Lucky's Lake Swim

So I've been trying to convince myself to go down to the Lake Swim that is available to people in the Orlando area on early morning weekdays and Saturdays. A 500 meter swim both ways equal 1k. I have told myself several friday nights that I would head down and complete the swim as I went to bed only to talk myself out of it by being saying the weather was too cold and that I didn't want to drown!

My brother bought me an Xterra Wetsuit for my birthday and it arrived early this week. Now my excuses were evaporating quickly..... I still almost talked myself out of it. I couldn't sleep didn't get to bed until 1:30 am. I kept reading Ironman Ambition by John Callos and The Great Deluge by Douglas Brinkley, both readings made me more stressed by my impending challenge. It was one of those few moments in my life when I knew I shouldn't be doing something because I wasn't adequately prepared but I was going to do it anyway.

Summer wasn't going to come with me and I really wanted her to be there. We struck a deal and she said she would come. I woke up really early for a Saturday... 6 am. And we picked up two stragglers, Jacob and his friend Ethan whose family staying with us temporarily. Off we went for a quick 20 minute drive.

Once you get there, it is a huge house on a huge lot with the word's Aquatica on the gate with little iron swimmers on the fence. You drive down to the front of the house and then walk to the back yard to the dock where the swim starts.....

We got there too early and we waited for nearly 25 minutes with kids. Summer is a saint for dealing with them. I was useless cause I was nervous! Eventually a few men came to the dock there was one woman. They seemed very familiar with each other, some had swum there many times before it seemed. It was a little surreal because I had watched this many times on YouTube and on the website.

I got ready zipped up the wetsuit and got in the water.... FREEZING! The thermometer at dockside said 64.2 degrees Fahrenheit. I waited for everyone to go ahead of me which I think was a mistake. I had a pool noodle attached to my foot for safety.  First thing I noticed, after doing the breaststroke for awhile to get used to the water, was that I couldn't put my head in the water without losing my breath. I tried several times and I couldn't do it! I tried to do the Freestyle without putting my head under the water and I got tired really quickly. My wetsuit was so tight and I was very uncomfortable, and cold. I looked at my watch and a whopping 4 minutes had gone by. Plus my pool noodle was annoying me. I had run a string through the noodle and then tied that off to a ankle strap that surfer's use to attach themselves to their boards. The string kept getting caught on my toes and getting caught dragging the noodle. I got so caught up an panicked I actually used the noodle to float. And I went to my back and did backstroke for a little while too. This was my first time swimming with a wetsuit, so my hips, legs, and feet kept drifting up try to get me horizontal in the water. Which would have been a good thing if I could keep my head in the water!

Eventually I made my way up to the beach on the other side. It took me 20:49 to get across the lake. I got to the small little beach sat down and rested for a minute, and then I tried to fix the noodle set up. I moved the string down so it would be more of a longer setup and hopefully not get in my way. By this time, I was sweating pretty good and I was starting to adjust to the temp of the water. Towards the end of first lap, I was able to swim normally, so after a small prayer at the beach to keep me safe, I set out on my way back to my wifey and kids! I decided I would swim 25 to 30 strokes then stop and get my bearings... I kept losing my bearings in the water since there were no bouys just houses on the lake. The dock was tiny and not easy to discern. Each time I stopped to site I kept having to readjust. Apparently Summer said that I was zig zagging the whole way back. It took me 25 minutes to get back. I had the wind against me and a little chop plus the zig zagging. But I was able to seim normally the whole way back so that was encouraging... I made it back and finished. A couple of guys were finishing their second laps! It was exhilarating and quite a sense of accomplishment.

I got cleaned up and went and signed the wall as a first time swimmer and got my patch! They gave me a log sheet for the next time. At 25 crossings, they give you a swim cap. Cheesy but cool.

I definitely want to get back there and do the swim again. I need to learn how to swim straight! I think I'll wear some earplugs, and maybe a neoprene cap if the water is cold still. It was at 64 but it'll keep getting warmer. Who knows how many strokes and far I really swam. I certainly didn't swim in a straight line!

But this was another example of how triathlon training is pushing me to my limits and I'm responding. I had ridden my bike farther then ever before, and now open water swim farther then ever before. Next is a nice long run. But I'm proud of myself. More to come.

Posted via email from Matt's posterous

I'm on the verge.... On the cusp... About to start something great! Its my birthday today. I'm 31.

