It might surprise you to know that the world distance record in archery is 1222.01meters. That's just over 4009 feet. Yeah, 3/4 of a mile with a bow. I have no idea what type of bow an "unlimited recurve" is, but it is a mighty weapon, worthy of a woodland elf.
Here's a link to the 2009 Flight Shooting world records.
http://www.usaarcheryrecords.org/FlightPages/2009/2009%20World%20Regular%20Flight%20Records.pdf
Anyway, I had no idea.
And what in the blue blazes!!! Links are actually working again!
Monday, September 26, 2011
Thursday, September 22, 2011
To be like Thor (or Chris Hemsworth)
However, Chris Hemsworth's pectorals made me want to shoot myself (Date Night reference). The guy was incredibly fit for this movie. Unbelievably so, which I guess makes sense, since he was playing, you know, a Norse god.
Luckily there are better solutions to shooting oneself if you don't feel that you actually have pectorals. The best solution would be. . .drum roll please?. . .going to the gym!!! Which I have been doing for a year now. . .minus a four month break to go make money in Alaska. No I don't have pectorals like Chris Hemsworth, but I'm getting closer. A year ago I weighed maybe 165 pounds. Today I measured at 182. Yay! I have big(er) muscles now. But, I want more. I want to look like a Norse god.
So, how does one achieve such a goal? According to Mr. Hemsworth, the trick (besides working out like an animal) is a proper diet. A healthy diet. And, a BIG diet. Here is his formula (thank-you Men's Health): Target Weight x (Workout Hours + 10) = Total Calories a day. So, in my case the formula would look like this: 190 x 17.5 = 3325. That's how many calories I need to be eating a day to get bigger. On top of that I should be eating 1 gram of protein for every pound I want to weigh. . .190g.
Today I tried to measure my caloric intake, and the results are depressing. I ate with as much effort as I possibly could, to the point where my stomach has been bloated since lunch.
Breakfast: 1 boiled Egg (65 calories, 6 grams protein).
1 cup sliced strawberries (50 calories, 0 protein).
Protein drink (140 calories, 27 grams protein).
Total: 255 calories, 33 grams protein.
Lunch: 3 helpings garlic chicken (almost half a Costco bag with added chicken and broccoli)
Total: 1120 calories, 95 grams protein.
Dinner: Carl's Jr. Chicken Fillet + protein drink
Total: 790 calories, 60 grams protein
Daily Total: 2175 calories, 190 grams protein.
So, I hit my protein goal for the day (but only by supreme effort), but I was over 1000 calories short! I barely hit the 2000 calorie average American diet! I still can't believe it. That means on the average day I'm not eating enough for a normal person. This probably has to do with my schedule because my first meal of the day comes after I work out, usually around 11am. That puts a big lunch at 3-ish, and then I'm not really hungry until I'm about to go to bed.
Gah! What sacrifices must I make to achieve this (see right)? I think I might actually have to start getting up an hour earlier just to eat a pre-workout breakfast!
And on top of all this, the food I'm eating needs to be healthy food. Which just adds a whole other dimension and level of difficulty to this process, because the food I am eating isn't. Not at all. I'm partaking in way too many carbs and sugars, and that equals bad.
I need a healthy food cook. Any takers?
The really funny thing, though, is watching my sisters try to avoid calories. Hahah!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
The Embarassing Truth about BYU Football
I don't know at what point I really bought into all the preseason hype, but I've been very excited about this year for the BYU football team. We have a lot of returning starters on the offense, and we have athletic ability that we have never had in the past. Plus we revamped the coaching staff into a unit that was supposed to be much better.
Well, the blinders came off yesterday. Our team was DESTROYED, OBLITERATED, and MANGLED BEYOND RECOGNITION by our hated rivals yesterday. I have never seen a greater implosion in all of my sports watching history, and I've never been more embarrassed to be a Cougar fan. The whole second half of the game yesterday is just one hazy blur, I don't even remember the final score. And, I feel like I have a hangover, a dashed expectations hangover (no drinking involved).
I will say this though, there is no way that Utah is 46 (or whatever it was) points better than us. Utah isn't better than Texas, or maybe even Ole' Miss. That was a very winnable game for us, until our team imploded on the first or second play of the game.
It isn't time to write off the season yet. We have at least two more difficult (but theoretically winnable) games left on our schedule, and then a lot of patsies. We can redeem ourselves. But somehow Bronco and his coaching staff need to answer for this fiasco. It's their responsibility to make sure our players are prepared mentally and physically for every game, and that certainly wasn't the case last night. I'm not calling for their heads, because I trust Bronco as a coach, he's successful and I know that he has his priorities straight, but somehow an explanation needs to be made. They owe it to all the fans who are still reeling from the constant barrage of metaphorical punches to the face last night.
Anyway, overwhelming sadness and despair. The end:(
Well, the blinders came off yesterday. Our team was DESTROYED, OBLITERATED, and MANGLED BEYOND RECOGNITION by our hated rivals yesterday. I have never seen a greater implosion in all of my sports watching history, and I've never been more embarrassed to be a Cougar fan. The whole second half of the game yesterday is just one hazy blur, I don't even remember the final score. And, I feel like I have a hangover, a dashed expectations hangover (no drinking involved).
I will say this though, there is no way that Utah is 46 (or whatever it was) points better than us. Utah isn't better than Texas, or maybe even Ole' Miss. That was a very winnable game for us, until our team imploded on the first or second play of the game.
It isn't time to write off the season yet. We have at least two more difficult (but theoretically winnable) games left on our schedule, and then a lot of patsies. We can redeem ourselves. But somehow Bronco and his coaching staff need to answer for this fiasco. It's their responsibility to make sure our players are prepared mentally and physically for every game, and that certainly wasn't the case last night. I'm not calling for their heads, because I trust Bronco as a coach, he's successful and I know that he has his priorities straight, but somehow an explanation needs to be made. They owe it to all the fans who are still reeling from the constant barrage of metaphorical punches to the face last night.
Anyway, overwhelming sadness and despair. The end:(
Thursday, September 15, 2011
NEWSFLASH GIRLS: He's nice because he likes you!!!
A few events over the last several weeks keep bringing this subject back home to me so I'm going to grind my axe for a bit here. Yes, some of this stems from personal experience, but it also comes from stuff I've observed.
Girls, you are a little too oblivious about your casual relationships with the opposite sex and it drives me up the wall (and I think this problem mostly happens with cute girly girls). You CAN'T be just friends with a guy, because he CAN'T be "just friends" with you! When a man approaches you in a friendly fashion, he isn't motivated by the idea of making a new "friend." He wants a little action (in Utah, that usually means a few dates, leading to kissing, and maybe marriage. Outside of Utah it means he wants to score, big time). Somehow girls don't understand this. They might go on a date, and then the girl will think "oh, he's a really nice guy" (but she isn't attracted to him because he's not a tool*) so she places him in the friend box. Which is not where the man wants to be. He never wanted to be there, and everything he does after that is an effort to get out. Brings you flowers when you are down? Check. Cake for a special event? Of course. Chicken soup when you are sick? Indeed. Offers dating advice? Yup. Calls/chats/texts/other Internet interaction? Definitely. Hangs out? No question. Anything where he is interacting with you in any way shape or form is done with the intention of building a relationship (not friendship) with you. He will do this until he realizes that you have no intention of ever giving him what he wants (a bonafide girlfriend) and then he'll slowly fade into the ether. BUT, the girl then thinks, "oh, I haven't seen such-and-such" so she calls, and suddenly the whole cycle starts over again. Girls, the guys that you hang out with you are there because they want you as a relationship. They aren't there because you are good friends.
There are exceptions to this rule: Gay men. And married men (and that isn't even certain these days)^.
So why is this a problem? Well it comes down to mismatched expectations where a girl gives a guy false expectations and hope, leading him around by the nose until it destroys his entire soul! This is rude and should be avoided. See the picture to the left? When you are sitting there, looking all pretty, this is what the man wants to do with you...but in a nicer way. Yes? But the girl is thinking the guy is just like her girlfriends and treats him as such. This is bad. He is a Man; a bundle of testosterone, muscles, AND feelings!
Where am I going with this? I don't know. I guess I just wish girls wouldn't be so cavalier about handing out the friend status left and right. Give guys a chance, not false expectations. If you want somebody to hang out with, hang out with your fellow women, otherwise you are just using a man for you own self gratification. A Man is not made to just hang out and be friends with you. So don't try it.
And stop wasting your time on that really hot guy who you like but only see once a week or so. He's got six other women on the line and he's making out with all of them, including you*.
^I later thought of another reason where men can actually be friends with women, when there is no attraction on either side (which is very rare, but it does happen).
*Another axe I want to grind dealing with the fact that the good/nice guys don't actually score very high on a girl's attraction scale and tool-ish men do. Girls SAY they want nice men, but their actions speak differently. Don't even try to argue with me about this.
Girls, you are a little too oblivious about your casual relationships with the opposite sex and it drives me up the wall (and I think this problem mostly happens with cute girly girls). You CAN'T be just friends with a guy, because he CAN'T be "just friends" with you! When a man approaches you in a friendly fashion, he isn't motivated by the idea of making a new "friend." He wants a little action (in Utah, that usually means a few dates, leading to kissing, and maybe marriage. Outside of Utah it means he wants to score, big time). Somehow girls don't understand this. They might go on a date, and then the girl will think "oh, he's a really nice guy" (but she isn't attracted to him because he's not a tool*) so she places him in the friend box. Which is not where the man wants to be. He never wanted to be there, and everything he does after that is an effort to get out. Brings you flowers when you are down? Check. Cake for a special event? Of course. Chicken soup when you are sick? Indeed. Offers dating advice? Yup. Calls/chats/texts/other Internet interaction? Definitely. Hangs out? No question. Anything where he is interacting with you in any way shape or form is done with the intention of building a relationship (not friendship) with you. He will do this until he realizes that you have no intention of ever giving him what he wants (a bonafide girlfriend) and then he'll slowly fade into the ether. BUT, the girl then thinks, "oh, I haven't seen such-and-such" so she calls, and suddenly the whole cycle starts over again. Girls, the guys that you hang out with you are there because they want you as a relationship. They aren't there because you are good friends.
