Wang Chung Tonight

Yesterday was a pretty good day, even though I had to go to work.  I climbed onboard my bike after what has been a long, long time.  Sure, I only rode 5.22 miles, but that's a really good start.  You have no idea how happy I was to just get my leg over the saddle.  And before the ride, I walked over 2 miles on the treadmill.  Exercise works.

As for my job?  I did get a measure for hard wood flooring.  Hardwood flooring is an asset to your house.  Hardwood flooring is also more difficult to maintain if you have kids and pets because they do things that scratch.  Most people don't understand that the stain used by manufacturers is proprietary, which means fixing scratches can be extremely difficult.  After buying a similar colored stain, home owners also need to think about matching the sheen since stain does not have a shine.  This family had kids.  Young kids.  So I gently reminded them that hardwood flooring is not waterproof, nor is it scratch resistant.

Biggie got off the bed around 0230 to go sit at the top of the stairs.  Thinking he had to go outside, I followed.  Nope.  He wasn't budging.  He just sat there.  So, I went downstairs and got a biscuit, thinking he might need a bit of an incentive. After I gave him the biscuit, he looked at me for a few seconds, and then went back to bed.  What he really wanted, I guess, was a midnight snack.

Quite often, when someone covers another musician's song, their own personal spin jars with the original intent of the composer / lyricist.  Now and then, the cover artist comes up with something far better.  Here's an example of a Wang Chung song that was very popular a number of years ago.  This is so much better than the original.  Oh, and it was used in a video game.  This thing would have made a fortune if they had released it.

I saw this morning at 60% of Republicans believe the election was stolen.  At first glance, that seems like a really high figure, until you realize that the Republican Party is the minority party, making up between 29% and 30% of the electorate.  This means that approximately 18% of all voters believe Trump's lies.  That doesn't mean this terrible losers can't do damage, they can, it's just not as insurmountable as some want to believe.  And if you think they're going to change their minds, forget that.  No matter how desperately they want, this group will never make it to the dance floor.  They will never Wang Chung Tonight.

 

Revolutionary Thinking

Well, here we are... Tuesday.  Sunday I had over 10,000 steps in, yesterday?  Only 5465.  I wanted yesterday to be a rest day.  This is how training works... a lot of steps one day, recovery stage, and then another day with a lot of steps.  Today there are chores planed.  I need to go to PetSmart as well as grocery shopping (I'm running low on paper products, and I thought I'd stock up, just in case).  The idea occurred to me that since I purchased that portable heating, I might as well try using it while I'm on the treadmill where there are a lot less layers of clothing.  Wearing it to work proved to be very ineffective.

Yesterday, almost to my horror, I subscribed to SiriusXM, but only for a year.  $4.99 + taxes and royalties = $5.62 a month.  After that, however... well... I don't want to spend nearly $17 a month when I only listen to one station.  That is not what I call getting enough bang for my bucks.

Yesterday was Indigenous People's Day.  Today is Columbus Day.  For those who need to be reminded, Columbus did not discover America, however he did prove to the scholars of his day the reason you could move beyond the horizon was because the Earth was round.  That was revolutionary thinking back then, so recognize him for that fact and only that fact.

As for Indigenous People's Day? There is a group called the Icollective, a group of indigenous chefs, working to bring indigenous recipes to the world.  As someone who toys with words, I appreciate their punniness.  Give them a look see, you might find something interesting.

Picture is from the Washington Post

I'm sure there were a lot of Conservative voices complaining, they always do when someone else is getting recognized.  They whine so much.

And what about Abbott, Texas' lackey governor issuing an Executive Order outlying mask and vaccine mandates?  For those who don't know, this is fascism masquerading as democracy.  Those stupid MAGAs think this represents freedom, when in actuality what we are seeing is a malignant attempt to control.  Rules are enacted creating illegalities.  Like their absurdly unconstitutional abortion law, they are attempting to vilify that majority group who believes differently.  They will continue until we vote these losers out of office.

It's not the workouts that'll kill you, just the other people in the gym!

I read an interesting article NBC News / Health concerning gym intimidation which actually made me chuckle.  True, there are those out there who have such terrible self-esteem when it comes to their physique, the idea of letting others see their bulges is terrifying.  Because my work requires a constantly changing schedule I do my workouts at home.  If, some day, I land a job where I can work 8 to 5 I'll be in the gym.  Personally I think this being intimidated is a bit of horse shit.  It gives slackers an excuse, an easy out.  Can't you hear them whining "I can't go to the gym because they might laugh at my fat belly bouncing up and down."  Give me a break!  If that were the problem they could be exercising at home, running on a treadmill, spending an hour and a half a day with P90X.  If they were doing that they wouldn't have a fat belly to bounce up and down.

There were two comments on the article, no more.  I took this as agreement to my position because there are alternatives to going to a gym.  If it has to be a gym, then go when it isn't full.  I took a walk through Planet Fitness one day around noon and was amazed at how empty the place was, seven or eight old people walking slowly on treadmills.  Believe me, they are more focused on keeping their balance then on how out of shape you are.  Or, better yet, get one of your friends to go with you.  I've always heard there is safety in numbers.  You can actually have a lot of fun if you go with a friend.

Look at the terror on their faces.

Of course there are always going to be those who steadfastly stand behind their hokey-pokey line of shit  "I'm just too embarrassed to go to the gym."  Translation:  I'm fat and a I'm going to stay fat. 

As for alternatives, they could take up jogging, not done in a gym, or mall walking, again not done in a gym, or cycling, or bowling.  If you can afford it by a piece of equipment.  I own a Sole 95 Elliptical.  I also have my bike on a trainer during the colder months of the year.  Dumbbells are not that expensive and you don't need a lot of intelligence to figure out how they work.  Of course buying it means using it.  I have a friend who once told me his parents had just about every piece of equipment manufactured in their basement gathering dust.  I suspect that a lot of these whiners have the same sort of stuff sitting around in their basements or attics.  The real problem for them is not the intimidation, it's the lack of ambition.