The True Meaning

I'm sitting on a couch in front of the fireplace at Panera. Fires are so nice. Primal and vital. Warmth.

If I was building my own house I'd have a study with a huge fireplace. Chairs, sofas all around it. Lots of books. No TV.

That'd be a nice room.

House M.D.

Do you watch "House M.D." regularly? I don't, but I've seen enough episodes to appreciate this.

Pure genius.

(From cracked.com)

Your Death

How often do you think about your death? I don't think about the details of my demise much, but I've decided on one thing. I want Adagio for Strings by Barber to be played at my funeral.

I had the privilege of performing this piece when I was a member of a youth symphony. It was extremely powerful, almost bordering on a spiritual experience.

You may recognize it from the ending scenes of Platoon where a wounded Charlie Sheen is surveying the scarred battlefield of Vietnam as he's airlifted out by helicopter.

I encourage you to watch the entire video below.

Meat Falls Off the Bone

I love this commerical. I've watched it on youtube about 50 times now. Not exaggerating. It's just so damn catchy. If I'm ever near 1017 South Air Depot I'll definitely make a pilgrimage.



Gimme some of that
Mmm mmm good
Meat falls off the bone
Baby I'm hungry
I say 'Baby, you hungry?'
Let's head to Mr. Spriggs and get us some ribs
1017 South Air Depot

I need that S-P-R-I-G-G-S
When I'm dealin' with Mr. Spriggs I only deal with the best
Gotta have that S-P-R-I-G-G-S

Call 733-8578

Mr. Spriggs BBQ
It's always
Mr. Spriggs BBQ
Tender
Mr. Spriggs BBQ
Meat falls off the bone
Mr. Spriggs BBQ
Spriggs BBQ

Mr. Spriggs BBQ
It's always
Mr. Spriggs BBQ
Tender
Mr. Spriggs BBQ
Meat falls off the bone
Mr. Spriggs BBQ
Mr. Spriggs BBQ

Oklahoma's best BBQ, Mr. Spriggs
Located at 1017 South Air Depot
Or call 733-8578

Whatcha gonna do?

So the election is over. Maybe you are happy that Obama won. Maybe you are despairing that McCain lost. Maybe you didn't vote or voted for another candidate.

It's natural to experience post-election euphoria or despair for several days, however the more important question is once that wears off, how ya gonna act, my friends?

Are you going to:
1. Do nothing different, continue living your life just as you had prior to the election results
2. Approach life with a renewed sense of optimism and hope
3. Complain about the election, approach life with a sense of pessimism, anger and bitterness
4. Threaten to move to another country
5. Actually move to another country

Pick one or several of the options.

What's Most Important to You?

I try and think about the big picture in life. Often times I view it as a game or a linear program where there's a distinct objective function. Minimize or maximize this objective and you've 'won'.

It's a strange way of thinking of things, but it's been molded by two major factors - my education, namely in operations research, and me playing a lot of games.

In games and linear programs there are rules or constraints that govern what you can and cannot do. At the same time there's (usually) a score which is calculated based on any number of factors.

To achieve the highest score you must determine:
1. What factors are the most important or highly weighted
2. How to maximize those most important factors

The problem with life is that the objective function is not clearly defined. It may differ for each person and even for the same person, change many times. My dream would be to determine what my true objective function is. Knowing exactly what the ultimate goal is would allow me to focus my efforts on activities that would help me reach that goal.

So what's the objective function? I'm not sure. In general people tend to go with 'Be happy'. That's a pretty good objective, although it's rather broad. The concept of happiness is hard to define, but I won't go into that here.

Other people have an objective function that looks like:

max(dollars accumulated)

I'm not saying this is what life should be about, but from a OR standpoint, it's much easier to define. Money is quantifiable, so it's perfectly clear how well you're doing at all times. In the case of gaining money, there are hardly any constraints, provided you don't view laws as binding.

While I can't say for sure what the true objective function of life is, I can define some constraints which I feel are universal. I feel the most important constraint is that one must be healthy. Without health, one cannot enjoy anything or accomplish much of anything. Think about it - even when you have a cold, you're useless. All you want to do is lie around and sleep. I've heard people say they've gotten hangovers so bad that suicide seems like a reasonable option. And these aren't even SERIOUS health problems! I can only imagine what it's like to have far more debilitating conditions such as cancer.

Without your health, nothing else matters. Perhaps a worthy objective function would be to maximize your body's healthiness...

We can't all be the best

No matter how good you are at something, there are always a hundred people better than you. The opposite is probably true too.

"Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is, never try."

- H. Simpson

Palin as President?

It's fully interactive, chock full of soundbytes, and updated daily up until election day! It's...Palin as President!

A Neat Commercial

David Fincher directs the life-long journey of pro football players LaDainian Tomlinson and Troy Polamalu as their destinies collide in an NFL football game.

Song - "The Ecstasy of Gold" by Ennio Morricone, originally written for the film "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly"

McCain/Palin Interview with Katie Couric - Choice Nuggets

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/30/eveningnews/main4490788.shtml

******

Palin feels news coverage of her has not been sexist

Couric: Do you think the coverage of you been sexist?

Palin: No. I don’t. It's obvious there are some double standards here. You know, in terms of what the media has been doing. But I think that's more attributable to the Washington media elite not knowing who I am and just asking a whole lot of questions. Not so much based on gender, though. But based on just the fact that I’m not part of the Washington herd.

Couric: Having said that, do you think it would be sexist not to question your credentials and your policy positions.

Palin: It would be sexist if the media were to hold back and not ask me about my experience, my vision, my principles, my values. You're right.

***

Apparently McCain thinks 'gotcha journalism' is a pizza place.

Couric: Over the weekend, Gov. Palin, you said the U.S. should absolutely launch cross-border attacks from Afghanistan into Pakistan to, quote, "stop the terrorists from coming any further in." Now, that's almost the exact position that Barack Obama has taken and that you, Sen. McCain, have criticized as something you do not say out loud. So, Gov. Palin, are you two on the same page on this?

Palin: We had a great discussion with President Zardari as we talked about what it is that America can and should be doing together to make sure that the terrorists do not cross borders and do not ultimately put themselves in a position of attacking America again or her allies. And we will do what we have to do to secure the United States of America and her allies.

Couric: Is that something you shouldn't say out loud, Sen. McCain?

