Back at Long Last

This all started in 2012 as a way to explore interests and keep a record of some projects, but shortly thereafter life changed directions. The time commitment was more than I could spare, I lost focus then completely forgot it existed. I maintained some of the data tracking that began with this site, the Nerdist Way Character Tome, Nutrition/Water Intake/Sleep sheets, but did not post and let things slide.









That being said, I will be posting quite a bit more, but formatting and polish may not be consistent. The main part of putting out unfinished posts is to have the information available and searchable for personal Nutritional Tracking.


Intro
Changes
Why back









Plans
Tools

cost benefit analysis

Ahhh how much life has changed in the last 6 years! New family members, major life events, impactful diagnoses; all the milestones of passage into middle age adulthood. With nostalgia I look back on the short, recorded here that is, stint with various projects and how these helped prepare me for the challenges ahead.

The frustration with comparative measurements (1 scoop of Protein Powder equals how many Tablespoons?), accomplishment in creating recipes that combine ingredients for measuring exact-ish nutritional information (unposted Protein Shake nutritional information) and tracking daily nutrition, fitness and habits (see below) all proved to be valuable lessons. These things I did for fun and fulfillment prepared me for life in 2018! All of these challenges have been assets.

With that in mind I have resurrected this play space to remain engaged and have an online resource for recording my recipes, projects and investigations. Chief among them is fulfilling the statements made in earlier posts:

Protein Shake:

- The measurements used and the nutritional contents (Talk about figuring out a "scoop"; record brands and nutrition)

- More data, recipes and pictures (Chocolate Peanut Butter, Raspberry Cream)

Men's Body Wash:

- pros and cons of this project and look at some variations to the recipe (Summation of data tracking, pros/cons, small batch variations)

-- This is all from memory based on a six year old event, please bear in mind that the actual results may vary.

I began recording 3 test cases to compare the use of the body wash from this recipe vs. commercial body wash vs. a bar of Castile Soap. I recorded each time the soap was used during daily showers and after workout showers then compared the effectiveness and feeling of cleanliness of the soap. After recording the number of uses per recipe/purchased body wash/bar of Castile Soap I then detailed the cost of each option. The Men's Body Wash recipe included a time-cost which I factored into the final calculation. After all was compiled, the costs were divided by the number of uses to establish the Cost per use.

Daily Use Recording:

The Men's Body Wash recipe was employed first, but as the weeks wore on and the biological components of the soap began to separate and turn rancid the soap became unusable. As the smell and feel of the soap deteriated, I felt the cleanliness was not consistent with my needs; I discarded the lot. Based on the usage recorded, it was slated to last for about 3 months at the current rate. Each shower required several reloads of the wash cloth or loofa and expended the product quickly.

The Commercial Body Wash was next up and fared well. It lasted 2 months and remained effective across all standards through the final use. A small amount was needed during each shower without need to reload the wash cloth or loofa.

The Castile Soap Bar lasted about 1.5 months and worked quite well, but was the scent and cleaning factors declined slightly as the bar dwindled to a soap chip. Like the Men's Body Wash Recipe, the soap bar required a reload of the wash cloth or loofa to remain effecting.

January 1, 2012 $9.04 (https://www.lni.wa.gov/WorkplaceRights/Wages/Minimum/History/default.asp)

Unfortunately, I no longer have the critical data based on the tracking, but I do remember the results from comparing the Cost per use and effectiveness!

1) Castile Soap Bar - Slightly edged out the Commercial Body Wash with a lower cost per use and the drop scent/cleanliness was negligible. The time spent reloading the wash cloth or loofa added a little extra time to the shower but was not drastic by any means.

2) Commercial Body Wash -

3) Men's Body Wash Recipe - Despite the lower projected Cost per use, it ended up being the highest on the list. Add in the time cost in creating the body wash and the spoilage of the body wash, the results were a letdown. On top of the purely economic aspects, the cleaning power and scent faded far too quickly to remain effective.

Disclaimer:

All the nutritional information presented has not been verified in a lab, but rather through my own measurements based off package supplied data or recording from cited sources.

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