My March, 2013 Running Report

March, 2013 saw me continuing my running at a higher daily mileage average than in 2012, but also stepping it down a notch.  It didn't start out that way, though, when on the 3rd I completed the Orange Blossom Half-Marathon (in Tavares and Mount Dora, Florida) in 1:50:53.  That 13.1 mile run also represented my longest single run of the month.  All in all, though, I ran less, amassing a total for March of 157.09 miles.  Still, I managed to run at least a little on every day, extending my consecutive day running streak to 335 days. 

Part of my running cutback was due to my new work schedule, which has me working the graveyard shift and puts pressure on my other activities regarding how I can fit them into the day.  But even with that taken into account, I don't see myself training for any half-marathon race anytime soon...at the very earliest it would be early fall.  So I'm planning to go back to shorter runs, still planning to run daily (if possible) and keep my monthly running mileage at above 100.  Starting tomorrow!

Just Finished Reading David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas

Last year I was treated to some of the most intriguing previews to a movie that I have ever seen.  Cloud Atlas was depicted as a flurry of spectacular scenes and special effects, with a star-studded cast to boot.  It was a must-see, as far as I was concerned.  And then I read a couple of reviews and changed my mind.  It seemed that the movie was based on the same-titled novel by David Mitchell, and if you didn't read the book first...you'd probably find yourself completely lost watching the film.  Oh well, I thought, I guess I'd better first read the book!  And I did, just completing it.  I must say that I was impressed, now looking forward to seeing the movie version (the trailers now make sense to me).

Cloud Atlas is actually a series of six nested novellas, with all but the middle one interrupted and completed in reverse order.  They are set in chronological order and span the early nineteenth century to a time hundreds of years in the future.  Each tale is complete unto itself, but at the same time has connections with the others.  There is a very strong theme of reincarnation here, so you may or may not need to set aside some of your own beliefs in order to flow with the reading.  But the most interesting aspect of Cloud Atlas is the author's deft use of language in each story, usually told in the first person and in line with the literary usage and style of the time in question.  For example, in the first story The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing, Mitchell writes out the story in that era's predominantly literary language, something that made me frequently scurry to my dictionary.  As the stories advance in time, up to the present area, the narrative language becomes more colloquial and familiar until Cloud Atlas turns toward the future, at which point it's language once again becomes more obtuse.  The "final" tale, which actually takes up the middle section of the book, is written in a futuristic, greatly altered English ingeniously projected by Mitchell upon that speculative time.  A master work in language, I must say.   So, about the movie, then...

If part of the great appeal to me in Cloud Atlas was the narrative language, then how can the cinematic rendition keep that magic?  This is where the screenwriters, directors, actors,and  special effects people need to step in and try to match David Mitchell's vision with their own arts and skills.  I look forward to seeing how well they did!

Please read David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas.  It beats anything else I've read recently. 

Personal Blogs in Decline, Facebook (Scarily) Dominant

My wife is an avid Facebook user while I, on the other hand, not only didn't use it...I stopped my account.  She has a whopping number of "friends" on it and the instant communication is, at times, a little frightening.  For example, one day a couple of months ago, after my Ocala Half-Marathon performance, I was sitting in our dining room at my laptop while she was using our desktop a few feet away in the living room.  I decided to check out the on-line Ocala results and found, to my pleasant surprise, that I had finished quite well relative to the other race participants (78th out of 262 total runners, 7th out of 18 in my gender/age group) .  I casually told my wife these exact figures, to which she responding by asking me if I wouldn't mind her bragging on me with them on her Facebook site.  Sure, I said.  I had hardly said so, it seemed, before she began to report several congratulatory comments from her Facebook friends, and even more "likes". These people are really hooked in to this network...and why isn't that so surprising, with the smart phones they carry around with them, alerting them instantly to any change in status in their various e-mail and networking accounts?  In the meantime, hardly anyone reads this blog, and even those whose blogs I used to follow have abandoned theirs.  The amateur, personal blogs have been declining while the "pros" are still out there, doing quite well for themselves.