John McCain: Of course not. But, look, I understand this day and age of "gotcha" journalism. Is that a pizza place? In a conversation with someone who you didn't hear … the question very well, you don't know the context of the conversation, grab a phrase. Gov. Palin and I agree that you don't announce that you're going to attack another country …

***

Palin does believe global warming is due at least in part to man, but she doesn't feel it's important to determine the cause of global warming.

Couric: Is it [global warming] manmade in your opinion?

Palin: You know … there are man's activities that can be contributed to … the issues that we're dealing with now with these impacts. I'm not going to solely blame all of man's activities on changes in climate. Because the world's weather patterns … are cyclical. And over history we have seen changes there. But kind of doesn't matter at this point, as we debate what caused it. The point is it's real, we need to do something about it. And like … Tony Blair had said … when he was in leadership position, he said, "Let's all consider the fact that it is real." So instead of pointing fingers … at different sides of the argument as to who is to blame, and if nature just to blame, let's do something about it. Let's clean up our world. Let's reduce emissions. And let's go with reality.

***

Palin believes abortion should be illegal but those who have abortions should not be jailed.

Couric: But, ideally, you think it [abortion] should be illegal …

Palin: If you …

Couric: …for a girl who was raped or the victim of incest to get an abortion?

Palin: I'm saying that, personally, I would counsel the person to choose life, despite horrific, horrific circumstances that this person would find themselves in. And, um, if you're asking, though, kind of foundationally here, should anyone end up in jail for having an … abortion, absolutely not. That's nothing I would ever support.


***

Palin was not/is not a member of any church:

Couric: Your church sponsored a conference that claimed to be able to convert gays into heterosexuals through prayer. Do you think that gays can be converted, governor?

Palin: Well, you're absolutely wrong, again, on the facts. My church, I don't have a church, I'm not a member of any church. I get to visit a couple of churches in Alaska when I'm home, including one, Wasilla Bible Church, and that's the one that you're talking about.

***

Palin believes homosexuality is a choice:

Palin: But you are talking about, I think, a value here, what my position is on homosexuality and can you pray it away 'cause I think that was the title that was listed in that bulletin. And, you know, I don't know what prayers are worthy of being prayed. And I don't know what prayers are gonna be answered or not answered. But as for homosexuality, I am not going to judge Americans and the decisions that they make in their adult personal relationships.

I have, one of my absolute best friends for the last 30 years who happens to be gay. And I love her dearly. And she is not my "gay friend." She is one of my best friends who happens to have made a choice that isn't a choice that I have made. But I am not gonna judge people. And I love America where we are more tolerant than other countries are. And are more accepting of some of these choices that sometimes people want to believe reflects solely on an individual's values or not. Homosexuality, I am not gonna judge people.

The real difference between liberals and conservatives

Should I Vote For For President: Obama or McCain?

I match up well with...

Barack Obama - 69 match While only having served in the United States Senate for about four years, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) has electrified the presidential stage. Earlier this year, Obama defeated the much vaunted Clinton machine in the Democratic primaries, receiving 18 million votes, as Democratic voters flocked to the polls in record numbers. Unlike his opponent, Obama opposed the Iraq war from the start and is running his campaign on the theme of working together to fix the economy, provide affordable health care to all Americans, restoring the nation's moral authority on the world stage, and keeping the lobbyists and special interests out of the White House.

John McCain - 34 match As a Vietnam war veteran and someone who has a record of bi-partisan work on issues like campaign finance reform and immigration reform, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has often won praises for his willingness to buck his own party on issues. Unlike his opponent, McCain is a staunch supporter of the war in Iraq, a social conservative who believes that the Supreme Court should overturn a woman's right to an abortion, and fiscal conservative who believes the Bush tax cuts should be made permanent and that corporate tax rates be further lowered.

CLICK HERE TO TAKE THE TEST

Hot for Teacher

They're young, hot teachers...who apparently love having sex with their underage students. I just posted 3 examples below because in a brief Googling there were FAR TOO MANY to post a comprehensive list. How come when I was in school I never heard the slightest whisper about this type of thing? Then again, I also had no concept of what a homosexual was until I was in middle school. Perhaps I had a very sheltered upbringing without knowing it.

Anyway check out "the big list".


Pamela Rogers Turner, former Ms. Monday Nitro for WCW Wrestling


Amy McElhenney, former Miss Texas contestant


Debra Lafave, bikini magazine model



I've been posting a lot recently about politics as it's the hot topic with elections approaching in November. Here's a change of pace. Tonight I watched part of Dateline.

The one particular story I'm going to discuss involved a young couple with 2 children. The wife was a student teacher and the husband was an aspiring music director. Long story short, the wife who was 29 ends up having an affair with one of her 18 year old students. Apparently she makes no secret about it, flaunting her affair in public, even in the presence of her husband. She even has sex with her teenage lover in front of her husband at their house. According to the husband, the wife and her teenage lover threaten to take their two young kids and desert him. One night, there's some sort of confrontation which ends with the young lover shot dead. The husband admits to shooting him, but claims it was an accident.

The result of the trial was that the jury found that the husband did not premeditate the murder and would later be charged with a lesser charge of reckless manslaughter.

So first point - what's up with all these young female teachers sleeping with teenage students? Maybe it's news bias, but does it always seem like this only happens with young, attractive female students and teenage males? Why don't we ever hear about male teachers having affairs with female students?

My second question has to deal with infidelity. We already know that in America over 50% of marriages will eventually end in divorce. I don't know what proportion is due in part to infidelity, but I imagine it's a large percent. I'd like to see statistics on what gender is more likely to be unfaithful. Of course, I doubt accurate data exists on this topic because it's something that people would probably be ashamed (or at least I hope they would be ashamed) to admit.

This ties into a email discussion I had with several friends about human behavior, genetics, and social constructs as it applies to the concept of monogamy. Is there any reason to be monogamous or do we have instincts or even genetic predispositions to be polygamous?

Coming from a biased male viewpoint I tend to think females are more likely to be unfaithful than men. I'm sure women would most likely hold the opposite viewpoint. Here's the basis behind my theory. Women, in general, have a much easier time getting sex than men. I make this next statement with the utmost confidence: Any woman, no matter how attractive or unattractive she is, can get sex at any time provided she isn't picky about the man.

The converse is not true for men. Men have to try much harder to get sex. Any guy can't just walk into a bar and say 'Hey, who wants to get laid?' and have flocks of women come up to him.

So because it's so easy for women to get sex, I think the temptation to be unfaithful is greater. You're much more likely to sneak a few donuts when you work at the bakery.

