A little perspective, courtesy of my television provider

A handful of patience is worth more than a bushel of brains. ~Dutch Proverb

This morning I found myself having to put effort into exercising patience. You see, I have a technician in my house right now, hooking up a new DVR receiver for my satellite. Then he has to go outside and upgrade the dish itself.

Not only do I have to delay my morning run, but I just found out that the 40 hours of old TV shows that I have saved on my old DVR can’t be downloaded off of it, onto the new one. (That’s one of the reasons we’re upgrading.)

Anyhow, anyone would be frustrated. Right?

Yeah, well, honestly, I’m ashamed of myself that I’m feeling anything other than elation that this whole thing is happening.

How did I get to the point that I’m feeling upset that my satellite company is giving me a new receiver for free (and installing it for free, also)?

Why am I not thrilled about this?

It’s such a First World problem. I have a roof over my head, safe drinking water that comes out of the tap, hot or cold, on demand. My electricity works 100% of the time and is affordable. My air conditioner runs cold air at my every whim. I can watch way too many TV channels any hour of the day or night, or watch nearly anything I want on the internet, which I can access from any spot in my house. My refrigerator is filled to capacity with food, as is my pantry. My bank account gets steady infusions of cash, enough to cover the mortgage and utilities and basics of life, and still have some left over. 

Seriously. What the hell do I ever have to complain about?

All that we behold is full of blessings.  ~William Wordsworth

The rest of the day, I’m going to be grateful for all that I have. Then I’m going to be grateful again tomorrow. And the next day.

And I’m going to start right now, by being grateful for the shiny new satellite receiver that’s being installed in my home. Something that I don’t need at all, but will get hours of enjoyment from. And the next time I realize I'm not appreciating the many blessings I have in my life, I'm going to mentally smack myself upside my head.

Thank you, Mr. Satellite Technician, for teaching me a lesson in humility today!

Zen and the Art of Running

Since I began running, I’ve learned a lot…about patience.

(But isn’t the point of running to get someplace fast?)

I’m not a natural athlete, and hadn’t run more than a few steps at a time since college. So when I took it up again two decades later, I tried to jump right in and be strong and fast, immediately.

That didn’t work out so well.

After a couple of mildly strained knees, I learned my lesson, or so I thought. And I slowly began to build up distance, and to a lesser amount, speed. And when I got to a certain point in my fitness, I tried to push it again. After all, I was over the beginner’s hump and was strong enough to handle it now, right?

Um, no.

My strained hip told me to back off again. At this point, I was a year into my running, and had to go back almost to where I started.

How humiliating.

But I did it, let myself heal up, and got to where I could train again. And I slowly eased into distance and speed again. Which was great, until my body started to respond to the training. Which meant I could do more…

…and injured my hamstring.

You seeing a pattern here? Good. Sad to say, it took me a year and a half to identify it.

Now, I think I have it. My hamstring has healed. I successfully (and slowly) ran a half marathon last month and felt great. I have two more races scheduled in the next three months. Life is good.

This time around, I’m keeping the speed work in check. It’s still difficult. I feel good and I’m ready to let loose. But I made it this far without hurting myself again, so I must be doing something right. I want to get faster, and want to someday finish a race mid-pack instead of in the back. And it will happen, someday. But for now, finishing injury free is enough.

I never thought it would take this long, but my journey from zero to marathon is going to take at least three years. If I had known that when I started running, I might not have kept going. But I’m glad I did. It was totally worth it.

What I’ve learned about patience from running has spilled over into other areas of my life. Everything… every task… every undertaking has its own pace. You have to respect that pace. It will happen in good time. In the meantime, enjoy the ride!

A (half) Marathon Undertaking

“Time to go for a run.”

Those are quite possibly my favorite words in the world.

The Spousal Unit and I had a great time at our half marathon two weeks ago. We picked the Space Coast Half Marathon for SU’s debut, and it was a wonderful race.

There’s a lot to do in Cocoa, FL. We took a couple of days and explored the area, including Kennedy Space Center (you get a discount coupon in your race packet, so there’s another bonus for signing up for that particular race).

