Health & Fitness: The Road to 40 (Week 17)

Week: 17
Workouts this week: 1
Workouts/Total days: 54/118

Obviously I have not been involved in the whole fitness thing for the past three weeks. While the cat was at the emergency vet, I’d visit him in the evening. The late nights combined with the general stress of the whole thing pretty much sucked any energy I might have had. Needless to say, getting up in the morning to work out was not the first thing on my mind.

This week, I tried to start back but only made it one time. Tuesday I did cardio and worked the chest (with lowered weight). I am still pretty low on the energy level though.

Anyway, I hope to regain most of my energy in time to hit next week’s gym schedule with a vengeance; in other words, five days.

Reggie: In Memoriam (1993 - 2007)

On Tuesday, January 16 2007 at 3:50 am, my cat of 14 years passed away due to complications from Feline Chronic Renal Failure (kidney failure).

He was diagnosed on Saturday, January 6th and spent the next five days at an emergency animal hospital. I brought him home on Thursday, January 11 and was able to spend the following four days with him. Though weak from his ordeal at the hospital (he's always hated the vet) he was quite happy to be home and would purr even if you'd just glance at him. I am thankful that I got to spend that time with him.

In September of 1993, I adopted Reggie from the pound. He and his siblings had been picked up in a field as strays and were very young. What separated him from the rest of the kittens was that he was totally black (except for a small white patch on his chest) and quite rambunctious.

Except for one scare in 1999, he was a healthy cat, albeit an overweight cat (uh, I mean “big boned”).

As with all pets, he had quite the personality. The cutest thing he’d do was to crawl under the covers of the bed to sleep. I’d come home and find this ball curled up in my bed. Of course I’d wake him up by sliding my hand under the covers to pet him (which would make him purr like there was no tomorrow).

Tuesday, I was awakened to my worst fear; Reggie was in his final minutes. My god! That is the hardest thing to watch because there is nothing that can be done. Amid the fresh snow falling and my constant convulsions of emotion, I drove his body one last time to the emergency hospital for cremation. His ashes are being sent to Eastern Washington where they will be sprinkled in an orchard; such is the circle of life.

So it is with a heavy heart that I say a final goodbye to my friend and companion. Rest in peace Reggie, you are already missed.

Health & Fitness: The Road to 40 (Week 14)

Workouts this week: 4
Workouts/Total days: 53/97

Now we're getting somewhere! Since Monday was a holiday I was not downtown so no workout. However, the rest of the week showed great improvement.

I’ve started to add more weight to my leg workouts. Hopefully in a month or two I’ll be back up to pressing what I was while in college. As for my chest, I am currently at the weight from college. Yeah, for some reason I didn’t like chest workouts back then so I didn’t push myself too much. However, since I’ve seen some great pectoral development in the couple of months that I’ve been on “The Road to 40,” I’m much more psyched about chest workouts than before. I still have a ways to go before pressing 75 lb dumbbells though.

Overall, it’s been a good week. Let’s see if we can keep this momentum.

On to week 15!

Two Men Kissing: The Inconvenient Truth

While looking around the internet a couple of days ago, I came across a My Space page that stood out. Of course, the reason for the attention was that it was the site of a pro bodybuilder and he has pictures of himself posing. Not bad at all (in fact, I think he’ll be featured on the “...in the eye of the beholder” blog in the coming days).

Anyway, I read what he had to say (yes, I went there for the articles as well). One thing caught my eye though; he requested that people who wanted to be on his friends list should not have inappropriate stuff on their site. He lists pornographic images but also singles out “two men kissing.”

That got me thinking. Why is it that a man and a woman kissing is nothing of concern yet two men kissing is pornographic? Of course, most of the time the general population never sees two men kissing in mainstream movies and TV shows. To them, it’s something they’ve only heard about from gay pornography. Nonetheless, it’s a double standard.

I think for many, homosexuality is only about sex. That’s partially right and goes without question since it’s the definition.

ho•mo•sex•u•al (hō'mə-sěk'shōō-əl, -mō-)
adj. Of, relating to, or having a sexual orientation to persons of the same sex.

Dictionary.com

Interestingly enough though, listed as a side note is the following:

Usage Note: Many people now avoid using homosexual because of the emphasis this term places on sexuality. Indeed, the words gay and lesbian, which stress cultural and social matters over sex, are frequently better choices...

This gets right to my point. Since people generally think that it’s only about the sex, they cannot see it in any other way. As a result, they think that a picture of two men kissing is pornographic; they choose to see it as sex and not a show of love and romance.

For this guy (I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt), my guess is that he had the misfortune to attract some guys who indeed had pornographic pictures on their sites that included men kissing in the heat of sexual passion. Lord knows the internet is full of those images. Even when I searched for a picture showing men kissing to post with this text I mostly found only pornography.

