Yosemite

After my trip to the Reagan museum I drove north to see friends in Fresno. The city itself has fairly little to show for, but it's less than two hours from lovely Yosemite National Park. Tuesday evening I had dinner with my old friend Roslyn, her hubby Rob and a couple of their friends. I also got to meet Roz' dog Jackson, a friendly little Pomeranian.

Wednesday we drove up to Yosemite and the trip was made extra super special cool by the fact that Roz brought a couple of walkie talkies so we could stay in touch during the drive. I felt like a kid again, and we had fun with various codes like "roger", "over" and the immortal "10-4". At the park entrance I bought the $80 annual pass that gives me free access to all federal parks and monuments through June 2010.

We started out with a 1.6 mile walk at Mariposa Grove to see some Redwoods. Daymn, them things are big. Here I am in front of a fallen tree (no, I didn't lean on it, it was that way when I got there, I swear!) the sunlight makes it look like I'm some kind of armless, radiating alien...


Roz and Rob, perfect hosts throughout


Famous view of several well known mountains. I believe the granite thingy on the left is called El Capitan, the jagged top in the distance is Half Dome and the waterfall is Bridalveil Fall. Very, very purdy.


Down in the bottom of the valley we had lunch (Roz had packed a huge cooler full of all sortsa goodies), and we were soon surrounded by some local wildlife. This little fella was very strategic, he went around to all newcomers and tried to look cute.


Famous and purdy Tuolumne Meadows


I took lots more pictures, you can find the rest here.

The Gipper

Tuesday morning I drove up to Simi Valley, to the Ronald Reagan presidential library & museum. I was interested in politics and history from an early age, and RR was inaugurated a few days short of my tenth birthday, so he was the prez through most of my "formative years". To us on the right (in both senses of the word - nyah, nyah) he became an icon for his vision of a free economy and a free world and his enormously important part in bringing down Soviet communism.

As always with politics and history, realities and facts are more complex than the cardboard image we usually make of our heroes and enemies, and of course there are things one can legitimately critize Reagan for, also from my side of the political spectrum. But he was, by and large, the right man at that point in history and his ability to communicate the eternal truth of freedom is unsurpassed in modern times. Young people need someone to look up to and Reagan was my hero, that's just how it was.

The museum lies on top of a hillside, with great views over the Simi Valley. The admission price is a steep $12, but I advise you also get the $5 audio guide. It's definitely worth it. Inside you'll find information about Reagan's life from childhood, his college years and his early work as a radio presenter, actor and budding politician. There's a lot about his time as California governor and of course his presidency. They have a full scale replica of the Oval office and the piece de resistance is of course the actual Air Force One used from 1973 till 2001. It is surprisingly small, I gather the current one is quite a bit larger.

Afterwards I went outside, to see the memorial garden and the actual gravesite. Again the views are stunning here; this part of California looks like Tuscany on steroids. It is a very fitting resting place for the great man who loved this landscape and spent so much of his spare time enjoying the scenery of this beautiful state. I get a lump in my throat just thinking about it now. RIP, Gipper. You earned it.


Air Force One and Marine One:


Now tell me if this doesn't look like Tuscany...


The Oval Office and a statue of RR at the museum entrance.


The memorial garden.


The gravesite.


All RR library pics here.

What a long, strange trip it was

Aight, biatches! Time for an update from your traveling hero!

Quick recap: I bought a cheap ticket to Los Angeles by way of Philadelphia with US Airways. I'm driving around the western US for 30 days.

First a few words on the flight... The plane was surprisingly small, a regular size thingy with just three seats on each side of the aisle. I'm not sure if it was the pilots or the control tower who fucked up, but we were almost an hour late out of Oslo due to a runway mixup. There was very little entertainment on board - just some TV screens in the ceiling, and you had to pay $5 to get a headset. The movie was called "The Bride Wars" or something equally stupid, and from what I saw I made the right decision by saving my money.

I was initially placed next to a woman with a young kid and a baby who could probably make good money as the next face of Duracell. Some passengers traveling in groups had been scattered all over the plane, and there were several requests for changing seats. I eagerly volunteered to move as the Mother Unit next to me was cranking up the noise level of her little energizer bunny by engaging the little snot magnet in a loud, long game of peekaboo. To my astonishment my wish was granted, but universal balance was seemingly restored when I realized I was being moved to the seat right next to the toilets. This did prove to be a nuisance throughout, but not as bad as I had feared.

Fortunately I was seated next to two nice Norwegian girls in their 20s, who were also on their way to LA for a road trip. They were sadly unprepared for the trip, and with only the vaguest grasp of American geography. Little did they know who they were sitting next to... they soon realized I knew my shit, and were asking me all kinds of stuff and refering to me as their "google". Hero status was sealed when I gave them a couple of chocolates from the mountain I had bought at the airport.

We were worried about making our connecting flight to LA, but things went smooth in Philly and we actually landed at LAX 40 minutes early, wheeeeeeeee! On a side note, I should like to state that I can't understand those who bitch and complain about how terrible procedures have become in the US after 9/11. I've traveled here three times since then and Immigration and Customs officers have been nothing but polite, friendly and efficient. The guys at Philly were very nice, and we had a brief but fun chat during the procedures.

Sadly, the time gained at LAX was lost again at Dollar (the rental car company), where using the term "glacial speed" for comparison would be a libelous insult to glaciers. The original car I'd booked from Norway did not have cruise control and automatic transmission, and the upgrade, with taxes, cost me something like $280. In addition something so basic as 24 hour road assistance was an extra, which I chose not to take. There was something amateurish about the whole operation, and this will be the last time ever that I rent from Dollar, and it will be the last time ever that I rent through a Norwegian intermediary.

Numbers

Ok, let's start on a happy note, this is my post #400, wheeeeee!

Numbers this morning, just before I head out to LA... 120,1kg, slightly down from last week. I am fearful of what will happen on this trip, since I know from experience how easy it is to overeat and not get enough exercise when you're on holiday and the US is of course the holy grail of vice in that respect. Still, I'm hoping to get in quite a bit walking in all those museums and national parks I'm going to, so maybe it won't be a total pigfest after all.

Ok, I dunno how often I'll be able to update while in the US. I would like to post pics and stories almost daily, and I'll try to read email often, but this IS a holiday after all. I've made some slight adjustments to the final itinerary, we'll see how final it turns out to be once I get going...

See ya'll latah!

Free, free, freeeeeee

Ahhhh... yesterday was graduation day, so now my life is comparatively teenager free until mid August, praise Jebus. Yesterday afternoon was spent at a garden party at the US Ambassador's residence (yes, I am a man of some standing) where I happily stuffed my face on free hamburgers and chatted with other wannabe yankees (and a few real ones).

This weekend is going to be a long, slow countdown till I leave for California on Monday. Tick-tock, tick-tock. Argh.

Still... FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Numbers

Just realized I forgot to post yesterday - 120,8 kg, again essentially the same as last week.

Final itinerary

Methinks this will be the final itinerary for the US trip... I've had some good suggestions from you readers (both of you), and there are things I will definitely try to get in the next time I'm over, but time and money is scarce and I have to make some choices. Anyways, here goes.

Updated June 9: Today I discovered I'd booked the three nights in Portland for the wrong month. This tipped the scales so now I'm only spending one night there and venturing deeper inside Washington instead. Meh.

Updated June 22: Made a final adjustment, going as far north as Seattle...

June
22 Oslo - Philadelphia - Los Angeles - Thousand Oaks
23 Thousand Oakes - Simi Valley (Reagan Library) - Fresno
24 Fresno - Yosemite National Park - Mammoth Lakes
25 Mammoth Lakes - Yreka
26 Yreka - Portland
27 Portland (various sights and activites) - Olympia
28 Olympia - Seattle - Pendleton
29 Pendleton - Baker City (Ontario Trail museum) - Ontario
30 Ontario - Craters of the Moon - Pocatello
July
01 Pocatello - Jackson - Grand Teton Nat. Park - Yellowstone - Cody
02 Cody and Yellowstone
03 Cody - Red Lodge - Billings
04 Billings - Little Big Horn battlefield - Buffalo
05 Buffalo - Devils Tower - Deadwood - Rapid City
06 Rapid City (Black Hills, Mt Rushmore, Badlands)
07 Rapid City (Wall, Cactus Flat, Wounded Knee)
08 Rapid City - Alliance - Scottsbluff - Fort Collins
09 Fort Collins - Laramie - Medicine Bow - Ft Collins
10 Fort Collins - Lookout (Buffalo Bill’s grave) - Green River
11 Green River - Arches National Park - Green River
12 Green River - Ely NV
13 Ely - Carson City
14 Carson City - Lake Tahoe - Fresno
15 Fresno (this could change into a trip to Palm Springs/Joshua Tree Nat.Pk)
16 Fresno - San Diego
17 San Diego - Flagstaff
18 Flagstaff (Grand Canyon tour)
19 Flagstaff - Las Vegas
20 Las Vegas - San Diego
21 San Diego - LA
22 LA - Philadelphia - Oslo

Numbers

Today: 120,2 kg - essentially unchanged from last week. Meh.

Numbers

This morning: 120,3 kg - down 2 kg from last week. I rock.