The race itself was perfect: overcast, a bit breezy, and 68 degrees. I know, that’s a little warm for some (most?) runners. But for us weenies that don’t deal well with cold, it was exactly what we wanted.

before

The start of the race was a little rocky. But then, aren’t they all? Well, again, maybe that’s just me. The SU and I don’t do mornings that well, especially not early mornings, and the race had a 6:15 am start. That means up at 4:00 am, to make sure we were properly fed and caffeinated prior to running. Plus finding parking, which turned out to not be a huge deal. (Yet another bonus of the Space Coast Half Marathon.)

In addition to the early hour, my SU had given me a Garmin Forerunner 405 prior to the race. That’s a runner’s toy that I had been eyeing for nearly two years, and was very excited to have. Unfortunately, it is a very complex toy, and I didn’t have any clue how to use it, so it caused a bit of frustration the first mile. Okay, a lot of frustration. But once I got it working, things settled down.

Since this was the SU’s first race, and I wanted it to be a good experience, I hung back and let him set the pace. We did a nice, sloooow jog for the first four miles. Then, suddenly, magically, my SU discovered his inner competitive streak. “I’m tired of all these people passing us – let’s go!” You got it, baby.

halfway there

The rest of the race was a series of negative splits, meaning we ran nearly every mile faster than the previous one. Near the end, we had enough energy to flat out sprint. Not bad for a 13.1 mile run!

We crossed the finish line hand in hand, with a respectable time, and realized we still had energy to spare. And, most importantly, we had fun, and the SU is looking forward to running more races.

Mission accomplished!

afterglow!

Let's talk time management - the five-minute rule

Yes, my old friend, time management. Where have you been, buddy?

Today I made a concerted effort to create a list and cross things off, like I talked about here.

You know something? Lists work.

What else worked was the five-minute rule.

The five-minute rule is if you need to do something, and it only takes five minutes, DO IT RIGHT NOW. Don't put it off.

I cleared my list in record time today by doing all the five-minute tasks first, then tackling the other stuff.

Amazing...

It doesn't all have to be done today! (Or even tomorrow...)

Last week I was busy. Crazy busy. Nod off in front of the computer at the end of the day busy. And I must say, I got a lot done! But I’m also glad that things have calmed down this week.

Since becoming a freelancer, I’ve noticed something: when I’m super busy, my work takes over my home life. Before, when I went to an office, I had busy days, and even some long days…but when I got home, that was it. Work was done.

Not any more. When you work from home, sometimes there is no “off” switch.

Luckily there are some things that I can let slide when I get extremely busy. And there are a few things I can’t.

Here are four things I can put off when life gets hectic.

-Selected housework. I can’t just drop all housework, because I still have to live and work here. But vacuuming, dusting, and making beds? They can wait.

-Cooking. I love to cook, it’s one of my favorite things in life. But if I’m busy, meal planning, shopping, ingredient prep, and cooking are time-vampires. As long as I have a carton of eggs and a bunch of bananas in the fridge, I’m not going to starve.

-Reading/writing for fun. This one kills me to give up, but these enjoyable pastimes become time-wasters when I’m busy. That means no extra personal blogging, rambling emails to friends, or reading novels or magazines.

-Sleep. Well, I can’t cut sleep out entirely. But if it’s a choice between getting a project done on time or disappointing a client, well, I’ll give up a couple of hours a night. Besides, I work from home - when it slows down again, I can take a nap!

And here are four things I can never let slide. Ever.

-Selected housework. Laundry - gotta have clean clothes. The alternative is just unbearable. And running the dishwasher from time to time, as well as a weekly trip to the grocery store for the basics (like eggs and bananas).

-Email. Like everyone else, I get a ton of email. I found out the hard way that it must be dealt with every day, like clockwork, or my electronic inbox overflows and it becomes too much to handle. I set aside 3 times a day that I tackle new items in my inbox, and it only takes a few minutes each time. The rest of the day I try to ignore it (unless I’m expecting something important).

-Family time. Again, a few minutes here and there accomplishes a lot. Setting aside the computer for 15 minutes or so does wonders for my husband’s and cats’ moods, and mine, too.

-Exercise. I’m not talking about training for an Olympic event here. But I need a minimum of 30 minutes, 3 days a week of aerobic activity to feel human. It may mean giving up a little sleep, but I’m not giving up my morning run.

What are the things you have to keep up with, even when you’re busy? What can you avoid? Share in the comments section below.

Saw this coming...

On Saturday I went running.  My hamstring was still a little sore off and on, but I tried to do a good job of warming it up and taking it easy.  It really wasn't too bad.

So I ran an extra mile and a half.  And the hammy has been screaming at me ever since.

Can you say, "Stupid?"

Yeah, that's me.

So I've been icing and resting, and it's feeling much better.  As in, no pain today.

Yup, you guessed it.  I'm going to run tomorrow!

Ha!

No seriously, I'm running tomorrow.  But I'm going to only do a couple of easy miles.  Which will hopefully keep it from flaring up again.

And for those that are keeping track, I'm very close to cancelling the marathon.  I'd still like to do the race, because it looks like a lot of fun.  But I think I'm destined for the half, and not the full.  This year.  The hubby and I need to discuss it, and it also depend on how the next couple of weeks go.  But I'm trying to mentally prepare myself.

Cautiously optimistic

I went running on Sunday.  For the first time in weeks.

It went okay.

It was humid and about 150 degrees out.  (Well, maybe not quite that hot.  But above a certain point, does it matter?) Hubby and I went to a nearby park that has a one-mile paved loop, and ran laps.  The heat was brutal, and I was dead tired after just three miles.

And the hamstring?  Well, it's a little shaky, but it seemed to hold up. 

It's not 100% yet.  I've spent a lot of time icing it, and resting it again.  Another run this morning, and more ice today.  Did you know that a blue ice pack, the kind you use in coolers, works really well on a sore hamstring?  It's true...it's flat and easy to sit on.  Don't laugh, it's the easiest way to ice the back of your thigh and still get some work done!

So yes, it's still a bit sore.  I'm going to give it a few more days, then try it all again.  And again.  And again...

This morning, while I was slogging along in the early morning heat, trying to step gently and not jar my hips too much, I was thinking about my future.  Or at least, my future as a runner.  I was thinking about the marathon I have planned at the end of November, and what my chances are of being able to make it through the training, and the race itself.  I was wondering if I should just give up on the idea of a marathon this year, or even next year.  Maybe the distance is just too much. 

Then I thought, who cares?  I want to do the marathon.  So I'm going to continue to try and heal up, and keep training.  And I'll run the marathon.  That will be great.  Unless I can't do it; then I'll do the half marathon.  That would be okay, too. 

And if I can't do either in November, I'll still live. Because someday my hamstring will be okay.  And there are always more marathons.

Three Tips for Time Management

Today's topic is time management, which is kind of funny if you realize that I was actually going to post about this yesterday, but didn't manage my time well enough to actually get it done!

Okay, well, I guess it's just funny to me...

Anyhow, work (and life in general) is getting a lot busier, so suddenly, time management matters to me.  A lot.

Here are three things that are helping me get a handle on my time.  Admittedly, I don't have my system refined down to a science yet (see my little snafu above).  But after the nice long break I had for the first few months of the year, these tips are really helping me get back on track.

1. Write my to-do list on a post-it.  I read this in an article from AWAI.  Basically, if it doesn't fit on a post-it, I have too much to get done in a day and I need to re-prioritize.

2. Write early.  Dang it, I didn't want this one to be true.  I wanted to wake up when the sun woke me, have some coffee, relax, plan my day, maybe do an errand or a chore around the house, then get going creatively.  But if I don't start working early in the morning, I don't get any real work done all day.  So now I roll out of bed, get my cup of coffee, and start writing.  Even if I move on to something else, I come back to the writing and my creativity flows all day.  (Dang it.)

3. Listen to music.  This one has helped a lot.  I love music, but I also love quiet.  One of the things that I relish about working from home is not having to listen to other people's phones, conversations, footsteps, and noise in general.  But I recently heard a recommendation to listen to baroque music while working.  Slow baroque music is supposed to have a positive effect on your brain waves.  I personally find it does have a positive effect on my concentration.  And I love baroque!  If I get tired of my Bach and Vivaldi CDs, I switch on a classical music station, and it has a similar response.  Although, anything that I can't sing along to works, too.  If you are new to baroque music, go to Sunday Baroque for a great playlist.

What are your favorite time management techniques?

Not what I was expecting, but I'll take it

I went gluten free five years ago.  Up to that point I had been sick for many years, and bounced from doctor to doctor, all of whom tried to throw different drugs at me to minimize my symptoms, without finding an underlying cause.  When I finally realized my problem was gluten, I gave it up cold turkey and never looked back. 

The change in my life was instantaneous!  I felt better immediately, and within 72 hours, I honestly was a new person.  Hallelujah!  Now we can go on with life, right?

Well, um, not quite.  After a couple of months, some of my symptoms returned.  I examined my diet, and knew I wasn't eating any gluten, so I went looking for other things.  Soon I had it - soy was the culprit.  Whew.  Not quite the amazing transformation, but definite improvement in my overall well-being.  Okay, soy is out.  Now, back to this life thing...

Ah, wait a minute...I sense a pattern developing here.  To give you the condensed version, I ended up cutting out gluten, soy, all legumes, poultry, nightshades, most fruits, and many vegetables.  I also have a reaction if I eat any food that lists "artificial flavorings" or "natural flavorings" on the label, which means almost no processed foods. 

In the last year, a few of these intolerances have lessened in severity.  For instance, I can now eat small quantities of poultry, and some nightshades are okay in small doses.  But for the most part, I'm still pretty restricted on what I can eat.

And that's okay.  I really didn't mind a lot...well, sometimes I did, but I usually got over it...until I started having issues again earlier this year.  I put on an alarming amount of weight in a short time, I had digestive issues, skin problems, and all the old symptoms.  I just couldn't figure out what was going on.

Basically I had gotten to the point (again!) where I needed to do something drastic.  I even tried another elimination diet a few months ago, with no success.  I seemed to be reacting to everything.

Now, I had heard about paleo, the caveman diet, whatever you want to call it, for years now.  And I had considered it, really, I had.  But I just couldn't fathom giving up my rice, corn, and dairy. (And don't even talk to me about sugar!) Not after losing almost every other food out there that I could eat. Then I found out about the Primal Blueprint. 

Yeah, yeah, you've been hearing me talk about it for a while now, so I won't get all gushy.  You can go to the site or leave a question in the comments if you want to know more.  But what I realized was this - the list of foods that our ancestors ate are eerily similar to the list of foods that don't give me any reactions.  And the minds over at the Primal Blueprint are of the opinion that if you can stomach dairy, it's probably okay to eat it.  Score!  But rice, corn, and sugar are still out.  Awww...

Still, I had to try it.  And when I try something, I go all the way.  So two weeks ago I dove in and gave up all rice, corn, and sugar.  Then an amazing thing happened.

I stopped being hungry all the time.  And when I say all the time, I mean I was hungry All. The. Time.  That went away overnight.  The mystery stomach aches, skin problems, and bloating followed after a few days.  In a week, I dropped 5 lbs of water weight, while stuffing my face constantly with food.  I haven't been hungry, I haven't been bloated, I haven't been cranky, and I haven't been fatigued for days.  I think the last time I felt this way was, oh, about 5 years ago, when I gave up gluten.

Yay, this is great, except...crap!  I really like rice and corn and sugar!  I haven't tested them yet, so I don't know if my body is just happier grain free, or if I have an actual reaction to rice and corn (don't even talk to me about sugar).  That remains to be seen.  But if I don't have overt reactions, all is not lost.

While the primal lifestyle is grain free, it doesn't mean I have to give them up 100%.  One thing I love about primal is that it recognizes that sometimes, things don't go as planned and that's okay.  They actually encourage a 100% attempt at compliance, realizing that if you hit at least 80%, you're doing pretty good.  So if I want to make brownies with rice flour (and sugar!) to take to a pot luck, and I want to eat one, it's going to be okay.  I just can't eat the whole pan anymore.  Which is probably for the better...

