CRINGE-WORTHY ADS

 I've held these beliefs for years:  the ads reflect the corporate culture or in the case of small businesses, the owners.  While my remarks refer to TV ads, they apply equally to print or billboard or whatever.  What has set me off recently are the ads for Radiant Plumbing and A/C.  In my opinion, these are some of the most stupid ads to grace the small screen.  You can put whatever spin you like, they tell me a lot about the owners and there is no way would I call them for service.  I hit the mute button as soon as I'm aware of the ad.  On a regular basis some company is apologizing and pulling an ad or article because they didn't see the problem when approving it.  Some of it is latent racism, some is blatant racism.  

But let's go back to the beginning.  Large corporations have their own PR departments who will either develop the ads or farm it out to a real ad agency.  I do not fault the ad agencies for some of the outlandish presentations.  Their job is to create eye-catching ads and letting their imaginations go wild is part of it.  It is up to the client to reject, reject, reject until they are given something they like.  And that is the problem.  Sometimes the people making the decisions are the weak link.  Ad men (and women) are good at sneaking innuendo into their ads.  Sex sells.  So if you have Cindy Crawford selling Pepsi, that's certainly eye-catching and worked well.  No problem with that one.  If a company ad shows women in a subordinate position, that is probably the company culture.  On the flip side, a very masculine ad says the same thing.  I know kids and pets are usually a good idea to garner attention, but I don't like the smart-alecky or smarmy ones.  Don't like to see kids jumping on furniture or other actions which should not be tolerated at home.  

Apparently people in search of a used car are all losing their hearing.  Otherwise, why do 95% of the car ads have someone yelling at you?  The only example of a normal tone was a Roger Beasley Mazda ad with their sales manager.   I'm a veteran and I won't be going to Capitol Chevrolet for a car.  BTW, that ranks just below Radiant Plumbing as worst.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate a well-presented ad.  I look forward to seeing the Super Bowl ads and the talking-head opinions that follow.  I think the current State Farm ads are excellent, as are most of the Progressive and Geico ads.  

MY COVID BODY

 To be clear, I have not had the virus, this post is about gym work and how I got to where I am currently.  First, a bit of background.

My bike racing is fortunately divided into five-year age groups.  But the older you get, even a few years makes a difference.  After the 2019 racing season, I targeted 2022 as the year to be competitive since I'd be the youngest in my category.  To that end, 2020 and 2021 were to be build-up years.  It's not like they were throwaways, I'd still be racing, just not winning.  There are a handful of faster guys who I would leave behind in 2022.  The plan was to strengthen my core and hone my racing skills doing criteriums at The Driveway.  So in the winter (2019-20) I started doing planks and push-ups and got ready for criteriums.  On March 12, 2020 I did my first race of the year at The Driveway.  It was also the last.  I had just started the automated trainer, Activtrax, at the gym.  After my initial workout, the gym closed.   So much for plans.  I kept riding, but strength training suffered.

The gym reopened in late May, but I was hesitant.  By June I had a plan in place.  For years now I've been waking up at 3:00 am or so.  Fifteen years ago I'd use this time to write my books.  A good night would have been sleeping in until 4:00.  The Y opens at 5:00.  That seemed to be the most efficient time to workout.  As it turned out, there were only about five of us at that time of the morning and for the most part not even in the same section.  In the six months I've been going that number has grown to maybe ten.  With their Covid protocols in place, I rate this as a very safe place to exercise.

I was surprised at how really weak my upper body had become, excluding triceps which benefitted from doing push-ups.  From 2008 or so to 2016 I'd been going to Gold's for leg work and spin class.  When I stopped, I could push 400 lbs on the leg press machine.  After a few days in June, I finally got it back up to 200 lbs and after six months I'm doing 320.  Old age and muscle manufacturing are at odds with one another, so it will take time to build back.  But remember, my goal is 2022.  And I don't need to have a strong upper body, just stronger (than I was).  So far, so good.  Given the current pandemic outlook, I have another six months or more before life loosens up a bit.

I have no illusions about developing a six-pack.  There are two things against me: age and diet.  Were I to eschew carbs for a month, maybe some semblance of definition would show.  But I'm pleased with the muscle hidden underneath that thin layer of fat.  There is a side story about why I'm working on my abdominals, but after originally including it in this post, I deleted it as being TMI.

My current routine is leg work on Monday and Friday, various upper body, whatever Activtrax assigns,  on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.  This puts to good use otherwise stagnant time early in the morning.  Cycling in the winter is mostly in the afternoon.

One other part of my body is related to Covid.   Apparently I'm spending too much time playing games on my phone.  I've developed what I call a Covid neck.  My neck is killing me.  I spend a lot of time with heat on my neck and shoulders.  My massage therapist gives me a good going over but I think it is more structural than muscular.  I still spend too much time sitting.

As to why this post reflects Covid, it is because with the travel restrictions and at home protocols in place, I've felt the need to do something active other than cycling.  That something happens to be going to the Y, which is giving me a firm(er) body.  The fact that it aligns with my racing goals is serendipitous.  I repeat what I've said many times in the past: exercise is a very easy habit to break.  It looks like 2021 will still be restricted, but 2022 should test my resolve.  Stay tuned.

