tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12783165996524957692024-03-13T09:01:50.627-07:00Foolish QuestionsA fools attempt to make sense of the world, or reality, or existence using Buddhist psychology.
Ultimately, there is no "there" there. It's here.The Foolhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00760304637414434872noreply@blogger.comBlogger178125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-36593844533653675272022-12-23T02:32:00.007-08:002022-12-23T07:10:48.576-08:00Round and Round<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhVPVGtI0rXthSArrGGn8tNwlJ0Nbt1nA0WnicSZPD1sLQU-QJ--HR4lqVAjO42IqypokGTO-9VXLP5Us2cbY7PCUG0pB6pcWsjv65-y0ej47kaxFoZYQSmQhOnczQ-3_ovYMcqb5kvgHW5qyc6PM6Y_N3PgOyKZznNy-sGp-yrO_m4qT9BGPTPytMQ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="251" data-original-width="612" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhVPVGtI0rXthSArrGGn8tNwlJ0Nbt1nA0WnicSZPD1sLQU-QJ--HR4lqVAjO42IqypokGTO-9VXLP5Us2cbY7PCUG0pB6pcWsjv65-y0ej47kaxFoZYQSmQhOnczQ-3_ovYMcqb5kvgHW5qyc6PM6Y_N3PgOyKZznNy-sGp-yrO_m4qT9BGPTPytMQ" width="320" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p><br /></p><p>I usually have a long day scheduled for Saturday or Sunday, but I had coach move it to today given the Christmas holiday weekend.</p><p>I usually do a "quality" session midweek, and a long run on the weekends, but today it's both. 17 miles. </p><p>2 mile warm up, followed by a marathon pace mile (8:20), followed by an easy mile (8:30-8:45). Repeat 7 times.</p><p>Being December in Wisconsin, it's a balmy minus 8 with a wind chill of minus 30.</p><p>So. I joined a local gym that has an indoor track, 1/8 mile. That's 136 laps. It sounds boring, but it's really not. It is a lot of turns, so I am hoping to get there early enough to do some reverse laps before anyone shows up, and I have to do the rest based on today's counter-clock-wise rotation. </p><p>I tested it out earlier this week, on a short 8 mile run and let me tell you, it's a waaaay better than a treadmill.</p><p>So, here we go, round and round.</p><p><br /></p><p>Edit: Done with that one, ran with Jess for the middle 9 miles. A little hot sometimes on the recovery miles, but inside temperature of 70 degrees makes the miles feel effortless sometimes. Cadence is still wonky sometimes, I think the corners are getting me off a bit. Trying to stay in the 170 range, would love to see it get to 175 as the year progresses. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEizIuuHHW5M2NAktBzBxSwRPv_2Y9bjaZ8M23hhfgbuV8Pm7y6GLlYC0MBMfjdD2zNHeOB7s8evPx5BOScZO-nxnoJCNFrVWj9mGjw7kVLmsm3TUBJ8nimdXt6F9qw8qBF_cF_tTTOAHDepVcDvjXVLE63BKcw2HWOstSQQsY6rSyjn59Nete6TD9Ni" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="437" data-original-width="528" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEizIuuHHW5M2NAktBzBxSwRPv_2Y9bjaZ8M23hhfgbuV8Pm7y6GLlYC0MBMfjdD2zNHeOB7s8evPx5BOScZO-nxnoJCNFrVWj9mGjw7kVLmsm3TUBJ8nimdXt6F9qw8qBF_cF_tTTOAHDepVcDvjXVLE63BKcw2HWOstSQQsY6rSyjn59Nete6TD9Ni=w324-h268" width="324" /></a></div><br /><br /></div><br /><br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-63541437054867355782022-12-08T16:16:00.002-08:002022-12-08T16:16:53.350-08:00Resurrections <p> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLabemUMBnCULw_fD_-ehywB53ae-FPz1An0VJL2MJQu4uwKHpHJNwGPDJAANPBzmr_pYBX89w2bL27yn2xwEkSD_HXDWddQFgqxtq04Y5B4h1rarTCloRDpI51_J23xrDW5-Veo2Pt-QAlI0vRhI8A7oY8g0JmZB5yqUwlIUbH3yxhFcR_bNvjUDn/s400/22_290-35-Aweb2_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="320" height="405" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLabemUMBnCULw_fD_-ehywB53ae-FPz1An0VJL2MJQu4uwKHpHJNwGPDJAANPBzmr_pYBX89w2bL27yn2xwEkSD_HXDWddQFgqxtq04Y5B4h1rarTCloRDpI51_J23xrDW5-Veo2Pt-QAlI0vRhI8A7oY8g0JmZB5yqUwlIUbH3yxhFcR_bNvjUDn/w324-h405/22_290-35-Aweb2_2.jpg" width="324" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;">I am back at running, mostly roads right now. After 50 or so Ultra Trail events, I have come to the conclusion I am just not good at technical trails.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;">Oh, I'll do trails, like I plan to do Ice Age this year, and hopefully finish somewhere in the middle of the pack. Having volunteered there for 12 years, the RD is letting me in gratis. </p><p style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;">But my real goal for 2023 is the Mesa Marathon, followed by the London Marathon in April.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;">If I plan and train well enough I will qualify (3:55) for Boston next year. Boston 2024 is like two days before I turn the clock on 65 years. Crazy right? </p>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-47423372744656490852015-10-18T07:50:00.001-07:002015-10-18T07:53:51.056-07:00O' Dark Thirty<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Getting ready to run across the Grand Canyon next week, and this poem landed in my lap. We actually will start at 3AM, but seriously, who is mentally awake at 3? I look forward to seeing a nearly full moon, which will likely fade behind a canyon wall by 4. But, by 4 my mind will be awake, and ready to see ... all there is to see.</div>
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Another Grand adventure.<br />
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Four In The Morning....<br />
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The hour from night to day.<br />
… The hour from side to side.<br />
The hour for those past thirty.</div>
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The hour swept clean to the crowing of cocks.<br />
The hour when earth betrays us.<br />
The hour when wind blows from extinguished stars.<br />
The hour of and-what-if-nothing-remains-after-us.<br />
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The hollow hour.<br />
Blank, empty.<br />
The very pit of all other hours.<br />
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No one feels good at four in the morning.<br />
If ants feel good at four in the morning<br />
—three cheers for the ants. And let five o’clock come<br />
if we’re to go on living.<br />
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- Wislawa Szymborska</div>
martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-2743926002390071022014-05-06T06:56:00.001-07:002014-05-06T06:56:12.166-07:00Light Years<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Over a year since the last post.<br />
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Time Flies.<br />
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Where to start? The last post had me moving back to my house on Sussex, which I did. I don't have and didn't keep an apt in Lake Forest.<br />
<br />
There. That's a logistical update for you.<br />
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Other than: Wow, a year ago, I was just thinking about moving back to the house, and now we (Robyn) have completely transformed the house space. Outside, inside.<br />
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House word bank: Siding roofing windows furnace water heater fireplace living room den kitchen appliances floors.<br />
