Today was mostly a work day. It was a super-productive day, but progress was made on the audit.
We are nearly done and hopefully tomorrow we'll start our final import and start making preparations to release the data and train our users on the new system for maintaining it.
I read an interesting account of the Iowa micro-wine industry today. I still would like to grow some grapes at some point.
I was able to get a very quick ride in out at sugarbottom after work this evening.
I also took the beagle around the perimeter of the Iowa rental property for 2 full loops. Tyler is still not 100%, but he seems to be getting better finall!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
20100328
Today was a pretty decent day.
I got a swim in mid-morning. I hit 184.5 pounds again. I think 185 is going to be the weight that I can maintain, with somewhat normal eating and the occasional beer or three. I could go for a somewhat more extreme diet and NO beer, but that just does not seem like much fun to me. This is about 10-11% body fat which I think is pretty good for an old bloke.
I had a full burrito at pancheros (mmm barbacoa). I normally just get the burrito bowl, but I was in the mood for the uncut version today. :)
After fighting the good fight getting groceries at Hy-vee, and avoiding buying a very nice bike at Scheels(that was on sale!), I got a text that the mountain bike trails at Sugarbottom opened! What glorious news! I high-tailed it home, put the groceries away and zipped on over there.
I got a reasonable ride in. There is still a massive amount of water on the trails, much of the 304 trail coming back in was under water, I did not ride the 100 loop at all today, but did all of 200 and 300 except for 305 which was completely submerged. The trails are in astonishingly good shape for this time of year. I'm looking forward to many rides there this year! I think it's time to get the full suspension bike tuned up--I've been riding the old Trek 6000 thus far.
To celebrate the stroke of good luck, I pulled a Sofie Belgian Style Ale 2009 from Goose Island out.
I got a swim in mid-morning. I hit 184.5 pounds again. I think 185 is going to be the weight that I can maintain, with somewhat normal eating and the occasional beer or three. I could go for a somewhat more extreme diet and NO beer, but that just does not seem like much fun to me. This is about 10-11% body fat which I think is pretty good for an old bloke.
I had a full burrito at pancheros (mmm barbacoa). I normally just get the burrito bowl, but I was in the mood for the uncut version today. :)
After fighting the good fight getting groceries at Hy-vee, and avoiding buying a very nice bike at Scheels(that was on sale!), I got a text that the mountain bike trails at Sugarbottom opened! What glorious news! I high-tailed it home, put the groceries away and zipped on over there.
I got a reasonable ride in. There is still a massive amount of water on the trails, much of the 304 trail coming back in was under water, I did not ride the 100 loop at all today, but did all of 200 and 300 except for 305 which was completely submerged. The trails are in astonishingly good shape for this time of year. I'm looking forward to many rides there this year! I think it's time to get the full suspension bike tuned up--I've been riding the old Trek 6000 thus far.To celebrate the stroke of good luck, I pulled a Sofie Belgian Style Ale 2009 from Goose Island out.
20100327
Work, I dare say, was the the theme today, ugh.
I did manage a quick 3k swim. A _bad_ chinese food run, and then about 20 hours of work on auditing data conversion. It was not very much fun work, but progress was made. Towards the end of the day, I pulled out a Traquair House Ale. What a fabulous treat that was!
I did manage a quick 3k swim. A _bad_ chinese food run, and then about 20 hours of work on auditing data conversion. It was not very much fun work, but progress was made. Towards the end of the day, I pulled out a Traquair House Ale. What a fabulous treat that was!
Saturday, March 27, 2010
20100326
Frustrating, slow progress for the data audit today. But we are getting there, I think another couple of days and it will be done.
I did not swim or do anything else except work today. Also talked with the MRN folks about converting over to being a contractor at MRN rather than an employee. I think it's time, the private business is going pretty strong and I think it's time to begin the transition/phase out of full time NM work. I'm excited, but at the same time, I'm looking forward to going out west in a couple of weeks (I should be in NM and CA for nearly 3 weeks in April).
I did not swim or do anything else except work today. Also talked with the MRN folks about converting over to being a contractor at MRN rather than an employee. I think it's time, the private business is going pretty strong and I think it's time to begin the transition/phase out of full time NM work. I'm excited, but at the same time, I'm looking forward to going out west in a couple of weeks (I should be in NM and CA for nearly 3 weeks in April).
20100325
Thursday is usually my least favorite day. However, I got a reasonable amount of sleep after feeling sick yesterday. I managed to get a lot of MRN and local work done today. The audit, while not finished is finally progressing.
I managed to get another short swim in and the beagle got a quick walk in around the rental property.
The best part of the day, though, was hanging out with Matt at The Sanctuary. Good company and good beer. The Sanctuary was out of piraat, so I had la chouffe paired with a nice pizza.
I managed to get another short swim in and the beagle got a quick walk in around the rental property.
The best part of the day, though, was hanging out with Matt at The Sanctuary. Good company and good beer. The Sanctuary was out of piraat, so I had la chouffe paired with a nice pizza.
20100324
I felt like absolute crap all day today, both in terms of mood and productivity. I also managed to throw up (ugh) after swimming in the afternoon. I think I caught another minor bug while traveling, hopefully it goes away soon!
20100323
I traveled up the parkway to the Baltimore Airport, BWI. I had a 6am flight, so I arrived at the airport at about 4:00am. Since the security lanes didn't even open until 4:30am, I got to hang out in the terminal for a bit. I managed to leave and arrive on to Chicago ontime, but of course was late leaving Chicago and late finally getting back to Cedar Rapids. All in all, 5 of the 6 segments were delayed on my journey from Cedar Rapids to Birmingham via Dallas and Birmingham to DC via Dallas and Baltimore to Cedar Rapids via Chicago. I'm very disappointed in American Airlines, going forward it looks like I'm mainly need to fly United or perhaps Delta depending on cost. Thankfully, though, winter is over and much of my travel will now simply be hopping in the Jeep and heading out west.
I arrived to a more healthy and happy Beagle, who had been boarded at Julia's Kennels near West Branch. I got a quick swim in, and then SLEPT for hours and called it a day.
I arrived to a more healthy and happy Beagle, who had been boarded at Julia's Kennels near West Branch. I got a quick swim in, and then SLEPT for hours and called it a day.
20100322
Today I am in DC, well Bethesda MD actually, attending a conference on the open source product, OpenClinica that one of my projects based in Iowa City uses to support biomedical informatics needs.
I learned a great deal about the OpenClinica product and its capabilities.
Those working around its limitations, seem mostly unwilling or unable to share actual code, so I found it fairly frustrating that we'll have to reimplement their approaches based solely on having the gist of what they've done.
Following the day, I got the metro down to Dupont Circle.
I hung out at the Brickskeller, my favorite place in DC!
In addition to a nice pizza, I had
Bells: Batch 9000
Heavy Seas: siren noir
I also had
Bells: Consecrator with a piece of glorious cheesecake.
It was a good day (at least the evening!).
I learned a great deal about the OpenClinica product and its capabilities.
Those working around its limitations, seem mostly unwilling or unable to share actual code, so I found it fairly frustrating that we'll have to reimplement their approaches based solely on having the gist of what they've done.
Following the day, I got the metro down to Dupont Circle.
I hung out at the Brickskeller, my favorite place in DC!
In addition to a nice pizza, I had
Bells: Batch 9000
Heavy Seas: siren noir
I also had
Bells: Consecrator with a piece of glorious cheesecake.
It was a good day (at least the evening!).
Sunday, March 21, 2010
20100321
I had a pretty reasonable day visiting Jeff and Karen in Birmingham today.
It was a bit cold and rainy unlike the previous day, though.
We started the day a bit late with workouts at the hotel--recovering from another evening of debauchery. We picked up an electronic tape measure and some quick food and measured the majority of their new house for renovation planning. I was able to grab a beer with Jeff at the airport prior to the two of house heading back home. Karen was staying on for another day.
American Airlines again managed to have my flights be late, both into Dallas and then on to DC flights were late.
The health care bill passed in the House this evening. I am not completely thrilled with it, but it's a step forward.
It was a bit cold and rainy unlike the previous day, though.
We started the day a bit late with workouts at the hotel--recovering from another evening of debauchery. We picked up an electronic tape measure and some quick food and measured the majority of their new house for renovation planning. I was able to grab a beer with Jeff at the airport prior to the two of house heading back home. Karen was staying on for another day.
American Airlines again managed to have my flights be late, both into Dallas and then on to DC flights were late.
The health care bill passed in the House this evening. I am not completely thrilled with it, but it's a step forward.
