Archives May 2010

This actually made me break out in a sweat.  Hopefully my pull up hobby never reaches this degree.

I thought I would give my raw hand a break today and do no weight work at the gym.  Instead I decided to do yet another physical challenge,  a “sprint” mile on the treadmill.  I am by no means fast.  My best 5k time is 24 minute something, somewhere around an 8 minute mile pace.  Running that pace pretty much wipes me out after 3 miles.  Well for a one mile all out run I needed to go faster obviously.

I set my goal as a sub 7 minute mile.  Doing a quick look up on the internet, that came out to running 8.6 mph.  For comparison sake, my normal treadmill pace is 7 mph which works out to an 8:34 pace.

I wanted to make sure I was good and loose before the attempt so I walked a 1/4 mile and ran another half mile at 7 before cranking the dial up to 8.6.

It didn’t take long until my body was protesting the significant speed increase.  It was uncomfortable at first, really uncomfortable after a few minutes.  About half way in I questioned my ability to complete the challenge.  I just kept reminding myself I only had to endure another three minutes.  You can endure almost anything for three minutes.

Finally the distance clicked to the 1 mile mark and I immediately dialed the speed down, exhausted.  I could hardly imagine how human beings run distances much further much, much faster than the 6:58 pace I just kept.  Man I was pooped.

I decided to round off my gym session with some more cardio, a much tamer variety on the recline bike.  I decided to use one of the bikes in the Retro Fitness cardio theater.  Each day they play a different movie on loop throughout the day.  Evidently they pay no attention to the rating of the movie that is playing, today’s film was “Any Given Sunday”.

Anyone that has seen the movie knows it was an R film.  In the 15 minutes I was in there I heard no less than 10 “mother f’rs” on screen as well as a scene filled with football players snorting coke off of a bunch of topless women.  Now of course personally, I am the last person that would be offended by a R movie.  However I have to admit I felt a bit embarrassed to be in there with three or four middle aged soccer mom types getting in their mid-day workout.

Even stranger was at the front desk the guy behind the counter was watching the movie as well with the sound cranked way up.  It just seems like not quite the right image you want to be projecting as your customers come in the door.

I do have to admit I did laugh out loud when Jim Brown, who plays a coach on one of the teams in the movie is reaming out his players in a very loud and animated manner.  One of the players says “Calm down coach, you are going to give yourself a stroke”  Brown screams back “I don’t get mother f’in get strokes, I GIVE THEM!”

Maybe tomorrow they will be showing some soft porn?

Most of my evening last night was consumed by the new dishwasher.  When I bought it in mid April I scoffed at the $100 Home Depot wanted to charge me to remove the old unit and install the new one.  Without hesitation I dismissed the charge and proclaimed I’ll just do it myself.  After all we were already dropping close to 2K on appliances, I didn’t need to spend another 100 for something I could do myself.  Around 8pm last night I have to admit I was reconsidering the decision.

I came home to a big box in the middle of the kitchen.  I ran into frustration right off the bat.  The instructions on the outside of the box indicated I should cut along a line near the bottom but to not use a cutting instrument any longer than 1/4″.  I assumed there was a risk of cutting into the dishwasher otherwise.

Ok so I grabbed my utility knife and set it to it’s first notch where the blade is just poking out of the housing.  I worked my way around the box carefully.  Well it became apparent that with the blade at that setting it simply was not long enough to cut all the way through the cardboard.  Opening the box became a hack, slash and rip affair as it progressed, by the end of it I had the blade almost fully extended as I cut away at the box angrily.

Finally I was able to slide the top of the box off, revealing the dishwasher in all of it’s glory.  The unit was bolted to a small wooden skid which I removed.  As I looked at the directions it became apparent that I was missing an important component, a 90 degree elbow that connects the dishwasher to the hot water line.  Why they don’t include that as part of the dishwasher is dumbfounding to me. So after dinner I was out the door with the instructions in hand to the local hardware store which is closer than Home Depot.  I figured I could save some time.

The instructions identified the part as a 90 degree 3/8″ elbow (NPT), not sure what the NPT means.  I told the woman I was looking for a 3/8″ 90 degree brass elbow.  She directed me to the spot and pulled of a bag labeled as a 3/8″ elbow.  I hurried home with the part, eager to get this project completed.

