CPR

Today I got my CPR and first aid certification.  Some of the fitness certifications I'm studying for require a CPR certification, and as a fitness instructor, I just think it is a good idea to be able to revive clients that I've lead to the brink of death and not let them fall completely over the cliff (morally and ethically of course, but it also makes good business sense).  I used to be a lifeguard, so I was a regular in the American Red Cross CPR courses for many years.  It always amazed me how much CPR changed from year to year.  First, it was 1 breath and 5 compressions.  Then, it was 2 breaths and 15 compressions.  Now it is 2 breaths and 30 compressions.  It always made me nervous that, God forbid I ever have to use my CPR skills, I would perform it using last year's "technology" and the victim would actually die.  Hopefully if it ever comes to that, I'll be able to do it in some manner that actually saves the person's life.

Today's class was taught through the Longmont fire department, and it was actually very disappointing.  The teacher, who I believe said she had been a fire fighter for two years, was probably in her late twenties and was very cool.  As we were discussing head injuries, she informed us that she had had SEVEN concussions.  Seven.  Apparently she played softball and ice hockey, and she probably couldn't remember what else she'd ever done.  The people in the class were also very friendly and generally made great classmates.  Sure, there was one woman who constantly asked the extremely specific questions about EVERYTHING ("So, what if the victim is having a heart attack on a hiking trail while being bitten by a snake who touched a downed power line and is choking on some trail mix, and she's also pregnant with twins?  How am I supposed to tell 911 where we are located if my cell phone can't get a signal?")  One woman, bless her heart, was the only one in the room who said she had actually had to use CPR on someone before.  She left the room several times crying during the course...apparently something was still emotionally very raw with her.  I kind of wish I'd gotten to talk to her to see what had happened.

So we pretty much blew through the various aspects of first aid.  We watched a video (complete with the porn star quality acting) and paused every so often to hear some details about what we just witnessed.  Then we got to the part where we were to perform CPR on the dummies.  Unfortunately, the instructor could not find the little face shields to put over their faces so no one would catch my mild case of whooping cough I'd brought to class with me.  So, we were instructed to "pretend" to give breaths.  Ummm, actually PERFORMING the breaths on the dummy is kind of a big deal I think.  It takes some practice to tilt the head right and breathe in the correct amount of air.  Too little air, you aren't helping get oxygen in the lungs.  Too much, you'll blow up the victim's lungs.  Either of these are bad.  I was stunned that we were getting certified to do CPR but not actually getting to perform breaths.

Next, we got to see an AED (automated external defibrillator) in action.  The instructor made a big point, several times, about how these things have just one button and are completely idiot proof.  And then karma kicked in.  She couldn't find where to plug in the leads until one of the students in the class pointed it out to her.  Then, a voice in the AED gave her step by step instructions of what to do.  Repeatedly.  She told us eventually it would tell us to stand back and push "the button" to deliver a shock.  Well, that point never came. I could just picture this being used in the field and after 15 minutes of being told to remove the victims clothing around his chest and to apply the leads, the victim would just get tired of waiting and cross over to the other side.  In the end, the instructor basically said "Well, ones in buildings will tell you everything you need to know to use it, so just do that.  Any questions?"  BAM!  I'm AED certified now.

Since I've taken several first aid and CPR classes over the years, this was pretty much a refresher for me, but I felt bad for those people who had never done this before because I can't imagine they really learned anything.  When I was a shift foreman at a factory in Cincinnati, I had to take a 5 day, 8 hour per day first responder course.  The dummies gave feedback as to the frequency and depth of breaths and compressions, and we had to do five minutes of CPR while making ZERO mistakes with regard to either of these.  Practically everyone had to do the test multiple times, but in the end, you felt damn sure you could do this in real life if needed.  I didn't quite get that same warm fuzzy feeling today.  But oh well, it was still a good review for me at least, and the people there were fun to be around.  I'd actually highly recommend a first aid/CPR course for anyone, particularly if you have kids.  What you learn really can save the life of someone you love one day.

The First Album I Ever Owned

While listening to the radio tonight, I heard a song that used to be one of my favorites from the first album (well, technically the second) I ever owned.  The song is We Got the Beat by the Go Go's.  I wish I could remember the details of when I got this album (Beauty and the Beat), but I know it was released in 1981, so I'm sure it was sometime around when I was 10 or 11 years old.  As a young boy, I was seriously into video games (I wonder where my son gets it??).  For one of my birthdays, our neighbors got me my first LP - Pac Man Fever.  I really liked some of the songs on this album, but I remember hearing a song about that time by the Go Go's that I didn't know the name of but loved.  It sounded to me like "Honest the Eel" (????), and it was shortly after I received the Pac Man Fever album that my boyhood desire to own Honest the Eel by a group of five hot chicks won me over, so I traded my brand new audio tribute to video games for a chance to hear (and see on the album cover) Belinda Carlisle and her crew of hotties.

