Naturalist Maneuvers on the Beach

I will often pre-excuse myself by declaring that I don't, or haven't had time for one undertaking or another, when it would be more precise to state that I haven't taken the time. So now that you know where I'm going with this... on with the show.


Freedom Year is nearly a month gone. Contrary to the way the event might seem, Freedom Year began at noon on December 16th, 2016 - my official last day of work. There were exit procedures to attend to which delayed my departure by several weeks, however I did make it out and on January 10th of 2017 I landed in Fort Lauderdale to officially begin the next leg of this adventure.

My timing, as usual, was fairly lucky - I believe that luck runs in our family. Legend has it that our (my cousins, siblings and I) great grandfather was struck dead by lightening. In my imagination, real or not, his sacrifice has cast a blanket of good fortune upon us for countless generations forward. Most of that luck is a matter of timing. I arrived at Fort Lauderdale International airport several days after the shootout took place. I also missed Southern Florida's two-day winter, during which, I am told by a friend, she had to don her thermals.

I didn't know what to expect when I got down here - I wasn't thinking that specifically. I've had two new experiences - one planned, the other more of an opportunity. On the 12th of January I caught my first (well second) ever moon rise. This was the first one on the beach. I caught it on video, however it's not as good as I could have been. I have to gain a bit more experience with my equipment. I have a remake, remix, myself into a photographer again... as well as a videographer.

Second new experience was chillin' out on a nude beach - well clothing optional - I went full Monty however. People have commented about it being liberating. I didn't find it especially liberating. I didn't even find it out of the ordinary after a while. It was nice to be outside naked... so now maybe my bottom half will catch up with the top half in depth of color.

Nudity is such a taboo - or has been - but it probably still is, in this Judaeo-Christian, Puritan culture that whatever we (or, I) consciously want to think and/or believe is over-ridden by what we've been conditioned to believe, how we behave and how judge others on their behaviour. So in that sense maybe it is liberated and perhaps I haven't been completely liberated yet? Or, conversely, I didn't need to sit out on a nude beach to become any more liberated. Either way, I thin

Mary Kay, Friend, Fan, Follower

k I'll go back.

Don't ask for any pictures... although I was going to take a selfie and record an update, one never knows who will be caught with their pants down... quite literally... in the background.

I have yet to explore the City Miami. I have a few spots I want to go and at least one friend I want to catch up with. But there's time for that... maybe. I plan to exit Florida around the first of February, but I might stay longer. I am on a mission and I have promises and an itinerary to keep. Although it doesn't sound like freedom I still believe it is. I am exercising the freedom to fulfill the promises I made.

So, today... I got two workouts in. I can do this here a couple of times a week, probably. I'm feeling the soreness now, probably from the one this morning - it was all body weight and movement.. like the animal movement, low to the ground, crawing... low game, I call it. I haven't graduated to creeping... very low to the ground, yet, but that will come. I want and need to do more work on my arms... balance, handstands, etc. Maybe once a week... on the first day after a break. I will continue the 500s - that, I believe it doing wonders for the Bod.

Okay.. I think I can wrap this up. In fact I need to, I am sore and need to stretch.

Happy New Year 2017

Surviving 2016 and ready for 2017 with my Brothers

Yesterday I reached my twenty year weight goal. Weighed in at 175 lbs. Whew!! Big exhale. At some point I will recount the story of weigh gain and weight loss and what I learned. It will probably start with an e-book I am currently writing and continue with a series of reports.

So let's get to the balance of the day.

I thought I'd be able to stay in and clean house, but a text for brunch kind of changed my plans. Today,  realize I probably have more food at home than I can eat in two weeks, so I'd best not eat out much this week.

So back to yesterday.

I wanted to have breakfast at Aquarius Diner, along with Blossom, however the waitress seemed grouchy and her body language as well as her behaviour was rude, or at the very least unprofessional. I felt that she had some kind of problem with me; or it could have been her, the day, her situation, etc. Nonetheless the vibes were so bad I couldn't raise them up and my guest was overtly having a bad experience. After a cup of tea and coffee, we headed out.

There are many examples of our server's non-professionalism but no need to go into that. I may not get to go back to Aquarius before I leave, but if I ever do, I will be sure to avoid her section.

Blossom and I went to a coffee house called Five Points; a mom and pop place with a pleasant atmosphere, however the food was a bit lighter.

All things for a reason, so no worries.

We spent so much time at Five Points I was hungry again by the time we got back to my spot. Blossom got the the glasses I'd saved up for her and a pair of shoes.. perfect fit too. She'll be back for the dishes.

The Llama came through and we went out for a protein shake. This has become a thing with him. He will literally drive an hour to get a shake from this place. I go along for the ride and we get to laugh and talk about the past and the future, walk around town and sometimes... shop.

