You are currently browsing the category archive for the 'Personal Growth' category.
I love my Jeep – it is “the awesome.” But gas prices have forced me to look at ways to lower my costs.
My daily commute is about 32 miles. With the old me, that was 2 gallons a day. At today’s costs, it would be $8 a day, or $160 a month just for gas.
CNN had an article about the myths of saving gas and mentioned that the best way to improve your gas mileage was to slow down. What?!? Oh noes!
The first tank of the experiment wasn’t much of an improvement… I was still adjusting to my newer, kinder, gentler, “omg I’m going so slow!” way of life. But the second tank of gas actually improved 3 mpg over the last 2. That saves me $25 a month! Think of all the beer that buys!
The weather has been nice — I think the top has been up maybe 4 days over the last 2 months. I’m slowing down and smelling the gardenias… and the natural gas and sewage and road kill, but nevermind that… but it’s becoming nice.
I’m slowly getting used to going slow. Now, if I look down and haven’t been thinking of my speed, I’m going about 62 mph, or about 10-15 mph slower than my old cruising speed.
I kind of like life in the slow lane. Going 15 mph slower adds 3 minutes to my commute. Three more minutes of enjoying the outdoors, the clear blue skies, and the bird song. I definitely like that!
“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather skidding in sideways, chocolate in one hand and wine in the other, body thoroughtly used up, screaming, ‘WOO-HOO!! What a ride!”
Sometimes I feel like I’m not even in line yet, but standing a few feet back watching the ride, hearing the screams, watching people get off the ride — hair tassled, grins on their faces and chattering with their friends using interjections like “Awesome!” and “I know!” and “Let’s go again!”
I’m ready to get in line again. I’m getting back on the ride.
Bring me…. the earworms… (say in an evil Kahn-from-Star-Trek voice).
From Wiki:
Earworm, a loan translation of the German Ohrwurm, is a term for a song stuck in one’s head. Use of the English translation was popularised by James Kellaris, a professor of marketing at the University of Cincinnati. His studies appeared to demonstrate that different people have varying susceptibilities to earworms, but that almost everybody has been afflicted with one at some time or another.
I’ve posted about ear worms before, in a previous blogging life. That life too, was a slack-ish and short-lived life. But we’re not here today to talk about my slack-tivity. We’re here to talk about Dammit, Janet.
I had actually moved away from my ear worms the last 3 or 4 months. It was actually quite strange, not having a constant song in my head. Enough that I noticed it, at least.
But I’ve started a new plan to get fit, and the plan I’m working on gives me about 41 weeks (starting last week) to get to the top of my goal weight range. This has been my mantra the last week and a half. 41 weeks… 41 weeks… 41 weeks… no, you don’t want to eat poor choices, you’ve got 41 weeks… yes, you really DO want to go exercie, you’ve got 41 weeks… and so on.
It’s actually worked so far (I’ve got 40 weeks). I only exercised 4 times last week, but my food choices weren’t too bad. I’m trying to go for moderation without counting every stinking calorie that passes my lips. I was on a super-strict diet once or twice and I lost weight, but the second the strict part was gone, I was gone too. (remember the slack-tivity above? It’s all encompassing.)
So, by introducing the repetitive mantra, I’ve obviously awakened the ear worms from their brief hibernation. We’re on day 3 of Dammit, Janet. But it’s not so bad.
40 more weeks.
J-A-N-E-T I love you so, oh, oh!
Mark, his wife and I crossed the finish line at 1 hour, 1 minute. The whole thing was just amazing. Our team raised $12,480.00! Jack and Nancy were the #2 and #3 individual fund raisers for the WHOLE event!
It was just really, really cool. Check my flickr on the right …
Today I lifted — a total of 15,600 lbs. This way I can run/walk Tue and Thur, and then do the 5K on Sat. Now that I know a couple of people that are going to walk, I may just walk with them instead of trying to keep up with those that are going to run.