We had some cake and I've been watching football all day. All the playoff games have been duds, but its fun to do nothing sometimes. I've been doing nothing for two weeks now though. After the surgery I had to stop and then the doctor said no lifting till Monday, which is tomorrow.  So tomorrow I have some p90x, and some swimming to do. I want to wake up early around 6ish am and head out. And do some work too! I've been not working for almost a month now. 

Which reminds me I need to plan my workout week! More to come.

So I made some changes, I'm going to be posting more, I've added some widgets after an afternoon of tinkering with some html. I have no prowess whatsoever with Computers but I figured it out! I updated some really old links and will be adding more stuff on here as I move forward.

I completed 2 Sprint Tris in 2009. Now I'm off to a slow start in 2010. I was running on December 31st doing a three mile run. I recently was able to average 12:26 again for my mile pace for the first time in several years. So I was excited to get back out there. I felt some pains in my left calf muscle, pretty high up right in the meat of the calf. I ignored it as I usually do since I always have calf pain on my runs. I've been trying to incorporate more fore foot running in my runs landing on my midfoot instead of heel striking. I think I over did it. Kept going and the annoyance turned into red hot pain. I couldn't even walk without pain. So I was on the shelf. Hobbling around like a cripple. But more fun awaited me!

Two days later I notice a twinge in my right upper abdomen. It felt like an oblique at first, I've had that before and it was another annoyance with the calf but it keep going and was worse when I ate. Keep getting progressively worse until Sunday night, Summer was begging me to go to the doctor, but I didn't since I knew I had my physical on Monday morning. I woke with the pain worse then ever before, and went to the doctor. I got checked out and sent STAT to get a CT scan.

I had to drink this horrendous liquid called Barium Sulfate. I said on Facebook that it is white liquid creamsicled death or something like that. I choked it down and got the scan. I asked the tech if I could eat since I had been fasting for over 12 hours. She said sure. So I went to Five Guys for a burger and fries (I was rewarding myself for my pain.... pathetic) After the Bacon Double Cheeseburger, my doctor calls me and tells that I have acute appendicitis and need to go to the ER ASAP so my appendix doesn't burst and I die with a double cheeseburger in my mouth! I make all the calls, and I fight with the ER admins to get me admitted. I had to put my foot down and tell them that I didn't want my appendix to burst in the waiting room but they sent me up. My friend Dave from the Apopka Ward gave me a blessing and before I knew it they were prepping me for Surgery! It all happened very fast. I was telling Summer about money info and life insurance stuff cause I was worried!

They took me back to operating room, put my arms out straight on a skinny table and then made me tilt my head back so I wouldn't throw up my food I had just ate and kill myself. They gave me the gas and instantly (it felt like an instant! Actually 2:30 in real time) awoke in recovery with a lot of pain in my abdomen. The rest is a blur till I woke in my room 8 hours later. I talked to Dennis and Suzanne (Summer's parents) The nurse made me get up and walk. I was discharged later in the following afternoon, Tuesday. I've been home off of work and taking Percosets ever since. The one good thing is this break has given me a chance to rest my calf but the doc said no activities for 7 to 10 days from the surgery. So that would two whole weeks off for my calf and a week and a half for the appendix.

Crazy stuff, I can't wait to see the bill! We have insurance but I'm not looking forward to the deductible! Be using the FSA after all!

This week I'll probably go back to work in the middle of the week if everything heals ok then start walking until the two weeks is up. See the doc get the ok and then back on the training train. Finish P90X, and start base training.

Boys Ranch Sprint Triathlon

This is my second Triathlon so far in my Triathlon comeback. It is a very small race at the Florida Sheriff's Boys Ranch in the Panhandle of Florida not far from Lake City where I-75 and I-10 intersect. The distances are a 750 meter swim, 16km bike, and 5k run.

