One of the things I'm doing while not POVing. Hasn't turned out yet, but
I did promise an update and ended up with this picture while playing 
around with a friend. Goal is a mock advertisement for some shorts 
another friend is making for me.

I've been trying to get in shape for the past few months for this 
advertisement, but have had a few setbacks[1]. So not quite there yet, 
but I do like to think I've reached above average for a 25yo[2]. Maybe 
in six months.

Excuse the mess; I'm remodeling the house as well.

This and other projects have stemmed from a conversation with my brother 
about the types of goals people in general (perhaps myself in 
particular) tend to choose. More on other projects and some details of 
this conversation later.

Dressed as a character from a friend's song (more on that later [or 
sooner] as well). Perhaps this is more how you had imagined I (a 
plebeian) would look, Andrel.

  -Shay


[1] No weights on the new rig and some failures when learning to combine
a new diet with my job's massive calorie requirements.

[2] I'm 36.

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That WIP looks good man, keep it up.

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Saul Luizaga wrote:
> That WIP looks good man, keep it up.

Thanks. One egg white at a time.

  -Shay

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Shay escreveu:
> Saul Luizaga wrote:
>> That WIP looks good man, keep it up.
> 
> Thanks. One egg white at a time.

I see beer is not an option... :P

-- 
a game sig: http://tinyurl.com/d3rxz9

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"Shay" <sha### [at] nonenone> wrote in message news:4ae0de5d@news.povray.org...
>
> I've been trying to get in shape for the past few months for this
> advertisement, but have had a few setbacks[1]. So not quite there yet,
> but I do like to think I've reached above average for a 25yo[2]. Maybe

I'm 41 as of yesterday.  I got myself into better shape about 5 years ago, 
but slowly, slowly, I've put the weight back on.  Oddly, this last summer, I 
was in the best bicycling shape that I've been in since... well, maybe the 
best in my life.  60, 70, 80 mile rides were a piece of cake.  But I was 
still almost 20 lbs heavier than 5 years ago.  No, it's not all muscle. 
Endurance sports/activities have always been where my interest lies.

I've realized that creating goals is basically what keeps me from becoming a 
couch potato.  But you can't simply create a goal.  It has to be something 
you have an interest in, or it becomes somewhat of an empty promise to 
yourself.  Saying, "I want to lose 10 lbs by September 1st" is different 
from saying, "I need to get in shape to ride my bike in the DALMAC* on Labor 
Day".  Finding goals like that is where I have most of my trouble.

Nevertheless, this motivates me to try harder in my own life.

*a 4 day ride from Lansing to the Mackinac Bridge.  325 miles.

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Shay <sha### [at] nonenone> wrote:

> ...  my job's massive calorie requirements ...
>

That's a phrase you don't see every day.

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On 23-10-2009 0:35, Shay wrote:
> Perhaps this is more how you had imagined I (a 
> plebeian) would look, Andrel.

I don't remember me calling you a plebeian. In as far as it would be 
implying that I am a patrician, that would be slightly out of character 
too.

I think I would originally have expected more tattoos and a few years 
more of life experience showing on the outside. It is hard to say, 
because my impression of your physical appearance changed as soon as I 
saw a picture and this is not the sort of thing my memory stores. Going 
back to the original e-mails is also a bit of a problem in this 
newsgroup (luckily).

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Jeremy "UncleHoot" Praay wrote:
> 
> I'm 41 as of yesterday.

Happy birthday.

> 
> I've realized that creating goals is basically what keeps me
> from becoming a couch potato.  But you can't simply create a
 > goal.  It has to be something you have an interest in, or it
> becomes somewhat of an empty promise to yourself.  Saying,
> "I want to lose 10 lbs by September 1st" is different from
> saying, "I need to get in shape to ride my bike in the DALMAC*
> on Labor Day".  Finding goals like that is where I have most
> of my trouble.

I'm just not results oriented. I may set out to lose ten pounds or bike 
in the DALMAC, but I'll do so because I want the challenge, not because 
I care about the ten pounds.

Seems like a common trait around here. How many of us have spent weeks 
working on a POV-Ray picture only to all but forget about it the moment 
it's complete?

