Wealth
Net Cash: -$145.10
I bought my plane tickets for Bordercon and PAX this week, so I don't feel too bad about this. It also helped that the monthly bonus was paid this week. I'll also have to pay for some accomodation and some other related expenses so I shall endeavour to be a bit more frugal in day to day life in the coming weeks to make up for that.
Jobs applied for: 0
I continue to suck
Health
Net Calories: -1926 Calories
A few instances where will power gave out was mostly but not completely countered with exercise
Fitocracy points: 2769
While taking the benefits for it, I still believe strength exercises get more points than cardio for the amount of effort put in.
Fitocracy Level: 11
Yeah, I leveled up again.
Life
Bike riding: 397km
Books read: 0
Darts: 501 in 20 rounds
Games played: 0
Monday, May 20, 2013
Sunday, May 12, 2013
By The Numbers 19/52
Wealth
Net Cash: $63.41
Jobs Applied for: 0
Health
Net Calories: -2448 Calories
Weight: 94kg
Fitocracy Points: 1632
Life
Bike riding: 366km
Books read: 1
The Geek Manifesto, a call for greater prominence of science and the scientific method in the public sphere.
Darts: 501 in 25 rounds
Games Played: 2 Age of Industry (the Japan map) and Steam Barons
Net Cash: $63.41
Jobs Applied for: 0
Health
Net Calories: -2448 Calories
Weight: 94kg
Fitocracy Points: 1632
Life
Bike riding: 366km
Books read: 1
The Geek Manifesto, a call for greater prominence of science and the scientific method in the public sphere.
Darts: 501 in 25 rounds
Games Played: 2 Age of Industry (the Japan map) and Steam Barons
Sunday, May 05, 2013
By the Numbers 18/52
No comments about the progress of time this week.
Wealth
Net Cash gain: $388.37
In this I'm counting $150 worth of Coles gift vouchers I received via work this week, as they're almost equivalent to cash. Not sure if I'll just use them for groceries and bank the cash I'd otherwise have spent, or use them for a slightly bigger purchase such as a new chair or a filing cabinet.
Jobs applied for: 0
Man I suck at this
Health
Net Calories: -1793 Calories
Back in the negatives, but could be better
Weight: 96kg
Fitocracy points: 614
In addition to the gift vouchers, I also got a set of dumbbells to get a bit more variety in the exercise I do. I've noticed that for the amount of effort I put in, I get a lot more points for doing strength exercises vs cardio exercises.
Life
Bike riding: 156km
A lot of public transport this week as my shifts were during peak hour ($5 petrol + $9 parking = $14 bus fare + less stress)
Books read: 2
So I finally got round to finishing How to Win Friends and Influence People. Unsure on my feelings about it, and will probably write something about it to get my thinking straight. I then went and tore through Inversions by Iain M Banks, and can only lament the fact that there will be no more Culture novels (damn you cancer)
Darts: 501 in 18 rounds
Games Played: 2 Roll Through the Ages and Twilight Struggle
Wealth
Net Cash gain: $388.37
In this I'm counting $150 worth of Coles gift vouchers I received via work this week, as they're almost equivalent to cash. Not sure if I'll just use them for groceries and bank the cash I'd otherwise have spent, or use them for a slightly bigger purchase such as a new chair or a filing cabinet.
Jobs applied for: 0
Man I suck at this
Health
Net Calories: -1793 Calories
Back in the negatives, but could be better
Weight: 96kg
Fitocracy points: 614
In addition to the gift vouchers, I also got a set of dumbbells to get a bit more variety in the exercise I do. I've noticed that for the amount of effort I put in, I get a lot more points for doing strength exercises vs cardio exercises.
Life
Bike riding: 156km
A lot of public transport this week as my shifts were during peak hour ($5 petrol + $9 parking = $14 bus fare + less stress)
Books read: 2
So I finally got round to finishing How to Win Friends and Influence People. Unsure on my feelings about it, and will probably write something about it to get my thinking straight. I then went and tore through Inversions by Iain M Banks, and can only lament the fact that there will be no more Culture novels (damn you cancer)
Darts: 501 in 18 rounds
Games Played: 2 Roll Through the Ages and Twilight Struggle
Monday, April 29, 2013
By the Numbers 17/52
And April's almost done
Wealth
Net Cash: -$97.25
I reverted to form on eating takeaway in the later part of the week due to some bad planning on the groceries front (if you're going to run out of food on the day before ANZAC day, don't think you can get your groceries home delivered on ANZAC day), plus I went out and saw a movie on Saturday
Jobs Applied for: 0
Health
Net Calories: 1166 Calories
A positive no. A consequence of eating too much takeaway during the week (it doesn't help that they make it cheaper to get a meal than just one item by itself, but I should have known better).
