Exercise Log: August 24 - 30

This week I canoed, ran and biked 27.48 miles, burned 2492.1 calories and weigh 149.9 pounds.

Sunday: canoed .5 mile
Monday: ran 2.15 miles in 24:14
Tuesday: biked 2.96 miles in 13:53
Wednesday: ran 1.14 miles in 15:00 and 6.08 miles in 1:05:00
Thursday: ran 2.01 miles in 24:37
Friday: biked 4.02 miles in 18:46
Saturday: ran 8.62 miles in 1:43:52

My canoe experience was short because Loki accompanied us. A half mile was all he could handle his first time out so I took him out of the canoe and walked with him while Walter paddled some more. I let him go off leash in the swimming area and he had a good time splashing in the water and chasing turkey buzzards.

I bought a life jacket for him for our next trip. Hopefully, he can last a bit longer in the canoe and maybe learn to swim.

The nightmare at the Bank of Santa Royale begins

I love psychotic Ruthie.
Thus begins the nightmare of a customer service representative at the Bank of Santa Royale.

Toby, you might want to light a match and lay off the spicy food. Maybe turn the AC down a bit as well.

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I subscribe to a blog called Art Deadlines List. Description: Art contests & competitions, art jobs & internships, art scholarships & grants & fellowships, art festivals, call for entries/proposals/projects, and other opportunities in all disciplines, for art students, art teachers, and artists of all ages.

From time to time I tag an entry as "keep new" in Bloglines intending to follow up or submit something for a particular show. The deadline always passes and I never submit anything. My cartooning, life and other things end up filling up my time. I've not created other art in over a year.

I tagged this as keep new:

Side Show! Freak Show! Creep Show! We've all heard the terms. What does this mean to you? What comes to mind? What do YOU consider a 'Freak of Nature'? What constitutes this label? This is an open call to artists of all mediums to challenge themselves to respond to the title of this show. Who can participate: Anyone in the world, all artists welcome, all mediums. No entry fee. Contact: GM (Deadline is October 15)

The bold question really intrigues me. In response I want submit a portrait of Ann Coulter. So much ugliness in a somewhat attractive package. What a freak of nature.

Laugh out loud Mary Worth

Stupidity only hurts the people who have to deal with it. It's funny because no real people are harmed by Toby's cluelessness. Thanks for perpetuating a negative stereotype, Toby. I feel so sorry for the bank employee that will have to explain things to Toby but at least that person and the other customer service people with the bank will have a good laugh once the call is completed. Her story might appear on customerssuck.com.

What alerted the bank to fraudulent activity? Clothing purchases made a store that sells non-ugly clothes.

Happy cocktiel vs. Happy baby

As an owner of a cocktiel, I found the third panel of Baby Blues a bit offensive. Salvador can make some annoying noises when happy but he is not nearly as annoying as a loud baby. I'm one of those nasty people who cannot distinguish between loud annoying happy noises and loud annoying other emotion noises. My pain receptors cannot make the distinction. I would rather hear a cockatiel or any parrot in a restaurant over a baby regardless of its emotional state.

The two times that I've taken Salvador to a public venue (church for animal blessing) he has been fairly quiet. Just a bit of soft chirping.

Happy cockatiel does not equal happy baby! Happy cockatiel rules! Happy cocktiel rocks!

Exercise Log: August 18 - 23

This week I biked and ran 20.02 miles, burned 1594.1 calories and weigh 150.1 pounds. No, I did not gain a bunch of weight this week, I readjusted my scale. I'm not bothered by the change in numbers after the adjustment. My goal was to get to a healthy BMI which for my height is 160 pounds.

Monday: ran 4.35 miles in 51:48
Tuesday: biked 2.94 miles in 14:06
Wednesday: ran 4.41 miles in 49:26
Friday: biked 3.9 miles in 19:54
Saturday: ran 4.42 miles in 49:23

Ms. Kitty's Kitty

When I saw this cartoon at Chron.com, it reminded me of a post about Ms. Kitty's cat, Maxie and dealing with his hunting instinct. Looks like a 6 or 7 point buck. At least she does not have to worry about field dressing Maxie's kills.

Speaking of adopted pets, two years ago today Loki went from being a foster dog with two unsuccessful adoptions under his collar to permanent member of the family. Right now, he is becoming one with the floor.

Day 22

Ew! No nipples or navel!

For some odd reason I find the swim cap in the second panel more repulsive than Ian's lack of nipples and navel. Toby holds the cap the same way I hold the plastic bag after I've picked up after Loki.

Day 21

No sign of Mary Worth but we get a glimpse of Ian Cameron's surprisingly hairless back and Toby's lack of cleavage. I guess she decided to take a quick dip in the pool as a break from the demanding bill paying.

