Archive for November, 2013

Giving thanks

Posted: November 27, 2013 in Bariatric surgery, Doctor Who, family, friends, Supportive Partner Woman, Team AllEars
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The US holiday of Thanksgiving is almost upon us. For many folks, this is a chance to gorge oneself on turkjey and stuffing, loosen your pants, sit on the couch and sleep though a game featuring my favorite team (which would be whoever is playing Dallas), then hit up the fridge for leftovers.

It’s an American tradition.

Not for this guy. For me, Thanksgiving will be giving thanks that I changed my life around.

Thanks for another year with family and loved ones

Thanks for vacation starting next week.

Thanks for the friends I’ve made through the Disney community and my teammates.

And thanks that we still have a few freedoms left.

ThanksgivingLet me first start by thanking my totally awesome big sister for her very generous donation toward my Avon goal. Only $119 to go! I might add that thanks to the generous support I’ve received, I’m closing in on tripling my original goal. So, thanks to you as well.

Had the opportunity Monday to have lunch with an old elementary school friend who I’ve not seen in around 25 years. He was back in Pennsylvania from California and we had a nice time. It’s funny… you start out kind of stiff, then you realized why you liked each other and it’s like old times sake. It was great to see him and I hope it’s not another 25 years until we see each other again.

Also, Supportive Partner Woman (devoted Whovian!) and I managed to see the Fathom Events simulcast of Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor. It was so awesome to see it in HD on a theater screen and even more awesome to see David Tennant back in the role, alongside Matt Smith. The theater was loaded with nerds, which isn’t a bad thing, and the audience was quite appreciative.

That’s something else I need to give thanks for. SPW truly is the perfect match for me. We can do nerdy stuff and have a blast. We can also agree to disagree. She thinks I’m too good for her, but truth be told, she deserves much better than me. Do we agree on everything? No. But that’s OK.

So, if you have your own SPW (os SPM), give thanks for them and to them. They make it all worthwhile.

Happy thanksgiving, everyone!

Song of the Day: Be Good to Yourself – Journey
Currently Reading: Ender’s Game – Orson Scott Card

 

Great news

Posted: November 19, 2013 in Doctor Who, Inspiration, Nerd Herd Running, Team AllEars
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So, today there was an announcement from Nerd Herd Running on the final results from the 2013 Trilogy. They set their first goal, annihilated it, set a second goal, went medieval on that one, and for good measure, obliterated the third goal as well.

Together, we managed to raise over $17,000 for Stupid Cancer.

$17 large.

Damn.

Happy!

Happy!

You can read the nuts and bolts here, but I wanted to take a few minutes and talk about what an amazing group of people this is. These are people who embrace their nerddom and aren’t afraid to show it. Words fail me when I need to come up with superlatives to describe their efforts. For such a small group of people to achieve so much totally blows my mind. I’m proud to say they are amongst my inspirations. I look forward to finally meeting most of them in January. So, thanks again Sara, Julie, Jamison, Mike, Joelle, Christina, Brad, Erinn, Dan, Jeff, Christine and April. You guys set a high standard and I’m super proud to be associated with you.

This is not to take away from my own fundraising efforts for Team AllEars. So many of you have contributed and allowed me to raise my goal yet again. Help me get there by clicking here to donate a couple dollars. The link will take you to the Avon site and allow for secure donations. I would dearly love to hit $1,500. There’s still time and it is fully tax deductible.

Postings will be sparse the next few weeks. Between the upcoming holiday and the usual workload, Supportive Partner Woman (survivor of the MRI tube) and I are going to catch the 3-D theater presentation of Day of the Doctor and we also have a much-needed vacation on the books. I will check in while I can, but I wanted to wish you all a happy and joyous Thanksgiving, Chanukkah, or whatever other holidays you celebrate. Remember to stay active and love your families.

 

The Bucket List

Posted: November 17, 2013 in Uncategorized
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Been thinking a lot lately about what I’d lie to accomplish in my life.

See, I’m kind of what you’d call an underachiever.

I always thought I’d accomplish great things, then I just kind of realized that’s kind of out of the question. I’m too ADD to focus long enough on one thing to make a difference. I guess I could point to my 1,327-201-66 Sporcle record as an achievement, but I think that just means I have way too much brain sludge.

I was recently reading a friends blog and she posted her life list. She’s going through a tough time, medically speaking, and just reading it inspired me to create my own. Just know that these are not in any order… they are numbered to make counting easier.

