My Army PT Test Is Done!!

Well, I took the Army PT test this weekend, and I did well, met a couple of my goals and got close to my third goal.

Pushups: 100 in two minutes
Situps: 83 in two minutes
2 Mile Run: 11:57

I have no clue where I pulled 100 pushups out of. I did 60 in about the first 50 seconds, then rested for a bit, then began doing them in increments of 10. I got to 90 and starting thinking "wow, I could make 100" and from then on out it was just a push, one by one, to crest the century mark in pushups. I have never done that before, and it gave me a lot of hope about my situps. As it turns out I may have overdone the pushups because I got to 60 situps and I was really hurting. I cranked out as many after that as I could, but I can see I have work to do in the area of my situps if I want to reach 100 in 2 minutes.

The run was very painful, I overdid it just to break 12 minutes, my first mile time was 5:45 and from then on out it was just push push push to try and keep my pace going. I over-ate spaghetti at lunch, trying to load up carbs, and that hurt me. I will have to do a LOT of work yet in the run if I ever plan to get to 10:30 before the state army fitness challenge in August sometime.

Overall I was encouraged. I didn't like how hard I had to run to break 12 minutes, but I was surprised at how I was able to get 100 pushups. I'll work some on situps, and continue to press on with increasing my running ability, and hopefully in a couple months I'll be ready to really do well.

ALL ALONE!!!

Well, Deanna is gone for close to 5 days, on a trip for the place she works at. This means I'm all alone!!! I AM FRIGHTENED!!! Actually though, this is wierd, because for the past 3 months we haven't been apart for more than 2 days at a time, and that was me going to my military guard drills. I have drill this weekend so we won't actually see each other until Sunday night *YIKES*. I miss her right now though, I shall call her, tried once but no answer, she's probably out on the town having some fun, seeing the sites in Kansas City, and what not.

I'll try not to have a huge beer bash while she's away, it will be tough but I think I can abstain from such activity for the time being. Will the dishes pile up? Will trash overflow? How will fraNk feed himself? STAY TUNED!!! CLIFFHANGER OF THE YEAR!!! The new season of As fraNk's World Turns starts on Monday!!!

Working Out Makes Working Good!!

I've been working out for about a month now, really getting into it the last week or so, because I have a PT test this weekend. I talk to some of the guys at work about how I go running and such after work and I hear "oh, I'm too tired to do that" and so on.

What is interesting though, is how much better a person feels if they work out with any consistency at all. You feel better at work all day long just for working out.

My calves have been really killing me though, because I've been running 'sets'. Sets are a 'set' distance and you run that distance like 6 times, and walk a little between each run. I am up to about a half mile now I think, and at the end of my sets, I sprint the back side of the dam 3 times, wow, my calves just scream the next day.

Hopefully all this work will do me good for this weekend's PT test. I am ready for the situps, the pushups are still a little iffy, as is the run, but I will do well.

TV Shows, Some Great, Some Terrible

I watch TV sometimes, and over the years there are several shows that I have really enjoyed, but there are also several shows that make me cringe with horror when I see them.

The shows that I have liked go as follows, chronologically listed based on when the show started, not by what show is better:

1) Hogan's Heros

What's To Like?

A bunch of crafty WW2 American prisoners of war, held by blundering idiots who run a pow camp in Germany, crawling around in tunnels and doing secret missions to help the Allies.

What's Not So Good?

Not all that believable at all, no one is as stupid as Colonel Klink, but still, with fun little missions going on in every show, it was always a good time to watch it.

2) M*A*S*H

What's To Like?

Plenty with MASH, a miriad of characters to choose from, from Hawkeye Pierce and his laid back fun time humor to Frank Burns and his over patriotic stupidity. As I got older, my time in the military allowed me to appreciate this show even more.

What's Not So Good?

I can't really watch it as much as I used to, sometimes the humor is downright childish. But mostly it's good fun.

3) Dukes Of Hazard

What's To Like?

I LOVED this show when I was little, it was the best, fast cars, police chases, crazy characters such as Roscoe P Coaltrain and Boss Hog, and wow, Daisy Duke with those jean shorts (although at the time I didn't pay attention to that much, I was too little).

What's Not So Good?

I try watching it nowadays, and it's just plain bad, you notice that were probably only about 3 jumps total ever done for the show, the footage is just added into every episode, the plots are terrible too. But in the day, as a kid, you didn't care, you just liked all the crazy car chases.

4) Airwolf

What's To Like?

Stringfellow Hawk was the lead character's name, he would go around getting his butt kicked all show long, and then at the very end show up in his mach 3 super attack helicopter called "AirWolf" and kick the holy shit out of everyone, it was awesome!!! Always on his tail were both the US government and the company that created AirWolf, although the company, represented by a man who dressed all in white with an eyepatch, never seemed all too concerned about going after the helicopter as long as Stringellow did the missions they wanted him to.

What's Not So Good?

The show centered around Stringfellow's quest to find his long lost brother, Sinjin Hawk. Belarus sold the rights to a new company took over production of Airwolf and got rid of all the actors and brought in terrible ones. The new helicopter pilot? Sinjin Hawk, how quaint, he was found, they never even showed the old actors doing a transition, the excuse? Stringfellow died. Too bad all the new actors were terrible. The show didn't even last more than 4 or 5 episodes after that.

5) Saturday Night Live

What's To Like?

TONS of incredible actors have come from this show, from the days of Eddie Murphy and Bill Murray, on to Dana Carvey and Phil Hartman, to Chris Farley and David Spade. A live skit show that makes you laugh and laugh, with guest stars ranging from huge movie stars to politicians.

What's Not So Good?

The show is really terrible now, ever since Phil Hartman left, the writing and skit ideas have been terrible, this probably has a lot to do with NBC having too much creative control over what goes on with SNL now and the show not being able to be so raw and nasty as it used to be. Another not so good thing is how many wonderful talented actors from this show have died young over the years.

6) Sienfeld

What's To Like?

This is my favorite show of all time, to be quite truthful, quarky, witty, there was no real basic plot week by week, the show just followed the strange yet hilarious exploits of 4 friends and their adventures around New York City.

What's Not To Like?

They quit TOO STINKING EARLY!!! And the series finale was really really horrible, they need to have a comeback show, a 2 hour fun movie, with all of them, and Newman, and Kryger, and Mr Peterman, and others.

Here's the shows I really did not like at all, I put these in order, Most Hated up top:

1) Touched By An Angel

What's To Like?

NOTHING, and I mean absolutely nothing

What's Not So Good?

EVERYTHING, it's all bad. The lead actress and her miserable blithering bothersome interference somehow always seems to save some poor begotten soul who has strayed from the path of good and always sees the err of his ways by the end of the show, thanks to the annoying angels. This show makes me want to projectile vomit, then run to my balcony and jump to my death. Well, I'd probably live, but with a broken leg or back or something. Then the angels would show up and save me and I'd want to stab myself.

2) The Other Half

What's To Like?

Not much, this show tries to be the male equivalent of The View, and it does even better at being terrible. Mario from Saved By The Bell, Dick Clark, drunken freak Danny Bonaduce, and some no name hunk of a guy, with an audience full of women, presumably to make the hosts feel like they are attractive or something, which they aren't.

What's Not So Good?

I don't know anyone who likes this show, it's completely pathetic, and it's sad really because Dick Clark looks like a has been when he hangs around with Bonadufus and Mario, I even feel bad for the no name guy, because his name won't get any more reknowned being on this show, that is for sure. Four poor idiotic men who sit around and talk about women's problems and even try feminine clothing and products on, just to get stupid laughs from the studio crowd, YUCK!!!

3) Murder She Wrote

What's To Like?

I suppose a person could really stretch and say this is a dramatic detective show, and get some enjoyment out of an 80 year old geriatric woman chasing down hoodlums.

What's Not So Good

It's an 80 year old geriatric woman chasing down hoodlums, that's bad, Angela Landsbury is about as believable as a detective as Charles Manson would be playing the Pope. This show actually makes me want to support assisted suicide.

4) The Nanny

What's To Like?

I suppose you could say Fran Dreschler is cute?

What's Not So Good

She may be cute, but then she opens her mouth and you are so completely annoyed that you want to pull out a shotgun and shoot the television.

5) The View

What's To Like?

4 well known women get together to discuss current events, along with a famous guest host.

What's Not So Good?

This show constantly degerates into a plethora of man bashing behavior, not to mention a man could grow a vagina just watching an episode of the View.

6) Highway to Heaven

What's To Like?

Michael Landon tried to do a spin off of sorts from Little House On The Prairie, this show was the prequel to Touched By The Devil.. err, An Angel, I mean. Landon was an angel that tried to help people out.

What's Not So Good?

Pretty much the same problem that Touched By an Angel is facing now, crappy feel good plots that have unrealistic feel good endings, and are so pathetically boring you pray for death.

There are other shows out there that I like and dislike, but this should give you an idea of some of my favorites and most hated.