Many, many months ago I started the book "The Hunt for Red October", a classic by Tom Clancy. I read only a small amount, and put the book down. A few weeks back I picked it up again, and tonight I finally finished it. The ending was so gripping that I had no idea that I was past my normal bedtime. Whoops!
About two years ago, I bought 3 books: Terminal Man, The Hunt for Red October, and Kiterunner. The first two were suggestions from Justin, and the latter was one from Andrea. Two years later, I have sadly only knocked off two out of the three. It's not that I don't enjoy books, I generally like all the books I've read. Instead, the problem has been that I'd rather be doing many other things, such as playing video games or bass, watching TV shows, or hanging out with people. Reading has always been so far down in my priorities that it never came up. I decided I wanted that to change, and so far I've succeeded.
Once I finish Kiterunner, I am open to your suggestions, my fellow readers. When I say I am open to your suggestions, I'm being quite literal. I don't have a favorite genre, and I will give both non-fiction and fiction an equal shot. As long as it's engaging, I don't care, but I don't know why you would recommend a book that isn't engaging. If it's not engaging then it's not a good book, right?
So post up one or two of your favorites, and I will give them a look-see. In the off chance that I've already read it, I'll let you know so you can give me another.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
first day, first aid
I'm not going to bother recapping the weekend because I'm lazy. So there! Average weekend, nothing out of the ordinary. I did some hanging, some downtowning, and some lunching. Instead, let's start with the first day of the workweek.
Today was a special day at work; I was in training all day to become first aid certified. The first half of the day was spent on medical, injury, and environmental emergencies, and knowing how to handle such situations. They're all very basic, since we're obviously not trained medical professionals. It just allows us to do something at work for the few minutes before paramedics arrive, or to look for warning signs for things such as heart attacks and strokes.
The second half of the day was centered around administering CPR and properly using AEDs. A common misconception, and one that I actually held before the course, is that CPR is used to actually bring people back into consciousness. That is incorrect, and usually CPR doesn't "resuscitate" people as the name might suggest. We were told that typically, adults whose hearts stop beating are due to underlying reasons which simply pumping won't correct - they will need hospital intervention to get their heart jump-started. Instead, CPR is used to maintain blood flow to the vital organs - the heart and brain, especially - to keep them oxygenated. By using compressions on their chest, you act as their heart and circulate their blood for them, giving them the extra minutes needed before the EMT arrives with better equipment. Ventilation (through breathing into their mouth) isn't entirely necessary these days, although it does help to provide additional oxygen, especially when CPR is being administered over several minutes. However, they recommend that if we ever have to give CPR to a stranger we don't know, to do compression-only CPR and not risk mouth-to-mouth contact. They say that giving compressions is better than not doing anything at all, which is understandable. Now, there are instances where CPR can actually bring people back around, but those cases are rare, such as children who were drowning. In a case such as that, the heart was perfectly fine and only stopped beating because of lack of oxygen. By giving CPR, you are re-establishing oxygen to the heart and it will return beating as normal.
AEDs on the other hand are used to send electrical shocks to the heart, to correct very specific heart conditions. They are almost completely automated, and are virtually dummy-proof. You turn it on, and it will tell you audibly to place the pads on their chest and to plug in the pads. Then it will analyze their heart, and determine if a shock is needed. If so, it will recommend a shock and charge itself. Once everyone is cleared, you push a button and it sends the shock. You administer CPR as normal and it will analyze and shock if necessary every 2 minutes.
CPR is intended to be given until trained professionals arrive. Since patients don't typically revive, you can be giving CPR continuously for upwards of 10-15 minutes until the paramedics are ready to take over. I was pretty tired after just 2-3 minutes of CPR. Tough stuff.
In completely unrelated news, many months ago Taylor and I completed a little mashup for fun. In case you're too lazy to click the link and read about mashups, I will briefly explain it for you. A mashup is a song that is made up of segments and snippets of a ton of different songs. Basically, we took vocals from some songs, and put it on top of music from other songs, and put them all together for about 5 minutes. In case you're interested, here it is (it's a bit soft so you might have to turn up your speakers). As a warning, you should know that there are rap songs in this mashup and thus the language is not safe for work or prudes. I think we're going to work on a new one soon.
Okay, I just hyped you up to listen to that mashup, right? Well it wasn't as easy as I was hoping to post it, so I will work on it and put it on a future entry. I didn't want to delete everything I wrote above, so instead I just teased you. I apologize.
Finally, a lot of my time the past week has been spent practicing piano and reading, neither of which I regularly do. I'm proud of myself for working on both of those. However it has come at a cost, because I haven't played much bass in the last few weeks. That's okay though, it will always be there for me when I'm ready.
Today was a special day at work; I was in training all day to become first aid certified. The first half of the day was spent on medical, injury, and environmental emergencies, and knowing how to handle such situations. They're all very basic, since we're obviously not trained medical professionals. It just allows us to do something at work for the few minutes before paramedics arrive, or to look for warning signs for things such as heart attacks and strokes.
The second half of the day was centered around administering CPR and properly using AEDs. A common misconception, and one that I actually held before the course, is that CPR is used to actually bring people back into consciousness. That is incorrect, and usually CPR doesn't "resuscitate" people as the name might suggest. We were told that typically, adults whose hearts stop beating are due to underlying reasons which simply pumping won't correct - they will need hospital intervention to get their heart jump-started. Instead, CPR is used to maintain blood flow to the vital organs - the heart and brain, especially - to keep them oxygenated. By using compressions on their chest, you act as their heart and circulate their blood for them, giving them the extra minutes needed before the EMT arrives with better equipment. Ventilation (through breathing into their mouth) isn't entirely necessary these days, although it does help to provide additional oxygen, especially when CPR is being administered over several minutes. However, they recommend that if we ever have to give CPR to a stranger we don't know, to do compression-only CPR and not risk mouth-to-mouth contact. They say that giving compressions is better than not doing anything at all, which is understandable. Now, there are instances where CPR can actually bring people back around, but those cases are rare, such as children who were drowning. In a case such as that, the heart was perfectly fine and only stopped beating because of lack of oxygen. By giving CPR, you are re-establishing oxygen to the heart and it will return beating as normal.
AEDs on the other hand are used to send electrical shocks to the heart, to correct very specific heart conditions. They are almost completely automated, and are virtually dummy-proof. You turn it on, and it will tell you audibly to place the pads on their chest and to plug in the pads. Then it will analyze their heart, and determine if a shock is needed. If so, it will recommend a shock and charge itself. Once everyone is cleared, you push a button and it sends the shock. You administer CPR as normal and it will analyze and shock if necessary every 2 minutes.
CPR is intended to be given until trained professionals arrive. Since patients don't typically revive, you can be giving CPR continuously for upwards of 10-15 minutes until the paramedics are ready to take over. I was pretty tired after just 2-3 minutes of CPR. Tough stuff.
In completely unrelated news, many months ago Taylor and I completed a little mashup for fun. In case you're too lazy to click the link and read about mashups, I will briefly explain it for you. A mashup is a song that is made up of segments and snippets of a ton of different songs. Basically, we took vocals from some songs, and put it on top of music from other songs, and put them all together for about 5 minutes. In case you're interested, here it is (it's a bit soft so you might have to turn up your speakers). As a warning, you should know that there are rap songs in this mashup and thus the language is not safe for work or prudes. I think we're going to work on a new one soon.
Okay, I just hyped you up to listen to that mashup, right? Well it wasn't as easy as I was hoping to post it, so I will work on it and put it on a future entry. I didn't want to delete everything I wrote above, so instead I just teased you. I apologize.
Finally, a lot of my time the past week has been spent practicing piano and reading, neither of which I regularly do. I'm proud of myself for working on both of those. However it has come at a cost, because I haven't played much bass in the last few weeks. That's okay though, it will always be there for me when I'm ready.
Friday, July 16, 2010
welcome to the wonderful world of friday
It's Friday!
Let's get down to business. We had a double-header for kickball on Wednesday, and unfortunately we lost both. However, they were what I consider "good" losses - 8-9 and 8-13. Both games were close right up until the end, and we played very well despite losing.
We also had a double-header for softball, but we had 45 minutes in between our two games, instead of immediately back-to-back. Our softball team's roster consists of 19 players, and yet we somehow managed to only have 8 show up for our first game. That means that we were short 2 players from the normal amount you have on the field, so we combined short stop and third base into one position, and had only 3 outfielders instead of 2. The team we played was good, but they didn't understand that the game was over when they were up 11-2, and they kept trying really hard throughout the rest of the game.
Now, I'm not one to really complain about people being competitive, but let's look at the facts here. We only had 8 players, meaning we had people doubling up positions and no one was getting breaks. Also, we were clearly going to lose. At that point, is it really necessary to keep trying to kick our ass? We ended up losing 4-12. During our 45 minute break in between the two games, we stayed and watched as they played another team that was as bad as us. They were even more unnecessarily overly-competitive against this team. By the third inning, they were up 18-0. You read that right, eighteen to zero. You know what they were doing? They were still running and diving for fly balls like it was life or death. Listen guys, when you are up 18 points after about 15 minutes of play, you no longer have to give 100% effort. Need I remind everyone that this is a "super-social" league, which according to the Austin SSC website, is a league "for players with limited softball skills." What that translates to is, "when you are kicking a team's ass by 18-0, you no longer have to dive to catch fly balls, assholes." Not to mention that they were still hustling at full speed and throwing fastballs to first base to get out poor people who never had a chance to get to the base to begin with. At least they weren't verbal assholes, like other teams we've run into.
Taylor actually played in that game, because the team who got their ass kicked needed an extra player. Also, after our second game, another team needed two more so me and her joined that team, too. I ended up playing 3 softball games, while Taylor played 4. Intense.
In motorcycle-related news, I have attached my new clutch cable, but my battery is now dead. It is clear that my battery can't hold a charge very well, but what is the cause: poor acid levels, or keeping it hooked up for 6 months while I was storing my bike and not riding it? Either way, I need to resolve the issue. I also made the big purchase yesterday and grabbed all (or almost all) the new parts I'm going to need. It's going to come to about $500 in parts, plus however much in labor for whatever I take to the shop (like the new tires, for example). Wish me luck!
Let's get down to business. We had a double-header for kickball on Wednesday, and unfortunately we lost both. However, they were what I consider "good" losses - 8-9 and 8-13. Both games were close right up until the end, and we played very well despite losing.
We also had a double-header for softball, but we had 45 minutes in between our two games, instead of immediately back-to-back. Our softball team's roster consists of 19 players, and yet we somehow managed to only have 8 show up for our first game. That means that we were short 2 players from the normal amount you have on the field, so we combined short stop and third base into one position, and had only 3 outfielders instead of 2. The team we played was good, but they didn't understand that the game was over when they were up 11-2, and they kept trying really hard throughout the rest of the game.
Now, I'm not one to really complain about people being competitive, but let's look at the facts here. We only had 8 players, meaning we had people doubling up positions and no one was getting breaks. Also, we were clearly going to lose. At that point, is it really necessary to keep trying to kick our ass? We ended up losing 4-12. During our 45 minute break in between the two games, we stayed and watched as they played another team that was as bad as us. They were even more unnecessarily overly-competitive against this team. By the third inning, they were up 18-0. You read that right, eighteen to zero. You know what they were doing? They were still running and diving for fly balls like it was life or death. Listen guys, when you are up 18 points after about 15 minutes of play, you no longer have to give 100% effort. Need I remind everyone that this is a "super-social" league, which according to the Austin SSC website, is a league "for players with limited softball skills." What that translates to is, "when you are kicking a team's ass by 18-0, you no longer have to dive to catch fly balls, assholes." Not to mention that they were still hustling at full speed and throwing fastballs to first base to get out poor people who never had a chance to get to the base to begin with. At least they weren't verbal assholes, like other teams we've run into.
Taylor actually played in that game, because the team who got their ass kicked needed an extra player. Also, after our second game, another team needed two more so me and her joined that team, too. I ended up playing 3 softball games, while Taylor played 4. Intense.
In motorcycle-related news, I have attached my new clutch cable, but my battery is now dead. It is clear that my battery can't hold a charge very well, but what is the cause: poor acid levels, or keeping it hooked up for 6 months while I was storing my bike and not riding it? Either way, I need to resolve the issue. I also made the big purchase yesterday and grabbed all (or almost all) the new parts I'm going to need. It's going to come to about $500 in parts, plus however much in labor for whatever I take to the shop (like the new tires, for example). Wish me luck!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
bad news in Coppell
Quite a sad story in Coppell today. The mayor was part of an apparent murder/suicide, where she killed her daughter and then turned the gun on herself.
Read more:
play qrank
What is Qrank? It is a daily social trivia game. Everyday, you have one chance to answer 15 questions and get the best score you can. By the end of the day, you can see how you did against all your friends. Turns out I have no friends, because no one plays. Won't you play a daily trivia game with me?
For those without an iPhone, play it on facebook:
http://apps.facebook.com/qrankit/
I'm serious, play it. Once a day. I need competition.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
rain rain go away
Let's start with kickball - that didn't go well. We started the game very shorthanded with 7, but our 8th arrived almost immediately after the start. Our 9th and 10th players came during the first inning, but the discombobulated start threw us off our game. The game ended with some outrageous score like 4-16, us being the 4. The good news is that I scored 2, or half our runs. I knew being skinny and fast would come in handy one day.
It rained some more on Thursday, apparently because raining for several days before that wasn't enough. Our softball game was cancelled, but I wasn't totally feeling it anyways, so it worked out.
I had Friday off, but woke up early anyways because me, Andy, and Kelcey were doing volunteer work! We headed out around 7:30 to get to Fort Hood for their Christmas in July event. The idea is that they are celebrating Christmas now, because their moms or dads will be in Iraq in December for Christmas. BAE Systems and Walmart donated several hundred bikes to soldiers' children, and we were there to build them all. We tackled them assembly line-style, and I was mostly in charge of putting on training wheels for the 12" bikes (the smallest ones for little kids). I helped put on training wheels to probably around 100-110 bikes. Here is a link to the photo album for the event: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=194228&id=85820336449&ref=mf
There are some nice comments on there from the wives and soldiers, but they don't have the pictures from the actual build up yet. They took a lot of pictures of us building, so I'm looking forward to seeing them.
The colonel personally thanked us, and out of appreciation they gave us all military coins for their regiment. I thought that was pretty cool, because they're not normally given to civilians.
.JPG)
.JPG)
All in all, it was pretty fun and rewarding.
Friday night we just hung out at the house. Started off with an hour or two of both Rock Band and Guitar Hero, and then ended with some Apples to Apples which was a pretty fun game. Didn't sound like we did much, but we were up until around 3 AM, so I guess we had some fun. It's been a while since I've been up that late.
