Man oh man, work has been sucking big time. I try not to care enough to get drawn into controversy, but damn it, some things just demand that you take a stand. So I do, people get pissed, but then we move forward and get things done. Progress!
Finding comfort in a gin and soda after a particularly fucked up day at the office.
It was a quiet night at Shenanigans so I set about entertaining myself by arranging a grudge dart match between the two bartenders.
Nuri on the left representing Kyrgyzstan and Sonya on the right from Mongolia.
I scored the match. Nuri had the better darts, but I enjoyed Sonya’s expletives…
To the victor goes the spoils…
I guess it was the element of surprise…
Meanwhile, spring has sprung as evidenced by the blooming of the gaenalee blossoms…
the purple magnolia…
these…
…and a park that hasn’t been impeached!
I’m not sure what the significance is of an open umbrella in a vacant lot, but it spoke to me somehow.
Hurry sundown!
It’s HUGE!
Almost as huge as today’s walk.
Best of all, I didn’t need to use my inhaler at all today. Let’s hope that’s the beginning of a trend.
Hey you! out there in the cold
Getting lonely, getting old, can you feel me
Hey you! Standing in the aisles
With itchy feet and fading smiles, can you feel me
Hey you! don’t help them to bury the light
Don’t give in without a fight.
Hey you! out there on your own
sitting naked by the phone would you touch me
Hey you! with your ear against the wall
Waiting for someone to call out would you touch me
Hey you! would you help me to carry the stone
Open your heart, I’m coming home
But it was only a fantasy
The wall was too high as you can see
No matter how he tried he could not break free
And the worms ate into his brain.
Hey you! out there on the road
Always doing what you’re told, can you help me
Hey you! out there beyond the wall
Breaking bottles in the hall, can you help me
Hey you! don’t tell me there’s no hope at all
Together we stand, divided we fall.
Sorry to hear about the bad day(s), but congrats on a good walk. I did 21K steps tonight; will soon be lengthening my walks as my departure date gets closer.
I like all the numbers on your pedometer’s readout except for the calories. Alas, I have to call BS on over 4000 calories burned. An average person normally burns about 100 calories per mile walked, plus or minus 20 calories (see here). I certainly believe that you walked 12.3 miles because I’ve done that sort of walk myself, but I’d put your caloric expenditure at around 1200-1300 calories, tops.
Unless your pedometer is giving you a gross daily figure…? That might actually make sense: if you’re burning close to 3000 calories per day as part of your basal metabolic rate, a total of 4000+ calories would indicate over a thousand calories specifically burned through exercise. Is there a way to check on how your pedometer is measuring caloric burn?
Kevin, yes they Fitbit does an overall measurement, not just during activity. When I set it up I put in all the demographic info (age, weight, etc) and the calories burned are for the 24 hour period. It does the same thing with sleep and heart rate measurements.
I can’t attest that it is 100% accurate, but it is a consistent baseline standard from which to measure progress. I’m actually a big Fitbit fan.
Oh, and about the walk, it was also spread out over the day. Walk to work, walk at lunch, a long walk home. I’d have a hard time doing that many steps all at once like you are doing.
Have you guys considered?:
mapmyride.com (you can drill down & track your specific activity)
myfitnesspal.com (comprehensive food log data base and tracking)
They interface with each other and the calorie expenditures according to activity seem to jive with real expectations. Not sure how this will work in the ROK.
John,
About 75% of my walk gets done all at once, but the remaining 25% is done in bits and pieces earlier in the day: I take three mini-walks per day with my coworker during business hours. Each of those walks is good for about 1200 steps. Add another 1200-ish steps for the walking I do to get to work, and that’s nearly 5000 steps before I even set out on my big walk in the evening.
Starting maybe next week, I have to do my old, long route: the 33-staircase route along the Yangjae creek that amounts to around five hours’ schlepping. I need to be up around 5AM and on the road by 5:30. I start work late and end late in the day, so getting back home around 10:30AM, then showering and going to work, won’t be a problem. Those walks will bump my step count back over the 30K-step mark. It’s been a while since I walked that long and far, but a man’s gotta practice if he’s gonna do 600 kilometers.
Well, you sound motivated and that is the *ahem* hardest step…
Curtis,
I’ve consulted My Fitness Pal for calorie counts. It does indeed have a surprisingly comprehensive library of food, including Korean food—often specifying a brand name (like Ottogi, etc.). I once tried Map My Ride, but had bad luck with it. I suppose one’s mileage may vary. All in all, I’m OK with the Samsung pedometer I have; it serves my admittedly limited needs.