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September 25, 2004
Annoying
Not a great week, on the whole, though it has had a few 'ups' to show the 'downs' for how down they were!
The week began with a training course at Kirkham that I was put on the previous Friday. The course was not too bad, and the company was nice (thanks David for dragging me to the table then leaving to have a 'wander into town'!). For various reasons, I couldn't get out of eating lunch (but it was quite healthy, at least, though I couldn't much carrots like she did earlier) and that was only the beginning. As the week went on, I found myself eating meals. I couldn't help it - I can't spend too much money at the moment - so I fell into the depressive eating. Not much more than normal, but enough to add weight - not much, but enough to make sure next week I go anorexic!
Work filled the rest of the week, and was just plain annoying for the most part. A couple of urgent cases dealt with, then Friday brought a morning of hell, followed by an afternoon (and evening) of the directors cut of the sequel, Hell 2! On the phone all morning (mostly about stuff that I don't even deal with - someone is using my name in vain again), with 4 people to see with 3 urgent cases suddenly dumped on me too. I missed one (not important) as I could do it Monday night when I get back from Kirkham (!) and did all the others. Including fixing a loop, two doorbells, dropping off a textphone and pager system with a lady in Haslingden and then install stuff at another. Three deaf people in a row. It was 8:20PM when I finally got home, had a sandwich and then went up to my room. After a little grumping around I sat down to do anything other than the art I was supposed to be drawing - don't worry, the strip is on schedule! - and proceeded to play 2 extremely good games of Joint Operations... The Joints Ops team didn't know what hit them... sniper hunting, helicopters landing in front of me when I have an RPG in my hand... having Final Fantasy XII thrown in your face is not what they expected!
I also opened the latest emails from James and the new b3ta Newsletter, where I found this link which pretty much cleared the stress from my mind - I'll never look at the Rivendell sequence in Fellowship in the same way again...
Then, whatever was lurking was swept away by a combination of James' blog entry (I can't wait to see his hair (and his blisters) the next time he turns up) and the first episode of Hitchikers - Tertiary Phase. Well done guys - it sounds great (Simon Jones and Mark Wing-Davey don't sound any different!)
Now, I'm expecting a call from Nick to say he wants me to set up his broadband connection - nothing yet, but that sword of Damocles is hangin above getting the rest of the comics done this afternoon!
Posted by Badgers at 01:35 PM | Comments (0)
OMFG!
Not in a good way, either. This week, for various reasons I'll probably mention in the blog (comin' next folks!), I have been off the diet.
Come on, get off the floor, fool!
Due to the depression that was falling on me (likely to be totally removed though once I see what James has done to his hair!) I pretty much ate all the food put in front of me. At least some of them were salads.
So I'm 15 stone 2lb at the moment. I'm hitting the diet this week, though (despite a scary 4-day training course, though there won't be anyone to impress there this time (!))
See you in the much-lighter weekend next weekend!
Posted by Badgers at 01:30 PM | Comments (0)
September 18, 2004
On The Way!
Okay, after the huge drop in weight last week, I expected this week to be less, and it was - I'm 14 stone 13 1/2, which is not bad considering that mum's meals have made it difficult (I mean, cheese potatoes and only one salad all week?). It is in my expected range (though I can do much better), and means that I am on my way to my next target! I certainly feel better, and now the fat is actually starting to disappear so it looks like I'm losing the weight! One thing that hasn't happened this week, though, is exercise, or at least not as much as I'd like as I haven't had too much time to do it! This coming week should be better though, as I don't have as much art and scripting to do in a short space of time (thank Zarquon for long storylines in webcomics!), allowing me to take walks along the canal (if the weather is good enough) and exercise in the mornings or evenings... This will help make a big difference by next Saturday, I have no doubt!
