Friday, December 07, 2007

The Rational a Rationale for Rationalizing

I caught myself cheating today. At the gym, while the attendant was in the toilet.

I was skipping recovery stations between machines.

How stupid is that? Like I'm at the gym for the good of the woman behind the counter instead of myself.

But in my defense, I was in a hurry. I had to get to the first showing of 'The Golden Compass" on opening day. I loved the books, which Joey Cavalieri recommended to me after Louise Simonson suggested them to him.

I knew going in that there was no way the movie could visually capture Philip Pullman's prose the same way my imagination did. But it was a valiant, engaging attempt. Nothing like an armored bear battle to fill an afternoon of playing hooky from paperwork.

Seems some are upset at the anti-organized-religion message of the "His Dark Materials" trilogy, of which "The Golden Compass" is Part 1. Yeah, and Aslan is just a friendly lion. Get over it, people, and let yourself enjoy the escapism.

3 comments:

Steven R. Stahl said...

Recovery stations? I recently began using weights machines after years of riding a recumbent bike and nothing else. The county fitness club doesn’t have recovery stations; there’s just a big room full of machines. I carry around a bottle of Diet Orange Sunkist pop.

Over a year ago, the amount of sweat I generate drastically decreased. That’s not a bad thing, I think, but how unusual is it? When I’m on a machine, I’ll do about 85 repetitions, lifting from 7550 pounds to 10,700 pounds total--that varies with the muscle group being worked. The exertion feels good. Maybe I’m an endorphins addict.

SRS

Marie Javins said...

I go to a really wimpy gym. It's all I can do to get myself to that one. I keep saying that when I manage to get to it 3x a week on a regular basis, I'll add yoga to the mix. And I keep not making it 3x a week.

Steven R. Stahl said...

Well, as long as you exercise in some fashion (walking, housework, mowing the lawn) regularly, and are in good health besides, I wouldn’t worry about meeting some self-imposed schedule. In my case, it’s easy to exercise because I reward myself by eating heartily afterwards. Having 1,000 calorie desserts can be habit-forming.

SRS