pecs, bi’s and salty snacks

Pecs are your friends kids!  That’s what they say at least …and if they say it then it has to be true.

Anyway, it was pecs and bi’s today (roughly translated into ‘pectorals and biceps’) and it all started off with everyone’s favorite basic movement …the flat bench.  The flat bench (incase you’ve been out of the loop for a bit) is a bar-bell press while laying flat.  On a bench of course.  It is, as I’ve said before, the most basic chest exercise you can do and the most popular and frequently used movement in the history of fitness related endeavors.  I’m guessing a little …but it’s probably true.  I did 4 sets starting with 12 reps and going down (increasing weight) to just 4 for the last set.  After that I zipped over and did some incline dumb-bells (4 sets, again 12 down to about 4) and finished off with some machine flies.  The machine flies were done in the sitting position and again, I went down to around 4 reps.  With the files however I super-setted some basic standing curls (alternating between one set of flies and then one set of curls until 4 sets are done) which I usually like to do on my last ‘major’ exercise because it not only warms up my next muscle group but kills a little time as well because you don’t really rest between the alternating sets.  Make sense?

The Flat-bench. Image from ShapeFit.com

Biceps started then with standing curls (more or less 8-10 reps for all 4 sets) then shifted over to preacher curls (wide grip, 10 down to 4 or 5 reps) and finished off with straight-bar cable curls (narrow grip 6-4 reps throughout).  The last exercise of bi’s was super-setted with some triceps …straight bar cable extensions.  These were nice to do because I simply used the same bar I used for curls but just raised the pivot point – these machines let you adjust things pretty easily.  Again, there’s really no rest in between the two exercises, and you get a great arm pump as long as you’ve still got the energy.

Preachers curls. Image from ShapeFit.com

And I seemed to have the energy today.  Just for fun, food throughout the day consisted of a bowl of Kelloggs Just Right, an apple, a Genisoy bar, a 6 inch turkey breast on whole wheat from Subway (toasted, cheddar cheese, onions, lettuce, green peppers, banana peppers, cucumbers and mustard), another Genisoy bar, some water, some orange juice, a few whole wheat crackers, a two egg ommlete with one whole orange pepper (I like those things now!) some milk (skim), two slices of Little Caesars ‘Supreme’ Hot and Ready (of which it was both), a protein shake with milk and a whole banana and finally two more pieces of the aforementioned pie with some orange juice.  Oh, and a bottle of apple juice somewhere along the way.  And more water too.

So that’s the day.  Obviously there’s a bunch of fast-food in there which although wasn’t too bad, was still fast, full of salt and typically not what I usually eat.  In my defense, I did put in an 8-5 shift for the Man as well as a trip to the laundry-mat and dickered with a few old-timers who stopped by to buy some of my ‘collecting dust camera equipment’ …film of course.  I was able to trade them for a Photo Trekker AW 2 (by Lowepro) which is a very comfy bag, but I’m not sure I’m going to use it much.  I don’t have a lot of equipment of course, so I’ll probably just use it as a back-pack for various outings.  Perhaps.  Worse case scenario ….I’ll sell it.

It seems to be worth something!

breasts! (turkey and stroke)

There’s some things you just don’t forget …like riding a bike.  Add swimming to that list as well.

I hit the pool the last few days and it actually felt good.  My front crawl sucks cause my pacing is waaaay off, but the breast stroke seems fine and relaxed.  I kinda missed it in a way.  The contacts didn’t though …but the body did.  I used to do the swimming/water thing back in the WWP days of my life.  I was there a long time now that I think about it, 2 years full-time and 4.5 in total.  Made some great friends that I’m still in touch with as well …but as far as getting out in the water, I just haven’t been motivated.  Looking back I’ve probably had enough chlorine to last my lifetime anyway.  But getting in the pool again was fun and I’m looking forward to making it somewhat of a regular thing …especially over the winter.

Of course biking to work, working on legs (and triceps) at the gym and then waking 4 or 5 k’s through the evening didn’t help with any ‘leg recovery’.  I’m planning a trip out to Tisdale this weekend (yea …no gigs!) and don’t plan to do a whole lot physically, so maybe that’s why I’m stacking things up.  Mom is having an early Thanksgiving Day supper for me when I’m there ….lol, which is funny cause she always ignores meals with my sisters who live in the same small town …and she’s doing the whole nine yards as well …turkey, cabbage rolls – even pies!

Yeah I know …I’m the special boy

Surrogates

September 28, 2009.  12:21 am

As I sit down to my computer screen to make this entry I can’t help but feel something similar to deja vu.  I just returned from seeing the new Bruce Willis movie Surrogates.  It’s a show set in a not to distant future where people are capable of living their lives through surrogate bodies.  All interactions, all ‘real world’ activities are done through their surrogates while they, controlling them, relax in the comfort of their residence.  Their natural bodies plagued with the regular ailments of age while their surrogates gleam with the youthful vigor of days gone by.

