To get back to regular blogging, I am going to start reporting my progress climbing. Yes, I have adopted the standard web 2.0 hipster activity as my own. Two weeks ago I took a course at Allez-Up, last week I went back to get accredited, and since then have been three times, trying to make it out there 2 to 3 times a week.

Before my most recent sojourn, I had completed a 5.5, and with encouragement from my regular climbing partner Julien Smith managed to finish one 5.6 and got halfway up another.

Note: everyone should have a partner like Julien; awesome guy as a friend, coach, and internet rock star.

While I am moving on to 5.6s (and many people say that climbs at Allez-Up are rated one level lower then they would be elsewhere), there were a couple of 5.5s that I hadn’t tackled but looked really fun.

The first was a doozy:

There are a few areas I need to work on as a climber, and this wall hit that all.
In summary I need to:

• Develop my arm strength to maintain grip while I swing legs over.
• Trust the wall and use it as leverage for my feet on occasion.
• Go for foot and toe placements that are less “secure” then a flat rest.
• Stop being a pussy!

First time, I totally wussed out when I reached the overhang. Second time, after seeing Julien go for it and fail, I did the same myself, trusting the rope. Third time, figured out the foot placement that Julien was using and succeeded to make it to the next overhang (is that the right term)? My final attempt had me placing my hands on the final hang, but by that point my arms gave out when I tried to lift myself over.

The second 5.5 was MUCH easier:

It was a straight run up, with only a bit of difficulty to get around the overhang. I had to ask for a “take” to do so, but in the end, reached the top. Next time, I am going to try to make it without stopping.

One note; bouldering is fucking hard!

Seriously, I can’t even get started! Any advice?

photo courtesy of Simon Law under Creative Commons License BY-SA

For those who don’t know, Casey’s laptop, a $3300 Macbook Pro, was stolen out of her luggage after our return from Las Vegas this weekend. Our luggage actually was delayed/missing for a day which makes the theft all the more suspicious. When it was finally delivered, the bag was half-open and dented, so clearly someone broke into it. The laptop is her (and mine) primary means of making a living as a video producer, and contains much sensitive corporate and financial information, as well as the “keys” to our online kingdom.

Now, we have changed all our accounts and filed a claim with Air Canada, as well as with the police and our insurance. However, Air Canada does not supply any direct way to contact and receive updates for these claims. Instead, upon submitting the online claim form, you receive a message informing you it will take 30 business days to respond to our claim. Again, there is NO other way to address these issues with Air Canada.

This is unacceptable in the case of a theft, where every day decreases the chances of finding an answer.

Realistically, we know we probably won’t get the laptop back. I mean if the person who took the laptop SOMEHOW hears about all this and decides to call/mail us and/or return it, no questions will be asked, and everyone gets a happy ending. But we know that is not going to happen …

And while some have suggested raising funds for us to buy a new laptop, we really can’t accept that either. There are so many people out there who need your help before us. We rather you give money to them on behalf of us.

But what I am hoping you can help us with is reaching senior management of Air Canada to address the ridiculous treatment they are giving customers who are caught up in what is a worst case scenario. Thomas Leroux sent me to a nice post about how Air Canada’s CEO Montie Brewer is open to this kind of discussion; we would love to be put in touch with him via e-mail or Facebook.

We want to ask how would he or his VPs feel if their valuable luggage was violated and those who they have entrusted to care for it provide no open lines of communication to let them stay on top of the situation. It is no secret that so many people are dissatisfied with their treatment by airlines, but to have a most fundamental service broken, that is shameful. And given the feelings of being victimized that this kind of event generates, why would they leave their customers out in the cold?

So if you, or your friends, or your friends’ friends can let us begin a proper dialogue with Air Canada about this situation, please reach out to Casey (Facebook, Twitter, Pownce) or myself (Facebook, Twitter, Pownce). Hopefully, if we can’t have a happy ending, we can have an “improved” ending with regular updates on our claim.

Why it’s me!

A “brief” stop over at the NextNewNetworks turned into a guest-star appearance on Indy Mogul, one of my favorite shows. Run by kindred spirits Erik Beck and Justin Johnson, it’s not only a wealth of DIY movie making projects, but genuinely funny too. Check out the magic!

Everyhipster has heard of Getting Things Done by now, David Allen’s task organization and workflow system. I tried implementing it last year, but fell off the wagon quickly, not finding good software to centralize everything, especially on a Mac. Like the sweet Melissa Gira once told me, Getting Things Done became another thing to get done!

