Goals for 2008

having had time to think about it a bit, here are some of my goals for 2008.

1. Finish in the top 10% of my class in the Camp Pendleton Mud Run in June.

2. Call JKM at least once a week.

3. Go to the MotoGP race at Indianapolis in September.

4. Be 100% in my daily and weekly religious observances.

5. Perform an iron cross on the rings.

That is it. I used to make sure I had at least 10 for a year and that they were equally among different catagories. Not this time. This is all it is.

my new banner photo

So I started with the Infidel/Rowdy patch photo from when I was in Iraq, then I went to a great white shark. Now I have settled on a pic of Nicky Hayden from the recent MotoGP test in Malaysia.

Why does this matter, you say?? Well I am a deyed in the wool Rossi fan. When I was in Italy the last time all I wanted was 'real' Rossi stuff from Italia. And I got some wonderful stuff. I like Rossi.

But in 2008 I just don't see Honda and Michelin taking a beating again. The other teams have had too many changes. And of the Honda riders Hayden knows how to win a championship. So while I am a Rossi fan, my money is on Hayden to win it all in 2008.

Jealousy and Laziness

Walking to the office after lunch I saw a bumper sticker which read, "Ask a man how he got rich and if he says, 'hard work', ask him 'whose?'"

I find this a disgusting insinuation. The continued notion that anyone who is "rich" is somehow an oppressor of 'the people' and only got there through someone else's hard work and not through their own efforts is an outdated piece of leftist propoganda.

If you are concerned about a gap between the haves and have nots, this type of thinking will focus you in the wrong direction.

I am no Horatio Alger, but I overcame being born to a teenage single mother, a debilitating chronic illness since childhood, attending 7 different schools due to moves, poor high school grades, alcoholism, divorce, bankcruptcy, depression and not attending college until I was 26.

But yet I went on to graduate college, excell in my field, enjoy healthy relationships, participate in my religion, learn new sports, enjoy my hobbies, travel around the world AND make six figures.

I am thankful for each and every challenge and blessing I recieve, knowing where they come from and they are for my benifit.

Those whose diseased thoughts follow ones like the bumpersticker are doomed to failure.

My "dodgey tummy"

If you have been reading my posts, you will know I sometimes state I don't feel well. Quite often I don't feel well and I am really tired of it.
This is the cause:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crohn's_disease


And here is the effect:



Which then leads to this!!

Im doing it as hard as I can.

Can you see this idea stealer? I am doing it as hard as I can.

Enter at your own risk!

"The greater the risk, the greater the reward"-unknown




This is a great site, super fun!! I have done over half the things on here. You should to!

http://dangerouslyfun.com/

Crushy McCrusherson crushed me!

Is there a greater sorrow than having one of your dreams crushed?

I had a spontaneous idea for an Internet based business last week. I reviewed it with D and went forward with a plan. I had a two hour meeting with a web designer that went well. I got 28 pages of data ready and prepared to go into a database. I brought an expert in the field on as a contract worker. I bought the domain name. I was rolling and ready to do this, "go live" before the end of summer.

The feeling was amazing. I had an idea and was working towards it. I would have been my own boss and working hard for something I was in control of. Finally free of the fickle job market in San Diego. So many needs were being met in me by this project.

And then.....

The first email I read Friday morning at work was the launch of an EXTREMELY similar web service by the university I currently work for as a temp!!! I had no idea someone else was working on this project and it was done almost exactly as I wanted to plan it.

Crushed? Could someone please take the SUV off me now.

So my idea is now worthless in that the university is rolling it out to the public for free ahead of me. Also I am charged with some of the beta testing of it as part of my new job assignments related to my recent promotion. My dream I thought was all mine, that I was planning soo much of my future on.....

Crushed!

The bright spot of hope in the whole experience is that I learned about the entrepreneurial spirit I had latent in me and I am only out $100 dollars rather than $20,000 right before launch.

Poll Results

It looks as most of you would rather show a little extra flesh in public than eat hot dogs, break a bone or get caught picking your nose. Full disclosure, I voted for the Speedo as well.

"Where is my $20 Marlo?!?!?"

Not a food destination

I like good food. I like food that makes me feel good when I eat it. Oahu did not do that for me most meals. Here is a good sampling of what it is like to eat in Oahu.

