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P90X Workout Regimen

Monday was the first day of my P90X workout. I’m doing a different track as Molly (she’s doing the Lean Plan, I’m doing the Classic Plan) but at the same time as her for encouragement, as well as getting me a bit better in shape for the wedding and some backpacking trips I’ll be planning or am planning. I’ve been sore since I started, with emphasis on different parts of the body for the different days which is the way this program claims to work – by “muscle confusion”. I can already tell to the touch that my back, quadriceps, and triceps are toning up and I’m only 3 days into it. Today is “Yoga X”. I’m not doing the daily pictures, but I’ll probably end up doing a weekly picture digest. Right now I’m posting them privately to my Flickr account. At the end of it all I’ll share my Day Zero through Ninety improvements with a week delta, 13 in all if my math is right. If you’re interested in it, send me an email, IM, or Direct Message and I’ll try to hook you up. There’s some equipment you’ll need to procure on top of the videos, so you’re going to be financially dedicated to it from the beginning. I’m dedicated to it right now because of that “hurts so good” feeling – I guess I’m a masochist when it comes to self-improvement.

Fileserver Research

I’m brainstorming a couple of ideas for a few of my friends and I to have our own server for everything we’d use one for (Games, Streaming Media, Private Web Hosting) and the most promising option requires us to have a storage tank attached to a separate VMWare ESXi server. So when I read this article on Monday and it got me thinking about it a little more. I had been thinking about a Drobo as the solution, but wasn’t ready to make that the choice without weighing other options. Of course Mike, my supervisor at work and fellow geek, planted the bug in my ear about Sun’s ZFS which lead to me investigating Solaris/OpenSolaris as a potential solution in lieu of a Drobo.  The DataRobotics stuff is fancy, and would operate exactly as we would need it but it’s a bit pricier than we’re really wanting to get into initially. A couple of the other articles I’ve found on the topic which have helped me formulate my decision:

• Expand-O-Matic RAID-Z
• Build your own multi-terabyte file server with OpenSolaris and ZFS
• Build your own Drobo-Replacement Based on ZFS
• and a handful of others on my other computer

Anyways, this means that I’ve been geeking it up which derails the progress I was making on my other articles.

Gear Guide Research

My next article is going to be about sleeping bags what materials their made of, pros and cons, and of course – my methodology in choosing a good one. I did some here-a-little-there-a-little research regarding the materials over the weekend when I wasn’t cleaning house, doing dishes, doing laundry, watching my Netflix queue (Big Bang Theory – TV Series), or napping. I’ll probably get back on to that by the end of this weekend which should yield a post before Monday (which may have some significant sales on Camping gear). I haven’t forgotten about it, I’ve just been derailed with other things stewing in my brain!

Comment Booster!

So I realize I haven’t exactly been encouraging audience participation, even though there’s a fully available comment section below every post. I’ll ask some questions to get you started.

• Anyone else out there started/finished P90X, and have any suggestions or words of encouragement?
• Do you have any suggestions for articles regarding ZFS or OpenSolaris?
• What specific details do you look for in a Sleeping Bag?
• or even, What are you doing for Labor Day Weekend?

Omg, I've been robbed. No wait, @thatmollygirl just took her TV back to school for the last semester #

I'm not going to be able to save money by switching to @EPB_Chattanooga. Probably means no TV when I switch. #

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When Digg, and later StumbleUpon, helped me peek out of the little bubble of the internet I was aware of I discovered many new, interesting, and fun webcomics to add to my daily reads (or at least check for updates on a regular basis). Some of them even give me the feel that I could do it myself if I only had the talent of an original sense of humor (stick figures I can do). This influx of new discoveries quickly turned me into a webcomic-aholic. So without further ado, I present you my list of webcomics, complete with a link to their RSS, a link to the author or comic’s official twitter, a short description, my rating on a scale of 1-5, and selected comics (if permitted). My rating scale is inspired by Netflix’s rating system because it’s too simple – 5 denotes Love it, 4 denotes Really Like It, 3 denotes Like It, 2 denotes Dislike It, 1 denotes Hate It. You won’t see any 1′s or 2′s in my list, if they drop that low they don’t get read by me.

