Deadlands

I found something fun to do with my family and a few select friends during this pandemic.  

Imagine my wife role-playing a foul mouthed gunslinger, my son as a card chucking magic-user, and my daughter a miracle creating show girl.  Throw in a pacifist Native American Shaman, a one armed Martial Artist, and a gatling gun wielding Pinkerton Agent (played by a former fellow member of the Dungeons and Dragons club!), and you have a fun making posse. 

The game had to be online because we live in different states and we didn't want to risk giving each other the virus.

There are a numerous Virtual Table Tops (VTT).  I was introduced to Roll20 when the pandemic got started and the groups I was currently meeting with switched to an online format.  It was a natural choice.  It helped that my son and a couple of our friends were familiar with the interface. 

 I'm a big fan of a role playing game called Savage Worlds.  It has its roots in wargaming, and has just enough tactical elements to engage my interest.  A friend of mine had introduced me to the system.  It's an easy to use generic system that serves as the engine to create a role playing environment of your choice, be it science fiction, superheroes, fantasy, or the Old American West.  The good people who created the rule-set also created a number of ready to run campaigns.

Conveniently, my son and I had just backed the reboot of their flagship campaign "Deadlands" on Kickstarter. The campaign is based on an alternate history of the American West set in the late 1800s.  It's a west where magic works and monsters are real.  The players try to survive, tell and epic tale, and perhaps save a few imaginary folks.

Currently they are in the city of "Lost Angels."  They are battling their way out of the city, while an epic battle rages around it.  

Even with the previous experience, there has definitely been a learning curve in setting things up in the Roll20 environment.  Fortunately YouTube has helped a lot with that.

We meet weekly for around 3 hours, and we can video chat as needed.  Mostly we use voice chat.

It was a bit of a challenge working around everyone's diverse schedules.

I hope we can keep it going.

So many worlds to explore.

Too much time on my hands

Running

Back in 2014 was when I first tried heart rate training.  I didn't really post any data or analysis.  Fortunately, Garmin Connect has my back.

I was obviously trying to keep my heart rate below 130.  My cadence was less than 180, which it never is these days, and I'm still just as slow as back then.

This time around, I started by trying to figure out my maximum heart rate, and then using zones based on that value.  First, I wanted a new Heart Rate Monitor.

I figured a Garmin Heart Rate monitor would provide the fewest technological hitches for my Garmin Forerunner 735XT watch.  I turned off the wrist optical heart rate monitor because it is crap.  The optical monitor kept telling my my max heart rate was 180-190 bpm (beats per minute), and kept setting my zones based on that value.  Using the chest strap, and some fast finish long runs, I managed to cap my heart rate at 171bpm.  That is some hard running, and I can't be 100% sure that this value is my true maximum.  I've read articles that say don't even try to determine your maximum heart rate as it can trigger a cardiac event, aka "heart attack!"

So I tried using the 171bpm anyways, and keeping 80% of my miles in "Zone1/2."  Hah!  That is some stupidly slow ass running.  Zone 2 is 70% of maximum heart rate, and that is 120bpm. I'm supposed to do this for months, and then my pace should magically start to improve, even as my heart rate remains in the same zones.  

Two absolute rules for my running:

1. Don't do it, if it sucks the joy out of running.

2. Don't do it, if it results in injury.

This really slow running was violating rule #1.  Also, upon reflection, this whole % of maximum heart rate seemed too arbitrary.  I don't doubt that maximum heart rate is a hard physiological fact, and that the central governor (my brain) monitors that shit.  So truly easy running, which is what 80% of my running miles per week should be, must be some fraction of maximum heart rate.

Hold up.  Isn't 80% of weekly miles in the "easy" zone also rather arbitrary?  Ah, but when I run too many hard miles in a week, then I violate rule #2 above.  The 80/20 rule has never gotten me injured, and therefore, it is canon law for my running.

A little more research, aka "Googling," turned up Lactate Threshold Heart Rate.  This is the heart rate that correlates to when your body is producing more lactate than it can clear for a given effort.  Increased heart rate is the "effect" not the "cause" of increased lactate load.  Lactate builds up due to anaerobic respiration in muscle.  Heart muscle never uses anaerobic respiration.  Turns out there is an actual setting on your watch that you can change in Garmin Connect to make your watch record data based on percentage of Lactate Threshold Heart Rate. 

This number made a lot more sense to me as a value to measure "effort."  The brain, along with cells in all my organs could monitor/respond to changes in lactate level in the blood.  It should be a much more precise and nuanced molecular marker for the whole body, as opposed to heart rate.  

