Too many desserts

I've attended a few singles socials recently wherein people were assigned different kinds of foods to bring. This was done alphabetically; for example, people whose last names start with the letters A to L might be asked to bring a side dish, whereas people with names from M to S might be asked to bring desserts and T to Z would be asked to bring drinks.

What typically happens, however, is that there is an overabundance of cupcakes and cookies. Is it because there's a disproportionately large number of people whose names fell into the corresponding range? I seriously doubt it. What happens -- and of this, I'm absolutely convinced -- is that a lot of people just decide to bring a bag of cookies regardless of what their surname initial is. After all, it's simpler and easier to do that.

In most cases -- and again, I feel confident in saying this -- it's also lazy and inconsiderate. I don't want to judge any individual on this matter, as I'm sure that some people were legitimately pressed for time. Knowing human nature though, I don't doubt that many people simply decided to take the easy approach.

Is it disastrous? Not really, but it does create obvious problems.

Andrew Fenlon

Some people just don't get it.

I can be fairly negative at times. In fact, I often use this blog to vent about stuff that bothers the heck out of me. It's a way of pouring out frustrations that I can't really voice elsewhere. However, Andrew Fenlon carries this to a whole 'nuther level.

If you've seen his little snitty fit on "American Idol," you know what I'm talking about. I don't blame Kara DioGuardi for telling him that he should just walk out if he didn't change his attitude. Nor do I blame the ever abrasive Simon for saying that he should stop being a smartass.

How did this fella even think that he could get away with that kind of 'tude?

A rediscovery

Today I rediscovered the Science Advisory Board. I had forgotten that this organization existed.

Their mission is to improve communications between (a) medical and life science professionals and (b) the companies who provide this community with products and services. In other words, its a way to hook researchers and their colleagues up with companies that can provide the stuff and services that they need.

So they conduct studies about the products and services in question. Companies can then use this information to improve existing products and services or to develop new ones that better meet the needs of their customers.

About Chloe O'Brian

I thought this was amusing. It's from an earlier version of the Wikipedia page for a certain "24" TV character.

For a time, her character nickname on the website Television Without Pity was "Potato Face." In various TV appearances and print interviews, Mary Lynn Rajskub has mentioned that she now avoids Internet discussions about her character because somebody said that she had a face like a potato. More recently, other nicknames have been proposed, such as "Hot Potato" (a reference to the fact that many fans have found her increasingly attractive).

Clueless gym gal

I try to avoid referring to gym newbies as being "clueless." I recognize that we all have to start somewhere, and that it sometimes takes people a while to understand proper form, good workout techniques, and even the fine points of gym etiquette.

However, some people truly are clueless. I was reminded of this when I saw the following on someone's blog:

"Machine Hogs. These people will hog one machine and won't let you work in with them. I can understand if you're using a machine and you leave your towel on it to show it's in use. However, if you are doing lunges up and down the room and the machine is sitting there, you can at least let someone work in while you are lunging. Yes, this goes out to the woman who hogged the leg press machine today - you could have shared. Other people have work outs they need to do too."

Last week, I was trying to use the lat pulldown machine. However, somebody had left her gym back and water bottle on the seat. That wasn't very nice, but I figured that this person might simply be between sets. I waited around, even trying out a cable row machine in the meantime. The bag just sat there.

I tried to work around this by using other machines. I also tried to stand behind the seat and use the lat pulldown machine that way. Eventually, the owner of the bad did show up. She said, "Sorry, I should have moved my stuff."

YA THINK!?!?!? Apparently, she had been using this machine as a table while she worked out on another station. I wanted to give her a piece of my mind; instead, I said, "Yes, that wasn't very nice. Other people want to use these machines too, you know."

Now that is just pure cluelessness. I can understand someone not understanding how to use the machines properly. I can understand them not being familiar with how to get an effective workout. However, how can you possibly think that it's okay to dump your stuff on one machine while you work out somewhere else? Do you think that you're the only person who could want to use the machine in question?

I think that my reply to her was quite restrained. What I really wanted to say is that she was being very rude. I wanted to say, "You do not own this machine, lady. Don't treat it like it's your personal property."

Some new exercises

I watched Jillian Michael's "Last Chance Workout" DVD. It's very much a beginner's workout and won't be challenging for people who are already fit. However, there are two exercises there that I liked and that I think are worth incorporating into a workout:

Staggered pushups, in which one hand is placed more forward than the other
Up and down planks, in which we alternative raise ourselves up on our hands and go down onto our forearms

I also liked the idea of doing certain weight exercises while balancing on one leg. This causes the body to engage more muscles.

Dancing well

Earlier, I talked about how I wish that people who enjoy dancing would learn how to do so. That is, I wish that I could get my friends to take a few lessons, or to break down some dance moves from TV, or to learn some other interesting stuff.

