The Gazelle Man

As part of my ongoing attempt to lose weight I have decided to take up running. I went out a couple times the last couple weeks but quickly realized that Adidas Sambas are not running shoes and will only destroy my legs and feet if I attempt to run in them.

Today I took my fat ass over to the Gazelle Sports and got myself a proper pair of running shoes. After trying on about 4 different styles and a couple different sizes I settled on a pair of New Balance 860v3. They were as comfortable as any of the others I tried on. Style wise they were less flashy than most of the others. (Apparently runners really want you to look at their feet.) And the deciding factor was that they are Made in the USA (of imported materials). A fact that I think is exclusive to New Balance in the running shoe industry.

When Id made my decision, my assistant asked what kind of socks I was planning on wearing with the shoes. My response: What do you recommend? After spending more on footwear than Ive ever spent in my life I decided Id better get some good socks to go with them. We headed over to the $16-$20 per pair of sock section of the store and she explained to me all the benefits of these magical foot devices. They were also running a buy 3 get 1 free special on socks. Anyone who knows me knows that I can not say no to specials like that especially when its on items that have features. Socks with features no less. So I spent the second most I have ever spent on a pair of socks. (Second only to the pair of socks I got to keep that came with the tux I rented for the Teso wedding.)

Perhaps the best part of my trip out was the personal attention I got from my sales person. Rather than just grabbing things from the back room and walking away on she asked me questions about what I wanted the shoes for and took time to see how I walked and based her recommendations on those factors. Its things like this that make me comfortable paying a little bit more then I would have at a discount store or on Amazon. Now, to run...

NFL 12 Midseason

After week 3 I made my first set of picks for the season. I also predicted that the then 3-0 Cardinals would have blown it by now. Well, theyre 4-5, losing their last 5. Youre welcome! I also said that the 0-3 Saints would continue to suck, and they have, barely managing to defeat San Diego and Tampa Bay to become 2-5.

As for my playoff picks from early in the season.

AFC

East: Patriots (5-3)

In a division that it seems no one wants to win I still like the Patriots. Its hard to root against Brady. 

North: Ravens (6-2)

I feel like I always pick the Ravens to win this division. I also feel like Im always wrong about it. So, heres to being wrong.

South: Texans (7-1)

Its up to the Texans to lose this division. They are by far the best team in the AFC and are my pick to represent it in the Super Bowl.

West: Chargers (4-4) Broncos (5-3)

Im not sure why this division is even allowed in the NFL anymore. Its full of teams that lose over and over and over. The Chargers might be able to pull something off. Perhaps Peyton Manning pulls off something special in Denver. I dont know. I guess if I had to Id put my money on Peyton and not Giant Baby Head T Rex Arms.

Wildcard: Jets (3-5), Bengals (3-5) Colts (5-3), Steelers (5-3)

Looks like someone stupid made those picks. How about those Colts? Its starting to look like they may have made a good decision with Andrew Luck. With a big win today over the Giants, the Steelers are one of the few AFC teams that seem to want to be in the playoffs this year.

NFC

East: Cowboys (3-4) Giants (6-3)

Well, just like the Ravens, I love picking the Cowboys early in the season. And just like the Ravens, they always seem to disappoint me. Realistically its the Giants division to lose. I just hate picking Eli Manning to succeed at anything. Which means Ill just pick no one to represent from the East.

North: Packers (6-3)

This is the best division in the league and will probably produce 3 playoff teams this season. Its hard to pick against the Packers with a 4 game winning streak. But its also hard to pick against the Bears with a 6 game winning streak.

South: Falcons (7-0)

If the Falcons beat the Cowboys tonight (which they should) they will have as many wins as the rest of the division put together.

West: 49ers (6-2)

Perhaps the second best division in the league, they also have the second best team in the league. Its hard to think of the Cardinals or Seahawks having what it takes to overcome the 49ers. I think the 49ers make the Superbowl this year.

Wildcard: Eagles (3-4), Lions (4-4), Bears (7-1)

The wildcard slots in the NFC will be filled by whoever of the Packers, Bears, and Lions doesnt win the North. I know the Lions are 4-4 but if they win their next 2 games they will be tied with the Packers and ahead of the Vikings. Then, if the Bears lose their next 2 (Texans, 49ers) the Lions will be only a game behind them.

I know my AFC picks looks just like the if the season ended today scenario. But thats the way the AFC is this year. There isnt much up in the air. There are 6 or 7 teams that actually showed up this season and thats whos going to the playoffs. As for the NFC who knows whats going to happen. The Giants dont mess the end of the season up and the Falcons dont have any competition but other then those divisions everything is up in the air still. 