Finally to the New Year's Eve party hosted by Julia and Tim. Great atmosphere and an opportunity to meet new friends and get different perspectives on today's issues. I Actually drank and still survived. Three slow-motion dark-n-stormies with actual Gosling dark spiced rum. Long time since I had Gosling. The ginger beer was a kind of lucky find.... picked up four bottles at a spot that was still open... like a deli or something. Anyway, I used Reed's, which was used in the first D-n-S cocktail I ever had... adequate. I couldn't get Citadel.

The night ended a few hours before sun up. About 0400. I prepared NOT to be hung-over this morning. ACV (apple cider vinegar), Chlorella and Carnitine and Arginine (Amino Acids) were taken before the nod.

Just a quick note, I've been experimenting with taking arginine and carnitine before bed based on the idea that the body repairs itself during sleep. If aminos are building blocks, they should be best utilized during sleep. How do I measure the results?? I have no idea. However, if they do no harm, then I'll keep up the practice.

Well, today is Mr. Honey's 88th birthday, so I have to head up and do the family gathering thing. More important now'adays. It's a nice, relatively warm day (high 30s and sunny) so I might just take that walk up to Mom's.

I'm beginning to feel the lack of group fitness class conditioning as I exert myself in certain situations, which suggests... strongly, that I need to grab an Insanity tape, or better yet, practice my own "Come Back" session.

Okay, this is the report of the day. It could be just me or shared to those who've subscribed. I've still got so much to do. Better organization and discipline is the key.

Happy New Year.

Feeling Like A Player

Foodie Tour Continues: Winter Harvest Grill

Today was highlighted by two good meet-ups, first part two of our Harvest tour with Venise; it seems like we are catching up from twenty years back... and I guess we are. 1996 was a pivotal year for both of us. She left the job and went to for the federal government and I started working graveyard shift (from previously working 3-11PM.)

Later to Aksum, where I met up with Number One Son Wolvie for a great meal at the down tempo spot on Baltimore Ave. He's digs the place... ambiance, the vibe and we had a very nice server as well. Afterward he came by and relieved me of some items in the house... as much as he could carry. Ha ha.

On the technical side, I learned how to do a few moves with Google Drive, including upload the pix from my phone, download a video clip to my phone, so I could share it on Instagram and access and complete my body weight chart in Google sheets.

Part of my plan is.. let's call it Operation: Best of Both Worlds; the goal is to live like a twenty-something (energetic and curious, in my case about the new technology) with the wisdom, experience and savvy I've accumulated along the way. Someone joked about employers wanted to hire Millennials with thirty years experience? Well, I'm that employee - problem is, you probably can't afford me... ha ha. (Watch, someone offers me a gig.)

On the financial side - and I've never been a big fan of money, but I love numbers... but not math(s)... I realize I have to position myself to be able to afford food and shelter on the road. I've been listening to the Financial Media for the past 2 years and they've been painting a gloom and doom scenario particularly for the USD. To answer those concerns, alternative as well as classic, even ancient, strategies for purchasing what's required have been emerging via the - dare I call it - Millennials - dominated interwebs. This is where I have to surmount the technology curve as well as the faith curve. That is faith in the predictions/warnings of the wackos and crackpots I readily admit to listening to.

I refer to them as such with admiring respect because several predictions they've made during 2016 have come to pass and I've scored some wins that have eclipsed the earnings from traditional financial institutions and even the long-term traditional investments. Of course I realize that one day I can be cheering about wins and the next day licking the wounds of my losses, so this isn't bragging. I'm not in for buckets of ducats, just enough to get around, from points A thru Z without too much strain and stress.

Body weight chart 6-19-16 to present (Google Sheets)

It's not only the wins that have me feeling like a player, it's being able to navigate that technology curve.

Oh, and one sobering development - a Jury Duty summons came today. Of course I won't be here, but I think it's not a random event that it arrived just over a week after leaving the gig. I'm sure it hasn't been three years since the last time. Fairly sure anyway.

Tomorrow I'll find out when I'll be able to officially leave this City.

Ciao.

On Vacation In Philly

Suburban Station, Philadelphia 12-22-16

As I walked home from the train station I was mulling over in my imagination today's contribution. Some key phrases came to mind, but when I rounded the corner I saw a front end loader on the small street a third of a block away from my house and there was a Water Department truck parked across the street. The fact that is was parked, between other parked vehicles suggested it had been there for a while and it would be there a while longer.

My imagination always prepares for its worst case scenario; no running water in my house? Do I have enough stored to make a cup of tea? As I opened the door, what to my ironic eyes should appear? but that little blue envelope that contains the water bill. This Universe business is a bit much for me at times. I think It's stacking the deck, not necessarily against me... but not for me either. It's a rigged game, but I don't expect too much.

