5-a-side soccer at lunch for 40 minutes. Brutally hot and humid, but with 5 per side it was easier (usually we play with 4, or 3 and a roaming goalie.)
3 rounds for time:
Run 400m
21 Kettlebell swings @ 55lb (sub 55lb dumbbell swings)
12 pullups
Time: 11:32.68
32 seconds faster than PR set on 20080101, and a couple of minutes faster than in March.
I got stuck within 20 seconds of 12:00 for about 6 months last year. Every time I'd do this workout, I'd give it my all. Once I finished within a second of my previous time. Consistency is good, but it's nice to be making gains again.
That's a bunch of PR's for me in the last 2 weeks. I'm happy with that.
Don't get down, Joanne: What matters is your time compared to your previous times.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Monday, July 28, 2008
Crossfit and new website
First of all, I'm launching my photo website:
www.jholroyd.com
Things are very much in their infancy. The selection of photos is limited (just some random stuff I grabbed off my hard drive), and not representative. Expect things to change as I get time to organize. Lightroom says I have almost 40,000 photos. I filled another hard drive. Half a terabyte here I come...
Yes, Joanne, I'm wading through the learning curve on Lightroom. Very cool stuff.
At some point, you'll be able to order prints of my work, but I have some figuring to do on how to turn that feature on and get it working properly.
Crossfit:
Crossfit Total.
Rode to gym on the commuter bike. It felt good, even though it was about 85 degrees with 99 percent humidity.
Push press: 130 pounds (new PR!) This was tough. I've been stuck at 125 forever, and I've tried 135 a few times but always stalled out. I wavered quite a bit, but managed to get the weight all the way up.
Back Squat: 305 pounds (tied with my PR.) It felt so easy that I went for 325 and failed. Should have gone for a 310 or 315. Oh well.
Deadlift: 415 pounds (tied old PR that I haven't hit in over a year, and with much better form.)
Overall, my total weight went from 835 on 20080709 to 850! Woohoo! I'f I'd been a bit smarter, I could have done 860, I think. It's nice to see all the hard work paying off. That number hasn't moved upwards in a long time. Feels good to be making gains again.
...and it looks like it's Helen tomorrow! Sweet! Running, dumbbell swings, and pullups. I've finished this one 4 or 5 times with the same time within seconds. Time to move the bar.
www.jholroyd.com
Things are very much in their infancy. The selection of photos is limited (just some random stuff I grabbed off my hard drive), and not representative. Expect things to change as I get time to organize. Lightroom says I have almost 40,000 photos. I filled another hard drive. Half a terabyte here I come...
Yes, Joanne, I'm wading through the learning curve on Lightroom. Very cool stuff.
At some point, you'll be able to order prints of my work, but I have some figuring to do on how to turn that feature on and get it working properly.
Crossfit:
Crossfit Total.
Rode to gym on the commuter bike. It felt good, even though it was about 85 degrees with 99 percent humidity.
Push press: 130 pounds (new PR!) This was tough. I've been stuck at 125 forever, and I've tried 135 a few times but always stalled out. I wavered quite a bit, but managed to get the weight all the way up.
Back Squat: 305 pounds (tied with my PR.) It felt so easy that I went for 325 and failed. Should have gone for a 310 or 315. Oh well.
Deadlift: 415 pounds (tied old PR that I haven't hit in over a year, and with much better form.)
Overall, my total weight went from 835 on 20080709 to 850! Woohoo! I'f I'd been a bit smarter, I could have done 860, I think. It's nice to see all the hard work paying off. That number hasn't moved upwards in a long time. Feels good to be making gains again.
...and it looks like it's Helen tomorrow! Sweet! Running, dumbbell swings, and pullups. I've finished this one 4 or 5 times with the same time within seconds. Time to move the bar.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Crossfit 20080724
Fran
21,15,9 of
95 lb thrusters
Pullups
7:07.80
39.2 seconds faster than PR set on 200081117
New PR.
w00t!