Any thoughts?

Goign down in flames?

I'm not well-versed in economics and I had trouble understanding the full extent of this article, but I still think it offers a glimpse into what all the buzz is about concerning the economy right now.

It's a scary time. Whoever we elect into the White House better damn well know what he's doing.

How Financial Madness Overtook Wall Street

Sarah Palin & Hillary Clinton - United Against Sexism

Tina Fey is amazing. I blogged about her awhile back in my post about My Top 10 TV Women.

Are you afraid?

Pizza

http://williampennmanship.blogspot.com/2008/01/ellios-pizza-endorses-mccain_23.html

I was thinking about this today. Nothing like some disgusting, frozen rectangular pizza to associate with your name, huh?

Phunny

Resistance is Futile

Several weeks ago I added ads to my site in hopes of making a few cents every decade, but mostly for the fact that having ads makes my site look a bit more legitimate than it really is.

Google Adsense places 'contextual ads' on my site, meaning Google reads the content of my site and determines what advertisements would be of most interest to my readers. Since my recent post focused on McCain's selection of Sarah Palin for VP, a ad for McCain popped up.



The first thing I thought when I saw the ad was 1984. A smiling picture of McCain followed by a simple message: "Invest in Victory". Anyone who has read Orwell's famous work should see the similarities in tone. You're not just making a donation to his campaign, you're putting a bet down on the winning horse.

What adds even more to this creepy, Big Brotheresque feel is that the group sponsoring the ad is called the "McCain-Palin Compliance Fund". That's right...COMPLIANCE. YOU WILL COMPLY. Sounds like something the Borg would say. Is there a connection?

Sarah, Palin and Tall

Recently John McCain unveiled his choice of Vice-President to the world in 44-year old Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin. Being a relative unknown on the national scene voters are just now getting to know the Republican Vice-President nominee. What are the real reasons you should support Palin?

Top 10 Reasons to Vote Sarah Palin for Presi...err, Vice-President.

1. Goes ice fishing, snowmobiling, owns a floatboat and ran a marathon once.

2. Eats hamburgers made from moose flesh.


Palin and her freshly shot caribou, which one day, may become a burger.

3. Is a mother of 5 (or a mother of 4 and grandmother of 1).


One/Two of Palin's kids.

4. Was runner-up in the Miss Alaska pageant AND Miss Congeniality.


A young Palin in 1984, showcasing her skills at being beautiful.

5. Believes in Creationism and that Earth was created in 6 days, 6000 years ago.

6. Smoked marijuana in the past, but didn't enjoy it.

7. Promises to shoot anyone who tries to have an abortion or a gay marriage.


Palin takes aim at some matrimonius homosexuals.

8. Names her kids after types of math.


Palin with her husband and newborn Trig. Their next kid is going to be named Geo.

9. Posed, fully clothed, for Vogue.

10. Is a smokin' hot MILF.


Palin in her office in Alaska, discussing her hotness.

Chinese Gymnasts' Age Controversy

The recent Beijing Olympics women's gymnastics competition has generated an extreme amount of controversy surrounding the age of China's gold medal-winning gymnasts. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has asked the FÉDÉRATION INTERNATIONALE DE GYMNASTIQUE (FIG) to look further into this matter.

After an extensive investigation involving meticulously combing through thousands of reams of government forms, this is what they found:

- He Kexin actually advanced cybernetic gym-bot from the future

- Great Wall apparently not visible from space

- Confucious didn't say all that stuff

- Fortune cookies predictions only accurate 78% of time

- General Tso was a fervent vegan

- China makes a lot of crap

- Mao Zedong actually Mexican

Commercial Jingles

Now that I think about it a lot more commercials these days use actual songs rather than customized jingles. Here are two that I especially enjoy:

The Story - Brandi Carlile
This isn't the official video, it's some compilation from Grey's Anatomy. I chose it because the official video has embedding disabled.



Half Acre - Hem
Another unofficial video - this one set to some scenic views.

The Big Snack

One of my favorite football players is Casey Hampton. The man is listed at 6'1 (one inch taller than me) and 325 pounds. There is no way in hell he's 325 pounds. He's admitted himself, "it's been a long time since I was 325." The man is simply massive, but he's not just a fat blob - he's athletic and powerful. He placed 2nd to Larry Allen in a Pro Bowl strongest man contest, doing 40 reps of 225. He's explosive - on one particular play in Super Bowl XL he stiff armed Pro Bowl center Robbie Toebeck of the Seattle Seahwaks, knocking him to the ground and then preceded to sack Matt Hasselbeck. For years he anchored the Steelers top 3-4 defense, especially against the run, but this year he reported to training camp quite overweight (or more so than usual). Coach Tomlin had none of this and slapped him on the PUP (Physically Unable to Perform list). Hopefully the man gets in shape!


When you're as big as Casey it's physically impossible for both of your feet never leave the ground simultaneously when you run.


After sacking Hasselbeck in XL, I believe.


Being huge allows you to drink entire bottles of vodka as if they were shots.


The guy he's talking is RB Jason Wright who is 5'10 215 pounds, not exactly small. Running backs usually have huge legs - look at them compared to Hampton's. Casey's forearms are the size of Wright's biceps and Casey's biceps are the size of Wright's legs...and Casey's legs are the size of...well, Wright.


Even NFL stars have time for beer pong.

In conclusion, although I appreciate Casey's bulk and what it does for his football playing, I hope he trims down so he can last 4 quarters without requiring an oxygen machine. His conditioning is crucial to the success of the Steelers.

The Olympics - Tainted Gold?

Last night I watched the final rounds of the women’s team all-around competition. The US and China teams were quite close with only 2 rotations left. The Chinese team had a gymnast fall off the balance beam which was an automatic 0.8 deduction. This crucial error left the door open for the US to jump into 1st place. Unfortunately the US was unable to capitalize on the error as Alicia Sacramone also fell off the beam. Going into the last rotation, floor exercise, Sacramone fell again on a tumbling run, which was another huge deduction. The following two gymnasts Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson both stepped out of bounds, resulting in 0.1 point deductions. The Chinese team came into floor exercise next and executed relatively error-free and won the gold.


Alicia Sacramone, 20 (left) is visibly shaken after making an error.

This morning I read an article talking about the results of this competition and I notice on the messageboard portion of ESPN there was considerable debate on the subject of age. Apparently, some of the gymnasts on China’s female team may have been under the minimum age of 16. I’m not sure exactly why there is a minimum age, but there is and it’s 16.

