So yesterday morning I did not run when I got up. Seriously WTF was the husband thinking about doing a light run. The best part was later in the day he sent me a link to a site saying you should not do any running- or biking or swimming- for a week after your race. That was also an excellent reason to skip the dojo- Cobra Kai never die!- last night. Of course I was a bit busy in the Land Of The Rising Sun, so still got to bed a bit late. I slept in later than usual this morning too and I have to say the buses later in the morning are sorely lacking in any eye candy to start the day right.
Here is how fucked up most people in my line of work are: The news of President Carter being hospitalized elicited a long discussion that- while not wishing any ill upon the man- if he were to pass ideally he would do it Wednesday or very early Thursday so that President Obama could declare Friday a National Day of Mourning and we'd get an unscheduled three day weekend. Surprisingly I was not the one who initiated the discussion.
I am confused at to what the difference is between a currency war and a trade war. To me it is just semantics and since we are clearly in a currency war- in case you weren't sure even Peru jumped in the fray today (all the cool kids are doing it so we should I guess is the reasoning there?). It is now unofficially a trade war with everyone try to cheapen their currency as quickly as possible. We've seen this movie before and it does not end well. Granted back then it was black and white and an actual film, today it is a viral web series but the medium doesn't change the ending.
Speaking of history not repeating but echoing one should recall that the '87 crash- which occurred when I was a snot-nosed sophomore in college- had several main causes one of which was a dollar crisis. Sound familiar? It all actually makes me happy I have a hard asset in the form of arable land- granted it is only 6 acres but I can get a vegetable garden on it of decent size, get some goats and sheep maybe and I'll be set. I am thinking of starting an apiary as well- honey and wax for candles....
I got scooped on a story out yesterday by a big time financial blog. I read about how the editor of The Stock Trader's Almanac is calling for the Dow to go over 38,000 by 2025. The supposed move will start in 2017. Ok- who the hell can see that far out and who has an investment time line that long? Seriously? The other thing that kills me is that publication flies in the face of everything about the Street. Every financial firm tells you upfront that past performance is no guarantee of future performance and every investment has unforeseen risks. Yet for some reason people like to read this thing and base investment decisions on the past? And if you ask anyone who is in my line of work, they will comment on how one of the things they love about this business is that it is never the same thing every day.
The boys are still laughing at the dogs. Our older one looks like Ren- his fur was really matted (we don't brush him out enough apparently) and the groomer shaved him. The boys then said that must make the younger one Stimpy as she is stupid enough and Rubenesque.
As I wrote before one of the creators/writers of Glee is a fellow college alum. I debated logging on to the alumni network and shooting him a message suggesting the show do Meatloaf.
I see Trent Edwards got released unexpectedly. He is damn cute and I find it hard to believe he gets released unexpectedly- I bet he gets released a lot...
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Be careful with elevators
The last week of training for the half marathon was nice and light. I also made it to the dojo- sweep the leg!- Wednesday. Sensei had a sit down with me. I explained to her that with the new responsibilities at work are taking some time to get used to and I was also training for a half marathon.
The race was this morning and I did meet my goal of finishing under two hours- one hour, fifty eight minutes and thirty one seconds by my stop watch; I have not seen my official time yet. I am also exhausted and writing without any notes so I may ramble.
Thursday night was Back To School Night for my youngest. I was most surprised by his homeroom teacher- she is The Biest! Seriously, I immediately texted the husband telling him my youngest has the new football coach from Glee as his homeroom teacher.
Friday after work it was right back down to central Jersey to pick up the boys for the weekend. Saturday my oldest and I did a short run for me a long one for him. He wants to get in shape and asked me for some ideas how. I wrote a workout schedule for him- no weights right now, just cardio- shocker a gay dad telling his son to do cardio!- and body weight exercises such as push ups and pull ups. I also gave him various abdominal exercises. As we did the run- three miles- I told him I think it is a good idea to start working out as he will get in shape, get muscles and end up getting the girls. He laughed.
Saturday night we went and saw M. Night Shamalamadingdong's new movie Devil. All of our expectations were very low and believe it or no the movie was pretty good. My youngest thought it was okay but his older brother, the husband and I all liked it. I would recommend it. Maybe M. Night Shamalamadingdong is gonna make a comeback.
This morning the husband and I were up at 6 AM to eat oatmeal for breakfast. We then took the kids for a walk and went and picked up our bibs and chips for the race as it is about three blocks from the apartment. Then it was back home to have some coffee and get ready for the race.
The race...WTf was I thinking doing a half marathon? Actually I was feeling good until mile 8. I was not so happy and frackin' hungry as shit by mile 10 but they had Gatorade at the water stand there and OMG orange Gatorade never tasted so good or so sweet. By mile 11 I had a bit of a second wind and finished strong. The other thing that helped in the last two miles was the eye candy I had to chase. Before the race started the husband and I noticed red bandanna and his friend blue shorts. Well I caught up to them between miles 10 and 11 and they were running shirtless. It was quite a boost to my inspiration. There were actually quite a few hotties at the race and it did not hurt trying to keep up with them all.
I was so frackin' hungry by the end I just wanted my banana and water. Much to my delight the race organizers had a lot more than just bananas and water. I scarfed down a chocolate frosted donut, two Nutrigrain bars, a bagel and a banana, chugged an orange juice and a water. We got home and got the boys and the dogs and went for a warm down walk for us and some exercise for the boys and the kids. We did a half hour of walking. The thing that annoyed me was seeing some people who did the race were still running- WTF? Stop!
