Walking thoughts on a nice day

Yes, it seems to be that extremely rare occurrance here, a nice day. Mid 60's at noon with a small breeze. And the second one in a row - I guess I had better enjoy these few days of actual spring.

Taking a walk at lunch, and going to get my butt kicked at water aerobics again tonight (it must be a good workout if you are sweating while in the pool).

I was down 3 lbs yesterday, but back up this morning. I so hate the variable nature of the human body. But I have managed to hit the gym 15 of the last 16 days, so that is good.

Ok, enough looking at my phone, time to enjoy the sunshine for once.

Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it

I think it is harder being fat in the summer, because you are always just a big ball of sweat. Of course it isn't actually summer yet, just hitting over 90 outside with the humidity making it feel like 98, and still going up. Of course the air conditioning in my van is still broken, so it makes for a nice, toasty evening commute home.

They can't seem to get the AC balanced at the office either - my office is a bit too warm, however I did find that the vent was partially covered (from back two years ago when it used to get way too cold - go figure). Maybe it will get better now.

At least the boss went out and bought ice cream for everybody - a nice, fattening, break.

Weight - again

Fat. I'm fat. I have to admit that first before I can do anything about it, and I am trying to do something about it.

This feels like deja vu a bit, or another glitch in the matrix. Oh yeah, maybe because I was here before : http://puggimer.blogspot.com/2006/09/weight.html

What is worse is that this time I'm not only fat, but also a failure. Why - because at one time I wasn't fat : http://puggimer.blogspot.com/2007/10/he-shoots-he-scores.html . I hit my weight and BMI goals, and finished maintenance on Weight Watchers to achieve lifetime status.

So what happened? I said I was going to keep it off, and obviously did not.

Part of it was support. At my goal weight I didn't really have any. In fact I had a lot of negative feedback about it - people saying that I actually looked sick and gaunt. I had some people asking Diane if I had cancer. Nice way to be encouraged.

I also was so tired of watching everything that went into my mouth and counting points.

I let it slip, but when it started to slip I paid attention, and got started back with weight watchers at work. Lost a couple of pounds there, back towards where I wanted to be. I admitted that I didn't need to be at the perfect weight (and my doctor even says that the BMI range may not fit me right - he is thinking around 200 and I agree).

But I was starting to watch it again, and then lost my job. That was good in a way, because for at least the first few weeks I was so depressed I wasn't eating :-). Unfortunately that couldn't last, and I got a job, but it was in Detroit, so I was eating out Sunday night through Friday night. Plus a lot of beer at the hotel bar for the first half of the contract (until I moved to a cheaper hotel). I tried to work out a bit after work each night, and was doing ok.

Then I got this job. A great job. But no workout facility (yes, that spoiled me). And I was tired of making my lunch - that gets boring having the same stuff after a few years, even if you know exactly the points for it. Then it just went. Since I started here I've put on almost as much as I lost before - such that I am bigger than I was before I started last time five years ago.

So I'm fat and a failure. But once more I am trying again, and I figure one way to help was I held myself accountable here, and will do it again.

I weigh 275. I need to get down to at least 200, but probably not to 169 again. Diane and I have joined LA Fitness to work out - they have one near her work and near mine, so I am starting to go work out at lunch again. Not quite as convenient as being in the building, but still only a few minutes away.

We started on Saturday, and I did strength training (i.e. weights) again for the first time in over three years on Monday. And that means, of course, that I hurt. I hurt all over, but especially in my abs, my thighs, my upper arms and across my chest. And it will be time to do it (weights) again tomorrow. oh boy.

I don't know if I will do weight watchers again or not, though it could work to work out after work on Wednesdays then head to a meeting again - that always felt like I was working the system and not being quite honest (though you can't work the system for 70+ lbs, can you?)

However going back to my old meeting makes me feel like an even bigger failure. Probably time to just man up and it - the accountability helps even if the support doesn't feel like it sometimes.

Influences, pt 1

Today marks 21 years since Jim Henson died. I couldn't help but think, while I took my walk at lunch, about him and how, while I never knew him, how much he influenced me growing up. So since I don't have anything to complain about at work, I thought I would take a bit and just go over some of the influences in my life.

It is interesting to me how there are people who are extremely significant to the process of becoming who it is that you are, yet you have never met them. Through their work they influence you in so many ways, and yet as important as they are to you, they could never be called friends.

Jim Henson - well he got this post started, so I'll start with him. The muppets were just always there growing up, first on Sesame Street, then with The muppet show - I looked forward to it every week. Then to see him go beyond learning and comedy with Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. It was like a part of my childhood died with him.

Mel Blanc - the voice of Bugs Bunny and so many other Looney Tunes characters. Even though he may not have been the guiding force behind the humor and irreverence of the old Warner brothers cartoons, he was their voice and their soul.

Alan Parsons - along with Eric Woolfsons created the Alan Parsons Project - and since discovering his music back in 1980 with "Time" off the album "Games People Play" his music was a major factor in keeping me sane through high school and college. I can't remember how many times I would come home after a stressful day, put on one of their tapes and lay back with my headphones and let the melodies and lyrics just float me away from my troubles.

