Hello, friends!
Just a few days until I get married and I cannot wait for a number of reasons. I am going to be marrying the love of my life and my best friend, which is pretty sweet. I am looking forward to all the great things that Meg and I are going to be able to do for the kingdom as a couple. That is going to be pretty sweet as well. One reason that may be a little understated but still really important is that getting married is going to be great for my back.
See, once Meg and I get married, I get to move into our apartment. That means I get to sleep on the bed that we bought. I took a nap on that bed one time. It was NICE. Now, sleeping on a new bed may be great and all but the comfort in compounded when you consider that the past few weeks I have been sleeping on nothing but couches.
The apartment where I am staying in Saint Louis is great. The roommates are great, the location is wonderful (except that it is too far south for UMSL or Flo Valley, where Meg and I work) and I am staying there rent free because there are 4 guys and only 3 rooms. What this means though, is that I am sleeping on a couch. Add this to the fact that I am sleeping on a couch already in Columbia when I go out there on Tuesdays, and I can definitely feel the pain.
I guess the moral of the story is that I'm getting old. When I was younger I slept on the couch in California and I think I actually preferred it. Now, I wake up sore and creaky, not quite ready to bike, run, walk, or even stand up. I wouldn't be surprised if the couch has led my back to be all mangled and such. I'll probably go to a chiropractor after the wedding.
Anyway, that's one of the reasons I haven't been biking much. I need to get myself right before I can start to pedal in earnest.
Stats:
Places traveled: Just to campus and back
Distance traveled: 4 miles ($.40)
Meters: 2 hours on campus ($2)
Total: $2.40
Grand Total: $302.38
Left to Save: $280.65
Happy Biking!
~Adam
The story of a guy trying to rationalize the money he spent on his bike and other random thoughts.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
The Inefficiency of a Pedometer...
Hello, friends!
I found a new app for my phone. It is a pedometer, which tracks the number of steps that I take on a given day, as well as calculate the distance that I walk and the calories burned. Pretty much, it has turned me into a very inefficient person.
One thing that you may know about me is that I am highly competitive. I will compete with anyone over anything, even if that means competing with yesterday's self to make sure that I take more steps today than I did yesterday. I will compete against the "average" US male, who takes about 7100 steps per day to make sure that I will take more steps than him. Competition does weird things to a guy. Why would I walk my bike when I could ride it, even for a few steps? Because it will make my pedometer happy. Why will I take the furthest parking spot possible? Because it means I get in a few extra steps. These are the things that happen when you are highly motivated by competition.
Here's what I've found. I actually don't walk a ton. My average step count has been somewhere around 4000. That even includes all my "cheating." I spend most of my day sitting with students or sitting to prep stuff for my students or sitting in car, driving from one place to the next, or sitting on Sulu, riding from one place to the next. I'm not sure if I can be 10,000 steps inefficient, like the doctors (whoever they are) say I should be. But, I guess we'll see, right?
Stats:
Places traveled: Just to campus and back yesterday.
Distance traveled: 2.0 miles ($.21)
Meters: 4 hours on campus ($4)
Total: $4.21
Grand Total: $304.19
Left to Save: $278.84
Happy Biking!
~Adam
I found a new app for my phone. It is a pedometer, which tracks the number of steps that I take on a given day, as well as calculate the distance that I walk and the calories burned. Pretty much, it has turned me into a very inefficient person.
One thing that you may know about me is that I am highly competitive. I will compete with anyone over anything, even if that means competing with yesterday's self to make sure that I take more steps today than I did yesterday. I will compete against the "average" US male, who takes about 7100 steps per day to make sure that I will take more steps than him. Competition does weird things to a guy. Why would I walk my bike when I could ride it, even for a few steps? Because it will make my pedometer happy. Why will I take the furthest parking spot possible? Because it means I get in a few extra steps. These are the things that happen when you are highly motivated by competition.
Here's what I've found. I actually don't walk a ton. My average step count has been somewhere around 4000. That even includes all my "cheating." I spend most of my day sitting with students or sitting to prep stuff for my students or sitting in car, driving from one place to the next, or sitting on Sulu, riding from one place to the next. I'm not sure if I can be 10,000 steps inefficient, like the doctors (whoever they are) say I should be. But, I guess we'll see, right?
Stats:
Places traveled: Just to campus and back yesterday.
Distance traveled: 2.0 miles ($.21)
Meters: 4 hours on campus ($4)
Total: $4.21
Grand Total: $304.19
Left to Save: $278.84
Happy Biking!
~Adam
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Out Sick...
Hello, friends!
Sorry for not posting last week. I didn't actually get a chance to ride, so I guess it wasn't a big loss.
Here's the thing that I've noticed with my new schedule. I am really tired. I work 15 hour days or so on Tuesdays and at least 10-12 on Wednesdays. I suppose it wouldn't be so bad if I was doing something that didn't require so much emotional energy but the truth is that working with college students requires me to stretch my "feeler" muscles and I think they are a little out of practice.
What does this have to do with biking? Well, things are so jam packed that it is hard to get all the miles in that I normally would. Sometimes I just need to sleep, which means that I get fewer hours at the meters, which we all know is a big money saver.
An unfortunate trend has developed the past few weeks. When I work 15 hour days on Tuesday, my head is in pretty dire shape on Wednesday. Today has been no exception. I had plans for today. There was going to be errands run. There were going to be things accomplished. There were going to be miled pedaled! Instead, I was the victim of a late start, a busted head, and now playing catch up. I rode a bit yesterday, so there is still progress, but not as much as there could have been.
Stats:
Places traveled: campus and columbia college
Distance traveled: 3.6 miles ($.37)
Meters: 2 hours downtown ($1.20) + 2 hours on campus ($2)
Total: $3.57
Grand total: $299.98
Left to save: $283.05
Happy Biking!
~Adam
Sorry for not posting last week. I didn't actually get a chance to ride, so I guess it wasn't a big loss.
Here's the thing that I've noticed with my new schedule. I am really tired. I work 15 hour days or so on Tuesdays and at least 10-12 on Wednesdays. I suppose it wouldn't be so bad if I was doing something that didn't require so much emotional energy but the truth is that working with college students requires me to stretch my "feeler" muscles and I think they are a little out of practice.
What does this have to do with biking? Well, things are so jam packed that it is hard to get all the miles in that I normally would. Sometimes I just need to sleep, which means that I get fewer hours at the meters, which we all know is a big money saver.
An unfortunate trend has developed the past few weeks. When I work 15 hour days on Tuesday, my head is in pretty dire shape on Wednesday. Today has been no exception. I had plans for today. There was going to be errands run. There were going to be things accomplished. There were going to be miled pedaled! Instead, I was the victim of a late start, a busted head, and now playing catch up. I rode a bit yesterday, so there is still progress, but not as much as there could have been.
Stats:
Places traveled: campus and columbia college
Distance traveled: 3.6 miles ($.37)
Meters: 2 hours downtown ($1.20) + 2 hours on campus ($2)
Total: $3.57
Grand total: $299.98
Left to save: $283.05
Happy Biking!
~Adam
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)