blk

Greetings, LJ reader.

This blog is no longer being updated. Find me elseweb.

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Administrative note: I will stop LJ crossposting at the end of 2017. For a better blk-blog experience, find me at blk.dreamwidth.org.

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I'm attempting to start a new series of entries which will basically be acro/workout logging, in hopes of encouraging me to remember more of what I do (so I don't blank out like deer-in-headlights whenever I'm given an apparatus without explicit instruction) and also for tracking my progress for self-motivation. Also maybe it will encourage me to take more vids.

Last week was my last class of this trapeze/lyra session. From now until classes start back up in Jan will also be my biggest break from it since I started. I have a lot of homework to keep me busy until then, though.

One of my biggest weaknesses that I found this session is my hamstrings and hips, discovered when we started conditioning with single leg hangs, which I cannot do AT ALL. Apparently even when I do a double leg hang, I end up relying on a lot of tension of pressing my legs together (feet, actually), and when that is taken away, I can't hold it. I guess running and biking don't really use hams as much as I need them to. So a variety of new things are now in prime spots in my workout rotation.

Possibly related: among the things I couldn't do last week was a move on trapeze where I split up in the ropes, then had to bend both knees around one rope, and hold on while I moved my hands. Nope! As soon as even the primary hand even loosened, it was just a slow descent down. Which I guess could look nice and cute but was not the move. I was wearing thicker leggings that night, and J blamed those, but I'm also thinking that my hang weakness also had something to do with it.

The other thing I super failed at was an ankle hang on trapeze. J was trying to have me do monkey/russian roll into ankle hang (specifically this actually), and I vaguely recalled not having an ankle hang down yet so I tried that multiple times and every single time I'd try to get in position and slowly put more weight on my legs and every time I'd get the NOPE NOPE NOPE super awful pain which probably indicates I'm doing it wrong and had to bail. We walked through every single toe flex and angle and tension and it still didn't click and only gave me horrible foot abrasions. Phooey.

After that we switched to hoop and I did some kind of nifty series of moves that of course I can't remember. Then back to trap and I successfully did my first real complete forward roll with all parts correct. And I'm sorta close to getting meathooks. Kinda.

Definitely staying in level 3 next session. (So far I've had 1xL1, 2xL2, and this will be 3xL3. A trend!) Lots of things are decent and smoother but not easy yet. Meanwhile, working on hamstrings, general flexibility, and not forgetting everything I've learned so far.

This entry was originally posted at https://blk.dreamwidth.org/320974.html and has comments.

Bike log, Nov 2017: 115 miles

A far cry from my 200 miles from a year ago last November, but not surprising given that I took 7 days off from biking to work and didn't do much else.

I'm glad for my wheel lights in the evening darkness, although the front one still occasionally blinks out.

Probably the most interesting thing of the month is that I had what I think might be my first moving fall off my bike. (All my other falls to date have been when I've been not moving. Check out that awesome coordination and balance!). It was a dumb fall, too. I was coming around the corner off the Hot Metal bridge a little too quickly for dark conditions, so when I saw a person coming the other direction, I panicked and jerked the handlebars a bit too much, and tumbled over. Got away with a minor scrape on one knee, a jammed finger (which I was still able to do lyra and rock climb on, after the initial pain subsided), and a bit of whiplash in my neck.

This entry was originally posted at https://blk.dreamwidth.org/320294.html and has comments.

The was my Thanksgiving. It includes a food log because it helps me plan for future years where I get to feed ~10 people for dinner every night for a week. Also the ones from 2016 and 2015.

Saturday
Everybody arrived in the evening. Jim and I went out to a dinner party, and I cooked potatoes and pork chops for people to eat when they got home. Put 3 quarts of soup in the fridge to thaw for lunches.

Sunday
Roast chicken, quinoa, acorn squash, shaved roasted (overcooked) brussels sprouts

Monday
Katy and I drive to Rochester and back to pick up Justin. Jim made steaks, pierogies, corn, and mom made salad for when we arrived home. Then the dishwasher broke overnight.

Tuesday
Meatloaves, baked potatoes, roasted cauliflower, peas, after doing dishwasher shopping.

Wednesday
Finally succeeded in trading moneys for a new dishwasher. Dinner was Cuban pork, yellow rice, black beans, tomato/onion/avocado spread, salad, and sleek.

Thursday
Ham, roast chicken, roast brussels sprouts, roast sweet potatoes (katy), mashed potatoes (katy), green beans and bacon (x2) (jim), cranberries (justin), canberries, biscuits (david). Then Jim and I went to Rapiersgiving and brought home leftovers of caprese, some sliced meat, and salted caramel rum brownies.

For extras and desserts there were apple pies (previously frozen), pumpkin pies (x3), lime meringue pie, and plenty of deviled eggs (mom).

Friday the dishwasher got installed! Dinner was leftovers and soups.
Saturday everybody left.
Sunday I made another lemon meringue pie and then drove Justin back to Rochester.
Monday I took the leftovers and made chicken pot pies, cranberry sauce muffins, and potato ham soup, and provided dinner for friends.

As of now, the only leftovers remaining are a little bit of potato, some muffins, another cup of cranberry sauce, a couple half loaves of bread, and broth from the meat bones.

This entry was originally posted at https://blk.dreamwidth.org/320003.html and has comments.

Oops this time I forgot the month boundary.

Bike log for Sept and Oct, 2017: 355

It was a pretty boring two months of biking. Likely neither month was over 200 or under 150. Sept I only had 14 days of regular commute days, and 4 days of extra commute (going somewhere after work) and no extra long rides. Oct I had 16 days of regular commute and 5 days of extra trips plus a short trip to see the new Greenfield Bridge opening. Extra commutes included lyra classes, Moth events, and the Great Race Expo.

I replaced my rear wheel lights with a new pair, although now my front pair is starting to flake again, and I am not so good at debugging cheap electronics. Haven't figured out what I'm doing about it yet. Now that fall is here the lights are pretty essential for biking home in the evening and I get plenty of compliments on them.

This entry was originally posted at https://blk.dreamwidth.org/319603.html and has comments.

After last year's Great Race where I ran without having trained at all, I promised myself I would re-start my regular running and be more ready for this year's race, and I signed up for it back in January. I did run for a few months but then took a break when my knee was still being annoying and then that turned into a really long break and before I knew it, 9 months had passed and the Great Race was next week.

Oops.

On the bright side, I've been doing a ton of good workouts in the last 7 months, and I'm definitely much stronger than I was last year, so I was sure I was aerobically fit enough to run 10k. The rest of it, well, I guess I'd just run and see. So I went into the race with goals of: 1) Run without working too hard, 2) Don't hurt my knee, and 3) Have fun.

Jim had signed up with me, but decided at the last minute to go away for the weekend, so I convinced David the grouchy teen to do the race with me, offering a bribe to help him with costume shopping later. Surprisingly, he agreed (although he planned to walk it).

On race morning, I estimated when we should leave the house to walk to the end of the start line to get there right on time. But I underestimated how long it would take us and overestimated how long "start" would last, and we turned the last corner just in time to see the very last runners already across the start line. Oops again. So I urged David into a slow run with me and nodded apologetically to all the race volunteers who were patiently waiting for us. About a half mile in we caught the tail end of the race and also ended the first uphill, so, amidst his grouching and some friendly cursing at me, I pushed him to continue running the next half mile until we were no longer in dead last place. Then I wished him luck, let him slow to a walk, and continued on.

The fun part about starting in last place is passing everybody. The not fun part is hitting a wall of walkers around mile 4 and having to dodge them all. That was also about when my knee started complaining more, but I was still having fun and it wasn't -that- bad, so I decided to hell with goal #2 and kept running, doing my best to keep correct foot alignment and partly just ignoring the pain.

