Catching Up
Rocking Out
Since picking up the Wii version of Rock Band at the beach this summer, Megan and I have both really enjoyed it. It turns out Megan Van Fleet is an excellent drummer! I don’t play drums that much, but when I do, I struggle on easy. She can definitely get through all the songs on medium, only struggling on the hardest ones. I’ve had to try to up my game and start practicing hard guitars, but we really don’t play that much.
I’m Not Fat, I’m Big Boned!
As a part of my post-surgery life, I’ve been referred to Elite Physical Therapy[http://www.elitept1.com/] here in Charlotte, and it’s unbelievable. Joe kicks my ass twice weekly, and has also taken his own time to show me how to kick my own ass at the Y. I’ve got the pictures to prove it.
As a result of physical therapy, I now consider myself 99.99% pain free. There is only the slightest bit of very occasional bother. We have been working on restoring my flexibility, core-strengthening (which relieves stress on the back), and recently more total body activities. I have definitely learned that you do not need weights to get stronger; your own body can provide all the resistance you need.
I am excited about getting back into a rhythm of going to the gym. I went last night to do a full session on the elliptical runner, and I was reminded about how I used to start plenty of days that way. It’s been over 18 months since the last time I was doing that, and I’ve definitely lost a few steps, but I came home energized.
Still a Geek
charlotte.rb has a new Meetup group sponsored by the guys at Engine Yard. It has been a bit of a relief to have a chance to participate in a professional group that I did not have to start myself.
I am working a lot more with Rails 2.1 and it’s new features. I hope to be able to write up some of it soon.
I am also working on a talk that I hope to present at RailsConf 2009; it won’t be just another Scaling Rails talk, I promise you that. It’ll be the first talk I’ve ever really spent time and energy on, and I hope to have enough fun making it so that if it gets rejected, I will still think it was worth it.
Fall’s Season Passes
Farewell, Monk, Psych, In Plain Sight, and Burn Notice! We will see you again soon. Here’s what we’re ready for this fall.
- House
- Heroes
- Pushing Daisies
- Project Runway (I’m getting destroyed this year in our fantasy Project Runway showdown)
- Desperate Housewives
Still Church Goers
For those of you who are familiar with my typical routine, it may surprise you that I really look forward to going to church each week. Megan and I became members of the UUCC earlier in the summer, and it’s something that we both look forward to every Sunday. It encourages us both to better habits (like just going for it and waking up earlier) that we’ve both struggled with a bit at times.
Thanks
I am slowly getting around to writing letters to everyone that’s impacted my life. My handwriting is bad enough that the experience may not be 100% pleasant for the recipient, but I was inspired by a service given by a guest speaker one week. He read aloud a note that his son had written him years ago, in conjunction with a gift of a book. It was clear, even years later, how this note made him feel so wonderful and happy.
We all have the power to do that for the ones we love. I want to encourage everyone to take a little bit of time out of your day to write from the heart to the people you love. They will never forget it, and it will make you feel good, too.
I, also, hope to write here more often. I am trying to get back into a lot of habits, and sometimes the last thing I feel like when I get home is more keyboarding.