I understand no one likes the cobblestone stages, but I think it was really the rain, perhaps in conjunctions with the lower tire pressures for the cobblestone, that caused yesterday’s mayhem.
The real meaning behind today’s title is that I have very little about which to blog today. I played racquetball after work last night, had some drinks and unhealthy food at Tilted Kilt, and the returned home to go to sleep nearly immediately.
Today’s Daily Challenge
Skip the multitasking and focus on just one activity for ten minutes today.
We may think that multitasking makes us more productive, but research shows otherwise. Not only are there the possible deadly consequences (as when talking on a cell phone or texting while driving), family life and relationships also suffer from our distracted behavior. Studies also show that heavy multitaskers have more trouble focusing and experience more stress.
Had I been able to do this today’s blog post would have been done thirty minutes ago.
More Progress
I conquered another huge bug in the new app I am writing for “The Man”. Now I have one more huge bug to conquer to get the app back to where it was before I gutted its plumbing (see, I’m okay dealing with some plumbing) in the name of “progress” back in June. Once I return from Europe I plan on trying to add the necessary new features/fixes to push it toward a release sometime later this year.
REI Is Wealthier Thanks To Me
Before playing racquetball I walked into REI with the intent of buying myself a “European Travel Bag”. I walked out of the store $150 poorer, carrying a new Osprey Waypoint 65 (at least that’s the model I think I bought).
You might rightly assume that I don’t plan on bringing a lot of clothing with me on this trip. In fact the clothes I’ll need for hashing, especially the shoes, are going to severely hamper my packing capabilities. This weekend I will start checking weather forecasts in order to make some final decisions.
What I really like about this backpack is that it has a million zippered pockets and two shoulder straps (like a book bag) that can be slipped inside the bag when you don’t want to use them.
My only concern about this backpack is that it is not officially “Size Wise” so I may have to check (or gate check) the bag and it’s not exactly the most rugged of cases.
I should have been smart and looked for a REI coupon, but I suppose I’ll get a meager dividend next year based on this purchase.
Today’s Personal Project
Leave work early enough to go to tonight’s CocoaHeads Atlanta monthly meet up at the new headquarters of Big Nerd Ranch in Kirkwood.
Stats & Goals
Daily
Current Mood – okay, but I have a lot to accomplish between now and next Tuesday
Current Music – getting ready to listen to today’s Tour de France stage
Website Of The Day – More preparation: Rough Guide’s Map of the Beers Around the World.
Mode Of Transportation To Work – my car
Exercise (b)Log – racquetball, > 90 minutes
Morning Weigh-In – going to check the day before I leave for Europe
Monthly
Foot Mileage – ~6.5 miles
Wheel Mileage – 0.0 miles
Gym Visits – 3 (3 cardio)
Marta Rides To Work – 0
Bike Rides To Work – 0
July Goals
– be prepared for, and have fun on my European vacation
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
- “Johnny Carson” by Henry Bushkin
- “Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative” by Austin Kleon
- “Chaos: Making a New Science” by James Gleick
- “What’s So Funny?: My Hilarious Life” by Tim Conway
Cheers,
Paulie [eatl/ga]
had some drinks and unhealthy food at , ________???
You are flying Delta, right? you should be fine. you get 1 bag (50lbs I think) free for international flights, so with that & the back pack, you should be fine I would guess. Maybe find a lavanderia in Europe? (sorry, couldn’t resist)
I thought 1 bag on an INT flight should be fine… and remember, you won’t have to bring back your hash shoes..
The pool seems to be the bane of my existence lately. The booster pump for Igor is leaking, but the pool store was out of the part I needed. Having an old part (or a piece of it) I thought I’d try to fix it last night. All apart the pump comes, in goes half of the seal with a little extra waterproof grease and back together… and still leaking! It was a gamble- the problem is there isn’t a way to test without putting it all back together. I hate plumbing… sound familiar?
Cobbles!! Wow. You certainly can’t predict the weather and they even removed 2 “bad sections” (god only knows what those were like) but all in all, the people who are GC contenders rode well and survived. Froome, on the other hand, cracked I think. 2 crashes, 3rd in 2 days and it hadn’t even gotten to the hard part! Maybe he just saw the handwritting on the wall, or was trying to “ride through” the Tuesday crash. Sad. Imagine if they had had the foresight to bring both Froome and Wiggins… there’s always next year.
-FP
Ooops, I’d opened the browser tab for Tilted Kilt but forgot to fill int he information in the post.
The backpack will be my only clothes bag. My goal is to have the backpack for clothes, and my briefcase / messenger bag as my technology bag that I take with me on day trips.
While it may sound extravagant I just may bring old clothes for week and replace them with new ones for week two. It may be interesting to figure out what size I wear in European terms.
Yeah, I might donate my hash shoes to Europe as well. 😉
Still fighting Xcode’s Interface Builder and Autolayout. If I ever figure this shit out it will be monumental!
The only thing you ‘need’ to take is a really good pair of walking shoes (you will walk everywhere)…anything else you can pick up there. Nobody has ever said, “I wish I had brought more stuff with me”. I can remember if you are going to visit the UK as well as the Continent? Because the UK uses a different sising system from both the US and Europe.
So our 4 month old AC unit doesn’t seem to be working, or at least not working well enough. The fan is running and it seems to be making cold air but it’s not getting into the house. One vent seems to be blowing a little more than the others, thank god its the one in the master bedroom. They’re coming this afternoon to check things over, I can’t imagine its anything major.
Trying to work out travel plans with my sister, it looks like her and the girls might actually visit me. Now if I can just convince her to keep the husband at home.
The current agenda is Belgium -> Germany -> Netherlands -> Belgium. I don’t plan on overpacking, my only concern is bringing the proper clothes for the weather.
Good luck with the AC. Probably just a leaky coolant line.
A rain type of jacket, some sort of sweater. But – sweater/sweatshirt wise, that might be something fun to buy over there as a souvenir.
A good waterproof shell will serve you well in many situations. I replaced my old one before working Colorado a couple of years ago and haven’t regretted it. Take that and a fleece that could be worn under it and you’ll be ready for most anything. Good walking shoes- Martha is correct.
Good suggestions. I’ve identified the shoes I am planning on wearing — my low-cut hiking shoes, with the unfortunate hole in one toe box; I’ve walked miles in these before. I’ll also bring a pair of Chucks, they are good all-around sneakers that pack up small. And of course some disposable hashing shoes.
Had I been smarter I would have booked my travel with the hash at the front end of the journey instead of the last. This was I could have shed the disposable clothes and being able to get some travel suggestions from people who are more familiar with that part of the world. Oh well, live and learn.
Stupid people are killing me!!! why they can’t just fire their asses, I just don’t understand. I’m trying really hard to get one to quit.
I have a friend looking for work- do you need some better folks?
we gotta get rid of someone (or two) first……. that is the problem. Alla they do is make life so much tougher for the rest of us.