3Resurrection - Day 8. Legs & Back

Legs & Back today. I squeezed out one less pull-up than I did a couple of weeks ago, and that's okay because I've been out of sorts. 67. I'm still wary of giving it 100% intensity. I'm holding back for some reason. I've got to really start bringing it again.
For the first time, I skipped Dreya's 3 direction kicks and the sneaky lunges. They do nothing for me, and I usually just rush through them anyway. It shortens a long workout by about five minutes, which is welcome. Another thing, after the close grip overhand pullups in round 2, is it my imagination or is Tony about to pass out? He looks like he's in trouble, and then he kind of stumbles. "I'm falling over!" he says. Then the guy does 60 of those those 60-40 squats straight up. Wow.
Well, I bought dad a DVD player that can play DivX. Fuck it. It's only $70. Problem is, I bought it online at JB HiFi, an Australian retailer. It's a good chance they'll mess the order up. When I order books through Japanese Amazon, they often arrive the evening of the next day. It's unbelievable. I can imagine a group of guys standing at attention around the computer. "We have just received an order!" screams the stock controller, ripping the sheet from the printer and shoving it into the hands of a uniformed stock hand. "Go! Go! Go!" In Australia the I imagine the guy doesn't notice an order has come through for hours because he's too busy having bongs in his car out the back. We'll see. I figure it's probably the same amount of money as I would spend buying all the genuine Lost DVDs for him, and then afterwards he would have a DVD player that could play any downloaded stuff I wanted to send him.

3Resurrection - Day 7. ARX

I was pretty slack on the weekend. I did Shoulders & Arms on Saturday after missing it on Friday, and then I only did Ab Ripper X yesterday and not the Insanity workout I was supposed to. I can feel the motivation slipping. I've also been eating pretty badly. There are a lot of little cakes and chocolate things around the house because of Valentine's day, and I've been helping myself to those. Usual stuff. Today is February the 22nd, exactly one month before my 36th birthday, so I'm going to get in the best shape that I can for the photo I'm going to take on my birthday. That means no more missed workouts, no more overdoing the snacks and stuff. So I'm going to catch up on my workouts today and tomorrow. Legs & Back tonight, then Insanity, ARX, and Patience Hummingbird Yoga tomorrow. Insanity in the morning, ARX after work, and Yoga at night. That will put me back on schedule.
I'm completely over this cold, except the lining of my sinuses and nostrils apparently weakened to the point of bleeding. It's stopped now, though my nose is full of scabs, and it's really annoying. It was unlike any cold I've ever had. I wouldn't even call it a cold. Let's see. Hay fever-like symptoms for a day or so, then a really, really sore throat, then bloody mucas, then a headache for a couple of days, amounting to about a week of suckyness. Maybe I have a new virus, and I'm now a fundamentally new type of human, changed at the DNA level. Maybe better, maybe stupider.
So what else? Will and I went to the Okazaki Nature Experience Forest, and we climbed a large hill together. There was some pooz on one of the steps, which he loved. As soon as we got home he drew a picture of us climbing this hill with pooz on the steps. Last night we had eel, which was nice. I suspect it's the sauce they cover it with that is nice, and the eel meat itself is not that nice. I watched "Capitalism: A Love Story", Michael Moore's new movie, and again marvelled at why Americans haven't taken the guns that they supposedly value so much and shoot dead every elected official in the country and start again. For all their bluster and bravado, they are great at putting up with being treated like pieces of shit.
I was watching Lost a couple of weeks ago and I thought, I wonder if dad would like this. So I bought the first season on eBay for $10 and sent it to him. You could say he liked it. He watched the entire 24 episodes in 3 days. Nothing if not compulsive, my dad. It'll be the only thing my sister and I hear about for years. That, and how he has just wants to be left alone. He can't just like something, it has to consume him. So now I have to get season 2 to him, and then 3, 4, 5, and 6. I hope he has a player that can play DivX or it's gonna cost me hundreds.

