Treadmill Research

Haven't posted anything in a while - figured I might as well post my treadmill research in the event that anyone else (besides Laba2) asks about it.

SO many options/opinions. Keep in mind what Matt told me: you're never going to find one that someone doesn't have some sort of complaint about somewhere.

I was looking for one that I could jog on, 30-45 minutes, 3-4 times a week at 6-7 mph on a slight incline. I didn't care about bells and whistles in the computer or TVs/MP3 players attached or whatnot.

I used these sites to research:

• http://www.treadmillreview.net/ (very good)
• http://www.treadmilldoctor.com/
• http://forums.runnersworld.com/eve/forums/a/frm/f/974106038

What I found was that for jogging you want a minimum of 2.5 continuous horse power motor. Belt length is something else to consider if you have a long stride (I don't). And the heavier, the sturdier, the better.

[IMAGE OF TREADMILL REMOVED AT REQUEST OF SMOOTH FITNESS]


I originally planned on getting the Smooth 5.45 for $1000, but ended up with a Smooth 7.1 HR Pro from Costco b/c it was $200 off last month ($1300 vs. $1500) and Costco provides in-home delivery AND set-up (although I think the set-up would have been easy to do ourselves). The major difference between the two is that the 7.1 is 2.75 horse power as opposed to 2.5, has more programs (hill, interval, etc), and is about 70 pounds heavier. Also, I've had good luck with Costco - although this wasn't the smoothest transaction ever. I'd do it again for the savings, but if you do end up getting one from Costco, let me know! I have some 800 numbers for you!

Honestly, I've only had it set-up for a week so far, but I do like it. It squeaks a little on an incline, just like the ones at the gym, but once I have music/TV set-up down there I won't even notice it. Other than that it's amazingly quiet. It has far more programs in it than I'll ever use. Power-incline is smooth. So far, so good and the warranty is decent too.

I did buy a mat to go underneath it, at Dick's $30. It's supposed to help keep dust out, provide extra cushion, and protect the flooring underneath. Figured it can't hurt, might help.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy anything that has decent reviews on that first link I sent above. They have reviews by brand so you can get a sense of the company/construction, or they have reviews by specific product too including weaknesses. Here's a good place to start on that site: http://www.treadmillreview.net/best-treadmill.html

Also, I got the impression that Soles and Smooths were comparable mid-price treadmills. Dick's carries a bunch of Soles, so you could always try them out in the store if you wanted. I can't remember exactly what I read about ordering from Dick's vs. Sole directly though - you might want to look into that as I think there was an issue with service from one vs. the other.

Long weekend, hopefully *not* with Lyme disease

Of course, I had to go and poke fun of tick borne diseases in my last post. Now debating going to a doctor about the possibility of Lyme disease. I've been achy all week, headache on and off, stiff neck, and exhausted. No other symptoms as far as digestive or respiratory goes. Also, haven't found a tick on me or seen a bite rash. Bleh.

Anyway, this is the big weekend for the new camp! We went and removed the deck, packed up the glass, and blocked it down last Sunday and it is currently sitting safely in NH having made its journey from the south-west corner of CT yesterday. Mark and I are heading north tonight (where it's supposed to be 27 degrees F!) and with any luck we'll meet the mover coming off of I-91 first thing tomorrow morning.



The gravel pad is ready and the septic and electric lines are buried. Won't be in move-in condition by the end of the weekend, but one major hurdle will over. I just hope I have enough energy to enjoy it!

Missing VT

5 1/2 years. Really? :-(

I miss VT. I miss the idea of hiking without deathly fear of "tick-borne diseases". I miss cool mornings and evenings. I even miss the clouds. I miss the mountains and the lack of traffic noise. I miss bitching to friends about my ridiculous life, in their offices. I miss office-gossip. I miss 2 hours to camp. I miss camp.

I miss VT. Only 278 more weeks. I'll be back. I swear.

I live in a nature show

Mark got 12 minnows and 3 goldfish for Hermie today. 10 minnows, 2 goldfish, and the 2 survivors from the first batch remain. Hermie slinks around like a cat stalking them. Sometimes he takes the "rock approach". It's disturbing. Can't. Look. Away...

