Crossfit’s 12 Days of Christmas
Current mood: luminous

Mid-December, Crossfit Seattle will be having it's annual 12 Days of Christmas workout, plus potluck afterwords.  What is the 12 Days of Christmas workout?

Remember how the song goes?

Well, it starts out with one exercise.  Then for the "2nd day",  you do the 1st day exercise plus the 2nd day exercise.  Then for the "3rd day", you do the first two exercises plus the 3rd one.....and so on until you are doing 11 exercises, then all 12 exercises.  All 12 days of the song in one workout.

(1 exercise doesn't mean just 1 burpee or 1 pushup....it's usually 5)

Jeezus.

The usual Crossfit workout like this starts at 10reps, 9reps, 8reps, down to 1rep.   Usually you're dead tired when you're in the 3's, but at least you don't have many reps left.  This seems to be going the opposite....1, 2, 3, 4, 5,6 to12.  Doing the last full set of exercises must be a killer.

I think i'll just be going to cheer people on and eat food.  /grin/
And take pictures.
______________________________________
Wednesday's workout (with VERY sore legs) was:

run 200 meters
5 deadlifts (bar/weight on ground, stand up)
5 cleans  (bar at knee level, shrug it up into the clean position at the chest)
5 thrusters (this is a deep squat, with the bar at the chest/neck area, then thrust the bar overhead as you stand up)

Do the whole set of exercises as many times as possible in 20 minutes.

I managed 6 sets with very little weight on my 35lb bar.  (Yes I was last again)  My wrists were SORE afterwords and my arms and hands kept falling asleep during the night (while I woke up every fuckn hour).  I'm so very wimpy after November's trainwreck.

Hot yoga on Friday!

It feels so good to be healthy again!  Keeping my fingers crossed in that department.

10:10 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Crossfit workout after a month off
Current mood: accomplished

At 6pm tonight I was debating whether to go to my regular gym and run on the treadmill or to go and face my first Crossfit workout after being sick and not working out for 1 month.  I was supposed to run last week to try and get myself back into SOME kind of shape before attempting a Crossfit agony-athon, but all that food and friends got in the way, damn them!

Here is what I almost skipped out on tonight.  I also had high blood sugar the whole time, so really had to fight my flopping muscles and heaving stomach.  Even though my 'team' ended last, it wasn't by much and hell...we finished.

Row 350M
30 air squats
25 dumb bell thrusters (a squat with dumbells at shoulder height and then stand up and thrust your arms straight overhead)
20 medicine ball cleans (med.ball on ground, shrug shoulders up with arms straight, as ball comes up, you squat and the ball and catch it, then stand up)
15 burpees (squat, thrust out legs behind you, do a push up, jump back to a squat, then jump up off the ground with arms above head)

We did all of that for 3 rounds.  We were supposed to do 4, but the instructor saw what sorry shape most of us were in and chopped it down to 3.

Then we did L-sits on the bars (arms straight, shoulders back, lift your legs up in front of you, hold for time).  I made it to an awesome 1.26 minute the first round and then a pathetic 28 seconds on the second round.  None of us tried for the 3rd round.

I'm going to go again on Wednesday, then do Bikram yoga on Friday.  Sometime during this week, i'll need to run at least once as well. 

Right now, I needz a shower.

4:25 AM - 4 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

2nd Saturday Rose
Current mood: quiet

I've seen another angle on Prop.8, the Right to Die initiative.  Nothing sinister or extreme.  If fact, it's just about dying of old age.

My new patient's son told me that Rose feels like she is ready to go.  Not that she is depressed or in pain and can't stand her situation any longer.  No, she just has reached a point where she doesn't really enjoy the state of her life anymore and can't see it changing any. 

Rose is basically dying of old age.  She has had a stroke that has really impaired her ability to move around, get to the bathroom or feed herself, but her mind is still sharp.  So if she wants to die now, she has only her own self to work with.  She isn't dying a horrifyingly painful death, in fact she might be taken off hospice care soon, which means I won't be able to liven up her life, nor will she be able to access some of the medicines that have been helping her improve.  She can't access Prop 8, nor would I want her to, but what if she's just tired of the same ol' same old and wants to just pass away peacefully.  What would I want if I was lucky to reach such a late age, but found life just a monotony of 'eat bad food, sleep a ton, have someone feed me, wash me and get me out of bed?  What if I had no one to visit me?

