Turkey on the Trail

Had to get up early to work the swim meet this morning.  But then there was a nap in the afternoon.  And then a mountain bike ride at Hartwood.  Best part was going on a singletrack through a field with waist-high grass.  All of a sudden a turkey appeared on the path in front of me.  I sped up a couple of times, but the turkey also increased its speed and disappeared into the woods at the end of the grass.

Picnic + Dishwasher Successfully Installed

Busy day - bought dishwasher, 45 minute run, company group picnic at North Park, and came home and installed dishwasher. Gotta get up early early tomorrow to work at the swim meet.

Survived a Full Day at Work!

Survived my only full day at work today and had a nice 15 mile bike ride afterward. Looks like it's going to be a busy weekend with a swim meet, company group picnic, and soccer game!

Prick Testing

Had prick testing for food allergies today. The only positive was the histimine control. Interesting result in that it was negative for a food (fish) for which I had previously tested positive. Blood testing is next.

Satisfaction Is Proportional to Fantasy

Mike has helped me to realize that my satisfaction is directly dependent on my level of fantasy.

Safety First!

Picked up a company van for an out-of-town trip tomorrow. It has a bad windshield wiper squeegee. Given our current company policy, I should probably cannabilize one from one of the the other vans.

Defend the dividend!

I Need Another Day Off

Today I did it all - slept in a little bit, checked out the Giro d'Italia on Velonews.com, took a 17 mile bike ride, did Ab Ripper X, read a few more chapters of "The Terror," took a nap, fixed the kitchen floor so the dishwasher can be replaced, and had burgers from the grill.

What I really need is another day off!

Lazy Sunday

Well, I'm not accomplishing anything on my task list this weekend! Church this morning, some parallel parking lessons with Andrew, threw frisbee with Andrew, napped during the thunderstorms, went to see Star Trek with Beth (we really liked it) and then took a walk through Hartwood.

First Mountain Bike Ride of the Year

After 2 trips to Dirty Harry's, and more maintenance than I had planned on, I took my mountain bike on a ride through Hartwood Acres. One of the trails was blocked by a doe and fawn, so I had to go home a different way!

Took a Wrong Turn and Had a Great Bike Ride

Took a half day vacation, went on a bike ride, took a wrong turn, & went for 17 miles, including a couple of roads I'd never been on before. Great ride!

Make It A 4-Day Weekend?

I want to take vacation tomorrow but I have a 1:00 call, which I could do from home. I also have to do some stuff in advance of that call, and I have a monthly report due.

If I stay home I can go on a nice bike ride, or I can do that plumbing project. Of course, those pipes'll still be there on Saturday!

Shirtless Running

One of the greatest days of the year is the first day I can run without a shirt. With the temperature in the low 80s when I got home from work, that was today!

Love My Steel Trek 520, Vintage 1984!

I have a bad spoke on my mountain bike, and couldn't get my wheel trued today. So I went on a road ride with Stephen on my vintage (1984) steel Trek 520. Love that ride!

Systema - Breathe Deeply and Under Control

I don't know anything about Systema, other than that it is a Russian Martial Art. At tonight's TKD class we did some breathing drills which were from our teacher's studying of Systema. The basic idea is that you don't let your body decide when to breathe; rather, you control your body, including controlling when it is to breathe. Some good drills.

In thinking about this workout, it occurred to me what I like so much about running. When I run, the exercise is intense, yet so regular, that I have breathing on my mind and I really pay a lot of attention to the rhythm of my breathing. It is under my control, and I vary my breathing patterns at times, depending on the intensity of my running.

Other exercises, like walking, don't tax my breathing so much, so I don't have the degree of mindfulness of my breathing that I do with running. Mountain biking is, at least where and how I ride, a series of anaerobic fits and starts, so I spend a lot of time breathing, but it's a mostly a matter of breathing as much as possible.

In martial arts, I pretty much exhale on every technique when I do drills or patterns. However, my understanding of Systema is that it is not a pattern-based system. It's more fighting-based, so breathing under rapidly changing circumstances can be a challenge, and is definitely something that is an opportunity for development.

Tonight's workout was very enlightening. I'm going to pay a lot more attention to my breathing in my various activities.

Rachmaninoff All-Night Vigil (Vespers)

Went to St. Paul's Cathedral in Pittsburgh's Oakland section to see the Mendelssohn Choir performance of the Rachmaninoff All-Night Vigil (Vespers). Magnificent!

The Long Sleep

I didn't go to the prom but I slept in like a promgoer, not getting up until 11:15 am. Well, there were a few interruptions, with Stephen coming home at around 5 am, and Beth getting up at 6 am to go on a Venture Crew trip with Andrew. And the political calls started just before 9 am.

Prom Photos

Had a great time taking photos of Stephen and Kayla and their friends before the prom.

Today's Workout

30 minute run and Ab Ripper X. Finally getting back in the groove.

What's That Smell?

When I got back yesterday there was a burny smell that I couldn't quite place. But today, the computer stopped working, and I found that my video card's fan had stopped working and the card was overheating. Found it just in time, too, because the AGP slot on my motherboard's looking a bit charred. But I put in an old card and it does seem to work, so I just need to replace with a better card.

Bite Me

Back from Minnesota. Finally found those "Bite Me" T-Shirts, with giant mosquitos on them, at the airport. Got two of them to be fought over at home. Not looking forward to going back to work tomorrow.

Good Trip to Minnesota

Enjoying the trip to Minnesota so far. We ate dinner at Bacio in Minnetonka.

Getting Ready to Travel Tomorrow

The fever is mostly gone so it looks like I'm going to be stuck with going to Minneapolis tomorrow morning, including a 3 hour leg from Newark, with a nasty head cold.

Could it be Swine Flu?

I've been in bed sick since coming home from work Friday. A team of medical experts I think that it's swine flu.

Sick For The Weekend

It appears that I've gotten sick just in time for the weekend. I have air travel planned for Monday and Tuesday, so hopefully I'll feel some better by then.

The Taming of The Jungle

After a drenching rain yesterday and threats of more of the same today, it turned out to be probably the nicest evening of the spring and we finally completed the year's first taming of the jungle.

I Am...

...one meaningless day closer...

I Must Not Have a Good Butt Crack

I must not have a good butt crack, the evidence of which is my plumbing ability. I thought I was reasonably good as a sometime dabbler in plumbing, but I don't know after tonight. I was setting up my new water softener, at least temporarily, and it was the first time I had tried plastic plumbing parts. I still don't have all the drips stopped, but at least now they're acceptably infrequent. I think I'll go back to all copper tubing for when I permanently install the softener.

Why I Stayed Up Late

I was up very late last night posting Anything Goes photos to my Smugmug and Facebook accounts and tagging them on Facebook. I wonder what'll cause me to stay up way too late tonight?

SWDD (Same Whirlwind Different Day)

Andrew's final PYCO concert of the year was this afternoon. "Anything Goes" is done, unless they get a Gene Kelly Award nomination. So the whirlwind is over. No, wait, Stephen just got home. SWDD (Same Whirlwind Different Day).

Season's First Steaks on the Grill

Cello recitals, steaks on the grill with my visiting parents, and the final performance of "Anything Goes." And tomorrow it continues...

A Full Suburban

A full Suburban came home from Clarion today. A whole lot more stuff in it than went up there last August. Including a drum set, which should make it an interesting summer indeed.