My Updated Cumulative Running and Walking Race Record

I've updated below my cumulative running race record...you can see that since the previous update on May 11, 2024, most of my ventures have been to a single location: Gainesville's pretty Depot Park where, on Saturday mornings, they hold a free 5K race/run/walk called the "Depot Parkrun"...I've covered it 73 times at this writing on May 8, 2025.  I also ran marathon, half-marathon, 15K and 10-mile races during the intervening weeks.  Races 10K (6.2 miles) or longer I have highlighted in red. If you see a race you'd like to read more about, just click on the listed title to read my same-day blog article (the first five, though, are "ancient history" from the previous century).  Each entry contains, from left to right: date, distance, my finishing time, event name, location. As for the distance abbreviations, m=miles, K=kilometers, M=marathon and HM=half marathon. And now, on to more running (and walking) adventures...

3-23-73        2m       11:56      Nova HS at Piper track meet         Piper High School, Ft. Lauderdale

4-10-73         2m       11:35      Broward Country South Division Meet    S. Broward HS, Dania

11-27-74      ~2m      ??            Turkey Trot  (BCC) (1)                  Davie, FL

11-?-75      ~2m      ??            Turkey Trot (BCC) (2)                     Davie, FL

7-?-76      ~5m      ??            -unknown-                                         Hollywood, FL   

10-04-08    5K       25:10      Red Cross                                         University of Florida

10-18-08    5K       24:07      Hope Heels                                       Westside Park

11-01-08    5K       24:28      Dog Days                                            Westside Park
2-14-10     HM    2:17:10     Five Points of Life (1)                      Gainesville
3-27-10     15K    1:23:55    Climb for Cancer                                Haile Plantation
4-24-10      5K        23:05     Run Amuck                                        NFR Office Park
5-22-10      5K        25:00     Somer's Sunshine Run                   Orange Park
6-05-10      5K        23:23     Cpt. Chad Reed Memorial                     Cross City
7-04-10      3m        23:04     Melon Run  (1)                                Westside Park
11-6-10    HM    2:01:41       Tom Walker Memorial (1)              Hawthorne Trail
1-23-11      M       6:04:35    Ocala Marathon                                South of Paddock Mall
11-12-11    HM    1:59:38    Tom Walker Memorial (2)              Hawthorne Trail
1-01-12      HM    1:56:07    De Leon Springs                              De Leon Springs
7-04-12      3m        25:45     Melon Run (2)                                Westside Park
11-22-12   10K       53:10     Turkey Trot (1)                                 Tacachale
1-20-13      HM    1:55:20    Ocala Half-Marathon                    South of Paddock Mall
3-03-13      HM    1:50:53    Orange Blossom                             Tavares
11-09-13    2m     untimed    Gator Gallop                                   University Ave, SW 2nd Ave
2-01-14      5K        25:53     Education for Life                           Westside Park
2-16-14      HM    2:07:36    Five Points of Life (2)                    Gainesville
11-27-14   10K        56:56    Turkey Trot (2)                                Tacachale
12-20-14    HM    2:03:30    Starlight Half-Marathon               Palm Coast
1-31-15     15K    1:18:21       Newnan's Lake (1)                          West of Newnan's Lake
2-15-15     HM     1:58:48    Five Points of Life (3)                    Gainesville
3-14-15     10K        56:24    Run for Haven (1)                           Tioga
12-05-15   6.5m   1:03:52    Lumber Around the Levee           Micanopy
1-30-16     15K    1:31:20    Newnan's Lake (2)                           West of Newnan's Lake
3-12-16     10K       59:00    Run for Haven (2)                           Tioga
5-14-16       5K       28:36    May Day Glow Run (1)                    Tioga

7-4-16         3m      28:22    Melon Run (3)                                  Westside Park

11-24-16    10K    1:01:13    Turkey Trot (3)                                Tacachale

2-26-17     HM    2:24:29    Five Points of Life (4)                    Gainesville

3-11-17      10K        58:45   Run for Haven (3)                           Tioga

5-21-17        5K        33:00   May Day Glow Run (2)                 Tioga

1-27-18       15K    1:38:41    Newnan's Lake (3)                        West of Newnan's Lake

2-18-18    HM      2:19:37    Five Points of Life (5)                   Gainesville

3-17-18        5K        29:17    Chris Lacinak Scholarship           Gainesville

12-8-18      15K     1:37:33    Season of Hope (1)                       Hawthorne Trail

1-5-19          5K        30:00    Depot Parkrun (1)                        Gainesville

2-9-19         5K        30:36    Depot Parkrun (2)                        Gainesville

3-16-19       5K        31:16     Miles for Meridian                        Tioga

4-27-19      10K    1:01:52    Run the Good Race (1)                 NFR Office Park

5-5-19         5K        30:38    May Day Glow Run (3)                Jonesville

11-10-19    HM    2:35:20   Tom Walker Memorial (3)          Hawthorne Trail

11-28-19    10K    1:02:16    Turkey Trot (4)                             Tacachale

12-7-19      15K    1:35:48    Season of Hope (2)                       Hawthorne Trail

4-3-21         5K        32:40    Headwaters (1)                             Gainesville

5-29-21      5K        30:50    Depot Parkrun (3)                        Gainesville

6-12-21       5K        33:06    Depot Parkrun (4)                       Gainesville

12-4-21       5K        33:03    Depot Parkrun (5)                        Gainesville

2-12-22       5K        31:28    Depot Parkrun (6)                        Gainesville

