OK, so I have been a monument to inefficiency and laziness for the past week. It has been Spring Break, and in the grand tradition of people everywhere, I sat on my butt the whole week and did nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada. Squat.
Well, I take that back. I went all through Guitar Hero II and III and got five-star ratings on every song (on easy and medium; a rock goddess I am most certainly NOT). And I watched such wonderfully mind-expanding movies as Clue and Ratatouille. And I was not entirely sedentary. I did have my hand weights and exercise ball at home, so I did actually work out at least once a day each day, lifting arms, doing squats and lunges, and doing crunches (after I would play a song on Guitar Hero, I required myself to do a set of something before I could return to the game). And I did manage to behave myself on the eating, for the most part (darned Cadbury eggs). So I did not end Spring Break on a horrible weight gain.
However, neither did I end the week on a significant loss. (Nor did I grade any of the papers I should have graded over the week.) I have successfully established that minor physical activity coupled with somewhat moderate eating is not enough for me to drop poundage. *insert shocked look here*
So, I'm trying something new for the next few weeks, hopefully for the entire month of April if it looks like it might have some success.
First of all, since I've done poorly over the months dragging my butt out of bed at 4:00 a.m. to make the long drive to the gym, I'm going to try sleeping in a whole half hour (4:30 instead of 4:00) and running through the neighborhood for at least 30 minutes each morning, then coming home to do crunches on my exercise ball before showering and heading to work. I'm hoping that the extra half hour, coupled with less frantic ablutions after my workout (usually I have to pack up all my toiletries and several outfits to take with me before I leave for the gym, as well as cram breakfast down my throat), might make my morning ritual more of a, well, actual ritual as opposed to something I do once or twice each week.
Now, I started small this morning. Very small. I am not much of a runner under the best and fittest of circumstances (I'd pretty much rather have smoldering bamboo slivers shoved under my nails), and I haven't kept my cardio up very well recently. I walked for five minutes to warm up, then ran for a minute. I repeated that until my 30 minutes were up. My goal is to gradually increase the length of time I can stand to run (those one-minute intervals seemed very long to me!) while decreasing the time I walk in between, until I can run for a full half hour without stopping. Then I can increase the time I run from them (which may mean I will need to start getting up earlier again).
This also may be helpful to me in the long run (ha ha, see what I did there?) when it comes to weight loss. Running is a much more high-impact sport than most of the other cardio I've done, and it seems that the higher impact cardio is more efficient for weight loss.
I will still go to the gym in the afternoons after school, for weightlifting and more cardio. I think weights will also help: more muscle mass=more stuff to burn calories with.
The next thing I'm trying, along with the whole running thing, is food-related. Dinner seems to be the meal of the day that has the biggest impact on my weight. Meals such as burritos and pizza are absolutely devastating to my weight, but it seems to affect my weight more when I eat those things for dinner instead of lunch. I've seen as much as a three-pound swing in my weight due to those foods eaten at dinnertime. Obviously moderation in my portions is a big part of successful weight loss, but along with my attempts at that, I am going to stop eating meals after 5:00 p.m. for a few weeks. In the afternoons I will instead start eating something small (or perhaps drinking a Slim Fast shake) as I leave work (which can be anywhere from 3:45-4:45) to give the energy to survive a gym workout. Then when I get home I will maybe have a small yogurt or a cheese stick, something small and <100 calories. I'm hoping that will be enough to keep my metabolism up in the evenings without my wanting to gnaw on my ankles from hunger.
Now, I know that not eating in the evenings is going to make me hungry. I will need some help on the willpower front. As far as the rest of the day is concerned, I will try to eat a breakfast that is filling enough to keep me going until lunch at 10:45 (I know, what kind of crazy school makes the kids eat lunch so early?). I've bought a nice big box of Shredded Wheat. If I find myself getting hungry earlier, I can bring carrots and dip like I did today (I got a really cool snack container that looks like a thermos but has a small ice pack in it instead and keeps veggies and dip cold)--I ate about a cup of carrot sticks with a little ranch dressing at around 9:15 this morning, and that kept me going. I'll try to stick to sandwiches and salads for lunch, and then bring some fruit or yogurt for a mid-afternoon snack. Then whatever I eat when I leave work, and my evening snack...I really hope this works!
So, here we go with the renewed (again) attempt at weight loss. My goal is 10 lbs in the next eight weeks (that will take me to the end of the school year). I would love to lose more than that, but hopefully 10 will be completely reasonable and will make me happily surprised when I drop more than that. I've got a long way to go, though, to get to my target weight of 150 lbs. Maybe be the end of next school year...
Monday, March 31, 2008
Friday, March 07, 2008
To a teacher, or a student too really, there isn't much more unfair than a snowstorm on a Friday afternoon.
It'd been building up; the newscasters had been hyping the storm for a few days. But it really didn't look like it was ever going to get here. It seemed to dawdle over Arkansas a lot longer than most weather fronts do. I figured it wouldn't even get here until this evening. I half-expected schools and businesses to close for the day anyway, simply from the threat. In the South, the mere possibility of severe weather sends droves of people to the stores to load up on essentials, just in case we're all trapped in our homes for a few hours. But I knew we wouldn't get out of school. Today was the last day of this grading period, so all the teachers were trying to get grades recorded and all the students were grubbing for extra credit. Also, our lower school had Grandparents' Day today, and with all those guests on campus there was no way they were going to cancel anything.