Resolving that became the first thing I got done this year.

My requirements were straight forward.

• The software should be Mac compatible.
• Have minimal of fuss to get going.
• Stable (who would have thunk it>)
• Synchronizes with iCal, as my calendar and phone all do

That last requirement was a personally major one, and surprisingly where so many of them failed.

I first tried iGTD. It has a following and honestly, GTD was right in the name, how could I go wrong? Setup was fine, and it seemed to sync with no problems … most of the time. And I could easily enter data … most of time. Sadly, with increased frequency, iGTD would forget a whack of tasks I had just entered when I clicked onto another project. That and quirkiness with Leopard literally bugged me.

I should have stopped using it when the beauty-outmatched-only-by-her-brains Micki Krimmel abandoned it. She moved on to kinkless and other systems for a while before developing her own with OmniOutlinerPro. I, however, am “Teh Lazy” and can not maintain the discipline over a free form system. My hunt continued.

I settled on Inbox for a couple of days and fell utterly in love with it. Hence, the rest of this post will now use the metaphor of software as women I am seeing. Inbox looked like an elegant hottie, with the GTD workflow as the central navigation. The idea of automated collections that pull in items to process from folders, queries, mail, etc is sexy, and SEEMED to answer the synchronization question. It also has the nice touch of allowing tasks to have subtasks, and to mark those task groups as serial or parallel.

The romance died over three major flaws. First, like iGTD it was not stable though it would not crash as consistently as that program. And I need to be in a stable relationship when it comes to my data. Secondly, while the idea of automated collections is solid, the choice is limited to services on your Mac, which is really disappointing. Why not speak to Gmail, or an RSS feed? If you don’t like my friends, we can’t be together.

But what really killed it for me was the supremely flawed synchronization. Here is the scenario. An automated collection grabs your to-dos from iCal. Ooooh, we can do it anywhere! You then act on them, assigning them to projects or scope, or archive and delegate. Work it baby! You can sync it back to iCal, completing the circle. 69, dude!

But wait! The next time your automated collection runs, all those processed to-dos you just added? They come right BACK in as NEW items to process!

Baby, I am afraid this is not going to work out.

I spent too much time trashing duplicates. Inbox is fail.

I decided to fool around with smaller applications next, thinking looking for something completely different would help me find one true love. There was Anxiety which floats your iCal to-dos on your desktop. Very pretty, but I couldn’t use it for the same reason I couldn’t follow Micki’s solution; relies too much on myself, and I need discipline.

Ghost Action was my next try, and I was very close to settling with it. While not as flashy as some of the others, it forgoes the pretty for ACTUALLY WORKING. Two-way synchronization was perfect, to-dos could be brought into projects, and contexts mapped to iCal calendars. Small footprint, small price point, yet big results. Why did I not stick it out? Sadly, my hot love affair with Inbox ruined me, so I had come to love subtasks and parallel grouping. And to be perfectly truthful, yes, looks do matter. Thinking I could do better, I moved on.

I stopped at the Things website … and moved on. Sorry, no iCal synchronization, no play.

Finally, I took a look at OmniFocus, from the creator’s of OmniOutliner and built with the input of leading GTD advocates. And love bloomed anew! Literally it does everything perfectly for me. I can view tasks by project or context. It has a clear processing mechanism. Tasks can have subtasks and be marked as serial or parallel. And the synchronization is perfect; I can control whether I bring in all or just the next items in each context, and it marks the iCal to-dos with the project name. Again, perfect.

Mind you, at $80, this lady is an expensive broad to get with. But you don’t need to buy the rock right away, as you can try it out for a couple of weeks. But at this point, I am ready to commit to a long-term relationship!

We’re almost 2 weeks into ‘08, so how am I doing on my resolutions?

1. Producing Daily? Well I have managed to keep up with my daily self portraits. But I have been awfully slaggy (declaring that a word) on my blog posts. But not for want of trying. But I giving myself permission for a reset. D+.
2. Getting Things Done? I’ve collected all my projects and have started going through my lists. Interestingly, I want to write a review of GTD software for the Mac. B+
3. Sharing More? Y’know, looking back at my posts, there are too many about me (like this one!) Which is fine given this is my site, but I should mix it up a bit more. D+
4. Get Fit? Blasting through on this one. I have my workout plan, I swim, walk where possible, and have now started a martial art. Still feel I can do more though, or at least more regularly. B
5. Appearing in a movie? Ummm … I really should be posting the list of what I want to do, yes? D-
6. Making a movie? Oh, yes A
7. Enjoying Friends? Remotely still, but feel the need for a shindig soon. C+
8. Open Galacticast? Still thinking on this one. The problems are how to control the logistics, and the quality of the thing, when you hand over something you’ve built to others. But I think its part of maturing as a creator, and it has to be done. Have to extend my deadline. D
9. Solved the Rubik’s Cube? No, but I have found instructions. B-