I guess my only recourse would be to not eat or drink.  That is the most basic way to get out of a life that I would not want to keep on living.  I don't see Rose as a depressed person....maybe a bit pissed and tired of what old age has reduced her too. 

It's hard to wrap my mind around this for some reason.  If you just want to die, because you are tired of having to live in a body that has become a deteriorating house, with leaky plumbing, practically no roof, the foundation is going and the wiring is shot to shit....is it so bad to just say goodbye and ...stop?

I don't believe there should be a Prop 8 type assistance for someone in Rose's state, but dammit, I sure as shit don't look forward to dying of starvation and dehydration.

So for now, I focus on making Rose's life as interesting and varied as possible, for as long as they let me, which might not be very long.  Rose and I are working on her motor skills and trying to improve her ability to take care of herself.  We went up to the floor that has a pool table and she gripped the edge, while I held her around the waist.  She stood up and then lifted first one foot then the other.  With rests in between she was able to manage it 3-4 times.  She would get a little scared while standing and I would tell her, "I won't let you fall Rose.  I've got you."  For some reason that made me feel so good. 

We went down to her old floor where she met some old friends and the attendants she really liked, then heading down to the lunchroom.  Today's lunch for Rose was Thick-Ass-Orange-Juice, soup of unknown origin, ground up turkey, ground up green beans, tangerines in a cup and pudding.  Rose was able feed herself today.  I helped when she seemed to get tired, and I think she knows I want the practice, so lets me help more than she really needs.  At one point, I said "Do you want more turkey Rose" and she leaned close to me and replied "If you can call that turkey!" with a happily sarcastic look that said 'we BOTH know that ain't turkey'!  She comes out with these one liners sometimes, with such impish attitude, that just make me laugh.  Which I can tell makes her very pleased.

I met her son, we'll call him...Craig.  He's so great with her, visiting almost every day.  While Rose rested after lunch, we went down to look for another book on CD for her.  The library is awesome.  The first book we picked out for her, Memoirs of a Geisha, she said she already had read.  So while Craig read his newspaper in the incredible lobby, with the roaring fireplace and stunning view, I picked out two more books and ran them upstairs to Rose.  I read both book descriptions to her and she picked "The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency", a book about a woman detective in Botswana.

By this time, it was past 1 and Rose was pretty tired.  I woke her up one more time to say goodbye and tell her I'd be back again next Saturday.  I gave her a kiss on the cheek goodbye and left feeling very good.

Her son told me that I'm exactly what she needs.  I hope that hospice doesn't discharge her.  I think we both enjoy helping each other.

------------------------------------

On a side note, I've roughed out an old man sculpture.  I think I might like it, if I can eventually get the face to have the right expression.  I'm going for a distorted (body) look this time. 

6:29 AM - 2 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

The difference
Current mood: calm

This morning I woke myself up at 8, hit the snooze button twice and then groaned my way to the bathroom.  I had to tell myself "keep moving, keep moving", because every moment i'd pause, the thought of any soft surface, preferably warm, would start melting my resolve and muscles.

I was supposed to be at my patient's bedside by 9:30.  I made it by 10am. 

I now have seen what a rest home for rich people looks like.  High ceilings and grand spaces, reading rooms with book filled walls, nice furniture, a roaring fireplace and water views on almost every side.  The rooms have balconies that anyone would envy and though the patients are two to a room, the atmosphere is still so much better.  There still is the ever present televisions, but fewer people watching them and some with the sound completely off.  In fact, most of the tv's weren't in the center of the room or the room's main focus.

The incessant beeping at the last nursing home I visited was not present here.  In fact, I don't remember hearing ANY beeping.  There weren't any screams, yelling or groaning echoing down the halls.  The only things I found in common between the two nursing homes I've visited is the long wait for an attendant, once the call button is pushed.

My new patient is a wonderful elderly woman, who is incredibly sharp for someone of her age (94).  She loves books and she's a fan of Obama.
I'm hoping to help her get better so that she can go back to the floor where "everyone talks at lunch and the food is better", as my patient said. 

The first thing she wanted to do, when I arrived, was to listen to her book on cd.  She can't get the headphones on or work the stereo, so I did that for her, then retired to a chair to draw.  She seemed to nod off to sleep, but I think she absorbed the book as she was sleeping.  When I put the disk back to where she had gone to sleep, she told me "no, farther ahead" until I reached the end of the disk.  She had heard it all.  Freaking weird.

