Guilty (semi-)pleasures

So I've figured out one way in which a semi-anonymous blog is better than Facebook: there are a number of things that I just can't bring myself to share with the entirety of my friends list. I mean, really, the person who had all of one class with me through high school does not need to be informed of my guilty pleasures. (I'm sure it comes as no surprise--I was a huge nerd in school, generally seen, even admired, as an intellectual. I have a reputation to maintain.)

So the first admission is that I just finished Twilight--that I read it at all is something that will not make my status. Amazingly, when I put myself on the waiting list at the library, I found the book ready when I went in to check out some other materials. I read through it in just three days, so I have to grant that it is a quick read (doesn't hurt that the print is large). And... meh.

I will read the others in the series, eventually, when I get around to it. Parts of the story are compelling, but I really find it surprising that so many self-avowed Buffy fans can also wax poetic about this. Bella drives me nuts. Edward keeps saying how dangerous he is, but that never really comes through. The dialog is repetitive and predictable. I'm torn about the monkeying with vampire lore--some of it is an interesting interpretation of all that has come before, other parts seem to be slapped in to fit some detail that she thought of later. The major danger comes up suddenly at the end and is dispensed of way too quickly--so much more could/should have been done with the other vampires. There was a good long stretch before that part where I kept reading only because I wanted to know more about Alice, who is my favorite character. Please tell me there's more of her in New Moon.

Enough of my life of the mind. On to the physical world. And the second admission.

I've mentioned before that I watch Biggest Loser. It is, in fact, the only reality show I watch. And Jillian Michaels is a big part of why I keep tuning in. So I was intrigued when I saw references to 30 Day Shred popping up on many friends' FB statuses and in a number of blog posts. (Side note: I really, really want to stick in the grammar-appropriate hyphen between '30' and 'Day,' but the official title does not have it.)

Out of curiosity, we Netflixed it so I could give it a go. It arrived today, and I decided to try Level 1 between an early dinner and Scooter's bedtime. Limitation #1: I definitely ate too much, too soon beforehand. Limitation #2: My knee's been bugging me, so I couldn't do all of the jumping for the cardio. Things I can work on and compensate for, but nothing compared to...

Misconception: Just because Jillian yells less on the DVD than on the show, I would have a quieter workout. Trillian and Scooter sat in our recliners behind me as I worked out. To give Trillian credit, she does know quite a bit about fitness and would probably make a decent trainer if she wanted to go that route. So she was giving me some tips on form, most of which I know (whether or not I can translate that to physical expression), nothing I mind too much. What I hadn't counted on was that she would fill the void of Jillian's usually tougher presentation by yelling out sayings we've heard many times on Biggest Loser. At the same time, Scooter was critiquing me and offering suggestions. He was particularly concerned when I adapted the jumping jacks so I wouldn't be stressing my knee. "You're going to lose," he shouted when I was not moving as fast as the women on the DVD.

The big advantage of getting this from Netflix is that I can hold onto it for a bit yet. And now that I know to schedule my workouts for school time while Trillian is occupied with work, maybe I can concentrate on the images in front of me and not the voices from behind.

So... what are you not putting in your Facebook status?