Posts

Showing posts from May, 2013

Sally's Art Show

Image
My wife held her first annual art show for the kids she teaches in her class,  Art and the Artist.   I took some pictures of the show and of some of my favorite pieces. Maybe I'm biased, but I think Sally is a terrific art teacher, and some of her kids have real talent.  My daughter Hannah did this one.  I told her it looked like a Matisse. Hannah also did this one, called Two Mountains. A very talented little girl named Abigail did this one. Abigail also did this one, called The Four Limes.  I thought it was the best piece in the show. A 3-year-old did this one.  I loved it. My daughter Emma did this one, based on a Dr. Seuss piece.

Invitation, Un-looked-for: 2013 Duathlon National Championships

Image
Congratulations  Daniel Head ! With your finish at the  Brian's Beachside Boogie Duathlon , USA Triathlon would like to invite you to the 2013 USAT Duathlon National Championship, presented by TriSports.com. 

Wet Daddy

Image
I rode into work yesterday because it was a beautiful morning.  I knew it was probably gonna rain, but I decided to take the chance. Well, it did in fact rain yesterday afternoon.  I don't know that that picture quite does justice to how wet I got on the ride home. Regardless, it was a cold, miserable experience. 

Stratford Memorial Day Parade, 2013

Image
My favorite thing about the Stratford Memorial Day Parade is that it seems like half the town marches in it while the other half watches.  My girls marched with the Girl Scouts this year, and they even had a float! Pics are after the jump!

Triathlon Training Diary: 5/20 to 5/26

I’m gonna try to keep this short because it’s Memorial Day, and I can think of lots of better things to do today besides sitting there reading my blog.   Happy Memorial Day!   Now go outside and do something exciting!

Mask of the Red Panda

Image
Mask of the Red Panda #1 from Monkeybrain Comics . Bought it yesterday.  Haven't had a chance to read it yet, but I'm sooooo looking forward to it.   I've been loving the podcast .

Friday Mad Science: On Turning 40.

Image
For the longest time, it’s seemed like I’ve been  nearly  forty.  At physicals the last couple of years, doc’s have told me, “You’re almost forty now, so you need to start blah, blah, blah...”  I had to get glasses for the first time last year, whereupon one of my friends immediately said, “That’s what happens when you turn forty!”  Hrm.  Well, I may have glasses now, but no power on Earth can make me wear them, it seems.  And finally, this year I even started racing in the 40-44 year old age bracket in triathlons--because age is figured  at the end  of the triathlon season for some reason--and that just made it more real than ever.   And now, finally, the day has come and gone at last.  There’s no more hiding from it. I am 40.

Friday Hair Metal: Free Fallin'

Image
Sally had this version of this song on last night when I got home.  I've never been a huge fan of Tom Petty even though people have told me that I look like Petty--not a compliment, that--but I liked this version quite a bit.

Email from USA Triathlon

Image
Congratulations  Daniel Head . You have qualified for the Olympic-Distance race at the 2013 USA Triathlon Age Group National Championships on  August 10th,  in Milwaukee, Wis., after finishing in the top  10  percent in your age group at the  The Y Tri . 

And just like that...

...it's Summer.  So long Spring.  Too bad we barely knew ya!

A Look at NBC's Dracula

Image
Well.  Now that the Duke of Suffolk is about to make a star turn in Man of Steel , it's good to see that his good friend Henry VIII ( Jonathan Rhys Meyers ) hasn't been totally swept under the rug.

Stray Voltage: 5/21/13

Image
Sally and I were supposed to ride together this morning, but after a hard week of work last week and then a second night in a row of crappy sleep, I begged off.  And even now that I'm feeling better, I still can't say that it was the wrong decision.

Triathlon Training Diary: 5/13 to 5/19

Image
This week started off kind of slow.  It was a little hard to get motivated coming off of the race last weekend, and then, too, there was a lot of family stuff going on.  But I think I managed to end on a high note, so I guess I’ll take it.   Moreover, this was a run-focused week, and since running is by far and away my weakest discipline, I felt good about putting whatever effort I had into it.

Sunday Comics: Bronx Angel--Politics By Another Method (Page 32)

Image
Bronx Angel: Politics By Another Method , page 32. Click here to see the page at full size.

Friday Mad Science: Going Bulworth

Image
Right up front, let me just say that the news this week is depressing as Hell.  You’ve got the President talking about going full-on “ Bulworth ”,  sexual assaults apparently rampant in the military , and  the mayor of Osaka defending Japan’s use of “comfort women” during World War II as “necessary at the time to maintain discipline in the army .”  Oh, and  the CEO of Google wants to start his own country , so that he can beta-test his weird-ass social programs without the pesky oversight of people or government.  

Friday Hair Metal: Patience

Image
Why is this song on my mind?   *sigh*   I don't think I could explain it. Happy Friday, everybody.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Trailer

Image
You might've seen this yesterday.  It was all over the Internet. My only comment is that Gunn isn't big enough to play Luke Cage.

Polygamy, USA

Image
Sally and I sat down to watch TV last night, and we wound up watching this crazy reality show on  NatGeo  called  Polygamy, USA .  We were both fascinated. I couldn't get the videos to load off of Nat Geo's website, so you're stuck with this logo.  But by all means, jump through the link and take a look at this for yourself. The show was pretty much exactly what it seemed like--a reality show set on a massive polygamous compound out in the middle of nowhere in, I think, Nevada.  

After Work: Beers for Relaxing

Image
As I write this, it's Monday evening, and Sally and I are getting ready to relax with a couple of beers.  Today's beers of choice are Hoptimum , Sierra Nevada's Imperial IPA (for me), and Widmer Brothers' Unfiltered Hefeweizen .

Y-Tri 2013 Race Report

Image
FIRM Racing  and the  Woodruff Family YMCA  held their fourth annual  Y-Tri  over the weekend, and I raced it as my first full triathlon of the season.  The race is a short sprint, consisting of a 300 yard pool swim, followed by an 11-mile bike course, followed by a 2.35-mile run.  That makes it the triathlon equivalent of a 10K--a good race for beginners and/or folks looking to try triathlon for the first time, and also a tune-up race for more serious triathletes early in the season. I did well in this race, and that was important to me because I coach the Woodruff Y’s triathlon club, and while the club itself is neither large nor particularly formal, I still wanted to put my best foot forward with people that I like and respect looking on.

Sunday Comics: Bronx Angel--Politics By Another Method (Page 31)

Image
Bronx Angel: Politics By Another Method  (Page 31). Click here to see this page at full size .

Friday Mad Science: A Few Things to Think About...

Image
A report released on Monday was the first to openly blame the actual Chinese government for a lot of the cyber-attacks that have hit this country over the past ten years.  And while I don’t think it’s surprising that the Chinese are trying to hack American government computers as part of a prolonged espionage campaign, what is surprising is that the American government has responded by making what would ordinarily be a covert struggle public .

This is what drives me crazy about D&D...

Image
These guys go to the trouble to make a game, make a trailer for that game, make that trailer look awesome, but then they can't spend $100 to hire a decent screenwriter to give the trailer words that will make sense to a regular human being.   I mean, seriously?  I love D&D, and even I'm turned off--way off!--by this thing. Ugh.

The Red Panda

Image
I've become such a fan of Decoder Ring Theater. http://www.decoderringtheatre.com
Ugh. I have a headache, so of course, I also have to design something.   On days when I feel great, nobody ever asks tough questions.  They wait until I look like poop, and then suddenly, I'm the smartest guy in the room, and only I can answer the difficult questions. 

Tour de Cure 2013

Dear Friends, The 2013 Tour de Cure is coming fast, and I need your help!  The Tour is a bike ride sponsored by the  American Diabetes Association. It's an opportunity to change the future and make a positive impact in the lives of those who are affected by diabetes and to remind folks of the importance of living healthy lifestyles.  In today's sedentary society, diabetes is becoming an increasingly prevalent and dangerous disease, and that fact is that you almost certainly know someone who has been affected by it.  That means that you already know how important it is to stop this disease. By making a donation on my behalf or by joining my Tour de Cure team, you will be helping the Association provide community-based education programs, protect the rights of people with diabetes and fund critical research for a cure. I am committed to ride and raise money in this inspirational event not just because 26 million people in the United States have diabetes, but because I personally

Quassy Amusement Park Pics

Image

Triathlon Training Diary: April 29 – May 5 (Week 3)