Then we went to a diner and had some lunch. After that I was pretty much in a food coma and needed a nap. So I napped for about a hour then got in the car and drove the boys back to their mom's house. Then it was back up home. Three plus hours in the car was not good after doing a half marathon. My right knee was killing me by the time I got home.
Once I got home it was time for Icy Hot on my knee, popped some Advil and then we ordered pizza. Fox' Animation Domination tonight and then bed time. The husband stated we should really do a light run tomorrow morning. I laughed at him and said no way and especially not with my knee bugging me. I'll just lift and hit the dojo- wax on, wax off- tomorrow night.
No clue what to expect from the markets this week. Don't really care right now either, lol.
The best part was the husband saying he figured I was cursing him around mile 8 saying what the hell did he do to me. I told him no it was closer to mile 10 until I got Gatorade and then I was fine. I'll probably do it again next year.
The race was this morning and I did meet my goal of finishing under two hours- one hour, fifty eight minutes and thirty one seconds by my stop watch; I have not seen my official time yet. I am also exhausted and writing without any notes so I may ramble.
Thursday night was Back To School Night for my youngest. I was most surprised by his homeroom teacher- she is The Biest! Seriously, I immediately texted the husband telling him my youngest has the new football coach from Glee as his homeroom teacher.
Friday after work it was right back down to central Jersey to pick up the boys for the weekend. Saturday my oldest and I did a short run for me a long one for him. He wants to get in shape and asked me for some ideas how. I wrote a workout schedule for him- no weights right now, just cardio- shocker a gay dad telling his son to do cardio!- and body weight exercises such as push ups and pull ups. I also gave him various abdominal exercises. As we did the run- three miles- I told him I think it is a good idea to start working out as he will get in shape, get muscles and end up getting the girls. He laughed.
Saturday night we went and saw M. Night Shamalamadingdong's new movie Devil. All of our expectations were very low and believe it or no the movie was pretty good. My youngest thought it was okay but his older brother, the husband and I all liked it. I would recommend it. Maybe M. Night Shamalamadingdong is gonna make a comeback.
This morning the husband and I were up at 6 AM to eat oatmeal for breakfast. We then took the kids for a walk and went and picked up our bibs and chips for the race as it is about three blocks from the apartment. Then it was back home to have some coffee and get ready for the race.
The race...WTf was I thinking doing a half marathon? Actually I was feeling good until mile 8. I was not so happy and frackin' hungry as shit by mile 10 but they had Gatorade at the water stand there and OMG orange Gatorade never tasted so good or so sweet. By mile 11 I had a bit of a second wind and finished strong. The other thing that helped in the last two miles was the eye candy I had to chase. Before the race started the husband and I noticed red bandanna and his friend blue shorts. Well I caught up to them between miles 10 and 11 and they were running shirtless. It was quite a boost to my inspiration. There were actually quite a few hotties at the race and it did not hurt trying to keep up with them all.
I was so frackin' hungry by the end I just wanted my banana and water. Much to my delight the race organizers had a lot more than just bananas and water. I scarfed down a chocolate frosted donut, two Nutrigrain bars, a bagel and a banana, chugged an orange juice and a water. We got home and got the boys and the dogs and went for a warm down walk for us and some exercise for the boys and the kids. We did a half hour of walking. The thing that annoyed me was seeing some people who did the race were still running- WTF? Stop!
Then we went to a diner and had some lunch. After that I was pretty much in a food coma and needed a nap. So I napped for about a hour then got in the car and drove the boys back to their mom's house. Then it was back up home. Three plus hours in the car was not good after doing a half marathon. My right knee was killing me by the time I got home.
Once I got home it was time for Icy Hot on my knee, popped some Advil and then we ordered pizza. Fox' Animation Domination tonight and then bed time. The husband stated we should really do a light run tomorrow morning. I laughed at him and said no way and especially not with my knee bugging me. I'll just lift and hit the dojo- wax on, wax off- tomorrow night.
No clue what to expect from the markets this week. Don't really care right now either, lol.
The best part was the husband saying he figured I was cursing him around mile 8 saying what the hell did he do to me. I told him no it was closer to mile 10 until I got Gatorade and then I was fine. I'll probably do it again next year.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Are you a warrior?
Friday I left work right at the closing bell and drove up to the Catskills for my Warrior Dash weekend with my fraternity brothers. First off it sucks trying to find a shitty country road in the dark. Thank God I had my crackberry, opened GOOG maps and typed in the address. I had only overshot the road by four miles. I drove back and found the place. Funny how being the only gay guy in the group pretty much automatically gets me my own room, lol.
Friday was definitely a late night drinking- probably too much but it was a POTATO weekend. That is a great acronym I found that stands for Person Over Thirty Acting Twenty One. The weird thing is sometime during the night my crackberry died on me. No clue as to what happened to it. At first I was a bit freaked out by it but I have to say there was something actually pretty nice about not being connected.
Our wave was not until 3 PM so everyone had time to rest up and partially recuperate. Some however- actually only one- chose to use their time differently and started with the Bloody Marys at breakfast and switched over to vodka and tonics. Funny how the lawyer in the group was the one who did that.
