Lose weight, be rich

Everyone I know would love to lose weight, and everyone on the face of this planet also wants to be rich. Skinny and rich - its ideal isn't it? Its the reason why we pay p120 pesos (or 26 zloty) to watch Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie running around on the silver screen in Rockwell - we want to be just like them. Perhaps we don't want to adopt children from halfway around the world (like they did), but we work our assess off in the gym and do the same at work to try and chase this ideal.

I just found out from this post that these two things (losing weight and becoming rich) are very similar.

Everybody knows how to lose weight - all you have to do is exercise more and eat less. Getting rich is the same, everybody knows that to be rich, you have to spend less and earn more. Everybody knows this, its not rocket science.

Why then do people still go on South Beach diets? Or invest in stupid get rich schemes? Why are there still so many fat people riding the MRT eating chicharon, why do we still see people who try and hit the jackpot with Zagu-or-lechon-manok-type-copycat businesses? Don't they know that 95% of all diets fail, and that 9 out of 10 new businesses fail within the first 2 years? Why can't people just eat less, exercise more, spend less and earn more?

Alas, reality tells us that this is not as easy as it sounds.

I am the perfect example. Due to my recent "European" adventures, I just wiped out every centavo in my savings account - money I have been slowly putting aside for the past 4 years. In these past few months, I also gained 10 kilos (not pounds, kilos - thats 22 pounds!). My pants are getting really tight, and my wallet is getting really light. I am slowly becoming the fat, bald guy who doesn't have any money. Not exactly Brad Pitt material, I know.

I know how to lose weight, and I know what it takes to be rich - its just, well...difficult. In my case, I have identified several problems:

I like to eat, but I cannot cook. As a result, I spend a big chunk of my income on restaurants (and in case you are wondering - no, eating out is NOT a necessity). The main problem is that I am very picky when it comes to food - if I have a bad meal, I feel terrible all day (or night, depends on when I eat). Good food, on the other hand, makes me feel great! I guess its in my genes - I am Capampangan, in case you didn't know.

Since Polish food is not exactly at the height of culinary sophistication (except for their Kielbasa - which is very, very good), I am forced to spring for more expensive meals. I also generally don't like fast food (except for Jollibee Chickenjoy - I love this, but it is obviously not available in Poland), vegetables, and fruits - which makes things worse. I can save a lot of money (and lose a lot of weight) if I cooked, but I just can't cook. I know, I know - if you know how to read, you know how to cook (try Googling "5 minute meals") - I guess I am just too lazy. Being a picky eater and a terrible cook is a bad (and expensive) combination. If you still don't believe me, read this post from my favorite personal finance blog.

I also spend a lot of money on stupid things - like beer. I absolutely love beer. The problem is that in Europe, beer is very expensive. The calories from beer also go straight to your gut. I am trying very hard to limit this expense - however it seems that the world is not cooperating with me. For example, today during dinner (at a restaurant, of course), I ordered one beer with my meal. The waitress gave me 2 beers. When I asked why she was giving me 2, she said that the 2nd one was free. Alright - free beer! Hehehe...

I also do not exercise at all here in Warsaw (walking to the office pantry to get a sandwich in the morning is NOT exercise) and I am not exactly earning a boatload of money (boss - if you're reading this, please take note). I guess I am a hopeless case - destined to be fat and poor.

Hopeless, that is, until I learn how to cook.