But sure enough, my students returned from their lunch period to inform me that it had started to snow. It was pretty light, more tiny ice crystals than actual flakes, and snowing with no real enthusiasm for the job. At first it didn't even stick but rather blew around in big swirls. The girls kept asking if I thought there was any chance we'd get out early. I felt it was unlikely; in the six years I've taught at the school I think we've had something like three snow days. And sending kids home early is logistically much more difficult than canceling school early in the morning before the students arrive. Not all our kids drive themselves, not all our parents can change their schedules that quickly to come collect their children, and we have no school-provided transportation available. So I told the kids to strap themselves in and deal with it.
But by golly after a while it started to stick, first on the playground wood chips, then on the grass. Apparently the powers-that-be decided that sticking on the pavement would come next, because an announcement came over the loudspeaker at about 2:25, just at the beginning of the last class of the day, announcing that the seniors were released (our 12th-graders receive a number of privileges that come with seniority). After they had cleared the hallway (it took all of maybe three minutes), a second announcement released the sophomores (our juniors were off-campus at a retreat and had apparently already been released), and a final announcement at about 2:35 released the freshmen (I teach 9th grade).
It was entertaining to see the reactions of the freshmen: 1) excited about the rare escape from school (although I was quite gratified to hear more than one student in my last class complain that they were going to miss their favorite class); 2) overjoyed at the chance to run around in the snow; and 3) distressed at the effect the weather might have on their Friday night plans (really, how many parents are going to want to run shuttle for a gaggle of giggling girls to the movie theater in the snow?). These conflicting emotions really highlight how the freshmen are perched between childhood and adulthood.
But, man, somehow getting a forty-minute snow day is like winning $20 in the lottery. It's appreciated, but it had the potential to be so much more.
I wonder what this relapse into winter weather will do to our local flora, after enough warm days to bring out the buds on the trees. The daffodils had started to bloom, and the forsythia bushes were working on some nice flowers. Some of the pear trees had started blossoming too. Oh well. We may not have many flowers this spring. Poor little guys, so easily beguiled.
It'd been building up; the newscasters had been hyping the storm for a few days. But it really didn't look like it was ever going to get here. It seemed to dawdle over Arkansas a lot longer than most weather fronts do. I figured it wouldn't even get here until this evening. I half-expected schools and businesses to close for the day anyway, simply from the threat. In the South, the mere possibility of severe weather sends droves of people to the stores to load up on essentials, just in case we're all trapped in our homes for a few hours. But I knew we wouldn't get out of school. Today was the last day of this grading period, so all the teachers were trying to get grades recorded and all the students were grubbing for extra credit. Also, our lower school had Grandparents' Day today, and with all those guests on campus there was no way they were going to cancel anything.
But sure enough, my students returned from their lunch period to inform me that it had started to snow. It was pretty light, more tiny ice crystals than actual flakes, and snowing with no real enthusiasm for the job. At first it didn't even stick but rather blew around in big swirls. The girls kept asking if I thought there was any chance we'd get out early. I felt it was unlikely; in the six years I've taught at the school I think we've had something like three snow days. And sending kids home early is logistically much more difficult than canceling school early in the morning before the students arrive. Not all our kids drive themselves, not all our parents can change their schedules that quickly to come collect their children, and we have no school-provided transportation available. So I told the kids to strap themselves in and deal with it.
But by golly after a while it started to stick, first on the playground wood chips, then on the grass. Apparently the powers-that-be decided that sticking on the pavement would come next, because an announcement came over the loudspeaker at about 2:25, just at the beginning of the last class of the day, announcing that the seniors were released (our 12th-graders receive a number of privileges that come with seniority). After they had cleared the hallway (it took all of maybe three minutes), a second announcement released the sophomores (our juniors were off-campus at a retreat and had apparently already been released), and a final announcement at about 2:35 released the freshmen (I teach 9th grade).
It was entertaining to see the reactions of the freshmen: 1) excited about the rare escape from school (although I was quite gratified to hear more than one student in my last class complain that they were going to miss their favorite class); 2) overjoyed at the chance to run around in the snow; and 3) distressed at the effect the weather might have on their Friday night plans (really, how many parents are going to want to run shuttle for a gaggle of giggling girls to the movie theater in the snow?). These conflicting emotions really highlight how the freshmen are perched between childhood and adulthood.
But, man, somehow getting a forty-minute snow day is like winning $20 in the lottery. It's appreciated, but it had the potential to be so much more.
I wonder what this relapse into winter weather will do to our local flora, after enough warm days to bring out the buds on the trees. The daffodils had started to bloom, and the forsythia bushes were working on some nice flowers. Some of the pear trees had started blossoming too. Oh well. We may not have many flowers this spring. Poor little guys, so easily beguiled.
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Saturday, March 01, 2008
As I try to remotivate myself (again...and again...and again...there seems to be a real problem here), I've got a few things that I'm going to try to focus on. Found this article on another blog and thought the points were really interesting.
10 Tips to Change Yourself From a Dedicated Couch-Potato to a Gym Enthusiast
Written by Gretchen Rubin of the Happiness Project.
Exercise helps keep you happy and vital. Studies show that folks who exercise are healthier, cheerier, more energetic, think more clearly, sleep better, and have delayed onset of dementia. What’s more, they get relief from anxiety and mild depression—comparable to medication and therapy.
But of course, no one really disputes the benefit of exercise. The trick is actually DOING IT.
My own favorite activity is reading in bed—preferably, while snacking. It took me a while, but I’ve managed to get myself into the habit of exercising regularly.
