Ideal driving according to...me

I've been meaning to express how I feel about the way people drive for quite awhile. Usually, when I've been out driving and noticing what people do. I've been driving ever since I got my license way way back. And ever since I got my own car, I have pretty much driven every day. Needless to say, I have quite a few hours under my belt. Now driver's ed was great and all, but they don't really teach you much about efficient driving.

Like most people, I was quite the crazy driver when I was younger. But after some interesting experiences, I mostly pride myself on trying to be a smooth and efficient driver. Whether this includes using the brake and gas pedals only when needed or timing traffic lights and turns, I like to put my passengers at ease. A carsick passenger resulting from my driving is a sign of failure. Braking hard is a sign of failure. Braking more than twice in a span of 3 seconds is a sign of failure.

I like to be always aware of the driving situation all around me. I check my 3, 6, 9 quite often during a drive. Which brings me to my first rule for all efficient driving: Check ALL your mirrors frequently. Don't just check it when you're changing lanes. Don't just check it when you're backing up. Check it routinely. Know that you have a way out if something funky happens in front of you. Know that you need to adjust your driving depending on who's behind or next to you.

This brings up a second rule: Don't be a righteous b*st*rd. If you're driving in the passing lane of a highway (there is no fast lane, but one can argue someone is passing all the time), and you see someone driving faster than you behind you, don't think, "Oh look, a crazy guy speeding. I'm already going pretty fast, so I'm just going to stay in front of him and block him." This only leads to two things: traffic and road rage. Best thing to do is, move over one lane. Let the "lunatic" through, switch back. Not only have you kept your place in line, the highway has become more efficient.

Another rule: Don't tailgate. Not only is it dangerous, but tailgating invariably leads to you tapping your brakes a lot. This will cause the person behind you to brake, probably because he was following you at a distance that he thought was fair, not knowing you were tailgating. The person behind him might brake because he sees brake lights. You can see where I'm going with this. You tapping your brakes can cause traffic behind you. I know, I know. Why should you care about traffic behind you. Well, next time you sit in traffic. Think that it might have been less bad if people timed their acceleration and deceleration accordingly and used their brakes only when needed. This is why I say using your brakes twice in 3 seconds is probably a failure - a failure in judgment. Remember, when you're going highway speed, letting off the gas will slow you down a bit. Apply gas only if the situation calls for it and if it will prevent an accident or dangerous situations.

I have tons more thoughts on driving, but I guess the most important rule is to drive safe and practice defensive driving. Keep in mind that the above rules are my thoughts only and not the absolute word. You are responsible for your own actions and resulting consequences.

The eating begins...

Some more sporadic mini-workouts again. November is always a pretty tough time since I have a lot of stuff happening. Had a pretty huge dinner Sunday night for a friend's birthday. I had to order the steak (after some filling appetizers), and I paid for it. Thanksgiving was pretty tough too. I'll recap that week later.

Monday: Squats (40), lunges (20 each)

Tuesday: Hammer curls (10), Biceps curls (10), calf raises (75), pushups (45)

Wednesday: Squats (40), lunges (20 each)
Thursday: Calf raises (75), pushups (45, 45), front raises (10, 10, 10), bent-over rows (10, 10, 10), shoulder press (10, 10, 10), hammer curls (10, 10, 10), biceps curls (10, 10, 10), shrugs (20, 20, 20), ab work
Friday: None
Saturday: hammer curls (10), biceps curls (10), pushups (45)

Sunday: Side raises (10, 10, 10), bent-over raises (10, 10, 10), hammer curls (10), biceps curls (10)

The one good thing is that I'm trying to do a minimum of 20 curls per day. Hoping that little bit in the morning will condition my arms a bit. I figure if I'm doing pushups 2-3 times a week, I should at least do some curls.

Last weigh in:
178.5lb

Workout update

I'm late with this update. Work has been quite exhausting with the large workload I have. Year-end is coming too, so the internal audit is looming over my head. In any case, I've still been trying to keep up with my mini-workouts. I try to make an effort to squeeze in some other stuff at home as well. I haven't made it to the Y yet, but I hope to. Cardio is so far behind, so if I do hit the gym, the focus will be cardio and swimming.