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Looking back on it, everything in life has shift, transformed. I ran my first hundo in November, we completely changed the house, work life has shifted dramatically, and Robyn and I got engaged. Life looks so different this year. Things shift, transform around us, continually..<br />
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When you look at the stars, you are looking into the past. Always. Light years backwards. You can always see where you've been, but you have only a vague idea where you are going. Try to steer as best you can, but don't grip the wheel too tight.<br />
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Trying to capture a years worth of change seems impossible. Like trying to capture the light from all the stars in sky.<br />
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What do I value this year? What is important? How is it different than last year? Maybe that's a good place to start. (Or end).<br />
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<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-48917714621182497602013-04-08T03:46:00.001-07:002013-04-08T03:46:41.455-07:00Awake is the New Sleep<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So I am sitting here, as I have been for the last hour and half. Awake.<br />
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So mostly Random thoughts at 4 AM.<br />
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I love to pace runners in hundos. That's races at or over 100 miles. I've done it 5 times now. Why? People ask. All the time. Why would you constant;y just self-sacrifice, and not do one of your own? Well, good question. Several reasons pop to mind, in no particular order. One, I have gained a lot of experience in how to run all night, without the added pressure of trying to "compete", or even "complete". Running all night is hard, taxing mentally. You get good experience pacing other people. Two, I love to run at night. And to be able to do it for free, with Aid stations and all the food? Bonus. Third, to see someone else succeed because of your efforts, is satisfying. This was really my first initial reason. You can't go into these sorts of things with a "What's in for me?" attitude. You will quickly tire of someone else's pace, or personality quirks.<br />
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Lot's of life changes going on right now. I am moving from Lake Geneva back to my old house in Janesville. Still, I am going to have to have a place near my work in Lake Forest IL, so house and apt. The logistical challenges in the next few months are going to be interesting. Patience. Life changes quickly sometimes, and you gotta roll with it.<br />
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Headed to South Carolina this coming Friday. Much needed break from work life. Looking forward to running in some new areas. Swap land! Couple national Forests too.<br />
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I've run back to back on weekends before, but never this kind of mileage. Saturday ran 31, and Sunday ran 15. Mostly felt pretty good. Legs are a little tired, but the trails are kind to the joints. Muscles sore, as they should be. I am eating well. Staying pretty clean, dietary wise. My recovery food on Saturday was chicken, some green juice, a little almond milk. Staying clear of the simple carbs, but some of the better carbs I still indulge in, post-run. The green juice in particular. Interesting though, during both runs, I took only two gels. Total. I totally get the fat burn. Held my pace pretty solid and steady, and never bonked once. I get it. Totally get it. It really works.<br />
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Well, 5:40, I've been up for an hour and a half. Might as well make tea and get ready for the day.<br />
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<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-70119896431441106612013-02-23T19:17:00.002-08:002013-02-23T19:22:59.347-08:00Influence<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's rare when a book or a web site inspires me to make lasting, significant changes in my life. In fact, I can't think of any examples. Oh sure, I have my favorite authors, musicians and sites. But to think of a significant course change. I can't. IDEAS. I can get ideas from these places, but to put them into practice, it takes more.<br />
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Popular media? Not at all. I ditched the TV, I don't read magazines. Even reading on line, I think we all tend to find those sites that merely reflect our already made up minds.<br />
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Community, people, teachers, mentors, training, practice. These things influence me, every day. Set a direction, offer advice. Change my course.<br />
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I am a reader, but even more so, I am a doer. Everyone learns differently, but I think I learn best by listening, and watching, then doing, and reflecting, or paraphrasing. But I need someone to show me, teach me, talk to me, advise me (Instruction manuals usually consulted only after failure).<br />
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Teacher: show me how to pick up my sword, get behind my plow, work my shovel. I think better when I am moving. Wax on, Wax off (Except math. Can't do math in my head while I am running. I've tried.).<br />
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So Question of the day: Who or what influences you?martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-26930537864387683082013-02-11T08:42:00.000-08:002013-02-11T19:07:04.547-08:00A Fairy Tale<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3wvYXcBPh6U/TfI_liYhjGI/AAAAAAAAAJg/7D6ICvRzbQ4/s1600/Scales.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616621599401806946" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3wvYXcBPh6U/TfI_liYhjGI/AAAAAAAAAJg/7D6ICvRzbQ4/s320/Scales.jpg" style="cursor: hand; height: 228px; width: 153px;" /></a><br />
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<br />
RE-POST. From June 10, 2011.<br />
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We all start out as warriors. A child is the truest example of a warrior in fact. Simple, true to herself, she knows her strengths, gifts, and is happy with them. She plays with them, she polishes them, she embraces them. She cannot imagine life in any other way. But the warrior child at some point is blinded by dragon scales, and can no longer see what is hers. She is restless, becoming an adult. She hears the voices telling her she is not good enough. That she is missing something. she She will start a journey to seek other riches. She seeks. And seeks.<br />
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Then, along the journey, she packs up and start carrying her gifts in a sack slung over a shoulder. It's a burden, she says. It's heavy. Most of the time, she never even stops to look at the treasures in the bag and how they can help the journey. She curses them.<br />
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She is now the fool.We all become the fool at some point, on a journey to trying to be a warrior again. Trying to return to that happy, simple place where life seemed like an adventure, and everything looked fresh and alive.<br />