Numbers

This morning: 122,2kg, which is down 1kg from last week. Still need to accelerate if I am to reach what should have been a very realistic 115kg before I head for the US on June 22. Damn you, Scottish beef! Damn you, cold & fever! And damn you readers for not doing your job of heaping abuse on me!

Numbers

Ok, bitches - where's your abuse now that I need it? Clocked in at 123,3kg today, up 3 kg in one week. I'm not paying you to sit around idly and watch me balloon (actually I'm not paying you at all, but you get my drift) so have at it in the comments!

Scotland summary

I came down with a cold the day after I got back from Scotland (I felt it coming during the weekend), and I know precisely what set it off - walking around Stirling Castle Thursday without a functioning umbrella. Fucker got blown to pieces, and by the time I'd reached the souvenir shop to purchase a new, I was already drenched.

I think I managed to convince my colleagues of the virtues of the Castle, and afterwards most of us went up and climbed the Wallace monument - the weather had improved a bit by then. Later Thursday we had dinner at a TGI-wannabe called Papa Joe's, and it was quite good. Cheaper than TGI, yet with plentiful and good food.

Friday morning most of the wimminses went shopping (bah!), or left early for Edinburgh, while the two other guys and one brave woman went with me out to Doune Castle. I was happy to see that they liked the place for the same reasons I did - all its nooks and crannies, which give the place a sense of adventure, and of being bigger than it actually is.

Around noon we took the train from Stirling to Edinburgh, and on board I got a wee lesson in Scots English. Sweet Jebus, what those people DO to their wovels. The conductor came into the carriage and started shouting something and I could have sworn he was going on about "bay corners". I believe his exact words, as perceived by my ears went something like "Mumble, mumble Bay Corners! BAY CORNERS! mumble, mumble". It gradually dawned on me that what he was in fact shouting was "bike owners"... apparently there were some bikes blocking an emergency exit, and he wanted them removed.

In Edinburgh we walked from the station through pouring rain till we found a very nice place to have lunch. I believe it was called The Dome Garden, it's in Rose Street (a pedestrian street parallel to Princes Street), down some steps. Good, plentiful food and very friendly staff. We had the Dutch waitress in stitches most of the time, anyway.

We had rented an apartment not 100 meters from the Royal Mile, and it was quite a nice place. If you're traveling in a large group, apartments are often the way to go, and if you're there for some time you may be able to save a little on food - though part of the fun of traveling is of course going out for dinner. The place was right next to the cemetary where Adam Smith is buried, and as soon as I get the pics from my colleagues I'll post a funny little story about our visit there. We spent both evenings in a pub just up the street, I believe it was called Tass. They had some folk music on Friday, though nothing I recognised, while Saturday they had a couple of guys doing mostly 50s and 60s pop - good fun.

On Saturday three of us went up to Edinburgh Castle (due to my membership in Historic Scotland it was all free, free, free and we also avoided the ticket lines, muahaha) and took in the marvelous views over Edinburgh, which is surely one of the prettiest cities in the world. We strolled through the Scottish National War Memorial, then got a quick history talk in the Great Hall. Afterwards we walked down to Grassmarket, where I bought some gifts in a tiny, second hand bookshop, then up to Grayfriars, where we lunched and then back to the Mile again.

Sunday we had a hell of a time finding a cab and getting out of the city, since they were having a marathon, and most of the centre was closed for traffic. Bastards. Anyways, I think I was able to pass on some of my enthusiasm and love for Scotland to my colleagues on this trip, and I'm already looking forward to my next adventure. I'll have to see how much money I have left after the US trip this summer, but maybe I'll take 8-10 days there in October. There's still soooo much to see and do... still no awa ta bide awa!

Numbers

Today: 120,4 kg - essentially the same as two weeks ago, before I went to Scotland. Last week was lazy, since the blasted Scottish weather gave me a cold (I'm still snotty), but I hope to start biking again this week... I just can't be bothered when I have a fever.

Quiz

It's been a long time since my last proper photo quiz, so when I saw this pic I thought it was time to have a go again.

The person in this picture looks an awful lot like:

1) Gordon Brown, Prime Minister of the UK
2) A creepy, middle aged businessman in a disco in the seediest parts of Bangkok at 3am.
3) The love child of Fred Flintstone and anything that would mate with Fred Flintstone
4) All of the above

Stirling I

Ahhhh... I'm back in Stirling again, this time with nine colleagues. We arrived last evening, and I promptly headed up to the Settle Inn, where there's a folk music jam session every Wednesday. When we got there, we found out the place was "under new management", and what a cunt he must be, cuz the folk music nights had been abandoned. Fortunately, they'd simply moved next door, to the pub Whistlebinkies. It has more space, nicer staff and the music was every bit as foot-stomping as when I was here last October.

