Holiday Gym

Gym Report.  I was virtuous this week and managed to get to the gym Sunday (12/23)  Monday (12/24), Wednesday (12/16) and Friday (12/28).  Sunday was a make-up day because I missed going to the gym on the Solstice.    Monday was my birthday, and I decided that I'd revert back to doing 30 minutes on the elliptical and then doing a set of lat pull-downs. 

I e-mailed my trainer and figured out what I was doing wrong with some of the overhead cable work I was doing, so the the other days consist of

Warming up with dumbbells, then ...

3x12x20lbs dumbell presses
3x12x20lbs dumbell rows
3x12x45lbs barbell press
3x12x45lbs barbell row
3x12x15lbs low cable fly
3x12x5lbs low back cable fly
3x12x25lbs barbell inline overhead triceps extension
3x12x25lbs barbell incline hanging bicep curl
3x12x30lbs rope triceps extension
3x12x20lbs overhead rope bicep curl
3x12x40lbs standing cable crunch

I'm already seeing results... and I suppose I should get out a tape measure so I have some actual metrics. 

Tea!

Well... OK.  Not really, but it looks good.

Holiday Craft Project: Paper Icosidodecahedron

This year for the holidays I made some ornaments.  I'd wanted to make something a little more complicated, but in the end opted out for something that would use (mostly) straight lines and wouldn't require glue to put together.

The ornament is based on a stellated  icosidodecahedron.  I cut out triangles with a circle cut out of the middle to give the design an airier feel.

The edge of the triangle is about two inches; anything smaller and it would have been too difficult to assemble.







Five triangles hooked into each other pop into a three-dimensional star shape.  (Pause to imagine giant triangles making some cool outdoor gazebo.)  The triangle edges are slotted so they'll make a five-pointed star wen assembled.

There are several ways to put the different colors together.  I like to start with five triangles of the same color to make a star.  Other times I'll surround a triangle of one color with three of another and make a banded effect.












I didn't actually link the stars together at their points... but you could, and get a giant snub dodecahedron... and I would have for this post, except that I didn't have enough triangles (it would take 60 triangles... eyes cutter-plotter).

Back to this project,... I decided to make a blue and a green star joined together with a band of purple.

Usually I put the triangles together directly into the sphere, but for purposes of illustrating how things go together, I made the two end stars first, being sure that I kept the slots on the triangles on the same sides

Here's an interior shot, showing the geometry of interlaced pentagons and hexagons.

The last triangles require a little sphere flexing to fit together.

The holes in the triangles are useful for turning the sphere into an ornament.  I suppose a larger construction could be used as light shades.

Happy Winter Solstice!

Happy Solstice, everyone.  It was a perfect day here to catch some Solstice Fire.  I managed to get the flame going fairly close to the time the sun transited the meridian.

We'll keep the flame burning for Solstice Home Decorating tonight and for ritual use later today.

Update:  Here's the post Solstice Spiral Walk:

The room was dark, and folks walked widdershins into the spiral, where there was a wrought-iron tree holding votives lit with Solstice Fire.  They'd light their own candle and then walk deosil out of the spiral, placing their candle along the path of greens.  Slowly the room got brighter as more candles were added.  It was a moment of wonder for me, as I was sitting in the East (with my harp) keeping an eye out for any sudden outbreaks of fire, and watched families with little kids go to the center of the spiral together and light their candles.  The kids said, "Whoa, that was so cool!" when they were done.  The Pagans were very present (the event was a Unitarian Universalist Church Event); folks were pausing at the altars at the cardinal directions and were obviously having meaningful moments.  C.N., who really should get most of the credit for making the even happen, said several folks commented about how peaceful the Solstice Spiral walk was, and that they hadn't realized how they need a peaceful event until then. 

Er... and then we had to reset the church and I got home rather late.  Not so much decorating happened -- although Mark had cooked up a Christmas storm and done prep for The Next Family Event.

Moon Ornament

I forget when this Moon was aquired.  I want to say the late nineties, probably in the Portland Galleria Building.

Above it and to the right is a porcelain dove -- which I'm thinking is about a decade older.

Bishop Mouse

Bishop Mouse was bought in the seventy's, I think, from a gift cart at the Church of the Good Samaritan in Corvallis.

I've always liked the purple robes, and there's something friendly about a bishop who is also a mouse.

As Bishop Mouse is an animal, relatively dog-proof, and child-friendly, it's usually found on the lower boughs of the tree.

Pre-Solstice December Report

The other night, I tried to get a photograph of the comet zooming up to the right of Orion, but all I really got was a shot of Bellatrix and Aldeberan.  I tried to see the comet near Taurus and the Plieades last night, but I was not successful.  I think part of this is not being able to focus the camera in the right place, and dealing with the cloudy skies of the last few nights.  Mark says that I should drive out of the city where the sky is darker.