"My sushi makes you scowl!" Yummy, thanks I'll be sure not to go back. (I did have a massive tummy ache after eating there!! I guess I was warned.....)


And that is exactly what I am sure it tastes like.......and smells like.....


Fook Yuen too pal! See if I leave you a good tip!


Fancy a burger made by a old blind man known for his hijinks?? Me neither....


And finally the best thing in all of Oahu, Candy Bead cookies!! How could that not be just delicious!

Self Portrait for the week

It is Friday!!

So you know what that means? A list and a self portrait! Woo Hoo! I know your excited. Lets start with the list.....hmmm.... but what to list about?

Injuries I have sustained
1. sprain both ankles simultaneously in jump off something as a kid
2. burned both palms putting hands on wood stove
3. branch for rope swing breaking and hitting me in the head
4. jumping up to see something and splitting head open on cupboard door
5. concussion falling off roof of house and hitting fence with head on the way down
6. bruised right talus bone
7. type II ligament tears on right ankle (one year of rehab)
8. broken right radial head/elbow
9. broken right navicular bone in wrist
10. torn ligament snowboarding crash at Mt Bachelor rt shoulder
11. knocked out front tooth goofing off on park toys as an adult
12. concussion wrestling with brother-in-law
13. broken rt thumb punching someone wrong
14. knocked unconscious wakeboarding
15. broken fingers X3
16. broken toes X5
17. 3 stitches in thumb sliced open with boxknife at work
Maybe due to the multiple concussions but that is all I can remember right now....

Motorcycles I have owned
1. 1989 Yamaha YSR 50
2. 1988 Honda 600 Hurricane
3. 1984 Yamaha RZ 350
4. 1989 Kawasaki Ninja 600
5. 1989 Honda VTR250
6. 2002 Yamaha R6
7. 2005 Suzuki GSXR 600
8. 2004 Honda CRF50
9. 2005 Suzuki DRZ 400SM
10. 2004 Kawasaki ZX6R Ninja
11. 1988 Honda NT650 Hawk
12. 2003 Honda XR50
13. 2005 Suzuki DRZ 400SM

Guns I have owned
1. Marlin .22 rifle
2. Ruger Mini-14
3. Berretta 92FS
4. Glock 19
5. Browning mdl88 .308
6. Berretta .22lr pistol
7. Winchester 1300 12ga
8. Ruger mdl3 22/45
9. Taurus PT409
10. Smith & Wesson mld64 .38special
11. Mossburg 500 Special Purpose 12ga

Places I like to eat
1. Oggis Pizza in Mission Valley
2. Abbey's Pizza in Klamath Falls
3. Hoffbrau Hauss in Munich
4. JB's place in Kuwait City
5. Anyplace with a good french dip sandwich
6. Le Thai Basil in La Jolla
7. The Prado in Balboa Park
8. At LB's or ND's house when I can get a 'mom' meal
9. Taco Fiesta near my house
10. Emerald Sea Chinese Seafood in San Diego
11. Yellow Tugboat fish and chips place in Lemon Grove

Every dang time!

Scenario 1:
I was "just looking" at a motorcycle dealership in Gilroy California one weekend and I made an impulse buy of a 2005 Suzuki GSXR-600. It was a great motorcycle and I loved it. But as I was not prepared to buy one that day I needed to buy a helmet and such to ride it home the 70 miles to the East Bay area. I had also let my motorcycle endorsement lapse, so to the sales people at the dealership I looked like the most beginner of motorcyclists and an accident waiting to happen. When it came time for me to ride home that afternoon it started to rain.

Motorcycle tires need to be "broken in." Whatever compound they have on them from their manufacture makes them very slippery until they have a bit of initial wear on them. So they need a little bit of use before they are grippy.

As I left the dealership the whole staff came out to see the 'idiot kid' ride away a brand new, high powered sportbike with new tires, in the rain! I did pay extra attention while riding home and exercising good throttle control I disappointed the assembled viewers by not crashing for them right in the parking lot.

Why does this always happen to me? Scenario 2:
The tires on the supermoto were severely worn! As the rear tire is a non-popular size I had to wait for it to be ordered and show up. It came in and I left work early to get them on and be riding home the 20 miles on the freeway before the fore casted storms started.