Once I got back and got a better look at what I was supposed to connect the elbow to I immediately saw what I had was too small.  I verified my fitting was way too small.  I was very annoyed.  I told Ali I had to head back out.  This time I made the longer trek to Home Depot, I wanted to make sure this was my last trip for parts.  I marched back to the appliance department and told the guy I had a new GE dishwasher and needed the elbow for the feed line.  He knew exactly what I needed, marched me over there and pulled it off the shelf, cool.  Even though this was also marked as a 3/8″ fitting the one end was significantly larger than what I bought earlier.  Perhaps the NPT designation is significant.

By the time I got home from parts run number two it was already after 8pm.  I knew regardless of how long it took, I WAS finishing this project tonight come hell or high water. 

Hooking up the new unit wasn’t that hard but had a few challenges.  I left the drain hose from the old unit in place.  I figured it would save me some time.  Well it turns out that the dishwasher side of the hose was too small for the new unit so I had to yank it out and throw in the new hose.

The most important things to pay attention to when installing a dishwasher are the water connections are all tight to prevent leaks and that the electric is connected in a manner that you don’t electrocute yourself.  I made sure to use plenty of teflon thread tape and crank the fittings/clamps snug.  

You also need to level the dishwasher to make sure water drains as it should instead of collecting in the sides of the machine.  A couple times I had to adjust the rear feet to level it out.  Ali assisted me in the process by tilting the dishwasher forward so I could reach the feet easier. Ali helped me throughout the install process as she could tell my frustration level was high that it was taking this long.

Finally a little after 9pm we had the unit level, leak-free and secured back under the counter.  We loaded it up with the sink full of dishes and washed our first load. It worked.  The new dishwasher is all push button controls instead of the rotary dial our old one utilized.  It makes for easy operation.  We also liked the CLEAN led that lights up to let you know the dishwasher was run as well as the delay start option that let’s you start the unit up to 6 hours later. 

 On the downside we sort of missed being able to tell how far into a wash cycle you are by looking at the dial.  There is no way of knowing if it just started or is almost done.

Ali was the designated house expert when it came to dishwasher loading with the old machine.  The layout of the racks is totally different now so she has to start from square one again in her craft.  I am sure she will get up to speed quickly on the optimal loading patterns.

Once I was done with the install of course I looked upon it with pride.  The question is was that feeling of accomplishment worth $100?  Oh well it’s history now.  The rebate form is in the mail and our participation in the Florida Appliance Rebate program is complete.

The video and and pictures of the kid that got tasered after running on the field at a Phillies game are national news.  I find it a bit disturbing to watch personally.  Do I think the kid was being an idiot for running on to the field? Yep, for sure.  Did he need to be tasered? Absolutely not.

People have been running on to the field for decades yet somehow security always managed to handle it without injecting the individual with several thousand volts of electricity.  Sure tackle the kid, handcuff him but don’t shock him for cripes sake.  Philly fans have a bad enough rap as is.

That’s a big number huh?  That is the amount of money the airlines generated charging their ancillary bullshit fees.  It’s pretty disgusting.  If you recall, baggage fees were introduced in 2008 in response to the oil companies raping the world with sky high oil prices.  At the time airlines introduced baggage fees as well as tacking a fuel surcharge onto ticket prices.

Well the price of fuel dropped dramatically a few months later but the airlines never got rid of the fees that were supposedly in response to high fuel prices. Nope, instead they invented MORE FEES.  Now some airlines will charge you extra for pillows, blankets, an aisle seat or in some cases carry on bags!  It makes me absolutely sick to my stomach.  I am so glad that I rarely have the need to fly.

This tactic of raising fees/taxes/prices long term based on a short term issue is a common tactic used by many businesses and all levels of government.  In Florida they have responded to a budget shortfall caused by a decrease in tourism and real estate values by raising/creating fees left and right.  Motor vehicle registration costs were raised almost 50% in the end of 2009 and the fees for almost any state issued service went up as well.   They even had the balls to target the state pension fund as a source to generate more dollars.

The problem is when you claim poverty based on an issue that is short term, you shouldn’t be offering a solution that permanently increases the burden on the public.  It’s maddening.

The combo of limited sleep and excessive exercise on Sunday left me feeling pretty drained on Monday.  My ripped off calluses on my hand limited my lackluster gym session.  Anything requiring gripping is out.