Weight: 96 kg
Fitocracy points: 590
At least I walked to and from the cinemas on Saturday.
Life
Bike riding: 289km
Books read: 0
I've all most finished How to Win Friends and Influence People
Games played: Glory to Rome and Tichu
Wealth
Net Cash: -$97.25
I reverted to form on eating takeaway in the later part of the week due to some bad planning on the groceries front (if you're going to run out of food on the day before ANZAC day, don't think you can get your groceries home delivered on ANZAC day), plus I went out and saw a movie on Saturday
Jobs Applied for: 0
Health
Net Calories: 1166 Calories
A positive no. A consequence of eating too much takeaway during the week (it doesn't help that they make it cheaper to get a meal than just one item by itself, but I should have known better).
Weight: 96 kg
Fitocracy points: 590
At least I walked to and from the cinemas on Saturday.
Life
Bike riding: 289km
Books read: 0
I've all most finished How to Win Friends and Influence People
Games played: Glory to Rome and Tichu
Sunday, April 21, 2013
By the Numbers 16/52
Another week down.
Wealth
Net Cash: $197.45
Jobs Applied for: 0
Successful Interviews: 0
So after a few delays at work, they final told me that they'd decided to appoint no one to the position I applied for, and also that I might be better suited in a slightly different role, which I suppose is at least more constructive feedback than any of the other job application this year.
Health
Net Calories: -2431 Calories
I noticed a trend this week. If I don't get enough sleep I eat more. I should try to get by on more than 5 hours sleep.
Weight: 95kg
Fitocracy Points: 1361
Fitocracy level: 9
The arbitrary no increases again, hooray!
Life
Bike riding: 360km
Books read: 0
Games Played: 4, two plays of Dominion base and intrigue, and two new games, Discworld and Twilight Struggle (note to self: If you're going to replay the entire cold war, expect it to take a while)
Wealth
Net Cash: $197.45
Jobs Applied for: 0
Successful Interviews: 0
So after a few delays at work, they final told me that they'd decided to appoint no one to the position I applied for, and also that I might be better suited in a slightly different role, which I suppose is at least more constructive feedback than any of the other job application this year.
Health
Net Calories: -2431 Calories
I noticed a trend this week. If I don't get enough sleep I eat more. I should try to get by on more than 5 hours sleep.
Weight: 95kg
Fitocracy Points: 1361
Fitocracy level: 9
The arbitrary no increases again, hooray!
Life
Bike riding: 360km
Books read: 0
Games Played: 4, two plays of Dominion base and intrigue, and two new games, Discworld and Twilight Struggle (note to self: If you're going to replay the entire cold war, expect it to take a while)
Monday, April 15, 2013
By The Numbers 15/52
Here we go again
Wealth
Net Cash: $163.03
Not bad, but about half of the surplus comes from gifts, so it's not too sustainable, but I spent more than usual as well, so it probably balances out. If I'd given in too temptation, this would have been a very big negative number, but I've decided my current computer will have to do for now.
Jobs Applied for: 1
Interviews Attended: 1
A new field! Now, I don't think I gave them the answers they were wanting to hear so I'm not too optomistic, but I should find out how I went today (it was for a different position at my current work).
Health
Net Calories: -2583
Yeah, eating a packet of mint slices on Sunday probably wasn't the best lunch
Weight: 96kg
It's going down again. Yay!
Fitocracy points: 243
I'd forgotten about some exercise I did early in the week and was thinking this was going to be a terrible week for exercise, but instead it's just ok.
Fitocracy level: 8
Life
Years lived: 32
I'm older! Yay! If I use hexadecimal I'm only 20
Bike riding: 214km
I caught the bus in to work a few times this week to avoid traffic and weather.
Books read: 0
Still plodding through How to Win Friends and Influence People. After that I have two very interesting books to read, The Physics of Wall Street and Scepticism and the Possibility of Knowledge.
Darts: nope
Games Played: 6
Glory to Rome x3, Eminent Domain x2, and Dominion
Things done
Worked on the jigsaw puzzle, read a bit, went to Critical Mass, got a haircut, did some cleaning around the house, exercised on Monday, walked to and from the bus stop on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (although I forgot my go card on Friday, so the return trip was in the morning and then followed by riding the bike into work).
