Susan Grisanti RIP

I was saddened last night to learn of Susan Grisanti's death. I was one of her students at one time. She was always patient and full of encouragement. My talent is pretty limited but she encouraged me to play guitar for the pure pleasure of it. She was also very kind to my wife's grandson, and helped him become a musician. Susan loved guitar, and all varieties of guitar music, from high classical to folk, to blues, to rock and metal. She also taught keyboards. She was an excellent teacher and a wonderful human being. She will be missed. She was part of Lubbock's unique musical culture.

Judo jokes

Recently, I came up with a number of "judo jokes"-- where that stuff came from I do not know. I haven't done any psychoactive drugs, as far as I know. I will share them with the world, because they are just so darned funny! Of course, Mark Trail cracks me up too. All those grouse and speckled trout.

You know what black belts in judo like to do during the Christmas season? Go chopping.

You know where judo black belts like to get auto parts? A chop shop.

A couple of black belts in judo went fishing but they weren't out long because the water was too choppy.

Of course, even an expert in judo gets sore, cracked lips, but not to worry  because they always carry chopsticks.

Judo workouts can be tough and dirty, so black belts always keep a roll of chop towels handy.

The motto at some judo academies is "chop 'til you drop".

Black belts in judo really like classical music-- but Chopin is best.

Unfortunately, that's all I can recall.

Getting married and combining households...

Busy, busy, busy, and more busy. The marriage ceremony was small and quiet and simple, which was what we wanted. The last week before the marriage was very stressful because we made a trip to my home town to see my mom and sister and a lot of relatives. They all love my wife! As soon as we got back to Lubbock we had to complete the job of moving my stuff into my wife's house. That stuff included my cat. And then I had to get all that stuff organized and set up to create my "office"/"workshop"/"computer room". In my last post I praised an AT&T sales rep, but that was premature. I was grossly misinformed. I set up my own computer's internet access with a cable service.

Weights and a walk (Update)-- Update Again

This was a really good morning for my "weights and a walk" routine. I've been doing that for years: working out with free weights and then taking a brisk walk. I like to do that in the morning. I feel great about being retired. I've never regreted retiring when I did, and I've never been at a loss for something to do.  My current weight is 166 and I can bench press that weight, although only one rep. I usually use 120 for bench presses and do 15 reps, minimum. I think, at my age (62) it makes sense to do a bit less weight and as many reps as I can. Besides, I'm kind of tall and thin and haven't ever had a power lifter's bone structure. Some day I'll describe my exercises in some detail.


This post is obsolete. My wife and I go to a gym. She goes 5 times per week and I go 4. She does more cardio and I do more lifting and less cardio. I have access to free weights and machines. Bench one rep max now, at age 66, is 170. I weigh 170. Normal is 6 reps at 150. Dead lift max 275, no belt. usual is 250. 310 x6 on the leg press machine, and so on. At least I gained ground instead of losing ground as I grew older. I do a lot more exercises, of course. And sometimes I just go for reps rather than maximum weight. You have to do the best you can.


Another update: as of December 2015 my max deadlift is up to 295 lbs. Maybe I will make it to 300+.
5/17/2017: Yeah, I made it to 305 lbs. But then I asked myself what the heck I was trying to prove and decided that all I needed was to be able to do 250 lbs consistently. And that's what I do, 250 to 275, and that is good enough. One rep max on bench is now 180 but, again, why?? I don't go much over 150 on that anymore and do inverted pyramids to exhaustion. Good enough. On squats I worked up to 175. Good enough. More inverted pyramids plus front squats with 95, hack squats with 195 to 215-- good enough. Good enough!

The Howling Wind

This is one of our big dust days, with high winds and dry condtions creating a big danger of grass fires. Springtime on the high plains is a time of high wind and blowing dust. The cotton fields are bare and there is not much other vegetation. The air quickly fills with dirt. And in that dirt, if you looked closely enough with modern lab equipment, I'm sure you could find plenty of traces of herbicdes and pesticides-- all the chemical junk cotton farmers have sprayed on their crops to control weeds and bugs. AHHHH! Take in a lungful and feel refreshed! Nothing like fresh air! Not. Of course, that crud probably beats the hardcore industrial pollution, the many and varied hydrocarbons, you can inhale in Dallas, Houston, or San Antonio. I associate Dallas with the stink of pollutants. So it could be worse. It could be much worse. It was much worse, here in Lubbock, in earlier days, before the more virulent pesticides and herbicides were banned. DDT is a thing of the past, as well as Toxaphene and Dioxin (Agent Orange). Today, those dust particles carry traces of Round-Up and Atrazine, at worst. So take a deep breath. And relax.