Boo

Ramble away Nikki. Use this forum as much as you need. Regardless of where we're at in our quit, everybody here started right where you are. We all understand. Congratulations on making a great choice for yourself.

We're good for right now. Three-inches above normal in fact. We've had moderate-to-severe drought conditions every summer for about five-years straight, so this is a nice change for us.

Nope. We've caught a brief respite from the daily thunderstorms but are looking at a potentially wet week ahead.

Yep. Moving is stressful. However, I haven't had a single smoking thought through the whole process of moving. There hasn't been any time for it. Staying busy is one of the best ways to avoid cravings and moving will keep you very busy. You finish one job and there's twenty more waiting to be done. You'll be fine GITW. Just remember: lift with your legs and don't put anything in your mouth and light it on fire.

Good job!

Dammit! I didn't want him to go there. The Phillies are surging and have a 2.5 game lead over the Braves in the East.

Asdrubal will be a good addition for some team, but I really don't see the Braves making the move for him. Even if Atlanta was willing to move Albies to short and plug in Cabrera at second, that leaves no place for Dansby Swanson. And the organizations still has high hopes for Swanson in spite of another season where he has yet to live up to expectations. Of course...those expectations were likely unrealistic from the beginning. Hyping a young player up in Atlanta as the heir apparent to Chipper Jones before he's played in a single big league game is a good way to make a decent ballplayer look like a flop. But...that's another story for another day.

Horny Toad at the gym...

Potentially a very good move for the Cubs. Best case scenario: he shows flashes of his old self and improves the rotation of a team that is already playing good baseball right now. Worst case scenario: he doesn't deliver in a big way, but does improve the depth of the rotation. As risk/reward goes, it looks like a good call by Chicago. Things are still quite with the Braves as the trade deadline approaches. Some talk of making a move for Marcus Stroman from Toronto. Stroman could slide into the rotation and, most likely, improve it a bit. I'm just not sure he's worth the cost. Of course...with Alex Anthopoulos calling the shots in Atlanta, sometimes Braves fans just like to throw out a name and speculate. You know, so we have something to talk about in the trade rumor circles.

Got in some strength work this morning: Deadlifts, High Boy Rows, and Farmer's Walks. Had some gas left in the tank so I finished with a superset consisting of: Push Press and Pull-Ups. Repeated the superset four times. This afternoon, I was feeling highly irritable. You know those assholes who make you have some really violent thoughts? Of course you do. I had the pleasure of dealing with one of those guys today. Rather than commit a felony, I bought a day pass at a local black iron gym. Did an old school 5x5 workout while I was there: Front Squats, Bench Press, and Bent-Over Rows Rage can be a detrimental and dangerous emotion. However, when channeled into a workout, rage is a powerful motivator.

Cool. And a happy Guru Purnima day to all the trailblazers here on the Train that helped show me the way to freedom. A fine lot of gurus we have here.

Nice job FarmGirl. You are free now. Proceed.

I was only sixteen, they wouldn't let me in pubs. Saw Drivin' N' Cryin' at the outdoor venue at Six Flags Over Georgia. Admittedly, not a great concert venue. However, got to ride some roller coasters, see one of my favorite bands live, and I made out with a young lady I met during the show...good times!

First band I ever went to see in concert. Had some drunken sing-a-longs to this one back in the day...

Just a suggestion: you may want to try Farmer's Walks or any other variety of weighted carry if your looking to build strength. I know I go on about weighted carries, but I have not found an exercise yet that gave the kind of results that I've enjoyed with Farmer's Walks. If anyone reading this is interested in learning more, here is a good article about weighted carries by Dan John, one of the best strength coaches in the world... https://www.t-nation.com/training/secret-of-loaded-carries

I've been twice. The first time, I was six years-old. Really don't remember much from that trip. Last time was twenty years-ago and it still ranks as one of my favorite trips of all time. I'm stoked to be heading back.

I haven't been checking in on this thread as much lately, but have been consistent with the exercise. I do a strength session on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday alternating between Workout A (Deadlifts, High Boy Rows, and Farmer's Walks) and Workout B (Front Squats, Incline Bench Press, and Atlas Swings). As for the other days, I do get in some mobility work and steady-state cardio first thing in the morning. Having recently moved, there is a lot of work to be done around the new house. The activity levels are good. Where my focus is right now is getting my nutrition and sleep levels optimized again. I've been eating on the run a lot and just grabbing a bite here and there for the last couple of weeks. To say my diet is less than optimal right now would be an understatement. And the sleep pattern is way off right now. I got by with a lack of sleep for a little while there, but it has caught up with me now. I've got a trip to the Grand Canyon planned in September. Multi-day rafting trip down the Colorado with some hiking excursions along the way. And, where I live now is only a couple of miles from Laurel-Snow and multiple sections of the Cumberland Trail are nearby. I am ready for fall. Ready to get back out there and put in some trail miles.

Good job!

Well done Sandy. Congratulations.

I'm content with what I wrote. I described the ridiculous myths surrounding cigarettes and identified them as abject lies. I also described smoking as a self-perpetuating problem that enslaves the addict and eventually kills them. As for the claim that what I wrote could be used for a marketing campaign for big tobacco...that is a ridiculous allegation.

Jeff Wilpon just hired a new team doctor. He seems legit...

Great job Paul. Congratulations. High Five!

I'm in the early stages now, so I don't even know what specific questions I'm looking for answers to. I'll know a lot more after I test the soil and start preparing it in a way that, hopefully, will produce a good yield. The University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension has a lot of great resources online and I ordered a book last night that is considered the preeminent source for all things muscadine. So with my obsessive personality in full swing, I'm learning more about grapes with each passing day. Thanks for the offer. It's good to have a link to viticulturists.