Keep in mind that just as with straight guys, there is an equal percentage of gay guys who are only about their next sexual conquest (can anyone say “Spring Break Florida” for both gays and straights). However, there is also an equal percentage of gay guys who are monogamous and looking for a life partner to share more than just a bed with. In other words, the makeup of the gay population is similar to that of the straight population.

It is only a matter of time before people in the United States see men kissing for what it usually is; a show of love and romance. And then that perverse bubble will finally be popped.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year all!

May this year bring you success in all of your endeavors. For those who made that old New Year's resolution to workout and get fit, good luck! But remember, if you don't use that new gym membership you just bought, you're just throwing money away.

Health & Fitness: The Road to 40 (Week 13)

Workouts this week: 1
Workouts/Total days: 49/90

I've no comment! Bah! Un"Lucky" number 13 I guess.

Since the new year is week 14 (and I'll be at work for four of those days), I'd expect some improvement.

Women (and Men)

A store that sells new husbands has just opened in New York City, where a woman may go to choose a husband. Among the instructions at the entrance is a description of how the store operates: "You may visit this store ONLY ONCE! There are six floors and the value of the products increases as the shopper ascends the flights. The shopper may choose any item from a particular floor, or may choose to go up to the next floor, but you cannot go back down except to exit the building!"

So, a woman goes to the store to find a husband. On the first floor the sign reads: "These men Have Jobs". The second floor sign reads: "These men Have Jobs and Love Kids". The third floor sign reads: "These men Have Jobs, Love Kids, and are Extremely Good Looking."

"Wow," she thinks, but feels compelled to keep going.

At the fourth floor the sign reads: "These men Have Jobs, Love Kids, are Drop-dead Good Looking and Help With Housework."

"Oh, mercy me!" she exclaims, "I can hardly stand it!"

Still, she goes to the fifth floor and the sign reads: "These men Have Jobs, Love Kids, are Drop-dead Gorgeous, Help with Housework, and Have a Strong Romantic Streak." She is so tempted to stay, but she goes to the sixth floor and the sign reads: "You are visitor 31,456,012 to this floor. There are no men on this floor. This floor exists solely as proof that women are impossible to please. Thank you for shopping at the Husband Store."

To avoid gender bias charges, the store's owner opens a New Wives store just across the street. It too has six floors. The first floor has wives that love sex. The second floor has wives that love sex and have money. The third through sixth floors have never been visited.

time.blogs.com

Health & Fitness: The Road to 40 (Week 12)

Workouts this week: 4
Workouts/Total days: 48/83

Better. It’s still not exactly 5 times a week but getting better. At least I will not have to "have words with myself" as promised if I didn't improve.

Next week will be interesting as I have Monday, Tuesday, and Friday off from work. Since the gym is closed on Monday (Christmas day) and I have to be out of town that day anyway, there is no way to make it. Tuesday and Friday however could see me at the gym if I drag my lazy ass downtown just for a workout. Not the best commute just to hit the gym but fitness trumps convenience eh?

If all goes well, it’ll be another four days for week 13.

The Active Sun

Credit: Solar Optical Telescope, Hinode Satellite, JAXA

Another cool shot. I wonder if my current fascination with the sun has anything to do with the fact that it's so damn cold up here these days; duh, it’s like uh, winter?! Deal with it!

Maybe a trip to Hawai’i is in order. I think I'll start a "Send-Rob-to-Hawai'i" charity fund (right after I start that "Buy-Rob-a-new-computer" fund).

Health & Fitness: The Road to 40 (Week 11)

Workouts this week: 2 (!)
Workouts/Total days: 44/76

Now this was a down-right crappy week for fitness. Monday and Wednesday were the only days that saw me at the gym. What a slacker! And the reasons (read “thinly veiled excuses”) for missing three days this week?

Tuesday and Thursday mornings I was at 0% energy when I woke up; I’d guess I was fighting some bug but that is pure speculation (read “wishful thinking”). Today my alarm (an electric one) didn’t go off because there was no power for it.

Yup, we got that big wind storm slamming Puget Sound last night. It actually knocked out power at least twice last night. Needless to say, without an alarm clock, I missed my wake-up time for the gym. The only reason I woke in time to get to work was that my backup alarm went off... in other words, my cat wanted to be fed.

It is a bit disturbing that I do not feel much guilt for missing so many days this week. I’ll need to work on that because I should be beside myself with grief, totally depressed, and unable to function... basically a total wreck for missing so many days. I’m slipping.

On the bright side, if there is still no power tonight, I’ll have to find something to do in the dark. If that is the case, I might as well do some push-ups and sit-ups. However, that doesn’t quite count as a workout so I’ll not include it in the count.

Next week better show improvement or I’ll have to have words with myself; and that will not be a pretty sight. On to week 12.