Various delays and such caused me to be there for 3 hours almost and I walked outside to leave about 6PM. Key in the ignition, start the bike and ride away. At least this time I am dressed for a motorcycle ride, but I am happy it is not raining. Well, one block later the first drops are falling on me and less than one mile later the deluge began.

It seems to be a cosmic motorcycle law for me,
new tires + heavy rain = freeway ride home!

Thow ya hands in the air if you's a true playah

You are now about to witness the strength of street knowledge...

From the archive: I meet a new friend today

This is an entry I wrote Tuesday Sept 11, 2007. I don't feel to well so I am giving you some of my greatest hits.




I meet a new friend today. He is kind of famous in that he only has one name, Stingray. Oh I'm sure he would tell you he has some sort of fancy Latin name on his birth certificate if you pressed him, but no one really cares about that one.

I learned quite a few things about my new friend today even though we have only known each other a short time. I never knew someone could get sooo upset about being surprised while they are just laying around, doing nothing.

As an example, Stingray and I were at the beach today. I was surfing and he was just lounging in the shallows. My friend Scott was there, getting some good practice and having a great day. I was starting to feel water logged so I said to Scott, "Just one more good one and them I am done." Surprisingly the very next wave was quite nice, I got up well and even turned down the line. At this point the world is perfect, the sun is setting behind me, the air is warm and I'm riding on my surfboard effortlessly. Too much is never enough so I decide to ride it all the way in to the beach. I feel the fin touch sand and I jump off my board! Well, I guess I didn't knock loud enough or something, because I just happened to jump into the water right next to, or on top of if you ask him about it, my friend Stingray!! Amazing. He sure is cranky though, I just had the best ride of my evening at the beach and in his jealousy of not being a good surfer himself, he just whacks out and stabs me in the left ankle! Can you believe it? Some ray's children....

I would like to think Stingray and I could still be friends after this little episode with his temper and his barbed way of dealing with things. I don't know though, he left in such a hurry and he wasn't at the car when it was time to go home...

When I seem him next I hope there are no hard feelings between us. Really.

I don't speak German

But I am excited that I have tickets to Wagner's Tannhauser opera. In honor of it I present to you this:

"Everybody say it, Wild Bill!!"

Saturday was a good day. I bought the domain name for my new business and fleshed out some other things. Good brainstorming.

While that may have been exciting, the fun part of the day was going out into the desert to shoot. I have been shooting guns since I was about 5 years old and have owned them myself since about 12 years old. Younger if you count BB and pelet guns. I have a membership at an indoor range here as well. So shooting has always been a fun part of life for me.

We went out past Jacumba to the spot everyone goes to and of course mid-day on a Saturday it took some driving to find a spot. (I am THE ONLY person to regularly take their Lexus hybrid SUV off road I think) Handguns and shotguns were the order of the day.

Fun times.

Tylenol PM

Wow, I really need something for sleeping! I am starting my own business and each night when I fall asleep, all I do is dream dream dream about it. It is as if I work 8 hours while I sleep, my mind just racing.

I am off as it is MLK Day, so surfing was supposed to happen but my two buddies cancelled on me. It is now looking like it is going to rain as well... I should be paddeling out, not typing right now!!

Normally a day off for me is a blaze of fun fun activities. Today, not so much. I might have to pull a good story out of the archives, so you have something good to read!

List

List for the week

Countries of visitors to my blog
1. Unites States
2. Australia
3. Spain
4. Japan
5. Argentina
6. Hong Kong
7. Sweden
8. Finland
9. Italy
10. Palastinian Territory
11. Canada

I find this all every amazing. I wish you would leave comments!! Hahaha. I would love to check out your blogs! Muchas Gracias!

Self Portrait

As promised, here is the weekly self portrait. This one is me driving at the Skip Barber Performance Driving class I attended in 2006. The class was two days at Laguna Seca!! Woo Hoo!!

So much fun!

They are only $15!! I think I would need one for each arm! And maybe an old 'Clash of the Titans' Krakken Halloween mask.

Buy 'em here: http://www.gaiastore.com/servlet/Detail?no=221

"Ah, what also floats in water?" "A duck!"