What evidence exists that some of these Chinese gymnasts are ineligible to compete? Well, first off they look young. In comparison to their American counterparts, the Chinese gymnasts are considerably shorter, lighter, and less curvy. They also have more youthful looking faces as judged by most people. One gymnast supposedly was missing a tooth (presumed to be a missing baby tooth).

Although it’s quite easy to, we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. No one can accurately discern someone’s age just by their appearance. On the issues of height, weight and body shape, I believe on average, American women are taller and heavier than Chinese women, so I don’t believe it’s a good assumption to say a Chinese woman is younger simply because she’s smaller than an American woman. The missing tooth could be a baby tooth…or it could be a adult tooth that was knocked out. You can’t tell what kind of tooth it was simply by looking at the gap in her smile.


Shawn Johnson of the US (left) is 4'9" and 16 years old.


He Kexin of China is 4'8" and 16, but was reported to be 13 as recently as 9 months ago.


Shawn Johnson again - close up.


The 3 girls circled are the ones who are suspected of being under 16. I believe He Kexin is the one on the left.


Looking at the 4 pictures above I, for one, can't conclusively say one looks older than the other. Even looking at the close-ups all I can say is that Shawn Johnson looks Caucasian and He Kexin looks Chinese.

Anecdotally, I have a friend who is quite petite – she’s 4’11 and can’t weigh more than 80 pounds. She has a very youthful looking face and she can fit into clothes made for kids – she just turned 30 recently. Another time I was talking with a friend of a friend who I had met for the 2nd time. He was telling me about his siblings one of which was 12 years younger than him and was in college – I did a quick mental calculation assuming he was my age and it didn’t add up – he was actually in his 30s. Whoops.

Now the more compelling evidence is that there have been government news agency reports that list members of the Chinese women’s gymnastics team being as young as 13. These reports were published less than 1 year before the Olympics, so if they were accurate the oldest these members could be now would be 14.

The problem with this evidence is that it can be easily denied. The Chinese government can simply say the previous new agency report was incorrect and that the gymnasts are actually 16. Age is verified using government-issued passports as well, so the veracity of those is questionable as well.

Many people simply don’t believe that the passports are accurate. The problem is that all this speculation over whether or not the government is being deceptive can’t be pushed aside unless there is some neutral 3rd party that can find an independent method to verifying the gymnasts’ age.

Should the US be leading this effort? Absolutely not. It should be led by the IOC or some committee that doesn’t have an obvious national interest. If an American led probe determined the Chinese gymnasts were underage the results might be dismissed as biased by a sore loser. In order for the results to remain credible a neutral party must be used.

We certainly don’t want to start a witch hunt where full scale probes must be launched every time a gymnast who looks like she’s 15 steps out on the floor, but in the case of blatant inconsistencies in the reporting of ages, investigations should be conducted.

If a 3rd party investigation conclusively establishes that China used ineligible athletes, their medals should be stripped and awarded to the US. There should also be some neutral 3rd party form of age identification to prevent future violations of the rule.

Lastly, I have to say that unless age restrictions are in place to protect developing athletes from physical harm, they should not be used. For example, I’ve heard of youth baseball leagues prohibiting pitchers from using certain pitches as they may cause permanent arm/shoulder damage in youngsters. But if the age restriction is not there to prevent damage to the athletes’ bodies then it should be lifted as to allow the best athletes to compete.

If you’re 15 years old and you’re the best gymnast in the world, you should be competing at the Olympics instead of sitting at home watching them on TV. After all, the summer games are only every 4 years and by the time you’re 19 you’re a relative geezer in the gymnastics world. I don’t want to go flying off on a tangent about affirmative action but the message is simple – may the best man or woman win.

To wrap it up:
1. A 3rd party, neutral committee should investigate any age violations.
2. If China is found guilty of using ineligible athletes, the medals should be stripped.
3. Age restrictions that aren’t in place solely to prevent physical harm to athletes should be removed.
4. People should stop jumping to conclusions about peoples’ ages until more definitive evidence is provided.

Woo...100 posts.

That is all.

The Grand Internet Experiment

I might be labeled an Internet addict. I often times find myself struggling to get to bed at a decent hour because I start browsing youtube.com before bed. I watch a short clip. It's 3 or 4 minutes...but when it finishes another interesting clip pops up, and then another.

Before I know it 2 hours have gone by and I've watched dozens of random clips spanning a cornucopia of subjects. I feel smarter and more worldly, but I'm also a lot more tired.

I have a very extreme personality - moderation is very difficult for me so the only way for me to control myself consumption of something is to go all or nothing.

So I've decided I will have no computer at home during the work week. At least not my desktop - I'll still permit myself to use my work computer if I need to. However using a work laptop is pretty unwieldy and plus I won't install Flash and Shockwave and all the other plugins I need to play amusing little online games. Having to stare at a small screen and use an unprecise touchpad are enough of a deterrent to keep me from wasting a lot of time on the computer.

I've gone one day so far - let's see if my productivity increases. My prediction is that I'll attempt to fill in the time by watching more TV and gradually relax my black and white restrictions.

Hopefully my predictions are wrong.

Fantasy Football Friday!

About 2 months ago I made a post about fantasy football keepers. Well now that preseason has started I decided to update my keeper lists.

I'm in a 10 person keeper league where we keep 8 players year to year. This list has been changed to reflect trades, injuries, and depth chart adjustments.

Click to biggify.



What do you think of the list? Keep in mind it's a non-PPR, passing TDs are 6 points and you start 1 QB, 3 WR, 2 RB, 1 WR/RB, 1 TE, 1 K, 1 DEF.

Notice anything different?

Boom...stretch! For some reason I never thought to use all the available monitor space I had for my blog. Sure, the blog looked neat but I was cutting off the sides and reserving it for...well, nothing.

So this new look fills up your monitor, making the page more horizontal and less vertical, which means less scrolling up and down. Huzzah!

Hopefully my trademark color scheme is about the same...

Positive or negative feedback on the change will be accepted and/or published.

Sweatpants

Ever see a girl wearing sweatpants with words printed across the butt? Sometimes they say 'Princess' or 'Sexy' or 'Flirt'. These pants are apparently quite popular with women and also with the men, who now - for the first time ever - have a legitimate excuse to stare at ladies' derrieres for extended periods of time.