Douglas R Hofstadter - I don't read much any more, but back in high school and college I read everything I could find. One of my college professors recommended I read "Godel, Escher, Bach" for a project I was working on, and I had to special order it because in my small hometown no one carried it (we had no chain bookstores). I came in over spring break, and my life was never the same. While I have read several books more than once, I have read this one at least six or seven times, each time gaining more and more from it. From the way music, math and art are tied together to the pure exploration of thought and what it means to think, this book has inspired so much of who I am now. Not light reading by any means, I still find myself picking it up again every few years, if for nothing else than to marvel at the dialogs.

Isaac Asimov - I must have been only in Junior High, if that old, when a colleague of father's lent me a copy of "I Robot". It grabbed me like no book before - the stories of robots and other planets - I had never read anything like it. It was the first science fiction I ever read, and opened me up to so much joy since then.

Stephen R Donaldson - The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant were such massive work, building a fantasy world that still today, after over thirty years is unlike any other I have ever found, so rich, vibrant. The anti-hero Thomas Covenant was one of the first characters in a book that made me want to reach into the pages. When I discovered that he was writing four new books a few years ago I was elated - and I eagerly await the final installment.

JRR Tolkien - It took me three tries to get through The Fellowship of the Ring - and now I've read it several times. Finally seeing The Lord of the Rings on the big screen a few years ago brought back so much of my childhood joy in getting lost in another world.

Brian W. Kernighan, Dennis M. Ritchie and Rob Pike - Not just for 'C' - for which I owe them the first half of my career, but also for their excellent writing on Unix, and programming in general. I still refer to "The Practice of Programming" as a text on how to write code correctly, regardless of what language you are writing in.

These are just some of the stronger influences, but some of the people who helped to shape me into the man I am today, for which I will always be grateful.

Zombie Awareness Month

To prepare for Zombie Awareness Month and subsequently the Zombie Apocalypse, it's important to have these items at arms length:   1) A cricket bat. The reason: you know you're gonna run out of bullets.  Also, an actual gun is completely different from a PS3 controller used for Black Ops.   2) An MP3 player full of Queen music. "Don't Stop Me Now" has to be one of the songs!   3) A box of twinkies. They stay preserved forever  4) An assortment of plants that have various fighting abilities (Plants vs Zombies...we figured that not everyone would get this).   Other tips:  1) Get Bill Murray. No look alikes will count.   2) Avoid anyone with the T-virus   3) Destroy the staircase. Zombie's can't climb!!   The most important thing of all is to ALWAYS BE AWARE OF THE LOCATION OF YOUR ZOMBIE!!

ALERTS TO THREATS IN 2011 EUROPE : BY JOHN CLEESE

(To give credit where due, this was sent to me by my wife, but I had to share).

ALERTS TO THREATS IN 2011 EUROPE : BY JOHN CLEESE

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent events in Libya and have therefore raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved." Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588, when threatened by the Spanish Armada.

The Scots have raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's get the Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years.

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in France are "Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France 's white flag factory, effectively paralyzing the country's military capability.

Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain: "Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides."

The Germans have increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbor" and "Lose."

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels .

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy.

Australia , meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to "She'll be all right, Mate." Two more escalation levels remain: "Crikey! I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend!" and "The barbie is canceled." So far no situation has ever warranted use of the final escalation level.

-- John Cleese--

Only a few days early

With spring officially only a few more days away, it seems to finally be acting like it. So time to exchange sweaters for alergies. But at least it is pleasant enough to resume walking at lunch, so time to think and actually update my blog.

Not that I can actually think of anything to write today.

This month can't end soon enough

Just a few more hours, and then this stupid February will be over and done with for good. I have to say it has been a pretty miserable month.

I'm afraid that as much as I tried to not let it, my SAD has most likely cropped up yet again. Of course by the time I realize and/or admit that it is back, it is too late to do much about it because it will naturally be going away before any meds can affect it. I've noticed it the most the past couple of weeks, and feel a bit frustrated about it.

I'm sick of winter, the snow, the cold, the ice, and the dark. And being grey and wet outside isn't really any better. Slipping on the icy steps last week as I was warning my son that they were slick and falling on my ass doesn't do much to help my mood either.

I need to get out and at least walk some - as well as actually start a new, real exercise program and diet. I haven't gotten it turned on in my head just yet, but it is a lot closer, and I'm getting to the point that I simply can't stand to be in my own body anymore - huffing and wheezing over every flight of stairs and straining just to bend down, tie my shoes or pick up something off the floor.

While the operation in December eliminated the numbness and burning in my hand, it is still sore and that frustrates me, and the scar is right where I rest my hand when I use the computer mouse, and that is uncomfortable.

So just venting a little, before crawling back in my cave as I wait for this damnable winter to end for good.