I then pushed her around in her wheelchair as she gave me a tour of the different floors and spaces.  She was getting pretty tired by then, but lunchtime had arrived, so we found our way into the lunchroom.  Strawberries, orange juice, cranberry juice and some odd looking chopped up bits of something....hell, even my patient didn't know what the ingredients were.  I recognized some cucumber bits and there was gravy.  Ew.  I tried alternating the different foods and always ended with a slice of strawberry to get rid of what she obviously wasn't enjoying.

For someone like me, who has never had to take care of another human being and who assumes everyone has a personal space the size of mine, feeding or handling a stranger is so very...odd and disconcerting.  Did I tip the cup too fast and nearly drown her?  Did I put the spoon in her mouth okay?  Is the placement of the headphones alright?  Should I pat her on the shoulder?  Can she see that i'm smiling?

After lunch, she was getting very tired and said she needed to be changed.  We waited quite a while before the attendant showed up and I asked my patient again if she wanted me to stay during the changing.  She said "you said you wanted to learn didn't you?" which made me laugh and so I helped the guy roll her and manuever her in bed.  The thought of actually wiping someone down...uh...in that area, is really intimidating. 

Throughout my time with my patient, hey let's call her Rose, I keep telling myself to speak slowly, don't move fast, just chill.  Any one who knows me fairly well has seen me get 'speedy' with my words and actions, especially when i'm nervous or want to please someone too much.  Both of those states of being come into play while i'm with a patient, but elderly people don't respond well to a twitchy mouse talking at crack-ho speeds, so I space my words, slow my movements.  Calm myself the fuck down.

The woman in the next bed had some visitors.  They were definitely the upper crusty, bridge playing, social-function-planning types of women.  Then they surprised me by watching a football game on tv.  My stereotype was all blown to shit.

Rose asked me to come back again, which made me very happy.  I reassured her that i'd be there, probably every Saturday morning through lunch. 

It's so nice to be able to communicate, to be able to help someone pass the time.
Getting up in the morning is a bitch, but at least now I know the lay of the land and am looking forward to seeing Rose and being her companion.

 

10:07 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

AT&T Stupid fucked up shit.
Current mood: pissed off

I bought a phone a couple of months ago.  I'm was a Verizon customer (I think) before they became AT&T.   Instead of going online and upgrading to a new phone with a new service contract, I decided to go 'the fast way' and head straight to a AT&T store to get my phone NOW.  My old phone was making cracking and creaking noises every time I popped it open, so I really didn't want to wait weeks to get my new phone in the mail.

Since I was upgrading after finishing a two year contract, I was eligible for a phone with a rebate.  The one I wanted had a $50 rebate.  I understand that rebates take forever to get, but I wasn't desperate for money.

Somehow I had a strange feeling that something would go wrong.  I mean, how could it not?  I'm dealing with a freakin phone company and anytime you think you're getting a good deal or 'rebate', there's bound to be a fuckup in there somewhere.

So I waited.  And it happened.

I got a letter in the mail saying my phone wasn't eligible for the rebate or that I hadn't included the UPC code from the box in my rebate letter. 

Bullshit, I had SEEN the AT&T employee cut the UPC code from the box and he even filled out the forms, gave me copies, addressed the envelope and it was done.  I knew the UPC code was in that letter.  I saw it go in.  All I had was a box with a hole cut in it.  And the letter denying my rebate said that "photocopies were not accepted".  How the fuck was I supposed to get my rebate if THEY didn't have the piece of the box and I didn't have the piece of the box and PHOTOCOPIES (which I had) were not accepted.

It had me thinking of all the healthcare insurance shit i'd had to go through.

Well after calls, etc, etc things were fixed.  I was told that yes, i'd be receiving the rebate.

I just got a letter from AT&T in the mail today.

*deep breath*

It had my rebate, but it was in the form of a debit card.  Not a check.  So now I have to keep this extra piece of shit in my thin wallet and TRY to by only $50 worth of shit.  I can't just go put it in my bank account.  I have to BUY something!!  M*Fuckers just can't make it easy on me can they?!

First off, why do it this way?  Are they tracking my purchases?  Was it supposedly cheaper to create a plastic card and MAIL IT TO ME instead of just sending a letter with a check attached??  JEEZUS FUCKING CHRIST I'M PISSED!!