20100320
I had a great day with Jeff and Karen in Birmingham, AL today.
We started the day somewhat late as all of us had plenty of libations to process from the previous evening. We grabbed brunch at The Mill in Five Points and took in the tail end of an Irish festival in the square. I had a pint of a pretty decent double IPA brewed locally in Birmingham.
While Karen had some business to attend to, Jeff and I further explored Five Points. We found an spectacular alehouse, J Clyde, also in the neighborhood. We did not manage to grab a pint, but believe me, with that beer list, we will be back.
We later met again at Karen and Jeff's new house with some local friends and did some further renovation planning and discussion.
Later on in the evening, the group of us met for drinks and dinner, cafe-side, at Bongiorno. Excellent food and service! I had a prosciutto and dried fig wood fired pizza that was quite tasty! Did i mention the strawberry shortcake? :)
We ended the evening at local friends place for further scotch and discussion.
Finally, I am very happy that today was the first day of spring! It was a long winter!
We started the day somewhat late as all of us had plenty of libations to process from the previous evening. We grabbed brunch at The Mill in Five Points and took in the tail end of an Irish festival in the square. I had a pint of a pretty decent double IPA brewed locally in Birmingham.
While Karen had some business to attend to, Jeff and I further explored Five Points. We found an spectacular alehouse, J Clyde, also in the neighborhood. We did not manage to grab a pint, but believe me, with that beer list, we will be back.
We later met again at Karen and Jeff's new house with some local friends and did some further renovation planning and discussion.
Later on in the evening, the group of us met for drinks and dinner, cafe-side, at Bongiorno. Excellent food and service! I had a prosciutto and dried fig wood fired pizza that was quite tasty! Did i mention the strawberry shortcake? :)
We ended the evening at local friends place for further scotch and discussion.
Finally, I am very happy that today was the first day of spring! It was a long winter!
20100318
Today work was somewhat trying. Had to do some re-entry of things to help make progress on the data audit. Nothing like data-entry... ugh
Yikes, this could suck. As if I do manage to buy the Cedar Lane property, I will not be able to drive to North Liberty or Coralville without driving many miles out of the way!
Yikes, this could suck. As if I do manage to buy the Cedar Lane property, I will not be able to drive to North Liberty or Coralville without driving many miles out of the way!
20100319
Today was a somewhat hectic travel day, due to American Airlines not being able to keep their schedule. I flew from Cedar Rapids to Dallas and on to Birmingham, AL.
After arriving late, we had a quick tour of Jeff and Karen's new home and then met some local friends for dinner and fellowship.
We stayed up very late and had a nice time catching up.
After arriving late, we had a quick tour of Jeff and Karen's new home and then met some local friends for dinner and fellowship.
We stayed up very late and had a nice time catching up.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
20100317
St Patrick's Day has always been one of my favorite days of the year. I enjoy celebrating and embracing my partial celtic heritage. Green has always been my favorite colour. I have always wished to be in Boston or Savannah, Ga on this date to witness the parades and festivities or for that matter Dublin! I have to be careful though, anytime I cross the pond, it makes it even less likely that I want to come back...
I don't have any special plans today, but hope to at least grab dinner and a few drinks after work this evening, perhaps with a friend.
I dug around for some of my favorite Gaelic proverbs to share:
Cùm do chù ri leigeadh.
Hold back your dog till the deer falls.
Is math an sgàthan sùil caraide.
A friend’s eye is a good looking-glass.
Gluais faicilleach le cupan làn.
Go carefully with a full cup.
Nuair a bhíonn an t-ól istigh, bíonn an chiall amuigh. When the drink is in, the sense is out.
What a nice day this turned out to be. Indeed!
After work, I went on a hike with my friend Matt Squire/Linder Point Loop at the Coralville Reservoir. We had a nice dinner at Red's Alehouse. I must be a "regular" there, as we got a table in no time on a super-busy night. :) Dinner, as always was good, and so was the company!
My day ended with me laughing my butt off to this link that Mark sent me.
Recently, I haven't had so many good days, but today was a notable exception. I'm hoping for more days like this.
I don't have any special plans today, but hope to at least grab dinner and a few drinks after work this evening, perhaps with a friend.
I dug around for some of my favorite Gaelic proverbs to share:
Cùm do chù ri leigeadh.
