I'm Brian, and what you see here is usually the product of my warped sense of geekiness. I started the blog to chronicle my struggle against being overweight but I've branched out into social commentary as well as the trials and tribulations of bariatric surgery. When I'm not being snarky on here, I like baseball, music, and travel, as well as keeping up with technology. Oh, and I also have a wee bit of a Lego problem.
There’s been some success in my life lately. I actually got service from Comcast… an event I just had to add to the Life Events part of my Facebook page. I got the parts to repair the mixer. I even went to Root’s Market for produce.
The biggest success thus far is not only have I made my original fundraising goal, I’ve made my revised goal. See, after making it to $500, I upped it to $600. Thanks to a donation I received in the mail yesterday, I stand at $601 (for anybody checking out my page, checks take a long time to reflect in your total), which makes me wonder if I should up the ante yet again. Should I make it $750?
Anyway, the contribution that put me over the top came from an old college friend of mine. Karen and her husband Rodger, who I have seen once since their wedding 18 or so years ago, were kind enough to drop a check in the mail.
People do surprise me.
I’ve been so busy carping about Comcast lately that I’ve not given any credit to those who are inspiring me. Today, that honor goes to the lovely and gracious Supportive Partner Woman.
Now, I’m sure some people may think that’s a cop-out answer, but truth be known, SPW is to be admired. She has a stressful job, family health issues and, well, has to put up with me. Through it all, she lets me drag her to the gym and when she gets there, she totally kills it. Take today, for example. I did 2.3 miles at a 3.3 mph pace and she did like 2.6 on the elliptical and another 1.5 on the dreadmill.
Basically, she smoked me like a trout, and I love her all the more for it.
That’s why she’s my inspiration of the day.
Oh, and I only have a few days until the Boot of Shame makes an appearance again. I’ll be getting two toes on my left foot straightened on Tuesday, so I’ll need to be in the boot for a week. I hate missing the workout time, but it should make walking easier. I’ll take that.
Received two donations for my Team AllEars Avon fundraising goal yesterday and this prompted me to dig out the calculator. Seems I’m only $54 away from my original goal after everything gets credited.
Fifty. Four. Dollars.
That’s less than the price of the next entry in the Call of Duty franchise.
I’d venture a guess that $54 toward the elimination of breast cancer has more redeeming value than a first person shooter. But maybe that’s just me.
As has become a habit, I wanted to give a public thanks to my latest donors. First of all, Donna & Jim. I worked with both of them and I’m sad to report that Donna will be joining her husband in retirement in under two weeks. She’s been a great mentor to me and was always available to answer any questions I had. They are both great people and I’m that much better for knowing them.
I’d also like to give a huge thanks to my brother from another mother and his lovely wife. Mike & Mary gave a very selfless donation and it actually brought tears to my eyes when I got the e-mail that they had done this. I’ve spent a lot of time over the years bemoaning the state of humanity and just like that, my faith is restored.
Thank you, Mike & Mary. And thank you, Donna and Jim. You guys are awesome.
So, on to the meat of today’s post. I want to talk about doctors and such. See, I had an appointment with my primary care practitioner yesterday. Things went well. She’s pleased that my blood pressure is getting back to normal, that I’ve lost weight, and that I’ve been able to make changes to my lifestyle. So pleased that she doesn’t want to see me for six months. I’m actually kind of bummed about that, because as I’ve previously mentioned, I actually LIKE this one.
This follows on the heels of a good visit to the podiatrist. Maybe there is something to this healthy lifestyle stuff. Whoda thunk?
I’ll keep you posted on the fundraising efforts. Remember, if you want to contribute, you can do so at info.avonfoundation.org/goto/BrianT. Even if you can only spare your daily Starbucks allowance, every little bit helps.
I not only killed it at the gym, I managed to wound Stubby as well.
See, on Thursday, I was actually running on the treadmill. It felt pretty good… the left ankle was barking a little, but that was the extent of my pain.
When I got home from work that night, well, I found that Stubby had a pretty substantial blister that had developed where there was a corn.
Cue frowny face.
I had Supportive Partner Woman (tender of my feet!) give it a Betadyne bath, then slept with my foot hanging off the bed, allowing it to air out. The next day I called my podiatrist and scheduled an appointment for this morning. He was impressed at how well it is healing and told me I could get out of the Boot of Shame. So I have that going for me. The bad news is that I’ll need to spend a week in it in early August. The doc wants to straighten the two remaining hammertoes on my left foot. Not something that I’m really looking forward to, but what can you do? This will hopefully prevent any more corns from forming.