When I first set out on this blog nearly six years ago, I felt that I was doing something pretty bold, setting out my thoughts in public like this, available for anyone with Internet access to read.  But in that span relatively few people have taken the effort to read any of it, in spite of the fact that my articles, which cover many varied topics, could be reached via search engines.  Now, with my blog's name and URL change, they haven't been available through these engines.  So I am in a relatively isolated position here...especially in contrast to the Facebook users.

I see no reason to end this blog...and I don't want to get into Facebook.  Perhaps at a future date the good people at Google will adjust their search engines and once again allow users to archive older articles of mine that match their search topics.  But for me, this is all ultimately a moot point, for I am doing this primarily neither for networking nor providing information for others.  I am doing this as a personal discipline of writing.  And making my writings publicly available gives me a sense of accountability and causes me to be more careful in expressing myself in a manner that respects and interests any potential reader...

NCAA Tourney So Far

The buzz going around the college basketball world right now is the upstart Florida Gulf Coast College team, in only its second year as an NCAA Division I school, not only making it to the championship tournament but also winning its first two games and getting all the way to the "Sweet Sixteen".  I'm impressed as well, but now its time for them to graciously bow out as they face my Florida Gators in the next round this Friday night.  Not that I believe that will happen, though.  It will probably be a very hard-fought contest; nevertheless I see the Gators prevailing, if for no other reason than that their coach Billy Donovan will have laid out some very effective strategies for his players to stop the Eagles.  It will be an interesting game for me to watch: with my new schedule in place, it'll be smack dab in the middle of my "weekend"!

Elsewhere in the NCAA men's hoops tourney, things have been generally going well for my teams, with Florida, Louisville, and Miami advancing to this round.  North Carolina, though, fought gamely but lost out to Kansas, a very possible Gator opponent in the following round should they get by Florida Gulf Coast...

Blog Name, URL Changed

It is indeed sad to have to report this, but I had to change my blog's URL and title because a soft porn website, for whatever perverse reasons of theirs, decided to adopt the almost identical designations I had, which were legitimately based on my name. Jerks.  Still, it doesn't bother me too much as not very many people read this blog, anyway.  As a matter of fact, the change to what is essentially a deliberate chain of nonsensical, random syllables for my blog's title and URL is an opportunity for me to see just who around me is really taking the time to read my blog. 

But no way am I going to let anyone confuse my own personal blog with a soft porn site...

10th Anniversary of Special Theme Park Visit

Today is the tenth anniversary of a fun, diversionary trip to a theme park with my two children.  My wife was busy at the time, so I took the kids to Wild Adventures theme park on the outskirts of Valdosta, Georgia.  Will and Rebecca were both pretty much fearless with the thrill rides there, but I wasn't.  But I resolved to tackle all of them, no matter how daunting. 

So I rode scary coasters like Boomerang, Cheetah, Hangman, and Bugout.  I went on the straight-up-and-down exercise in terror known as Double Shot (Universal's Islands of Adventure has a larger, but smoother version in their Doctor Doom's Fear Fall ride).  And I partook of what scared me the most, looking up from ground level: Power Surge, a "circle" ride quite like no other, being tossed about and inverted in my seat far above the ground.  Oh, and let's not forget the gut-wrenching gravity torture machine, Pharoah's Fury, a boat-shaped ride that swung back and forth in ever-increasing swoops.  All of this I conquered on that day, a day in which I repeatedly faced my primordial fears and pressed on.  To others, this may sound a bit laughable...but it was a big deal to me.

After that trip, for about two or three years, I made a point of visiting theme parks to ride roller coasters and other thrill rides.  I had a great time with my children...but they were growing up and weren't as interested in the thrill ride experience as before.  And Melissa NEVER was.  So here I am, now, having gone for a few years since going on a thrill ride at a park.  The last time was in south Florida, in the city of Dania on a fantastic wooden rollercoaster appropriately called the Dania Beach Hurricane.  But I've heard this this great ride has been dismantled...so sad.

I don't know about the future for me and theme park thrill rides, and I only got out to a few parks in the Southeast.  Plus, I have to keep in mind that one negative drag on my enjoyment was the often inexcusably long time I had to spend waiting in line just for one ride.  Also, I tired of the long driving to and from the parks.  O.K., so I'm getting old and impatient.  Wait, I've always been impatient!

