Thursday, March 30, 2006

Okay, so it's nothing more than an excuse

I will be suspending the posting of weight updates until I get done with The Odd Couple. I'm not gonna let myself gain weight during that time, but I am not going to be actively attempting to lose weight, either.

Oscar is supposed to be "husky," and that's what I am right now. I could probably afford to lose the 8.5 pounds I've gained in the past month, but I'm just not going to be focusing on it.

Have no fear. Once that show is over, I'll get back on track.

Of course, if all goes well, I'll be in a musical or two right after The Odd Couple closes, so I'll be dancing and getting some exercise that way.

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

The Odd Couple

I was cast as Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple in Rockwall. More HERE.

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Getting in Shape Update 67

Another bad week of not paying attention to what and how much I was eating.



Starting Weight = 267.0

Last Week's Weight = 228.0

Saturday's Weight = 230.5

Weight Gain in past week = 2.5 pounds

Weight Gain in past 4 weeks = 8.5 pounds



TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS
= 36.5 pounds

Friday, March 24, 2006

Let's face it. I'm pooped!

I got home from work yesterday and promptly took a 4 hour long nap. Because of that, I found it incredibly difficult to fall asleep last night. Thus, I had a hard time getting out of bed this morning.

AH, the cascade effect of things we do.

I won't be able to sleep in tomorrow morning because I have to be at the County Republican Convention at about 8:30. I'll be serving as Parliamentarian. The last time I was a Parliamentarian was at the 1996 State Republican Convention in our Senatorial District Caucus. I fear that my knowledge of parliamentary procedure is a bit rusty.

Next week is likely not going to provide any sort of respite, either. I have court three days, and then on Friday, we are supposed to close on the purchase of the new home.

Auditions for The Odd Couple at Rockwall Community Playhouse are next Monday and Tuesday nights.

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Ace-Deuce Suited is NOT a Good Hand

My wife and I got a few days away from home and went to the Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City/Shreveport. My dad is a frequent slots player over there, and he got us a comp room. Wait, let me clarify that. He got us a "High Roller" suite on the top floor of the hotel. I believe the suite may be about as big as our current house.

I played in the weekly Monday evening Hold 'Em tournament last night. Seventy-four players vied for a top prize of $5816. The top nine positions would win some money. I got off to a good start and relaxed for a bit. Made a few less than brilliant plays and went into a bit of a hole, but then got a string of good hands.

I made it to the final table of 10 players in second chip position. Blinds and antes were eating my stack away until one hand when I was in the small blind. We were down to seven players, and everyone had folded around to me. I looked down at Ace-Deuce of Diamonds. I had 2 choices at that point. Call the big blind, which would have been just $2000 more in chips, or go All-in with about $25,000. If i win the hand, I'm back in a solid position to last to some good money.

I went All-in, and the big blind quickly called me.

He had a pair of Jacks.

I didn't catch an Ace, three Diamonds, or the 3-4-5 I would have needed to make a straight. Finished 7th, and won about 2 1/2 times the amount I had paid to play.

It was fun and nerve-wracking at the same time.

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Getting in Shape Update 66

The drive just isn't there right now. When I first decided to lose the weight, all it took was a decision. I think it was easy to get started in the first place than it will be to re-ingite the burners.



Starting Weight = 267.0

Last Week's Weight = 227.0

Today's Weight = 228.0

Weight Gain in past week = 1.0 pound



TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS
= 39.0 pounds

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Second Blog

I've created a new blog to keep track of my theatre stuff.

There I Am . . . Up on the Stage

I'll still mention acting and theatre items here, but I'll go into much more detail over there.

The Upside of Losing

Now that my campaign is over, I will have a little more time to pursue my main hobby, acting. I will be auditioning in a couple of weeks for a production of The Odd Couple at the same Theatre where I appeared in Neil Simon's Rumors. I'm also planning on auditioning for Garland Summer Musicals. If I get cast in one or both of their shows, I get paid. Ensemble members get a small amount, but featured roles get a pretty nice check.

After that, my "home theatre" is doing Grease, and I may try out for that show.

I guess what it boils down to is that I need something to do, and now that politics is over for a while, I can get back up on stage if all goes well.

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Movin' On Up

Our family will soon be moving to a new house. We finally got a "Yes" to our offer on a house in Forney.



The house has almost 3000 square feet, which will be a 150% increase in the space we will have. We'll finally have adequate closet space, and plenty of room for all our stuff.

I am looking forward to being able to park my car in a garage. At our current house, we have had to use the garage for storage, so my car has never been inside it.

The new home will only cut a small amount of time and mileage off my commute, but I believe it will add up. It should mean about one less tank of gas every month, and at current prices, every little bit helps.

Disappointed but not Discouraged

Some of you may not know that I have spent the past few months in an effort to gain the Republican nomination for Judge of a newly-created Court at Law for Kaufman County. The Primary election was this past Tuesday, March 7th. My bid was unsuccessful. Looking at the final results, I can honestly say that I don't think there was anything I could have done that would have resulted in my winning the nomination outright or even my leading in the vote count among the four candidates. It is apparent that a substantial number of Democrats crossed over and voted in the Republican Primary in Kaufman County. In 2002 & 2004, approximately 3100 people voted in the Republican Primary. This year, that number more than doubled to 6800.

Both the candidate who obtained the most votes and the candidate in second are former Democrats who switched parties for this election in an effort to get elected. I don't begrudge them this decision. It was the only way they would have a chance of winning this position, so they had to do what they had to do.

What is disappointing to me is that despite the cross-over voting, I should have been able to run stronger and challenged for second place and a spot in the Run-off election. My failure to do so probably stems from three main reasons: 1) The Democratic cross-over; 2) The fourth candidate in the race siphoned off some of the "true Republican" vote; and 3) I refused to believe that the cross-over was going to be as significant as it turned out to be, so I ran a traditional targeted Primary Campaign focusing almost exclusively on people who had a history of voting in the Republican Primary. The second and third reasons combined are probably the most important ones. If the fourth candidate had not been in the race, I believe I would have received the vast majority of the votes that went to him. Those votes alone would not have put me in second, but if I had run a more broad-based campaign, I might have drawn the extra few hundred votes I would have needed to make the run-off. However, despite the adage that "anything can happen in a run-off," I believe that the leading candidate has too strong of an ability to turn out his voters, so it probably would have only resulted in my focusing five more weeks on a race I was ultimately destined to lose.

I don't know if I will seek elected office again any time soon, but as the title of this entry states, I am not discouraged. I ran an honorable, clean campaign, and I am proud of everyone who helped me in any way.

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Getting in Shape Update 65

It's time for serious re-focus and re-commitment.



Starting Weight = 267.0

Last Week's Weight = 225.5

Today's Weight = 227.0

Weight Gain in past week = 1.5 pounds



TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS
= 40.0 pounds

Saturday, March 04, 2006

Getting in Shape Update 64

Just didn't have the discipline this past week not to snack.



Starting Weight = 267.0

Last Week's Weight = 222.0

Today's Weight = 225.5

Weight Gain in past week = 3.5 pounds



TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS
= 41.5 pounds