The race was actually great. Well the first part was not as the first leg was a mile and a half up the mountain. Holy shit that sucked and it was a complete mind fuck. You get up to a nice level area and think you are done with the ascent and go through the tire high knee obstacle only to turn the corner and find another incline. Then it was over the walls- three of them. At that point the medical personnel on hand decided the lawyer was really not fit to complete the race and pulled him out- thank God as we all thought he might drop dead- he has not kept in good shape since college.
The rest of the race was pretty fun. The pond was interesting as it was freezing- think George Costanza- and you started up to your waist and after about three steps you are instantly up to your neck. I and two other brothers were in good enough shape we probably could have done a great time but prior to starting we had all agreed to do it and finish it as a group. The three of us were often waiting for the rest to catch up after the obstacles. The funniest parts were the the last three obstacles. The giant slip 'n slide was a blast and you picked up serious speed on it and the people at the end of it were yelling to hurry up and get off. Jumping the two fire pits after that was fun. The mud pit was a lot deeper than it looked- of course I did a flip into it and did not injure myself- and they had the barbed wire low enough that you had to get down in the mud and do the army crawl through it- basically getting completely covered. The short dash ended it at the water table and the bananas. Then it was off to the beer tent and the party.
We all got back, showered up and I took a nap as did some others. Then it was pizza and wings and beer yet again.
That night I hit the hay relatively early as I knew I'd be sore. I had breakfast and decided when some choose to break out the remaining alcohol that I would leave.
I got to the first Can You Hear Me Know store and walked in and told the guy my crackberry died, I did not get it wet nor did I drop it. Thankfully it was under warranty still so he replaced it. I was psyched about that as right now with the cottage I could not afford to buy a new one.
Of course I was very close to the cottage when I got my new phone and there was a text from the husband suggesting I just go straight home. Instead I went tot he cottage, got to have lunch with him and spend time at PJ and ST's pool. Then I brought the kids home with me. Thank God I had no trading to do last night.
I watched Boardwalk Empire last night. Why? Don't know, probably should have gone to sleep earlier and I had set the dvr to record it anyhow. The first episode was a bit tedious for me. I will have to give it a few more to decide if it is worth it.
This morning after I showered I grabbed some Q-Tips to clean my ears out. Holy shit I had tons of mud still from Saturday. The things were black.
I did not run this morning. Probably should have as it was a short one and this is the race week. I'll make it up tomorrow morning and then do the one for tomorrow morning in the evening.
I am kind of perplexed by the whole payroll tax holiday idea being put forth by various politicians. I think it show how much they have sold out and how much of a corporatist state we have become when they all suggest the companies get it. Seriously, I don't know of any company that makes hiring decisions based upon tax rates. Companies make hiring decisions based upon how much of their goods or services they can or think they can sell. Why hasn't anyone suggested the employees get the one year tax holiday from payroll taxes? That would be money directly into peoples pockets. Granted there is no way to control what they do with it; some may spend it, some may use it to pay down debt and some may save it. All of those things are good for the economy.
Who says baseball isn't dangerous? I read where one Tyler Colvin from the Cubs got impaled by a bat. No, he isn't some kind of vampire but apparently the bat broke when the batter swung and it went flying and impaled the guy in the chest. He is doing ok. He is also kinda cute...
No dojo tonight- sweep the leg NOT!- because I am actualyl busy in Asia. Sensei is getting annoyed and rightyl so but I will have a sit down tomorrow and explain sorry my career responsiblities have changed and it pays the bills. It probably means my aspirations of gettingthe vaunted black pants within the year are notgonna happen and I may have to admit to myself that window has closed and just burn off my classes over time when I can make it. Oh well.
Friday was definitely a late night drinking- probably too much but it was a POTATO weekend. That is a great acronym I found that stands for Person Over Thirty Acting Twenty One. The weird thing is sometime during the night my crackberry died on me. No clue as to what happened to it. At first I was a bit freaked out by it but I have to say there was something actually pretty nice about not being connected.
Our wave was not until 3 PM so everyone had time to rest up and partially recuperate. Some however- actually only one- chose to use their time differently and started with the Bloody Marys at breakfast and switched over to vodka and tonics. Funny how the lawyer in the group was the one who did that.
The race was actually great. Well the first part was not as the first leg was a mile and a half up the mountain. Holy shit that sucked and it was a complete mind fuck. You get up to a nice level area and think you are done with the ascent and go through the tire high knee obstacle only to turn the corner and find another incline. Then it was over the walls- three of them. At that point the medical personnel on hand decided the lawyer was really not fit to complete the race and pulled him out- thank God as we all thought he might drop dead- he has not kept in good shape since college.
The rest of the race was pretty fun. The pond was interesting as it was freezing- think George Costanza- and you started up to your waist and after about three steps you are instantly up to your neck. I and two other brothers were in good enough shape we probably could have done a great time but prior to starting we had all agreed to do it and finish it as a group. The three of us were often waiting for the rest to catch up after the obstacles. The funniest parts were the the last three obstacles. The giant slip 'n slide was a blast and you picked up serious speed on it and the people at the end of it were yelling to hurry up and get off. Jumping the two fire pits after that was fun. The mud pit was a lot deeper than it looked- of course I did a flip into it and did not injure myself- and they had the barbed wire low enough that you had to get down in the mud and do the army crawl through it- basically getting completely covered. The short dash ended it at the water table and the bananas. Then it was off to the beer tent and the party.