• Questionable Content (RSS) – Now that I’m grown up interact a bit more in the social world and still have those geeky tendencies this comic is a near perfect fit for my psyche. I have no idea about the number of readers of this comic but it is underrated no matter the readership. QC’s storytelling style combines romantic melodrama, sitcom, humor about indie rock music, and sexual or scatological humor. I found this via StumbleUpon and is the one comic I will read if I only have time for one. Also, if you really enjoy it you can follow the Characters’ Tweets to add to the whole experience: Penelope Gaines, Sven Bianchi, Dora Bianchi, Faye Whitaker, Marten Reed, Hannelore, and even Pintsize!.  Created by Jeph Jacques (Author’s Twitter). 5/5
• Ctrl+Alt+Del (RSS) (Twitter) – I’d be willing to say with certainty that this is a webcomic for video gamers by a video gamer, created by Tim Absath (Author’s Twitter). 5/5
• XKCD (RSS) – Intelligent humor “a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.” as described by its creator, Randall Munroe a former contractor to NASA. 5/5
• Penny Arcade (RSS) – Geek humor, similar in appeal to CAD – focused on video games and gaming culture, written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik. 4/5
• Cyanide and Happiness (RSS) -  Controversial, sometimes awkward humor. Not for everyone, but I’ve got a twisted sense of humor that I attribute to being on the internet and seeing its many ugly sides. Created by Four different authors on a rotation – Kris Wilson, Rob DenBleyker, Matt Melvin, and Dave McElfatrick. 4/5
• Another Random Day (RSS) – Another comic that picks at my twisted sense of humor, inspired by the IRC logs at Bash.org. Sometimes it is actually dirtier than Cyanide and Happiness, but for the most part it is on par. Simple stick figure drawings and having a dirty mind are what the authors do best. I discovered this via StumbleUpon. Created by “a few cats”. 4/5
• Not From Concentrate (RSS) – A bit calmer than Cyanide and Happiness, but it appeals to my twisted sense of humor just the same. I discovered this via StumbleUpon. Created by Thomas Dobrosielski. 4/5
• The Joy of Tech (RSS) – The title of the comic kind of gives the subject matter away – however it won’t lead you to believe this is a Apple-fanboy-leaning comic. It does cover a range of topics you’d typically hear about in a Diggnation or TWiT episode. I wish the website was less crowded, and the RSS feed didn’t have that teaser image – it’s just mean!. Created by Liza Schmalcel and Bruce Evans. 3/5
• AmazingSuperPowers (RSS) (Twitter) – Unique illustration style, comedy is usually derived from a play on words. I discovered this via StumbleUpon. Created by Wes and Tony. 3/5
• Dark Legacy Comics (RSS) – If you play WoW and you’re not reading this comic, you’re out of the loop. Even though I don’t play anymore I still check on this comic to see what the current issues are that they poke fun at. Created by Arad Kedar. 3/5
• Truck Bearing Kibble (RSS) – Situational, anecdotal, and play-on-words type humor with a polished artistic style make this comic enjoyable. Created by Jeremy and Eric. 3/5
• VG Cats (NO RSS FEED) – Even though it isn’t in my RSS Reader, I make an effort to visit the comic on occasion. This one features parodies of popular video games using a pair of anthropomorphic cats playing the common roles. Created by Canadian cartoonist Scott Ramsoomair. 3/5

DISCLAIMER: I do not claim to own any rights to any of the comics displayed or linked on this page. If you are the Author or Representative of one of these comics and I have incorrectly linked or embedded your comic, please let me know what I can do to correct it (email webmaster (at) n00tz.net). Some of the information on this page is supplemented by excerpts from various articles at Wikipedia, the rest is opinion.

This is a late post that has been sitting in my drafts folder for awhile. But, we’re onto the planning and man-oh-man is it a process!

Stay tuned!

1. Although me and my brothers grew up in the same house by the same parents, I was born in a completely different hospital from them. My mother was a nurse at Alexandria Hospital when she got pregnant with me, and delivered me there.

2. I attended Georgia Tech for a year. I was a legacy applicant, both my father and my uncle graduated as Electrical Engineers. Since leaving: two of my cousins have also attended, one of which has already graduated and is working in Chattanooga a block away from me.

3. I have a scar on my chin from when I was in first grade and tripped while chasing a kickball at recess. 7 stitches.

4. I’ve never broken a single bone in my body. Neither have either of my two brothers.

5. I am an Eagle Scout, and have been in the Scouting program since I was 6 years old as a Tiger Cub. This should come as no surprise to anyone that has known me for more than a week.

6. The thing I miss the most from living in Virginia was coming home from Elementary School and playing outside with my brothers and the other neighborhood kids until it was dark.