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Along the way, she will meet other fools, teachers, warriors, tempters, and dragons. The other fools aren't interested in what's in her bag, they are too busy complaining about the burdens in their own. Teacher will try and show her that whats carried with you is valuable, and that it should be held in high regard. But the fool doesn't listen. Warrior will show her that he can use the contents of his bag very well. Then fool is just envious, still cursing her own bag and covetous of the warrior's gift's. Tempter will try and sell her some bauble to add to the already full bag, claiming she will be happy when you've added such and so. But it's fools gold, for she can add nothing to the bag she has without making it even more burdensome<br />
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The fool will also meet the dragon. Now the dragon is very dangerous, for he will want what is in her bag, by telling her that it's only a burden, worthless. He covets it; He understands the value of it. But if she let's him relieve the burden he will sit on it. The dragon knows the value of what he sits on, down to the last coin. The dragon speaks in riddles. Sometimes the truth, sometimes a lie, sometimes half of each. He will tell stories, spinning, spinning always spinning a web of words to cloud from her what is so valuable in her bag, whats is precious. But the dragon can never really take it, only hide it.<br />
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The dragon has the most to teach her, and yet she has the most to lose by talking to him, facing him. But only by facing him can she ever hope to come full circle, and realize her gifts and what she is.<br />
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Somewhere, sometime, some fools have the dragon scales fall from their eyes. The fool realizes that <em>she is</em> the warrior, the teacher, the tempter, the dragon, and yes, she is still and always will be a fool. She has come full circle not to once again be the simple warrior, but all of the above.<br />
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In addition to her wonderful bag of gifts, she has gained wisdom.<br />
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Question: Whats in your bag?martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-4979772722641795612013-01-27T18:41:00.001-08:002013-01-27T18:41:50.678-08:00The Adventure<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Heroic life is living your own adventure*. There is no security in this. It's falling off the cliff, or maybe it's jumping. It's moving with purpose, with intention, into dangerous situations. It's the dragon's breath.<br />
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Nothing is exciting when you know the outcome.<br />
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When we turn away from the unknown, we turn from the possibilities. instead, when we turn toward what's comfortable, we think in that safety we can escape anything, even death. We chase things to keep that comfort. material things, build a castle. We want things to remain the same. We acquire. More and more.<br />
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But they won't help. Things will change, leaving us clinging to the bits of glue and leather we used to hold our life together. Wondering what happened.<br />
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The only solution, is to face the change, the dragon, and embrace it. for it will come, whether we like it or not.<br />
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Don't turn way from the hard things, the painful things. for in them we find the joy in life. Sometimes it's not fun, but it's always an adventure.<br />
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OK, sometimes it sucks. But at least you know you are alive. That to me is the hero's journey.<br />
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(*paraphrased from The Art of Living, by Joesph Campbell)martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-45567079965084103412012-12-31T15:32:00.001-08:002012-12-31T15:33:22.852-08:00Happy New Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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You don’t need to leave your room.</div>
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Remain sitting at your table and listen.</div>
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Don’t even listen, simply wait.</div>
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Don’t even wait.</div>
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Be quite still and solitary.</div>
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The world will freely offer itself to you.</div>
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To be unmasked, it has no choice.</div>
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It will roll in ecstasy at your feet.</div>
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Frank Kafka</div>
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martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-17120735098121680612012-12-14T06:40:00.002-08:002012-12-14T06:41:51.110-08:00Plumage and Progeny My youngest is graduating from UW- Madison on Sunday.<br />
<br />
It's not often I talk about these kinds of things, but this one is a biggie. She invited me to the ceremony, and I will be pleased and proud as a peacock when she walks up to get her diploma.<br />
<br />
She done good.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nV1Tv1-dZfE/UMs6NkMV1hI/AAAAAAAAAhE/Ff8-Lau1h_M/s1600/peacock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nV1Tv1-dZfE/UMs6NkMV1hI/AAAAAAAAAhE/Ff8-Lau1h_M/s320/peacock.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-87970342992796980972012-10-20T20:01:00.002-07:002012-10-20T20:01:54.284-07:00Strong Drink and a Peer Group<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uF0s0GZy9AM/UINk5XJWlDI/AAAAAAAAAgI/qpM-i6rkUrY/s1600/succ100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uF0s0GZy9AM/UINk5XJWlDI/AAAAAAAAAgI/qpM-i6rkUrY/s200/succ100.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Do you do what you do because you are compelled by personal accomplishment, a curiosity or inquiry, or for Fame and Glory?<br />
<br />
If you do it for the first reasons, then failure does not bother you. You try, you fail. You try again. And again. Fame and Glory will come of the own accord, when success is reached. <i><b>Failure, is always an option.</b></i> If you do it for the latter, what price, what lengths will you go to, to succeed, or gloss over a failure? Do you make excuses, try to find the silver lining, or partial success?<br />
<br />
In an adventure, I have heard it said, the two best times are the planning, and the bragging once you get home. I think that is truly the scope of the Fame and Glory seekers. It seems this is a modern, or recent thing, but then again maybe not. Did old-time explorers trump up their accomplishments? Did they do it for fame, or to satisfy the pressure of investors looking to cash in on the publicity?<br />
<br />
I read Admiral Byrd's account of his time on the south pole. He really was driven by a curiosity, but then he also had to answer to investors. That is a pressure I'm sure he would have done without, if he could have.<br />