My estimations of my overall fitness was correct, as I kept a pretty comfortable pace the entire time and finished in 1:05 without feeling like I exerted too hard (except for being sweaty because it was hot and very sunny). Knee pain mostly stopped as soon as I stopped, so I don't feel like I abused it too badly. David finished 25 minutes later and I congratulated him while he grumbled some more.

We collected medals, gatorade, cookies and snacks, and bussed/walked home, where he collapsed for the afternoon and I sunscreened up and went out to do several hours of yard work (hey as long as I'm hot and sweaty I may as well do more things that get me more sweaty and grimy).

It turns out that running muscles are different from cycling muscles, so for the next two days I had various leg muscles that were SUUUUPER sore, although biking wasn't a problem. My lyra class on Tuesday helped a good deal with some of the soreness, and today I'd say I'm almost recovered, as I'm feeling a desire to run more.

This entry was originally posted at http://blk.dreamwidth.org/319343.html and has comments.

Oops I forgot to post for a while.

Bike log, July 2017: 200 miles

Bike log, August 2017: 245 miles

In August, I set a new monthly record and daily record (62 miles), mostly thanks to riding the metric century route of Pedal Pittsburgh. It was a challenge and I was quite sore after but it was fun and I felt very accomplished. I'm also pretty sure distance riding in general is not a thing I have interest in doing more of.

Other rides included my usual commuting, regular rides to the South Side for my lyra classes, downtown to see In The Heights, and Open Streets. I went to Try-a-bike and rode a tallbike and a backwards pedaling bike which was fun.

For bike updates, I re-taped one of my handlebars which made the grip more comfortable, raised my seat slightly which seems to have made my butt stop hurting, replaced the front set of blue wheel lights with a new set which work more reliably, and replaced my Oi bell with a regular small bell that is louder and fits better.

All is well.

This entry was originally posted at http://blk.dreamwidth.org/318984.html and has comments.

Bike log, June 2017: 205 miles

Trips this month included a couple jaunts down to the Three Rivers Arts Festival downtown, a few trips to Iron City Circus Arts's new location on the South Side, a Weekend Hill ride, and a Flock party ride, where some members of the ride successfully harassed an aggressive bus driver.

I also survived my first (I think) instance of being "hit" (physically touched while in motion) by a car; fortunately it was a very light brush at low speeds and not only was nothing hurt, I didn't even fall over. I called 911 to report it after I got into work. Oddly (and annoyingly), talking to the officer was more emotionally wracking than the actual incident was, probably because missing the adrenaline rush.

No bike changes; it's a lazy month.

This entry was originally posted at http://blk.dreamwidth.org/318922.html and has comments.

I've recently decided that I like listening to stuff when I'm walking/biking/driving. And since a) I don't pay to subscribe to any music streaming services (nor is my private collection very impressive), and b) the speakers in my car are so crappy that playing almost any kind of music on it is an insult to the music, I've been listening to podcasts.

I had gone without listening to things for so long that I had a couple years of backlog of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me to catch up on, which kept me golden for a while, but then I ran out, and started seeking more. I feel like I've struck out way more than I've hit gold, so this post is mostly here to ask for suggestions.

What I like: humor, storytelling, brevity, segments I can start and finish in a typical day's commute (~20-25 minutes one way), nothing too deep as my attention isn't 100% on it at any point and my listening is the first things to go if my brain is preoccupied.

What I don't like: People having a lengthy, unedited conversation. Too much pop culture references that doesn't include me. The wrong kind of humor.

What I've tried:

Wait Wait Don't Tell Me
My favorite podcast that I've listened to for many many years and compare all others to. I like the personalities, I like the humor, I like that it is strictly edited and consistently timed, I like that no single segment in it is very long (even Not My Job is rarely more than 10-15 minutes).

The Moth
My next favorite. The stories are captivating and interesting and emotional and not too long. Just right for a small listening break in my day. The character list is ever changing, but they are basically all people who are picked for being good at storytelling, which is important. If I needed to I could probably just go back into the archives and listen to all of them.