In the other news, it’s time for a rant.
Got another letter from Evil Bitch Queen Wanda of our homeowner’s association. This time saying that we need to put down a “mulch” barrier to prevent damage to the siding from the lawn crew trimming.
My first thought was, “Seriously, this is the first you mention it after the lawn crew has had SIX YEARS to jack up the siding?
My second thought was a lot less charitable.
I posted about this on FB and one of my friends had the winning comment regarding the “mulch barrier.” She said, “Four foot bunker made of bags of mulch. Check.”
Amen.
So far we’ve established that the foot is healing nicely, me running isn’t pretty,and, oh, yeah, Wanda is an evil bitch.
Not bad for a day’s work.
So, on to the fun part of today’s post… Another fine inspirational story.
When I was in elementary school I had a very good friend named Mark. We played together pretty often and we kept in touch well through elementary and middle schools. At that time we went to different schools, and as frequently happens, we lost touch. Fast forward 20 years and we reconnected via Facebook. I’ve been very open about the health issues I have faced, and he had faced some similar issues. It’s been a long road for both of us, but he’s done some running and it inspired me to get in better shape. It’s kind of funny that I can find inspiration from someone I haven’t seen in over twenty years but still think the world of.
Thank you, Mark, for your friendship, inspiration, and also your donation to the Avon Walk. Every little bit counts.
Speaking of which, if you want to contribute, visit my personal fundraising page at
I’m proud to report that I’ve discovered another way to get a workout.
Yard work in the heat.
It makes you sweat, but you still manage to make the yard look better. It’s a win/win! Speaking of yard work, many of you might remember the tale of Wanda, the evil bitch queen of our HOA. Got a missive from her complaining about weeds around our air conditioning unit.
Weeds we had already pulled.
Sigh.
So, I started on Thursday with my latest Xfinity run-in. This time, the internet was down. I called Comcast and talked to a rep who seemed to be less interested in solving the Mystery of the Missing Internet and more interested in getting me to subscribe to HBO, Skinemax and whatever other overpriced crap they can foist on you.
No, if I wanted to upgrade my package, I’d have called that department, or spoken to somebody regarding TV. All I wanted was the Internet to work. That’s all, folks. Also, when scheduling a repair appointment, don’t hold that appointment hostage to whether or not I want to buy a service protection plan. That’s kind of bush league, guys.
I also managed to hit the driving range twice this weekend. Saturday was far more entertaining. There was a guy in a bad toupee (I know, there is no such thing as a good toupee, so calling it a bad toupee is redundant. It was seriously heinous, though. If there were war crimes trials for bad hairpieces, this bad boy would be guilty of crimes against humanity.) all by his lonesome in a stall about four spots behind me. After every shot, he’d say (loudly), “Now that’s a golf shot!”
To himself.
My first thought was, “Well, no shit, Captain Obvious…. You’re hitting a golf ball with a golf club. Of course it’s a golf shot!”
My second thought was, “I can’t make this stuff up.”
Now, I finally got around to finishing the mulching. So I’m a little behind. My advice is to not spread mulch before you go to the gym to get in a strength training day. It tends to make things a little sore all around.
On to the meat of the post, though. It was a good day in that I got my first donation for the 5K. So, a huge thanks to Janet for breaking the shutout. Your kindness and generosity are greatly appreciated. Anyone wanting to join Janet in backing my 5K bid can do so by visiting my Avon fundraising page.
We’re getting to a point of the year where it’s easy to backslide. It’s so hot and oppressive that it’s easy to not get your work in and stay in the air conditioning. If you really want to stay in the AC, go to your local mall to walk. Many malls have information about how far one lap of their building is for the walkers and it helps break the humidity. You’re still that much farther ahead of the guy on the couch.
I’m going to do better with my writing this week. I’ve slipped a little of late and I’m not happy about it. Hope you have a great week and stay comfortable. If you must be outside, remember to hydrate. It’s important.
Song of the Day:If I Had No Loot – Tony! Toni! Toné!
The first time, I came up with 279.8. I was so excited I went running for a camera.
It’s a little grainy, but it says 281.0
The second time? 281.0. Since it’s such a big milestone, I decided to be conservative and go with 99 pounds lost.
99 pounds.