21,15,9 of
95 lb thrusters
Pullups
7:07.80
39.2 seconds faster than PR set on 200081117
New PR.
w00t!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Crossfit 7-23-08
Soccer at lunch, 40 minutes. Took a soccer ball to the left eye. Minor vision loss in low-light situations.
Little voices inside my head still telling me "buy more cameras." Trying to ignore them.
Catchup day, as yesterday was:
Filthy 50 in 31:47 or so. About 5 minutes faster than last time, and a PR by about 4 minutes. Happy with that.
Today:
Row 2k
Goal: 7 minutes (1:45 pace)
Actual: 7:17 (1:49 or so pace)
Push Jerk 5x3
3x95
3x115
3x135
3x155
3x165
Could have gone harder, but legs a little tired from soccer and the brutal group ride on Saturday with the happy sadists from the Bikery (our new coffee shop in Stillwater, which rocks.)
Little voices inside my head still telling me "buy more cameras." Trying to ignore them.
Catchup day, as yesterday was:
Filthy 50 in 31:47 or so. About 5 minutes faster than last time, and a PR by about 4 minutes. Happy with that.
Today:
Row 2k
Goal: 7 minutes (1:45 pace)
Actual: 7:17 (1:49 or so pace)
Push Jerk 5x3
3x95
3x115
3x135
3x155
3x165
Could have gone harder, but legs a little tired from soccer and the brutal group ride on Saturday with the happy sadists from the Bikery (our new coffee shop in Stillwater, which rocks.)
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Crossfit-20080702
Five rounds for time of:
135 pound Deadlift, 15 reps
135 pound Hang power clean, 12 reps
135 pound Front Squat, 9 reps
135 pound Push Jerk, 6 reps
Humbling. Started strong and went downhill from there. Something tweaked on my first round of front squats, but I soldiered through it.
34 minutes and change. Lots of resting. Form was pretty good though. I just gassed heavily, which is understandable given the relative paucity of metabolic conditioning I've had in the last couple of years. Marathons are a bad habit for Crossfit.
My hands are highly abraded.
On a positive note: My 1991 Kawasaki EX-500 turned over and ran for the first time in 5+ years. It's been a multi-year project, and I've finally got around to finishing it. The paint on the tank and tail section is complete, but I think I need one more round of wet sanding and paint on the fairing.
It will be up for sale soon, for around a grand. I want to get some commuting miles on it for a while to make sure it's in a condition I'd feel good about selling it.
Plus, when you have something that gets 49 mpg and does 0-60 in 3.7 seconds, you kinda have to enjoy it. I love this bike, but I just don't have the room to keep it anymore.
135 pound Deadlift, 15 reps
135 pound Hang power clean, 12 reps
135 pound Front Squat, 9 reps
135 pound Push Jerk, 6 reps
Humbling. Started strong and went downhill from there. Something tweaked on my first round of front squats, but I soldiered through it.
34 minutes and change. Lots of resting. Form was pretty good though. I just gassed heavily, which is understandable given the relative paucity of metabolic conditioning I've had in the last couple of years. Marathons are a bad habit for Crossfit.
My hands are highly abraded.
On a positive note: My 1991 Kawasaki EX-500 turned over and ran for the first time in 5+ years. It's been a multi-year project, and I've finally got around to finishing it. The paint on the tank and tail section is complete, but I think I need one more round of wet sanding and paint on the fairing.
It will be up for sale soon, for around a grand. I want to get some commuting miles on it for a while to make sure it's in a condition I'd feel good about selling it.
Plus, when you have something that gets 49 mpg and does 0-60 in 3.7 seconds, you kinda have to enjoy it. I love this bike, but I just don't have the room to keep it anymore.
Gun Camera Adds Graffiti to Other People's Photos | Gadget Lab from Wired.com
Gun Camera Adds Graffiti to Other People's Photos | Gadget Lab from Wired.com
Hmm. I had this exact same idea about two months ago as I was flying back from Detroit. Although my plan was to use my Bronica medium format gear and a specially modified film back to do the projecting.
