F3 Knoxville

Tag: Mr Jinxy

Chasing Windmills

THE SCENE: Clear and a little nippier than it seemed, around 50 degrees with a bit of a breeze.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER Nailed it. I think.  
WARM-O-RAMA:

  • -20 Side Straddle Hops (4-ct), in cadence
  • – 10 Steve Earl’s (4-ct), in cadence
  • – 10 Cherry Pickers (4-ct) in cadence
  • – Little of this, little of that (arm stretches)
  • – 20 Moroccan Nightclubs (4-ct), in cadence
  • Calf Stretches on curb, followed by 20 calf raises, OYO

THA-THANG:

Mosey to big parking lot southwest of the chapel:

KRAKEN: Six cones in a rectangle. Start at first cone and do 5 Reps of each exercise.  Run around the cones to where you started PLUS ONE Cone, then do 10 Reps of each exercise. Keep adding 5 reps until you’ve returned to where you started.  Last cone will be 30 reps of each exercise.

    • Exercises are: MERKINS/BOBBY HURLEYS/BBS

Mosey to big parking lot east of the chapel. Lines 60 yards apart with X’s about 20 yards apart between lines.  Partner up.  Goal is for Partner 1 to travel to the next X, then do maintenance exercise until Partner 2 (who was doing plank) catches up.  Then Partner 1 starts the next series while Partner 2 does maintenance exercise.  Partner activities (active/maintenance) are:

      • Broad Jumps / Iron Mikes
      • Lunges / Smurf Jacks
      • Bear Crawl / Mountain climbers

REVERSE AND COME BACK.

  • Mosey to CMU pile. Keep your battle buddy, but everyone gets a CMU
    • One partner runs to end of parking lot with CMU, does 5 Jump over Burpees and runs back while the other starts the exercises. Each pair shall complete the total number:
      • 100 Big Boy sit-ups w/CMU
      • 100 Lunges w/ CMU (both legs = 1)
      • 100 Side to side Merkins
      • 100 Squat Presses w/ CMU

We ran out of time before we finished the lunges.

MARY:
She was not to be found
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
11 Strong.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

As some of you know, THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT DAY of CELEBRATION!!  That’s right, on this day, in 1605, Miguel de Cervantes’ El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha, better known as Don Quixote, was published. The book is considered by many to be the first modern novel as well as one of the greatest novels of all time.  There’s Chivalry, there’s Romance, there’s dudes charging at Windmills, there’s Delusions of Grandeur… It’s the best book ever.

“It is not the responsibility of knights errant to discover whether the afflicted, the enchained and the oppressed whom they encounter on the road are reduced to these circumstances and suffer this distress for their vices, or for their virtues: the knight’s sole responsibility is to succor them as people in need, having eyes only for their sufferings, not for their misdeeds.”

Some Key Tenets of being a good Christian are contained in this quote…

  • Help others:

Proverbs 19:17: Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed.

1 John 3:17  But if anyone is wealthy and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?

  • Do not judge:

Matthew 7:1-5 and Luke 6:37: Judge not, and ye shall not be judged:

 

Please join me in celebrating this great anniversary. I can’t think of any other reasons to celebrate.

OH, wait a second… I guess it’s ALSO our Nan’Tan’s 50th BIRTHDAY!!!

MOLESKIN:
Happy Birthday Abscess!  Way to finally earn our RESPECT! 😉
ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Slaughter tours the Asylum

THE SCENE: A crisp 65 degrees, beautiful weather for my tour of the AO
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
SSH x 10; Cherry Pickers (slow) x 7; Overhead Clap x 25; Moroccan Nightclub x 25.

THA-THANG:
Inaugural “Flight of the Blue Falcon”

  • Given two 8x12x16 (XL) CMUs, two PAX held the CMUs overhead while the rest of the group ran away for a 10-count.  At the end of the counting, “drop” was called and the herd executed AMRAP of an exercise designated by a block-holder (burpees, merkins, squats, pickle pounders, smurf jacks, etc) until the blocks caught up and were passed off.  Upon exchange, the new CMU holders designated the next exercise and began 10-count while everyone else ran away.  Rinse and repeat, with a goal of showing the Q the ins and outs of the AO (Everest, Cardiac Hill, etc) until time was up.