Has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?
Let’s put it into perspective… that meansI’ve lost a weight equivalent of slightly greater than three Explorer 1 satellites (first US Earth satellite). Explorer 1 weighed in at just under 31 pounds.
I’ve lost greater than the body mass of actresses Kristin Chenoweth (88 pounds) and Mila Kunis (95 pounds).
And I’m not done.
It hasn’t been an easy journey… it’s going to be a challenge for the rest of my life. That being said, it’s a challenge I don’t want to back away from. I’m feeling better every day, my clothes are baggier (and I’m OK with that), and I bought my first ever compression shorts. Never thought I’d see the day. I’m regaining the lean muscle I lost when I couldn’t work out. I can be on a treadmill for 45 minutes at 3.5 mph and still have my heartbeat under 115.
It’s kind of cool, actually. I just wish I had done it sooner… maybe before diabetes really messed with my feet and I entered the realm of morbid obesity. The other thing I’m pleased to see is that my BMI is finally back on the scale, as opposed to being off the charts in a bad way.
At any rate, I’m keeping it short today… just wanted to share the good news. Hope I can report 100 pounds soon.
Song of the Day: Lawyers, Guns and Money – Warren Zevon
Had a great Independence Day. Spent the day at Hersheypark with some friends at my company picnic and it was actually fulfilling. Not only that, 16,472 steps and no blisters. Woot!
Right up until the end.
The day was oppressively warm… there was a fleeting breeze, but it was not always dependable. It took about as long to get into the parking lot as it took to drive to Hershey. So, you could say it was busy. We started the day with The Scrambler, a special request of Supportive Partner Woman. Line was a little long, but the ride is always fun. After which, we scouted out Skyrush, which is the latest entry in the Hershey coaster pantheon, while we waited for our friends to arrive. I was pretty sure I was going to attempt it, if one big hurdle could be overcome… if I could fit.
They have a demonstration seat at the head of the queue, so I sat in it and was pleasantly surprised to actually fit.
This would come back to haunt me.
After our friends arrived, we made our way to the back of the park to ride one of our favorite wooden coasters… Lightning Racer. Lightning Racer is a dueling wooden coaster that usually ranks in the top 15 wooden coasters in the world. It’s a lot of fun, and doesn’t beat you up like a lot of other woodies.
After that was the picnic lunch. It was kind of a challenge, but I managed to eat a little bit of chicken BBQ and half of a hamburger patty. I also had some fresh fruit. It was pretty tasty, but I can’t help contrasting it with what I would’ve eaten back in my heyday. That would’ve been multiple hot dogs and burgers, all with rolls, chips, washed down with lots of diet soda.
Yeah.
And to think that was normal. I’m liking the new normal that much better.
Following lunch, we wandered over to The Claw. This is an evil beast that I kind of looked at and said, “Oh, HELL no.” We hung around while our friend Hollie went for a ride, then we wandered to the arcade to play some SkeeBall. Post SkeeBall, it was off to my favorite coaster in the park… Great Bear. Great Bear is smooth, yet thrilling, and I even managed to get SPW (Brave little toaster!) on board for the ride. As with many things, there’s a backstory. During my yo-yo weight loss years, I went to the park. Paid admission and all that, then decided to try to ride Great Bear. I waited nearly an hour in line, climbed on board and they couldn’t close the restraints. I was too fat. I left the park immediately, totally ashamed.
The last time I rode it, I managed to fit, but it took two people to get me in, pressing on the harness until I could barely breathe, until the belts would actually close.
This time, there was even some extra room.
The ride is smooth and thrilling, and due to the design of the coaster, it roars like an angry bear. This is due to the lack of sand in the supports and the design of the track itself. Following Great Bear, I was hoping to take my first ride on Storm Runner. This was not to be, however. The seat harness is supposed to touch your thigh and I needed another inch or two. Gives me something to look forward to next time.
The Skyrush train
We closed the day with a visit to Skyrush. The motto for the coaster in “Ride the edge” because the two outboard seats are floorless. I opted for a trip on one of those. SPW (Kind of a coaster chicken!) was having no parts of this, so there were only three of us. The train is pulled out of the station with a cable lift rather than the typical chain lift. You are moving up that hill at a pretty good clip. The cable system pretty much throws you over the top and into an 85° drop, reaching speeds of 75 mph. That’s awesome. Then the airtime kicks in, pretty much throwing you out of your seat. This is what caused the problem. I hit the restraint with my left leg so hard, it bruised the quadriceps. This has made walking a challenge, not to mention getting into and out of a car. It will heal, and I now have more of an appreciation of what to expect, should I ride it again. I’ll leave you with the front seat POV.