Tiger

Anyone who knows me knows there is no bigger Tiger fan than me. He has meant so much to me the last ten to fifteen years, made me feel lucky to be alive.
Does he owe me anything?
That's the question I keep coming back to. And I have to answer that he does, because I feel betrayed by what he has done. Honestly, I feel humiliated. Only a fraction of what his wife is feeling, of course, but there it is. I'm a fan. I hoped my son would possess the same qualities as Tiger seemed to have. Dedication, discipline, a fearless heart. If it was just golf, then fine. But here was the greatest athlete in the world playing my sport better than anyone thought it could be played, and to top it off he seemed so... what? Square? Trustworthy? Dependable?
Your speech was fine. You seemed genuinely sorry. To admit your mistakes in front of your friends and mother (who looked really pissed off the whole time) took guts. Probably more guts than if you did it in front of the press.
Your foundation? Could not care less. Your wife? Yea, she's great, Tiger. And if she had any sense she'd never have anything to do with you ever again. But that two year non-divorce contract is probably too good to refuse. The paparazzi? They took a photo of your mother going shopping. So what? And the Buddhism? Spare me. I live in a Buddhist country, and there's seemingly only one commandment in Buddhism; you can doing anything if you don't get caught.
But you got caught. And only then did you think about what you had done.
When are you going to play golf again? I thought you were going to answer that question.
Anyway. Basically it was "I'm sorry. Leave me alone." Okay.
The irony is, after ten years of the greatest ever golfer, golf is in a terrible state, and it looks like 2010 will be disastrous. Golf put all it's eggs into Tiger's basket too, and now they're all broken and we are left with Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk.

3Resurrection - Day 3. Chest & Back

I couldn't get up yesterday morning. I just couldn't do it. So frustrating. That meant I had to do my workout after my lesson with Nori last night, which meant I wasn't done until about 10:30. Still, it's got to be done. I decided to skip the warm-up and cool-down, which reduced the workout to a mere 40 minutes. Probably not the best thing to do, but time! I just don't seem to have enough of it now that I'm working 5 days a week. It sucks. I also had a headache yesterday morning, which a couple of aspirin took care of, but why? Not enough something? Too much something? The only difference between yesterday and every other day is that I had an extra hour's sleep. And I thought that was a good thing. Anyway, I did Chest and Back, and did it at about 80% intensity. I didn't want to go too hard after a week lay off and a cold.
Tiger's coming back! The shitstorm begins on Saturday morning. He's going to hold a press conference, but instead of answering questions, he's going to be sitting with a group of friends talking, and a camera will be there to record it. Is it going to be like that Elvis concert, just him and a bunch of friends riffin'? Jim, you have a question?
Yes, Tiger. Why wasn't holing putts to win tournaments, with thousands of people roaring, and winning millions of dollars, enough to satisfy you? Are you telling us that despite all your achievements and wealth, you still felt so incomplete and restless that, for example, you just had to fuck the waitress at your local coffee shop in your car in a church car park? And even when you got caught doing that, and were basically blackmailed into giving an interview to Men's Health, you didn't stop, but in fact became even more brazen? Did your dad know? Also, will you keep insisting on being a phony, even though everyone now knows you are a sleaze?
I watched a show on the golf channel last night, a review of the '09 season, which he dominated without winning a major. Every little snippet of interview they showed of him, I couldn't help adding at the end, ".. and now I'm going to go fuck a stripper."
My opinion? He will talk about how he will never talk about this, it is between him and his wife, he is sorry, all that. "He is looking forward to it," says his manager. WTF? He will be back at Bay Hill for Arnold Palmer's tournament, and then the Masters. He will not change. I kind of want to see how he reacts if the only thing that he has left, his golf game, leaves him too. But it won't, because he is the best ever.
Looking forward to the interview too.

