Trying to avoid opening the work laptop yesterday, I was browsing Netflix, and one of their recommendations just popped under my remote. Death in Paradise, a BBC detective show. The premise is somewhat weak, the pilot showed a police officer in Sainte Marie (Martinique in the Carribean) was killed with some unusual circumstances. An inspector from Scotland Yard is sent over to solve the case. So...
Today I did a mountain bike ride in my local park. As I was wending my way around the park, I noticed something odd. I passed an amazing amount of cyclocross bikes on the trail. Trust me, if someone is off road, doing some serious dirt riding with drop bars, it is a a cyclocross bike. I mention this, as I see maybe one a year. Tops. Today, I saw at least 6 in about 5 miles of trail riding. About...
Like many Apple users, when I bought a digital camera in 2003, I naturally gravitated to using the bundled iPhoto. It worked well, and my original camera, a Canon Sureshot 2.1 megapixel camera, integrated with it well. We took a couple of international vacations, and iPhoto was a useful tool for managing the photos. Of course, I upgraded from that original digital camera to a DSLR, and started...
The diet is continuing well, and apart from two visitors this week, with a couple truly egregious cheater meals, I made some progress. The statistics so far: 3 weeks (started July 3) down 11.6 #’s (that is a 4.54% loss) Exercise is trending up – both walks at lunch during the week (2.4 ish miles), and cycling on weekends, is feeling better. So far, I have adjusted to smaller portions...
In a discussion on slashdot about the Apple Watch, where the consensus was that it was a product looking for a solution, and that there weren’t any compelling applications for it. The comment that I offered as a valid use case was as a remote display of the exercise statistics while cycling. When I ride, I wear a heart rate monitor, have a speed and cadence sensor, and use my iPhone to...
Apple Music has won my latest battle for my ears. As is often the case, Apple isn’t first to market (or even second), but when they do get to market, they have the best service, most polished interface, and it “just works“. After only 3 weeks of my 3 month trial, it is time to dump Spotify. Dear Spotify, I know this may be hard to take, but it is time to move on from your...
Two weeks in, back on the Perfect Diet Tracker, counting calories, and making sure I track everything. Down 9 pounds – I am sure at least half is water, I am beginning to feel better. The old adage rings true. Calories in less than calories burned = weight loss. Yes, it was easier before I turned 40, but it still works. The secret is to count everything that passes the lips. Already I am...
Sometimes you just can’t catch a break. This one involves music. Over the weekend, I fired up the guitar and did some warm ups. Then I tried what I had tried 1000 times before. Alternate picking. The 999 times before it sucked. I couldn’t get my right hand and left hand synchronized, and I was over-thinking the right hand motions, screwing it all up. Last weekend? It clicked. It...
I grew up bicycling, and returned to it semi seriously many times. Gear is important, and the changes in gear have been stunning. I remember my first good road bike, splurging for clipless shoes and pedals. My first cycling computer. A tiny Cateye thing. Worked great, put several thousand miles on it. Fast forward to today. Cycling computers are so 1990's. There are still dedicated cycling...
Every so often I get tired of be a fat slob, and need to get back into shape. This time, months of moving, living in a crappy apartment, and high stress at work has lead to me, uh, putting on a few pounds. When the 40″ waist jeans stopped fitting, and the 42″ pants were getting snug, it was time to do something. So, I fired up the diet tracker, started counting calories, and...