[Guy obviously oggling a woman]
Women wearing sweatpants: Excuse me, can I help you with something?
Guy oggling: No, I'm fine, just trying to read your pants. "Luscious" - nice!

From a personal perspective, I would never let my daughter wear such pants. Especially if she was under the age of 18, like the girl below, who can't be older than 10.


I'm sorry, but there can be nothing 'juicy' until you hit puberty.

And don't think for a moment that this trend is limited to girls and womens' fashionable brands. Hell, even the US National Swimming Team has gotten in on the action.


In case the swim cap and googles didn't give it away, I'm a swimmer.

Sometimes companies don't even bother printing real words on the pants. I'm not sure what "Velicious" means but they tell me it's French. Somehow I don't seem to care too much.



Although you've seen that many clothing designers have tapped into this valuable fashion resource, I can't help but feel like there's so much more out there in the words-printed-on-my-ass economy. I think if I came out with my own line of designer sweatpants I could make a lot of money. What do you think?

The Victoria Collection


The Monique Collection


All designs are property of allovertheowl.blogspot.com

Don't steal! I shall make my fortune selling these pants! MWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

The Game

After work today I decided to make a stop at a Starbucks that had recently opened up in the neighborhood. It was surprisingly small and the tables and chairs were all cramped in a crowded rhombus to the right of the counter.

I went up to the counter, looked over the menu for any drink that didn't cost $17 and ordered a 'Grande' (which somehow is medium) Iced Coffee. I don't drink caffeine normally so hopefully this won't give me some sort of nasty reaction.

I sat down at a table with my drink. To my left there was a guy on his cellphone. He looked younger than me, perhaps in college...early 20s. He yapped on and on, call after call. Every time he hung up his phone within 2 minutes he had started a new call ,presumably with someone new.

Oh yeah, the only other customers in the Starbucks were a mother and her young daughter who probably was 7 or 8. To my surprise she let her little kid order a caffeine-loaded Frappuchino. Letting a little girl that age drink that much caffeine can't be good.

Back to the cell phone guy. After about 20 minutes he finally hung up his phone for a brief period in which his friend walked in the door. His friend sat down next to him. I attempted to focus on what I was reading but I couldn't help overhear their conversation because they were talking quite loud and I was seated within 3 feet of them. Starbucks really should get a bigger seating area.

Now if I hadn't been paying close attention I would have thought these guys were talking about business, but they weren't. They were discussing women. And the cellphone guy was rambling on and on in terms I hadn't ever heard of before.

Now, I am admittedly, very analytical, especially about relationships, but I've never realized how ridiculous some of the things that I analyze sound when said in public.

This is an approximation of some of the things I overheard:

"Okay, so tonight I'm going to act as your DHB. I'm going to help you get past Tier 1 and move into Tier 2 of the Comfort Pyramid. Normally this transition takes 6-8 hours, but with my help I can accelerate the process. Let's agree now that we'll both only say good things about each other. We can make mocking jokes, but it must be clear that we're only trying to pump each other up. I'll work hard to present all your best aspects - it's like buying a car - you want to know if it has a nice interior, a powerful engine - except this time it's you. Once we've established your positive qualities we'll begin the devaluation phase on her. The goal is to make her feel inferior to you as to elevate your own standing above her."

Another excerpt:

"You know how sometimes you see a girl in a club and you feel nervous approaching her. Well this is known as 'Approach Anxiety' and it occurs because of three main factors: 1) Fear of rejection, 2) Fear of success, 3)..."

Now I don't know what DHB stands for and at this point I had to leave Starbucks because I couldn't take anymore of hearing this guy blather on. I seriously felt like these guys were conspiring to assassinate Caesar. It was an intricately timed plan, complete with Freudian psychological analyses and contingency plans. The whole thing just felt like a scam. Who knows, maybe it works wonders. Maybe discussing the subtleties of making intentional physical contact (like touching her hand while you speak) seem unintentional is really what it's all about.

Nevertheless I felt thoroughly disgusted after hearing this guy spit his game. I don't like the idea of having to trick women into being interested in you. I mean, hell, what's next, trapping them in a giant cardboard box baited with candy?


How to score hot babes.

Well anyway, this won't keep me from analyzing but it'll sure as hell make me not discuss this type of stuff in public. It makes you sound like a giant douche.

Oh, are you a pilot?

Damn kids...

Have you seen these whippersnappers with their new-fangled "sun-glasses"? I remember back in my day when glasses used to just protect your eyes. Nowadays the 'hip' thing is to wear glasses so monstrous they not only cover your eyes, but they also shield your ears, cheeks, and teeth from the sun's carcinogenic rays.

Why do people feel the need to wear such over-sized spectacles? A friend of mine who sports such novelty glasses explained that it's all about the mystery and intimidation that comes with concealing your eyes and a large portion of your face. Ah, so that's why...you want to look dark and secretive.

Well, I have a solution then for all those who rock aviators. Why not take the mystique to a new level?

Below I've created a pictorial hierarchy of sun-glass coolness. Will you take the next step toward reaching the apex of sun-glassiness?

-

Cool




Cooler




Coolest


That's right...marvel at how little of my face you can see! I am the coolest of all!

Eva Cassidy Revisited

A long time ago I blogged about Eva Cassidy, the shy singer who only really gained fame years after her death in 1996. Today I stumbled back upon that post and rediscovered what an amazing singer and musician she was.

I found an episode of ABC Nightline on Eva's life. I have embedded the videos below in 3 parts. Below that I've embedded additional videos of Eva's music.

In addition to her beautiful renditions of classic ballads, Eva also sang many other styles - including jazz, soul, gospel, folk, blues, rock... I've mixed in songs from each of her styles below.

She truly is the most beautiful voice I have ever heard. Please enjoy and RIP, Eva.

For more information on Eva you can visit this website.

~O~

ABC Nightline Part I


ABC Nightline Part II


ABC Nightline Part III


EDIT: I removed all of the embedded youtube links below because they were making the page load really slowly. Of course you can always just search youtube if you would like to see more of Eva.

Kennedy - "Your Mama"

Can't get this catchy tune out of my head...

It's a Nice Day for a White Wedding

I wanna make you smile whenever you're sad
Carry you around when your arthritis is bad
All I wanna do is grow old with you.
I'll get your medicine when your tummy aches
build you a fire if the furnace breaks
Oh it could be so nice, growin old with you.
I'll miss you, kiss you, give you my coat when you are cold.
Need you, feed you, I'll even let you hold the remote control.
So let me do the dishes in the kitchen sink
Put you to bed when you've had too much to drink.
Oh I could be the man to grow old with you.
I wanna grow old with you.

