iTunes Top 200 Artists: #71-79

3 years ago, we first counted down the then Top 100 artists in my iTunes library.  Since that time, I’ve successfully managed to migrate my music collection to a new PC with the stats intact.  So, I figured it was time to take another look, expanding out the field to the top 200 artists, based on number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2017.

An eclectic group of musicians as we continue our march towards the top of the charts.

#79: Ludacris
iTunes stats: 58 plays
Previous ranking: #63

A 16 spot drop for the Atlanta-based rapper, despite 20 additional listens to his 3 songs over the past 3 years.

#79: Florence + The Machine
iTunes stats: 58 plays
Previous ranking: N/A

An impressive debut appearance, thanks mostly to their inclusion in last year’s road trip mix to placate Val.

#76: Ron Funches
iTunes stats: 59 plays
Previous ranking: N/A

The comic makes his debut thanks to the tracks from his first album.

#76: Nancy Faust
iTunes stats: 59 plays
Previous ranking: #57

The former organist for the White Sox drops 19 spots due to the removal of her final performance of Take Me Out To The Ballgame from my victory playlist.

#76: Bell Biv DeVoe
iTunes stats: 59 plays
Previous ranking: #66

22 new listens for the former members of New Edition cause them to drop 10 spots in the rankings.

#74: Red Hot Chili Peppers
iTunes stats: 60 plays
Previous ranking: #84

A 10 spot leap for the California-based rockers due in part to 32 new listens over the past 3 years.

#74: Black Eyed Peas
Continue reading →

Fitbit III: Week 5

Another good week, as I broke 50,000 steps for the 5th consecutive week, my longest stretch since last summer, when I put together a 14 week stretch between mid April and mid July.  I also continued my streak of above-goal days to a record 41 straight, surpassing the 36 day streak last summer.  Things started on a good note on Sunday, where I combined trips to the grocery store, Danny’s band concert, and dinner out to finish near 7000 steps.  Monday was a day off work and managed to be the high point of the week, coming in over 10,000 steps for the fourth time this month.  Tuesday was back to work, and a lot of time was spent running around the building dealing with drama, followed by an after work trip to the Glen.  Wednesday was the low point of the week, finishing a mere 36 steps above goal despite walking from Willow back to South after a morning meeting.  Things bounced back on Thursday, as I approached 8000 steps thanks in part to an old-timey afternoon coffee run with Val.  Friday and Saturday both took some extra effort to traipse around the upper level of the house to reach and surpass my daily goal.

Total steps: 53,746

Daily average: 7678

The Still Growing 10,000 Step Club

Last year, as I was finishing my first year with a Fitbit, I took my last look at the top 20 step days I’ve had since I first started tracking my steps way back in July of 2011.  At the time, I had only surpassed the 10,000 step plateau 81 times.  In the past year, I have managed to add an additional 35 occurrences, raising the total to 116.  With my second year using the Fitbit coming to an end last week, I thought it would be appropriate to take a new look at my now top 25 step days over the past 5 1/2 years, featuring 12 new entries.

btn10K-41: 6/6/2013 – 24,988 steps

My best single day total continues to be from my 2013 trip to Disney World.  The day’s excursion to both Epcot Center and the Magic Kingdom ended up with a total of approximately 12.5 miles.  And yes, it still bothers me that I didn’t get those 12 additional steps to reach 25,000.

2: 3/22/2016 – 22,493 steps

My first new entry shares much in common with my #1 day, taking place in Disney World last March.  The day’s excursion started at Hollywood Studios before heading over to Epcot Center with Jeff and Val.

3: 7/27/2013 – 20,592 steps

My now third highest total came nearly 2 months after my highest, thanks to the BTN 5K and a, for lack of a better word, misunderstanding about where I should be picked up after the race.  These 3 days are the sum total of my days over 20,000 steps.

4: 6/2/2016 – 18,725 steps

The second new entry comes from last June’s trip to Universal Studios.  Our first full day at the park, we split the day between Universal and Islands of Adventure, taking in all of the different Harry Potter options.

5: 6/4/2016 – 18,617 steps

The third new entry rounds up the top 5 with another entry from last June’s trip to Universal Studios.  The day included another trip to Islands of Adventure, and would have ended up even higher but for an afternoon trip to the hotel pool.

6: 9/6/2015 – 18,259 steps

Down three slots from last year, my now-sixth highest total comes courtesy of my trip to Toronto in September 2015.  This Sunday consisted of traversing around Toronto, with trips to Royal Ontario Museum and, at night, the Molson Canadian Ampitheatre for the Oddball Comedy Fest.

7: 9/11/2015 – 17,889 steps

My seventh best total also occurred during my trip to Toronto.  My last day in the city was spent at the Eaton Centre mall, the Hockey Hall of Fame, and a few other stops.

8: 6/8/2013 – 17,852 steps

My now-eighth highest output brings us back to Disney World in 2013, this time for a day split between Animal Kingdom in the morning and Hollywood Studios in the afternoon.

9: 6/1/2016 – 17,243 steps

My fourth new entry again comes courtesy of last summer’s trip to Universal.  This first day of the trip started in Chicago at O’Hare and took us to the Hard Rock Hotel for check-in and a round of mini-golf at City Walk before taking a quick trip in the afternoon to Islands of Adventure to reacquaint ourselves with the original Harry Potter attractions.

10: 6/5/2016 – 16,317 steps

We round out the top 10 with my fifth new entry, which again took place last summer at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure, where we tried to take in all of the non-Harry Potter attractions.

11: 9/5/2015 – 16,083 steps

We head back to Toronto for my eleventh highest day, my first full day in the city.  There was exploring along the riverfront and, of course, a trip to Rogers Centre for a Blue Jays game.