Hopefully, there will be no more cheese-potato stodge-fests dropped on me this week either! I mean, I'm not a great fan of the potato (unless it is in the form of a few chips or a bag of M&S Hand-Cooked Crisps (crushed black pepper flavour)), and I really hate mashed potatoes. Once upon a time, the cheese was added to make a change and to encourage me to eat the stuff. Now I just feel ill looking at it, though thankfully I managed to eat as little as I could. And what did we have with the stodge? Sausages. And while watching a programme about just what is in them (meat? vaguely!) and how healthy they aren't! Of course, I like sausages, and won't give up my Sunday morning fried breakfast (bacon, eggs, sausage) as it is my one big treat while doing this, but when your mother's only comment on the programme is 'I haven't looked at what is in our sausages' (they are cheap and bought from Iceland so I shudder to think!), I despair, I just do.
Ah well - another week begins, and this time I'm aiming a little higher - 'under 14 stone' was a little too vague... I want 14 st 9 or less! Until Saturday!
Posted by Badgers at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)
September 17, 2004
What Is It With Old People...
...and having the fire on full blast when it is hot outside?!? I visited a couple today and I had to be in there for an hour... it wasn't exactly roasting outside, but it was nice and warm. Indoors it was a little more than warm. It was a bloody sauna. That should help me with my weight loss...
Yes, I have started a diet diary as part of the blog. I felt it was a useful way to make certain people feel inadequate as I show what can be done when you really want to lose the weight. And don't want to sepnd all night puking every last bit into the bog. Been there when I was ill for two months and couldnf't keep anything down - it might be a fast way to lose weight but it will kill you. Believe me. This time it's just cutting back (even if it is quite a cut back!) and exercising now my ankle isn't hurting! Expect an update every Saturday from here till Christmas (or until I hit my target of 12 1/2 stone!)
What have I been doing this week? Work has been annoying (the usual), and I found myself rushing through the I.T. strip for next week (Sun, Fun & Hired Guns) and I have got to admit - it isn't my best... the number of panels I've redrawn... luckily I was able to cheat a little, and it should all start coming together this evening as I start colouring... It didn't help that I keplt fiddling with the 'script'! One of the main reasons that I've rushed it and not really bothered too much is that I have been going through I.T. Goes To War, and plotting that - and that strip (which wil run for 8 weeks (!) is what is on my mind - it's a good'un! Promise! And it will hopefully mark a first as I will be inking digitally... This is partly as I want to get up to speed as I want to do the same for Dark Tidings in the New Year, and partly 'cos I think it should look better. We shall see...
Ah well - another thing that has taken my time is Joint Operations - After drawing I spent about an hour a night online - so much fun it hurts, but only if you have a good team. And the news that the expansion pack (more money!) will bring in tanks, new terrains, dirt bikes and apaches (!) and apparently add parachutes is good... if only the game didn't keep sysdumping out on my fast machine!
That's all I can be bothered to type for now - go some art to do! Later, everyone!
Posted by Badgers at 05:58 PM | Comments (0)
September 13, 2004
Diet Diary: An Introduction
Y'know, I was going to stop doing this blog, but I've seemingly found a whole new way to use it, and this 'diet diary' is oneof those new ways! Don't worry, it isn't one of those things that will catalogue every little thing I eat, but it gets my resolutions out there and so gives me more of a push to keep on with it! I have, in fact, been on the diet on and off all summer, but it is only in the past few weeks that I have managed to stick with it (due to comfort eating due to being depressed after the stuff you can read in the normal blog entries). Surprisingly, it is not due to the various fitness programs on TV at the moment - the fact that it coincides with the shows on BBC, etc, where whole streets are all cutting back to get fit is a coincidence! I was going to do this earlier, but I just couldn't keep it up long enough - I always fell off the wagon and gave up.