Sorry for the screaming, but i'm...god...livid.

All I can say is that i'm going to call their asses and tell them what I think.
If anyone of you have a similar situation, I suggest you do to.

Jeezus.  I have to ACTIVATE THIS DAMN CARD!!  You don't have to activate a friggin paper check.  And a paper check is recycleable for shit sake.
Did the AT&T people think that maybe they were saving me a trip to my BANK!?  How fucking considerate of them.  Now all I have to do is activate this card, try not to LOSE my card, have it bulk up my wallet even more, and forces me to BUY instead of save.  Is this a new way of forcing people to buy shit to help the economy?  Force people to use their own money to buy instead of save?

What if I wanted to buy some pot, huh AT&T??  You saving me from a DANGEROUS drug habit??!!   What if I want to buy a piece of art from a friend?  Can I use plastic? Probably not! 

Debit cards ALWAYS make you buy more than what the card is worth.  I have $50 on this one....nobody is going to by $47.50 worth of stuff.  No, you'll buy more so you get all your damn money out of the stupid thing.

Okay.  Enough ranting.  Personally, i'm going to look into changing phone companies.  This shit is just too stupid.

Thanks for listening.
--------------------------------------

PS:
I just read the back of the paper sent with the card.  I think i'm about to have an aneurysm due to how pissed off I just got.
Read this little piece of info:
"We may disclose information to third parties about your Promotion Card or the transations you make.  To our employees, auditors, affiliates, service providers, or attorneys as needed."

You know how many AFFILIATES this stupid company has?? 

2:03 AM - 5 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

I’m up, so why not?
Current mood: tired

This will be the most boring blog ever.  Just FYI.

I've been sick since forever now and unless a miracle occurs by Monday morning, i'm going to the doctors to get some meds that will take care of my problem.  Those meds will probably give me a secondary problem, but fuckit, they have a pill for that too.

My 'cold' has gone from flamingly painful sore throat, with swollen tonsils I could barely swallow around (at least 3 days of that), to stuffed up head accompanied by dry cough (another 3 days?) which turned into a wet cough on Friday.  The wet cough produced my very first green phlegm ball, the size of a nickel.  That shit HAD to be spit out.  I marveled at it's disgusting color then nearly threw up.

My temperature has ranged from low (97 degrees) to a high of 99.5.  I think I usually hang in the low range when i'm normal. 

Right now though, the newest form of my cold has become a massive jaw ache, particularly on the right side.  One place in particular, right under my right cheekbone is a nice little pile of screaming pain.  Like a very VERY bad headache concentrated in one area.  Sometimes the pain bounces from there to my the back of my right jaw, then up into my right ear.

Every time I cough, it feels like my skull expands at all the pressure points. 

Oh yeah,  and the movie From Dusk Till Dawn sucks so much fucking ass I couldn't finish it.  AVP was a little better.

I've been hanging my head over a steaming bowl of water with some Vick Vapor Rub mixed in.  Can you burn your lungs out with Vicks?  It sure feels like it.

I think the last steam bath for my lungs actually worked.  I hacked up my second mass of greenish goo.  It made me happy....then I almost puked again.

I've been Online Doctoring myself, trying to diagnose what each new form this crazy cold has taken.  At first, with the tonsils and throat all fucked up, I researched Strep Throat, Tonsilitis and the Common Cold.  Things were leaning toward Tonsilitis, which requires home care.  Then Tuesday hit, Election Day, and I was on my couch with all the Common Cold symtoms you could want.  Fever, congestion, cough, body aches and exhaustion.  That lasted 'till Friday, when I went back to work with my voice so fucked up, they HAD to believe i'd been sick.  Probably the most authentic Sick Employee they'd seen in forever. 

By midday Friday, I knew I'd made a bad decision coming to work.  I stayed for a meeting I couldn't refuse, watched Obama's first (AWESOME) press conference on Popcap's big TV and then went and bought groceries.  Forgetting to resupply the Kleenex.  Yeah, i'm scraping my nose to bloody hamburger with earth friendly toilet paper.

Friday was when I hacked up my first green lung goober, with no chance of getting to the doctor till  Monday.  Then I pretty much decided (with the help of the internet) that I have Bronchitis or possibly a Sinus Infection....or maybe both.

