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It’s been a fairly uneventful month for me.  I did  start a new podcast  – What We Make: A Terminator Podcast.  It was originally going to be an introcast on The Sarah Connor Chronicles.  Since we were planning on discussing pretty much the entire Terminator universe, we decided to make it a general Terminator podcast.

I’m a lot less optimistic about work improving than I was before.  I spoke to someone in the same position as me earlier, so I’m not the only one who feels the way I do.

Fitness is going well.  I got my measurements today and I’m down to 11% body fat.  My trainer told me it would be really hard to get lower than that, but I’m going to try.  I got a Fitbit Charge HR yesterday and it’s pretty cool to monitor my heart rate.  I don’t like wearing anything around my wrist, but this device hasn’t been a problem for me.

I’m so busy I haven’t had much time for video games, TV, or movies. That should change this coming week. I’m looking forward to going to Raleigh in April and Mississippi in June.

Until next time.

Back in September I entered the first ever Lose-to-Win weight loss competition at my new gym, VillaSport, which had opened the month before. It ended 3 weeks ago.

I came in 11^th place out of 120-130 people in terms of percentage of weight loss.  I got 1^st place in participation points for going to the events and activities.  I got a $50 gift card at the gym for that. I used that card to buy a larger gym bag.  My team got 5^th place out of around 20 teams.  We each got a $25 check for that.

I’m happy with the results.  I got off to a slow start because I went to Hawaii soon after the competition began.  I didn’t finish as strongly as I would have liked to because of Thanksgiving.  Another thing is that I added some muscle.  Excuses excuses.  Still, I’ve been working hard to get into shape these past few months.

I was working out before the competition began.  The competition was just more motivation to get serious about losing weight again.  I found out because of the competition that my membership at this gym got me 4 30-minute sessions with a trainer. I picked out my trainer, Nate, because he specialized in body fat reduction and metabolic resistance training, which I had heard of and wanted to learn about. I thought I was doing a good job working out before, but these sessions proved that I wasn’t.  What he had me doing was tough.  Fitness has evolved and what he taught me started showing results even after just a few weeks.  Early on though I was afraid that Nate would tell me that I wasn’t cut out for MRT and that I would have to do something else.

In addition to better workouts, I got my eating back to what it needs to be.  I go out of my way not to use to d word.  I went crazy on Thanksgiving,but other than that I’ve been pretty good. I was already doing a lot of things right, but I got some more tips from Nate and a dietitian at the gym. I threw away everything that was unhealthy or expired in my kitchen and there was almost nothing left.  It was fun to go shopping for healthier food.

At one point I lost 5% of my body fat in a month, which Nate says is hard to do and is a record among his clients.  Apparently he’s been bragging about me because of that.  After about 5 weeks of a “basic” workout, I bought more sessions to learn a more advanced workout.  I thought what I was going before was tough, but this is even tougher. I’m getting the hang of and I’m actually enjoying it now. Nate also formulated a food plan that actually allowed for more food each day that I was previously eating.

I had my annual physical last week and unlike last year, my cholesterol was right where it needed to be.  Yay for overall health improvement!

I’ve been showing off how much progress I made after 3 months.  Pictures of me on this blog are pretty rare I think.

Let’s see what I can do in another 3 months.

This past week was Thanksgiving.  After Hawaii I had said that I wouldn’t use any more vacation days this year, but I decided to take Wednesday off so I would have a 5-day break.  I was happy that for the 2^nd year in a row I got to have a Thanksgiving meal.  While we were camping in September, Alston and his girlfriend Stephanie asked me if I wanted to join them for Thanksgiving.  That was the last mention of it until the week before when I asked Alston if it was still on. Alston said that everybody else had backed out, but I was still welcome to come.

