Jim's Guts

Friday Morning Pick-me-up...

In honor of her concert at the Tractor Tavern tomorrow night (which I'll be attending) here's a double shot of Missy Higgins...

From her US debut album "On A Clear Night" - Steer...

And from her 1st Aussie EP - Scar...

“No Country For Old Men”

I finally took the time to go see the Oscar's Best Picture winner on Wednesday afternoon, and this may be the easiest review to review ever – If you like the Coen Brother's, if you liked "Fargo", "O Brother, Where Art Thou", "The Big Lebowski", "Barton Fink", you'll like this movie. If not, don't bother. I would however add this quick disclaimer; while there is humor to be found here, this is a very violent film and not for the squeamish. I think the violence helps to tell the story, but while there are a couple of laugh out loud bits, it is decidedly not a comedy.

As with most great Coen films, the movie is filled with wonderful, yet flawed, and very real characters. While the pseudo-hero / everyman Moss, the laconic Sherriff (played fantastically by Tommy Lee Jones, by far my favorite character in the film), and the psychopathic killer Anton Chigurh (Bardem's Oscar was well deserved) are rightly the focus of the story, even the smaller parts are fantastic and add a ton to the total picture. And while the violence is harsh and feels real, it's done to advance the story not just for the thrill of putting some blood on the screen, much like "Fargo" when it happens it's sudden and shocking.

Overall I thought it was a great movie and well deserving of the awards it has garnered.

Trailer watch (the movies before the movie) –

"Funny Games" – Looks a lot like and updated and much scarier version of "Clockwork Orange", could be very good and very creepy.
"21" – The "fact based" story of 6 kids from MIT that took Vegas casinos for a lot of money.
"Forgetting Sarah Marshall" – The latest from the creative team behind "Knocked Up" and "40 Year Old Virgin", that's pretty much all you have to say.

Frostbite report…

I know I'm late in reporting this, but between my fulltime job with LexisNexis and my fulltime job with GYGIG, time to blog has been one of the things that got shuffled out. With that kvetching out of the way;

The Frostbite Time Trial was "frostbite" in name only; Sunday was a perfect day for a race – Very little wind, temperatures in the upper 40s, and light cloud cover. The course itself was great, very flat, pretty clean, and generally in good repair. The route was a straight out and back, and there was a small issue with the turn-around (it wasn't marked when I got there) but that was corrected shortly after I finished.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I was rider #1 and scheduled to be first out of the start house. It was far more intimidating than I thought it would be. I'm used to the mass starts of crits and 5k's, but not having to be the focus of three people in the start house (two USCF officials and the bike holder) and all the riders lined up behind me. I really had to focus on myself and what I was about to do. As for the start itself, a Time Trial (TT) start is different from a mass start in that you go to the start house, someone holds your bike, you clip in, and when it's your time to go, you go. There's no fooling around with pedals or the like, the holder releases you and you're off. I realized Saturday afternoon that I had never made a TT start before so I asked the L&T to help me with a couple, which went pretty smooth, I even figured out which gear I wanted to be in at the start. So Sunday I roll up a couple of minutes early and the USCF official asks me "would you mind clipping in? Our holder has never done this before and we'd like him to get a little used to it first". D'oh! (he did a great job by the way).

The Frostbite had a slightly different category setup than regular racing which included a "retro division" for those of us without specific time trial bikes or TT equipment (aero-helmets, special wheels, that sort of thing). I was not only the first rider to go, but I was the only "retro" for about 30 minutes which meant that no matter what my time, I was going to be 1^st in the clubhouse for at least a little while. But it also meant lined up behind me was a serious collection of speed, which would start every 30 seconds after I left.

I think I warmed up pretty well, but my cadence monitor died while I was on the trainer and I wasn't able to get it back before the start. Not horrible, I would still get distance, speed, and heart rate, but it threw me off my game enough that I forgot my PowerBar Gel. After the countdown in the start house I left with a pretty good push, but was trying to hold back a little bit because I thought the return would be hard based on the wind and my test ride. I should have gone harder, because my split coming back was significantly faster than the out. Overall I finished with a time of 32.00, last in retro and men's.

Even though my time wasn't as good as I thought it should be, I still enjoyed my first time trial, and I can see the attraction. It's just you and your bike, no teammates on the road, no excuses, and I really enjoyed that. While this was my first TT, it definitely won't be my last…

One man and his dream...

