August 25, 2008: Back to School

Today was the first day of school, the day I most dislike. It is the day where I have to do ALL the talking, go over rules, procedures, grading, what to expect, and so on. It drives me crazy and by the end of the day, I am a bit horse. I usually have a good first day of school, and today was no exception. I have 1st period planning, which gives me an extra hour-and-a-half to get ready. Then I teach AP Economics. This class is challenging because of the content and the calibre of the students. They will be certain to ask me challenging questions that I may not know the answer to right away. The I have lunch, at 10:40am. It is more like brunch, but since I eat breakfast before 5am, it isn't a problem. Next is honors Civics & Economics. Another good class: intelligent and conscientious. And finally, I end the day with an average Civics & Economics. Another good class: polite and courteous. So this will most likely amount to a good semester. I will have to stay on top of some of the average students each day to keep them on task and caught up, but that is typical of an average class.

You may be asking why am I eating breakfast before 5am. Simple, I am going to the gym BEFORE school. As I previously mentioned, last week was an experiment to see if I could do it. It was pretty successful, so this week is the real challenge: to go to the gym and then be ready to teach. Today was OK, but by the time I got home, I was tired. Sitting in carpool for Evan doesn't help. I really get tired there. Another thing, my feet are killing me, already. I hope it gets better or else I am going to need to find more comfortable shoes!

August 21, 2008: Adjustment Period

On Monday I mentioned how this week was going to be a trial period. As of this morning I have successfully arrived to work at the time I desired, 6:45. I will admit, I am getting pretty tired. All of this up at 4:30am is starting to catch up. I am trying to get to bed earlier since I am waking up earlier, and I have been somewhat successful in that, but I am still pretty tired. The difficult thing about it is that I am unable to tell if I am tired because I am getting up so early or because I am back to work (albeit, without students). But if you think about it, I am not up all that much earlier than I will be next week when the students arrive. Last semester my alarm was set for 4:51, not it is 4:30. 21 minutes should not make that much difference. But I guess if I am at a gym working out in the meantime, then that could account for it too. The other thing is food. I get up and eat a bowl of cereal by 5am. I get to work around 7. And by 8:30 I am hungry. I am not going to eat another meal, I am going to have to find a sensible yet filling snack. The good thing there is that I have 'A' lunch, meaning I eat lunch around 10:30. So the morning isn't too bad that way. The long stretch will be after lunch. I won't get home until 4:15-4:30 each day, I will definitely need something before that to tide me over enough that I will not binge until I get home.

August 18, 2008: Trial Period

I now have a would be scheduling conflict, gym or work. Well, obviously I can't skip work to go to the gym. Sure, I could go in the evening, but I am reserving that time for Michelle to go since she does not have the "luxury" of going before work. I, on the other hand, do have the time to go before work. That is, if I want to wake up and get there around 5am. So this week is my trial period. I am trying to get to work at the normal school time (6:45am for me) and still go to the gym before hand. If I can successfully pull it off, then I will continue to do it next week when the students come back to school. I will have to make few adjustments such as better planning in the evenings and going to bed earlier. I will have to do my school work right away once I get home instead of after Evan goes to bed since I will likely be going to bed at about the same time. Breakfast may be a bit of a challenge. When should I eat? Before I go to the gym or once I get to school? This will all work itself out. Another concern is that the workout I am attempting is six days, Monday through Saturday. What happens when I have softball the night before? Even worse, what if it is a 8:45pm game that won't end until 10pm? I imagine the next day I will be pretty tired.

Friday and today we had workdays at school. That is no students, only teachers getting prepared for next week when the students come. It is cool to talk to my colleagues, but at the same time, I am finding myself less productive. Not to mention the meetings that, let's face it, must be conducted. I find myself in the same bind as I usually do, starting out the year. It is the first unit that baffles me, but after that I roll. So this week I am having a difficult time actually planning the first week. Tomorrow will be a "big" day for that. I would like to have the first week of all my classes planned and copies turned in before I leave tomorrow. Even better, I will have the first two weeks all planned and copied before I leave work on Friday. That is my goal. It can be done, but will it?

August 13, 2008: Much of Nothing

Another busy day. As with every morning, I took Evan to school and like most, went to the gym. I added a couple of things more to my workout and am starting to feel like I am actually accomplishing something again. After the gym, I came home and had enough time to eat lunch before my dermatologist appointment. I was glad to receive a clean bill of health and the doctor removed what amounted to a skin tag from the knuckle of my big toe, weird spot, I know. After getting a haircut, I went to pick Evan up from school. We headed over to the book store, then home, then to dinner. And here I am. Not too much really. A busy day but one without excitement.