I recognized quite a few people from last time, and eventually some recognized me too (after I'd joined in the singing...). There was a new guy there with a contrabass he was pluckin' and not only did he ask if I sang professionally, as an added bonus he thought ah wuz 'merican. Wooo hooo!

Towards the end I got in a couple of songs of my own, and we rounded it off with me singing lead on Fields of Athenry (just like last time), to the point where even the waitress put down her work and just sat down to listen. It was effin awesome, people. I didn't bring my camera, but I know several of my colleagues did, so I hope to post some shots here eventually.

Today we're going up to Stirling Castle, and then maybe to the Wallace monument (not sure if I can be bothered, as it's pouring down outside). Later tonight I hope we can hunt down another pub with live folk music...

Gran Torino

Just got back from seeing Gran Torino, and I think I saw a fairly accurate portrait of myself 35-40 years from now. Also, I'm thinking about legally changing my name to Walt Kowalski. This is the best movie I've seen in years.

(PS: I saw "Knowing" Monday and what a load of rubbish that was. I don't know how many trucks you could drive through the holes in the plot, but buying them would be enough to save General Motors.)

Numbers

120,3 - essentially the same as last week... I'm in Scotland with colleagues Wednesday-Sunday. A miracle if I don't put on anything... Scottish beef... mmmmm....

Prague roundup

Tuesday I visited a Czech friend of mine who's really into Australian Shepherd dogs. Her dog had five puppies in February and they were running all over the apartment, sniffing, nibling and chewing on everything, including my feet and fingers. Very, very adorable.

In a rare quiet moment...


Of all the lovely things to see in Prague, I think maybe my favorite area is Mala Strana - The Little Quarter. Cozy streets and buildings abound, museums, cafes, squares etc, etc. Just GO there, mmmkay?

You can find all my Prague pics here, but I'll leave you with a small selection of Mala Strana purdiness:





I was especially happy with this pic, from the John Lennon memorial wall (I have no idea who the kid is, it just seemed like a good image)


I love it when a hostel goes the extra mile for its customers - even so far as to humiliate their employees by forcing them to wear bunny ears all through Easter. Bwahahaha!


Finally, my Chinese crew, who I hung out with the two last nights I was there. They study in Sweden and Germany, very nice kids. They thought I looked like Buddha; I chose to regard this as a good thing.

Post-Prague numbers

As feared, I gained some weight in Prague - more than I should have, since I was sick for most of the time and didn't feel like walking around much. Eating and sleeping is a bad combination...

Anyways, last Tuesday, the day after I came back, I weighed in at a hefty 124,5 kg. Amazingly I've lost over 4 kg in less than a week (I still haven't started exercising again!), and weighed in at 120,2 kg this morning.

From this I draw two conclusions; one good and one bad:
1) It's difficult to eat right while on holiday
2) It seems relatively easy to lose recently gained weight

Today I'll start on the daily biking again, next week's numbers will be interesting.

Me and Maddy

There's a new woman in my life.

Her name is Madeleine and she's white. Madeleine is high maintenance; she craves constant attention and can get quite loud and bitchy when she doesn't get it. She likes nuts and fruits and baths. She also likes to nibble my fingers.

Madeleine is an Umbrella Cockatoo (no, that's not Cajun for slut) and she is to be found in a cage at the cafe just down the street from my hostel here in Prague. I read up a bit about these birds on Wiki and she seems to fit the description just fine. Very sociable, intelligent and curious but also demanding and noisy if she doesn't get her way. I know the staff often has to pull a tablecloth over the cage to shut her up.

I'm not a good imitator of bird sounds per se, but I have this one sound I can make pretty well - sort of like a cross between a sparrow and a dolphin... anyway, when I started making it, the bird stopped cold and raised the feather crest on top of her head. According to Wiki this is something they do when they're surprised. Can't say I blame her.

Madeleine giving me her wtf-look



Another thing I read about these birds is that they can apparently sense rythm. I don't know if it was just her way of trying to get attention, but I did observe Madeleine swaying to the beat several times when there was some kind of dance music on. She had more groove than me anyway...

A modest proposal

Now that several civilized nations already have troops both in Iraq and outside Somalia, would it be too much to ask for a quick, surgical black-op against this judge?

A less modest, though by no means less desirable proposal in the eyes of yours truly, would of course be to go in full force, guns blazing and execute the whole Saudi royal family and every single member of the Saudi clergy, religious police, religious school system, etc, etc... you get my drift.

I've always found it apalling that there is not more outrage in the civilized world against the oppression and inhumanity prevalent in most Arab countries, Saudi Arabia foremost among them. This is 2009. If a western citizen treated his dog the way the Saudis treat their women, he'd be in jail. We shouldn't sit idly by and watch this anymore, not when we have the military means to wipe out these fuckers in short time.