~O~

This weekend I attended the wedding of two of my friends, Dan and Julie. Dan and I went to grade school together as well as college. I met Julie through Dan and we ended up being classmates extensively for two years since we were in the same major (BAM - Bowling Alley Management).

Anyway, the wedding took place this past Saturday in the afternoon so Saturday morning two of my friends and I drove down to Philadelphia. The drive wasn't too bad and soon we arrived at the church. The church was quite beautiful with its high arching ceilings and ornate artwork. My gift and duty to Dan and Julie was to play 'Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring' on my violin during the ceremony. For awhile we waited around the darkened church, trying to keep quiet since we were standing next to some confessionals which were occupied.

Eventually I found the Sister who was going to accompany me on organ during the piece. We ascended the stairs to the organ loft. The view from the loft was inspiring and the acoustics were even more amazing. From up on the loft there was a cavernous reverb. Every note I drew across the strings of my violin resonated profoundly. I ran through the piece twice with the Sister before the vocalists came up to the loft. They were both friends of Julie and I had met one, Mary, previously. I listened to the two of them practice and they sounded angelic. I'm not a religious man but being in such a setting one could easily feel spiritually inspired.

After rehearsing I went back down to the ground level to mingle with some old acquaintances. As the clock got closer to 2 PM more people entered the church and began to be seated. I took this as a cue to return to the loft where I'd watch the entirety of the ceremony.

The ceremony began shortly thereafter and for the next hour or so I watched a series of songs, readings, rituals, and prayers. The priest actually had a pretty funny reference to the movie The Wedding Singer starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. He read the lyrics to the song that Sandler's character serenades Drew Barrymore with. When I saw the movie the song was entertaining, mildly heartwarming, but overall not very significant. But somehow when read in a serious non-Sandlerish voice in the sanctity of a church with hundreds of people listening intently, it gained meaning that it hadn't had before.

Often times people are concerned with finding someone who is fun to be with - in the short term. Many don't really consider the more mundane aspects of marriage - the aspects of partnership that are much less glamorous than those typically associated with romance. When we see Hollywood couples they're always parading around town, dining at fancy restaurants, driving in exotic cars, and getting dressed up for movie premieres. In those types of settings maybe it's great to have the sexy trophy wife/husband on your arm, but what about those less exciting times?

Who is going to take care of you when you're sick? If you got lost on a roadtrip who would you want to have by your side? Would that person make a good parent?

I'm young, so admittedly, I don't think about those things much, but I should. It's much easier to judge people when your most important criterion in finding a mate is how good they look naked. But of course if you have longer lasting aspirations you need to delve much deeper than that.

I'd like to make an analogy to this situation - buying a car. I think young people (myself included) tend to look for mates based on external characteristics - akin to buying a car based on how sporty it looks or what color it is. Maybe you choose it because it's exciting - it can go 0-60 MPH in 3.3 seconds, It can turn on a dime and do burnouts. But the less glamorous features are often ignored - how reliable is the car? Does it require a lot of maintenance? Does it get good gas economy? These are the features that aren't easily discerned at first glance - you need to read the specs - get to know the car at a deeper level.

Sorry for the digression - back to the wedding. I had not had lunch that day so my friends had offered to pick something up for me while I waited for the Sister. Before the wedding had started they handed me a white Styrofoam container and a plastic bottle of iced tea. I retreated to the loft with my food and hid behind the pipe organ. I opened up the container to find a monstrously messy stuffed hamburger. The thing was covered in thick, sweet BBQ sauce and evidently some peppers and onions. It tasted delicious but I had to be so careful not to stain my suit. It was certainly a very impractical meal choice for someone who had to maintain precise finger dexterity when playing the violin moments later. So for the next 15 minutes I sat hidden behind the organ while the Sister played and a wedding photographer worked from the loft. I just hoped no one in the audience below saw me hunched back there like a squirrel eating a forbidden nut.

The time came for me to play. I was so nervous because I hadn't played violin more than 2 or 3 times in the past year. From rehearsal I knew that my arms would stiffen and fatigue after only a few minutes of playing and the significance of the event made my hands sweat. I wiped my hands off in a vain attempt to keep them dry. I really feared that my damp hands would cause my fingers to slide on the fingerboard of the violin with disastrous results.

The Sister gave me a nod and I stood up. I had turned the music stand to face the organ and away from the crowd below. I knew that if I saw everyone staring at me I might freak out so I did my best to ignore them. I started playing and surprisingly I made it through without any discernible problems. I finished the piece, packed up my violin and thanked the Sister. The rest of the ceremony went by quickly.

Later several people told me how nice the violin sounded and how it completely overpowered the organ, which was a total surprise to me since I feared no one would be able to hear me. I was glad that my performance was acceptable and that I didn't ruin one of the most important events of my friends' lives.

*** More to come later


Creepy photo of me up on the balcony. I felt like Batman overlooking the masses below.

Bananas - The Atheist's Nightmare

Perhaps next time you peel that delectable fruit you'll feel the power of God's creation.

Wastes of Time

I've gotten to a point in my life where I feel as if there aren't enough hours in the day. Or perhaps there aren't enough hours where I can be productive - meaning I can't run full throttle every waking hour.

At the bowling alley we sometimes measure the utilization of the lanes - how many hours out of each day they are being bowled on. Of course lanes never are utilized 100% of the time since there's always some gaps between bowling parties. Likewise, as a person I find it hard to stay productive all the time. Unlike bowling alleys, people fatigue physically and mentally and need 'down-time' to recover.

Years ago when I was attending college there were nights where I was studying for big pin-alignment tests where I'd eventually get so tired I'd decide to just go to bed rather than force myself to stay up studying the intricacies of the 7-10 split. I found that tired studying was hardly better than no study at all. So today when I'm going through the course of the day I find sometimes it's better to stop for awhile and then come back later rather than just sludge through it.

As far as wastes of time go there some tasks while necessary are annoying in the fact that they take up time that you could be doing better things with. I'm talking about things like washing dishes, cleaning, doing laundry, buying groceries - basically any task that could be done by someone with a grade-school education.