Today I worked out with Aaron Ward, former Carolina Hurricane, now Boston Bruin. It was cool. Of course I am making it sound like more than it is. He always seemed to need the machine next to where I was already working. That is cool if he thinks my workout is good enough to copy, him being a professional athlete and all. Just kidding. But we were working next to each other a lot. It makes me feel more important if I believe we were working out together. So do me a favor, don't tell me otherwise. Thanks.

August 11, 2008: Last Chance

This is it, the last week to get anything accomplished. Today was surprisingly busy,considering t was filled with nothing. Got up, took Evan to school, went to the gym, did some grocery shopping, came home around 1:30, left for the YMCA to enroll Evan in before school care, picked Evan up, went to an appointment, went to dinner, came home... and a couple of hours later, here I am. At the gym recently I have felt like I have not been doing enough. I have been doing the workout proscribed by the trainer but I feel I need more. So today, I added exercises that target specific muscle groups, today was arms. Tomorrow will be chest/back. The only problem is, I am kind of winging it. I am using the machines that are targeted for the designated muscle groups, but am I really doing what I should be? If anyone has any ideas of some useful information/websites, please post here and let me know. Thanks in advance.

While doing my grocery shopping, I bought Evan a new book: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules. This is the second book in the series, so far. Evan enjoyed the first book so much, I had promised him that if he finished it, I would buy him the second. Well, he finished Diary of a Wimpy Kid last night, so as promised, I delivered. He has already been intently reading this volume. I am glad he is reading fiction for a change. He always wants to read books about a topic: dinosaurs, bugs, marine biology. I even tried to have him read fiction about the topics he enjoys, but he wasn't into it. For some reason, these books are clicking with him. Maybe because it is something that takes place in school? I don't know, but I am glad he is reading fiction.

Evan and I began watching National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets after we got home from Chik-fil-a tonight. We had to stop until tomorrow after school because it was getting late. He enjoys the National Treasure movies, but he has so many questions because he doesn't know enough about history yet. That is OK, I am a history teacher, so I should be able to explain these things for him.

August 9, 2008: Just Another Saturday

Nothing all that spectacular today. Michelle had an appointment this morning with her trainer at the gym, Evan and I caught up with her about 11:30 at the pool. I proceeded to work out while they hung out poolside. For some reason, I feel as though it is taking me way too long to get through my routine. I probably shouldn't feel that way when you consider I spend about 20 minutes stretching to start, 25 minutes on the elliptical to wrap up, and about 20 minutes showering and getting dressed after. That is over an hour right there. Add in about an hour on the weights and such, and that adds up to 2 hours or more. If I am even contemplating going to the gym in the mornings before school (which means I'd have to be at the gym between 5 and 5:15 in the morning) I better make sure I speed things up and find a more efficient use of my time.

Next Evan had soccer practice from 3 until 4. The humidity wasn't too bad today so sitting in the sun was bearable. Evan is getting a little better I think. He is definitely showing signs of more strength in his kicks, but he is still a bit timid. That is OK, when the time comes he will step it up. Until then, as long as he is having fun. His first game is a week from today, he plays the Lizards, Chris' team.

This evening, we watch Chris and Brendan while Peter and Katie went out to dinner for their anniversary. Evan was very excited, and has been all week. Everyday he was counting down the days until Saturday. While they were here they spent a good amount of time playing in Evan's room. Now that he has his new bed, his room has become infinitely cooler!

August 5, 2008: Did I Need that Wall?

Yay! Evan's bed came today. The same delivery men brought the bed and again, they did not want to bring the big section (the stairs) up the stairs. The odd turn on the stairs makes it difficult to bring large objects/furniture upstairs. So I told them to leave that piece downstairs and I will get it up there. Dan, myself, and my neighbor Josh gave it a good effort but with the same result. It would not fit. And now we were stuck with the bed since it was out of the box. Basically, come hell or high water, that stair section was making it upstairs. So logically, we did what any clear thinking individual would do and knocked down a wall. Now we would have a straight shot up the stairs. It was no problem whatsoever. Just add another project to the long list - who ever said it is better to own a house?

As a result of this new project, I did not have time to get to the gym today. In reality, I could go now, but after all that today, I think it will wait until tomorrow morning after I drop Evan off at school. Believe it or not, after those seven straight day, I am already seeing a difference. I am very excited, by the time we go to Disney in October I will need all new shorts! Other than that, well, wasn't that enough for one day?

