Birdhouse!

I just love the lyrics of "Birdhouse in Your Soul."

Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch
Who watches over you
Make a little birdhouse in your soul
Not to put too fine a point on it
Say I'm the only bee in your bonnet
Make a little birdhouse in your soul

Oh, the pain

This knee of mine keeps hurting and just isn't getting a lot better. In fact, it recently got worse for reasons that I don't understand. Ouch.

What a piece of work

Been reading the Facebook statuses of some gal named Sepesy. She's a real piece of work with no shame or interpersonal skills.

Bittersweet

I remember some pleasant times during my high school years. Some pleasant people, too. So why do I often think back on those years and remember the unpleasantness?

Vocals

I wish I could sing. I really don't have any singing chops.

Kaley Cuoco

Man, that gal is funny! She has tremendous comedic timing and she's a darned funny actress.

Job hunters, look here.

Looking for a biotech job? This site might be helpful to you.

I know so many people who could use help with finding a job. My dear friend Linda, for example. It's sad.

The Slug, Part III

BTW, somebody complained to the class instructor that I was running into her during the class. I'm pretty sure that it was the slug, since she made some kind of remark when I was doing back kicks and supposedly tagged her or something.

The thing is, I was doing BACK kicks. I didn't run into her; rather, she was standing too close behind me when were were kicking. Common sense should dictate that if the class is going to be kicking backwards, you shouldn't stand too close behind another person in the class. What a diva.

The problem is that she doesn't pay attention. She often starts the moves late, acting as though the class was catching her by surprise. She doesn't have her head in the game. That's one reason why she barely moves -- because her mind isn't engaged by the class and she puts in no effort to speak of.

The Slug, Part II

Another thing about this sluggish gal at the gym... toward the end of the class, she keeps yelling out stuff like "Oh, yeah!" or "You go!" Something like that.

I don't object to that per se. Like I said though, she's barely moving in these classes! Why in the world would you let loose with these yelps of enthusiasm if you're barely moving at all? I'd rather that people put their money where their mouths are, so to speak.

The annoying slug

There is this woman in my gym that I think of as "the slug." It's not a kind nickname, which is why I don't share it with anyone. In my mind though, that's how I think of her.

She barely moves during the Saturday morning Hi-Lo class. From the very start of the class, she always adopts a hangdog expression. She doesn't really do the moves; rather, she moves as though she's dragging her limbs through molasses. Instead of doing a kick or a knee raise, for example, she just kinda lifts her foot a couple of inches off the floor.

No wonder she hasn't shown any results over the past couple of years. Working out the way she does, she's not going to get anything done. Heck, she'd get a better workout just by going for a brisk walk, since she hardly moves at all.

F.B.

Fenna can be very... problematic. She is so full of anger and negativity, and she's overly quick to jump down other people's throats, even without knowing the facts. She also has no grasp of diplomacy.

Gotta catch up

I need to catch up on my mail. Seriously.

Gotta catch up on my reading, too.

ALL CAPS

I met this one comic book store owner who always types up his messages entirely in capital letters. Argh.

Bad idea.

WKRP

I would like to watch some old WKRP episodes. Really.

Terry

Terry, you disappointed me. Greatly.

My thumb

My thumb hurts. Darned cut.

When communication fails

I think that the following comment that I once read makes a lot of sense: "If six people have understood the same thing, and it is not what you meant... you have, indeed, not made yourself clear!"

Hungarian Movie Night

I dislike it greatly.

The Cupid Shuffle

The Cupid Shuffle has got to be the most mindless line dance ever invented, right after the Chicken Dance. Even the Hokey Pokey provides more variety than this stupid charade.

That's why my mind was boggled when I attended a swing dance in Pennsylvania where the organizer actually took five minutes out to TEACH people how to do the Cupid Shuffle. Good grief. This isn't the sort of dance that you waste time teaching. Rather, it's the sort of mindless crap that people should be able to observe for a few seconds and then follow along.

Then again, the organizer of this particular event wasn't known for having a lot of dance expertise.

