Oddly Anonymous

To a certain extent, I want to protect my identity at the moment. Likewise, I want those who know me personally to not know about these changes I write about here.

Trying to keep this blog hidden from my family and friends has not been easy. It's often difficult to find time to write posts. "Babe, what are you doing?", my wife will ask from across the room. I'll respond with whatever I heard on the news that day... "Huh, just reading an article about some window washer that survived a fall from 47 stories."

With all the anonymity I suppose it almost seems counter-intuitive to write about everything on the world-wide web. I guess a part of me just really wants to tell someone. And maybe I'm not alone. Maybe someone can explain what's going on. Was this really caused by that trip to the silo?

I've tried to do some research on my "condition" (FYI, I now use Rock Quotes as suggested by Dane Cook). There's also been some recent news about some pretty incredible feats that caught my attention.

Alcides Moreno, a window washer in New York, fell 47 stories when his scaffolding collapsed. Moreno survived and was released from the hospital for rehab six weeks after his fall. His brother,Edgar, was working with Alcides at the time, but did not survive the fall.

There have also been stories of babies with a genetic mutation known as myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy. This genetic mutation results in above average growth of skeletal muscles, incredible strength, a warp-speed metabolism and minimal body fat.

I have found only two such cases. The first was of a German boy born in Germany in 2000. His mother was apparently a professional sprinter. The boy's identity, along with the rest of the family, was kept confidential, though a photo was released of the muscle development of the boy's legs at just 7 months.

The second case was of a boy named Liam Hoekstra. Oddly enough, Liam is also of German decent, but was adopted by an American couple living in Michigan. Liam was apparently so strong that at 5 months he could hold himself in an Iron Cross, a gymnastics move in which a male athlete suspends himself by his arms between two hanging rings, forming the shape of a cross.

I'm not sure I can compare myself to the German boys. I never displayed such strength when I was younger. Only now am I seeing such a rapid transformation in my strength and other oddities.

This past week I discovered an increased sensitivity with my five senses. It was most apparent during an interview. I was sitting in on an interview as a witness while an investigator questioned a woman in regards to suspicion of theft. For the most part, I was just taking notes. Just about every time the woman denied stealing the cash, I could almost feel and hear her pulse increase. It was as if the increased tense and speed of her pulse were literally vibrating the air to such a degree that I could detect it from across the room. The woman eventually confessed to the theft.

Fortunately, the sensitivity doesn't have an affect on my pain threshold. For example, I can hear soft sounds much better, but loud sounds don't seem to cause more pain than before.

AM: Dunkin Donuts, Cream/Sugar

First WOD for 2008!

Finally! I managed to roll out of bed early enough this morning to get in my first workout of the year (and in 3 months). I warmed up with the Crossfit WOD (4 x 400m runs with 2:00 rest between each run). I then did some pullups, dips, and more sprints. It wasn't a difficult workout, but it felt great to finally get outside.

All I could think about last night was that crack down the center of my monitor. I had no idea what to tell my boss. I just kept thinking to myself, "What crack? My monitor is in one piece." It practically became my mini-mantra for the night.

Oddly enough, when I arrived at work this morning, I found my monitor was in one piece. I know that I was really upset over losing all that data, but could I have been so blinded by anger and frustration to see something that wasn't even there? It was definitely weird and not the sort of differences I've been noticing with myself that prompted this blog. I'll have to pay closer attention to such instances in the future.

AM: DD Home brew, Medium, Cinnamon
AM: Folgers, Medium, International Delight

Anger Management

I smashed my mouse today. I also cracked my monitor screen, I think.

I've been working on this same project for the last six months. I collected a lot of data and prepared a bunch of reports that I've been saving on my harddrive (the files are too large for my network drives). In any case, I accidentally deleted the files late this afternoon and had no idea how to retrieve them. I have Windows XP loaded on my work laptop, so I tried the System Restore feature, but that didn't help. Our Internal Computer Support Team was of even less help.

During my frustration, I gripped my mouse so hard it cracked in three places. Normally, I'm pretty calm. But the thought of having lost six months worth of work made it very difficult to be optimistic. The thought continued to boil inside my head. I stared at my computer screen and just thought of tossing the laptop across the room. At that moment, the screen cracked down the middle. With my left hand, I caught a tiny piece of glass that came flying towards my face. I just sat there, befuddled. How could I explain what just happened?

It was about 6:45pm by this time. Everyone had gone home over an hour ago. I figured the best thing to do was just go home and get some rest. Maybe I was just seeing things. Maybe screen didn't crack. I mean, how could it? I didn't even lay a finger on my laptop!

AM: DD Medium Roast with Cinnamon
PM: Cafecito

This is different

Lately, I've been noticing some changes to my strength. I haven't exercised in months. My diet hasn't been anything to be proud of. The healthiest food I put into my stomach nowadays is probably water and coffee. And despite this, I've actually noticed some significant strength gains; gains unlike I experienced when I DID workout. I wanted to start documenting some of the more significant strenght feats.

Just this morning, while working at the Flager Flea Market, I picked up the back end of a 17' U-Haul Truck! Well, let me clarify. It's not like I pressed it overhead. I grabbed the rear bumper and pulled it up as if Iwas deadlifting a barbell. The tires must've come up only about an inch. I think my max deadlift was about 320 lbs. I'm almost certain the truck weighs a lot more than that, but I'm not sure how that compares to picking up just the rear as I did.

I sort of do know when these changes started occuring. It was sometime after my brother and I visited the missle silo found south of the entrance to the everglades near Florida City. There was a smal barricade blocking the path of this 2 mile stretch. The barricade only prevented cars from passing, so it was easy enough for us to hop over and bring a bike along. We made it to the end of the road and found this large, abandoned warehouse. There was a huge circular steel plate (40 feet in diameter maybe) covering the ground.

We weren't there for long because there was this massive infestation of mosquitoes, flies, and other unrecognizable flying insects everywhere! The swarm looked like a thick black fog heading towards us. And each insect was larger than I've ever seen. We only had one bike with us, so I let my brother ride the bike back while I ran out of there. It wasn't until I was about 1/4 of a mile out did the massive swarm finally dwindle, sparing me enough blood to run the remaining 1 3/4 miles back. My brother escaped unscathed. I'm sure all the sugar in my blood from the coffee I've been drinking helped enticed the thirsty critters.

Hopefully I'll be able to adhere to my New Year's Resolution and begin my workout routine again. I keep reading the posts and WODs over at Crossfit.com and begin to lament over my lack of participation. I'm really curious to see how I've regressed (or maybe, somehow progressed).

AM: Dunkin Donuts, Medium Cream/Sugar