Say Yes

I was flying down the mountain, wind and snow piercing my face...not exactly ideal considering my skis had flown off about 3 seconds ago.
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I was flailing around while simultaneously yelping in pain. Meanwhile everyone around me was laughing hysterically at my sensitivity to brow waxing.
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All of a sudden my income skyrocketed, and my pupils were replaced by dollar signs. Maybe I should build a money-bin?

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I looked down which was a big mistake. One slip, and I'd be falling down about 2000 incredibly steep steps. Look up, and keep climbing Arun.
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I read recently that statistics and testimonies indicate that general happiness has more to do with experiences than it does with possessions. After some thought, I realized how true this is!

I always try to be a "Yes" man. What I mean is, when people ask me to do something, even if inherent laziness or fear creeps in, I always try to suck it up and do it. 99 times out of a hundred, I'm glad I did. The experiences above are just some examples of things I hesitated to say 'yes' to, but pulled the trigger anyways because I knew, if nothing else, the experience would be entertaining and memorable.

Last weekend, I went skiing in Mammoth. I had previously skied two years ago at Mammoth and before that, not since I was like 11 years old. Suffice to say, I'm not exactly Twinkle Toes on skis...especially for an Alaskan.

Naturally when my friends asked me if I wanted to go to the TOP of the mountain, I said yes :)

So there we are at the top, wind howling, cold biting, snow blowing, and Arun Aruning.

We decided to take "Dave's Run" down. Sounds simple enough right?

WRONG.

Dave and his damn run decided to take me on a little jaunt down his hill, ass first, for about 200 feet. The experience was cold, uncomfortable, and painful.

I'm glad I said yes.

By day 2, I was carving my way down black diamonds! I definitely made a huge jump in my skiing skills that would not have been possible had I not decided to accept the challenge of skiing (or my personal technique, which I call "ass-ing") my way down some crazy runs at the top of the mountain.

The second example was from my little waxing adventure. Sure it was painful, but I wound up even MORE devilishly handsome (hard to believe, I know) and it made for a good story.

The third example is from a recent "career opportunity" that I accepted doing some work for a friend. In fact, I think I'll write a post all about his unique career and my roll in it soon.

Anyways, when he asked me if I would do some work for him, I was initially resistant. It was going to take a lot of time with everything else I have going on, and I would have to do some extra studying and learning to do everything he needs properly. But, I am a Yes Man, so I accepted.

What a great decision. I'm getting to be a pro at the work, and I'm finding ways to minimize my time commitment while maximizing my income. The one drawback however, is my ebook is taking forever to publish since, between working, exercising, marathon training, and gmat studying, there's not a heck of a lot of time.

The last little image was from climbing the pyramids in Teotihuacan Mexico. Sure they were scary and dangerous, but the view at the top was unforgettable.

These are just three examples off the top of my head. Overall, I'm always the one my friends can usually count on to join them in something fun, interesting, or new. If I'm tired or resistant, I usually just convince myself to sack up and go out. Then I imagine the greatest scenario of what could possibly happen, happening. Obviously this doesn't always happen, but in the end, I'm happier having said 'yes' and enjoying the experience.

Finding the Extra Gear

Recently I've noticed that most people don't really know, or have the heart, to dig deep. Occasionally, some adrenalin inducing situation may arise where we have to force ourselves to kick our physical effort to the next gear, but for most people that's extremely rare, which in my mind, is a separating quality between average people and people who accomplish their goals.

One of my goals for this year is to run the San Diego Rock N Roll Marathon. Not only do I want to run a marathon, but I want to do it in a decent time.

There will be no walking.

There will be no excessive stopping to re-tie "loose" shoelaces (as we all used to do in elementary school to buy some rest time during "the mile run").

It's not that I particularly enjoy running, and to be quite honest, I'm not exactly Jolly McJollyson waking up at 7am Sunday mornings to go train, but I dig deep and get it done.