<br />
Are we satisfied with our adventures? Or do the accolades of our peers mean as much as the thing itself?<br />
<br />
It's a hard question. And be careful when alcohol is involved.martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-82557366809221055792012-10-15T19:35:00.000-07:002012-10-18T10:50:20.568-07:00Raging Bull<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RZ3znu3pLWo/UHzGjM0-KJI/AAAAAAAAAfs/mb0oYbroXpQ/s1600/brain1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RZ3znu3pLWo/UHzGjM0-KJI/AAAAAAAAAfs/mb0oYbroXpQ/s200/brain1.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I ran the Kettle a few weeks ago. The whole thing. Southern Kettle Moraine forest, end to end, and back again. 63 miles. It took 15 hours, but time was beside the point.<br />
<br />
It wasn't much. It was not a big thing. It was a small thing. Big things, personal things are shock waves through your system. Those things that you never forget. The birth of your children, the death of your parents. Marriage. Divorce. Big gain. Big loss.<br />
<br />
Still, it meant something to me. I struggle all the time with trying to verbalize why, and what it meant to me. The questions come up about it. The usual questions really. "Don't you get bored..." Do you listen to music"... "why did you do it..."<br />
<br />
Hard to answer, even to my running friends. But the answer to the 'why' is hard to verbalize for me, and when I try I get some quizzical looks, like I am some kind of spiritual kook. So I just shake my head and say "No, I don't get bored, or listen to music, I just run, and I just wanted to see if I could do it".<br />
<br />
It's a hard thing for many to understand, but the first thing that had to go was other things to distract. Aid stations, drop bags, people. When there other people there, no matter how tired you are, you still hold onto that semblance of self, the persona you want other people including yourself to see. I needed to remove that. All of it.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
When you push yourself long enough and hard enough, you will start to strip away who you pretend to be, and see yourself for who you are. Push long enough and hard enough, and your mind will collide with your ego, and your soul will have to referee. When you are that tired, you lose your past, and have little regard for your future. All you have is you. Small, so small, yet so big. It's all you got. No desire, no hope, no dream. The raging bull stops crashing through the china shop. If even for a short time.<br />
<br />
I didn't want distraction. I wanted the empty. I listen for it. That moment when your mind finally shuts off so you can pay attention and listen. It is a wordless, quiet thing.<br />
<br />
It wasn't about the mileage. It wasn't about conquest of a trail, or any competitors. I wasn't fighting, I was embracing. I wasn't turning away, distracted, I was looking. Really what I was after was something deeper. I wanted to open wide, and have the trail swallow me whole.<br />
<br />
It all sounds kind of hokey. Kind of new-agish. But it's the most real I can write it.<br />
<br />
<i>Addendum, a quote lifted from <a href="http://www.irunfar.com/2012/10/wonderful-past-all-understanding.html" target="_blank">iRunFar</a>:</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<span style="background-color: #f4f4f4; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><i>…the moment we peer beneath this surface of things, the moment we look through the tranquil reflection of ourselves and the clouds above us, down into the clear, fluent, unfathomable depth of nature, how startling is the silence of it, how amazing the flow of life, how absorbing the mystery. Unceasingly the essence of things is taking shape in the matter of things, and this unspeakable process we call birth and growth. Awhile the spirit and the matter fade away together, and it is this that we call decadence, death. These two happenings seem jointed and interdependent, blended into one like a bubble and its iridescence, and they seem borne along upon a slowly moving air. This air is wonderful past all understanding. -</i></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Louis Sullivan</span><br />
<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-70659517863455959652012-09-25T13:18:00.001-07:002012-09-25T13:18:03.290-07:00Turn it Off<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CPIAfTJKPII/UGIQY0M0v8I/AAAAAAAAAfY/Kbf_m7wkM00/s1600/brokentv1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CPIAfTJKPII/UGIQY0M0v8I/AAAAAAAAAfY/Kbf_m7wkM00/s1600/brokentv1.gif" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Polite culture dictates that I should not expect you endure my cigarette smoke, listen to music blaring from my house, or listen to me blathering on a cell phone.<br />
<br />
So why is it OK for every bar, hotel and restaurant to have one or more TV's blaring all the time?<br />
<br />
I recently stayed in a very nice hotel in Prairie Du Chen. Awesome hotel. Perfect service in every way but one. In the morning, while i was trying to enjoy the great breakfast they had out, the TV was blasting the CNN.<br />
<br />
I even tried to turn it off, since I asked the other two people in the room whether they were watching it or not. They both were fine with turning it off.<br />
<br />
The clerk behind the desk, however, insisted that it remain on. Even though she couldn't watch it from her station.<br />
<br />
<i><b>WHY?</b></i><br />
<br />
Why is it OK to make me endure the TV, and not say, a rap or country radio station? To me, it's still noise that I don't care for. Next time you have the chance, see if you can get someone to turn it off.<br />
<br />
I have a dentist appointment Friday. Even they have TV's now. GAH!! I will insist they turn it off. I abandoned my TV three years ago, and I haven't missed it one bit.<br />
<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-9369146455746197592012-09-05T12:40:00.001-07:002012-09-05T12:40:16.268-07:00Bring On The Night<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HC-_uPKQsJ8/UEeosvO6dmI/AAAAAAAAAfE/_ZNCCO1-6xM/s1600/north-star-filter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HC-_uPKQsJ8/UEeosvO6dmI/AAAAAAAAAfE/_ZNCCO1-6xM/s320/north-star-filter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
The day begins with a certain kind of rhythm, and sets our course in a kind of tick tock pattern. BZZZZZ.. We wake. Breakfast, maybe coffee and a commute. Radio in the car. News, reviews, talk. More talk. Work. Get settled. Email. Meetings. Facebook. Lunch. Maybe more meetings. More Facebook. Commute. Home. Dinner. TV.<br />
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />
We are tired. 9 pm. 10 pm. Maybe we can stretch it to 11 pm and watch some more TV. Call it a day.<br />
Weekends are not all that different. Maybe we have plans, maybe we have chores. Maybe we have events to attend. Summer time. Baseball games. Weddings. Picnics. Graduations. Maybe we look forward to that long run, that long ride. Summer. Fall. Winter. Spring. And so it goes.<br />
<br />
All of it flows, like a waking dream. We move through our days, sometimes impatiently. Everyone trying to be somewhere where they are not. Gotta get going, gotta get there. got stuff to do, important stuff. Life stuff.<br />
<br />
We beat the sun. We got to cut holes in our days. Tick tock, like a clock, the Sun moves it way to the west, and the end of the day. We sleep. And do it all over again.<br />
<br />
Days pass. Weeks Pass. Months. Seasons. Years.<br />
<br />
Now, the juxtaposition, to the night. We don't get many chances to see the night, the whole night. Night stops time. The stars and the moon move, yes, but it's subtle, like a whisper. Night is big, when you are outside away from the artificial day of incandescent lights. Its big, yet intimate. It folds over you. Caress.<br />
<br />
Evening spreads itself against the sky, blends down to your shoes. If you are out there, at night, you know what I mean. Somebody turn on the stars. Pin holes in the blanket.<br />
<br />
Once the blanket is thrown, time slows down. Minute to minute. Hour to hour. last forever. There is no where to be, other than here. Its one my favorite times to run. All night. The earth seems to pass beneath your feet. You don't have to chase this, let it come to you. It just comes, and stays.<br />
<br />
This is even more true when you stay up, long past the twilight. your body, not sure what to do, reaches a point beyond tired. And then you can just stay up, locked into that moment.<br />
<br />
Three times this year, I found that place. Stayed up all night. With friends, shared.<br />
<br />
Got one more coming, up at Superior. Very much looking forward to it.<br />
<i><b><br /></b></i>
<i><b>"Bring on the night. I couldn't stand another hour of daylight" (The Police)</b></i><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-63532559883412957732012-08-06T19:51:00.002-07:002012-08-06T19:51:52.241-07:00Massive<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wZy7kuAmueg/UCCCPWES4AI/AAAAAAAAAew/uU7F1y66jPM/s1600/co_mt_massive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wZy7kuAmueg/UCCCPWES4AI/AAAAAAAAAew/uU7F1y66jPM/s640/co_mt_massive.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
<br />
Time to hit the road once again. This Friday, I drive to Colo, to pace a friend in the Leadville 100.<br />
<br />
I get there a week early, so hopefully I will acclimate a bit. The picture above is Mount Massive, outside and south of Leadville.<br />
<br />
A 14er!<br />
<br />
Should be a fun climb.martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-35482841975974001142012-07-28T10:47:00.002-07:002012-07-28T10:47:40.676-07:00Fear and Self Loathing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DsV9DZo0r9s/UBQkLsnmo6I/AAAAAAAAAec/DFKBIQPiPJs/s1600/swan-songs_blagden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DsV9DZo0r9s/UBQkLsnmo6I/AAAAAAAAAec/DFKBIQPiPJs/s200/swan-songs_blagden.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
So it's been a while since i have posted. Work. Travel. Life. It takes time. So, a short set of thoughts here, and then onward.<br />
<br />
I ran today, about 20 miles in four hours. Leisurely pace, for sure, with a couple new guys from the Lapham group. It was a good Ice Age Trail run, on a day that the temperature wasn't a million degrees.<br />
<br />
Walking on the sun for the last month or so, not so much fun. Most of my running friends have been hiding too.<br />
<br />
The nice thing about today was that I felt like myself again. Unlike when I ran on Wednesday with the group at Lapham, something I have been missing due to work. That day, it was HOT, humid, and impossibly close feeling in the woods, where normally you get relief from the heat. It just felt oppressive.<br />
<br />
The day was supposed to be one of celebration; one of the guys was turning 50, and another had turned 50 a few weeks ago. So we had one of our little competitions. I totally, and completely sucked. I mean, between not enough sleep, too much travel, and the oppressive heat, I literally couldn't run. It was the slowest I had ever 'run' the black loop. Ever. I came in 27 of 35 runners.<br />
<br />
What should have been a good day with good friends turned into; self-loathing.<br />
<br />
<b>Lesson 1</b>: Most importantly, I discovered something about myself. I am competitive, and mostly with myself, but I STILL need the bench mark of other people to go by. <span style="background-color: white;">It was HOT, yes. but where I placed in the group told m about my fitness level that day; my ability to step it up and lay some down. There wasn't much in the tank.</span><br />
<br />
<b>Lesson 2</b>: I should have opted out of the competition. I think it's really OK some days to just say: I don't have it, and rather than turn in a dismal performance, just give it a pass for another day. <span style="background-color: white;">So, I spent some time pouting about my crappy performance, fortunately, no one was listening and instead were enjoying themselves at the festivities. I got over it.</span><br />
<br />
<b>Lesson 3</b>: You can't mail it in. OK, sometimes you can. By that I mean show up under-trained and unprepared and do well anyway.<br />
<br />
<b>Lesson 4:</b> it's much more fun to listen to other people than to talk. The most fun I had was listening to Brother Grub talk about his backpacking trip. When I finally shut off the whiny little kid in my tiny little ego, I relaxed. I am sure I was much more fun to be around too. No one likes a whiner. Especially Ultra runners.<br />
<br />
So, that is whats on my mind today.<br />
<br />
So to all of you, have fun TODAY, because life is an adventure. Stop and listen, and look around once in a while. you'll be surprised at what you see.<br />
<br />
<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-46852544518210493812012-07-28T07:00:00.000-07:002012-07-28T10:48:51.103-07:00Quote<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 15px; text-align: left;">"I will not die an unlived life. I will not live in fear of falling or</span><br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 15px; text-align: left;">catching fire. I choose to inhabit my days, to allow my living to open me, to make me less afraid, more accessible, to loosen my heart until it becomes a wing, a torch, a promise. I choose to risk my significance; to live so that which comes to me as seed goes to the next as blossom and that which comes to me as blossom, goes on as fruit."</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 15px; text-align: left;">Dawna Markova</span>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-112346580519228932012-06-15T10:33:00.002-07:002012-06-15T10:45:35.716-07:00Focus Focus<br />
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Profound thoughts don't always come from famous people. I have a theory that many famous sayings from famous people were said by someone not so famous at some point. But you may never hear from them (thanks to the internet, we now can). </div>
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So the Everyman (or woman in this case) quote of the day.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><b>"I jest to friends that I ride horses so I can scare myself
to death on a regular basis. In such a challenging pursuit, there's always the
chance of falling; a moment's inattention can result in serious injury. But
people don't ride horses, rock climb, or ski down sheer slopes because