I lifted weights today. The YMCA uses Cybex machines that have fitlinxx. You log in before your workout, and it sets up all the machines for you. You go to your first machine, mine is the leg press, and put in your pin and it tells you what weight you used last time and how many reps you have set as your goal (you put in a min/max), and there’s a place for notes where you put your setttings (like Back 3, Feet 4, etc) so you don’t have to remember anything. It gives an audible and visual cue to slow down in your lifting too fast, and if you let the weights touch the bottom. Then after your min reps it gives a rewarding beep, and if you reach your max, a cheery little tune. Then it tells you the next machine to move to. I LOVE it! I get monthly emails telling me how many calories I’ve burned (in the form of # of gummy bears) and how much weight I’ve lifted (in the form of elephants). I can also put in cardio workouts at the machine in the gym, or from any computer. And from my computer at work or home, I can email my coach, CF, who is awesome!
I’m much stronger in my legs, and TOTALLY weak in my arms, especially my biceps. My triceps are ok, and I think that helps my “gun of an arm” as some people have said I have.
| Exercise | Visits | Reps | Sets | Ave Wt(lbs.) | Tot Wt(lbs.) | Form % |
| Cybex VR2 Ab Crunch | 1 | 25 | 1 | 70 | 1,750 | 95 |
| Cybex VR2 Arm Curl | 1 | 12 | 1 | 45 | 540 | 78 |
| Cybex VR2 Arm Extension Tricep Extension | 1 | 15 | 1 | 60 | 900 | 87 |
| Cybex VR2 Back Extension | 1 | 25 | 1 | 140 | 3,500 | 100 |
| Cybex VR2 Chest Press | 1 | 12 | 1 | 70 | 840 | 75 |
| Cybex VR2 Pulldown | 1 | 15 | 1 | 115 | 1,725 | 78 |
| Cybex VR2 Lateral Raise | 1 | 15 | 1 | 40 | 600 | 67 |
| Cybex VR2 Leg Extension | 1 | 15 | 1 | 80 | 1,200 | 93 |
| Cybex VR2 Seated Leg Curl | 1 | 15 | 1 | 80 | 1,200 | 96 |
| Cybex VR2 Leg Press | 1 | 15 | 1 | 200 | 3,000 | 93 |
| TOTALS | 10 | 164 | 10 | 90 | 15,255 | 86 |
Finally got back to the gym today. I ran/walked 1.75 miles in 30 minutes. Felt good, knee and hip didn’t hurt until just a little at the end while walking/cooling down in the last 2 minutes.
I am a member of the YMCA in Buckhead. It’s right at I-75 and Moores Mill Road. Being in an old and established part of Buckhead means the crowd that works out there is… very interesting. About 40% of them are old men, with another 40% size 0 Buckhead Moms that don’t have much more to do other drop the kids off – from the conversations I’ve over-heard most don’t even pick them up, the nanny does that. The remaining 20% (I checked my math. It’s my job after all) are a total mixed bag of people like me (out of shape and there to change that), old women (really old), and younger single types.
I like this mixed bag. It’s definitely not a meat factory / hook up place like some of the other gyms are, and it’s very family friendly. We take the kids swimming (they get great pleasure in swimming in mid-January… it’s like breaking a rule or something) year round and there are a lot of activities including a great summer camp that they may attend this year.
I asked EGlenn earlier tonight “Why, if I feel this good at 7:50pm after working my butt off at work all day, do I not exercise every morning of my life?” and his reply was “Because you hate waking up in the morning with every fiber of your being, and you can’t have a memory of being refreshed when you’re in that state.” And he’s totally right. I’m a morning person that hates waking up, and a night owl that can’t pull an all night-er. I love the morning… once I’m up and awake. And I love staying up late, but I can rarely make it all night.
“I run when chased.”
After holding fast to this mantra for nearly 20 years, I’m going to start running. Yesterday I signed up for the Susan G. Komen 5K on May 12th. That’s less than a month away. But, I have some inspiration and motivation.
About a month ago someone fairly close to me let us know that she has breast cancer. When she first told us, she made it seem ok – no big deal – everything’s under control. She used words like “contained,” “it’s all figured out,” “I’ll only be out for a bit…”
Looking back she was trying to reassure us. At a time when you’d think she’d be asking us for our strength, instead she was being strong for us!
