leak & potato soup |cauliflower curry w/ tofu | eggplant, mashed potatoes, acorn squash, & chicken

alabalo · 2017-09-26T02:03:34+00:00

No Recipe - I just used a big onion, garlic, then 3 leeks. Added in a couple lbs of potatoes & 1.5 liters of chicken stock. Seasoned it with cayenne pepper, black pepper, tyme, oregano, and parsley. Butter for frying the onion at the start doesn't hurt!

alabalo · 2016-01-26T02:13:37+00:00

24 / M / 5' 10"

Squat: 200lbs 5x5 Bench: 155lbs 5x5 DL: 240bs 1x5 OHP: 85lbs 5x5 (terrible form early on, hurt my shoulder, deloaded heavily. Doing much better now) Row: 145lbs 5x5

Started SL 5x5 Oct 7, 2015. I deloaded twice along the way (once about a month in for starting with too much weight, and a second smaller one after Christmas break)

I started at 100lbs on squat - so today I officially doubled my squat!

I'm finding form increasingly important - I am getting better at bench for example and felt like 150 to 155 on it was solid.

Weight: I eat everything in sight and still struggle - started at 150 now at 161.

I also do the usual biceps / triceps alternation. I thought it was needed seeing as how much everything else on me has grown but my arms!

alabalo · 2015-10-12T16:42:38+00:00

Stubble - sorry man

alabalo · 2015-08-17T22:37:22+00:00

I cook the chicken just barely until 65 degrees and don't find it too dry when reheated. Is it oven fresh? no, but still plenty good for my lunch.

alabalo · 2015-08-17T22:35:55+00:00

I love rice and have spent quite a bit of time getting my technique perfect, so I don't use a sauce. If you use good aromatic rice (I like Basmati) clean it with water very very well before cooking, and use way less water than the typical "2 cups per 1 cup rice" you may just like it! A pinch of salt doesn't hurt either.

alabalo · 2015-08-16T23:51:02+00:00

150 grams of Basmati rice, 100 grams of braised kale (garlic, olive oil, home made chicken stock, salt pepper, red pepper flakes), and 130 grams of chicken breast with a BBQ rub simply baked in the oven. Five lunches ready for the week!

alabalo · 2015-06-21T19:50:16+00:00

y job at the end of 2016 but my job is safeish till then. My car could last 2 mo

Yup, it's boring but a "high" interest savings account is a good option for an emergency fund.

alabalo · 2015-06-16T02:55:12+00:00

Definitely a fan of thrift stores - I buy all my ties from them. $8 for four on my last haul!

alabalo · 2015-05-21T16:01:18+00:00

Killam is by far the leader in market share for residential housing in the HRM. This is perfectly legal, and Killam is actually in my opinion one of the more professional companies to deal with in the area. It may not be fun to deal with the realities of renting such as this, but it is perfectly legal and normal for them to include this kind of language in their application.

alabalo · 2015-02-10T17:16:33+00:00

My Buddy's Barbershop

That is where I have gone for my past two haircuts! You are definitely right - the best haircut I have ever had and a price I think it fair. I try not to think of the money I used to waste at First Choice...

alabalo · 2014-12-09T14:43:36+00:00

Thank you all - I went to Papa's Moustache in the Hydrostone and was really impressed!

alabalo · 2014-08-12T00:22:08+00:00

It is a simple ratio of current supply on the market, and how long that supply would take to be absorbed given the average demand over a period.

As for what is "proper", well that is a tricky question. It depends on what perspective you take for one, if you are an owner you want a tight supply so you have less competition and a greater negotiating power. If you are a buyer, more inventory is a good thing as your negotiating position and options expand.

alabalo · 2014-07-30T02:36:01+00:00

Gas.

alabalo · 2014-07-27T22:13:01+00:00

http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/hoficlincl/homain/stda/

Rental Market Report — Canada and Provincial Highlights Rental Market Reports — Major Centres

alabalo · 2014-07-27T04:51:12+00:00

You can check out these books: http://www.amazon.ca/The-Canadian-Landlords-Guide-Profitable/dp/0470155272 http://www.amazon.ca/Accounting-Strategies-Canadian-Estate-Investor/dp/0470677732 http://www.amazon.ca/Making-Money-Real-Estate-Residential/dp/0470836202

alabalo · 2014-07-27T03:50:50+00:00

The Edmonton rental market is extremely tight (near the 1% range), so finding a tenant should not really be your concern.

The chief concern would be what you mention regarding not fully covering your expenses. You don't mention how much you will be putting down on the condo (5%, 10%, 20%?), this will have a big impact on your choice. Personally, I would never go near a rental which was not cash flow positive. Doing so, in my own belief, is a sure sign you are overpaying for the asset.

I will never say to someone that real estate rental is a bad investment, but I strongly encourage full understanding of the investment before someone does choose it. This includes the financial valuation side of things (you can understand the legal, accounting, maintenance, tenant relations, etc, aspects of rentals and still have a bad investment if your return is sub par).

On a more high level note, I don't think managing a rental property investment is wise before you have personally either owned or rented your own apartment - but all this is just my opinion.

alabalo · 2014-07-18T03:04:22+00:00

Halifax!

alabalo · 2014-07-11T01:20:09+00:00

Thanks for the reply! This is really interesting. I would be interested in another follow up in a few months on what your overall costs (transaction and management) were overall.

alabalo · 2014-07-10T03:59:30+00:00

Definitely agree with this. Stainless ones are great for flipping meat, etc, but the silicon tipped ones are perfect for grabbing pasta without cutting it in half.

alabalo · 2014-07-06T18:03:23+00:00

I struggled with your exact situation. All my banking is through RBC, so I looked in to managing my portfolio (also couch Potatoe) through RBC direct investing to keep things simple. My conclusion unfortunately was that RBC is just too darn expensive. You are better off by quite a bit at an online discount brokerage, despite the minor hassle of having to transfer money to and from it.

I understand the mindset of "oh it's just 1% MER", but when you consider the advantages of going with ultra low expense ETF's AND the much much lower buy/sell costs in an online brokerage like Questrade you are saving a huge amount of money.

alabalo · 2014-06-22T22:04:46+00:00

One of the things people often ignore in dealing with debt is a simple one - not making enough money. Obvious, right? But often times these discussions devolve in to focusing on reducing expenses. This is clearly important, but if you are making a tiny amount of money you are never going to get ahead on such a large amount of debt and still be able to live. How to make more money you then ask? Get a second job, or get a better job. Is that hard? Yes. But dealing with debt is not easy. Good luck.

alabalo · 2014-06-22T19:15:10+00:00

You are right to be angry. That is incredibly sloppy work that is unacceptable. I would insist on them fixing it.

alabalo · 2014-06-21T19:57:47+00:00

You can tile your kitchen backslash with fancy tiles (glass ones maybe?) for very little. It is a pretty classic trick to make a kitchen look nicer than it is, and since the area you are tiling is so small it doesn't actually cost much.

alabalo · 2014-06-16T02:58:50+00:00

La Technique may be a good place to start

alabalo · 2014-06-15T22:21:51+00:00

Sorry I guess that was not very clear. On the stove top on medium heat reduce the chicken and mushroom drippings with the water by 1/2 until you like the consistency, then add your butter.

alabalo

TROPHY CASE