SO I get in the house and before I even turn on the requisite music, I check the water - running!! So, of course I make a cup of tea.

Now we can get down to business... Today's Blog.

It's day six and I have come to the realization that I need to stop dining out so much. It's as if I am on vacation... or staycation in my own back yard, but never go inside to eat. But let's get to this day.

Woke early - and couldn't get back to sleep; good sign, so I started the AMX, which was more of the same. There's a lot more balancing on the pushup bars than before. Good sign. I have gotten better conditioned here. I want to say "stronger" but I'm not sure I am stronger over all, just in this particular group of exercises/poses. I may record a few clips for us.

Had to go into the (former) job today to get the retired ID, check out, turn over at least 25% of the balance of my time to the city to withhold for you guessed it... taxes. While I was there a co-worker (well, former now) showed up. We'd scheduled lunch for next Wednesday but decided to go ahead and do a brunch-ish meet-up today. Good timing. We went to the first place I ate when I started on day work; Pagaon's... a salad/food bar where I have a bit of a crush on the lady who works there (slash owns it). She's friendly in general and I have the feeling that even her rather stoic-all business husband detects the mutual attraction - but of course I would never do anything about it... not even introduce myself. Nobody needs that drama.

So Frank and I went over a combination of socio-political drama, economic conspiracy theories and some sci-fi plots that seemed to have come into our reality; and heck, we even discussed if this reality was even reality and that in some dimension of the multi-verse the outcome of the US election had been, well... different.

Then I went to the YMCA. This is around the time I started realizing that I'm pretty much doing the same pattern as I did in Los Angeles, except I got my workout done first thing. I'm a day early for a 500 workout, so I did a mainly body weight workout which including balancing, pulling and lots of leg work. It gets kind of random, but I generally get three or four sets in. I also did dips.. I hate dips so when I do them I need to acknowledge that. I should do more. If I do it will really improve my upper body strength.

At this point I don't really like doing upper body, body work, because I'm not as strong as I'd like to be... however, in order to get stronger I have to do the deed and put my ego on the back burner and not be mad if I can only do six reps instead of 20. I need to keep at it.

This session wiped me out and it didn't even seem like I did that much. Working the legs with the bands ignites different nerves and muscles... those rarely worked, so it gets my cardio-vascular system going... and the brain as well because it's not used to it. I expect some kind of pain tomorrow.

Okay after a goodbye hug from Rebecca, and young girl who sprouted into a young lady while taking my classes (she's also a pretty badass runnner too) I headed into town to meet up with Number One Son, Wolvie. I knew I was in for a loud ride when I saw the Eagles jerseys on the trolley. I am NOT an Eagles fan, but I don't knock anyone who is, so I had no idea they were playing tonight. I won't go into the suburban-kids-in-the-city bit.

I caught up with Wolvie down at suburban station and we headed to a restaurant called James that is still open in the midst of the construction that's going on across the street from it. Once again, I am completely oblivious to what's happening in the city from which I am escaping. Anyway, for three or four weeks, Mika - whom I met several years ago at The Cafe, kept telling me to come by to say farewell on Thursdays after 1600... today I finally got down there are the lace was "closed" for a private party. Humpf!! I got my goodbye hugs in nonetheless and Wolvie and I went in search of some Vietnamese food.

After a decent meal in an empty Vietnamese restaurant, we went for our traditional drink (beers) in Chinatown at a place called Sea Bar. The bartender was funny, she gave us nuts. They didin't have any dark beer on tap so I had to settle for Alagash White, which was pretty good the first time I had it, but now I can taste its bitterness. We have these occasional man-to-man talks about career and life and opportunities and such like that.

I realize through my kids and some of the other "Millennials" I come into contact with, that right now is one of the hardest times in US History to be alive and be young. I was very lucky coming up in the hood, and getting through the military and getting in at the gig when I did. I was raising kids, so there may have been a different kind of hustle and a different kind of tolerance for what kind of job I would accept. Of course I didn't have the same opportunities twenty-somethings have today, so I steer clear of the "when I was your age" speeches.

Once I get this journey of self discovery completed, I might find out that my duty it to create a business that will employ and help secure my childrens' futures... or at least make it a little easier on them.

I'm done at the job, but that will only unleash my creativity. When I find the partner (even if it's me) that can harness, focus and direct that creativity, we'll be in business.

Shot a lil clip for ya... Enjoy..

The 500 Workout Explained

Pic of the Day: YMCA

I didn't wake up this morning the way I imagined I would. Well, I didn't imagine I wouldn't wake up... I just pictured it differently. I didn't picture a dark, warm room, and I didn't imagine there'd be frozen rain falling from the sky; or was it snow?

