Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in John's LiveJournal:

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Thursday, July 9th, 2009
11:22 am	YRCW at $0.89 yesterday. I used to work for those guys and while I think the company is mismanaged and probably heading for some sort of major restructuring, I do not think it's going to disappear. However, yesterday was the 52-week low on their stock which used to be around $20-someodd. So I picked up a buncha shares. Today its up around $1.75 at the moment. I'm gonna sell when it gets to twice what I paid, pull out my original investment and sit on the remaining 'free' shares. If this trend continues I might be able to put together a little portfolio of nothing but 'free' stocks. I can see how day trading can become an addictive pasttime. (6 Shots | Pull trigger)
Saturday, July 4th, 2009
8:26 pm	I'll go out on a limb and forecast what uber-MILF Sarah Palin is up to next: RNC chair Yes, I do think so. (11 Shots | Pull trigger)
Thursday, July 2nd, 2009
1:55 am	Happy birthday labrat2! Have Kiwi barbecue ya something nice........ (3 Shots | Pull trigger)
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009
8:04 pm	I used to think the Cuisinart was the ultimate kitchen appliance. But the VitaMix knocks the Cuisinart down and steals its lunch. Hail the VitaMix! (8 Shots | Pull trigger)
Monday, June 29th, 2009
4:41 pm	Potential dog names: Kevlar Kang Thermite Koloth Uzi Taarna Ranger Kit still thinks 'Max' has some merit. I dont know whats wrong with her. (61 Shots | Pull trigger)
Sunday, June 28th, 2009
12:57 pm	I suppose I should give a slightly more detailed version of the whole CrossFit experience. Not because anyone really cares, but because the results and motivation might be interesting. First off, I've lost about 10 pounds or so. Throwing my bulk on the scale at the gym, shoes off / workout clothes on, came in at 206.5# (or, for you freaks, about 94 kilos). I've been doing this since April sixth so we're looking at about 2 and a half months of this. Average is 4-5 times a week, one hour each session. I dont keep track of many of the numbers, mostly because I simply don't care, but I can see physical changes in my overall shape. I care less about if I can lift/run/move 10% more weight than previous, than I do about if I look good in jeans and a t-shirt. Anyway, when I first started this thing the daily warmup by itself was enough to kick my ass. (5 pullups, 10 pushups, 15 squats...repeat three times) Now I can bat that out in a couple minutes without breaking a sweat or breathing heavily. Theres definitely an increase in stamina. From a physical standpoint, I think my chest has gotten a little fuller, and perhaps the shoulders a bit broader. I think there might be a slight increase in arm size. I've definitely knocked some distance off my circumference at the waist. For a guy who is going to be 42 this year, I think Im in better shape than alot of gut-heavy 40-year-olds I've seen. At my heaviest, I weighed about 225#. When I took the freight swinging job at the trucking place a few years ago I lost about 20 of those pounds. When I left that job alot of it came back and I think I was around 217 or so when I started CrossFit. Personally, I dont care what I weigh numerically as long as it looks good. However, when I have to do the running exercises (which I freaking hate) I think that it might be nice to have a bit less bulk to haul around. I think Im the heaviest guy in the class. I think the next heaviest guy is around 185 or 190. I'd like to be 195 but I think 200 is more likely. However, as long as I dont have to buy new pants I'm happy. Kit had a link to some visual showing that 5# of fat takes up more space than 5# of muscle. So, its entirely possible I could weight the exact same as I do now but be somewhat smaller and more compact..and slightly more powerful, which could be handy I suppose. Anyway, thus far I am quite pleased with CrossFit. I told the trainer that the other day. Said I was really pleased with the results and that he was doing a good job. I think he appreciated the praise. (2 Shots | Pull trigger)
12:25 pm	1.5 mile = 14:04 Time limit is 14:55 Under the limit, but anyone can do anything one time. Oh, how I hate running. This is why I carry a gun, so I dont have to run. (15 Shots | Pull trigger)
Thursday, June 25th, 2009
4:44 pm	Our long national nightmare is over. NAMBLA has ordered its members pants to be worn at half-mast. There is no way I can see that Michael Jackson leaving the state of biological existence is anything other than good. I eagerly await the 'discoveries' that will follow now that he's dead and doesnt have an army of lawyers covering for him and his bizarre activities. (8 Shots | Pull trigger)
Thursday, June 18th, 2009
7:11 pm	CrossFit today: 1 Minute of thrusters, 35k 1 minute o' burpees 1 minute of rowing 1 minute of rest lather, rinse, repeat 5x for score I came this close ---> <--- to earning my puke patch. It looked like an easy one on paper but I was done twenty minutes ago and im still shaking from it. No more meatball sandwiches on workout days. I am, however, at this moment severely tempted to go to DQ for ice cream. (14 Shots | Pull trigger)
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009