Again I haven't really lived up to what I'm trying with this section.
Wealth
Net Cash: $163.03
Not bad, but about half of the surplus comes from gifts, so it's not too sustainable, but I spent more than usual as well, so it probably balances out. If I'd given in too temptation, this would have been a very big negative number, but I've decided my current computer will have to do for now.
Jobs Applied for: 1
Interviews Attended: 1
A new field! Now, I don't think I gave them the answers they were wanting to hear so I'm not too optomistic, but I should find out how I went today (it was for a different position at my current work).
Health
Net Calories: -2583
Yeah, eating a packet of mint slices on Sunday probably wasn't the best lunch
Weight: 96kg
It's going down again. Yay!
Fitocracy points: 243
I'd forgotten about some exercise I did early in the week and was thinking this was going to be a terrible week for exercise, but instead it's just ok.
Fitocracy level: 8
Life
Years lived: 32
I'm older! Yay! If I use hexadecimal I'm only 20
Bike riding: 214km
I caught the bus in to work a few times this week to avoid traffic and weather.
Books read: 0
Still plodding through How to Win Friends and Influence People. After that I have two very interesting books to read, The Physics of Wall Street and Scepticism and the Possibility of Knowledge.
Darts: nope
Games Played: 6
Glory to Rome x3, Eminent Domain x2, and Dominion
Things done
Worked on the jigsaw puzzle, read a bit, went to Critical Mass, got a haircut, did some cleaning around the house, exercised on Monday, walked to and from the bus stop on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (although I forgot my go card on Friday, so the return trip was in the morning and then followed by riding the bike into work).
Again I haven't really lived up to what I'm trying with this section.
Thursday, April 11, 2013
The Human Mind is a Chinese Room
The following is an essay I wrote as part of an Introduction to Philosophy course I finished recently on Coursera that I felt like sharing more generally.
Could a computer have a mind?
In the debate over can a computer have a mind, one of the most well known arguments for the negative is Searle's Chinese Room Argument. To make his case, Searle asks us to consider a man locked in a room. In the room with the man are some pens, some paper, and a large book. From time to time, the man will receive a piece of paper with some symbols on it which the man will look up in the book and then copy some other symbols onto a blank piece of paper and send that out of the room. Unknown to the man, the symbols are words in Chinese and the book is telling him what to say in Chinese. Searle claims that since the man is just following instructions based on the symbols and not their meaning he doesn't understand Chinese, and since any computer program would also just be following instructions based on the symbols, it too can not understand Chinese. That is, a computer can operate on a syntactic level, but it can not operate on a semantic level, and thus can't be said to have a mind.
I disagree with conclusion, and to explain why I wish to present a counter example, namely the human brain. The human brain is made up of around 86 billion neurons. Each individual neuron is functionally very simple. It receives electrical impulses from other neurons and from time to time based on the received impulses it will send out an electrical impulse to other neurons, who go on to do the same thing. Now for an individual neuron all of these electrical impulses only have syntactic information. Either there is an impulse or there isn't, that's all. It might have originated with a pain receptor in your foot after stepping on a nail, or in a photoreceptor in your eye when you look at a red rose, but to a neuron it's just an electrical impulse with no semantic information associated with it.At this functional level, a neuron is very similar to a circuit in a computer, various electrical inputs are received, and based on that, a certain output is made. From this we can see that a neuron operates on a syntactic level, and not on a semantic level.
So what happens when we start grouping together neurons? For a moment, let us go back to Searle's Room, and this time instead of just one person, we have two people, each with their own book, receiving and writing symbols and passing them between each other as their books instruct to achieve the same outcome. Again, everything is happening on a syntactic level so no semantic understanding occurs. If we continue to add more people to the room each with their own book of instructions, nothing changes to move us from the syntactic to semantic level. So if we remain operating on a syntactic level by adding more people to the room, we will also remain at the syntactic level by adding more neurons to a brain. So a human brain (and indeed any other creatures brain) must operate at a syntactic level and not a semantic level.
But the human brain does operate on a semantic level. We know a rose would smell as sweet by any other name. Semantics are who we are, it's how we think.
We can come to either one of two conclusions. We could look at Searle's claim that a system that operates on a syntactic level can not also operate on a semantic level and say "well, the human brain does that, why cant something else?", or if we concede that yes, the human brain only operates at a syntactic level, then the question is "If the human brain operates only on a syntactic level and we say people have minds, why can't something else that only operates syntactic level also have a mind?" In either case, Searle's argument does not provide a reason to believe that a computer can not have a mind.
