I read a book once that mentioned a man who said he wasn't very interested in politics because what they did in Washington didn't seem to effect his life on a day to day basis. But what did effect his life was what happened right there in his neighborhood. So, instead of asking the local government to put in a bench at a bus stop where he always saw a little old lady waiting for the bus, he built one, and put it there himself.
This analogy really stands out to me as the media is currently making a big deal about the first 100 days of the new Obama administration. At first I was sort of surprised to realize that he's been our new president for 100 days. Sure I voted for the guy and have vivid memories of thinking that being in downtown Oakland on my bike the night of the election was probably a bad idea, but since then, I have almost forgot that we've had a chance in administration.
Now how could this be? We went from good ol' W who many consider the worst president of all time to Obama who many have already crowned the second coming of whatever christ like figure you may believe in. But for me, I can't tell the difference. My life hasn't changed one bit. Is this because I generally don't find a lot of the political hooplah interesting? Maybe it is, I don't know.
I still wake up at the same time. My pay check still arrives on time in this "shitty" economic climate. And while I read the economy is terrible and certainly my minuscule retirement account is almost microscopic at this point, but I can still buy the same things I used to buy. I just bought plane tickets to Australia in this economy and I'm pretty excited about that.
And while I hope for the greater good Mr. Obama does great things, I actually take a bit of comfort in the fact that everything for me is pretty much the same. I like that fact that whoever is in office my everyday life isn't effected. I like living my life the way I choose to. I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who disagree. I remember all of my crazy republican friends claiming they were moving to Canada if Obama won. (On a side note, can we think about that for a second? Republicans want to move to ultra liberal Canada to avoid a moderately liberal America?) Of course none of them did, and I'm sure if you asked them their lives are no different than they used to be either.
I can't think of a good way to sum this all up, so, that's it. Have a nice day and I hope the current administration doesn't make any decisions that change the way you live your daily life. Unless, I guess, you want them to?
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
Dumb!
Click here to read the professionally written article.
Here's the short of it because I don't feel like typing a lot. Astana was thinking of sending Levi, Lance and Chris Horner to the Tour of Gila, a pretty old US Stage Race that takes place in New Mexico, for some last minute race training for the upcoming Giro.
Apparently, somewhere in the stupid UCI rule book they've decided to enforce a rule that seems totally retarded that says these guys can't race it because they are ProTour riders, but it's a Continental race. Or some shit like that. All the different levels of professional cycling take no less than a PhD in chaos theory to actually start to understand who is what and how it works.
The part about this that bugs me is it seems like the UCI is stepping in and saying when and where these guys are allowed to earn a living. Would Lance or Levi or Chris win the Tour of Gila? Who knows. It's certainly not guaranteed, but that seems the only viable reason that the UCI would be stepping in and saying now. I read this as the UCI saying, "You guys are too good, you can't go to that race, give those guys a chance." I may be wrong on that and honestly I hope I am.
If I am a guy racing for a smaller domestic team and I get the news that those three icons of US cycling are coming to the race I'm at, you best believe I'm licking my chops at my chance to beat them. That's a story for the grand kids, even if it does take place in New Mexico.
From a simple financial standpoint the UCI is really hurting a lot of people. Look at the turn out for the Tour of California. It was huge. Sure it was CA and there were a lot of big names, but I was there, and well over 50% of those crowds were there because it was maybe their last chance to get to see Lance race in person. I know it motivated me when trying to decide whether it was worth it to drive 8 hours to watch for 20 seconds. If Lance was there that race would have fan turn out like they'd never experienced. All the little towns in New Mexico that I can only assume are struggling with the economy would have a short but much needed boost in their economy.
This race almost didn't happen this year because of the organizers inability to secure a title sponsor. Luckily, SRAM stepped up and the race can go on. You don't think sponsors in the future would like to put their name on a race that Lance did? It'd make that sales pitch a whole lot easier.
Bike racing in America has been around for a long time, but it's not a secure sport by any means. The modern day races that come to mind are struggling to stay or have already been scratched off the calender. Anybody heading to Georgia this year? Didn't think so! We don't have Paris-Roubaix, the Tour of Flanders or any of those other European classics that versus cuts down to a convenient hour. What we've got are a bunch of small, but beautiful races that maybe in 50 years can make the cut for Versus "Cyclism Sunday" or "The Epic Cycle" or whatever it is they're calling it this year.
I don't know who's in charge of the UCI or where it's located but I think this is a stupid show of brute force. It doesn't accomplish anything and does a lot more long term harm than if the final podium at Gila was all Astana. Nobody wants to win a watered down Tour. It's not Carlos Sastre's fault that it happened to him, but it did. The Tour of Gila had the opportunity to have what's already an impressive field of domestic pros be three deeper. But the UCI put a stop to that. I hope that whoever wins the Gila this year won't be remember as the guy that won the year that Levi, Lance and Chris weren't allowed to race.
Here's the short of it because I don't feel like typing a lot. Astana was thinking of sending Levi, Lance and Chris Horner to the Tour of Gila, a pretty old US Stage Race that takes place in New Mexico, for some last minute race training for the upcoming Giro.
Apparently, somewhere in the stupid UCI rule book they've decided to enforce a rule that seems totally retarded that says these guys can't race it because they are ProTour riders, but it's a Continental race. Or some shit like that. All the different levels of professional cycling take no less than a PhD in chaos theory to actually start to understand who is what and how it works.
The part about this that bugs me is it seems like the UCI is stepping in and saying when and where these guys are allowed to earn a living. Would Lance or Levi or Chris win the Tour of Gila? Who knows. It's certainly not guaranteed, but that seems the only viable reason that the UCI would be stepping in and saying now. I read this as the UCI saying, "You guys are too good, you can't go to that race, give those guys a chance." I may be wrong on that and honestly I hope I am.
