James Pearl Thinks Blogging is Dead

jShort

2018 Fantasy Football Toilet Bowl Lead Technician
Team MTBNJ Halter's
This the second post in about a year that intimates that goals are an "issue" -
since you mentioned iterative, when things are working, this seems to be my mode. just get it directionally correct, and try to keep going.
7 weeks to hoh.

i spiralized a rutabaga today. so you spiralize?
There is some golden beet and turnips in there too.
quick fry in sesame and lemon oil - splash of rice vinegar. figured i'd post it here instead of the cooking/eating threads.

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Looked good till I read it wasn't spaghetti
 

Mitch

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Goals smoals. Go where life takes you. Do things that make you happy. If its training in the rain then do it if not then fk it. I had some great fun years on the bike and im still having fun but by not training I have to compromise and just enjoy myself more . How fun was Saturday's group ride? 6.5 mph of pure joy. Your life is good right now, work, kids and D. You can pick your goals on a daily basis and do one good deed a day. That's all I have to say on that.
 

mattybfat

The Opinion Police
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Goals smoals. Go where life takes you. Do things that make you happy. If its training in the rain then do it if not then fk it. I had some great fun years on the bike and im still having fun but by not training I have to compromise and just enjoy myself more . How fun was Saturday's group ride? 6.5 mph of pure joy. Your life is good right now, work, kids and D. You can pick your goals on a daily basis and do one good deed a day. That's all I have to say on that.
Solid old man active advice. Hey @Mitch when we hitting the diner for soup.
 

jShort

2018 Fantasy Football Toilet Bowl Lead Technician
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I have the ability to play the endurance race card for March Mayhem, or whatever it is called.

I would advise against that simply based on the course. @UtahJoe would probably back me up.

If mooch was a 9, lewmo a 4.5, I'd say this mayhem course is a 2 for endurance racing. I'd go a little crazy doing endless laps here.
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
The Impossible Burger

I had never heard of an Impossible Burger before yesterday, but now I am motivated to earn myself an Impossible Burger. Today I thought to myself...what would I need to do in order to earn the eating of a burger, either possible or impossible, from Turf & Surf? We've eaten there before, and while the food there is super good, it is also super not healthy. In general I think you need to really earn something like this. See now Jeremy, you gave me a goal. The question follows - what do I need to do to earn that? Ride 50 miles on the road? Ride 3 hours at CR? Pull a 19 mph average for a 2+ hour ride?

I don't know the answer to that question.

After I sat down to write this, I looked it up and it seems interesting. Now, the course is set. I have an Impossible Burger in my future. I just need to earn it. Which of course means defining what is meant by "earning it". I'll ruminate on it and get back to you.

The Possibly Impossible Bike Ride

After the weekend I was feeling pretty good today and decided to try and pull a double spin class today. Last week I also pulled a double but it was more like 2 individual spin classes broken up by a 45 minute rest between. I also dialed them both back a tad because I wanted to make sure I got to the end of them, as opposed to burning out and not wanting to keep on. Today, the classes were 15 minutes apart so I just stayed on the bike and D grabbed me a number, which is how the YMCA meters out the bikes. I just took a break to pee and change my shirt, which was drenched after the first class.

I did the first class and gave it a solid showing. Now I know some of you, well one of you in particular, will rage that I went to spin class at all on a warm day like today. But those of you who have done these know they are no joke if you actually give it an honest effort. So the first class was all-in, solid interval workout. Took a few minutes between then just kept going until the 2nd one started. I miscalculated a bit and didn't bring anything to eat. In addition, I double miscalculated and thought they were both 45 minutes when in fact, the second class was an hour.

Foreshadowing of course. I popped a bit more than halfway through the second class. My right knee had started to hurt so I stopped standing when Kerry (the teacher) stood. Like last time my knee started to hurt, I just dialed up the resistance and tried to grind it out. This was all well and good until things just started to get impossibly hard about 30 minutes before the end. I took off most of the resistance and just spun out the rest of the class. 2 hours, 10 minutes, and 39 miles.