Late Night Shift and Weirdo Radio

I have been working at my graveyard shift for about a week and a half, and frankly, I seem to be adapting reasonably well to it.  The key to my success so far has been my ability to get home after work and quickly into bed and asleep...for a good, solid block of time.  I have been consistently waking up in mid-afternoon and forcing myself into directed, purposeful activity. The only real problem I have been experiencing so far is that, toward the end of my shift, I can feel a little strung out.  I do tend to take a short catnap, though, during my lunch break around 5 AM.   

With me being awake all night long, I am once again reacquainting myself with a certain peculiar late night talk show: Coast-to-Coast AM, which I call "Weirdo Radio".  I used to listen to it back in the 1990's when Art Bell hosted it.  Now, George Noory interviews the variety of guests and, while not as personable as Bell, still competently pulls it off.  Still, I'm more than a little taken aback at all of the conspiracy crap being pushed on it. I prefer shows on the paranormal, frankly.  I don't necessarily buy what's being said, but I somehow get good vibes listening to it!

NCAA March Madness Back

We've once again come to the time in the year when basketball couch potatoes like me follow the "madness" that is the NCAA basketball tournament.  Not to try to sound sexist, but I have focused my attention on the men's tourney and have discovered some teams that I plan to follow.  First of all is my hometown college team, the Florida Gators.  Then, a traditional favorite: the North Carolina Tarheels.  The University of Miami Hurricanes is another one.  But if I just went by the players and how much I enjoyed watching a team play, my hands-down favorite would be the Louisville Cardinals, with their incredible point guard Peyton Siva, one of those rare players who not only are committed to working with the coach and his vision for the team, but who also are talented and outstanding both on offense and defense.  With him, Louisville could well go the distance and win it all.  Fortunately for them, UF, NC, and Miami are placed in other regions and won't have to face them unless they make the Final Four (and the Gators and Hurricanes both stand a reasonable chance of doing so).  One of my dream scenarios is a Lousiville/Florida game!

The so-called "first round" began today with two games pitting the very worst, lowest seeded teams against each other.  One of them, Liberty, actually sported a losing record at 15-20!  I do wish they wouldn't call this the first round when it is just a preliminary round to whittle the bloated 68-team field down to a manageable 64.

The true first round (naturally misnamed the "second" round) begins this Thursday.  I can't wait...

Restaurant Odors and the Sense of Smell

Over the past few months, I have had three disquieting experiences in local restaurants.  Each of the three is part of a different national chain...either franchised out or directly run by the corporation, I don't know.  The food is good and so is the service.  And they all seem to be popular, with customers coming in filling up the "joints" and reacting with favor to their dining experience.  But in each of these places, the minute I walk in I detect a nasty underlying odor.  It is an odor of decay and dirtiness, and is in all likelihood due to one factor: old, smelly carpeting.

In a way, though, I can understand why a lot of customers don't pick up on this unpleasant stench.  At one of the places, my wife had to point this out to me before I noticed.  But once she had, I wondered to myself how I could have missed it before, it was so bad.  It's as if, as humans, we've suppressed our sense of smell so much that someone else has to tell us when something doesn't smell right!  In any event, once I was alerted, I began to pick up the same disgusting odor elsewhere.

Could it be that people in general are losing their sense of smell, or like me, have they trained themselves not to recognize unpleasant odors when they arise?  Maybe it's a bit of both, I suppose.  But I don't want to frequent any of these places until they fix their problem!

My Substitute 10K Run

Yesterday I had an opportunity to run a 10 kilometer race in nearby Tioga, Florida.  I had thought of doing this more or less at the last minute, but I had some reservations about spending the money to enter it.  With a tee shirt and medal (and "free" admission to the post-race party I didn't want to attend), it would have cost me $35.  Without all of the above, they would have let me run in it and get my results posted on the Web for $20.  After giving the matter a little thought, I decided to step out of my own front door and run my own 10K course without spending a penny.  I deliberately timed the start of my private run to coincide with that event's starting time, 4:30 pm. Like much of the "official" race, my run went up and down residential streets.  I finished my run in 50:51, a personal best even though I stopped several times to drink Gatorade and walk a bit.  After it was over, I compared my times to comparable 10K races and found that in almost all of them, I would have finished at least third in my age group.  So I came away from the experience with a sense of satisfaction.