of the danger. They do these activities because the absolute focus required
makes them feel intensely, undeniably alive."</b></i> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16px; text-align: -webkit-left;"><a href="http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/172" target="_blank">Donna Farhi</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qkhfEJo61tQ/T9txsn2GZVI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/9lBpWdZqYo4/s1600/focus.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="274" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qkhfEJo61tQ/T9txsn2GZVI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/9lBpWdZqYo4/s400/focus.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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And then the more famous Lord Chesterfield added: </div>
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<i><b>A man is fit for neither business nor pleasure who either cannot, or does not, command and direct his attention to the present object, and in some degree banish, for that time, all other objects from his thoughts… There is time enough for everything, in the course of the day, if you do but one thing at once; but there is not time enough in the year, if you will do two things at a time… This steady and dissipated attention to one object is a sure mark of a superior genius; as hurry, bustle, and agitation, are the never-failing symptoms of a weak and frivolous mind.</b></i></div>
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Time to focus, and be present for the task at hand. Lunch time is over, back to work. (Focus Focus. Yes it's Friday afternoon, but people work on Friday afternoon. Don't they?)</div>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-24048035678226752932012-06-14T17:01:00.000-07:002012-06-14T17:01:00.225-07:00Ghost in The MachineRandom bits of stuff for the day. The ghosts in my memory.<br />
<br />
YIELD.<br />
<br />
I don't have many pet peeves (That I know of) when I drive, but I notice a rise in my blood pressure when people stop at a yield, when no one is coming. Clearly, they can see, NO ONE IS COMING. No reason to stop. Slow? Sure OK, but <b>KEEP GOING</b>. OK, I feel better now.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7ofWCOukFgE/T9p1Ua0ho5I/AAAAAAAAAdw/ynwB8pPkjiE/s1600/Yield.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7ofWCOukFgE/T9p1Ua0ho5I/AAAAAAAAAdw/ynwB8pPkjiE/s200/Yield.png" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Form over function.<br />
<br />
I bought a new vacuum cleaner today. It's an ordinary thing, you don't think about it too much. I could think of about a million things I'd rather spend a hundred bucks on. I love gadgets and good design, sometimes even over the function of something. I was really really tempted to buy what I'll call the ipod version of a vacuum. Steve Jobs was famous for clean lined, simple interfaces on everything Apple made. Sleek. Nice to look at, and use (most of the time). If Steve Jobs or the Apple designers had ever built a vacuum, this is what it would look like:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n_HoAAM9TRs/T9p0shShRRI/AAAAAAAAAdo/wr1lhU7P1lk/s1600/Vac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n_HoAAM9TRs/T9p0shShRRI/AAAAAAAAAdo/wr1lhU7P1lk/s320/Vac.jpg" width="137" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> So when I saw this beauty in the store, I almost bought it. I choose not to, mostly because it didn't fit my needs, but boy is it cool looking. Battery operated, no cords but only runs for 15 minutes and doesn't do deeper pile carpet. It does convert to a hand vac for your car, which is very cool. The buttons on it make that satisfying 'click' and the pieces all fit snug. Nice job, Electrolux. Steve would have liked it.</span></div>
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A Big Chicken</div>
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If we are what we eat, I am a rotisserie chicken. And some broccoli. With a few eggs and some Naked Green Machine thrown in. When you don't have time to cook, and you eat alone, you tend to fall back on the staples. </div>
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Torturing Plants</div>
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I have three Bonsai trees. I received two as gifts, and bought the third one myself. Bonsai care is something that requires patience, planning, and pruning. It's an art and skill at the same time. This is not one of mine, but it's a classic shaped tree. Mine will take years to look anything like this. I have a lot of learning to do. But I have time.</div>
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That's all the random stuff I have for today.</div>
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<br /></div>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-7788451939013166662012-05-28T12:38:00.001-07:002012-05-28T15:43:03.056-07:00Intestinal Fortitude<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So I just got back from AZ, and brought along a surprise. I somehow managed to pick up an intestinal bug my last day there. TMI: It's moving through my system. I got more toots than a full brass band. So, on my Memorial day Holiday I got some time, while I lounge around and fart, to put a post here.<br />
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<b><i>Microbes</i></b><br />
I am reading a book by Bill Bryson called "A Short History of Nearly Everything". I am to the part where he talks about the microbes in and around our bodies, the one's we use, the one's that are nice in some places but not so nice in others. I can't help but think about this intestinal bug I picked up, and where it came from. I was out on a run in Long Canyon in Sedona, and I was punctured by what I thought was an agave plant. This is also known as an "Aloe" plant. I wonder if that puncture lead to some bacteria releasing into my bloodstream. It hurt like hell, and the area around it was was sore and inflamed. It burned like nobody's business. Anyway, my point is that we think we are so healthy, and in a moment it can change that quickly. Was it the plant that made me sick? Who knows..In a way I just feel lucky it was only as minor, and if a short lived intestinal bug is all I get I am grateful. <i>Intestinal Fortitude. Got some.</i><br />
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<b><i>Madison Marathon</i></b><br />
So they cancelled the Madison Marathon. Evidently, the organizers felt that the heat was too much for runners to take. Feh. To me, this just goes to show the degradation of the marathon distance in general. It's an every man distance now. My most recent marathon time puts me in the top 16% of the race, at age 50. It was a very lukewarm pedestrian 3:35. My 3:19 at Chicago was good for top 7%, of 33,000 runners. 20 years ago, that wouldn't have even been middle of the road. Anyway, back to my point. Now, everyone thinks they can 'run' a marathon, and expect organizers to take care of their every need, and ensure they don't get hurt or do something stupid. Sorry folks, but it's YOUR responsibility to ensure your own safety. The race is the race, the Madison Marathon should have gone on as expected and the runners should decide if the conditions warrant starting, or dropping out. Ultra runners know what I mean about personal responsibility. I ran a 50 mile race in July, at 95 degrees and high humidity. I adjusted. Have road marathoners ever heard of S-caps? do they know how to carry a hand held, or a Camelbak? How about slowing down to the conditions? If the Ultra distances ever start to turn into what the road marathon has turned into, I am switching to a new sport. <i>Intestinal Fortitude. Get some.</i><br />