People who are ignorant about dance

Not everyone knows how to dance, and not everyone understands what goes into preparing a good dance event. I'm okay with that, as we all have different talents and backgrounds.

It does annoy me, however, when dances are organized by people who know nothing about dancing. Now, I'm not saying that the organizers need to be professional dancers. However, when they fail to understand such simple niceties as keeping the dance floor dry and mud-free... well, that's just dumb.

What's more, they typically cater to the lowest denominator. That's why a lot of dance parties have plenty of mindless line dances such as the Cupid Shuffle and the Cha Cha Slide. Don't get me wrong; I'm okay with having some of these dances, especially for the benefit of people with no dance expertise. However, when you have these kinds of dances over and over again in the course of the night, it gets to be a bit much.

10/10/10

Today's date is 10/10/2010 -- or if you wish, 10/10/10.

Makes me want to watch a Bo Derek film.

Tuberculosis screening

I came across the following in a paper from 2003.

"ELISPOT, an enzyme-linked immunospot that detects T cells specific for Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigens, promises to be a major advance in screening for tuberculosis (TB), according to the results of a study published in the April 5 issue of The Lancet. In a comparison trial, ELISPOT was more accurate than the tuberculin skin test and was unaffected by BCG vaccination."

Personally, I would have said "The ELISPOT assay" rather than just "ELISPOT," but that's just me. At any rate, I like the idea of using this technology for TB screening.

G I Joe, a real American hero

I just love watching old reruns of the G.I. Joe animated series from the 1980s. Now that was some quality writing for a children's show.

Phil

I received a Facebook friend request from this guy named Phil. I don't want to accept, but I suppose that I should.

Batman TV series

I have been watching some old episodes of the Batman TV series. Boy. This isn't great writing and Burt Ward's acting is deplorable, but it is a bit of a guilty pleasure.

Appreciated

I received a bit of appreciation recently. I don't get that a lot, so I am thankful for that.

Writing

I have way too much writing to do. Ugh.

Bri

I really appreciate my pal Bri. She is such a sweet and appreciative person.

She is also very beautiful. That is part of why I appreciate her. Not because I appreciate her good looks, but because she doesn't put on airs about it. Some beautiful women act that way and they tend to be hypersensitive about men showing them attention. She knows that I don't just regard her as an object of beauty though, and that I respect her marriage. I am thankful for that.

Working out too little

I've talked about how some folks fear that lifting weights will cause people to put on too much muscle. These people have probably never lifted in their lives. If they did, they would know that it takes a LOT of work to pack on tons of muscle.

Most people overestimate the benefits that they'll get from exercising. They think that if they run a couple of laps, they've made a big dent in their fitness goals. Or worse, they think that they can indulge in that cheeseburger they've been craving.

I see this in our gym classes all the time. People do practically nothing in the cardio classes, scarcely working up a sweat. They probably figure that they've put in their time, and that that's what counts. No, it doesn't. If you consistently work out at a low level, then you'll scarcely see any results. You need to put in some real effort if you want to get real results.

I'm not saying that every workout needs to be intense. The occasional low-intensity workout can be beneficial, especially if it's an endurance exercise or part of one's recovery period. However, consistently working out at a low level is likely to yield low-level results and nothing more.

Rats

I sure could use a change. A real change.

This is kinda disappointing. And frustrating. And aggravating. And discouraging.

Could really use a change of pace.

Women who fear getting bulky

In my previous post, I talked about folks who fear that if you start working out, you run the risk of looking like some hideous bodybuilder. That's simply a foolish fear, unfounded in any sort of reality.

Most people don't go that far. However, a lot of women have more moderate fears. They don't want to lift weights because they fear that they'll develop too much muscle. Again, that's just a foolish concern. First of all, a bit of muscle on a woman is SEXY. Second, it's extremely unlikely that they'll develop so much muscle that they'll start to look masculine -- especially if they're generally feminine in their appearance. Third, when they do develop muscle, it will be a gradual process, so it's not as though they are likely to be taken by surprise at how massive their biceps have become.