Awesome.
Hmm. I had this exact same idea about two months ago as I was flying back from Detroit. Although my plan was to use my Bronica medium format gear and a specially modified film back to do the projecting.
Awesome.
CrossFit: Forging Elite Fitness: Tuesday 080701
CrossFit: Forging Elite Fitness: Tuesday 080701
Shoulder press 1-1-1-1-1 reps
50,100,110,120,130(fail)
Push press 3-3-3-3-3 reps
100,110,120,130,140 (PR by 5)
Push Jerk 5-5-5-5-5 reps
100,110,120,130,140 (PR by 5)
Run home 2.43 miles in 19:56.97. PR by 4:00. Pace: 8:13
Course is a bit hilly, but there's an overall elevation drop from the gym to here. Legs felt a bit sore at the beginning, but it worked itself out. I did some walking in a couple of spots.
Plan is to keep doing this run, either as an out-and-back with a workout in between, or as a one-way deal. I plan to do it at the beginning and end of a Crossfit cycle (Days 1 and 3, with day 4 being the rest.)
We'll see how it goes.
I'd like to break 1:25 on the Lumberjack Days 10- miler. I need to break 18:35 on this run in order to do that, then hold onto a similar pace for over an hour.
Shoulder press 1-1-1-1-1 reps
50,100,110,120,130(fail)
Push press 3-3-3-3-3 reps
100,110,120,130,140 (PR by 5)
Push Jerk 5-5-5-5-5 reps
100,110,120,130,140 (PR by 5)
Run home 2.43 miles in 19:56.97. PR by 4:00. Pace: 8:13
Course is a bit hilly, but there's an overall elevation drop from the gym to here. Legs felt a bit sore at the beginning, but it worked itself out. I did some walking in a couple of spots.
Plan is to keep doing this run, either as an out-and-back with a workout in between, or as a one-way deal. I plan to do it at the beginning and end of a Crossfit cycle (Days 1 and 3, with day 4 being the rest.)
We'll see how it goes.
I'd like to break 1:25 on the Lumberjack Days 10- miler. I need to break 18:35 on this run in order to do that, then hold onto a similar pace for over an hour.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Friday, April 04, 2008
Monday, March 31, 2008
F#@!$ing Itunes!
Okay, so I've been fighting with Itunes lately. By fighting, I mean cursing it blue and calling the ancestry of most of the programming team responsible for the program into question. Needless to say, this hasn't helped (much), save for making me feel slightly better.
But only slightly, because my problem has been annoyingly, vexingly persistent. Here's what happened. I've been on a film photography kick lately. See here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cavebat/sets/72157604091076090/
I've even pulled out my Canon 35mm and started carrying it loaded with black & white film. You never know what you'll find.
Anyway, so I got a kick-ass scanner (Epson Perfection V700 Photo) and the decent negative carriers, and have been having a wonderful time developing, scanning, printing, etc.
However, it quickly became apparent that my office is way too dusty to do a good job scanning negatives. Looking around, it's easy to see why. Clutter. Disorganization. General symptoms of being an ENFP, and the sort of thing I don't normally notice. But I do notice crap on my negatives, so the clutter had to go.
Part of the process involved cleaning out our CD collection and ripping it in iTunes. Since both film scanning and ripping CD's require large amounts of time in front of the computer, it was a perfect fit. My computer had the grunt to handle both chores without missing a beat, and life was good. Plus, I got to go through the entire music collection and discover some real treats.
...and some not-so-treats. I drew the line at ripping Celine Dion. Because, well, you never know when it will come through the party rotation. It's like putting landmines in the back yard then playing croquet. Kind of kills the mood. XKCD obviously agrees:
So I'm ripping and scanning away happily, and the computer is quite happy. I'm quite happy with it, and life is good.
