Pneumatised!

Friday, December 16

I went for a mile run to Yonge/Bloor. I went up Church Street then south on Yonge. My time was 9 minutes 14 seconds. This was slower than my fastest time, but as the ground might have been a little icy, I decided to be careful on my run. Either way, the run felt good especially since I was feeling a little sick the past week.

I still need to motivate myself more now that winter is almost here. Hopefully the increase in daylight after the solstice will help. 😀 (Saule, Saule, shining one, light my way to glory…)

Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

Yes, I know this review is overdue, but I was just too busy the week of the final episode. Here are some of my thoughts on the season finale.

Way to go, Danni and Stephenie (but next time don’t eat the sacrificial chicken)!

First, let me say I was surprised by Danni’s final vote. I really thought Danni would have taken Rafe, but he decided to “release” her from her promise to him. Was that really what he wanted and did he really think she’d still take him to final two? Or was he just being a martyr and making it easier for Stephenie to get to the final two? He genuinely looked upset for Stephenie that she was crying for not winning the final immunity. I’d like to think that he just had a good heart. Danni however decided that she wanted to take Stephenie to final two as Stephenie never gave up in the final immunity challenge. She hang on until gravity took over and she just collapsed to the ground. Anyone watching that can see why Danni picked Stephenie to go to final two. It was the epitome of how competively strong Stephenie is. (As a sidenote, I’d like to comment that it almost looked like that last challenge was a little easier for Danni and her long legs.)

Now, let’s just say that I’m pleased to see two strong players make it to final two and not just two strong players, but two strong female players. Not to say that some of the guys sitting on the jury didn’t play well, I think it’s obvious they just got blind-sided (as the case with Jaime and Judd) or just didn’t have the odds to win (as with Gary or Bobby Jon). Getting back to the final two, both girls struggled to make it to there. Stephenie as she said to Bobby Jon “had a target on her back” since day one just like him. Danni had to fight to survive the merge as she had the numbers against her (6 to 4), but yet she survived the guys of her dwindling tribe to make it to final two. Also, I’d like to point out that both girls were good sports, even when sometimes the game didn’t go their way.

And the winner is… Danni. Good job, Danni. Though I’m not surprised by the final votes. Although Stephenie played a good game, she already knew she would lose votes by blindsiding so many on the jury. Then again, is there really any way to vote people off and onto the jury without them getting upset at you, especially if you were one of the two controlling the game? It’s pretty hard as is evidenced by the past Survivor seasons. Overall, I’d have to say this was one of the better played Survivor seasons I’ve watched so far. (I’ve missed a few seasons.) My other favourite seasons were the Outback (season 2) and Africa (season 3) because of the few good players. I wonder if the next season will be half as well played.

Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

Yay! I finished book 2, The Great Hunt on Friday – onto book 3, The Dragon Reborn. I can’t wait to read it. I bought it but haven’t had time to read it yet. I’m making myself wait to read it as I have other things I should do. I’ve always had tons of books lying around to read and trying to catch up on old reading. But still can’t wait to read book 3 of The Wheel of Time. I also have to read Nathan’s second novel. He’s almost done editing it and then we’re going to try to get it published. 😀 I’m so proud of him. He’s quite talented and I think he’ll be a great writer someday. His stories are quite interesting and unique.

Okay, enough writing for me today. I need some more rest and then I can do some reading tomorrow – hopefully.

BB,
Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

Blah. Cold weather. Storm coming in. Already I’ve been a bit sick. I didn’t get to go to the do jang the rest of last week. The change in weather kind of hit me bad. I also guess maybe I wasn’t used to running in the cold. Therefore, last week was a bust for exercise. Then, I had to go to the do jang on Saturday (December 10) to do a self-defence demo for the X-mas party. Somehow, goddess bless me, I managed to do a fairly good demo (at least that’s what Nathan is telling me :)). Then, I still needed Sunday and Monday to recover. So… this week…

Tuesday, December 13

I went to the do jang for gumdo and taekwondo class. As I was still recovering from being a bit sick and not exercising for a whole week, I was pretty tired on Tuesday. I almost didn’t take taekwondo. I probably shouldn’t have. Halfway through the class my bad knee started acting up and was shaking. Not good. Figured I just needed some more rest and try again the next day. I did manage to go to the gym and do a little bit of weights, especially for my knee. Weight training usually helps get my muscles back to the idea of working out again.

Leg press
Hamstring flexor
Pull-ups (again military and parallel)
Dips
Shoulder fly
Shoulder lift

Wednesday, December 14

I went to the do jang again. I made it in time for poomse class and the regular taekwondo class. My knee is feeling better. It’s still a little shaky, but it’s just getting used to working out again. The drop in temperature these days doesn’t help much. I stayed a bit after class to practice some more stuff. I needed to practice some jumping kicks. I did a few then gave up since I was tired from the class already. Then I practiced some breakfall rolling, both right and left side. My left side is a little off. I don’t quite roll straight yet – just haven’t practiced that side as much. Then, tried doing a handstand. Hard work. I was using the wall to shuffle my feet up. I’m just not used to holding my weight up yet. Afterward, I headed out to the gym to do some more weights.

Leg press
Hamstring flexor
Hip adductors
Hip abductors
Pull-ups (again military and parallel)
Dips
Chest press
Bar pulls (works the muscles next to the scapulae on the back)
Pectoral press
Shoulder fly
Shoulder lift
Leg lifts
Back extensor

When I got home, Nathan helped me do a handstand. Tried it a few times shuffling my feet up the wall. Then tried it the normal way. Nathan had to help me get my legs all the way up and then I couldn’t hold my weight too long. I think part of it is the balance. Have to get that perfect alignment where the body is balanced well. Anyway, will try again some other time. Next I need to learn to do cartwheels as I’ve never really done them before. Everyone tells me cartwheels are easier than handstands, probably because you don’t have to hold yourself up for long.

No running yet this week, not since last Monday. Next time I’ll cover my mouth with a scarf as well as wear my hat. I’m afraid it might be the cold air that helped me get sick. The cold air is also very dry – might have hurt my throat from that.

Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

Just minutes after posting my Survivor predictions, Cindy was voted out of the tribe. Was this simply because she won a car and was a good competitor? Jeff did say winning the car was probably a curse as in ten seasons of Survivor, the one winning the car never won the million dollars.

Okay, so Cindy is out now. The final four are Stephenie, Rafe, Lydia, and Danni. Danni is a threat to Stephenie, Lydia isn’t, but is it really Stephenie pulling the strings? I think it just looks that way. Rafe is making the decisions here and has been for awhile. Stephenie is smart to go along with him and not outwardly oppose him. Chances are likely Lydia is next to go since Rafe seems to like Danni so much (but will Lydia the underdog hang in somehow?). Final three is looking more like Stephenie, Rafe, and Danni. Rafe still is a shoe-in for final two in that case. Danni, if she wins immunity, will no doubt take Rafe to final two since he’s helped her stay alive since the merge. I hope Stephenie makes it to final two. Yes, I’m still rooting for my girl, despite how she’s been portrayed this season due to some sneaky cut and editing from the show producers. Okay, that’s my final predictions for the finale. No doubt Sunday night will be a surprise.

Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

This season of Survivor is almost over. It’s down to the final five and after tonight’s episode only the three-hour finale is left. After giving it some thought and thinking about what has gone down this season, here’s my prediction for final three – Stephenie, Rafe, and Cindy. Lydia and Danni will be voted out next in some order. For the final two, I’d have to say Rafe is a shoe-in. Sad to say, I doubt Stephenie will win the million dollars, but surprises have been known to happen (such as Gary finding the hidden immunity idol and Danni winning immunity just when she needed it).

This is what I think will happen when it comes down to final three. There will be the one final immunity challenge to get to final two as always. If Rafe wins and goes final two, I’m not sure who he’ll pick to go with him though. If he picks Cindy, it might be toss up at the final tribal council vote. If he picks Stephenie, I think Rafe has a better chance of winning considering the four guys sitting on the jury right now are a little annoyed with Stephenie. If either Stephenie or Cindy win the final immunity, I think Rafe will likely go to final two with either of them. Either way, the final episode will be interesting.

Now, I just watched Stephenie win immunity tonight, so she’s definitely in final four. I’m happy for her. For someone who thought she might just get voted out first this season, she’s now guaranteed final four. Way to go, Stephenie. Good job on the immunity challenge.

Previous Survivor blog entry

Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

Went in today and took taekwondo. It was a good class, good way to start the week. I missed the poomse class because I didn’t feel like teaching today and figured I’d practice patterns tomorrow or Wednesday.

After class I ran through some of my gumdo techniques. I hadn’t taken class for awhile so I wanted to run through the stuff briefly. Still need more work on some of the techniques. After taking the hapkido class a few weekends ago, I feel more comfortable with the breakfall rolls. (I have to do that with a sword for gumdo). I guess I’ll try to make the gumdo class tomorrow.

Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

Today, I decided to finally try running 1.5 miles. It was a little hard the first time out. Always is. Have to get used to the distance and make sure I have enough energy for the extra half mile. It was a tough run, especially with this cold weather, but I managed to survive. Now that I’ve had a chance to catch my breath, I’m feeling good. My time for the run today was 13 minutes 23 seconds. Apparently, that’s U.S. Navy qualifications (according to Nathan) for an age group younger than mine. 😀 For my age group, it’s rated excellent. (And I used to hate running.)

Okay, I have to make myself go to the do jang tonight so…

Lates,
Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame

Sources:

http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/navfitness/blfemale17-19.htm
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/navfitness/blfemale30-34.htm

I’m now reading the second book in the serial, The Great Hunt. I’m finding this one a bit more intriquing than the first book, although both books are quite good and I wouldn’t recommend not reading the first book in the serial. You’ll be missing alot if you skip any books in the serial. I can’t wait to get to book 3. 🙂

Cassandrah
Your local webmistress
Brigid’s Flame