3Resurrection - Day 2. Yoga

This cold really kicked my ass. I haven't worked out for a week. I've got a real scabby dry nostril now, and every time I try and get some dried gunk out of there it bleeds. I'm feeling a lot better, though. I used the break to reevaluate what I have been doing, and thinking about how easy it would be to slip back into lazy habits. I walked past an old guy outside his house this morning having a smoke. Ah, that first smoke of the day. He probably had just finished breakfast, and if he is like I was, had rushed it to have the smoke. I felt a pang of envy. But then I remembered that I had already done 45 minutes of yoga, had a huge, healthy breakfast, and had been there when both my sons woke up. Can't get much better than that. Inhaling a poison isn't gonna ice that cake. So this week I keep coming back to one thought. If I stop now, then this is as fit and healthy as I am ever going to be. Even if after only a few months of dogging it, if I decide to recommit, it would take a year to get back into this kind of shape, and then I would be a year older. So is this it? No. I want to get in better shape. I don't want to go out like this, taken down by a stupid virus or cold or whatever it is. So I'm going to start round 3 again. I'm going to call it Resurrection. Not like Jesus, more like Alien. Coming back hard.
I've made a schedule more in tune with my lifestyle. LOL. Lifestyle. That's funny.
Monday will be my day off, and Tuesday will be Yoga and Ab Ripper X, or visa versa. Just as long as one Yoga and one ARX get done in these two days. The start of the week is a drag, and this is usually the time I would miss a workout because I was tired or couldn't be bothered. So I'm going to work my schedule around that. The other days will be the same as what I have been doing, alternating between a P90X resistance workout, and an Insanity workout.
I would like to find a 30-minute stretch workout for Mondays and Tuesdays if I can. X Stretch is great, but it's too long.
I'm going to mix the workouts up a little, too. I might throw in the odd One On One With Tony Horton workout now and then. Hey, not afraid to mix shit up, me.