Wasn't there a wall here?

Who is crooked, Evan or the house?

Evan likes his new bed!

I would swear that just this morning there was a wall there.

Did I need that wall?

August 4, 2008: Time Out!

I took a time out today from the gym. My shoulder was really hurting me this morning when I woke up, and my quads are feeling tired. So I decided to skip a day. So if I hit the gym 7 out of 8 days, it is pretty good track record. In fact, I even took a time out from softball today. I decided that I just needed a day of rest and hopefully tomorrow I will be back up and ready to go.

I watched The Good Shepherd on HBO this afternoon. It is a long movie, and sad too. I won't get into it in case you want to see it, but I got fixated on the whole family aspect of the film. I felt that it earned 3.5 out of 5 stars.



Tomorrow Evan's bed will be delivered, again. This time we will keep it. In fact, I think I will sign for it to be out of the box and then still have the delivery men take it upstairs and assemble it.

August 3, 2008: Seven

Seven days and going strong, mostly. My shoulder is beginning to hurt from the throwing motion in my workout and my legs are beginning to fatigue. I may take tomorrow off and allow myself to heal some. I want to make it 19 straight days (that would be everyday until I go back to work) but I don't think it is advisable to do so. Besides, I have softball practice tomorrow, so I will still be getting the exercise. While I was working out, Michelle and Evan were at the pool with Dan, Wendy, and Aidan. I arrived at the gym hours after them so I didn't spend hardly anytime with them. Instead I saw the new movie The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (as I mentioned yesterday). It was as I expected/predicted, action packed with good effects, but not very good. I would say it was "OK." 2.5 out of 5 stars.



This evening we went to Nicole and John's for Nicole's birthday. It was nice and relaxing. We grilled out, I'm sorry, since they are also New Yorkers I guess I should say "we had a barbecue." Either way was fine, there were chicken wings, hot dogs and hamburgers. Slaw, potato salad, and so on.

My dad also forwarded me a link to a news video that you should see. it is about automobile tires. I am sure after you watch it that you will go outside and check your tires right away. I did and on the van my tires had the code 2807, 3007, 0808, 0908. So the van is good. As for the Ford, the tires are a little older and must have the code printed on the backside of the tire. I will look under there tomorrow in the day light. You are just going to have to watch the video to find out what the numbers mean. And I highly encourage you to do so!

Aged Tires: A Driving Hazard? (ABCNews.com)

August 2, 2008: 6, and Counting!

Today makes 6 straight days! I am serious about this, I am going to lose this weight. I will continue to push myself, but I will do it. I have to remember to be patient. It took me many years to gain all this weight, so I can't expect to lose it over night. It will probably take years to shed it too. But that is a good thing, by that time, I will have crossed from the need/want to exercise and eating right stage to the habit of exercising and eating right. And once it becomes a habit, I will have changed my lifestyle, and hopefully it will stay that way. When I woke up this morning I thought I may have jinxed myself in yesterday's post. That is, I said how my work out routine put me on the edge of sore, yet this morning my muscles were feeling a little fatigued. Fortunately, once I got out of bed and ate breakfast, I felt much better. Apparently, it is not a good idea to exercise so intensely that late and go to sleep because I woke up famished! I felt that I NEEDED to eat first thing (and I did - a bagel and cream cheese).

Evan had his second soccer practice today. He enjoys soccer, he gets to run around and kick a ball some. It is good for him to get out and exercise too. I am not sure his team this year will have as much success as last year's team (undefeated) but regardless, I am sure he will have fun. His first game will be against Chris' team. It should be fun.

Today I received my information for the start of school: parking tag and agenda for the first week. I am looking forward to the year starting, yet, c'mon, let's be serious, who really wants to go back to work? All new textbooks this year will pose a bit of a challenge, but if the deal proposed to me goes through, I will not have more than one average class per semester. Now that is a pretty good deal! Sure, it will mean more work in prep, but will mean less struggle with each student. I am looking forward to that. I have already set up a separate blog and netvibes page specifically for the AP Economics class. Hopefully the students will notice it and participate some before the semester begins, it would be nice to get an advance idea of how these students will be thinking, kind of a "heads up" on what each student is capable of. But I still have to wait and see until someone actually reads and posts comments.

Tomorrow we are planning on seeing the latest installment of The Mummy, it is called Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. It is not getting great reviews, but I am sure the effects will be cool. We'll see.

August 1, 2008: 5 in a Row!

