We did a WOD (workout of the day. Shouldn't it be WOOD? Or WOOTD?) that consisted of:
As many reps as possible in 15 minutes - 25m lunge with 45# plate, then run 400m, repeat.
I'm horribly weak when it comes to lunges. I never do them. Add a 45 lb plate to the mix and 400m runs and it just gets worse. I predicted a paltry 2 reps mostly as a joke when asked how many I would get. I figured I could get 5. I ended up only getting 3 1/2 reps done. Ugh.
Someday I'll be able to keep up with the others - I hope.... :)
I've been doing a fair bit of exercising the last 2 1/2 -3 months. I'm trying to combat the lovely effects of sitting in an office with minimal movement for 42+ plus hours a week. That doesn't fit well with being diabetic, so I joined the local crossfit gym. Here is a video of part of last night's workout after the weighted pull up segment:
I'm not really in it much b/c I was A) positioned at the back half of the "course" plus B) I am weak and pathetic compared to most of the people there. My team ended up losing and I can't help but feel that my weak performance led to that. :)
Or here is another video of me shortly after joining up demonstrating my strong knowledge about olympic lifts and my perfect form doing overhead squats (insert eye rolling here). In case you can't tell I'm the one with the confused/unsure answers. I've gotten better since then, but I've still got a long way to go...
Visited my cousin Rudy in Marquette, MI with his brother Wes. Had a good time and made this stupid video when commented about the scenery on one hike reminding him of the movie The Last of the Mohicans.
There are lots of movies with lots of cool cars. Here's a list of the most memorable ones for me with some youtube clips. No particular order other than my #1 pick.
But first let's start off with one of my favorite car movie intros...
Gone in 60 Seconds (remake) Opening Credits
I remember seeing this in the theater with my buds. As the music started with the montage/collage of the brothers growing up in the car culture, I thought "this is going to be the greatest car movie ever". About an hour into the movie my thought changed to "where are all the cars"? Major letdown as a movie overall.
No surprise that this wild, black, "last of the V8 interceptors" made an impression on me as a kid. I thought it was the coolest thing when Max turns on/off the supercharger (plus the axle hop stop). I also liked the yellow pursuit vehicles in Mad Max.
Smokey and the Bandit - 1977 Firebird Trans Am
Another movie car I remember loving as a kid. That giant firebird graphic on the hood screamed cool to me. Now days it's more "classic" than "cool". If I had a firebird it would have to have the graphic on the hood.
Back To The Future - 1981/82 Delorean DMC-12
Other than the Star Wars movies, Back to the Future was my most watched movie growing up. The car was wild and out there with the gull wing doors. Oh and flux capacitor. Brilliant. Eighty-Eight miles an hour!!
Christine - 1958 Plymouth Fury
Alot of these older car movies were of course introduced to me by my Dad who loves cars. This killer-car movie was creepy the first time I saw it, with the radio that would come on and play music. The car "talking" via radio/music idea would later be reused in Transformers. The "Okay....show me..." scene below is the best!
Gone in 60 Seconds (remake) - 1967 Shelby GT500 (Eleanor)
No matter how dissappointed with the movie I was, the Eleanor car rocked. After waiting the whole movie for a good car chase scene we finally get one at the end. Could have been better without the Bruckheimer-ness (especially the car jump/ET stunt).
Gone in 60 Seconds (original) - 1973 Ford Mustang Mach 1
Just recently watched this for the first time. Oh dear lord the fashion styles, hair and moustaches in this movie...... It is definitely a dated movie, but not a bad chase scene considering the cars are all original back then (suspension/tires/handling). The car is cool, but not as sexy as Eleanor in the remake.
Transformers - 1976 Camaro Z28
Setting the movie and the VW Bug vs. Camaro controversy aside, I loved the junked out POS Bumblebee Camaro. I've a soft spot for Camaros since I was young -like a ton of middle class suburban/hick '80s/'90s kids who dreamed of those cars. On the whole the movie is weak, but I liked the "boy and his first car" feeling in the beginning of the movie. I wish they would have kept the '76 Z28 the whole time, just have Bumblebee make it look restored instead of a new Camaro. I have a secret dream (well not secret now I guess) to buy a POS '76 Z28 and make it a POS Bumblebee replica.