Weight Loss

I used to fit into these jeans. They are buttoned and zipped as far as they can be in the picture. I used to be able to run 5 kilometers in 20 minutes. Tonight I was only able to go half the distance in that time. Three years ago, when we moved back from Arizona, I weighed thirty pounds less than I weigh now. I will, by next summer, fit into them again.

The Voice

I think the thing Im going to like the most about this Nexus tablet is the voice to text feature. Right now Im typing this whole blog with the voice to text feature and only the voice text feature.* As I speak, the words are being displayed on the screen. I have been using this feature on my Droid x2 smartphone. It feels more accurate on the Nexus 7. perhaps because it is running Jelly Bean. Right now I'm going to go check the text to talk to see how well it understands what a 3 year old is saying. Jack: "mama" What he said was "hi mama" but I think he may have spoke before the mic was ready. I've been debating whether I should get a keyboard to go with this but with the voice to text recognition I might be alright without one!

*I did go back and fix the punctuation.

NFL 12 Week 3

It looks like, with nearly all of week 3 completed, the Cardinals are the best team in the NFL and the Saints are the worst. Cardinals best and Saints worst. I dont think anyone would have ever picked that. The Cardinals have beaten three teams that had previously been undefeated. The Saints have lost to three teams that have only won against them this year. The Cardinals almost have half as many wins as they had last season. The Saints have as many losses as they had the entire season last year. Whats going to happen with this? The Cardinals will blow it half way through the year and wont even get a wildcard spot in the playoffs. The Saints however are going to continue to suck. Things are going to continue to go badly for them because they dont have any leadership with Sean Payton sitting at home on the couch with his clipboard. Neither team makes the playoffs this year. Who do I think will?

AFC
East: Patriots
North: Ravens
South: Texans
West: Chargers
Wildcard: Jets, Bengals

NFC
East: Cowboys
North: Packers
South: Falcons
West: 49ers
Wildcard: Eagles, Lions

Popped the Fisher

The NFL season is in full swing and the Lions defeated Jeff Fisher and his St Louis Rams! This week couldnt have gone much better. The Packers and Giants lost. Sure Stafford threw 3 interceptions but it didnt get the team down. They stuck it out and pulled out a last minute win. 

Back-to-School Spirit and Your Pinterest Recommendations

I got my weekly Pinterest email today. You know, the one that recommends boards your might like, presumably based on boards you already like and what not. Well they recommended Andy Victors black and white photography board. Now Im not much into photography. I take pictures of things and enjoy the pictures that people I know take but thats about the extent of it. I also think people put too much stock in putting all kinds of filters on photographs. Take it easy with the black and white and sepia tone people. Heres the album if any of you are interested. http://pinterest.com/andyvictor/photography-b-w/

Americas Got Talent

Weve been watching the Americas Got Talent this season. I really like the judges this year and I think Nick Cannon is one of the best competition show hosts. Howie is funnier then Hasselhoff ever was and Stern (despite not having a British accent) is more interesting to listen to then Morgan.

Its great because its not just singing or dancing, which have been played out on the other shows. There are comedians, magicians, acrobats and more. Theres some guy who makes beautiful stories in sand. Theres a

Mostly though, I love the show because there is so much creativity. This brings me back to singers. I think the singers should only be able to sing original songs or at least original arrangements of songs. It will show their true talent. If a magician were to come on and do one of David Copperfields illusions or if a comedian were to do one of Steve Martins bits or a dance troop were to do a Michael Jackson routine they would be booed off the stage. These people write their own material. I say the singers should have to do the same thing.

By Starlight, I Know You

The Jeep is loaded up and when Jenna gets here were off to the wilderness again! Its just a weekend trip and were only going to Ionia this time but the Postemas, Dan and Jenna are coming so we should have lots of fun. Im always anxious about going to a new campground. Mostly I hate paying for wood and dont like not knowing if there will be good spots to forage for some. Its going to be good to get away from the heat and do some swimming, hiking and fire building. I wonder if I still have my Merit Badge Book from when I was a Cadet.

Thor

Watch it.

Where Were Going We Dont Need Roads

The Tesos sure have been blowing this blog-o-sphere up. Im loving it!

We now have two cars! Well, tomorrow itll be legal anyway. Im buying my step dads 99 Saturn SL1. Its an interesting thing buying a car. In this price range, the less than $800 range that is, it doesnt matter as much who makes the car. What matters is what still works. Between the two cars we have over 500,000 miles. Everything but the AC works on both cars. Sure the Jeep needs some fresh shocks and the Saturns windshield is cracked but who cares. These things are not stopping us from driving. Im pretty excited about this new chapter in our automobile owning lives. Itll be fun to see if I can get the Saturn the rest of the way back from the moon. It only have 132,600 miles to go.