Cincy Beer Festival

So I thought I would write up a bit of a review of the Cincinnati Beer Fest that we attended tonight. Understand, I'm not beer expert nor professional reviewer, just a person who likes craft beer and brews a few of my own. I have very little to compare it against (all of one other event, the Miami Valley BeerFest last October).

Promotions before hand were good. While we don't get the Cincinnati Citybeat paper up here in Dayton, I was able to find it on the web ahead of time, and it was a nice supplement. I bought the VIP tickets before Christmas when they were on sale, and were a good deal ($30 for VIP tickets).

It was easy to find, and parking was adequate in a lot across the street for $10 (event price).

We enter the convention center, and the organization seems a bit weak. There are no signs at all for Designated Driver tickets (which were not available beforehand, which makes sense to me).

There were enough people showing up early on Saturday that they actually opened for VIP tickets just after 6 instead of 6:30. However Diane had to walk all the way back to the front of the convention center to stand in other lines to pay her $10 as a DD - for which she got admission and two free bottles of water. I much, much preferred the MVBF where the DD simply paid as they entered, and got a coupon for a glass as they left. DD's here got no glass, and pretty much nothing for their $10. Sorry, saying they got admission into a beer tasting event where they would not be tasting beer was not worth the $10.

The hall had vendors all around the outside and in the middle, and then a few tables all the way in the back. I immediately noticed there was no list of vendors or beers. It took me quite some time to find copies of the newspaper insert, and while a great promotional tool, it was not updated to reflect the actual vendors and beers. Several beers in the listing were not there, and others that were were not in the listing. Some simply had "to be announced", which was even more frustrating. We found several other people also looking for a guide.

The food seemed ok, if a little overpriced. For an event like this, I think the best is to have little, easy finger type food available. I thought that the MVBF with the 3/$1 eggrolls from Thai/9 and the $1 ribs were great (though Chappy's booth there was fairly poor - serving a $6 pulled pork sandwich that was half the size it should have been for the price). Montgomery Inn's pulled pork sandwich was good, their chips w/ warm BBQ sauce were great, and the big soft pretzels (with warm butter on them) were really good. The hamburgers were making me drool every time I walked by, though they still seemed to be regular concessions burgers - but it could have been the beer making me hungry.

For the first couple hours it was really great - you could walk up and get your samples, and there was enough seating. Then the general admission let in, and a fun event went to a huge, crowded madhouse. The floor was simply packed with people - you could barely move. People would get a sample, and because it was so crowded were unable to move from the front of the table to let others in, so you felt like you were always fighting through crowds and pushing in front of others to get a sample.

Some of them did have actual lines - though it was very difficult to tell where the line was as compared to the heaving mass of bodies in the main area just milling around and talking. Back at our table (which we wanted because Diane, despite the new knee, still can't stand around for 4-5 hours) - it was a near fight to keep our chairs, as there simple weren't enough for this huge mass of humanity.

I started getting very frustrated. I would fight my way through the heaving throng, only to get to a booth that did no have the beer that I wanted to try because the newspaper supplement was out of date, only to have to turn around and fight my way back to our table. What started out very enjoyable was becoming less and less so.

We met some fun people and had some good conversations over some excellent beer samples. I liked that there were also some other vendors and organizations there aside from the beer vendors - I want to follow up with both the American Homebrew Association and BeerArmy.com.

However, in the end we left about an hour before it closed. I was getting more and more frustrated trying to find samples I wanted, and the gradual smell of where some one had vomited began to fill the area we were sitting in, so I knew it was time to go.

Overall I was not happy. While this is a bigger venue than in the past, it seems that instead of making it better and spreading it out, they just added more and more people. For the crowd that was there, I felt they should have opened the adjoining exhibit hall as well. The lack of seating was frustrating, both for us and all the people we saw later needing seats simple to be able to eat a sandwich. We had a much better time at MVBF - simply because it was less crowded and had adequate seating. At this point while we really look forward to both AleFest and MV BeerFest this year, we are not so excited about heading back to Cincy BeerFest in 2012.

I do not support Heart Disease or Breast Cancer!

Not wearing red today. I've heard that today is wear red to support heart disease in women. Personally I think this is a bad thing, so I am not wearing red as an act against Heart Disease in Women. It is a bad thing and should not be supported, instead we should support the women against heart disease.

Just like all those pink ribbons supporting breast cancer. We should be protesting against such an awful disease not supporting it!

How about we set up a day to actually support the people who have diseases, and those working for the cure, instead of supporting the diseases?

Or even better, how about a day to support the proper use of English to express what it is we mean! What a concept! And then maybe instead of making a facebook update about it, or wearing a ribbon or shirt, you could actually go out and volunteer and really help someone, or donate to a cause. And while I'm a big, big fan of Boobie Wednesday (because I enjoy pictures of women's breast just as much as the next heterosexual man), does changing your avatar for a day or posting a facebook status really do anything?

We need a lot less people saying they support something, and a lot more of people actually doing the support of a cause, whatever cause it may be.