So, without further ado, I present my bucket list:

  1. Visit Antarctica to see penguins in the wild
  2. Get to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
  3. Drive cross country, stopping in every little dinky tourist joint to see that giant ball of twine or whatever else said town is noted for
  4. See the aurora borealis
  5. See a baseball game at every major league ballpark
  6. Travel across the US by train
  7. Go to culinary school
  8. Transit the Panama Canal
  9. See the Holy Land
  10. Go dogsledding
  11. Tour the Lego factory in Denmark
  12. Be a better friend/spouse
  13. Go to an Olympic games (preferably winter… I like hockey)
  14. Go to a Formula One race
  15. Return to the Hotel del Coronado for longer than one night
  16. Visit Disneyland Paris and Tokyo Disney
  17. Visit Disneyland
  18. Run a half-marathon
  19. Attend San Diego ComicCon
  20. Rebuild an engine
  21. Tour the Boeing plant
  22. Learn to fly
  23. Go deep sea fishing

I know, it’s nothing earth-shattering and it is subject to change. If it didn’t change, well, it wouldn’t be me.

 

Warning!

Posted: November 4, 2013 in 5K, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Hiking, Physical activity, Stubby the Wonder Toe, Supportive Partner Woman, Team AllEars, Virtual Races, Walking
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I figured I should warn y’all that this post will have a picture of a foot. So, if you’re foot-averse, be warned.

So, it’s Monday. That usually means the weekend is done and it’s time to get back to work. Sadly, it’s the beginning of November, and for the big cheeses at the soulless corporation I work for, this means a chance to compel us lowly worker bees to work overtime.

I have a love/hate relationship with overtime.

The paychecks are nice. VERY nice. But you wonder if the headaches are worth it. Being ordered around by people who like to THINK they are supervisors is always a drag, as is actually starting at paperwork for extra hours. The seem to think it’s life or death, but the fact of the matter is that what we do doesn’t really have a huge impact on the safety and well-being of the majority of people in the US.

Enough about that, though.

The Boo to Cancer 5K medal

The Boo to Cancer 5K medal

I signed up for and completed another virtual 5K this past week. A friend and teammate had put together the Boo to Cancer Virtual 5K to benefit the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. I did things a little differently, opting to cover the distance on the elliptical, since it was my second day out of the boot and I didn’t know how the foot would behave with full-length toes for the first time in years. I managed to get the 3.1 miles done in 21:16, which was pretty cool for me.

Chickie's Rock anticline

Chickie’s Rock anticline

I also managed to get up to the Chickie’s Rock Overlook again last week. I was hoping for more of a foliage change, but I think I beat that by a few days. I did manage to get a slightly different view, as it was pretty deserted and a lot of the leaves had fallen. One of the highlights was looking at the exposed rock face. I’m not sure what the exact geological composition of the rock is, but it’s enough to make you contemplate just how insignificant humanity’s time on the Earth has been. Knowing that this anticline has been eroded through over millennia by flowing water, and that erosion will continue for millennia after we’re gone. Really puts things in perspective.

The freshly straightened toes (with Stubby to the left)

The freshly straightened toes (with Stubby to the left)

Speaking of the foot, I’m attaching a picture where the toes are not all bandaged up. The toes are nice and straight and it was really weird, actually feeling the texture of a sock with the bottom of my toes. They had been curled for so long, I didn’t really remember the sensation.

So, that’s pretty much what’s happening here in cow country. I would like to give a shoutout to my friend Brad who not only completed the NYC marathon on Sunday, but did it while enjoying himself AND followed up by getting interviewed on GMA. Way to go, Brad!

One other note. I’ve been talking about my Team AllEars fundraising. I’m pleased to announce that due to an unusually generous corporate match, my fundraising total has eclipsed $1,000. This is more than double my original goal. I have to give thanks to everyone who has contributed, and if you haven’t, there’s still time. Feel free to donate here… any amount $5.00 or greater is most appreciated.

I’d also like to take a moment to offer belated birthday wishes to the lovely and gracious Supportive Partner Woman. She had a birthday on Halloween and we’ve now entered the four months of the year when I can get away with busting on her for being older than me. I should also mention that the day prior to her birthday we celebrated our ninth wedding anniversary, which, I think, is the Styrofoam anniversary. It hasn’t always been easy, but we’ve made it this long and the good days far outnumber the bad days. Some days that’s all you can ask for. I will note that I love her more today than I did on our wedding day.

That’s really saying something.