Now understand I'm not saying I'm too good to do these things, but if I was rich, I'd definitely pay other people to do those tasks. Would it cost less for me to do my own laundry? Almost certainly, but that's not factoring in the value of my time. Let's say I can make $20/hr working at the bowling alley and doing 2 loads of laundry takes me 1.5 including drying and folding time. If the cost of getting my laundry done is less than $30 then it's a better value for me.

I'm not yet at that point in life where I can pay people to clean for me, but I wish I could.

What else would I pay people to do?
- wash dishes
- cook
- buy groceries
- car maintenance
- laundry
- house cleaning
- lawn/yard maintenance
- household supply shopping
- running errands (post office, etc)

There would be certain things that I would always do myself regardless of how rich I was.

- taking care of the kids/pets
- buying any non-consumables (clothes, furniture, electronics, etc)
- paying the bills
- hmm...I guess there really isn't that much to put on this list

The funny thing is it sounds like I desire to be a kid again - where mom and dad did all those things for me! I guess being rich is like being a baby again in some ways!

2000th Hit Anniversary

Believe it or not, this page has now received 2000 hits!

Here is the chronology:
3/31/08 - Counter installed - 0 hits
6/12/08 - 1000th hit recorded
7/08/08 - 2000th hit recorded

So it took almost 75 days to get my first 1000 hits and less than 30 to get my 2nd 1000. Pretty nifty stuff considering I don't advertise my site other than occasionally telling a family member or friend to read the site for a particular story.

Other fun facts:

People have visited my page from at least 34 countries (39 visitors from unknown countries).



66% of visitors use Windows XP while only 18% use Vista. (This might tell you how popular Vista is, Mr. Gates)



A lot of variety when it comes to keyword searches. One line is blurred out because the search term is not appropriate. I like how the guy (or girl) searching for pr0n of Spitzer's call-girl went so far to put the accent on the 'e'.



That's all for now, folks! See you at 3000!

Once You Pop - You May Want to Stop

I don't eat chips frequently but I do remember that Pringles were a family favorite a long time ago. So much so that we even brought them to overseas relatives whenever we went to visit. That and Centrum Silver vitamins. Apparently Pringles and vitamins are hot commodities.

Anyway, the article below describes how in London a judge ruled that Pringles are not potato chips because - get this - they aren't made of potato slices. They're actually made of baked dough. Sounds sick.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-pringles5-2008jul05,0,1574005.story

A Dead Battery and the Kindness of Strangers

It's Sunday and I realize I'm getting depleted on food so I decide to make a drive out to my local grocery store. I make the short drive, buy my groceries, and load them into the car.

I turn the key...nothing. Absolutely no sound. No whimper, no clicking, just silence. Hmm, odd. I quickly check to see if I left the lights on. Nope. Is the steering wheel locked up? No. I try the key again. Silence. My battery must be dead. I call home and my dad tells me to get the car jump started. I tell him I have jumper cables and then hang up. I don't have cables.

I realize that my car is loaded up with perishable groceries in the 90 degree heat so I quickly reload my cart and push it inside. I explain my situation to an employee and she tells me she can put my cart in the fridge. I hand off the cart and rush back outside. For awhile I ask people if they have jumper cables...2 or 3 didn't have them. Then this man pulls up in a SUV and asks me if I need a jump. I say yes and he's extremely helpful, however my car is parked headfirst and flanked on both sides. Worse yet, I can't get my car into neutral. The guy is really going out of his way to help me. He pulls around to the other side of the lot and literally drives his SUV up over the curb between another car and a tree, just barely missing them both, but alas...the cable is still too short. Only a car to the left or right of me could help.

I ask to borrow his cables and that I'll return them later. He agrees, gives me his address and is off (he had 2 little kids in the car). A few minutes later an Indian couple and a older white couple see me sitting on my disabled car. They both offer to help. The Indian man has some sort of starter system which plugs into cigarette lighters. However, the cable isn't long enough to reach my car. Luckily the owners of the one car to my right show up. Somehow they don't even seem to notice the commotion that I'm creating, but they leave and this allows the older white man to pull his minivan parallel to my car. We use the jumper cables I borrowed and presto, the car starts. I quickly rush back into the grocery store to get my cart. I get the cart, reload my trunk, thank the couple for their help and drive off.

I had planned to go back home, drop off my groceries and then head to Sears to get a new battery. As I'm driving back home I notice my dashboard's gauges are going nuts. The speedometer and the tachometer keep flicking back and forth. One moment it says my speed is 40, the next moment it dies. My car's power systems are lapsing in and out of consciousness. Somehow I make it back to my apartment. I leave my car on, not wanting it to die again. I dash for a shopping cart and push the loaded cart toward the apartment building like it was a bobsled. I rush up to my apartment, throw everything in the fridge and hurry back downstairs.

I sprint to my car and it's eerily silent. It's dead again. Damnit! I call my father for help again. He gets me the number for Sears. I try calling them - their stupid voice-recognition system sucks! I say 'auto' and it keeps sending me to appliances! The appliance guy can't transfer me to auto and he gives me a phone number. The first time I call I get some music store. I must have written down the wrong number. I call back and deal with the idiotic voice system. Somehow it can't tell when I'm saying 'yes' or 'no'. I curse at the robotic female voice. I connect with the auto center. The phone rings...maybe a dozen times. No answer. It's 4:30. Maybe they're closed. That would be a pain in the ass.

I call the main Sears number again...and again saying 'auto' puts me through to appliances. I get the same guy who gives me the same phone number. I try again - finally someone answers! Luckily they're open until 6 and they can put a new battery in my car if I can get it there in the next hour.

A good break! There's a guy in the parking lot cleaning his BMW. I ask him for a jump and at first he's reluctant because the battery is in the trunk...not sure why. But he agrees and pulls around to my car. The battery has leads under the hood. I hook up the cables and boom, my car is running again. I thank him profusely and drive off to Sears.

I drive for about 5 minutes when I notice my dashboard is acting like a metronome again. I'm on the main road of the town - 3 lane thruway. One moment I'm doing 45 then I notice my tach is back down to zero. I hit the gas...nothing. Shit, my car is dead again. I'm coasting. I quickly put on my 4-way flashers so I don't get rear-ended by the heavy traffic. I manage to pull off in front of an empty building. I really have to muscle the steering wheel to pull over - I guess power steering isn't working. Now my car is dead again and I'm standing along side the road as scores of cars whiz by.