If I am a guy racing for a smaller domestic team and I get the news that those three icons of US cycling are coming to the race I'm at, you best believe I'm licking my chops at my chance to beat them. That's a story for the grand kids, even if it does take place in New Mexico.
From a simple financial standpoint the UCI is really hurting a lot of people. Look at the turn out for the Tour of California. It was huge. Sure it was CA and there were a lot of big names, but I was there, and well over 50% of those crowds were there because it was maybe their last chance to get to see Lance race in person. I know it motivated me when trying to decide whether it was worth it to drive 8 hours to watch for 20 seconds. If Lance was there that race would have fan turn out like they'd never experienced. All the little towns in New Mexico that I can only assume are struggling with the economy would have a short but much needed boost in their economy.
This race almost didn't happen this year because of the organizers inability to secure a title sponsor. Luckily, SRAM stepped up and the race can go on. You don't think sponsors in the future would like to put their name on a race that Lance did? It'd make that sales pitch a whole lot easier.
Bike racing in America has been around for a long time, but it's not a secure sport by any means. The modern day races that come to mind are struggling to stay or have already been scratched off the calender. Anybody heading to Georgia this year? Didn't think so! We don't have Paris-Roubaix, the Tour of Flanders or any of those other European classics that versus cuts down to a convenient hour. What we've got are a bunch of small, but beautiful races that maybe in 50 years can make the cut for Versus "Cyclism Sunday" or "The Epic Cycle" or whatever it is they're calling it this year.
I don't know who's in charge of the UCI or where it's located but I think this is a stupid show of brute force. It doesn't accomplish anything and does a lot more long term harm than if the final podium at Gila was all Astana. Nobody wants to win a watered down Tour. It's not Carlos Sastre's fault that it happened to him, but it did. The Tour of Gila had the opportunity to have what's already an impressive field of domestic pros be three deeper. But the UCI put a stop to that. I hope that whoever wins the Gila this year won't be remember as the guy that won the year that Levi, Lance and Chris weren't allowed to race.
Friday, April 24, 2009
So Much Drama in the LBC...
Simeoni steamed at Giro snub
Probably the best headline velonews.com has ever written. I think the reason I find it so awesome is because I have an assumption in my brain that the term "steamed" isn't one used by Italians. I have no evidence to back this up, but I'm sticking by my assumption of ignorance.
This is sort of funny on another level because as an American cycling fan and more importantly a Lance Armstrong cycling fan, I'm pretty much programmed to hate this guy. Simeoni for a long time was the guy in the professional peloton who bad mouthed everybody else in the sport of doping. Anytime somebody won, Simeoni would make public statements that the guy was on the juice. Of course he made these accusations towards Lance and anybody that's seen Lance in a press conference when he's angry knows he's not always a nice guy.
There was that one little incident in I believe the 2005 Tour de France when after making more doping accusations Simeoni tried to get into a break away. After bridging up he looked over his shoulder and saw that he'd been followed by a yellow jersey. My intention here isn't to get all cycling dork on you, anymore than I already am, but if you aren't in the know, a break with the yellow jersey stands about a 0% chance of surviving. The rest of the field simply won't let the yellow jersey ride up the road. The rest of the guys in the break see Lance and all exclaim, "what the hell are you doing here?" Probably in like 10 languages and what they actually said may or may not translate in that exact way. None the less Lance calmly explains that as long as Simeoni is in the group, he was going to be there too. If Simeoni went back to the peloton, he'd happily drop back as well. They voted and Simeoni was sent back. These kinds of decisions about who can stay in a group happen all the time, it usually doesn't involve quite the display of power that Lance threw down in this particular case.
Of course later that day Simeoni was all upset and crying about how Lance was hurting his chances of making a living and that he was a big Texas bully. Lance made it clear that he was basically protecting the interest of the group. Nobody in the peloton wants the guy that constantly bashes them to win, so he was making sure he didn't.
So, back to present day and Simeoni finds himself as the current Italian national champion on a smaller tier 2 pro squad. There are so many bike teams in the world that want to come to these big races that very, very few tier 2 teams actually get an invite. Simeoni's squad was left off that list for the Giro this May and of course he's upset again. He thinks the race is disrespecting him by not having the Italian national champ in their country's grand tour. Maybe I just don't like the guy but I don't see his point. It's not the national championship race, it's the Giro, they are totally different. If he wanted to ensure his presence in the Giro maybe he should have taken a contract with a team that would be big enough to get an invite.
When Lance announced his comeback and originally said the Giro would be his main goal there were about two weeks of articles where Simeoni was asked how he felt about it and if he thought there'd be any more battles on the road. Both parties stayed pretty neutral, but I am hoping beyond hope at this point that Simeoni starts crying conspiracy theory about his exclusion.
I mean, it only makes sense that Lance would keep him out!
Probably the best headline velonews.com has ever written. I think the reason I find it so awesome is because I have an assumption in my brain that the term "steamed" isn't one used by Italians. I have no evidence to back this up, but I'm sticking by my assumption of ignorance.
This is sort of funny on another level because as an American cycling fan and more importantly a Lance Armstrong cycling fan, I'm pretty much programmed to hate this guy. Simeoni for a long time was the guy in the professional peloton who bad mouthed everybody else in the sport of doping. Anytime somebody won, Simeoni would make public statements that the guy was on the juice. Of course he made these accusations towards Lance and anybody that's seen Lance in a press conference when he's angry knows he's not always a nice guy.