Turtle Condo

We adopted a new turtle, Ming-Ming, this weekend from friend. She came in a 5-gallon tank, which we upgraded to a Hermie's old 10-gallon tank, then set the tank into Hermie's 50-gallon tank to make a new turtle condo. It works out well because Hermie likes darkness and Ming-Ming likes light. The are both much happier now.



The best part about Ming-Ming is she's nice and can come out to visit. Jazzy just loves her. (Don't worry, Jazzy was just curious and it didn't even phase Ming-Ming)

Twin Fawns!

And they were just about to come up to the apple tree when Hobbes shook his head and the tags on the collar jingled... even though he was inside they house, they darted off in a chorus of snorts.

Road Trip!

I'm actually looking forward to the upcoming road trip.


View Larger Map

Unfortunately, there won't be much (any) time for sight-seeing and we will be towing a trailer (so no short cuts through the Adirondacks :-( ), but it will still be a road trip (aka scheduled down time with my sweetie). And, when it's all said and done, Turbo will have a backhoe for this tractor, Lorraine will have her new-to-her wood stove, and Mark will have a riding lawn mower to tinker on. Oh, and we must not forget the third deer head (Mr. Victor Jenkins) for the living room (joining Oscar and Billy), thereby securing Mark's presence in the household redecorating efforts. (Sad part: Victor's head cost nearly as much as my new couch and he's not nearly as comfortable to sit on.) :-)

New Couch!

	Before
	After - Mark style
	After - Lee style :-)

Weekend of Processing

The garden is overflowing with veggies. Mostly summer squash and beans, with cukes and tomatoes on their way. With the hot, hot, hot weekend, we spent quite a bit of time, indoors, processing food. We did 6 quarts of dilly beans a week or so ago and then this weekend we turned this:


into these:

We also took a loaf of zucchini bread and some cukes and squash to Shoreline Soup Kitchen dinner in Chester yesterday.

Wasps and Decks

This:


is keeping this:


from finishing this:

Zits & Wrinkles - Note to Self

Dear Body,

You're 30 years old now, and you have a choice to make: zits or wrinkles. Pick ONE and stick to it. You can go the adolescent route and give me all sorts of grief with acne on SMOOTH skin. Or, you can go the middle-age route and give me crows-feet and smile-lines on CLEAR skin. The choice is yours. While I was willing to tolerate your indecisiveness in your twenties, I simply will not accept both at the same time any longer.

I appreciate your prompt attention and quick resolution to this matter. Should you have any issue with this request, please direct it to Mother Nature. Hey, I don't make the rules, I just want you to start following them.

Yours truly (no pun intended),
~Lee

Wordle.net

Finally got a chance to check out wordle, the cool tag cloud art generated by IBM's own Jonathan Feinberg.

I made this one is for John and Phyl, in celebration of their new tats!


And this one is for Mom and Erin, seeing as training camp is just a couple weeks away!

Detaching the Porch at Camp

So, major decisions about my camp need to be made. The options are endless, limited only by time and money: rebuild entirely, start building next to existing camp, rip it down and bring in a house trailer, build a guest-house with a bathroom and use as is, or try to save the camp. We decided to try and see if we can save the camp, for a few more years at least, and then build a small bunk house with a bathroom. Terry had a contractor come look at the site, to see if it would be possible to jack-up the camp. He thinks it is, but said to take the porch off first. So, that's what we did this past weekend, with the intent of reattaching it later.


The Great Porch Removal Project from Lee Ives on Vimeo.

Back from Mini-cation

Guess I should be happy it wasn't one of those new, trendy 'stay-cations' and that we could at least afford to go up to camp for a few days. Ah, camp. I miss it already. I don't recall ever having such perfect weather. Photos coming later tonight.

A Deer!

Normally I'd never be so excited to see a deer in CT. I mean, it's like a petting zoo around here come fall when Mark puts out corn for them (yes, it's legal in zones 11 & 12 - the population is out of control).



They've been hiding out in the woods with their fawns for weeks. I was hoping this one would have a baby with her, but if she did, it was well hidden in the brush. She looked pretty thin to me - like she should eat a sammich or two.



