Halloween ala Zombie

IMDB

As I get caught up on movies released in the past few years, I finally got to see Rob Zombie's 're-imagining' of the classic "Halloween". People who don't appreciate the genre may not realize or have forgotten that John Carpenter's original 1978 "Halloween" is a classic. It was the first true movie of it's type and at the time very scary. We've become so saturated with horror flicks copying it's style (Jason and Freddy don't exist without Michael Myers coming first) that we've forgotten that these types of flicks can be original and scare the pants off of you. The horror genre needs more movies like this after going on a several year run of simply spitting out 'torture porn' which isn't scary, just nasty. We watch horror movies because we want to be scared; in the right way.

Despite what most purists say, Zombie made a super fun movie without disgracing the original material. He took what John Carpenter produced and expanded several story lines while maintaining the big scares. This time around when you see Michael wandering out in the open, during the day, on the streets of Haddonfield, you have deeper understanding of what makes him the way he is and what he is capable of. Dr. Loomis went from being the obligatory white knight who would show up shortly after Michael had done his thing and make a profound statement to being a conflicted man who potentially is only involved with Michael to land a book deal. Yet despite his possible ulterior motives, he alone knows Michael's make-up and what Michael truly is.

The best part of the way Rob Zombie makes a scary movie (and I believe this to be the case with "The Devil's Rejects" as well) is that he's able to marry the disturbing and gory elements of what you see in horror a lot these days, yet he does it with a grin and an air of campiness. The movie is, for lack of a better word, fun. You are scared, watching some scenes through your fingers, but at the end you are completely satisfied and leave with a smile on your face. Zombie's affinity for old-school scary movies makes it's presence known in the way he pieces together the film. This makes me want to see more movies from him because let's face it, yes we're there to see something scary, but don't we want to have as well? He also maintains several of the important elements found in most typical slasher flicks: gratuitous nudity, having sex gets you kill and the chaste protagonist makes it through to the end.

If you are into scary movies and have not already, see this flick. Put aside the importance of the original and don't go into Zombie's flick ready to compare the two. That's not fair to this one, which can stand on it's own. Definitely looking forward to seeing the sequel...on DVD of course.

Swimming is Awesome

Got into the gym for the second day in a row. Did a great core workout than hit the pool. Swimming is so sick. Totally challenging, form is so hard to master (especially without a coach) and totally rhythmic. I'm hopeful that swimming will help fuel my ankle to recovery. The best part is afterwards, feeling a full body exhaustion that is completely unique when compared to other endurance sports. You don't have that pin pointed weariness or pain that you can get from a tough ride or run, it's just an all over sense of being worn out. I could have slept immediately afterwards. Love it. Can't wait to do it again. Plus since I haven't ridden since Fat Tire Narnia, and I still can't run, it's so nice to hit something aerobic.

I need to get in some serious workouts this week too. Not sure what the situation is going to be in Park City next week. I'm sure I'll have gym access, I just want to go in with zero expectations...so I need to keep after it this week.

Cold.

Yeah, I have a cold. It's annoying me to no end.

Mostly because it's not a typical cold. I don't feel rotten and can function fine. This sounds like a good thing, right? Nope. This cold is just a drippy mess that makes me tired. So even though I don't have that typical feeling of being sick that sucks so much when you have a cold, I still don't feel like working out or doing anything productive. At the end of the day I just want to go to sleep. Not my style...at all.

So today I'm forcing myself to the gym to lift and swim. I don't care what happens to me later tonight (or the possibility of leaving a snot slick in the pool...early apologies to other users at the Malden YMCA) I need to get a workout in.

This is my last week at City Sports. Finally I'll be back on a normal daily grind schedule and I think that will only help me be a better father (consistency) and also get me in the gym with more frequency. I thought a retail schedule would open things up for me, but in reality it only made things harder. Psyched to have things back to normal-ish.

Good Lunch

So I'm weird in that I like to cook...but I never do. Ever. I rely on Carli (who is an awesome cook) for most dinners and when it's just Lily and me I make pancakes (and I'm hell at pancakes). So lately I've found an easy lunch. Boil some pasta with a bit of olive oil in the pot, when the pasta is about ready toss in some frozen broccoli, after a minute or so (so the broccoli can soften up) drain it and top it off with some butter and parmesean cheese. Enjoy. Great recovery meal and it only takes like 10-12 minutes.