Two weeks later, we were told that actually she would be out of pocket “for a while” and the end of that was very much left open. She’s now had another surgery (which required a 2 night stay this time).
And yet, the day before that surgery she sent us an email asking how everyone was doing. She told a friend through another email, when asked how she was doing, pulled out the old quote “what doesn’t kill us, makes us stronger.”
So…. I’m going to start running. For her so I can run in her honor, but also because if she is facing the scary C word and can still have that kind of attitude, I sure as hell can get off my fat ass and have half that attitude towards my own health.
I bought a pair of running shoes today, and here’s what I’ve done this week:
Mon – walked 1.46 miles in 30 minutes
Tue – none
Wed – rode stationary upright bike 6 miles in 30 minutes
Thur – jogged/walked on treadmill 1.7 miles in 30 minutes, and played right field in a softball game
Fri – none
I’m playing in a tournament tomorrow, and then I’ll do something Sunday.
Here’s another post from my old blog, that I really like. As an update, I took the job, and I’m having a great time – I work with 4 other guys (2 a level below me, 1 above, and 1 contractor that is with us 3 days a week, and I will miss a helluva lot when he leaves) and we have a great time – we laugh A LOT, and everything is tackled as a team. I miss my old department a ton, but I’m so glad I made the change.
=============================================================
Is the act of considering change, change in itself? Does the consideration immediately alter the way you view the current situation, and in doing so, make that current situation different (in my case, less appealing)?
A job opening was posted a couple of weeks ago. I found it slightly interesting – it was something different. I met with the head of my department (my boss’s boss) to discuss this, then had a meeting with the hiring manager to learn more about that new position.
My question is –> in the act of even finding this other job interesting, have I begun finding things about my current job that I dislike? Were those things always there, and now I look at them differently? or now that I’m looking, they are there for me to find?
Leaving a place you hate is easy – be it the work, the environment, your coworkers, or your boss. Leaving a place you like? Not so easy. I’m thinking maybe because I like it here so much, I’ve waited too long to move on, to try new things, push myself.
In considering this new position, I’ve realized I’ve let my satisfaction with my boss and environment outweigh my dislike for my work. And now that the window of doubt and change and contemplation has opened, many new things are popping up. Lately, I haven’t had the best of times with my coworkers –> as a team we have some definite problems. Lately, I’ve realized some of my inner feelings are actually based on my boss, and are not entirely my fault or lie entirely on my shoulders.(remember, I say these things about the boss I LIKE!)
While at the information meeting, the hiring manager “pitched” another job they have open. This other job would be a lateral move, which doesn’t bother me in the least – I’m not concerned too much with “title” and such. It did hurt my fragile ego a bit to talk to someone about a higher level job, and then have them push a lower level job. Kind of “sure I’ll tell you about this high end model, but how would you like to look at this less expensive model here… you know, while we walk to the high end one you really can’t afford, and won’t look good in anyway.” <grin> I can smile and joke about it now, but that afternoon, it hurt, and I had a tiny pity party for myself.
So, the “pitched” position I have known about for a while. The hiring manager commented that they were having a hard time filling it, and the little guy inside my head yelled, “yeah? because it’s a suck job!” Over half of the days in the job would be doing something I’ve never found THAT interesting. And I told the hiring manager that part didn’t sound interesting to me at all, while the other position we were talking about did. But, now. Now I’m thinking more about this “suck job” position. The other main “con” would be reporting to someone I consider a peer, and is realtively new to the management position, and I’ve heard some not so good things about. But I’ve heard some good things too.
A major “pro” is it is a pretty high profile job – which leads to a “con” of high stress at times.
So I’m thinking. And in the act of thinking, I’m noticing more and more how weary I am of the work I do now. Do I think the new job will be all nice and better – no matter what that new job is? No. I realize it’s called work, and not play for a reason. So do I trade out “my suck” for “new suck” work? I’m thinking about it, kitten, I really am.
And so blow the winds of change…..