Until four days ago. Then I get the Itunes stutter problem. This makes the computer damned near unusable (CPU pegged at 100%, mouse not happy, that sort of thing). I blame the recent Norton upgrade. Try turning it off for a bit. No help. Do some research, try everything I can find, including downgrading back two major revisions of Itunes (7.6->7.5->7.4). No go diggie die. (to understand this, listen to the song "Mr Egyptian" by Jon Wayne, on the album Texas Funeral.)
Nothing works. Nothing anybody else has said has helped. So I try different things, culminating in the thing that finally worked.
I put another CD drive in my computer. I had one lying around in an old Dell. It fit, and fired right up... and ripped CD's at the same speed the original DVD reader/writer/label maker/coffee maker did before it slowed down.
The only thing I can think is that some of the dust (remember what started this whole endeavor?) got into the gubbins and mucked up the inner workings of the DVD drive. It was working, but was having to look past thick clumps of dog hair and other nastiness, and could only muster 3-4x, instead of the 12-16x it should have been able to achieve.
So, if you've exhausted all the software options, no matter how remote you think the possibility might be, check the hardware. It is occasionally at fault. I hope this helps somebody.
Now, I'm lusting after one of these:
http://www.dyson.com/store/product.asp?product=DC16-SY-STD
Oh, and sorry I ever doubted you, Apple and Steve. ...and sorry to all the hardworking Apple programmers that I accused of having uncertain genetic provenance.
But only slightly, because my problem has been annoyingly, vexingly persistent. Here's what happened. I've been on a film photography kick lately. See here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cavebat/sets/72157604091076090/
I've even pulled out my Canon 35mm and started carrying it loaded with black & white film. You never know what you'll find.
Anyway, so I got a kick-ass scanner (Epson Perfection V700 Photo) and the decent negative carriers, and have been having a wonderful time developing, scanning, printing, etc.
However, it quickly became apparent that my office is way too dusty to do a good job scanning negatives. Looking around, it's easy to see why. Clutter. Disorganization. General symptoms of being an ENFP, and the sort of thing I don't normally notice. But I do notice crap on my negatives, so the clutter had to go.
Part of the process involved cleaning out our CD collection and ripping it in iTunes. Since both film scanning and ripping CD's require large amounts of time in front of the computer, it was a perfect fit. My computer had the grunt to handle both chores without missing a beat, and life was good. Plus, I got to go through the entire music collection and discover some real treats.
...and some not-so-treats. I drew the line at ripping Celine Dion. Because, well, you never know when it will come through the party rotation. It's like putting landmines in the back yard then playing croquet. Kind of kills the mood. XKCD obviously agrees:
So I'm ripping and scanning away happily, and the computer is quite happy. I'm quite happy with it, and life is good.
Until four days ago. Then I get the Itunes stutter problem. This makes the computer damned near unusable (CPU pegged at 100%, mouse not happy, that sort of thing). I blame the recent Norton upgrade. Try turning it off for a bit. No help. Do some research, try everything I can find, including downgrading back two major revisions of Itunes (7.6->7.5->7.4). No go diggie die. (to understand this, listen to the song "Mr Egyptian" by Jon Wayne, on the album Texas Funeral.)
Nothing works. Nothing anybody else has said has helped. So I try different things, culminating in the thing that finally worked.
I put another CD drive in my computer. I had one lying around in an old Dell. It fit, and fired right up... and ripped CD's at the same speed the original DVD reader/writer/label maker/coffee maker did before it slowed down.
The only thing I can think is that some of the dust (remember what started this whole endeavor?) got into the gubbins and mucked up the inner workings of the DVD drive. It was working, but was having to look past thick clumps of dog hair and other nastiness, and could only muster 3-4x, instead of the 12-16x it should have been able to achieve.
So, if you've exhausted all the software options, no matter how remote you think the possibility might be, check the hardware. It is occasionally at fault. I hope this helps somebody.