A POLITICAL DILEMMA

I've previously mused about being a Republican for 36 years before realizing they were headed down a dark path and becoming an anti-Republican.  But I really don't discuss politics, for various reasons.  However, that doesn't mean I disparage my friends who haven't seen the light as I have.  There are different ways to advance the democracy and the different strategies ebb and flow among the populace are reflected in elected officials.  Until 2016.  Actually 2008.

Maybe even before 2008, but that is when the Republicans openly went from trying to advance their philosophies to just opposing the Democrats.  That was bad enough, but now they can't even acknowledge that the majority of voters have rejected their leader (I can't categorize this as philosophies because there isn't any, just get him out of there).

Fox News, for the most part, is at least acknowledging Biden as President-elect and is being roasted for it.  Some of my friends are now embracing the myriad conspiracy theories that are abundantly trumpeted (pun intended) by oddball social media outlets and have excoriated Fox.  And this is my dilemma.  In my opinion, they have left the world of reality (you might argue that politics in general is unworldly).  Do I register my disbelief in their choice or just quietly delete them from my feed and reduce contact (which in today's environment is zero anyhow)?  

In my previous post I opined that it is silly for strangers to police mask wearing, or lack thereof.  Mainly because there is likely to be a violent, either physical or verbal, response.  The same can be said of pointing out someone deliberately choosing to ignore obvious facts.  These are not unintelligent people, they are being defiant and can only respond defiantly.  What purpose is served by initiating this?  In writing this musing, I think I cannot let it go unchallenged. But it will be a gentle expression of disappointment rather than entering a discourse.  

I really resent politics being the main part of daily life.  It should be quietly in the background, allowing people to pursue their lives without disruption.  Unfortunately, I don't see that happening anytime soon.

CHRISTMOOSE ROOM, A HISTORY

 You could say this room (computer room ten months of the year) is a microscopic example of the Butterfly Effect.  It all started in 1999.  On my Cycle Montana ride I kept seeing road signs warning of Moose Crossings.  In a whole week of cycling, not only did I not see a moose, I saw zero wildlife, not even a rabbit.  Lots of great scenery, just no animals.  At the end, on my way out of the Glacier National Park gift shop, I spied a small stuffed moose and purchased it as a memento of the ride.  His name is Moose, and he is affixed to my Camelbak which I use on long rides.

At the time, I was riding with the Georgetown Cyclopaths and (brag) designed a jersey for the group.  It still gets rave reviews, by the way.  Anyhow, my ever imaginative wife did an iron-on transfer of this jersey onto a doll's shirt and Voilá! Moose matched the other riders.  But it didn't stop there.  She and her friend, Judy Peterson, did more shopping for doll clothes and found a jogging outfit, so Moose also has cold weather gear, and a raincoat (he also has a passport for when he went to France).  Judy found a moose neck warmer and for Christmas gifted me a moose door stop.  They were out of control, couldn't help themselves.  Then my daughter and sister got into the act.

And so the Christmoose Room came to fruition.  There was enough that I could call it a theme room.  But various moose stuff kept arriving.  Friends who stopped by at Christmas added to the collection for the next year.  A few years ago I called a moratorium.  There is still room to hang stuff, but the desk is getting crowded.  As of today, 12/1/2020 Moose has his own ugly sweater.  

I did a short video and posted it to my Flickr account.  Feel free to see it, and any of my other pictures. https://www.flickr.com/photos/acyclistpublishing/  For those not wishing to check out the video, I've put a few pictures here.  Unfortunately, unlike my Christmas Tree ornaments and the spreadsheet I keep of when and from whom we received them,  I cannot attribute all of the decorations, but I'll list the ones I can remember

From Judy Peterson: neck warming moose, door stop, tree topper.

From daughter: Hal and Holly Moose, and book, the other two moose books,  moose calendar (all 12 pictures are loaded on the digital photo frame), advice from a moose card, and the moose to the left of the Christmoose tree which is a pooping moose (load it with brown jelly beans and lift its tail and they drop out one by one).  Also insulated coffee mug.  The paper angel I believe was made when she was in junior high.

From my sister: the moose mobile, large moose in the chair,  towels, hand lotion dispenser, box with moose which held the moose tree ornament seen upper center on the tree, music box in front of the pooping moose, possibly the snow globe.  Same year, she also gave me the same insulated coffee mug.

From Kurt and Nic: the wine holder (which is holding a Moose Drool beer bottle brought from Montana by Marilane), the silver moose on the tree skirt (which was supposed to go on my car window but was re-purposed).

From grandson Anthony, one of the moose tree ornaments and the orange moose.

From Amy Gelfand (cycling buddy and the person who designed my Acyclistpublishing website): plush moose reclining on the coaster holder on the desk.  

The King of the Forest ornament and the shot glass came from our visit to Sweden.  The white moose ornament is Lennox, but that's all I can remember of it.  I did the moose mouse pad.