Tuesday and Wednesday start with long walks or walk/runs at 5 am. I need to get the workout in before work on Tuesday to post-work activities. On Tuesday after work I ride the motorbike up to Beverly Hills for a class. After the 80 minute class I am able to rush on down to Long Beach at 85 mph for the majority of the ride. On Wednesday I get in a great workout for the abdominals and then walk again (after the early morning walk.) At work I announce that I have had enough and I'll be back on Monday.
On Thursday I stay in bed for a long time after the alarm clock goes off. I have the start of a sore throat. I end up getting out of bed near 7 am to do homework and lift weights. (I'll throw the body off track for a couple of days by lifting in the morning and cycling later.) It's a great session with the pull muslce groups. And now I start trimming back the bushes in the front yard. These are the same bushes that I was spraying regularly to get rid of spider mites. I've decided to try and take them way down over the next few months and let them start over. I fill two giant trash barrels full off trimmings (one from the neighbor who is out of town and lets me use her trashbin when I have extra stuff) though I am only halfway finished. The other bushes will have to wait until next week. I mow the lawn and do some maintenance on the roses before a warm shower and some relaxation. I do a few errands (including buying a new extension cord to repalce the one that I sliced through today) and then I head out for the aquarium bicycle ride. I'm spent today, so I spend time watching the first football game of the year, the Republican National Convention, and working on websites.
Friday starts with the pull weights workout. When I've recovered from that I head on down to the aquarium on the mountain bicycle. Today my legs start tiring on the way home, but it's a good ride. By 10:30 I've lifted weights, read some websites, finished the aquarium ride, and taken a cool shower. I relax with the news for a while until about 2 pm when I start on down to Irvine to visit Person W_HK.
Person W_HK and I hang out at a number of cafes and bookstores and restaurants as we spend the time from 2:30 pm until 10:30 pm just talking about a wide range of issues. There's also a little side trip to the bank so that Person W_HK can cancel his debit card that he seems to have lost. Eventually I'm headed for home - I consider a sde trip to the Frat House (because I haven't been there for years) but I drive on home and get down to sleep before midnight.
On Saturday I'm up a bit after 5am to go walking/running for almost an hour before getting cleaned up, doing the laundry, and some grocery shopping. F1 qualifying from Spa, Belgium occupies the next hour or so as tingles run up and down my spine with the track, the surroundings, and the driving. After a break I get out on the road bicycle for the loop ride. The legs are strong for the first three quarters of the ride and then they suddenly disappear. Thus I just cadence ride home where a cool shower and some Red Bull energizes me. The rest of the day is spent reading and working on websites.
Sunday starts slowly but I get enthused with the bizarre ending to the Belgian Grand Prix from Spa, Belgium. The race is decided until rain starts to fall two laps from the end. And, surprising, a pit stop with one lap to go is the right decision as those who stopped gain more than 20 seconds a lap over those that did not. After my enthusiasm carries me out the door, around the aquarium, and back home on the bicycle I read that the race results are in doubt due to an after-the-race assessed time penalty. Bizarro! Late in the day I get in a great session with the weights and a 35 minute walk as I listen to class homework on my mp3 player. And then wind down the long weekend to start work on Monday.
Monday is a frustrating day at work. I try to get my work done but there are meetings and teleconferences with no progress, no decisions, and no end in sight. Thus I have a good workout with the weights after work to relieve some stress, do my homework for class, watch some of the two football games, and have conversations with Person Dan_SF and Ralph.
The rest of the week is a blur. I wake up at various times during the nights as problems, thoughts, and emotions overcome me. I wake up on Thursday mornng at 2 am and cannot fall back asleep. When I get up to surf the Internet I realize it is 9/11 and tears come to my eyes as I recall that day 7 years ago. There are various morning and afternoon workouts to relieve stress but they are obviously not working. There are pleasant phonecalls with Person T_U, Karl, and Person W_HK, but they are a blur. There's good solid progress at work, a lot of running in place at work, and expressed frustration at work. And there are new friends made. There's the footage of the last few laps of last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix in the now-falling rain that sends tingles throughout my entire body to play and re-play. And there's the news of the new 2009 Yamaha R1 with cross-balanced crank, variable length intake trumpets, fly by wire throttle, and magnesium sub-frame. I need it! I want it! But I need sleep and direction.
Finally on Friday afternoon I have had enough. I've been pulled in every direction at work by people who want me to fix their problems immediately. And since I cannot oblige them I leave work at 3 pm, get in a good session with the weights, and make another trimming pass on the bushes in front of the house. A nice warm shower gets me into a relaxing mood.
Saturday starts with an hour run/walk, a shower, the laundry, and some grocery shopping. Qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza is in wet and abysmal conditions and I am just ecstatic when a Scuderia Toro Rosso takes the pole. It will be a very interesting lineup for Sunday's race. On Saturday afternoon I meet up with Person MQ_U at apolitcal rally. Person MQ_U is playing bass for a friend's band and I hang out and visit with Person MQ_U in between sets. It's a nice visit and I help Person MQ_U take his equipment back to his car at the end and I head for home. The minute I get home I jump on the mountain bicycle and go on down around the aquarium and back. After the ride and a shower I start to lose energy quickly - I didn't sleep well last night, I went running in the morning, was in the sun for a couple hours at the rally, and went cycling. Thus the offers that I get to do stuff tonight are declined and I try to get to sleep early.
Sunday starts slow. But by mid-morning I am ecstatic! The Scuderia Toro Rosso team and young driver win their first grand prix in the wet but changing conditions at Monza Italy. I am ecstatic! I have tears of joy during the last lap and during the victory celebration. And the driver cannot remove the smile from his face and says, during the post race interview, "This feels so much better than I though it would." I get out for the aquarium ride and have a shower before the MotoGP race from Indianapolis. The conditions for the race are abysmal and, in fact, the race is red flagged and stopped 8 aps early because the wind is so severe - a remnant of hurricane Ike. But the results are good and I am happy again! I later learn that the 250cc race was cancelled entirely - giving one an indication of how severe the weather was. In the afternoon I get in a heavy session with the weights and that ends the weekend.
Monday is another blur. The heavy workout with the weights after work almost removes the blur, but does not.