Could a computer have a mind?
In the debate over can a computer have a mind, one of the most well known arguments for the negative is Searle's Chinese Room Argument. To make his case, Searle asks us to consider a man locked in a room. In the room with the man are some pens, some paper, and a large book. From time to time, the man will receive a piece of paper with some symbols on it which the man will look up in the book and then copy some other symbols onto a blank piece of paper and send that out of the room. Unknown to the man, the symbols are words in Chinese and the book is telling him what to say in Chinese. Searle claims that since the man is just following instructions based on the symbols and not their meaning he doesn't understand Chinese, and since any computer program would also just be following instructions based on the symbols, it too can not understand Chinese. That is, a computer can operate on a syntactic level, but it can not operate on a semantic level, and thus can't be said to have a mind.
I disagree with conclusion, and to explain why I wish to present a counter example, namely the human brain. The human brain is made up of around 86 billion neurons. Each individual neuron is functionally very simple. It receives electrical impulses from other neurons and from time to time based on the received impulses it will send out an electrical impulse to other neurons, who go on to do the same thing. Now for an individual neuron all of these electrical impulses only have syntactic information. Either there is an impulse or there isn't, that's all. It might have originated with a pain receptor in your foot after stepping on a nail, or in a photoreceptor in your eye when you look at a red rose, but to a neuron it's just an electrical impulse with no semantic information associated with it.At this functional level, a neuron is very similar to a circuit in a computer, various electrical inputs are received, and based on that, a certain output is made. From this we can see that a neuron operates on a syntactic level, and not on a semantic level.
So what happens when we start grouping together neurons? For a moment, let us go back to Searle's Room, and this time instead of just one person, we have two people, each with their own book, receiving and writing symbols and passing them between each other as their books instruct to achieve the same outcome. Again, everything is happening on a syntactic level so no semantic understanding occurs. If we continue to add more people to the room each with their own book of instructions, nothing changes to move us from the syntactic to semantic level. So if we remain operating on a syntactic level by adding more people to the room, we will also remain at the syntactic level by adding more neurons to a brain. So a human brain (and indeed any other creatures brain) must operate at a syntactic level and not a semantic level.
But the human brain does operate on a semantic level. We know a rose would smell as sweet by any other name. Semantics are who we are, it's how we think.
We can come to either one of two conclusions. We could look at Searle's claim that a system that operates on a syntactic level can not also operate on a semantic level and say "well, the human brain does that, why cant something else?", or if we concede that yes, the human brain only operates at a syntactic level, then the question is "If the human brain operates only on a syntactic level and we say people have minds, why can't something else that only operates syntactic level also have a mind?" In either case, Searle's argument does not provide a reason to believe that a computer can not have a mind.
Monday, April 08, 2013
By The Numbers 14/52
I'm a bit late this week as I stayed over at my uncle's as my mother is staying there while she's in town. I'm now doing this while at work, so will need to come back a bit later to fill in some blanks.
Wealth
Net cash: $191.30
Jobs Applied for: 0
I'm working on an application for different job at my current work, but am uncertain as I've applied for this role twice before and each time I've had a crash on my bike just after applying, so there's a certain irrational fear associated with it.
Health
Net Calories: -3809 Calories
An ok week but hurt by a few overindulgences along the way seem not to have had too big an impact
Weight: 97kg
Fitocracy Points: 347
So much lower than last week, but still my 2nd best result for the year
Fitocracy level: 8
Life
Bike Riding: 77853km
Darts: let's call it a miss this week
Books read: 0, but I have been churning through Race for the Iron Throne, a political analysis of A Game of Thrones, which also has a lot of interesting history as well
Games Played: 0
BGG stats not withstanding, as I entered a bunch of online plays of games in bulk the other day. I've decided online plays of games against other people I will keep track of, but not if I just play against an AI.
Things done
A big fail on the three things a day this week. However, things done last week include starting a jigsaw puzzle, exercised once, visited Mum while she's in town, and procrastination. As always, I will try to do better next week
Wealth
Net cash: $191.30
Jobs Applied for: 0
I'm working on an application for different job at my current work, but am uncertain as I've applied for this role twice before and each time I've had a crash on my bike just after applying, so there's a certain irrational fear associated with it.