Now, I'm lusting after one of these:
http://www.dyson.com/store/product.asp?product=DC16-SY-STD
Oh, and sorry I ever doubted you, Apple and Steve. ...and sorry to all the hardworking Apple programmers that I accused of having uncertain genetic provenance.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
View from the Tundra (Minneapolis in photos)
View from the Tundra (Minneapolis in photos)
This is the website of an awesome local photographer. His are the best HDR's I've seen yet.
This is the website of an awesome local photographer. His are the best HDR's I've seen yet.
Friday, March 07, 2008
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Monday, March 03, 2008
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Ugh.
Busy day.
Morning: catch up on sleep. Hang out with the boy, who is getting cuter by the day, and growing up fast.
early afternoon:
9.2 mile hilly run in 1:22:13. This is about 6 minutes faster than I've ever done it. Credit the ChiRunning/Pose method I've been learning. The funny thing was, my legs didn't get tired. At the end I was fighting a side stitch, but the legs felt like they could have gone forever. If you run, check out either of these excellent methods for improving your form.\
early evening:
Back squats:
3x135
3x185
3x225
3x245
3x225
Then: Crossfit "Angie"
For time: 100 pullups, 100 pushups, 100 situps, 100 squats.
29:32. Pitifully slow, but I'm still sore from recent dips and sumo deadlift high pulls.
I am definitely tired now.
Morning: catch up on sleep. Hang out with the boy, who is getting cuter by the day, and growing up fast.
early afternoon:
9.2 mile hilly run in 1:22:13. This is about 6 minutes faster than I've ever done it. Credit the ChiRunning/Pose method I've been learning. The funny thing was, my legs didn't get tired. At the end I was fighting a side stitch, but the legs felt like they could have gone forever. If you run, check out either of these excellent methods for improving your form.\
early evening:
Back squats:
3x135
3x185
3x225
3x245
3x225
Then: Crossfit "Angie"
For time: 100 pullups, 100 pushups, 100 situps, 100 squats.
29:32. Pitifully slow, but I'm still sore from recent dips and sumo deadlift high pulls.
I am definitely tired now.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Sunset over Whale Lake
We had a great time winter camping this weekend. Here's a short time-lapse of sunset. This was my first attempt with the new D300.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Crossfit update
Saturday 080209
Run or Row 5K
Run on treadmill @ 2% grade: 24:53. I'm pretty happy with this.
Sunday 080210
Deadlift 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps
Maxed out at 405. Got 415 about 90% of the way there, but forgot my chalk and found grip to be the limiting factor. I did some grip strengthening exercises after this. Walked around with a 90 lb dumbbell in each hand. Serious forearm pump.
Tuesday 080212
"Nate"
Complete as many rounds in twenty minutes as you can of:
2 Muscle-ups (sub 6 pullups, 6 dips for each round)
4 Handstand Push-ups (done to 4lb medicine ball)
8 2-Pood Kettlebell swings (70 lb dumbbell swings)
9 rounds, done Wednesday morning as Owen didn't want to cooperate at the gym on Tuesday night. The dumbbell swings fried me. Major aerobic debt, plus grip strength was going towards the end (see previous comment about grip strengthening exercises.)
Wednesday 080213
"Randy"
75 pound Power snatch, 75 reps for time.
6:04. I was really under the gun on this one, as Owen wasn't cooperating again. Able to crank through pretty quickly. It would be great to beat 5:00 next time. I could definitely feel that this was the second "hero" workout of the day.
It's hard to read the stories and the tributes on the Crossfit comment boards about the heros. Many who knew or served with the fallen check in to share their memories, and it really tears me up. I don't know, with Owen being around, it makes everything seem more real about what's at stake. It was nice to be able to give it my all and think about these guys and what they stood for and what they gave to those of us who have so much.
To all those who serve, thank you.
...and now, the little scream-monster is doing a halfhearted attempt at screaming, but a fully committed attempt at shaking his crib apart.