Hold back your dog till the deer falls.
Is math an sgàthan sùil caraide.
A friend’s eye is a good looking-glass.
Gluais faicilleach le cupan làn.
Go carefully with a full cup.
Nuair a bhíonn an t-ól istigh, bíonn an chiall amuigh. When the drink is in, the sense is out.
What a nice day this turned out to be. Indeed!
After work, I went on a hike with my friend Matt Squire/Linder Point Loop at the Coralville Reservoir. We had a nice dinner at Red's Alehouse. I must be a "regular" there, as we got a table in no time on a super-busy night. :) Dinner, as always was good, and so was the company!
My day ended with me laughing my butt off to this link that Mark sent me.
Recently, I haven't had so many good days, but today was a notable exception. I'm hoping for more days like this.
20100315
It was a long, expensive morning but found out what has been plaguing Tyler. He has tested positive and appears to now be suffering from Lyme's Disease. This would explain many of his recent symptoms such as strange joint pain in right front leg, lethargy, weight loss, etc. He stopped being a beagle this weekend and it about broke my heart, so I am hopeful that the treatment will work and he'll bounce back to being somewhat normal again. Once Tyler was squared away with his treatment, worked the rest of the day on the data audit. Things started to go better this that by the afternoon. In the early evening, I got a swim in. Tyler seemed somewhat better in the late evening, we was able to walk around the house slowly on his own (having to carry him to his food/water and outside was sad.
20100316
Worked another long day on the data audit of the Iowa-based project. We are finally starting to make some progress and I think we're just about done with this phase. Tyler started to respond to his anti-inflammatory and antibiotics today. He is running around the house howling and foraging for food again, which is more in line with the beagle that I know and love.
I got a late evening swim in, but note to self, the pool closes at 8pm even though the community center closes at 9pm. Thus, the swim was shortened and left me wanting more, but I guess that's it for today--I didn't really feel like riding the trainer tonight. Another note to self, why not get some of workout videos, yoga mats, etc for little workouts at home, perhaps I will get that set up when I return from trip to Alabama and DC this weekend.
I got a late evening swim in, but note to self, the pool closes at 8pm even though the community center closes at 9pm. Thus, the swim was shortened and left me wanting more, but I guess that's it for today--I didn't really feel like riding the trainer tonight. Another note to self, why not get some of workout videos, yoga mats, etc for little workouts at home, perhaps I will get that set up when I return from trip to Alabama and DC this weekend.
Monday, March 15, 2010
20100314
What a beautiful late winter day. It hit 60°F for the first time this year. It was mostly sunny, with just some wind. There's actually some green grass beneath the cedars in front of my rental house, perhaps there is some hope that spring is truly just a few weeks away.
In the afternoon, i went on a nice bike ride.
I was messed up all day with regard to the time change. It seems like it occurred much earlier than expected, but I have no complaints, I much prefer day light savings time, I could potentially get some bike rides after work in now, if the weather continues to cooperate.
Tyler is not doing well. His right front leg is stiff, he refuses to use it. I'm hopefully getting him to the vet tomorrow morning to see what is wrong with it. It doesn't appear to be broken, but he will not use it and now refuses to go down stairs or jump up on the bed.
I also got a swim in after biking, progress on the Mm:
Results (45 Found | 33537 Total kcal | 189.53 Total km.)
In the afternoon, i went on a nice bike ride.
I was messed up all day with regard to the time change. It seems like it occurred much earlier than expected, but I have no complaints, I much prefer day light savings time, I could potentially get some bike rides after work in now, if the weather continues to cooperate.
Tyler is not doing well. His right front leg is stiff, he refuses to use it. I'm hopefully getting him to the vet tomorrow morning to see what is wrong with it. It doesn't appear to be broken, but he will not use it and now refuses to go down stairs or jump up on the bed.
I also got a swim in after biking, progress on the Mm:
Results (45 Found | 33537 Total kcal | 189.53 Total km.)
20100313
Today was a dark and gloomy day.
I managed only to get a short swim in.
The bulk of the day was spent monitoring and worrying about Tyler.
He apparently injured his right front leg during his little adventure.
I am taking a wait and see approach to see if he gets better.
I managed only to get a short swim in.
The bulk of the day was spent monitoring and worrying about Tyler.
He apparently injured his right front leg during his little adventure.