After our park time, we stopped at the Troeg’s Brewery in Hershey to meet up with the subject of today’s inspiration section, Brad. Brad is a fellow Disney enthusiast, fan of quality beer, as well as an all around great guy.
We met some years ago at Magic Meets (are you sensing a pattern here?) and we just hit it off from the get-go. He and his family live in the Central PA area as well and we get together periodically, although not as frequently as we would like. Brad is one I refer to as insane, as he is a running nut who’s been known to do the Dopey before it was officially the Dopey. What that means is that he would often run 42.4 miles in one weekend. See? Insane. That being said, he’s been incredibly supportive of my efforts with Team AllEars and has offered much in the way of sage advice and patience for a complete novice runner (me). I’m really psyched for January now… I think that crossing that line will really make an impact on my life and maybe illustrate that I can succeed at something I thought insurmountable. It will be because Brad (and many others) believe in me, so much so that I might start believing in myself.
It’s Tuesday and I’m a little loopy from sniffing polyurethane. Yes, I was in a well-ventilated area, but that stuff is pretty potent.
Progress continues to be made on my shelf project. All parts are cut and sanded, and all but a couple of sides are stained and polyurethaned, It should look pretty good when it is finally complete. Next job will be to find a place to hang it. Yikes!
So, I had some more inspiring folks I wanted to give a shoutout to. Todays co-honorees are my Team AllEars co-captains Michelle and Mike.
These are folks I again met through Magic Meets (are you sensing a pattern?) and they’ve always been great friends to myself and Supportive Partner Woman. Michelle is actually a frequent Words With Friends opponent (she usually wipes the floor with me) and has been subtly encouraging me to join the team. They have seen my struggles to keep up with the crowd at Reunion and seen me suffer through the blisters from hell. While I was in the program, both Mike and Michelle would check in with me to see how I was doing and it was hard to tell who was more excited when I committed to join the team from my hospital bed. They even sent a lovely flower arrangement that lasted over a month.
It’s hard to express how much their encouragement has inspired me, but if you want to talk about great leaders leading by example, I would be hard pressed to find a pair of co-captains who exemplify that adage more than Michelle and Mike. I’m proud to call them my friends and my inspirations.
So, second shift is going well after one day. It’s not a crazy busy week with the upcoming holiday, but it works just the same. I even got out for a 1.5 mile walk on break with a nice detour through Home Depot for air conditioning. Have to do it again tonight, assuming the weather stays dry. The foot looks fine, so I think it’s safe to say that the blister crisis is averted.
It’s been a good weekend so far, for the most part. The blister appears to be pretty much healed, I got to do the sanding on my project, and the British Grand Prix was a helluva race.
In the other good news, Supportive Partner Woman (Getting her work in!) has been hitting the gym with regularity. This makes me very happy that she’s been doing this. I know how much of a difference it has mad in my general health and well-being and I hope it has the same effect on her as well.
Yesterday was also a chicken BBQ day at the little Mennonite church on the corner. Pretty tasty stuff and, for me, two meals. 🙂 I ate the leg and thigh yesterday, I still have the breast and wing, so it might actually become a three-meal chicken dinner. I knew there was a plus to this surgery thing.
As for the blister, well, I protected it with moleskin when we went to the gym yesterday and stayed on the arc trainer and lifted weights. That was more for some protection, just in case. After I got home and took a shower, I figured I’d go without, since things seem to be really well-healed. After a few hours running errands and the like, I found that my sock was bone dry and the foot seemed in great shape. It’s a far cry from the last blister. I’m taking that as a positive sign. As for today, I’ll probably put moleskin on for the gym visit, just to be cautious, then I’m going without for the rest of the day. See what happens. I’m hopeful that there will be a Wegman’s trip today, which will be a nice change for the foot.
Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen
I’d also like to give a shoutout to Nico Rosberg on his win at Silverstone today. Looked like it would be another Vettel runaway, but Nico was there when Vettel’s gearbox went and managed to hold off a charging Mark Webber for the win. Also, mad props to my boy Kimi Raikkonen for scoring his 25th consecutive points finish, setting a new record for consistency in Formula 1.
