I have said, time and time again that I have been truly blessed with a life of jobs that I have absolutely loved. Not all of the work I have done has been glamorous or exciting (i.e. construction, sorting UPS packages...) but I have really enjoyed them either for the actual work (i.e. raft guiding, working various jobs for NOLS....) or for the camaraderie.
I have been looking for work in our new home of Chattanooga since we found out we were coming in March. Once again I have found opportunities for employment that it seems like I will really enjoy. Again, I recognize that I am very fortunate that way, a lot of people do not like their jobs at all. This was my first real job search in over 15 years and there are a lot of great things out there. There are a few things out there that are not so great as well. Here is what I found....
The Good:
- 1) The Search Engines out there for jobs are awesome! Indeed, Linkedin, heck even Craigslist all make it easy to find a job that you are looking for. I checked a slew of sites everyday looking for jobs. Patience and persistence is the key.
- 2) Filters are clutch. Though I liked looking at all the jobs that were available to me (i.e. "Managing a doughnut shop?! Awesome!") filtering out the ones that were not appropriate or had been posted for a while was very helpful. Otherwise the volume is overwhelming.
- 3) There seem to be jobs out there! I ended up sorting packages at UPS until a job that I really wanted came around. Taking a job while you look for your next career is okay. I actually really liked the people I got to work with at UPS even though it was a pretty brief stint.
- 4) Technology has made it so easy to take care of all of the paperwork, background checks, etc. once you are in the door at the new job. That saved me a ton of running around.
The Bad:
- 1) Job hunting has become very impersonal. Though I applied for dozens of jobs I was contacted by very few of the places that I applied to. Only two employers contacted me to say "Thank you for applying, we have chosen another applicant." I recognize that some places get inundated with applicants, but still.... a one sentence e-mail politely saying, "Thanks but no thanks" is all that I would really expect. I have no idea if anyone even looked at three quarters of the applications I turned in?! At times this was discouraging especially when I applied for a job where I thought I would be a strong candidate. Don't let this derail you!!
- 2) Reference Checks. I got a text from my last supervisor yesterday out of the blue. After catching up for a bit I asked a simple question since she was one of the references that I had listed on every application: "Has anyone contacted you regarding my references for any of the jobs I have applied for?" "Nope." Now, I recognize that there are times when people interview and meet a person and there is just that feeling that they would be a good employee and they do not feel they need to check references. I get that. If that is the case, do not make me fill out a reference check sheet?! And if it is not the case, check my references damn it! You may find out that I would be a great employee!!
That's all I've got for now I will keep you posted on how the new opportunities pan out.
Warm-Up: Perform each exercise for one minute each to complete a round. Three rounds. No rest between rounds.
Heavy Rope Whip
PVC Passthrough
Weight Training:
Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press, 3 sets of 6-10 repetitions
Diamond Triceps Push-Up, 3 sets of 15 repetitions
Seated Dumbbell Side Raise, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
Dumbbell Triceps Extension, 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions
One Hand Kettlebell Clean & Jerk, 5 sets of 4-6 repetitions
Triceps Cable Pushdown, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
Core Work: Perform 35 repetitions of each of the following exercises. No rest between exercises.
Flutter Kick
Lying Heel Touch
Lying Knee Pull-In
Lying Leg Lift
Have a Great Day!!
I am watching the Cavs versus the Warriors in game three. Yes, it is a seven game series but if Cleveland cannot win at home tonight the series is over and you might as well just hand Curry and Thompson the trophy. There is no way in hell that the Cavs will beat the Warriors four games in a row. Kyrie is lighting it up at the moment... LeBron just needs take over.
Warm-Up: Perform each exercise for one minute each to complete a round. Three rounds. No rest between rounds.
Heavy Rope Whip
PVC Passthrough
Weight Training:
Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press, 3 sets of 6-10 repetitions
Diamond Triceps Push-Up, 3 sets of 15 repetitions
Seated Dumbbell Side Raise, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
Dumbbell Triceps Extension, 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions
One Hand Kettlebell Clean & Jerk, 5 sets 4-6 repetitions
Triceps Cable Pushdown, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
Core Work: Perform 15 repetitions of each of the following exercises. No rest between exercises.
Flutter Kick
Lying Heel Touch
Lying Knee Pull-In
Lying Leg Lift
Have a Great Day!!
The Golden State Warriors beat the Memphis Grizzlies tonight to win their 73rd game this season. They broke a long held record by the 1996 Chicago Bulls that included the greatest player of all time, Michael Jordan. Lots of people talk about these Warriors... "They won the title last year because the teams they played in the playoffs were all injury plagued..." or "Well if Curry played back in Jordan's day... blah blah blah..." The fact is that 73 wins in a season is amazing and the only ones that seem like they may be able to do it again in the not so distant future are.... the Warriors.