If I had made it all-in for both, would I have earned an Impossible Burger?

The Possibly Impossible Creak

Google translates the common Chinese expression of JIA YOU, as "COME ON!" When you are watching a sporting event, the crowd will yell "Jia You!" Or if you were trying to encourage someone on, you would yell the same. I have seen another translation as claiming it means "add more gasoline to the car" which is about as accurate as saying you can translate "blue" as "not green". That's not really what it means.

I had a 3 hour conference call again today and while I was on it I took the backup cross bike apart and regreased the bottom bracket. I think I need a new BB but it's not so bad that it cannot survive the rest of the trainer season. I should probably get some new bearings and swap them out. Utah thinks this looks like a typical bike of mine. I think this looks more on the clean side than usual.

Anyway, I cleaned it up a bit and as the Chinese say when they are watching a sporting event, JIA YOU! The literal translation of "jia you" is "add oil". When I eat Chinese food, I often JIA LA YOU, where LA means "spicy".

I also swapped out the skewer to the proper one.

View attachment 62463

Das Dishwasher Was More Busy

Signs of a warm weekend this morning on the drying mat:

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The Impossible Dessert

By impossible, I mean it would be impossible to finish all this in one sitting and not feel like you wasted the entirety of that 2 hours and 10 minutes on the bike tonight.

View attachment 62462
Invest in a Kogel BB and thank me later. It is a hit in the pocket 4 sure but a solid investment. Note: I actually take care of my bikes so maybe that extends the life but they have a 2 year warranty and are b-u-t-t-e-r f'ing smooth and we sure as shit know you like you some butter.

@Mitch pretty much nailed the goal thing for me and I am current swimming in the seas of no goals. That being said, do you really need to think in terms of what do you need to do to eat something? I can't relate and I know you have dealt with weight issues but that line of thinking seems like weight watcher BS. I am probably wrong.

The glaring flashing beacon for me is that your desire to exercise to eat has warped your perception in such a way that you have a goal involving finishing a double spin class. I assume stating the mileage was bait to gather responses but two 45 min classes, plus 15 min in between and whatever time it takes you to get there = enough time to ride outside.
 

Mitch

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
but two 45 min classes, plus 15 min in between and whatever time it takes you to get there = enough time to ride outside.
But it is so much easier to put on sneakers and shorts then trying to dress with right layers, then shoes then, helmet then bottles then glasses then gloves and which ones and then toe warmers and hand warmers and and and.. Plus some gyms have nice friendly instructors too. Just sayin
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
But it is so much easier to put on sneakers and shorts then trying to dress with right layers, then shoes then, helmet then bottles then glasses then gloves and which ones and then toe warmers and hand warmers and and and.. Plus some gyms have nice friendly instructors too. Just sayin
Admittedly, dressing does take longer but not longer than driving to and from the the spin class, hell even if you just have to walk across the street. At this point in Norm's cycling career, dressing correctly shouldn't be an issue.

I did a spin class once and while the scenery was ok, but for every something good, there were 3 bads, like MEN in there
 

clarkenstein

JORBA Board Member/Chapter Leader
JORBA.ORG
having had a massive dose of perspective the past few months, i suggest having the goal of finding a balance zone, and being comfortable in that zone, where you have no goals.

you're very good at setting goals. try a new goal of being comfortable, and still motivated, without them.
 

1speed

Incredibly profound yet fantastically flawed
But it is so much easier to put on sneakers and shorts then trying to dress with right layers, then shoes then, helmet then bottles then glasses then gloves and which ones and then toe warmers and hand warmers and and and.. Plus some gyms have nice friendly instructors too. Just sayin

This is by far the biggest upside to riding a trainer. Now that I'm officially a fraud and ride online, the one thing that has allowed me to transcend my shame is knowing that I don't need to set aside 3 or more hours for a 2 hour ride (between gearing up, driving to and from the trail, stopping occasionally to get feeling back in my limbs, etc.)

As for the "friendly instructors", the only one who ever hangs around when I'm riding is Pawsby and he's not really into exercise and can be a jerk about it.