Five for Five this week... Monday - Friday, I hit the gym every day this week and I am teetering on the edge of sore, but making it. The workout the trainer gave me seems to be just right. It pushes me to be as the edge of my anaerobic threshold this way I do not burn all sugar and create a lactic acid build up in my muscles (it is the lactic acid that makes the muscle feel sore). The big question is do I try and go tomorrow or do I take a day off? My present goal, in addition to building lean muscle mass to more efficiently burn calories, especially from the stored fat, is to strengthen the muscles around my right shoulder. I continue to suffer from a football injury. Not that I played football, no, but when I coached, I really messed up the shoulder. As wide receivers coach, I had to throw between 100 and 200 passes each day. My arm was not up to the task. I am sure that if a doctor did an MRI on the shoulder I would see some ligament damage. It really only hurts when I play softball. This week from the out field I was having a difficult time throwing the ball to the infield, so I have to get the muscles there stronger. I am not going to let the pain stop me. As we get older we just have to exercise smarter.

July 29, 2008 - Evan Is Back to School

This week Evan has gone back to school. It is hard to believe that he is in 2nd grade already! His teach is Mrs. Edwards, he says she is nice. He will have homework every week, which is a BIG change from last year where he practically had no homework at all. But this is good, I am glad he has homework. I was a little nervous about Monday. I anticipated Evan would be very difficult to get to school through all the crying and complaining since that is how he went to bed Sunday night. But much to my surprise, he got excited about going. His big thing was that he wanted to find out who would be sitting at his table with him. I was glad he was able to find something positive and he stuck with that. It definitely made my morning easier. Today went off just as well, in fact, maybe a little easier. He woke up early, which I was not happy to see since I wanted every minute of sleep I could get this morning. On the bright side, I didn't have to spend any time waking him up and we got started earlier (I even got him to school on time today, he was late yesterday). This afternoon we bought him some new cleats for soccer, tomorrow is his first practice or the season.

Now that Evan is back at school, I will be going to the gym every morning straight from dropping him off. I have been sticking with the plan laid out by the physical trainer I met with but I some how don't feel like I am doing enough. I feel my routine lacks variety. That is to say, I work on cardio everyday (which I am supposed to do) but every other day I alternate between exercises and lower aerobic cardio versus high aerobic cardio only. I am thinking about adding a few exercises for my abs on the high cardio days and see how I respond to it.

I have also begun some school work. All new textbooks this year is going to make things a little more challenging but will also force me to rely less on the textbooks and focus more on student directed inquiry. We'll see how that goes. I also finished book 7 of Harry Potter (again). It was the only one I hadn't read twice so I had to have another go. I did have to read book 6 again before book 7, so now I have read book 6 thrice. Now that I am done, I believe the books will sit on the book shelf until Evan is old enough and desires to read them.

July 15, 2008: Body Age = 40

Evan and I spent another 4 hours at the gym today. Unfortunately the rock climbing wall was not there while we were there so Evan did not get a chance to do that. Instead he hung out in the kids room while I met with a physical trainer and then we ate lunch at the cafe and headed out to the pool. The physical trainer today gave me a body evaluation, sort of a baseline for before I begin my routine. This test included a brisk walk on the treadmill, a flexibility test (where I sit on the floor and stretch as far as I can), a strength test (where I curl a fixed curling bar), and body fat measurement (with the "pincher"). I was expecting my body age to come back somewhere around 50. Instead I was surprised to be evaluated at 40. Tomorrow I will meet with the trainer to create a work out regiment to reach my goals, or at least the goals put forth by the evaluation. I have bigger goals than the machine but one step at a time, I suppose.

July 14, 2008: New Gym

This weekend Michelle, Evan, and I joined Lifetime Fitness. It is the biggest gym I have ever seen! It has hundreds of weight lifting machines, dozens of ellipticals, what looks like a hundred treadmills, a bicycle studio, a gym with two full length basketball courts, a rock climbing wall, racketball courts, a kids center, cafe, spa, three pools. It is an experience more than a gym. Evan and I spent more than three hours there today. He spent nearly two hours in the kids center while I worked out, then we went rock climbing, that is Evan climbed the wall, I supported him, then wewent to the pool, and had it been earlier, we would have spent more time at the pool. As it was, we got home at about 7pm. The place is great! Tomorrow I am meeting with a trainer in order to get a fitness evaluation and a fitness plan. I am really looking forward to utilizing this new facility. And on top of it all, it is open 24 hours. Can't beat that.