The Buhner.com Blog

Ok, I’ve gone all out and reupdated the blog page here. It looks a lot better, and it’s actually being published now. Eventually there’ll be some transition where this will be the main page for Buhner.com when you access the site. Articles are few and far between nowadays, but I’m pretty sure I can update this on a regular basis.

Stop laughing. I mean it this time.

The page will be found (although you’re probably already here) at blog.buhner.com. It’s a template that someone made, and it actually looks pretty good. Blogger has really improved their service from when I first got here. I guess there’s a lot more bloggers now.

I most likely get my “new” pickup tonight. I’ll go to the DMV tomorrow and go through the process of making it mine. It’s an ‘88 Dakota with a few dents here and there.

In other words, it’s perfect. Good for to and from work, and trips in the general Hamptons area. Not a family vehicle, but there’s nothing wrong with that. I have a family vehicle. By tomorrow, I’ll also have a vehicle to throw stuff in the back of to go to the dump.

The Cablevision monopoly ends at my home tomorrow as well. DirecTV will arrive between 1-5 and hook me up with a dish and three boxes. Costs when you factor out the $13 a month we were paying for TiVo and some other stuff are similar. Pretty much the only thing holding us to cable was our Internet service (which we’re keeping, for $5 more a month) and News 12. Well, Cole’s pretty much eliminated our watching of News 12, and as I mentioned before, the price difference between a digital cable customer and a schmuck who only wants the Internet for Optimum Online is only five bucks, which is a nice way to repay someone who drops a crapload of money on their service.

The final straw came the other day when Noggin (Cole’s favorite channel) went out again. We’ve already had Cablevision come out three times to fix our signal, and for a company that likes to trumpet how good and reliable their service is compared to the weather-dependant dish, they seem to be dropping the ball somewhere.

Plus - NFL Sunday Ticket. Figures that what projects to be the worst Dolphins season in recent memory I’ll be able to see EVERY GAME.

One of the things I love most about food and today’s society is the belief that certain food is always “good for you”, while others are generically “bad for you.” Beef is bad. Chicken is good. Fry is bad. Grill is good.

But, above all else, remember that a salad is the healthiest thing on earth. No matter what you put on a salad, it’s healthy. You could put gravy on the sumbitch, and you’re a gonna lose 20 pounds.

So I’m eating my McDonald’s salad, but mind you, I’m a little smarter regarding my eating habits. I know where fat and calories come from. I also know that I put grilled chicken on my salad because I need protein. Anyway, I’m eating my salad and the placemat has “nutritional information” on the reverse. I flip it over and read, and I’m entertained. First off, I don’t know why you’d advertise this info. It’s not like McDonalds really offers much in the way of “healthy food”. Anyway, I’m looking at the salads, and I’m making potential combos, and I come up with this one:

One Crispy Chicken California Cobb Salad, with ranch dressing.

600 Calories, 37 grams of fat.

For comparison, a double quarter pounder with cheese is 770 calories, and has 47 grams of fat. A #2 (a popular choice in the past - two cheeseburgers and a medium french fry) is 1010 calories and 45 grams of fat.

For those pointing the finger at me, my salad was 310 calories/14 grams of fat, and only because McDonalds doesn’t make their nutritional information regarding their salads readily available. McDonalds advertises three salads - the Cobb one, a Bacon Ranch salad, and a Caesar salad. Though not on most menus, there is also a “side salad” which is smaller, and consists of little other than greens. The three salads are also listed with either grilled or “crispy” chicken options (note the lack of the word “fried”, which is considered negative). No option is listed for a chickenless salad, nor is a price listed for one (and spending over $4 on a salad with no meat is silly).

In addition, there are no salad dressing choices listed, with a “default” dressing given with the salad when ordered unless you ask for something different. The Caesar comes with Caesar dressing, the Ranch comes with Ranch dressing, and the Cobb comes with a “Cobb” dressing, whatever that is. You have to inquire about other dressings, and if there is a nonfat one (which there isn’t). McDonalds only offers one dressing outside of the selected three for each salad - a lowfat balsamic vinaigrette (3 grams of fat), so unless you’re shooting for bringing your own dressing, you’re still hitting fat.

Upon further review, if you’re looking for something low-fat from McDonalds, go with the grilled chicken Caesar salad with the vinaigrette - 9 grams of fat and 240 calories without picking anything off - but just make sure not to throw on the croutons; that’s an extra 1.5 fat grams. The difference in the three salads comes down to cheese and bacon. The Caesar has only shredded parmesan, while the Cobb has bleu cheese and the Ranch cheddar. The Cobb and Ranch both contain bacon as well.

I could get into a total rant about McDonalds (and the whole “I’m dieting” belief), but I’ll save that for another day.