Some more pics

From the industrial expo/amusement park site at Holesovice, very close to my hotel. I really went in there to see a museum with statues, but typical of my luck, it was closed "due to technical reasons". No word on when it would open again.



This huge fucker goes around and around with downright frightening speed, and the passenger capsules turn around in the air. Argh.


Sweet Jebus, that carousel thingy in the back was high above the ground.


The Old Town and Josefov seen from Letna Park.


View towards Mala Strana and Petrin hill (with the tower). There's a monorail going up the hill, with a restaurant about 2/3 of the way up. Great views from up there.

Bless Google

I bought a cough remedy at a Czech pharmacy a couple of days ago, but the instructions were all in Czech and I'd forgotten it completely until I almost coughed up my lungs last night. It took me a couple of days, but I finally came up with the bright idea of googling the medication and then use the translation service to get instructions. It worked like a dream, so now I'm coughing slightly less... I may even make it home alive (sorry folks).

Quick update

Had precious little sleep last night, coughing, sneezing and generally feeling very sorry for myself. Managed to get in a little walking yesterday, in Mala Strana. Spent the evening at the bar again, most of it in conversation with a strange, but funny Korean girl who had a thing for British swearwords. The bartender was called a twat, a cunt and a wanker every other minute, while I mostly escaped the abuse, largely because I'd given her a spare breakfast voucher. We actually had a good time, it was just one of those nights where everyone's tired and everything, no matter how inane, gives you the giggles.

A few pics from beautiful Prague...

Josefov, the old Jewish quarter has tons of pretty streets and buildings.


From Old Town Square, where they had an Easter market


Yes, we all know why we celebrate Easter: To commemorate the poor, fluffy, yellow toy chicken that was cruelly hung from an iron bar by a steel wire for the sake of our sins. I swear, sometimes I don't understand the Czechs at all...

I'm cursed

Come down with a slight cold... sore throat and a little fever. Fuck fuckety fuck.

Had very lazy days Sunday and Monday (the Kraut group finally left Monday morning, and an unusual calm descended upon the hotel). Finally got a full night's sleep and didn't feel too shabby this morning, so I went to the National Technological Museum, which of course was closed until 20fuckin10. So instead I embarked on the 45 minute walk through Letna park to Prague Castle.

It's been real nice and sunny today, and I was sweating like a pig the whole way. Lots of people outside, strollers, dogs, the whole bourgeois fantasy out in full force. I was lucky enough to find the last available table at the terrace cafe by the eastern entrance to the castle and anticipated a nice (if pricey) lunch, with great views over the Mala Strana district. My luck lasted less than 30 seconds.

I don't know what it is with me and Germans, really I don't. I don't know why these sauerkraut-gobbling, tuba-molesting beerguzzlers feel the need to fuck up my world every chance they get, but fuck it up they do. I'd perused the menu for maybe all of ten seconds when my table -and mine alone - was surrounded by a dozen Krauts and their guide, the latter pointing and explaining out over the city, the former cackling and pushing and shoving, all of them utterly oblivious to the fact that someone was actually sitting at the table they were crowding.

After a couple of noisy, unpleasant minutes they left, only to be replaced by a middleaged German couple who were seated next to me (I couldn't in good conscience try to grab four seats for myself, not even with my belly). By faking deafness, muteness and utter incomprehension of any and all Indoeuropean languages I managed to keep the conversation to a minimum. I don't really speak any German, but I was able to make out that they had a disagreement towards the end over how much to tip. The bitch was clearly being niggardly (no, that's not Cajun for African-American) while hubby seemed to have figured out how little money they were actually looking at in Euros. As a final adding of insult to injury, I was afterwards presented with a bill that contained two items of theirs. GAWD!

Suggestion to the world's tourist industries: Now that pretty much every place in the civilized world is smoke free, why not partition your premises into Kraut and non-Kraut? I know I would pay extra for the privilege.

Sweet Jebus

... how I hate Germans... loud, inconsiderate, boorish fuckers. There are dozens of them here, probably teens on spring break. Truman nuked the wrong nation.

Update: I was just talking to the Swedish receptionist. I asked her if it was allowed to shoot Germans, and she was positive to the idea. She thought they were leaving Monday. Sweet Jebus, let it be so!

Update II: I was a nanometer from braining one of the females when I opened the door to the hallway just now. At least the little twit got a real fright... hatehatehate...

Quick update from Prague

Had a good time thus far. Weather's been great and I walked for nearly four hours Friday and a couple of hours today. Bought some souvenirs and ate some pancakes, took a few pics, did the tourist thingy

I brought a ton of chocolate, and have been handing it out left and right to the delight of the bar staff. My Israeli friend who owns the bar made some noises normally associated with ahem, more physical activities than eating when he tasted the Trokia. I swear, I should probably set up shop and start selling this stuff down here.