A few years ago I had ballooned up to (wait for it) SEVENTEEN AND A HALF STONE! Much of this was put on due to late Friday night internet sessions. The net was cheaper at the weekends, and I was only on dial up, so I would sit at my computer eating chocolates (usually Buttons or Minstrels) and you can imaging what that did for me. See the bloated picture of me in my university get up on the About Me page then add a few more pounds! Working at Preston in computing didn't help as it just made me more depressed, and I ate chocolates and snacked all day. Then, I suddenly came down with a bad bout of flu or something, lost my appetite, and started to lose weight fast - for months afterwards I had no appetite and could barely keep anything down... withing a few short months I had fallen to below 11 1/2 stone, which was probably not good. I could not eat chocolate (thougj I did manage white chocolate for a few months) as it made me feel ill and throw up. I had already stopped drinking tea and coffe with sugar long ago. Any comments I get about me looking thin and stick-like come from this time. I managed to put on more weight, then stablised around 12 1/2 stone, which was fine. In recent years I have steadily put on weight, stablising about 15 -15 1/2 stone. My big problem is that (as friends can attest) I don't actually look like I am that heavy (I don't have great hanging jowls, a huge belly, etc)... I do have a big bum and man-tits (or had - at the time of writing this they are going rapidly!) and, tellingly, have taken to having a short beard shaved so it gives me a more noticable jawline but I manage to look fine when clothed. Luckily I'm the only one who see's me naked - and it is not a pretty sight!!! Even though I may look good, I still feel terribly self-concious when on our (occasional and getting even less frequent) nights out - I get appraising looks, but only from a distance. Annoying. The butter trolls might not care, but I do.
Recently then, I started to eat less (I skip breakfast anyway, and lunches are not common any more) and thankfully for the summer mum started doing the odd salad - now we are having up to three or four a week as they are trying to lose weight too. Basically, this is just a record of how I get on from this point onward - I won't advocate the diet as it may be unhealthy - it is close to being the so-called 'calorie-reduction' thing that some strange people think will add years to their lives, but for me it is just a matter of eating less crappy food (I've avoided frozen oven-ready meals - something we were eating for months as I steadily put on weight - for about two months or more) and more healthy stuff (salads, some fruit). Nothing difficult, though as the autumn and winter approach it may be hard to stop mum from going back to the old ways! I am also exercising far more (something I've only recently been able to get back into due to a damaged ankle that I am soon to have an operation on - another good reason to lose weight!). At the moment I'm not exactly pushing myself on that score, but I will be doing more as the year moves on, which can only help.
So, the big push really began a couple of weeks ago, and so I weighed myself on 29 August - I was 15 stone 11 1/2 pounds. Gulp. This I took as my start point. My aim is that by Christmas, or earlier, I should be just 13 stone at the most, preferably a little less. This would be close to my perfect weight (I am 6 foot tall), and if I can lose between 2-3 pounds a week (not an unreasonable amount) I should hit my target without a problem. After a week, on 4 September (I intend to weigh myself once a week on the Saturday morning, so you can guess when these updates will be made!) I had fallen to 15 stone 9lb. I was on target, but that week I had not exercised and had eaten lunch on Thursday and Friday (off the wagon already!!!). Last week was better - I haven't had much time to eat lunch, and this past Saturday (11 Sept) saw me blasting past my target and coming in at 15st 2 1/2lb - ulp! This is probably down to worry about the car (recently crashed and in for repair at the time) as well as the salads, etc, so I doubt if I could sustain a loss of 6lb a week... if I do, I'll be hitting my target weight a whole lot quicker than I expected!
We shall see - it will be interesting to see how this develops in the coming weeks - will I make it to 13 stone (or if possible., 12 1/2 stone, my ideal weight!) by Christmas or hit the plateau where I find it hard to lose anything? How will my loss stack up against those on the TV shows (at least they can help me get a feeling of how well I am really doing)? I will keep you posted, as I - hopefully - find myself fitting into clothes I havn't been able to wear in a while, and then have to go out and buy new stuff as the old stuff hangs off me like a tent!
My targets then are:
Weight: By Christmas 2004 I want to be 13 stone at the most. Less would be preferable!
Weekly loss: I have set a gentle target of 2-3 pounds a week, though may revise this as I go along if I am losing more a week.
