Kudos to Steph!
Who PR’d for the first time in almost 3 years…at the Loughran’s Buffalo Alumni Run….
Happy Birthday Dan!
Please do leave a comment wishing him a wonderfully happy birthday!
Rightbackatcha
I can just picture the look on my mother’s face after she reads this and the language…and no, she did NOT teach me THAT!
I have been riding my bike to work for over 3 weeks now and it takes me down one of the busiest streets in Buffalo, Main St. Not only is it busy but part of it is under construction. You think that is dangerous? Read on…
This morning, Steph and I went for a run down Sheridan Dr. on the sidewalk. Just as we reached a shopping center that has a Starbucks, I noticed a black SUV alongside me. Instinct told me that it will make the turn and cut me off. Boy, was I right!
This black GMC SUV with tinted glass was driven by some fatcowho who (1) thinks she is the only living specimen on earth at 5:30 in the morning, (2) is too busy yakking on the cell phone with her gigolo; (3) is so stupid she thinks cars have the right of way over pedestrians or (4) is a PHAT dooshbag who despises runners or bikers because they look better than her.
As she cut in front of me, I slapped her back window…she stopped!!! HOLY MOLEY! And what did she do??? Not one but 2…..TWO birdies! The fatcowhodooshbag actually had enough guts and strength to flip me “two birds”!! And this is coming from some fatcowho in Amherst!
So what did I do? I laughed at her and gave her the finger (which coincidentally is the only sign language I know) and went on my merry way!
Buh bye Schwinn…
THANK YOU Steph and mom, two of my main wimin for the early birthday present, a spanking brand new 2008 Cannondale Adventure 4 Bike. Believe it or not, this is the first time I have owned a bike other than Schwinn.
click on photo to enlarge
Frame: CO2 Adventure
Fork: Spinner Tridium AC w/preload adjust, 50 mm travel
Rims: Cannondale C3 w/machined sidewall, 36 hole
Hubs: Formula FM-31 front w/Clix QR, FM-32 rear
Spokes: Stainless, 14g
Tires: CST Selecta w/Kevlar belt, 700 x 38c
Pedals: Wellgo resin platform w/Kraton insert
Crank: Shimano FC-M191, 28/38/48
Chain: KMC Z72 8-speed
Rear Cogs: Shimano CS-HG40, 12-32
Bottom Bracket: TH cartridge
Front Derailleur: Shimano FD-M311
Rear Derailleur: SRAM X-5
Shifters: SRAM SX4 Twist
Handlebars: Cannondale C3, 50mm rise
Stem: Adjustable rise quill
Headset: Semi-integrated cartridge, threaded
Brakeset: Lee Chi TX-120 w/modulator
Brakelevers: Cannondale 4-Finger Comfort w/Kraton insert and Bell
Saddle: Cannondale SuperCush w/springs
Seat Post: Promax SP-896 suspension
Size: X
Extras: Montague Clix front QR
Miles per “gallon”: Two Hebrew National All-Beef Kosher or Nathans Coney Island Hot-dogs
Environmental Impact: Methane loaded nuclear flatulence bomb (”The Oblivion Express”)
Friday, I picked up the replacement for my primary right side Cochlear Implant processor. So far, so good but I am still curious as to why it failed and even more, why the backup failed too. And lately, I feel the quality of sound has been deteriorating somewhat since I seem to be having trouble with the Ling sounds.
Friday night’s race sucked! It was humid. I went out too fast. I over-trained during the week. And I didn’t have Wegman’s famous roasted chicken the night before. The next race is my shortest to date… the Dick Bessel Independence Day 2.3 mile. Steph will be doing that one too.
Have a great week! If anything newsworthy comes up, I’ll surely report on it.
Bad karma?
On Sunday, I mentioned that the right side processor died. Now the backup has gone poopy. WTF???? Fortunately, the replacement for the primary is in so I’ll pick that up either tomorrow or Friday.
Bike riding to work has gone great. Thus far, in 2 weeks I’ve logged 4 round trips-a total of 78.48 miles. At roughly 18 miles per gal, $4.25 a gallon…I have saved $18.53. And that does not include knocking off 3-4 pounds. I suspect my running will be faster so we’ll see Friday night when I enter the Fit for Fire, downtown Buffalo.
Oh and one other thing…I have met lots of good folks like me who are trying to save a few bucks. Not including some 51 year old dude in a ponytail riding a 1950s Airdyne in pajama shorts and goes by the nickname lkizz. And a former colleague who rides even further (14 miles each way).
Various ramblings
Friday night, we did the St. Greg’s The Great Great Race and that is not a typo! Here are our lines…
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101. Sam Spritzer Williamsville NY 0:21:18 0:06:51 13/M50-54 86/M
176. Stephanie Spritzer Williamsville NY 0:22:42 0:07:18 2/F50-54 34/F
343. Nike Spritzer 0:25:39 0:08:15 21/M20-24 261/M
It surely was a great race and my time tied my second best time which was set at the same race, last year. And Steph was a merely 6 seconds from her PR. A lot credit has to be given to my new-found method of commuting (Click here for that story) and to fellow runners and good friends, Tony and Diane. If you get a chance, head over to the Checkers website for pictures of this race and the fabulous post race party that followed.
Yesterday, my right side processor died. I tried everything…fresh battery, new headpiece, new t-mic. Good thing I have a backup. My next mapping is August 1st. I emailed Michelle at Buffalo Hearing and Speech to find out what to do next. You know, I wear my CIs even when my hair is sopping wet with sweat from running. I’ll be curious to find out if that is what caused the failure.
Last week I biked to work 3 times. Going down in the morning isn’t too bad since the traffic is light but coming home can be a challenge. I haven’t had any close calls, knock on wood, but I’ve heard some pretty horror stories. I’ve already dropped off 2 pairs of shoes at work so I won’t look as bad as the picture in a previous post.
And lastly, my sister Ellen is moving back to the states, from Greece in August. She bought a beautiful 1930s Dutch Colonial in New Paltz, NY.
Up yours ExxonMobil…
Another posting from Talk is Cheap…
click on photo to enlarge
click on photo to enlarge
means I am not going to spend $40 a week feeding some goddamn fat oil sheik and his harem of 72 hookers. Three times a week, I plan to do my share to protect the environment wearing a nice pair of black steel toed shoes for anyone who wants my “autograph” on their fender. And in the winter, I plan to do what I used to do…commute by bus and train! Hasta la vista Sheik Kissmybutt…I am done paying for your excesses. And on top of it all, I get to really enjoy the sounds of mother nature (and some more) in pure living stereo with my CIs. At least I can hear a few (bleeps) curse me out…too bad!
This brings back some other childhood memories…the 7 mile trek on my bike to work at Jeffer’s Nursery when I was a kid. And in those days, gasoline was $0.29 a gallon! Those were the good old days…
Happy Father’s Day
Recently, I was asked on Hearing Journey what I remember best about my father. Here is my response…Tom is the guy who asked the question and started the thread…
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Tom…That is really inspiring! My dad died when I was young. But not before I had tagged with him on his many rounds of golf begging for orange slices which he needed since he was diabetic. And fishing at 6 miles water works outside Albany including catching…myself in the back of the head. And countless number of times I had to get out of his chair so he could watch his beloved Yankees. And his famous BBQs and clambakes. And bottles of cream soda and Yoo Hoo. And crashing his car when I wanted to move it out of the way so we could play in the street (I was 13, mind me!) And his proud look at my bar mitzvah. And the meeting him for lunch from school on Tuesday for “hot pastrami club with rushin dressin and cole slaw” at Lerner’s. Those were the good old days…and I miss him.
To all of you dads (and single mom’s), Happy Fathers Day!
Welcome to Deaf Village!
Last week, I wrote about the fiasco at Deafread. As a result, Rachel at Cochlear Implant Online with a bunch of others started their own deaf site aggregator. Its called Deaf Village. Yours truly is now linked to that site and proud to be part of it.
This weekend is the HLAA convention in Reno. Unfortunately, yours truly will not be there. Its a kind of expensive plus I figure there are enough earthquakes out there. Next year’s convention will be in Nashville. I am definitely planning on being at that one.
This weekend is the Jamie LaBarbera Run for Education 5K. This is suppose to be a fast and flat course with a great post race party. And the weather promises to break from the oppressive heat and humidity we had the past few days.
Thank you Deafread!
See my post Injustice to a Hearing Impaired Blogger…
As a result, Deadread didn’t remove my blog. They merely “moved it” to the Inactive Blogs section. According to the heading of that section,
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Inactive Blogs (231)
Those blogs are marked as “inactive” because they have not written anything in a few months. Blogs either “die” or go on haitus. If you have written something to your blog and wish to re-activate it, it’s as easy as e-mailing us!
Inactive??? Lets see…10 posts in May, 6 in April, 18 in March, 16 in February…you call that inactive? And I can assure you this blog is not going to “die” or go on haitus.
I asked to be removed not inactivated…REMOVED. I do not want to be associated with a website that practices censorship without due process. And what is worse, this Tayler Mayer dude aka shatforbrains (my mother wouldn’t approve of the other word), banned Rachel’s blog, Cochlear Implant Online, because it was what he calls a marketing tool. He claims that the Cochlear Awareness Network (CAN) for which Rachel volunteers is a marketing tool of Cochlear Americas.
Unfortunately, shatforbrains and his stooges are so totally clueless because there are many blogs in Deadread that are owned by members and volunteers of Hearing Journey, a website that is sponsored by Advanced Bionics. And these blogs having postings that are far more pro-AB than any of the posts in Rachel’s blog. Yet they are still on Deadread. If that isn’t double standard, I don’t know what it is…so help me God!
Fortunately for me, I don’t have to worry anymore…and this concludes the first topic of ire in Talk is Cheap.
Injustice to a Hearing Impaired blogger
This morning, over my favorite cup of Starbucks, I was catching up on my blog reading. One of my favorite bloggers is Abbie over at Chronicles of a Bionic Woman. She wrote a very interesting post which can be found here. But if you’re interesting in getting right to the point and the target of my ire, read this post at Cochlear Implant Online. So Rachel…thank you for giving me something to talk cheaply about.
I do have to admit that my website is linked to the aggrevator at Deafread and quite frankly, to the editors there, I hearby request that you remove me from it. Your blatant violation of the First Amendment is a total embarassment to the Deaf/deaf community. You mentioned that the reason for removal is because this young lady’s website is a “Commerical Sites” because she is “employed as a volunteer”. By the way Tayler, its spelled C-o-m-m-e-r-c-i-a-l and secondly, since when does someone make money from being a volunteer?
Then the moron at Deafread mentions “the blog is part of a network whose purpose is to bring awareness about a company’s product…”. Umm…*MY* blog is part of *MY* cochlear implant manufacturer’s website and *MY* blog does not make ANY money from being posted there and *I* do not receive any endorsement, incentive, discount, remuneration of any kind from *MY* cochlear implant’s manufacturer. And I pay my hosting fees and do my own programming with the assistance of volunteers (also known as commenters and friends). Gonna kick me off now?
You know, I am glad *MY* cochlear implant manufacturer’s website includes me because my objective is to help educate others about cochlear implants. While I do have to admit that I will freely endorse *MY* cochlear implant manufacturer, it is only after someone else asks the question, why I chose the brand I now wear. That is E-D-U-C-A-T-I-O-N, Tayler…not “Commerical”. Haven’t kick me off yet?
After reading all the comments about your response to why Rachel’s blog was removed, I have to admit that there are definitely a few sour grapes in the Deaf/deaf community. I won’t hold it against the entire community nor will I look at a deaf person any differently because you represent such an insignificant minority in the population, it would be a tiny microscopic speck of dust no smaller than the “whatever it is in your head” called brain. You are a total disgrace! If anyone wants to see the disgrace, here it is! So shitforbrains, are you getting mad enough to want to kick me off yet?
Oh and by the way, you were smart enough to mention that SprintRelay is DeadRead’s sponsor. Excuse me, but let me cut and paste that….
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Tayler Mayer Says:
June 3rd, 2008 at 7:45 pm
justamomtothreeboys, the blog you cite is for Sprint Relay, which is DeafRead’s sponsor.
“The exception is being that of the company sponsoring DeafRead.”
Employ definition:
VerbS: (v) hire, engage, employ (engage or hire for work)
She is engaged as a volunteer.
You know…its funny that the SprintRelayBlog is built by TaylorInfomedia as mentioned on the bottom of their website. I wonder who the dictat…I mean developer of that website is. Well guess what…here is the link to Sprint’s Media Contacts page. How naive and stupid of me! I just made it easy for everyone who is royally pissed off at what you did. I’ll let them choose *YOUR* poison. Oops…I just did promoted a “Commerical Site”. Finally, a reason to kick off of Deadread without having to waste my time emailing you…Talyer.
I may have been Deaf/deaf at one time, but I am even prouder to be a CIer! Have a nice day and don’t get lost in cyberspace!
Talk is Cheap…
Normally, I would be writing about a race or my adventures being fully bionic. I have garnered quite an impressive audience ever since I started this blog a year and half ago. Its amazing how fast time has flown. Lately, I have been hard pressed to find topics to write about, within the realm of what I have been writing about.
I want to write more. I want to unleash those creative juices. I want to share what is really on my mind. I want to keep my current audience craving for more from Welcome to Sam Spritzer’s Web Site. I want to bring in new people; people whose interests are besides CIs and running.
So, I’ve decided to start a category called Talk is Cheap. Now I must warn you, my mother did not raise me to write trashy, cheapened, “you’re gonna get in trouble” articles. I am even going to risk a few comments from mom admonishing me for writing such filth. Sorry mom!
Over the next coming days, I’ll be saying my piece…whatever tickles my fancy. So, lets see how it goes. Maybe I’ll finally become rich and famous, who knows. If you have a topic you would like to hear my completely unbiased opinion on, drop me a note.
A somewhat CI moment…
What does a parent do when their teenager son is in his room, surfing the ‘net and the door is closed? Now we’re talking about going up a 14 flight stairs…making a left 180 degree turn…walk about 15 fee then a 90 degree right turn…then oh maybe 10 feet and POLITELY knock on his door.
My reaction was to check every downstairs door to the outside…and we have 3 of them. Nope…nobody there. Steph is coming down the stairs so I asked her were you BANGING on Dan’s door? Her response was “No…and your heard that!?” And this was over the tv “blasting” from the family room next door.
Ahhhh…sometimes…silence is golden……………
Congrats to “Big” Mike and Judy
The story of “Big” Mike K. goes back to 1999 at the Moonlight Run. Steph was already an accomplished runner and I was a devoted couch potato enjoying the ciggie with the hole (Vantage), 30 pounds overweight (before the bacon, of course), chuggin’ Genny Cream Ales. Mike approached Steph just before the gun went off, tapped her on the shoulder and with a wink, introduced himself as “Mike…Mike K”. And what followed were a countless number of phone calls and what-nots. And in the end, Big Mike was once again disappointed in finding out that Steph was married to me.
And then somewhere along the way, “Big” Mike became one of my dead rabbits until 2006 at the JP Bullfeathers 5K, Mike was waiting for Steph to come out of the porto-san where he proudly introduced a stunningly beautiful blonde name Judy as his “friend”. And the rest became history….
click on photo to enlarge
click on photo to enlarge
It was a beautiful wedding so deserving of a couple who are truly made for each other. Steph and I…along with fellow Checkers members Di and Tony, Sandy and Anne, and Greg are forever honored to be part of this special moment.
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
I recognizE that for some people, “Click here” doesn’t really tell them to actually click on the here so I decided to republish the subject of my post, Featured Article in B.I.G. news. Now maybe I’ll hear from my mother…..
click on photo to enlarge - this may take time depending on the speed of your connection
Griswold 5K
My line…
51. Sam Spritzer 0:21:42 0:06:59 8/M50-54 46/M
Mike’s line…
106. Mike Spritzer 0:25:04 0:08:04 7/M20-24 90/M
And the course…
click on photo to enlarge
The course winds through beautiful Como Lake Park in Lancaster. The conditions were less than optimal, breezy, chilly, with on and off showers. At least the post race party made it worthwhile to stick around till the awards were given out. A lot of my running friends and buddies are picking up quite a few pieces of hardware but for me, consistently lowering my times are more satisfying. I knocked off a good average 29 seconds per mile from last weeks’ race and 11 seconds from last years’ Griswold. Now if only I can shed hhhmmmmmmm….may 10 pounds. Tony and Darlene better watch out…the season is young and the best races are yet to come. Oh yea, there is also Ed and Ed.
With next week’s wedding of “Big” Mike K. and his lovely missus, Judy we will won’t be at the Buffalo Marathon. And then on Sunday, our very own Checkers Mile which I’ll be helping with; us Board members have to do something!!
So it looks like the next race won’t be until the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge on June 5th. This is one fabulous event where over 12,000 runners are expected and I’ll be running for my company, WILLCARE.
Until then, I’ll be shuffling my feet, building up the miles, wearing out the soles and continuing my quest to see who has the most guts!
Featured Article in B.I.G. news
Click here for the latest featured article in B.I.G. news. B.I.G. is the acronym for Buffalo Implant Group, which is my local CI group. And as an added bonus, there is an article on the Chillin’ with Jesus 5K race that I ran on March 23rd. A great big shout out goes to the editors, authors and contributors of this wonderful magazine.
For those of you who are local and interested in B.I.G., please attend out next meeting, Wednesday May 21st at 6:30 PM. The meetings are held in room 107/109 in the Business Building at Daemen College, 4380 Main St., Amherst NY. Dealing with insurance companies is the main topic of this meeting. For more information, visit the B.I.G website.
Happy Mother’s Day!
About a week ago, a question was posted on the Hearing Journey about mothers.
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As Mother’s Day approaches, I was thinking about my mother and I thought it might be fun if we shared some memories about our mothers and grandmothers. What is/ was your mother like? What made her special to you? Did she give you any advice for life that has served you well?