2-20-22     HM   2:33:51     Five Points of Life (6)                  Gainesville

3-19-22      10m  1:48:24    Micanopy Ten-Mile (1)                    Micanopy

3-26-22       5K      30:45     Depot Parkrun (7)                        Gainesville

4-9-22         5K       29:28     Headwaters (2)                            Gainesville

10-15-22     10K   1:04:55    Tom Walker Preview (1)                   Hawthorne Trail

10-22-22    10K   1:03:20    Run the Good Race (2)                Gainesville

11-06-22     HM  3:05:29   Tom Walker Memorial (4)           Hawthorne Trail

11-12-22       5K       31:38   Depot Parkrun (8)                         Gainesville

12-10-22      5K       31:46    Depot Parkrun (9)                        Gainesville

1-1-23           5K       32:59   Depot Parkrun (10)                      Gainesville

1-15-23       HM   2:34:42   FTC Mary Andrews (1)                 Hawthorne Trail (east end)

3-11-23        5K         34:02  Depot Parkrun (11)                      Gainesville

3-25-23       5K         33:19   Depot Parkrun (12)                     Gainesville

4-22-23       5K         32:47  Depot Parkrun (13)                      Gainesville

4-29-23       5K        33:34   Depot Parkrun (14)                      Gainesville 

5-6-23         5K        33:08   Depot Parkrun (15)                      Gainesville

5-20-23       5K        31:46    Depot Parkrun (16)                     Gainesville

5-27-23       5K        45:14    Depot Parkrun (17)  (speed-walk)  Gainesville

6-3-23         5K        31:22    Depot Parkrun (18)                     Gainesville

6-10-23       5K       33:38    Depot Parkrun (19)                      Gainesville

8-19-23       5K       32:52    Depot Parkrun (20)                     Gainesville

8-26-23      5K       31:29     Depot Parkrun (21)                      Gainesville

9-9-23        4m      41:59     Is It Fall 4-Miler (1)                      Squirrel Ridge Park, G'ville

9-16-23      5K       32:17      Depot Parkrun (22)                     Gainesville

9 -23-23     5K      30:23     Depot Parkrun (23)                      Gainesville

10-14-23    10K    1:04:51  Tom Walker Preview (2)               Hawthorne Trail

10-21-23    5K       30:19     Depot Parkrun (24)                      Gainesville

10-28-23    5K      30:38     Depot Parkrun (25)                      GaineGainesvillesville

11-4-23       5K      30:14     Depot Parkrun (26)                      Gainesville

11-12-23     HM  2:18:06    Tom Walker Memorial (5)          Hawthorne Trail

11-25-23     5K      29:47     Depot Parkrun (27)                      Gainesville

12-2-23       5K      30:39     Depot Parkrun (28)                     Gainesville    

12-9-23      15K   1:33:02    Season of Hope (3)                       Hawthorne Trail

12-16-23     5K      28:57     Depot Parkrun (29)                      Gainesville

12-23-23    5K       42:20    Depot Parkrun (30) (speed-walk)  Gainesville

1-1-24         5K       27:38    Depot Parkrun (31)                      Gainesville

1-13-24       5K    1:00:40   Depot Parkrun (32) (walked with Melissa) Gainesville

1-14-24      HM  2:07:40   FTC Mary Andrews (2)                Hawthorne Trail (east end)

1-20-24     5K        57:26    Depot Parkrun (33)  (walked with Melissa) Gainesville

2-3-24       5K     1:10:25    Depot Parkrun (34) (volunteer walker) Gainesville

2-10-24    10m   1:39:18    Micanopy Ten-Mile (2)               Micanopy

2-24-24     5K        27:36    Depot Parkrun (35)                      Gainesville

3-16-24     5K        28:19     Depot Parkrun (36)                      Gainesville

3-30--24   5K        28:18     Depot Parkrun (37)                      Gainesville

4-13-24     5K        28:47     Depot Parkrun (38)                     Gainesville

4-20-24    5K        39:43     Depot Parkrun (39) (speed-walk)  Gainesville

4-27-24    5K         27:10     Depot Parkrun (40)                     Gainesville

5-4-24       5K        28:19     Depot Parkrun (41)                      Gainesville

5-11-24     5K        29:11      Depot Parkrun (42)                     Gainesville

5-18-24    5K        38:58     Depot Parkrun (43)  (speed-walk)  Gainesville

5-25-24    5K        49:27     Depot Parkrun (44)  (social walk/running)  Gainesville

6-1-24       5K       27:23      Depot Parkrun (45)                      Gainesville

6-8-24      5K       38:49     Depot Parkrun (46)  (speed-walk)  Gainesville

6-22-24    5K       27:41      Depot Parkrun (47)                       Gainesville

6-29-24    5K       27:01      Depot Parkrun (48)                      Gainesville

7-4-24      3m       26:55     Melon Run (4)                               Gainesville

7-27-24    5K       38:19      Depot Parkrun (49)  (speed-walk) Gainesville

8-10-24    5K      38:19      Depot Parkrun (50)  (speed-walk)  Gainesville

8-17-24    5K       26:51      Depot Parkrun (51)                       Gainesville

8-24-24   10K   1:00:45    US Road Running (1)                 Gainesville

8-31-24    5K       27:25     Depot Parkrun (52)                     Gainesville

9-7-24      4m      36:46     Is It Fall 4-Miler (2)                    Squirrel Ridge Park, Gainesville

9-14-24    5K       39:15      Depot Parkrun (53)  (speed-walk)  Gainesville

10-5-24    5K       27:28     Depot Parkrun (54)                      Gainesville

10-12-24  5K       26:58     Depot Parkrun (55)                      Gainesville

10-19-24  5K       27:17      Depot Parkrun (56)                      Gainesville

11-2-24    5K       26:56      Depot Parkrun (57)                      Gainesville

11-10-24  HM  2:54:40     Tom Walker  Memorial (6) (speed-walk) Hawthorne Trail

11-16-24  5K       26:31       Depot Parkrun (58)                      Gainesville 

11-24-24  M     5:07:49      Mega Cupcake Marathon (1)      Hawthorne Trail (east end)

11-28-24  5K      28:25      Depot Parkrun (59)                       Gainesville

12-7-24   15K   1:29:19      Season of Hope (4)                       Hawthorne Trail 

12-14-24  5K      27:39      Depot Parkrun (60)                       Gainesville

12-21-24  5K      39:22      Depot Parkrun (61) (speed-walk)  Gainesville 

12-28-24  5K     27:32      Depot Parkrun (62)                       Gainesville 

1-1-25       5K    1:11:58      Depot Parkrun (63) (walked with Melissa)  Gainesville

1-1-25       1m        8:25      Frank Shorter Mile                        Gainesville   

1-4-25      5K       27:42     Depot Parkrun (64)                        Gainesville

1-11-25    5K       27:51      Depot Parkrun (65)                        Gainesville

1-18-25    5K      27:45      Depot Parkrun (66)                        Gainesville 

1-20-25  HM   2:05:13     FTC Mary Andrews (3)                  Hawthorne Trail (east end)

1-25-25  15K    1:25:22     Newnan's Lake (4)                         West of Newnan's Lake

2-1-25     5K       39:15       Depot Parkrun (67) (speed-walk)  Gainesville

2-8-25   10m   1:36:50     Micanopy Ten-Mile (3)                  Micanopy

2-15-25   5K       27:32      Depot Parkrun (68)                        Gainesville

3-29-25  5K       44:52      Depot Parkrun (69) (speed-walk)  Gainesville

4-5-25    5K       42:28      Depot Parkrun (70) (speed-walk)  Gainesville

4-12-25  5K       41:23       Depot Parkrun (71) (speed-walk)   Gainesville

4-19-25  5K       34:51       Depot Parkrun (72) (run-walk mix) Gainesville

5-3-25    5K       28:19       Depot Parkrun (73)                         Gainesville

5-10-25  5K      28:04       Depot Parkrun (74)                         Gainesville

5-24-25 10K  1:05:36      US Road Running (2)                      Gainesville

5-31-25  5K      39:42       Depot Parkrun (75)  (speed-walk)  Gainesville

6-7-25   5K      28:37        Depot Parkrun (76)                         Gainesville

6-14-25 5K      28:09       Depot Parkrun (77)                          Gainesville

6-21-25 5K      41:05        Depot Parkrun (78) (speed-walk) Gainesville

7-4-25   3m     28:17         Melon Run (5)                                  Gainesville

7-5-25   5K      29:25        Depot Parkrun (79)                          Gainesville

7-12-25 5K      41:44         Depot Parkrun (80) (speed-walk) Gainesville

7-26-25 5K   1:11:38        Depot Parkrun (81) (volunteer-walker) Gainesville

8-2-25   5K      30:16       West End Community Parkrun  (1) Tioga

8-9-25  5K      42:42        Depot Parkrun (82) (speed-walk)  Gainesville

8-16-25 5K     37:14         West End Community Parkrun (2) (walk/run mix) Tioga

8-30-25 5K    38:54        Depot Parkrun (83) (walk/run mix)  Gainesville

9-6-25   5K     34:36        West End Community Parkrun (3)  (walk/run mix) Tioga

9-13-25 5K     37:08        Depot Parkrun (84)  (walk/run mix)  Gainesville

9-20-25 5K    33:21        https://wmirwinsblog.blogspot.com/2025/09/ran-and-speed-walked-west-end-community.htmlWest End Community Parkrun (4)      Tioga

9-27-25 5K     64:13       West End Community Parkrun (5)       Tioga

10-18-25 5K   43:09       Depot Parkrun (85)  (walk/run mix)   Gainesville

11-8-25            56:06       Depot Parkrun (86 ) (walk)                   Gainesville

11-15-25          43:12        Depot Parkrun (87)  (walk/run mix)  Gainesville

11-22-25         70:03        Depot Parkrun (88) (walk)                   Gainesville

11-27-25         44:21         Dpeot Parkrun (89)  (walk/ran mix   Gainesville

11-19-25         67:38         Depot Parkrun (90) (walk with Melissa Gainesville

12-6-25          42:55         Depot Parkrun (91)  (walk/run mix)  Gainesville

4-45-26          65:16         Depot Parkrun (100) (walk)                Gainesville

*******************       

As for the standard-distance races from 2008 through the present, here are listed my total races finished for each distance along with my personal best time for them...

