Boy, do I have some Tales to Tell...
It's interesting how people have made customer service representatives their personal bitches/therapists. Does the average person in America really believe that instructors or cashiers really give a shit about their pointless lives? You may think that I am harsh to consider somebody's life pointless, but if you think about it, in the grand scheme of your own life, most problems of other's are exactly that - other's.
Does that women who takes my Body Sculpt class really think I care that she cannot lose the fat on the inside of her thighs? Do I really think her slightly chubby thighs warrant more than a disgusted look from me? Honestly, if you want advice on slimming your fat ass, then ask for it. Don't give me some sob story of having three kids and having no time in the world to exercise and how advertising & marketing has forced you to buy plus-sizes. Personally, I got my own problems to deal with. Jeez lady, take some responsibility for putting the spoon in your mouth and refusing to take your kids for long walks in the park. Maybe you should get them started on some sort of exercise program so that they don't end up as miserable as you.
Also, when you come into the wine store, don't ask us for our recommendations unless you plan on taking them. Pick your own fucking wine if you think you are so damn good. What is the point of asking a person to recommend something if you are not going to take their advice? Is it just for the sake of engaging the staff of the strore? Well, let me tell you, we do not want to be engaged. We want to ring you up and send you home.
I baffles me that as a society, America has become lazy, complacent, and irresponsible. We refuse to take responsibility for our actions. We want somebody to do it for us so that we can blame them for our failures. The holiday season is especially rife with such behavior. We cram into trains and highways, bitch as loudly as we can, and create tension and strife for others, all so that we can partake in some pointless tradition so that we can feel good about ourselves. I for one have taken myself out of it and have chosen to celbrate and be thankful for my friends and family on my terms. Mostly on days that nobody expects me to. If you really want to show your thankfulness and love for someone, do it when they least expect it. That is if you really are thankful and if you really do care. Later.
My first job at a gym was being a Front Desk Receptionist. And since I was the newest staff in the gym, I was given the most coveted shift of 5:30am-1:30pm. Now, you are probably thinking, "How the hell does one even wake up at that time let alone go to the gym to work out?!?!?!" Well, I am here to say that every morning, there was a line of 15 to 20 people waiting for the gym to open at 6:00am. The line of people was not exactly the issue. Neither was the fact that I had to wake up at 5:00am to get to work. The issue was the schizophrenic, neurotic, obsessive, compulsive, anorexic woman who would show up at 5:30am to stand in line.
Now, it would be perfectly fine if all she did was stand in line and wait for me to open the gym at 6:00am. But NOOOOOO! Ms. Electric Blue would arrive in her electric blue unitard and knock on the door to ask me what time it was. She would continue to do this every 5 minutes. Occasionally, she would tell me that the other staff let her in early so that she could start her workout early. She would also ask to just come in because she was feeling cold standing outside waiting for the gym to open. She would continually do this while I was trying to get the place set up to open promptly at 6:00am.
After, about 2-3 weeks of her neuroses, I decided to take matters into my own hand. On a particularly crisp winter morning, at around 5:55am, she began pounding on the front door. There was a line of about 12 people waiting to get in. I looked up from my duties, threw a bunch of things I was carrying on the desk, walked to the front door, opened it, and stepped outside. In the most bitchy voice I could muster, I said, "If you continue to knock on this front door and interrupt me, I will not be able to accomplish my duties and will be forced to delay the opening of the club. Which means that all the people behind you will also not be able to come in from the cold because of your lack of patience. If you are cold, then go home and stay home until we open!" She was so horrified that I had yelled at her. The other members burst out in laughter so hard that she would have crawled up into a ball if she could.
She stopped knocking on the door for about a week. Then her neuroses kicked back in. But nevertheless, I got to yell at her. What I really should have done is kick her in the face. Alas, I can't do that since I have no idea where she is now. Later.
As I have said before, I tend to come across tons of diet/eating fads. Some of which have legitimate health benefits and some of which are legitimate health hazards. A lot of new "eating" advice is being geared towards the health benefits of foods that have been around forever and were once thought off as "not good for you".