...The Amgen Tour of California is quickly becoming one of the premier early season races on the Pro calendar. This year's edition started with a short 2.1 mile individual time trial that finished on the campus of Standford University. While I admit that this may not be quite as funny if you're not a cyclist, you've got respect the man's efforts (BTW - Important note, this took place before the course was open for competition)

What I’m reading…

There is a lot of really quality stuff out on the interwebs (and yes, there's a lot of crap out there too), so in what could quite possibly be one in an ongoing series, here's some articles and posts that I think are well worth a read, I hope you will as well…

"The thin I aways wanted to be" – When you're an athlete, whether it's a weekend 5k sort of thing, or a paid professional, it's easy to get caught up in always trying to be better, faster, stronger, thinner, the list just goes on and on… But sometimes it's important to stop and think not about where you're going, and what you still need to do, but about where you are and where you've been. I think this Athena Diaries post nails it.

"Defining Victory Downward" – Michael Kinsley can be pretty hot and cold for me but I think he nails it here. Is "The Surge" working? Well, some violence is down, but the original idea of the surge was to be able to bring even more troops home, and that's not happening. Or as Kinsley so accurately puts it:

"Imagine that you had been told in 2003 that when George W. Bush finished his second term, dozens of American soldiers and hundreds of Iraqis would be dying violently every month; that a major American goal would be getting the Iraqi government to temper its "debaathification" campaign so that Saddam Hussein's former henchmen could start running things again (because they know how); and that "only" 100,000 American troops would be needed to sustain this equilibrium.

"You might have several words to describe this situation, but "success" would not be one of them."

"Castro Resigns! Sanctions Work!" – Jon Swift at his snarkiest best.

"When all you have is Hate" – While I may be hot and cold on Kinsley, I'm almost always cold on David Brooks. And his attempt to write a witty article on how all us who are looking for positive change are just setting ourselves up for "Obama Comedown Syndrome" is just one of the reasons. Fortunately there are guys like Driftglass to author an excellent rebuttal.

Friday Morning Pick-me-up...

This is for my friend Fina, who I know enjoys this guy as much as I do. Here's a little Mocean (pronounced motion) Worker - "Shake Ya Boogie"...

"The printer is right here..."

This isn't the "Friday morning pick-me-up" but if you're not a fan of my music choices (the L&T) perhaps this will be a good substitute. Eddie Izzard is one of the funniest guys on the planet, and this is a great routine about technology...

The Frostbite Time Trial (Updated)…

…Or Jim's "oh shit" moment of the day.

Update – I decided that since the weather wasn't too bad it might be better to go ride the course once rather that sit on the trainer for 60 minutes. Because my disease can make me a little late for events, I decided that once I got to the start area, I'd go cold (without warm-up) to simulate a worst case for Sunday. So once I was geared up and on the bike, I rolled to where I think the start line is going to be and off I went.

The course itself a standard out-&-back and is pretty good. There's a decent sized shoulder for probably 80% of the course, and there's wasn't a ton of traffic on a Wednesday afternoon around 4pm so I think there will be less on Sunday morning. The route is flat (a whopping 67' gained over the course of 9.2 miles) and protected pretty well from the wind on the out (the back is a little more exposed).

My time for the test run was 33.17 minutes, which is obviously higher than my goal of sub-30. That said, my split was around 14 so if I can stop from losing time on the back I'll be in pretty good shape. I'm also hoping that I'll get a chance to warm-up and that will help as well (I went to threshold pretty quick because I started cold). Overall, I'm cautiously un-pessimistic.

Being an adult…

When you were a little kid you thought about what life would be like when you were a "grown-up". You thought about what you'd do, and imagine that there wouldn't be any stupid rules. You'd go to bed when you wanted and get up when you wanted. You'd eat what you wanted and however much if it you wanted. What you didn't realize at the time is that there would still be stupid rules, and you really can't go to be when you want to because you have to get up in the morning "gotta get up and take on that world, when you're an adult, it's no cliché it's the truth".

And then some time it's everything you thought would be. Last night I had a team meeting so I got a chance to meet one of my brothers at the always excellent Sand Point Grill. I had a drink, some excellent food, and got to laugh a catch-up. All "on a school night". Yep, sometimes being an adult is better than you thought it would be.