After work it was nice to see Ali get home only a couple minutes after me. She just was at the hairdresser.  She came home with a cute short cut.  Ali says this type of cut makes her feel “sassy”.

For dinner we had salad from our garden and warmed up lasagna. We enjoyed it while watching Celebrity Apprentice on Tivo. 

We had to run the dishwasher to empty it out.  Today we are scheduled to get our new dishwasher.  Since I didn’t feel like spending $100 to have Home Depot install the new one I had to make sure the old one was disconnected ahead of the delivery.

Disconnection of the the old unit was straight forward.  Of course the most important step is making sure the breaker for the electric is turned off.  Other than some water spilling out on the tile there weren’t any major issues with the removal.  The old dishwasher is now sitting in the garage.

Ali said she felt a bit sentimental as we unloaded the dishwasher for the last time.  I asked her if she seriously felt sentimental about a dishwasher?  She said she was a bit, after all it has been with us since the house was constructed and has served us well.  For some reason I don’t have similar feelings of remorse over the dishwasher although I have a well documented pattern of being emotionally attached to inanimate objects.  Unlike my lunchbox, 7th grade camouflage t-shirt, and 30 year old baseball glove, I never got that close to the dishwasher.

Another weekend ends and again I feel like a zombie today.

On Friday after work I stopped at Sam’s.  While I was there I fell prey to a couple impulsive buys, a pack of six solar pathway lights and a small raised garden kit.  I have wanted to get some new solar lights for a long time.  The couple I have have been dead for a long time.  I used four of them out front to compliment the fresh landscaping and two in the back by the lanai doors.  They look great once sunlight fades.

The raised garden will go into our existing garden once we shut it down for the summer.  Our thought is to use it in the low corner to raise and contain the soil. It would add another 8 inches to the soil level.  It would be a good spot for root crops. 

On Saturday Ali had another swimming session planned.  She is trying to swim as much as possible in preparation for her first sprint triathlon next weekend.  Before she left she hopped on the mower and got a good amount of grass mowed before she left which was a help for me.  After weed whacking it saved me a lot of extra time on the mower.

I was busy around the house most of the day doing various small chores.  At one point I piled the girls in the van and took them with me to the auto parts store.  I finally got around to doing some research on the 171 code that my Chinese code reader has been showing me on the Tacoma.  The most likely cause is a dirty MAF sensor.  I picked up some cleaner that is specifically designed for the job.

I also managed to find a replacement battery for the Moto Guzzi.  When I checked at Walmart and Autozone neither place had anything in stock.  Not only did I find a battery but I found one that you didn’t have to fill and charge yourself, a double bonus.  My plans for the bike are simple, get it running again and sell it hopefully.

I also finally got rid of the old bedroom tv Saturday.  After listing it twice on Craigslist unsuccessfully I decided I would try the curb option.  I printed out a sign that said “FREE   WORKS FINE  HEAVY!” and taped it to the front.  I carted the 118 pound monster to the end of the driveway and set it in place with the remote control sitting on top.  Within 20 minutes it was gone.  Yea it would have been nice to score a few bucks for it but at this point both Ali and I were just glad to have it off our bedroom floor.

We had a race Sunday morning so we had some race prep to do but it didn’t stop us from sneaking in another visit to the Silverspot theater to see “How to Train Your Dragon”.  I had heard from several sources that the movie was really good.  Once again we took advantage of the on site restaurant.  This time I requested the “good” seats that are up on a small platform looking out the window. I went less formal with my meal this time, ordering the three mini-burger platter.  Ali switched it up as well getting a flat bread pizza which was really good. 

You can really tell that season has passed.  The theater was not full at all, I think we had less than 10 people in there with us.  Once again Ali and I really enjoyed the plush environment to watch a movie, the first 3D film I have watched at Silverspot.  The movie was really fun.  It’s theme was right up the alley for two animal lovers such as Ali and myself.  I was glad the theater was sparsely populated so that the moisture on my cheek late in the movie was not witnessed by others.  I’m a sucker for animal movies, even animated ones. We both liked it, a lot,  A rating from me.

