Numbers Update

I shouldn't be writing this after entering the numbers I just did, but I need a kick in the pants, really.

Starting weight:
275.2 lbs AVG (272.4 AM / 278.0 PM)

Last night's totals:
269.9 lbs AVG (267.4 AM / 272.4 PM)

And this morning:
270.4.

According to the average yesterday, the numbers are great - I've lost 5.3 pounds.  Even if you take this mornings weigh-in less the average weigh-in, it's still pretty good.  But compare this morning to the first morning weigh-in - that's only a 2 pound drop.

All I feel about this right now is disappointment with myself; the long and short of it is that I ate too much yesterday, and that's my own fault.  I was fine all weekend until I decided to snack.  I don't even view the two beers I had Saturday night as all that bad - it's the snacks I had Sunday afternoon that did me in.  We also had a big dinner, but it wouldn't have been all that bad had I not had so much to eat earlier.

This can and will be turned around, however.  Today might be a bit of a challenge - there's a lunch buffet in the plans at Pizza Hut - but I think I can restrain myself and still get a good meal.

30 by 30

My numbers as of 11/20/13

Do a Google search of things to do before you turn 30.  You will likely find several lists of things that you should accomplish in your life before you turn 30.  Vanessa and I have had conversations with friends recently about that specific number.  You may have guessed by now that I am turning 30 in just over 3 months (101 days, to be exact - thanks again, Google).

I've given some thought to what I'd like to accomplish in that time, but either I'm not the ambitious type or I'm just content not pushing the envelope.  Still, there is one thing that I'd like to do: lose 30lbs by the time I'm 30.  I made this goal about a week ago or so, but some of the numbers I got to the right got me thinking about it again.

While my numbers are OK - I'm high in the BMI & Body Fat %, and my blood pressure is a little high, but my cholesterol and glucose numbers are pretty good - they can be better.  I'm roughly 3 inches away from the "ideal" waist circumference for males.  Other than Body Fat % and BMI, I'm pretty close in the other numbers.

So far in my goal, I've lost 2.3 pounds.  When I calculated my goal last week, I estimated that I needed to lose roughly 2 pounds per week to meet this goal (30 pounds / 16 weeks).  So far, I'm behind that goal.  I've decided to look at a more attainable number - how many pounds do I need to lose per day?

With 101 days to go, I need to lose 27.7 pounds; that works out to 0.3 pounds per day (rounded up).  While that is 2.1 pounds over a week, in my mind it sounds a lot more do-able to drop 0.3 pounds every day.  I've learned that the best way to track weight loss is apparently to weigh yourself three times a day, and take the average number of those three.  I'm only able to weigh myself twice a day, so I'm taking the average from the morning when I wake up and just before I go to bed.

It's not a perfect system, but it's what I have.  In previous posts I've talked about what I'm doing to attain various writing goals.  Guess what?  I haven't spent 15 minutes every morning writing.  However, I am actively working toward this fitness goal.  It's something much more important to me than writing goals.  It also helps that I have a partner that is working toward similar goals, and we are motivating each other.  I can't say the same about my writing, at the moment.

Back to weight loss: so what are we doing?  We signed up for a gym membership; we're doing a 30-day plank challenge (this is pretty tough, but it's going to be worth it); we're eating right (or as well as we can without a nutritionist guiding us properly).  And what I'm doing now is keeping honest with my progress by sharing it here.

I'll check back in a month with some results - but until then, I'll get back to my "regular" writing.

Creative Spirit

Lately I've been thinking a lot about writing. It's all been sparked by a comment last week on a blog post I wrote last year about a "Short Story Writing Month". Strangely (or maybe not so strangely) the writing I've thought about hasn't been fiction - it's non fiction writing.

I've made the decision a long time ago that I'm not a fiction writer, and I'm okay with that. I've also come to terms with not being "popular" or we'll known; it's not a goal for me, and it's also a direct consequence of a lousy work ethic when it comes to writing.  Unfortunately, that same lousy work ethic means that I’m terrible at keeping up with something as simple as a blog.

I admire everyone out there who writes for a living (and for a hobby, too).  The people that write every day are doing something that I keep saying, “oh, I can do that, no problem!”.  I look at them and see a complete lack of fear - the fear of running out of things to write about, running out of opinions, coming off as boring.

But I also know that these people also experience that same fear.  They just bowl over that fear and they just. do. it.  No excuses, the job gets done.  Believe me, I’ve gone through all of the excuses: no time, no motivation, no ideas.  What has that got me?  A whole lot of nothing.

No time?  What kind of excuse is that?  I have plenty of time every day.  I wake up at 5:30AM, shower, and I’m usually done breakfast before 7, sometimes earlier.  Of course I have the time to spend as little as 15 minutes stringing words together.  What’s the hold-up here?  It’s that lousy work ethic again.

