A New Year

2012 is happening. As I write these words, I have one daughter vacationing in Hawaii and one living in Costa Rica. I have so far been invited to Costa Rica, Connecticut, New York, and Switzerland during this new year. Maybe this time I will not just live vicariously through all my friends and family; but .... as always finances will tell the story.

This blog's reason for existence is to think out loud about my running. But, it maybe will expand to the bigger, more encompassing, metaphorical journey along with running. Today is 5th day of the new year, and I have not logged a single mile running or walking on road or trail. First, a very painful foot injury of some kind made it difficult to shuffle along, let alone run. And then, more recently a tenacious and debilitating seasonal cold kept me indoors and inactive. But, I think the bruising of my foot is mostly healed now, and the cold is on its way out. So, I will let the running begin again this weekend. It is fun to anticipate the first miles of the year, and high time.

Post-60

Not long ago I decided on a whim to do some physical activity sufficient so that I could legitimately make an entry on my Daily Mile log every day, consecutively, for 60 days. And then I actually accomplished it. I also decided to exceed 100 miles for the month of June on DM, and exceeded that comfortably.

When both of those self induced challenges were complete, I found myself ratcheting down and taking some time off from the focus. Not entirely...I have still gone out and done some satisfying runs and walks since then. But, not daily.

Now, the bug is burrowing inside me again. I feel an urgency to pick back up where I left off. Only this time with a modified - as yet undefined - new grander goal and objective. The new plan will definitely involve running and cycling. It will also involve a lot more yoga and shoulder/arm focus since that is where old age decrepitude seems to be creeping up more obviously.

I know about myself that one of the joys of running is exploration. It is an amazing way to see the world with a fresh eye and perspective. So, over the next two to three months I will do more travel-running. And, it is a good way to explore inward as well. I love to get away, with no agenda, in new places to think & plan & pray while I run. I nearly always find new perspectives of beauty and gratefulness and freedom in the stars, or blue skies and powerful clouds, on long roads, with wilder creatures about, and the normal restraints on me lifted by conditioning, reflection, flight.

I can not wait to get started again.

Miles Accumulation

One of my posts to this blog in March of this year was bemoaning the fact that it was my lowest mileage month since I began keeping track of such things on the Daily Mile social site last year. I resolved to change that puny pattern. And so I have. Each month since then has been higher than the one before it, and as I recall at least a couple of them have sequentially registered as the highest ever recorded by me. There is still a third of this month remaining, and I have already recorded the highest number of miles yet in any month. That is hugely helped along by the fact that I added back in cycling and the miles that come along with that. But I am pleased. And I am only about 15 miles away from my June goal of 100 total miles, biking, walking, and running. Yay!

3rd Month in a Row 5k Race

A few minutes ago I registered for next week's Jazz in the Woods 5K race, sticking to my plan of participating in a race every month through the summer-fall. So far, this means I will have done so in April, May & June. The route is in Corporate Woods and mostly pretty flat. I came within a fraction of a second or so on my last one of getting in under 30 minutes, so the goal this time is to finally get that officially accomplished. I came very close to registering for the 10K, It is probably still premature to do that in a race situation, but it is getting closer. One thing that I like about this process is that little thrill thing in the pit of my stomach right after I have completed the registration process.

Sometimes, You Can Go Home Again

This is actually just the commencement of post. Will add more and edit later.


My wife and I recently took a break from family deaths and illness to get away without much of an agenda. Saturday morning began with a visit to beautiful and historically interesting Fort Leavenworth, an hour or so away. This Army fort, founded in the 1820's or 30's, sits commandingly high above the mighty Missouri River on the Kansas side of the river and includes fascinating museums, well preserved and used buildings from the mid-1800s, a variety of memorials, and so on. It has been a tourist friendly facility during much of my life: When my children were little, for example, we would simply drive through the important stone gates with picnic baskets, bicycles, cameras, and leisure time to walk and look and lounge. We have some prized family photos from those forays.

Then 9/11 happened. Of course, access to this impressive facility has never been the same. Our most recent visit, unfortunately, commenced with our being stopped cold at the big entrance gate and promptly guided  back out - once our identifications were checked. The gate guard at first attributed our exclusion to the "terrorists" assembled across the road from the Fort. As we gulped loudly, he softened his choice of language from "terrorists" to "protesters". His change of description, frankly, seemed a little reluctant. As we hung around the town of Leavenworth for the next couple of hours, we realized that a small group of rag-tag almost unnoticeable protesters had assembled from around the country to voice an opinion about the imprisonment of ______________ Manning, the young soldier alleged to have passed information on to Wikileaks. He had just been moved to the maximum security military prison at Fort Leavenworth from Guantonomo. I have no idea what the subject of the protests may have been. But, of course, I understood that the Army does not want to confront such activity on its on post. And for all the guard could have been able to tell, we might have been a surreptitious group of the same intending to make our way onto the facility. But, it was a disappointment.

The Loss of a Good Friend

Zippety-do-Dah was not the dog I ran with. But, man we did enjoy the growling fun of vigorous bedtime wrestling challenges. Zippy competed in many loud singing & howling duets with the worst of them - me, and deftly curved her talented hands - I mean paws - to work through problem barriers or grasp toys and wrists. She was always on alert to know when "they're here!". And how high into orbit she twisted in an effort to gulp every possible drop from forceful water hose or oscillating lawn sprinkler. She was tiny and shiny, a little bald, and jet black, invariably so gentle, and ever trusting and good natured, even in her last halting, but determined, months. She was a little friend. But, now her 16 1/2 years of life are completed; her last moments spent caressed in my arms. A little dog, so wanted by a little girl long ago, who lived up to her name - Zippy.  She was the best..  -- May 15, 2011. 1:00 pm.

The Prodigal Runner

PART I.  I am in the midst of the longest period I have gone without running in a very long time. At least 8 days. My desire, my energy, it seemed even my ability, simply disappeared. Overnight. The touchstones of this little drought were common enough: (1) unappealing weather; (2) inconvenient scheduling; (3) an achy-breaky old body and stiff joints; (4) an over-indulged appetite - my goodness, (5) general malaise, and (6) just life stuff - much of it nice and good. My response has been to be sad about that and yet powerfully unmotivated at the same time. So, now the prospect of dragging myself out onto the streets or trails is rather daunting and overwhelming - almost frightening. It feels like beginning all over again. And it almost is. But, I brought my running gear to the office today. Seems like a waste not to haul it out. And I am registered for a 5K race to happen in 10 days or so. The sun is out and the temperatures have risen a bit. The achy-ness has minimized itself. I feel the need to reassure myself and challenge myself physically. So, barring the unforeseen, Part II of this posting in an hour or so should be from "the other side".

Part II. It is good to begin moving again. Tonight's easy run along the Tomahawk Creek bicycle trail was beautiful. A jewel blue and flawless sky. Sunshine. How I have missed the warmth and happiness of sun. Full and freely flowing stream and small waterfalls. Deer. Gentle solitude. As my body gradually became used to movement again, the sense of deeply regular breathing imparted a gratifying peace and I once again felt connected to the natural world. My running pace was not amazing, but that is alright. This was an evening to be grateful again, propelled by my need for movement... to be back in the swing, to have an ability to move in ways that elude many, to be "in the moment", to be a little less slothfully self indulgent than some other times. I am already eager for tomorrow's outing along the same path. While contemplating my enthusiasm for running in nature, I came across the following quotation from the Islamic poet/philosopher Rumi, "Judge a moth by the beauty of its candle." I have not heard this quote before, but it is a powerful one. It is a reference I will keep in mind for awhile and even consider while I run, though it is probably not a good racing mantra.