Day 13490, & the calm before the storm...

So, Adam Sank was quite accurate in his last post.  Blogging is a lot like exercise.  Once you get out of the routine, it is very hard to pick it back up.  I can easily equate the two because lately I have been desperately trying to rebuild my routine for both.  Thankfully, the running is making far more progress than the blogging.

It is not like I don't have anything new to say.  It is not like I haven't done anything worth talking about.  It is just time better spent working, running, or, quite honestly, drinking beer at the bar.

But, for now, I will just give you a recap of my week, starting with some slow but measurable progress at the new restaurant.

Over the last week, the finishes have been appearing.  Here is one of the banquettes in the dining room.  I have to admit that I have been concerned about the longevity of this design, fearful that it would become dated too soon.  After all, we designed the restaurant over two years ago.  I don't even remember half of the finish choices and each day is like a little surprise.  

Anyway, when I was in Boston (more on this later,) my hotel was undergoing a multimillion dollar renovation.  They are using the same wood finishes.  This tells me that we are ok, as I am sure that the Millennium Hotel paid somebody good money to make the same choices.

The bar is tiled, and the floors are almost all done.  They are putting in the hardwoods this weekend and Monday should be quite eye-opening.  I have learned not to get too excited though, as work always seems to be slow in the construction scenario.  Perhaps, if people just came to work for more than a few hours a day.  Or, if more than 2 people could show up at a time.  Everybody seems to want something for nothing.  But enough of that.  This is not a political blog...

OK, so I went to Boston last Wednesday to see the Queen of all things gay.  Now, you might be thinking that I went to see Cher.  That assumption is fine, though wrong, if you are a purist.  However, I went to see Madonna, the alternate Queen of Gay.

I woke up at 3:30 AM Wednesday to catch my flight at 5:40.  Traveling first thing in the morning is always best.  There is no time for delays to build up and snowball.  I flew Delta, which meant I had to fly through Atlanta.  As I boarded, they said the flight was full.  No worries.  That is, until the woman and her toddler were standing next to me, waiting for me to allow them into the neighboring seat.  NOOOOOOOO! It is 5:30 and that child looks loud.  It this an omen.  Maybe I should get off the plane.

Fortunately, the kid slept for the short hour long jump.  Therefore, so did I.

Next up, two hours in Atlanta.  Why is the internet free in some airports and not in others?  I think it is a traveler's first clue about the friendliness of a city.  Anyhow, with no desire to pay 9 bucks to check my email, I read the paper and called Jay.  He told me that there was about to be an announcement on GMA regarding Madonna.  Oh shit!  She is going to announce her divorce?  What if the show is cancelled?  How pissed am I going to be if, upon arrival at Logan, I find out that my trip was just an expensive tour of the airways?

Well, my guess was correct.  She did announce her divorce.  Quel surprise!  My worries were unfounded, however.  True professional that she is, the show must go on.  Really, why would she cancel a show and refund the millions of dollars in ticket sales.  After all, she isn't going to have Guy's income anymore.  How will she get by on a single earner's salary?  Poor Madge and her struggle...

So, I arrive in Boston and head to the hotel, check in, call Jay, and change clothes.  I head down to the front desk to find out where I might want to go run.  With a series of bad directions from the concierge, I head out and turn on Garmin...

Garmin doesn't like Boston.  At least, he doesn't like the parts of Boston with tall buildings.  Note, he definitely won't like Manhattan, so don't bother taking him.

I had counted on Garmin to keep me from getting lost.  Clearly, he was lost and was going to be no help to me.  I was on my own.  I had taken 20 buck with me, just in case I needed a cab.  Mainly, I was concerned about time.  If I got lost, I would fall behind schedule.  I needed a nap, food, and time to get ready for the Queen.

Also note, the sidewalks of Boston are not runner friendly.  Those charming brick ones are pretty, but not ankle and foot friendly.  Also, crowded sidewalks are like the start of a race.  Shuffle, dodge, bolt, shuffle, dodge, bolt...  Finally, I found Boston Common.  Pretty, but hilly.  Then some other park with a pond.  Then, a bit late, I found...

the Charles River.  Gorgeous!  And, runners everywhere!  Inspiring.  And brief.  I had to get back.  Well, definitely tomorrow morning, I said to myself as I turned back.  Through the parks and up the sidewalks I ran.

Sprain, shuffle, dodge, bolt... Not an effective cool down, I assure you.  But I made it back without getting lost.  So, all ended well.