I've hung out in the bar at nights, talking to old friends and making some new ones, and tonight there's going to be a huge birthday party for an English ex-bartender who's also a friend of mine. I foresee most of the remaining chocolate disappearing soon... Fun, fun, fun!

Pics from London

Just to get it out of the way, here are the disappointingly few pics I managed to take while in London in February:


The Wellington Arch - not very interesting, but it looks nice.


I believe this was a WWI memorial


Views from the top of the Arch - the building on the left is Apsley House, home of the Duke of Wellington.


This is a memorial to NZ troops that have participated in British wars.


Another WW1 memorial.


The tiny print at the bottom - I like the sentiment.


Big Ben and Westminster Abbey.


The sinful dessert I had at the small Italian place just behind the National Portrait Gallery.

The Candyman Cometh

I'm off to Prague in the afternoon. Weighed in at 119,3 kg today, but even though I'm hoping to walk a lot while I'm down there it'll be a miracle if I don't put on a little something. Good, cheap, plentiful food and late, late nights in the hotel bar... a dangerous combination even if one doesn't drink!

Last time I was in Prague (Dec/Jan) I'd brought a little Norwegian chocolate I'd bought on the plane. I spread the wealth among guests and staff, and the chocs literally went down well; people loved it and I acquired (nay cultivated) the nickname "candyman". So, being the great guy that I am I went and purchased 2.7 kg of Norwegian goodies yesterday that I'm bringing with me (I also figure it's a cheap way to buy friends!).

April's fool

For those of you who can read Norwegian... truly, no good deed goes unpunished.

I've created a monster

I should have known that nothing - absolutely nothing - would get as much attention as inviting people to comment on a diet/exercise project... I've gotten way more comments than I usually do, and my (admittedly meagre) hit rate actually doubled last week!

Some of you know me well, some not at all, so let me try and summarize and answer some of the questions from the comments...

1) I'm 38 years old and appx 182 cm tall (I distinctly remember being 182 cm when I reported for the draft registration in high school, but I may have shrunk since then... I dunno?). With a current weight of 119 kg that should equal a BMI of appx 36. Applying BMI, that makes me fall within "Category 2 Obese", but borderlining the less severe Category 1 (35 is the dividing line).

2) While I appreciate all the advice, let me make a few things clear: I am not ever going to go running or biking or whatever outdoors. Especially not in winter, as I fuckin HATE snow and cold temperatures. On a stationary bike I am in complete control of my environment, and the risk of keeling over and sustaining potentially griveous bodily injury remains remote, even for a klutz like me. Out on the roads or in the woods I would be a multiple skull fracture waiting to happen. With good music blasting and 20 minute sessions it's not boring at all. Also, I will forever remain a driver at heart, and bikers and runners are a bloody nuisance. I will happily go for a walk in the woods - even a long one - but that's about it for outdoors activities.

3) Again, while appreciating the advice I'm going to stick with my current eating habits, at least as long as I keep losing a kilogram per week. That means no fanaticism of any kind, just trying not to stuff my face too much and keeping the unhealthy stuff at a reasonable level. I would still consider it downright rude to turn down the offer of a slice of cheesecake, if you get my drift. But I'm downing much less chocolate and chips (crisps for you limeys) and much more apples and pears these days.

4) I'm going to look into doing a wee bit of weights. Nothing drastic, but a slight toning up would probably do me a world of good. I am also going to try some (moderate at first) interval training, but I fear I will probably need to lose some more weight before I even have the stamina to go all out for one measly 4-minute session without keeling over.

5) Yes, I'm a type 2 diabetic, diagnosed in September '02. I take medication, but no insulin. I've stayed below the magic blood sugar line of 7 for more than a year now, and as previously reported I was at 5.7 this month. A non-diabetic will have levels between 4-6, so this is very good.

mmmkay?

US Route update

Earlier post here. I've made a few changes to my itinerary, mainly due to the fact that I can no longer count on having a place to stay in San Diego for the last 8-10 days of my trip (my friend there has gotten a 60 day notice from the landlord... which sucks). This means I need the flexibility of having a car for the whole 30-day period and it means I'll have a couple of extra days on the road.