Some would point out that when most people dance, they're not performing for other people. That's true, but it's also beside the point. It can be fun to just shake one's booty around, but I guarantee that dancing -- even for one's personal pleasure -- is vastly more gratifying when someone learns some real stylings.

I have attending this monthly singles "dance" party where almost nobody knows how to dance. Oh, they know a few line dances (that wretched cupid shuffle, for example), but nothing that requires real skill. A few of them know some country steps, and there's one couple that knows a little east coast swing, but nothing really impressive or energetic.

Heck, I remember trying to lead a couple of them through a turn. These folks were so sluggish that they couldn't make it all the way around, not even at slow speed. I swear, it was like they were walking through molasses. Ugh.

I wish that my friends would learn to dance

I wish, I really really wish, that I could get my friends to learn how to dance.

They enjoy dancing, but to my frustration, they don't really try to learn. Oh, they'll make a token effort at going through the complimentary lessons at our community swing dances, but they don't pay much attention and they don't try very hard. Nor do they try to learn any really interesting moves, not even the simple ones. They just kinda like to wiggle and shake around.

The politically correct response would be to say that it's all dancing, and that there's nothing wrong with just shaking around. In a very real sense, that's true. However, it's not "real" dancing as far as I'm concerned. Some call it freestyle dancing, but really... good freestyle dancing involves much more than just wiggling around to the music. Yeah, I know. Some people think it's fun to just wiggle around, but frankly, it's kinda dumb.

I like what a friend of mine said. This friend of mine pointed out that it takes time and effort to learn how to dance. People want quick gratification, so instead of learning how to dance well, they just wiggle about. Have I mentioned lately how dumb that is?

A skinny gal's response

In the past, I've written about the poor way in which overweight people sometimes get treated. I've also written about the fat acceptance movement -- both the good parts and the parts on which certain elements go way overboard.

Today, I'd like to post the following remark from someone who's been treated poorly because she's NOT overweight.

I find these discussions depressing at best. I'm a "skinny, little bitch" according to quite a few people. The disgust and nastiness shown towards me is far more than I have ever expressed internally or externally to someone overweight, but hey, it is ok, 'cause I'm skinny and I deserve it.

I've been overweight (briefly) and got a great view of how overweight people view skinny people, it isn't nice, it is not attractive and frankly, it pisses me off.

My husband is overweight, always has been. He also has horrible eating habits. Several of his family members are overweight also, they have the same horrible eating habits. The two skinny ones? Well, they don't eat like the others, nor do they weigh like the others.

If eating less didn't work, then bariatric surgery would NOT work. Sure, some folks regain the weight by stretching their stomachs back out and doing exactly what they aren't supposed to do.

I work with a girl that is about 5'2" who is probably close to 400lbs. She swears she never eats. I guess all the times I see her helping herself to the ice cream cooler don't count. Or my friend who swore it was "genetics" and was a vegetarian who would eat cream cheese by the container, or the friend that was a "vegan" but would binge eat anything, once by eating about 4lbs of shepard's pie (yes, there was meat in it).

Now, I have an unhealthy relationship with food, but I adore it. I also understand that it is impossible to create something out of nothing.

We, as a world, are fatter now than ever. Obesity is rampant. The food we eat has more calories per ounce than it needs to, our portion sizes are out of control, what we consider food is laughable. I'm perfectly fine accepting someone for who/how they are, just don't sling bullshit at me.

The amount of people who have actual medical conditions that are responsible for their weight are in no way even close to the majority of obese people.

Some freestyle (hip hop) dance moves

I picked up some "freestyle" dance moves from a Christy Lane DVD. Based on the context though, I'd say that she's using the term as a synonym for hip hop.

The ones that I most want to remember are the following: hot spot, pump, electric kick, the box (basically, a box step with some funk thrown in), and the reggae chop.

Science revisited

In an earlier post, I mentioned that some bozos pride themselves on being scientific in their day-to-day activities, yet they have a poor grasp of what science is. Far from using real science, what they're doing is using a severely watered down version thereof.

In that post, I described how one of these guys would claim to use science in evaluating relationships. Interestingly enough, this guy is an ardent atheist who ridicules those who believe in the power of prayer. Now I'm not about to argue for or against prayer or God right now. However, I would like to reproduce the words of one bright fella who made an interesting observation.

The point I'm trying to make... is that your definition of a "scientific approach" is not what most people would recognize as science at all. Let's suppose that somebody said that they prayed to Jesus for a miraculous healing and their request was granted. The objection will immediately be raised that the healing might have occurred naturally, and that the only way to determine whether prayer works is to conduct a study with many people suffering from a certain condition, split into two groups, one using prayer and one not. This response is given all the time on this board and elsewhere. In other words, the assertion is that a single person evaluating his or her own experiences cannot be scientific; it's only scientific when you're studying a group.

But then here you are saying that a single person making conclusions based on unique circumstances can be using a scientific approach. In other words, the exact approach that people usually blast for failing to be scientific, now is scientific.

