Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Argh!
Website crash!
Thursday, January 24, 2008
"Shame on you... There's something in my head.... It's got it's back to me!"
We are flying home tomorrow. There is still no sign of snow. As I type, it's cold, but just too cold for the snow to fall. Last night was -8 or something. Pretty brutal. Anyway, enough of that. This time tomorrow I'll be at Boston Logan airport for the flight home to Heathrow. Let's hope the taxi turns up for us this time. Last time, they didn't turn up and I had to get a train into London and then the London to Worcester train, which actually wasn't as bad as I make it sound.
So, at lunchtime today, we took a trip to the guitar centre (a music store not far away). For 45 mins we looked at the guitars, tried some out, and generally had a fun time. It reminded me that I do actually like playing guitars, even though I am a total beginner (open chords only). I've resolved to go home, and clean up my two electrics, get them restringed (with Dan's help I hope, cheers mate!) and start from scratch practicing chords and scales. If my time and schedule allows it, I'd like to get involved in a band or jam as well (again, maybe Dan can help!) as it seems this is the best way to really learn and have fun with instruments.
In the music store, I had a go on an electronic drumkit, and I was really surprised at how well it played and felt. While it's not a real drumkit of course, it sounds and responds pretty closely to a real one, with the added benefits that you can have the volume turned right down so as not to agitate the neighbours too much :) I think I'm decided that i'm going to make effort on guitar for now though (instead of wasting hours on Guitar Hero!), but if I had the money, I'd definitely be tempted on an electric kit.
So, at lunchtime today, we took a trip to the guitar centre (a music store not far away). For 45 mins we looked at the guitars, tried some out, and generally had a fun time. It reminded me that I do actually like playing guitars, even though I am a total beginner (open chords only). I've resolved to go home, and clean up my two electrics, get them restringed (with Dan's help I hope, cheers mate!) and start from scratch practicing chords and scales. If my time and schedule allows it, I'd like to get involved in a band or jam as well (again, maybe Dan can help!) as it seems this is the best way to really learn and have fun with instruments.
In the music store, I had a go on an electronic drumkit, and I was really surprised at how well it played and felt. While it's not a real drumkit of course, it sounds and responds pretty closely to a real one, with the added benefits that you can have the volume turned right down so as not to agitate the neighbours too much :) I think I'm decided that i'm going to make effort on guitar for now though (instead of wasting hours on Guitar Hero!), but if I had the money, I'd definitely be tempted on an electric kit.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
"I can't remember anything... can't tell if this is true or a dream..."
It's Sunday, and still no snow! At this rate, it looks like we'll be flying home on Wednesday as planned. The forecast has changed again, and now they are saying it's too cold for snow. As I look out of the window, the sky is clear, the sun is shining, and it's below zero. Very strange!
I just did the daily 3mile run and I'm improving. I did it in 25.15, which is about the pace I ran last year's sun run at. The aim now is to steadily increase the pace bit by bit (0.2 of a mile per day or every couple days) until I reach the target pace, and then from there, increase the distance. I figure *if* I can run at a steady 7.6 to 8.0 miles/hr, I should hit my target time of 45mins for the Sun Run! Yeah right! It does seem a big ask! I've added 100 sit ups a day to the regime (along with the calorie counting) in the hopes of losing weight to increase the pace :) I weighed myself on the gym scales when we arrived here (Thurs) and I was 223lbs. I'm now just a shade under 218lbs, so the water is coming off. Next week will be the hard grind to lose the real weight.
Time for a shower and lunch now anyway, then this afternoon, get cracking on my report for work
I just did the daily 3mile run and I'm improving. I did it in 25.15, which is about the pace I ran last year's sun run at. The aim now is to steadily increase the pace bit by bit (0.2 of a mile per day or every couple days) until I reach the target pace, and then from there, increase the distance. I figure *if* I can run at a steady 7.6 to 8.0 miles/hr, I should hit my target time of 45mins for the Sun Run! Yeah right! It does seem a big ask! I've added 100 sit ups a day to the regime (along with the calorie counting) in the hopes of losing weight to increase the pace :) I weighed myself on the gym scales when we arrived here (Thurs) and I was 223lbs. I'm now just a shade under 218lbs, so the water is coming off. Next week will be the hard grind to lose the real weight.
Time for a shower and lunch now anyway, then this afternoon, get cracking on my report for work
Saturday, January 19, 2008
"Welcome to the Jungle! We got fun and games!"