We all got back, showered up and I took a nap as did some others. Then it was pizza and wings and beer yet again.
That night I hit the hay relatively early as I knew I'd be sore. I had breakfast and decided when some choose to break out the remaining alcohol that I would leave.
I got to the first Can You Hear Me Know store and walked in and told the guy my crackberry died, I did not get it wet nor did I drop it. Thankfully it was under warranty still so he replaced it. I was psyched about that as right now with the cottage I could not afford to buy a new one.
Of course I was very close to the cottage when I got my new phone and there was a text from the husband suggesting I just go straight home. Instead I went tot he cottage, got to have lunch with him and spend time at PJ and ST's pool. Then I brought the kids home with me. Thank God I had no trading to do last night.
I watched Boardwalk Empire last night. Why? Don't know, probably should have gone to sleep earlier and I had set the dvr to record it anyhow. The first episode was a bit tedious for me. I will have to give it a few more to decide if it is worth it.
This morning after I showered I grabbed some Q-Tips to clean my ears out. Holy shit I had tons of mud still from Saturday. The things were black.
I did not run this morning. Probably should have as it was a short one and this is the race week. I'll make it up tomorrow morning and then do the one for tomorrow morning in the evening.
I am kind of perplexed by the whole payroll tax holiday idea being put forth by various politicians. I think it show how much they have sold out and how much of a corporatist state we have become when they all suggest the companies get it. Seriously, I don't know of any company that makes hiring decisions based upon tax rates. Companies make hiring decisions based upon how much of their goods or services they can or think they can sell. Why hasn't anyone suggested the employees get the one year tax holiday from payroll taxes? That would be money directly into peoples pockets. Granted there is no way to control what they do with it; some may spend it, some may use it to pay down debt and some may save it. All of those things are good for the economy.
Who says baseball isn't dangerous? I read where one Tyler Colvin from the Cubs got impaled by a bat. No, he isn't some kind of vampire but apparently the bat broke when the batter swung and it went flying and impaled the guy in the chest. He is doing ok. He is also kinda cute...
No dojo tonight- sweep the leg NOT!- because I am actualyl busy in Asia. Sensei is getting annoyed and rightyl so but I will have a sit down tomorrow and explain sorry my career responsiblities have changed and it pays the bills. It probably means my aspirations of gettingthe vaunted black pants within the year are notgonna happen and I may have to admit to myself that window has closed and just burn off my classes over time when I can make it. Oh well.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Under two hours
The past week or so has been a bit busy.
Thursday night we had a friend of mine from my hometown over for dinner. I made dinner and it drove the husband a bit loco- his A-type personality showing through. Usually he is in the kitchen and I am playing the host, serving wine, giving the art tour (I actually know almost all the artists by now and can fake the whole spiel about light and form, etc.) and putting out appetizers. He did a miserable job at that but he was great at keeping the conversation flowing in the living room. I made lamb chops with minted potatoes and zucchini. dinner was a big hit.
Friday Mr. Clifford and his new (well not really as they have been dating for about eleven months now but new to us) boyfriend visited us for the weekend. That evening we ordered in Mr. Clifford's favorite pizza in Hoboken and drank- probably too much as Mr. Clifford and I went through two bottles of wine between just us. Our guests then went into the city for BlowUp. There was no way I was going.
Saturday I was supposed to do a nine mile run- yeah right, that was not happening after Friday night. Our guests were up early and grabbed breakfast in Hoboken then headed off tot he city for the day as PS had never really been there before. The husband and I headed down to the cottage to help out ST move a bunch of art from his house to the gallery after we dropped the kids off at the groomer. We also hit Lumber Liquidators and looked at hardwood flooring. We had approached the hardwood from going for unfinished and then finishing ti ourselves. We end up with prefinished, strand bamboo that was on sale. Then it was back to the apartment. Our guests were sleeping after having spent the entire day walking around NYC. We hit a local Italian place for dinner and then home to watch SciFi. It was an early night.
Sunday it was brunch and then our guests headed home.
Monday the husband took TK down to the cottage for some commentary and suggestions on it. Thankfully TK convinced (i.e. told) the husband we should do hardwood in the kitchen (which I was for) and also in the foyer (which means I don't get to try my hand at tiling). He also told the husband a sleeper sofa was needed for the den- woo hoo! I had been trying for years to get us to have a sleeper sofa but the husband had been dead set against it.
I then met the husband and TK and we had dinner in the city down in Tribeca. It was good ol' down home cooking. I even had rhubarb-strawberry pie for dessert.
Not much to discuss about Tuesday other than it was mom's birthday so I called her and sang Happy Birthday to her. She is not an easy person to get gifts for so she got flowers from me, the husband and the boys.
Today I got up and made up my nine mile run. I did it in a hour, fifteen minutes and 43 seconds. Not bad but I then had to rush to get showered, dressed and onto the bus to get to the office.
Today was sort of slow but I had a bunch of stuff going on in Europe so the morning was brisk. I was starving by lunch time so I was bad and got lunch from MCD.
I am loving the weather- I think autumn is my favorite season. The mornings are brisk, we can sleep with the windows open and yet it is still warm enough that I don't need a coat.