This could still change, but here's the new itinerary (I've already booked almost all of these nights at various Motel 6 establishments - best value for money if you ask me):

June 22: Touchdown LAX, fairly short drive to a motel in Thousand Oaks.
23: Reagan presidential library in Simi Valley, making my way to Fresno to see friends.
24: Driving with said friends to Yosemite for the day. Spending the night in Mammoth Springs, just east of the park.
25: Driving to Portland, OR. No idea how far I'll get, maybe the Oregon border.
26: Hitting Portland sometime in the afternoon/evening.
27-28: Portland, including a brief swing into Washington state. Various museums and sights.
29: Portland - Baker City - Boise.
30: Boise - Pocatello, by a leisurely northern route to see Craters of the Moon and other Idaho sights, such as they are.
July 1-2: With Pocatello as my base (because it's half the price of staying closer to the park) I'll explore Yellowstone. Maybe I'll drive through the Tetons too.
3: Pocatello - Cody - Billings MT.
4: Billings - Little Bighorn - Buffalo WY.
5: Buffalo - Devils Tower - Deadwood - Rapid City SD.
6: Driving around in the Black Hills. Mt Rushmore, etc.
7: Rapid City - Badlands - Wounded Knee. Start making my way south through Nebraska.
8: Hitting Cheyenne WY sometime during the day.
9: Going to Laramie and probably Medicine Bow.
10: Cheyenne - Green River UT.
11: Moab and Arches National Park.
12: Green River - Ely NV. Starting on US 50, "The loneliest road in America", supposedly very scenic.
13: Crossing Nevada, ending up in Carson City.
14: Carson - Fresno.
15: Fresno.
16: Fresno - San Diego.
17: San Diego - Flagstaff with friend(s).
18: Grand Canyon.
19: Flagstaff - Las Vegas.
20: Las Vegas - San Diego.
21: San Diego - Los Angeles.
22: Flying out from LAX.

Ish gonna be fun.

Numbers

Last Monday: 120,5 kg
Today: 119,5 kg
Net loss: 1 kg

Loss since I started posting: 2,3 kg

Numbers

Last Monday: 121,8 kg
Today: 120,5 kg
Net loss: 1,3 kg

One Mississippi, Two Mississippi...

Besides the huge enjoyment I get from traveling in the US, there is also a particular goal to it all, one understandable to all you anal-retentive nerds out there: Reaching 50.

My two geographical aims in this life is to visit all European countries and all 50 states of the US. The latter, needless to say, has priority. So far I've got 43 notches in my metaphorical belt, achieved over seven epic trips. Just to bore ya'll (because I can), here's a quick breakdown (Bold denotes a new state):

1997: MD, NJ, NY, PA, VA (5)
1998: CA (1)
1998: AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MD, MS, NC, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV (13)
1999: AR, CA, CT, DE, IL, IN, KY, MD, MA, MI, MO, NJ, NY, NC, OH, OK, PA, RI, TN, TX, VA, WV, WI (10)
2001: AL, AZ, AR, CA, CO, GA, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, MD, MS, MO, NV, NM, NC, OH, OK, PA, SC, TX, UT, VA, WV (7)
2002: AL, AR, DE, GA, IL, IN, IA, KS, MD, MN, MS, MO, NE, NJ, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, PA, SC, SD, TN, VA, WV, WI (4)
2006: AL, CT, DE, GA, ME, MD, MA, NH, NJ, NY, NC, SC, TN, VT, VA (3)

So this year I aim to grab OR, WA, ID, MT and WY. This will leave AK and HI for later, but rest assured - I will go there too someday.

RIP Chathouse

Today I learned of the "passing" of a website that once meant a lot to me. I was first introduced to web chatting in the fall of 1995, when we finally got computer labs at my college in Oslo. Sometime in the spring of 1996 I wound up at Chathouse - http://www.chathouse.com/ - and it was to be my home away from home for several years. I must have talked to thousands of people, and some of them remain my friends to this day. Many of them I have met in person on my American travels, but also in Canada, England, Scotland and even Sweden I've met chatters.

I have (mostly) fond memories of chatting into the wee hours during my carefree student days, and in spite of the generally horrible spelling and grammar found in such places, I do believe it helped my English considerably. I talked to people in the US and Canada on the phone several times, which helped my spoken English, and my first visit to the US in 1997 was to meet chat friends - indeed I am meeting one of them in California later this year!

The place sadly started to go into a long decline in the late 90s as it became clear that the operators no longer cared. As with any large social group, there were fights and intrigue and people backstabbing each other. I know for a fact some started real life sexual affairs with people they met online and The Chathouse broke up (but also led to) several marriages. Friends and enemies were made, but at some point is seems people had just had enough of the worsening atmosphere. Internal rules were broken, people harassed, head games played and the administrators were absent throughout it all.

I still went back there now and then, although few of the old gang hung around. I made some new friends, had some fun, but it just wasn't like it used to be. The last few years, most of the "floors" and "rooms" have been closed down, and I can't even remember the last time I went in there to chat - it must have been early 2008 if not late 2007. Since then I've checked in maybe once a month or so, but no one I knew was ever around.