                         # of Finishes   Personal Best

1 Mile                     1                    8:25  (1/1/25)

3 Miles                   5                 23:04  (7/4/10)

5K                        110                23:05  (4/24/10)

10K                       13                  53:10   (11/22/12)

15K                         9               1:18:21  (1/31/15)

10 Miles                3               1:36:50  (2/8/25)

Half-Marathon  19               1:50:53  (3/3/13)

Marathon             2               5:07:47  (11/24/24)

Weekly Short Stories: 1999 Science Fiction, Part 13

Here's another installment of my weekly feature whereby I review what I've just read in the realm of short science fiction.  This feature goes far back to the year 1939 as I have been progressing through year-by-year "best of" anthologies in this genre...I seem a little stuck on 1999 as I'm going a bit slowly through the present anthology, Gardner Dozois' The Year's Best Science Fiction, Seventeenth Annual Collection.  Although I'm retired now, I am fortunate (or wise, take your pick) to be able to fill my days with purposeful and meaningful activities and projects while enjoying the company of my family, chiefly my dear wife Melissa.  I used to be more directed toward reading while I was at work during my break periods...probably need to carve out a routine for it out of my current daily schedule.  But I did get through one story this past week, and here are my reactions...

DADDY'S WORLD by Walter Jon Williams

A little boy lives with his parents and little sister in a wondrous, fantasy world where his home is just down the road from strange tall, thin, pointy-headed...but friendly beings called Whirlikins and a kite-shaped person called Mister Jeepers swoops down to greet them when they return.  Jamie is used to their routine, but one day everyone around him temporarily freezes and a strange being inserts himself into his reality, forever changing how he sees his world.  This is a scary story that starts out as idyllic.  It also raises the question of what constitutes one's identity in life, and whether that identity is transferable from one physical body to another...especially if that other body is artificial or virtual.  This was a very thought-provoking tale for me...

Next week: more from 1999...

Discussing a Recent, Worthy Rob Dial Podcast Episode

This article isn't really for you folks out there in the worldwide web for your enlightenment, but if you get something from it then that's okay, too.  No, I just wanted to have a ready source at my own hands for the following material I picked up from a recent Rob Dial Mindset Mentor podcast.  He put it out last Friday, and the title was "7 Mindset Habits That Changed My Life".  Here they are:

1 Take radical responsibility...nobody is coming to rescue me...stop blaming others

2 Practice daily gratitude...even when life sucks

3 Reframe fear as a compass...pay attention to where it points, usually to discomfort zones where growth opportunities lie

4 Learn to trust intuition...the "whisper" in the mind over the "scream"

5 Act before I feel ready...ready, fire, aim...take action and then adjust through the mess

6 Speak to myself the way I speak to someone I love...the Desiderata says "Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself"

7 Let go of perfectionism...perfectionism is "fear in a fancy outfit"..."done" is better than "perfect"

Of course, Mr. Dial explains each of these in greater depth.  And my own "whispered" inner voice tells me that each of his points are very well-taken...

Excessive Smiling: An American Pecularity

Back when I was twelve and in the seventh grade in junior high school, I had an assigned afternoon slot on my schedule for math study lab, which I shared with a small number of classmates.  One of these, Randy, was a bit of a smart-ass snobby extrovert who would fit into the general depiction of an "alpha male".  He was a stout believer in grinning, and seemed to have a problem about me not sharing his outlook, calling me "Smiley" in sarcasm.  The idea was to make me feel bad and inferior because I wasn't constantly beaming like him (and other students): I just shook it off with the best of humor that I could muster.  In truth, though, it's this insistence in American culture for people to always be smiling with their teeth on grand display that the rest of the world sees as peculiar and worth criticizing.  Most folks, it turns out, are like me in that they are much more hesitant to smile, using that expression more in alignment with actual feelings and tending to be more close-mouthed with it.  Here, though, it's seen as a sign of social confidence and strength and emphasized much more.  I recently saw a YouTube posting in Russian where the host delved into this curious American phenomenon: it was a revelation to me.  So all these years I was the normal dude...should have known.  I know when I do those weekly Depot Parkruns, there's always a photographer present who gets shots of the participants during the event and then posts them within a day or two on Facebook.  Most everyone is grinning from ear to ear at the camera while I usually appear as deep in a frown even though I'm feeling quite happy...that's just me, and I'm guessing that's how the larger part of humanity does it as well...

Scheffler Wins First '25 Golf Tournament with Outstanding Score

It looks as if professional golfer Scottie Scheffler is back on track with his game, after having to recover from a hand injury late last year following a spectacular season that saw him win several tournaments and even the Olympic gold medal.  He shot a mind-numbing 31 under par in the CJ Cup Byron Nelson Classic, held in McKinney, Texas, a few miles from Scheffler's home town of Dallas, winning by eight strokes.  I can see from watching some of the action there this week that weather plays an enormous role in how the golfers play...apparently those treacherous winds I've witnessed in previous tournaments were much tamer with this one.  Scheffler seemed to have his game together in all of its aspects...good for him!  Of course, other than fellow Texan Jordan Spieth and a handful of other notables, there was a general lack of big names entered in this tournament...I wonder how Rory McIlroy or Justin Thomas would have done here.  Well, I guess it's on to the next week, wherever they happen to be playing...

