Today is Santa Lucia day in Sweden and around the world. While it is a beautiful tradition in the Swedish home, it was a day I dreaded. While growing up with a Norway (G’pa) vs. Sweden (G’ma) environment was a lot of fun and seeped in traditions that we still enjoy and I have shared with my children (including Lutefisk!), I always felt out of place with this one. It was one of the most poignant feelings of “fish out of water” that I had while being a Polynesian raised in a Scandinavian home. Looking back, it’s not that I wanted to disrespect this tradition, I just wanted some of my own. Typical youth.
Anyways.
I was very happy when my younger sister took over serving and I still vividly remember how right she looked the part. It was as it should be. AND I still got to enjoy the Swedish coffee cake in the morning. Score.
I’m the first to admit that I am pretty uninformed on the Jewish holiday. I was talking with my friend, AoD, today and she filled me in on the essentials. She also promised me that she and Paulie would take time to celebrate by getting some potato pancakes…still waiting on word that it was so. (Just got word. They had broccoli fritters which still count because they are fried goodies. Well done Steinman’s.)
Anyways.
Growing up as a Lutheran PK in Minneapolis suburbs near St. Louis Park meant that during this time of year, we got to see their ginormous Menorah light up night after night. It also meant I had no clue what it all meant. But now I do.
So Happy Hanukah to those who celebrate.
Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.
Back in my day, the above picture was considered an appropriate form of pre-gaming. Ya know, that process where you psych up for the upcoming event…whatever that was. You could pre-game a sports game; you could pre-game a party; hell, there’s no rules about pre-gaming weddings. Pre-gaming is fun and gets you in the mood for whatever is to follow.
Growing up in sports, it was very common to see folks pre-game a competition. You’d see wrestlers jumping around; swimmers flailing their arms; throwers slowly going through motions with closed eyes. The pre-game is an important part of training and competition. In most cases, I’m a silent pre-gamer. I want to be as calm and dialed in as possible prior to whatever I’m doing. There have been exceptions, but I’m better calm. The only case I’ve seen where the pre-game of lifting was so completely off the rails was down in Texas when I first got there. Until now.
Bigg and I were watching some videos the other day different folks’ lifting and got some pretty big chuckles out of the pregaming going on. One deadlift attempt looked so much like Benedikt Magnusson pregame routine that we had to look at the plates again to see what the lift was. Now, I will not ever disrespect someone’s PR but JHMFCOAHB, if you’re going to replicate Bennie you better make sure there’s over 900# on that bar. SRSLY.
The more these goofballs watch the internet, the more pregame we’re likely to see duplicating the bigg dogs of sport. That’s fine. More entertainment for us.
In the meantime, here’s the pregame of the World’s Strongest Man Zydrunas Savickas prior to a 950+ pull…
…pretty focused I’d say. Not a lot of yelling and pacing. But hey, you silly boys screaming your heads off prior to benching 225# for a double, go for it.
Douches.
The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up.
The above video has been raising a ruckus lately, which (I suppose) it was intended to do. Well done idiots. The lackluster creative effort of the Planet Fitness team usually causes some LULz among those of us who train, and train hard to be stronger (or whatever.) One of my lifters from Texas proudly wears her favorite shirt stating, “I Lift Things Up and Put Them Down.” One of the original commercials poking fun at their interpretation of people who train. That they’re really, really dumb.
Bwahahahahhahaaaa. Soooooo funny.
Then they went too far. Honestly, I believe it’s because they (or more importantly their advertising agency) have absolutely no idea how hard bodybuilders, powerlifters, basically anyone other than their clientele works in the gym. Insinuating that the woman in the ad could pass as a he or a she. Ha. Ha.
And then there’s the woman in the ad. She has to know what Planet Fitness is about. She clearly knows the premise of the ad. Yet she agrees to be a part of it. Judge her? Nahhh. Anyone who knows anything about the strength game knows there’s few who make a lot of money on it. She obviously trains hard and had her chance to make some cash and possibly not worry about rent for a month. Who knows. The whole thing is just kind of sad and a far departure from the lulz that usually comes from the ignorance of the PF crew. (By the way, I like how they try to make her look drab and ugly when clearly she’s not. Nice try.)
Let’s buck up people and understand that the “No judgement zone” of this company is just another case of intolerant, ignorant foolish people who can not stand on their own merits so they go after a group of hard working folks who just do their thing. Whatev. Unoriginal.
Here’s a pic of Katy in her cool T. She and her buddy Amber took first at multiple meets last year and Katy has already been accepted at Texas Tech. But ya, she’s too harsh and stupid for Planet Fitness. Heh.
**Update: The video has been removed. Could be they actually accepted that they’re a bunch of classless douchenozzles. We can hope.