It's Saturday morning, and we are at work. The snow is all but gone, after a reasonably mild day yesterday, coupled with overnight rain. It doesn't look good for snow tonight or tomorrow, although it's forecast to be desperately cold.
We went for lunch yesterday at a nice place called "Papa-Razzi" that Graham likes. It's part of the Garden City mall in Cranston. We had to go to the nearby Banana Republic, and it turned out they had a 70% off sale! Happy days! I got a jumper for £6 and a shirt for £12 that should have been £50! We did some exploring around the other stores and found that at this time of year they are ALL getting rid of stock as fast as they can for the new '08 range of things. We really did get some bargains yesterday.
We tried again to get into the swimming pool last night but pretty much from 5pm to 10pm it was full of kids messing around, so no swimming at all yesterday! Apparently there is some hockey tournament going on locally, and there are a couple of kids teams staying in the hotel. They're making life hell for the staff, running around the corridors late at night, etc etc. Fair to say we'll be glad when they leave!
Last night we went for dinner at Legal Seafood, and had curried smoked haddock, which was really quite nice. I went for steamed broccoli and sauted spinach with my fish which was excellent. Graham (the fatso) had braised lentils, spinach, and a rack of shrimps. Saying that, I had the tuna sashimi starter :p I'm quite enjoying trying to eat healthy for a change. The steamed veggies have a lot more flavour than stuff that has been boiled to death! I think a steamer for home is in order.
So today, I am downloading Microsoft Office 2007 again, and will get to work on my report for work. Hopefully over the weekend (in the absence of snow) I can have a good crack at getting the first draft finished. Tuesday we have our customer meeting, but between now and then we pray for snow!
We went for lunch yesterday at a nice place called "Papa-Razzi" that Graham likes. It's part of the Garden City mall in Cranston. We had to go to the nearby Banana Republic, and it turned out they had a 70% off sale! Happy days! I got a jumper for £6 and a shirt for £12 that should have been £50! We did some exploring around the other stores and found that at this time of year they are ALL getting rid of stock as fast as they can for the new '08 range of things. We really did get some bargains yesterday.
We tried again to get into the swimming pool last night but pretty much from 5pm to 10pm it was full of kids messing around, so no swimming at all yesterday! Apparently there is some hockey tournament going on locally, and there are a couple of kids teams staying in the hotel. They're making life hell for the staff, running around the corridors late at night, etc etc. Fair to say we'll be glad when they leave!
Last night we went for dinner at Legal Seafood, and had curried smoked haddock, which was really quite nice. I went for steamed broccoli and sauted spinach with my fish which was excellent. Graham (the fatso) had braised lentils, spinach, and a rack of shrimps. Saying that, I had the tuna sashimi starter :p I'm quite enjoying trying to eat healthy for a change. The steamed veggies have a lot more flavour than stuff that has been boiled to death! I think a steamer for home is in order.
So today, I am downloading Microsoft Office 2007 again, and will get to work on my report for work. Hopefully over the weekend (in the absence of snow) I can have a good crack at getting the first draft finished. Tuesday we have our customer meeting, but between now and then we pray for snow!
Friday, January 18, 2008
"If you want... I'll sell you a life story..."
Good morning! Is it....? No! There was no snow last night, and the forecast has changed - there *may* be snow at the weekend, but most likely it will be next week. Damn! We need the snow so we can do our work.
Discussions at breakfast this morning with Graham were interesting. We talked about the nutritional benefit of poached eggs. He said they had high fat content, and I didn't agree... Well, this page shows us the answers, and it seems poached eggs are not as good as I once thought. I had two poached eggs yesterday, and did my 3 mile run in the evening (on top of lunch) and it seems that half of my run was required just to burn off yesterday's breakfast!
Today, we stuck to porridge only. In an hour I'm gonna go hit the gym for another 3 mile run. I'll try and do another one tonight around tea-time. Having reviewed my fitness and performance over the last week, I think I *have* to up the ante to get into shape in time for the Sun Run.
The hotel was besieged with a kid's hockey team last night, so swimming was impossible. It was quite annoying that the kids showed no consideration for other people who might want to use the pool or hot tub, and the parent with them didn't seem bothered either. I sound like an old man! Ha-ha! Hopefully after my run today, I can swim and hot-tub with no problems.
