Author Archives: Robert

Wow, did we have a killer storm roll by last night.  It was like the sky opened up.  Ray and I took turns going from front to back porches.  It was like being on the dance floor with all the flashing.  I love monsoon.

My mom and a handful of family members are on their way from LA right now.  Brother rented a motor home to get everyone here.  Hope the weather holds out for some pool time.  I’m going to show them all around Bisbee, Tombstone and the outer areas. 

I upgraded my WordPress blogging software and some of my site got jacked up.  The little “About Me” module with the dorky B&W photo just disappeared.  I’ll get it all back up to speed soon.  Right now, I have to focus on the rellies weekend visit.

A little movie of the storm:

We had quite a storm last night.  My point-and-shoot has a shutter speed setting.  This was a four-second exposure.  I had to take about twenty just to get one lightning strike. 

Pretty cool huh?

I tried to make a movie too but it was too dark.

The banner photo now changes from time to time.  I’m going to dig through all my photos to find images that best capture the theme of the Lopaka Lounge. 

Or is it better to have the static pool pic?

This critter was crawling along by the pool the other day.  Most of the tarantulas we see around us are black.  This one is brown.  Hope it’s not poisonous. 

So I was just about to hit the shut down on my computer last night when I noticed that my blog archive has July on it twice.  I’ve almost been blogging for a year!

Am I a prolific blogger?  Hardly.  Quantity doesn’t matter to me.  I set a goal to blog (with some regularity) in order to hone my writing skills–and I’ve been doing it for about 50 weeks.  Give or take a week. 

There’s kind of an itch to redesign the overall look and feel of my blog.  I’m trying to stop myself.  If I had the talent that Brian has to create cool banners every other day for my blog, I might do just that…but I don’t.  Speaking of my blog’s look and feel, does anyone know what the banner pic is and what it represents?  Just curious.

Last night it was official; I saw it.  I really saw it.  I think I know that I saw some pectoral action going on with the upper bod.  It’s finally happening!

I started working out with a trainer last December.  I bought two 12 session packages at our local gym.  Those sessions were helpful but I didn’t go with regularity and they had me on more of a toning plan.  After wrapping up with the trainer in late April, I decided to workout at home Every Single Day and push myself as hard a I could.  Last night after a killer upper body workout, I totally saw some shape.  Some form.  It’s working. 

OK, here it is.  The truth about fitness (as told by some know-it-all asshole who’s only been working out for a few months).

1. Visualize, visualize, visualize.  Don’t think about the person you are going to become–be that person in your head and realize it through the exercise.
2. Burn baby burn.  lift the weight until your muscle is on fire (if you want to get bigger). 
3. Mix it up.  Don’t develop a routine and do the same old exercises every time.  Do different exercises for the same muscle group as much as possible.  You’ll be glad you did.
4. Eat, sleep and drink water–’nuff said.
5. Do it every day.  That’s right.  It’s so much eaiser if it becomes a part of your daily routine, part of your life.  It was much harder for me to do it two to three times a week. 

Change your head.  If your brain is saying “Oh man…I have to work out…sigh…OK, let’s get going…” you may as well give up now.  Motivation happens from the inside out.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not always doing the happy dance when it’s time to break a sweat and grit my teeth but I do force my brain to be positive about it.  Ray told me this many times and it finally sank in:

If you force yourself to workout, you’ll never finish and regret it.  You’ll never say “I wish I didn’t do that.”

Ray and I come home every night and go in to our home office to check emails and see who’s online.  For about an hour every evening, we sit in the same room with all the weight equipment.  When we start our computers, it takes a few minutes to boot up so we do a set.  Open our web browsers, log into emails, chat sites and messenger, do another set.  Reply to an email, do another set.  This works for us (it really works for me ’cause I like to watch my man flex).  I actually look forward to my evening workout.  As things start to firm up and get bigger, I really, really look forward to my workouts. 

I’m not going to sugar coat it; working out and making physical change to your body is the hardest thing in the world to do.  There were many times where I looked in the mirror and wondered why I was doing this because I didn’t see anything.  This time around, instead of getting discouraged, I pushed the old flabby image of myself out and replaced it with the new and improved image and held on to it as tight as I could.  I’m not giving up this time. 

There are three major immediate benefits that come with a good exercise program.   

1. I’m focused.
2. I’m happy.
3. I sleep like a rock.  Haven’t been able to do that for years. 

When I was a child, a lot of television specials were brought to you in part by <<insert corporate conglomerate name here>>. 

When people come to visit us, they tend to take notice of the remarkable Arizona sunsets that occur during monsoon.  I always tell them that the sunsets are “appearing nightly here at Stolen Horseshoe!” as if it were some sort of show. 

This evening, I ventured out to the front of the house and caught a glimpse of something that took my breath away:

In keeping with a show or TV special theme; Tonight’s moonrise is brought to you in part by Optimism®.  The makers of Hope, Compassion and An Overall Sense Of Well Being.

How’s that for Pollyanna?  Could you just barf?

BTW, the San Jose mountain range in the photo is entirely in Mexico.

Ray and I made our way up to Tucson yesterday to pick up the other fountain we bought.  First we had lunch with Sandy.  It was nice to eat at a place the had linen napkins as opposed to the standard Bisbee paper napkin eating establishment.  Even though the iced tea was kind of  “mod” for lack of a better word, it was quite refreshing.  It had some pomegranate or something in it.  I’m very particular about my iced tea.  I like: Iced. Tea.  No sugar and no funny business with lots of ice and a straw.

After lunch we said goodbye and stopped at Fractured Earth to look at tile and stuff.  We’re planning on doing a design treatment to the fireplace in the great room. 

I love tile stores.  You’d think I was doing the X because all I can do is run my hands and fingers over everything.  I love texture!  I love to see it, feel it. 

Eventually we made it to The Fountain Center and had the piece loaded in the car.  When we got home to set it up, we realized that it was heavier than a motherfucker.  It is, after all, concrete!  Long story short we got it all set up (and had a good workout). 

Once it got dark and–I had one too many vodka rocks–the fountain started taking on a Gothic Batman/Blade Runner look to it.  So I had to make a little movie because I’m a total dork.

Here is a special effects shot if I were to use our fountain in a Sci Fi movie: