Which Camera Does This Pro Use? It Depends on the Shot – “Ultimately, the technology is just a tool,” he said. “It’s a tool that lets your eye become the picture. It’s easy to get caught up with all of the gadgets and all of the technology, but the most important thing is just to get comfortable with the tools you have.”
Dating an Apple Developer – The world needs more Emilys. 🙂
4.5 miles yesterday
But I sort of cheated — I was getting tired so every I took 5 minute walking breaks for each 10-15 minutes of running.
I also got my OldNavy.com order in the mail today — all of their inexpensive workout clothing is…icky, so I guess I’m just gonna have to suck it up and go back to REI for more of the expensive stuff.
How to Choose a Pair of Running Shorts – My question was #1, so I’m glad they got that one out of the way quickly… 😉
Matt Miller asks if the fine art of persuasion is dead when it comes to politics – In a word? Yeah. But West Wing still occasionally showcases people actually debating interesting issues.
Framing quest
I uploaded some photos to Costco’s photo center and ordered 4×6 prints at 17 cents each. Picked ’em up at the local Costco and they looked pretty darn nice. Costco looks to be the best game in town for digital prints, much better quality than a home printer and costs less than any other printing place (possibly costs less than doing it at home, in fact).
Next I went to Target to get some inexpensive frames for the photos, but for some inexplicable reason while they have a couple dozen different frame types and hundreds of frames in stock, there were only three or four 4×6 frames, no more than one of any single type, all hiding behind other frames. Everything else was 5×7 or larger. Either someone came in and just grabbed every 4×6 in sight, or they aren’t refreshing their stock very quickly.
While I was disappointed on frames, I did at least find some solid colored shirts I like at the insane price point of $5.99 each. Target is really an amazing place, why didn’t I know this before now?
Channeling Forrest Gump
So after reading the feedback to my last post I decided to go out and buy some proper attire. The stuff is annoyingly expensive, but up until this point all I’ve purchased is a pair of shorts from Old Navy so this seemed like as good a time as any to start investing in my workouts.
I purchased some polyester clothing (err…DryLETE or Dri-release, depending on who is asking) at REI that is meant for workouts, and is supposedly good at keeping you dry and ventilated and such. Well, it worked.
One of the major changes over the past week or two that I didn’t think about is that it has gotten warmer. Hot, even. We sort of switched from winter to summer with no spring in between. And while the gym, located in an underground concrete bunker (don’t ask…) isn’t as hot as the outdoors, the air is warm and humid, and that was probably the biggest factor affecting my treadmill runs.
Remarkably, this stuff performed as advertisied, and kept me pretty cool and dry, or as much as can be expected from mesh fabric as opposed to, say, air conditioning. That combined with a desire to really push myself and not stop no matter how tired I was getting, and I was able to run the furthest I’ve ever run, namely 4.1 miles. Now my only fear is that when I go to run today, I won’t get that far.
So some new clothes, a renewed desire, and probably some placebo effect, and now I’m pretty excited about the future of my professional running career. Or at least my chances in a 5k. 🙂
Buckle up laws are a waste of time and money – He’s doing so well and then in the last paragraph he pulls out a conclusion that does not logically follow from anything before it.
Setting the Record Straight – The USPS VP of communications hits back at negative Post Office press with a healthy dose of sarcasm. Whoda thunk?
Richard Dawkins on how Creastionists are twisting scientists’ words and tearing down the scientific method by mocking honest inquiry – Apparently that curious cat really did just have it coming.
More confusion about what is causing higher insurance premiums for doctors – Is it because of more, bigger malpractice lawsuits? Is so, are they wrong, or are larger awards simply a response to rising health costs? If not, is it something else, like a bad return on investments by the insurance companies? No one really seems to know with any degree of certainty. That’s not stopping the White House from putting forward a plan that favors business over patients.