Sunday was another 4am morning to time a race.  When we got to the race site I decided to take a leak before the port-a-lets got too disgusting.  Well it seemed as though someone discovered them the night before.  The first one I went into had the urinal filled with trash and a pile of wet toilet paper on the floor.  Since there were only three port-a-lets I knew I had to do something so after I relived myself in another unit I went back to the first one, grabbed a wad of toilet paper and used it to clean the junk out of the urinal.  People are pigs.

The timing process went well.  Ali once again ran the race with her friends.  It was a warm and humid morning.  It seems like we pretty much skipped Spring this year.  There was an odd man on the course.  He almost appeared to have terets or some other sort of mental disorder.  The best way I could describe it was the man would say whatever was floating through his mind, constantly.  Unfortunately it seems like he had a lot of obscenities in his head.  Ali said he was doing it the entire race.  I heard him swearing and yelling at himself loudly as he crossed the finish.  It was bizarre.

Again we made record time getting out of there.  We were packed up and in the car by 9am and back at the house before 10 even with a pit stop at DD for coffee and a donut.

Ali and I talked about doing a bike ride to further push her triathlon training.  Ali wasn’t very excited about the prospect but within 15 minutes of being home we were out on the bikes doing another 10 mile jaunt.  Once again there was a strong headwind for the first portion of the ride which turned into a nice tailwind on the return trip.  It was the first time we rode the bikes after they were “tuned up”.  I have to say, I’m not really impressed with the tune up.  I didn’t really notice any difference, some gears still felt like they weren’t aligned quite right and my handlebars actually were now off center.  I don’t know if  it was worth $60.

After the bike ride we headed to the pool to swim a bit.  Ali bought my a tri-style swimsuit on Friday which is basically mid-thigh spandex. I didn’t opt to put on the suit.  I did use the swim goggles Ali bought me.  We both did a number of laps in our 28 foot long pool.  It was obvious that Ali’s form is much better than mine. I have a hard time doing conventional breathing and instead resort to lifting my head entirely out of the water.  She got me the suit so I could accompany her to the pool for some of her swimming sessions.  She registered us as official NAT’s members (Naples Area Triathletes) so I am a card carrying triathlete in name only.  Maybe some day I could try a sprint-tri such as what Ali is doing but from our brief swim session I can tell you swimming 400 meters would be a big challenge right now.

After our “block” Ali retired to the bedroom to nap.  I dug into getting all of my post race responsibilities cleaned up which took a couple hours.  Afterwards for some reason, despite being up since 4Am I had an urge to attempt yet another physical test I had talked about with Jeremy, the 100 pull up challenge.

I lugged the camera and a bottle of water out to my pull up station and got rolling.  When I first thought about doing this I thought that I could do it within a half hour, later that mental goal shrunk to 20 minutes.  Now I do a decent amount of pull ups but I have never attempted anything close to this number.  Currently if I went to failure I could do somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 full ROM pull ups, give or take a couple.  My plan was to break the effort into smaller sets, before I hit muscle failure.  I’ve found that once muscle failure occurs it is very difficult to continue repping out in multiple sets. 

I decided to do a first set of 10 and then go with sets of 5 as long as I could.  Surprisingly I was able to maintain 5 and even a few sets of 6 inadvertently all the way to the end.  Jeremy discovered upon his review that I actually did a total of 103 pull ups.  I suppose fatigue affected my ability to count as the challenge wore on.

I completed my challenge just under my 20 minute goal, clocking in at 19:37. The last 25 or so reps were pretty tough but overall the challenge wasn’t quite as difficult as I imagined it would be.  One thing I didn’t imagine or plan for was the toll the challenge would take on my hands.  My right hand had huge two calluses ripped wide open.  There were screams heard throughout the house as I tried to clean them up later, major stinging.

When I told Ali of my latest challenge all she could do was shake her head.   I showed her my self inflicted wounds of battle which she helped me bandage.  If you have 20 minutes or so to kill you can watch the event here.

After my pull up marathon was over I was pretty beat.  The early wake up plus physical exertion sort of wiped me out.  At one point I passed out on the couch for awhile while Ali was cooking.  Speaking of Ali’s cooking, she made some quality dishes yesterday including a very tasty lasagna hybrid and a chocolate chip banana cake. Both efforts get 4 stars from me.

I was lazy for the rest of the night, my energy level was low.  This week I will need to be creative in my gym sessions.  So many exercises utilize the portion of my palm that is ripped up.