Is it just me or is there a dichotomy in something the President has proposed? The President wants us the have the highest graduation rate by 2020. I am all with that- a great idea as I am a firm believer in the idea that education is a must for a democracy to thrive. President Obama also wants us to become a manufacturing powerhouse again. Are college graduates really going to want to work on assembly lines in what is traditionally a blue collar job? Hasn't a college degree always been viewed as an exit from having to take a blue collar job? Maybe I am biased by history and not perceiving what manufacturing jobs will entail in the future and maybe it will need a college degree but that is not going to happen over night.
Tomorrow I am having drinks with JS after work. I also have to run fours miles and get a my hair coiffed by Joe the barber in the Port Authority the one who likes to call me Tom.
This weekend I am doing my annual get together with my fraternity brothers. This year we are doing something different. We are heading to Wyndahm for the Warrior Dash. I am going up Friday after work with a brother who works in the city- I am driving. It should be quite interesting as whichever one of us comes in last place is supposedly going to have to wear the Borat bathing suit- we'll see; actually I really hope I don't see as many of the brothers have seriously gone to pot.
Next weekend is the half marathon. With how the training is going I am hoping to finish it below the two hour mark.
Thursday night we had a friend of mine from my hometown over for dinner. I made dinner and it drove the husband a bit loco- his A-type personality showing through. Usually he is in the kitchen and I am playing the host, serving wine, giving the art tour (I actually know almost all the artists by now and can fake the whole spiel about light and form, etc.) and putting out appetizers. He did a miserable job at that but he was great at keeping the conversation flowing in the living room. I made lamb chops with minted potatoes and zucchini. dinner was a big hit.
Friday Mr. Clifford and his new (well not really as they have been dating for about eleven months now but new to us) boyfriend visited us for the weekend. That evening we ordered in Mr. Clifford's favorite pizza in Hoboken and drank- probably too much as Mr. Clifford and I went through two bottles of wine between just us. Our guests then went into the city for BlowUp. There was no way I was going.
Saturday I was supposed to do a nine mile run- yeah right, that was not happening after Friday night. Our guests were up early and grabbed breakfast in Hoboken then headed off tot he city for the day as PS had never really been there before. The husband and I headed down to the cottage to help out ST move a bunch of art from his house to the gallery after we dropped the kids off at the groomer. We also hit Lumber Liquidators and looked at hardwood flooring. We had approached the hardwood from going for unfinished and then finishing ti ourselves. We end up with prefinished, strand bamboo that was on sale. Then it was back to the apartment. Our guests were sleeping after having spent the entire day walking around NYC. We hit a local Italian place for dinner and then home to watch SciFi. It was an early night.
Sunday it was brunch and then our guests headed home.
Monday the husband took TK down to the cottage for some commentary and suggestions on it. Thankfully TK convinced (i.e. told) the husband we should do hardwood in the kitchen (which I was for) and also in the foyer (which means I don't get to try my hand at tiling). He also told the husband a sleeper sofa was needed for the den- woo hoo! I had been trying for years to get us to have a sleeper sofa but the husband had been dead set against it.
I then met the husband and TK and we had dinner in the city down in Tribeca. It was good ol' down home cooking. I even had rhubarb-strawberry pie for dessert.
Not much to discuss about Tuesday other than it was mom's birthday so I called her and sang Happy Birthday to her. She is not an easy person to get gifts for so she got flowers from me, the husband and the boys.
Today I got up and made up my nine mile run. I did it in a hour, fifteen minutes and 43 seconds. Not bad but I then had to rush to get showered, dressed and onto the bus to get to the office.
Today was sort of slow but I had a bunch of stuff going on in Europe so the morning was brisk. I was starving by lunch time so I was bad and got lunch from MCD.
I am loving the weather- I think autumn is my favorite season. The mornings are brisk, we can sleep with the windows open and yet it is still warm enough that I don't need a coat.
Is it just me or is there a dichotomy in something the President has proposed? The President wants us the have the highest graduation rate by 2020. I am all with that- a great idea as I am a firm believer in the idea that education is a must for a democracy to thrive. President Obama also wants us to become a manufacturing powerhouse again. Are college graduates really going to want to work on assembly lines in what is traditionally a blue collar job? Hasn't a college degree always been viewed as an exit from having to take a blue collar job? Maybe I am biased by history and not perceiving what manufacturing jobs will entail in the future and maybe it will need a college degree but that is not going to happen over night.
Tomorrow I am having drinks with JS after work. I also have to run fours miles and get a my hair coiffed by Joe the barber in the Port Authority the one who likes to call me Tom.
This weekend I am doing my annual get together with my fraternity brothers. This year we are doing something different. We are heading to Wyndahm for the Warrior Dash. I am going up Friday after work with a brother who works in the city- I am driving. It should be quite interesting as whichever one of us comes in last place is supposedly going to have to wear the Borat bathing suit- we'll see; actually I really hope I don't see as many of the brothers have seriously gone to pot.
Next weekend is the half marathon. With how the training is going I am hoping to finish it below the two hour mark.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Demon-dogs!
I got up late this morning as I was up a bit late again last night trading in the Orient- yes it is politically incorrect to call it the Orient but I also still call it Constantinople and the other one Bombay.
No hotties that late on the bus which was kinda depressing.