These ten strategies helped me stick to my routine:
1. Always exercise on Monday. Starting the week on the right foot makes it easier to stick to your plan.
2. Never skip exercising for two days in a row. You can skip a day, but the next day, you must exercise no matter how inconvenient. This rule dramatically increased the number of times I exercise over the course of a month.
3. Remember, exercise GIVES energy. If you feel too tired to exercise, remember that exercise boosts energy. It took me a long time to notice that I’d drag myself to the gym, work out for forty minutes, and leave feeling far more energetic than when I went in.
4. Any work-out “counts.” Give yourself credit for the least effort. My father, a runner, always said that all he had to do was put on his running shoes and close the door behind him. Why does this work? Because if I know I can quit after five minutes, I get started—and once I start, I usually follow through with my usual routine. Getting out the door is by FAR the toughest part.
5. You don’t have to shower. One problem—mostly for women—is that taking a shower can take too much time. Look for exercise like strength-training, yoga, or walking, that don’t make you sweaty.
6. Throw money at the problem. Spend more to go to a more convenient gym, or to get an iPod, or to work with a trainer. Exercise pays off BIG in your quality of life, so this is a place to splurge.
7. Don’t set the bar too high. I have a friend who thinks it’s not worth exercising unless she’s training for a marathon – and so she never exercises. She’d be better off going for a one-mile run five times a week.
8. Don’t kid yourself. Belonging to a gym doesn’t mean that you go to the gym. Having been in good shape in college doesn’t mean you’re in good shape today. Be honest about what your habits really are now.
9. You have time. Just take a twenty-minute walk. If you can’t do more, do that! Just a twenty-minute walk will really pay off.
10. Exercise for SANITY not VANITY. I find it more motivating to think about the fact that exercise is going to make me feel happier, calmer, and more energetic, right now, rather than to think about vaguer long-term benefits, like strengthened immunity or longer life. It’s not clear that exercise has much impact on weight loss, so don’t be give up when the pounds don’t fall off. It’s worth doing for so many other reasons.
If you want to visit the original blog, here's the link: Life Remix.
10 Tips to Change Yourself From a Dedicated Couch-Potato to a Gym Enthusiast
Written by Gretchen Rubin of the Happiness Project.
Exercise helps keep you happy and vital. Studies show that folks who exercise are healthier, cheerier, more energetic, think more clearly, sleep better, and have delayed onset of dementia. What’s more, they get relief from anxiety and mild depression—comparable to medication and therapy.
But of course, no one really disputes the benefit of exercise. The trick is actually DOING IT.
My own favorite activity is reading in bed—preferably, while snacking. It took me a while, but I’ve managed to get myself into the habit of exercising regularly.
These ten strategies helped me stick to my routine:
1. Always exercise on Monday. Starting the week on the right foot makes it easier to stick to your plan.
2. Never skip exercising for two days in a row. You can skip a day, but the next day, you must exercise no matter how inconvenient. This rule dramatically increased the number of times I exercise over the course of a month.
3. Remember, exercise GIVES energy. If you feel too tired to exercise, remember that exercise boosts energy. It took me a long time to notice that I’d drag myself to the gym, work out for forty minutes, and leave feeling far more energetic than when I went in.
4. Any work-out “counts.” Give yourself credit for the least effort. My father, a runner, always said that all he had to do was put on his running shoes and close the door behind him. Why does this work? Because if I know I can quit after five minutes, I get started—and once I start, I usually follow through with my usual routine. Getting out the door is by FAR the toughest part.
5. You don’t have to shower. One problem—mostly for women—is that taking a shower can take too much time. Look for exercise like strength-training, yoga, or walking, that don’t make you sweaty.
6. Throw money at the problem. Spend more to go to a more convenient gym, or to get an iPod, or to work with a trainer. Exercise pays off BIG in your quality of life, so this is a place to splurge.
7. Don’t set the bar too high. I have a friend who thinks it’s not worth exercising unless she’s training for a marathon – and so she never exercises. She’d be better off going for a one-mile run five times a week.
8. Don’t kid yourself. Belonging to a gym doesn’t mean that you go to the gym. Having been in good shape in college doesn’t mean you’re in good shape today. Be honest about what your habits really are now.
9. You have time. Just take a twenty-minute walk. If you can’t do more, do that! Just a twenty-minute walk will really pay off.
10. Exercise for SANITY not VANITY. I find it more motivating to think about the fact that exercise is going to make me feel happier, calmer, and more energetic, right now, rather than to think about vaguer long-term benefits, like strengthened immunity or longer life. It’s not clear that exercise has much impact on weight loss, so don’t be give up when the pounds don’t fall off. It’s worth doing for so many other reasons.
If you want to visit the original blog, here's the link: Life Remix.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
I was Stumbling through the Internet and tripped upon a series of photos so horrific I must show them here, to freak people out as much as I'm freaked. I've seen these pics before, but I wandered across them again and will probably have nightmares because of them.
Allow me to preface this by saying that I HATE BUGS. I include spiders in the category. I'm not a female typically given to the screaming meemies very often, but bugs will do it to me almost every time. Oh, not every bug; I really like lightning bugs, and lady bugs, and even itty bitty sugar ants are pretty inoffensive.
It's the "icky" bugs I don't like. Anything that stings, bites, pinches...those are the ones I don't like. Well, honey bees are OK. Everything else is out.