Waist: I hope to get my waist back to the 34" I was when I lost all the weight last time (though anything is a bonus!)
Exercise: I hope to exercise at least every couple of days using my weights, and other equipment to tone myself up. This will have a decided effect on my bum, belly and hopefully increase my metabolism to burn off the fat. Jogging is out due to my ankle, though brisk walks are not too bad.
Food intake: Salads when possible, but I won't give up my Sunday morning bacon eggs & sausage! I will eat fruit (but not too much) and also drink less of the fruit juices I replaced cups of tea and coffee (they make me feel sickly) with as they may add too much sugar if I go though my usual 2 litres of pineapple juice a day! No chocolate isn't a problem as I haven't eaten it in years as it makes me throw up!
See you on Saturday for the first real update! Think thin! Think thin!
Posted by Badgers at 10:56 AM | Comments (2)
September 11, 2004
Back To Normal
It feels good to be driving my 206 again! I needn't mention the power, the feel of the steering, the boot space, the better stereo, so I won't! Things I do miss about the Micra include that little rubber button to open the boot. Well, that's pretty much all really!
I picked it up yesterday and went back to work. Luckily I had appointments to go to in the afternoon (in the rain, unfortunately!) so I was able to get used to driving her again - which didn't take long! A quick run over Hardcastle crags after work, and I was happy! The repair is good, though they did decide to snap off the bit of the front skirt that I was planning to stick back on with glue (again), but all in all, I'm happy! I'm in a car that goes up hills!
The rest of the working week wasn't too bad (ie Friday!), and today I plan (now that I've added the reviews to the blogs at last) i wil get down to the next I.T. strips (they need colouring and stuff, and then I need to draw the week after next's strips - what? me waste a week on JO?)
Actually, I have wasted a little time on Joint Operations this week, wasting being the operative word most of the time... When the game is full of idiots who won't go for the PSPs and flying helicoptors like idiots (or hovering over one spot for 3 minutes!) it is no fun - the number of times I've heard 'ffs rebel/jo team is shit' this week - but when it is good, it's good. Like Thursday night. I like the Arms Market map, and even though the rebels lost, it was a great battle - and helped by me and my rpg attacking the armoured vehicles! GGA!
Ah well, Nick is on the phone about getting his PC reformatted (won't read his Windows CD) and James about his melted power connector... I will work on the comic even if I have to tape the Star Wars thing on The Biography Channel tonight!
PS - my diet is working - I've lost half a stone in the past two weeks! Hurrah!
PPS - due to the chaos of today (dealing with installing at Nick's) I've decided to have a break from updating the comic this week, but will go daily next week for all 6 pages of Sun, Fun & Hired Guns from next Sunday... yeah, I know....
Posted by Badgers at 02:16 PM | Comments (0)
September 09, 2004
Farewell Micra, It's Not That I Hated You, But...
...a 1.2 litre engine just ain't making it! Between the lack of power (I barely managed 60mph on the motorway), lack of feedback, the stereo which eventually managed to keep hold of Radio 2 but sounded muffled, the shape (I must admit, the shape has grown on me a little), its been a pain. Perhaps I'm just too used to power (the Colt was nippy and cool, the Saab 900 powerful as all heck, and my beloved 206 with it's 2.0 diesel Turbo... I just like to be able to pull out from a junction and not have to pray that I get movong quickly enough to not be hit by that oncoming car 300 yards down the road! Luckilly, I got a call as I got home today to say that I can go to collect my repaired car tomorrow! w00Tage!!!!!!!1111
Just in case you're wondering, work hasn't been too bad so far... but there's another day yet (though as that day will also include a 206 that can shift itself, it can't be too bad!!!)
Posted by Badgers at 06:58 PM | Comments (0)
September 07, 2004
Getting There...
So Sunday was interesting... Nick's computer overheated, we played lots of Bomberman for a change, and Nick decided he needed to re-install as he is getting the dreaded 'NT Authority Shutdown' even when not online. And the fact that he is finally getting (300k) broadband and digital TV on 25th September! At last! Now Andrew can set up the clan he is longing for... he can build the damned site for it though!!!