I am taking a wait and see approach to see if he gets better.
20100312
Thank the gods, I got Tyler back today.
At 0930am a distant neighbor called and said that he had found Tyler the previous morning. He had trouble finding my contact information, because Tyler's rabies tag and contact information tag were missing from his collar.
Tyler seems mostly ok, although very tired and seems very sad.
I got to spend some time working with KCA today, that was really nice.
Later in the day, I met mom and mike for dinner at Red's. They are off to cozumel, mexico until thursday.
At 0930am a distant neighbor called and said that he had found Tyler the previous morning. He had trouble finding my contact information, because Tyler's rabies tag and contact information tag were missing from his collar.
Tyler seems mostly ok, although very tired and seems very sad.
I got to spend some time working with KCA today, that was really nice.
Later in the day, I met mom and mike for dinner at Red's. They are off to cozumel, mexico until thursday.
20100311
What a horrible day, one of the worst that I can remember.
The day started with me chasing Tyler nearly all night. I gave up trying to find him at about 3:30am. I left the patio door wide open with treats and a full bowl of food.
Later on work did not go well all day, I was constantly worried about Tyler and could not focus. I called all local vet clinics, the humane society, the sheriff's dispatch just to let them know that Tyler was missing.
I looked everywhere for him, but had no luck finding him.
This seriously was one of the worst days of my life.
The day started with me chasing Tyler nearly all night. I gave up trying to find him at about 3:30am. I left the patio door wide open with treats and a full bowl of food.
Later on work did not go well all day, I was constantly worried about Tyler and could not focus. I called all local vet clinics, the humane society, the sheriff's dispatch just to let them know that Tyler was missing.
I looked everywhere for him, but had no luck finding him.
This seriously was one of the worst days of my life.
20100310
Today was an ok day in terms of work.
but
Tyler got loose this evening. At about 10pm he managed to get outside off leash.
He chased deer for hours, the human chased tyler for hours no luck in finding him.
but
Tyler got loose this evening. At about 10pm he managed to get outside off leash.
He chased deer for hours, the human chased tyler for hours no luck in finding him.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
20100308
Well i wish this cold (i'm thinking it's a viral sinusitis) were getting better, but it really has not seemed to improve as of yet. I managed to get a swim in today. Also finally got to work some with Hans on our Huntington's Disease project today. We're still stuck importing CDISC 1.3 into SAS. Also the windows-based laptop that I had been using decided to die. I truly have earned and actively maintain my reputation for being a laptop killer.
20100309
Today I spent a fair bit of time with my buyer's agent. We prepared and submitted a formal purchase agreement contract for the 3978 cedar lane property in Solon. I'm very hopeful that the seller will accept (perhaps just a small bit of negotiation is still needed on a handful of items). I think the bulk of the details have been agreed upon (verbally and via email), so hopefully Tyler beagle and I will have a new home starting June 1!
Spent the afternoon fighting the good fight on importing CDISC 1.3 into SAS. What a pain, I think we will get it working though. I really am ready to have this phase of the project finished.
The viral sinusitis is starting to get better today. I am at least feeling slightly better and more energetic. I also am putting a dent in the weight that I gained back, down to 187 again.
I managed to get another 5k swim during the evening today. That was a first (swimming in the evening), it turns out the 5:20pm--7:00pm time period was relatively open (I would have thought it would have been more busy).
Spent the afternoon fighting the good fight on importing CDISC 1.3 into SAS. What a pain, I think we will get it working though. I really am ready to have this phase of the project finished.
The viral sinusitis is starting to get better today. I am at least feeling slightly better and more energetic. I also am putting a dent in the weight that I gained back, down to 187 again.
I managed to get another 5k swim during the evening today. That was a first (swimming in the evening), it turns out the 5:20pm--7:00pm time period was relatively open (I would have thought it would have been more busy).
Monday, March 8, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
20100306
I started the day a bit late (slept in) and finally went for a nice swim.
For the year I done the following swims:
39 Total | 29293 Total kcal | 165.28 Total km
After resting and ugh coughing (I wish I could kick this wretched cold), I took the beagle snowshoeing at Macbride Nature Rectreation Area. We followed this snowshoe route. It was a glorious sunny late winter day. Most of the shoeing was done on Lake Macbride. I used the DROID phone to capture some pictures of the outing.
