Walking My Butt Off
I knew if I could return to even a moderate daily walking routine, I'd eventually lose some weight. And, after weeks and weeks of hoofing it 'round the neighborhood an average of just 1.5 miles a night, I was finally awarded proof: two pairs of pants, which before would accept nary a buttcheek, are now zippable (if not cozy yet). Huzzah!
I refuse to weigh myself, especially in the earliest stages of fat loss, since my lower body is building visible, heavy muscle. Even though I know I'm burning, not seeing the numbers go down (or go down as fast as I think they should be) can be a blow. A Pocky-sucking blow.
What's really helping me stick to it is MapMyWalk. You can Googlemap your routes (publicly or private; mine are the latter for security, since I walk alone), saving them to use in your Training Log again. Plug in the start/end times, and it'll calculate your estimated calorie burn and miles per hour. There's a MapMyRun Facebook app (it can record "running/jogging/biking/blading/walking/hiking/swimming") which keeps a list of the most recent mileage; it's encouraging to see how much distance I've covered in a month! Signing up for new monthly mileage challenges keeps me from resting on my laurels.
And, if the Garmin Nuviphone is ever released and we can get our hands on a couple, that will automate the recording even further. Sweet.
08/19/08 14:21 in Babble | Comments (2)
Double Disappointment
I've been blogging over at Vox this morning.
08/16/08 08:01 in Movies , TV | Comments (0)
Well, There is ONE Thing...
...I miss about Sacramento. The libraries.
And the thing I miss most about those libraries? The availability of circ-it-yourself stations.
And what's the main reason I miss those machines? Very sadly, some of the staff at our current libraries. If you can't handle, or just plain don't enjoy working with the public? The Circulation desk is a bad choice. Believe me, I understand the lack of whatever allows someone to do it sanely and cheerfully day in and out. Which is why I preferred spending most of my library days in a damp basement with OCLC and a heavy cart of books.
Understanding or not, I don't appreciate being publicly scolded for a very minor misjudgement (approaching the desk before she was ready). And I could do without the overt coldness the rest of the time, too.
That's not to say that there aren't some fine, friendly people! There are. I just wish I could opt out of dealing with the ones that aren't. And I know it's a childish impulse. But part of me always wants the library to be the safe, warm harbor that it was as a child, for me and for my own children. Not negative and cold.
08/15/08 12:39 in Meh | Comments (0)
Loot
I think we made a couple of really good gift choices for Daniel this year. My goals were to shop a) locally and b) at independent retailers. I managed the former, but not so much the latter.
Quercetti's Marble Run Vortex is going to get some mileage. Additional kits will allow for more interesting runs someday, but for now the chutes and twirls are completely absorbing (to cats, too!).
Fisher-Price's Kid Tough FP3 Player is almost everything you could ask for in an electronic device for a small child. Rock solid with rubber edges, a breakaway neck cord, and -- this is the big one -- volume that cannot be turned up past a kid-safe level. I had fun loading a couple of his CDs, which is more than simple with the included software. Yes, files have to be converted to their proprietary format; that's the only true negative. Each song or story (type chosen by the child with the "note" or "book" buttons) can be assigned a large FP icon, or you can draw your own with their rudimentary utility. So a non-reading child can shuffle through the playlist and recognize his favorites by the LED displayed icons -- brilliant! You can store about two hours of listening on the device itself, or insert an SD card (inside a secured compartment with the batteries) for even more. So enamored, I'd planned on paying full price, but finding it at less than half MSRP was sweet, sweet frosting.
Daniel has been listening half the afternoon. It'll be great for trips, too!
Grandma sent him L.L. Bean's Junior Back Pack. It's sized just right for preschoolers, and features a nicely padded back panel. We'll have to make a special trip to the marsh so he can try it out, naturalist style! Aunt sent him his very own compact Bushnell binoculars and a bird guide, so he'll be all set for birding with me.
08/14/08 18:33 in Bub | Comments (0)
He Says He Wants to be Five, Though
Daniel is four today!
But are you sure this wasn't just yesterday?
We're just having a simple celebration, as usual. I baked a cookie monster cake again this year. But, unlike his first birthday cake, this one is not an all-organic no-fun mix from Whole Foods -- this time he's been, erm, already well acquainted with processed sugars. He also requested pizza ("chicken, bematoes, and black olives!"), so we're "making" that (doing the Boboli thing).
We'll go to the coast or Sonoma Traintown this weekend, depending on the coastal and inland temps.
08/13/08 09:10 in Bub | Comments (0)
Late and Too Awake
The delightful Dara has tagged me! Six random things, is the gist. I can be random. Didn't that, in fact, used to be my specialty?
Before my specialty became being sporadic.
1. I'm becoming more crowd intolerant by the day. You might see my crazed headshot on the news, after I'm booked for committing third-degree murder with a shopping cart. Lady who angles cart across the whole aisle and gives the stinkeye for a polite and cheerful "Excuse me," I'm thinking about YOU.
2. Being a fierce loyalist to the original version, I thought I'd loathe the new Chocolate Factory. But (grudgingly! Gene Wilder! Woo!), I found myself watching not long ago, and even sort of enjoying it. Harrumph!
3. I think Twitter sucked out a lot of my blogging impulses. It's so concise (read: low on effort)! So rewarding (read: more people might digest and comment)! But so impermanent -- doesn't it only archive ten pages, something along those lines? Hmm. And then. Then! There are message boards, of which I now officially have too many to keep up with in any meaningful way.
4. I didn't know until last week that Craft magazine is based in Sebastopol, just up the road. Neat.
5. Sometimes our neighborhood smells like cow. It doesn't smell like exhaust, which I try to remember and be appropriately grateful for.
6. Every now and then, I'm the expert. Now, I don't enjoy this status frequently, so I appreciate the whole "being right" phenomenon when I assert that I am. Makes me less crabby. Trust me.
I'm not a tagger by nature, so feel free to tag yourself.
08/12/08 00:47 in Meme | Comments (1)
One List to Rule Them All
How cool is it that the Amazon Wish List has gone Universal? Meaning just this: that you can add your favorite needful things from ANY site. Woohoo!
It makes my consumer whore of a heart all giddy like.
07/21/08 21:05 in Misc | Comments (3)
Ups and Downs
Thumbs Up:
Thumbs Down:
07/17/08 11:16 in Stuff | Comments (1)
SquEEEEEEEEEE!
Joss Whedon. Nathan Fillion. Neil Patrick Harris.
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. A three-part musical coming to a computer near you, starting July 15th.
</barely-suppressed giddiness>
07/09/08 10:37 in Fun , Link , Movies | Comments (2)
It's No Schulz, But...
Tim has been using Bitstrips to make blog comics for awhile. I thought I might try it out, too, and after an initial day of technical difficulties, this is what I ended up with.
D. says that his little fake dude isn't a good enough representation, but, in my defense, the component libraries are pretty limited!
07/08/08 14:36 in Fun , Link | Comments (3)
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