Vanishing Point - 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T
What happens when you make a bet that you can deliver a car from Colorado to San Fransisco in an ungodly short timespan? Well, if it is 1971, you take a lot of speed to stay on edge and then drive like a bat outta hell. This movie, like Two Lane Blacktop, really captures the look, feel and spirit of the early '70s. Or at least how I imagine it. That white Challenger flying through the blasted deserts and blue skies is so iconic.
Two Lane Blacktop - 1955 Chevy
One Christmas during high school I hunted down a VHS tape for this hard to find movie my Dad remembered but couldn't find. A car movie with James Taylor, the singer, with hair and acting? I remember sitting down to watch this with Dad, excited because of the hype he had built up about the movie. Two-thirds of the way through the movie I think I had my first ever WTF moment. The movie barely had a story and the thinnest of plots.Story telling in movies has thankfully progressed. I understand now, looking back, that while the movie may be boring and story-lite it does capture Route 66 life during the late '60s/early '70s car culture. It is more like a history/museum highlight reel now, showing us young 'uns the pop culture trends of Americana at that time. As far as the main car goes, this movie sealed the deal on the '55 Chevy being my favorite out of the '55-'57 Chevys.
Ghostbusters 1 & 2 - 1959 Cadillac Ambulance
For Jeff. Another classic '80s movie from childhood. I'm actually more familiar with the cartoon than the movies. Either way it is a memorable car - and huge too! You tube clips shows a good walk-around of the car, but has some random dudes in GB gear.
Death Proof - 1971 Nova
I can't think of another movie that I love and hate more. I love the car scenes, but man I hate the rest of Death Proof. I'm convinced that is by design as Taratino was making a Grindhouse movie where, true to form the second part of a double feature usually sucked except for a couple scenes. That is the case here. Cool cars through out the movie, but the Nova is the most unique of the bunch. My current dream car for my "some-day" project is a 3rd generation Nova. Classic looks and power, yet still enough in existence to realistically be able to afford one.
Bullitt - 1968 Mustang GT
I don't remember much of the movie other than the car and the main car chase. Steve McQueen was a competent race car driver in real life and you could tell he felt at ease behind the wheel in the chase scenes. As with the original Gone in 60 Seconds car chase scene, this might seem a little blah by today's standards, but Bullitt was one of the pioneers of the car chase scene.
The Fast and The Furious - 1969/70 Dodge Charger R/T
This movie is dated at this point. All the tuned import racers in this movie are garish and "ricey" by today's standards. TF&TF is a good bad movie. The lines/quotes from this movie are of the unintentionally hilarious kind. Still this movie inspired alot of kids at the time and got them into car tuning/culture. I still chuckle at the scene where the charger does a wheelie while also managing to create plumes of smoke from the tires. Not possible. Look closely and you can see a jack of some sort under the charger lifting it up.
Not too thrilled to be going to a work Christmas party tonight. Even worse is it's not my work Christmas party. That means lots of people chatting about work antics that I know nothing about. Ugh. Here is a very basic representation of what the party is like:
The gloominess of Michigan's winter is just around the corner. Sounds like the perfect time to explore the depressing dystopian landscapes of bad post apocalyptic movies! Below is the cliff notes version announcing the event, along with an announcement poster for the 1st movie event. After that is just some of my rambling drivel which I amuse myself with.
The Basics:
What: Fun Shitty Movie Night (here on out referred to as F.S.M.N.) Gather as a group to mercilessly mock and laugh at a bad movie. It's fun! The more people the better.
When: Friday night, December 4, 2009. Starting around 7:30-ish. There will be some snacks and drinks, but if there is a must-have favorite movie munchie you want, bring it!
Where: My house (if you know me but somehow don't know/forgot where I live, contact me for directions)
Here's my attempt at a grindhouse-style flyer for the party.