I talked with my buyer's agent today regarding the cedar lane property. I'm moving forward with a real estate contract, hopefully to be offered sunday or monday.
The picture shows an aerial view of the property that could perhaps be my next home.
The day was nicely capped off by hanging out with Matt. We grabbed dinner and saw A Single Man. For the most part, I liked the film. It moved kind of slow, I did like the nonlinear timeline and how his past relationship was revealed in bits throughout the day. Also, the use of pillows and sleeping bag in his botched attempt at ending his life was rather amusing.
For the year I done the following swims:
39 Total | 29293 Total kcal | 165.28 Total km
After resting and ugh coughing (I wish I could kick this wretched cold), I took the beagle snowshoeing at Macbride Nature Rectreation Area. We followed this snowshoe route. It was a glorious sunny late winter day. Most of the shoeing was done on Lake Macbride. I used the DROID phone to capture some pictures of the outing.
I talked with my buyer's agent today regarding the cedar lane property. I'm moving forward with a real estate contract, hopefully to be offered sunday or monday.
The day was nicely capped off by hanging out with Matt. We grabbed dinner and saw A Single Man. For the most part, I liked the film. It moved kind of slow, I did like the nonlinear timeline and how his past relationship was revealed in bits throughout the day. Also, the use of pillows and sleeping bag in his botched attempt at ending his life was rather amusing.
Friday, March 5, 2010
20100305
I did not sleep worth a CRAP last night! This head cold has taken a turn for the worse. I did not feel up to swimming today, or anything much for that matter.
Later in the day, after getting some work done, I did 5 new paintings!
"Not all black"
"Propelled"
"Swirls"
"Snowshoeing"
"Beneficial"
Matt gave me the idea for both the "Not all black" and "Snowshoeing" pieces.
I still want to go to Alice in Wonderland 3D. I can't seem to find anyone that is super-motivated to go to the movie with me.
Have I mentioned it's good to be back in the midwest? I stumbled upon this today, and it was good for a chuckle.
Later in the day, after getting some work done, I did 5 new paintings!
"Not all black"
"Propelled"
"Swirls"
"Snowshoeing"
"Beneficial"
Matt gave me the idea for both the "Not all black" and "Snowshoeing" pieces.
I still want to go to Alice in Wonderland 3D. I can't seem to find anyone that is super-motivated to go to the movie with me.
Have I mentioned it's good to be back in the midwest? I stumbled upon this today, and it was good for a chuckle.
20100304
Did a quick swim in the morning. Tried to get some work done, despite the rotten head cold.
After some work in the early afternoon, I helped mom pick out a new netbook computer.
On a whim, I decided to roadtrip up to Readlyn to help her set it up. I took tyler beagle. We made steak and chicken fajatias and margaritas. Jessie and the twins came out for a short visit. It was a short, unexpected visit, but was fun and good I think for all of us.
I tried to get the energy to go to Alice in Wonderland 3D for the midnight showing, it turns out it only seemed to be showing in Mt. Vernon. I had good intentions of going, but dozed off briefly and missed out being able to go. No one seemed interested in going with though, either.
After some work in the early afternoon, I helped mom pick out a new netbook computer.
On a whim, I decided to roadtrip up to Readlyn to help her set it up. I took tyler beagle. We made steak and chicken fajatias and margaritas. Jessie and the twins came out for a short visit. It was a short, unexpected visit, but was fun and good I think for all of us.
I tried to get the energy to go to Alice in Wonderland 3D for the midnight showing, it turns out it only seemed to be showing in Mt. Vernon. I had good intentions of going, but dozed off briefly and missed out being able to go. No one seemed interested in going with though, either.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
20100302
Theoretically, today was the first day "back to normal" following grandma K's passing. It really did not feel like a normal day at all.
Today I worked feverishly on getting my piece of documents completed, signed, notarized, and and far too large check sent back to Albuquerque for closing by buyer tomorrow.
Even though I picked up what has now turned out to be a nasty cold, I did manage to get a swim in. I am disappointed in my Mm swimming progress, to date I'm at
37 Found | 27477 Total kcal | 155.28 Total km. 16% of the year has passed, 15.5% of swim goal has been achieved. I plan on stepping the swimming back up later this week when this cold gets better. In the future when I forget how to do a julian in openoffice this code snipet helps
I was able to meet Kim and Jason at Red's Alehouse for lunch today. Had a nice time visiting with them as they began their journey back to Florida.