So when I was in Iraq I would often have conversations that went like this;
"So you came to Iraq and you've never been in the military?"
"Nope", I would say.
"Well, what did you go to college for to get this job and how much do you make?"
"I went to school and got my BS in Radiological Science, I was a Nuclear Medicine Technologist for 6 years and I make like $11,000 a month here. What did you go to school for and how much you make being enlisted?" was my normal reply. Might as well cut to the chase. There is a fraction of service people who are really anti civilian contractor, so this dialogue is usually not in an innocent tone.
"Uh, I didn't graduate from high school and I don't know, (expletive deleted) you make more in a month than I do in 3 months!! I wish I had your job!! (expletive deleted) What makes you soo special?"
"Cream rises to the top", I would say and follow it with "We all make choices to end up where we are at." Like I wasn't freaking there in Iraq with them? Living in the same tent and eating the same crap food. Stupid jealous little Fobbits.

Point is, today I was awarded an increase in responsibility, in pay and elevated job title. I got a promotion for the remainder of my contract. And this in less than 3 months of working there!

A duck, a witch, wood and maybe even a very small rock may float as well, but I know that cream rises to the top.

Revenge of the...

So yesterday I mentioned how chilly it was riding to work. Well, there now is a part II of the story.

In response to my frozen ride I decided to wear some extra layers, windstopper fleece, balaclava and such. I was like the little kid in A Christmas Story in his red snow suit.

Noticing I could run out of gas before getting to work this morning I decide to zip into the gas station quickly. I pull in to the pump, hop off and go inside to the cash register and tell the attendant "Fill it up on pump 5."

"......", was her reply. I say that because my helmet, balaclava and earplugs were still in place. Trying to read her lips I just hold up my hand with my fingers spread and say louder, "Pump 5!"

Gas and go, $5 later I am on the road zooming along at 74mph trying to still be on time to work.

I roll into the office and the two other people there are kinda making fun of my new anti-cold motorcycling attire. My torso and face were much warmer this ride but not really the rest of me. So I took the joking in good humor thinking it was just that I looked funny. Or so I thought.... But now I also know what the attendant at the gas station was saying as well. Not "fill up on five", but;

"Zip up your fly."

Work Commute

This morning it was 40 degrees outside when I went to ride my motorcycle to work at the University. Which is quite the chilly Farenheit temperature for San Diego! So you add a 70mph wind to a 40 degree air temperature and you get a felt body temperature of........24F or -5C for you international readers.

How I miss the commute in Iraq. And there you could machine gun someone who was in your way!

The natural flow of things

To help keep things interesting for you Dear Reader, but at the same time give some consistency to my entries I have "a plan."

Each week I will make sure to include one photographic or video self portrait and one list of some sort or another. Do not despair, for it will be a Rowdystyle list and thus avoid the appearance of your grocery list.

Finally, as a sad sad confession, I have bought a book on HTML to see if I can't add something to your reading experience. We will see.....

Truth in Advertising?

Some things I have seen recently...

"luxury Kabul hotel", I mean really, could there actually be a luxury hotel in Afghanistan? I have only been to Iraq but I can't imagine that the A-stan has greater infrastructure and posh hotel that hasn't been shot to crap. Think about it...

"bifidus regularis", This is the one that really gets me! Remember the Wiley Coyote and Road Runner cartoon when they would freeze the frame on one of them and have the fake Latin name underneath them, like "luncheous velocitus" and such. That is how I feel about those stupid Activia yogurt commercials.

I can just see a bunch of nerdy food scientists in their white coats sitting around with the hipster marketing people thinking this crap up.
"Hmmmm, what fake name can we give to regular bacteria already found in yogurt so that it will appeal to constipated housewives?", say the marketing people.
"Daily Dump is too crass for our sophisticated customer. Easy Out sounds like an oven cleaner. Hmmm, maybe it should be more scientific. I know, Vividus Regularis, the bacteria first discovered to control human bowel movements and only found in our yogurt!", the scientists say with enthusiasm.

What crap. No really, what crap.

Where is John Williams when I need him?

"Shark in the water? Cage go in the water, with the shark?"-Quint in Jaws

So one of the neatest things I have done is do a little cage diving with some sharks here in Hawaii. The outfit is called North Shore Shark Adventures and I would recommend them to anyone.