The swim is in the Suwanee River which is on the north border of the Ranch. This part was daunting for me. First off I didn't know if there would be a current which could whisk me away! Plus it was really cold on race morning. 45 degrees according to the car's temperature on the dashboard. So as I got down to the water, I noticed that all the Triathletes had wetsuits on! I was going to freeze! Plus the water was pitch black. We had an impromptu National Anthem by one of the racers and we were off in a wave start. Once in the water I couldn't breath! I was two seconds from getting out of the water and taking off for home when I remembered my contingency plan. Breast Stroke! I couldn't put my head in the water it was so cold! So I just treaded water until I saw the other racers in front of me walking? Turns out the river is down way down from previous levels so their are sandbars and the depth varies a ton from place to place. Soon we all were running or wading through the water. That was a relief. So I waded through the turn around and my thighs were burning bad not good for the bike. The swim is supposed to save your legs. On the other side of the river, it was deeper so I was able to swim a little bit. I put my head down and tried to get into a rhythm. I swam about 15 strokes and I ran into a log. It scratched me up pretty good, the cuts are still healing. Also the current was there on the return trip a lot faster. I wasn't able to exhale in the water though way too cold still. I made it through and ran up to transition. The kids and Summer were there to see the bizarre surreal scene and were cheering me on. Little Addy was jumping up and down screaming "My Daddy, My Daddy!". The swim was 12:06

Transition was quick, Shoe, shoe, Heart rate monitor, watch, Shirt, Glasses, helmet, GO!

The bike at first was hard. I was wet and cold and couldn't feel my lower extremities. The bike felt weird like I had broke a spoke or had a flat tire. I figured out that since my legs were numb I had no feel for the bike either. But the good thing with that was I didn't have to worry about going hard, I made my way out the ranch to the roads and the loop that waited for me. I hadn't previewed the course on the bike, but I had driven it and knew that there weren't many hills that I couldn't handle. I did well averaging over 15 mph for the ride an improvment of 1 mph from the previous race in Clermont. Stayed the in the big ring for most of it after I could feel my legs. The kids cheered me on into T2.

T2 was even quicker, sock, shoe, sock, shoe, GO! I ran out the T2 less then 2 minutes. I grabbed my Iphone to track the run. I tried to track it on the bike, but I couldn't make it work since it was so cold.

The run was a two lap course that finished in a different place then Transition. The kids ran with me for a little bit and that was cool. Again Addy was great with the "My Daddy, My Daddy!" I continued on no problems. No tendonitis in the left knee. I was able to run most of the way in periods until my Heart Rate got too high so I wouldn't go Anaerobic. I ended up running about a 14:40 pace. Which is ten seconds faster then my previous race.

All in all a great race I accomplished my goals, introduced my kids to Triathlon, and I won my Division!

Not sure about the next race but I'm going to work on strength and building a good base for the next race where ever that may be.

Florida Challenge Super Sprint Tri-Race Report

My name is Matt. I am 347 lbs and I competed in the above mentioned Triathlon a few weeks ago. I ran my first triathlon back in 2004 in Missouri before my family and I moved to Florida. At that time I was at 295 lbs. And it was hard.... but not as hard as I thought.

I've always heard that it is important to write race reports as you progress in Triathlon. Well here it is.

I recently decided to get back into exercise as an everyday habit. I have been off and on for the past few years. And my weight has fluctuated. I have been up to 375 and down to 318 since 2004. I seem to stay focused for about 6 months and then I get bored and "reward" myself by not working out and eating poorly.

So with that in mind, I decided to sign up for this Tri as a good warm up for progressing into longer races. It is very short 1/8 mile swim, 8 mile bike, 2 mile run. Certainly a nice little brick workout for most inshape athletes, but not for me I was determined to just finish. Oh and my wife Summer decided to do the race with me. She has finished a marathon before in 2008 and is in pretty good shape. She said she would smoke me. She was right!

We arranged baby-sitting for our three kids. We live about 30 minutes from the race so we didn't want to drag them out of bed to watch us. In retrospect, I wish we included them since they are 7,6, and 2 and would have had a good time. Anyway we got there at dark before the sunrise and struggled to find the start and registration and packet pick-up but followed the stragglers. We got our schwag and headed to the transition after being body marked. First thing I noticed was we got nice stuff! A water bottle, t-shirt, and other goodies. A nice unexpecteed perk. We took our bikes to the Transition area and picked out a spot. Not a lot of people at the race probably around 75 or so. As were getting ready, a huge buff, in-shape guy in a tri-suit asks me if I could show him how to shift the gears on his bike?! I'm thinking what? You don't how to shift your bike and thought that you'd wait and then ask the fat guy at Transition? Plus this guy looked like he was doing an Ironman. Not an ounce of body fat on him, all brand name Tri gear,and he hasn't a clue. Luckily I was familiar with his shifters, shimano type with the big lever and the small lever on the side. I showed him and he seemed satisfied.

