New Shoes

There are many days that I am glad that hash “rules” don’t apply everywhere. For the first I’m wearing the new Simple shoes that I purchased from The Gear Revival a few weeks ago. In a hashing world I would be forced to drink a beer out of these new shoes.

Today’s Daily Challenge
Listen to 2 (sic) of your favorite songs.

Listening to music is not only fun, it also has a positive effect on health and well-being! It lowers the risk of depression, boosts energy, and stimulates positive thinking. It can even help with relaxation: one study found that listening to music for 60 minutes reduced anxiety as effectively as a therapeutic massage.

Huh, I was a day early on this one as I listened to Squeeze’s “Tempted” last night. It’ll be real easy for me to accomplish this challenge.

I Apparently Wouldn’t Recognize Bill Cowher If I Stood Right Next To Him
One more from last weekend. I just recalled this happening while out last night.

When the Raleigh kids and I went to the Hurricanes game last Saturday night we were ushered into the “VIP Entrance.” While trying to get the five us in at the same time this guy seemed to be cutting into our pack. I sped up so that we five could enter together and when the man backed off I gave a flippant “Thanks, pal.” without looking at him.

During the second intermission the Jumbotron showed one of the luxury boxes and acknowledged the presence of former Pittsburg Steelers head coach Bill Cowher. And then Randy said “That was Bill Cowher. He was standing next to us as we entered.” And I was oblivious to it all.

Many Steps Forward, Still Too Many Steps Back
Last night I headed out for a walk, this time with my boss. We covered about 4.6 miles before ending our trip at Outback for some dinner (and a couple of drinks of course). I realize that I continue to beat back the gains of my walking by eating/drinking afterward, but hey, at least I’m starting to get some exercise. One step at a time… One step at a time…

Oh Great, More Paperwork?
So far Sharpened Stone has yet to generate anything more than grief and expense. I really fucking need to get my City of Atlanta business license renewal done today, before the City levies a $500 fine upon me. Yesterday in the mail I received even more paperwork from the City of Atlanta which must be filled out. I glanced at the paperwork and think it has something to do with proving that I am a citizen of the United States or something or other.

Someone please remind me why I introduced all of this nonsense into my life a few years ago.

ITP Flickr Pic
I guess I’ll have to settle with posting last night’s walk map.

To Spree Or Not To Spree, That Is The Question
I’ve a busy week/weekend scheduled. I’m getting a haircut tonight, have a ticket for a play at the Alliance Theatre for tomorrow night, and one for a play at Theatrical Outfit on Saturday night. I was sort of looking forward to not doing much on Friday night (a Taco Mac visit perhaps) though the thought of going to Friday night’s They Might Be Giants show crossed my mind.

And then I received an email letting me know about The Polyphonic Spree show at Center Stage on Friday night.
Dangen.

The last time I saw The Polyphonic Spree was magical. I was visit Seattle and it was coincidental that The Polyphonic Spree was as well. Shit, that must be at least five years ago now. I’ve been occasionally checking to see when The Polyphonic Spree would be touring again. I guess my answer is “Now.”

I’m conflicted. There’s a part of me that really wants to go to the show, while there’s an equal part of me that would really enjoy the “downtime.” Oh hello First World Problem, we meet again…

It’s Top Chef Night, And I’m Thinking “Shrimp”
Yesterday I took a bag of rock-hard frozen shrimp out of the freezer and placed it into the refrigerator to thaw. Tonight I plan cook up said shrimp. Clearly today will not be a vegetarian day. I’m thinking “scampi” perhaps, or grill panning them, or something else which I’ve yet to conjure. Do you have any shrimp recipes/ideas that you’d like to share?

Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – meh
Current Music – listening to The Who’s Isle of Wight concert from 1970
Website Of The Day – If you are a fan of music and your satellite/cable system offers Palladia (formerly MHD) I highly recommend checking out the programming on it.
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – walking, ~4.6 miles
Morning Weigh-In – tomorrow

Monthly
Foot Mileage – ~8.9 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Pushups – 0
Situps – 0
Stairs – 0 flights

Days Of Bed-Making – 8^*

Vegetarian Days – 3^*
Carnivorous Days – 4
Pancakes Eaten – 2

Marta Rides To Work – 0
Bike Rides To Work – 0

February Goals
– Lose at least one pound (net weight loss)
– Exercise for thirty minutes no fewer than twenty days
– Not to get sick for the entire month
– Eat vegetarian no fewer than ten days
– Not get fired from my job, nor quit my job
– Follow up with doctors, lawyer, women in whom I have interest
– Go out on a least one date with a woman in whom I have interest
– Submit 2012 paperwork for Sharpened Stone, LLC
– Gather all tax paperwork for 2011 income taxes
– Successfully arrange for automatic payments for my mortgage
– Watch all of the classes in the 2011 Winter semester of Stanford’s CS193P (iOS Development) course

2012 Goals [will be a little less fluid than last year]
– Get my weight under 200 pounds, or at least whittle myself back down to where wearing a 36″ pant size is comfortable
– Completely read ten books, audio books permissible
– Run Sharpened Stone as a real business
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Attend at least one professional photography workshop
– Ride in no fewer than five 50 mile or 50K bike rides
– Run in no fewer than one one 10K
– Submit at least one application under the name “Sharpened Stone” to Apple’s iOS store
– Restore the ITP Estate to a condition where it can be put up for sale at any time
– Buy a new iPhone (iPhone 5?), a new iPad (iPad 3?), and MacBook Air [look, not all goals have to be altruistic]

The Unmeasurable
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– Become a proficient and profitable programmer in Objective-C
– Do not create a solution for something which is not a problem
– Eat smaller portions
– Start, and continue, to make my own bread using my bread machine as well as using the technique outlined in Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking
– Read and discard magazines during the month in which they arrive (even digitally)
– See more live concerts than I did in 2011
– Eat more pancakes
– Drive/Fly somewhere for a real vacation

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]