http://www.ubervice.net the best tips and advice for a simpler, more efficient, more abundant life Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:06:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/13/growing-up/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/13/growing-up/#comments Mon, 14 Dec 2009 01:44:22 +0000 bridgetstrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2855 In case you haven’t heard yet, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. This past weekend though, I’ve started feeling nostalgic about life. I keep looking back on where I’ve been, and wondering where in the world I’m headed. I can’t seem to shake the feeling that I’m missing the boat somewhere. As I wade through my thoughts, one thing has become unpleasantly clear. I’m growing up, and I hate it. Read more>>]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/13/growing-up/feed/ 1 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/10/winter/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/10/winter/#comments Fri, 11 Dec 2009 02:39:33 +0000 petestrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2846 To me winter means three months without sunlight. Three months of driveway shoveling. Three months of double-long commutes. Three months of wondering whether this will be the day I drive into a ditch for the third time (What? You haven’t done that before?). Three months of bulky winter coats. Three months of salt marks on my shoes. Three months of our dog Monty dragging me like a dogsled through the snow on walks. Three months without my bike or my running shoes. Three months of chapped lips. Three months of depression. In short, I’m not a big fan of winter. Read More>>]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/10/winter/feed/ 3 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/06/cookie-commotion/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/06/cookie-commotion/#comments Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:53:05 +0000 bridgetstrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2840 Each year around Christmas time I set some pretty lofty goals for myself that involve Christmas cards arriving in people’s homes by the third week of December, having all my gifts purchased and wrapped before Thanksgiving, and decorating the house from top to bottom on Black Friday – after I’ve spent the morning bargain hunting for the cheapest prices of the season of course. Here I sit at the end of the first weekend in December and I’ve not purchased the cards yet or even attempted to search through the attic for our Christmas decorations. Read more>>]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/12/06/cookie-commotion/feed/ 1 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/30/the-family-that-sweats-together-stays-together/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/30/the-family-that-sweats-together-stays-together/#comments Mon, 30 Nov 2009 04:29:59 +0000 bridgetstrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2829 More than a few weeks ago I wrote an article about being stuck in bad eating habits. Since we’re all still a little hung over from our Thanksgiving indulgences I figured today would be as good as any to give an update on my self proclaimed “stuck-ness.” I should preface this article by saying that I just downed a 44-ounce cup of Mountain Dew and an entire theatre size box of Tropical Typhoon flavored Mike an Ikes. Surprisingly enough, though, this could shape up to be a pretty positive report. Read more>> ]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/30/the-family-that-sweats-together-stays-together/feed/ 0 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/26/a-note-from-thanksgiving/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/26/a-note-from-thanksgiving/#comments Thu, 26 Nov 2009 16:00:23 +0000 petestrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2818 Hi, I’m Thanksgiving and today is my day. I don’t usually get a lot of publicity outside of today, and that’s usually the way I like it, but there are some things going on with the other holidays that I don’t really appreciate. It’s time for me to step up and be recognized for what I am: the best holiday on the calendar. It didn’t used to be this way; there was a time when I was clearly no better than 3rd or 4th on the list, but times have changed. Read More>>]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/26/a-note-from-thanksgiving/feed/ 0 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/19/adventures-in-awful-csi-miami/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/19/adventures-in-awful-csi-miami/#comments Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:13:27 +0000 petestrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2804 I am so excited about this week’s Adventure in Awful. CSI Miami holds a special place in my heart. It is one of the most poorly written and acted shows on television, and I can’t get enough of it. It is half drama, half unintentional comedy. It’s kind of like eating Kraft Macaroni and Cheese: you know it’s not high quality, but man is it enjoyable. Most of the plots have more holes than the Bills’ defense (ah, making fun makes the losing hurt less). If the methods they use to catch killers were actually possible, there would be no crime in our world. On a weekly basis, they perform an impossible miracle of science. Read More>> ]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/19/adventures-in-awful-csi-miami/feed/ 2 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/15/get-outta-town/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/15/get-outta-town/#comments Mon, 16 Nov 2009 03:32:59 +0000 bridgetstrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2793 For the four years Pete and I have been married, we’ve made it a habit to go away for a night every three months or so. You might be wondering how we can afford weekly date nights and nights away every three months. This type of behavior doesn’t fit in to our normal spending behaviors. For a couple who slept on a ten year old mattress for the first four years of marriage, counts every dollar each month in a strict budget, and lives in a $60,000 home, you wouldn’t think we’d live extravagantly enough to sleep in a hotel every three months. The truth of the matter is, though, we can’t afford not to do these things. Read more>>]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/15/get-outta-town/feed/ 0 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/12/adventures-in-awful-ditching-people-for-tools/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/12/adventures-in-awful-ditching-people-for-tools/#comments Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:00:02 +0000 petestrub http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2775 I ditched you last Thursday. But you shouldn’t feel bad: you’re not alone. I ditched my friends on a cider-making date; I ditched friends on our football watching the following day; I ditched friends going to the movies. I ditched church; I ditched my diet (not that I normally eat well, but I survived the last 2 weeks on a straight Mountain Dew diet); I ditched things that I’d rather not report publicly; and I even ditched Bridget (but not in the “I’m leaving you” way, just in the “I’m not spending quality time with you” way). Read more>>]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/12/adventures-in-awful-ditching-people-for-tools/feed/ 0 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/07/christmas-is-not-your-birthday/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/07/christmas-is-not-your-birthday/#comments Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:33:05 +0000 Aaron http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2748 Last year while at a conference at Ginghamsburg UMC in Ohio, I was introduced to the concept of Christmas is not your birthday. Instantly I fell in love and lead our congregation through the process of celebrating Jesus' birthday. Since I have already seen commercials and other advertisements for this year, I thought it was time to get moving. What if we reduced the consumer within us all, while at the same time made it possible for others to simply live? "read more >>"]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/11/07/christmas-is-not-your-birthday/feed/ 0 http://www.ubervice.net/2009/10/31/domestication-of-imagination/ http://www.ubervice.net/2009/10/31/domestication-of-imagination/#comments Sat, 31 Oct 2009 12:50:47 +0000 Aaron http://www.ubervice.net/?p=2722 I did not grow up in a Disney home. We lived in the land before cable TV, and only had the stations the old antenna could draw in. This meant most of our entertainment was outside, through the woods, fields and creeks surrounding our home. Hours were spent letting our imagination take us to places and situations far from where we were. A great number of war battles were waged, great explorations of unknown lands, even the occasional African safari. For the most part when we are young our imaginations run wild. A tragedy happens as many of us age, we put away imagination exchanging it for "the real life". The end result is one of our greatest assets becomes domesticated. read more>>]]> http://www.ubervice.net/2009/10/31/domestication-of-imagination/feed/ 0