I think this all stems from a traumatic incident from my childhood. We lived in northern Arizona, in a pretty rural area. Not too far from our house was a cow field and pond where we would all play. One evening my brother came home from an afternoon of playing with his friends in the field. My brother went and showered, leaving his clothes hanging in the bathroom. A little while later I went into the bathroom. As I walked through the doorway, I thought I saw a big piece of fat rusty-colored yarn laying along the wall. I didn't really notice it again until I went to walk OUT of the bathroom, and noticed the yarn was WALKING TOWARDS ME. This is what it was:
This had apparently been ON my brother's clothing, and had dropped to the floor while he was showering. Let me say that again: it was ON MY BROTHER. Oh dear God.
Needless to say, there was some screaming and leaping into the sink. My brother came running, but he was barefoot. My mom ran to the rescue, but she had sandals on. My dad came in, and when he stepped on the centipede it stuck out from under the front and back of his foot. That might give you an idea of how long the bug was. The horror.
Even worse is the fact that the monster centipede was not alone. At the same time I was sitting in our bathroom sink and screaming, my brother's best friend was sitting at the dinner table at his home when suddenly his mother went crazy, slapping at him and dragging from his chair. She opened the back door and tossed him out, smacking at him frantically. It wasn't until then that they realized she was slapping at the humongous centipede that was crawling up over his shoulder. Let me say that again: it was crawling up OVER HIS SHOULDER. I want to scream just thinking about it.
Anyway, ever since then, I have hated bugs. Really the more legs, the less I like it. So spiders are pretty high on the list of yuckiness.
So imagine my emotions upon seeing this series of photos:
Oh sweet Jesus. I cannot even IMAGINE how I would feel if I came home and saw those legs sticking out from beneath my clock. Heck, I'm looking at my clock now every few minutes just to make sure those legs AREN'T hanging out.
Supposedly this is a huntsman spider, and it's pretty common in places like New Zealand and Australia. All the more reason for me to NEVER go there.
The only entertaining part about these pictures is one of the comments left on the website where I found the photos. It reads, "I woulda removed the clock.. not by taking it off the wall, but by setting my house on fire and never living anywhere near that location ever ever again." I think that's about right. I don't want to live anywhere that has big f*%&$^# spiders like that. It's bad enough I live in the South, where all the bugs bite, sting, and pinch anyway.
OK, I'm headed to bed. May as well take some NyQuil to try and stave off the nightmares. Urk.
Allow me to preface this by saying that I HATE BUGS. I include spiders in the category. I'm not a female typically given to the screaming meemies very often, but bugs will do it to me almost every time. Oh, not every bug; I really like lightning bugs, and lady bugs, and even itty bitty sugar ants are pretty inoffensive.
It's the "icky" bugs I don't like. Anything that stings, bites, pinches...those are the ones I don't like. Well, honey bees are OK. Everything else is out.
I think this all stems from a traumatic incident from my childhood. We lived in northern Arizona, in a pretty rural area. Not too far from our house was a cow field and pond where we would all play. One evening my brother came home from an afternoon of playing with his friends in the field. My brother went and showered, leaving his clothes hanging in the bathroom. A little while later I went into the bathroom. As I walked through the doorway, I thought I saw a big piece of fat rusty-colored yarn laying along the wall. I didn't really notice it again until I went to walk OUT of the bathroom, and noticed the yarn was WALKING TOWARDS ME. This is what it was:
This had apparently been ON my brother's clothing, and had dropped to the floor while he was showering. Let me say that again: it was ON MY BROTHER. Oh dear God.
Needless to say, there was some screaming and leaping into the sink. My brother came running, but he was barefoot. My mom ran to the rescue, but she had sandals on. My dad came in, and when he stepped on the centipede it stuck out from under the front and back of his foot. That might give you an idea of how long the bug was. The horror.
Even worse is the fact that the monster centipede was not alone. At the same time I was sitting in our bathroom sink and screaming, my brother's best friend was sitting at the dinner table at his home when suddenly his mother went crazy, slapping at him and dragging from his chair. She opened the back door and tossed him out, smacking at him frantically. It wasn't until then that they realized she was slapping at the humongous centipede that was crawling up over his shoulder. Let me say that again: it was crawling up OVER HIS SHOULDER. I want to scream just thinking about it.
Anyway, ever since then, I have hated bugs. Really the more legs, the less I like it. So spiders are pretty high on the list of yuckiness.
So imagine my emotions upon seeing this series of photos:
Oh sweet Jesus. I cannot even IMAGINE how I would feel if I came home and saw those legs sticking out from beneath my clock. Heck, I'm looking at my clock now every few minutes just to make sure those legs AREN'T hanging out.
Supposedly this is a huntsman spider, and it's pretty common in places like New Zealand and Australia. All the more reason for me to NEVER go there.
The only entertaining part about these pictures is one of the comments left on the website where I found the photos. It reads, "I woulda removed the clock.. not by taking it off the wall, but by setting my house on fire and never living anywhere near that location ever ever again." I think that's about right. I don't want to live anywhere that has big f*%&$^# spiders like that. It's bad enough I live in the South, where all the bugs bite, sting, and pinch anyway.
OK, I'm headed to bed. May as well take some NyQuil to try and stave off the nightmares. Urk.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
So, I've had a day to think about the Knight Rider movie that was on this past weekend. I was an avid fan of the original TV show (didn't we late 70's-early 80's kids have the COOLEST TV shows ever?) with The Hoff. Nothing was more awesome than that Trans Am, by golly. I even got to sit in it at Universal Studios. Way cool.