The asswipe pastor in the south who is holding a Qur'an burning this Saturday, yes I have some thoughts on the situation. First off while I believe it is disrespectful and wrong headed, Mayor Bloomberg has it right when he said the guy has the right to do it. It does not mean it is right but he has the right in this country to express his opinion in that matter. The thing that kind of miffs me though is how many on the left get all pissy and indignant when a conservative, larcenous pastor in the south chooses to burn the Qur'an as his an expression of his First Amendment right yet will defend to the death the right of someone to burn the American flag. That smacks a bit hypocritical to me. They also don't seem to get upset when foreigners burn the flag and calmly state that is their right to express their anger at the United States.
Yesterday on BBRG tv I saw that some people on the right are floating the idea of a Palin-Beck GOP ticket for 2012. Seriously??? You have got to be frackin' kidding me?! If that is the case then I will vote for whoever the Dems put up even if it is Obama or I'll write someone in. That would be a spectacular way to see the fundamentalists we have in this country blow up politically though.
I read on the internets today an article from Esquire about 25 things a gentleman should or shouldn't do while dining out. Some that made me laugh and taught me I apparently am not a gentleman are (in no particular order): Only one cocktail before dinner; no drinking beer from a bottle and no sugar substitutes.
I read how two asteroids are passing or have passed between the Earth and the moon today. That got me thinking about one of my favorite Saturday morning cartoons growing up- Thundarr The Barbarian. The Sunsword kicked ass! I also then was thinking why hasn't that been made into a full length movie instead of the crappy Smurfs? The Smurfs- seriously???
Or maybe it is just the thing that will start the zombie apocalypse...
Keeping in the sci fi theme, I loved the irony today of how one of the best market strategists commented on how equity investors are in a Vulcan death grip about to pass out and they don't even know it. It is ironic because on this day back in 1966 Star Trek premiered on tv.
Which segues nicely into my tv comment. Hawaii 5-0 is getting retconned for the fall season. Scott Caan who is totally doable is in it. But I am thinking how soon before we get other shows from the past retconned? BSG started the craze I think. What's up next? The Rockford Files? Magnum, P.I? Police Woman? The Mod Squad? I think Ironsides would be a good choice.
No hotties that late on the bus which was kinda depressing.
The asswipe pastor in the south who is holding a Qur'an burning this Saturday, yes I have some thoughts on the situation. First off while I believe it is disrespectful and wrong headed, Mayor Bloomberg has it right when he said the guy has the right to do it. It does not mean it is right but he has the right in this country to express his opinion in that matter. The thing that kind of miffs me though is how many on the left get all pissy and indignant when a conservative, larcenous pastor in the south chooses to burn the Qur'an as his an expression of his First Amendment right yet will defend to the death the right of someone to burn the American flag. That smacks a bit hypocritical to me. They also don't seem to get upset when foreigners burn the flag and calmly state that is their right to express their anger at the United States.
Yesterday on BBRG tv I saw that some people on the right are floating the idea of a Palin-Beck GOP ticket for 2012. Seriously??? You have got to be frackin' kidding me?! If that is the case then I will vote for whoever the Dems put up even if it is Obama or I'll write someone in. That would be a spectacular way to see the fundamentalists we have in this country blow up politically though.
I read on the internets today an article from Esquire about 25 things a gentleman should or shouldn't do while dining out. Some that made me laugh and taught me I apparently am not a gentleman are (in no particular order): Only one cocktail before dinner; no drinking beer from a bottle and no sugar substitutes.
I read how two asteroids are passing or have passed between the Earth and the moon today. That got me thinking about one of my favorite Saturday morning cartoons growing up- Thundarr The Barbarian. The Sunsword kicked ass! I also then was thinking why hasn't that been made into a full length movie instead of the crappy Smurfs? The Smurfs- seriously???
Or maybe it is just the thing that will start the zombie apocalypse...
Keeping in the sci fi theme, I loved the irony today of how one of the best market strategists commented on how equity investors are in a Vulcan death grip about to pass out and they don't even know it. It is ironic because on this day back in 1966 Star Trek premiered on tv.
Which segues nicely into my tv comment. Hawaii 5-0 is getting retconned for the fall season. Scott Caan who is totally doable is in it. But I am thinking how soon before we get other shows from the past retconned? BSG started the craze I think. What's up next? The Rockford Files? Magnum, P.I? Police Woman? The Mod Squad? I think Ironsides would be a good choice.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
The most wonderful day of the year
This weekend involved a lot of driving. Thursday night I drove out to the in-laws after my four mile run. Friday morning as Earl was (unbeknownst to us at the time) was losing steam as it came towards us, we picked up the sixteen foot moving truck, packed it up and drove down to central Jersey.. The cloud line was black to the south of us and I wanted to get ahead of it. Unfortunately we could not take any of the parkways. I took the advice of the rental guy and took the Sunrise Highway all the way to the North Conduit- big mistake. Thankfully I handed the husband my crackberry and told him to use the GOOG maps app to get us to the Verrazano. It took us through Brooklyn. Sadly the drive took us about four hours. We got to the cottage and unpacked everything, ran across the street and showered up then picked up the boys. We stopped for dinner near the cottage, then got back on the road and drove back to the in-laws. We arrived around midnight.