So, that's one part of it; I want to experiment with /wanting/ a result. 
That's a bit tough for me as I am content by nature, so the best goal I 
can muster for working out is a joke picture. But working towards a 
punchline still provides a different mindset than working out for its 
own sake.

Another thing I want to try relates to a quote I cannot remember clearly 
enough to find online. Something along the lines of "Keep doing what 
you're good at until you become great at it." Sounds obvious, but it's 
sure boring. Boring for the same reason that chess became boring after 
the first 100 games: 95% of any match became automatic and the winning 
or losing lay in only 5%. It sucks to be so familiar with the 
limitations, but discovering those limitations over and over is 
"unproductive."

I don't really mind being unproductive, but I'm curious how it feels to 
do things the other way. Maybe I won't like it and I'll go right back to 
reinventing the wheel -- it's worked for me so far.

  -Shay

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On 26-10-2009 1:42, Shay wrote:
> Jeremy "UncleHoot" Praay wrote:
>>
>> I'm 41 as of yesterday.
> 
> Happy birthday.

Thanks. Oh, it wasn't directed to me. (47 today)

>>
>> I've realized that creating goals is basically what keeps me
>> from becoming a couch potato.  But you can't simply create a
>  > goal.  It has to be something you have an interest in, or it
>> becomes somewhat of an empty promise to yourself.  Saying,
>> "I want to lose 10 lbs by September 1st" is different from
>> saying, "I need to get in shape to ride my bike in the DALMAC*
>> on Labor Day".  Finding goals like that is where I have most
>> of my trouble.
> 
> I'm just not results oriented. I may set out to lose ten pounds or bike 
> in the DALMAC, but I'll do so because I want the challenge, not because 
> I care about the ten pounds.
> 
> Seems like a common trait around here. How many of us have spent weeks 
> working on a POV-Ray picture only to all but forget about it the moment 
> it's complete?
> 
> So, that's one part of it; I want to experiment with /wanting/ a result. 
> That's a bit tough for me as I am content by nature, so the best goal I 
> can muster for working out is a joke picture. But working towards a 
> punchline still provides a different mindset than working out for its 
> own sake.
> 
> Another thing I want to try relates to a quote I cannot remember clearly 
> enough to find online. Something along the lines of "Keep doing what 
> you're good at until you become great at it." Sounds obvious, but it's 
> sure boring. Boring for the same reason that chess became boring after 
> the first 100 games: 95% of any match became automatic and the winning 
> or losing lay in only 5%. It sucks to be so familiar with the 
> limitations, but discovering those limitations over and over is 
> "unproductive."
> 
> I don't really mind being unproductive, but I'm curious how it feels to 
> do things the other way. Maybe I won't like it and I'll go right back to 
> reinventing the wheel -- it's worked for me so far.

Some of those wheels may have been more like balls. Anyway, are you sure 
other people feel the same way about you being unproductive?

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andrel wrote:
 > On 26-10-2009 1:42, Shay wrote:
 >> Jeremy "UncleHoot" Praay wrote:
 >>>
 >>> I'm 41 as of yesterday.
 >>
 >> Happy birthday.
 >
 > Thanks. Oh, it wasn't directed to me. (47 today)

Happy birthday to you, Andrel.

 >
 > Some of those wheels may have been more like balls. Anyway,
 > are you sure other people feel the same way about you being
 > unproductive?

A matter of perspective. I have a very good analogy in mind.

My uncle creates custom carpentry. Today he'll build a chair, tomorrow a 
door, and next week a roll-top desk. He is able to apply his aptitudes 
and experience to each of these projects and produce an acceptable 
number of quality pieces. As remuneration for this production, he 
receives a nice living along with challenge and satisfaction for himself.

However, having one day spent six hours on a single custom chair, he 
could the next day produce ten identical chairs in the same amount of 
time. This would be less challenging and produce less job satisfaction 
but would bring him other, more tangible rewards ($$$$, more time with 
his wife).

There are rewards for doing and rewards for having done. I find the 
former more appealing, but do recognize that the rewards for doing 
evaporate the moment the doing is complete and (perhaps more 
importantly) that the rewards for doing are not easily shared with 
others. I suspect I will always prefer the rewards for doing, but am 
curious to experience the rewards for having done.

  -Shay

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