5:27 pm	The trouble with eating food while sitting around in your underwear is that, should you spill some food on yourself, no matter how well you clean it off of your underwear you look like you've had some sort of horrible gastrointestinal episode and/or a titanic lapse in basic personal hygiene. That is all. (8 Shots | Pull trigger)
Friday, June 5th, 2009
7:13 pm	Getting tired of these CrossFit posts yet? If I multiply the number of pullups I did this week times the amount of weight moved (my body weight), I lifted/moved 53,350 pounds. This explains why my shoulders hurt. And today, while trying to do kipping pullups I managed to get a rhythm going..one pullup..two pullup..three pu - and thats when both hands, due to inertia and physices, slipped completely off the bar. Gravity did its thing and I hit the ground like a sack of orc skulls. I was okay, I guess...I did manage to tear off a nickel-sized chunk of calloused palm in the process. That hurt. (5 Shots | Pull trigger)
Thursday, June 4th, 2009
8:23 pm	Today was back squats. I like squats. I feel like I could lift a house. What I wanted to do was sets of 5, add 5 kilos, repeat until fail but the guy in charge didnt like that idea. Stopped at 95k which is about 3k short of bodyweight. So, my goal next time is 100k front and back squats. As it stands now, best I've done so far is 92k front, 95 k back but Im pretty sure I can do 100k next time. I like squats, its one of the few weightlifting moves I do well. I like the absence of sudden movement like in the cleans. Very purposeful - walk up to the bar, get under it, lift it, step back, start moving up and down...very simple, very deliberate. Drawback is that it doesnt feel like a workout since it doesnt leave me laying on the floor gasping for breath and sweating like the other stuff (burpees, anyone?) does. (8 Shots | Pull trigger)
Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009
11:26 am	So here's how the same story can be seen differently. Robber tries to knock over a store. Shopkeeper whips out the 'gauge. Robber immediately turns to jello, begs for his life, says he needed the money and that he's not a bad guy, and please dont shoot me I'll convert to Islam. Shopkeeper gives the guy $40 and swears him in. Example of stereotypical Middle Eastern generosity? or Example of stereotypical Middle Eastern forced conversions at gunpoint? (17 Shots | Pull trigger)
Friday, May 29th, 2009
9:01 pm	One of the annoying things about CrossFit is that when it comes time to fling weights around I have no point of reference. See, the guy in charge will say something like "use 75% of your 1-rep max". Problem is, I have no idea what my max weight in any given move is. The class is usually pretty good in using up the full hour so there isnt often an opportunity to lift a weight, add a few more kilos, lift again, add a few more, etc. However, today was one of those days. So for my front squat my 1 rep max appears to be 92k. Interestingly, I just jumped on the scale and at this moment my weight is 95.5k...so Im close to actually squatting my own body weight which is, I think, kinda cool. On the other hand, todays shoulder presses weren't even half that. But, its nice to have some metrics to work against. I need to find some time, maybe right before or just after class, when I can do this trial-and-error max. weight thing without slowing down the rest of the class. (1 Shot | Pull trigger)
Thursday, May 28th, 2009
4:41 pm	Man, I hate CrossFit. But...I was talking to my landlady and her secretary this morning when I went to the shop and she said "Youre getting so skinny!" and the secretary said "Yeah, but your getting more built up in the shoulders and chest. Your torso is getting more triangular shaped." So. Guess I'll keep going. I hate it, but at least people are noticing results. (4 Shots | Pull trigger)
Tuesday, May 26th, 2009
4:58 pm	So the electorate and judiciary of California have agreed that its okay to deprive a minority of a fundamental right because its the 'will of the people' even if that will contradicts some constitutional issues. The minority gets denied rights that folks in other states can exercise and might get placated with compromises that are 'as good as' the rights theyre being denied...if theyre lucky. That cuts it... Gun owners need to move outta California. (13 Shots | Pull trigger)
Tuesday, May 19th, 2009
1:34 pm	Bwahahaha...Stag Arms just called. My order from December will be shipping tomorrow. Three nice shiny M4geries at the 2008 price of $760 ea. And 3 complete lower parts kits. And a couple stripped lower receivers. And field repair kits. And A2 stock kits. And...other goodies. When I placed the order and they told me it would be several months until it shipped, I figured I'd go ahead and get a couple extra rifles and worry about how to pay for them later. And now, in the world of $1200 ARs, I am patting myself on the back so hard it hurts. Again: bwahahahaha! (2 Shots | Pull trigger)
Friday, May 15th, 2009
4:55 pm	kitiara sent this to me in email and it was too good not to share: (8 Shots | Pull trigger)
Thursday, May 14th, 2009
7:31 pm	CrossFit continues to kick my ass. On the bright side, Im more comfortable being there and actually engage people in small talk. On the other hand, I wake up every day quite sore. Obligatory "MySpace"-style bathroom-mirror-photo after the cut. ( El Jay Cut ) (17 Shots | Pull trigger)
Thursday, May 7th, 2009
7:19 pm	Man, I hate CrossFit. Current Mood: Sweaty Current Music: Sounds of gasping for air (6 Shots | Pull trigger)