On the gym front, I did the new routine Friday, and this time I did things closer to the way they are supposed to be done.  I'm still a little confused about one of the over-head pull reverse grip things, and I'll have to touch base with the trainer. 

On the Holiday Front:  We went to the folks' house and decorated their monster tree.  I took fewer photos than I realized, and many didn't quite come out.

Advent Shenanigans

On the art front, I tried to make a paper sphere out of circular daisy forms, but I got overly ambitious pre-combining them on the computer, and I ended up with a tangle of paper curves instead. Also, the design didn't allow a flat hexagon to fold into a pentagonal cone.   Anyway, I'm trying again with a slightly simpler net that is notched at the vertices so  it will fold more readily.

On the gym front, I met with a trainer Monday and he came up with a new routine for me that will concentrate on upper body strength.  He walked me through it and I think it will more effectively target my chest, back and arms than what I'm doing now.   One possible drawback is that there isn't time allocated for elliptical work.  We'll see how it works out; I'm a little sore in the triceps.  Proper form will be key, as will be isolating my arms so I'm hitting the target muscle groups.

On the writing front.... mostly editing.  I got a story rejection the other day, and I'm waiting for what seems like forever for this one market to even get to a story I submitted way back in July.  ...And, I just got another story rejection Thursday morning.

Back to the gym front, I tried out the new routine Wednesday... and left at the end like I had done it wrong.  I had some difficulty following the sets because I kept losing my place on the rep-sheet.  I remedied this by using a highlighter to highlight alternate sets.  There was also an overhead cable exercise I think was supposed to be a crunch exercise but there was a reverse rope grip I couldn't remember.

Gym Report

Went to the gym Wednesday.   Ran on the elliptical for about 20 minutes, followed by a sideways elliptical machine for another 5 for about 275 calories burned.  15x(60+2x70lbs) on the lat pulldown, 3x15 Roman Chair curl-ups.  On the 45degree inclined bench: interspersed 2x12x10lbs dumbbell presses, 2x12x10lbs dumbbell flies, 4x8x10lbs dumbbell curls and 4x8x10lbs reverse dumbbell flies.  12x(20+30+30lb) triceps pull-downs.  5lbs dumbbell side-and-front arm raises.

Woke up early Thursday morning.... possibly because I went to be earlyish.  The mornings have been icy, and the new moon has been visible, but now it's gotten so wan that I think it won't be visible... so maybe no lunar pictures today.  On the hand, this close to the solstice, we get extended hours of "magic light", starting about 3 PM and going until sunset.

Last Old Moon of 2018

This is probably the last morning that we'll be able to see the Old Moon.

Although, if the sky is clear enough, we might be able to catch a glimpse before the sun rises.

I'm not sure if I managed to site Mercury this morning, or if the object at the 8 o'clock position is Libra Gamma.

Foggy Old Moon

I woke up early this morning, after a series of hypnagogic visions and a very odd dream about French people setting off an artificial volcano that I and a bunch of other people were stranded on.  I'd been drifting out of varies states of wakefulness, when Smokey came in and jumped on the bed and woke me throroughly.


Remembering that the Moon and Venus would be close to each other again, I went outside and saw a ruddy sliver of the Moon, climbing out of fog over hills, and a brilliant Venus. 


The sky was darker than when I had taken similar shots the day before, and the stars were out.  The only difficulty with taking early morning photos of eastern objects is that we have these pesky utility poles and power lines cutting across that part of the sky.  I manouvered the camera around the deck, but I still got a couple of shots with wires running across the moon's disk. The fog was artistic instead of obscuring, and I like the effect. 


I managed to get The Big Dipper, too.


On the gym front: went to the gym Monday night, did about 300 calories on the elliptical machines, and the usual lat pull-down, hanging dip, free weights, and triceps pull-down.

December Moon Conjunct Venus

This morning I almost forgot that the Moon and Venus were going to be next to each other. 

I was feeling pretty lazy when the alarm clock went off and I woke up and I really didn't want to get out of bed. 

Seriously. 

The thought if hibernating all day was extremely attractive.  Things felt sore, and I wondered if maybe I was fighting off a cold or something.

 Eventually, I did, did my morning ablutions, and Mark said something about the Moon and I threw on some clothes and rushed out with my camera. 

The moon was a bright sliver in the pre-dawn sky, and Venus was super-bright.  I snapped a few shots and made sure to drink in the spectacle with my own eyes and appreciate it. 

I always joke to myself that a bright Venus with a new Moon is Luv Magic.  Upon reflection about a bright Venus with an old Moon, I think it's Tuck You Into Bed After A Mug of Hot Chocolate Magic.