I find the extra gear. I've gone running with some people who, sure, they at least get up and make it out, but they don't know how to find the extra gear and really push themselves. The minute they get tired, they start walking.

As Arnold Swartzeneggar says in the movie Pumping Iron, "the ability to push through the pain barrier (while training) is what separates the elite from the average."

Last Sunday morning, I went on one of the most brutal runs I've been on. 12 miles of HILLS! Believe me, when I was climbing the first mountain, my lungs on fire and my calves screaming bloody murder, I really wanted to walk, but mentally I wouldn't let myself.

My calves are still mad at me.

I found the extra gear and made it to the top. The picture above shows the elevation changes each mile as tracked by my awesome new GPS watch (Thanks Mom)!

Last week, I hopped in on the spin class at the gym for only like the second time this year. I'm not a great biker, but varying training styles is good. I'd bet at least 50% of the class are better bikers than me. The crazy thing is, I'm certain I worked harder than everyone.

A lot of people gave up on some of the hard climbs much earlier than they could have. They didn't have the desire to dig deep and find the extra gear.

I absolutely HATE HATE HATE that damn spin class! In fact, I hate it so much that I'm going again tomorrow.

Why do I torture myself?

Because I know it's good for me and I feel like it's a test of my will. If I can get used to pushing through the pain and really digging deep, then it won't be so difficult when I really have to (like at the end of a marathon).

If everyone practiced finding the extra gear, we'd all be much better off (and in much better shape!). In fact, you can apply this principal of pushing yourself to practically anything (although, I'm probably not the best example of doing this which is why I'm conveniently leaving other applications out :)

Now if only I could somehow transfer this will power to resisting dessert ;)

Boobs and Botox

Good ol' Southern California.

If there's one thing you see a lot of down here, it's boobs and botox. Many people are smart about how they go about "enhancing" their size and/or smoothness. Generally, younger people seem to go for the borderline "au naturale" look: pleasantly busty cantaloupes as opposed to state-fair winning watermelons.

Older chicks on the other hand, get downright reckless.

Au naturale is out...they just want to get as boobalicious as possible.

The gym I work out at has a lot of older woman who obviously have a few extra bucks to invest in "personal growth." Now I think it's perfectly fine that some of them want to enhance their looks, but wouldn't you realize if your bra size is two letters passed 'K' that you may have gotten a touch carried away?

One of the ladies I see all the time is an aerobics instructor. Yes, an AEROBICS INSTRUCTOR! It is seriously a feat of epic proportions (and I mean EPIC PROPORTIONS)that she can teach an aerobics class with those things bobbing around. How she manages to stay upright without losing her balance is beyond me. She's pretty small too - like 5'2" but I swear each bazoom-zoom is as big as her head.

Then there's another Brazilian chick with two kids that's in phenominal shape. She has a six-pack, but I can't for the life of me figure out how her abs get any work when she does sit-ups. Her torso moves up like two inches before her Babaloos collide softly with her knees.

These ladies likely know they're not fooling anyone, and probably don't care either.

On the hand, women who get the botox treatment will definitely lie about their age. Most of the time, they can get away with it too...unless they're not wearing a turtleneck and gloves.

When older women get facelifts or botox injections, their necks are always dead giveaways. Sure you have a nice tight, maybe expressionless face, but when your neck looks like a turkey's, you're not fooling anyone. And if she has excellent foresight and gets a "neckjob," the hands reveal all.

There's no escaping!

Exhibit A: Susan Lucci.

And people say I'm unobservant! :)

The Fast and the Ridiculous

I was about to post an article today about the different types of women in the gym, but I think I'll save that juicy little nugget of truth for next week.

Today I'm going to post another article I wrote a few months ago about Sports Cars. So what do I know about sports cars you ask?

Absolutely nothing. I'm no car expert. I'm more of a look, dream of driving, and admire type of guy. BUT, when the request was made for an article about 2009 sports cars, I narrowed down my favorite ones, looked up some stats in Motor trend magazine, threw in some "Arun Flava" and went to town!