Watched Today's Kentucky Derby, Hype and All

Earlier today I watched...as has generally been my pattern...the drawn-out, hyped coverage of this year's version of the Kentucky Derby, the first of the Triple Crown of American three-year-old thoroughbred horse racing.  Taking place at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, it is full of tradition with all the flowers, ornate clothes and hats...and of course all that Kentucky booze.  Before the race, Journalism was the listed betting favorite, and different analysts and celebrities weighed in on which horse they picked to win the race, composed of twenty horse/jockey combos crammed onto a slick, muddy track on this rainy day.  As for me, a few days ago I picked Sovereignty out of the lineup because I liked the name and the horse wasn't an extreme long shot.  I also looked to see what trainer Bob Baffert had entered in the race...I'm something of a fan of his and was dismayed at his suspension for the past few years for a violation in an earlier race.  The only horse of his was Citizen Bull, so I kept an eye on that one.  The race itself went well, although everyone in it was thoroughly muddied at the end.  As it turned out, Baffert's entry, drawing the undesired pole position, started out strong in the lead but faded to finished 15th.  And Journalism and Sovereignty, training pals from their horse farm in nearby (to me) Ocala, fought it out for the win at the very end, with "my" horse pulling away.  It was a satisfying race to watch and, you know, I didn't need to wager a single dime on it in order to enjoy it all.  Now on to the second jewel in the Triple Crown, Baltimore's Preakness at Pimlico, in a couple of weeks.  Usually the Kentucky Derby winner runs in the Preakness, but that isn't always the case as the trainer has to ascertain the horse's condition... 

Ran This Morning's Depot Parkrun 5K in Gainesville

This morning I got up and, unlike last Saturday when I felt a twinge of pain behind my left leg, got ready to run the Depot Parkrun 5K for the first time since before my prostatectomy surgery on March 6th...a little more than eight weeks ago.  The temperature and humidity for this early May event in northern Florida was typically unpleasant at 68 degrees and 89% mugginess.  But I've been through them before and wanted to return to the old routine, confident that I could cover the 3.1 mile course after some successful training outings around my own neighborhood.  The theme for today's run (or walk, if that suits your fancy) was "may the force fourth be with you", except of course it was May the Third...oh well.  There were quite a few people there today at the park...I was surprised to get a close parking spot after leaving home a little later than expected.  On my run today I resolved to get into my established "groove", which I did in short order.  I was frankly surprised to see that I was running at a pretty solid pace, and at the end...in spite of the unpleasantness from that high humidity...had no problem finishing at 28:19.  That's a very encouraging result.  No pain, no energy drain, not even excess sweating.  As for next week, maybe I'll do the Parkrun, maybe not.  If I do it, maybe it'll be a run, maybe a walk...or maybe some overdue volunteering.  You can view today's results by clicking HERE...

Language Acquisition Through Conversation: I'm Working On It

Here in Gainesville...and in many other locations, I hear...is an informal group called Language Exchange Party.  They meet the first and third Fridays of the month at 7 PM, at a restaurant that borders on Depot Park, the place I do my (more or less) weekly runs and walks.  I've known of them ever since the start of the year as I was looking for some venue in which to practice the foreign languages I'm studying, but had to first deal with my own medical issue.  I was thinking about going there this evening but decided to pass on it, college graduation going on and all...we'll see how it goes a couple of weeks from now.  Their group is free and, like I said, informal.  They say that, upon entering the place, you select stickers representing both your best languages and those you are pursuing, enabling everybody to sort through the crowd to find suitable conversation partners.  I would don stickers representing English, Russian, Spanish and Chinese, preparing myself to spend much of the time with my first language as I converse with others learning it.  I have some strategies with Russian, Spanish and Chinese for engaging in conversation as well, both relating to how children pick up their first language.  One is to use stream-of-consciousness speaking, casually connecting words and phrases that at least approximate the meaning of what I'm trying to convey without obsessing on "perfect" grammar or word selection.  Another is to copy my brilliant niece Melanie who, when she was just 20 months old, would go around everywhere and point to just about anything that captured her attention, loudly and clearly naming it...that vacation trip in June, 1981 was unforgettable.  With the latter, I think adults who are studying new languages tend to lag behind with naming things and probably focus too much on just grammar and general vocabulary and phrases.  In any event, I plan to try out my "experiments" in language acquisition some time starting in May: stay tuned...

My April 2025 Running and Walking Report

As I continue to recover from my prostatectomy surgery on March 6, the recommended six-week post-op delay before I could begin running passed in mid April, and I consequently began to reintroduce running into my workouts.  Before that I was walking a lot, and resumed my participation in the weekly Saturday morning Depot Parkrun 5K, walking on April 5 and 12.  On the 19th I mixed the 3.1-mile walk with running, with encouraging results.  My recovery from the surgery has three facets to it.  One, the healing of the necessary surgical wounds involved in the robotic laparoscopic removal of my seriously malignant prostate.  Two, my body's ability to recover functions lost with said prostate's removal, chiefly urinary continence.  And three, the future (starting in may-May) periodic blood tests to ascertain whether the cancer, diagnosed as localized within the prostate, was completely removed or whether I need further treatment.  The healing seems to have gone very well and the bodily functions, mainly improving, are still a work in progress, with me cautiously optimistic.  And those future checkups and potential treatments are simply going to be an aspect of my life from now on...better to just get used to them.  As for my workouts in April, I have been employing my personally-designed  3.3-mile course in my own residential neighborhood here in far-northern Gainesville to great success, either speed-walking the distance or mixing it up with running.  Regarding May, in a couple of days on the 3rd I plan to fully run the Depot Parkrun and then continue consistently trying to make it to that weekly event, running some of them and walking others.  It's heating up here in northern Florida and I'm taking this into account by keeping my training reasonable and my distances relatively short.  So far, so good.  I'm also checking into whether to introduce sprinting into my running routine...

Weekly Short Stories: 1999 Science Fiction, Part 12

Sometimes the story I'm reading is a little lengthier than usual, and sometimes I have different demands on my attention over the course of the week: I think both may have been at play here as I have just one 1999 tale to discuss below.  It appears in the Gardner Dozois anthology The Year's Best Science Fiction, Seventeenth Annual Collection.  The entry's title certainly got my attention...

PHALLICIDE by Charles Sheffield

The setting here is Utah in more or less the present era.  A young woman who appears to be something of a scientific genius is performing some kind of advanced research at a private facility in a hush-hush project.  Then she realizes she has just lost a week of time for which she cannot account...she was supposed to be visiting her family.  Then her "handler", a high official in a renegade offshoot of the Mormon church...renegade because it still illegally practices polygymy and early teenage marriage...interrogates her and she recovers the lost memory.  The project is centered around coming up with effective drugs to enable the church elders to maintain their sexual potency in far advanced age.  But our scientist has had enough of all this, having experienced for herself the worst of this kind of child abuse.  And then...well, read that title and then read on to the story's end.  And that ending: what exactly was she dreaming up in her head that made her smile?

Next week: more from 1999...  

Finally Went Down to the Friends of Library Book Sale for April

On this overheated, muggy late-April day, I decided to get on down to Main Street here in Gainesville to attend yet another Friends of the Library book sale.  They're held each April and October, at least in non-pandemic years, but I was considering skipping this one, with today being their next-to-last day of the sale.  Around noon when I got there, it was pretty crowded but at least there wasn't a long line in order to get in like two or three days ago.  I focused on the foreign language books, and they had an unusually wide selection of material.  I settled on one item to purchase, a Japanese-English idioms dictionary...complete with transliteration and sentence examples...for just one dollar.  It's something I can just keep by my side at the recliner and look at from time to time.  I was thinking about looking at their jigsaw puzzle selections, too, but they would have made me place my book out on a table where anyone could have walked away with it...so I demurred and went on home.  Besides, I have plenty of puzzles at home to do...

My Top Favorite Songs In April 2025

Back at the start of the year I wrote that it might be fun to revisit an old habit of mine from the early 1970's, which was to reflect on each of the calendar months at their close and select a "song of the month".  For example, 52 years ago in April of 1973, it was Stealers Wheel and the Gerry Rafferty-led band's hit single Stuck in the Middle With You.  This April is almost past, and I've picked a song for it as well: Nothing I Need by Lord Huron.  Maybe it got some radio play, maybe not: since I generally don't listen to the radio for my music anymore, I wouldn't know.  All I do know is that it is in the current rotation on Amazon Prime Music on their Fresh Indie channel.  Another song, April's runner-up for me, is Before You I Just Forget by Fontaines DC.  And for #3, I like Zero Sum by The Smile.  I still consider Fontaine DC's Starburster as my "song of the year" so far, but there are still many months to go.  I'm also think of researching recent album releases of different acts I like and see if I can't find some deep tracks on them.  As for Nothing I Need, it sounds more like it belongs back in the seventies when there was a lot crossover between country and pop, with more than a few hits combining the two. This song fits the bill in that regard as it reminds me a little of some of Kenny Rogers' early tracks...

Packaged Evening News Like Box Lunches

It's hard for me to take the televised news seriously anymore, beyond the barest of facts they present before being mercilessly spun out of recognition by people with no more qualification to do so than you or me.  In the midst of all the hyper-serious stuff being presented, it gets really bizarre when the announcer keeps teasing the viewing audience to stick around to the end of the show for a preview of the network's special upcoming show.  That happened recently on ABC Evening News with David Muir, as Muir kept referring, with a twinkle in his eyes, to the upcoming National Football League draft that would immediately follow the broadcast. As if this were such a special treat that went beyond my wildest expectations.  Please. I went to a church function last Saturday that offered a lunch break on the premises, complete with box lunches.  They were very thorough and meticulous with the various nutritional components.  There was a nice little chicken salad wrap, a little cup of seasoned pasta, a little fresh fruit cup...and each packaged meal was complete with a brownie for dessert. Because, after all, we just have to have everything at least a little bit sugar-coated, right?  Somehow, though, I think I'd rather the news be free of that embellishment.  I really don't need the distraction of a football draft, or even the human interest regular segment...ABC has its "America Strong" "good news" to close out its news broadcast.  It's as if we've sat at the table, eaten our salads and nutrition like good little girls and boys, and now need our sweet dessert reward...all carefully designed and packaged in a little box. I do like those prepared lunches, though.  What was it that Mary Poppins said?  Oh yes, a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.  I believe she sang that to little children, which seems to be the way that the news media treat us...

Skipped Run This Morning, Attended Church Function

Normally, Saturday morning is the time for me to drive down to Depot Park, just south of downtown Gainesville, to participate in their weekly free Parkrun 5K.  Yesterday evening, though...following the viewing of the movie Conclave...I felt a twinge of slight pain in my leg behind the knee.  Not wanting to take a chance on aggravating a possible injury, I decided to skip the event.  No problem...I slept in and got some extra needed sleep: I can take it easier on the exercise and see how it goes.  Later today, Melissa and I went to the nearby United Methodist Church to attend a conference headed by Wesleyan scholar Paul Chilcote.  It was well-done and I felt a spirit of love and camaraderie there.  I did notice, though, a personal aversion to interacting directly with others.  It wasn't a matter of disliking anyone for any reason, but rather a physical reaction I experienced, as if I were somehow allergic to them.  Oh, one thing that kind of rubbed me wrong was Chilcote claiming at the end that he was an introvert...that dude apparently hasn't a clue about what the word really means.  Still, his message was welcome although I felt he invested too much time and emphasis on the official denomination and its founders.  Then again, I guess that contributed to how he got to rise like he did in stature within the organization.  That's fine: he's a good guy and I wish him well...