[begin blatant comment whoring]

A question inspired by the Olympic diving event: How big a splash would Ian Cameron make if he executed a cannonball into the Charterstone poll?

[end blatant comment whoring]

I found out last night that I had been lifting heavier than I thought. I thought the barbells were 40 pounds. Turns out they are 45 pounds. I bench pressed 80 pounds for 4 reps. I managed to get that weight to my chest rather than just bending my arms to a little over 90 degrees.

20 Days

I have revived the Mary Worth watch. 20 days since Mary Worth appeared in her own comic strip. It should take another 11 days for Toby to pay her credit card bill. Today: filling in the fields on the check; tomorrow: signing check; next day: finding envelope (because Toby's credit card issuer does not provide envelopes); day 4: finding stamp; day 5: putting statement and check into envelope; day 6: sealing envelope; day 7: affixing stamp; day 8: addressing envelope (Santa Royale does not have those fancy window envelopes); day 9: standing up; day 10: head out door; day 11: see Mary Worth on way to mailbox.

If this storyline continues to move at its current pace then Mary Worth should set a new record for absence from her own comic strip.

I would like Mary Worth, Style Mavin attempt to recreate Toby's purple chitinous plate blouse.

On my Leg Press I did 31 reps @ 155 pounds.

Bodies

Off the Mark and Days of Thunder brings today's comic page theme - strategically placed props

Speaking of the human body check out this slide show from the New York Times. The stats are mind boggling and given the diversity of body types all these athletes consume about the same amount of calories.

Boxing fascinates me because of the wide range of sizes that participate. From nbcolympics.com:
Weight classes (kilogram amounts are official)
• Light flyweight (Up to 48kg/106 lbs)
• Flyweight (Over 48kg/106 lbs up to 51kg/112 lbs)
• Bantamweight (Over 51kg/112 lbs up to 54kg/119 lbs)
• Featherweight (Over 54kg/119 lbs up to 57kg/126 lbs)
• Lightweight (Over 57kg/126 lbs up to 60kg/132 lbs)
• Light welterweight (Over 60kg/132 lbs up to 64kg/141 lbs)
• Welterweight (Over 64kg/141 lbs up to 69 kg/152 lbs)
• Middleweight (Over 69kg/152 lbs up to 75 kg/165 lbs)
• Light heavyweight (Over 75 kg/165 lbs up to 81kg/179 lbs)
• Heavyweight (Over 81 kg/179 lbs up to 91 kg/201 lbs)
• Super heavyweight (Over 91kg/201 lbs)

Athleticism comes in all shapes, sizes and ages.

Yesterday, I did my jump rope for the Gold's Gym Games: 1 minute 36.44 seconds. This is a personal best according to the way I count (I count the number of times I go over the rope): 102. Then I ran 4 miles and never felt lighter on my feet. I need to add jump rope to my regular training routine. My coordination has improved as well as my running.

Later today I do the leg press. 155 or 160 pounds depending on what the gym scale says today. I'm weighing with my shoes on because I wear them while working out.

Exercise Log: August 11 - 17

This week I ran, biked and used the elliptical trainer for 22.83 miles, burned 2314.4 calories and weigh 142.1 pounds.

Monday: ran 2.36 miles in 28:54
Tuesday: elliptical trainer for .72 miles in 10:00
Wednesday: ran 6.01 miles in 1:05:00
Thursday: ran 2.43 miles in 26:56
Friday: biked 4.02 miles in 17:48
Saturday: ran 7.29 miles in 1:28:35

Gold's Gym Games training:
Tuesday: Jump Rope - 3.5 minutes; 21 reps Leg Press @ 170 pounds; 3 reps Bench Press @ 80 pounds; 270 seconds Wrestler's Bridge
Friday: Jump Rope - 3 minutes; 22 reps Leg Press @ 175 pounds; 4 reps Bench Press @ 80 pounds; 213 seconds Wrestler's Bridge

Chest Fly Wedgie

Has the Decathlon started yet? The shot put and the women's 10,000 meters have posted results already. Damn, this 13 hour time difference.

I love these kind of panels where you get a gag and lots of things to wonder about.

Loretta has absolutely no appreciation for Leroy. Leroy wonders why he bothers reading and quoting great literature when it all goes over Loretta's head. Maybe the Lockhorns is set in the world of Harrison Bergeron. Poor Leroy has sirens screaming in his head right now.

Not waiting for Godot

Leroy again demonstrates how well read he is. This allows him to deliver insults about Loretta's cooking beyond, this tastes like @#$!.

One of the male announcers for the gymnastics competition irritated me with his tortured metaphors and attempts to reference material he did not really know. Some of his commentary has been so awful that I wonder if he was simply reading what someone else wrote.

Waiting for a turn on an apparatus is nothing like Waiting for Godot. [Spoiler Alert!] Godot never showed up [end spoiler] but Shawn Johnson did complete her vault.

