Tag / Polar Vortex

by admin

Fitbit V: Week 1

We kick off the 5th year of Fitbit use with a slow week, thanks to the return of the polar vortex, which brought record low temperatures. The week got off to a decent start on Sunday, where I combined snow blowing with a trip out to celebrate mom’s birthday to finish just over 4900 steps.  An overnight snowstorm kept me home from work on Monday, where another round of snow blowing put me up over 5500 steps.  Tuesday was back to work, where I was able to put together over 8500 steps, a full 1000 over my new daily goal of 7500.  The polar vortex returned on Wednesday, keeping me home with a high temperature of -14, resulting in a poor total of just over 2800 steps. Thursday was another day trapped indoors, so again I was just over 2800 steps. Friday was a good bounce back day, both weather-wise and step-wise. Reaching into the low 20s, I was able to go to work and finish just shy of 9900 steps. Most of Saturday was spent in an airplane; but between the airport and an early evening stroll down Waikiki Beach, I managed to just pass my daily goal with over 7600 steps.

Total steps: 42,166

Daily average: 6023,7

by admin

GF4 – Week 18

Y4Week18Well, this was a disappointing week, with my lowest total since the end of January, when the polar vortex kept me with 3 days under 2000 steps.  This week suffered from busy days that kept me away from my afternoon trip to North plaza for coffee.  Thursday, the only day I did get to go on a coffee trip, was the one day to cross the 5000 step plateau.  Hopefully things pick up this week.

Total steps: 28,060

Daily average: 4008.6

by admin

Return Of Winter

chkdskSo, after spring arrived for one day on Monday with temperatures breaking 50 degrees for the first time in 2014, Tuesday night dropped another snowstorm on us, wrecking traffic and playing havoc with the electrical lines.  The power has gone out and come back on in under a minute at least 10 times since I woke up this morning.  As a result, I got the priviledge of watching my computer go through a CHKDSK after shutting down in the middle of a meeting.

On the plus side, I have recently started to back up my files for the first time in years, so a crashed hard drive, while annoying, would not be catostraphic.  On the minus side, I was in the middle of a meeting, so the continuous power outages kept knocking me off the phone and the prolonged CHKDSK made rejoining the Webex a bit difficult.

At the end of the day, the old computer made it through in one piece.  But, winter seems unwilling to let go of its grip on the Chicago area.  Any snow that had melted the past few days has been replaced with a fresh coat, and 2013-2014 has become either the 2nd or 3rd snowiest winter in Chicago history, depending on the airport, and the cities denizens continue to suffer the effects.

by jim

Screw You, Phil

punxsutawney-philPunxsutawney Phil, the world renowned groundhog, woke up this morning and saw his shadow, predicting six more weeks of this horrid winter.  Having just completed the third snowiest January on record and facing another month and a half of alternating freezing cold, thanks to the polar vortex, and torrential snow, I would imagine that the little rodent is in hiding due to numerous threats against his life.  Watch your back, Phil.

by admin

GlobalFit III: Week 27

Y3Week27This week was supposed to be the first back to work after more than 3 weeks of vacation, but the Polar Vortex had a little something to say about that, plunging temperatures below 0 for over 2 days and keeping me home both Monday and Tuesday.  Wednesday was the day that I finally ventured back to work, and the first day to break 5000 steps in 2014.  Thursday was even slightly better, coming in 4 steps below the 6000 step plateau.  Friday just missed on 5000 steps, and the weekend was surprisingly above their low average.

Total steps: 25,196

Weekly average: 3599.4

by admin

Oh, The Weather Outside Is Frightful

polarvortexWinter has been particularly harsh in the Chicago area so far, already exceeding the average snowfall for the entire season and we are barely in to January.  The last two days have added the additional treat of arctic sub-zero temperatures, with wind chills down in the -40s, thanks to a polar vortex.  Which means that most of the area has been shut down, with very little opportunity to leave the house.  There’s got to be IT jobs available in Hawaii, right?