Discussions at breakfast this morning with Graham were interesting. We talked about the nutritional benefit of poached eggs. He said they had high fat content, and I didn't agree... Well, this page shows us the answers, and it seems poached eggs are not as good as I once thought. I had two poached eggs yesterday, and did my 3 mile run in the evening (on top of lunch) and it seems that half of my run was required just to burn off yesterday's breakfast!
Today, we stuck to porridge only. In an hour I'm gonna go hit the gym for another 3 mile run. I'll try and do another one tonight around tea-time. Having reviewed my fitness and performance over the last week, I think I *have* to up the ante to get into shape in time for the Sun Run.
The hotel was besieged with a kid's hockey team last night, so swimming was impossible. It was quite annoying that the kids showed no consideration for other people who might want to use the pool or hot tub, and the parent with them didn't seem bothered either. I sound like an old man! Ha-ha! Hopefully after my run today, I can swim and hot-tub with no problems.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
All men have secrets, and this one is mine.......
My passport arrived in the end on Tuesday night! I was at the Liverpool match, so I found it waiting for me when I got home. The game was good, we won 5-0 but they should have won the first game of course.
So, Wednesday, I made that familiar journey down to London Heathrow and got on a 777 airplane to fly to Boston. I don't know what it is, but I always have terrible problems with my ears on those planes. On the 747's I am always fine, but on landing in a 777, my ears never pop and it kills. On this landing, there was a baby crying it's eyes out in the row behind but I didnt mind, because I was in agony myself so I can't imagine what a little baby makes of it, given they don't understand why they have these horrific pains in their ears and sinuses.
Anyway, we arrived in Boston, and it was *cold*. There was no fresh snow, but lots of snow on the ground and frozen in the trees. We are hoping for some snow storms in the next couple of days so we can go and do some experimentation on the runway down in Providence.
We are back in the Hilton Garden Inn in Warwick, and it's good to be back. The staff are all so friendly. They always remember who we are despite the huge numbers of people who must stay each year. It's a lot different to the Executive Inn in Vancouver. I almost lived there for 8 months of the year, and they still don't say hello or treat me any different to a first time customer (with the exception of the shuttle bus drivers who are awesome). Graham and I had breakfast this morning (porridge, and poached eggs on toast) and they didn't even charge us. That sort of good treatment is well appreciated.
There is no escape from the health kick out here either. Graham has decided he is going to follow my lead, so twice a day we are going to try and run 3miles, and swim for half an hour. That, coupled with no drinking, and a healthy diet, should ensure some good results somewhere down the line.
So, Wednesday, I made that familiar journey down to London Heathrow and got on a 777 airplane to fly to Boston. I don't know what it is, but I always have terrible problems with my ears on those planes. On the 747's I am always fine, but on landing in a 777, my ears never pop and it kills. On this landing, there was a baby crying it's eyes out in the row behind but I didnt mind, because I was in agony myself so I can't imagine what a little baby makes of it, given they don't understand why they have these horrific pains in their ears and sinuses.
Anyway, we arrived in Boston, and it was *cold*. There was no fresh snow, but lots of snow on the ground and frozen in the trees. We are hoping for some snow storms in the next couple of days so we can go and do some experimentation on the runway down in Providence.
We are back in the Hilton Garden Inn in Warwick, and it's good to be back. The staff are all so friendly. They always remember who we are despite the huge numbers of people who must stay each year. It's a lot different to the Executive Inn in Vancouver. I almost lived there for 8 months of the year, and they still don't say hello or treat me any different to a first time customer (with the exception of the shuttle bus drivers who are awesome). Graham and I had breakfast this morning (porridge, and poached eggs on toast) and they didn't even charge us. That sort of good treatment is well appreciated.
There is no escape from the health kick out here either. Graham has decided he is going to follow my lead, so twice a day we are going to try and run 3miles, and swim for half an hour. That, coupled with no drinking, and a healthy diet, should ensure some good results somewhere down the line.
Monday, January 14, 2008
It's Not in the way that you hold me, it's not in the way you say you care....
Well the short stay in England has come to an end. On Wednesday, I have a flight booked to Boston to do a week or so's work in Providence. Assuming my passport comes back! I called the office today and they say it was printed last week, so should arrive by Thursday... Doh!
It dawned on me that since my update of last year, we visited Toronto and Niagara Falls, and I neglected to write anything about it. I don't think I've even put the pictures up in the photo gallery. They are on my Facebook page (isn't *everything* on facebook these days?) so I will have to make a new gallery for them on the website too.