I call Sears again to tell them I didn't make it. They tell me they can't tow me or do roadside service, but they can tell me the number of a towing company. They put me on hold. I wait...and wait...and wait. Realizing they may have forgotten about me, I hang up and use GOOG411 (Google's free 411 service). Their automated voice system is actually smart and connects me to a tow company. It'll be $125 plus tax - sure, whatever. I have no other choice anyway. About 15 minutes later the tow truck shows up. The guy is dressed in camo pants. Apparently he was in the army.

My car can't get out of neutral so the guy does something I've never seen before. There's little rectangular button near the D on my transmission. He pops it off and using a little pocketknife manually puts my car in neutral. Apparently there is a way to get it in neutral even if you can't start the car. He loads up my car and we're off to Sears.

He drops me off at Sears and they take my car in. I pay the tow trucker driver and thank him. He was nice and helpful too. The guy at Sears was very calming. He took my car in and filled out the paperwork. About 15 minutes later he informed me my alternator was fine - thank Jebus. They put in a new battery and it was fixed. I drive off relieved and stop by to return the jumper cables. What an ordeal.

Lessons Learned:
1. Buy jumper cables
2. Cell phones are invaluable
3. Get your car serviced as per the manufacturer's schedule (I haven't done my 60K service even though it's 3K over due)
4. Help people with car troubles
5. It's nice to have parents you can count on.
6. It's amazing how much we rely on cars.

I was quite panicky and stressed out throughout the situation. It was hot and humid and I felt powerless. I couldn't push my car to Sears, nor could I repair it myself. I feel grateful for the strangers who were kind enough to help me - the man who loaned me his jumper cables and drove his SUV up on the curb to try and reach my car. The Indian couple who offered their charging system. The elderly white couple who jumped me. The girl in the grocery store who took my cart into the fridge. The guy in my apartment parking lot who jumped me with his BMW. The guy at Sears who assured me they could fix it today. The tow truck driver...

Granted the tow truck driver and Sears guy were paid ($125+tax for the tow...~$80 for a new battery + service) but they were nice nonetheless. The people who helped me out of their own kindness were even more appreciated.

Oh, and after I left Sears I immediately went to fill up my gas tank. I was low the whole time too...that would have been another kick in the nuts if I had finally gotten my battery working only to run out of gas.

So, I owe the world one. Next time I see someone in need of car help I'm going to offer them a jump, use my cellphone, or anything that may help them. It can be stressful, but it's nice to know there are people out there to help.

Gymettiquette

I recently started going to a gym. It had been almost 2 years since I had been exercising with weights regularly and even now I'm still not back into the flow of things. The gym I go to advertises itself as a place where anybody and everyone can work out without having to fear being 'evaluated' by others.

It has certain rules enacted to discourage so called 'musclehead' behavior. For instance, no bandanas are allowed. No gallon jugs of water. No grunting, no deadlifting, no weight dropping - all things associated with burly he-men lifting massive amounts of weight.

These rules do a pretty good job of keeping out a particular type of gym-goer but the 'anyone can work out here' atmosphere leads to all sorts of people. I'll list some of those types that bug me and then some that I respect.

WTF?!

1. People who dress inappropriately for the gym
I wear mesh shorts, a t-shirt and sneakers. This is pretty standard attire. Some folks wear tank tops, compression shirts, or cut-off t-shirts. That's fine by me. Sweatpants, sure - windpants, that's okay too. Even spandex is okay. But then you have the group of people who come to the gym in street clothes. I'm talking about polo shirts, sandals (some with socks), jeans, khaki shorts, women who wear tops that were certainly intended for club wear...

I'm not sure if these people didn't realize that it might be appropriate to dress in athletic clothes or if they simply were so busy they walked in right off the street and had to get a quick workout in in their work clothes.


Standard gym footwear for far too many...


2. Camoflauge
You're at a gym. You're not hunting and you're not hiding. Why are you wearing camo shorts or a camo shirt? Unless you're in the armed forces you shouldn't be wearing camo at the gym.


No, just no.

3. Men who dress like women
This usually only applies to guys who think they are the next coming of Ahnuld. They show up in these shirts that must be sold at Victoria's Secret. Skimpy little halter tops, spaghetti straps...ugg, it looks so wrong! I'm not sure how wearing women's lingerie makes you more of a manly man.


Ready for your workout, big boy?

4. Social butterflies
These people occupy a piece of equipment while chatting away. They might be sitting on a bench or under a squat rack but the one thing they always have in common is that they're taking up the machine without using it. Usually it's not a problem, but if the gym is crowded it's discourteous.

5. Germ-a-phobes
I've only seen 1 person do this, but it really weirded me out. This old guy was carrying around 2 paper towels - one in each hand and for each piece of equipment he used, he gripped the handles of the machine with these towels. If you're that afraid of germs, you probably shouldn't be in a public place like a gym. Also, do you really have faith the antiseptic properties of a 1mm thick, sweat soaked 55%-recycled post consumer waste paper towel?

6. Mr. Triangle
These guys have massive upper bodies and tiny toothpick legs. They just look funny, that's all.

7. Guy who stands in the locker room naked
Okay, there's a shower so you have an excuse to undress, but it's not necessary to stand in the middle of the locker room with your ass flapping in the breeze. Put on some pants already, geez.

***

Good for you
1. The morbidly obese or obviously out of shape person at the gym
I respect these people because they know they're fat BUT they're trying! Instead of sitting at home complaining about how fat they are while scarfing down M&Ms these people are actually doing something pro-active. Everyone has to start somewhere - kudos to these people.


Hey, at least they're trying.

2. A girl lifting free weights
Assuming the girl isn't in 'the pit' just to attract attention (which would be easy considering there's about a 40:1 male to female ratio) in the free-weight section, I think it's great that she's not weirded out by free weights. Some women have the idea that if they do anything other than cardio and machines they'll hulk up like Lou Ferrigno. Sure it can be intimidating in the pit, so all the more props to the girl who is brave enough to enter.

3. Guy wearing a big sweatshirt
This is the opposite of the guy wearing the lingerie. It can be clear that this guy is huge but he doesn't care about showing off his delts. Instead he's wearing a sweatshirt and is just focused on his exercise. The same goes for the guy with the headphones - he doesn't socialize, he's in his own world where he just does his thing and leaves. No BS.

4. People who wipe down the equipment
It's common courtesy but not everyone does it. A little sweat won't give you AIDS, but still, it's nice to know that the previous person cared enough to clean up a bit.

***

So that's all I have for now folks. My suggestion for all - sneakers, athletic shorts, and a t-shirt. It's a classic for a reason.