Today I was greeted with a message that said the domain name had expired on March 6. I guess this means the owners no longer had any revenue and decided to pull the life support for good.

The Internet has changed our world in so many profound ways, and I know for sure Chathouse changed mine. Chathouse allowed me to practice my English daily with native speakers, it taught me a lot about many people and places, it allowed me to make many good friends and it provided me with innumerable laughs. I can safely say my life would be different, and mostly for the worse without Chathouse.

Goodbye, old friend, from the chatter known as Aton. I shall miss you.

First numbers

Sunday I started the day at 122.3 kg. I took two turns on the bike, at slightly over 35 mins in all. Monday morning: 121.8 kg.

I forgot to check this morning and I didn't exercise yesterday, so I need to do double dosage again today. Wednesday will be interesting.

Fat no more

I've blogged about various half hearted exercise schemes before, but this time I mean it: It's healthy or horizontal! Dashing or dead! It's pushing iron or pushing up the daisies!

The most I've ever weighed (as far as I know) was a solid 131 kg (289 pounds), measured on Feb 19, 2008. Mostly due to a few days of hospitalisation due to leg problems and later a bout of flu which had me in bed for a week, I lost weight last spring - I was at 123 kg in late March and 121 in June. I then went up during my summer holiday in Britain - I was at 126 in late July - but lost that by late August, when I was at 121 again. I slowly pushed it further down last fall, reaching an all time low of 118 kg several times in November and December.

Traveling and generally vegetating since then, I got a shock to the system when I found myself at 127 kg after returning from Britain a few weeks ago. So since March 7 I've been on my stationary bike almost daily, for an average of 20 minutes. I just weighed in at 122kg, meaning I've lost 5 kg in 8 days, which isn't too shabby (unlike my general appearance).

I'm going to post more or less daily updates, describing my progress (or lack thereof) and enrolling my faithful readers in this project. Ideally, I'd appeal to your better nature and ask for encouraging words and the odd slap on the back, but knowing you guys, this would be utter folly. Instead I'm asking for venom, cruelty and inane comments to spur me on. Go on, tell me what a lardass I am and berate me for not exercising enough! Kick me when I'm down and trample all over my self esteem! It's a win-win, people!

Tentative route for the US

It's early yet of course, but I've been obsessing about my summer trip since the day I bought my ticket to LA. Feel free to add comments and suggestions, as I have few absolutes at this point other than these:

1) I will visit the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.
2) I will spend a weekend with friends from Fresno, but not necessarily IN Fresno - this is where Yosemite comes in.
3) I will spend about a week, maybe a week and a half in the company of friends from San Diego, but again not necessarily IN San Diego - this is where the trip to Grand Canyon comes in.
4) I have already booked a car for June 22 - July 13, but if need be I could of course extend this period a few days.

Draft route, including appx driving distance in KM:
Monday June 22: Oslo - Philly - Los Angeles
June 23: LA - Simi Valley (The Reagan Library) - San Simeon (390 km)
June 24: San Simeon (Hearst Castle) - Eureka (766 km)
June 25: Eureka (Redwood forest) - Portland (667 km)
June 26: Portland
June 27: Portland (while in Portland I'll make a quick trip up into Washington state)
June 28: Portland - Baker City (Oregon Trail Museum) - Boise (695 km)
June 29: Boise - Jackson (592 km)
June 30: Driving around in the Grand Tetons National Park
July 1: Driving around in Yellowstone National Park
July 2: Driving around in Yellowstone National Park
July 3: Yellowstone - Ranchester (497 km)
July 4: Ranchester - Little Big Horn - Rapid City (556 km)
July 5: Mount Rushmore
July 6: Rapid City - Cheyenne (507 km)
July 7: Cheyenne (driving around southern WY, prolly visit the Laramie farm that inspired the Flicka books)
July 8: Cheyenne - ?
July 9: ? - Las Vegas (total of 1,374 km over two days)
July 10: Las Vegas - Fresno (650 km)
July 11: Fresno - Yosemite (206 km each way)
July 12: Yosemite - Fresno
July 13: Fresno - Los Angeles to drop off the car (601 km) - Driving with friend to San Diego
July 14 - 16 San Diego
July 17: San Diego - Phoenix - Sedona (756 km)
July 18: Grand Canyon Tour, prolly spending the night in Flagstaff (270 km)
July 19: Flagstaff - San Diego (790 km)
July 20-22: San Diego
Wednesday July 22: San Diego - Philly - Oslo, arriving July 23

Watchmen

I saw Watchmen yesterday, and while I'm no fan of that paranoid commie cunt Alan Moore, I enjoyed it. Now, if I can just find some "Rorschach for president" material...