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Sunday, November 22nd, 2009
masterme
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9:27a
My quest to be a better person is not going well
I got all bent out of shape last night because Adam continues to be a tool. Then this morning I spent some portino of the post-wakeup, pre-getup bitching to Renee about how much that guy pisses me off. And now, here I am writing here about how annoying he is. All in all, my efforts to spread love and gratitude into the world have definitely hit a roadbump...and that bumps name is Adam.
Seriously, that guy pisses me off.
Renee had another run in with Amiee...I think that is how she spells her name (pretentious, but ture). It's weird how those two continue to have run ins even after all these years. But, Amiee got the last word in which is driving Renee nuts.
Going to Farmer's Market today and am going to get to have a crepe--DELICIOUS!
I had this idea that I would start working on my homework today, but given the (relatively) last rise, the long run (to come), and Farmer's Market, there is a good chance that I won't get to it. God I love Thanksgiving break.
Much love to the world (with the exception of that pain in the ass, Adam--he can suck it).
David
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(comment on this) Saturday, November 21st, 2009
masterme
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3:38p
New MP3 player
MP3 players have become so affordable. Less than 40 dollars got me the perfect running buddy. AND, I have loaded (almost) all of my favorite playlists on it and still have almost 2 gigs. Hurray!
Training today went well. I'm having fun with it, and enjoy it. Who knows, maybe I should look into exercise science as the next step.
Spent some time looking at US News and World Report rankings of graduate schools. Helpful...not really. Turns out they don't really rank nutrition as a program...or even a sub program. So, it will be more queries to the oracle at Google for me. I think that I will apply to one (or two) of the top out of state schools as secondary choices--along with two (or one) of the lesser program schools in the OC and LA areas, also as secondary choices. SDSU looks like they are going to keep the combined program, at least for now. SO...I think that I will apply to that, and maybe focus a little more on the exercise science stuff there (since that is probably the area where they will be experiencing the least brain drain.) That's pretty much what I am planning now anyway. Tomorrow, I will narrow down the one or two OC/LA schools that will be backup so that I can give the contact information to my letter writers RIGHT after Thanksgiving.
Can't believe I missed that opportunity to make a contact through Ellen. I wonder if I am subconsciously sabatoging (sp?) myself. Hm...I hope not.
THIS IS NOT THE GAME OF LIFE. THERE ARE NO WINNERS.
I am happy. Life is good. I have love, and health and freedom. Thank you universe.
Today, I will remember to be thankful.
Namaste to the universe.
David
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(comment on this) Friday, November 20th, 2009
masterme
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6:03p
I think that I might have blurted this morning, but I was so bleary that I am not sure if I did...and if I did, I'm not sure that it made any sense. What I am sure of is that the "papers" that I turned in for my history class were not examples of my finest writing. 'Evs. It got turned in, and I was seriously considering blowing it off all together.
Hung out with Renee today. Other than the fact that I kinda got pissed with her when my MP3 took a dump (RIP little dude. We have traveled a lot of miles together.) we got along really well. And we got to have some pretty interesting semi-philosophical discussions over lunch which is always fun.
Got my tires changed today. I hate shelling out duckets for that sort of totally not fun sort of thing, but it was pretty necessary. And, I keep telling myself that the tires are not going to get any cheaper after I have a blow out...and the new ones are a WHOLE lot safer.
Maybe going to have dinner at DeMille's tonight. I really enjoyed them last week. What they lack in decor (and it is a lot let me tell you.) they make up for in good food in large portion for reasonable prices. I dig it.
Off to (probably) finish the first AFI tonight. I think that tomorrow I will (again, probably) post an updated version of my list. That will be good to get me refocused on some of those goals that I have let slip to the side.
Anyway, much love to the world.
David
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(comment on this)
masterme
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6:31a
White Shame
WTF. White people in general, and the US government in particular have done so many disgusting and depressing things to black people (and other people of color). I kinda knew about that, but I have been exposed to so many specifics in the last semester due to this class. It makes me sad.
Why can't we all just get along?
_Bastards of the Party_ is quite good and illuminates the background/development of LA gangs (Bloods/Crips mostly) very well.
David
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(comment on this) Thursday, November 19th, 2009
masterme
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8:01a
Thanksgiving week is almost here
I'm doing the last stupid assignment for my online class and then I get to take about ten days off! HURRAY. I will still have to do some homework during that time. Of course, my organic chemistry professor gave us a HUGE assignment to do over the holiday. Still, it will be awesome to have a comparitively open schedule. I plan to do lots of running, sleeping, and Blood Bowling.
Speaking of which, they just opened a new team--The Dark Elves--which was my favorite when I was playing the game on a board tabletop. Very exciting.