There was that one little incident in I believe the 2005 Tour de France when after making more doping accusations Simeoni tried to get into a break away. After bridging up he looked over his shoulder and saw that he'd been followed by a yellow jersey. My intention here isn't to get all cycling dork on you, anymore than I already am, but if you aren't in the know, a break with the yellow jersey stands about a 0% chance of surviving. The rest of the field simply won't let the yellow jersey ride up the road. The rest of the guys in the break see Lance and all exclaim, "what the hell are you doing here?" Probably in like 10 languages and what they actually said may or may not translate in that exact way. None the less Lance calmly explains that as long as Simeoni is in the group, he was going to be there too. If Simeoni went back to the peloton, he'd happily drop back as well. They voted and Simeoni was sent back. These kinds of decisions about who can stay in a group happen all the time, it usually doesn't involve quite the display of power that Lance threw down in this particular case.
Of course later that day Simeoni was all upset and crying about how Lance was hurting his chances of making a living and that he was a big Texas bully. Lance made it clear that he was basically protecting the interest of the group. Nobody in the peloton wants the guy that constantly bashes them to win, so he was making sure he didn't.
So, back to present day and Simeoni finds himself as the current Italian national champion on a smaller tier 2 pro squad. There are so many bike teams in the world that want to come to these big races that very, very few tier 2 teams actually get an invite. Simeoni's squad was left off that list for the Giro this May and of course he's upset again. He thinks the race is disrespecting him by not having the Italian national champ in their country's grand tour. Maybe I just don't like the guy but I don't see his point. It's not the national championship race, it's the Giro, they are totally different. If he wanted to ensure his presence in the Giro maybe he should have taken a contract with a team that would be big enough to get an invite.
When Lance announced his comeback and originally said the Giro would be his main goal there were about two weeks of articles where Simeoni was asked how he felt about it and if he thought there'd be any more battles on the road. Both parties stayed pretty neutral, but I am hoping beyond hope at this point that Simeoni starts crying conspiracy theory about his exclusion.
I mean, it only makes sense that Lance would keep him out!
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Back to Back Fake Holidays!
Fake Holiday #1: Earth Day.
What the heck is Earth Day besides a chance for crazy recycle nazi's to send office wide emails out to everyone to remind them it's Earth Day and then make additional suggestions about things you can do to help save the planet. If I wanted to constantly hear about how to save the polar ice caps or my carbon footprint I'd have applied to work for Al Gore.
I responded to our office wide email by saying I only observe holidays that come with a paid day off from work. That was followed up with a request not to pro-create. Which, I thought was pretty funny.
However, I did do my part. I saved water by refraining from washing my hands every time I went to the bathroom.
Fake Holiday #2: Bring your Kid to Work Day.
In my opinion, this sounds terrible. Let's face it. Unless your a fireman or a professional athlete there isn't a lot you do on a daily basis that keeps you entertained. Imagine having your kid sit there and watch you do it!
The good people at someecards.com have posted a few cards for the occasion that I think sum things up better than I can. And I clearly think I'm pretty good at summing.
What the heck is Earth Day besides a chance for crazy recycle nazi's to send office wide emails out to everyone to remind them it's Earth Day and then make additional suggestions about things you can do to help save the planet. If I wanted to constantly hear about how to save the polar ice caps or my carbon footprint I'd have applied to work for Al Gore.
I responded to our office wide email by saying I only observe holidays that come with a paid day off from work. That was followed up with a request not to pro-create. Which, I thought was pretty funny.
However, I did do my part. I saved water by refraining from washing my hands every time I went to the bathroom.
Fake Holiday #2: Bring your Kid to Work Day.
In my opinion, this sounds terrible. Let's face it. Unless your a fireman or a professional athlete there isn't a lot you do on a daily basis that keeps you entertained. Imagine having your kid sit there and watch you do it!
The good people at someecards.com have posted a few cards for the occasion that I think sum things up better than I can. And I clearly think I'm pretty good at summing.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Picture test
Jill's solution to not having a working blender but being determined to make a milkshake!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Why is there no blogger app?
I realize I have now either entered a whole new level of dork or, well that's probably the only real explanation but why is there no app or at least an iPhone optimized version of the website for me to get my blogging fix in while away from my computer? Google has all sorts if other apps that vary widely in there actual value of utility but no blogger app! WTF? Ok. That might be abut much but it does seem a bit odd. Netflix needs to get on it too!
I want this as my iphone background
so if I post the images I want on here I can access them. I realize, this isn't interesting, but maybe you will think these images are cool too?
They forgot about gambling!
I recently came across a link to the above video and of course I have some thoughts.
1) Lifehouse isn't a christian rock band. It was always my impression this song was about a girl, not Jesus. So, I did a quick bit of research. According to Wikipedia the genre's they fall under are punk, post grunge, crap like that. Not Christian. It says they started as a "Christian Band" but if they didn't stick with that because of the money then the irony of using their songs for that skit is even better.
2) If you can make it all the way through, which, really, it's tough, the guy who hands her the knife and gun totally tosses her across the stage in the battle scene.
3) Everybody knows that Jesus has a beard and long hair.
4) Everybody also knows that Jesus wore linen, not choir robes made of polyester.
5) Why does Jesus waist his energy with the fake tug-o-war thing. I mean, he's all powerful right, zap people with lightening bolts or demonstrate your league leading rebounding boxing out technique a little sooner.
6) Everybody knows that wanting to be a model and drinking beer leads to suicide. Duh!
7) I love when the people in the crowd start to cheer. As if Jesus wasn't going to win the whole time!