I looked online and got an idea for something healthy to cook: roasted Brussel sprouts.  I also made a sweet potato pie.  When I got to their place they had snacks ready while the other food was being prepared.  They made turkey, stuffing, corn bread, mashed potatoes and cranberry relish.  It was a delicious meal.  I wasn’t so keen on the Brussel sprouts, but I just didn’t like the taste.  We all ate so much.  It had trouble standing up straight for very long after the meal.  We ended up going for a walk afterwards.  According to the scale I put on 3 lbs that day.

I took my PS3 over there.  While we waited for the turkey to finish and after we ate, we played video games.  I had never played most of the games we played and I owned them.  I ended up letting Alston borrow my PS3 a few days later.

It was great spending Thanksgiving with friends since I couldn’t be with family.  Hopefully, I can keep the streak alive next year.

I haven’t really done much since I got back from Hawaii.  It’s been nice to be live a lazy and boring life.

A couple of weeks after I got back from Hawaii, I came home to find that Reese wasn’t his normal energetic self.  After a couple of trips to the emergency vet and a visit to the doctor that performed his surgery back in March (she works at a different place now), we figured that it was a return of his back problems, which will be a lifelong problem.  Although I was prepared to take him in for surgery again, it looks like bed rest has help greatly.  I started taking him on increasingly longer walks each week as the doctor instructed, but this week he started limping a little bit.  I started shortening his walks and he’s doing better.  He seems like his normal self most of the time.

I entered a weight loss competition at my gym and it started right before I left for Hawaii.  I used my 4 complimentary personal training sessions to learn a new workout routine.  Even though I had been working out, I was still very much out of shape.  My old workout wasn’t cutting it. My new workout was a “basic” workout, but it was very tough.  My trainer is honest and told me beforehand it wouldn’t be easy.  Over the next 4-5 weeks, I saw made some good progress, but it was getting too easy and I wasn’t loosing weight anymore.  I paid for 8 more sessions and I’m learning a more long-term workout routine.  It’s much much harder than what I was doing before.  Also, I’ve been eating better.  I’ve done pretty well with sticking to my food plan over the past couple of weeks.  So far, I’ve lost about 17 lbs.  I’m in 8th place in the weight loss competition.  At this point, I don’t really care about the competition anymore.  I just want to be healthier.

I’ve been trying to play video games as much as possible.  There are way too many games and not enough time to play them.  I’ve also been catching up on a lot of movies that missed.  Everyone should go see Birdman.

I went to “An Evening with Patrick Rothfuss” here in Portland about a month ago.  The Doubleclicks opened for him.  Most of it was a repeat of what I saw at P.A.X., but it was still fun.  I got an autographed copy of his new book.  I was too tired to stand in a long line to get a personalized autograph.  Maybe next time.

Work is the main thing that’s bothering me these days.  I’m just very bored and frustrated.  I’ve talked to the people that I need to talk to, but no one seems to want to change anything except me.  Hopefully, things will turn around soon.

That’s it for now.  I have to get a few things ready for Thanksgiving tomorrow.

This past weekend I went on my very first camping trip. I went with my friend Alston and his girlfriend Stephanie. We went to the Keenig Campsite, which is about an hour from here in the Tillamook State Forest. Originally we had planned to go fishing one morning, but that trip turned into a camping trip.

Somehow I wasn’t notified that they were planning on going out there Friday afternoon. I left Friday after work. I did leave work about half an hour early though. When I got there they had already started the fire and were preparing to cook dinner. Alston and I got my tent set up and we ate dinner. That night we stayed warm by the fire and chatted the whole night. We didn’t have enough light to do much else. I think we all underestimated how cold it would get considering how hot it was during the day. We went through all of our firewood that night. None of us really slept well that night. My sleeping bag did a decent job of keeping me warn, but it could have been better.

