30 Day Challenge -- Day Five

Added on by C. Maoxian.

(All 30 day challenge posts in reverse chronological order)

Inscrutable notes:

Overslept, no row

07:15 87.2 24.5

07:22 mush (fresh squeezed soy milk, blueberries, sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds, cashews, apple, pear, banana)

07:29 BM

07:37 scooter in motion

Rare blue sky day. (Another one, but trust me, they're rare.)

07:49 arrive FCD (fresh charge, caught Chang'an light)

08:00 arrive P3

08:04 arrive desk

Teekanne tea

57 cash in pocket

Listened to Robin Williams comedy channel (Pandora), play list here

Wife tries to sabotage me by wanting to have a nice lunch together, tentatively agreed.

10:49 E3  to scooter ... wife called to say Thomas accidentally hit in nose with bat at school, had to pick up insurance cards first in case we need to visit hospital

11:13 arrive FCD

Thomas is fine, false alarm, teachers / schools these days panic over little things and call parents (terrifying them) for any little thing. Normally this kind of stressful event would make me binge on something, but not now, not in week one. Only good thing about this is wife's lunch date cancelled and her sabotage attempt foiled.

11:40 P3

11:42 E3

11:44 at desk

11:52 E3 to gym

13:05 finished weights: back, chest, back, shoulders, chest, triceps, biceps, multiple benches 140

14:19 cardio finished (usual routine: 10 tmill, 15 bike, jump rope, stretch, 30 stepper) ... looking at Joan Rivers on tv, did she have her nose done by the same guy who did Michael Jackson? Terrible work, but it probably gets harder with age.

14:20 apple

steam and sauna (timed sand clock with Nokia 105, it is accurate at 15 minutes)

15:09 gym scale 82.5, consistently inconsistent, typical Friday result after disciplined first week

15:15 E3 to office

15:18 105 g beef tenderloin (melts like butter!), 175 g steamed veggies, one boiled egg, bottle chrysth tea

Apparently Monday is a holiday, I had no idea.

17:05 E3 going home

Junk I like but am avoiding: gummi bears, Dr Pepper, buttered popcorn, Cheetos, Doritos, Tostitos (I sense a trend), mac & cheese bright orange, ravioli out of the can bright orange, spaghetti and meatballs. The toxic orange color is very important.  I believe my long-time addiction to Wise Onion Rings directly related to neon green bag they packaged them in years ago.

$242.90 Jenny Lou's cred

17:55 arrive home (doorstep)

Must pump up scooter tires because they feel mighty low and the battery is running out extra fast.

18:16 black olives, pickle, 300g salad with French and Thousand Island dressing, one boiled egg, 50g beef tenderloin, 175g steamed veggies, a few pork ribs, bowl of fruit salad, cup raspberry yoghurt, large handful flavored almonds (wasabi and habanero), bottle chrysth tea

19:11 one daban bingpi mooncake

Good day, a scare with T at school but he was fine and I didn't go into a sugar spiral as a result.  No dreaded work but I was told Bossini may want to talk with me next week. Exercise felt good as the built-up poisons are excreted. But now, now comes the weekend, always an incredible trial where massive backsliding happens, though usually not as bad on first weekend ... it's those second and third weekends where everything falls apart.

30 Day Challenge -- Day Four

Added on by C. Maoxian.

(All 30 day challenge posts in reverse chronological order)

Inscrutable notes:

Awake at 5 AM due to mosquito in bedroom

06:56 2K row (ran out of time)

87.6 25.0

07:03 mush (fresh squeezed soy milk, blueberries, sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds, cashews, apple, pear, banana)

07:48 arrived FCD

Another rare blue sky day

07:59 arrive P3

$8.50 small McD coffee, drank half, will need boost given lack of sleep 

08:08 BM (two pounder "2PP")

Teekanne tea

58 cash in pocket

Dreaded work Dalian Wanda Comm Prop IPO

11:05 E3 to gym

As I detox my B.O. is a combination of chicken soup, milk, and hairy balls.

11:11 apple

mild headache, either because I had to concentrate during morning discussions or a result of the detox

13:01 cardio finished, 25 min tmill, 15 min bike, jump rope and stretch, stepper extended to 45 min (300 cals) as I watched Horschel try to catch Kirk at DB tourney replay, what a choke with that second shot into the hazard. 

13:02 apple 

steam only, no sauna

gym scale 84.1

Towel boy upset since he discovered apple core I crammed in vase (one of my old pranks) much earlier than I anticipated. My name is mud down there until they forget about it (Chinese never forget about it).

13:38 E3 back to office

13:41 90g beef tenderloin, 175 g steamed veggies, one boiled egg, bottle chrysth tea

Dreaded work finally finished, discussion about Dalian Wanda Comm Prop IPO over, lots of chicklets of doublemint chewed to keep stress at bay.  Now I can get back to my real job which is dicking around online.

17:37 handful habanero almonds, 300 g massive salad with thousand island dressing, pickle, 90g beef tenderloin, 175g steamed veggies, cup of raspberry yoghurt, handful of tater tots with catsup, watermelon and cantaloupe

19:38 walk around block with wife and daughter

20:01 back from walk

20:32 3/4 of one daban bingpi mooncake

Tried to watch the Prisoners (too long and didn't grab me, looked bad) and Let The Fire Burn (documentary, looked depressing, stopped it) ... listened to Robin Williams comedy radio instead (Pandora), enjoyed John Pinette and some guy named Tosh?

Large handful of wasabi almonds before bed.

Solid fourth day of discipline ... no smokes or booze, this is key. Or Cheetos.  Weekends always difficult because of lack of structure and stress of family time, so pay close attention to notes on those days, fast approaching.

Movies Watched -- Gloria

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Another movie that critics will love and audiences will hate (because it makes them uncomfortable).  Precious few movies about the lives of 50-something year old divorced women, esp. their love (and sex) lives.  Getting old, alone, is not a topic that sells a lot of movie tickets. Especially with those eyeglasses.  Except at arthouse theaters.  In Chile.

30 Day Challenge -- Day Three

Added on by C. Maoxian.

(All 30 day challenge posts in reverse chronological order)

Inscrutable notes:

07:03 4K row

87.0 24.5

07:10 mush (fresh squeezed soy milk, blueberries, sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds, cashews, apple, pear, banana)

07:35 scooter in motion

07:48 arrive FCD (fresh charge, caught Chang'an light)

07:59 arrive P3

08:03 arrive desk

Rare blue sky day

Teekanne tea

Dreaded work Dalian Wanda Comm Prop IPO 

77 cash in pocket

11:15 E3 to gym

Security pulled from hotel ... whoever was staying there has left.

Boardwalk Empire.... what season / episode am I up to? Wacthed a few mins of Veep on bike, entered a post-political world?

Weight day: back, chest, back, shoulders, chest, triceps, biceps, multiple benches 120

13:08 apple  

steam, sauna (ran out sand clock)

13:56 apple

13:53 84.6 gym scale

13:08 finished gym, no stepper, have parent-teacher thing

14:04 arrive desk

14:10 90 g beef tenderloin, 175g steamed veggies, one boiled egg, bottle chrysth tea

14:40 scooter in motion to parent teacher nursery school thing

14:58 arrived nursery school

16:23 wasabi soy sauce almonds (large handful) and bottle chrysth tea

Watched another hour of "Gloria"

$10 thread tape B&Q cash

$363 Carrefour cred

18:19 slow scooter in motion from Carrefour

18:27 arrive home (under ten minutes, as expected ... this is why the apt. is worth a few million dollars)

18:39 few pieces pork ribs, 300g bagged salad (mispriced at 12.80) with thousand island dressing, 75g beef tenderloin, 175g steamed veggie, boiled egg, bottle chrysth tea

19:10 walk over to do real estate transaction

20:05 back from real estate transaction (quicker than buying vegetables, they say)

20:15 bottle chrysth tea

20:26 one Daban bingpi mooncake (Megha reminded me)

22:24 finished watching "Gloria"

Some unexpected stress with a surprise real estate deal but it didn't throw me off track, make me binge on something as it probably would in week two or three ... any time the routine is broken there's a big risk I'll fall apart ... but not today, not in week one.

30 Day Challenge -- Day Two

Added on by C. Maoxian.

(All 30 day challenge posts in reverse chronological order)

Inscrutable notes:

07:05 4K row

87.8 25.0

07:19 mush (fresh squeezed soy milk, blueberries, sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds, cashews, apple, pear, banana)

Raining hard, yellow slicker day getting boy to school, hope his new school books not soaked

08:08 at desk

Scarlett confirms Helen quit, must have happened when I was on holiday

Was able to log on as "Guest" using laptop but only 14 days and they may catch me and crack down at some point.

Teekanne tea

245 cash in pocket

11:08 E3 to gym

Still raining hard out there.

Not sure who's in the hotel but they have the full X-ray machines out, heavy security

Cardio day: 25 min tmill (6 6 is exactly 200 cals), 15 min bike (7 90 cals), jump rope, stretch, 30 min stepper (7 237 cals)

12:49 cardio finished, a bit beat

12:49 apple

steam, sauna (ran sand clock out but didn't truly time)

13:43 84.4 on consistently inconsistent gym scale (the carpet to blame)

13:45 apple

13:50 E3 to office

13:53 beef tenderloin, steamed veggies, boiled egg, bottle chrysth tea

Dreaded work, IPO for Dalian Wanda Commerical Properties, chewed a lot of doublemint gum to deal with stress

As expected, the Guest wifi log-in very shifty on laptop, 3G stick still required, will renew this week

$68.40 Jenny Lou's (blue diamond almonds: habanero bbq and wasabi soy sauce ("gifts"), thousand island dressing)

18:06 "American" bagged salad with thousand island dressing, two deep fried chicken legs, pickle, handful of habanero bbq almonds, 75g beef tenderloin, raspberry yoghurt, large slice watermelon, bottle chrysth tea, another handful habanero nuts, handful Lulu dates

19:02 walk around the block with wife and baby

21:13 BM

21:56 handful almonds (unflavored) at beddy

Watched first half hour of "Gloria"

Another day without any slips or sips. Always the case in the first week.  Just watch as things begin to falter in weeks ahead.

30 Day Challenge -- Day One

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Since the first day of September falls on a Monday, it's an especially good day to start another 30 day challenge.  The challenge is not to drink any booze or beer, smoke cigars, eat junk (esp. Cheetos), have promiscuous sex, etc.  In short, I try to live like a monk for a month, abstaining from all my usual day to day pleasures.

What follows are my inscrutable notes on the day, which are either incredibly boring or completely fascinating:

98? cm above belly button

100? cm at underpants waistline

108? cm chest

07:04 4k row

89.0 25.0

07:20 mush (fresh squeezed soy milk, blueberries, sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds, cashews, apple, pear, banana)

07:33 scooter in motion

07:48 arrive FCD

08:00 arrive P3

08:03 arrive desk

Teekanne tea

245 cash in pocket

Finished watching "The East"

Office-wide wifi for the first-time, no need for 3G stick if I log on as "Guest" (2 week limit), iPad completely unlimited, sweet

11:06 E3 to gym

12:16 finished weights: back, chest, back, shoulders, chest, triceps, biceps. Bench 120 multiple sets.

13:33 finished cardio: 10 min tmill, 15 min bike, jump rope, stretch, 30 min stepper. Watched old La Liga games, still marvel at the Flea's skill

steam, shave, sauna (briefly)

14:08 84.6 on gym scale, completely inaccurate since they installed new carpet but could be consistently inconsistent over next 30 days (useful)

14:11 apple

14:16 E3 to office

14:20 75g beef tenderloin, 175g lightly steamed broc caul, one boiled egg, one bottle chrysth. tea (unsweetened)

Grace moved offices, closer to Ernest, will see less of her? One of the few people I will say bye to when I finally quit.

18:08 75g beef tenderloin, 175g lightly steamed broc caul, half a boiled egg, several slices of goose (HK diner), handful of almonds, a pickle, some eggplant, large slice watermelon, cup of raspberry yoghurt

19:25 bottle of chrysth tea

21:48 bowel movement (BM)

22:09 handful of almonds as tum tum feels empty at beddy

First week is always easiest for these challenges. Easy to maintain discipline and enthusiasm, see quick results.  Week two harder and week three a real trial as jonesing for booze, Cheetos and other carnal delights hits a peak and little progress in registered.

Movies Watched -- The East

Added on by C. Maoxian.

Not bad ... Gen Y / Millennial thing ... eco/corporate-"terrorists" and a mole ... token black guy and fat girl (also the computer nerd, kill two birds with one stone) and maybe even a Latino in the group, just to get that Sesame Street-like balance. Everyone else is beautiful so don't worry. Juno girl in there.  Had that Martha Marcy May vibe at points.  Ridley Scott a producer.  Not on my radar since only 68% Fresh at RT, but came across it on some other list.  Wasn't too thrilled with the ending, but as I say, not badly done.  Too long at 1 hr 56 mins.