Pretty soon the race announcer (they were playing Sirius before that on the loudspeakers) let us know to make our way to the swim. The swim was to be a 200 yard square around two buoys in Lake Minneola. At the start there is a nice little beach with restrooms and benches. Summer and I went in the water and checked it out. It was really warm! I think, Amoebas! Now the chances of getting a fresh water Amoeba go up your nose into your brain is similar to being struck by lightning if not higher, but hey you still worry about it right? A few people around Orlando died recently from them. Well I was worried. I swam in the water to warm up going halfway out to the buoy. There was no visibility at all just gross lake/pond water. I had not done an open water swim before. Honestly this was not a real open water swim in my opinion. No chop no harsh weather conditions (except for Amoebas!) and not a huge crowd. Just grossness. Plus they wanted us to line up and swim time trial style. The race staff forgot the mat to time us so that hindered things. We had the national anthem (recording of Whitney at the Super Bowl) and the first competitor took off. Summer and I went to the back of the line and discovered more people behind us! No one wanted to go! We got a kick out of that. But eventually we got to the start as we watched more experienced swimmers plow through the grossness. Summer went first since we erroneously thought she was a slower swimmer then me. She went first and that was the last I saw of her until the finish. I ran out until green stuff hit my waist and then dived in and took off. Of course I was going too hard. Adrenaline took over. After a few strokes I realized there was no one around me. I had to forgot to sight the buoy every few strokes I was 25 yards going right when I should've gone straight. That sucked. I figured it out and made my way past the buoys, thiniking about Amoebas and focusing on exhaling with my nose, while people were passing me. Then came the run to T1. Well that run part didn't work out to well. I was exhausted! I couldn't move! I walked all the way to T1 which is up the beach and 50 yards to the bikes. I felt like a schmuck and when I saw the race photos later I saw that I looked like a tired blob of humanity. My swim time? 5:17 for 200 yards. My time in the pool had me at 4:55 or so. So yeah I lost little bit there.

My arrival at T1 invigorated me though. I put my HR monitor belt on, and forgot the watch. I had to sit down to brush off my feet full of sand and rocks. My socks stuck to my feet and were not cooperating. My shirt stuck to me as I tried to put it on. I got halfway out of T1 when I realized I forgot my watch. Back to go get it. My T1 time? A blistering fast 6 minutes. It took me longer to transition then to swim! Wow.

Out on the bike and my dead legs made another arrival. There was a small climb to get out of the Waterfront park and I almost thought I wasn't going to make it. I geared to the easiest setting and pedaled hard. Thankfully for every ascent there is a descent so I was able to recover a bit. I was getting passed by everyone though. An 8 mile bike around Lake Minneola awaited me. A long eight miles for sure. I didn't preview the course like I wanted to because that part of the race website was down two weeks leading up to race day. Most people who passed were encouraging and I wanted to scream at them to stop talking but I smiled and encouraged back. I didn't use Aero bars due to me switching hand positions all the time. I also changed my stem the night before. I know all the "experts" say to not change anything unless you've trained with it. But I was too spread out with the old stem and this let me be more comfortable in my so-called cockpit. Except for the hand thing. Well it got me to a pace of 14.6 mph which was a full 2 mph faster then I had trained. How much of that was raceday adrenaline and the equipment change? Since then I've maintained the speed in my workouts while not coming close to the HR at taht pace. But the catch was I didn't tighten the stem enough! Can you say vibration! My hands hurt the rest of the day bad. I kept thinking I might catch up to Summer since she had ridden her bike ONCE in preparation for the race and didn't have bike cleats and pedals. She did 15.6 mph and smoked me again on the bike. My HR was around 155 for most of the bike except for the beginning and the end as I hit the same hill to get back to T2. Same hill as in the beginning but from a different point so we had to go up it to go back down to T2.

I pulled in to T2 excited for the run and proud of my comeback on the bike. I was doing better then expected on the bike and I was having fun! My T2 time was a lot quicker at 2:48 but still slowest out of the men. I was just glad it wasn't six minutes! Put on my running/tennis hat, running shoes, and off I went. I tried to jog at first, but I was redlining from T2.