The hypocrisy of le Tour…

For a lot of US cycling fans Sunday marks the start of the 2008 Pro Cycling season with the opening stage of the Amgen Tour of California, and yet…

As excited as I am about the ToC (I've already got it setup on TiVo), I can't help but be disappointed and a little dismayed, at the announcement on Wednesday that the Tour de France will not allow the Astana team (which includes the defending TdF champion Alberto Contador and 3^rd place finisher, Levi Leipheimer) to race in this year's Tour. Unlike most US pro sports where, if you're a recognized team you get scheduled, cycling is more like NCAA Basketball tournament, and teams are invited to "play". To carry this analogy forward, this move by the TdF would be something akin to holding the NCAA tournament and not inviting Duke (currently ranked #2).

Quick history for my non-cycling friends – In the 2007 edition of the TdF Team Astana was, quite correctly I might add, disgraced and kicked out of the Tour midway through. The team responded in the offseason by firing pretty much everyone, and starting freshPretty much the only thing that didn't change was the team's name and colors.

So why has the ASO (the company which owns the Tour de France) decided to exclude Astana? Because of "the damage caused by this team to the Tour de France and cycling in general," Don't get me wrong the ASO has every right to invite whomever they want to le Tour, what bothers me is the hypocrisy of it all. Astana can't race, but Robobank (they fired their team leader, who was in Yellow at the time, during last year's race because of doping concerns), and Cofidis (the whole team was kicked out of the 2007 Tour) are welcomed? Had the ASO came out and said "Astana can't race because we don't like them" I would have thought them wankers, but well within their rights, but to exclude Astana (and 3 guys with a real chance of winning) because of "the damage" they caused? Please.

So, will I watch the TdF? I think that honestly depends. If Team Slipstream (a new American team) gets an entrance probably, but if not…

Quick hits…

…Indiana Jones Edition! The trailer for the 3^rd Indiana Jones movie ("Temple of Doom" never happened, do you hear me? It never happened) was just released, so how about an Indy quotes edition?

Sallah: Please, what does it always mean, this... this "Junior"?
Professor Henry Jones: That's his name… Henry Jones...Junior
Indiana Jones: I like "Indiana."
Professor Henry Jones: We named the *dog* Indiana.
Sallah: You are named after the dog? HA HA HA...!
Indiana Jones: I've got a lot of fond memories of that dog. – Maybe the best set of lines in the series, but I have to admit, the new one looks pretty good, you can see it here.

Marcus Brody: The search for the Grail is the search for the divine in all of us. But if you want facts, Indy, I've none to give you. At my age, I'm prepared to take a few things on faith. – When Coach T reads this she's either going to be amused or disappointed, but really, since when wasn't lactic acid what caused your muscles to fatigue? Apparently it's been a while, but now they think they know what's happening according to this New York Times article. Calcium ions being released in the cell, and they've figured out how to stop it (in mice). Science is always changing.

Marion: Well, Jones, at least you haven't forgotten how to show a lady a good time
Indiana: Boy, you're something – So how did the Smith's celebrate Valentine's Day? I went to InCycle and she went to a step class at her gym. We did share a dessert while watching "Countdown". Who said romance is dead?

Professor Henry Jones: My son, we're pilgrims in an unholy land – I've never met anyone more fearful than this President and his enablers. Everywhere you look it's "scary brown people coming to kill you". I refuse to let fear guide my action, Olbermann agrees.

Friday Morning Pick-me-up...

I love the classics, and honestly 80's stuff is probably half of my personal music collection. That said, man does not live by New Wave alone, and there's a lot of new stuff that's really good. Since the early 1980's Australia has given birth to a lot of great bands and music (Men At Work, INXS, Crowed House, etc.), and now a new generation is emerging from "The Land Down Under" - Missy Higgins, The Cat Empire, Clare Bowditch, and these guys, showing what happens when you let Emo go unchecked; Kisschasy - "Spray On Pants"

Dropping weight the IBD way…

My doctor decided that I had been on, and been taking too much of the anti-diarrheal drug that I had been on and requested that I try an over the counter alternative. The results have been mixed. On the downside, I'm taking a fair amount of the OTC one, still having the "problem", and having a hard time getting away from a bathroom for more than an hour or two. On the upside, I've dropped below 180lbs for the first time in years, and if my scale is to be believed, some of the weight I'm losing is actually fat.

Who says I'm not a glass half-full kind of guy?

Odd post script…

If you read my "report" of the day that the L&T and I scattered Mr. Stout's ashes then you know that a fair number of odd and wondrous things happened that day. Well, the L&T was balancing the checkbook tonight and noted that the bill from where we stopped for breakfast that morning (the one with the waitress who is studying to be a Physician's Assistant) hasn't cleared. We were the only ones in the restaurant, and we paid by debt card, it's not like a check was pocketed or cash lost, or even that it got lost in the bustle. The charge hasn't cleared.

