One Half Buddhist, One Half Christian, One Half Pagan

I need to get more exercise. I've tried joining gyms on several occasions, but after the first month or so I always find myself making excuses to not go. I suspect that if I hired a personal trainer and made regular appointments with him/her, I would keep those appointments. I don't think I'd enjoy the exercise any more than in the past, but I think the feeling that I was wasting somebody else's time and even more of my own money would be a pretty good motivator.

The other motivator would be finding a fun way to exercise that I can do on a regular basis. Just about the only type of exercise I enjoy is walking around a place with interesting things and people to look at. NYC is great for that. I've learned that as long as I have decent shoes I can walk around The City for 8 hours and not only not be bored, but I won't even feel any aches or pains until I stop moving. (Of course, once I do stop moving I feel like a train hit me.)

This has me wanting to do a cost comparison between joining a gym & and hiring a trainer VS going down to NYC every weekend. I'd have to include gas, train tickets, food for the day, and probably one or two other things I'm not thinking of now.

Thoughts?

I just opened up Google calendar to add something to my task list.

Before I typed it in, I noticed that one of the other things on the list needed to be re-phrased. By the time I did that I'd forgotten what it was that I wanted to add to the list in the first place.

Why, exactly, did nobody realize I had ADHD until now?

Only somebody from the UK would refer to "the Detroit, Chicago, Boston area."

(I'm sure Americans make similarly silly statements about Europe all the time. This just jumped out at me.)

The Story of Reuben Clamzo
& His Strange Daughter in the Key of A, from Arlo Guthrie's album One Night.

I just have one question: how stoned was Guthrie when he came up with this? It's hysterical, but a sober person would never have created it.

Give me a category (a given author, a band, a type of book or music, things that start with the letter z, whatever else you can come up with) and I'll tell you my five favorite things in that category.

Even though I have a slightly sore throat and scratchy eyes, I am not coming down with anything.

I'm not.

It's just the dry air here at work, and the cold dry winter air in general.

I am perfectly healthy.

"Hell Is For Children" by Pat Benatar

Followed by

"Sorry (I Ran All The Way Home)" by the Impalas


(Can you tell I'm a little bored today?)

Railroad Bill

And the lyrics.

An amusing example of how to deal with a recalcitrant character.

A few minutes ago I sneezed hard enough that my headphones fell off.

I don't have a cold or allergies, so I think it's just the dry air in the office irritating my nose.

(In case anyone happens to be curious.)

Step 1: Learn that a given book exists. I usually do this via one of the dozen or so book related podcasts I listen to, or one of the several dozen book related blogs/websites I follow.

Step 2: Find the book on Amazon. If the original source didn't give me enough information about the story, read the description on the Amazon page.

Step 3a: If the book is not available for the Kindle, add it to my Amazon wishlist. Try to remember to check back on a regular basis to see if it has been released as an ebook.

Step 3b: If the book is available for the Kindle, get the free sample chapter(s).

Step 4: Choose what looks most interesting from the last page of my Kindle contents. (When it's sorted by acquisition date the stuff I haven't looked at in longest is at the end of the list.) Read it.

Step 5: If the title from step 4 was just the sample content, make a decision.
Step 5a: "Oh, God. That was awful." Delete the sample content, and try to remember the title so I don't accidentally get it again. Repeat Step 4, hoping for better results.
Step 5b: "Not bad, but not what I'm in the mood for right now." Repeat Step 4, deferring a decision until later.
Step 5c: "I must find out what happens!" Turn on my Kindle's internet connection and buy the book. While it's downloading delete the sample. Read the entire book.

Of course, if I'm in the mood for something specific I just open it up and start reading. Steps 4 & 5 are only for when I'm not sure what I feel like reading next.