Health
Net Calories: -3809 Calories
An ok week but hurt by a few overindulgences along the way seem not to have had too big an impact
Weight: 97kg
Fitocracy Points: 347
So much lower than last week, but still my 2nd best result for the year
Fitocracy level: 8
Life
Bike Riding: 77853km
Darts: let's call it a miss this week
Books read: 0, but I have been churning through Race for the Iron Throne, a political analysis of A Game of Thrones, which also has a lot of interesting history as well
Games Played: 0
BGG stats not withstanding, as I entered a bunch of online plays of games in bulk the other day. I've decided online plays of games against other people I will keep track of, but not if I just play against an AI.
Things done
A big fail on the three things a day this week. However, things done last week include starting a jigsaw puzzle, exercised once, visited Mum while she's in town, and procrastination. As always, I will try to do better next week
Sunday, March 31, 2013
By The Numbers 13/52
Three months in to the year.
Wealth
Net Cash Gain: $63.93
Not much, but I still have a lot of cash on hand which I don't recall being the case at the end of last week. I've also played a bit with timing things to make this a bit better by delaying paying my phone bill until tomorrow so it counts for next week's expenses.
Jobs applied for: 0
I've averaged one job application per month. This needs to improve.
Health
Net Calories: -3799 Calories
An ok week. It would have been a very good week but I ate a bunch of chocolate today and take out on Friday.
Weight: 98kg
A slight move in the wrong direction
Fitocracy points: 1408
A big week. A major step up in the use of the treadmill at a much higher setting. I am getting blisters on my feet though so I may have to actually start wearing shoes while using the treadmill.
Fitocracy level: 8
So after spending most of the year so far getting from level 6 to level 7, I then managed to reach level 8 in one week. I'm not sure if I can repeat this next week.
Life
Bike riding: 402km
A bit of non commuting riding this week
Darts: 501 in 36 rounds
Books read: 0
Games Played: 3. 2 games of Dominion (just the base set) and Battlestar Galactica with the Pegasus Expansion. My second time as a cylon, and I did a bit better at not getting caught, but the humans got a very good start and the cylons weren't able to hit them hard enough during the last jump, but we got close (two of the dials were down to 2)
Things done
Monday:
Tuesday: exercise
Wednesday: exercise
Thursday: exercise
Friday: Social gaming,
Saturday: exercise
Sunday: exercise, Coursera work (Greek History quiz and peer review of Philosophy essays)
So much for the three things a week. Let's have another go next week.
Wealth
Net Cash Gain: $63.93
Not much, but I still have a lot of cash on hand which I don't recall being the case at the end of last week. I've also played a bit with timing things to make this a bit better by delaying paying my phone bill until tomorrow so it counts for next week's expenses.
Jobs applied for: 0
I've averaged one job application per month. This needs to improve.
Health
Net Calories: -3799 Calories
An ok week. It would have been a very good week but I ate a bunch of chocolate today and take out on Friday.
Weight: 98kg
A slight move in the wrong direction
Fitocracy points: 1408
A big week. A major step up in the use of the treadmill at a much higher setting. I am getting blisters on my feet though so I may have to actually start wearing shoes while using the treadmill.
Fitocracy level: 8
So after spending most of the year so far getting from level 6 to level 7, I then managed to reach level 8 in one week. I'm not sure if I can repeat this next week.
Life
Bike riding: 402km
A bit of non commuting riding this week
Darts: 501 in 36 rounds
Books read: 0
Games Played: 3. 2 games of Dominion (just the base set) and Battlestar Galactica with the Pegasus Expansion. My second time as a cylon, and I did a bit better at not getting caught, but the humans got a very good start and the cylons weren't able to hit them hard enough during the last jump, but we got close (two of the dials were down to 2)
Things done
Monday:
Tuesday: exercise
Wednesday: exercise
Thursday: exercise
Friday: Social gaming,
Saturday: exercise
Sunday: exercise, Coursera work (Greek History quiz and peer review of Philosophy essays)
So much for the three things a week. Let's have another go next week.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
By The Numbers 12/52
Almost at the end of March. My time flies.
Wealth
Net Cash: $167.74
Jobs Applied for: 0
If job hunting is a numbers game, I'm definitely playing it wrong
Health
Net Calories: -5248 Calories
My will power seems to be improving. On Thursday among my groceries I bought two packets of mint slices, and I'm still making my way through the first packet.
Weight: 97kg
A lean diet this week hasn't really translated into weight loss. At least my pants seem looser around the waist.
