[quote]Cal Jones wrote:
So great, I can’t do any of the big three due to injuries. Sometimes I hate my body.
On the plus side, I can get into my skinny jeans - a pair that used to be my favourites when I was 30. They are too tight and I can’t lift my leg in them, but I can do them all the way up. A few more pounds and I should be able to wear them again.
[/quote]
First off, who needs to lift legs in jeans anyway? You’re in 'em. That’s what counts.
I can relate to the lifting frustrations. I’m down to one of the big three lifts myself and soon will be down to none for some time. Arrgghh. Perhaps we should have a little pity party, just the two of us?
Pity party indeed. My week just went from bad to apocalyptic.
Last year I had some trouble at work, as in I didn’t get a placement for several months (recession and all that), so ended up going through discipliniary proceedings. It got to the stage of a final warning and I managed to get a placement through, so pulled my arse out of the fire. Thing is, that remains in my record for a year.
So this year, happens again. This time, it’s no fault of my own - I’ve worked hard, put in the hours, got more interviews than anyone, sent out more CVs, and yet, no placements. So Friday, I’ve got another discipliniary meeting. Fucking awesome. This time, since I was already on my final warning, I can just get fired right away. Doesn’t necessarily mean I will, but I could. Way to kick me when I’m down.
I don’t know what I’ll do if I lose my job - I’ve worked in a niche market for years, can’t relocate and don’t have anyone else to support me. This on top of my parents’ illnesses. Not shit I need right now.
Busted out eight hill repeats on the common to blow off some stress. It definitely helped. I was breathing hard enough that it sounded like someone sawing wood.
Now I’m off to play Mass Effect 2 where I will take great pleasure in popping off some headshots with my sniper rifle.
Oh man, fucking sucks about the work issues. Its understandable that since economy is crap finding replacements would be difficult (I’m assuming in the UK the economy is crap like it is here).
Hill sprints and popping of headshots sounds like a healthy alternative to what I would do (get wildly inebriated and belligerent).
Hang in there Cal. When it rains it pours, but you will survive - 2 cliches in 1. Top that!
Yeah, well I’ll know tomorrow. I expect the boss would give me a month to get a placement, but I can’t guarantee that will happen. If the worst happens, I’ll take my holiday in June as planned, then start looking for something new when I get back and maybe do some temping. Dunno. See what happens.
Didn’t fancy training this morning so I did more running at lunchtime. Mixed it up a little. The hill I run up isn’t steep but it’s an uphill dirt path through the wooded part of the common. It levels out and keeps going - normally I just do the uphill part, but today I continued running at the top making it a longer, but slightly slower, interval. Let’s put this into perspective - I’m not flat out sprinting, I’m just running hard for as long as I can. So I did four of these (run up, walk a few steps, jog back), but on the fourth rep I slowed to a jog at the top but carried on going, then sped up again and did a lap of the common at an uncomfortable pace. The common’s a small one - I guess a lap is somewhere between 800m and a mile (unlike the one near my house which is about 2.5 miles for a lap). I’m aiming to lower my 5 and 10K times so this sort of training forces me to run outside my comfort zone and will hopefully improve my overall speed. Because my speed pretty much sucks, heh.
So, the work thing: since I haven’t got any placements this year (that is to say, none of the people I’ve been looking after have landed a job) I have to get two this month or I’m out on my arse. I may get one, but given the state of the market and the difficulty I’ve had thus far, I suspect I’ll be looking for a new job come June. I may just say fuck it and try and find a job in a gym. I don’t know yet. Let’s see how this thing pans out. I’m still going on my coaster holiday in June, no matter what.
On the plus side, Dad’s out of hospital and they’ll let Mum leave the nursing home some time next week. I hope they can both stay out of trouble for a while.
No exercise today beyond walking. I could probably have done some more running to blow off some stress, but my calves needed a break. I’ll do a gym workout tomorrow - hopefully I won’t break or aggravate anything this time.
I am a recruiter, yes - I work in the computer games industry. I used to be a computer games journalist - I worked on magazines back before the Internet was popular and people had to buy them for the game reviews and the cover-mounted demo discs. The pay was mediocre and the hours were terrible but it was a dream job and I had a blast. But once the 'net took off (which was a little later in the UK than the US), magazines started dying, and I found myself out of a job. Sat on my arse for a few years playing online games and doing the odd bit of freelance, until my boyfriend saw an ad for a recruiter and told me to apply for it. Which I did because I was broke. I got the job and have been there for 4 years 8 months now.
I’m not a sales person - actually I hate sales people - and I’m not money motivated, so I guess that makes me a poor recruiter. I did OK when the market was favourable because I know a lot about the games industry and could build a rapport with the candidates, but since things got tougher I’ve not done so well. The frustrating thing is that I’ve actually worked hard this year - I’ve just not had the luck.
So, I’m at a crossroads now. I’ll have to figure out which way to turn, so to speak. Although it doesn’t feel like it now, it may turn out to be a blessing in disguise. We’ll see.
Cal - I know it’s super frustrating to actually feel like you are giving something your all and not be succeeding… =-/ At least you have a bit of a heads up about it. working in a gym might not be a bad gig!
(At this point a girl I know came in and got talking between sets so the intensity went down a bit!)
Military Press
Bar x 10 (naked bar actually felt heavy today!)
25kg x 10
30kg x 5
32.5kg x 5 (not bad! This is about 70lbs, FYI)
35kg x 1 (weak sauce! I normally get 3 with this but my arms just failed on rep 2).
Dumbell Rows
28kg x 5 (awful…enough that I dropped the weight)
2 x 26kg x 5
At that point I had to go because I was expecting carpet fitters to come and do the communal hallway.
Weight: 10 st 6 (146lbs) - pound up from last week but I’m not too worried, given Flo, and all that.
My legs are starting to look better (from the front anyway - they’re still a disaster from the rear but never mind) so that’s the main thing.
Cal, your chins are getting super strong! Weak-sauce or not, that’s good stuff.
Meh. The job situ does sound incredibly frustrating. Good luck with that. But you seem to have a good outlook on the situation, and who knows where things will lead you - after all, you are a certified PT…
Being at a crossroads is at once unnerving and exciting. If you know that your current job just isn’t your thing, then a forced change is a prime opportunity to find a more-fitting path.
Being at a crossroads is at once unnerving and exciting. If you know that your current job just isn’t your thing, then a forced change is a prime opportunity to find a more-fitting path.[/quote]