Monday: Lunges (20 each)

Tuesday: Calf raises (75), pushups (45, 26, 20)
Wednesday: Squats (40)

Thursday: Calf raises (75), pushups (45, 45, 10), diamond pushups (20)
Friday: Lunges (20 each), squats (40)
Saturday: Hammer curls (10), biceps curls (10), side raises (10, 10, 10), rear lat raises (10, 10, 10)

Sunday: Hammer curls (10), biceps curls (10)

I do seem to notice some visible changes. Of course, there should be since I was up to 187.0 lb. But, I do seem a bit leaner. I don't have a way to measure my body fat, but it's definitely lower than before. I also seem to be reaching my side goal of prepping my legs for ski season. The squats, lunges, and calf raises definitely help. I'll probably add in some hops and jumping squats later to add some dynamic stress.

Last weigh in:
178.5lb

The ordeal is over

I haven't had much time to write about this due to my ever-increasing workload, but I think my HP ordeal is over. I had finally received my replacement laptop after 4.5 months.

So what good came from this? HP sent me a superior laptop compared to my dv2415nr. They sent me a dv4t equipped with a Pentium Core 2 Duo, 2GB of RAM, 250GB HDD, blah blah blah. Still Windows Vista, but the improved specs seem to handle it pretty well. I just need to send in my old one now.

The bad? Well...

1) Had to send my laptop to the repair center four times.
2) Out of the four times, my laptop was repaired to its original condition ZERO times
3) Out of the four times, I've had half my RAM taken away and then had my dual-core Turion replaced with a single-core.
4) Regular tech/customer support stinks.
5) Executive case manager support stinks (Although after I contacted the BBB, a higher executive case manager called me and the case moved smoothly after that)

To be fair, if you stick around long enough, someone high-level enough will eventually call you and your case will eventually be closed. I guess my suggestions would be to have patience, escalate the case along in a reasonable matter, and try to keep temper in check. I appreciate how HP eventually solved my problem, but this whole thing has left a sour taste in my mouth. I cringe when I see ads and articles about HP now. Will I buy HP again? Maybe, but not for a long, long time.

So to sum it up: Thanks HP for replacing my broken laptop, but you still stink.

Visiting cousin means FOOOOD!

Not that great of a week. Barely finished my mini-workouts. Barely squeezed in an additional workout. Then I entertained my cousin who came up to visit. And visiting cousins usually mean food, food, and more food. I think I gained 2lbs just from the past weekend. Craziness. Here's the breakdown:

Monday: Squats (40)
Tuesday: Pushups (45), lunges (20 each), calf raises (75)
Wednesday: Pushups (45), squats (40), lunges (20 each), pullups (10, 10, 6), chinups (10, 10, 6)
Thursday: calf raises (75), pushups (45, 20, 20, 15), ab work
Friday: Squats (40)
Saturday: None
Sunday: None

At the minimum, I need to finish my mini-workouts. I can't let those slack. Then I need to complete some additional full workouts. It's quite tough.


Last weigh-in (after weekend binge):
180.0 lb

New determination

I went to NY over the weekend and saw my cousin there. He has informed me that he is at 8% fat. Boy, seeing him has given me new determination. Not necessarily to aim for 8% fat, but I have a Y membership and I should put that to use. So I hope to hit the gym in addition to my mini-workouts. I hope to get back to doing some cardio. And I hope to practice my swimming. Here's the breakdown for last week:

Monday: Squats (40), lunges (20 each), pullups (10, 10, 5), chinups (10, 10, 5), 90-degree-grip pullups (10, 10, 5)
Tuesday: Pushups (45, 45), calf raises (75)
Wednesday: Squats (40)
Thursday: Lunges (20 each), calf raises (75)
Friday: Pushups (45, 45), squats (40), lunges (20 each)
Saturday: Pushups (15 prior to heading out for the night)
Sunday: Pushups (20 difficult reps after a 4-hour drive home)

Friday night I weighed in at 176.0 lb prior to dinner. After this weekend of drinking and eating with my cousin, I doubt that's still the case. So I'll update the weight next week after getting back some consistency.