My sleep cycle is so fucked up, I wake up every few hours.  I can practically hear my muscles melting away.  I miss working out.  I really would love to go running, feeling strong and invincible.

I guess this is my body's payback for me not taking very good care of it the last few weeks.

I have at least five new books to read, but they're all in the category of 'educational' not entertaining.  The movies have not been able to transport me to another world or at least made me forget what hurts in this one.

I remember Predator 2 being at least sort of fun to watch....why did it suck so bad this time around?!

Well, i've at least exhausted myself a bit from sitting at the computer, so maybe i'll be able to sleep for another hour or two.

No, I don't need any sympathy, i'm just doing this blog 'cause i'm awake, bored and needing a distraction.  Whining about how I feel online makes me feel better for some reason. Whee.

If anyone feels like writing a comment, please tell me a Common Cold horror story of your own.  That would be cool. 

Any movie suggestions would be great too.  I might have to drag my gasping carcass down to the local used movie store and get something for entertainment...and also stop by QFC to get some Kleenex.  The ultra-environmental-unfriendly type.  With Aloe.  And any other species-erradicating niceties that are in there.

Okay, yeah...i'm definitely tired enough now. 

Enjoy your good health, you freaks of nature!!

1:33 PM - 6 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

yogurt, drugs and smoke
Current mood: sick

Well, to get the boring (for you) bit out of the way, here are pictures of my favorite food combination.  I found a new granola mix (bulk) at the hippy co-op (Madison Market) and added it to the wondrous Chobani yogurt that I had discovered a month or so ago.  I just tried the Vanilla version (without any fruit on the bottom thank god) and it's so thick, a bit on the sour side, but with the granola....heaven.


The yogurt:


The granola mix:


The ingredients and percentages....check out the protein content and low carbs:


Look how thick it is:


Look at the beautiful combo:


Okay, enough drooling.

Next story:
My friend Sean and his girl C (don't know if she wants to be named in this story)...wait...maybe her name starts with a K...fuck.  Anyway, they went to R-Place on Capitol Hill for Halloween.  They had had a few drinks, but nothing to get really bombed on.  Sean was in line, waiting to order another drink, when a girl said he could have hers.  He unthinkingly accepted and drank it.  He doesn't remember anything after that.

Yup, that drink had been tampered with.  He's not sure if the girl had drank some and was feeling the effects and stupidly offered it to someone else or if it was just a random drugging that he says happens quite frequently where he DJ's downtown. 

I guess there are complete shits cruising the clubs just dropping shit into people's drinks.  So....the lesson is, don't leave your drink unattended and of course never accept a drink from an unknown stranger, even if it is a sweet girl.

Sean's girl hand her head on straight and realized something was wrong with Sean right away.  She knew he hadn't had very many drinks and shouldn't be acting blasted out of his mind.  She took him home and watched over his ass. 

I'm so glad he came through okay.  What if he had drank a ton of alcohol already, before chugging the spiked drink?  That amount of depressants in a body could have sent him into a coma.  What if I ever was drugged like that?  I wouldn't be able to wake up if my blood sugar became dangerously low.  I could possibly go into an insulin coma and die.

There are some really dumb fucks out there who will probably end up killing someone with their stupid drugging game.  Watch yourselves, watch your drink and if you have ANY worry a drink might have been left alone too long....just get another one.

On another subject....our whole building downtown was cleared out due to a worker welding (or something along those lines) near an intake for the air system.  The horrible burning odor hit all of the Popcap floors (and probably all the others too) and the whole block was cordoned off around the building. 

It's nice, at times, to have the fire department right across the street.  There were at least 4 fire trucks, a news helicopter and some news vans all piled into that one intersection.  The poor firefighters didn't get to blast away with their hoses and the news people didn't get any pictures of mass flames and screaming people. 

There almost was a casualty.  A firefighter nearly got run over by some dumbass in a red car that came screaming through the blocked intersection.

Everyone got to leave a bit early, since the air was still horribly stinky when we got back in the building.

Not a very exciting story, I know.  But I wanted to post pictures of my yogurt craze,  so you're stuck with a few milky pictures and some fillers.

Hmmm....I wonder what I should have for dinner tonight....

3:07 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Tonight, somewhere between happiness and contentment.
Current mood: sleepy

I usually exist, blog about and wallow in my own acid bath of negativity.