Anyway, the new version is...interesting. Probably a bit better handled than the other recent remakes of 80's TV. Don't get me wrong; I really like the new Battlestar: Galactica, but it's a whole different animal than the original. Much more serious; not nearly as much lighthearted humor. Very dark. A kickass show, but very different. And I did watch a few episodes of the ill-fated Bionic Woman. I actually kind of liked it, but again, much darker than the original. Don't know why it didn't make it. Haven't seen the Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, but I've heard it's pretty good.
So I watched Knight Rider with baited breath. Could I accept that the new KITT was a Ford Mustang and not a Pontiac Trans Am?
HELL YES I could, just as well as I handled Bumblebee as a Chevy Camaro instead of a Volkswagon Bug in Transformers.
Sure, I was a little taken-aback at first; I mean, how could they mess with the original? But then I watched the show. Damn, if that Mustang isn't SWEET. I mean, DAMN. And how cool is the indestructibility of the car? Pretty freakin' awesome--in the original show, it was a special coating on the car; in the new version, it's nanotechnology at its finest.
Oh sure, it's all about product placement. I know Ford paid big bucks to get KITT into the family, just as GM paid handsomely to get all the Autobots to be GM products (and did you notice that Barricade, the evil Decepticon police car, was a Ford Mustang? Ha ha, GM people, funny!).
But the Knight Rider of new is better-connected to the Knight Rider of old. Essentially, after 25 years, the FLAG Foundation arm of Knight Industries is reorganizing to fight crime and injustice, and conveniently the new driver of KITT (Mike Traceur) is the son of Michael Knight, allowing for a nice cameo for The Hoff at the end of the show.
When do episodes begin airing? Not sure. But I will definitely watch, for now, and hope it develops into a solid show. That car is too freakin' cool to pass up. I want one. And I will park it right next to my Bumblebee Camaro.
Anyway, the new version is...interesting. Probably a bit better handled than the other recent remakes of 80's TV. Don't get me wrong; I really like the new Battlestar: Galactica, but it's a whole different animal than the original. Much more serious; not nearly as much lighthearted humor. Very dark. A kickass show, but very different. And I did watch a few episodes of the ill-fated Bionic Woman. I actually kind of liked it, but again, much darker than the original. Don't know why it didn't make it. Haven't seen the Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, but I've heard it's pretty good.
So I watched Knight Rider with baited breath. Could I accept that the new KITT was a Ford Mustang and not a Pontiac Trans Am?
HELL YES I could, just as well as I handled Bumblebee as a Chevy Camaro instead of a Volkswagon Bug in Transformers.
Sure, I was a little taken-aback at first; I mean, how could they mess with the original? But then I watched the show. Damn, if that Mustang isn't SWEET. I mean, DAMN. And how cool is the indestructibility of the car? Pretty freakin' awesome--in the original show, it was a special coating on the car; in the new version, it's nanotechnology at its finest.
Oh sure, it's all about product placement. I know Ford paid big bucks to get KITT into the family, just as GM paid handsomely to get all the Autobots to be GM products (and did you notice that Barricade, the evil Decepticon police car, was a Ford Mustang? Ha ha, GM people, funny!).
But the Knight Rider of new is better-connected to the Knight Rider of old. Essentially, after 25 years, the FLAG Foundation arm of Knight Industries is reorganizing to fight crime and injustice, and conveniently the new driver of KITT (Mike Traceur) is the son of Michael Knight, allowing for a nice cameo for The Hoff at the end of the show.
When do episodes begin airing? Not sure. But I will definitely watch, for now, and hope it develops into a solid show. That car is too freakin' cool to pass up. I want one. And I will park it right next to my Bumblebee Camaro.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
I can't help it...I'm addicted to LOL stuff. I love the critters of I Can Has Cheezburger. And I love Star Trek. So what could be better than LOLTrek?
Monday, February 11, 2008
There are times when a battle between two sports teams becomes the most meaningless thing in the world. Last night was one of those times.
During the third period of the Florida Panthers-Buffalo Sabres hockey game, one of the Panthers was knocked to the ground, and as he fell his leg flew up and his skate blade struck the neck of his teammate, Richard Zednik, cutting Zednik's carotid artery. Zednik managed to skate to the bench, leaving a trail of blood.
Zednik was helped off the ice and all the medical personnel in the building rushed to his aid, while his teammates, the opposing players, and the fans stood around in stunned silence for about fifteen minutes. Thankfully, they received the news that Zednik had been stabilized and was being transported to the hospital. The packed crowd in the arena, Buffalo's ice, gave the news a rousing standing ovation. Zednik has since undergone surgery on his neck and is reported to be in stable condition in intensive care.
Despite the posturing, and the rowdiness, and the bantering and insults that often are associated with sports, no true sports fan EVER wants to see a life-threatening injury to a player, no matter how much they might jokingly call for one. I certainly have called for the heads of various athletes over the years, but never have I truly wished for something terrible to happen. The Buffalo fans showed their class by rejoicing over the news that Zednik was being helped. Those are the truest fans of all: those who love the game for the game itself, not for any violence or injuries that might come along with the game.
I am not a Panthers fan, but I am certainly rooting for Richard Zednik today.
During the third period of the Florida Panthers-Buffalo Sabres hockey game, one of the Panthers was knocked to the ground, and as he fell his leg flew up and his skate blade struck the neck of his teammate, Richard Zednik, cutting Zednik's carotid artery. Zednik managed to skate to the bench, leaving a trail of blood.