Friday, April 17, 2009
My Latest Bio
Whenever I'm asked to write a Bio for a company I'm working for I take it as a challenge to point out odd things that I've done that are far from important, but completely factual. This morning I was greeted by an email asking for a bio that would go in a newsletter. This is what I came up with:
From an early age I had my eye on the prize. 1988 was the first year I tasted victory when my car crushed the competition to become the overall Champion at the South Hill Boy Scouts Pine Box Derby races. Still, that wasn’t enough to satisfy my insatiable appetite for success so I went on to dominate the South Hill 1 mile youth fun run for 3 consecutive years while in third through fifth grades. Wanting to be a well rounded individual I decided to take some time and focus my life on charity. However, my competitive spirit got the best of me even while helping others. In 4th grade I was honored with the “Most Valuable Jumper” award after raising the most money for the Dupont Elementary Jump Rope for Heart. As I matured I decided it was nice to let others have a taste of victory and backed off of my accomplishments showing my humble side. In 8th grade however I needed to remind the world of my greatness. I did so by winning both the Mecklenburg County Math and Science Fair with some break through research in Statistics and Optical Illusions as well as taking gold in the Virginia FFA Meat Judging competition. Few people can say they lead all of NCAA Baseball with a perfect 1.000 batting average over several weeks, but I can. After hanging up the cleats to concentrate on my studies I was asked to use my wealth of basketball knowledge to steer the ship of the AOPi Intramural team. With my guidance those girls went on to win 3 straight All Campus Championships. It was a dynasty of domination that some people compare to the New England Patriots, but I don’t want to get carried away.
Jill says it sounds too cocky if you don't know that I'm being sarcastic. I think she's right, but I also think that's the point.
From an early age I had my eye on the prize. 1988 was the first year I tasted victory when my car crushed the competition to become the overall Champion at the South Hill Boy Scouts Pine Box Derby races. Still, that wasn’t enough to satisfy my insatiable appetite for success so I went on to dominate the South Hill 1 mile youth fun run for 3 consecutive years while in third through fifth grades. Wanting to be a well rounded individual I decided to take some time and focus my life on charity. However, my competitive spirit got the best of me even while helping others. In 4th grade I was honored with the “Most Valuable Jumper” award after raising the most money for the Dupont Elementary Jump Rope for Heart. As I matured I decided it was nice to let others have a taste of victory and backed off of my accomplishments showing my humble side. In 8th grade however I needed to remind the world of my greatness. I did so by winning both the Mecklenburg County Math and Science Fair with some break through research in Statistics and Optical Illusions as well as taking gold in the Virginia FFA Meat Judging competition. Few people can say they lead all of NCAA Baseball with a perfect 1.000 batting average over several weeks, but I can. After hanging up the cleats to concentrate on my studies I was asked to use my wealth of basketball knowledge to steer the ship of the AOPi Intramural team. With my guidance those girls went on to win 3 straight All Campus Championships. It was a dynasty of domination that some people compare to the New England Patriots, but I don’t want to get carried away.
Jill says it sounds too cocky if you don't know that I'm being sarcastic. I think she's right, but I also think that's the point.
1 Post. 3 Topics. Unlimited Awesome?
#1: Remember when Michael Rasmussen was kicked out of the 07 Tour de France, not for doping, but because he was reported to have been spotted training in "plain clothes?" At the time there were a few circulating stories of why, but Rasmussen's argument was consistently that it was the only way he could train without being hassled by cycling fans out on the road as it's clearly easy to spot and recognize these guys in their team kits. The only other people that wear full team kits are fat rich dudes and nobody's mistaking them for featherlight KOM champs.
Since Lance's comeback he has consistently been training in everything OTHER than his Astana team kit. It was said that part of his comeback bid to raise awareness for the global fight against cancer would allow him to wear LiveStrong kits in training, but Astana kits to race. Well, that made sense, especially when the pictures from the team camp showed up online and it's not like he was a hard guy to spot and the message seemed a good one.
However, recently, from his very own twitter updates I've seen multiple pictures where Lance is all kitted up, but wearing either LiveStrong or Astama team issue gear.
This puzzled me. So I took back at the old story and realized the "plain clothing" that was made such a fuss about wasn't the real issue at all. The reason Rasmussen was kicked out of the Tour was because he said he'd be in Mexico City for training, when he was actually some place in Europe. So his plain clothing was simply a means of disguise to keep his location a secret. But, he was spotted and it was reported and later his manager/trainer admitted he had been providing him with doping products. I realized the difference is the pros can train in whatever they want, as long as they are really where they say they area. And with about 10 twitter updates per day, Lance isn't trying to hide from anybody!
Why's this important? It's not.
#2 Tyler Hamilton tests positive again and will decide retire. I mean he's 38 so an 8 year ban is essentially a life timer for him. The story is reported that he quit his anti-depression meds cold turkey and resorted to some over the counter anti-depressants that included some substance that is on the banned list.
Unlike last time Hamilton says he knew it was in there and took it anyway. However, the performance enhancing properties of this supplement are clearly questionable as Hamilton finished 2nd to last in the Tour of California when he was on the stuff and with no real results coming after.
Either way, I think it's sort of a sad story and I was hoping for Tyler that he'd finish his career with the stars and stripes jersey on his back. But, it sounds like there's a bit bigger issues here than whether or not Hamilton is using doping agents for performance. I love cycling, but it's not the most important thing in the world. I wish Tyler nothing but the very best and I hope he can seek treatment for his depression.
For a professional journalist's story and not mine, click here.
#3
This morning on Good Morning America they showed a clip of these sorts of shots and asked if they were fake. Of course they aren't fake. What they aren't are first time attempts. Anybody, with an sort of athleticism can make these shots give an unlimited number of attempts. Why do you need at least a little athleticism? Because you're going to have to make adjustments based on misses. Not to mention throwing a basketball the length of the court isn't easy.
I will point out though, the kid who uses the bat to hit the ball should be careful. I got 18 stitches above my right eye in 7th grade doing that.
Have a great Friday everyone!
Since Lance's comeback he has consistently been training in everything OTHER than his Astana team kit. It was said that part of his comeback bid to raise awareness for the global fight against cancer would allow him to wear LiveStrong kits in training, but Astana kits to race. Well, that made sense, especially when the pictures from the team camp showed up online and it's not like he was a hard guy to spot and the message seemed a good one.
However, recently, from his very own twitter updates I've seen multiple pictures where Lance is all kitted up, but wearing either LiveStrong or Astama team issue gear.
This puzzled me. So I took back at the old story and realized the "plain clothing" that was made such a fuss about wasn't the real issue at all. The reason Rasmussen was kicked out of the Tour was because he said he'd be in Mexico City for training, when he was actually some place in Europe. So his plain clothing was simply a means of disguise to keep his location a secret. But, he was spotted and it was reported and later his manager/trainer admitted he had been providing him with doping products. I realized the difference is the pros can train in whatever they want, as long as they are really where they say they area. And with about 10 twitter updates per day, Lance isn't trying to hide from anybody!
Why's this important? It's not.
#2 Tyler Hamilton tests positive again and will decide retire. I mean he's 38 so an 8 year ban is essentially a life timer for him. The story is reported that he quit his anti-depression meds cold turkey and resorted to some over the counter anti-depressants that included some substance that is on the banned list.
Unlike last time Hamilton says he knew it was in there and took it anyway. However, the performance enhancing properties of this supplement are clearly questionable as Hamilton finished 2nd to last in the Tour of California when he was on the stuff and with no real results coming after.
Either way, I think it's sort of a sad story and I was hoping for Tyler that he'd finish his career with the stars and stripes jersey on his back. But, it sounds like there's a bit bigger issues here than whether or not Hamilton is using doping agents for performance. I love cycling, but it's not the most important thing in the world. I wish Tyler nothing but the very best and I hope he can seek treatment for his depression.
For a professional journalist's story and not mine, click here.
#3
This morning on Good Morning America they showed a clip of these sorts of shots and asked if they were fake. Of course they aren't fake. What they aren't are first time attempts. Anybody, with an sort of athleticism can make these shots give an unlimited number of attempts. Why do you need at least a little athleticism? Because you're going to have to make adjustments based on misses. Not to mention throwing a basketball the length of the court isn't easy.
I will point out though, the kid who uses the bat to hit the ball should be careful. I got 18 stitches above my right eye in 7th grade doing that.
Have a great Friday everyone!
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Top of Palomar, 2009 ToC
Palomar Mountain, from the Mavic moto from CycleTo on Vimeo.
At :45 look on the left hand side. Tall guy, B Sample Kit, really attractive!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
The Myth of the Ice Bath Busted!
Back in high school whenever I had some sort of injury the first thing we did was ice it. Then, after a few days there'd be the dreaded ice bath and warm bath alternating plunges. The theory behind this process seems simple enough and even makes logical sense; the ice bath slows swelling and the contrasting warm water helps to speed up blood flow and speed recovery of damaged muscle and tissue.
I have pretty much always sworn by this treatment. I've told plenty of friends to do this for various injuries, but, to be honest, I've also always wondered why I never read anything proving it's scientific merit. I always assumed there was nothing circulating because it was such an old method that it was simply accepted as effective.
Today, upon reading this article my mind has been changed. The reason there was no scientific evidence floating around about the effectiveness of ice baths was because nobody had really done the study. As complex as our training systems can be and as much as science has told us about how the body works under loads, it's fascinating to me that there are still basic ideas being tested.
I'm not sure this article is telling us that ice in general is overrated to help with injury. But I'm also not sure if it isn't saying that either. As someone who "used" to swear by the ice/heat method I can tell you that my elbow in high school seemed to bounce back much faster while using it.
Was it mental? Did my elbow recover quicker because I expected it to? If so, is that enough to justify using an ice bath or some other form of recovery that may not be scientifically sound but sure does make you feel better? That's probably a question more for sports psychology than exercise physiology and is not what I'd like to specialize in. But, it is an interesting idea!
One things for sure, under no circumstance will you see me climbing into a bathtub filled with cold water and ice EVER again! That is a miserable experience I now have justification to avoid!
I have pretty much always sworn by this treatment. I've told plenty of friends to do this for various injuries, but, to be honest, I've also always wondered why I never read anything proving it's scientific merit. I always assumed there was nothing circulating because it was such an old method that it was simply accepted as effective.
Today, upon reading this article my mind has been changed. The reason there was no scientific evidence floating around about the effectiveness of ice baths was because nobody had really done the study. As complex as our training systems can be and as much as science has told us about how the body works under loads, it's fascinating to me that there are still basic ideas being tested.
I'm not sure this article is telling us that ice in general is overrated to help with injury. But I'm also not sure if it isn't saying that either. As someone who "used" to swear by the ice/heat method I can tell you that my elbow in high school seemed to bounce back much faster while using it.
Was it mental? Did my elbow recover quicker because I expected it to? If so, is that enough to justify using an ice bath or some other form of recovery that may not be scientifically sound but sure does make you feel better? That's probably a question more for sports psychology than exercise physiology and is not what I'd like to specialize in. But, it is an interesting idea!
One things for sure, under no circumstance will you see me climbing into a bathtub filled with cold water and ice EVER again! That is a miserable experience I now have justification to avoid!
Monday, April 13, 2009
When Animals Act Like Animals
I apologize for the non English video but I use what youtube gives.
I remember a few years ago when Gilbert Arenas wrote on his blog during shark week that it wasn't an attack if you went in the ocean. It was trespassing. If the shark knocks on your door, comes in your house while you're watching TV and bites you, then it's an attack. If you're in the ocean, you're trespassing.
I can't help but feel the same way about this video. Since this video isn't in English, and maybe you didn't see it, allow me to briefly explain in bullet format.
- Stupid women decides she wants to go "swimming."
- Stupid women climbs over the barracade to achieve this goal.
- Stupid woman jumps into Polar Bear lair.
- Stupid woman swims to rock and Polar Bear welcomes her with a high five.
- People scream and try to rescue her.
- All three Polar Bears come over to see what's up.
- One of them decides to see if she's worth eating.
- Eventually, she's rescued and thankfully, arrested.
The exception I take with the story is the same one that Gilbert took with shark week. This lady is hardly being "attacked." She went into the Polar Bear lair for a swim, and the Polar Bears decided they wanted to play. Sure that "high five" probably wasn't intended as a warm greeting and invitation for tea, but, I'm also pretty sure the Polar Bear wasn't sure what the hell was going on, and decided it needed to protect itself and it's homies.
While watching this story, my girlfriend agreed with me that it wasn't an attack, but asked what verb I would use instead. Initially, I said they should have simply described it as the woman gets polar "beared," since they were simply doing what they do. But, after some thought, maybe describing the whole scene in a manner of self defense is probably more accurate.
Either way, one thing's for sure. If you keep your dumb ass out of the Polar Bear feeding tank, your ass doesn't get confused for food.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Parking and the Urban Life
If you live in the city and are always parking on the street then in at least a bit of your daily happiness hinges on the space you find to park. I don't mean in a manic way, but when you find a spot that is right in front of your destination it definitely makes everything else that much better. At the same time, if you have to search for a spot for a half hour and then are forced to settle for a space that isn't close to where you want to be, it bums you out, at least while you're walking to and from your car.
Since moving to San Francisco I have been introduced to something that I never really noticed back east. Every single house or apartment building has a drive way and of course, you can't park in front of this drive way. At first that may make sense, but then consider the last time you were trying to park in the city and took for granted that the entire block was cars, bumper to bumper. That doesn't happen here. More often than not a city block here will accommodate about half the cars that it would back east simply due to all of the driveways. With all those extra cars left to look for less spaces, it can be quite the adventure.
As someone who likes to be independent parking in the city relies far too heavily on others than I'm really comfortable with. This may not make sense, so allow me to explain. When you have limited space available, that space is at a premium (And you never thought simple supply and demand from ECON 101 would come in handy). For parking to work most efficiently people must only take the amount of space that is necessary for their car. However, as most of you know, this is rarely the case, and this drives me insane. Since moving to the city with a car I've changed the answer to "what super power would I like to have." It is now the ability to move parked cars closer together to create space for me to park.
When I drive to work I still have to park on the street. Our office is in a shopping district and we don't have parking spaces for everybody that works here. There is a street behind our office that has open parking about 3 blocks away. However, the side streets that make those blocks have open parking on one side, but not both. Available spots on these streets is at a premium due to the fact that everybody is lazy and wants to walk as little as possible. My morning is made when I can park on the first street. It's generally the highlight of at least the first half of my day.
The last two mornings my soul has been crushed by the asshole owner of this car (see picture below) who apparently either never took or failed ECON 101. This person clearly doesn't understand how simple supply and demand relates to urban parking and is too selfish to ensure that another spot is available for another person behind them. There is also the chance that they are protecting their car by parking like this so there isn't space for someone to bump it when trying to squeeze in. If this is the case, buy a cheaper car if you're going to be parking on the street all the time. All this person would have to do is pull up to where their bumper is in line with where the red paint begins. That's it! If they did that, another spot would be available for someone to park. I'm considering drawing this person a supply and demand graph and leaving it under their windshield wiper to illustrate how their messing up the, "rotation," if you will.
As I've so carefully illustrated for you, all this person has to do is pull forward along the red arrow. If they did that, a spot of more than ample size would be available behind. With the current parking arrangement only a smart car could fit either in front or behind. And since I'm writing this post out of totally selfish annoyed reasons I'd like to point out that I don't drive a smart car.
*Using the paint brush in Microsoft Paint with the touch pad on a laptop is very hard. However, that's still sadly close to what my handwriting looks like.
Since moving to San Francisco I have been introduced to something that I never really noticed back east. Every single house or apartment building has a drive way and of course, you can't park in front of this drive way. At first that may make sense, but then consider the last time you were trying to park in the city and took for granted that the entire block was cars, bumper to bumper. That doesn't happen here. More often than not a city block here will accommodate about half the cars that it would back east simply due to all of the driveways. With all those extra cars left to look for less spaces, it can be quite the adventure.
As someone who likes to be independent parking in the city relies far too heavily on others than I'm really comfortable with. This may not make sense, so allow me to explain. When you have limited space available, that space is at a premium (And you never thought simple supply and demand from ECON 101 would come in handy). For parking to work most efficiently people must only take the amount of space that is necessary for their car. However, as most of you know, this is rarely the case, and this drives me insane. Since moving to the city with a car I've changed the answer to "what super power would I like to have." It is now the ability to move parked cars closer together to create space for me to park.
When I drive to work I still have to park on the street. Our office is in a shopping district and we don't have parking spaces for everybody that works here. There is a street behind our office that has open parking about 3 blocks away. However, the side streets that make those blocks have open parking on one side, but not both. Available spots on these streets is at a premium due to the fact that everybody is lazy and wants to walk as little as possible. My morning is made when I can park on the first street. It's generally the highlight of at least the first half of my day.
The last two mornings my soul has been crushed by the asshole owner of this car (see picture below) who apparently either never took or failed ECON 101. This person clearly doesn't understand how simple supply and demand relates to urban parking and is too selfish to ensure that another spot is available for another person behind them. There is also the chance that they are protecting their car by parking like this so there isn't space for someone to bump it when trying to squeeze in. If this is the case, buy a cheaper car if you're going to be parking on the street all the time. All this person would have to do is pull up to where their bumper is in line with where the red paint begins. That's it! If they did that, another spot would be available for someone to park. I'm considering drawing this person a supply and demand graph and leaving it under their windshield wiper to illustrate how their messing up the, "rotation," if you will.
As I've so carefully illustrated for you, all this person has to do is pull forward along the red arrow. If they did that, a spot of more than ample size would be available behind. With the current parking arrangement only a smart car could fit either in front or behind. And since I'm writing this post out of totally selfish annoyed reasons I'd like to point out that I don't drive a smart car.
*Using the paint brush in Microsoft Paint with the touch pad on a laptop is very hard. However, that's still sadly close to what my handwriting looks like.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Armstrong vs. the French, Round 47...
Here we go again. There's a new report that has hit the cycling media that says Lance violated rules at a random drug testing in Southern France. If you're interested in the latest on the story from a source other than myself, click, here.
Basically, here's the run down. Lance was met in the driveway immediately after a long training session by a guy who claimed to work for a French lab and he was there to get samples for a random drug test. Lance didn't recognize the guy, and so understandably given his relationship with all things French he decided that it'd probably be a good idea to contact the UCI, WADA and maybe even the Pope to find out if this guy was legit, or a Richard Virenque supporter looking to take home a personal souvenir. It should probably also be pointed out that this the first time that the lab itself as sent someone to collect his DNA. Usually, it's a person who works for the doping authorities.
In the initial stories that came out, a complaint was filed by the lab guy saying that Armstrong was "mean" to him(That was my interpretation anyway). According to Armstrong and Johan Bruyneel, who was there as well, they asked if Lance could go in and shower while they checked this guys credentials. He apparently said that was fine, but now, that's exactly where the trouble comes in.
When I first read this story I immediately thought that getting out of the guys sight and going to shower seemed a bit suspicious. I was reminded of the movie The Program where the roid raged middle linebacker goes into the toilet stall and pulls a clean vile urine out of the toilet paper holder. Then I realized this couldn't really happen as they not only want Lance's pee, but also blood and hair. Unless there is an exact body double with Lance's DNA walking around, you're not getting someone else's blood and hair without it actually being him. Shower or not.
In my humble opinion this seems like the French taking any small opening they can to essentially try and rub Lance's name in the dirt. They can't possibly build a case on this bit of evidence, but I'm sure they'd like nothing more than to keep him out of the Tour de France this year. It's no secret they don't like him and have always assumed he was riding under the influence. I think it drives them insane that whether he was or wasn't they were never able to prove it.
I don't blame Lance one bit for not just pulling out his junk and peeing in a cup for some random French dude who shows up to his house. But, maybe next time, wait and shower after they've taken the samples. At least then the worst offense they could write in the report would be your smell. Then again, they might not notice, he was French...
Basically, here's the run down. Lance was met in the driveway immediately after a long training session by a guy who claimed to work for a French lab and he was there to get samples for a random drug test. Lance didn't recognize the guy, and so understandably given his relationship with all things French he decided that it'd probably be a good idea to contact the UCI, WADA and maybe even the Pope to find out if this guy was legit, or a Richard Virenque supporter looking to take home a personal souvenir. It should probably also be pointed out that this the first time that the lab itself as sent someone to collect his DNA. Usually, it's a person who works for the doping authorities.
In the initial stories that came out, a complaint was filed by the lab guy saying that Armstrong was "mean" to him(That was my interpretation anyway). According to Armstrong and Johan Bruyneel, who was there as well, they asked if Lance could go in and shower while they checked this guys credentials. He apparently said that was fine, but now, that's exactly where the trouble comes in.
When I first read this story I immediately thought that getting out of the guys sight and going to shower seemed a bit suspicious. I was reminded of the movie The Program where the roid raged middle linebacker goes into the toilet stall and pulls a clean vile urine out of the toilet paper holder. Then I realized this couldn't really happen as they not only want Lance's pee, but also blood and hair. Unless there is an exact body double with Lance's DNA walking around, you're not getting someone else's blood and hair without it actually being him. Shower or not.
In my humble opinion this seems like the French taking any small opening they can to essentially try and rub Lance's name in the dirt. They can't possibly build a case on this bit of evidence, but I'm sure they'd like nothing more than to keep him out of the Tour de France this year. It's no secret they don't like him and have always assumed he was riding under the influence. I think it drives them insane that whether he was or wasn't they were never able to prove it.
I don't blame Lance one bit for not just pulling out his junk and peeing in a cup for some random French dude who shows up to his house. But, maybe next time, wait and shower after they've taken the samples. At least then the worst offense they could write in the report would be your smell. Then again, they might not notice, he was French...
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Blake Griffin's Going Pro?
Say it ain't so! Actually, who could possibly be surprised? And, as a loyal fan of all things Texas and hater of all things Oklahoma I say good riddance!
I am not here to make fun of Mr. Griffin. I think it's obvious that his lack of good sense to go to school in a state other than Oklahoma speaks for itself. What I am here to do is wonder why we need to have an official press conference for his to declare his intention to enter the NBA draft. This isn't a surprise. Everybody knew coming into the season that it would be his last. Then, as he dominated pretty much everyone all season it was simply a question of when would Oklahoma lose in the tourney and give him the opportunity to secure his agent. Who I am also pretty sure has been around since he was, like, 9, give or take a few years.
Here is what I predict he'll say in his press conference, which is really why he doesn't need to have one. Please keep in mind these are not direct quotes. To be honest I'm not even sure if it's taken place yet or not as I write this. I just know I read a headline that says he called a press conference. These will be the highlights:
- He'll thank god. Because, well, whether he believes in god or not, it's what you do apparently.
- He'll thank his parents. Which he should. Except he should point out that he isn't happy with how close his eyes to each other.
- He'll thank Coach Campbell for giving him the opportunity to grow as a player. Without his two years at Oklahoma and under Coach Campbell he wouldn't be the player he is today.