Watched the Movie Conclave Tonight

Since Melissa and I are Amazon Prime subscribers, we had the opportunity to watch the suddenly-timely movie Conclave on their channel.  I have to admit to being a bit resistant to sitting there through this fictional account of the selection of a new Bishop of Rome, i.e. the Pope, after the death of the incumbent pontiff.  But I thought, why not, especially after reading up on it that it received high critical reviews and starred one of my favorite current actors, Ralph Fiennes.  Fiennes plays Cardinal Lawrence, tasked as the manager of the Conclave.  The College of Cardinals, all with their red beanies, are shut off in a well-staffed and well-supplied building in the Vatican, and have to take repeated ballots to finally come up with their selection for the new leader of the Roman Catholic Church.  Since Pope Francis just passed away recently, this Conclave process is coming up soon, at the beginning of May.  The deliberations and negotiations behind doors will last as long as it takes until someone is finally elected.  As for the movie itself, I found sticking through it all rather tedious, with men representing different predictable factions vying for an edge against each other.  Scandal, tenuous alliances, megalomania and betrayal abound here...these "holy men" would fit in quite well with the Nazgul of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings for their coveting of power.  I'm not Catholic and I don't harbor any delusions that their situation is any worse than anyone else's...the urge to lord oneself over others is a human foible, largely male, as I have suffered from this desire on the part of would-be alpha-male "leaders" to make me subservient to them, going all the way back to childhood and continuing through school, work and even into old-age retirement.  I don't boss others around, nor do I want to: if you see yourself as my leader, then you ARE deluded and need to stay away.  Conclave's depiction of humans in conflict...albeit peaceful conflict...may enhance a story's dramatic appeal to many, but it left me flat and drained.  Who cares who they finally picked, and sadly, who cares in the real world how "our" Cardinals will  decide...

Just Finished Reading Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown

A few days ago I decided to head down to my local public library to see about possibly replacing my old worn out library card.  After they told me it could still scan, I instead just went browsing and checked out a couple of books, one a mystery novel and the other science fiction.  I managed to select...from what was offered...the very first in a long series of books by Rita Mae Brown...with partial credit given to her cat Sneaky Pie Brown...called the Mrs. Murphy Mysteries.  Wish You Were Here introduces protagonist Mary Minor Haristeen, or more simply "Harry", who lives in the western Virgina town of Crozet with her cat Mrs. Murphy and corgi dog Tee Tucker.  This inaugural mystery centers around brutal murders of townspeople, preceded by the victims receiving in the mail cryptic postcards depicting gravestones with the phrase "Wish You Were Here" on the flip side.  Harry, who manages the local post office, is in the perfect location to see this unfold as the cards begin to arrive.  But she's not the only sleuth around. Mrs. Murphy and Tucker, who know everything and everyone around and who can talk fluently with each other and their other animal friends, are the main detectives: they just have trouble getting their ideas across to the often dense humans.  It's a funny book, and I appreciated how it featured a list of characters that I repeatedly referred back to as I read along.  Wish You Were Here is light, escapist reading (284 pages paperback) for folks who have an affinity (as I do) for cats and dogs. It first came out in 1990, and some twenty-odd other Mrs. Murphy novels have followed...I'm ready to get started on Book Two.  But first I think I'll tackle that sci-fi novel I also checked out...

Weekly Short Stories: 1999 Science Fiction, Part 11

Today I discuss two well-written stories from 1999 that appear in the Gardner Dozois anthology The Year's Best Science Fiction, Seventeenth Annual Collection.  I always like to see Robert Silverberg's presence in these anthologies, and Paul J. McAuley likewise contributed a thought-provoking entry.  Here's my take on them...

A HERO OF THE EMPIRE by Robert Silverberg

Close to novella-length, this is an alternative history tale that speculates on how history may have progressed had the Western Roman Empire remained as a powerful entity into the seventh-century, AD.  A member of the Emperor Justinian's court has been sent, ostensibly in disgrace but in reality to be a spy, to the stark desert land of Arabia where he not only befriends the Eastern Empire's representative there, but also meets up with a local charismatic fanatic who simultaneously enthralls and scares him with his convictions.  I wonder, given the violent touchiness certain world religions have toward those who they feel are taking liberties with their ideology, if Silverberg's 1999 story might have had a different fate were it submitted for publishing following 9/11 only a couple of years later.  Not that it contains anything offensive, but that ending might have been just a bit too unsettling to an intolerantly true believer...

HOW WE LOST THE MOON, A TRUE STORY BY FRANK W. ALLEN by Paul J. McAuley

Here's a truly "hard" science fiction story, that is, one with scientific viability playing a key role in its plot and outcome.  Here the reader gets a crash course...without the advanced mathematics...on black holes and the degree of threat that they might pose if close to Earth.  "Frank W. Allen" in the title is apparently the first-person fictional character relating the events that, in a near-future scenario, indeed determine the fate of our moon.  Along with his physicist colleague, working on the moon to fix problems at various research sites, the two arrive at a somber conclusion after an accident at a base on the Far Side.  You might gather from this that Earth and its life would be in peril...yet astonishingly, this doesn't seem to be the case.  An intriguing story that makes me wonder whether something like this could actually occur...

Next week I continue looking at the year 1999 in short science fiction...