That about covers it for the day. Hope to post more frequently this week and maybe give a fundraising update. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Last post I did, I started my little series of recognizing the folks who have really inspired me to make some life changes. These aren’t exactly folks who have supported me… in many cases, they don’t even know I found their stories or journeys to be inspiring. Now it’s my chance to throw them some recognition.
Today’s honoree is Glenn, also known as Vegan Wayne (long story).
Glenn was a pretty big guy… also a member of the Disney community, I met him through the fine folks at WDW Today. I’ve always told him he’s my favorite Hawaiian attorney (He’s the only Hawaiian attorney I know, so of course he’s my favorite, but don’t tell him that… it’ll spoil the gravitas that goes along with that honor) I say Glenn was a pretty big guy because he’s no longer that big. Some of my fondest memories of Glenn involved chowing down at the Ohana feast , so imagine my surprise when he told me he was going to a vegan, whole foods diet.
I was stunned.
Flabbergasted.
The voice running through my head was that of the aunt in My Big Fat Greek Wedding saying, “Whaddaya mean you don’t eat no meat?”
Of course he took some ribbing about that major dietary change, including when we all went to Ohana and he had them bring out the vegan platter while the rest of us did our best barbarian impression, eating meat cooked with fire. The gauntlet was thrown, as well, with our friend Jeanine making a snarky remark about “those four months you went vegan”. To Glenn’s credit, he’s stuck with it and has lost well over 100 pounds.
The road isn’t always smooth, but if you stick with it, you can succeed.
My current project of a minifig display rack is moving along. I finished cutting the wood for the outer frame. I even used the router table to cut shelf guides. The first attempt wasn’t too successful… I did each side individually and the alignment was WAAAAAY off. So, I had to buy another piece of wood and start over. I managed to rig some scrap wood into a jig, which kept everything nice and aligned. The shelves are going to made from 1/4 inch oak plywood, since there’s no real weight to the figures. I’m going to make the basic design in a cross-hatched pattern so there’s some support to keep the shelves from sagging under their own weight.
So, that’s what’s been going on. The router table has proven to be a most excellent acquisition, so I’m pleased about that.
Oh, one tip… if you’re outside getting exercise on these hot days, remember to hydrate to the best of your ability. You don’t want to get dehydrated, so avoid caffeine and sodas. Instead, stick to water and sports drinks. My sports drink of choice is PowerAde Zero in the orange flavor. Seriously yummy stuff.
More soon.
Song of the Day: Running on Empty – Jackson Browne
Jury is still out on that, but I can say that it felt good to do something other than pound the treadmill. While my legs are STILL a little rubbery some 6 hours later, my ankles and feet feel fine.
This week and next week are really booked up at the clinic’s fitness center, so I’m only getting one session each week. I just need to make up the time at the Rec. There are worse fates. I might try to get some weekday swimming in… although the probability of a Gratuitously Naked Guy sighting is much higher during the week. But, dear readers, I’m willing to risk it.
Now, I know I’ve posted about my inspirations for losing some weight and getting healthier, but there’s one that I keep overlooking. So, I’d like to give a shoutout to my friend Matt. I know Matt through the Disney community… he was a fellow Magic Meets volunteer and, like me, was a big guy. Not as big as me, but a bigger guy nonetheless. I hadn’t seen Matt since the last Magic Meets, but would spot him on Facebook from time to time. Then there was one post that blew my mind. Matt was running in last year’s Disney World Half-Marathon.
Wow.
Not only that, but he was deep into martial arts and just really seemed serious about getting healthy and making the lifestyle changes. That was in the back of my mind as I progressed through my program. There’s someone who was doing it. Someone I knew.
I knew that I could do it, too.
The road is long and anything but smooth. I’m getting there, following the footsteps of someone whose success and determination has really been an inspiration. Thanks, Matt, and keep up the awesome work.
From here on in, I’m going to make an effort to recognize those folks who have inspired me to keep going. Who knows, I might even have nice things to say about my jerk co-worker who really got the ball rolling.
I wouldn’t hold my breath, though.
Tomorrow will be more of the same… gym, work, and maybe playing with power tools. We’ll see what the weather is like after work.
Song of the Day: Kashmir – Led Zeppelin Currently Reading: The King’s Deception – Steve Berry
P.S. I think the elliptical won… word of the day? Ouch.
Memoirs of a Soon-to-Be Former Fat Guy 