PaulP1.jpg
 

xc62701

Well-Known Member
I would advise against that simply based on the course. @UtahJoe would probably back me up.

If mooch was a 9, lewmo a 4.5, I'd say this mayhem course is a 2 for endurance racing. I'd go a little crazy doing endless laps here.

Totally agree here. I wish these venues would make a longer course for endurance just so you don't have to do 15 laps or something nutty.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I got back on the trainer today, in the basement. The creaking is gone so either the BB re-grease or the skewer did the trick - take your pick. Either way, I am happy as the noise is a slow road to insanity. There are any number of reasons one might ride the trainer. For me, it is usually it is a combination of time limitations and/or cold. Today was more of the time limitation than anything. I had 90 minutes to ride, shower, and shave. In the end I rode for 1:10, then showered & shaved. I think it is fairly obvious in this case why I would choose to stay inside and maximize the time, as @Mitch points out.

I also think that sometimes it is missed as to why one would ride the trainer at all. But, belaboring this point is, well, without point.

I watched episode 2 of Dark on Netflix today. Interestingly enough, 7 years ago Germany got about 1/4 of its energy from nuclear power. Today that number is down to 14% and it is targeting a complete phase out by 2022. This show is almost a socio-political commentary in that regard. Well, in Twin Peaks clothing, sort of. The episode, 2nd of 10, ended awesomely. Great next step of the series. I look forward to #3.

So we are kind of against goals here, which is fine. Being realistic, again, I won't be able to stick to any. Personally I need to have micro-goals, even if the "micro" becomes more of a "monthly" thing. I believe that for me, I need to find a way to keep myself motivated and mixing up the exercise is the best way to do it in the winter. I have done the monster winters where I ride 10-15 hours a week no matter what the weather is. I've also ground myself to a pulp by August, several times. Having said that, as I have said before, I need to roll my motivation into something more than just "enjoy yourself" because frankly, I would eat ice cream all winter and watch TV instead.

This brings me back, to a point, to the spin class. I guess I need to spell this out to those of you who have never done a spin class, but if you put in "your best" when doing one of these, this is going to be harder than any basement trainer session and harder than most outdoor riding sessions. Putting in a hard effort is not why I ride my bike every day. But putting in a solid effort is part of it. It also allows me to mix things up, which is important to me right now. I have gotten my HR up to 190 on the spin bike before. This will never happen in my basement.

And more, there is life. If I ride during the day, maybe I can get outside for an hour. If I wait until the end, when it's dark out, I can meet D and we do the class together. She gets a ride in, we ride together, and I put in a huge effort on the day. I probably don't need to spell out why this bears some importance in my life, though I guess writing this sentence means that I think I need to. So, the extension of this is no more or less than when I would ride to the Tuesday night MAFW rides in the summer. That effort, same as this double, is a way for me to ride with D and get in a really hard workout. In the great game of life/work/health balance, this takes them all together and manages to give me a happy medium to all of these.

Duly noted on Mayhem.
 

gtluke

The Moped
I watched episode 2 of Dark on Netflix today. Interestingly enough, 7 years ago Germany got about 1/4 of its energy from nuclear power. Today that number is down to 14% and it is targeting a complete phase out by 2022. This show is almost a socio-political commentary in that regard. Well, in Twin Peaks clothing, sort of. The episode, 2nd of 10, ended awesomely. Great next step of the series. I look forward to #3.

Is that domestic nuclear power? I thought one of Germany's largest imports was buying power from France, who is basically 100% nuclear.
 

gtluke

The Moped
Are you watching Dark with subtitles or dubbed? I think I screwed up going with subtitles. I don't have Netflix so it wasn't an option on my copy. My brain is wired heavily for audio and I had a hard time keeping track of characters without the audible language entering the brain properly.

I think the show really ramps up in quality of story, they have to spend a lot of time laying the foundation in the first few episodes.
 

JimN

Captain Wildcat
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I think I screwed up going with subtitles. I don't have Netflix so it wasn't an option on my copy. My brain is wired heavily for audio and I had a hard time keeping track of characters without the audible language entering the brain properly.