Well, still getting things off the ground. But there are 50 weeks ahead of me. Back to blogging!

photo courtesy of Atanas Entchev licensed via Creative Commons BY-NC

In and around sorting the medical drama that has resulted from Casey taking a punch to the face (more on that later) I had an opportunity to sit down with my friend and former personal trainer Dino Masson. Dino was half the formula that made my last fitness kick a success, where I went from 215 lbs down to 175lbs. He tailored fun workouts, provided ample encouragement, was a confident, and just a great person.

Want an idea of how awesome he is? When I called him for medical advice on Casey’s condition right after the assault, not only did he give wise instructions but also said to call him the next day to provide an update, and even offered to come over and give a physical checkup. And he lived half-an-hour away.

I don’t know if he is taken ladies, so have at him.

Anyway, mid last year he landed an awesome job that takes him around the world so we had to end our sessions together. But he was in Montreal for the holidays and offered to put together a new program with me. When I asked if I could share it online, he was all for it. So here we go.

It’s a 3-day a week workout, with the same muscles exercised each day BUT with radically different goals.

Day 1
The goal is to build strength. Many sets, but with a small number of reps and heavier weight. A 1 minute rest between each set, and a 1.5 minute rest between exercises.

1. Bench Press 5 sets x 5 Reps
2. Squat 5 sets x 5 Reps
3. Chin-ups 5 sets x Max (I aiming for 3 … go me!) & 2-3 negatives.
4. Leg Curl 5 sets x 5 reps

Day 2
After a day’s rest, the next set works more for tone and targets specific muscles, as well as broken into supersets.

1. Superset 1 - 4 sets x 10-12 reps
   1. Dumbbell Press
   2. Close gripped Seated Row
2. Superset 2 – 3 sets x 10-12 reps
   1. Dumbbell Step-ups
   2. Leg Curl on Swiss ball
3. Superset 3 – 3 sets x 10-12 reps
   1. Dumbbell Seated Press
   2. Barbell Curl
4. Superset 4 – 3 sets x 10-12 reps
   1. Close grip Bench Press
   2. Crunches on Bench + Weight

Day 3
Finally, the 3rd day is plyometrikineticalsomethingsomething … well its about working movements. Much larger super-sets

1. Superset 1 – 3 sets x 10-15 reps
   1. Jump Squats
   2. Chin-ups with feet on floor
   3. Push-ups
2. Superset 2 – 3 sets x 10-15 reps
   1. Leg Press
   2. Dumbbell Push Press
   3. Dumbbell Curl
   4. Dips feet on Bench

Abs
Finally, my daily abs routine, taken from the Abs Diet.

1. ½ Crunches + weight
2. Leg raises
3. Side obliques + weight
4. Bridge
5. Superman

Whew! I am jazzed to start this today (after a goodnight’s rest). I would also be curious to see if anyone would wants to follow along and compare results.

photo courtesy of Gary Arndt under Creative Commons License BY-NC-SA

So following yesterday’s events, and a thread that has been running in my head for awhile I have decided to take up a martial art. Which one?

Now, I know that followers of martial arts can be quite fanatical about which styles are better then others, the history behind one or other, or why such and such a style is a joke. And I am going to sum it all up and say: SHUT IT!

My goals are simple:

• The martial art becomes part of my fitness program.
• The class is easy to get to and fits in my schedule.
• The course is not too expensive.
• The style is practical if I need to use it.

I do not care about history, school politics, or why this style is less real then another.

Which was why my first choice was Keysi Fighting Method, a tight fast fighting system of smashing past your opponents blocks to deliver a hard brutal hit. None of which matters half as much as it being the fighting style of Christian Bale’s Batman in the new movies. Fanboy art I. Sadly, no school has opened up in Canada or even the USA.

Real-life mentat Chris Penn suggested Budo Montreal. It looked promising, and again, geek-dar pinged at seeing the word ninjitsu. With a free session to try it out I would have gone, except it is too far out of my way. One thing I have learned about working out is that unless the gym/course is located along a frequently traveled path, you will finding plenty of excuses to skip it.