On Saturday, Taylor and I ran by a few places to take care of some errands. I also spent an hour or two prepping myself for "Motorcycle Maintenance Mania of 2010." Since my clutch cable snapped, I decided it was finally time to give myself a fresh maintenance baseline on my motorcycle. I don't know what kind of maintenance they did before I bought it, so if I do pretty much everything this summer, I will have a fresh start and can properly follow the maintenance schedule. It'll be quite a bit of work, so I'm going to space it out over the next couple months. I think I'm looking at around $500-600, most of that being parts. I'm going to attempt to do almost everything myself, except replacing the tires (I'll take it somewhere for that). Here's my list for MMM 2010, in no particular order:
Oh, and Spain won the world cup
It rained some more on Thursday, apparently because raining for several days before that wasn't enough. Our softball game was cancelled, but I wasn't totally feeling it anyways, so it worked out.
I had Friday off, but woke up early anyways because me, Andy, and Kelcey were doing volunteer work! We headed out around 7:30 to get to Fort Hood for their Christmas in July event. The idea is that they are celebrating Christmas now, because their moms or dads will be in Iraq in December for Christmas. BAE Systems and Walmart donated several hundred bikes to soldiers' children, and we were there to build them all. We tackled them assembly line-style, and I was mostly in charge of putting on training wheels for the 12" bikes (the smallest ones for little kids). I helped put on training wheels to probably around 100-110 bikes. Here is a link to the photo album for the event: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=194228&id=85820336449&ref=mf
There are some nice comments on there from the wives and soldiers, but they don't have the pictures from the actual build up yet. They took a lot of pictures of us building, so I'm looking forward to seeing them.
The colonel personally thanked us, and out of appreciation they gave us all military coins for their regiment. I thought that was pretty cool, because they're not normally given to civilians.
.JPG)
(click for larger version)
.JPG)
All in all, it was pretty fun and rewarding.
Friday night we just hung out at the house. Started off with an hour or two of both Rock Band and Guitar Hero, and then ended with some Apples to Apples which was a pretty fun game. Didn't sound like we did much, but we were up until around 3 AM, so I guess we had some fun. It's been a while since I've been up that late.
On Saturday, Taylor and I ran by a few places to take care of some errands. I also spent an hour or two prepping myself for "Motorcycle Maintenance Mania of 2010." Since my clutch cable snapped, I decided it was finally time to give myself a fresh maintenance baseline on my motorcycle. I don't know what kind of maintenance they did before I bought it, so if I do pretty much everything this summer, I will have a fresh start and can properly follow the maintenance schedule. It'll be quite a bit of work, so I'm going to space it out over the next couple months. I think I'm looking at around $500-600, most of that being parts. I'm going to attempt to do almost everything myself, except replacing the tires (I'll take it somewhere for that). Here's my list for MMM 2010, in no particular order:
- Replace clutch cable (gotta get my bike home first!)
- New tires
- Replace chain
- Replace brake pads and brake fluid
- Change oil and oil filter
- Replace coolant
- Engine valve clearance check
- Replace fork oil
- Replace spark plugs
- Inspect hoses, other fluids, etc and replace anything that needs replacing
After this summer, I will be thoroughly bonded with my motorcycle. Anything that goes wrong after this summer can only be blamed on me.
Okay, time to come back from my tangent. The rest of Saturday was just hanging out, and ended with some Battlestar Galactica.
Today, Sunday, has been spent doing typical Sunday things: laundry, vacuuming, etc. I also went to the gym today, which sadly has been the first time in a couple of months. My routine is a 4 day split (meaning I work my entire body over 4 gym days), which really doesn't work with my schedule right now. On Wednesday and Thursday I have kickball and softball, respectively, so I'd have to work out 4 out of the 5 remaining days, which I just don't see happening. It's not worth changing my routine, though, because by the end of the month those sports will be over. I'll probably go twice a week right now (three if I'm feeling particularly motivated), and by the time those sports are over I'll be back in "gym shape." I took that hard first step though, going back for the first time in a while. Now I just have to keep it up, and stop looking for excuses to not go.
Oh, and Spain won the world cup
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Big Bang Big Boom
Stop motion video of graffiti artists representing the big bang and big boom. Kinda long but cool nevertheless.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)