An interesting idea, and somewhat relevant when you consider the fact that many people seem to have ‘computer’ lives that are separate from their own.  Perhaps computer identities might be a better description.  It made me think of my POF trials lately (that I’ve happily left off this blog) where I encountered a few people who admittedly use the site for entertainment and have no real desire to meet face to face.  It also made me think of the fashion industry and its effects on image and self perception, as well as the notable disassociation of people from what’s often perceived as our ’seemingly-boring’ natural environment.

It’s pure hollywood sci-fi of course, but still ties in neatly with modern trends in computer, online and machine technology.  At times over the top …but at other times sadly close to home.

3 highly over-priced popcorns out of 5.

Image from IMDb.

Kaleido Festival

Tilo Paiz did another Kaleido festival gig this afternoon.

I was prepared for an outside show (like last year) but they had some wind gusts come up later last night and I think the organization decided to err on the side of caution and move the venue inside for today.  Probably thinking of the Big Valley Jamboree fiasco that went down this summer.  I didn’t mind the move though, although the sun was out it was only 13 Cel. and my fingers don’t respond so well if they’re a little cold.  Yes, I’m a wuss.

Anyway, it was moved indoors and into a pretty formal set-up as well.  What did we do?  Hummmm, started off with Yesterday, then Watermelon Man, St. Thomas, Mantecca, Seven Steps to Heaven, Fiesta De Melones (a track from the 2003 Sandro Dominelli release), something else and then wrapped things up with 500 Miles High.  A lot of standards …something Tilo doesn’t do too often, but then I think he’s getting tired of the other stuff he typically does.  He has a Yardbird Suite gig coming up on the 30th which I think he’s somewhat ambitious about, and mentioned something about new songs and rehearsals.  His problem though is that he likes to leave things to the last minute (and who doesn’t I suppose) but then finds everyone is already committed to other things and has to default back to his old repertoire of sorts.  Hopefully things will be different.

Failing that, it’ll be the same old, same old.  Which means I get another chance to maybe get it right this time

Tilo and Jonny. Do sunglasses ever get old?

peace?

The whole ‘walking out‘ incident reminds me of a bunch of kids in a sandbox.  They all have justifications for what they do and how they behave and the end result is consistent bitterness, mistrust and hatred.  It’s always been like this …and certainly more is expected.  Humans have had how many centuries to figure things out, yet they run into the same road-blocks time and time again.  Someone is right and someone else is wrong …there’s no middle ground because there’s no will for it and no patience because everyone is concerned about themselves and needing to see to their own well-being (and those like them) before their time is up.  Peace isn’t really about peace …it’s more about what’s good for those who profess it and how that creates a better world.  Forget the fact that someone has differing opinions which have been formed from their own unique situations in life …and forget the fact that they may have strong, justifiable reasons for acting the way they do.  Problems are buried upon problems and we no longer have the desire nor the time needed to understand them …to figure out where we differ on what are essentially similar matters.  And perish the thought that we may be the ones acting inappropriately on occasion.

Here’s a riddle: If two dead people are laying on the ground, which one is more right?

ch, ch, ch, changes…

The old header was a picture of a leaf superimposed with a shot of the moon …but for some reason when I recently threw up that ‘two ant’ image it kinda called out for change.  It was greener I suppose …and antier as well.  And who doesn’t like ants anyway?  Heck, they even dispose of their dead in ways that we’re still learning about!  The ants around my place have taken a liking to my basement/body-storage-chamber as a dumping ground for a few of their friends.  I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not.  It’s been 10 years or so and I’m still alive, so I figure it can’t be that bad.  I hardly ever see them dumping the bodies though.  The vacuum cleaner works wonders as well …and it’s not as if there’s a lot of bodies either – maybe a couple times a year.  Maybe.  I remember when we first moved in we’d set up ant traps and spray the place every so often, and all to no avail.  I suppose we could use stronger chemicals …but then I suppose we could fix the foundation enough so they can’t get in in the first place.  But nope …that’s not going to happen.

The ants are here to stay it seems …so let me be the first to welcome our new insect overlords!

the three tenors

Ahhh, weddings.  What’s not to like about weddings!

Actually …when you’re a bitter old cranky bastard like myself you can find quite a few things.  But I digress, as I always seem to do.  The wedding was fine.  Heck, it was darn near beautiful – and full of all that stuff that makes all weddings special.

But enough about the wedding.  Instead, let’s talk about how the Wedding Crashers did!  Surely having a live band at a wedding would produce endless stories and memories that kids and parents could share with future generations ….reliving those special musical moments that a DJ could never duplicate!

Actually …when you’re a cranky old bitter bastard like myself there’s really not much to dwell on.  The gig worked, people danced, sound came out of the speaker thingys that sounded vaguely similar to the people producing it and it was all good.  Or rather good enough I suppose.

