Hazy Hot and Humid

Why do people in senior management suddenly lose sight of the fact that you can't just throw money and/or people at all problems? At work the past two days senior management has told us that we need to complete two major projects by the end of October, or the end of November at the latest. When asked how they came up with the date, they simply said "because it has to be done by then." When my boss told senior management that such a date was basically impossible, they replied that we should let them know what we need and they'll give it to us.

Well, the thing we need is more time, but that apparently wasn't what they meant. Basically, they want us to complete two 4-6 month projects that utilize the same resources in the next 3-4 months, and that doesn't count the fact that we are in the middle of another project that has to be completed before any substantial work can begin on the other two projects -- and the current project won't be done for at least another month. So now we have to spend the rest of the week not working on the current project to come up with a list of things that need to be done for the other two projects to prove that we can't meet the dates that senior management has come up with. It's quite frustrating.

But enough complaining about work -- let's talk about the weather. Yesterday was hot, and today is even hotter, and it sucks, because you can't really do anything outside -- it was still 90 degrees in Manhattan at midnight last night, so you can't even do anything at night either. At least my apartment is air conditioned, right? Well, it was yesterday, but our possessed air conditioner decided it would be a good idea to set the temperature at 88 (the highest it will go) while we were at work, so I got home and the living room was a balmy 85 degrees -- my room was 93 when I got in, it's down to 89 now, but that's still really bad.

Tomorrow isn't supposed to be quite as bad, which is good since I will be outside for Hootie and the Blowfish, but there's also a chance for severe thunderstorms. Last week it rained for a bit and everyone went into the bars. It was probably in the low 80's then, and with all the bodies crammed into the bars the bars were probably around 85-90 degrees. I can't imagine what it would be like tomorrow if it's still around 90 and it starts to rain, especially since they are predicting over 8,000 people will be there.

Not much else exciting is happening, but I'm looking forward to being on vacation and going back home to Long Island for the week. It'll be a much-needed vacation.

One last thing before I go -- Yankees are now in first place in the East by a percentage point! Go Yankees!

Goals

Ok, so I've been thinking about some goals I should be setting for myself as a motivation for the rest of the year and beyond. So my goals, in no specific order, are:

1) Get in shape. Specifically I'd like to be able to run a 6:30 mile at some point, and also be able to keep up a decent pace for 3+ miles. Considering my best mile ever was 7:30, and that was as a senior in high school, I've got some work cut out for me.

2) Lose weight -- I've been poked in the gut enough times (thanks Jasnit). I could stand to lose about 15-20 pounds (and ideally turn the rest into muscle, but baby steps, baby steps).

3) Play more poker and improve -- I'd like to some day enter the WSOP, but I definitely need to improve first. I need to get out to foxwoods and play live games -- the online stuff is fun but I don't think it's really helping my game much. Plus it's a lot more entertaining in person.

4) Play more golf and also improve my golf game -- it's a little late in the season to start, but it'd be nice to play once a week or so. My game has improved a good deal this year and it would be nice to be able to improve to the point where I'm playing about bogey and a half golf by the end of the year.

5) Learn something entirely new -- here's where you come in -- I'm open to suggestions on what you think I should learn. It could be pretty much anything, but it would be neat to try something entirely new.

As Promised

So I'm back from my session at the driving range (more on that later), so as promised here are some things on my mind:

Stamford -- OK, so I've lived here for two and a half years now. I've been downtown to the bars before, I've eaten at some of the restaurants in the area...but I'm just starting to realize how nice it is out here. Those of you who know me know I'm not much of a city person -- I enjoy going into Manhattan from time to time to see a show or meet up with friends, but it's just not a place I'd want to call home. I need things like yards and driveways and all the other things that come with suberbia. And Stamford has all that if you go a mile in pretty much any direction away from downtown. But Stamford can offer you a slightly toned down version of city life when you want it.

I think I really learned to appreciate Stamford when I attended my first Alive @ 5 concert last Thursday. I think it says a lot that this is my third summer here and I only just found out about it. Anyway, for those of you who don't know what it is -- it's a free concert series every Thursday for about 10 weeks in the summer, and it's in the heart of the downtown area (where most of the bars are). I think the best way to describe it would be like one big block party -- the roads are closed off, and it seems like everyone in Stamford under the age of 30 (and a lot over 30 as well) is there. You can BYOB if that's your thing, or you can hit up one of the many bars/restaurants in the area, who all extend their outdoor seating substantially. And then there's the music, which isn't too bad either. This Thursday is Hootie and the Blowfish, and I'm definitely looking forward to it. My little corner of Stamford is also great -- there's the Cove Island Park a short walk away that has beautiful sandy beaches (ok, not at all, it is the Sound after all), lots of open fields for just about any sport you'd want to play, a beach volleyball court, and tons of picnic benches and grills for a fun barbeque with friends. It's also got a few paths for biking/rollerblading/walking. Perhaps the most amusing part of it is that you'll hear about 10 different languages while you're there.

So Stamford is pretty cool -- and I hear that the golf courses are both nice, and being a resident they're also dirt cheap. So just another great thing about Stamford.

Ok, for more thoughts....

Baseball -- I'm not sure if Abreu is the right guy for the Yanks, but they gave up practically nothing for him, so it can't hurt. I'm not sure I like him over a healthy Matsui or Sheffield, but who knows if we'll see either at 100% before the season is up. And for all the media coverage of the whole A-Rod situation....enough is enough. I don't think he'll be the pre-Yankees A-Rod until he has a successful postseason, which hopefully will be this year.

Golf -- so I was very pleased with myself at the driving range today. I was there yesterday, and I was hitting my 6-iron well, and I wasn't doing too badly on the rest of the short irons, but I couldn't hit anything else at all. So I go today, and I'm making solid contact and hitting the ball mostly straight. So that's something to look forward to. Maybe I'll beat my Dad next time I play him (I was up a stroke going into the last hole last time I played him until I shot a 10 on the 18th). I must say that there's something therapeutic about hitting golf balls. Even when I wasn't doing well yesterday it was still calming and it really put my mind at ease.

Mountain Dew -- don't drink a 32oz Mountain Dew about 2 hours before you plan on going to bed.

I'll probably put one more post before I head to bed which will go over some of my goals for the rest of the year. I figure if I put them down publically I can't go pretending I didn't have them as goals later on when I get tired of reaching for them. So it'll be your jobs to keep me honest when it comes to them.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog. I'm about 3 years late on the fad, but when it comes to fads and pop culture I am usually about 3 years behind. I'm not quite sure what my purpose here is, but I'll make it up as I go along. Feel free to join me on this journey to nowhere, and if you're reading this, I'd love to know, so leave some comments or a quick hello.

I'm off to the driving range now, but when I get back I've got a few things on my mind that I'd like to share.