Noob Golf 2

Today I'll discuss clubs and balls.
There's only one ball to use. Titleist (pronounced Title-ist, not Tit-leist) Pro V1, or Pro V1x if you are cashed up. They go long, feel great, and last forever. They are the best ball. Tiger uses Nike balls, but when I used one it looked dull after a couple of holes and scuffed up really easily. You can use a Titleist for two or three rounds and it will still clean up good. 90 percent of the pros use Titleists.
Woods
Drivers are in many minds the most important bag in the club. They are not (that would be the putter), but the driver is a close second for most club players. Hitting the fairways makes golf that much more enjoyable and stress-free. Over the last ten years, drivers have been getting larger and longer. Buy a high-quality driver that looks good and straight when you set up at the ball. Again, as usual, the well-known brands make the better drivers. Titleist, Calloway, Mizuno, Nike. For these companies, the driver is where the glamour is, and they spend a lot of money on design and promotion. Get one you like the look of, and treat it good. The benefit of spending a lot of money on a club is that you are going to treat it a little better than you would a cheap one.
Most sets come with two woods, a driver and a fairway wood. The fairway wood goes in and out of fashion. It's a little bit of an ego thing, because no-one wants to be seen hitting a wood off the fairway unless it's a par five. They are useful from lies in the rough, much easier to hit than a 2-iron, but from the fairway you should be able to hit a 2-iron just as far. Get one, but get a 3-wood, one with a bit of meat to it, not a little dinky 4- or 5- wood.
Irons
The best brands for irons are Titleist and Mizuno. There are a lot of different types of clubs, and if you buy a reasonably priced set from a big brand, chances are they will be pretty good. You want a set of irons 2 to 9, all the same kind. Most sets come as 3-9 with a pitching wedge and sand wedge, but order the 2 iron and dump the wedges. I prefer blades to cavity backs, but they aren't as forgiving. If you are just starting out, cavity backs are the way to go, but they can sound a bit clunky. I'll never forget, we had pennant match at Tullamarine, and there were people everywhere, and my mate hit a Ping 2-iron off the first tee. It made such a horrible sound that everybody stopped and looked up, and then started laughing. Just one of those moments. The blades have a smaller sweet spot, but you can feel exactly where the ball is going to go the moment you hit it. With cavities it's much harder to tell. Tiger uses Nike blades, but they have to pay him tens of millions of dollars to use them. This is why in 2003 Phil Mickelson said Tiger "has inferior equipment. Tiger is the only player who is good enough to overcome the equipment he's stuck with." Of course Nike threw a fit and Phil apologized, but he's right. Buy high quality clubs. Used clubs are fine, if they are high quality and "straight". Scratches and small dints are fine – bent shafts and hossels are not. Make sure the grips are in good condition. Unless you are unusually tall or short, off the rack clubs are fine. If you are average height and off the rack clubs don't suit you, you are the problem, and you need to get a lesson and work on your address and position at impact.
Wedges
There is an incredible variation of wedges around, but I prefer a fairway wedge with about 56-7 degrees loft and a sharp leading edge, and a 60 degree wedge with a flange that can be used around the green or in bunkers. Another, less lofted sand wedge might be useful if there are a lot of bunkers on your course, or a chipping iron (a wedge without much loft) if the greens on your course are large. It will only take a few rounds at the one course to realize what you need. Just be sure that the role of each wedge in your bag is clearly defined in your mind. There's nothing worse that having 60 meters to the pin and not being sure what the "A" or "U" or "P" or "L" on your wedges stand for, or which one you should use.
You need a putter. This amounts to 14 clubs, the limit you can carry in your bag. This is the club that will make or break you. Collect them. Have one in your bag, one in your car, and a couple at home. If the one you're using is not working for you, change it. You want a putter that is straight, square, and solid. Don't get a putter that is too reflective. The rays of the sun can be reflected in your eyes and be distracting. Make sure the putter shaft is the right height for you. The head can be heavy or light. The grip thick or thin. Whatever works. Best brands are Ping, who built their company around their putters, and the Scotty Cameron brand putters from Titleist, which are awesome. But basically, if it's putting the ball in the hole, who cares what it is?
A final word regarding equipment.
Clothing. You need a couple of pairs of slacks, a couple of shirts, a couple of jumpers. Some clubs let you play in jeans, and I do sometimes, but I recommend buying a real awesome plaid pair of slacks. This is golf, and your pants should reflect that. Keep a jumper in your bag for if it suddenly gets cold. Long-sleeve undershirts can be worn underneath shirts for a warm, baseball look. Buy a comfortable cap, and consider sunglasses if you squint a lot or play in sunny climates. Good sunglasses for golf can be hard to find. When you are addressing the golf ball, you are looking down at it, and in many cases, underneath the lenses of a lot of sunglasses. This can be distracting. Make sure your whole range of vision is covered by the lens by trying them in the shop.
Buy a towel that can be clipped onto your golf bag and wash it regularly. Before each round, dampen the end of it to make it easier to wipe you clubs and ball with. Clean your clubs after each shot, making sure that there is no dirt in the grooves. These grooves give you control over the ball when you hit it. Clean your ball every oppurtunity you get. Rememeber! Golfers like to play a round with clean balls!
That's it. You are ready to play. Golf is an expensive sport to play. You've already spent several hundred dollars, and that is if you've been conservative. But if you keep your equipment clean, and treat your clubs with respect, you will only need to buy balls, tees and gloves for the next few years.

I think I have the plague

I'm at work today, though I really shouldn't be. I don't have many sick days left, and if we want to go to Hawaii again in March or April, then I can't afford to take too many more days off. I took yesterday off and hung out at home, watched some Lost, had a couple of naps, but I didn't feel any better at the end of the day. My throat is really sore, slight headache, aches and chills. Fuck knows what's wrong with me. I kept thinking about the English skit show Man Stroke Woman talking about "man colds" and how they are worse than the usual colds. I think I have a man cold. I'll put the video up when I get a chance. Needless to say, workouts are out of question, and will be for a couple more days yet. I think I'll keep doing Ab Ripper X every second day, but apart from that, no go. I'm not sure what I'll do yet, probably just start the week again. I'm hoping to get back into it on Saturday.
I just watched the episode of Lost that ends with the creepy shot of Libby in the mental institution with Hugo. WHAT THE FUCK IS SHE DOING IN THERE! My theory with Lost is that Hugo is in hell and everything is a delusion of his, and that this episode, "Dave" season 2, is the key to the whole show.

"No! Noooooo!"