The actual name of the song I liked so much is Our Lips Are Sealed, and on the rare occasion I that I hear it on the radio these days, I always turn it up.  This song, as well as We Got the Beat, helped define what music in the 80s was all about to me.  I did a little research on this album tonight.  It hit #1 on the Billboard charts, sold over three million copies, and is one of the most successful debut albums of all time.  On Rolling Stone's list of the top 500 albums of all time, it was ranked (drum roll please).....413.  Heck, Van Halen's debut album was only ranked 415.  Not too shabby. :)

I kinda miss the 80s, when I was too young to have to worry about the problems of the world and the music was just, fun.  I have no idea where my LP of Beauty and the Beat is these days, but I've got my digital copy on Itunes.  Think I'll spend the next 32 minutes reliving those days long gone.....

The Walk To School

I'm fortunate to live just two blocks from the school that both of my kids attend.  One of the things I've enjoyed most about the short distance has been the walk to school.  During our walks, my daughter always seems to have something she wants to know about.  We've had discussions about rocks.  We've had discussions about weather.  We've had discussions about eyeballs (her class just dissected a cow eyeball a couple of days ago, so she knew more about its anatomy than I did).  We've had discussions about politics.  We've had discussions about God.  It fascinates me to hear the things this little girl thinks of and what she is curious about. 

Recently we've had discussions about the snow.  There is a house on a corner that we pass every morning, and after a snow storm, the snow cover in its yard is usually pristine.  Becca recently called attention to the sparkles in it and asked why it is so glittery.  I explained to her that there are a lot of mirror-like surfaces in the snow, and as the sun reflects off of them, it makes them shine.  I told her a trick she could do is to stare at the snow without moving, then duck her head just the smallest bit, and she could see a whole new set of sparkles in the same area.  It really is serene to just stare at the snow in this condition under a bright sun.

The whole thing got me thinking how much of life is perspective.  Any given situation can look completely different with just the slightest change in your point of view.  I'm glad my daughter could help point that out to me.

Yoga

As you may or may not know, I'm in the middle of a P90X workout routine.  I'm almost three weeks into the three month program, and so far things are going very well.  The workouts repeat for the first three weeks, and I can definitely see improvement in the workouts I'm doing now versus the same ones I did just three weeks ago.  So far so good.

One workout in this program that has intrigued me is the yoga workout.  P90X includes a 90 minute yoga "workout" that is done at least once a week.  Before this, I had ZERO experience with any sort of yoga.  I'm sure 90 minutes of a DVD that is geared more towards a fitness routine is not necessarily "real" yoga, but it has been a very cool part of the routine.  It really is quite difficult to do it well, and it is great for balance work (and as a martial artist, I like that).  I really think you have to go into it with somewhat of an open mind, but after the workout phase, the balance phase, the stretching phase, and the meditation phase, I always feel very refreshed.  Yes, it is a different feeling from busting out the heavy weights and squatting or pressing until you literally can't move your limbs anymore, but it is still a very good feeling, and I see how people can get hooked on yoga.  I would be interested in trying a real class sometime with a real instructor sometime.  (On second thought, maybe I don't really need another addiction in my life.  Hmmmmm.......)

And the Results Are In

We adopted a puppy from the Boulder Humane Society at the beginning of January.  We named her Bella.  They said she was a Great Pyrenees mix, but didn't know what she was mixed with.  She is a big puppy, and after looking at some pictures online and getting some opinions from friends, she definitely seemed like she could be mixed with a mastiff of some sort, possibly a Great Dane.

Well, we were really curious if our hunch was correct, so we picked up a "doggie DNA" test from Wisdom Panel.  The test involved swabbing the inside of Bella's cheek with a couple of small bristle brushes, then putting the brushes in a sterile package and mailing them to the lab for analysis.  The instructions say to expect results in two to three weeks, and this would be the third week.  Today, those results were emailed to us.  Oh boy.....

The results identify grandparents, then parents, and finally the best guess of the breed (or mix) of the dog in question.  One set of grandparents indeed was a Great Pyrenees, but mixed with "mixed breed", so they couldn't pin that one down.  The other set of grandparents was the intriguing one.  It said she had American Staffordshire Terrier as one grandparent, combined with........

a Dachshund.  Yes, a Dachshund.  Now, we knew we were getting a mutt, and we really have no problem with that in the least.  I LOVE Great Danes, though (at least other peoples' Great Danes), so I was really excited to think our new pup may have some of that in her.  But a Dachshund???  Seriously?   You've got to be kidding me.  A Dachshund??