MARY:
Arrived back at the AO with about 5 minutes to spare, completed flutter kicks x 25, tempo squats x 20, then overhead claps/moroccan nightclubs until time was up (lost count in the midst of the mumble-chatter).

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
1 Peter 5 v. 6&7 say “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”  Talked about what it means to cast anxieties on Him, and that it means to cut the cord and leave it there, not reel it back in like a crank-bait.  Shared a story about a flight with my M, when she got very nervous during a turbulent flight.  Being the “good husband” that I thought I was being, I told her not to worry, that it would be ok.  Of course, that didn’t help, and she looked at me, panicked, and said “how do you know?”.  My too-quick and too-honest response was “I don’t, but I can’t fly the damn plane, so there’s nothing I can do about it…”  This is a good reminder that as men, we need to be honest, but we need to do so with love.
MOLESKIN:
The Asylum bunch was fun, but way too courteous.  I should have explained the “blue falcon” concept better at the beginning, because they were asking “who wants the block?” instead of just handing it off to the next vict.. er, uh, participant.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Keep an eye on the Q calendar, me and “my friends” as Mermaid called them, will be making appearances at more AOs to spread the love.

No More, No Less

THE SCENE: Low 50s and partly cloudy
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER  Check
WARM-O-RAMA:

-Motivators (7 count)

-11 Cherry Pickers, IC

– 10 Rockettes, IC

-10 Tempo Merkins, IC

THA-THANG:

Mosey to Serpentine Sidewalk.

    • Run down sidewalk, suicide style, stopping to do the following exercises:
      • 2 lights: 5 Merkins/ 4 lights: 10 merkins/ 6 lights 15 merkins/ 8 lights 20 merkins.
      • Rinse and repeat with Carolina Dry Docks
      • Rinse and repeat with Dive Bombers, but shortened this one to every light.  Q was getting gassed.
    • Mosey to Play ground:
      • 30 Seconds AMRAP:
        • LBCs
        • Xs &Os
        • BBS
        • American Hammers
      • Rinse and repeat
    • Mosey to Baby Cardiac
      • 7s on the hill: Froggie Jumps and Iron Mikes (2-ct)
  • Mosey to CMU pile, avoiding the condoms on the ground.  So Gross.
    • 30 seconds AMRAP: Overhead Presses, Curls, Rows, Triceps, Rinse and repeat, except for triceps.

MARY:
No time.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
11 Strong
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

EYORE: It occurred to Pooh and Piglet that they hadn’t heard from Eeyore for several days, so they put on their hats and coats and trotted across the Hundred Acre Wood to Eeyore’s stick house. Inside the house was Eeyore.

“Hello Eeyore,” said Pooh.

“Hello Pooh. Hello Piglet,” said Eeyore, in a Glum Sounding Voice.

“We just thought we’d check in on you,” said Piglet, “because we hadn’t heard from you, and so we wanted to know if you were okay.”

Eeyore was silent for a moment. “Am I okay?” he asked, eventually. “Well, I don’t know, to be honest. Are any of us really okay? That’s what I ask myself. All I can tell you, Pooh and Piglet, is that right now I feel really rather Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All. Which is why I haven’t bothered you. Because you wouldn’t want to waste your time hanging out with someone who is Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All, would you now.”

Pooh looked at Piglet, and Piglet looked at Pooh, and they both sat down, one on either side of Eeyore in his stick house.

Eeyore looked at them in surprise. “What are you doing?”

“We’re sitting here with you,” said Pooh, “because we are your friends. And true friends don’t care if someone is feeling Sad, or Alone, or Not Much Fun To Be Around At All. True friends are there for you anyway. And so here we are.”

“Oh,” said Eeyore. “Oh.” And the three of them sat there in silence, and while Pooh and Piglet said nothing at all; somehow, almost imperceptibly, Eeyore started to feel a very tiny little bit better.

Because Pooh and Piglet were There.

No more; no less.

(A.A. Milne, E.H. Shepard)

Be present for those around you who are withdrawn, or depressed, or in need of encouragement. Also look to God when you feel this way.  Oftentimes, no words are needed.  Just be there and open your heart.  God will always be there to fill it.

MOLESKIN:
Happy Birthday to Brick! 40, BABY!!
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Tank’s party Friday, ski trip Feb. 7-9.