I like the social aspect of people getting together with a common interest and expressing that interest.  With running, of course, this manifests in the form of public road races.  Naturally, it costs money to organize and hold them, and participants should pay their share.  In the last few months, I ran a 10K race and two half-marathons.  But I don't need public affirmation as to how good a runner I am.  And even though I stood on the victory podium at the last half-marathon and received a prize for finishing second in my age group, during the actual race I had no idea which groups any of the runners around me were in.  So the competition factor in these public races tends to get a little abstract, anyway.

There is also a "tourism" factor that makes running in certain races more attractive than others.  For example, Tavares, with much of the run skirting pretty Lake Dora, was an interesting experience while Tioga, a place with which I am pretty familiar, promised little in this area.

In April there is a fun 5K walk/run, in Jacksonville, that Melissa and I are going to be in.  Other than that, though, I don't see me entering any more public running races for a while.  Maybe in the fall, we'll see... 

New Pope Hullabaloo

The hardly democratic "election" of Jorge Mario Bergoglio to be the next pope is rubbing me the wrong way.  For one, I was watching CNN's coverage of the news and was dismayed to find them completely abandoning any appearance whatsoever of objectivity, with excessive praise, even to the point of fawning, being the order of business.  That there might be some serious, controversial issues concerning this man and his past actions in Argentina has been completely glossed over.  And of course, completely forget about Fox"News" being objective, either.  But even on MSNBC, only Rachel Maddow, from what I can gather, has made any attempt to bring up some problematic points about the new Roman Catholic pope.  Chris Matthews, for example, was almost downright giddy about this selection.

It is an established feature of Judeo/Christian/Islamic dogma (in general) that homosexuality is "bad" and those such named deserve either second-class citizenship (in the more "civilized" parts where these religions predominate), banishment, or (in the more savage zones) even death.  And those promoting these views will always tell you that it isn't them...it's God (or Yahweh or Allah) saying this stuff within their scriptures.  Which were written down, of course, by PEOPLE with their own prejudices and agendas to promote.  Sorry, but I'm not buying into that bigotry.  Still, the incoming pope only recently engaged in a large-scale media blitz to prevent Argentina's president from being able to pass through their legislature a law allowing same-sex marriage in that country.  In other words, he robustly involved the Roman Catholic Church in the politics on an issue that said church wanted to impose on EVERYONE.  He has also clearly stated that, anywhere in the world where Catholic politicians hold office, if any of these politicians don't vote according to the positions on issues that the Church deems important, then priests are entitled to withhold giving Communion to them as a punishment.  Talk about interference in the affairs of other countries!

So I am quite a bit cynical about all the phony hullabaloo being generated about this "humble" pope, who took on the name of a venerated Catholic saint with the obvious intention, as I see it, of deceiving popular opinion as to his true intentions...which border on megalomania.  At least until someone shows me otherwise, that's going to be how I see this edition of the papacy...

Writing at Archer Road Starbucks

As part of the new routine I'm trying to develop, I am stopping by the Gainesville Starbucks on Archer Road near SW 34th Street after doing my treadmill run at the gym I'm a member of...all just before going in to work my graveyard shift. This Starbucks, though, is always so crowded with customers glued to their seats for hours, staring at their laptops (or other customers), that I find myself forced to sit outside. Fortunately, this little shopping center, of which Starbucks is just one store, has a huge outdoor food-court-style seating area. So that's cool, I suppose...as long as it isn't raining, that is, for the court is only partially covered over.

Still, sitting outside brings me to the old days back in 2007 when I would sit outside a different Starbucks (which no longer exists) just before going in to work and compose my blog articles. Back then, though, it was the middle of the day and I didn't seem to have too many other projects on my plate to occupy my attention.