 |
| Giants and Freya by Arthur Rackham |
So why is this a problem? Well it comes down to mismatched expectations where a girl gives a guy false expectations and hope, leading him around by the nose until it destroys his entire soul! This is rude and should be avoided. See the picture to the left? When you are sitting there, looking all pretty, this is what the man wants to do with you...but in a nicer way. Yes? But the girl is thinking the guy is just like her girlfriends and treats him as such. This is bad. He is a Man; a bundle of testosterone, muscles, AND feelings!
Where am I going with this? I don't know. I guess I just wish girls wouldn't be so cavalier about handing out the friend status left and right. Give guys a chance, not false expectations. If you want somebody to hang out with, hang out with your fellow women, otherwise you are just using a man for you own self gratification. A Man is not made to just hang out and be friends with you. So don't try it.
And stop wasting your time on that really hot guy who you like but only see once a week or so. He's got six other women on the line and he's making out with all of them, including you*.
^I later thought of another reason where men can actually be friends with women, when there is no attraction on either side (which is very rare, but it does happen).
*Another axe I want to grind dealing with the fact that the good/nice guys don't actually score very high on a girl's attraction scale and tool-ish men do. Girls SAY they want nice men, but their actions speak differently. Don't even try to argue with me about this.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Writing is Cool (reason # 244)
Most people don't profess to like school. I do. Of course, I hate assignments and tests as much as the next person, but I do love the pursuit of knowledge. I like learning random things. I like history. I like understanding how things work. Lucky for me that I am pursuing a career as an author (since I finished up my eternal bachelors degree).
However, there is a certain disregard for the genre I choose to write in (fantasy). People think it's just a whole lot of flights-of-fancy and other useless drivel; that everything that goes into the story is just made up on the spot. They are so wrong! I am constantly researching real information that I need to make my story work, and it is a very fun and enlightening process. Here are some of the things that I can remember researching this year to feed the writing muse: alchemy, cannons, the human circulation system (focusing on heart rates), rubber (naturally produced by a tree), fire hoses (in use much, much longer than you think), ancient plumbing systems (lead pipes, etc. . .), magnetic fields (of the earth and moon and how they interact), rape trauma syndrome (along with PTSD), ship construction, and most recently, spiders (give a spider caffeine and then watch it spin its web, heheh), gliders, hang gliding, and Otto Lilenthal.
Anyway, it's a lot of fun. Hopefully the end product is worth all the work I'm putting in. And good luck trying to figure out how all those subjects fit together:).
However, there is a certain disregard for the genre I choose to write in (fantasy). People think it's just a whole lot of flights-of-fancy and other useless drivel; that everything that goes into the story is just made up on the spot. They are so wrong! I am constantly researching real information that I need to make my story work, and it is a very fun and enlightening process. Here are some of the things that I can remember researching this year to feed the writing muse: alchemy, cannons, the human circulation system (focusing on heart rates), rubber (naturally produced by a tree), fire hoses (in use much, much longer than you think), ancient plumbing systems (lead pipes, etc. . .), magnetic fields (of the earth and moon and how they interact), rape trauma syndrome (along with PTSD), ship construction, and most recently, spiders (give a spider caffeine and then watch it spin its web, heheh), gliders, hang gliding, and Otto Lilenthal.
Anyway, it's a lot of fun. Hopefully the end product is worth all the work I'm putting in. And good luck trying to figure out how all those subjects fit together:).
Monday, September 12, 2011
For Those Who Were Lost
It's time for my first post of September. And I think it will be appropriate if a take a moment to honor those who lost their lives ten years ago yesterday. The11th of September, 2001 was a day seared into the memory of just about every American but myself. At the time I was isolated in Alaska (preparing for an LDS mission), and my mom mentioned that she had heard something about it on the radio--without all the drastic video coverage of the event, the tragedy largely passed me by. Since then I've seen a few photos, but that's about it.
It's strange to feel like the only person who doesn't have a 9/11 story to share. Yesterday there was a trend on Facebook for everybody to post where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. I can't do that. All I can do is mourn the victims and honor the heroes. God bless them and their surviving kin. And God bless America.
It's strange to feel like the only person who doesn't have a 9/11 story to share. Yesterday there was a trend on Facebook for everybody to post where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. I can't do that. All I can do is mourn the victims and honor the heroes. God bless them and their surviving kin. And God bless America.
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