Regular Exercise

 

My desired workout frequency is 5 days a week. Lately, I have been doing well to get 3 days in and am very happy when I manage 4 times.

Achieving regular 4x plus per week is wonderful and once in the groove it's great...if I can keep it up. But after a while something invariably comes up and the frequency drops....and once that happens....it's easy to start making excuses...and it starts dropping to 3... then 2 or even once per week....or when really bad...none at all....and once at the bottom of the barrel...it's a struggle to get up to a good frequency again.

I know that some people are lucky (?) to feel physically bad when they don't workout...so it keeps them motivated to workout regularly. I, unfortunately, am not one of those people.

So take today....I went...for the third time this week and the third day in four days...pretty good. But I did a long workout...using relatively new equipment at the gym, which I am still not used to. Plus, I have to admit that I was not really in the mood for it. So it was a hard workout. Nevertheless, I did it. And I am certainly better for doing so.

Now, all I need to do is find some way to keep the momentum going:))

 

Another look at our gun culture

As noted on an earlier post below, I have tried to look at both sides of the gun fence. In fact I actually own several hand guns and rifles, although not many, and frankly I have not been using them lately.

I view guns from a recreational standpoint. I am not one of those people that pursue gun ownership under the premise and need for self defense. I also do not see it as a means to defend myself from an out of control government. Mostly, I just like to be able to shoot straight and hit a target at long range. That is it.

As such, I do not see it as a right to own guns and certainly not a right to own an arsenal with thousand of rounds of ammunition and automatic large capacity weapons. There is no conceivable way to justify that for “hunting”. And no, I do not believe that ‘guns don’t kill people, people do’. Yes, people have to pull the trigger, but it is a fact that making weapons so readily available for purchase gets those weapons in people’s guns more easily. Furthermore, try to kill 15+ people with a knife or baseball bat instead of a semiautomatic weapon, and watch that person fail.

What has finally really irritated me about the extreme position of the hard core NRA crowd is a recent opinion published in a gun publication. The premise was that the UN was looking into imposing new regulations to cover the transportation of weapons for hunting when traveling overseas. The writer further commented that this was part of the international conspiracy by the UN to restrict Americans the use of their guns and impose restrictions on our second amendment rights..saying as always ‘who knows where this will lead?’. There are no international second amendment rights!!! Just because we are crazy enough to want to carry weapons in the street, in a bar, or in a school doesn’t mean that we have the right to do so all over the world. And for that I am very thankful!

What the heck has happened to reasonable moderation. Why are we inundated in extremism every where we turn?

2012 Elections

After watching the Republican convention and with the thought of the Democratic convention to come, I have to say that I am very uncertain about how or if I will vote. I know that not voting is a waste of my civic duty and a right that many citizens of other countries will literarily die for, so I probably will. But it is a fact that I am very disappointed with both parties.

At the risk of offending both sides, I have to say that I cannot trust the blatant lies of republicans and question the competency of democrats in managing the economy. It thus leads to a choice of the least of two evils. Given the stubborn and blind faith of republicans to believe in tax reduction and increased defense spending as the solution to all problems, as well as the arrogant no-compromise approach they have, I guess I will be voting democrat. But it will be a reluctant choice.

I wish that we could find an inspirational leader of any party, including independent, that would succeed in leading this nation and find ways to address the needs of both sides of the political spectrum. Has there ever been such a politician? Or is my naive view of historic presidents tainted by selective perception. Politicians are just people. And in particular, politicians are usually ambitious people that will do and say whatever it takes to win election. In this fragmented society we live in, with interest groups for just about anything, and money freely flowing for whatever cause raises its popular head, is it possible that we will never have a leader to look up to again, but merely the compromised choice that we hope will do the least damage?