I'm not one for extreme emotions so I didn't do any kind of freedom dance. In fact, I stuck very much to my wake-up ritual, sans the AM exercise, (AMX) and the doom and gloom reports about the economy collapsing and the truth about the geo-political climate in the planet.

There's a lot of newness in my life. It seems like it came suddenly, but it's been brewing for a while now. The only surprise was the laptop replacement. I am getting used to this Dell and slowly but surely logging in to my social networks and obligations from this "new device."

Of course I weighed in; 176 even, 14.4% body fat (less than 25 lbs of fat on the Bod) and 44.5% (78.3 lbs.) of muscle, according to my scale. That's a 3.09:1 ratio. That may not mean much to you yet, unless you've been following the Bajai Boot Camp 6 Sessions. Attaining and maintaining a 3:1 Muscle Mass to Body Fat ratio has been a goal of mine for two years. I figured I'd be able to meet that goal only after I managed to leave the gig. I'm sure it's just a coincidence. The biggest change I've made is a new 2 - 3 times a week workout I call the 500s. I snagged this name from the 300 workout from back in the day, when the movie "The 300" was released. I think that was around the time people started flipping tires and such.

Simply explained, I perform 100 reps of five exercises. They all target big muscle groups and all except one are combination exercises, which involve multiple joint movement. I think today was the fifth session. The theory is sound; although I'm sure I see any results in the mirror, the feedback I am getting from the scale is impressive. [At this point I hope the results continue, otherwise I will be very perplexed.]

Leg press type at the YMCA

So here's the set up. I give myself guidelines for these programs to help keep me honest and injury-free. Ideally I start with the leg press. The challenge is to do 30+ reps on the first set before I can increase the weight. Today I started with 360 lbs., and only got 20 reps. So next time I'll start with 360 lbs again. This way I can gauge my progress. Before today I'd add 90 lbs per set, however that was getting pretty hairy, so I half-stepped in a few sets. I was able to go from 360 lbs to 450 lbs., but had to stop at 500
lbs. before I took it 540. I maxed out at 720 lbs., but kept the safety pegs engaged.

I am a firm believer in legs day. People, especially men, neglect their legs to their detriment. There are quite a few men at the YMCA who are top heavy. They can bench incredible weights, but have no leg development. The way I see it, these gams got to keep me up and walking for a long time.

Next station is the bench press. I started out with the 45 lb. bar the first time out and today I advanced to 100 lbs. The guidelines are different here and for all the rest of the stations - maintain a steady weight and and push 100 reps in as few sets as possible. I don't count sets. I try to get 30 reps in the first set - I have not achieved that as of yet. I get carried away with adding weight, but now that I'm up to an even hundred I may be able to stick around there for a while.

The next station is a leg extension machine. I'm at a good weight, 130 lbs., I've been trying to increase the reps (18) today. I'll stay at this weight for a while.

Seated cable row is the same procedure, only today I realized I can change the grip to make the same weight more challenging as well as hit different muscles in the back. I think I'll explore that.

Cable Crunch

Finally, is a cable crunch. Only today I opted out of the cable... I am very close to racking the bricks on this one so I used a tension band, which provides a very different feeling and I expect a different result as well.

And that was that.

In case you want to try this here are a few items to keep in mind. #1) use lighter than usual weights, (if you're used to lifting weights). #2) This program is time consuming. Break times can range from 30 seconds to several minutes. Sometimes I can feel my heart rate spike (not to dangerous levels) and I have to wait for it to settle down before I do the next set. I also stretch a bit between sets. My main goal is to get 100 reps done and although I haven't had to resort to single rep sets, I think I would do it to complete the task. #3) This isn't a program to be performed daily, or every other day for that matter, (especially if you're just starting out.) This is a full body workout so you have to rest and repair your entire body before you go again, and that generally takes 48 hours. Two days break, I have found to be idea. Three days is too much. I took three days off once (due to circumstances) and I felt I lost the momentum.

Finally, despite the positive results I've gotten and the strength gains I've apparently made (lifting and pulling higher numbers) I find it boring, (but that's just me.) So I am considering doing something like this every so often over 30 days. If you maintain an every third day schedule you'll get ten workouts in. Thirty days is a good duration - you could probably even stretch it out to 90, but I've found that after three weeks, I start to lose any gains (or weight loss) I've achieved. So It's probably a good idea to go for thirty - do something light or fun or aerobic like walking, yoga or Zumba for a week or ten days and then get back into some kind of resistace training.

I will be experimenting with such strategies during the year (2017) and reporting back, either on You Tube,  Facebook (Minimum Wage Fitness), or right here.

Confession: This entry didn't really go the way I'd envisioned it, but it certainly went the way it needed to go. And with that, I bid you adieu.