Zednik was helped off the ice and all the medical personnel in the building rushed to his aid, while his teammates, the opposing players, and the fans stood around in stunned silence for about fifteen minutes. Thankfully, they received the news that Zednik had been stabilized and was being transported to the hospital. The packed crowd in the arena, Buffalo's ice, gave the news a rousing standing ovation. Zednik has since undergone surgery on his neck and is reported to be in stable condition in intensive care.
Despite the posturing, and the rowdiness, and the bantering and insults that often are associated with sports, no true sports fan EVER wants to see a life-threatening injury to a player, no matter how much they might jokingly call for one. I certainly have called for the heads of various athletes over the years, but never have I truly wished for something terrible to happen. The Buffalo fans showed their class by rejoicing over the news that Zednik was being helped. Those are the truest fans of all: those who love the game for the game itself, not for any violence or injuries that might come along with the game.
I am not a Panthers fan, but I am certainly rooting for Richard Zednik today.
Monday, February 04, 2008
Sunday, February 03, 2008
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Boy, isn't that the truth?
I get these catalogues in the mail, Title Nine and Athleta chief among them, that contain athletic wear and active wear for women. The clothing sold by these companies is intended for women with "active lifestyles", you know, women with interesting and powerful jobs who then have time in the afternoons to go out for a quick ski/mountain bike ride/surf/rock climb/marathon. All of the women in these catalogues are trim, toned, perky, athletic, and purely capable of running a board meeting in a skort. These are the women I would like to be. But as the cartoon above suggests, all of these clothes the women in these catalogues wear are designed for women who ALREADY LOOK LIKE THAT. Where are the cute, sassy, mildly-granola-earthy clothes for those of us who are pudgy, rounded, slouchy, and unlikely to have the opportunity to frolic in the surf in the afternoons?
My goal is to someday resemble a woman who could theoretically be featured in one of these catalogues, even if I can't scamper out for a quick run down a volcano before dinnertime.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
I hate the New England Patriots. I think with their win today over my San Diego Chargers, they may have just surpassed the Oakland Raiders as my most hated team (I mean, when was the last time the Raiders were really a threat?). During the first half of the AFC Championship game, it looked like my Chargers were the better team and just hadn't managed to get into the end zone yet. In the second half, New England did what they did best: adjust to the other team's defense. Since they couldn't throw the ball, they just picked their way down the field with their running game. Shit.
My only hope now is that the Green Bay Packers take out the New York Giants (don't really have anything against the Giants, but I think the Pack has a better chance to win) and then go down to Arizona and end the Patriots perfect season hopes.
Bring me the head of Tom Brady on a platter!
My only hope now is that the Green Bay Packers take out the New York Giants (don't really have anything against the Giants, but I think the Pack has a better chance to win) and then go down to Arizona and end the Patriots perfect season hopes.
Bring me the head of Tom Brady on a platter!
Friday, January 18, 2008
OK, I'm sure we all agree that the website I Can Has Cheezburger can be kind of funny from time to time, and also kind of annoying with all its cute and hackerish misspellings and grammatical errors. The so-called "LOLcats" and their tagged pictures range from extremely funny to pretty boring.
But every once in a while you come across a picture that is just too funny to be ignored.
moar funny pictures
Does anybody see a resemblance to Bucky from the comic "Get Fuzzy"? Or perhaps Solange from "9 Chickweed Lane"?
I want this cat!
But every once in a while you come across a picture that is just too funny to be ignored.
moar funny pictures
Does anybody see a resemblance to Bucky from the comic "Get Fuzzy"? Or perhaps Solange from "9 Chickweed Lane"?
I want this cat!
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Now that the football games for the day are over, I am tickled to find my Chargers going to the AFC Championship game, for the first time since they defeated the Steelers in the same game on Jan. 15, 1995. Now I really, really hope they can take out the Patriots. I'm pretty freaking tired of listening to the hype.
But I have to laugh about something one of the commentators just said at the end of the Giants-Cowboys game: "There is a Manning playing in a championship game next week, and his name is not Peyton." I thought that was pretty dang funny.
Anyway, I am waiting for next week. I sure hope my team can be the Patriots. If not, I sure hope the Packers or the Giants can beat the Patriots. If not, I hope some guy in a dark alley can beat the Patriots, because I'm f*%&^*$ sick of them. Seriously.
But I have to laugh about something one of the commentators just said at the end of the Giants-Cowboys game: "There is a Manning playing in a championship game next week, and his name is not Peyton." I thought that was pretty dang funny.
Anyway, I am waiting for next week. I sure hope my team can be the Patriots. If not, I sure hope the Packers or the Giants can beat the Patriots. If not, I hope some guy in a dark alley can beat the Patriots, because I'm f*%&^*$ sick of them. Seriously.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
We've discovered over the years of owning video games that they are great time-wasters. I knew this, of course, from childhood, although I never did own an Atari (we had an Odyssey 2000). My husband and I purchased a Sega Dreamcast when they were the "thing" (remember the commercials: "It's thinking"?) and played Midway's Hydrothunder until our brains melted. We still own the console for the sole purpose of occasionally pulling it out and playing it for old-time's sake. Then we got an Xbox. We promptly wasted a great deal of time playing such games as Halo, Gauntlet: Legends, X-Men, and Splashdown. Of course, when the Xbox 360 came out, we had to get that too. We added to our time-wasting games (Halo 2 and 3, Gears of War, and Bioshock) in quick succession.
We've finally met the category of ultimate time-suckers: the Guitar Hero series (and hopefully soon Rock Band). Oh, man.
Guitar Hero comes with a controller shaped like a guitar (you can play with a regular controller, but who would want to?). On the neck of the guitar are five fret buttons that can play notes and chords. On the body of the guitar are a strum bar and a whammy bar.