For Example:
Red wine is good for the heart -
well, maybe. Studies do show various chemical compounds that help prolong cell life. Then, there is the big French fact that they have less heart problems but eat richer food. Well, I am here to say that red wine is not going to improve your health if you continue to introduce stress in your life. If you come into my wine store and are so stressed out over getting the red wine with the highest amount of Resveratrol (THE compound), then perhaps wine is not what you need.
Chocolate is good for the cardiovascular system -
not really. The oils in cocoa may have some health benefits in small doses but the amount of sugar in most chocolate consumed in the USA could give anyone a diabetic coma. Plus small amounts does not mean a king-size bag of M&M's. If you really want to do something to benefit your cardiovascular system, try doing some aerobic exercise. The walk to the store to pick up the Snicker's bar is not considered exercise.
Maybe a glass of red wine or a piece of chocolate can help your health. For me at least, these things help me destress and put me in a more positive frame of mind. Like all things in life, moderation is the key. But, if you ask me, not that you did, the real answer is alleviating stress from your life. Later.
Do you ever feel out of the loop? I certainly feel that right now. I don't even know what the hell is going on in the world. First, I didn't know that the Matrix was out or that Madonna published her new children's book or that Prince Charles is involved in a scandal of some sort. Next thing I hear is that we are still at war in Iraq. Now that is pathetic! Am I just stupid or am I working too hard?
My life seems to consist of working at the wine store, coming home to keep my dwelling in shape and spend time with my love, going to the gym to keep in shape, and teach a couple of classes every week. If I am not working out, I am selling wine or keeping my store in shape or crashing on the couch. I feel that I have no exposure to whatever is going on outside of my narrow focus. It really frustrates me that I don't do anything else.
I would be content to be able to work out a bit more but I can't even do that because I am at the store 55 hours per week. Arrrrggghhhh. Okay, I just needed to say that. Later.
After seeing the latest cover shot and pictures from Vanity Fair, I have to say that I am utterly
disgusted. It's an article on the gay explosion in Pop Culture. The pictures show various stars of "Queer TV", both reality and scripted, in various provocative and suggestive poses. Isn't it enough that as a gay man I am constantly being judged by my fellow gays? Our Gay Culture is excessively concerned as to whether one is thin enough, cute enough, tall enough, non-Asian enough, rich enough, fashionable enough, endowed enough, (insert vain descriptor) enough. Do I need the heterosexual world jumping onto that bandwagon?
With the latest Vanity Fair cover, every freakin' straight Middle American is going to start picturing all gays and lesbians as thin sex freaks who wear Gucci and use expensive beauty products. Of course, the questions they will be asking those of us who don't fit that mold is whether or not we really are gay. Great, now I have to spend more time justifying my preference for Fruit of the Loom briefs and Lubriderm lotion as my only beauty product.
I, for one, am sick of it all.
NO NO NO: we are all not skinny and muscular like the boys on that cover. All lesbians are not lipstick lesbians. Some of us DO shop at Old Navy on purpose. Most of us do not lounge around half-naked or in lingerie. An enormous number of us have love handles AND are balding. People please!!!!! Can I please have a neurotic, chubby, short, and poor queer on TV? Please?!?!?!?! If you can think of one, I will be at the gym working out. Later.
I am getting very old! After teaching step class last night, I noticed something was different. I noticed that my legs were feeling unusually tired. Specifically, I could feel my knee joints "asking" me to sit down. Since I had to teach an Abdominals and Sculpt class, I could not really sit down. During my Abs class, I decided to teach some lower back exercises. As I was demonstrating these, I felt my back. Not in a bad way but I felt myself working hard to lift off the floor.
Fast forward to this morning: My heel is screaming for mercy! Now, I have had a recurring heel probem aka Plantar Faciaitis. But even with this ailment, I continue to teach and workout. It hurt so much I decided to ice it this morning. I did still go to the gym to lift some weights but I am disappointed that I could not take a step class. Honestly, I decided to listen to my own advice and rest my injury.
Is that what getting old does to a person? Do your joints scream in pain because of exercises that you used to do without thinking twice? Do your muscles refuse to work as hard as they used to? Do you actually listen to your advice and give your body a chance to rest and heal? Does becoming wiser indicate becoming older? I am concerned. Later.