Warm-Up: One minute of rope whips followed by 1 minute rest to complete a set. Four sets total.
Heavy Rope Whip
Weight Training:
Seated Barbell Shoulder Press, 5 sets of 5-10 repetitions
Medicine Ball Push-Up, 3 sets of 15 repetitions
Barbell Shoulder Shrug, 3 sets of 10-15 repetitions
Triceps Cable Push Down, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
Super Set: Perform each exercise in order to complete a set. Three sets total. No rest between exercises or sets. Keep exercising until all sets are complete! Don't even put down the weights!
Alternating Dumbbell Front Raise, 15 repetitions
Dumbbell Side Raise, 10 repetitions
Dumbbell Overhead Press, 15 repetitions
Have a Great Day!!
I am not sure where the Blue Raiders' upset win over Michigan State ranks in the history of basketball but it has to be pretty high. Many people, including Dick Vitale picked the Spartans to win it all. I personally think that the 1983 NC State Wolf Pack win over the "Phi Slamma Jamma" of Houston that included future NBA stars Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon and Clyde "The Glide" Drexler is the biggest upset. Mostly that is because it was for the championship.... The Blue Raiders over the Spartans is right up there though.
Warm-Up: Perform the rope whips for one minute then rest for one minute to complete a set. Three sets total.
Heavy Rope Whip
Weight Training:
Strict Overhead Barbell Press, 5 sets of 5 repetitions
Triceps Push Down, 5 sets of 8-10 repetitions
Dumbbell Side Raise, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
EZ Bar Skull Crusher, 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions
Landmine Jammer, 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions
Super Set: Perform each exercise in order to complete a set. 5 sets total. No rest between exercises.
Medicine Ball Push-Up, 15 repetitions
Front Plate Raise, 15 repetitions
Have a Great Day!!
It was another great day here at NOLS Southwest as we get ready for the first batch of students to arrive next week. The vehicles are all getting washed and serviced after a summer in the desert, the facility has gotten a serious scrub down, field rations have been ordered and the equipment room is just about ready for a big day of students getting the gear that they need. This evening all of the in-town staff went and hung out at a local putt-putt golf course then went out to dinner as a team. It was a great evening topped off by some heavy lifting!!
6:30 am Morning Circuit:
Perform each exercise in order for 1:15 to complete a set. Three sets total. One minute rest between sets.
Jumping Jacks
TRX Row
Barbell Push Press
Renegade Dumbbell Row
AbMat Sit-up
Medicine Ball Trunk Twist
Heavy Rope Whip
7:00pm Weight Training Session:
Strict Overhead Press from the Rack, 5 sets of 2-5 repetitions
EZ Bar Skull Crushers, 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions
Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press, 3 sets of 6-10 repetitions
Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extension, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
Dumbbell Side Raise, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
Medicine Ball Push-Up, 3 sets of 15 repetitions
Have a Great Day!!
Another mass shooting. Another example of someone who obviously should have never gotten their hands on a gun. Another example of a young white man who, admittedly not being raised in a racist home took it upon himself to strike out against people... total strangers... who were nothing more than different than him. Obviously insane, Dylan Roof was welcomed into their place of worship and he sat with them for an hour before murdering nine of them in cold blood. Columbine, Blacksburg, Sandy Hook, Aurora, Tucson and now Charleston. At what point do we say enough? Children and young adults murdered at school? No. People watching a movie? No. People meeting there elected official? No. People praying at their place of worship?! We will see.
There is a gap in our system that fails to alert us to insane people that are willing to kill a large group of people. There is a gap in our system that allows people that are insane to get a hold of high capacity weapons. There is a gap in our system that sells weapons to civilians that have no other purpose than to kill and awful lot of people. Yes, these are not easy things to do. Yes, they bring into question the constitutionality of the Second Amendment. Yes, it challenges incredibly wealthy lobbyists like the NRA. Yes, it does question the privacy between mental health professionals and their clients and when things need to be reported. These will all be hard things to address. But, one of the hardest things I read today is that the families of the victims in Charleston forgave Dylan Roof for his murderous rampage. If they can do that, the rest of us can try to keep this from happening again.
Workout: Cardiorespiratory Power Session
Heavy Rope Whips, 10 sets of 30 seconds of maximal effort, 1 minute rest
Hanging Knees to Elbows, 3 sets of 10 repetitions
AbMat Abdominal Crunches, 50 repetitions