And here is my answer…
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Mine, for mine…especially my mother since my dad died when I was 15 was an inspiration and still is, at the ripe young age of 86. As feisty as she was and still is (has to be the Russian blood in her!), she never gave up in her quest to make sure that I had the best and most normal life when I was growing up. But at the same time, rushing from doctor to doctor, clinic to clinic, hospital to hospital, retreat to retreat to make sure that I was getting the best of anything in dealing with my hearing loss. There is not one single moment that stands out (other than chasing me into a tree and knocking me out cold for misbehaving when I was oooooooohhhh….hhhmmmm…..12, I think) because each and every moment is a defining one in what shaped me into what I am today. For that, I love my mother ever so dearly!
Click here for the rest of the thread and other’s answers.
So to my mother, wife and sister……and all those other mothers out there!
HAVE A WONDERFULLY HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!
The 3Ps
One of the CI websites that I frequent religously is Hearing Journey. This is a CI networking community sponsored by the manufacturer of my CIs, Advanced Bionics. I have been a member of this community ever since its inception in 2007. To date, I have posted over 200 replies to topics from various folks ranging from the mom whose child needs implants but doesn’t know where to turn to the Coloradian whose true passion is talking about, and eating, grits. In between, there is a wide variety of characters…Abbie in NJ who graces the cover of the current issue of HLAA magazine, Mike who was featured in the prior issue of the magazine, Evelyn whose inspiration and poetic grace is a pleasure to read, Tom who hates grits - Greg the Coloradian who loves grits, Kim who was my first contact and helped me tremendously while I was debating getting activated with the Auria or the Harmony, the lovely Meeeez Jennifer whose bubbling personality keeps us all on the “up and go”, and the Queen of them all who started Hearing Journey and is the sole reason we all are family…Gloria! And in between, all of those others whose contributions warrant consideration but at my advanced age and lack of politician skills I have a hard time remembering.
This is a story of a deaf man in Minnesota who was told by his insurance company that he is approved for bi-lateral implants yet two days he was turned down…but some clerical bureaucracy at the hospital that the “what if” scenario may be too much of a financial risk for the hospital. Here is Michael’s post…
I could write a very long post here but instead I will keep this short… I received an email yesterday afternoon (two days before scheduled surgery) saying the surgery is canceled because the hospital’s insurance coordinating office is concerned that if something should go wrong and I have to stay for more than 24 hours, the procedure woudl then be classified as IN-patient surgery and my medical insurance plant specifically limits impatient surgery to $10,000. Therefore they would not pay for the CI in that event. So the news is, after all of your wonderful help and support and my fretting over one or two CIs, etc… nothing is going to happen. I do intend to press this and continue to hope it is something that can be overcome but for now… surgery is off. the single most disturbing thing is that I have an email form the same person in the hospitals’ insurance office (dated January 24) saying that the surgery IS covered and explaining why the $10,000 cap is NOT a problem, I have a letter from the insurance company authorizing the surgery, (and more). so after three and a half months of getting OKs and planning, NOW they say here could be a problem so call it all off? THAT is the very worst part.
So just need to get this info out to you because I have received so many kind words and good wishes regarding the surgery that will not happen tomorrow.
Within 24 hours, the entire HJ community has rallied around Michael and on top of which, Advanced Bionics has mobilized their insurance department to make sure this human being gets what he truly deserves..the right to hear! Each and every one of us is ready to stand behind our comrade and Gloria has taken it upon herself, like a dog with a bone, to make sure that Michael is not denied what he truly deserves.
As of this writing, the wheels are in motion hopefully, with confidence Michael should once again realize his dream of what each and every one of us already have…the ability to hear. To all of those who dream of something, no matter how impossible or impassible…please remember three words that are the driving force behind everything I do….the 3Ps…Persistence, Perseverance and Patience.
About Sam Spritzer
Welcome to Sam Spritzer's Web Site is about the mindset of a 50-something Amherst/Buffalo, NY male who enjoys running and collecting PR certificates and, will become became part-bionic on January 12 2007.
UPDATE: On January 15, 2008 he will become became fully bionic.
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"Most people run a race to see who is fastest, I run a race to see who has the most guts." -Pre
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- Kudos to Steph!
- Happy Birthday Dan!
- Bobby Murcer 1946 - 2008
- Rightbackatcha
- Buh bye Schwinn…
- Bad karma?
- Various ramblings
- Up yours ExxonMobil…
- Happy Father’s Day
- Welcome to Deaf Village!
- Thank you Deafread!
- Injustice to a Hearing Impaired blogger
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