Played Hal in raquetball yesterday. I won 2 out of 3 games. Also, VERY EXCITING. I don't know that I have ever beat him before, so this was a big deal. I really have improved a lot during this semester. Nothing like playing every day to improve.
I wonder if Clint is going to call me back and we are going to work out today? Hope so, but if not, no biggie.
Much love to the world.
David
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(comment on this) Wednesday, November 18th, 2009
masterme
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7:45a
At the desktop
It is starting to feel weird to work from the desktop. The keyboard feels strange, and the mouse is...different.
Big test today. Study now.
Much love to the peeps.
David
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(comment on this) Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
masterme
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8:04a
I forgot to blurt last night, but I'll tell you one thing, my Blood Bowl team is doing great.
Hal is buried in work now that it is his second week on the job and he has to find a house and all that stuff. It'll probably take him a couple of weeks to settle in, and then we will be able to hang out more.
Renee is wonderful. I'm still riding high on being proud of her.
School is lame...I'm tired of it in all senses. Luckily, excellent vacation time coming up.
Now, off to look at NMR spectrum to get ready for my test tomorrow.
Hurray!
David
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(comment on this) Sunday, November 15th, 2009
masterme
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12:41p
Renee's run a half marathon
Renee did it. She really has made this whole thing happen. She just completed a half marathon, running the bulk of the course. This is the woman who only two years ago couldn't run a mile. She has come so far. We have both come so far, but I think that I really give Renee the credit for recognizing an area ripe for change, and then acting to make that change.
I am so proud of her...and impressed by her...and pleased for her...and in love with her.
These are the moments that make all the training pay off.
Sorta...in some ways the training time is damn good too.
I was so inspired by Renee today that I went online to find my times for my previous races and to think about what each of those races felt like. It's not like I have done hundreds (not even 10--yet), but I have become (or at least, am becoming) the kind of person who always has a race on the horizon. Hell, Renee and I are thinking about planning our Spring Break vacation around going to a run somewhere different and fun.
So, just so that I have it somewhere where I don't have to hunt through a bunch of webstites, here is my list of PR's accurate through today.
5K: 23:03 at the Carlsbad 5000 (that one is seriously fast...I had just finished rehabbing a foot injury when I did this race, and I still posted a PR. Gotta run it again when I am fully trained!)
10K: 49:01 at the Resolution Run. That day was fucking cold, and there was a crappy headwind...IN BOTH DIRECTIONS. Not kidding, I'm pretty sure that the wind shifted halfway because it seemed like it was blowing in our face the whole damn time. I think the next 10K I do will be in late spring, much more conducive to a fun time.
Half-marathon: 1:53:42 Surf City 2009. I ran (most of) this one with Cassie. I'm going to beat the hell out of this time at the next one I run. Great race...perfect weather, pretty area, fun times.
Marathon: 4:08:34 Rock and Roll 2009. I'm pretty sure this will be my only marathon...Although if I only have to knock of 514 seconds, that is less than 20 seconds a mile...I could probably do that. Anyway, the experience of marathon was very strange...and mystical...and fucking hard. It's still hard sometimes for me to really KNOW that I did that...maybe that is always the case...or maybe that is why people run more than one. Maybe it is like childbirth in that regard. From what I remember that was a perfect day and a great course too. I'm not 100% sure though, instead the whole thing has the fogginess of dream around it.
Renee is russling around in the kitchen, which is my sign to go and help out.
Again, I am so proud of her...She is really a runner...Has been for a while, but now she got to prove it...to herself and the world.
WAY TO GO BABY.
David
current mood: elated
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(comment on this) Saturday, November 14th, 2009
masterme
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9:44p
Day before Renee's race
Renee is very nervous about tomorrow. I know that she is going to be great, but I'm not really sure how to reassure her. I know that when I ran nothing people said really made me feel better. And I knew that I would be fine, but there was still that pit...well, I guess the other side of nervous is excited.
SHE IS GOING TO BE GREAT.
I think that I have everything put together for tomorrow so that it goes smoothly for everyone involved. Mostly it matters that it be smooth for Renee. Everything else will work itself out.
Moved Dale today...sorta. I was involved in her moving anyway. And I got to hang out with Hal pretty much all day so that was pretty cool as well.
To be honest, I am pretty excited about tomorrow as well. I try to talk/think about other stuff, but mostly I am jazzed for Renee, so my mind keeps coming back to that.
Much love to the world!
David
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(comment on this) Thursday, November 12th, 2009
masterme
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4:59p
So, no update from the powers that be about the SDSU program. There are other programs and education is more about what you put into it then where you go to school, but...dammit...still, one door closes and another opens...and this door isn't really even closed yet...at least, not for sure.
We got the details of our Thailand trip today. That is going to be SO AWESOME. What a wonderful way to spend New Year's. It could be magical...or meaningful...or just tons of fun. Whatever, I am super excited.
