Content-type: text/html Ray Manning

Monday, December 11, 2006 9:00 PM

Cold and Colder


The weather finally turns wet and cold and I turn the furnace on just prior to the goal date of December 1. (I always try to make it to December 1 before turning on the heater and usually come up a bit short.)

The motorcycle rides to work on Tuesday and Wednesday are cold, but I've broken out the winter jacket and stay farily warm (except my fingers). And because it's cold, my eyes tear up during the morning ride. After Wednesday's day of work (or day of teleconferences), I get in a high repetition workout with the weights on the push exercises, go walking for 40 minutes, grab a quick shower, and head down to a coffeehouse in Long Beach for an evening of reading. I have two magazines and two books in my bag as I walk in and find a good seat with lots of light. An acquantaince who works at the coffeehouse, Marty, is there and we smile at each other but there are lots of people here today so we don't get a chance to talk. Over the next three hours I get a lot of reading done. And I observe a lot of people come in and out. There are a few ChiChis with "creative" haircuts that I observe. When I'm all "read out", I head for home and get the lights out for sleep near 11 pm.

For the Thursday morning motorcycle commute at 6 am (for a 6:30 am teleconference), what is the wind chill factor for an air temperature of 38 degrees and an equivalent wind of about 100 mph? Cold! Very cold! For the week I've not shaved and intentionally messed up my hair each day after removing the motorcycle helmet - I'm going for a heroin hangover look. Since my hair is longer now than usual, people take notice. There are many many people over the week who ask me if I've slept the previous night, if I've jost got out of bed, if I need to borrow a comb, and etc. The heroin hangover look is working for me!

On Thursday I get in the pull exercise workout with high repetitions and go walking again for 40 minutes. I also note that since I started lifting again I have slept very very well. Why is it that lifting for 30 minutes a day (with fair to high intensity) helps me sleep better than a 230 mile week of cycling?

On Friday I take off a bit early (not that early considering that I was at work early and had meetings through lunch) to mow the backyard and go for an hour walk. And then I am glad that the week is over as I read and relax.

On Saturday I sleep in a bit late and get out for the 27 mile loop ride. I wanted to do more, but this will have to do. Later I get my haircut. It has been a year since I went to my regular haircut guy because Person C_T had been doing it. Late in the afternoon I get in a high repetition workout with the push exercises and go for a short walk to the post office and the DVD store. I rent "Art School Confidential" and though it has some funny moments, overall it is just pathetic. I end up going to sleep early and handling phone calls from Person T_U nd Person T* from bed.

On Sunday I am lazy and do not get out cycling at all. I have agood high repetition workout with the weights late in the morning and grab a shower before Person T* comes over. We walk over to a street festival going on and grab lunch. During the wandering around we run into my city councilperson. After I introduce Person T* to the city councilperson and her friend, the city councilperson asks me, "What do you think the next cleanup or paintove should be?" We have a little discussion and go our separate ways. Person T* is a bit surprised that the city councilperson knows me so well and that she asked me what to do next. Late in the day I just read and watch some football. It has been a lazy day.

Monday through Wednesday are semi-productive days at work in between teleconferences and telephone calls. Each day at work is followed by the high repetition workouts - Monday for abdominals and lower back, Tuesday for Push exercises, and Wednesday for pull exercises. On Wednesday night I gather the information needed for the ResourceScout one day trip to Seattle on Thursday.

Thursday is a long day. Ruby, Joseph, and I are on the road to LAX at 6 am, catching an 8 am flight to Seattle, and driving to downtown Seattle to meet with someone who might have money for us. We give our presentation and interact with the contact and then leave. We deconstruct the meeting afterwards and decide that it was a 7 (on a scale of 1 to 10) and that we have prospects. After the meeting we wander over to the pike area and walka round - checking out the sites and the ChiChis. Later we catch a flight home and I'm laying down for sleep just before midnight.

On friday I get to work early, work through lunch, and leave early. When I get home I lift weights, go walk for 40 minutes (stopping at the hardware store and the grocry store for supplies), take a shower, and head to the motorcycle show. I only attend the motorcycle show when I want to buy something and this year I am leaving the show with a new winter riding jacket. At the show is a MotoGP rider that my former boss and I would rago on as being a loser. So when I see him present signing autographs, I call the former boss and leave him a message that I'm going to get the loser's autograph for him. But I don't. It would be a watse of time. When I arrive I home I set the alarm clock for late on Saturday and lay down. But I don't get to sleep until 10:30 because of calls with Person J_T and Person T*.

After the long days on Thursday and Friday it feels good to sleep a bit late on Saturday - the quality of sleep also being nice and deep. (Again, a 30 minute workout with the weights serving to promote deep sleep.) I get out for the loop ride and enjoy the cranking along even if it is a bit windy and chilly. Afterwards I spend a fair amount of time doing paperwork. This year I start cleaning out the old files prior to the Christms vacation. As I clean through the files I cannot believe the number of bicycle service records that I have for borken spokes or wheel rebuilds. They just keep going on and on. It makes me glad that I finally bought the new wheels and shouldn't have to deal with broken spokes for a couple of years or so.

On Saturday afternoon Person C_T comes over and we hang out for a bit, have a nice dinner, browse through a Border's bookstore, and then go home and relax some more. Near 10 pm Person C_T is leaving and I head for bed to read and sleep.

On Sunday I lift weights in the morning because the streets are still wet from the overnight rain. After reading the newspaper I turn on the television to have the football game playing the background as I clean out more paperwork. I realize that the television has not been turned on since Wednesday night.

On Sunday before noon I get out for a windy and chilly bicycle ride around the aquarium. There are not many riders out today but there is the African American rider on the recumbent that I see all of the time. And of course we give each other a wave (as we're headed in opposite directions).

The remainder of the day is spent reading, watching football, listening to music, and finishing off a lot of paperwork. The cleaning of old paperwork is almost 90% done and included the aforementioned old bicycle repair records, very very old insurance and mortgage coupons, old investment paperwork, and old veterinarian bills for Nopey. Boy did that dog cost a lot!

Late on SUnday Ruby comes by. She stops by on her way to check out an accidental drowing (and almost death) of a 13 month old child at the hospital. We talk about ResourceScout and our recent trip as well as her current case. I cannot get over some people's inability to parent.

I sleep well and wake up near 5:30 am. The motorcycle ride to work is a bit wet from the rain, but at least I am warm with the new winter riding jacket. A meeting at work is changed many many times throughout the day and finally ends up at 4 pm. I go to the meeting and just feel myself becoming more and more frustrated as the meeting continues. Finally, a few minutes after 5 pm, I get up to leave and this starts the end of the meeting. With the frustration fresh in my mind, I rush home on the motorcycle - taking a few more chances than usual. And work off some of the frustration with a decent workout with the weights as I finish up the high repetition series of workouts (for the push exercises).