Late Friday Ponderings
Had a great weekend over Labor Day, then a sucky work week, and now I’m just bleh about the upcoming weekend. The heat and humidity drains the life energy away. Even Diego’s a lethargic little slug. The only thing around here showing energy are his #$^# fleas.
Might go to the La Jolla Rough Water on Sunday, even though injuries killed my training and no one I know is swimming this year. Should get reminded of why I want to keep training and hope I can make it competitive next year. I still think it would be fun if I can just avoid getting trampled to death on the start.
Back To Basics
FINA to ban high tech body suits in competitive swimming. Finally swimming can get back to the athletics and the athletes, and not be just a technical competition where competing patent-holders get to swim vicariously.
Late Start To The Weekend
Site maintenance is done, unless I’ve broken something that I haven’t noticed yet. Now it’s time for Chuck maintenance. A little swimming, a little tanning, and little reading. Sundays rock.
Disconnected Thoughts
Not really proscrastinating, just trying to avoid overthinking a hearing this afternoon. Need to keep things focussed and on point. I’d sneak out for a swim, but the tendons in my wrist seem to have gotten mangled (again) over the last week, and I’m trying to be good until BorgHealth can do some probes and give me some magic pills on Monday. Good equals bored though. Not only does the swimming keep me from becoming Jabba the Chuck, but it keeps me sane. Need to be doing something away from the electronic leashes, and the swimming cuts off the links for a while. That’s a good thing.
Brutal Winter, SoCal Style
The mood swing is back on the other side of it’s arc this morning, and I am most definitely not upset with another day in the mid 80s during this brutal winter. Just need to manipulate my schedule a bit so I get to swim at one of the outdoor pools this afternoon. Can’t let a gift like this go to waste.
Support Your Local Water Rats
I’ve lamented here in the past about the UC’s drive toward mediocrity, particularly as shown by the axing of the Santa Cruz water polo program. Though I still think the UC can and should do better in protecting the system’s reputation and standing in all programs, I read an interesting article yesterday that included some discussion of Yale’s water polo program, and other sports, after they lost official recognition and became club programs. Glad to see that relegation to club status isn’t always the death knell of an athletic program, but can lead to positive outcomes.
Two related notes for the aquatics inclined: Penn State swimmers raised $235 in a charity auction by agreeing to deliver pizza in their speedos, and this year’s Maverick’s Big Wave contest may be canceled due to a lack of sponsors. Hmmm. Pondering. Hmmm.
Baby Steps
Still recovering from a mild tryptophan coma. Two full thanksgiving dinners and a three day pumpkin pie binge left me pretty much incapable of complete sentences, much less a full post. Should be swimming off some of the turkey and stuffing, but instead, just watching others swim. Baby steps…
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Alumni Fanboy Weekend In Progress
Big Game week is upon us. The only football game that really matters, ever, will start in a few minutes when Cal and Stanford meet for the 111th Big Game at Memorial Stadium in Berkeley. We did Big Game dinner with the local alums at The Linkery on Thursday, and though Spinner had met the alums before the look on his face when it came time to perform the various drinking songs was priceless. Seeing the local matriarchs who probably graduated well before The War doing their Grrrahs (complete with bear clawing motion) was a little too much for him. Even with all that though, I won’t pretend to be much of a football fan – just a Cal fan who tolerates football as a means to financially to get us through to the sports where we win. Want the better views of the blue and gold? At least rugby, water polo, rowing and swimming are all considerate enough to visit those of us in extreme southern California.
Bleh and more bleh
Bit of a funk here. Unseasonably warm here – 84 as I type this. Dry air, probably with a touch of smoke from Los Angeles and random other sites, is doing a number on my sinuses. Making no progress on a writing project despite a deadline. My new wetsuit is back for warranty repair or replacement and my old is still suffering from shrinkage. I keep drawing unhelpful tiles in Facebook Scrabble. Bored with swimming laps lap after lap. So I’m here. Entertain me internet people. Please help me forget my frustrations. Anyone?
Another Successful Weekend
I wasted most of my Sunday coding on the sites, and now I’m just vegging on the couch watching Futurama while Spinner makes some pancit for dinner. Life is good.
Despite the slacking, there was a good swim and steam yesterday, and the coding means that comments are back on the photo gallery. This will be an ugly Business of Law week, but at least I’m going into it well rested, and fairly content.