Saturday we were prepared for the worst and of course Earl fully disappointed it. It was sunny and nice but the water was rough. I also had to do a twelve mile run. Holy crap after sitting on the beach all day reading (more on that in a bit) with a dip in and no lunch makes for a tough ass long run. By mile nine I was cramping in my calves and had to take a few breaks. The run took me almost two hours. The cool thing though was I ran into a raccoon right in front of the in-laws house. Of course what immediately came to mind was is it rabid- thanks Mr. Barrett.
Sunday the water had calmed down enough that my oldest and I braved it and went clamming. The water was cold. We got enough clams though for my mother-in-law to make great paella.
Sunday we also had to go get my oldest his first blazer. The ex' cousin is getting married this weekend and the boys are going. She took them shopping for dress pants and dress shirts. On the way home my oldest apparently asked why no blazer. So Sunday we drove two towns over and went to Burlington Coat Factory and got him a blazer. Yes, Burlington Coat Factory and yes it is polyester but he is thirteen and growing; there is no way I am paying for a really nice one that he will grow out of in a year or less.
Sunday night we went and saw The Last Exorcism. It was a pretty good flick and I won't ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet. The funniest part was that the boys both complained they thought it sucked yet they both came in to our room in the middle of the night; my oldest complaining it was too hot in the room and my youngest complaining he just couldn't get back to sleep. My oldest woke me up by shining his Droid in my mug. My youngest actually woke up the husband who woke me up. My youngest also said I sleep so heavily that he considered slapping my face my to wake me up.
I hit the gym this morning and holy crap #3 at the gym is smoking! His legs a re a bit too skinny in proportion to the rest of his body. He is apparently also friends with the hot guido who wears his baseball cap at that irritatingly skewed angle thinking it is cool- but he is still hot.
Nothing to note on the bus ride in this morning.
Tomorrow is the first day of school for the boys. I always think of that Staples add where the parents are dancing though the aisles singing "It's The Most Wonderful Day of The Year." The boys are not happy with it but it gets better. They have Thursday off and they are taking Friday off as well as Thursday morning they are leaving for Michigan to go to the wedding. I told them they are being babies and need to toughen up.
Now that summer vacation is over for everyone it seems like people are again focusing on the facts of the economy and what the deleveraging entails. People seem socked that the EU crafted the stress tests to completely avoid the elephant in the room.
I am completely befuddled by the President's new plan for a $50 billion infrastructure plan. What the hell was ARRA for? I thought that ~$900 billion plan was for all these shovel ready programs that would employ people and stop the downturn? So if that was not the case and the President has a measly $50 billion plan for infrastructure where did the ~$900 billion go? The cynic in me says it was used in the grand Chicago political tradition- pay off your allies.
Mr. Clifford is visiting us this weekend with his new bf. It will be great to see him and hang as it has been quite some time.
Saturday we were prepared for the worst and of course Earl fully disappointed it. It was sunny and nice but the water was rough. I also had to do a twelve mile run. Holy crap after sitting on the beach all day reading (more on that in a bit) with a dip in and no lunch makes for a tough ass long run. By mile nine I was cramping in my calves and had to take a few breaks. The run took me almost two hours. The cool thing though was I ran into a raccoon right in front of the in-laws house. Of course what immediately came to mind was is it rabid- thanks Mr. Barrett.
Sunday the water had calmed down enough that my oldest and I braved it and went clamming. The water was cold. We got enough clams though for my mother-in-law to make great paella.
Sunday we also had to go get my oldest his first blazer. The ex' cousin is getting married this weekend and the boys are going. She took them shopping for dress pants and dress shirts. On the way home my oldest apparently asked why no blazer. So Sunday we drove two towns over and went to Burlington Coat Factory and got him a blazer. Yes, Burlington Coat Factory and yes it is polyester but he is thirteen and growing; there is no way I am paying for a really nice one that he will grow out of in a year or less.
Sunday night we went and saw The Last Exorcism. It was a pretty good flick and I won't ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet. The funniest part was that the boys both complained they thought it sucked yet they both came in to our room in the middle of the night; my oldest complaining it was too hot in the room and my youngest complaining he just couldn't get back to sleep. My oldest woke me up by shining his Droid in my mug. My youngest actually woke up the husband who woke me up. My youngest also said I sleep so heavily that he considered slapping my face my to wake me up.
I hit the gym this morning and holy crap #3 at the gym is smoking! His legs a re a bit too skinny in proportion to the rest of his body. He is apparently also friends with the hot guido who wears his baseball cap at that irritatingly skewed angle thinking it is cool- but he is still hot.
Nothing to note on the bus ride in this morning.
Tomorrow is the first day of school for the boys. I always think of that Staples add where the parents are dancing though the aisles singing "It's The Most Wonderful Day of The Year." The boys are not happy with it but it gets better. They have Thursday off and they are taking Friday off as well as Thursday morning they are leaving for Michigan to go to the wedding. I told them they are being babies and need to toughen up.
Now that summer vacation is over for everyone it seems like people are again focusing on the facts of the economy and what the deleveraging entails. People seem socked that the EU crafted the stress tests to completely avoid the elephant in the room.
I am completely befuddled by the President's new plan for a $50 billion infrastructure plan. What the hell was ARRA for? I thought that ~$900 billion plan was for all these shovel ready programs that would employ people and stop the downturn? So if that was not the case and the President has a measly $50 billion plan for infrastructure where did the ~$900 billion go? The cynic in me says it was used in the grand Chicago political tradition- pay off your allies.