Today I worked feverishly on getting my piece of documents completed, signed, notarized, and and far too large check sent back to Albuquerque for closing by buyer tomorrow.
Even though I picked up what has now turned out to be a nasty cold, I did manage to get a swim in. I am disappointed in my Mm swimming progress, to date I'm at
37 Found | 27477 Total kcal | 155.28 Total km. 16% of the year has passed, 15.5% of swim goal has been achieved. I plan on stepping the swimming back up later this week when this cold gets better. In the future when I forget how to do a julian in openoffice this code snipet helps
=YEARFRAC("2010-1-1";"2010-3-2";3).I was able to meet Kim and Jason at Red's Alehouse for lunch today. Had a nice time visiting with them as they began their journey back to Florida.
Monday, March 1, 2010
20100301
I went on a nice snowshoe loop this morning during a dualing moonset and sunrise. I was able to use the camera built into my Droid phone to take a few pictures. It was really an awesome way to start the day. I was also able to spend some further time with Bob, Kathy, Brian, Kim and Jason, all of whom stayed along with me at my mom and mike's place in Readlyn.
It was a very long trying day with regard to gma K's funeral. I had already said my goodbye. Today was about being with my larger family, to say our collective goodbye and put my grandmother to her rest. Along with my 10 other male first cousins, I was a pall bearer at the service. I have a significant difference in opinion with how the Catholic faith tradition conducts a funeral service. I much prefer funerals that celebrate the life of the person that has passed away. I tend to think that in this faith tradition, funerals are much too grim and solemn. I don't want to take away anything from the day, but will tell you with certainty that this is NOT how I want to be remembered when I pass someday. I wish that Alfonso could have at least spoken at the service or contributed to it in some way. He and I talked after the service today, and we both reflected on the number of times that he, grandma and I got to spend together several years ago. I would have liked it had Al been able to attend, it would have been really nice for him to share those memories either in the form of a homily are even at the blessing at the meal after the service. Anyway, I am happy that this day is over. I am happy that our family was able to come together and share this day together to say goodbye.
It was a very long trying day with regard to gma K's funeral. I had already said my goodbye. Today was about being with my larger family, to say our collective goodbye and put my grandmother to her rest. Along with my 10 other male first cousins, I was a pall bearer at the service. I have a significant difference in opinion with how the Catholic faith tradition conducts a funeral service. I much prefer funerals that celebrate the life of the person that has passed away. I tend to think that in this faith tradition, funerals are much too grim and solemn. I don't want to take away anything from the day, but will tell you with certainty that this is NOT how I want to be remembered when I pass someday. I wish that Alfonso could have at least spoken at the service or contributed to it in some way. He and I talked after the service today, and we both reflected on the number of times that he, grandma and I got to spend together several years ago. I would have liked it had Al been able to attend, it would have been really nice for him to share those memories either in the form of a homily are even at the blessing at the meal after the service. Anyway, I am happy that this day is over. I am happy that our family was able to come together and share this day together to say goodbye.
20100227
I was still sore from weight lifting friday evening today! I'm happy I did it, though, I just need to figure out how to ease into a weight-lifting routine that does not interfere with the normal cardiovascular fitness training that I am engaged in.
My intention today was to participate in my first triathlon.
The formal event, if you want to call it that, was scheduled to be xc skiing, biking, and snowshoeing at MNRA. Since I did not have time to rent skis (I can't believe by now I haven't just purchased a set), I just swam instead for the xc ski leg. So my first unsanctioned, unofficial first triathlon consisted of a 3.0km swim at the north liberty community pool, followed by a 13.74km bike ride (using a hard tail mountain bike on shoulder of road), and finally a 5.17km snowshoe (mostly on lake macbride). I think I will likely do several of these unofficial tris this year, I'm going to talk to the organizer of this one to see if he's interested in scheduling monthly tris once sugarbottom opens up for the riding season. It felt amazing to do the three activities back to back! I was certainly capable of doing more time on each event; however, I needed to rush a bit in order to make it to Fairbank to attend the wake for my gma K.