After looking at some staffy/dachshund/pyrenees mix pics, we still aren't completely convinced that she's going to look anything like a Dachshund, and she is still a big puppy, so we'll see what she grows into.  "Mixed breed" very well could mean "horse", so there is still a chance of having a giant Great Dane-like dog in a couple of years.  But even if she doesn't grow that big, she's still a sweet dog (usually), and we're still happy to have her in our home.  Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go clean a puddle off of the floor......

Tournament Time

This weekend, Alpha Martial Arts hosted an in house Tae Kwon Do and kickboxing tournament.  Both kids and I competed, and Bec took 2nd place in her form (where she actually competed a level above her actual belt level).  Both kids made me very proud.  I competed in traditional forms and two different sparring events.  As I mentioned in a previous post, my stamina is by far my weakest area, and that tends to show when I spar.  Needless to say, I was very excited when the tournament was over and I had sparred about 10 matches and I wasn't sucking wind at the end.  I don't know if it was because I was more relaxed, since I knew everyone I was sparring against (it was only for Alpha students), or if the week of P90X really made that much of a difference.  Whatever the reason, I felt very good throughout the tournament, and that is the first time that has happened.  My last tournament, I sparred TWICE, and after the second match I could honestly hardly stand up. Definitely some improvement, and that is the goal.

I saw a lot of other things this weekend as well.  Seven women competed in the kickboxing competition, and every one of them looked fantastic.  Everybody cheered and supported everyone else, and everyone looked very strong doing all the exercises.  They represented the Alpha kickboxing program superbly, and I couldn't have been more proud.

My friend Ashley competed with me in several events.  Our forms differ primarily in that I tend to have more power, and she tends to have better technique, but she has closed that power gap substantially.   I've trained with her for several years, and it has been really great seeing her constant improvement.  We've sparred many times, and did again this weekend.  Even though we know each others' strongest moves, I still couldn't escape a beautifully executed axe kick/round house kick combo in one of our matches.  She always pushes me, and she is a great martial artist.

Another friend, Erika, has been off the charts in her physical improvement in the past year.  She very nearly withdrew from this tournament, but ended up competing in the kickboxing event and sparring.  She has lost over 50 lbs and is definitely one of the strongest students in the kickboxing program.  And as luck would have it, I had to spar against her this weekend.  She has been sparring for maybe 2 months (not that you could ever tell from watching her), and  I have been sparring for several years.  She was the underdog, and she knew it, but she didn't let that get in her way.  I did not hold back in our match, and at the end of it, I had beaten her by literally a couple of punches.  As her confidence grows, she is going to be scary good in the ring.


Jacob is younger (8th grade), and I had to spar him a couple of times, one of which was for the grand championship in point sparring.  Again, on the surface, he was outmatched by a more experienced opponent, but that didn't stop him.  He displayed great technique, and it was very difficult to get in on him to score any points.  In the end, we actually sparred to a tie, and the final, sudden death point could have easily gone either way, but the judges awarded me the point.  I hear compliments about Jacob's sparring ability all the time from other adults in the class, and I agree, the kid can spar, and he is only going to get better.

Ever is an adult in the class I don't know very well and have never sparred, but I had to spar him a couple of times this weekend.  I don't think he has been doing martial arts for more than a few months, but he sparred very competently and looked like he was having a great time doing it.  He is a very humble and gracious opponent, and he is going to be very good when he gets some experience.

I saw two sisters spar, one of which was half the size of the other one.  A clear mismatch, but the older sister got just enough points to win, then let her younger sibling get some shots in herself even though she could have easily dominated the match completely.  It has been good to see the older daughter mature over the course of the past year.

For me, one of the most rewarding aspects of being an instructor is watching people improve, and seeing how happy they are when they actually realize and can admit to themselves how much they have improved.  And there was a TON of that on display at the tournament this weekend.  I think everyone learned something about themselves and got to know some new people as well.  The support and camaraderie among the members there is simply overwhelming and addicting, and I love being around it.  Congratulations to all on their great performances this weekend!

The Geek Clock

So my mom showed me a picture of this clock today.  As an engineer (in degree only), this stuff fascinates me, but embarrassingly I could only figure out about 4 of them without a cheat sheet.  And with the cheat sheet, I still had never heard of some of these.  I heard a great joke though (if you're a geek).  An infinite number of people walk into a bar.  The first one orders a beer.  The second orders half a beer.  The third, a quarter of a beer.  The bartender says "I get it", and pours two beers.  (yeah, if you're a geek, that's funny).