The run was going to be challenging for sure and is my worst limiter out of three. I taught myself how to swim for my first tri in 2004 and I still can swim better then I can run. My weight just catches up with me I guess. After about three minutes I'm at 95% of Max HR, so I walk to bring it down. I did this for most of the first half of the 2 mile loop. People were passing me and offering me their polite encouragements with my same response as before. I can feel my weight on my chest and stomach and I wonder why on earth did I ever let it get this bad. So towards the end of the turnaround I start to run again. My left knee, which gives me occasional tendinitis, is starting to hurt but I decide to got with 2 minute on 1 minute off intervals until the finish. Then I actually pass a couple of people! A 50 yr old woman who looks like she is about to die and a mother and son who look like they had a rough bike portion, with grease all over their hands and legs. Hey its the small victories right! Summer finished by now and is walking back to bring me in. I am happy for her and envious at the same time. She is such a good endurance athlete. Hardly trains and competes no problem. She picks my spirits up and I tell her about my day's events. She encourages me to run the rest of the way and I try my best. I walk a couple of more times but I see finish and I sprint the last 200 yards. I cross the finish line at 1:16:59 and about collapse. I didn't realize how tired I was! I can't calm my breathe and I walk around in a daze for a few minutes... My run time was 14:58 pace for the 2 miles. In my training I did o better then 16:30. Summer? 10:16 for the 2 miles. Summer's overall time was 58:08:00. She finished 10th overall in the women. Not bad for an occasional triathlete. Me? I finished 46th out of 48 o f the men. My HR for the entire bike and run was 160 Avg so for most of the race I raced at 87% of Max HR. Not bad for me either since I was at least 100 lbs heavier then anyone else at the race.

Looking back I can think of a number of things to improve on for next time. Practice and focus on T1 and T2. Swim straight! Make sure the bike is good to go and use some Aero bars for better aerodynamics and speed. And drop as much weight as possible to get a better run in. My next race is the "Best of Boys Ranch Tri in Live Oak which takes place at the Florida Sheriffs Boys Ranch in Panhandle on November 15th. It's a longer sprint. 750 meter swim in the Suwannee River, 12.4 mile bike and 3.1 mile run. Mostly flat so I hope to improve my splits, and keep working towards completing a Olympic Tri by this time 2010. And maybe I'll drop some more pounds by then too!

These triathlons are interesting. A lot like life I guess. Some parts are hard, some parts are fun, some parts you can't believe you accomplished, and some parts you find disappointing. But the fun part is getting ready for the next one, I think and getting better.

Hopefully more to come.

M

I have so many things to say. I hesitate to write them all down because this goes on the net and and I like to keep things private. I don't know. I wish I had something clever to say like they have on TV.....

I was reading some of my older posts and it is interesting to remember moments from what seems so long ago..... It amazes me that I have closed a few houses in the past year. Got my brother paid back which feels good. The market is so up and down that we have to keep the status quo, and get Summer through school.

I miss my Dad...... he could be a real son of a bitch but I loved him and I miss him. I miss my Mom too but the loss of my Dad is more recent I've learned to deal with not having Mom around....

I lost some weight last year. Around 50 pounds but now I am stuck around 335 345 or so. I can't get the motivation to increase my exercise and make my eating better. Everyday my life seems to get in the way.

I wish we could win the lottery, or go on Biggest Loser, or someone will sweep in and save me from this existence. But I'm a fool....I love my kids and my family but I wonder if I am absent too much. I feel like this all could be too much for me.......

Can you tell I've been off my prozac for a couple of days?

Feels good to write something down...... I worry about my brother. He's in a loveless marriage and is risking his freedom to keep the money flowing to pay for his wife and her habits.... To his credit he is also trying to pay for his step-daughter's education but I worry that is all for naught....

I don't know I'm pretty down right now. I'm going to go to bed.....

Wow its been a long time again, and again..... Summer has lost all of her weight pretty much and is looking really great. She cut her hair and I'm loving it even though I thought I would like the longer hair better. We have moved into a house in Orlando that is really nice. It's big and spacious and free rent can't be beat. But it won't last. Sam and Jakey are doing great in kindergarten and 1st grade. Addison has been attending Kindercare day-care when Summer has been going to UCF. Speaking of UCF Summer is almost done and ready to graduate after just one more semester. I am trying to decide what I want to do for a graduate degree. MBA? Law Degree? Digital Forensics? Lots of questions. Not sure what I am supposed to do, really.

My Dad died at the end of January this year. His lifelong battle with Diabetes, and a nasty case of MRSA from a nursing home got him in a weeks time. I had to pull the plug and I watched his life expire. It still haunts me at times....

When we moved we switched wards and are now in a different stake as well. The new ward is very affluent and we are having a difficult time adjusting really. We miss our old ward and our old friends.