After scrambling to pack for a quick two days up north, I managed to go off my lane a bit in my driveway and get my Jeep stuck. It's no small feat to get a Rubicon stuck, I was actually somewhat surprised that I could not get unstuck on my own, but I was easily in about 20 inches of snow at a steep angle buried up to both axles, and anything I did just made the vehicle slide further sideways towards the fence line along the ditch. Looking a the situation, I realized that even IF I had a winch, it would not have gotten me out of that situation, because there really wasn't anything to connect it to laterally to pull me back up the incline and onto the lane.
After that ordeal, I managed a quick drive up to Fairbank. Driving through Jesup on the way, I decided I should plan to stop at Jesup Gym equipment, I would love to have some weight equipment for home, I think a new road bike, weight equipment, and a kayak may all be in the future purchase list. :)
The wake for gma K was well attended by our massive family and friends of my grandmother. It was nice to see many people that I had not seen in years. I was not able to go up to gma's casket, even though I heard that she was made to look nice, I had already said goodbye to her on terms I was happy with. There were many sad family members and friends, most of the wake I spent with my brother in the basement of the funeral home, reflecting on old times living in Fairbank, our boyhood home was literally two houses away from the funeral home.
I stopped in to Costas and got to spend time with Angie, Bev and Gerald, Brian, Becky, Lisa and a few others. It was nice to have some beverages and pizza, and the laughs that always accompany spending time with the Bockholts.
Since the Florida contingent stayed at my mother's house, Bob, Kathy, Brian, Kim, Jason, Mike, Jane, and Jeremy opened a bomber of Marble Reserve Ale and had a toast to an amazing woman, gma K. We had a nice fire and just relaxed after a long day.
After an absolutely gorgeous late-winter day, a spectacular full moon capped the day.
Tomorrow will most certainly be a difficult day.
My intention today was to participate in my first triathlon.
The formal event, if you want to call it that, was scheduled to be xc skiing, biking, and snowshoeing at MNRA. Since I did not have time to rent skis (I can't believe by now I haven't just purchased a set), I just swam instead for the xc ski leg. So my first unsanctioned, unofficial first triathlon consisted of a 3.0km swim at the north liberty community pool, followed by a 13.74km bike ride (using a hard tail mountain bike on shoulder of road), and finally a 5.17km snowshoe (mostly on lake macbride). I think I will likely do several of these unofficial tris this year, I'm going to talk to the organizer of this one to see if he's interested in scheduling monthly tris once sugarbottom opens up for the riding season. It felt amazing to do the three activities back to back! I was certainly capable of doing more time on each event; however, I needed to rush a bit in order to make it to Fairbank to attend the wake for my gma K.
After scrambling to pack for a quick two days up north, I managed to go off my lane a bit in my driveway and get my Jeep stuck. It's no small feat to get a Rubicon stuck, I was actually somewhat surprised that I could not get unstuck on my own, but I was easily in about 20 inches of snow at a steep angle buried up to both axles, and anything I did just made the vehicle slide further sideways towards the fence line along the ditch. Looking a the situation, I realized that even IF I had a winch, it would not have gotten me out of that situation, because there really wasn't anything to connect it to laterally to pull me back up the incline and onto the lane.
After that ordeal, I managed a quick drive up to Fairbank. Driving through Jesup on the way, I decided I should plan to stop at Jesup Gym equipment, I would love to have some weight equipment for home, I think a new road bike, weight equipment, and a kayak may all be in the future purchase list. :)
The wake for gma K was well attended by our massive family and friends of my grandmother. It was nice to see many people that I had not seen in years. I was not able to go up to gma's casket, even though I heard that she was made to look nice, I had already said goodbye to her on terms I was happy with. There were many sad family members and friends, most of the wake I spent with my brother in the basement of the funeral home, reflecting on old times living in Fairbank, our boyhood home was literally two houses away from the funeral home.
I stopped in to Costas and got to spend time with Angie, Bev and Gerald, Brian, Becky, Lisa and a few others. It was nice to have some beverages and pizza, and the laughs that always accompany spending time with the Bockholts.
Since the Florida contingent stayed at my mother's house, Bob, Kathy, Brian, Kim, Jason, Mike, Jane, and Jeremy opened a bomber of Marble Reserve Ale and had a toast to an amazing woman, gma K. We had a nice fire and just relaxed after a long day.
After an absolutely gorgeous late-winter day, a spectacular full moon capped the day.
Tomorrow will most certainly be a difficult day.
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