12: 9/23/2014 – 15,728 steps

This total was accomplished thanks to the 2014 Sprint & Stride 5K race that was held at work.

13: 4/11/2016 – 15,597 steps

My sixth new entry took place last April, where an exciting day of work was followed by a trip to Wrigley Field for Opening Day festivities.

14: 9/9/2012 – 14,957 steps

My now-fourteenth highest total comes thanks to a Sunday in Belfast spent walking from our hotel, down to the Titanic museum, and then back again.

15: 6/7/2013 – 14,940 steps

Another day of 2013’s vacation to Disney World, this day started with a morning trip to the hotel pool, followed by an abbreviated day at the Magic Kingdom.

Continue reading →

FB2: Week 46

A mostly down week, that only managed to beat my goal thanks to Saturday pulling in the highest total of the week.  Things got off to a slow start on Sunday, where I finished below 4500 steps.  Monday was the first official day of vacation and I fell 72 steps short of my daily goal.  Tuesday I headed up to work for a free breakfast, which helped me to top my daily goal for the first time.  Wednesday just barely surpassed my goal, thanks in part to a trip to the mall for pizza.  Thursday involved another trip back up towards work for lunch with Hayley and Val and I managed to just eke past my daily goal.  Friday was a down day, falling 360 steps shy of my goal.  Facing an overall down week, Saturday turned in to the best day thanks to shopping trips for groceries and Christmas presents.

Total steps: 42,140

Daily average: 6020

FB2: Week 32

fb2_week32A decent week overall, with one minor blip that stopped it from being a good week.  Things got off to a good start on Sunday, thanks to a walk around the neighborhood followed by a trip to my aunt’s for her annual Labor Day weekend BBQ.  Monday was the bad day of the week, as I spent the holiday morning watching a Match Game marathon before going up north to spend the afternoon and evening in a faux Irish pub with Hayley and Val.  Tuesday was a nice bounce back day, as I tried to make up for the sins of the day before.  Wednesday was another good day, coming close to 8000 steps.  Thursday was back closer to 6000 steps, but benefitted from a trip to North Plaza to pick up the Sprint and Stride packets.  Friday fell below my goal by about 500 steps, before another bounce back on Saturday thanks to a neighborhood walk followed by a trip to US Cellular Field for a White Sox loss.

Total steps: 46,840

Daily average: 6691.4

Sprinting And Striding Yet Again

spandstFor the third year in a row, I’ve registered for the Sprint & Stride 5K race held on the campus of the old workplace next month.  I’ll be trying to break my time from last year of 57:32 at a minimum, if not my “personal record” of 54:10, from the first BTN 5K I did back in 2012.  Standing in my way will likely be the same issues as last year, walking with friends and narrow terrain that makes it hard to pass slower walkers.  Hopefully I can figure out how to get my time to register this year, something I’ve failed to do the past 2 years.

Either way, it should be a fun event and one that benefits a good cause.  Not to mention getting an afternoon away from my desk and spending some time with Hayley and Val.

FB2: Week 27

FB2_Week27The week got off to another slow start as I woke up in the city on Sunday morning before coming home to celebrate Angela’s birthday.  Monday and Tuesday both hovered around the 5000 step mark, before things picked up on Wednesday for my first 6000 step day of the week thanks to a trip to North Plaza for coffee.  Thursday was a good day, thanks to a post-work trip in to the city for dinner and drinks at Goose Island with Val and Hayley.  Friday managed to just squeak past the 6000 step mark.  A good day on Saturday, thanks to a morning walk followed by a Sox game at night, managed to even out the rest of the week, finishing with my lowest total since March.

Total steps: 42,709

Daily average: 6101.3

FB2: Week 26

FB2_Week26Another week got off to a slow start, despite a trip down to US Cellular Field for exciting White Sox baseball.  Monday was another disappointment, not ever cracking 5000 steps.  Tuesday saw a big increase, nearly totaling 9000 steps, thanks to game 2 of the Crosstown Cup.  Wednesday was another good day, due to a post-work trip to the Glen with Hayley to have dinner and see Star Trek Beyond.  Thursday and Friday were down days once again, with the week saved by Saturday’s total of over 13,000 steps thanks to a trip in to the city for Lollapalooza with Hayley and Val.

Total steps: 47,611

Daily average: 6801.6

FB2: Week 24

FB2_Week24Another good week, as my consecutive days above goal streak reached 36 before coming to an end on Saturday.  Things got off to a good start on Sunday, coming close to 10,000 steps thanks to a morning walk followed by a trip to US Cellular Field for a disappointing White Sox/Braves tilt.  The work week started off well, nearly hitting 9000 steps on Monday.  Tuesday was the highpoint of the week, crossing 11,000 steps thanks to an after-work trip in to the city for dinner with Val and Hayley.  The rest of the week was pretty standard, until Saturday, where a morning trip for mini-golf with Danny and Michael was the extent of the day’s activity.

Total steps: 54,011

Daily average: 7715.9

FB2: Week 21

FB2_Week21Another good week, as I extended my streak of consecutive days above goal to 16 days, with two days finishing above 10,000 steps.  The week got off to a slowish start on Sunday, as Father’s Day celebrations left me just barely over the daily goal.  Monday was once again a squeaker, with Tuesday and Wednesday bouncing back to normal levels.  Things really kicked off on Thursday, thanks to trips to the airport and then downtown with Val and Hayley.  Friday was another close call, and then Saturday was another good day thanks to a White Sox game followed by more Hayley fun in the city, including dinner at Weber Grill.

Total steps: 56,795

Daily average: 8113.6