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Month: March 2017

Who is Smarter? Me or My Samsung S3 Classic Smart Watch?

Who is Smarter? Me or My Samsung S3 Classic Smart Watch?

My new Samsung Gear S3 Classic Smart Watch

Sunset in Herndon, Virginia…7:23 pm.

Daylight Savings Time, time to start working out again.

After a gluttonous six days of traveling we returned from our trip to Florida on Sunday.  Our excursion included an unexpected drive and a night in Richmond as a result of the one inch snowmageddon that cancelled our Tuesday Southwest Airlines flight out of Baltimore  causing us to be unable to reschedule a flight out of a DC area airport until Friday at the earliest.

Now back, with the extra daylight, extra few degrees, and the some extra pounds, I parked my truck and headed out at my favorite mile marker on the W & OD trail and began my second run of the week.

 

“Warm up for five minutes” a woman’s voice said.

(Wait, who is talking to me?  Wait…it’s my watch?)

 

“Three minutes left until the main exercise starts”

(Main exercise? I am dying here, this isn’t the main exercise?)

 

“Walk briskly during the warm up”

(But I am running, I can’t get any more warmed up!)

 

“You’ve reached the next stage, speed up”

(Next stage? What next stage? Should I fire up the booster rockets?)

 

“Slow down, you’re going too fast”

(So I slow down)

 

“Looking good”

(Hey…Looking good!)

 

“Great pace”

(Great Pace?)

 

“Slow down you are going to fast”

(So I slow down more but I am walking now, and I don’t want to walk, so I start running again)

 

“Speed up for 4.0 miles per hour”

(Wait, I am at my fast pace and I am only doing 15 minute miles?)

 

“Slow down a little”

(My wife bought me one of those Samsung S3 Smart Watches…)

 

“Speed up for 3.8 miles per hour”

(This is the first time I am wearing it on one of my runs…)

 

“You are running too fast”

(Can you make up your mind?)

 

“Try a little harder”

(Okay that’s it! I am walking out the rest…she’ll probably call me a wimp next)

 

“You have reached your target”

(No, actually I think I may have found my target, and I will hit it as soon as I find my hammer!)

 

 

Don’t get me wrong, I love my Samsung S3 Classic Smart watch.  When I was growing up, the only person who had a watch that you could talk through was Dick Tracy, so this is the stuff of comic books and imagination.  And, when someone sends you a text message, it provides you with really short to the point responses so you don’t have to fuss over it.

Kim text message:  Can you pick up the dry cleaning.

Me and my watch responding with canned response: Roger that

And it’s done.

 

But can you imagine it’s a Saturday in July and you have a laundry list of things to do, and the watch on your wrist keeps reminding you:

“Hey that garage isn’t going to get any cleaner with you sitting here on the deck.”

Or…

“Move faster, we still need to cut the grass.”

Or…

“Slow down, take it easy, you are hot, maybe have a cold beer.” (Well, that might be okay)

But seriously, who wants to be prompted and reminded of what you are doing or not doing in real time, especially while zoning out on a nice run?

 

So I have a great idea.

Since I love to run and I love the relaxation that running brings to me;

And,

I love my new watch, that bought for me by wife, who I also love;

I think I am just going to be old fashioned and keep my new watch for communicating like Dick Tracy did, and use my Fitbit for running!

 

Looking good?

 

Roger That!

“I picked up the dry cleaning honey”

 

 

March Comes in Like a Meatball and Out Like a Clam

March Comes in Like a Meatball and Out Like a Clam

It was Cancun in January but that didn’t matter, it was still blazing hot. Kim and I were staying at one of those “all inclusive” joints.

We met another couple from New Jersey.  The woman claimed to be a mafia princess, the daughter of someone connected. I don’t remember their last name but their first names I couldn’t forget because they were straight out of Bon Jovi’s Livin’ On A Prayer, Gina and Tommy.  And Tommy even worked on the docks.

One particular “all inclusive” evening I got into a debate with Gina, that at one point was as heated as the mid-afternoon Cancun sand.

I couldn’t convince her that mine were better.  But why did I want to?  Why take that chance?

Be careful, I thought, it’s not worth it.

So what if she uses cubes of Italian bread and I use Italian bread crumbs.

Who cares!

There was no need to settle this score.

They were just meatballs.

I know this week the world recognized International Women’s Day, but I must admit I hadn’t kept current on the events of the day or this movement.  Even my radical, activist, middle daughter Hayley hadn’t filled me in on the agenda.  With all due respect for the efforts of women around the world and in my family, ever since the weekend I had been focused on only one national event.   Last Saturday I went to the grocery store and while scanning the weekly circular I saw this reminder:

March 9th is National Meatball Day!

Meatballs.

Next to French Bread, meatballs may be my second favorite food.

And you put the meatballs on the French Bread and…

Marone…

It doesn’t get any better than that!

But what does one do on National Meatball Day?  What is the agenda?

I suppose we could share meatball stories…

Okay I did that already with the best one I could come up with.

And what else?

Make meatballs right? So I did.

 

Intrigued by the thought of a National Meatball Day, I did some research and found out March 9th is also National Crab Meat Day, and National Get Over It Day.

And, already this month we missed:

National Dadgum That’s Good Day on March 1.

National Banana Cream Pie Day on March 2.

March 3 was National Tartar Sauce Day.

And National Cheese Doodle Day was on March 5.

And, according to my research:

March 15th celebrates Everything You Think Is Wrong Day, a day where decision making should be avoided, as your thoughts are wrong.

March 16th is just the opposite as it is National Everything You Do is Right Day.  You get to feel good about everything that you do (I probably associate more with the day before).

March 18 is National Awkward Moments Day (I am familiar with this one too).

March 21 is National French Bread Day  (I might have to make meatballs again!)

March 30 National I am in Control Day.

And last but not least, March 31 is National Clams on the Half Shell Day!

 

International Women’s Day posed the question what would life be like without a women?

A Day without a woman?

I can’t imagine my life without my four women in it… life without my wife.  So I will let Bon Jovi and Gina and Tommy take it home…

we’ve got to hold on to what we’ve got
‘Cause it doesn’t make a difference if we make it or not
We’ve got each other and that’s a lot for love
We’ll give it a shot  ( from Livin’ On A Prayer, written by Jon Bon Jovi / Desmond Child / Richard S. Sambora)

 

Okay, now it’s getting late.

And I’m tired…and this meatball has got to go to bed.

And besides, tomorrow I have to get up early, its National Pack Your Lunch Day.

 

Meatballs!