I did 45 sit ups last night for the Gold's Gym Games.

My dentist checked my blood pressure and pulse: 111/56 and 45.

Coloring Demons

Not only did Venus pass math in 6 weeks, she got a tan and dyed her hair blue just like the teacher. Maybe reverse Vitaligo.

Lessons from the comics: Never scare a miniature horse while inside the house. Never scare the daylights out of any animal unless a good distance away otherwise you might end up with daylights all over your shoes.

Pull Ups

The pull ups were modified for women. It was an overhand straight arm hang with shoulders down and back, spine in a neutral position and no swinging. I had to bend my knees in order to hang. My time - 40.41 seconds.

Push Up Results

18 regular push ups
34 modified push ups

I found out I could do modified push ups after I ran two miles. The modified set counted. Two other women were just as surprised about the apparent change in rules. The gym staff allowed me to do the modified set because I was not told about that option when I did my first set.

The pull ups have been modified for women, too. I might get some points after all.

Olympics

Where can my dear husband see a good video of the drumming countdown to the opening ceremony of the Olympics? We tried nbcolympics.com but all the videos either edit that part or talk about how spectacular it was and then not show it. MSN also does not acknowledge the existence of my TV provider so I had to say Dish Network in order to see some of the archived videos.

I spent a good portion of the weekend watching various Olympic events. Can someone from another country explain to me what is so damn exciting about soccer? It is more fun to watch than golf, poker and fishing but not by much. I understand the existence of soccer hooligans, now. I watched soccer games on both CNBC and Telemundo.

Watched women's beach volleyball. US vs. Japan. The Japanese team is the second shortest team in the tournament at 5 feet 8 inches and 5 feet 9 inches! Caught a bit of men's rowing, and a little of women's indoor volleyball.

The men's light heavy weight boxing matches were boring. Jab - hug - jab - hug - jab - hug - jab - hug. The welterweights and light welterweights were much more interesting fights. I'm becoming a fan of Tony, one of the fight commentators. He sounds and looks like an old boxer that took too many to the head. He provides some of the best unintentionally funny commentary. For example, 4th round in a light welterweight match, the scoring was close and Tony says this match will come down to whoever can establish his identity. I did not realize boxing had so many dimensions - punching, bobbing, weaving and identity formation all in two minute rounds. Most of the boxing matches have been on CNBC and Telemundo but be sure to watch a few matches on CNBC for Tony's commentary and a segment called Tony's Corner. NBC needs to bring Tony into prime time.

I'm cheering for a 33 year old gymnast competing for Germany - a woman competing in women's gymnastics.

Watched a sport new to me - synchronized diving - much more impressive than synchronized swimming.

For those on Suddenlink Cable the channels are 6 (NBC), 21 (Telemundo), 23 (USA), 37 (CNBC) and 64 (MSNBC). I'm annoyed with NBC for not showing Olympics on all their channels at the same time. They only use two channels at a time and seem to go to commercial at the same damn time. I like to see various events and want to jump around during commercials. I guess NBC got too much grief when they added Sci-Fi to their Master's coverage so that one get left out for the Olympics.

I don't know why I'm so interested in this Olympics (I signed up for the alerts for Track and Field). I don't think I will get much done in the evenings for the next couple of weeks.

Speaking of games, I will be doing my first event in the Gold's Gym Games tonight - push ups. I'm aiming for 25, my personal best so far 21.

Exercise Log: August 4 - 9

This week I did 22.87 miles of running, rowing, canoeing, cycling and elliptical training; burned 2272.9 calories and weigh 144.3 pounds.

Monday: 3.48 miles of canoeing in 1:18:51, 2.36 miles of running in 25:37
Tuesday: 1.26 miles of rowing in 10:00
Wednesday: 5.34 miles of running in 59:39
Thursday: 2.13 miles of cycling in 8:59
Friday: 1.07 miles of elliptical training in 15:00
Saturday: 7.23 miles of running in 1:27:54

Gold's Gym Games training:
Tuesday: 19 Push Ups, 3 Assisted Pull Ups @ 120 pounds, 5 Lat Pull Downs @ 90 pounds, 10 Leaning Pull Ups, 52 Sit Ups, 3 minutes Jump Rope, 31 Leg Press @ 165 pounds, 11 Bench Press @ 65 pounds, 203 seconds Wrestler's Bridge
Thursday: 14 Push Ups, 2 Assisted Pull Ups @ 110 pounds, 4 Lat Pull Downs @ 100 pounds, 14 Leaning Pull Ups, 65 Sit Ups, 3.62 minutes Jump Rope, 22 Leg Press @ 170 pounds, 6 Bench Press @ 70 pounds, 262 seconds Wrestler's Bridge
Friday: 16 Push Ups, 11 Leaning Pull Ups, 41 Sit Ups, 3.1 minutes Jump Rope, 20 Leg Press @ 175 pounds, 5 Bench Press @ 75 pounds, 122 seconds Wrestler's Bridge

Next week is the Push Up, Pull Up and Sit Up events (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday). I have not completed an unassisted Pull Up. Hopefully strong showing in the Push Up and Sit Up will make up for the lack of Pull Up points. I have managed to pull myself up about 2 inches.

