Friday night, I'm going nowhere

Swim practice tonight consisted of 5,000 for time; to enter the US Masters 5K Postal race (there's also a 10K--not sure if I'm gonna do that this year). Anyways, tonight's time was...

1:01:37.66

which is under the 1:15s I'd wanted to hold (which would be a 1:02:30).

My splits were kinda all over the place, though... not sure what to make of that (and if timer error is a factor). My Ks were pretty were alright, which is good: 12:06 / 12:06 / 12:23 / 12:30 / 12:42.

Now I'm pondering if I should try to swim another one at the end of August... and speaking of that, I got a birthday present tonight: the aforementioned trunk from Pier 1 that I demonstrated will-power last night by not buying (it's from my mom & step-dad).

Friday night, I'm going nowhere
All the lights are changing, green to red
Turning over TV stations
Situations running through my head
Looking back through time, you know
It's clear that I've been blind, I've been a fool
To open up my heart to all that jealousy
That bitterness, that ridicule

We're tiny, we're toony, we're all a little loony...

I'm having a sudden nostalgia for some Bugs Bunny cartoons.... It's mostly like due to a quest tonight for some shortbread cookies, which got me thinking about Bugs singing Momma's Little Baby Loves Shortening Bread. Not really a very good reason, but it's one...

In other news:

• I mailed off my passport to the Uganda Embassy in D.C. on Tuesday (to get my visa for my visit next month).
• Half the parking lot at the post office has been blocked off for some reason, most likely construction related (but there wasn't anything happening). This was semi-problematic, as the location is rather busy, and there were so many people parked when I stopped by that people had started parking in the median of the entrance that was open.
• I got time off for my friends Kathy and Patrick's wedding at the end of the year... now I just need my plane ticket.
• I made plane reservations for the USA Swimming Convention in September, happening in Garden Grove, California, which should allow for me to see my Dad and sister while I'm out there.
• Regretfully, the timing of said convention is the same weekend as the Miami 10K, so I won't be able to swim it this year.
• I'm scheduled to do a 5K-for-time in the pool tomorrow night, to enter a postal meet...
• I had some serious good will-power tonight, and avoided by a Vallejo Trunk at Pier 1 (particularly since I don't have $200 bucks to spend on it...).
  
• All this, and my work week has been rather crazy... mostly just continuing from last week.
• And last but not least, I'm getting a raise :)

And actually, now that I think about it, I will include a Marvin-the-Martian pic, cause my snarky personality and all the postal-ness seems to match him better :)

We're tiny, we're toony
We're all a little loony
And in this cartoony we're invading your t.v.!

Instead of making me better...

Well, I survived through the meet in surprising fashion. I even managed to get home at a relatively early time last night, thanks to a threatening thunderstorm which caused finals to be sped up to finish before its arrival.

And when I got home, did I go to bed at a reasonable hour? Oh, no... I couldn't be that sensible. No, instead I not only finished reading Pride & Prejudice but decided to watch Black Hawk Down, which had been sitting waiting to be played for a few days now. And while the movie was good and I mostly enjoyed it, watching it until 1:00 a.m. probably wasn't the best thing for what I've been battling since my vaccination shots just under 2 weeks ago (pesky Yellow Fever activation!).

So now my throat is a little sore, and so I'm going to strive to get to bed earlier tonight... so hasta

And I swear, you're just like a pill
'Stead of making me better
You're making me ill

I (don't rush me) I was standing

A view from last night at the meet... prior to the end of the session being postponed to tonight due to thunder/lightning.

And I find it somewhat funny that bring-your-dog-to-work day exists (and not just because it seems like a bastardization of bring-your-daughter-to-work day--I'm still waiting for sons to get equal treatment too).

I told you
That we could fly
Cause we all have wings
But some of us don't know why-hy-hy-hy...

What's my age again?

Today marks the start of the Age Group International meet here at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex. And while Masters is technically divided into age groups, we take our age as of the end of the year for long course (so I've already turned 34 at the meets this summer, despite my birthday not being until after the long course season is done...).

Anyways, the AGI meet is underway: 3.5 days filled with a ridiculous number of swimmers: just over 500 entries today, over 3,200 tomorrow, 2,600 Saturday, and 2,500 Sunday. Fun, fun, fun. Added to this is a visiting coach named Chronic, and there were some chronic unattached swimmers causing DQs to some relays tonight. All-and-all, not too bad tonight, though.