Without going into a huge narrative, it is basically like this, you drive yourself to the North Shore to a tiny little town and the boat dock is right there easy to see. You hop on the boat and 3 miles out to see later you cut the engine and BOOM, sharks are instantly at the surface. No maybes or hopeful scans of the horizon for that dreaded fin slicing through the water. Just 6-12 sharks there, in the water, waiting for little ol' you.

Snorkel gear on, jump in the shark cage and they push you away from the boat. Then chum is thrown in to make it a little exciting for you, as if your heart is not going 160bpm anyways, and you just swim around in the cage for 20 minutes or so and stare at these beautiful creatures. Trying not to get kicked by your cage mate.

Having snorkeled and dived with barracuda and sharks before, this was not totally new. But I had never been in the real ocean 400' deep with pelagic sharks, more than 8 of them and within touching distance. It was quite stunning. Got the requisite tshirt and dvd for proof of my experience.

The company was great, seems like a price bargain for what you get,I would do it again and I recommend it to anyone. And really, how bad can it be if the 68 year old grannies on the boat with me can do it, huh? So you should too!!

Needless to say this has only strengthened the fascination I have always had with sharks. So I think next is going to be the Farallon Islands of San Francisco and doing a cage dive with Great White Sharks!!!!!!!!!!!

Child Army

Should my little minions ever turn on me, I think I could take 'em!

http://www.howmanyfiveyearoldscouldyoutakeinafight.com/

I scored 25. You?

Waikiki

Back home in San Diego I am a reluctant surfer. I snowboarded for years when I lived in Oregon and I really liked it. This last time in Utah I went I took right back to it. But I really just surf here because I live in that kinda of area and it is a thing to do here. No snow, then surf. So I do.

If it is overhead or anything I don't go out. On the other hand if it is glassy and small I don't bother either. I started up again with my friend Scott W. since he was new to so-cal and wanted to go. So I seem to go about 3 times a month now, cold or not. Normally I am just so-so and not really into it. But going more often with him has made a difference, building up an experience base.

So here on Oahu at Waikiki beach it was pretty easy to just jump on a rental board and paddle out. I caught more waves in a hour here than I do in a month back home. I also had longer rides and was able to turn a little bit more and such. When I was done, in the vernacular, I was "stoked".

I didn't take any pictures of this trip, but here is something from a trip to Costa Rica. Just to give you an idea of me on a surf board. The guy who doesn't know how to swim...........

Breakin' the Law!

Driving in Hawaii is fun! Easily a dozen red lights run, 5 illegal u-turns, 3 illegal park jobs and driving 75mph in a 45mph. Of course none of these misdemeanors were witnessed by anyone, so they are not "real" violations. =)

Soon I will be back in San Diego and able to drive like normal. Rowdy Style.

In Hawaii, wearing the below, I would be wearing more gear than 80% of the riders I have seen here. No one wears helmets. Gloves are an unthinkable addition. Shorts, flip flops and sunglasses are very much the norm.....

Oh Wow Who or Oahu, whatever

So far, I have been to Pearl Harbor, and it was very emmotional for me. I have been to Wiakiki beach. I have hiked up Diamond Head. I have swam with sharks in a cage off of the North Shore. Today I went to the Kuoloa Ranch to mountain bike. Tomorrow is parasailing 500' up in the air, Friday is an hour long helicopter ride around the island and Saturday will probably be a mountain bike re-do. I will have to fit in some more exploring, surfing and going to China town in there somewhere as well.

I of course do not have a tan yet, or at all. But I am having a good time and the weather is really nice! Wish you were here.....

open your mind

Alright, I am sure someone will ask why there needs to be both a Rowdy Style and Tenaciousgirl blog... Well the reason is that I am ROWDY, my own man. So since I think different things and of course do many different things, I need my own place to express myself, my uniquely "rowdy" thoughts and actions, in my own Rowdy Style.

Feels like the very first time...

Alright, I caved in and joined the internet evil army. My blog on 360.yahoo was not getting the traffic and comments I desire and crave. If you have a yahoo ID and really really wanna read it while I am in the process of transfering over here, it is www.360.yahoo.com/ultra_rowdy

So, now begins a new era of me, sharing my "rowdy style" with anyone who wants it. Yes, I am that easy. =)