The next morning we ate breakfast and went to get more firewood. We overcompensated quite a bit. We walked around a nearby camping area and visited a museum there. Once we got back to our campsite, we went fishing. Back in the day when I went fishing with my cousins and uncle, I just used a simple pole. This time I had a rod and a reel. It took a little getting used to. I could never get the bait out far enough to do much good. The good spots were already taken. It was fun to get some experience using the equipment though. Next time will be better. After not sleeping well the night before and being in the sun fishing for too long, we were tired so we had lunch and rested a while before playing cards. Alston wasn’t feeling well, so he rested some more while Stephanie and I went on a good walk. After that I was tired, but thankfully it was time for dinner. After dinner we chilled by the fire for a while and called it a night early.

The next morning we had some breakfast, packed up all of our things and left. We didn’t come close to using all the wood, so I brought the rest home. I might actually use my fireplace this winter. I was so glad for my heater and cell reception on the way home and my shower once I got home.

I had a great time on my first camping trip. I definitely want to do it again, but probably not until next spring or summer. I learned some lessons. I know there are a few things I want to buy before I go again. A lot of people had their dogs with them, so I might take Reese with me next time. I’m sure he’d enjoy it out there.

This past weekend I went down to Houston to attend the wedding of my ex-roommate and friend from college, Rob, to his fiancee Bess. I think the bride and groom started dating for the first time in 1996. 18 years later, they finally got married.

I arrived in Houston late Thursday, but didn’t do anything. It was my first time in the city other than for layovers.

The day before the wedding, Friday, us guys got together and played a round of Top Golf. There were friends from college along with relatives and friends of the bride and groom. It was a lot of fun even though I wasn’t any good. I want to try to find something like that here in Portland. Later that day I went to the rehearsal dinner. I don’t think I had ever actually met Bess until this dinner even though I heard about her in college. I pulled up in the parking lot at the same time that she did. She’s great. I ate a ton of food. To finish the night off, the 4 of us who knew each other in college played tabletop games in my hotel room.

The next day was the wedding.. I hadn’t been to a wedding since my cousin’s in 2004. It was a great wedding. It seemed to go by quickly and it was very sweet. Later that night we went to an Astros game since the newlyweds weren’t leaving for the honeymoon until the next day. The Astros lost, but it was fun to catch a Major League Baseball game. We said our goodbyes that night.

On Sunday, I met up with a friend, Susan, for coffee. It was nice getting to meet her in person after only knowing her online up until then. I hope to see her again next year. Later that day, I arrived back in Portland, minus my luggage, which had been sent to Atlanta by mistake. I got it back earlier today.

I had a great time over the weekend. It was great seeing people that I hadn’t seen in over 10 years. At times, it almost felt like nothing had changed. We need to get together again sometime. Hopefully, it won’t take another 10 years.

I made a post on Facebook earlier.  I figured I would post it here and maybe expand a little.

I admit that it’s a little sad sometimes when I see my friends getting married, buying houses together, having children together, going on vacation together, etc.  I want the same thing for myself one day.  I can be happy for them, but sad for myself, right?  I haven’t been on a real date in well over a decade.  I’m frequently reminded of how inadequate I am, for dating a least.  A lot of people have the idea that everyone will find there one special someone if they look hard enough.  I honestly believe that not everyone will find that someone, but it doesn’t mean you should stop trying.  Also, you can live a happy life even if you don’t have someone.

When I get sad about these things, it’s only for a few minutes.  Then I go back to my happy self.  Life is good.

I’m at a point again where I’m doing almost everything alone.  The #1 reason that my friends around here give for not doing things is that they don’t have the money.

I always say that I’m far from rich, but I do well for myself.  I remember a time when a candy bar or an item off the Wendy’s dollar menu was all I could afford to eat in a day.  Anything more would mean running out of money before my next paycheck.  I had to walk to class and work because I couldn’t afford to put gas in my car. Now I’m doing better.