As the songs play, the screen shows the neck of a guitar (along with some background of a concert and a rock band playing). Moving towards you are the notes that you must play. The color of the note and the placement indicate the note to be played and the duration of the note. As the notes reach the circles at the bottom of the screen, you press the corresponding buttons on the frets and strum the bar.
There's a pretty wide variety of songs on these games, from classic rock to heavy metal to alternative. They vary in levels of difficulty as well, so for each level you increase in difficulty as you play the game. There are four levels the songs appear in: easy, medium, hard, and expert. The same song that seemed so easy on the easy level can turn into a real bitch very quickly. We noticed a significant increase in difficulty just between the easy and medium levels. The hard level is the one we're working on now, and it really is hard. I shudder to think of the expert level.
As with any video game, the longer you play, the better you get. I certainly would like to beat the game on the expert level. But I may or may not get there. I don't plan to spend all my spare time on this game (not that I have that much spare time to begin with).
Here's what happens when you spend too much time on the game:
This is a video of someone playing the really awesome song "Cliffs of Dover" by Eric Johnson on the expert level and getting a 100% accuracy rating.
This video is of the final boss battle (against Satan), playing a really kick-ass guitar version of The Charlie Daniels Band song "The Devil Went Down to Georgia".
Of course, as with any video game, there is a danger of children spending too much time playing it. All kids should spend some time playing something, but it's definitely healthier to send them outside to play tag or something. Here's a little kid who should TOTALLY join a little league team or something, because he needs to get outside and away from this game!
Guitar Hero is a seriously awesome game. The game Rock Band takes the idea a big step further. With the multiplayer mode, you can have four people who each get to take a different role in the 'band". You can have a lead guitarist, a bassist, a drummer, and a singer. I've been told by my students who have played Rock Band that the lead singer job is not difficult, but it's a great idea to include people who may simply not be able to master the other parts. From what I've heard from people and what I've read the guitar and bass parts are very similar to Guitar Hero, although several people have said they believe the difficulty is a little higher on Guitar Hero than on Rock Band for those two parts. The greatest skill that is acquired playing Rock Band is the drumming. It comes with a drum kit with a foot pedal and four pads to strike. It really does require rhythm to play the drums on these songs. While the guitar and bass parts of these games don't increase your real guitar-playing skill, the drumming actually can teach you some drumming fundamentals.
It boils down to this: Guitar Hero is a much better game for those who are only interested in the guitar/bass parts of the songs or for those who can't round up a posse to play with them. Rock Band is better for those who want a great party game, sort of the ultimate karaoke. Price, of course, may be a deciding factor as well; Guitar Hero 3 and a wireless controller cost about $90; the Rock Band special edition with the microphone, drum set, and guitar runs about $160 or so.
Once we feel we've mastered the material on Guitar Hero, we'll look into getting Rock Band. Then I guess we'll need to find some friends who can play with us. We need another couple with no life, like us...
We've finally met the category of ultimate time-suckers: the Guitar Hero series (and hopefully soon Rock Band). Oh, man.
Guitar Hero comes with a controller shaped like a guitar (you can play with a regular controller, but who would want to?). On the neck of the guitar are five fret buttons that can play notes and chords. On the body of the guitar are a strum bar and a whammy bar.
As the songs play, the screen shows the neck of a guitar (along with some background of a concert and a rock band playing). Moving towards you are the notes that you must play. The color of the note and the placement indicate the note to be played and the duration of the note. As the notes reach the circles at the bottom of the screen, you press the corresponding buttons on the frets and strum the bar.
There's a pretty wide variety of songs on these games, from classic rock to heavy metal to alternative. They vary in levels of difficulty as well, so for each level you increase in difficulty as you play the game. There are four levels the songs appear in: easy, medium, hard, and expert. The same song that seemed so easy on the easy level can turn into a real bitch very quickly. We noticed a significant increase in difficulty just between the easy and medium levels. The hard level is the one we're working on now, and it really is hard. I shudder to think of the expert level.
As with any video game, the longer you play, the better you get. I certainly would like to beat the game on the expert level. But I may or may not get there. I don't plan to spend all my spare time on this game (not that I have that much spare time to begin with).
Here's what happens when you spend too much time on the game:
This is a video of someone playing the really awesome song "Cliffs of Dover" by Eric Johnson on the expert level and getting a 100% accuracy rating.
This video is of the final boss battle (against Satan), playing a really kick-ass guitar version of The Charlie Daniels Band song "The Devil Went Down to Georgia".
Of course, as with any video game, there is a danger of children spending too much time playing it. All kids should spend some time playing something, but it's definitely healthier to send them outside to play tag or something. Here's a little kid who should TOTALLY join a little league team or something, because he needs to get outside and away from this game!
Guitar Hero is a seriously awesome game. The game Rock Band takes the idea a big step further. With the multiplayer mode, you can have four people who each get to take a different role in the 'band". You can have a lead guitarist, a bassist, a drummer, and a singer. I've been told by my students who have played Rock Band that the lead singer job is not difficult, but it's a great idea to include people who may simply not be able to master the other parts. From what I've heard from people and what I've read the guitar and bass parts are very similar to Guitar Hero, although several people have said they believe the difficulty is a little higher on Guitar Hero than on Rock Band for those two parts. The greatest skill that is acquired playing Rock Band is the drumming. It comes with a drum kit with a foot pedal and four pads to strike. It really does require rhythm to play the drums on these songs. While the guitar and bass parts of these games don't increase your real guitar-playing skill, the drumming actually can teach you some drumming fundamentals.