(Yes, that was a pretentious sentence, but it was fun to say.)

That seems to be my comfortable pH ...acidic.  I talk about things that have gone wrong, either sadly or laughingly depending on what the situation was.   Most of the time, life's pissy moments don't leave me with any aftermath of relief or contentment.

Tonight though, I'm left with a feeling somewhere between happiness and contentment after a strange ending to a dating experience.  The experience is now two days past, but the thinking I've done in between has brought me to this….space. 

It feels almost exactly like spending three hours kayaking on a short section of the Powerhouse, playing in the holes and learning to roll.  At the end of the adrenaline rush (holy shit I'm upside down in my kayak and heading downstream rapidly!) and massive, full-body physical activity, I would barely be able to haul out my kayak, strip the wet suit off and climb into the truck.  My exhub and I would go to an Azteca to savor, SAVOR the beautiful flavors of fat, salt, peppers, lime and tequila.  Either Azteca was different back then (I doubt it) or the complete exhaustion and hunger made the food into an incredible experience.  Afterwards, watching a movie then crawling into a warm, soft bed was so sweet.

Tonight, I savored my aloneness, my own space.  I had spent three days going out and had lived through the most crazy hour, lacking in communication, literally the complete inability to communicate with another person, that I've ever experienced.  I've had a hard time even explaining what occurred to anyone.

I know that I have a tendency to 'babble' or go into too much detail, so in that hour, as the communication seemed to be deteriorating rapidly, I started speaking slower, choosing my words, trying to make simple statements.  What came back as a response was an opinion or defensiveness that didn't seemed to be based on anything I said.

It was like playing the telephone game, but only with two people.  I'd say something like, "The sky is so blue." and he'd reply, "You think I hate the sky don't you!".  Where the HELL did he get THAT idea?  I didn't use any of those words except SKY for godsake.

We spent the time in my car talking in weird circles and jags.  I felt nuts.  I started sounding like a shrink.  "Why did you just mumble those words knowing that I wouldn't understand them, but hear the tone instead?  Are you trying to make me feel guilty?"

So this last week was actually quite a crazy, not so fun experience that left me exhausted.  I'd spent too much time drinking (Sunday-Tuesday), trying to look good for this dating thing, rushing around and staying up way too late.  My apartment is trashed beyond…well…god, it's bad.  I keep falling behind on laundry and I'm trying to stay healthy and get to my Crossfit classes that really kick my ass.  Tonight I finally made it to class and did pretty well.  I was happy for that and had that really wonderful feeling of muscles used and growing. 

A hot shower, a warm bed in my own room…even this horribly messy room….no pressure to look good, no times to meet up or alcohol to drink to feel comfortable.  No giving of reasons why I don't want to have sex on the second date, even though I found him very attractive.   It's like I've blasted through some exhausting experience called Dating and have finally arrived back at Normal.

I enjoyed the food, the music and yes, even some of the alcohol and company, but I'm not sure I have room in my life for Dating.  Or at least not a person, no matter how cool, that I can't fucking communicate with for whatever the reason was.

There's so many other things that this experience has me thinking about, such as how to conduct a modern-day date without just fucking and getting the sex out of the way.  I had decided a while back, after a certain stupid drunken night, that I wasn't going to have sex with someone unless I felt comfortable, safe, and happy with them.  That brings up some issues in these days of kissing on the first date, getting a bit of a feel the second date and 'Hey lets fuck already' by the third date.

I wish there was a saliva test or something, where you and the person you're thinking of going on a date with both lick the test-o-meter and in 5 seconds it pops up a message like "Do NOT spend any time or money on this!" or "There's a 95.3% chance of catching an STD" with a red flashing warning saying NOT COMPATABLE!  NOT COMPATABLE!  NOT COMPATABLE!

Then the thought, "Should I let him know I'm not interested by dialing, or can I just text him the basic facts?" will never have to cross my mind.

I'm going back to my couch to revel in my space.  I've met all the demands of today and of myself.  There is no one else here to create unwanted vibrations in my space.  It's just a few fruit flies and me.  Happiness is too over the top to describe how I feel and Contentment is too passive.

It's just nicely in between.

7:11 AM - 3 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

Crossfit Oct 24th
Current mood: weird

I just got out of bed.  It's almost 2pm.  I'm sore all over from last night's Crossfit workout.  The workout had five separate exercises.  We had six people, so split up into 2 teams.  As a team, we rotated through the five exercises.