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<b><i>Tourists</i></b><br />
So spent some time in Sedona, AZ. Beautiful trails, all over. Hundreds of miles of them. My only regret was not getting a four wheel drive vehicle. A lot of the more majestic trails have pavement leading right up to them. This makes it's easier for everyone to get to and enjoy them, but of course, that means bigger crowds too. If you didn't get there early, it was hell getting parking. Realizing this early on, I stayed on my 'central' time clock and rose every day at 5 AM pacific, which was 7AM central. This put my out there on the trails at 6 or so, and I could get the primo parking and be well on my way before anyone else got out there. It worked most of the time, except when the parking lot didn't open until later. Rather than go through these gyrations, I would have preferred to just drive into the back country, and avoid the crowds all together. Hence the need for a four wheel drive. I did one run, up <a href="http://www.summitpost.org/wilson-mountain-oak-creek-canyon/150363" target="_blank">Wilson Mountain</a>, and it was fairly obvious I would have the trail to myself. It's a jewel, easy to get to, and HARD. AS. HELL. 4 miles up, 2300 feet elevated, from 4700 to 7000 feet. Pretty much the whole thing was UP. I guess the tourists don't have <i>Intestinal Fortitude</i> to handle something like that. Suits me just fine. let em go shopping instead.<br />
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<b><i>More Tourists</i></b><br />
I went to the Grand Canyon one day. It was amazing. Awesome. Spectacular. It was also overrun by tourists. It's a national monument to be sure. 5 million people every year. For someone like me, its much harder to enjoy when I feel like I am in a mall.: Heading down Bright Angel, fewer and fewer people to contend with. I understand the desire to run rim-rim-rim, it's puts you in touch with the soul of the place. Gets you out there, alone and away from the crowds. I am grateful, actually that such a place exists for both the tourists and the individualists. The tourists can look at it from afar, and take it all in. I have to touch, see, smell it up close. I am a dirt roller by nature. Speaking of which, even an individualist likes company now and then. I found this great running store in Sedona, where they really have <i>Intestinal Fortitude</i>. They got some, for sure. Read the two bios, they are good runners, and know the area well. <a href="http://www.sedonarunning.com/" target="_blank">The Sedona Running Company</a> proves to me one other thing. If you read their page, you will see they have a sense of humor. Something I find common in Ultra folks. Here is a good example from the events list from their site.<br />
It's also nice to know that there is actually a semi-organized event of this type. <a href="http://www.sedonarunning.com/events.html" target="_blank">May 19, Grand Caynon R2R2R Start training now...This could be your chance to complete this Ultrarunning right of passage. Email Adam for details. Other distances available: Rim-to-river-to-rim (15 miles) Rim-to-rim with shuttle back to start (22 miles) Rim-to-river-to helicopter rescue (not recommended) </a><br />
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That's it for me today. I.m pooped. no pun intended.<br />
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<i><b>Post note: One last thing. On Memorial Day and every day, a very large thank you to all veterans. My Dad (Korean), my uncles Howie Wagner and Bob Kushel (Vietnam) my ex-father-in-law Arlo Kanter (WWII), Rolly Royce, Scott Royce, Randy Hansen, and probably more than I can think of right now. Yeah, you got intestinal fortitude.</b></i><br />
<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-62083770497532033822012-05-18T06:04:00.002-07:002012-05-18T06:05:26.034-07:00Big RocksHeaded to Sedona this afternoon. Red Rock country.<br />
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Going to run in the Grand Canyon for a bit too, I hope. Have a good week everyone, I'll post pictures as I can.<br />
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<br />martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-45363190335101250862012-05-10T19:55:00.001-07:002012-05-10T19:55:37.024-07:00Miles to go before I sleep<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've been getting a lot of miles in lately. In my car that is. The trail? not so much. This week alone I spent 9 hours in the car. Ugh. The career thing has changed my habits a bit as of late. So its time for some adjustments.<br />
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For the first time in my life, I am going to live away from the epicenter of where I was born. Funny when you think about it. I have always traveled, to a whole variety of places in this country. But I've never called anywhere but Janesville Wisconsin home.<br />
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Now that's changing. I am moving away. closer to my work, so I can cut down my drive time.<br />
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We'll have to see how this goes.martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-20787800001472910122012-04-26T09:11:00.004-07:002012-04-26T09:13:50.074-07:00Flame On<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">To really stretch myself, sometimes its gotta hurt. If it doesn't ever hurt, I'm probably not pushing the edges, finding limitations. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">This goes for events like Trail races but it applies to work and other personal life stuff too.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Today at work, I bumped into a lot of stuff. Ouch. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">The people who consistently fly under the radar, don't care for people bumping into them and their world. They give you dirty looks, mostly.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">EB White once said: I wake up every day determined to both change the world, and have a helleva good time. That can sometimes make planning the day difficult.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">I say: succeed spectacularly or fail just as spectacularly. Flame on, flame out.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">I guess I had some of both today. Now excuse me whilst I put some burn cream on the scorch marks.</span>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-22289529180409393002012-04-17T19:26:00.005-07:002012-04-17T19:57:23.497-07:00Inertia<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BUgWJFVAlVg/T44m5SIzmtI/AAAAAAAAAcg/aVxnl2fPBEc/s1600/addicted-to-inertia.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BUgWJFVAlVg/T44m5SIzmtI/AAAAAAAAAcg/aVxnl2fPBEc/s320/addicted-to-inertia.