This Is 2020 (Without Hugh Downs and Barbara Walters)

THE SCENE: Rainy, low to mid 50s

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
SSH x 20, baby arm circles forward x 20, baby arm circles backward x 20, 20-second plank, Pilates push-ups x 20 (10 each leg – merkins with left leg raised up x 10 followed by merkins with right leg raised up x 10), tempo squats x 20

THA-THANG:
Mosey to CMU pile via the Dragon’s Tail stopping at each light pole to do an exercise x 20 reps – alternating between merkins and squats

Pickup a CMU and mosey to the pavilon

CMU curls x 20 followed by 20-second recovery, rinse and repeat for 4 rounds (80 total reps)

Mosey to Crawdad’s Yoga Studio

Carolina dry docks x 20 followed by 20-second recovery, rinse and repeat for 4 rounds (80 total reps)

Mosey back to pavilon for table rows using the same reps and recovery as before

Mosey back to the yoga studio for flutter kicks, same schedule

Mosey back to the pavilon for CMU overhead presses, same schedule

Mosey back to the yoga studio for more Pilates push-ups, same schedule – Cheatsheet and Crawdad started singing the Hokey Pokey Song and dubbed the Pilates push-ups the “Hokey Pokeys”

Mosey back to the pavilon, pick up the CMUs and mosey to the CMU pile to return them

Mosey to Cardiac with just a few minutes to spare, so we only had time for one run up Cardiac and to the AO without stopping for any exercises

MARY:
We ran out of time for Mary, but we did get some ab work in during the workout

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
13 HIMs getting better in the rain on the first Saturday workout at the Asylum in 2020

Veggie was here, but he is not in the group, so I couldn’t tag him.

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
It is a new year and a new decade and no one knows what it holds.  It could be the year that someone is added to your life, or it could be the year that someone is taken away.  It could be the year of the promotion, or it could be the year of the demotion.  It could be the year of kindergarten, or it could be the year of graduation.  It could be the year of the big win, or it could be the year of the big loss.  Regardless, you don’t need a resolution, you need a constitution, a foundation.  On a big scale, it should be God, your family, your friends, etc.  But, it can be anything that grounds you.  It can even be as simple as the F3 workouts.  The asphalt, concrete, and grass do not change, and they are always there waiting for you whether you have a good day/week or a bad day/week.  They are checkpoints after good times or bad and before whatever lies ahead.  If nothing else, start there and build.  Have a good new year but not just for what good fortunes may come your way during the year but based on what you keep your eye on and focus on while the year goes by

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Pinto, Flashback 2, Lady Tank, Cheatsheet’s family, Lady Junk, and Veggie going back for another semester of college
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Party at Tank’s house on 1/10

Still need money for pull up bars for the Dog Pound

Struck Down But Not Destroyed

THE SCENE: Insert info about the weather, etc.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Mountain Climbers (four count), 10 Cherry Pickers, 10 Rockettes, 10 Baby Arm Circles Forward and 10 Backward
THA-THANG:
Get Bricks out of Truck.  Mosey Across Street to Trail that meanders to gate at Lyons Bend.  We will run with bricks for five lights then do 5 Mini-Man-Makers, 10 Jump Squats, 20 Squats and 25 Wings Up (still holding bricks).  Those getting finished first run in place with bricks.  We will then run for five more lights doing same exercises when stopping but with 25 Wings Out (instead of Wings up).  We will then run five more lights doing same exercises but with 25 Wings Down.  Next, five more but with 25 Overhead Presses.  Finally we will run for five more lights and do same exercises but with 25 Rows.  We will then mosey on roadway back toward AO.  However, we will stop in lowest parking lot on way back to bear crawls to inlets with bricks.  Finally, mosey back to AO and drop off bricks.

Mosey through entrance way of northern ball fields and go to northernmost ball field.  We will number off into two teams.  One team starts at home plate and the other team starts at second base.  We will do relay race with each man running around bases before next man starts.

Mosey to striped field in outfield.  We will do suicides running to each line and back to start but doing 15 Baby
Crunches each time we come back.  Those who finish suicides first will alternate between 10 Big Boys and 10 Merkins until everyone is back.

Mosey to pavilion.  We will alternate between 25 Picnic Table Pull-ups and 25 Bench Dips. Next we will do 20 of each, then 15 of each, then 10 of each, and, finally, 5 of each.

Mosey past pitching cages at Northern Ball Fields to Cardiac Hill.  We will run up the hill stopping to the following exercises at the following locations:

  • Curve 1:  25 American Hammers (four count)
  • Curve 2:  25 Hello Dollies (four count)
  • Curve 3:  25 Decline Merkins
  • Benches:  25 Bench Dips

Mosey to CMU Pile.  We will break into teams of two each for Doras.  While one man Bernie’s to curb and sprints back, the other works on the exercises, then each man switches.  Teams will do the following exercises:

  • 100 Overhead Presses
  • 100 Curls
  • 100 Bell Ringers
  • 100 Rows

Mosey back to AO.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
10 men, no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

2 Corinthians 4:8-11

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.”

As the year of 2019 comes to a close, I have been thinking about our brother, Pinto.  This has not been an easy year for him.  As you know, he had a major heart attack at the start of the year.  His mother died later in the year.  He began to cope with exhaustion and significant weight loss and weakening of the bones that led to a break in his back and tear in his rib cage.  He found out that multiple myeloma, a disease that causes cancer cells to accumulate in the bone marrow, was causing his bone weakness, weight loss and exhaustion.  Pinto is now undergoing chemotherapy and may have to receive stem cell therapy.  All of this has certainly given him pause to think about life in ways that we usually do not slow down to do.  As he told me at UT Hospital after he was diagnosed, “Lily, don’t take the chance to exercise with your F3 brothers for granted.  It is a blessing to be able to do so.”

Pinto was willing to admit anxiety in facing his treatment for multiple myeloma.  He is not only facing difficult treatment that can lead to sickness and exhaustion – he is facing his own mortality.  That can be a horrifying task.  But, as I think of our brother, I also think about the armor he has for his fight.

Pinto has the knowledge that he has loved his family strongly.  He is a wonderful father.  I remember the time he wanted to make sure who the hell my wife, Jan, and I were when we invited his daughter, Molly, to a Children’s Hospital Event where families stayed at a local hotel.  Fortunately, his wife already knew Jan well (and had met me a number of times) and after finding out we were alright people, he allowed Molly to go with us.  But Pinto was going to make doggone sure his little girl was going to be safe.  I think of Pinto’s relationship with Hooker, the strong bond between father and son, how much pride he takes in Hooker and who Hooker has become (as well as in Molly and who she has become)  And, I think of the powerful love Pinto has for his wife, Tessa.  That love was particularly poignant that day I saw them both in the hospital.  Both of them were exhausted, Lee from recent back surgery and Tessa from the sleepless nights by his side in the hospital.  The power of their love was tangible.

Pinto also has the armor of his relationship with God.  He believes in God and knows that God will be with him no matter where the journey with multiple myeloma takes him.  Gents, how many of us have truly faced death square in the face?  When we do, will we have what Pinto has?  I know that Lee Gentry wants to beat this cancer, to live on to enjoy life with his granddaughter (Hooker’s future child) that is due in May.  I think he will.  Yet, even if that were not the case, Pinto knows where he will go when he breathes his last breath here on earth.  That has to be comforting.  He knows that life goes beyond these fragile moments here.  He has a Father in Heaven who will never abandon him and will take him Home when his days here are gone.

Finally, when I consider my friend, Lee Gentry, I know that whenever his final day comes (which will probably be after mine since I am older than he is), Christ’s life will be revealed in Lee’s mortal body.  Because Pinto, Lee Gentry, though hard pressed by cancer and persecuted from every side is living the kind of life that God wants him to live.  He will be the first to tell you that he has had and will continue to have his human moments of doubt and anger.  But, he strives for more and seeks God in doing so.  And, in so doing, he reveals the love of Christ.

So, as 2019 comes to a close, I not only pray for Pinto’s health but I give thanks for his presence in our lives.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for our brother, Pinto, and his family.  Prayers for Ed, cousin of Curveball, who died yesterday.  Prayers for Ed’s family.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Polar Bear Plunge on New Year’s Day and 2nd F party (wives or partners only, no children) at Tank’s home on Friday, January 3.