!!!Warning!!! This post is more than 140 characters.

I found this ad last week:

email this posting to a friendgrand rapids craigslist > for sale / wanted > cars & trucks - by owner

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Geo Metro XFi (from the west coast) (GR)

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Date: 2012-07-04, 2:18PM EDT
Reply to: hkxbg-3081415998@sale.craigslist.org ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

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Let me first be clear on something and that is I am only half-way considering selling this car. In other words, I might very well keep it.

Secondly, I will not invest hardly any time in selling it. In other words, I will likely ignore nearly all requests for info. I will only respond if you express serious interest in buying the car, as in saying you would probably be willing to pay $x,xxx for the car and your name is xxxxx xxxxx and your phone number is xxx-xxxx All other email will be ignored.

Now let me tell you a little bit about it:

It is a 1991 Geo Metro XFi that spent its first 17/18 years on the west coast. Other than some surface rust the body is in very good condition for being a 1991. It has been well cared for.

The car has 225,000 miles on it.

It will need a new clutch one of these days; but I have been saying that for 3 years.

The transmission shifts great in all 5 gears with the exception of downshifting into 1st while the car is still moving. I double clutch it for this.

Last summer I checked the gas mileage for three tanks in a row and averaged 49 miles per gallon. And this is not highway driving either. In other words, had I been doing highway driving it would have been in the lower 50's

It runs well other than it needs either a new rear main bearing or rod cap for #3. I am betting on the rear main which, as I understand it, can be replaced without pulling the crank shaft. All you need to do is drop the oil pan to access it.

The compression in all three cylinders is around 190, so lots of life left in my opinion.

It needs a new inside driver's door handle, and perhaps the door latch. too. The windshield has a crack that is low so it does not obstruct my vision.

In terms of the value of these cars, the Metros in Michigan are generaly worthless due to underbody rust. And in the last three years I have only seen two XFi's and their bodies were toast. So if you want to buy one that is not going to rust out underneath in the near future you have to go to the west coast, for example. And it would likely cost $1,000 just for transporation to get it back to Michigan. Plus you would have to travel out there just to look for one. Maybe you would find one, probably you would not. Who knows how much time you would have to spend out there looking for one. XFi's are very rare; less than 10% of the Metros made back then were XFi's. - BTW, they were originally rated 53/58 for city/highway.

I will add a photo in the next few days as time permits.

Now, if you are interested, please reread the first few sentences because I really believe this car has extra value and I am really serious about not wasting my time.

• Location: GR
• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

PostingID: 3081415998

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I responded with this email:


Hopefully Im writing this email to your very specific requirements. My name is Dave and Id like to come see your Metro. I have $750 to spend on a car right now. If this fulfills your needs please call me at 616 914-xxxx. Have a wonderful Independence Day.

Dave

This was the response I got:

Hi Dave,

Your email fulfilled enough of the requirements so deserves a response. And I owe you an apology for not listing a price. The reason was simply because I just wasn't sure what I should ask for it.  The car has a lot of miles, to be sure.  And it has some issues that some might consider major, but I do not. Having said that, this car has been well cared for and should last many more miles and years.  Not something that can be said for any other Geo Metro that has spent its life in Michigan. Those cars are at the end of their life, unlike this one.  And in order to get one of these, even if you can, and it is nearly impossible because so few XFi's were made, requires a ton of time, travel and luck, not to mention money.  I looked for one for 6 months straight at one time and finally gave up.  A year later I came across this one by chance, but had to get it from the west coast. So right there is a thousand bucks in value just to transport one to our state.  And on top of that is the value of the car, which I consider to be quite high because its operating costs (gas!) are so much lower than anything else out there. So long story short, I will not sell it for less than $1,900 and I am sorry if you feel that is too high or do not have that much money.  But that is the minimum I would sell if for, and actually consider it worth more than that.  And for what it is worth, I took it off craigslists a short while ago because seling it at this time is too much of a hassle.  When gas hits $5 a gallon I will relist it.  Unless you decide you are able and willing to buy it for $1,900

Take care,
Chuck

Car Talk

In the last month both of our cars had been rendered useless without over $1000 worth of work. We opted not to do any of this work and sell them both and start anew. We have been borrowing family members cars for over 2 weeks. Today we were able to bring one back because we got ourselves a new car. Its a 98 Jeep Grand Cherokee. It has the straight six in it and almost no rust to speak of. Were very excited.

