I Need Some Silliness Right Now

After the seriousness of my last few posts, and remembering the time and effort that went into crafting them, I need to post something simpler, and sillier. Richard Simmons action figure to the rescue!

I pre-ordered this action figure in the summer, and then completely forgot about it, until it showed up on my front porch six months later. Yup, it’s a Richard Simmons action figure. Yup, it’s official – Richard signed a licensing deal so this company could make and sell this.

I didn’t play with action figures as a kid (unless Transformers count?), so I don’t know a lot about them, but it seems so bizarre to have two interchangeable Richard heads. Maybe that’s a common action figure feature? So far I haven’t opened the package (and I don’t know if I will), but if I do, where do I keep the other head?

I think it’s a pretty good likeness of Richard – especially the open-mouthed, currently detached head. Ultimately, I don’t know what I’m going to do with this action figure. It was an impulse buy.

Richard will forever be a part of my history and I still think about him regularly. I do a Richard Simmons video once or twice a month. I think I thought that buying this toy would be a nice (albeit bizarre) reminder of him, and it is. Emphasis on bizarre.

And no, as of right now I have no plans for buying the Richard Simmons Chia Pet, although if someone wanted to surprise me with one, I would gladly welcome it!

It other exciting and random news, I’m a published cookbook author! My company made a cookbook filled with employees’ recipes, and it was released this past week. Right now it’s not available for sale to the general public, but I bought my copy at work.

They collected recipes last summer, and I submitted my cauliflower-crust pizza recipe, which I shared on this blog way back in 2016. Here’s how it looks in the cookbook – click on it to read it larger.

Damn, that’s a good recipe. I made it a couple times in December, and it does not disappoint!

Lastly, an update on one of my other hobbies: mazes. I’m a firm believer in the importance and value of hobbies. I’m thankful that I have a few: this blog is one, stair racing is another, and drawing mazes is a third. All of them bring something to my life that I don’t get anywhere else, and they provide all sorts of benefits. Drawing mazes is a mental release and mental exercise, all in one. If you’re new here, you can see my work on my Etsy page, or… just keep reading!

Last weekend, I went into my office on a Saturday, when no one was there, and spent four hours transforming a giant, 24-foot-long chalkboard into a giant maze. It was a style of maze I’d never drawn before – a flowchart maze – and I love how it turned out.

The response has been incredible. People love it.

Here are the directions:

It’s proven to be quite challenging, although one of my colleagues, Peggy, has solved it. Another colleague, Martin, took multiple pictures of it and then stitched them together, so if you’re interested in trying to solve it, click on this picture to see it larger:

The other thing I really like about this maze is that it’s temporary. It was drawn on a chalkboard, and that chalkboard will be cleaned eventually. This maze will bring joy to those who see it, but it’s doing to disappear one day. I may even clean it myself when the time comes! Some things aren’t meant to last forever, but who knows what I could create on that chalkboard in the future! The possibilities are endless – for the chalkboard, for me, for you, for everyone.

Keep it up, David!

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