Once I returned to the hotel, showered, and selected my outfit, I scrolled through countless emails in search of the one regarding my will call ticket.  When I bought the ticket back in May, I was not given the option of having it mailed.  I would assume this was to curb scalping.  It also curbed my canceling the trip, as I wasn't going to eat the cost of the ticket and leave a 14th row seat empty.  So, pro or con, I HAD to go see Madonna in Boston.  I had no choice.  

Just another good reason the restaurant is way behind schedule...

Anyway, the email said that there was some VIP function and that I should arrive 90 minutes early.  Yuck on the 6:30 part.  Intrigue on the VIP part.  As I was by myself anyway, what could it hurt to go down to the show early?  I headed out in search of food and drink.  Sadly, as I hate oysters and didn't want to take a cab to any of the concierge's recommended spots, I ate at Houstons.  Again, sad, I know.  At least the bartender was way hot.

Then I headed towards the arena, and stopped at some pub called Hurricane something, blah, blah.  The bartender had the personality of a limp salad, but the beers were good.  I was limiting my intake, as I wanted to be sober for the show.  Remembering the show after all  the expense seemed a wise decision, after all.  So, after 3 beers, I headed off to the show.

I picked up my tickets, and made my way to the VIP line.  And I waited, and waited, and waited.  While we watched others go off to their seats, we all waited.  At 7:10 we were allowed to enter.  And for what?  Well, there was an open bar (that was NOT included in my drinking plan) and apparently there was food.  And...

All that waiting for a few beers that I didn't need, and a messenger bag I will never use.  I also got to carry the bag for the remainder of the evening, along with everyone else from the floor seats.  Just what I wanted to keep up with.  Oh well, maybe I can sell it on eBay someday.

I did get to meet some nice people while in line.  Some guys from Vermont, and a couple from Europe.  The guys from Europe just paid 100,000 for a surrogate and have a 7 month old baby.  100K? I guess there will be no baby for me...  

At my seat, I met a guy who was seeing this show for the 6th time.  CRAZY! 6 times in a month?  $$$ and C.R.A.Z.Y.  But at least he was able to tell me what was happening and when I could go to the bathroom without missing much (damn those extra beers!!!)

Apparently Paul Oakenfold was the DJ that opened the show.  I, of course, had no idea.  True to form, the show started late, way late, around 9:30.  And it was fantastic.

Sorry about the annoying guy, but I searched for a clip that looked close to my seat.  This was about right.  As I said, I was close.  The iPhone camera sucks, but...

I was this close.  And it was amazing!  

The show was 2 hours, and it is all a blur now.  Not so much from the beers, but from sensory overload.

Good thing I am going again next month.  Same seat, other side of the catwalk.

Again, good thing the restaurant is way behind schedule!

Post show, I was exhausted.  Having been up for nearly 22 hours, I made my way back to the hotel area, stopped for a beer with the Vermont boys, and then off to bed to dream of Madge.

The next morning, I was a bit flu-like and, sadly, couldn't run.  I packed, checked out, and met my former personal trainer for some breakfast and sightseeing.  3 hours and 5+ miles of walking and sightseeing.  With my flu-like symptoms, this was not the enjoyable experience I had looked forward to, but Boston is gorgeous and I will go back.

Just not for the marathon anytime in the next few years...

Sorry about the most long winded and boring post ever.  Just wanted to get it all in.

Cheers!

Day 13483, & a sigh...

So, over the last several weeks, I have had to find a way to reconcile things in my head.

This is not to say that I normally don't look for order.  I do enjoy everything being just so.

Again, control freak, remember?

It has been difficult to look at the election, the economy, the world, my place in it, blah blah blah.

And then...

I realized that pretty much everything can be justified by the concept of the yin and yang.

You cannot imagine how freaking excited I was to have a new way of looking at things.

It is always good to have an alternative outlook and, in all honesty, "people are stupid" was beginning to make me a bit depressed, a la Idiocracy...

So, again, I say find a new way to see the world.

I am not one to complain.  Well, I am not one to complain about anything that is really bothering me.  I will go on for days about the small stuff though.  Anyway, business is down.  Not horrible, bad, down.  Just a bit down.

Ebb and flow...

As I had budgeted everything to be "just so" for the new restaurant, there was a certain expectation from the restaurant that already generated income.  Apparently, creating expectations and budgets 2 years in advance does not work.  I thought everything looked pretty keen back in 2006.  Oops.  But, it could be a lot worse, and I am thankful.

What goes up, must come down...

Bush is an idiot and the "rescue plan" was foolish.  And that concludes my political rant.

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction...

And, with this new outlook, I will now tell you about my first 1/2 marathon experience yesterday.  With 24 hours between me and disappointment, I am actually quite pleased with myself.

To remind you, as my post have been infrequent, I have been recovering over the last 2 months from a pretty nasty battle with my left shin.  As a result, I have put plans of the marathon on hold indefinitely.

My diagnosis was shin splints.  My speculation on the cause?  Being in a rush.  I was rushing to train, rushing to work, rushing to stretch.  Rushing to get in 6 miles.  Rushing all the time.  Injury from said neglect and strain.  Basically, stress hurt my leg, but at least it wasn't a stress fracture!

My last long run was on August 9th.  It was 15 miles at a 9:40 pace. I remember it well because it was fantastic.  Everything about it felt great.  No pain, no fatigue.  The next day, no pain.  The next week, pain.  The pain lasted awhile.

After many weeks and many PT sessions, I feel better.  I started running again a month ago.  My longest run has been 7 miles, two weeks ago.  Slow.  But, I had already registered for this 1/2, and I was determined to do it.  How does one train for a Half Marathon in 4 weeks?  They don't.  I decided to rely on muscle memory and good sense.

I took Friday off from running and work.  Got some stuff done, had some beers, went to bed at 8:30.  I actually slept pretty well on the night before race day.  Just one heart attack dream, where I think I was about to die.  Otherwise, all good.  In fact, I only had to get up for nature's call a few times that night, despite my fanatical over-hydration plan.

I got up at 4 am for coffee and cereal.  This is my normal race day routine (only 2 other races, mind you.)  This generally allows for nature to run its course and for me to wake up.  I do not want to run while I still wish I was sleeping.  That isn't me.

Two bowls of Cheerios, two cups of coffee.  I got ready, collected my stuff, ran my checklist off in my head.  All good.  Only one thing left... One thing to do.  And, of course, it wasn't going to happen before I left home.  Oh well, nothing better than a lovely port-a-john experience in the AM...

So, I went to pick up Jerry and Carrie.  She was running with me.  Jerry had failed to register in time and had considered running as a bandit.  He decided against it at the last minute but came along to cheer us on.  This was good because he could hold the keys, camera, etc.

Murfreesboro is about 30 minutes outside of Nashville.  As it was 5 AM on Saturday, there was not  a hint of traffic.  Enjoyed a Cliff Bar and a liter of Smart Water on the drive.  And I tried to finish up my list of to-do's at a gas station before we got to the race.  No luck.  Oh well.

After some stretching, we were rushed over to the start by the PA guy.  So, fresh as daisies, Carrie and I left Jerry to go find a spot in the mob.  They claimed that there were 1700 people registered for the race.  I didn't see them.  I was determined that I was not going blast off from the start at some crazy pace.  So, I wanted to start farther back, as to avoid a trampling.  Carrie was not to into this idea, but she indulged me.

The race was supposed to start at 7.  Based on the rushing us to the starting line, this seemed right.  I am not clear why the gun went off at 7:15, but that's when we started.

I am no running genius.  Just a regular one.  My plan was to finish.  I decided not to bring Garmin along on the race.  I just wore my Polar.  I figured that my heart rate would be my guide.  As they also seemed to be sticklers for the no headphones rule, I had not brought iPod either.  In fact, I had been running sans music all week, as practice.  I do not like running so naked, but I will admit that it seems to help me maintain a steady pace.  

Mile one, 9:45.  Carrie is a dodger.  I was happy in my spot.  I also knew she had bigger goals for this race.  I fell back and let her go on her way.

I hit mile 2 at 20 minutes, mile three at 30 minutes.  I figured that if I could maintain that pace, I could just kick it up a bit towards the end and come in at a sub 10:00 pace.  I even hit the half at 9:58 pace, and I felt fine.  I had a GU around mile 5.  All good.  And then, we hit the highway.  I can't say how long that stretch was, but I can say that it was god awful boring.  It seemed like forever and I think it was also the beginning of the end.  

Somewhere around mile 8, I think I wanted to quit.  Well, mainly, I wanted to stop for a bathroom break.  I also wanted to quit.  I had lost about :30 of my pace at this point and I knew that I would not be able to gain my lost time at the end.  I also decided that I needed a sports drink, but I was saving my PowerAde for the last 3 miles.  I opted for an Accelerade at the water stop.  IT WAS BLUE!  What the fuck am I supposed to do with some nasty ass blue crap.  They said it would be red in the email.  Everyone knows that red is a far better flavor than blue.  So much for that idea.  I had another GU instead.