7. My first computer was a Commodore 64. I had one in my room and taught myself simple BASIC programming before I turned 10 years old. I haven’t had any true interest in programming since beyond troubleshooting errors.

8. I went all throughout High School without having a girlfriend. Spring semester of my only year in college I asked out my best friend and she said yes. I’ve been dating her ever since.

9. The indoctrination of children (even if unintended) is the biggest killer of free thought: I am proud of my parents for letting me decide my own beliefs and being good debaters even when I am admittedly unfair sometimes.

10. I am the co-owner of RockShow DJ Entertainment Services with my younger brother, Robert. We have never taken any share of any profits because it all goes back into the business.

11. My paternal grandfather died when I was a baby, so I never knew him. My father and uncle are the best grandfather figures I could ask for, and I thank my father for pulling the double-duty.

12. I’m twenty-two years old and I still call my mother and father “Mommy” and “Daddy”. I always will. I refer to them as “My Mom” and “My Dad” to other people, however.

13. Even in 3rd grade I was pegged by my teacher to be a computer savvy businessman. At the end of the year she did the “Most likely to …” awards, and I was “Most likely to own a computer business”. I’m not quite there yet, but my full time job deals with computers and I do own a business.

14. I failed out of Georgia Tech; the motivation wasn’t there. Nothing was catching my interest and all I could see was sitting at a desk in a cubicle for 35 years after I got out. You get two attempts when you fail out at GT, and I’m saving my second for when I need it to advance my career so I will have the drive to complete that (currently) useless degree.

15. My father is 68 years old. I was his first child at age 46. I share my name with him. Rial Fisher Sloan II. I have no doubts that my first son will be named Rial Fisher Sloan III.

16. I was a smoker from about a month after I turned 18 until shortly after my 22nd birthday. I wasn’t a heavy smoker (4 a day was my peak average), mind you, but it’s the worst habit I’ve ever had. I’m glad I’m rid of it. I also “quit” multiple times cold-turkey, withdrawal symptoms were a runny nose and only lasted for a couple days no matter how heavy I smoked up to that point.

17. I have no idea where I want to be or what I want to be doing in 2 to 5 years, and I’m comfortable with that. In most cases, I like to take things as they come. I think in leaving Tech I changed the way I set goals and determined failures, it certainly helped me deal with stress in a lot healthier manner (aside from the smoking at the time).

18. It’s not your first impressions you have to worry about with me, it’s your 3rd and subsequent impressions that shape my opinion of you. On a semi-related note, I get irritated really fast when dealing with ignorance when there is no excuse for it (and I consider myself fairly lenient when it comes to determining an excuse for ignorance).

19. I typed the first 15 answers to this completely naked in my desk chair at 3am. I have a hard time falling asleep when I am on-call. I only put on pants because my legs were starting to get cold.

20. My biggest fear is that I am not or will not become a good role model. Considering my biggest role model is my grandfather (as gathered through my father and uncle) this translates to my biggest fear being that I will not become a good father. The bar has been set very high.

21. I am really bad at not keeping up with my own calendar to the point that I “double-book”, and am likely to cancel my closest friends’ appointments first. I feel that this is due to the fact that I’ve built my reputation with them enough that our friendship could handle my misappropriation of time. This has put a lot of strain on an already stressful long-distance relationship with my girlfriend of nearly 4 years. I want to break the habit.

22. In the past, I have undertaken quite a few responsibilities that were not in my best interest only so my friends wouldn’t be at a disadvantage. None of these responsibilities ever appear to put me as at much of a strain as they really do, but I don’t regret them even if they make me miserable sometimes.

23. I sit down to pee if there’s any chance that the toilet will be used by a female. Actually, the only time I stand to pee is if I’m outdoors, at a urinal, or the toilet seat already has some splashing on it (the guys that do that need to learn to control your stream and collateral damage).

24. Since I got to High School, I came to the realization that I do not regret anything I’ve ever done. There is always a valid explanation or a positive outcome that sets the situation free from discrimination. I think this is why I don’t take things personally very often, and even laugh when people try and make fun of me; about the only thing that gets to me is when I feel like I’ve been devalued.

25. All throughout my elementary and middle school standardized tests I would be 97th or above percentile in all math and science areas, and never lower than 90th percentile in language and reading. I took the SAT in 7th grade and scored above the 70th percentile of 11th graders. I have been in the “Gifted” program in every school system I’ve attended.