Nevertheless, I would like to be able to choose to sit inside every now and then. I don't think, though, that whether I'm inside or outside really has much bearing on what I write. Instead, it's the feeling that, in a relatively short time, I'm going to have to get up and report to my job. So this isn't exactly conducive to speculation and imagination, two ingredients that I like to make use of in my writing. Tonight is only the second time I've tried this on my new schedule, though, so I should give myself a fighting chance to make a success out of it...

Trying to Establish Late Evening Blog Writing

This blog entry may seem a little shallow,  but my main purpose in writing it is to establish a disciplined routine of writing during the hour before I report to work at 11 pm (this is my second night on the graveyard shift).  I already did a 2.6 mile treadmill run at my local gym and plan to make pre-work/pre-writing runs a routine as well.  So far, so good...

It may well work out that I could get to sleep about an hour or so after I get off from work in the morning, so by late afternoon I could be fully functioning.  Today I was able to accomplish this, but I also know that each day at the beginning is a struggle as I try to change my sleeping/waking patterns.  Tonight I hope to not be as drowsy as last night...and then the next night even more awake.  We'll see, and I'll also keep my eyes open to any new job assignments that come up offering better working hours (along with good days off). But I don't think there will be very many opportunities in the future that don't involve working during the wee hours of the morning when most normal, sane people are happily tucked away in bed sleeping and dreaming...

Day One of New Graveyard Shift Behind Me

Well, I have crossed the first difficult hurdle in my attempted transition to working a new shift, one that has me returning after ten years to a late-night/early morning routine.  By the time I clocked out at 7:30 am, I was struggling, to say the least.  I managed to make my way back home driving the eight city miles through thick rush hour/school zone traffic, got a little bite to eat, jumped into bed...and promptly passed out for several hours.  That last part was auspicious: before, in the "old" days, I would have trouble getting myself to sleep after working the graveyard shift. 

Tonight is Step # 2 in my quest to accustom my mind and body to the change in schedule.  In the meantime, I still do what I can with the other routines in my life, wanting to keep up with my good studying and running projects.  The writing is important, too...maybe this change will actually step up my output...

President Obama Finally Sociable With Opposition

I have been hearing lately how President Obama, whom I have supported with my votes in each of his successful campaigns, is now inviting Republican opposition lawmakers to the White House where he is treating them with hospitality and friendliness.  While making his pitch, I'm sure, to try to persuade some of them to support some of his agenda against the unswerving, even irrational hostility generated by their leaders Mitch McConnell (Senate Minority Leader) and John Boehner (House Speaker). I've also been garnering reactions about this change of strategy from both conservative and liberal opinion makers.  The liberals seems to support Obama's sociable outreach, but some of the right-wing talk radio bigmouths are being critical of those GOP legislators who accepted the President's hospitality.  I have a deeper reaction, and it goes down to the heart of what I am currently feeling about Barack Obama as a leader.

Being a somewhat politically simple-minded soul, I have been naively believing for all these years that Obama was ALREADY reaching out and interacting with those Republican senators and congressmen.  All along...but no, apparently... he's had a "close door" policy against his opponents in Washington.  So if what I think that is coming out in the news is correct, then this president has long detached himself from the crucial process involved in political deal-making and arm-twisting.  Just take what perhaps the most successful president to get his programs passed by Congress, Lyndon Johnson, did all day, day after day.  He would be on the phone and directly communicating with those in Congress whose votes he needed to secure.  This necessary activity is something that our current president has thought himself to be too "above" to engage himself in.  Too bad.  And I wonder in retrospect how much of the obduracy of the Republican opposition in the Senate and House is due in large part to this...well, I'll say it...elitist attitude from the White House. 

I still support Obama, but my support has never been at the disturbing level of some others I've seen who act as he if were the Second Coming.  Now I am more skeptical of him, because it has taken more than four years in office for him to treat politicians whose outlooks on the issues are different with not only respect, but also an attitude of personal interest in their lives that anyone who isn't a complete imbecile should have been able to figure out was a necessary part of this nation's political process.  And what's even more incredible to me is that I used to watch him on C-Span2, the channel showing the deliberation of the U.S. Senate, when he used to be a senator (of Illinois) from 2005 to 2007...as he would show the most cordial, personable rapport with opposition-party senators during voting sessions.  How could he have forgotten this necessity?