Mr. Clifford is visiting us this weekend with his new bf. It will be great to see him and hang as it has been quite some time.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
I've been looking for this
So last night I was up until midnight trading in Hong Kong. There was no way I was getting my ass out of bed this morning to run my six miles. The other thing about trading in Asia is how passive they are. I don't get it. They are all about being involved over the day or a percent of the volume or trying to match the volume weighted average price (VWAP). Sorry, homo don't play that game. All of those are trying to be average and ya know what- I don't get paid to be average. At one point I had to use a line I was taught when I started i the business: "It's an order, not a suggestion." The Asian sales traders really don't know how to handle my trading style I think. Give them time.
High 'n tight was on the bus this morning. The guy is stunning.
Work was kinda busy but what should one expect on a low volume rip up on data from Communists and manipulated data from our government.
I did not hit the dojo- wax on, wax off- tonight as I had to do my six mile run. I got it done in call it 49 minutes. The best part was the hot guy in front of me in white shorts a black tank top with the amazing delts and arms. I let him set my pace for the second half of the run. I kept a respectable distance behind him- solely so I could watch his hot ass in those white shorts while running...
The husband is out a the beach with TK today and tomorrow so I had pasta again- whoo hoo! Spaghetti and meatballs.
I was supposed to have drinks tomorrow night with a fellow college alum who is coincidentally in town from Hong Kong. I cancelled with him today. Tomorrow night I am driving out to the in-laws and with Earl forecast to bear down on us starting tomorrow night I thought it would be smarter to not have business drinks and then drive out to Long Island.
Why am I driving out to Long Island tomorrow night? Well I took Friday off so the husband and I could move all the stuff we have in his parents basement down to the cottage. Of course when we planned this we did not expect a hurricane to be hitting. Regardless I will be driving a sixteen foot moving truck from Long Island down to central Jersey Friday morning. We will empty it out into the cottage, drop it off down there and then start putting stuff where we want some of it. Then we are picking up the boys and a their request we are spending the Labor Day weekend- you got it- out at the in-laws house. That is a shit load of driving.
I am looking forward to this weekend. My mother-in-law's husband always has wine and lots of it- he's French. I am psyched for a rainy Saturday of movies and reading (I am psyched to read Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter). I, the husband,the boys and the kids all enjoy our time at the in-laws and find it relaxing.
I am not looking forward to all the driving this weekend. I am not looking forward tot he twelve mile run I will have to do Saturday- most likely in the rain. I am not looking forward to reading Tommy Kuhn's opus again- almost twenty four years to the date- for the political economy book club I am doing with JW.
Tomorrow I'll run my four mile on the treadmill at the gym and lift. I am looking forward to seeing long sleeve orange tee shirt ...
After my run I showered up and needed to get something from under the sink. I actually took a look at what is int he cabinet and noticed some odd things I have under there. There is a Christmas nutcracker, a gallon of paint, a non-working nose hair clipper, and of course the toilet paper.
High 'n tight was on the bus this morning. The guy is stunning.
Work was kinda busy but what should one expect on a low volume rip up on data from Communists and manipulated data from our government.
I did not hit the dojo- wax on, wax off- tonight as I had to do my six mile run. I got it done in call it 49 minutes. The best part was the hot guy in front of me in white shorts a black tank top with the amazing delts and arms. I let him set my pace for the second half of the run. I kept a respectable distance behind him- solely so I could watch his hot ass in those white shorts while running...
The husband is out a the beach with TK today and tomorrow so I had pasta again- whoo hoo! Spaghetti and meatballs.
I was supposed to have drinks tomorrow night with a fellow college alum who is coincidentally in town from Hong Kong. I cancelled with him today. Tomorrow night I am driving out to the in-laws and with Earl forecast to bear down on us starting tomorrow night I thought it would be smarter to not have business drinks and then drive out to Long Island.
Why am I driving out to Long Island tomorrow night? Well I took Friday off so the husband and I could move all the stuff we have in his parents basement down to the cottage. Of course when we planned this we did not expect a hurricane to be hitting. Regardless I will be driving a sixteen foot moving truck from Long Island down to central Jersey Friday morning. We will empty it out into the cottage, drop it off down there and then start putting stuff where we want some of it. Then we are picking up the boys and a their request we are spending the Labor Day weekend- you got it- out at the in-laws house. That is a shit load of driving.
I am looking forward to this weekend. My mother-in-law's husband always has wine and lots of it- he's French. I am psyched for a rainy Saturday of movies and reading (I am psyched to read Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter). I, the husband,the boys and the kids all enjoy our time at the in-laws and find it relaxing.
I am not looking forward to all the driving this weekend. I am not looking forward tot he twelve mile run I will have to do Saturday- most likely in the rain. I am not looking forward to reading Tommy Kuhn's opus again- almost twenty four years to the date- for the political economy book club I am doing with JW.
Tomorrow I'll run my four mile on the treadmill at the gym and lift. I am looking forward to seeing long sleeve orange tee shirt ...
After my run I showered up and needed to get something from under the sink. I actually took a look at what is int he cabinet and noticed some odd things I have under there. There is a Christmas nutcracker, a gallon of paint, a non-working nose hair clipper, and of course the toilet paper.
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