61% Geek

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Before I even get going, there are a couple of things I’m assuming you’re doing already to keep your car in shape and at the best operating potential. These include: using gas grade per instructed by your manual, changing your oil (with the type intended for your engine) every 3000-5000 miles, checking your air filter to make sure it’s clean, and keeping your tires inflated to their proper pressure. If you weren’t doing that already, you may see a significant increase in your gas mileage just doing that (an estimated 5-20% depending on the amount of change).

The next step is to change your habits about when you choose to drive. Instead of driving on a whim when you realize you forgot to pick up milk or cream cheese at the grocery store when you were out last time, wait until you’re going by the store next time around. If you’re needing it right then, before you head out make a list of other items you may need.

I don’t totally endorse getting a new, more efficient vehicle mainly because that’s a significant investment and the idea behind getting better gas mileage for me has nothing to do with “saving the environment” and is more about saving my money.

Now, onto the ways to drastically increase your gas mileage.

1. Go the speed limit or just under it, unless you’re drafting (see below).
2. Don’t accellerate from stop as quickly as you usually do. Take it easy, hard acceleration is the quickest way to lose your average mpg.
3. When accelerating onto a limited access highway while on an inclining ramp, do your best to estimate the amount of power you will need to apply to reach the speed limit at the time you will be merging onto the highway. Doing so will allow you to appeal to traffic behind you, while conserving the most fuel.
4. Coast downhill for 80% of a decline, the last 20% or so should be used to boost your speed to make it up the next hill without having to downshift (*note* On longer uphill drags, don’t be afraid to downshift if it means keeping within 10 mph of the speed limit, you will be making up for plenty of gas mileage if you stick with the rest of my tips). Coasting is best done in Neutral so your engine isn’t stealing the energy from the coast. Automatics typically have a neutral position on one side of the “D” position. Manual transmissions can just be pulled out of gear, or clutch engaged for the duration of the coast.
5. Make the most of turns in the road when changing lanes. If possible, change lanes when you’re already going around a bend in the road. Forcing your tires away from direct parallel of each other takes energy away from moving forward and puts it into heat caused by friction on your tires. To realize how much this effect has, find an empty flat road and coast for the distance of it once. Do it again but weave back and forth across the lanes. I can assure you your vehicle won’t make near the distance it did before. This effect has a larger impact on those of us with wider/softer tires.
6. Draft off of bigger vehicles. BE CAREFUL AND ALERT. This is the absolute best way to make drastic improvements in gas mileage, but it doesn’t come without consequence if you aren’t paying attention. Drafting requires that you stay inside of the wind braking available from the vehicle or trailer ahead of you, and thus you will be well within safe limits for an immediate braking situation. I am able to “feel” when I’m at the maximum distance to still receive the benefits of drafting when I drive in my Nissan Pathfinder as it tends to get pushed in the turbulence behind the trailers I am drafting off of at my back end. Drafting off of trailers has allowed me to increase my gas mileage by nearly 50% over short highway distances (less than 30 mile trips). Make sure the truck driver can see you once every mile and a half so he/she doesn’t get paranoid.

Check back later for a possible part 2 as I check some more theories.

Now, you may be asking yourself “Why am I taking advice from a 21 year old?” Go ahead, ask yourself that. Now I’ll answer your question. I’m happy. The reason I’m happy is because I don’t let things get to me like they did when I was in middle school and early high school. Something clicked inside my psyche that changed the way I looked at myself and set goals for myself starting for me in 11th grade. I found myself surrounded by people I enjoyed being with, and they complemented my style. I’m a self proclaimed geek and I’m proud to have that title. Even ‘nerd’ is a complement to me when used in context (which simply means that it’s the truth). To give everyone out there a better understanding of why I’m perfectly welcome to these terms, I’ll define them as follows:

Geek – someone who is passionate about some particular area or subject, often an obscure or difficult one.

Nerd – someone who is passionate about learning/being smart/academia.

Dork – someone who has difficulty with common social expectations/interactions.

For me, it’s computers and networking, photography, audio production, and sometimes cooking that make me a geek as well as a nerd in subjects like computers, the internet, and networking. I take offense to being called a dork as a blanket term because I’m fairly social. I’ll readily admit that I do have some dork that shows on limited occasions, but I’m usually being silly or I’m in a bad mood.

All that being said, the point is accept who you are for what you are. Being passionate about something is what it takes to be successful and adopting that to your own reality will only make you more confident in your abilities and take you far.