Looking for a bit of living advice
My gym routine has been simplified down now such that my one constant is running on the treadmill most days, generally for between 30 and 40 minutes (including warm-up/cool-down) and then a bit of stretching and some weights or whatever strikes my fancy. For the last few days I’ve just not had the urge at all to run, and its been completely unenjoyable to me. I mean, its generally not the most exciting way to spend one’s time, but I can sort of zone out, think about things, listen to music, and the like. Lately it just hasn’t been working for me, so yesterday I took a day off from the gym and today I went back, and while I ran for a little while and worked up a sweat, I still didn’t feel very good afterwards.
The other difficult thing abou running as opposed to the elliptical machine or the reclining bike (neither of which give me near as good of a workout) is that I can’t really do it while watching TV or listening to audiobooks. The former isn’t terrible because I don’t much like watching network TV on their schedule with their commercials anyway (I wish the machines had DVD players!), but the latter is sort of sad, because I was having fun listening to audiobooks at the gym. I also can’t listen to any kind of music, it has to be something with the right kind of beat and to sort of match my mood and to be somewhat gripping, meaning either I haven’t heard it a hundred times or it is a showtune and I can sort of get engaged in the story. A tall order, my music tastes are, because my existing selections are getting stale.
Which brings me back to the problem I’m having, that I’m not energized to run, I’m not feeling good about running, and I’m just not doing as well running. Up until this point I think running has worked pretty well for me. Here are a few of the proposals I have come up with for change:
# *Try a different time of day.* — I might do better in the mornings. This would tie in with a desire I think I’m having to re-normalize my sleep schedule before it gets completely out of whack again. I’d love to start waking up earlier, and this is the right time to make it happen since I don’t have many other scheduled commitments to worry about. But when I’ve run in the mornings before I’ve had a problem with waking up enough to not, ya know, fall off. I’m not really a morning person.
# *Try running outdoors.* — Cambridge is a neat place, and while I find it a little weird to be running on sidewalks and stopping to cross intersections and the like, this would probably make the experience a lot more variable and perhaps bring back some of the excitement. Doing it with my big iPod to carry is another story…and I’m really not in the mood to go buy a Shuffle at the moment.
# *Switch my routine.* — Like I said, I think running works. It drains a lot of energy, and when I was doing it before it left me feeling fulfilled and energized afterwards. But maybe I can find something else I like just as much. Reclining bike isn’t terrible, and I can do it while listening to audiobooks or even, god forbid, watching TV.
This is where you come in. Let’s make this blog interactive. 🙂 Any comments on what I’ve said, or other suggestions? I know I have a few readers who do quite a bit of running in various capacities, perhaps they have some tips. (I’m looking at you, marathon girl. ;))
In a series of studies, researchers have found that, among other processes, new love involves psychologically internalizing a lover, absorbing elements of the other person’s opinions, hobbies, expressions, character, as well as sharing one’s own. “The expansion of the self happens very rapidly, it’s one of the most exhilarating experiences there is, and short of threatening our survival it is one thing that most motivates us,” said Dr. Aron, of SUNY, a co-author of the study.
To lose all that, all at once, while still in love, plays havoc with the emotional, cognitive and deeper reward-driven areas of the brain. But the heightened activity in these areas inevitably settles down. And the circuits in the brain related to passion remain intact, the researchers say – intact and capable in time of flaring to life with someone new.
Good to know. From Watching New Love as It Sears the Brain, because today is a New York Times day.
The New Urbanism movement is a pushback against urban sprawl – Some call it the future, some call it a pipe dream. (Thanks Aaron!)
The Five-Bedroom, Six-Figure Rootless Life – Apparently the Times has been running a special section, “Class Matters,” for the past month. This story is a fascinating and engrossing look at the evolution of a class of working, always on-the-move elite with no roots and no ties, constantly relocated as the requirements of jobs change. It is also a reflection on the kinds of communities that are developing, for better or worse, in response to these changes.