Photos of me, took by me, or things I like. Randomly placed at first, but to be sorted in some logical pattern later.
Bringing in 2024 without a new haircut, or lack thereof. Big Lake, Alaska“Hey, take a picture of me while I pose like Samson.” Somewhere in Athens, Greece. Biggest week ever! Says so on the box. Burning Man, Nevada. I do love this photo! Rave Fam! Definitely what I miss most about moving away from Phoenix. Given they are the absolute best, I hope they all get out of Dodge before the dual facts of climate change and peak oil turn the American Southwest into a wasteland. El Golfo, Mexico. Inside joke on Agonda beach. Goa, India. 12th place Production Nationals. In 2011, when Production was a still a big deal. Raw fish and beer. What more could you want? El Golfo, Mexico. YTT graduation with head of school, Sudhir Rishi. I’m much tanner than I arrived. Goa, IndiaGraduation day, Goa, India. It was definitely an experience. Meesh, me, and Austin. Burning Man 2018. Back when it was still cool, lol.Om trophy for biggest ego. I hope I need not explain this is a joke, kind of. Goa, IndiaI think this is the “nicest” I’ve ever looked. Yoga teacher training in Goa, India… but not all sugar and spice. Another from my competition shooting phase. I like it cause my forearms look big. Ben Avery Shooting Range in Phoenix, AZOne guess where. Actually pretty cool. Standing in a singing bowl. Sure, I’ll try that, eye roll, caught. Somewhere North of Agonda beach, Goa, IIRCHonestly I thought this was a little over the top, but in the spirit of joining in… I can’t say I felt any different after. My thoughts are that if I have to believe in it to work, then it doesn’t work. Placebo, yadda yadda… It’s still fun to try these things tho. Goa, IndiaTGO (Rob Leatham) looking on and giving critiques/advice. That notebook in my pocket was where I wrote down all the wisdoms regarding, guns, ammo, stance, trigger pull, etc… When talking to my other competitive shooting friend Bret, we would always be like, “Rob says this… Rob says that…” and it was legit. Like a yoga guru, but more militant, and with results immediately verifiable. This is my single favorite meme. Cause it’s trueKinda true, lolArc de Triomphe, my second favorite spot in my favorite city. It’s pretty stout. Paris, FranceHomies; Migs, Lilly, Ziggy, Austin. Jamie OG (squad mom) in the front, the only person I know who can tell me what to do and I’ll do it. I think this was at the Phoenix Lights Festival in AZ. “Where did you guys meet?” “Burning man.” I always thought that was a cool thing to say. Kenny and Cherry Burner standing out in this one. Speaking of, I never got a playa name that stuck.
Me at peak fat, almost. I think I have one worse somewhere, but look at that belly, round face, and sausage arms.
The former life of a competitive shooter. 2010 USPSA Production Nationals. Las Vegas, NevadaNailed the lighting on this selfie. Taken after combining SpineFitYoga with intermittent fasting. I would not have thought so little exercise (7 minutes a day at that point) would do so much. I’ve since reduced it to 5 minutes a day and it works just as well. Testing 4 minutes now, so will report back.I’m genuinely not trying to show off here, but… The leg development I’m getting from SpineFitYoga.com is remarkable. Almost like lifting weights, and certainly better than the way most people lift weights, and in WAY less time. And something that is lacking in every other bodyweight/yoga/calisthenic exercise program I have seen. Bodybuilders, powerlifters, and Olympic weightlifters are all proud of their leg development, and so show it off. Meanwhile, have you noticed every guy showing off their calisthenic skills is wearing long black pants? Have you wondered why? I’ll tell you. It’s because they’re hiding stick legs. Two reasons for this: first stick legs make pull-ups, muscle ups, various core and abdominal exercises substantially easier (less weight to lift). And second, pistol squats (the best they got), besides being bad for the back, don’t build any muscle. Not enough to show off, evidently. Meanwhile SpineFit Yoga builds quads, hams, glutes… Not just sayin’, demonstrating.My lowest measured resting heart rate, which I think is unprecedented with 5 minutes of exercise per day. However, I’m sure the intermittent fasting has a lot to do with it. And I think at the time I was taking it a bit far. I’ll have to look up the date to see what my body weight was at the time. Blood pressure is not too bad either, however I was laying down. I read that Lance Armstrong’s lowest heart rate was only 32, which I really wanted to beat but oh well, lol. Me and Pily in Oaxaca. I feel like we look so cool. Denise and I, and I think that’s Kate. Beach rave the morning after. I’m carbing up as usual. El Golfo, Mexico. It’s interesting to me that the Mexican beach dogs have the same form factor as the Indian ones. Oaxaca, MexicoFirst place single stack, Area 5 Championship. I approve my shooting posture. Reaching way back, but I think this was in Nebraska.Independence Mine, AlaskaI hadn’t worn these boots in like two years. I knew my calves were looking bigger but that’s pretty crazy. Like an inch and a half of pure soleus. Bodybuilders kill for such gains. I plan to use this pic in a upcoming blog now that I’m getting back into the flow. My Grampa wrote this! This is a BIG phone book size text. It was always in my home growing up, and a few years ago I got the idea I should read it. I haven’t read it all, but any bird I have seen I have been able to look up and read what he wrote about them. He was pretty smart, being the curator of zoology at the New York State Museum, and probably most responsible for getting me interested in science. The Berlin Cathedra. I think this is the gothest place I’ve ever been. And my favorite structure in Germany. BerlinFrom the window of the Berlin Cathedral. Super-Goth. I liked it.Berlin Cathedral. Even the birds outside were creepy. Not saying I didn’t like it, lol. This is real. This is what happened after that time I went low carb on accident. When some girl said I wasn’t getting enough protein eating one meal a day. So I started eating a dozen eggs, and not much else, lol. Date of the image January 10, 2015, so probably fasting less than a year. One of the bumps in the road, lolI thought my camo tie die was so cool.Flight to Denali with Meesh and Mike. Which we didn’t actually see cause it was cloudy. Still cool. Talkeetna, AlaskaFun fact about saguaro blossoms is they bloom for only a day. So I was lucky to be there. Especially given that the cacti are becoming endangered due to climate change. High Power Rifle match at Ben Avery Shooting Range. Training with Eric Grauffel in Quimper, France. I think this is in 2009, pre-Rob Leatham days. Same notebook. I remember Rob saying after we became friends that if I was willing to fly to France to learn, I’d probably listen to what he had to say too. True. From about 2007-2014 competitive shooting was this HUGE part of my life. Training with Eric Grauffel at his old, not so fancy range in Quimper, France. Which was actually really cool, in dark, dreary, kind of enchanted way. Proving you can get really good with low tech. This was before I knew Rob, and later when we became friends he said, “If you’ll fly to France to learn shooting, you’ll probably listen.”