I also have sworn off of sugar until Thanksgiving. I'm a sucker for sweets, mostly baked goods, and I'm easily swayed by the temptation of a chocolate chip cookie. To that end I'm purging myself of sugar for most of this month. I did relapse today. Peacuddy's had some fresh baked cookies out, and I indulged in one with Lily as we were spending the day together. But I'm confident that will be the only blemish in this endeavour.

In Waterbox news I'm heading out to Park City to start my new gig on 11/16. Get a quick tour of our new offices below.

Nice Little Swim and a Career Move

Good gym day yesterday. Did a core-based lift than hit the pool.

I only swam for 15 minutes, my ankle was getting sore from the repetitive motion, but it was invigorating. Something to build on. The soreness in my ankle didn't feel like injury pain, but more like, yeah we have some re-building to do pain, so that's super encouraging. Today my calf and ankle have that great 'day after soreness', not 'holy crap I can't walk pain'...again encouraging. If I can keep on this track, maybe I'll be running again by...January? February? That'd be nice.

In other news I accepted a position with a new company...Waterbox. You haven't heard of them yet, because they're brand new. What you are going to see when the product hits the shelves (later this month at an REI near you...well, 27 doors to start) is going to blow you away! Stay tuned. For me this is a great career move...and perhaps another crack at western living? Waterbox is based in Park City, UT so before too long we may be headed back to the Rockies.

Ankle rehab tonight and more gym tomorrow.

Today Revised

Slow start to the day and I have tomorrow off so I'm takin' 'er easy this morning, heading to work and hitting the gym tonight. Swim will come tomorrow along with more work in the gym.

Since I live in a world where going to the movies means checking out "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" (fantastic by the way) I'm a big Netflix'r and have finally gotten to see "Away We Go". There are certain movies that strike a chord in you and with "Away We Go" it's apparent that David Eggers and I have some similarities. If you've every questioned where you belong or if you are thirty-something who is still trying to figure it out, defintely go see it. I keep seeing reminders that I am actually growing older (people on Facebook who look somewhat larger and grayer, my father continuing to be in the mirror when I take a quick glance at myself) even though I feel better than I did when I was 18. There's a line in "Away We Go" when Verona asks Burt, "Are we fuck ups?...We're 34 and we don't even have this basic stuff figured out yet." The fact that there other people out there that feel the same as I do (I still don't know how to save money, or at least can't execute on it) is comforting as all hell. The important thing is to continue to learn from all of these little episodes and adventures so that one day I will know how to save money and balance being a father, husband, employee, endurance athlete, dog owner....etc, etc...

Ok...that was deep enough for a Tuesday morning. Off I go...

Off season...

Okay, so I swear I'm not going to start whining about my ankle again, but know that I'm still fuggin' dealing with it. Argh.

So, I'm in full off season mode. Which means fitting in gym workouts while consciously trying to beat my sweet tooth into submission during a season when candy and baked goods rule supreme clear through the end of the year. To that end I have sworn off sweets until Thanksgiving. Who doesn't like a challenge?
I've been getting to the gym somewhat regularly and in the name of endurance I purchased some goggles over the weekend in order to start swimming. Day one in the pool will be tomorrow. I'm looking forward to finishing the workout and having that sense of calm that arrives after a run, bike or swim. Nothing like that can be replicated in any other way. I see people who post on Facebook that they have insomnia problems and my response is always: "Start running". Go log a bunch of miles and you'll sleep like a baby.

Since I don't know what the long term holds for my ankle, I'm 100% focused on mountain biking for next year. Definitely some smaller races, but mostly two events: The Wildcat Epic 100 and the Hampshire 100. The Hampshire was my primary goal, I want to be a top five Sport finisher, but the Wildcat looks pretty sick. A two day stage race (each stage checking in at 50 miles) it sounds like a blast. It's the week before the Hampshire but I think I could pull it off. I mean, my boy Canice did Primal Quest this summer and after hearing about it, if I can't do 165 miles over the course of a week...how lame am I?