The house business is picking up we've closed five houses in the past few months. Best part time job I've ever had! We're reopening our company for tax purposes too which is great progress.

My 9-5 job has done well too. I am signing up accounts left and right and getting recognized for it. But I am one rep of three in a small geographical area and I am afraid that in this economic climate it may mean that I get laid off or "down sized". If it does I won't be surprised but I'm trying to do my best to make me too valuable.

I am writing to update everyone on this blog. I am now a Sales Rep with my company that I started with soon after the foreclosure market went bust. I'm thinking about getting back into the market though since my brother has perfected some really good techniques for getting discounts.

Recently, I was extended a calling as First Counselor of the Elders Quorum in my ward. Its been really interesting learning and getting used and comfortable with this calling. Not to mention it has strengthened my testimony.

I have worked out two days in a row and I have watched my eating as well. I want to journal all of my meals and I am starting Nutrisystem again, it has been ordered and will arrive soon. I'm excited. Right now I weigh 373 give or take.

Sam is doing well in Kindergarten, even though sometimes he hits the other kids when they do stuff he doesn't like but we're working on that.... he is learning to read and do math. Jacob is doing the same but is only in VPK. Addison is cruising constantly and should be walking anytime. She is just adorable and a perfect baby girl.

Summer is finishing up school and going to get her Physician's Assistant Degree from UCF and a Post Graduate school to be named later.

Summer, Sam, Jacob and Addy are all starting school next week! Of course just Sam and Summer's schools are real, Jacobs and Addy's are preschool but hey they are all growing up!

Summer is starting school again at UCF, and she is very excited about finishing up her education.

More to come soon....

I just had a few minutes of rain so I decided to go ahead and post real quick since it's been like ten months since I posted last.

So many things to cover. Well we live in Orlando area now. I have been promoted three times since I started working a normal job. Its been a fun time. I am now a Sales Rep, I get a company car that I switch out every week and I get free gas.

Summer had our baby, we named her Addison Reese and she is absolutely perfect. She is almost seven months now. Sam starts school in August...Kindergarten! Jacob starts VPK soon too and Summer is going back to school and getting her B.S. in Molecular Biology at UCF. She is excited about that as well. Anyway that is all for now more to come if I get time!

So yeah things have changed, so we had to adapt. I have been working a normal 9 to 5 now for almost two months. Well actually it's really a 7 to 6 job with work on Saturdays every other week but you know what I mean.

I like the job though. Everyday you do something different and it always involves cars. So I got that going for me...which is nice. The days go by quick and I can totally stand the people that I work with so thats good too. The only thing I have to get used to is having a boss over me. I mean always sort of did with my brother but that was more of a partner thing then a boss deal.

But I think that I am picking things up rather quickly and I want to get promoted quickly which I hope can happen in a few months or so. So anyways gotta go. Oh by the way Summer is pregnant again! She is almost 5 months and we find out the sex of the baby on September 6th! So we're excited about that. Dad is living with us now as well but he is probably going to move to Nashville in an Asssited Living center up there in the winter sometime. So laters.

A few days ago I was knocking on doors on Space Coast and I stopped in a predominantly black community, well pretty soon a very large black man with corn rows, pants halfway down his thighs and oversized white shirt, approached me with a shotgun. He was coming to "talk" to me or maybe shoot at me who knows? Needless to say I put my car in drive and took off. That door didn't get knocked on that day.

We got a homeowner out today. She actually left it somewhat clean so it won't take too long to clean and paint. Hopefully we'll make some money on the deal.

On the way home I got behind a biker on a sweet Harley Davidson motorcycle. Guess what his license plate said? "Hogasm" Need I say any more. Yeah. Nice.

It's my Father-in-law's birthday today and Summer and the kiddies are over on the West Coast of Florida spending the day. So I am all by my lonesome. So I worked out, made some phone calls, watched a couple of videos, and updated this blog.

If you notice I put some more links up to you (the random stranger, yeah right!) to show what I am reading and listening to at the moment. Not literally of course but pretty darn close.

Ipods are probably the best invention in the history of music. Music helps your mood so much.

I downloaded the Curious George Soundtrack and it rocks. Also downloaded the new Arctic Monkeys album.

Went to the doctor today and my triglycerides are still high, my cholesterol is okay but not great. Need to stay on the Nutrisystem and lose some where weight!

We got quotes on Health Insurance today too. 932 ducats a month for the whole fam-damily. Completely ridiculous!!! But what are you gonna do?