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732562141252393682" /></a><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">One thing you can say for any enthusiastic </span>amateur athlete. They don't sit around much.</span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">Physically, it's easy for us to build good habits and keep them going. We make time for our runs, work outs, apply ourselves toward goals and aspirations. We apply ourselves, overcome the initial friction of getting the ball rolling. Once a body is in motion, it tends t stay in motion.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">The physical is easy for me, and no issue to over come any laziness; I see the benefits, I get grumpy when I go too many days without physical exercise. When inertia starts to set in, I overcome it. I push that rock up the hill, and keep pushing it.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">Other forms of inertia, however are harder to overcome. For example, right now my reading list keeps piling up, my personal goals of where I want to direct my mental energies are, well, lacking.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">How to overcome this?</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">The nature of my athletic endeavors has many peers. Easy. Nothing like a race on the schedule and a weekly (when I can make it) run with a group of friends.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">But I have nothing in that regard for the mental and </span>cerebral<span style="font-size: 100%;"> pursuits; personal development. </span></span><span style="font-size: 100%; font-family: Georgia, serif; ">I thought maybe I had found something over at Project Reason, but it hasn't bore the fruit I thought it would. </span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">I am not exactly sure where to turn to next. I do know that if I don't start looking, questioning, bumping into stuff, nothing is going to happen. I gotta be careful not to get lazy about it.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">Life usually doesn't happen when you are sitting around. You have to make it happen. Getting started is the hard part; overcoming the friction of the initial inertia.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span><span style="font-size: 100%;"> </span></span></div>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1278316599652495769.post-43456250398468362762012-04-01T13:46:00.008-07:002012-04-07T18:33:33.764-07:00A Simple Plan<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i-2Ts7ZkuTE/T4DnVHlD2AI/AAAAAAAAAcU/uWUJiBChOa0/s1600/einstein-simple.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i-2Ts7ZkuTE/T4DnVHlD2AI/AAAAAAAAAcU/uWUJiBChOa0/s320/einstein-simple.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5728833076013029378" /></a><br /><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><span style="font-size: 100%; "><span style="font-size: 100%;">I don't usually write about my running escapades here. Usually reserve that for race reports over at the LPTR site. But there were things that happened that were important to me. </span><span style="font-size: 100%;"> So I thought I would ruminate on a couple things. </span></span><span style="font-size: 100%; ">The race was last Saturday, down in Clinton, Illinois. 30 Miles, three 10 mile loops on a really nice trail around a lake.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Like many people who start getting into a sport, I've been guilty of over-complicating mine. Trail running. <span style="font-size: 100%; ">It's not really all that hard to understand. But we add all this stuff: shoes of every type, hydration packs, nutritional stuff, supplements, pacing advice, yada yada yada.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">So, in my approach to this race, I tried to not talk too much about it. As I drove down with 4 friends, I pretty much kept my plans to myself. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><span style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><span style="font-size: 100%; ">I have trouble doing math while I run, so this one was going to be simple, keep it simple, 3 - 10 mile loops, 10 minute miles. 100 minutes per lap. Now that's math I can do. Simple. </span><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Strategy was simple. </span><span style="font-size: 100%; ">I was going to FORGET every last mile I ran, and focus instead on the one in front of me. I can't make up time, I turn my back on it and stick to the plan. 10 minute miles. End of story. I took some advice from two runners I admire very much.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div><span><span style="font-size: 100%;">The first piece of advice I took was from Joel. "Skip food, a 50K is too short to even need it". So I did. I took 5 gels, one every 50 minutes or so. No Heed, Powerade/ </span>Gatorade<span style="font-size: 100%;">. Nothing but water, and I ditched the Camelbak and went with a water bottle. Aid stations every 5 miles, I didn't need more than 20 oz in between. Read: Simple.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><span style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Second piece of advice. Double D says, "Go out at a pace, and stick with it", and I think something about hanging on late when you have to. Sometimes I run too slow at the start, thinking that conserving energy will make it easier later. So far, that has never worked for me. Ever. All that happens from running slow is I get even slower. Read: S-L-O-W-E-R. Start slow and then taper off. My legs have a tendency to seize up when I run that slow. I can never get the cadence back again. So, Go out at a brisk (for me) pace, and HANG ON. Thanks DD, it worked very well on this day.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Here are my splits. I can honestly say, the only race I ever ran more to plan was my 2006 Chicago Marathon (in which I ran near perfect splits for 8 - straight 5K's. None varied by more than 30 seconds).</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Lap 1: 101 minutes (1:41)</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Potty break: 3 minutes</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Lap 2: 100 minutes (1:40)</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Lap 3: 105 minutes (1:45)</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Total: 5:09, 11th overall out of 90 or so, 1st 50-59 AG out of 16.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">This was the first time I came in first in my AG. It was the highest I ever placed in race, percentage wise. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">I do have to say though, the proudest moment I had all day was when my fellow LPTR's (who came in 1st, 2nd, and 4th overall) gave me a HUGE cheer when I got my award. Even more than winning an AG, even more than placing high overall. Thanks Joel, Kevin, and Christine, as well as Hans and Jeff. Second to that would be this. <span style="font-size: 100%; ">I had a simple plan. And I executed it, nearly perfectly. A personal thing like that has elegance that's hard to describe.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Running is good right now.</div>martykchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13416307554750019260noreply@blogger.com0