Then, I stopped.  I must have pee'd for at least a minute and a half.  And, DAMN, did I feel better for it.  Miles 9 and 10 flew by.  I got my second wind.  Or my 7th.  Whatever.

Meanwhile, I had started making up stories about people in my head.  Mainly about the guy who would fly past me every 10 minutes, only to walk later so I would pass by him.  Slow and steady wins the race, right?  Anyway, I wondered what he was doing.  His method seemed awfully odd.  I wondered why all of these people were here.  Me?  No idea why I was there.  I am still not really sure why I am a runner.

Anyway, halfway through mile 12, I walked.  I thought I might just walk to the finish.  Who cares.  My time sucked anyway.  And then I saw him.  I saw the guy from the 4th of July 10K.  The one that kept passing me, but walked up all the hills.  I always caught back up to him when he would have to walk.  We chatted on the 4th about the hills downtown.  He didn't know that route was hilly.  I laughed.  I am not sure if he beat me on the 4th.

So, I saw him in that last mile, walking.  I started "running" again as I passed him.  I confirmed his identity as THAT guy, and spoke of the hilly 4th of July run.  Then I told him that since this route was completely flat, he should be running, not walking, to the finish.  His response: "Yea, but this is a lot longer."

That was all I needed.  I finished at a steady shuffle, all the way to the finish.  And I beat that guy.

Final time: 2:17:20, or 10:29 pace.

89/130 age group

431/647 sex

675/1298 overall

And, yes, I will certainly do it again.  And next time will be a sub 2:00 finish.

Day 13482, & it's done...

So, I finished my first half marathon.

Sadly, it took my something like 2:17

I am not happy with my time, but I am happy it is done.

I am happy that I finished.

I am also happy that I didn't die, which really was a fear for a moment overnight.  

More later.

Day 13481, & sink or swim...

So, it is 10.5 hours to go-time...

Yep, I am about to hop in bed for my 4 am wake-up.  Tomorrow, the Murfreesboro Half Marathon.

Injuries and fears aside, I am excited.  In reality, I am nervous about my first long race.

Goals?

1: Finish

2: Finish sub 10:00 miles

3: Finish sub 2:00

In August, Goal 3 was actually the primary one.  My, how things change!

Fingers crossed...

Day 13478, & it has been a really long time...

So, I realize that it has been almost a month since I wrote an entry here.

It is not that nothing has gone on.  I have moved my office, continued to build a new restaurant, resumed my training, and escaped any real impact in this recession, thus far, anyway... I even managed to get by on less than 1/2 a tank of gas during the great gas shortage of late September, 2008.

I should mention, I have managed all of these things for quite some time without any rescue plans from the government.  But, if they are looking to amend the plan, free free to throw a couple million my way.  Or, perhaps a few billion to the airline industry.  They are not really asking, but I hear they have needed it for quite some time.  They must have relied too heavily on sub prime mortgages, or fuel, I can't remember...

I have been busy.  Not too busy to write an entry here.  Just too busy to notice everything happening around me.  Too busy to observe.  Too busy to care.

I don't like being busy.  Busy is not easy to control.  Busy sucks!

I LOVE being in control.

Imagine how I must feel now.  I have a contractor and an architect moving along on a seven digit restaurant, spending money like it is someone else's.  I have given our GM the reins at the first place.  I have been working out of boxes in my new home "office,' which I can't even deduct on my tax return, because we all know that a "home office" deduct is a guaranteed audit...

Basically, it is like I am homeless.  And let me tell you, the world is a scary place.  

It is especially scary when you know you can't run away from the threats.  Trust me when I tell you, I can't run.

Trust me when I say that the Murfreesboro Half this Saturday is a really big threat.  6 weeks ago, no sweat.  6 weeks ago, I planned to run it sub 8:45 pace.

Now, 6 weeks and a killer shin splint later, I plan to run it, at some pace, and hopefully finish.  Now, 6 weeks later, my longest run since August has been a crappy 7 miler at a 10:00 pace.  Now, it seems to be a struggle to stay over 20 miles a week.  

But hey, 13.1 miles should be great!  At least it is FLAT...

If nothing else I will finish, I will defeat the 13.1, to prove that I can.  Besides, what else do I have to do Saturday morning before noon?  Please, let me be finished before noon...

Happy birthday, Catherine!  Happy birthday, Stick!