Whatever happened to Benjamin Ragheb?

I bought a new hoodie and sweatpants today, in order to have warm clothes for running. Since I declared my intention to start running again, I have yet to actually do it. Though I deserve no congratulations for merely purchasing an outfit, these sorts of things do make a difference. It’s cold out and getting colder, and having something warm to wear makes for one fewer excuse to go out there. The remaining excuse is that I’m still away from home with my family on Thanksgiving vacation.

It’s easy to become extremely guilty about food during a holiday like this, but I think that is counterproductive. It’s a holiday about food, and in my family, like many others, food is an expression of love, and turning down food is nearly impossible. So I enjoy it, don’t worry about it, and remember that a few days of excess aren’t important in the grand scheme of things. What’s more important is what I do on the unimportant days, when there is no special occasion to stop me from eating right or getting exercise.

Also important: not making up reasons to make the unimportant days important.

Now, here’s a vaguely relevant quotation from a CalorieLab post about a study correlating weight with sexual activity:

The researchers note that in contrast to the women’s numbers, studies have found that normal-weight men report 10 more lifetime sexual partners than obese men. The researchers speculate that either men in general have to stay in fitter condition to attract partners than women do, which sort of makes sense, or normal-BMI men are inclined to exaggerate their number of partners, while normal-BMI women are inclined to understate theirs, which sort of doesn’t.

In celebration of Thanksgiving (and in recognition of the global financial crisis), FatWatch’s price has been cut in half! Get the most advanced weight tracker on your iPhone or iPod touch for only $4.99. Hurry while supplies last!

I’m getting ready to release an update soon. It will include some interface enhancements (e.g. a larger note field) and optional BMI calculation.

The Apiary interviewed Alan and me about being in an indie improv team. The Apiary describes itself as “kinda like the US Weekly of NYC comedy”, although I think it really ought to publish more community gossip to live up to that comparison.

I should be sleeping.  I’m not sleeping because I should be packing.  I don’t know why I’m not packing.  In a few hours I’m boarding a train to Pittsburgh to visit my family for Thanksgiving.

I’m very unhappy with my weight.  Tracking my weight daily for over two years means I am aware that I am slowly getting fatter, even when it is otherwise imperceptible.  I started at 211 in the winter of 2006 and by the summer of 2007 I reached a low point of 174.  Now I am at 190, closer to my high point than my low.

I’ve been trying to find convenient ways to exercise, but today I’ve more or less decided that I need to start running again.  I need to buy some clothes that are good for running in cold weather.  I need to set out those clothes before I go to bed.  I need to go running as soon as I wake up in the morning.  I need to stop making quiet resolutions and boldly attack the problem.

Also:

Kevin wasn’t available to coach Fat Penguin this week, so we hired Ben Whitehouse and Frank Spitznagel to run a musical improv workshop instead.  When I saw my first musical improv class show, my initial thought was “that’s not for me”, but the workshop was so much fun that I am more or less ready to sign up for a class now.  You win, Alan.

And:

I feel like I have been whiny and/or self-pitying in a lot of conversations lately.  Enough that even I’m tired of listening to myself.  Also, sometimes I’ve been unintentionally derailing conversations because, for the sake of participating, I will tell a loosely related story about myself that doesn’t really lead back to the original conversation topic.  If you’ve noticed any of this, please accept my apologies.

And:

I spent about a half hour composing this post.