I looked into an old course I use to follow called Senshido, which was heavily focused on street fighting. Not too much out of my way BUT at 124 a month VERY pricey, and I don’t really have fond memories of it. The place was a dive (unbelievable given the costs), and while the lead instructor knew what he was talking about, I did not feel the same about half of his instructors.

So I looked to Concordia University, which is right down the street from me, between work and where I live. I am already registered at the gym, as its where I am doing my weight-training. And they have a weekend course in Jeet Kune Do, created by Bruce Lee, at $40 for 3 months!!!

Which means we have a winner! Wish me luck, or laugh at my choice in the comments!

Today was the closest I ever came to killing a man. And I deeply regret I didn’t.

Casey has the details on her hand on how she was punched in the face by a complete jackass. Yes she slapped him. That in no way justifies the hit he gave her.

And me? I keep reeling with what I did … and what I didn’t do it.

My first notice of anything amiss was hearing Casey loudly question someone behavior. I took a quick look. A stocky, dull looking brute was her target. Wasn’t worried. Everyone knows Casey is a firecracker who can more than take care of herself.

I saw the guy comment, and Casey staring in anger. I started to turn away … when she let fly a beautiful slap that would make any Golden Age starlet proud.

I started heading over there to insert myself … and that’s when he exploded.

I was ins shock, and next thing I knew I was in between him and Casey, yelling at him “You don’t hit girls, asshole. You don’t hit girls.”

He began swearing in Arabic and saying it was none of my business. Note: I am half Lebanese, so I am certainly familiar with the swear words. And he represented many things I hate about the culture. Stylishly dressed men, who walk through life thinking they are better then everyone else, especially women.

And yet I was at the loss of what to do. Do I start wailing on him? Give him a chance to make reprimands before I start wailing on him? All I kept thinking was go for the throat, hard fast.

I turned to Casey to make sure she was okay.

She raised her face screaming at the guy to get out.

He scurried away. I started to head out the door to follow. To do what, I don’t know. Have words, have blows, track him. But the soft wailing of Casey drew me back.

Right now, my primary concern is Casey. Icing her face, helping her relax. But threads run through my mind. Outside of slow, slow deaths for the bastard, I wonder why I didn’t just let him have it.

Casey says she is glad I didn’t, that I am too much of a gentlemen to do it, and its what she loves about me. She also says she thinks I would just have my ass kicked, which hurts to hear, and I don’t completely agree with (he had mass, but I am not a Neanderthal and think evolution will win out). But she says its more to do with the fact that he had no honor, and would stop himself like she knows I would.
Some Dark Knight.

I am not all torn up about this. But it’s making me think of taking up a martial art again, if only to be the sidekick to my ass-kicking girlfriend.

It seems that at some point every online personality goes vegan. I did it last year though it was not a decision I made lightly; the thought was running in my mind for a few months as a solution to my ballooning weight, having gained 20lbs in a year. Only thing stopping me were my friends and family laughing at the idea that carnivorous Rudy Jahchan could survive a week going vegan.

But then I was lucky to have the brilliant, vegan, (and sexy) Sean Bonner visit us. With his encouragement, inspirational links he provided on others who had done it, and his accompaniment on a grocery shopping makeover experience, I was on my way.

I didn’t document my experience like Vu Bui is doing (slap my own wrist) but I can tell you what worked.

1. Weight Loss – Over the 4 months I was vegan, I lost over 15lbs, without hitting the gym. And I know why it worked for me. Veganism forced me to know exactly what I was eating, preventing me from the excuses I usually make ( “Of course I can have a Wendy’s quadruple; beef and cheese are protein.”)
2. Shopping & Eating out classy – Living in a metropolitan city like Montreal is a blessing for food choices. At the grocery store there is a rack of tofu options, with local success Commensal providing a wealth of ready made meals. And I lurve Yves tofu-dogs and other options. Likewise, Montreal’s many restaurants have vegan options, and I highly recommend Chu-Chai for a complete vegan menu that even non-vegans will enjoy. And thank Zod for asian foods; I did not have to abandon my favorite restaurant Le Taj.
3. Being honest why you are doing it – Like in my case, it was purely for (again) weight loss. I didn’t do in protest of the meat or dairy industries, or to help the environment. Closest cause I had was acting a bit of a futurist and live more plant based as I do think green-lifestyles will be something we all adopt.

Most importantly, I did not crack once during that entire time, something former vegan fans could not even claim!