Run or Row 5K
Run on treadmill @ 2% grade: 24:53. I'm pretty happy with this.
Sunday 080210
Deadlift 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps
Maxed out at 405. Got 415 about 90% of the way there, but forgot my chalk and found grip to be the limiting factor. I did some grip strengthening exercises after this. Walked around with a 90 lb dumbbell in each hand. Serious forearm pump.
Tuesday 080212
"Nate"
Complete as many rounds in twenty minutes as you can of:
2 Muscle-ups (sub 6 pullups, 6 dips for each round)
4 Handstand Push-ups (done to 4lb medicine ball)
8 2-Pood Kettlebell swings (70 lb dumbbell swings)
9 rounds, done Wednesday morning as Owen didn't want to cooperate at the gym on Tuesday night. The dumbbell swings fried me. Major aerobic debt, plus grip strength was going towards the end (see previous comment about grip strengthening exercises.)
Wednesday 080213
"Randy"
75 pound Power snatch, 75 reps for time.
6:04. I was really under the gun on this one, as Owen wasn't cooperating again. Able to crank through pretty quickly. It would be great to beat 5:00 next time. I could definitely feel that this was the second "hero" workout of the day.
It's hard to read the stories and the tributes on the Crossfit comment boards about the heros. Many who knew or served with the fallen check in to share their memories, and it really tears me up. I don't know, with Owen being around, it makes everything seem more real about what's at stake. It was nice to be able to give it my all and think about these guys and what they stood for and what they gave to those of us who have so much.
To all those who serve, thank you.
...and now, the little scream-monster is doing a halfhearted attempt at screaming, but a fully committed attempt at shaking his crib apart.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Free Music Mixes from dj steve boyett
Free Music Mixes from dj steve boyett
Okay, so I have some new cool things to share.
First: Chi Running rocks. I'm stuck on a treadmill for my early season marathon training, and I usually hate it. However, I've been running intervals and shorter workouts lately, so it hasn't been too bad. I've also been working on learning the ChiRunning techniques, with what I can find of Pose thrown in for good measure.
This shiite works, and well. I've gone from struggling through 400 meter intervals at 8:00 pace to breezing through 800 meter intervals at the same pace. I can now do 2 minute long intervals at between 6:00 and 7:00 pace without dying. It's still hard work, but it's getting easier every time I run. In fact, tonight's intervals (4x800m @ 8:00 pace) were so easy that I was sorry I was out of time... I wouldn't have minded doing a few more at a faster pace. I even over-ran a couple of intervals- I forgot to look at the timer on the treadmill and just kept going. That usually doesn't happen.
Pivotal in this is increasing my turnover, and using the running form as taught in ChiRunning. For that, I've turned to the Podrunner podcast (see the link at the top of this posting.) It's good music to run to. Nothing that requires too many neurons to process, an easy beat to find for white schlumps such as myself, and good variety at the right speed. Perfect. I've been using 171 bpm, but I think I'll play around and go a little higher and a little lower to see what it feels like.
Third: Bosu balance balls are awesome for stretching and foot strengthening. I do some time standing on one leg balancing on one of these at the gym after I run, and it really works the kinks out. Makes the soles of my feet feel like they got worked hard, so it feels like it's helping my feet.
I can't wait to get outside and onto the trails for some good long runs. More later.
Okay, so I have some new cool things to share.
First: Chi Running rocks. I'm stuck on a treadmill for my early season marathon training, and I usually hate it. However, I've been running intervals and shorter workouts lately, so it hasn't been too bad. I've also been working on learning the ChiRunning techniques, with what I can find of Pose thrown in for good measure.
This shiite works, and well. I've gone from struggling through 400 meter intervals at 8:00 pace to breezing through 800 meter intervals at the same pace. I can now do 2 minute long intervals at between 6:00 and 7:00 pace without dying. It's still hard work, but it's getting easier every time I run. In fact, tonight's intervals (4x800m @ 8:00 pace) were so easy that I was sorry I was out of time... I wouldn't have minded doing a few more at a faster pace. I even over-ran a couple of intervals- I forgot to look at the timer on the treadmill and just kept going. That usually doesn't happen.
Pivotal in this is increasing my turnover, and using the running form as taught in ChiRunning. For that, I've turned to the Podrunner podcast (see the link at the top of this posting.) It's good music to run to. Nothing that requires too many neurons to process, an easy beat to find for white schlumps such as myself, and good variety at the right speed. Perfect. I've been using 171 bpm, but I think I'll play around and go a little higher and a little lower to see what it feels like.
Third: Bosu balance balls are awesome for stretching and foot strengthening. I do some time standing on one leg balancing on one of these at the gym after I run, and it really works the kinks out. Makes the soles of my feet feel like they got worked hard, so it feels like it's helping my feet.
I can't wait to get outside and onto the trails for some good long runs. More later.
Saturday, February 09, 2008
figures - Kotaku
figures - Kotaku
Oh no.
So I've been playing Valve's excellent Portal recently. My computer ate the last copy of Half Life2 that I installed, so I figured the switch to the console realm wouldn't hurt*. I dislike installing a bunch of TSR crap, because you can never get it to go away properly so you get your old computer back. Annoying. So I get the Orange Box, both for the ability to resurrect HL2, and for Portal, which friends assure me is worth the full retail price of the whole thing, even though it's just a bonus.
*as long as I don't move my Xbox, which tends to eat DVDs if you move the console when the disk is spinning. Microsoft denies the problem and says you should read your owner's manual, but that's just the last resort the lawyers come up with to avoid having to spend millions of dollars on corrective actions because their engineers fucked up. I know what I'm talking about, I live this sort of thing every day. Thing is, when we screw the pooch this hard, we fix it.
But I digress. Portal. I've managed to play through to the final scene without resorting to walkthroughs (though I did peek at one to confirm that I was on the right track in level 18. I was, and what I was trying was going to work, I just hadn't successfully executed it yet.) I've really been enjoying the way the game is written, and the lines are classic. Real tongue-in-cheek stuff. So I go to see if anybody has done a T-shirt that says "The cake is a lie."
Yes. They have. Cool. Good idea for a birthday gift for somebody.
Then I notice some other links, and click on them. People are going to immense trouble (and doing a really good job at it as a result) to make their own action figures of video game characters.
Wow. I guess the thing that surprises me is that I'm surprised. I shouldn't be. But it hits me like it did seeing small-scale models of larger-scale radio-controlled models of full-sized cars when I was in Japan recently:
In other random news. The D300 rocks. I was looking forward to taking it up north on a winter camping trip this weekend, but we bailed because Sunday is going to be a high temp of -14, and a low of -24. With blowing snow. No fun. No thanks.
Word of the day: Snizzooch. You can make up your definition, but I originally thought of it in the context of ... er... something gynecological.
Crossfit is going well. Pretty regular, seeing some good gains. Started marathon training (intervals) and can hold onto a much higher speed (1:20-2:00 per mile faster) than last year, so something is working.
Oh no.
So I've been playing Valve's excellent Portal recently. My computer ate the last copy of Half Life2 that I installed, so I figured the switch to the console realm wouldn't hurt*. I dislike installing a bunch of TSR crap, because you can never get it to go away properly so you get your old computer back. Annoying. So I get the Orange Box, both for the ability to resurrect HL2, and for Portal, which friends assure me is worth the full retail price of the whole thing, even though it's just a bonus.
*as long as I don't move my Xbox, which tends to eat DVDs if you move the console when the disk is spinning. Microsoft denies the problem and says you should read your owner's manual, but that's just the last resort the lawyers come up with to avoid having to spend millions of dollars on corrective actions because their engineers fucked up. I know what I'm talking about, I live this sort of thing every day. Thing is, when we screw the pooch this hard, we fix it.