20 Wall Balls
10 V-Ups
10 pushups
10 squat/jump/curls
2 forward rolls

Go through the series 5x for time.

Each Crossfit workout usually begins with a warm up.  Dave is usually the most fun teacher during warmups, because he introduces new movements.  Last night he showed us this movement that reminded me of some breakdance moves. 

You get into a plank/pushup position,  leave one hand in position, bring the opposite leg up next to where the other hand was, then bring the last leg through so you'd be in a sitting position with one leg extended forward.  You'd reverse that and then do the other side.  Of course it was a bit of a mind twist for some of us and if you did it fast enough it was quite a workout.

Dave took us through the movements of the squat/jump/curl (I'm not sure it if had another name), which is basically squating with hands behind you, winging your arms forward and up as you jump upwards, bring your feet up to your butt (not sure if the knees when to chest, I was stuck at the feet to butt level), land and swing your arms back (for balance mainly).  Repeat.

Dave then took us to the mats and had us do forward rolls.  Gymnastic movements are a part of Crossfit.  Dave said he wanted us to get used to being upside down.  If anyone wanted to do cartwheels or armless cartwheels...they could.  I stuck with the forward roll during the actual workout, 'cause I wasn't certain my arms could handle a cartwheel after doing everything else. 

Also part of a crossfit warmup is pushups.  And v-ups.  V-ups are when you lay flat and then sit up into your straight legs....ya know, fold in the middle and meet at the top...balancing on your butt.  The warmup version is done with bended knees instead of straight.  Squats are always included.

So after all the warmup bits and instruction it's off to the full workout.

At the end of the workout, we were instructed to take a 16K kettlebell in each hand and go do a farmer's walk up to the corner of the block and back.  Seems easy, but damn it makes you breath hard.  And walk funny.  My forearms were burning by the time I got back to the gym.

Since it was friday and there is a local bar and restaurant near by, I passed quite a few couples on the way to food, drink and entertainment.  As I puffed and gasped and waddled my way up the sidewalk, with two round balls of iron dangling from my hands, I bet they wondered what the hell I was doing and did I have a life?

Well, I might not have much of a life on Friday night, but I sure will have a nice set of arms, abs and buttocks! 

I was going to try to get to the 8am class this morning (it's the last class available during the week), but I was stiff, sore and had been up all night with low and high blood sugars.

I'm finally up and feeling a bit more normal.

I can't wait till we do handstands again...and Skin the Cat.  Fun, fun!

8:57 AM - 3 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Death with Dignity or I -1000
Current mood: determined

I voted 'yes' or 'approve' on I-1000.  I hope all of you who read this take the time to read the initiative's language and maybe some online stories of death and dying.

I just joined The Hemlock Society, which is now called Compassion and Choices.

I have seen 'good' deaths as well as horrible lives that are near death.  I've heard and read enough true stories as well as know my own mind on this subject.  Adults need to have as many choices as possible at the end of life.  Being able to ask for help in dying, with all the safeguards in place, should be a right.  The whole "slippery slope" argument is just fear mongering.  The Netherlands are not a horror of unwanted euthanasia.  Oregon is not awash with the blood of the elderly, sick or unwanted.

Read the wording of the initiative and make your choice.  Think about your own end and how you would like it to be, in the worst and best case.

Yes there are strange outgrowths that can be problematic, such as health insurance denying chemotherapy, but paying for the drugs a person gets to end their life.  This is wrong and should be fixed if I-1000 does pass, but we all know the inequities that insurance companies continuously bombard us with.  The most well-known is the Viagra vs. Birth Control.  Personally, I still would like the choice to end my life or battle the insurance companies.  The insurance companies would still deny me certain life-giving treatments no matter whether I could obtain an assisted death or not.

Life and death are never perfect.  Choices are how we try and control our destinies and quality of life.

Here is a few links for thought:

A list of the Initiative's provisions and information on the Supporter side as well as the Opposer side:

ballotpedia information


A Heartfelt Appeal for a Graceful Exit, by Jane Brody (PDF format)

A Heartfelt Appeal for a Graceful Exit


I think this will be a close vote.  I hope it is an affirmative vote. 

If you have religious objections, please remember that no one is forcing you or anyone else to end their lives.  This is not a promotion of death. 

6:10 AM - 6 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment