Another day, another reason to contemplate staying in bed for that day.  I'm just glad that I got my paycheck, because funds were a bit too low.  Meanwhile, V-Day continues to approach, with no hope of it being canceled.  I'm pretty sure that this day has sucked each time since 2004 (I can't remember 2005.  Wait, I just remembered it.  It was good), but this year is looking to earn another tick mark.

I've been doing a lot of reading while I've been out here.  I've been tearing books up like a kleenix at a snot party.  First off, I finally finished "The Interrogators: Task Force 500 and America's Secret War Against Al Qaeda", which my brother sent to me.  It talks about the first interrogators in Afghanistan when we went in.  It's a really good book, mostly for it's honesty.  It doesn't try to make the group look like some great organization that did everything right and got all types of secrets.  Oh, they got secrets, alright, but the author also talks about the mistakes that they made, and how the whole ordeal was a learning process.

From there, I read Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream, in which the Author, who had previously detailed the turmoils of the lower and middle class, decided to tackle the same for the upper class.  Basically, she went undercover, and became unemployed, and then attempted to get a white collar job.  That was her original plan.  Instead, she ended up detailing just how hard it is for the white collar unemployed, who actually say that they are "in transition", and all the things that exist out there which seem to stand in their way.  I recommend it to everyone.

Today, I read 100+ pages of The Long Walk.  I have never read a Stephen King book, and technically, he wrote this one under a different name, in order to express a voice that was different from his other writing.  I'm really liking it.  Reading it reminded me of just about every tough, physical thing I've gone through in the Army (Air Assault, Ranger, etc) where you had to be partially insane to do it, and it was not entirely up to your body, but the strength of your mind.

The premise is that every year, there is a competition where 100 boys compete in the long walk, for some cash prize.  All you have to do, is be the last person walking, and maintain a minimum pace of 4-miles an hour for the whole competition.  It ends when the other 99 aren't walking.  When you fall under pace, you get a warning, which you can get rid of by walking for another hour.  After 3 warnings, the next time you fall behind, you get your ticket, removing you from the competition. 

Did I mention that the ticket was a bullet to the head?

Black 6, out.

Before I get into the actual life update, Let me first acknowledge that Valentine's Day is quickly approaching, so some of you may be kicking things in to hyper drive. Meanwhile, I'm stuck in Germany, and actually hoping that I will be here through that day, since I've got someone who's digging their hooks in back in Italy, and I was expecting to spend the day having not spent anything. Amazingly, I am not the only guy here with this idea in mind. I also recently unhooked myself, and didn't want any new hooks.

Honestly, didn't we JUST have a gift giving holiday. Think about it. Christmas, Valentines, and Mother's Day. Then you deal with anniversaries and birthdays. Men need a break. Also, if you want to break up with someone between Christmas and V-Day, when is the best time. You're just so close to both. Technically, you're screwed into looking like an asshole from November to March.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have the single guy, who hates being single. I NORMALLY hate this, but there's a problem with the other end. When does a relationship actually become gift worthy. If you've known someone for a month, is V-Day really to be celebrated? What about 2? More talk about this in another entry.

In the meantime, I've been running ranges up here in Germany. It's a very easy job, and I've finished of two books, something that never would have gotten done if the Brigade had simply left me to do my job. Thank goodness for the range safeties, because these non-infantry people have no clue how to work a rifle.

"Drop your magazine."
KLANK! (Bolt goes forward)
"No, press that button."

We have people come out, that have no idea how to adjust their sites, even when there are graphic representations of the adjustment on the zeroing sheet. The command wanted people to use their optics (M68 and ACOG) even though these people may have never seen them before. On top of that, no one decided to give them a quick class. I find this unbelievable, since I think about guns every day. I told someone, "You should be thinking of shooting or killing someone every day of the week." They laughed, but I was two busy thinking of the easiest way to tell someone that if your point of impact is low, then you need to lower your front sight post to bring the barrel up.

Black 6, out.

For the love of God!!!! Every night, as soon as the lights go out, the f**king Philharmonic starts to play. Unfortunately, it decides to play out of everyone's noses and asses. At 2300, when we finally turn out the lights, there is a 30 second preparation before the music begins. It's almost a race to get to sleep, so that you won't be kept awake by the noise.

There was one guy, and his snoring sounding like farting, too. It literally went:
"Snooooooooorrrrrrrrreeeee.....toot."

I was so upset, but at the same time, it was so funny. I cursed myself for not bringing a tape recorder out here. However, I would have had to walk at least 20 feet to record him up close. Yeah, that's how loud he was. Hell, it's in stereo, since there are 8-10 people tooting it up before I pass out. I'm sure that most people in there fall asleep due to a combination of the oxygen being used up quickly, and it's replacement by noxious gases.

Meanwhile, I am all about the race to get some sleep, ESPECIALLY after the dream the other night with Barbara Eden. Unfortunately, thinking "Barbara Eden" over and over before I fall asleep is not producing the desired effects.

Black 6, out.

What a great time I'm having here in.... Germany? Yeah, you read that right, I'm in Grafenwoehr, Germany, for the Brigade's training cycle. Nothing like dropping life and going away for three weeks. The worst part is that, originally, I wasn't supposed to be here. Then, I was supposed to come up on Sunday. Then, on Friday night, I made the mistake of answering my phone, and getting the message that the unit wanted me to come up here on Saturday. Its not like the day made a difference, because no it's Tuesday, and I really haven't done anything. I definitely haven't had any tasks that I couldn't have handled from Italy.

On a positive note, there is the wonderful fact that I cannot spend money out here. I barely spent anything from the last paycheck, the next one will go untouched, and as soon as I get back, I'm due for another one. On top of that, because I didn't come up here with the unit, I'm on TDY (Temporary Duty) which means that they pay me to be here, to the tune of $1,800+ for these three weeks. Oh, and I just did my taxes, and it looks like I'll be getting around $2,000+ back. I think the tax money can go to flying my mom over to Italy for a little bit.

The negative reprocussions will be handled when I return to Italy.

Whenever you take a bunch of guys and force them in close quarters, like they have in placing somewhere between 20-30 guys in the bay we live in, you get a bunch of interesting conversations, that you would never have elsewhere:

SSG K: There is no "lower receiver" on the .50 Cal
SFC P: Yes, there is.
Chief D: What, are you guys asking each other board questions, now? Who cares?
SSG K: And there's no safety on it, either.
SFC P: Yes there is. (Which is true, on the newer models, and upgraded ones)
(Argument goes back and forth for a bit.)
Me: This isn't going to stop until you two end up going and drawing a .50 cal.
Chief D: Yeah, just go and wake up SGT R. "Hey, we need you to open the arms room up."

Later on, there's a discussion about someone being injured at one of the ranges.

SGT K: I heard there was an accident at one of the ranges.
Chief D: What happened?
SGT K: I think someone got shot. Nothing fatal, though.
LT B: How the hell did that happen?
Me: Did he forget to put the .50 cal on safe?
(All Chuckle)

This place is pronounced "Grafen-veer" but it'll always be "Grafen-whore" to me.

Black 6, out.

It's workout Wednesday, again, but rather than go over some exercise, I'm going to quickly advertise for Spinning, after a quick aside.  I finally got back into the gym, and it felt great.  I haven't lost much strength at all, so that's reassuring.  However, I desperately need to create some playlists for my iPod, as the music there sucks.  It's terrible.  How bad?  This bad.

With my bosses gone for a bit (more on this in the next entry), I can be king of my own time.  Tuesday, I decided that I would leave the office for an hour and go to the Spin class that they offer on post.  The hours that it is offered are horrible for me, but this was an exception.

Some people look at aerobics class and think that they are BS.  That may have been true a decade ago, before the big fitness movement began, but now, all that "weak" stuff is designed to break you off.  Throughout, you're adding resistance to the wheel, so as you get smoked, the damn thing only gets harder.  I mean, I'm in good shape, but still it's not a ride in the park if you push yourself.

And break me off it did.  Nothing like an hour of pedaling to make the legs burn.  It works up a very good sweat, too.  If you have a gym nearby that offers it, and you are trying to get into cardio shape, but don't like running, this is something that you should try.

Black 6, out.

Yesterday, I went on an ITR trip to Lugano, Switzerland.  The trip is titled as a chocolate factory tour and then some time in the downtown area.  However, the first thing was the 4 hour bus trip to get there.  I arrived at the bus at 0630 and upon walking on, noticed one thing.  There were a lot of parents with children on the bus.  I think there was one other single person on the bus, aside from our guide. 

The trip wasn't bad, and actually pretty scenic.  It's the only good thing about not driving, because you don't have the chance to look around when you drive.
 
 

This is the town of Como, Italy.  Not much to say on that.

From there we arrived at the chocolate factor, Schokoland.  Let me say a few things before I go on.  First off, when you think "chocolate factory" things like "Willy Wonka" comes to mind.  I'm sure that it does for Kristen.  I even remember going to Hershey, Pennsylvania, and going to Hershey Chocolate World as a child.  If you've got either of these things in your mind, you can imagine how badly I wanted to go to this thing.

Let me just say that I was sorely disappointed.  I mean, it was an actual factory.  It wasn't like they even had a dressed up area to please the masses.  And we couldn't take pictures, not that there was must to take pictures of.  The BEST part of it was where I saw this one wrapping machine where the feed area kept jamming.  This guy would go over, stop the machine, clear the jam, and start it up again.  From there, he would walk away, and 20 seconds later it would jam.  This happened 6 times.  I wanted to knock on the plexiglass and point out that one of the feed wheels wasn't turning, but this was funnier.  The high point was the chocolate fountain at the beginning:
 

This sign was funny because as we drove in, one of the kids yelled, "They don't know how to spell chocolate.":

Afterward, we were able to go and purchase chocolate.  One thing I have grown to do is always get SOMETHING when I go somewhere.  Today would not be an exception.  As I waited outside for the rest of the people to return to the bus, I realized that some of the parents had given chocolate to their children.  The evidence was chacing other pieces of evidence around, yelling.

The little girl in the purple was originally in a stroller eating her small piece of chocolate.  Then she started to wiggle like Bruce Banner changing into the Hulk.  Her mom decided to let her out of the stroller, and as soon as she became freed from her bonds, she began literally running circles around her mom before running off.  It was like where a satellite circles the earth to gain velocity before shooting of to distant galaxies.

From the factory, we drove down to the city of Lugano's downtown area.  The first thing that I saw when I got off the bus was the oversized chess pieces outside of Burger King:

The dude on the left is completely screwed.  I wasn't really sure why the guy on the left didn't just end the game by moving his knight out of the way.  That would have created a direct threat on the king with his queen, as well as the fact that his rooks prevented escape.  I was also baffled as to why this was outside of a Burger King, since the last thing I want to do while eating a Whopper, is watch chess.

Next, I walked past the Ego Bank, where I apparently have a large account:

Next, I passed by a jewelry store called Bucherer.  I assume this a description of what it would do to your wallet:
 
So you know, 4,900 Francs is $3,927.38.

From there, I walked around looking for lunch and souvenirs.  I took pictures along the way:
 
 

This is the Church of Saint Maria degli Angioli (of the angels):
 

I thought about climbing these stairs:

That's as far as that idea went.  I think I flashed back to Liverpool.

After lunch, I walked up a hill and fond the Cathedral San Lorenzo:
 
 
 
 
 
The nativity scene was made from carved stones.

 
This head was just out in the some field near one of the main roads.  I took a picture with it for scale.  It's called Eros Bendato.

Lastly, I found this, which feeds into the lake seen earlier:

Black 6, out.

Well, the USB bus on my computer decided to stop working yesterday.  Fortunately, after turning it of for a night, whatever the problem was reset itself.  It's a very good thing, because I don't want to even think about a new computer until the deployment.  Also, I don't want to have to spend my tax return just yet.

One of the more neglected areas of the body is the lower back.  It's probably because everyone has that "lift with your legs, not with your back" idea pounded into their skulls.  The problem is, people avoid this area entirely.  For someone that works out, if you re constantly working your abdominal area, and not working your lower back, you will eventually begin to have lower back pain from the strength imbalance, du to the pulling of your abs.  This will be compounded by the fact that because your back hurts, you will completely avoid working it, or putting strain on it, which is exactly what is needed to strengthen it.  I had this problem when I first started lifting.  Another regular muscle imbalance is people who work their chest, but not their back.  You'll be able to see than imbalance as the chest muscles pull on the shoulders and back.

I am not a fan of doing very heavy loads when working the lower back, especially in the beginning.  It's a very vulnerable, yet very essential area of the body, so overloading it isn't a great idea.  One simple exercise can be done using a couch, or something that can hold your feet down at the toes.  You start by kneeling on the floor and placing your toes under the couch, up to the balls of your feet (you may want a towel or something soft to place under the knees) and then place your forearms on the floor.

From there, without raising or lowering your butt, straighten into an almost upright position slowly, and slowly return to starting.  2-3 sets of 8 should be a good start, but don't overdo it.

Black 6, out.

Well, not much response on the last post, but I hope that the words were useful for someone.  I'm on the tail end of my winter vacation, which has been nice to get things in order, but I hate that it's over.  I'm just not looking forward to going back to work.  In any case, my big ideas in the new year are to devote more time to the things that I have already begun a path on:  Free Masonry, martial arts, reading, exercising, and such.

I've been out of the gym for over a month and a half, due to various reasons, so that's the number one thing to restart.  On that note, I am going to get back to Workout Wednesdays, starting today.  My biggest issue is that there are many easy exercises for the legs, chest, abs, and triceps, but not much for the back and biceps.  More work on that later.

The first thing to go over today is the behind the back dip.  This can be done with the aid of a chair, couch, trunk, etc.  First turn your back to the chair and place your hands on the edge.  The heels of your feet will rest on the floor.  From there, lower yourself until your upper arms are parallel to the floor.
 

If you can easily perform sets of 15, I suggest increasing the stress of the exercise by elevating your feet, and then by adding weights, such as books (you can't do the weight part before you start elevating, trust me).

I don;t care how you get into the position on your own, but getting out of it without stuff hitting the floor is just as hard.  Maybe place the books in a box. 

The second item is actually a stretch for the gluteus maximus, a muscle that is probably under-stretched (I can hear the laughter).  Anyway, you lie on your back and cross one leg over, as though you were going to do diagonal crunches:

Then, reach one hand through that triangle that your legs form, and the other to the outside of the leg with the grounded foot and clasp your hands on your shin, just below the knee:

Now, pull that knee toward the same shoulder (e.g. left knee toward left shoulder).

Hopefully, this time around, I'll keep this going regularly.

Black 6, out.

First, a quick piece from a book I recently finished reading.

   Then to my amazement, Socrates took out a pack of cigarettes and lit one.  "Speaking of smoke," he said, "did I ever tell you that there's no such thing as a bad habit?"
   I couldn't believe my eyes or my ears.  This isn't happening, I told myself.
   "No, you didn't, and I've gone to great lengths on your recommendation to change my bad habits."
   "That was to develop your will, you see, and to give your instincts a refresher course.  You see, any unconscious, compulsive ritual is a problem.  But specific activities - smoking, drinking, taking drugs, eating sweets, or asking silly questions - are both bad and good; every action has its price, and its pleasures.  Recognizing both sides, you become realistic and responsible for your actions.  And only then can you make the warrior's free and conscious choice - to do or not to do.
   "There is a saying: 'When you sit, sit; when you stand, stand; whatever you do, don't wobble.'  Once you make your choice, do it with all your spirit.  Don't be like the preacher who thought about praying while making love to his wife, and thought about making love to his wife while praying."
...
   Haven't I got the message across to you yet?  Smoking is not disgusting, only the habit is.  I may enjoy a cigarette, then not smoke again for six months.  And when I do smoke, I don't pretend that my lungs won't pay a price; I follow appropriate action afterward to help counterbalance the negative effects."

-Way of the Peaceful Warrior, by Dan Millman

Happy New Year to everyone.  Hopefully, everyone was able to celebrate with a person or people that they enjoy being with.  They say that whatever you're doing at midnight will echo throughout the new year.  Woe to those who were in the bathroom, because they may have a shitty year.

So, every year, people look forward to this one day, a day to "start over", to "begin anew".  What's so special about this day though.  I mean, it's really no different from yesterday.  Hell, the Fiscal Year started in October.  Officially, the end of the year was the end of a tax period, the last chance to max out your IRAs, the last chance to hold an "End of Year Clearance", but it's only a day. 

You can start your life up any day you wish, so there is little reason to have put it off until the New Year.  Why wait to quit smoking?  Quitting today is just as good as quitting a month from today.  Better even, because today shows dedication.  Tomorrow shows procrastination.  Granted, for some, there is always a time issue.  There may be pieces to the puzzle that are not in place yet.  But that's exactly my point.  If things won't realistically support your decisions until May, due to something like work, school, finances, etc., then it's fine to wait until May.  Just ensure that you take that step.

This is the time of year where everyone makes resolutions.  Most will end up failing, because either the goal isn't realistic, or the method of attaining it is off.  Imagine that you are a gauge, and you are pointed at one end, the red.  You resolve to point at the other end.  Remember that the arrow does not immediately appear there.  It must travel through the yellow before arriving in the green.  At the same time, what gets you out of the red way not be the same thing that will get you into the green.  So make your resolution, but reevaluate your plan throughout, or adjust your plans of actions.

Whenever you're and having a hard time focusing on what your doing, say these questions and their answers:

Where are you?  Here.
What time is it?  Now.

Black 6, out.

Some of you may be wondering how Tigger is doing.  Some of you may not have cared until I just mentioned that.  He appears to be doing fine, and we have all sorts of fun.  One thing that bothered me was that he was mostly an outdoor cat when I got him, so I figured that it would be wrong to keep him in the house all the time.  After having him for 2 and a half weeks, I decided that I would teach him where the outside was, since I live on the third floor.  My plan was to gradually move him away and let him return to teh apartment, until he figured out how to do from downstairs to my door. 

Step one: teach tigger to come when I call.  This step was accomplished through bribery.  The same treats that coaxed him out from under the bed are the ones that I use.  He comes when I call, but he will also come if he hears a drawer open and the crinkling of the packaging.

Step two: teach Tigger what the outside of my door looks like.  It's simple enough, all I did was open teh door, carry him outside of it, put him down, and let him walk in.

Step three: take tigger down some of the stairs, and let him return to the apartment.  This is where we had the failure.  After about half a flight of stairs, Tigger began to fight, got out of my hands and ran into the apartment and under the guest bed.  He didn't come near me for the rest of the day.

Tigger is approximately 3 years old, which I guess makes him not a kitten.  Therefore, getting him to play is sometimes a chore.  Right now, his exercise consists of me making sudden moves, and him running away.  There is also the exercise where I chase him through the house.  However, I was able to use my camera to capture some video of him interacting with a rope from my shoge:

Black 6, out.