Happy Earth Day...If Your "Truth" Allows It

So today is officially Earth Day...are we still interested in it?  After all, it's only the one planet we know that can sustain life in our universe.  But then again, that pesky former vice-president Al Gore did come out, a little more than a couple of decades ago, with his An Inconvenient Truth book that presented the widely-held view among climatologists that the world is warming at an alarming rate, due to man-made forces.  Ever since then, the issue has been divided on political lines with the Democrats generally supporting measures to counteract climate change and the Republicans in a "convenient" state of denial as they go full speed ahead with fossil fuels.  I remember back in April 1970 when another Republican, president Richard Nixon, was there at the inauguration of Earth Day.  In spite of his flaws, this was a president who understood the fragility of our home planet and supported environmental regulation.  It's sad to see much of this fall by the wayside as people nowadays choose their own "truths" and condemn the "other side" as enemies...

Saw Physical Therapist Again Today

Today I went on my appointment to see the physical therapist assigned me regarding my recovery from prostatectomy surgery on March 6th.  Although it has indeed been more than six weeks since that time and the general guidelines for resuming running allow for it after that interval, my therapist seems a bit more cautious about it, handing me a paper with some preconditions for returning to running that, frankly, I find a little unreasonable.  Oh well, I'm the one who has to make the decisions about that, and I think I'm being cautious enough.  In any event, I have four new exercises to work on daily, and then next month I'll have a follow-up p.t. appointment.  My physical therapist is also a runner, she does marathons, and is recovering from a leg injury probably caused by overtraining...I have to take this into consideration when taking her advice.  Some of the paper's criteria about running, interestingly, don't seem to matter when discussing simple walking.  Being someone whose sensibilities about health indicate that between active and sedentary, the former is usually the best road taken, and taking into account that I won't be doing any races anyway that are longer than 5K until October at the earliest because of the hot spring and summer here in northern Florida, I'm inclined to stick to what I've been doing.  Which is cautiously incrementally challenging my body...alternating with resting it well...as I continue to heal...

Easter Celebrated with Family

I hope all of you who celebrate Easter have enjoyed this holiday today.  You have to be something of an astronomer to determine, on your own, on which date this honoring of Jesus' resurrection falls within each calendar year.  The formula is: Easter (as celebrated in the West, not in the Eastern Orthodox churches) lies on the first Sunday following the first full moon following the first day of spring...for some reason it goes that way, maybe you can enlighten me on why.  Melissa and I spent it at home, with various folks in our family stopping by to enjoy lunch with us...what a blessing.  Later on in the day I watched the conclusion of the ongoing PGA golf tournament, the Heritage Classic held in Hilton Head, South Carolina.  Justin Thomas held on in sudden death to win his first tourney in some years...good for him, I guess.  I'm not a golfer...the irony is that were I one, I probably wouldn't have any interest in rooting for one over another in these tournaments.  After all, I'm a runner and I absolutely could not care less about the premier runners in the world or this country...or even in my own home town of Gainesville, for that matter.  That's another thing that maybe you can enlighten me on why...  

Just Did Gainesville's Depot Parkrun 5K This Morning

It's been a little more than six weeks following my surgery, and going by their guidelines about when I can resume running, I decided for today's Depot Parkrun 5K...held weekly at that park just south of downtown Gainesville...to mix in some running with the speed-walking I had been doing for the previous three weeks.  So, for the first three (of four) laps, I would walk the front side and run the back side.  On the last lap I ran most of it...finishing with a hybrid walk/run mix time of 34:51.  It was obviously more tiring to add in the running, but at this writing it's a little more than two hours since my finish and I feel fine...no pain or soreness.  Melissa went with me today...always encouraging...and she gamely walked half the event: keep it up, Sweetheart! It was a reasonable 60 degrees at 7:30 am race time...the humidity was a muggy 94%. You can view today's results by clicking HERE.  Depot Parkrun is just one of the Parkrun organization's hundreds of events held worldwide.  It's free, and you register online to receive a printable barcode that you take to be scanned after the race...then your results are posted online.  It's been a good habit for me for the past few years, especially regarding my recovery from my two surgeries.  

Chicken Family Jigsaw Puzzle

 

I just finished another jigsaw puzzle.  This one, a 300-piece depiction of a chicken family complete with rooster, hens and chicks, is a painting by Linda Picken titled "Farm Friends"...she has her own country property out west with lots of different animals on it.  I picked it up a few days ago at a chain crafts store on Newberry Road here in Gainesville.  I liked the combination of all the different colors and shapes in her picture...as well as the bigger individual pieces...

Six Weeks Now After Surgery

With today it is six weeks since I was operated on (six hours duration) to remove my cancerous prostate.  In spite of that and staying overnight in the hospital, I was never officially admitted there and was released the following day around noon as an outpatient.  That I didn't stay longer, though, was okay with me as I don't entirely relish hospital stays...my guess is that you probably don't, either. My progress after the surgery, beginning with an 11-day cathetorization of my bladder and a degree of pain and difficulty with sleep, has continued to the present day, with the predicted incontinence gradually lightening up...although I always had a substantial degree of control over my bladder from the moment the despised catheter was finally removed.  Aside from another "predicted" issue that may or may not be resolved during the next few months of healing, the only thing now concerning me with this unwanted medical episode in my life is next month's PSA (protein-specific antigen) blood test to determine the probability (or improbability) that the cancer had remained on a microscopic level in my body.  My urologist/surgeon expressed to me his confidence that there is a 65% chance that I was cleared of it, but I still have a month before I find out.  Regardless, my provider seems to have it all worked out with future treatment (or lack thereof), whatever the test results reveal.  In the meantime, life goes on and I intend to live it to the fullest...