I was going to buy a new TV stand for the flatscreen over the weekend until I did a bit of research and found out that they are now £50 at the least! It's 3 bits of glass and a plastic stand. I have NO idea when this stuff became so expensive. Anyway, rant over. I *might* get one if I can find something cheaper. It's only for my bedroom so I have something to stand the xbox and the tv on.
Ah... Xbox... I am still waiting for my own xbox to come back from repair. I sent it 10 days ago and have heard nothing back yet. I don't know whether or not to be worried. Friends said it would take 7 days, the official word is it will take 30 days, so we'll see. Either way, I have Jay's xbox until mine comes back :) Yahoo!
Tomorrow I have the day off to go and watch the Liverpool vs Luton replay with Scott. I don't know what the result will be. It's fair to say the club is in turmoil of late, and I don't know where they are going to end up this year. It looks increasingly like Rafa Benitez will have to leave which is a shame as he's been the best manager we've had for a LONG time, and I don't fancy any of the replacements I've heard about.
It dawned on me that since my update of last year, we visited Toronto and Niagara Falls, and I neglected to write anything about it. I don't think I've even put the pictures up in the photo gallery. They are on my Facebook page (isn't *everything* on facebook these days?) so I will have to make a new gallery for them on the website too.
I was going to buy a new TV stand for the flatscreen over the weekend until I did a bit of research and found out that they are now £50 at the least! It's 3 bits of glass and a plastic stand. I have NO idea when this stuff became so expensive. Anyway, rant over. I *might* get one if I can find something cheaper. It's only for my bedroom so I have something to stand the xbox and the tv on.
Ah... Xbox... I am still waiting for my own xbox to come back from repair. I sent it 10 days ago and have heard nothing back yet. I don't know whether or not to be worried. Friends said it would take 7 days, the official word is it will take 30 days, so we'll see. Either way, I have Jay's xbox until mine comes back :) Yahoo!
Tomorrow I have the day off to go and watch the Liverpool vs Luton replay with Scott. I don't know what the result will be. It's fair to say the club is in turmoil of late, and I don't know where they are going to end up this year. It looks increasingly like Rafa Benitez will have to leave which is a shame as he's been the best manager we've had for a LONG time, and I don't fancy any of the replacements I've heard about.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Can you help me? Help me if you can....
New Year, New Blog Entry! Happy days!
I make no apologies for the lack of blog entries since November. Things are really busy, and have been for a while. Unfortunately with the new year comes more work... but there it is.
I have made a resolution to train hard this year for the Vancouver Sun Run, which I hope to be able to compete in this coming April 20th. Obviously, I want to beat last year's time of 54.20, but at the moment I am in no shape to take on that time.
I ran a training run around my local area last night. 3.5miles in 31 minutes. While this is not a bad pace considering I haven't run for a long time, it's nowhere near sub 50-minute Sun Run pace. I estimate that by April I need to be running comfortably TWICE as fast as I am now. Well, should be fun training for that.
In any case, I have cut out drinking, and take-out food, and am on healthy eating and living, including (shock horror) visiting the gym at work to tone myself back into shape and do some extra cardio. It's my aim to run at least 4 times a week, and play football 1-2 times a week, with weight lifting in the multi-gym we have at home to try and tone up a bit. I started this new regime last night and I ache a bit today but the old cliche says "no pain, no gain" so I'm happy for now!
I make no apologies for the lack of blog entries since November. Things are really busy, and have been for a while. Unfortunately with the new year comes more work... but there it is.
I have made a resolution to train hard this year for the Vancouver Sun Run, which I hope to be able to compete in this coming April 20th. Obviously, I want to beat last year's time of 54.20, but at the moment I am in no shape to take on that time.
I ran a training run around my local area last night. 3.5miles in 31 minutes. While this is not a bad pace considering I haven't run for a long time, it's nowhere near sub 50-minute Sun Run pace. I estimate that by April I need to be running comfortably TWICE as fast as I am now. Well, should be fun training for that.
In any case, I have cut out drinking, and take-out food, and am on healthy eating and living, including (shock horror) visiting the gym at work to tone myself back into shape and do some extra cardio. It's my aim to run at least 4 times a week, and play football 1-2 times a week, with weight lifting in the multi-gym we have at home to try and tone up a bit. I started this new regime last night and I ache a bit today but the old cliche says "no pain, no gain" so I'm happy for now!