It boils down to this: Guitar Hero is a much better game for those who are only interested in the guitar/bass parts of the songs or for those who can't round up a posse to play with them. Rock Band is better for those who want a great party game, sort of the ultimate karaoke. Price, of course, may be a deciding factor as well; Guitar Hero 3 and a wireless controller cost about $90; the Rock Band special edition with the microphone, drum set, and guitar runs about $160 or so.
Once we feel we've mastered the material on Guitar Hero, we'll look into getting Rock Band. Then I guess we'll need to find some friends who can play with us. We need another couple with no life, like us...
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
One thing that I find somewhat disheartening with my weight is the wide fluctuations I see day to day. For example, I had mentioned my hope that, from my weigh-in during the weekend, I might be in the 180's sometime this week, since I was down at 190. Yesterday morning that hope was shaken when I weighed in at 193. But today, after no appreciable exercise or anything yesterday, I weighed in down at 190 again. Is it just water weight? How can that be if I take daily blood pressure medication? Is it just food weight? I always to try weigh in after my "morning constitutional" so to speak, so it shouldn't really be food weight. So what is it? It's just frustrating, because a big drop like this (almost three pounds for those of you who are mathematically challenged) gets my hopes up, only to be dashed the next day when I gain back the same weight (give or take a little). I guess, despite my giggling at yesterday's Cathy comic strip (see yesterday's post), I need to go back to charting my weekly averages on a spreadsheet so I can see if there is an overall drop in average from week to week, since apparently following just day to day isn't going to give me any real idea of my progress.
Monday, January 07, 2008
Actually, I think my skinny fingers will come from hours and hours of Guitar Hero. I rock. Really.
Anyway, all my excitement was undone this morning when I weighed in at 193. Crap. I had really hoped that I would be down in the 180's this week, especially since I was down to 190 at one point last week. But a weekend of not much exercise (other than Guitar Hero) and pizza and beer in front of the football games apparently means no weight loss for me. I will try to be better this week...
Friday, January 04, 2008
It's nice to know that just returning to some semblance of routine that doesn't involve eating huge amounts every four hours or so can help my weight. Even though I've only hit the gym once so far (heading out this afternoon to meet up with hubby at the gym), my weight has gone from 193.0 on Jan. 2 to 190.6 this morning. Cutting back on candy and desserts is probably a big part of this weight loss. The problem is, we brought all the candy and desserts back with us. Both of us got candy in our stockings: 3 lbs of M&Ms, Dove candy bars and nuggets, Hersey's Kisses of various flavors, a movie-theatre-sized box of Reese's Pieces, candy canes, you name it. How to balance eating the stuff (because God forbid we actually throw it away; there are starving kids in Africa, dontcha know) and not going crazy on it. We'll see.
The other factor that may weigh in (ha ha, see what I did there) when it comes to our weight loss progress is going to be one of the Christmas presents, namely a BREAD MACHINE. We received one when we got married, and we used it so much we wore it out and killed it. We've been home for three days and I'm already making loaf number 2 because we've almost finished number 1. Anybody know a good bread machine recipe for a low-carb/low-calorie bread loaf?
Next week will be a complete return to normalcy for me since school and swim practice will be starting back up. I'll start making my morning workouts beginning Monday, and I'll try to work out every afternoon in one form or another (either the gym, the pool, some weights in my classroom, or the new walking program some of the teachers are starting). Fingers crossed; I'd love to be back down in the 180's next week!
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
I took yesterday as a rest/recovery day (the third day of a 1500-mile drive and the morning after a wine binge--man, I hate wine hangovers); today is the day of reflection and beginning anew. And, after 365 days of 2007, I find myself in one familiar spot:
I am a fat broken record. (For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of "broken record", replace that reference with "scratched CD".) I looked back at my five resolutions for the year, and I didn't accomplish ANY of them.
#1--Weight loss. I had planned to reach my ultimate weight loss goal in the past year and find myself at 150 lbs. Ha. I weighed in this morning at 193. While that's pretty bad, I had actually expected it to be worse, with a Christmas dinner involving turkey, ham, AND prime rib (the carnivore in me rejoiced, but the self-restraint in me wept). I had even reduced the amount of exercise I got by just letting the dog run loose (my husband's theory when we first let him out on the first day we were there was "Well, we've got a week to catch him"--but he actually did really well; when there was no one chasing him, he got bored and started even coming in when we called him) so I didn't have to walk him at all. My physical tests for the week included an hour of ice skating and a few hours of skiing. Not very impressive. I don't know if I can reach 150 lbs this year. Instead, I just need to get back on the weight loss track. I'd like to be back down around 180 by the time spring break rolls around in March, but we'll see.
#2--Exercise. I was supposed to be making it to the gym daily last year, and making my morning workouts at least three times a week. Uh huh. Didn't even come close. So I need to get back on it. Can't lose weight if I don't work out.
#3--Grading. I didn't stay quite as caught-up as I was supposed to, but on the whole I did OK. I just need to hang on and stay as caught-up as I can.
#4--Blogging. I didn't blog as often as I intended, but then again, I just don't always have much to blog about. I'll try to be more interesting.
#5--Organization. I'm still hideously disorganized. I need to get better because my husband deserves better at home, and because I'm now sharing my classroom for one class period each day with my department head. I need to at least make it look good, right?
So anyway, here I go again. I need to get back on it, for sure. Stay tuned...
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