My Work Hours Drastically Shift to Late Night

Today will be my final day on my afternoon/evening shift at my workplace, as I will be doing "graveyard shift" at the start of next week.  Since the summer of 2003, I have been reporting to work around 2:30-3:30 and walking out around 11 pm to midnight.  Starting this Sunday, though, I'll go back to reporting at 11 pm, which was pretty much the hours of day I worked for 15 out of the first 16 years I've worked here.  I changed my schedule for a few reasons, none of which being because I liked the hours; I've always had some difficulty with my sleeping patterns when working on the late night/early morning shift.  For one, it's difficult to get myself into a regular sleep routine over the course of the day.  For another, when I'm off I almost always revert back to the old "sleep at night" pattern instead of just sticking to the daytime sleeping I'm forced to do the rest of the week.  So I'm a little apprehensive about the hours.  Still, I'll have weekends off, I like the assignment location and duties, I'll have a better, more secure assignment status than the one I now have, and I can still bid (by seniority) on any other job assignment postings that I may prefer to the one I just got. 

Making such a change as the one I just made may see like a bit of risk-taking, but the way I see it is sometimes it's more risky to just stay where you are and do nothing.  Instead I chose proactivity. We'll see how it all goes in the next few weeks...

My Tavares Orange Blossom Half-Marathon Experience

Today I ran the Orange Blossom Half-Marathon in Tavares, Florida.  Tavares is in Lake County, located a few miles northwest of Orlando.  My wife grew up in that area and I even lived there a few months, back in 1987.  So the two of us made it a weekend down there, with Melissa entering their parallel 5K race, power-walking the distance in grand style.  The weather played a major, unexpected role as the temperatures plummeted while the wind whipped up strongly, with 30 mph-plus gusts.  I had a minor crisis trying to decided how much clothing I should put on for the race.  At the last minute I changed to something heavier, which I regretted soon after the start when my body predictably began to heat up from running.  So after a couple of miles I shed the long-sleeve shirt and then the run went on without a hitch.  The course began in Tavares' beautiful little downtown area, in Wooten Park on the shores of Lake Dora, and then more or less went eastward, into the town of Mount Dora and hugging the northern side of the lake. There were some loops in the course and a couple of "there-and-back" scenarios that I usually dislike; in this case, though, it gave Melissa and me the chance to touch base and encourage each other! And the sightseeing was great!

I physically did not feel as if I were running a very fast race, but feelings can often be deceptive.  I crossed the finish line with a time of 1 hour, 50 minutes, and 53 seconds, which bested my previous best by about four and a half minutes.  I finished 44th out of 229 finishers, but the most unexpected result was that I finished second in my men's 55-59 age category, garnering a little prize and a photo opportunity on their victory podium.  That was nice, but standing around in the cold park with the wind getting worse by the minute was an ordeal.  During the race, I was by myself most of the time, which was a bit different from all the others I've been in when I ran for long stretches around other runners.

I'm very glad that I did this race, and more so that Melissa accompanied me.  We had a great time driving around the area and visiting places that brought up old memories.  And, of course, we also noted how much things had changed in some respects...

My February 2013 Running Report

February turned out to be an unexpectedly good month for my running, in spite of its beginning with me suffering from an upper respiratory malady and having concerns regarding work and family.  In fact, although I didn't reach the pinnacle of 200 miles that I attained in 31-day January, I made full use of this 28-day month, piling up 180.41 miles in all.  I also was able to maintain my personal record consecutive day running streak, at month's end standing at 304 days.  My longest run in February was for 10 miles.  I didn't participate in any public races, though. 

I tended to continue my routine of splitting up my daily runs into morning/road and night/treadmill components, establishing the truth that you can get yourself to do practically anything if you can just get first habituated to it!  The weather in February generally sucked, with ridiculously warm temperatures and suffocating humidity, making me sometimes question myself what planet I live on, of course with a nod to Star Trek's Dr. McCoy (I wonder if you know what I'm talking about).  Good news, though: winter seems to be back, at least at the start of March.  It's getting back down into the thirties at night, and the race I plan to run on March 3 promises to have a shivery start.  But that's cool...I mean REAL cool.  Literally, dude...