So, now you’re probably wondering what exactly it was that I came away with after the day.  I’ll tell ya ….I cleaned my car!  I also made a neat ’stack’ by placing the sound mixer on top of my bass cabinet …and that made it look cool.  I also gleaned some info from the wedding picture-taker girl about saving my images in RAW format as opposed to JPEG – this is good cause it might help me clear up some color issues I think I’m having.  I also vacuumed the basement and cleared up a lot of the cobwebs that were down there.  Our basement lies beneath a trap door in the kitchen btw …kinda spooky, but able to contain 5-6 full bodies before arousing suspicion.

Really …I never joke about that kinda stuff.

The three tenors ....kinda. Actually, if they sang tenor then perhaps ...but they don't. Or maybe they do? Hummmm. L-R - Jeff, Joel and Don.

warmth, brains and missiles

“Russia says it has scrapped plans to deploy missiles in a region near Poland after U.S. President Barack Obama canceled plans for a missile defense system in Central Europe.“  That’s kinda warm and fuzzy.  John McCain isn’t impressed though, seeing it as a “step backwards at a time when Eastern European countries are increasingly wary of what he called renewed Russian adventurism.“  I wonder though, if perhaps there are some countries that might view certain US actions as ‘Americian adventurism?’  Hard to say…but the scraped Russian plans still make me feel warm and fuzzy.

Speaking of which, one of the blogs I occasionally visit mentions a study that draws connections between our physical comfort (warmth vs cold) and both the feelings and language we use when associating with others.  It seems to suggest that …”thought processes are grounded in bodily sensations.” …”interpersonal relationships – which for most of us are critical in everyday life – are strongly grounded in temperature…” and …“temperature has a direct effect on social relations.“  It’s quite interesting when you think about it, how the language we use is potentially based on basic bodily sensations.  We are still primitive creatures kids, as much as we struggle to free ourselves from that association, I think it’s important to both admit and recognize it at times.

Speaking of primitive creatures struggling to free themselves, this blogs previous post on tracing synaptic firings compelled me to get a free one-day trial JOVE membership to check out the ever exciting advancements in the ‘cranial window’.  It’s not for the squeamish though …but it’s definitely science fiction fodder for the next installment of Man From The Future.

Now with the amazing ’see-through’ brain!

the friday…

With the day off today I headed out with the camera for a bit.  I kinda meandered around the neighborhood and eventually made my way over to the Muttart Conservatory …and then inside.  Exciting ….lol, I guess.  It was somewhat disappointing though.  Not that there wasn’t stuff to see, but that there wasn’t anything that really jumped out at me.  Maybe it was the daytime experience.  I’ve been there a few times at night for some gigs, and I remembered it as kinda magical in a way …not this afternoon though.  It was fine, don’t get me wrong, but perhaps the night/post-dusk experience might have a little more to offer.

Two ants doing an ant dance. Or at least I think that's what it is? Picture from my neighbors garden however ...the Muttart ants weren't all that exciting.

Also interesting to note was the fact that Jehovah Witness people come out on Friday.  That caught me off guard.  I can’t say no to two little old ladies of course …especially when one knew my name, so I took their magazines and chatted with them for a while.  The one has been stopping by for a few years now …and they are kind.  The roomie answered the door and later made the remark that he wished he had the time to talk to them.  I’m not sure if he was truly sincere or not.  Anyway, it was a short and sweet visit.  God Bless their stick-to-it-ness!

Off to the gym for a bit, then some groceries, then I contemplate recording a guitar part for a new tune.  It’s done of course, but now comes the ‘motivation to record’ test.  It is kinda neat though …and it uses that loop I stuck in that Banff vid.  So we’ll see.  Tomorrow I’m up early for a sound-check in prep. for a wedding later that night.  Mmmmm ….and I hear we get free food!

Ahhhh, the sweet perks that come with the power of entertainment.

Iran and the bomb

VIENNA (Reuters) – The U.N. nuclear watchdog said Thursday it had no proof that Iran has or once had a covert atomic bomb program, dismissing a news report that it had concluded Iran was on its way to producing nuclear weapons.

In a statement, the International Atomic Energy Agency reaffirmed IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei’s September 9 warning that allegations the agency was sitting on undeniable evidence of Iranian bomb work were “politically motivated and baseless.”

“With respect to a recent media report, the IAEA reiterates that it has no concrete proof that there is or has been a nuclear weapons program in Iran,” the statement said.

(Reporting by Mark Heinrich; Editing by Matthew Jones)

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‘Politically motivated and baseless‘ …hummm.  That kinda sums up the reasons for my complete disinterest with Western international politics especially when pertaining to events in the Middle East.  I wonder if people can dismiss fear in such a similar manner?

I’m gonna guess no.