So why did I stop? Well …

1. Don’t Go It Alone – At least not if you’re living intimately with somebody. My partner was very supportive at first. But meal planning became difficult, as my taste palette was wider then hers. The crisis point though was that she hated when I made a “bad” food choice. Not “bad” as in breaking veganism but bad as in …
2. Vegan doesn’t mean Healthy/Eating out sloppy – Due to time or trying to please my partner I would grab some fast food at McDonald’s … and discover the only choice for me were the fries. And no matter how you spin it, that is not a good choice. But I would eat it, making the same excuses like I use to (“Well it IS vegan …”) This introduced stress nutritionally and into my relationship (on top of the many other stresses that were already there).
3. Too much weight loss – I was happy when I hit 185lbs. Ecstatic when I hit 180lbs. And proud when I crossed back into 170s. Then started getting really worried at 172lbs. At 6 foot 1 inch I only have so much mass to lose. Granted, a personal crisis during that time period didn’t help. But the same way I (personally) needed a big change to stop the weight gain I needed another change to focus on the next step: maintaining and toning up.

So what am I doing now? Eating more balanced, frequent, smaller meals. In the last month (and through the Holidays no less!) I have maintained my weight in the range of 173 to 175 lbs. I’ve gone back to the gym and regularly swimming. And when the option exists, choose the lighter vegan choice.

Should you go vegan? That’s for you to decide. But I do encourage you to try it out, and don’t take the fact that I stopped to mean it doesn’t work or can’t be done.

‘Tis the season and all that for New Year’s Resolutions and there is no better way of making yourself accountable for them than by making them public. This post already fulfills …

Resolution #1.) Produce Daily – which means a daily blog entry, a daily self-portrait, and hopefully a daily photograph. I started this site late last year … and then sort of left it hanging. Which is really stupid, considering the number of things I have to talk about.

I’ll need to be organized to handle the new volume of data, so …

Resolution #2.) Get things done 4 hours a week - Last year I picked up David Allen’s Getting Things Done and Timothy Feriss’ The 4-Hour Workweek and made a half-assed to do both. I believe it can be accomplished with GTD as a pipeline and 4h as the prioritizer. Starting this weekend inbox goes to zero, replies will be automated, and I will focus on accomplishing things.

Thing like …

Resolution #3.) Sharing more - namely information on how I do things. This idea has driven me back to the video-blogging discussion group, coding for the community, and planning a making of series for Galacticast. Quiet to those who say it’s the same thing as #1.

One thing I will share is how I am performing …

Resolution #4.) Get fit – and by that I mean toned. This resolution is well on its way; so far I am my keeping weight under 175lbs through decreased my portions and eating regularly. Starting tomorrow, a daily swim and walking to work in the middle of a Montreal winter; nothing reflects UV better then snow. Weights every other day, hi-reps. And of course, twittering fitness and meal status.

All of this in hopes I can do a “Will Smith Mandatory Workout Scene” when I do …

Resolution #5.) Appear in a Movie – Technically I did this last year, in my “brother” Matt Campagna’s movie Six Reasons Why. But I want to do more walk-ons, act as an extra, or a screaming part if I can swing it, for shows, movies, or people I love. How will I do it? Not a damn clue, but I plan to make a list and post it soon, so any help would be appreciated.

Not worried if I don’t make it though, as I am also planning for …

Resolution #6.) Make a Movie – that I will appear in, though I am primarily writing and co-directing. This is the only non-seekrit fact of the seekrit project I’ve been planning for the last month. The goal is to have a draft script, pitch, and more to shop around when I head to LA early February.

That trip’s other goal is …

Resolution #7.) Enjoy Friends – Getting so wrapped up in Galacticast has not left me time to enjoy the great people I know outside of media production. Recent events confirmed just how wonderful and caring they all are. And not just in Los Angeles but in San Francisco, Arizona, Minnesota, Michigan, Boston, New York, and more. And, of course, right here in Montreal.

Not to put down Galacticast use in making new friends, which is where we have …

Resolution #8.) Open Galacticast – to more then just comments. A site redesign is on the agenda, but I want to see how much I can make it a fan-dom project. Galacticast has some really great fans and friends, and its time to let them play in the sandbox. This also ties into Resolution #2; I can teach techniques like green-screen lighting, have people shoot themselves on one in described angles, and composition them all in post, using spinxpress to shuttle the files around. More thought and people’s input is required as it’s not very clear now but I am using the next two weeks to define it, like solving a puzzle.

Which leads to …

Resolution #9.) Solve the damn Rubik’s Cube – ‘Nuff said!

Happy New Year!