Raquetball tournament today. I did...okay. About as well as I expected. I'm starting to see how the strategy of raquetball comes into play. I get the left/right okay, and I am starting to have command of all the shots, but I still don't think fare enough ahead to be doing a whole lot of planning. I think that during the "dead" time next week I will watch the really good people a little. I'm probably not going to be playing much after this (assuming that Hal and I don't start playing regularly) but it would still be good to watch and learn from some people much better than me. And, that is easier to do if I am not trying to play at the same time.
Gotta get ready for work now.
I am tired of school. Soon it will be done...at least for a little while.
Much love to the peeps.
David
current mood:  hopeful
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(comment on this) Wednesday, November 11th, 2009
masterme
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10:23p
A few random thoughts
Have you ever noticed that people who are described as battling addiction nearly always are overcome by it.
When someone repeats that they have said something very clear, they usually haven't.
Old couples walking are cute. Especially when they hold hands.
Republican bumper stickers make me want to key the car they are on.
California's State Fair is not well publicized. The one in AZ was a pretty big deal, but I'm not even sure we have one here.
Football is becoming less about which team wins, and more about who put up good fantasy numbers. This must say something about our society.
Do you ever wonder how many of the blurbs on book covers are written by people who have the book on their "read it eventually" stack.
Why hasn't Steven King retired. He's like the Robert DeNiro of the literary world.
Calories don't make sense. The whole cornerstone of nutrition and weight management is built on a fallacy...or at the very least a highly contestable theory. WTF.
And that is it for my broadcasting day.
Thank you and good night.
David
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(comment on this) Tuesday, November 10th, 2009
masterme
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3:27p
A paper I wrote on wheatgrass for a class.
I love it when I can do double duty.
It's so rare that I write anything amusing, or really interesting enough to post for school.
Anyway, here it is.
I too think that smoothies are delicious. Even better, you get boosters for energy or memory or whatever which encourage that heart-warming feeling that you are doing something healthy, while enjoying a cool and tasty treat. This may or may not be true (after all, there are a ton of calories in those delicious smoothies), but that healthful image is actively promoted and catered to by Jamba Juice, Robeks and similar establishments. Thus, it is no surprise that freshly-juiced wheatgrass is available there, and that the purported health benefits of daily supplementation would be posted and promoted as true.
There are dozens of claims regarding wheatgrass’ ability to improve everything from fertility to drug dependence. However, there are three main problems with all of the claims. The first, and perhaps the most critical, is that humans can’t digest the cellulose that makes up the cell walls of plants (including grasses.) Even herbivores’ “own digestive enzymes would have difficulty gaining access to the cell’s contents (without the help of specialized microbes). The reason that herbivores generally have complex digestive tracts is to slow the passage of food, and so prolong contact with the microbes that help digest it” (http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg12216604.000 --parenthesis added). Even in juice form, the chlorophyll in wheatgrass would be largely unavailable for use in our bodies because we can’t get at it.
The second problem with the claim that wheatgrass is some sort of superfood comes from a simple examination of its nutritional facts—even the ones provided on Jamba Juice’s website. Assuming that their nutritional data is accurate, 2 ounces of wheatgrass juice is not particularly nutrient-dense, even if we are able to access them somehow.
A final problem with the claims offered by wheatgrass’ proponents is the lack of significant scientific studies. An internet search will turn up numerous wheatgrass vendors, and scores of apocryphal stories regarding increased wellness and decreased disease. However, very few studies are available, and most of those are self-referential. ( http://healthpsych.psy.vanderbilt.edu/WheatGrass.htm) So, while wheatgrass aficionados can claim that “science has proven that chlorophyll arrests growth and development of unfriendly bacteria” (handout http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/greens.htm) they can’t really say where…or when…or how exactly that relates to wheatgrass.
This is not to say that a daily shot of wheatgrass doesn’t have real and tangible benefits. The complex workings of the human body, and the evolving understanding of nutrition, leave a great deal more between heaven and earth than is dreamt of in my philosophy. Ultimately, if it makes you feel good (and you can stand the taste), then I say more power to you and wheatgrass. However, if you are doing it because of something you read at Jamba Juice (a corporation that stands to make a huge profit if you are willing to spend $2.00 for 2 ounces of juiced grass.) then it may be time to rethink your plans.
David
current mood: amused
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(comment on this) Monday, November 9th, 2009
masterme
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10:52p
Got to see Hal today
I went and hung out with my brother today. Admittedly we hung out in a bar (which is not my favorite kind of meeting place anymore) and we "watched" football (which I only kind of keep up with these days) but still, we hung out. In the same city. And it wasn't even a special occassion.
We will get to hang out again.
I am very excited.
David
P.S. Bones is also pretty damn awesome.
David
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(comment on this)
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