If you would have told me a week ago that all of my web sites would crash because of an overload of traffic on my server, I would have thought that was some kind of a sick joke. But, as fate would have it, that’s precisely what happened right as I was debuting my annual “Encore Week” podcast episodes featuring the best of the best interview guests from 2010. Listeners were having to wait for hours to download these special shows featuring some big names and the loading times for the podcast, this blog and my forum were painfully slow (find out the scoop on what happened here). I knew January was always a big traffic month for me, but this took it to an entirely new level that I haven’t seen before in nearly six years of being online!
Of course, it’s a nice “problem” to have knowing that the growth of the “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb” web sites has reached the point that we needed to move to a larger server. My vision for the LLVLC brand was to expand it into as many places online so the positive message of healthy low-carb living could reach the maximum number of people possible. And thanks to the passion and devotion of so many of you who faithfully come here each day and tell everyone within earshot about my work, that’s exactly what is happening. So rather than bemoaning this little hiccup that has basically shut me down for the past week, I’m celebrating it as a milestone…a turning point…a reminder of the big picture. I’ll be honest with you, though, it’s been quite a stressful week for me trying to field all of the questions that have been coming in my e-mail box, Facebook and Twitter pages, and elsewhere about what is happening and we were actually offline for a few days late last week trying to resolve this issue. I had to step away from all of it while this was happening so I wouldn’t pull my hair out completely since I don’t do well when my normal routine is so abruptly altered like this.
But I’m breathing again and can’t wait to get back to blogging and sharing more podcasts with you in the coming months. Yes, we’re still trying to make sure the podcasts are showing up at iTunes (which they’re not fully fixed there yet and it’s really out of our control) and getting everything back to normal again. I apologize for the inconvenience of all of this over the past week and am grateful for all of the encouragement I’ve been receiving from so many understanding readers and listeners who have been e-mailing and leaving comments on my sites. Please know that I’m doing everything I can to make sure all of your favorite LLVLC sites are operating at full function again as quickly as possible. January is a BIG MONTH for blogs related to diet and health and there are so many new people checking us out for the first time to see if this low-carb thing is all that. We’re here to boldly say YES IT IS! That’s because we’re livin’ la vida low-carb baby!
I’ll be posting the rest of the “Encore Week” episodes early this coming up week at my blog for you to enjoy and we’re delaying my scheduled podcasts for this week until Thursday and Friday to allow you to catch up. I want to give a big shout-out to my podcast producer and web guy Kevin Kennedy-Spaien who basically hasn’t slept much for the past week attempting to deal with this very odd series of circumstances that impacted my sites. He has worked tirelessly to restore the podcast speed to where it needs to be and I am grateful for all of his expertise and leadership through this. He is the one who makes the magic happen technologically with my podcast and I’m so grateful to have him on my team. Without Kevin, there is no “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore.” I appreciate that man so much for everything he does.
While I’ve been away with this server issue, here’s some stuff that’s happened:
- Ramona Denton from “Lovin’ It Low Carb” is giving away a $1,000 scholarship in honor of her late sister Christina to attend The 4th Annual Low-Carb Cruise to Key West, Grand Caymans, and Jamaica coming May 1-6, 2011. Enter by sending Ramona an email at lovinitlowcarb@gmail.com telling her in 500 words or less why you want to go on the low-carb cruise and why you should get this scholarship. To be eligible, your email must have a timestamp BEFORE midnight January 31, 2011, Pacific Time. GOOD LUCK YOU GUYS! By the way, if you want to go on the cruise with us, then you need to sign up NO LATER THAN FEBRUARY 15, 2011. We’d LOVE to have you join us for an amazing time with all of your low-carb friends and special guests like Fred Hahn, Dr. Mary Vernon, Dana Carpender, Tom Naughton, Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt, Jackie Eberstein, and, of course, me and Christine! It’ll be an unforgettable experience!
- In case you’ve missed it, there’s a new low-carb podcast that debuted last Saturday for the first time–Dana’s Low Carb For Life! Yep, it’s Dana Carpender’s long-awaited radio show featuring the bestselling low-carb cookbook author and outspoken, opinionated, and never bashful Queen of Low-Carb Cooking! I’ve been begging her to get her own show and now it’s here. Listen to Episode 1 which includes a brief interview with me to kick off 2011 on the right foot. ENJOY!
- Duke University low-carb diet researcher and practitioner Dr. Eric Westman, who co-wrote the 2010 release The New Atkins For A New You was featured in a News Observer column last week called “Duke researcher says fat is your friend” that got picked up by several newspapers across the country. It highlighted his work using a high-fat, moderate protein, low-carb nutritional approach to treat his overweight and diabetic patients. CONGRATULATIONS Dr. Westman for sharing the truth about livin’ la vida low-carb. I LOVED this quote: “Diets that restrict fat, that’s a problem. Hunger is the main reason people go off a low-fat diet.” True dat!
- Speaking of books, I can’t really tell you a whole lot about an upcoming book that is coming out except to say that it features the biggest names in low-carb science to help teach medical professionals the ins and outs of why this way of eating should be shared with their patients. I have a chapter in the book that allows me to speak on behalf of patients about my experience on low-carb and my frustration with the generic low-fat, high-carb recommendations. That’s all I can say for now, but you’ll be hearing a LOT more about this when the book is set to release.
- If you’ve been wanting to pick up a copy of Gary Taubes new book Why We Get Fat And What To Do About It and haven’t done so yet, then you might want to head on over to CarbSmart.com this week to pick it up for HALF PRICE! That makes the book $12.49 through the end of the week which is cheaper than Amazon has it right now. I’ll be sharing a brand new interview with Gary Taubes talking about the reception he’s received to his book coming up in Episode 439 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show” on Thursday, January 27, 2011.
That’s about it for now, although I do have an inspiring video that I wanted to share for “Fun-Filled Friday” last week–but I missed the chance with my blog being down:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rPFvLUWkzs
WOW, you gotta love uplifting stories like this one about Ted Williams. This homeless man started receiving job offers by the hundreds after this video of him and his “golden voice” went viral on YouTube. He is now employed as an announcer for the NBA basketball team The Cleveland Cavaliers who will be paying his salary and fronted him a loan to buy a house. That is so cool! See, everybody deserves a chance and I’m so happy for Ted who seems earnest in his desire to get his life back on track again. Let that encourage you in your own life this week! SEE YA SOON!
