Good-Bye, Week

I’m run down today, perhaps because I’ve been pushing myself too hard. It’s a pity that I feel this way because my work is far from over.

Today’s Daily Challenge
Share 1 way that you save energy in your home or at work.

The benefits of saving energy are numerous! Taking time to conserve means less contamination of our planet’s land, water, and air. Using less fossil fuel also reduces the carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. Finally, saving energy leads to lower utility bills, meaning more money for you.

I’m the guy who routinely turns off communal computer monitors or televisions left on by others. People in this country have become so ignorant about energy consumption.

It All Adds Up
If you read this space often enough you know that I go out, a lot. Such was the case last night when I drove down to midtown for the performance of “The Tall Girls” at the Hertz Stage of the Alliance Theatre.

Side note: There was some “Salute to Public Safety Workers” last night at Alliance and the place was so full of unformed individuals as well as the vehicles they drive (or ride in the case of horses and motorcycles) that I wondered if the President had made a secret appearance in Atlanta.

I fought traffic down to midtown and parked near Woodruff Arts in the Promenade LAZ parking deck — I name it specifically to caution you not to repeat my sin — at around 6:00pm.

I had at least an hour to kill before doors opened so I meandered over to Tap for dinner and a beer. Dinner was the “Cowboy Girl” grilled cheese sandwich with a side of tomato (parmesan?) soup, and I added a side of “wrinkled” green beans. The sandwich and soup were good, the beans (costing me an additional $5), which were sautéed in some highly-salted sauce which tasted of hoisin, were not good. Departure from Tap occurred sooner than I originally planned because it was so warm inside that I was starting to sweat. My beer, meal, and side of beans, with tax and tip, cost me $28.

Back at the theatre, which in addition to Johnny’s Hideaway is the best place to go in order to feel young, I took a seat in the front row, or ‘court side” in the case of this play. The play itself was good, not great, contained themes and coincidences found in most of modern playwriting. For the most part the actor and actresses (I’m “old school” and still differentiate) was well-acted.

The play started a bit late, and with its fifteen minute intermission ran for about two hours, fifteen minute. By the time I got back to my car it had been parked there for a little more than four, but no more than five hours, and it cost me $14 for parking! Never again, Promenade LAZ parking deck, never again.

So if you add it all up, the theatre ticket cost $30 (if I remember correctly), dinner $28, and parking $14 for a whopping total of $72 — for one person. Yowza.

You Keep Using That Word. I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means.
I keep wanting to use the word laissez-faire in many sentences to mean “being indifferent” but when I look up its meaning (as you can if you click that link) I see that it has a complete different meaning than what I originally believed.

Weekend In
The weather forecast, at least for tomorrow looks wonderful. However, I have a ton of indoor chores to do so I may find myself indoors more than outdoors yet again. If I can get my shit together tonight and prep my road bike by tomorrow afternoon I may force myself to go out for my first ride of the year.

Tonight I am tentatively scheduled to join my boss at Ormsby’s for the monthly get-together of the divers who volunteer at the Georgia Aquarium; I’d be crashing their party which I don’t feel so comfortable with, but then again it would give me an opportunity to meet new people. As you can tell I am completely on the fence about this.

Today’s Personal Project
Don’t know, don’t care.

Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – laissez-faire, I know, it’s not what I really mean
Current Music – silence
Website Of The Day – Last Friday night I spent time watching stuff on Funny or Die.
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – nothing
Morning Weigh-In – Arg, I keep forgetting to jump on the scale

Monthly
Foot Mileage – ~3.9 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Gym Visits – 6 (6 cardio)

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

March Goals
– have Austin CocoaConf trip plans in place (new)
– exercise no fewer than twenty days (new)
– ride my bike no fewer than five times (new)
– have European trip plans in place, if not carved in stone
– clean my basement to the point where I could have people over
– hire a plumber to fix all of the sinks at the ITP Estate
– walk no fewer than 75 miles
– publish an app to the iOS AppStore

2014 Goals: Measurable
– Get my weight down to 190 pounds so that I can wear a 36″ waist pants comfortably
– Completely read ten books, audio books permissible
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Completely run at least one 10k
– Fix all (or at least most) of the things which are wrong with the ITP Estate
– Sell the ITP Estate (tentative)

2014 Goals: Unmeasurable
– Continue to Simplify, simplify, simplify
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– 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)

Books I’ve Read/Heard In 2014

1. “Johnny Carson” by Henry Bushkin
2. “Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative” by Austin Kleon

Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]