Great answer!

Kathy Griffin is an embarassment

Some comedians seem to think that dropping the f-bomb in their act makes them funnier. No, it doesn't.

Kathy Griffin did this a lot during her CNN appearance on New Year's Eve. She also made certain off-color jokes that were decidedly shocking. Frankly, she should have known better. It was CNN, after all, a network that carries a certain professional demeanor.

I've never liked her act, and this incident makes me dislike her humor even more.

What a disappointing NYE celebration

I had to decide where to go on New Year's Eve. I could have gone to this one singles group, but the folks there tend to be older than I am, and they even act much older than they are. I could have gone to this ballroom on the west side of town, but I suspected that it would mostly be older people as well. (Indeed, I later found out that it was mostly older folks and a lot of couples. Not a great environment.)

So I went with some friends to a singles dance about an hour away. That was very disappointing as well. It was a "dance" where people mostly just wiggled around on the dance floor. Were they having fun? Certainly, and I won't begrudge them that. I was really hoping to see some people with actual dance skills though, especially partner dance skills.

One problem with these singles groups is that there are often good reasons why these folks are single. I'm not trying to disparage them, nor do I wish to minimize their worth as human beings. Like it or not though, very often these groups tend to be filled with people who are badly out of shape or who otherwise lack physical ability.

That's not the entire problem, though. One of my friends is pretty athletic, and she's even quite pretty. She just can't dance, and I don't know why. I think that ultimately, it's because she lacks confidence. She could do it, but if you throw something unexpected her way, she panics. She also doesn't put in a lot of effort, which is disappointing. I know that a lot of guys would want to dance with someone like her.

Some new lindy moves

Here are some new lindy hop dance moves that I learned.

"The Basket"
Trying different moves when coming out of a reverse swingout. One could do a Texas Tommy, a she-goes, or an outside turn.
Trying "the basket" but adding an extra turn at the end

Hyphenation

I thought that the title of this article was interesting. Why? Because this is a situation wherein somebody actually used hyphenation correct. The term "antigen-specific" is a compound adjective, and as such, it should ordinarily be hyphenated.

So many people miss out on this simple rule. I don't understand why, since it should be pretty clear to anyone who does a lot of reading. I do understand that some people don't seem to be wired in a way that lets them grasp the written word as well as others do, though. Some can communicate perfectly when when using spoken English, but their written English is a mess. Go figger.

Consider Rick Warren's vastly overrated bestseller, "The Purpose Driven Life." "Purpose Driven" should be hyphenated, but it is not. Very few people pick up on this.

There was a car blocking my driveway

I saw a car blocking my driveway late at night. It had its hazard lights on and its front passenger-side tire was twisted at a nasty angle. I'm guessing that it had a broken tie rod.

What a bummer for the owner. I am glad that the car was gone by the time I woke up in the morning, though. I would have hated to be blocked in. (Remind me to rant sometime about the jackass who blocked the driveway of the apartment building that I used to live in.)

I am also glad that this person didn't knock on my door and ask for help. I would have been willing to help, as I would not turn away someone in distress. However, I was also tired and had a lot of things to do.

Some cardio DVD recommendations

I'd like to recommend the following cardio DVDs:

Kimberly Spreen: Absolute Kickboxing
Criss Cross Cardio featuring Sherri Jacquelyn

In fact, I'd recommend anything by Kimberly Spreen. This particular DVD is great though, because it incorporates the use of a Body Bar (that is, a weighted bar) for some combat exercises. This is a great way to mix one's workout up a bit.

Sherri Jacquelyn is a bit of a newcomer; however, she does have some rather unique kickboxing moves. She also makes good use of capoeira, which is refreshing. I wish that my right ankle weren't hurting right now; otherwise, I'd do her workout a lot more.

I think I'll borrow these DVDs from the library now and then, just to give my workouts some variety.

A new robot

I received an ad today from Agilent Technologies. They were advertising their new Agilent Direct Drive Robot. It's a bit odd that they chose this name, as opposed to something glitzier. It's especially odd since their life sciences clientele probably wouldn't understand the implications of a direct drive robot, but what the heck.

It looks like a nifty machine. I wouldn't mind taking one of these things apart and/or discussion the design philosophy with some of their engineers. Might be kinda fun, and I do enjoy these high-tech toys.

Visiting

I'm glad that I got to visit a new friend over Christmas. She's very cool.

She says that she's no domestic diva. Personally though, I think she's a wonderful person. No romance in the cards there, but that doesn't mean that I can't respect her.

She's also a writer and can articulate herself very well. I appreciate that. If only more people had that kind of mastery of the written word.

Some Christmas humor

Here is a geeky bit of holiday humor from a clean jokes page.

Real programmers can never tell the difference between Halloween and Christmas. After all, OCT 31 == DEC 25.