It was also a lot easier and safer to determine this number by just running all out for 30-60 minutes.  Actually, Garmin already had calculated it for me based on all the crazy ass running I had been doing over the years.

Finally, the values were a lot more doable and in line with what I perceived as easy running.  I could now take my heart rate up to 132bpm, and still stay in Zone 2.

So then, why use a heart rate monitor if I can just run by feel?  Actually, I'm still using the heart rate monitor, because I still have a tendency to go too fast as my runs get longer.  My heart rate goes above 132bpm. This is particularly true on my long runs.

Running Goals

I don't have any races to train for.  I'm keeping it safe, distant, so no races.  I started the year trying to just run 2 hours a day.  That burned me out (see rule #1 above).  I did get a lot of bulk miles done, and this puts me in striking distance of 2500 miles for the year.  So, that is the goal.  I'm still averaging 50 miles a week.  Once I hit 2500 miles, my plan is to take a 2 week break from running.

Culinary

Retired, lots of time on my hands, more than I anticipated due to world wide circumstances.  So, I've done a lot of baking.

Chocolate bread.

Sooooo yummy!

 With raisins and nuts.

Cinnamon roll bread.

Lots of pizza.

Downsizing, resulted in me getting rid of all my specialized pizza gear.  No more pizza stone, paddle, board.  I've adapted using these aluminum pans.  I've made 600 and  800 gram dough for my pizza.  Although not as crisp on the bottom (yet) it has been a lot less messier, and still very delicious.  I'm just wondering why I didn't do it this way years ago.

Pancakes, and just some ... bread.

About the pancakes.  I discovered on Youtube a video where this guy would pour off his sourdough starter, unaltered to make pancakes with.  I tried this, but pushed some blueberries in there.  I cooked them in butter, sprinkled some salt on them when done, added maple syrup, and...Awesome!  It is the best way to manage my sourdough starter ever!

The move to the Pacific Northwest has changed my sourdough culture.  It survived the move easily, but over the last few months has become more truly sour, not just "wild."  I don't mind it, but I do need to be mindful, so that my bread doesn't become too sour.

My cooking hasn't been all baking.  I did manage to put together a nice chicken terrine.

Poppy

My wife and I first met Poppy in March of 2004.  She was just 12 weeks old.  She was full of energy, attitude, and she kept her Mother and Auntie quite busy.

I got to bring Poppy home in April.  I wasn't sure how she would react to being taken from her home.  It was a bit of a drive, and I was worried she might whine or cry.  She did nothing of the sort.  She looked around was alert and seemed prepared for a new adventure. 

I would describe Poppy as Fearless.  She was a bright, curious spirit, always ready for a bit of fun on her terms.  She always seemed surprised that anyone would try to tell her what she couldn't do.

She was Poppy, Poppitt, Squeaky-girl, and Monkey.  She loved to play in the water.  Once we had a pool, she became an able swimmer.

She loved chasing a squeaky ball.

She was an avid camper and beachcomber

She could sleep anywhere.

Poppy was in charge.  When I first brought her home, she chased, the cat and soon had Bear (our mix Chow) wrapped around her little paw.  When we added Wally to the pack (blond dog in the above pictures), she quickly dominated him.  Often, I caught her stealing Wally's food from him. 

She wasn't no lap dog.  However, many a day, after I got home from work, she would decide it was time for her to be worshiped and would jump up on the couch to claw at my hand to let me know.  As I said, she was in charge.  Some scratching and petting, a little massage, and then, when she was satisfied, she would jump right down.  Even when she couldn't jump on the couch anymore, she would still come over to me for her attention moment.  Her competition name was: "I'm the One," and it was a great match for her personality.

She was quite the escape artist.  More than once, she had our hearts in our throats as we went tearing around the neighborhood trying to find where she was off to, often with Wally in tow.

I already miss her so much, it feels like my heart is breaking just writing this.  But it must be done, she deserves nothing less.

In her finals days, her end came quite sudden.  Just a couple of months ago she was trotting along with a pop in her step, able to knock out a mile or so, no problem.  Then she got quite ill in February.  She never completely recovered.  The pop came back a couple of times, a shadow of its former vigor.  I kept hoping she would mend enough to enjoy another year or so. Even a few days ago, she went into one of her classic moves of rolling around on the rug for a self back massage, while channeling, "hey look at me!"  But then, there was also a moment when she was obviously not feeling well. She found me sitting at my bed, leaned into my legs and just stood there.  I understood. I petted, massaged, and scratched her head.  I started to cry.  It occurred to me she was saying goodbye.

Thank you Poppy for the 16 years of your life that you shared with me.  It was truly an honor.  I am a richer person for having known you.