crackdown city

Crackdown city…..

I work for the Feds (as a nurse in a VA hospital…..), and recently there has been a blockade of some websites. No rhyme or reason, it seems, so I am a bit confused. Maybe I blogged about this already. I can’t go online and check, so bear with me if this is a repeat post, k? Thanks.

I can’t get to my blog, but I CAN get to “I am boring” and “endurance isn’t only physical” and “tall mom” and some others, but not MINE, which means I can only

post from email (like this one), and it comes out very discombobulated (yes, I can get to that one. AND red’s) and I can’t include links or pictures or anything other than just plain ‘ol text.

So here I am. That’s my story so far. Here’s what’s coming down the pike (or pipe, depending on where you are from)….

This weekend will be a good trip to Lake Placid, NY (not the one in FL with pet gators). Pop quiz….what is the name of the lake in downtown Lake Placid, NY? We are going to see a production having to do with Curious George. Should be a good time. My ulterior motive is to be able to do 3 or so laps around the lake Sunday morning before everyone else wakes up. 3-ish mile loop.

When I was in high school, I spent a week in Lake Placid (twice) at an Olympic Development Camp for Biathlon. Good times. Ran, ran, ran, roller skied, roller skied, shot, shot, shot, ran some more. Good times. There always seemed to be a strong positive energy vibe in LP. It will be interesting to see if I can still sense it. I’ll let you know.

First race of the season next weekend. Half Marathon. Am I ready? Not.At.All. But that’s half the fun, right? Have a good weekend!

Gene

FFF nephew Carson

Three Things Thursday

1) i am thankful that my wife is so patient with kids. it amazes me.
2) i am thankful that today is Thursday. I start a string of night shifts tonight at 2330. i think that i am on nights until next tuesday. i have been dreading this part of my schedule for almost 3 weeks, but now that it is here, i am ready. i just hope that i don't become such a PITA that my family asks me to move to Mongolia.
3) i am thankful for the nice weather that we have today. it means that i can be outside working on 'stuff' and projects and 'getting things done' (which, by the by, only leads to MORE things that need to get done). but that's ok. at least I am not stuck indoors.

so folks, tomorrow is ride/run/walk/bus/carpool to work day. if your town is having some sort of event to raise interest in this, stop on by and thank them for their efforts. i'll be either running or riding my bike, and will be stopping by the Hartford, VT town offices on my way home. i hope they have some socks left!

50 minute run

my official marathon training schedule doesn't begin until 6JUN10, so i am just going to repeat the first week's workout until then. i got this idea from another blogger, and i apologize for not remembering who that was. when i figure it out, i will give due credit.
today's schedule was a 50 minute run. i didn't really feel like spending 50 minutes pounding pavement during rush hour, so i headed for the woods. I had a great time. Came across a reservoir in the middle of no where (or so i thought), which was pretty cool, and then after i had climbed about half way up a hill i heard a sound behind me. I stopped running, hoping to see a bear or moose (I'd just left the "moose brook trail") or even a deer. Did I? Nope. It was a mtbiker! he was struggling to get up the hill, so i cheered him on. once he reached me, we chatted about the trails and such, and he reassured me that i was on my way back in the right direction. Here is an elevation profile of the run. oh, yea. hills. and yes, i walked a little bit. but not much. honestly!

Tooth Extraction

all pre-op'd and waiting!

our youngest had to go to the OR today to have an infected tooth extracted. short story is that he did great! Mom did a good job, too!!
Rainy, raw day here in Hartford, so we've all just hunkered down to recover. I am sure that Bryce will be running around like nothing ever happened in no time.

ya know that runner....

you know that runner you see out there, in the chilly rain? the one you curse under your breath as you drive by, complaining to yourself and the steering wheel that YOU should be out there, running, instead of having pressed 'snooze' again? The runner who makes you feel like a double helping of garlic mashed potatoes (yes, please!) instead of the toned runner that he is becoming? I see one almOst every day, more so now as the days lengthen. And I become increasingly envious, jealous, self-degrading, etc. etc. every time i see him out there.

today, I WAS THAT GUY.

and it was great.

have a great weekend, everyone!

You can call me......

Seve. Or probably not. Either way, in spite of the weather (yes, 'in spite of'...not despite), several hundred friends and relatives of "Colby" got together in Randolph, VT this past Saturday to play a round of golf. The Montague Golf Course is the second oldest course in Vermont. Quite picturesque, actually.
It was pouring rain at 830 while we were all standing around in the club house deliberating actually playing or just opening up the 19th hole a littler early. I don't drink, and since i was passing up a race that i would have done in the rain, i figured, HECK YA, i'll golf in the rain. I didn't bring my wet weather gear, dry socks, and GARMIN for nada.....
We collectively decided to give it a go, picked out carts (don't judge me!), and headed to load our bags onto the carts. In racing vernacular, the start corral looked like this:

I've never used a cart for golfing before, and was instantly intrigued by this bottle thing that was attached to each cart, right behind the heads of the golfers. "How flipping conVEEEnient", i said. Zach, our 12 yo (above, in red coat), asked what I was talking about. I said, "these little urinals are awesome! we need to get some for the truck, no?"

(cue face palm). Zach was like, "man, i am GLAD i am not your partner! those have seed or sand or something in them. if you make a divot, you dump some of this stuff on the spot before moving along." so i said, "you could do the same thing, even if it WAS a urinal!" (cue second face palm). "nope. i feel bad for Uncle Ray. I hear you're paired with him...." and off he went. who knew? sounded like a good idea.

Off we went, starting at the 3rd hole. Poured. got soaked even sitting in the cart. didn't care. at. all.

had some good shots, had some bad shots. didn't embarrass myself, didn't hurt anyone, and managed to have a good time. one of the things about golf that bugs me is the time wasted wondering if the ball you just found is  really yours, or just some random ball left there by someone too lazy to look, or whatevs. Since i am so clever, i eliminated that from my realm of possibilities. i drew a face on each of the 5 balls that i had alloted myself (i returned with the same 5 balls.....). Now i didn't have to remember if i was using a titleist 7000, a nike some such, or a Nimbus 2000. Just had to find a face. Notice the cleverly placed blade of grass? 

Mother Nature has a sense of humor about golf, too. No wonder we get along so well!                                        "Colby" is  a great long ball hitter (whatever the hell that means. it is just fun to say. like fartlek. :D He did well to get us off the tee, we pretty much shared the middle of the fairway, and then Ray brought us home on the green. Below is "Colby" smaking the ball. I am mostly impressed with my timing on the cell phone camera. I think I'll submit this one to Sports Illustrated. HA.

I leave you with a parting shot, looking off toward the 10th green from the 10th teebox. See the outline of the green (the 'fringe')? 3 of us (including yours truly) landed just shy of the fringe. Pretty slick. Like I said, all in all it was a great day. Time spent with family that i don't get to see very often, spending that time outside, melding with the elements. Ah... A good way to spend a Saturday.