Fitocracy points: 165
Walking to the shops instead of getting home delivery really helps with getting exercise
Fitocracy level: 7
I leveled up! Yay for arbitrary numbers increasing
Life
Bike riding: 352km
Books read: 0
Still working through How to Win Friends and Influence People (I'm forcing myself to keep going, once I'm done I'll post some of my thoughts) and The Geek Manifesto on the side
Darts: 501 in 37 rounds
An all round atrocious effort
Games played: 1 St Petersberg
I'm going to add a new section which I'm hoping will make me do more things with my free time rather than just watching tv shows and playing around on the internet. The aim is to do at least three things each day. I've not done it every day this week, but I'll see what I can remember
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday: wrote Intro to Philosophy essay (I'll post it next week after submissions are finalised)
Thursday: Walked to the shops (exercise in general will count as a thing for this), watched English Composition lectures and wrote "I am a Writer" essay,
Friday: read a chunk of How to Make Friends and Influence People
Saturday: watched Microeconomics lectures and completed quiz, looked at handbrake on bike to see why the brake light isn't working properly (the switch isn't working, I'm getting it fixed tomorrow), checked the oil and lubed the chain, played St Petersberg with Simon and Dan and learnt a bit about roofing (social things in general will count)
Sunday: Watched Games without Chance lectures and completed the quiz, watched the storm, mopped the floor (aftermath of the storm), read a chunk of How to Make Friends and Influence People
I'll make notes next week so I can provide a more complete list
Wealth
Net Cash: $167.74
Jobs Applied for: 0
If job hunting is a numbers game, I'm definitely playing it wrong
Health
Net Calories: -5248 Calories
My will power seems to be improving. On Thursday among my groceries I bought two packets of mint slices, and I'm still making my way through the first packet.
Weight: 97kg
A lean diet this week hasn't really translated into weight loss. At least my pants seem looser around the waist.
Fitocracy points: 165
Walking to the shops instead of getting home delivery really helps with getting exercise
Fitocracy level: 7
I leveled up! Yay for arbitrary numbers increasing
Life
Bike riding: 352km
Books read: 0
Still working through How to Win Friends and Influence People (I'm forcing myself to keep going, once I'm done I'll post some of my thoughts) and The Geek Manifesto on the side
Darts: 501 in 37 rounds
An all round atrocious effort
Games played: 1 St Petersberg
I'm going to add a new section which I'm hoping will make me do more things with my free time rather than just watching tv shows and playing around on the internet. The aim is to do at least three things each day. I've not done it every day this week, but I'll see what I can remember
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday: wrote Intro to Philosophy essay (I'll post it next week after submissions are finalised)
Thursday: Walked to the shops (exercise in general will count as a thing for this), watched English Composition lectures and wrote "I am a Writer" essay,
Friday: read a chunk of How to Make Friends and Influence People
Saturday: watched Microeconomics lectures and completed quiz, looked at handbrake on bike to see why the brake light isn't working properly (the switch isn't working, I'm getting it fixed tomorrow), checked the oil and lubed the chain, played St Petersberg with Simon and Dan and learnt a bit about roofing (social things in general will count)
Sunday: Watched Games without Chance lectures and completed the quiz, watched the storm, mopped the floor (aftermath of the storm), read a chunk of How to Make Friends and Influence People
I'll make notes next week so I can provide a more complete list
Sunday, March 17, 2013
By The Numbers 11/52
A milestone I've been working towards was achieved this week, but I fell a little short of another one so let's recap
Wealth
Net Cash: $223.58
It was bonus week at work this month, which accounts for a bit over half of this surplus. I've also been on earlier starts which means the free parking spot near work had spaces available, which saves about $45 on parking. The milestone I achieved was this has allowed me to finish paying off my credit card, which was about half of the debt I had at the start of the year. Hopefully the second half will be paid off a bit quicker, and the 2nd creditor offers much more flexible terms.
Jobs applied for: 1
A friend sent me a link to a job being advertised at their company, and it looked good so I sent in an application.
Health
Net Calories: -2385 Calories
I slipped a bit on Saturday as my DnD group reverted to getting pizza instead of going out for subway, but a bit of exercise today helped a bit
Weight: 97 kg
Fitocracy points: 148
Fitocracy level: 6
I only exercised once this week, and while I did 100 jumping jacks and some pushups while doing the prep for this post I'm still 72 points short of leveling up
Life
Bike riding: 351km
Just the regular commute to and from work
Books read: 1
The Flight of the Horse, a collection of stories by Larry Niven. An enjoyable read, and a pleasant distraction from How to Win Friends and Influence People.
