An enjoyable Memorial Day

Today I open up with an apology for the poor quality of pictures so far in this blog. Turns out, I have been shooting in the smallest size with my phone.  Instead of posting low pixel images today, I have retained their small size, and from this point forward, there will be large, clear images displayed.

Fresh squeezed fruits and organic
vodka.

Lets start with drinking, there was too much of it last night.  To recap, we had: A primer minibar Jim Beam, some Organic Vodka and fresh juiced pineapple, mango and orange juice, and a bum beer later in the evening while in the studio.  I had the majority of the vodka, but Aynsley had a couple, and I offered one to our room mate.

This was pretty average for the days of the past, before starting the program, but it had been a month since the last time and assuming my metabolism is different now, it got me good.  Next thing I knew, I was making embarrassing remarks on Facebook.  That happens to be one of my main reasons for cutting back.

Today I feel groggy, but not so much hungover.  While considering this earlier today, at around 4:30, I decided to say "so what?" So I miss a day of productivity. It is true every day must count while achieving goals, but I also could use a rest day considering I am active every other day in my life. Today will likely be active as well, just not five a.m. active. At that hour, the sky is just beginning to get a hint of blue towards the east, and only the most diligent birds are shouting out their merit. I went back to sleep.

Just one of the beautifully carved
figures in the carousel.

We went to Lark Toys, and it had what seemed to be only the cleverest, higher quality toys in it, as well as a full sized custom carved Merry-Go-Round.  Our original intent was to meet up with some friends but something came up for them, so we returned home and I began stuffing a roast of bison with local Gouda and kielbasa.

One third of this meal was a failure.

Supposedly this turned out well, but I do not remember eating it. No photos either of it, which is a fault. Instead of that, I will go with a shot of the BBQ meal from the night before, which didn't have much of a place in yesterdays update. This was local garlic brats, with spring onions and bacon woven through them, all skewered  together.  Also on the grill was some halved Fennel, which was a bomb. It was mostly inedible, and what was soft enough to eat was terrible.  You take the good with the bad.  On the side was a bok choy slaw, thrown together with pickles, raisins, carrots, and some other bizarre ingredients that actually came together rather well.  Aynsley liked it, and that says a lot.

In studio news: It took almost 24 hours for the first coat of poly to be dry enough for a light sanding and second coat, which I applied to the plyrometric boxes last night.  I will examine my work today  to find as many faults as possible I can contribute to having been drinking.  It is assumed it will be ready for the third coat today, which will be a satin finish, as opposed to the glossy I have been applying as base coats.

There is a reason for this; the flatter the poly blend, the less strength it has as a protective sealant.  This is due to the flattening additive slightly diluting the mixture, they actually add flatness with an extra ingredient which is the only difference in the blends.  I want the surface to be flat, so the top coat will be satin.