Up next I need to buy something that I can take pizzas around in.

Mens Shirts Short Skirts

I was reading 6 or 4 Cats: Skirts and Dresses and it made me happy. I love when women wear dresses. Its not a sexual thing either. Women are at their most womanly in dresses. Beautiful, elegant, and graceful.

I wish I knew why women don't wear dresses more often. I know they aren't always practical and I'm certainly not suggesting that they must be worn. Honestly, I don't know how to say what I'm about to say without sounding like a chauvinist pig but here it is. I wish women would dress like women. First and foremost stop wearing pants suites. They look ridiculous. Equal does not mean the same. Suits are a mans dress. When worn properly, it highlights the good and hides the bad. I'm not saying you should wear a sundress to the big board meeting. Wear a sophisticated black skirt. It says you are a woman and that women are just as important as men.

Lastly stop dressing like sluts. If you want a man to notice you, an appropriate dress will do the trick. It also says that you respect yourself and deserve to be respected.

Malebox

Someone ran over a couple mailboxes near my house last night. My box, which fell victim to the attack, is on the same post as my neighbors across the streets and in their yard. The man is almost 75 years old and had heart surgery last year. I found him outside looking at the debris this morning and he had a solution. He was going to attach the snapped off top part to a new post that he bought and call it good. I didnt exactly understand what his plan was so I left him to it. Periodically Id look out and see him wandering around his front yard, back to his car, to the garage, yard, car, garage, etcetera. So I went out and let him know that if he wanted Id be happy to take care of it. For $20 in lumber and an hour at my friends workshop I can rebuild the entire stand. I felt like I was taking his manhood away. Here I am, half his age and Im the one whos going to help him. Reluctantly he agreed. I took the new mail box that he purchased (his was destroyed) and will be building the new stand this evening.

Global Warming

Apparently its the summertime now. We were in the 80s here for most of March. (That was an exaggeration, we only got to 80+ during 4 days this month.) This means its almost bathing suit weather. Which means my fat ass needs to be able to lose some weight so I can fit into my bathing suit again. I really dont want to be the fat guy who doesnt know how to launch a boat again this year. (No, I have no intention to learn how to properly launch a boat.)

Theres also this thing in early August that Id like to be in shape for. The 64tacos 8/8 8x8 Taco Bell Taco Event. Come August, Im proposing that we undertake another leg of the Ironman competition, the 112 mile bike ride. Heres a proposed route.

Mayhem

Well my bracket just got all blowed up. I had St. Marys in the Elite 8, Duke in the Final 4, and Michigan winning everything. Theyre all out in after the big dance. I managed to get lucky on the Missouri upset but thats about the only thing going right this year. The only way this could get worse is if Michigan State becomes the first #1 seed to lose in the first round. Of course, everyone in my league has them winning the tournament this year so any progress they make does me no good either. So, lets go Vanderbilt!

Manterest

I joined the Pinterest. One thing Ive noticed and been a little overwhelmed by, is that its lady city. Sure the welcome email is from "Ben and the Pinterest Team" but Im pretty sure Ben is short for Bengina. (Interesting side note, Vagina is Latin for scabbard or sheath.) Im not sure where this new internet will fit in amongst all the other complete wastes of time. Ive managed to curtail my Facebook use. I "Close Friend, Friend and Acquaintance" labeled everyone so now I only see status updates from people I want to. Unfortunately, Ive replaced most of the time that I no longer spend on Facebook with time spent on http://www.quickmeme.com/.  OK so my show is about to start and I kinda forgot what my point was so I guess Im done. Bengina. (Dont click on it.)

Find us on Facebook

Ive been tossing around the idea of getting rid of the Facebook. All I ever do on it is post stupid status updates and snarky remarks on other peoples updates. Ive tried a couple times now but always had a "good" reason for keeping it. "Well, I should collect the contact info of people I might want to get hold of later." "I just printed business cards that have a link to the Facebook page." "There isnt anyone on Google+ to read my stupid status updates or for me to ad snarky remarks about." Im pretty pissed that Im having trouble with this.

Playoffs Here we Come

Its been an exciting season. As expected the Lions finished 10-6 and are in the playoffs as a wild card seed. Not only is this a winning season with a playoff spot but, with the exception of the Bears, they only lost to teams that will also be in the playoffs. Unfortunately, this also means that they have lost to all the teams in the NFC playoffs but the Cowboys. It looks like theyll be playing the Saints in New Orleans next week. This will probably be the last time Stafford and the boys suit up this season. But, who knows. Anything can happen in the playoffs. Look at what the Cardinals did a few years back.