Dad's bugging me about helping him with his traffic course that I signed him up for. I told him flat out that if he kept bugging me about it then I would NOT help him at all. It really sucks that my Father only respects me when he is afraid that I might not help him. What a sad state of affairs.

Laters.

Happy Freakin' Valentines Day

It's been a long day today. I woke up at 5:40 am to get up to Daytona by 8:30 am. A hearing was scheduled for a house we have up there. We needed 60 day sale extension and we got it. Thank goodness. So back down the Space Coast to the house and then off to a business meeting to explain our business plan to a hard money lender that lives in my ward who may want to do business. It went pretty well and I think that it may be beneficial for both of us. We'll see.

Then off to knockin on doors and making calls. I made all my calls and called every single skip. Proud of that. The meeting for the money really motivated me. I think I'll get one if I keep at it hard core until Dohnnie gets back.

Summer got her flowers, candy, and vase that I got for her. She also got flowers from her Dad which was nice. She also got the boys stuff which was sweet. They remember and appreciate her doing that when they're older. That stuff creates memories. She's cool.

I also got free screening passes for Nochnoi Dozor or Night Watch that is showing in Orlando at the end of the month. It is a Russian Vampire movie ala The Matrix or Underworld. But it's supposed to be better then Underworld for sure. Now all we have to do is get a sitter for it. It's on Monday night though so the Mormon crowd might object since it's FHE and all. Hopefully we'll figure something out.

Oh I almost forgot, our nanny is gone glory halleujah (sic?) she is gone. She flew out of our lives this morning, thank goodness. I have never been so happy to see someone go. She had soooo worn out her welcome. She has a lot of growing up to do and she made good money with us. Like close to 10K in all. So I am outtie laters.

I was just reading a news article about making your own website. The journalist used blogger.com and iweb from Apple as good examples for that. So I thought that I might write a post since I was coming over here anyway.

So what's been going since the last post? Well Dohnnie is over in Russia playing tennis against Russia's weekend warriors and our nanny is leaving soon (thank goodness).

We are really trying to stay on a budget that will cut our costs. Getting rid of Tina will really help that.

I played in a tennis tournament at the end of January and I really hurt my knee. It swelled up and I could hardly even bend it for days. It is just now starting to get back to normal. I think I'll play the next Lake Cain tournament in Orlando at the end of the month so we'll see how I do. I am thinking about playing 3.0 since the USTA ranked me down since my record last year at 3.5 was so crappy. Hey I would probably get better results. The guy who beat me last won the tournament too. He was Polish and couldn't tell me in English what the score was. Very frustrating.

Two days after my loss in the tennis tourney I had my call back interview for that reality show I am auditioning for. It went okay. I was nervous and they taped it as they asked me questions. I'll know something by the end of February but I am not convinced at all that I'll make it.

At this same time I got on Nutrisystem. I was skeptical at first, but I have already lost 10 lbs in 10 days. I am eating 1500 to 2000 cal a day now and it seems to be coming off. And since my knee has been bothering me I have only exercised twice in that time. Once I hit the exercising harder the weight should start melting off!!!

I feel a lot more positive now since I am eating better. I totally went a through a fat or junk withdrawal when I started eating better. I don't stuff myself and I don't feel guilty at all for eating.

Summer and I took the kids to see Curious George tonight. That is one cute, wholesome, little movie. Not real fancy animation; it stays true to the books that I read as a child. I got very emotional and teary eyed when Ted with the Big Yellow Hat had his personal adventures with George. I remembered my mom reading those stories to me as a child and I missed her so much! My mom died of a Heart Attack when I was 15. I miss her so much. George reminded me of my kids too how innocent and good hearted they are. It's too bad she never got to play with them. I guess we all have to wait until we're up there with her.

I really enjoyed watching the Davis Cup Tie US vs Romania yesterday as well. Andy Roddick showed some real heart throwing up and battling cramps to almost pull off the five set victory. He had Pavel in the third set tiebreak but a good lob deflated him.

Anyways thats about all I spose for now......

You know I have to admit, that picture on my profile is at least three years old. It definitely does not reflect me since I moved down here. That will be two years in May.

We have 14 houses now. Several under contract so we are pleased. Things are cooking. I am also auditioning for a very prominent Reality Show on one of the 4 major networks. I won't say which one but I have gotten a call back and meet the producers soon so I am excited. I never thought I would try out for a TV show.

