24 July 2010

5 Observations

A couple of observations this week:

1) Girls talk way more than boys. Seriously, I know what I am talking about. I have three girls. Like their mom, I sometimes think they just talk to hear themselves talk. Please don't be offended ladies. I love my wife, and my girls. They are already excellent at bossing each other around, the boys, and anyone else with ears.

2) My wife has this amazing knack of calling me at work to ask me questions regarding work around the house. This usually requires the purchasing of some large ticket object. She finds this especially convenient while my mind is preoccupied with grading papers, or I am with a student in my office. She'll ask something along the lines like "What are we going to do about those trees that need to come down? I got two estimates yesterday, they can cut them and grind the stumps for twelve hundred dollars. Should I go ahead with that. As I am totally blindsided and unprepared for this—and only half paying attention—I say "Yeah, sure... go ahead. Whatever needs to be done." Then I get home and we have a new piece of bedroom furniture or something. "Don't you remember us talking about this... I called you. I asked you about the tree, and you said... '...whatever needs to be done.' "

3) My friend Kelly can not help but notice that I do not have one picture on my blog with me wearing a shirt. Apparently, I am completely incapable of wearing one. Wait, I DO wear a shirt—a tri top—in several pictures. What is Kelly talking about? I'm a big guy. I sweat a lot. When I go out for a run and it is bazillion percent humidity, I do not want to wear a shirt.

4) When training for Ironman (which is by far the sickest thing I have ever done in my life) I can eat anything and still take off weight. I woke up this morning and had two bagels with lox, and a banana. Today, for lunch, I ate a pound of pasta with pesto. Here is my daily eating routine:

Breakfast at 7:30
Snack at 10:00
Lunch at 11:00
Snack at 12:30
Lunch #2 around 1:30 (depending on if I have a afternoon workout scheduled this could be earlier or later)
Dinner at 6
Graze on fruit, vegetables, cookies, cereal, leftovers from dinner during the week from 7:30 until bedtime

4) Minor league baseball games and beers with a friend is one of my favorite summertime activities. I don't do it often, and I am drunk off of one beer, but I don't mind. I barely even pay attention to the game. On a Tuesday night home game during the summer, you can treat yourself and three of your friends, kids, relatives, enemies to three tickets to a Rochester Redwing game, four hot dogs, four drinks for $30.  Of course, I do not eat hotdogs, but still, what a great deal.

5) It is important to swim consistently while training for Ironman. Failure to do so could result in catastrophic results, if not drowning. What could be more catastrophic than drowning? Missing the swim cutoff completely. That would spoil my day.

What are your seemingly benign observations this week?

Train Smart!

13 comments:

RockStarTri said...

+1 on minor league baseball and getting tipsy on one beer.

I live in a household of female. If know I comment on chattyness, they will find out and then I'm doomed.

Unknown said...

An observation I made this week: When on the treadmill at the gym the iPod may make you think that the fart was silent, but the faces of the people around you will tell a different story.

I estimate may wife speaks 10 words to my one. Seriously, I think a 10:1 ratio is about right!

Aimee said...

Here's mine: Boys, no matter what their age, like to fart, and they think it's the most hilarious thing ever! Living with 3 boys (my two sons 3 and 5, and my husband), I have experienced this all too often!

noah is the best said...

My Y membership expires August 4th, so we should swim a few times before then.

Noah

p.s. Did you hear it is going to be the Y now, not the YMCA

Unknown said...

My observation, in regards to your shirtless ways, is that you do sweat a lot, but that doesn't have much to do with your intense desire to go shirtless. I remember days long, long ago (we are talking pre-triathlon days), when you would go shirtless whenever you possibly could. Come on...you know you love it!

Another: I live in a house full of men. Despite the fact that men have it so easy when it comes to going #1 (no wiping, no sitting, etc) they still cannot manage to get all of said #1 into the toilet boil. Of course, some of my men choose to purposely pee in the garbage can, but that is a different story altogether.

Heather said...

Hi. Nice to meet you. I am triathlete mother of five.
I enjoyed your observations. Especially the last one - drowning and/or not making the cut off would be catastrophic.
In my house the boys talk just as much as the girls. No one stops talking. Ever.

Molly said...

I realized this week that my six year old may already be a ladies man. The other day at the pool, a couple of girls saw him and started poking each other saying "It's LUKE! it's Luuuke!" And so it begins.

ONEHOURIRONMAN said...

No man...swimming is way over rated if you are a 1 hr 30 minute guy.... training might get you 5 to 8 minutes. same time spent biking might get you 30.
I'm old..... trust me.

FLATOUT JIM said...

First time here. great Blog and great observations, but HOLY Crap, 5 kids?

No wonder you want to do triathlons. It's probably the only peace you get.

Sara said...

I agree with you about girls talking more than boys...except in your case. I think your daughters just take after you =)

Alexa said...

Mark, you do go without a shirt more frequently than normal. I've noticed that as well. heh.

Mark said...

Flatout Jim, WELCOME to the blog, and thanks for your comments!

Kelly, Alexa... okay, I admit it... I go shirtless quite a bit during the summer. Does that make me narcissistic?

Sara, I think without question, you are probably correct that the girls definitely take after me with the gabbing!

Mark said...

Kelly—I do not EVER remember going shirtless back in the day. You are obviously delusional!!!!!!! :-)