This was the last working week before my first triathlon of the season, a short sprint at my local YMCA called the Y-Tri .  The week’s training was slightly complicated by the fact that I didn’t ride my commute as much this week as I usually do, but ultimately, I think this was a decent week of work. Swim As usual, I got in the water twice this week.  The first time was Thursday morning before I drove up to Albany for a business meeting.  I don’t remember exactly what I did, but I do remember struggling with it because it was so early.  I’m almost 40, and I still feel like I can be a decent athlete when I work at it, but the early mornings are a struggle these days.  If I want to perform, I need to give myself at least an hour to wake up and get moving before I start really working. I got in the water Sunday afternoon and swam better. 5 x 100 @ 1:30 warm-up 100-200-300-400-400-300-200-100 Ladder Set @ base 1:25/100 200 warm down My intent during the main set was to swim at

Sunday Comics: Bronx Angel--Politics By Another Method (Page 30)

Image
Bronx Angel: Politics By Another Method , page 30. Click here to see this page at full size .

Iron Man 3 Quickie Review

Image
As I mentioned in Friday Mad Science , Sally and I went to see Iron Man 3 last night.  It was a fun flick, don't get me wrong, but I think some of the reviews I've seen have been a little overblown to say the least. I mean, yeah, the movie is funny and clever and often surprising, but it wasn't by far the best of the series.  In fact, I think it falls into the trap that a lot of superhero movies fall into--it doesn't really want to be a movie about a superhero.  Unlike the earlier Iron Man films, this one is much more a movie about Tony Stark , and it seems almost uncomfortable with him actually in his armor.  In that way, it's similar to Thor , where the first thing that happens is that Thor loses his hammer and essentially becomes mortal.  He then spends the entire movie trying to become who he really is, meaning that the movie itself isn't exactly about Thor , it's really a little more about a guy who wants to be Thor . On the one hand, it's

Endorsements

One of my buddies endorsed me on LinkedIn lately, and that was nice.  Thanks! But it was also funny because I haven't seen the guy in almost twenty years, and I think that the last time I did see him, we argued.  Which doesn't mean that I don't think we're friends, or that I have bad memories or anything like that.  On the contrary, had I known it was gonna be, like, two decades... I probably would've tried to make sure we didn't part on mediocre terms.  'Cause he's a good guy--at least as I remember it. And although it has taken me four days, I've finally endorsed him back.  Frankly, that seems like the least that I can do. So then LinkedIn asks me if I want to endorse anybody else. Do I?  Shit yeah!  Of course I do! So, bottom line, I endorsed pretty much everybody for everything until I ran out of time, and I'm telling you right now that if you want me to endorse you, I will totally do it.  Odds are that we haven't seen each oth

Friday Mad Science: Hydro-Fracking, Chromebooks, and Martha Stewart!

Image
Hydro-Fracking, Chromebooks, and Martha Stewart!   Yup.  Not a bad week of news if you ask me.

Friday Hair Metal: Natalie Maines's "Mother"

Image
Natalie Maines was on NPR last night , and in the interview, I learned that she has a new solo album.  The album is called Mother , and this is the title track. The interviewer noted that the new album is "empthatically not a country album," and Maines responded that she'd never really thought of herself as a country singer.  Which is maybe a little weird, but I suppose at this point I can see why she'd say that.  I gotta say, though, that while her songs are instrumentally not country (maybe), her vocal progressions certainly still sound that way--at least in my ears. Anyway, the NPR interviewer also noted that this song is creepy as Hell, and on that I agree emphatically.  Maines responded that she'd tried to sing from the point of view of the child, but that she herself is a mother, and that she can therefore see why, as a mother, the subject of this song would want to wrap her kid in bubble-wrap and build a wall around him. Yeah.  That comes throug

Dixie

Image
Dixie 2000 - 2013 Our dog Dixie was born in the late summer of the year 2000.  At the time, my folks were living in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and they were friends with a couple who bred retrievers at a little farm they owned within the city limits.  My folks agreed to stud out my grandfather’s dog Toby in exchange for the pick of the resulting litter, and Dixie was their pick.  She was born in the week before I got back from Korea, and I first met her the day after I got back.   She was less than a week old.  Back then, she could stand comfortably in the palm of my hand.

Sad Angel, Iron Man, Marvel Comics, and Infinity

Image
I read today that Fleetwood Mac has just put out a new EP.  This is the first cut from the album, called Sad Angel .