Phishing for a space bar

The person behind Enormoushop.com has done it again! Wait for the redirect and check out the private information of Toby Cameron. Click on the link at the bottom of the update account page to get back to the normal page and check on the link in the upper right corner to see videos of bunnies doing tricks.

Re-register her account again? She has fallen for this scam before? Why does Ian leave her unsupervised?

A bonus Toby Cameron avatar:

She will do anything to make sure her beloved Ian receives that slightly used DVD that he desires.

Love is risking identity theft to fulfill the desires of your beloved.

Phishing for a climax

Phishing! Blatant phishing with misspellings.

Ergonomics experts scream as they look at Toby sitting in front of her computer.

Some brilliant person has some inside information from the Mary Worth Compound. The day before Enormoushop.com was mentioned someone bought the domain and built a website. Yesterday links referring to phishing and spam were added.

No one has come forward to claim responsibility for this brilliant bit of humor. I have the skills to build a website but alas, it did not occur to me to buy the domain and build this site. I wish I had. I'm willing to waste time on Mary Worth but not money.

Neither Josh at Comics Curmudgeon or wanders at Mary Worth and Me have claimed credit. The genius Mary Worth mocker behind Enormoushop.com remains a mystery. Keep up the work and fix your broken images (Explorer 7 and Firefox 2.x).

Starting Early

Starting them early on the path of drinking while driving. Britney Spears shops at the Bryan HEB. Natural Light. Yes, I'm an elitist when it comes to beer and littering.

Has Joe Giella ever seen anyone operate a keyboard? Is Toby using her elbow to press the space bar to complete her transaction or pushing F10? I tried operating my keyboard like Toby and only got as far as, "I tr". This better lead to something - Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, a Nigerian e-mail scam (it would be funny if Toby were a scam baiter), enlargement spam, lies about Barak Obama followed by a futile e-mail advising the original sender to bookmark and read snopes.com (for the 5,000th time!). At this point, I'm open to just about anything.

Well played Karen Moy. Break me down with boredom and then introduce something that under normal circumstances would seem mundane but after weeks of witnessing the mundane daily activities and thoughts of Toby Cameron two panels at a time becomes a welcome respite. Do you work at Guantanamo Bay?

Exercise Log: June 28 - August 2

This week I ran, biked and rowed 20.27 miles, burned 1842.9 calories and weigh 144 pounds.

Monday: ran 2.31 miles in 31:06
Tuesday: biked 1.9 miles in 9:21
Wednesday: ran 5.70 miles in 1:05:00
Thursday: rowed 1.27 miles in 10:00
Friday: biked 3.05 miles in 14:27
Saturday: ran 6.04 miles in 1:14:22

Gold Gym Games training:
Tuesday: 16 Push Ups; 6 Assisted Pull Ups @ 130 pounds; 10 Pull Downs @ 80 pounds; 21 Leaning Pull Ups on Smith Machine; 57 Sit Ups; 1 minute 15 seconds Jump Rope (I cut this workout short to attend vigil at church)

Thursday: 18 Push Ups; 4 Assisted Pull Ups @ 120 pounds; 4 Pull Downs @ 90 pounds; 20 Leaning Pull Ups on Smith Machine; 47 Sit Ups; 3 minutes Jump Rope; 19 Leg Press @ 165 pounds; 10 Bench Press @ 65 pounds; 125 seconds Wrestler's Bridge

Friday: 12 Push Ups; 2 Assisted Pull Ups @ 110 pounds; 3 Pull Downs @ 100 pounds; 23 Leaning Pull Ups on Smith Machine; 61 Sit Ups; 3.5 minutes Jump Rope; 18 Leg Press @ 170 pounds; 6 Bench Press @ 70 pounds; 180 seconds Wrestler's Bridge

The Wrestler's Bridge is not part of the Gold's Gym Games, I do this as part of my regular strength training.

I earned my grilling merit badge today. Grilled a pair of chicken breast kabobs. I will try some fish on Sunday or Monday.

Watching a drawing of paint dry

Reading Mary Worth is like watching a drawing of someone watching paint dry.

Is Toby visually impaired or is she one of those has to touch everything? I bet she touches the screen when she points out something on a monitor.

King Features wonders why they cannot retain anyone in the sales department.

The sales person that the boss at King Features hates gets Mary Worth and the one he/she likes gets Pardon My Planet.

Moses is one exceptionally well dressed kid.