At work so far it hasn't been too bad, except that today I got very angry with a woman who works at Clitheroe... she has been a pain for a while, but luckily I havn't had to deal with her as I haven't covered that area for ages. I pity poor David as he does have to deal with her. A lot. If you have read earlier entries you will know my hate of a company called Universal Aids. Well, they don't fit things in that area. And I wrote on the form 'installation' which she took to mean (despite the fact she should know by now that they don't install over there) that they would install it. And then the fact that the equipment requested had in fact been installed last year. And she didn't quite understand the concept of 'cancelling the order'. And they wonder why I've taken to writing orders in big captial letters...
Oh, and I notice James has found the new blog - he sounds excited! I've now put up an index page which works, and I've just dragged the old pages here for the moment. Atr the moment, pages like My Cars and Meanwhile... will just have to look crap until I get a chance to get back to make them look right at the weekend. Any missing pages will be the same, so no moaning!
Posted by Badgers at 08:39 PM | Comments (2)
September 04, 2004
To Quote From My Own Comic...
"B-but you're dead!"
"I guess I got better!"
I know I said that the Badgers site would close, but it looks like it was a little premature! Of course, it is now lurking here at badgers.roguenoid.co.uk. Of course, people not in the know won't realise this as I haven't put any links here apart from a note on the front page of .com, so the only people who read this will be me and James for the moment.
In fact, James is the main reason the blogs are still around! I decided to relent last night when he started crying on Messenger last night after sending me umpteen ebay links for motherboards and videocards... expect him to crow about that in his blog! I had to download the new Movable Type which wasn't too bad. except that you need to pay for it now, and the free version only allows one author and three blogs! Not too much aof a problem as I have grouped Rants, Baka and the Dream Diary into the same blog using catagories - it should work! I need to transfer some of the other pages to HTML but for the moment it isn't a problem - it can wait for a week or a few!
So, it's been a while, and what has happened? Well, I had my week off and mum was doing everything pretty much like she did before the operation with the phrase "if I don't do it, no-one else will" on her lips all the time. I helped, when she let me! both mum and dad both resigned from the community action group too after various things occurred, then the rest of the committee followed for one reason or another. Then they get back into it now that the chairperson had gone. Well, 'if they didn't do it...'
I did use the week to get ahead on the comic so I've been able to get some time to play Joint Operations on Kyoko (Ayumi still sysdumps out!) and do things generally. Nothing much worth reporting, but things.
Last Sunday was interesting - we went to Nick's and he revealed that he was going to call NTL to get broadband and digital cable fitted to replace his current dodgy analog cable connection - I think the lure of porn and JO has finally made him cross the line! Of course, James gets all excited and tells me later that he'll drag me down to make sure that his computer is antivirused and firewalled on Saturday (today)... and he sends Nick a 4mb zip file in the email. Now, considering that Nick is on a 56k dial up, and is currently too scared to get email as another friend sent him a 1mb file that took ages to download on Sunday afternoon, and that Nick's new NTL connection is probably not going to be fitted yet... you have to wonder what planet his bus stops on, sometimes...!
This week saw me going back to work, and actually enjoying it - well, twice - a little. Buit by the end of the week I was desperate to go home by the time I got in to work. I notice a few webcomic authors have been fired from their jobs recently, and aiming to earn a living from their comics... sometimes i really think that's my best route to financial security as well! Augmented by eBay sales, of course!
The best thing about this past week? Well, so far it was helping a loveley young lady and child to find a solicitors on Bank Parade - cute as a button (and I don't mean the kid!)
Ah well - thats as much as an entry as you're gonna get - I have to do some exercises (I've lost 3lbs this week! Woo!) and watch the video for Call on Me by Eric Prydz on The Box... ;-)
Posted by Badgers at 04:07 PM | Comments (1)