She let Hobbes and I get check her out for quite some time while she licked up salt out of the stump before snorting loudly and bounding off.

Rain water tank

How clever is my boyfriend?! Really. I mean, he has what appears to be junkyard crap all over his yard, and has at least one good use for each and every piece of it, but not enough time in the universe to pursue every one. But this time he really followed through. He took a commodity tank from a friend of a friend of a friend of Agway and made it into a rain water tank!



Now why would you need a rain water tank, one might ask? Well, apparently, way down here in the deep south, wells can run dry during a drought. While this is very rarely heard of in the cool, lush hills and valley of the glorious Green Mountains, it is quite common in CT. What is also quite common in CT, is the need to water gardens during droughts. So, in the spirit of conserving water, we can now use the rain water tank to water the garden during droughts. And really, the possibilities are endless: use it to flush toilets during power outages, wash muddy bare feet off before coming inside, the list goes on and on...



Here's the simple design:

1. Rain falls on the roof
   
2. Rain flows into the gutter
   
3. Gutter spout flows into the tank
   
4. Tank has valve at the bottom to which you can connect a hose

That's it! It's all gravity fed. And here's the good news: he has ANOTHER tank, so he can collect rain from both sides of the roof! (He has lots of extra gutter spouts lying around, of course.)



While you might have sensed a degree of sarcasm in all this, I have to say, in all seriousness, I am impressed. We had a 0.5" rain storm yesterday, which yielded a foot of water in the tank (you can see the water line in the photo below). So, being the smartass that I am, I asked Mark, "If he hadn't collected that water, wouldn't it have ended up in the well anyway?" Short answer: No.

"In heavy storms, most of the water from the roof ends up going down the driveway."

Not being convinced of the practicality of it all, I asked, "Why does your well go dry anyway? Is it dug or drilled?"

"It's drilled, but it's only 80 feet deep."

Gotcha. So that puts an end to that. I'm impressed. And with produce prices going the way they are, I'm happy I'll always have water to use to keep our garden alive!



Side note: Mark's only online presence is facebook. Go ahead and friend him! Tell him you read about him on my blog - it'll make him smile. He's an interesting, and very clever, guy! And I love him to death!

Simplify.

This article on dumpster diving by choice is long, but if you can make it through it all, it's pretty interesting. It illustrates an extreme I don't relate to but the undertones of voluntary simplicity struck a chord. Lately I've found myself overwhelmed with 'stuff' and am making an effort to simplify. It seems I'm not alone! As habitual consumers it's not an easy thing to do, especially when you've been accumulating for years or decades.



So, how do I get rid of stuff? I've been a fan of freecyle for some time now. The concept is simple: freecyclers post things online that they're giving away, no strings attached, and other freecyclers pick them up. I may not be the most active freecycler, but I have scored a few items (including roofing paper in photo above to redo the shed roof with - we really do need it, and it will get used!) as well as gotten rid of a few things, and done it quickly. Another article, 10 Tips on how to be a 'freecylcler', outlines the following rules for freecyclers

1. Know how to begin.
2. Brace yourself for a deluge of e-mail.
3. Check out other recycling groups as well.
4. Mind your manners and attitude.
5. Show respect in your postings.
6. Keep it legal, honest and clean.
7. Stay safe.
8. Don’t leave people hanging.
9. Examine items carefully.
10. Decide how to handle multiple responses.

Another way I get rid of things are to pack them away in boxes labeled 'yard sale' and put them in the garage, basement or attic. Then, when enough boxes of stuff are stored, I call my mother and have her run a yard sale for me. :-) I find it easier to get rid of my things when I'm not the one actually doing it. Another advantage of a yard sale is that you go through what you've packed away and can pull out anything you've had second thoughts on. It makes packing it away easier in the first place and I'm surprised by how much I don't pull out to save. Another bonus on a yard sale? You usually end up with enough money at the end of the day for a kickass dinner out.