Now, if only work had been so crazy on yesterday (stuff kinda just flew at me in the morning), and then I managed to wake up today 15 minutes before work today.... But I'll be hanging at the pool most (all) of the weekend, helping out at the meet.


My friends say I should act my age
What's my age again?

Fever! till you sizzle, what a lovely way to burn (?)

<-- I felt like that bear last night, after practice.

The reason? Well, for whatever reason the water temperature of the "west" pool we swam in was above 83° (83.1, I believe). This is "warm" for a pool: it's a temperature that when you get in the water, it doesn't feel cold; more cool. This is a problem, because as soon as you start trying to swim at all, the water isn't cold enough to help cool you off. In fact, it begins to feel warm (and yesterday it took all of about a 100 to for it to feel warm). All of which just meant potential trouble for any really hard swims we might do.

So, combine this warm water with the main set we swam (3x 900 @ 13:00), and you have the right ingredients for overheating: prolonged periods of exercise generating body heat with no real way to dissipate that heat.

By the end of the set, I was a tad warm, but thought I was ok. It wasn't until about 30 minutes post practice, that I started to feel a little off. I wasn't really hungry, so didn't eat dinner but drank some liquids instead. Then when I got home--about an hour post practice--I started having cold shakes (even though it was 80°), so I briefly checked on some things, drank some Gatorade, and then proceeded to go to sleep at 9:30: without the A.C. on, in full bed-clothes and under a comforter.

And slept until I awoke at 5:30 in a sweat, which I took to be a good thing since I was not sweating the night before. The time was actually near-perfect for me to go swim, but due to the circumstances, I decided to skip trying to swim this morning. This made my second skipping in the row--I missed yesterday morning because some mental insomnia kept me awake until 3 a.m... ahhhh, such fun. Did I mention I've got Yellow Fever activating in my blood? (from the vaccination) Oh, but on the plus side, the pool temperature was down half-a-degree today, and, more importantly, our practice tonight was in the colder pool (the east pool's was at 79° today...). Heidi was also there--woo hoo!

Hasta...

Now you've listened to my story
Here's the point that I have made
Chicks were born to give you fever
Be it Fahrenheit or Centigrade

The sun will come out, tomorrow...

My veggin' out and recovering weekend has gone well: nice and relaxing. Though I did managed to cram in 3 movies over the weekend, amidst overcast and rainy skies both yesterday and today. I think I'm also on the way to recovering from the cold/congestion bothering me of late; though my doormats are still soaked, despite efforts today to dry them (which were thwarted by rain starting right after I hung them to dry).

My movie-filled weekend started with Ocean's Thirteen yesterday, with Laura, post a minor shopping excursion to find some pictures for her new place in Boca (Target coming to the rescue). The movie was quite entertaining: nothing too serious nor complicated. Just entertaining.

13 did have Laura and I wondering if the hotel at the center of the movie actually existed--as it looked rather cool (it was three twisting flat towers that circle up in flame-like fashion). From some online research, however, it appears that the computer graphics people did a really good job of creating a building, as it doesn't seem to exist on the Las Vegas Strip. Either that, or the hotel that used to be the Aladdin--now the Planet Hollywood Hotel & Casino--isn't there at all anymore.

But moving on, last night I watched On a Clear Day, marking my second Brenda Blethyn movie of the week following Pride & Prejudice. Clear Day is about a father who gets "made redundant" at his job, after 30+ years; and makes his way through his subsequent life crisis by swimming the English Channel. All-in-all, not bad, although definitely more of a slow-moving drama: good for a quiet night... as long as one's not too sleepy.



As for today, my Father's Day started by being awakened by Gwen's Stefani's Sweet Escape coming through the ceiling from my upstairs neighbor (this around 10:30, so at least I got to sleep in). Following some lunch and calls to my Dad and step-dad, I headed to the theater, again, and caught Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. I'm pretty much a junky for comic book movies, so, I liked the movie. And that it kept me out of the rain didn't hurt either. It was good though: nothing super violent or so-adult that kids couldn't enjoy it... not that it would stop some parents from bringing them (I still remember seeing 4 year olds in I think it was Hannibal).

And in the course of these movies, I managed to see two different previews for Life Free or Die Hard (aka Die Hard 4); the second looking much better than the (longer) first one. Why all the movies this weekend? you may wonder... well this is mostly due to the fact that next weekend will be occupied helping out at a swim meet weekend. Which means I won't get to catch Evan Almighty so soon--oh well (I'm actually more concerned about the fact that I leave for Uganda the day after Harry Potter 4 comes out...)