I just saw Kobe Bryant hit a fade away over LeBron James to put the Lakers up 2 with 8 seconds left in the game. I hate Kobe but he's money down the stretch in big games.

We had a good Christmas this year. Sam really understood what Santa Claus was about and the concept of opening presents on Christmas morning and making a mess. We spent the day with Dohnnie and his Russian ex-wife's family. It was actually very nice and relaxing not stressful or controversial at all.

I have been very hesitant to write anything here because of what Summer might say or disapprove of...So any relationship stuff with her is obviously off limits and I was wrong to cross that line. A line that I crossed in a stupid blind love affair with honesty at 4 o'clock in the morning when I wrote the post that she questioned. Anyways, whats done is done and now I have the new rules.

Our nanny is leaving us at the end of February. That sucks but she wants to go back to Idaho. I think we were a schock to her system of how righteous, church going Mormons could be so different then her family. She is good with the kids and NEVER gets mad about anything. I swear I could punch her in the face and she would smile and say thank you afterward.

I left a comment on blog of a girl in Provo that I thought was an old girlfriend in high school. Well of course its not the same girl. So she probably thinks I am stalking now or something. Well I"M NOT!! Eh who knows.

Got to make an offer on a house in Deltona tomorrow. it might be a hot one. They look motivated and their mortgage company won't help them. The bank probably just wants the house.Well we'll see about that!

Laters

Its been awhile again....It's Thanksgiving day. I attempted to fry our Turkey this year. We bought a fryer and the requisite peanut oil. Everything seemed to be working great until I put the bird in the oil and discovered that I didn't have enough to immerse it completely. So off I go to Wal-Mart to buy more. Of course they're sold out. So I had Summer take the bird out of the oil. Of course we both forgot to turn the heat down. So when I came back with a bunch of Canola Oil, the oil in the pot was about to spontaneously combust after reaching 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

So I poured the new oil in and that cooled it down along with me turning the heat down. Then I put the bird back in and fried it for about 20 minutes and the whole was done and it looked black on the outside making me think it was burnt. Of course, it wasn't; it was a very tender, juicy turkey, but it looked back on the outside.

Next time I'll do the fry thing a lot better. But isn't that like everything in life? So that's all.

So have any of you ever had a problem with Dell Laptops with the screen going off for no reason? Well I have and now I can't use my laptop at all. It needs a new motherboard and I'll lose all my memory good thing I backed most of it up while I was researching this problem. So I have four houses this month. I got two in one deal on Thursday. They are short sales but hey I'll take them.

It was a crazy thing, this lady used her credit to buy two houses for a friend of hers and now they are both in foreclosure.

Tomorrow I'll call a prison in Daytona Beach to see if I can talk to an inmate who has a house in foreclosure. That is pretty cool. He's in for two counts of Cocaine and one count of Marijuana. He also got a really big settlement from GMC from a defective part in Camaros in the early 80s. I found all this out by searching the public record.

I haven't been to church in quite a few weeks. I told the Bishopric that I need to be released because I can't be there consistently. In fact I have been to the Temple more recently then to church. Anyway I gotta put the kids to bed they crashed in our bedroom. Laters.

I took two Ambien an hour ago and I might be writing this under the influence of sleep enhancers. I had to go through and change all my email contacts to get them to send to my new right email. Try this site for acheat sheet about to get around automated systems.

Still deciding on whether I want to kill off this blog or maybe rename it or start a new one. I'll let you know.

Cardinals won last night, Pujols hit a bomb in the ninth with two outs and two on base. I went nuts jumping on the bed.

Another hurricane is coming. Wilma looks like she'll come for South Florida early next week hopefully it'll miss us. We're prepared though we have wood and water and a generator in case something goes wrong. So we'll see. That's all.

I turned on word verification to prevent all the comment spam. I have been getting a lot of that lately. Its funny how they try and build you up and then hit you with a solicitation for music on interest free credit or something stupid like that.

I played my match tonight and I won 6-1 and 6-2. It took a while and the guy was late because he got lost. I don't think I am going to schedule anymore matches on Sunday. I don't think its right. I'll work on Sunday because our "ox" is in the mire so to speak but playing tennis I think is too much.

I am thinking about deleting this blog anyway and keeping a journal on my computer only not available on the internet. Needless to say some people read this and were hurt by the content so I don't know if it is worth it anymore. I am going to think about it, however. Anyway, I am out.