Want a hi-resolution 8.5"x11" event reminder to print and stick on your fridge? Here ya go! Click the link and there should be a download button near the top left for an 8MB pdf.
The flyer is kind of a mess, but that's sorta the point for a grindhouse film. So in that case call it a hot mess, if you will. OK.......that sounded wrong, but too late now. I already typed it. You love the wildness. You know you do. Did you know in grade school the biggest problem area on my report card was self control? I'm not joking. Somethings never change. Alright. I got that weirdness out of my system. Carry on.
I love Mad Max, The Road Warrior and the first part of Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. I find something about them odd and fascinating. Unfortunately, the post-apocalyptic genre goes downhill in a hurry. I picked a few "gems" from Netflix and then decided I couldn't just watch them by myself. I had to share.
Now we have entered rant territory: I hate the term Post-Apocalyptic to refer to movies set in a future where some cataclysmic event has caused the general collapse of human society & technology. I think apocalypse just means "a revelation" - there is not really a good or bad connotation to it, right? Yet in the movies, Post-Apocalypse means fighting chaotic bands of humans dressed in shoulder-pads and/or studded leather using the almost broken-down technology of a by-gone age. I like that sentence - it was fun to write. Anyways, I think rather than the genre being called "Post-Apocalyptic" it should be called a "Dystopian" movie. At the least, "Post-Armaggedon" Oh well, what can you do? I just left it as Post Apocalypse in my flyer since that is the term everyone knows. You win some, you lose some.
*Another self-analyzation-made-public post - so pretty boring*
I figured I would update my progress on my 100 hours of guitar practice goal - mostly to point out to myself how fail I am. I made it to hour 88 and lost all motivation and commitment. Very typical of me. So what did I lose and what did I gain from it all?
Gain: Learned a bit of patience and sorta willpower (more in the lose section); saw that improvement takes time, but it does happen; learned more music theory and improv skills; can play some more songs.
Lose: Failed at my willpower/commitment goal of 100 hours of practice. "Lost" 88 hours of time (I did but I didn't).
Mostly this exposed my problem to seemingly not stick with anything. I tried to commit to this more than my other attempts in the past. Somewhere around the 80 hour mark things fell apart. I think a large part of it was it was such a solitary thing for me. Skill-wise I had reached the point where I was ready to play with other people. I needed to in order to progress some more. It also wasn't that fun practicing guitar alone for hours on end. None of my friends really are into music that much so I didn't have anyone to "talk shop" with - forums just aren't the same.
I also felt like I hit a wall and I wasn't really getting anywhere. This is where your willpower/determination to succeed is supposed to kick in. This is a recurring issue for me. I flunder, fail and then give up. Happens with alot of things for me. I try to find that thing in my life that I am good at, that I've got so much passion and determination for, that I will be able to surpass this very point I get to. I thought for sure music would be the thing. It always has been since I was a kid the one thing I felt I was naturally good at. Maybe I've got some sort of failure complex. Ooooo, I could get all Jungian on this but at this point I'm just ranting. A large part of it probably boils down to positive vs. negative attitude.
"When the going gets tough, the tough get going."
When the going gets tough, I find another thing to fail at.
Case in point: I start Auto Repair classes at the Community College today. Huh.
Really looking forward to Forza Motorsport 3 in October.The graphics look great, gamplay is supposed to be even better/deeper and the custom painter/livery editor is being imporved upon too. Can't wait. I'm thinking of building a steering wheel cockpit for it.
I've been hunting for a comic book spinning display rack. You know, the kind that used to be in all the grocery stores and pharmacies when I was growing up. I finally found one! I'm pretty pumped to get it, as they are getting harder and harder to find (and more expensive). I'm planning to get a bunch of old beat up comics from the '70s/'80s from a 25¢/50¢ bin at the comic book shops to fill all the slots with. I really want to recreate that feel of walking up to the comic rack, picking up comics from it and flipping through them or reading it. Maybe I'll have a tradition when people stop by my house they can pick a comic off the rack to keep. Just a fun little thing.