With clothes, I again enlist the help of my mother. I put them all in a box and she sorts them - some go straight to the Salvation Army or Goodwill, others she takes to one of a couple second-hand shops she frequents (Swirl in Putney is one, Talula's in Willmington is another). She makes a decent amount of cash at 2nd hand shops, but it does take some time to make sure everything is clean and pressed, as well as to learn all the rules each shop has regarding appointments for dropping things off, how the money is split, how many items you can bring in, etc.

The last place I get rid of stuff is the drop-off station at the dump. It's better for smaller household things. It's safe, it's quick, it's easy. And if none of those options work for you, there are other ones as well - donating to big yard sales where the proceeds go to a non-profit or donating to independent non-profits such as Recycle North or Twice Blessed.

It's not easy for me to simplify, but I'm trying. "Do I really need it? What else do I already have that I can use instead?" Moving into Mark's house has helped, as we're simply limited in space. I'm going to start a 'wishlist' of items that I want but don't want to buy new, and then keep my eyes open. I do agree with something that was said in the dumpster diving article: things have a way of falling into your lap. And if they don't, perhaps I don't actually need it! Less is more. 'Less' means fewer things to maintain, fix and keep track of, and it means less to clean, sort and keep organized. Less time and money spent on 'stuff' means more time and money spent on 'life'. Simplify.

Turbo and Lorraine's 40th Anniversary Weekend

This past weekend we made a flying trip up to camp for Mark's parents' 40th Anniversary party that Mark and Paul threw at the Hidden Country restaurant. We brought Shirley with us, Mark's neighbor, which made for a fun and never-dull weekend! Terry's mother, Lorraine's sister and brother in-law, Stub and Phyllis and Roger Stewart all attended.


We also found time to stop by Walt's, Bill's, and the Cow Palace for some signatures on the petition to leave Holland Pond as is. Saw Ed's Spyder Roadster at Walt's - he's planning to sell them next year.


Unfortunately I was too fried by Sunday afternoon to take photos at Bethany's graduation party... bummer. I still gotta get better with the camera!

So, the weekend flew by, spent a total of 13 hours riding in a car and didn't spend a lot of time at camp :-(. But I think these baby Robins were happy with that - they had made a nest in the entry way to Mark's camp, so we used his back door the whole weekend. Hope they all make it. Will have an update after a long July 4th weekend up there!

Plurk

Just not sure about this plurk thing. I mean, yeah, twitter sucks right now, but somehow (and I can't put my finger on it, exactly), I feel like plurk has insulted me. Twitter never did that.

<sigh>

I miss twitter.

Peonies are blooming

Just a quick post to show off the peonies in the rock garden (and how awesome picnik as is demonstrated in the below before and after shots).

NASTY Cedar-Apple Rust

by leeives

Ewwwwwww!!!! So, so gross! So gross. Yuck. phhhhhh.

It's been raining all day and I can barely stand to look outside. There are thousands of orange octopuses in the red cedar trees. Apparently it's called Cedar-Apple Rust, and it's bad. And gross.

More photos of it here.

LOVING tumblr.com!

I think micro-blogging might be more my style and I LOVE tumblr.com! Check mine out. It automatically takes feeds from this blog, as well as twitter.

Off to the garden to plant the peppers, cukes and tomato plants we just bought. Will try to post photos this weekend.

Memorial Day Weekend

Had a great holiday weekend! Good time at Trevor and Marie's on Friday. Despite Trevor's and my intention of getting "snot-slinging, elbow-scraping drunk", we had a relatively calm evening visiting with each other (and with the pigs and chickens!). One of their cats, Lefty (of "Poncho and Lefty" fame) was missing which was a bit upsetting to those of us who love cats (namely, NOT Mark or Marie). Turns out he was stuck up a tree and rescued by Uncle Bruce on Saturday.

Oren's Bar Mitzvah was a blast! It was a great evening for a cruise on Lake Champlain, great food, great company, and it was wonderful to see Gerry, Mary Jean, Oren and Flora after so many years! Oren is such a cool kid - can't believe he's 13, I still think of him as the 4 year old I spent so much time with! Wish I had gotten more (and better) photos!

The Vermont City Marathon was fun too, even though Matt was unhappy with his time (2:56). Gorgeous morning to enjoy Bruegger's on Church St and a morning out in the sun.