The sun will come out, tomorrow
Bet your bottom Dollar that tomorrow, they'll be sun

Just got paid, it's Friday night...

But I'm not really party hopping, tonight, as I'm feeling a bit under-the-weather.

I'm thinking my minor ailment is a combination of too little sleep last weekend combined with the vaccinations I got on Wednesday. Last night's set at practice (20x100 yrd free @ 1:10) didn't really help things, I'm guessing (although I was a good workout for where I'm at now; now if I can just get to doing it long course...)

So, I'm also thinking that it would be good to get a good amount of sleep this weekend, and consequently, I'm bumming around home tonight. And taking it easy this weekend.

But I do think I'll make it out to see Ocean's 13 and maybe Fantastic Four 2...

Oh! and I did get paid today... even managed to knock a payment off my mortgage :) (Now, only 342 payments to go, yeah!)


Just got paid (just got paid), it's Friday night (Friday night)
Party huntin' (party hunting), feeling right
Body shaking, all around
No one thinks, while I'm getting down...

It's like thunder, lightning; the way you love me is frightening

Random list time again, I feel, so here goes...

• Scarily, apparently the IOC is considering adding skateboarding to the Olympic program (it would be a discipline of cycling) (that's a lot of -ings in a row as well...). It almost makes me cringe when I think about it (snowboard cross and BMX's inclusion does as well). The thought is that adding skateboarding would attract youth to the Olympics; though it almost sounds to me like NBC has asked then to steal the X Games. The IOC's already proved that they'll bend tradition for the USA's broadcast partner: they are the reason swimming finals next year in Beijing will be in the morning there. Of course NBC's coverage of the Olympics is already driving me--an Olympics fan--away from watching them, so adding skateboarding is just another step away (like showing the entire Olympic basketball tournament, and ignore 50 other events to do so--there's a reason I don't watch the NBA but do watch the Olympics, you know). The IOC's also apparently going to create a "Youth Olympics", beginning in 2010.
• $210 today bought me 4 vaccination shots for my trip next month to Uganda: my final shots in the Hep-A and Hep-B sequence, Typhoid and Yellow Fever (my Tetanus is current). $210...
• My car key got stuck in my ignition for about half the day... (it's unstuck now, thankfully).
  
• After getting roughly 4 hours of sleep, after watching Pride & Prejudice with Keira Knightly--which I quite enjoyed--I managed to get up and swim 3,600 meters this morning. Which I was thankful I did do, as we got thundered out of practice (there was some lightning as well, but the thunder got us booted from the water way before it) about 5 minutes into it. It's probably just as well, cause hopefully I can get to bed earlier because of it.
• And to close out... tomorrow is Flag Day here in the USA.

hasta

You better knock... on wood

Sunrise... at this moment in time, is it in your mind at all?

My weekend in Maine is over... err, well actually my Friday afternoon and Saturday in Maine: I think my leaving the state this morning just after sunrise disqualifies it as being a "weekend".... But in any case, a recap:

Friday started with an early morning flight (6:30 departure). Interestingly, upon my arrival at the gate (around 5:30 a.m.) the airline credit card booth was already staffed--at that terribly earlier hour. Even worse, the woman manning the booth kept repeating "15,000 dividend miles. Real quick to fill out. Take a moment; come on over." about every two minute. Her consistency in phrasing and her intonation was such that she was squawking like a parrot... (and this Polly did not want a cracker).

The flight up to Boston was uneventful: the plane change in Charlotte even was smooth. I picked up my rental car, the Chrysler Pacifica at right; and managed to make my way to I-95, via U.S. 1, marking the second time that day I'd been on 1 (I took it to the Fort Lauderdale airport in the morning: it's always weird to me that notion of the same roads being so far away... that they're connected but disconnected. Both 95 and 1 are down here and were up there...).

Once on 95, I headed north to Maine, and along the way managed to have a conversation with my Dad while in 3 states (Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine). It may not seem like such a big deal to some, but growing up in Texas, one usually can't leave the state in the time I was on the call (around 50 minutes) let alone be in 3. (Though the NH part was only about 20 minutes long.)

In any case, my call with my Dad ended when I left the "Maine Turnpike" (95's name in the state), and started on a more rural state route [at left]. While picturesque, it was more of a highway (i.e. it had stoplights) and down to one-lane each way. I also needed to pay attention to the roads coming up, as I was looking for my turn. But, I ended up finding the place without problem, and the clinic Friday night and Saturday day went smooth.