- He'll thank all of the Sooner Fans that supported him throughout his two years. (Which, let's be honest, probably wasn't so hard to do.)
- He'll thank the entire University of Oklahoma for giving him such a great two years. And if it weren't for the millions of dollars in endorsements that he isn't able to cash in on while playing as a Sooner, he'd totally stay.
I wish he'd quote Carmello Anthony after he single handedly won the NCAA tournament for Syracuse when he said, "I thought college was a 4 years." But, for this to happen he'd need to open with that line. And then, just like Carmello, almost immediately follow it up with his intentions to enter the draft.
I am not hating on this kid! If I were Blake Griffin or any other kid in college with a high level prospect of playing in the NBA I'd get out of college as quickly as possible! Why risk injury? There's no age limit on getting a degree and I'm sure that Oklahoma would take him back with open arms whenever he's done playing basketball. To pass up on the immediate opportunity to make a living playing basketball would simply be irresponsible.
I am a firm believer that the NBA rule requiring a year of college is total bullshit. Not only does it hurt college basketball and graduation rates of teams, but it also limits one's ability to earn a living. What if that kid who can't enter the draft right out of high school get's injured his freshman year and can never play again? His signing bonus, whatever the size could have maybe held him over while he figured out his next move. But, that's probably a whole different entry in and of itself.
So, Mr. Griffin, and the rest of the current NCAA class that will declare their intentions to enter the draft over the next few weeks, good luck! Save us all the time and have your newly acquired publicist just send out a press release instead. Oh, and be sure to thank your "tutor" while you're at it.
And, just because videos and pictures are fun, I found this highlight real on youtube. This guy is incredible! He should have gone to Mason!
I am not here to make fun of Mr. Griffin. I think it's obvious that his lack of good sense to go to school in a state other than Oklahoma speaks for itself. What I am here to do is wonder why we need to have an official press conference for his to declare his intention to enter the NBA draft. This isn't a surprise. Everybody knew coming into the season that it would be his last. Then, as he dominated pretty much everyone all season it was simply a question of when would Oklahoma lose in the tourney and give him the opportunity to secure his agent. Who I am also pretty sure has been around since he was, like, 9, give or take a few years.
Here is what I predict he'll say in his press conference, which is really why he doesn't need to have one. Please keep in mind these are not direct quotes. To be honest I'm not even sure if it's taken place yet or not as I write this. I just know I read a headline that says he called a press conference. These will be the highlights:
- He'll thank god. Because, well, whether he believes in god or not, it's what you do apparently.
- He'll thank his parents. Which he should. Except he should point out that he isn't happy with how close his eyes to each other.
- He'll thank Coach Campbell for giving him the opportunity to grow as a player. Without his two years at Oklahoma and under Coach Campbell he wouldn't be the player he is today.
- He'll thank all of the Sooner Fans that supported him throughout his two years. (Which, let's be honest, probably wasn't so hard to do.)
- He'll thank the entire University of Oklahoma for giving him such a great two years. And if it weren't for the millions of dollars in endorsements that he isn't able to cash in on while playing as a Sooner, he'd totally stay.
I wish he'd quote Carmello Anthony after he single handedly won the NCAA tournament for Syracuse when he said, "I thought college was a 4 years." But, for this to happen he'd need to open with that line. And then, just like Carmello, almost immediately follow it up with his intentions to enter the draft.
I am not hating on this kid! If I were Blake Griffin or any other kid in college with a high level prospect of playing in the NBA I'd get out of college as quickly as possible! Why risk injury? There's no age limit on getting a degree and I'm sure that Oklahoma would take him back with open arms whenever he's done playing basketball. To pass up on the immediate opportunity to make a living playing basketball would simply be irresponsible.
I am a firm believer that the NBA rule requiring a year of college is total bullshit. Not only does it hurt college basketball and graduation rates of teams, but it also limits one's ability to earn a living. What if that kid who can't enter the draft right out of high school get's injured his freshman year and can never play again? His signing bonus, whatever the size could have maybe held him over while he figured out his next move. But, that's probably a whole different entry in and of itself.
So, Mr. Griffin, and the rest of the current NCAA class that will declare their intentions to enter the draft over the next few weeks, good luck! Save us all the time and have your newly acquired publicist just send out a press release instead. Oh, and be sure to thank your "tutor" while you're at it.
And, just because videos and pictures are fun, I found this highlight real on youtube. This guy is incredible! He should have gone to Mason!
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Best April Fools Joke
An email sent out to the whole company from the CFO. I was so pissed at first, then it dawned on me after realizing this was not legal.
Hi Everyone,
I noticed this morning that there are still items in the entryway of the office that shouldn’t be there. Given that I do not want to continue to send out emails about this problem, we’ve decided to institute a new policy. If you leave something at the entryway, we’ll deduct $25 from everyone’s paycheck which will go to our general company social fund. There will be one $25 deduction applied on your next paycheck for what happened this week (this does not include the warehouse team).
While it would be great to have more money towards our social time, I think we’d probably all prefer not to have that fund, so I encourage people who have items there to clear them out.
The best part, people rushed to the front to clean it all out! Well done!
Hi Everyone,
I noticed this morning that there are still items in the entryway of the office that shouldn’t be there. Given that I do not want to continue to send out emails about this problem, we’ve decided to institute a new policy. If you leave something at the entryway, we’ll deduct $25 from everyone’s paycheck which will go to our general company social fund. There will be one $25 deduction applied on your next paycheck for what happened this week (this does not include the warehouse team).
While it would be great to have more money towards our social time, I think we’d probably all prefer not to have that fund, so I encourage people who have items there to clear them out.
The best part, people rushed to the front to clean it all out! Well done!
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