In a very difficult week (I've been battling the flu and a change in my UC), it was a good reminder that things aren't always what they appear to be…

Quick hits (updated)…

I hate being sick! Between that and a change in my drugs, I'm just having a hard time doing much of anything. I've missed two InCycle classes (sorry Coach T), and a skills clinic. I would like to be better soon please.

This thing and this one have been bothering me for a while now. I'd like to do deeper posts on them, and might still at some point, but for right now could we stop saying "support the troops" but not do anything to back it up?

The author of the second link in the paragraph above is a gentleman named Alex who writes a fantastic blog called "Army of Dude". It's a great read and I can't recommend it highly enough.

The 2008 NASCAR Nextel Championship campaign kicks off tonight with the Bud Shootout at Daytona, which will set the pole sitter for next Sunday's Daytona 500. During the offseason local boy Kasey Kahne stayed with Evernham Motorsports and will continue to drive the 9 car this year but with a new sponsor. Budweiser. I like Kasey a lot, but I don't think I'm going to start drinking "Bud" just to support him. And yes, I know that it's weird for me to be a NASCAR fan, but I'm a study in contradictions (or not) – Dale Jr. won.

Speaking of winners, I'm very glad that Senator Obama won here in Washington, in addition to missing all the above I also did not get out to caucus (which I did in '04). I would have felt bad if I hadn't gone out and he'd lost…

Dang. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled for Coach Zorn, but I sure wish it had been an AFC team.

Friday Morning Pick-me-up...

There was an article in the Seattle Times last Friday talking about how Ryan Adams' band Whiskeytown "almost single-handedly created alt-country". Oh really? Now, I've got nothing against Whiskeytown (I don't really know their music), but "single-handedly"? What about groups like Uncle Tupelo, or Canada's Blue Rodeo, or these guys (one of my favorites) BR5-49 on a Prairie Home Companion...

Hiring Heroes…

I've said frequently that regardless of your personal feelings about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the men and women who are, or have been, at the "sharp end of the spear" deserve all of the support that we can provide. Regardless of their own personal feelings or their reasons for joining, all of them raised their right-hand and swore to protect and defend our country and Constitution. Yet the current administration has shown, let's say a "casual" attitude towards our returning veterans, disabled or not.

Sometimes necessity really is the mother of invention*, and so like Vote Vets before them, a couple of disabled veterans decided the only way something was going to get done was to do it themselves, so they created Hire Heroes USA, a placement service for wounded veterans. There is no cost to the vet or the employer. If you know someone in HR, or your own company is looking, I recommend checking them out.

* I'm a huge believer in self sufficiency, and I almost always think that private citizens and organizations are significantly better than the government at handling most things. That said, veterans, and in particular disabled veterans, are kind of a special case. We (that is the people of this country) sent them into harm's way, it's our responsibility to make sure they're taken care of when they comeback.

Rooting for the Patriots…

There's an old adage that "all politics is local" and I think that applies to sports just as much. You root for teams based on connections, and based on that, as much as I dislike dynasties, I'll be rooting for the Patriots. Why? Two reasons – Eckel and Belichick.

While certainly not the best student (he was the Class of 2005's "Anchor Man", finishing last in his class) Kyle Eckel was an absolute beast at Navy, and as a fullback was instrumental in returning Navy Football. In addition to being named the Army Navy game MVP twice he is among the all-time leaders in carries, yards, and touchdowns. He was signed to the Patriots' active roster in October of 2007, and in addition to seeing some playing time with the offense has had a very good year with special teams.

As for Belichick, his ties with Navy football go back over 50 years. Bill is the son of legendary Navy coach Steve Belichick. Coach Belichick was involved with the Naval Academy for 50 (yes, that's correct, Five Zero years) including 33 years as an assistant football coach and professor of physical education. Bill has in the past discussed his connection with the USNA and speaks fondly of his time learning the game by watching his father in Annapolis, and in 2006 moved his family's historic football book collection to the Naval Academy.

Tomorrow, I'm a Patriots fan.

Friday Morning Pick-me-up...

Hard to believe that Mandy Moore has made a cover of this (the L&T and I think that Moore's voice is too pretty for this song), but here's the original and by far the best from the amazing Joan Armatrading...