Darts: 501 in 16 rounds. Amazing how much better you do when you go out on your first try instead of busting for 15-20 rounds
Games played: 3 Battlestar Galactica with the Pegasus expansion, Through the Ages, and a session of Dungeons and Dragons
Wealth
Net Cash: $223.58
It was bonus week at work this month, which accounts for a bit over half of this surplus. I've also been on earlier starts which means the free parking spot near work had spaces available, which saves about $45 on parking. The milestone I achieved was this has allowed me to finish paying off my credit card, which was about half of the debt I had at the start of the year. Hopefully the second half will be paid off a bit quicker, and the 2nd creditor offers much more flexible terms.
Jobs applied for: 1
A friend sent me a link to a job being advertised at their company, and it looked good so I sent in an application.
Health
Net Calories: -2385 Calories
I slipped a bit on Saturday as my DnD group reverted to getting pizza instead of going out for subway, but a bit of exercise today helped a bit
Weight: 97 kg
Fitocracy points: 148
Fitocracy level: 6
I only exercised once this week, and while I did 100 jumping jacks and some pushups while doing the prep for this post I'm still 72 points short of leveling up
Life
Bike riding: 351km
Just the regular commute to and from work
Books read: 1
The Flight of the Horse, a collection of stories by Larry Niven. An enjoyable read, and a pleasant distraction from How to Win Friends and Influence People.
Darts: 501 in 16 rounds. Amazing how much better you do when you go out on your first try instead of busting for 15-20 rounds
Games played: 3 Battlestar Galactica with the Pegasus expansion, Through the Ages, and a session of Dungeons and Dragons
Sunday, March 10, 2013
By The Numbers 10/52
And we're into March now.
Wealth
Net Cash: $66
Could be better, but a positive figure
Jobs applied for: 0
I'm slack. But I've been browsing seek more regularly, which is a step forward
Health
Net Calories: -5094 Calories
A pretty good result
Weight: 98kg
Fitocracy points: 271
Fitocracy level: 6
I'm almost at level 7, if I do as much exercise next week I should level up.
Life
Bike Riding: 371km
Books Read: 1
Drift by Rachel Maddow of MSNBC fame. A pretty dismal look at how America has made going to war much easier and with less oversight. Also, the Iran-Contra scandal was even dodgier than I previously understood. I had thought the reason they were using money from arm sales to Iran to help the contras was just to keep it secret. It turns out the reason they did that was because Congress had specifically said you can't spend our money helping the Contras, but Reagan wanted to anyway. I'm now part way through Flight of the Horse by Larry Niven
Darts: I'm skipping this week
Games Played: 1, Cranium, and may I just say I suck at the green ones.
Wealth
Net Cash: $66
Could be better, but a positive figure
Jobs applied for: 0
I'm slack. But I've been browsing seek more regularly, which is a step forward
Health
Net Calories: -5094 Calories
A pretty good result
Weight: 98kg
Fitocracy points: 271
Fitocracy level: 6
I'm almost at level 7, if I do as much exercise next week I should level up.
Life
Bike Riding: 371km
Books Read: 1
Drift by Rachel Maddow of MSNBC fame. A pretty dismal look at how America has made going to war much easier and with less oversight. Also, the Iran-Contra scandal was even dodgier than I previously understood. I had thought the reason they were using money from arm sales to Iran to help the contras was just to keep it secret. It turns out the reason they did that was because Congress had specifically said you can't spend our money helping the Contras, but Reagan wanted to anyway. I'm now part way through Flight of the Horse by Larry Niven
Darts: I'm skipping this week
Games Played: 1, Cranium, and may I just say I suck at the green ones.
Sunday, March 03, 2013
By The Numbers 9/52
Wealth
Net cash gain: -$50.18
A major once off expense this week, my accommodation for PAX is now sorted out, I'll be sharing a room with a friend from bordercon in the city within hiking distance (4-5km) from PAX, so I'm pretty happy with it.
Jobs applied for: 1, a graduate analyst position in Melbourne, which might mean the above payment for a hotel room for PAX might end up being unnecessary, but that would be a problem I'm more than happy dealing with if it arises.
Health
Net Calories: -1903 Calories
A hermit-like weekend made up for a major blowout on Friday.
Weight: 99kg
Fitocracy points: 0
This is especially bad as on Sunday I got a free pass to a gym for 5 days and I managed to go to the gym exactly 0 times. A combination of logistics (having to bring in a complete change of clothes including shoes and a towel on the bike), bad weather (any change of clothes I did bring would be drenched when I got in) and distance (when they called me up to offer the pass, I was thinking they were only a block or so from work, turns out the place was about a 30 minute walk away). But that still doesn't excuse not doing anything at home.
Life
Bike riding: 326km
Books read: 1
I finally finished Mr Gatling's Terrible Marvel. Main points were amateurs inventors good and American style patents good. Very light on technical details though. Not sure what my next book will be, contenders are Drift by Rachel Maddow, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carneggie, and My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor (2 of these have been featured on the Daily Show this year)
Darts: 501 in 30 rounds, half for the first 498 points, another 15 for the final 3
Board Games played: 2 Through the Ages and Eminent Domain
Net cash gain: -$50.18
A major once off expense this week, my accommodation for PAX is now sorted out, I'll be sharing a room with a friend from bordercon in the city within hiking distance (4-5km) from PAX, so I'm pretty happy with it.
Jobs applied for: 1, a graduate analyst position in Melbourne, which might mean the above payment for a hotel room for PAX might end up being unnecessary, but that would be a problem I'm more than happy dealing with if it arises.
Health
Net Calories: -1903 Calories
A hermit-like weekend made up for a major blowout on Friday.
Weight: 99kg
Fitocracy points: 0
This is especially bad as on Sunday I got a free pass to a gym for 5 days and I managed to go to the gym exactly 0 times. A combination of logistics (having to bring in a complete change of clothes including shoes and a towel on the bike), bad weather (any change of clothes I did bring would be drenched when I got in) and distance (when they called me up to offer the pass, I was thinking they were only a block or so from work, turns out the place was about a 30 minute walk away). But that still doesn't excuse not doing anything at home.
Life
Bike riding: 326km
Books read: 1
I finally finished Mr Gatling's Terrible Marvel. Main points were amateurs inventors good and American style patents good. Very light on technical details though. Not sure what my next book will be, contenders are Drift by Rachel Maddow, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carneggie, and My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor (2 of these have been featured on the Daily Show this year)
Darts: 501 in 30 rounds, half for the first 498 points, another 15 for the final 3
Board Games played: 2 Through the Ages and Eminent Domain
Sunday, February 24, 2013
By The Numbers 8/52
Now for week 8
Wealth
Net cash gain: $171.14
a big asterisk on this week. Issues with my iphone caused me to have to reset it, which caused me to lose the data in the app I use to keep track of my finances. I've put all the data back in, but the bank records date things by when the transaction is processed rather than when the transaction actually occurred, which means the dates before and after the reset won't exactly match, hence the asterisk. From now on making a back up will be a part of process of preparing this weekly write up
Jobs applied for: 0
Health
Net Calories: -2802 Calories
Weight: 99kg
Fitocracy points: 84
Fitocracy level: 6
Yeah, I slacked off this week
Life
Bike Riding: 354km
Books read: 0
I didn't even make any progress on Mr Gatling's Terrible Marvel this week.
Darts: 501 in 40 rounds. I need to work on accuracy, since 21 rounds trying to go out on 7 and then 2 is just plain terrible, especially since it only took 19 rounds to that point.
Board games played: 0
An early start on Saturday meant no Critical Mass on Friday night, and there was no other gaming this week.
Wealth
Net cash gain: $171.14
a big asterisk on this week. Issues with my iphone caused me to have to reset it, which caused me to lose the data in the app I use to keep track of my finances. I've put all the data back in, but the bank records date things by when the transaction is processed rather than when the transaction actually occurred, which means the dates before and after the reset won't exactly match, hence the asterisk. From now on making a back up will be a part of process of preparing this weekly write up
Jobs applied for: 0
Health
Net Calories: -2802 Calories
Weight: 99kg
Fitocracy points: 84
Fitocracy level: 6
Yeah, I slacked off this week
Life
Bike Riding: 354km
Books read: 0
I didn't even make any progress on Mr Gatling's Terrible Marvel this week.
Darts: 501 in 40 rounds. I need to work on accuracy, since 21 rounds trying to go out on 7 and then 2 is just plain terrible, especially since it only took 19 rounds to that point.
Board games played: 0
An early start on Saturday meant no Critical Mass on Friday night, and there was no other gaming this week.
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