Biggest fish I ever caught! 80 lb. halibut. Seward, AlaskaMe and former mentor and TGO (The Great One) at the 2011 IPSC World Shoot. Back when we were still friends, lol. Before SpineFit and intermittent fasting, obviously. Rhodes, GreeceI’ve had this poster on my wall since college. It’s maybe a bit immature but I’ve come to think of it as the ideal male form. Not too big, not too small. And I think it’s pretty neat and perhaps not entirely coincidental that this is pretty close to what SpineFit Yoga achieves. At least for me. Not “the bus” but that’s what I immediately thought too. I like this pic cause my calves look giant from the front. And given that SpineFit Yoga is basically bodybuilding writ small, we’re all into that. I did learn a new trick being incorporated into the R5 program. Summer time, Hatcher Pass, Alaska. With the mushrooms, at Burning Man 2016. As cliché as it sounds, the beginning of new friends and start of a whole new life. Leading the pack, apparently. Goa, IndiaWhen Sally and I exchanged photos, she thought of the same joke as me. I’ll let you use your imagination, lol. Goa, IndiaEveryone’s favorite cow in Agonda. Goa, India. In person, it’s pretty neat. Is it neck pain or shoulder pain? I always have to look through my phone, or bookshelf to find this image for people. So might as well have it on the web. If you have “shoulder pain” in one of these dots (probably 6-7) that’s not shoulder pain, though I know it seems like it. It’s neck pain, almost certainly from looking down too much. You’re doctor (probably) doesn’t know this, nor does your chiropractor, nor does your physical therapist, definitely your yoga instructor doesn’t. Top researchers know it. I created SpineFitYoga.com to raise awareness, and teach how to heal it. Shooters, this is why you have neck pain. LOOKING DOWN to load magazines, collect brass, reload ammo, clean and repair guns… And a forward head when you shoot is no help either. I remember wondering, why does my neck always hurt? So it turns out, looking down is what over-stretches ligaments, bulges, and herniates the discs in your neck. It’s a scientific fact, and a sad fact that no doctor, chiropractor, and sadly no physical therapist knows to tell you this. Photo taken right before it dawned on me. Another reason why you want SpineFitYoga.com too. And not any other yoga, cause they’ll bend your neck worse. That time we did seven dots of kambo. The only thing worse… nine dots. I think I was reading about Taoism. Pyrros Dimas and I (to use correct English). In my physical therapy clinic I had a couple of patients from Greece. And I must have commented that my favorite weightlifter was from Greece, Pyrros Dimas. And it is true, that in my years of competitive weightlifting I idolized the guy, being as he was legit the best and we were in the same weight class. Some months, or maybe years later the same couple stopped by the office saying they were having a Greek gala in Phoenix and Pryrros was the keynote speaker. Since they knew I was such a fan they invited me to meet him. The event was interesting as nobody there was connected to weightlifting, the talk had nothing to do with weightlifting, and Pyrros had become a politician, for which I could not tell you his political leanings. But I was there as his sole fan from the sport. In America you probably have to be a weightlifter to know who he is, and in that small group (pre-Crossfit) he was legendary. For those who don’t know, this is a good introduction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLGhnYA7wX0
He told me I looked like I was staying fit, lol.
I don’t know why I look so skeptical. I’m at Hatcher Pass, which is one of my favorite places in Alaska. I bring all my friends there when they visit. On a clear day I can see Denali from my front yard. Though with 10x zoom. Big Lake, AlaskaDenali sunsets are pretty cool too. Same vantage point.Me and my K80 Pro Sporter. Rob said, “we shoot handguns like it’s a job, shotguns for fun.” Anyway, we hate to miss with either and with a shotgun I can bat them from the sky. Probably the lesser pressure but I learned a lot shooting with Arnt Myhre. That time we got those gold grills.
Burning ManLife’s not all fun and games. She changed everything, but definitely not worth the loss. And there’s nothing I can say that’s worthy. Burning Man Temple. Someone recognized me hours later by the pyramids and said they had a pic. Burning man 2016, and the reason for going. I think I’m demonstrating a good grip here for Rob in a class, but not quite getting the lesson. More to come on that…