But I digress. Portal. I've managed to play through to the final scene without resorting to walkthroughs (though I did peek at one to confirm that I was on the right track in level 18. I was, and what I was trying was going to work, I just hadn't successfully executed it yet.) I've really been enjoying the way the game is written, and the lines are classic. Real tongue-in-cheek stuff. So I go to see if anybody has done a T-shirt that says "The cake is a lie."
Yes. They have. Cool. Good idea for a birthday gift for somebody.
Then I notice some other links, and click on them. People are going to immense trouble (and doing a really good job at it as a result) to make their own action figures of video game characters.
Wow. I guess the thing that surprises me is that I'm surprised. I shouldn't be. But it hits me like it did seeing small-scale models of larger-scale radio-controlled models of full-sized cars when I was in Japan recently:
In other random news. The D300 rocks. I was looking forward to taking it up north on a winter camping trip this weekend, but we bailed because Sunday is going to be a high temp of -14, and a low of -24. With blowing snow. No fun. No thanks.
Word of the day: Snizzooch. You can make up your definition, but I originally thought of it in the context of ... er... something gynecological.
Crossfit is going well. Pretty regular, seeing some good gains. Started marathon training (intervals) and can hold onto a much higher speed (1:20-2:00 per mile faster) than last year, so something is working.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Back to normal.
This cycle was fun. I'm finally over the cold I had, and back to eating Zone pretty much full time.
2008-01-27 - Crossfit Total
Back Squat: 295 lbs (tie for PR)
Got 315 lbs down, then about halfway up, but lost balance and had to put it back down.
Shoulder Press: 130 lbs (PR by 5)
Deadlift: 405 lbs cleanly (tie for PR)
Got 425 90 percent of the way but was losing grip with left hand so I had to put it down.
Next time should be in sight of a double PR.
After that, some running, as I signed up for Grandma's marathon recently and should probably train a little:
Intervals, 6 reps. 2:00 @ 10mph, 2% grade, 2:00 @ 3mph, 0% grade. Practiced some of the Chi-running techniques. I think I'm starting to get it- it makes the fast running much easier. I got some lighter shoes tonight, so we'll see how they work.
2008-01-28 - Cindy
# of rounds in 20 minutes of:
5 pullups
10 pushups
15 squats
16 rounds. 5 off PR, but best form ever for Cindy (real squats, good pushups, etc.) 1 more than last time.
2008-01-29 - Grace
135 pound Clean & Jerk x 30 for time
4:31.37- New PR by 1:19. 25% improvement.
That felt good. It's nice to be back in the "PR's every time" mode with CF. The Zone really works to improve performance- I can literally feel the difference it makes.
2008-01-27 - Crossfit Total
Back Squat: 295 lbs (tie for PR)
Got 315 lbs down, then about halfway up, but lost balance and had to put it back down.
Shoulder Press: 130 lbs (PR by 5)
Deadlift: 405 lbs cleanly (tie for PR)
Got 425 90 percent of the way but was losing grip with left hand so I had to put it down.
Next time should be in sight of a double PR.
After that, some running, as I signed up for Grandma's marathon recently and should probably train a little:
Intervals, 6 reps. 2:00 @ 10mph, 2% grade, 2:00 @ 3mph, 0% grade. Practiced some of the Chi-running techniques. I think I'm starting to get it- it makes the fast running much easier. I got some lighter shoes tonight, so we'll see how they work.
2008-01-28 - Cindy
# of rounds in 20 minutes of:
5 pullups
10 pushups
15 squats
16 rounds. 5 off PR, but best form ever for Cindy (real squats, good pushups, etc.) 1 more than last time.
2008-01-29 - Grace
135 pound Clean & Jerk x 30 for time
4:31.37- New PR by 1:19. 25% improvement.
That felt good. It's nice to be back in the "PR's every time" mode with CF. The Zone really works to improve performance- I can literally feel the difference it makes.
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