Saturday...
Post clinic I headed into Portland [at right] with the clinic's organizer and some of her family to see the town as well as the ocean and track down some lobstah. We headed to the downtown/waterfront area, and found a place right next to the harbor.

Where we ate was actually fairly small, but quite good. It was right on the harbor--the picture at left is out the back window of their main eating area. It was almost like a wooden diner on a dock, except with stool-seats at the tables. Their buzzers to let you know your food was ready were shaped liked lobsters as well (the initial picture in this post, way up at the start, is of one of them).

Post dinner we took a short walk back through the waterfront area, included walking past the U.S. Customs House [at right--the white building] in the fading light, before heading back to where we stayed (which was about a 30-minute drive southeast of Portland). And headed to bed.



Sunday...
This morning, I was up early enough to see the dawn [at left]... which happened around 4:15 a.m. (or at least that's when I took the picture--I'm guessing that it was so early due to how far north Maine is).

I was up so early--4 a.m. to be exact--as I needed to get on the road to Boston, Mass. to catch my 9:20 return flight to Florida. (I actually had my alarm set for 4:30, but when I woke at 4:00 I just got up and got on the road.)

In the 2 hours of driving from southern Maine to Boston, I got to see the sunrise [at left]. Actually, it happened before I even left Maine or got onto I-95. It did happen while I was on ME-109 , which was after I almost got lost (at 4 in the morning): I missed a turn (which ended up simplifying the number of roads I needed to take).

But all worked smoothly this morning/today (maybe a good astrological day?). I got to Logan Airport early, which gave me time to not worry about delays in waiting for the rental car shuttle bus to the terminals nor the hour to check-in my bag. And my flight, itself, despite boarding not starting until 20 or so minutes before flight, not only left on time, it managed to arrive in Fort Lauderdale 30 minutes early.

And the early arrival allowed me to get to the pool in time to swim the 1500 at today's June June meet... which, while not a stellar swim, I did manage an 18:09 with a nice descend in pace. Now... hopefully, I'll get enough sleep tonight: will have to see... hasta.

As I look into your eyes I see the sunrise
The light behind your face helps me realize
(Sunrise...)

Your love is king... crown you with my heart

I throw a sheep up in the air
..Where it lands, I know not where
From the ground and into hand
..And out of palm, somewhere to land
On Facebook I perfect my aim
..Tossing sheep at a friend's name
If only more would add to the SuperPoke game...

(And for whatever reason, Sade's Your Love is King has been stuck in my head the past few days, so it's today's song. Now, I must pack for Maine... hasta. Oh, and Go Spurs Go!)

Round and round and round my head
Touching the very part of me
It's making my soul sing

Well the meaning's changed, For what it's worth, it's just a senseless game...

So, I'm doing a crossword puzzle last night, and 41 Across was a 3-letter word with the clue "Homeric cry?" Which reminded me of the two odysseys I've been preparing for this week.

One, which is more of just a trip I guess, is this weekend I head to Maine to give a clinic for work. I'm flying into and out of Boston, and driving up the rest of the way (timing just worked out better). So I've been preparing for my departure on early Friday morning. And I've also been adjusting to the fact that my return at mid-day on Sunday will most likely mean I'll miss the Masters meet at our pool this Sunday (the June portion of the June Kraser meet: the June June meet, as opposed to the July June meet on July 8: meet info here).

The second is becoming more and more of an odyssey. In July, I head to Uganda, to give a week long clinic in Kampala. This week, my flight has been arranged and started investigating getting a visa. I've also started investigating getting my shots before I head there (I need documentation of a Yellow Fever vaccination for the visa). So, Monday morning I call the Broward County Immunization Clinic, having tracked down their information last Friday, to schedule an appoint--all travel immunizations are done by appointment. The woman who answers the phone asks if she can put me "briefly on hold"; I say yes.

After being on hold for 10 minutes, I hang up and call back. When I am about to be "briefly put on hold" again, I ask if it will be 10 minutes, I get a reply possibly as this is their busy time. I accept this, and start to ask if there's would be a better time to call back, to which I get 3:30 or later. So I call back, at 4 p.m., to get a full voicemail (read I was not a happy camper).

