Fitocromancy

I'm testing out a few web sites and Android apps, looking for a workout equivalent to Weightwatchers. There are SO MANY to choose from. Lots of people recommended the Nike app, but it's only available for iOS. I am interested in the Nike Fuel Band, so I hope they go Android at some point.

Here's a list of what I'm trying: Runkeeper: GPS-based tracking and mapping of runs, rides, and walks. That's it. I do these activities most, so I've used this a bit already. The fact that I can connect with friends and look up the routes I've walked online or on the phone is pretty neat. Also, it's free. Fitocracy: this was recommended by some video game pals of mine. It's basically achievements for doing all kinds of physical activities. As you do more stuff, you "level up". Workout Trainer: it lists workouts or entire workout programs based on your size, fitness level, and goals. There are apparently 1700 workouts available, including walking for 30 minutes. The other app that was suggested by multiple friends is myfitnesspal, which is a food and calorie tracking app. I already use Weightwatchers (they finally have an Android app) so I don't need it. What do you use, if anything, to motivate yourself and track your progress?

Catching Up With Komen

I was appalled by the Susan G. Komen group's abrupt decision to remove funding for Planned Parenthood. It shows the absolute disregard for the actual mission of both organizations by the people managing it. The about-face and sacking of the folks who drove the decision makes a bit of a difference, but corporations have the right to put money where they want. When they do (or don't in this case), they also need to accept the consequences of those actions. I remember when the Komen foundation was an up-and-coming thing and I was amazed and impressed by how quickly they grabbed allegiance with so many people. It makes sense; the basic message is “we’re all affected by cancer in some way, and cancer sucks!” Tragically, in a move obviously triggered by an election year and selfish politics, we now have seen the reality: The Komen foundation can be plied against universal, unilateral support of women. Their support could be conditional. As I said earlier, I don’t begrudge them the option to remove funding. It’s unfortunate that they opted to alienate a large segment of their supporters over politics (why were they contributing to Planned Parenthood previously?), but they’ve also opened my eyes. I will be less likely to support an activity with Komen’s name on it. I think I’m not alone on this. And that's not all. This article shows that they may have been endorsing a gun manufacturer at the same time that they were defunding Planned Parenthood. How does that make any sense at all? And maybe more damning is the following movie trailer, which casts even more doubt on the motives behind the foundation, and was available the week of the Planned Parenthood debacle (disdain for Komen is not new, apparently). Are they still in it to fight cancer, or has it become a branding juggernaut caught up in a whirlwind of profit?

Is My Driving Offensive?

Every morning I drive to work and see an example of someone who does not understand common driving protocol. Common driving protocol is not the same as the law or NTSB safety guidance. The law is like a standardized test; it's a general set of rules based on sound principles, meant to apply to the largest possible population. It does not always make sense, depending on the situation. NTSB guidance informs the law, and is based on minimizing worst-case scenarios. It's the source of "defensive" driving.

I employ "dynamic" driving. When I drive, I pay attention to everything happening around me. I check my mirrors, I move over a lane to let faster cars pass, and I try to enter a highway at a speed matching the flow of traffic. Flow is the key to driving, in my opinion. There's the set speed limit, and then there's the prevalent speed. I maintain that it's safer to travel at the prevalent speed. The law doesn't agree and the NTSB can provide statistics showing how the prevalent speed (assuming it's faster than the posted speed) can be a percentage more dangerous in the case of a crash. My common sense response is that it doesn't matter if you're going faster or slower than the posted speed limit as long as everyone is going roughly the same speed. When you have much faster or slower cars, everyone around them has to adjust for them, and that's when chain reactions can happen. Personally, I prefer to be going just a tad faster than everyone so that the action is in front of me. If I'm going slower, cars pass me from behind, and it's harder to keep track. If I'm going slightly faster than most cars, less cars are coming up from behind, so more of my attention is focused on what's in front of me. I'd love to have some kind of way to reward the drivers that operate like I do on the road. I see it on occasion - someone moving over ahead of a merge, slowing down to make room for a truck, moving out of the left lane to let faster traffic through, etc. If there was a system of rewards in place, more people might start driving conscientiously. I'll probably still be going faster than them.

Not Resolved, But Motivated

I'm not big on resolutions, but I have some plans for this year. Some of it is completing what I started in 2011, some is correcting missteps, and some of it is just getting new stuff to make our lives easier.

First - I planned to lose 40 pounds in my 40th year. I lost 30, but then I gained back a few of those around the holidays. I need to eat better food and in smaller quantities this year. I also need to get back into an exercise routine. These are difficult with all of the temptations of modern life in a fairly populated area. On the other hand, I have a very inexpensive gym in the building at work and I am still enrolled at Weightwatchers.com which now has an Android app. No excuses - this needs to become the norm.

Second - we have a lot of clutter in the house. Mostly, it's in the areas that are primarily my domain: the garage and the basement. Since winter is here, the garage has to be the first priority. I need to get rid of anything we are not regularly using or might not use in the coming year. No matter what, I need to make space to get both cars in the garage. When Spring arrives, we need to get a shed. That's a big expense, but it'll not only free up the garage in a big way, but it'll help to sell the house at some point. In the meantime, I'll continue chipping away at the basement to make it a more functional space. That needs to become what I envisioned for it when we moved in.

Third - the mighty Vue can't last forever. Jennie's car is accumulating miles pretty quickly, and we'll need to switch to a newer vehicle for taking all the trips we take. I have my sights set on a particular car and model, so we just need to sort out finances and make it happen. Also, I currently have two bicycles and there's a third that I am coveting. I need to keep the newer of the existing bikes, sell the other bike (or part it out), and start a fund to get the new bike.

Other stuff - I'd like to get Jennie a DSLR camera that she can learn with and maybe supplant some of the trips to the photo studios for pictures of Eli. She has a great eye and this would be money well spent. I'd also like to start over or resume my CCNA training from last year. Finally, I'd like to take Eli camping, on a train trip (maybe Texas?), and on a plane (L.A. trip we've been intending to take) this year. We'll be putting quite a few miles on the bike and bike trailer, too.

Happy new year to you and yours!

~Chris

What the Hanie?

Football is a soap opera for men (as evidenced by the ridiculous Dr. Pepper 10 ads). Tebow's magic meets Belichik's discipline, Orton and Jones put one on the Packers, and Johhny Knox gets folded in half on his first catch of the last meaningful game of the season.

For the Bears, they're basically out of contention for post-season play, but with Hanie at the helm, it wouldn't have mattered if they made it. I'm not sure if it's that he's that bad or if he's just never gotten any practice time with the first team, but he's not capable of running that offense. Seems like a nice enough guy, but he's yet another indictment against Jerry Angelo.

Winding the clock back, Lovie fires Ron Turner, looks for a new offensive coordinator, and after all of the quality options get snapped up by other teams, he gets down to one guy - his former boss in St. Louis - Mike Martz. Martz is known for being a great coordinator, but that's based on the seasons he had in St. Louis, with top-tier talent at nearly every position. In Detroit, he put up tons of yards with a mid-grade QB and overrated WR (now on the Bears) but didn't win many games.

Since he's the last man standing, Lovie hires him to be the OC, likely knowing the team doesn't have the components to fill out Martz's system. The second year in, the Bears get rid of their prized draft pick in Greg Olsen and pick up the aforementioned Roy Williams as a veteran receiver. The idea was to replace Olsen with a blocking TE (Spaeth) and add a real WR (Williams), but they only got part of that deal done, and the cost was losing a sure thing for pass plays. The Bears would have been much better off moving Olsen to WR and NOT HIRING WILLIAMS.

They also got Sam Hurd, but you may have seen something about him in the news this past week.

It's time for the Bears to abandon their old philosophy (all we need is defense and a running game) and to adopt an offensive mentality. Yes, it means they'll have harder choices to make at draft time, but it also means that they'll finally have depth at key offensive spots for a change.