We spent Sunday evening up in the Islands at Matt's parents' camp for a BBQ on the lake. We saw a beautiful sunset on the way back, even though there was a couple having a heated argument on the beach, making it quite uncomfortable to be taking the photos (but obviously didn't stop me!).


Spent ALL DAY packing the truck and trailer FULL with my stuff to move down to CT.

Got most of it (unbelievably)... now just to UNpack!!! Got the clothes started, but already running out of room and we haven't even touched the rest of the stuff! Yikes!

Photo-less entries must go!

I know. How many times before have I said I need more photos?! But one camera is in VT (and I am not), another's battery is about to die and charger is with aforementioned camera. So, soon. Getting the rest of my stuff from VT this weekend!

I'm in CT officially now. Working on new job, officially. You'd think with all this "official" I wouldn't feel so disorganized and entirely unsettled. Was in Somers all day yesterday - productive meetings, met my new team leader, Norb, and am feeling like I understand the new job a little more.

I'm changing the ticker to track the number of times Mark and I jog/walk before his doctor's appointment mid-June. We're (I'm) aiming for 12. If we're making good progress as it approaches I think I'll suggest rescheduling it (shhhhh!). His blood pressure is high - generally around 150ish/90ish - needs to come down significantly.

Looking forward the long holiday weekend.
Thursday evening - head to Linda and Buzz's in Dummerston, VT for dessert and lodging
Friday morning - head to Bradford, VT - Lee will work, Mark will help Trevor
Friday evening - dinner with Trevor and Marie then crash there
Saturday morning - head up towards Burlington, VT - Lee has appointment
Saturday evening - Oren's Bar Mitzvah (I'm officially OLD) - crash at Matt's
Sunday morning - Matt's marathon - GO MATT! GO MATT!
Sunday evening - ???
Monday - pack up my crap and drive back to CT!

Sunday blues

Weekend's nearly over, but a good one. Beautiful weather! Ate WAY too much food. In the past three days I've had meals at the following:

Big Chile Republic - Colchester
The Bagel Market - Essex
Tiny Thai Restaurant - Essex
Michaels on the Hill - Waterbury
Trader Dukes - South Burlington

Needless to say, I have a lot of salad-eating and jogging coming up this week. In VT through Thursday then heading to CT for the weekend.

Ice off the Pond

Mark heard from his Mom that today is the day the ice is officially off the Pond. Although, on my drive up this morning there was still snow in the shaded corners of the fields in Randolph and atop Camel's Hump and Mansfield.

Short post - tired. Sleepy... ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Forbes Article

Sweet article about IBM, and some of the stuff I'll be working on soon! IBM's Webbie World

The Luiz Suarez they talk about was at the Web 2.0 Summit I attended last week in NY - he's a pretty cool guy!

OMG, I have a COMMENT!!!!

Someone, nash, commented on my last post! That's just crazy!!!

Anywho. Thanks nash!

BIG changes: new job, new home, new roommate. I've taken a job with IBM Corporate working on collaborative software in Web 2.0 technologies! Too cool. Huge challenge. Very exciting. It will allow me to work from home, and thus, make my home East Haddam, CT, living in sin with Mark (err, "keeping company with" as Edie might say). All this is effective May 15th. So much to do, so little time.

So, as blogging (and Wiki-ing and Twittering, oh my!) is a huge part of Web 2.0 and collaborative software, I'm going to stay in touch with all my friends back home with this blog (and yes, of course, still Facebook and Scrabulous!)

So, to put you all to the test, give me some comments on the following questions:

1. Blog name (Patriots Princess) - keep or change? Still haven't recovered fully from that awful, awful night. Feb 3rd, 2008. So sad.

2. What should I have up top for a new ticker, now that my divorce is old news?

3. So what do you think is worse?
Having to watch out for this:

causing this (yes that's my wrist):

or this thing sucking your blood:

But really, CT isn't all that bad. For instance, I saw my first Bluebird here today, since I was a kid.



I'm on the road at 4:30 A.M. tomorrow. Which means, time to hit the sack!