I even thought that I would spend 15 minutes a day listening to music for my podcast, and I haven’t done that.  I tend to put those together the day I intend to record, and the result is sometimes a not-so-well thought-out podcast.

You know, if you’re reading through this post so far you may come up with two deductions: 1) My thoughts are often scattered and not put together too well; and 2) I am a very lazy person with a terrible work ethic.

I’d say that part of both of those statements are true.  My thoughts are often scattered, though I tend to organize them better in some cases more than others.  I can have a terrible work ethic - when it comes to self-assigned duties.  I work very hard at my job, so sometimes I feel like being lazy when it comes to personal things.  I think that’s normal for most people, though.

Anyway, at this point I just wanted to write for the sake of writing.  I feel like I need to do some daily writing, so this is a good starting point - consider this day one.  I think I would like to spend 15 minutes a day working on a weekly blog post, so we’ll see how I manage with that.  I have a few ideas on the back burner so I could bring those to the forefront.

Here’s a challenge: how many idioms or mixed metaphors could I use in one blog post?

A Brief Review of A Storm of Swords

I haven't written in a long time, but George R. R. Martin's A Storm of Swords inspired me to at least write something short about it as a review.  No need to shield yourself from spoilers - I'm not going into specifics with this review, but you'll get more out of it if you've read the novel.

I came into this novel after enjoying the first three seasons of HBO's Game of Thrones.  I read A Game of Thrones and A Clash of Kings, and felt generally underwhelmed with GRRM's writing.  The plot was great, but the execution involved a lot of eating.

However, there seemed to have been a switch when it came to "ASoS", as fans seem to enjoy calling it.  The same great plotting is there, but the writing is dramatically improved.  I can't identify exactly what is better about this novel, but part of it is the characterization.  The characters definitely have more identity to them than before, so that helped my enjoyment level.

There are still moments where I'm left wanting more from him, but overall there was enough here to warrant a five-star rating.  I haven't started reading the other books (I need a break!), but I'd easily call this one the best.

As far as surprises go, there was only one plot point I knew going in (thanks to season 3 of the TV series); there were three others that caught me completely off-guard, and I was appropriately impressed.

New blog idea

I've been very neglectful of this blog and my goal this year. Honestly, I feel that most of what I have to say has been said by others, and better at that.

I also feel that I would still like to write. I think a problem I have with this blog is its lack of focus; It's too vague and all over the map.

That's okay - I will still occasionally scribe something here. But I have a few other ideas floating around that I'm going to try working on.

Some of these things may or may not be ongoing projects depending on the scope of the idea. I'll find out as I go.

The first is primarily a vehicle to improve my memory skills. I have a terrible memory. So I want to write weekly about various things related to memory. I'm pretty interested in this one and have a name picked out (I'll hold on to that for a little bit).

I don't have much else beyond that but I will probably post the ideas here as I get them so I don't forget them (see what I did there).

Review: Red Shirts (Novel, 2012)

Project 52: 9/52

I've been thinking for a long time about how to write this review without spoiling anything (which is now impossible because by writing this sentence, I'm indicating that there is something to spoil). This is one of those books where you should go in with a blank slate. All you need to know is the main premise: the story is one told from the point of view of "red shirts", those disposable characters who died a lot in Star Trek.

So, since I can't write this without spoiling, I've marked this article as "classified" and have removed any remarks that would give anything away.

Red Shirts, a 2012 novel by John Scalzi, is predominantly a comedy sci-fi novel - so pretty much what I've come to expect from Scalzi (see Agent to the Stars). As I mentioned, it's a story about crew members who come to realize that they're disposable when compared to the main crew (sort of like Kirk/Spock/McCoy) and want to do something about it.

That's where this book [REDACTED] and Scalzi writes some [REDACTED] scenes. You won't believe [REDACTED] and [REDACTED].

[REDACTED]

I definitely recommend this book and I'm sure you will enjoy it. Five out of five.

Odd Collections

Project 52: 7/52

For some reason I had the urge the other night to collect obscure NHL player trading cards, bought cheaply at Dollarama. The idea would be to buy these packs - which presumably are leftovers, misprints, etc that the trading card company deigned not to include in the "real" packs - and sort through, collecting players who are virtually unknown to the common fan. There would be bonus cards as well for players in the wrong uniform for the current season (see: Rick Nash in a Columbus jersey - or Radek Bonk).

To be honest, I have no idea why this urge washed over me. I know when it came: I saw a package of extra hockey card inserts at Wal-Mart. Naturally my first thought was, "gee, I would love to collect hockey cards nobody wants!"

In hindsight it's completely silly. I know this. But even now I still kind of want to do it. What would I do with these cards?  I feel like I would most likely start a blog and post about these obscure players in a "where are they now" vein.

This is intriguing me even more, now. It's grown from a completely ironic idea to a legitimate idea. Obviously this means someone has already done this, no doubt. Don't expect to see anything from me too quickly.

Here's the one example that started the thought process of all of this: