September 2008
23 posts
1 tag
1 tag
Why I Play Piano
It’s the same reason I surf. It’s serenity. I feel connected on another level when I play. I’m not sure what I’m connecting to (God maybe?), but I’m a part of something else. Something and somewhere greater. When I was playing earlier, I felt like the music was taking me far away. It’s how the chords make me feel. You’d think that I’d already know...
1 tag
Cervelo P4 Carbon
Total sex. The ultimate bike.
1 tag
Google Phone - Android Demo
This was posted a year ago. Google has announced they are releasing the phone in a few months. While it’s not “revelutionary” like the iPhone it represents and complete and utter dichotomy to what the iPhone and Apple stand for. Open source vs. “Steve knows best”.
4 tags
I'm Not Done Yet
I hereby formally resign from the 300-Challenge.
I have decided I’m not done cutting.
I am implementing a new body fat target: sub 10% per scale
I am implementing new strength challenges:
10 x 185 lbs. bench press
25 x bodyweight pullups
10 x 135 lbs. seated shoulder press
10 x 155 lbs. squats x 3 sets
Here’s where I currently stand:
10 x 155 lbs. bench press
20 x...
1 tag
Week Dump
I need to decompress a little from the last couple of days. Let me recount. Backwards.
Work is busy. Really busy. I used to at least have a few spare moments here and there to post but as it stands I barely have enough time to eat lunch. That and sometimes I have to work nights and weekends. You do what you have to do to get things done but it also means I need some time at the end of the day to...
1 tag
Color IQ Test →
Test your color IQ. For reference I scored a 0. It took me approximately 5-10 minutes though.
2 tags
Week in Review 9/8/08
This week is a “flux week”. It’s was the end of our wedding/honeymoon, coming back to work, and settling in. I averaged 144.8 lbs. 11.1% fat 63.9% hydration. This is the leanest I’ve been according to the scale. Contrary to what I predicted I did not gain a single pound on vacation. After coming back to LA and getting back on my routine, I’ve reflected an overall drop...
“These supposedly sophisticated suits — there isn’t a commodity...”
– Lenny Pomerantz, veteran Chicago trader on the Lehman bankruptcy
1 tag
Helicopters and Memories
In an earlier post I performed a rough cost benefit analysis on taking a helicopter ride to take some pictures:
16GB SanDisk CF cards… $450 30 minute helicopter ride… $500 Almost having diarrhea before boarding the helicopter… $0
Clicking 500 pictures to capture ones like the one...
2 tags
Confused
Something definitely happened. Larry experienced this. I experienced this. I’m sure Dai has experienced this. “Binge” eating (or maybe just eating a little more) immediately after staying on a strict diet and exercising religiously has resulted in virtually no weight gain, slight gain in muscle, and overall decrease in body fat percentage according to my scale. According to how I feel, I think...
1 tag
Tahitian Sky
This picture took me a long time to edit because I couldn’t get it just right. It’s a first try. It started its life as a series of a bracket of 4 pictures. It was then combined through Photomatix (HDR). Then it underwent some cropping, levels, colors, noise reduction, contrast, brightness, I think I might have touched almost everything. Well not quite. Here’s the initial pic.
1 tag
Leaving Paradise
September 8, 2008 The thing about paradise is after a while you no longer recognize that it’s paradise. I bet you none of the locals could tell you when they last stared at the sunset or raved about how blue the water was in the lagoon. After a while you just kind of take it for granted. Life goes on after all.
And that is exactly what has happened to us. After 5 nights and 6 days it’s time to...
1 tag
20+ things I learned about Tahiti, Bora Bora, and...
1. They speak Tahitian though they are taught in French 2. When it rains it never rains for more than minutes at a time 3. The winds blow seemingly more at night (or maybe it’s random)? 4. Some fish are attracted to light 5. As of 2007 there were 8,800 residents living on Bora Bora 6. There is very little temperature fluctuation in an entire day. As of September 7, 2008 the temperature is...
1 tag
Swim, Windsurf, and Motor Boats
September 7, 2008 Today is the first day that we’ve really slept in. Like slept in without having to wake for any reason. It was truly gratifying. It’s been weeks since I can say that we’ve really slept in. What with the wedding, the traveling and the activities, we’ve been up pretty early each day. Breakfast is taken in our room again as we’ve missed the buffet....
1 tag
Helicopters, Bugways, and Black Pearls
September 6, 2008 It’s 11am and I am totally stoked for today’s helicopter ride. This will be the second time for me in a helicopter. This time however I’m flying over the skies of Bora Bora and I’ve paid nearly $500 for this 30 minute tour of the islands. It’s crazy I know but this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the islands from air and an even rarer I...
1 tag
The Fish On My Plate and Beneath My Feet
September 5, 2008 We wake up early around 9am to eat breakfast later today. It’s pretty much the first day in a long while during which we’ve slept in. And it’s not even that late. Immediately after lunch we trek over to the turtle center where they’ve already begun feeding the turtles. The turtles are awesome! I snap away on the D3 as they tug and pull on the meat from the...
1 tag
Old Drivers Are Dangerous
I was walking in Bora Bora today when a bike almost hit me from my left. I gave the rider a long and vehement “WTF!” look as I walked by and noticed that she was an old lady around 183 years old (but for some reason resembled my good friend Larry). I was going to give her/him the one-finger salute, but I thought, “Nah, screw it… she/he’s old”. Then I changed my mind because she/he...
1 tag
The Fish Beneath My Feet
September 4, 2008 We wake up early around 7am to eat breakfast early. This morning’s 8:45am excursion includes shark feeding and as we would find out later sting rays and also snorkeling in coral reef. My primary concern was the temperature of the water first and then the potentially dangerous animals with which we would come into contact. The temperature concern stems from touching the...
1 tag
Bora Bora 2008 Mid-Week Update
September 1st Time to leave the Four Seasons Wailea. As we’re getting ready to leave the room we find out our flight is delayed 4 hours! Too late now, get to the airport, and Catherine’s cousin still has his rental car so we drive to Lahaina to chill. We finally board around 6pm and I get around 4 hours of sleep. Got home around 3am. Slept around 6am after cleaning up, doing laundry,...
1 tag
Stuck on You
When I met you girl, you were already queen, With a temperment, that I ain’t never seen. But through thick and thin, oh yes we’ve both been, I’m stuck on you, just like glue, through and through. You still make a mess everywhere you go, Just like Midas with that touch of gold. No matter how messy it is, you know… I’m stuck on you, just like glue, through and...
2 tags
1 tag
Stuck on You
Lyrics, chords, and song structure to come shortly!