Happy Friday the 13th!

Had a rather long day yesterday, but it was good. Worked some overtime again (big surprise, may happen again today), but made a concerted effort to get to the gym afterwards. Succeeded, then had my ass handed to me by said gym. Politely, but firmly, declined to pay an extra $300 - $600 for a "Personal Trainer Package" as (barring profit from the sale of my organs) I am not made of money. For the time being I'll simply have to try & muddle through figuring out the machines & their use on my own.

Raced back to the apt.to clean up & change, then sped over to meet people (albeit late) for wings. Didn't have a whole lot to eat earlier in the day and after the gym I was SO very hungry. Had grilled chicken fingers w/the sauce, though, instead o/buffalo wings. Go me.

Slept better last night than I have in a really long time. I think I only woke up once, which is kind of a big deal considering I usually do at least twice, usually three or four times a night. Got up this morning and, though I was a little tired for about the first 1/2 hour, felt great after that and have since. If this is what going to the gym makes a person feel like every time they visit, I can see why it's so addictive. Can't wait to try out the yoga class next week. :)

Have a ton to finish today before I leave work. Depending on when time that is may actually be able to hang out w/Katiedid for the first time since last week to run around Georgetown & do some window shopping, which would be supah-keen as I've not been down there in awhile.

All righty, must head back to work before I become all distracted again. More later.

~E.

Commence with the gymmery...

I finally decided on a gym to try for awhile, being LA Fitness. I've heard good and bad things about the chain, but after weighing the pros & cons of the various options in the area, I thought this would suit for the time being. Could not get over what they wanted me to pay for this membership, seriously. I spoke to friends who go there, I did my own research, and then decided on a range I was willing to pay. I want to be more active and start working out, but not to the detriment of my all ready limited budget.

Called LAF around noon yest.to arrange an appt.for a tour after work. Specifically told XYZ gentleman that I was not sure exactly when I'd get there, only that it would be somewhere between 5:30p & 9p as I was working late. That was fine, he'd be closing anyway, just drop in and ask for him. Duder then calls my cell 3x (4:40p, 5:58p & 6:28p) to confirm our “appointment”. ::raises an eyebrow:: Eh-heh.

Arrived at 7p, met Mr. XYZ, took tour. Gym seems nice, there appear to be plenty of machines I like avail.(even @ 7p when it's still a bit crowded from the leftover after-work crew), etc. Check. Locker rooms look good, there are probably enough lockers, more than a couple showers avail., clean. Check, check, check, check. No towel service. N/A, could care less. Pool if I ever wish to use it & evening yoga classes included with membership. Check, check, okay. Return from tour and Mr. proceeds to try and convince me that the following rates & reg.fees are reasonable:

Option #1: Initial Registration Fee - $249, then a mo.-to-mo.fee of $39.99
OR
Option #2: Initial Registration Fee - $149, then a mo.-to-mo.fee of $49.99

o_@!!! ::coughs:: I beg your pardon, are you serious? Oh you are, I see. There’s more? Well it can’t be a good thing, you’re starting to shift uncomfortably in your chair. Oh, I have to pay the first and last mo’s bill along with the initial registration fee to sign up? Uh-huh, I see. Why is that, considering it’s a month to month contract? Oh, it’s just like an apartment. Mm-hm. Okay, you know I’m not moving *into* the gym, right? Ha ha! Yes, wasn’t that funny? Oh, it’s just company policy. I see, okay, so my *real* options #1 & #2 are either $330 today, then $40/mo.after, or $250 today, then $50/mo.after. ...I see.

I did my research beforehand, checking other locations, rates, etc., so this wasn’t gonna fly for me. Politely but firmly tell Mr. XYZ I appreciate the info., but the combined fees were simply far more than what I was looking to pay and I would need to continue researching other locations. Answered w/the names of those locations and some idea of rates. Mr.XYZ decided he needed assistance, going in search of Ms.Asst.-in-Charge-of-Stuff. Ms.smiled and sat down, extolling the virtues of the gym all over again, then started explaining how the reg.fee was “standard” and proceeded to break everything down week-by-week into wee tiny pieces of itself, like I didn’t know how to do math and would be tricked into snatching up the offer by seeing a handwritten “$9/wk!” on a piece of scrap paper. Yes, thank you Ms., that’s terribly exciting. You do know that all those little numbers have a nasty habit of adding together again to make the same, much larger number I just explained I’m not going to pay, right? Here, I shall Math as well. It is a word problem, see?:

Person E.wants to work out, but needs option to go to other location in 3 or 4mos.should she prefer. Fitness Location X says payment for such is $250 today + monthlies or $330 today + monthlies. What amounts would she *really* pay per mo., over the course of 3 or 4mos., with either option?

Answers:

Option #1 (over 3 mo.period) - $330 (reg.+2 mos.coverage) + $40 = $370/3 = $123.3/mo. = decidedly not $9/wk.
Option #1 (over 4 mo.period) - $330 (reg.+2 mos.coverage) + $40 = $370/4 = $92.5/mo. = nope, not $9/wk.
Option #2 (over 3 mo.period) - $250 (reg.+2 mos.coverage) + $50 = $300/3 = $100/mo. = still not $9/wk.
Option #2 (over 3 mo.period) - $250 (reg.+2 mos.coverage) + $50 = $300/4 = $75/mo. = O HAI, not $9/wk.

Ms.decided she needed help, too, and went in search of Mr. Much-Higher-Boss-than-She-Was. Mr.#2 also extolled virtues of gym, taking the "commitment" tack and reorganizing the numbers all over again for my benefit. Informed that I was simply reticent to pay anything nearly that high, and that other gyms had @ least much lower reg.fees, but also mo'ly fees. After what can only be referred to as a very polite staring contest involving several nods of acknowledgment, Mr. Boss presented me with the following equation.

Option #3 (over 3 mo.period) - $79 (reg.fee) + $70 (2 mos.coverage @ $34.99/mo.) + $35 = $61.66/mo. = $15.42/wk.

We shook on it. :) Gotta love negotiation.

More later,

~E.

A very busy Tuesday...

Few quick things, then back to work for me:

1. Petunia's to give birth @ some point today and I'm trying very hard to concentrate on work because I'm terribly excited to meet the little man. She was originally scheduled for inducement at 7a, but it was pushed back a bit & (I believe) it should all ready have taken place about an hour ago. I can't WAIT to see the Cups after work. :D
   
   
2. I have one HELL of a lot of expense reports to do today & am really, really, *really* hoping I don't have to stay late to process them so I can still make it to the hospital after work by a decent hour.
   
   
3. I also have as much procurement to handle. Good Lord.
   
   
4. I'd really like it if my co-workers would quit dropping things off on my desk, (ranging from empty shipment boxes to computer parts to discarded batteries of all kinds), expecting that I will simply "take care of it" and make it go someplace magical they apparently can't possibly visit themselves...like the trash bin. These are grown men. Usually they've longer legs than mine as they're often taller, which means it *should* be even easier for them to traverse the extra 10' it takes to put whatever-that-is in its proper place and not in my workspace. Geez o'flip.
   
   
5. I’m excited to do fitness things this week. Also, depending on my paycheck & subsequent bills, I may be able to overhaul my diet which would be excellent.
   
   
6. I'd also like to actually hit the club this Sat.as I've not gone the past two weeks.

That is all. More later.

~E.