So yesterday morning (on 5-6-07 in non-USA date formatting), I call back again, and get put on hold again but which I was ok with. After 6 minutes (yeah! less time), I get to make my appointment. Toward the end of the call and setting up the appointment, the woman on the other end asks me which shots I want, to which I answer, well, I'm going to Uganda. To this, she replies with something along the lines of 'Well, why don't you look up online what you need and let us know..." To this, I replay, that previously when I've needed travel shots, the clinic/doctor has told me what shots I needed (which is generally 2-5 more than I want to get or do get) . And then continued to state that, from what I already looked up the shots I need were Hep A/B, Typhoid, Tetnus and Yellow Fever, but that I wasn't sure; that the only thing I was fairly certain on was the Yellow Fever, due to the visa requirement. (I think I may also need an adult Polio booster, as well... fun.)

To which I mentally said "D'oh!"... which is a 3-letter, Homeric cry. ;-)
(and this has just reminded me that I must unearth my shot history to take with me to my appointment...)

My blood is running dry, my skin is
My skin is growing thin (skin is growin' thin) oh yeah
For every time you find yourself
You loose a little bit of me (you loose a little bit)
Honey, from within (you loose a little bit)

You think I could muster up a little soft-shoe gentle sway, But I don't feel like dancin', no sir no dancin' today

Summer has arrived... the Jacaranda trees are in bloom (at left; there's a purple variant as well), the Atlantic Hurricane season has officially begun, and Tropical Strom Barry blew through the area on Friday night/Saturday morning.

Interestingly, I didn't think of Barry as being much; and really wasn't aware of it being more than just rain here. It began raining around 8 p.m. and just kinda got harder as the night wore on. It was windy, as well, but we've been having some good winds here for the past couple weeks.

I did have some power surges on Friday night, my power even having gone off briefly around 1 a.m. (just long enough to cause my alarm clock to need re-setting). And apparently, although I didn't awake for it, there was a strong push through around 3 a.m., as well. I found this out while swimming Saturday morning practice (36x50 @ 1:20, every 3rd one from a dive).

The sky was completely overcast through mid-afternoon yesterday, with rain happening off-and-on while I was helping Laura move to Boca. It even provided a break while we moved things in.

But it wasn't until I was driving around later yesterday, after the sky began to clear up, that I started noticing trees that had blown down (like those at right). Interestingly, it wasn't like every tree was down, but there seemed to be one down at four or five places I went to. They mostly looked like ones that have been planted since Hurricane Wilma so maybe they hadn't had enough time to take root, but it was still strange.



Cities come and cities go just like the old empires
When all you do is change your clothes and call that versatile
You got so many colors, make a blind man so confused
Then why can't I keep up when you're the only thing I lose?

I looked above the other day, cause I think that I'm good and ready for a change

The picture at left is from the Nelly Furtado concert my friend Vanessa took me to on Wednesday night out at the Seminole Hard Rock--that's Nelly with her left arm up in the middle of the stage. (And actually, I'm quite surprised anything can be seen: when I took the picture it looked like it was going to be like my "Beach at Night" shot from a few weeks ago...)

The concert was good: I even enjoyed Promiscuous when it came up--which, given that I don't particularly like the lyric to the song, is somewhat impressive.

She opened with Say It Right followed by Turn Off the Light and then, I think, Powerless (Say What You Want)--if I'm remembering the order correctly. And that mixture of her albums stayed through the show (those 3 songs are each off a different one of her 3 albums).

Other memorable bits...

• a version of Gnarls Barkley's Crazy, which she's apparently recorded as well... (the song's been stuck in my head of late made it really nice to hear);
• massive audience participation on I'm Like a Bird and the Spanish-language songs she did (as well), one of which was...
• Fotografía, which, strangely, she sang the Juanes part of but not the part she sings in the duet (Vanessa was impressed I knew as much of the lyrics as I did);
• her back-up singer doing a decent version of Justin Timberlake's SexyBack, right before Give It to Me, which JT sings part of; and
• the pièce de résistance: a seemingly off-the-cuff curling reference/joke, which I'm pretty sure half/most the audience missed (Vane--did you hear/get it?)

I do wish, however, that she'd done the original version of Turn Off the Light, instead of the hip-hop'ified remix she did... but all-in-all, a way cool time. It even counteracted the foul mood I was in upon leaving work on Wednesday. And speaking of work, I completely blanked on the title to Light the next day at work, even right after I had been singing part of the lyric (probably the part below)...

Now, if only it hadn't been cloudy last night so I could've seen the blue moon. ("If only, if only," the woodpecker sighs...)

I live my life by the moon (by the moon)
If it's high, play it low
If it's harvest, go slow
And if it's full then go...