We watched the dubbed version and still had a hard time keeping track of characters.
 

gtluke

The Moped
We watched the dubbed version and still had a hard time keeping track of characters.
Germany didn't get the social justice memo. There are ONLY white people in the entire series. There's not even a fat kid. Wait there is that one cross sexual hooker though but I don't think he/she has a name.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
The weekend is here, shortly.

When I am in these higher-frequency writing modes I often go through the course of the day thinking of something or other I plan on writing about later. When later comes, I am either no longer motivated by that thing or, more likely, I have forgotten. Today is one of those days. Sometimes I start chipping away at making words between my work "tasks", which are not actually tasks but somewhat-not-really atomic bits of work. Those are the days I typically find my writing is the best. When I immediately write what I am thinking, what I am motivated to say. Today is not one of those days.

My parents came down today to make us up some dinner then join us for Zac's basketball game. We wanted them to see one of his games and as it turns out, they got a gem with a 33-23 victory. This went well, as we explained that they have been, to say the least, less than impressive at times this season. Today it was like another team was out there, just in the same physical form. Speaking of physical form, and nothing to do with basketball, I watched episode 3 of Dark today. We have Netflix, so I watch with English dubbed over it. Often the dubbed language is garbage but they did a good job with these character voices. I'll tag @gtluke so he sees this. Surprisingly, I also figured out a lot of the matches they revealed towards the end of the episode.

I say "surprisingly" because I typically do not try to guess where these sorts of things are going. I am not usually one to try and figure out where books and movies are going before they get there. I don't know why that is, but media like this is a time for me to turn my active brain off and let it be passive, absorbing things. I think it's because I see media as a time to shut down and intake. I often feel most creative when I am reading a lot and watching non-rote television. Rote television being things like Everybody Loves Raymond, or Friends. Years ago, I found myself writing my best (self evaluated) stuff when I was plowing through Vonnegut novels. I really should pick them up again.

I also find that there is difference in writing to/for people, as in replying to specific posts, and at people. I think "at" is a more generic form, where the audience can be anyone. But this begs the question I have heard writers talk about before. When you write, who are you writing for? In the context of this blog I really don't know the answer to that question but in the back of my head, I think that aside from knowing that @Dominique will read pretty much every word of these, I would have to guess that @ChrisG has quite possibly read more of my blog posts than anyone on the board. I suppose I could be wrong, and someone has been ingesting these every time I post them for the last 10 years without saying anything. But as far as I know, he and maybe @capedoc go the farthest back.

I remember once, maybe a few weeks before I was going to do the Rattling Creek 50, Chris and I rode Hartshorne & Huber for something like 30 miles between the 2. I don't really remember much about the ride, being it was so long ago. But I do remember that much, and coming out of the ride thinking that I would be able to finish the 50 when it came. For those of you who were reading back then, or have heard me mention it, you know I triple flatted out of that race. I believe I camped with Jay Dodge that weekend, dad of the famed Cam Dodge. I also think I got a lift from Zach Adams, the promoter of the Michaux camp that they run in the spring. But I am not sure about either.

Chris was 1 of the original members of the team along with myself, and maybe 6 others. I forget. At this point it stands as me and only @graveyardman67 as the 2 originals left from the beginning. This does also require one to overlook the Ross-and-Rachel-like time period where we could have been said to be "on a break" but for the sake of continuity, I don't really consider Bill as ever having left. We discussed it this past weekend, and as he mentioned, I told him he wasn't allowed to fully leave. We just need to get him some new clothes. I think some of his kits are literally from 2008.

I had more or less absolutely nothing to say today. But do we always have to say something worth saying? In any event, like I said, tomorrow is the weekend.
 

mattybfat

The Opinion Police
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Don't forget your named Norm
Your best friend ever is Woody
And I am sure there is a Cliff

So yes TV was an influence with friends L oL.

Was @bonefishjake as much Mia as present? At best he should be the white shadow. It's like The ghost and Mrs Muriel.
 
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