This American Life
Pretty good show by those hipster know-it-alls who talk about how fascinating ordinary people are. I like when humans are shown in detail and made to be complex and sympathetic and Ira Glass does a good job at that. I remember listening to it years ago in the car when I'd flip to NPR and it would be on by chance, and generally enjoyed it then, so I looked it up now. Not much has changed, but it's all new.

Hello Internet
This one breaks all my rules for what I think I should like and yet I kinda do. My older son introduced me to it as something he enjoyed, and we got through a couple episodes on a college commute trip. It is, basically, just two dudes chatting, which I would expect to be bored by, and yet somehow I'm not. I suspect it has to do with the fact that hosts CGP Gray and Brady Haran are both successful YouTubers, and know the art of editing. But I also appreciate that the two of them, even though they seem to have very different personalities with occasionally wildly opposing opinions, obviously get along very well, and their comfort with each other somehow comes across in their shows.

The Ezra Klein Show
I started this because I've read a lot of Ezra Klein interviews and articles that I've liked. I admire his brain and his interviews tend to be with people who are passionate and articulate in ways I want to hear more of. But the interviews are on the long side, and I always find my brain wandering a little. I would probably appreciate these interviews a lot more by spending 10 minutes reading them than an hour listening to them.

Welcome to Night Vale
The premise sounded really good to me, a lot of my friends are in love with it, and I enjoyed it some. I listened to the first 10 episodes to really try to get into it, and while it has some nifty bits, it's just not as appealing to me as I'd hoped. It's non-contiguous enough that while I realize I don't -have- to listen to them all in order, it throws in a few ongoing storylines here and there so that skipping around doesn't seem to make sense. On the upside, each episode is fairly short, so I may go back and try more eventually.

No Dumb Questions
Downloaded because I like Destin Sandlin's work on Smarter Every Day. Unfortunately the one ep I listened to was basically a really long conversation between three people, probably only about 25% of which I found particularly interesting. On the upside, I discovered Emily Graslie and The Brain Scoop, which is vaguely interesting, but I don't think the rest is worthwhile to do it again.

Dear Hank and John
I like the Vlog brothers's personalities and most of their videos that I've seen. And I liked Paper Towns. Unfortunately, like John's books, this show is really aimed towards a much younger audience than me, and although I gave it a few episodes, I found their focus on answering internet questions to be pretty irrelevant to me.

The Daily Show Podcast Without John Stewart
I love the Daily Show, I like the correspondents, I like the editing. This was fun. But there were only 20 episodes, and then it stopped.

Stuff You Should Know
I downloaded this one because it was rated highly and is hosted by writers at HowStuffWorks, which sounded interesting. But it's basically another hour of two people having a conversation and usually not about things that I cared about (or agreed with).

2 Dope Queens
I like both Jessica Williams and Phoebe Robinson and yet their conversations and joking around just didn't amuse me.

My Brother, My Brother, and Me
Answering inane questions from random listeners or Yahoo (bzzt). An hour of conversation between people I don't know and don't particularly find funny (bzzt). Not going back here.


So, dear Readers. Given these descriptions (or not), what podcasts do you like and you would recommend to me? Heck, I'm even interested in some that feature music, as my headphones are pretty decent.

This entry was originally posted at http://blk.dreamwidth.org/318575.html and has comments.

First ripe raspberry of the year was today, June 18, one day later than last year.

May flowers were purple and pink. The last week of May and the first week of June I have almost no flowers. Then starting in June I have orange and yellow from the daylilies and coreopsis. There's been a ton of rain lately which the gardens have loved. The weeds have also loved it, too. Yesterday I weeded some places that had gotten a little out of hand, including the painted sidewalk. I'd thought that the paver base and sand was supposed to keep stuff from growing there, but I guess some weeds don't need much.

I planted some chard plants late and just transplanted some teeny squash plants from the compost. They've gotten a late start but are still alive. I'll see if they're still around next month.

Orange lilies half blooming.


This entry was originally posted at http://blk.dreamwidth.org/318381.html and has comments.