And we're still out of commission.
I have a feeling that my computer never got ordered. (For some reason my post isn't showing, but my poor Alistor's motherboard fried last Friday.) I'd call Best Buy to complain, but now I'm having second thoughts on the one I had picked anyway. It wasn't like I had put any money down, so no harm, no foul. The only thing is that I'm updating from Casa de Ramirez, which means that update times are going to be spotty until I actually *get* another computer.
Does anyone have any good recs? Basically, all I'm going to be using the new laptop for is:
* Office (Word, Excel, etc.)
* maaaaaaaybe an upgrade to Painter 12 (or whatever current one Corel is on, I just want to draw!)
* a new Wacom tablet (these two purchases are far, FAR down the line budget-wise, but on my Ultimate Wish List of things to have)
* photo storage
* music storage, mainly in the form of iTunes
* some light gaming, more than likely Sims 3, though if Sims 2 is still playable on a new one, that'd be great too.
Can anyone help? What sort of specs should I be looking for? When I was shopping for the Laptop That Didn't Arrive, I asked a bunch of questions and felt like a dork, but all I got was "uh, yeah. That can do that." said in a tone that wasn't quite sure, but they really wanted to make a sale.
Workout Battle Logs #9-13: I've had some ups and downs, but mostly ups. Instead of going in-depth on each workout, here's a summary:
Cardio: I've ditched the bike for the time being, which is going to eat into my goal of getting to Mile #317 to Rivendell. I'm happy to take a B or C grade (especially since points are not going to be allocated this 6-weeks around) in order to concentrate on my running. Marchelle, Juan (another co-worker from work) and I are going to do a 5K in November in Austin as the Bad Wolf Runners (because Marchelle and I are Whovians and Juan went "hey, I like wolves! Awesome name!") It's a color run, which should be all sorts of fun. My ankle is still a bit wonky, but I think running/walking is strengthening it up and I do have a Dr.'s appointment next Friday to get everything checked out/cleared officially. We have a hike and bike trail in town that we're walking every Tuesday and Thursday that's a little over 5K length if you go both ways and back to the car, so there's our training.
Cardio Ups: I can run 100 ft from lightpole to lightpole on the trail. Some places on the trail I can run 200 ft. instead of alternating stopping to run to one pole, walk to another. There are also very cute 20-somethings that run, several 30-somethings that sport the man!bun, and an incredibly hot older!Dad silver fox type that usually runs wearing geeky shirts. *dreamy sigh*
Cardio Downs: My calves tighten up almost painfully at the first half-mile mark and it takes another quarter to half mile of walking to loosen them up, no matter how much I stretch them beforehand. My ankle brace is helping my weak ankle, but I have a feeling that it's also hindering my achilles tendon from fully stretching, which makes it really stiff post-run.
Weight Lifting: I'm alternating the MTW routine every two weeks. This week is going to be Monday & Fridays Arms with Wednesdays Back & Shoulders.
Lifting Ups: I'm steadily improving on both weight and reps. Tonight I actually DID 3 sets of 10 bicep curls with the EZ Curl bar at 20 lbs, which was my "A" grade for that goal. I might have been cussing up a storm on the last set, but I DID IT. I feel like Wonder Woman.
Lifting Downs: I wish I was improving a bit higher up on the scale as far as weights go. It kind of brings the "whee, I lifted this!" down a bit when I realize that I just moved up from a 5 pound weight to a 10 pound weight, but I guess everyone has to start somewhere. I'm telling myself that the low weights are like being sent off on a quest to kill sewer rats. Those rats might have kicked your ass with just a wooden sword to defend yourself with, but they start to scatter after you level up. Pretty soon the 5 pound weights are going to be warm-up weights I don't break a sweat over. I just have to give my body time to grow and adjust.
Diet: Paleo is still a go. This week's Staple Protien is the beef bolognase again just because I like it. I tweaked it again and added a whole little can of tomato paste and a whole can of coconut milk along with some garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper.
Diet Ups: I like the fact that I'm not hungry between meals because I'm eating something filling. I also like that now that I've started to stock my freezer/pantry that I'm only spending roughly $30-40 on groceries per week.
Diet Downs: I MISS CHEESE AND MILK AND BREAD. I decided to hop off the Paleo wagon for one weekend this past Saturday and Sunday, buying a small loaf of sourdough bread, a small container of whole milk, and a box of Captain Crunch cereal (because if you're going to hop off the wagon, you hop off of it GOOD)
The end result was me feeling like absolute crap for two days. Oh, the toast and sandwiches and breakfasts were completely worth it, but I felt sluggish and bloated both days. I made a running leap back onto the Paleo Wagon this morning with a 2-egg scramble and steamed broccoli for breakfast, my Staple Salad with Staple Protien for lunch, and a pre/post-workout banana. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to have for dinner yet.
Weight: I *was* at 237 Friday morning, then 238.2 Saturday (expected post-Friday workout gain), but I weighed myself this morning and I'm back up at 241. I'm betting that most of this is general bloating and water retention, because even though I strayed off-plan, I know I didn't eat enough to gain four pounds over the course of two days.
Weight Ups: This is the smallest I've been in probably six or seven years. Once I hit 235, I'll be at my next mini-goal of weighing the same as I did when I was working in the school district in 2005.
Weight Downs: Daily weigh-ins are discouraging. I should know by now that my weight will be one number on Monday, then a little gain on Tuesday from Monday's workout, then wibble around the rest of the week until moving up on Saturday from Friday's workout, before being either the same or a smidge lower than it was on Monday morning. I need to just go back to Monday Only weigh-ins, I think. I haven't measured myself since my initial measurements at the beginning of the 6-week challenge, so I think I'm going to hold off until the 19th when everything is all said and done.
So that's pretty much where I'm at right now. Without a computer at home, I'm actually doing things like reading and catching up on Who. So *this* is what it's like to be disconnected. I'm not as twitchy as I thought I'd be, but I do miss looking up things on Pinterest and Youtube all the time.
Does anyone have any good recs? Basically, all I'm going to be using the new laptop for is:
* Office (Word, Excel, etc.)
* maaaaaaaybe an upgrade to Painter 12 (or whatever current one Corel is on, I just want to draw!)
* a new Wacom tablet (these two purchases are far, FAR down the line budget-wise, but on my Ultimate Wish List of things to have)
* photo storage
* music storage, mainly in the form of iTunes
* some light gaming, more than likely Sims 3, though if Sims 2 is still playable on a new one, that'd be great too.
Can anyone help? What sort of specs should I be looking for? When I was shopping for the Laptop That Didn't Arrive, I asked a bunch of questions and felt like a dork, but all I got was "uh, yeah. That can do that." said in a tone that wasn't quite sure, but they really wanted to make a sale.
Workout Battle Logs #9-13: I've had some ups and downs, but mostly ups. Instead of going in-depth on each workout, here's a summary:
Cardio: I've ditched the bike for the time being, which is going to eat into my goal of getting to Mile #317 to Rivendell. I'm happy to take a B or C grade (especially since points are not going to be allocated this 6-weeks around) in order to concentrate on my running. Marchelle, Juan (another co-worker from work) and I are going to do a 5K in November in Austin as the Bad Wolf Runners (because Marchelle and I are Whovians and Juan went "hey, I like wolves! Awesome name!") It's a color run, which should be all sorts of fun. My ankle is still a bit wonky, but I think running/walking is strengthening it up and I do have a Dr.'s appointment next Friday to get everything checked out/cleared officially. We have a hike and bike trail in town that we're walking every Tuesday and Thursday that's a little over 5K length if you go both ways and back to the car, so there's our training.
Cardio Ups: I can run 100 ft from lightpole to lightpole on the trail. Some places on the trail I can run 200 ft. instead of alternating stopping to run to one pole, walk to another. There are also very cute 20-somethings that run, several 30-somethings that sport the man!bun, and an incredibly hot older!Dad silver fox type that usually runs wearing geeky shirts. *dreamy sigh*
Cardio Downs: My calves tighten up almost painfully at the first half-mile mark and it takes another quarter to half mile of walking to loosen them up, no matter how much I stretch them beforehand. My ankle brace is helping my weak ankle, but I have a feeling that it's also hindering my achilles tendon from fully stretching, which makes it really stiff post-run.
Weight Lifting: I'm alternating the MTW routine every two weeks. This week is going to be Monday & Fridays Arms with Wednesdays Back & Shoulders.
Lifting Ups: I'm steadily improving on both weight and reps. Tonight I actually DID 3 sets of 10 bicep curls with the EZ Curl bar at 20 lbs, which was my "A" grade for that goal. I might have been cussing up a storm on the last set, but I DID IT. I feel like Wonder Woman.
Lifting Downs: I wish I was improving a bit higher up on the scale as far as weights go. It kind of brings the "whee, I lifted this!" down a bit when I realize that I just moved up from a 5 pound weight to a 10 pound weight, but I guess everyone has to start somewhere. I'm telling myself that the low weights are like being sent off on a quest to kill sewer rats. Those rats might have kicked your ass with just a wooden sword to defend yourself with, but they start to scatter after you level up. Pretty soon the 5 pound weights are going to be warm-up weights I don't break a sweat over. I just have to give my body time to grow and adjust.
Diet: Paleo is still a go. This week's Staple Protien is the beef bolognase again just because I like it. I tweaked it again and added a whole little can of tomato paste and a whole can of coconut milk along with some garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper.
Diet Ups: I like the fact that I'm not hungry between meals because I'm eating something filling. I also like that now that I've started to stock my freezer/pantry that I'm only spending roughly $30-40 on groceries per week.
Diet Downs: I MISS CHEESE AND MILK AND BREAD. I decided to hop off the Paleo wagon for one weekend this past Saturday and Sunday, buying a small loaf of sourdough bread, a small container of whole milk, and a box of Captain Crunch cereal (because if you're going to hop off the wagon, you hop off of it GOOD)
The end result was me feeling like absolute crap for two days. Oh, the toast and sandwiches and breakfasts were completely worth it, but I felt sluggish and bloated both days. I made a running leap back onto the Paleo Wagon this morning with a 2-egg scramble and steamed broccoli for breakfast, my Staple Salad with Staple Protien for lunch, and a pre/post-workout banana. I'm not quite sure what I'm going to have for dinner yet.
Weight: I *was* at 237 Friday morning, then 238.2 Saturday (expected post-Friday workout gain), but I weighed myself this morning and I'm back up at 241. I'm betting that most of this is general bloating and water retention, because even though I strayed off-plan, I know I didn't eat enough to gain four pounds over the course of two days.
Weight Ups: This is the smallest I've been in probably six or seven years. Once I hit 235, I'll be at my next mini-goal of weighing the same as I did when I was working in the school district in 2005.
Weight Downs: Daily weigh-ins are discouraging. I should know by now that my weight will be one number on Monday, then a little gain on Tuesday from Monday's workout, then wibble around the rest of the week until moving up on Saturday from Friday's workout, before being either the same or a smidge lower than it was on Monday morning. I need to just go back to Monday Only weigh-ins, I think. I haven't measured myself since my initial measurements at the beginning of the 6-week challenge, so I think I'm going to hold off until the 19th when everything is all said and done.
So that's pretty much where I'm at right now. Without a computer at home, I'm actually doing things like reading and catching up on Who. So *this* is what it's like to be disconnected. I'm not as twitchy as I thought I'd be, but I do miss looking up things on Pinterest and Youtube all the time.