The Fast and The Ridiculous: Top 5 2009 Sports Cars
By Arun Srinivasan

Driving up the San Diego coastline this morning, an all too familiar occurrence caught my attention. A glimpse of green in my rear view mirror. The high pitched engine scream. A flash of neon zipping by my left. Ah yes; another Lamborghini.

As much as I love my little Toyota Corolla, I sometimes long for a gas guzzling, speed-limit destroying, hot-chick attracting, sports car (big surprise, I know). But not just any sports car, mind you. Only the best will suffice for I, owner of the best small sedan in the land! So without further ado, I present to you, the top five sports cars of 2009.

5. Maserati GranTurismo
A sports car with more luxury than most “luxury cars.” Despite being longer, wider, and heavier than its closest competitors, the GranTurismo tops them all in handling and luxury while maintaining it’s trademark “giddyup.” They say a car is an embodiment of its driver, in which case the GranTurismo is perfect for me: beautiful, classy, and longer than its peers :)

The coolest part about this car? If/when I get in a high speed pursuit, I can just hit the “sport” button on the dash to increase the throttle responsiveness by twenty percent! They’ll never catch me.

4. Ferrari F430 Scuderia
I don’t think any fan of Magnum P.I. can make a list of top sports cars without including a Ferrari. Turns out “Scuderia” is Italian for “stable.” So how did they make the Scuderia more stable than the old F430? They made it lighter and added more power. I’m not sure how this logic works out, but I like it.

But this particular Ferrari is extra special. It’s particularly catered to Ferrari’s most passionate and sports-car-driving clients (as opposed to the normal, Ferrari clients). This car is a must have starting at only $272,306 (floor mats not included).

3. Aston Martin DBS
I don’t know if there is any better combination of speed, performance, and class than an Aston Martin sports car, and they’ve outdone themselves with the latest DBS. Not only is this the fastest Aston Martin available, but it features improved stability as well as a luxury interior. This baby is meant to move. Even the interior carpet that nestles between your toes is made from ultra light material.

As I was salivating over the specs on motortrend.com, I couldn’t help but get light headed when they described the engine as a “massaged V-12.” I know I perform well after a good massage, and I can only assume high-end engines respond the same. If it’s good enough for James Bond to roll around in, then it’s obviously suitable for me.

2. Lamborghini Gallardo
If you like speed and power, you could just tie up a wagon to 560 horses and crack the whip…or you can get the 2009 Lamborghini Gallardo. If you’re going to get a sports car, you might as well get the fastest and flashiest! This is for those of us who enjoy the feeling of passing out due to extreme G-forces. I suppose 0-60 mph in 3.4 seconds should accomplish that. Unlike last year’s model which topped out at a paltry 194 mph, the 2009 tops the 200 mark with a pedal-to-the-floor 202 mph. And, if you really love that “flying through the air so fast it feels like your face is going to peel off” feeling, it comes in a convertible version as well!

When you throw in the fact that the 2009 Gallardo emits 18% less carbon dioxide and gets 3 more miles to the gallon (for a whopping 17 mpg) than last years model, it just screams “commuter car!”

1. Honda Civic Hybrid
Ok, ok…so I know a Civic isn’t a true sports car, but slap a spoiler on that baby, and dog-gonnit I’m calling it one! With fuel costing as much as it does these days, give me a hybrid car and I’m happy. In 2006, Honda actually presented a concept Civic Sports/Hybrid car, but it is yet to come to fruition. Unfortunately, air cars and hydrogen fuel cell cars are not up for sale yet (plus, I don’t know if they have versions that come with spoilers).

So there you have it. The “who’s who” among 2009 performance vehicles. If you’d like to know more about any of the vehicles above, feel free to donate one to me and I promise to test drive it thoroughly and report back to you assuming I’m still alive and/or not in jail.