I not talking about taking trips to Europe or the Caribbean, though that would be nice.  I’m pretty sure I won’t do that unless I have someone to go with me.  Short trips to nearby cities or local activities where no trip is involved are what I usually suggest.  They can’t do any of that.  Sometimes I just want to go to a movie, but I hear the same excuse. I love my friends, but it’s frustrating.  I do like to leave home occasionally and doing stuff alone all the time gets old.

Maybe money is just an excuse and they just don’t really want to go.  They seem interested in the ideas I bring up and I’m not always the one bringing up the ideas.  Maybe they just don’t want to go with me.

I guess there’s no real solution to this problem other than them increasing their income or saving more.  Or making more friends, which can be hard when you’re a busy adult.  I’m glad to have Internet friends from all over the place.  A lot of them do like to do things and we can meet up in other cities from time to time.  This makes me happy.

As many of you know, it’s been a tough week for my little dog Reese. Today is Tuesday and it started last Tuesday when I noticed that his tail was hanging limp during our morning walk. He also hesitated to climb up on his steps to get on the couch. I left work early and took him to see the vet. The vet figured it might be a back problem that dachshunds tend to have and recommended rest and medicine.

Wednesday morning he seemed to be feeling better, but when I got home that night he was doing worse.

Thursday morning he was having trouble getting up, so I took him back to the vet’s office. His normal vet was doing procedures all morning so we saw a different vet. When we got to the vet, he was almost normal again. The doctor thinks it was adrenaline making him feel better. She prescribed more medicine. When I got home from work that night he was once again not wanting to get up. I think at this point I had to bring food to him and squirt water in his mouse. I took him to the emergency vet. They took x-rays, but didn’t see anything that warranted surgery. The doctor upped the dosage on his pain meds. That night he was up all night whining. Neither of us got much sleep. I carried him outside to do his business, but he couldn’t because he couldn’t stand up.

Friday morning I gave him his medicine and went to work even though he was whining. I called my vet and left him message. When he called back, he recommended I take Reese to see a surgeon. I left work immediately and took him to see one. She did a more thorough examination and did a CAT scan. The CAT scan showed that he had a herniated disc and that it was pretty bad. She performed surgery on him that day. He could come home the next day or the day after that.

On Saturday, I spent some time getting the place ready for him to come back. He needs to have his movement restricted for the next 8 weeks. He doesn’t need to do a lot of waling and he doesn’t need to be on the furniture.

On Sunday, I brought him home. It’s so hard to look at the incision on his back. He whined all day, but finally got a little sleep at night. The doctor thinks the whininess might be a side effect the pouch he’s wearing to help with the pain. Since I took half the patch off, he hasn’t been whining nearly as much. I’ve been so nervous about him doing something to hurt himself, but he’s been fine so far.

He seems to be doing much better now physically. He doesn’t have trouble getting up and laying down like he did when I brought him home. He starts to run after me sometimes like he normally does and I always make him stay where he is. He walks slightly differently and arches his back when he’s peeing. He has a follow-up appointment with the surgeon on Friday. Here’s hoping the rest of his recovery is as easy. I’m finally starting to relax a little today.

If you’re a pet owner, I highly recommend getting pet insurance if you can. I pay $30 a month for mine. I got it a couple of years ago. I’ve heard many stories about people going broke when something happens to their pets. I should have to pay hardly any of the cost of his surgery.

Earlier in the month, we had about 4 days of snow. It was the most snow I’ve seen since I moved to Portland. This coincided with my assignment ended at work. I ended up getting a week off from work unexpectedly and started a new assignment the following week. The new assignment is going well so far. I really like the team.

Podcasting has been going well. It’s taking up a lot of my time, but it’s a lot of fun

I didn’t get a chance to take the swimming class I was supposed to start in January that I had signed up for because I was working late. I signed up for another class that started in Feb. I’m enjoying it. I might not be good at all the kicks and whatnot, but at least I’m comfortable in the water. I need to work on floating on and swimming on my back.

I’m glad work isn’t as crazy as it was in January. Things almost feel normal again around here.