Anyhow, my point with this essay here isn't to convert you to the primal lifestyle. (Though it is simply awesome to eat as much butter and bacon as I want, every single day, and not gain an ounce. Stop worrying about my cholesterol, I eat tons of veggies each day, too.)

No, what I'm getting at is that if you continue to have health problems after going gluten free, keep digging.  If you have one food intolerance already, it's not unusual to have others.  Yes, eating things your body doesn't like can cause all sorts of problems with your health and well-being. No, drugs are not always the answer, no matter what your doctor says. If you really examine your diet, you may not like what you find, and you may hate the idea of giving up rice or sugar or apples, or whatever it turns out to be that's causing you problems. But let me tell you, once you feel better, it's all worth it.  Really.

By the way, everyone knows I'm not a doctor right?  And that this is all my personal opinion, based on my personal experiences.  And that I'm not dispensing medical advice here.  I'm just sayin'...

The worst is over, I think

It's a dreary day today in south Florida, but my dark clouds have a silver lining - my hamstring is definitely on the mend. 

In case you remember last week's post, I was going to try to run last Sunday.  This would have been my first run in two weeks.  I say "would have been" because, you guessed it, it didn't happen. 

I woke up Saturday morning with a definite soreness in my hammy.  It has been coming and going a lot since I finally decided to lay off of it, but that morning it was definitely here.  I made the difficult decision to bag any exercise over the weekend, including a much needed and anticipated walk.  Oh, how I miss walking!  But I didn't do it.

Actually, I fudged there a bit.  I didn't go out for an organized walk.  I did, however, go visit a couple of furniture stores (we need a patio table and chairs).  Okay, I think there were 4 total stops.  There was much sitting going on (gotta test those chairs), as well as wandering around showroom floors, and walking to and from the car to the stores.  Not what you call a great amount of exercise...but it added up. 

By the end of the afternoon my hamstring was burning.  It felt so weird!  It also reminded me that this whole healing thing is a long process.  Since then, I've planted my tushy back down on the couch, and have continued to take it easy.

And it's finally paying off.  Since Saturday, it has gotten progressively better, to the point that I only notice some tightness when lifting heavy things (using my legs as stabilizers) and when twisting. 

So right now, my Saturday run is back on.  Tomorrow I'm planning a gentle outdoor walk, to loosen things up for the first time in three weeks.  No running, just some longer strides and feeling things out.  And if things go well, I'll be doing a gentle 3 mile run on Saturday.

I'm so excited about that I could just about squee...

Still waiting to heal...

Still not running.  The sore hamstring is getting better, albeit slowly, and I've been trying very hard not to do anything to aggravate it. 

I'm hoping for a tiny run/walk session on Sunday, but we'll see.  I have to let this heal now, or my November marathon debut will be cancelled.

I can hardly stand the wait!

In the meantime, I'm working on the 100 Pushup Challenge.  Because muscular arms are sexier than flabby ones.  Or so I hear...

"Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must move faster than the lion or it will not survive. Every morning a lion wakes up and it knows it must move faster than the slowest gazelle or it will starve. It doesn't matter if you are the lion or the gazelle, when the sun comes up, you better be moving." - Maurice Greene (attributed to Roger Bannister shortly after running the first sub-4 mile)

Going nowhere...for now

Today is supposed to be a post about running, or fitness, or something like that.

But I just don't want to do it.

I managed to restrain my already sore hamstring on Saturday.  I'm not sure what happened, but it may have something to do with the fact that I never really gave it a chance to heal.  Maybe. Possibly.

So this time my hubby sat me down and ordered advised me to just completely rest it for a couple of weeks.  I whined about it discussed it with him and came to the conclusion that he was right.  I need to heal this thing up, and the light activity I was doing was just too much.

That means for now, no running.  No walking.  No elliptical machine.  I'm even trying to not walk on it as much around the house.

This stinks.  But I want to run again, and soon, so I'm going to do it.  Most importantly, I need to run again so I can pick up my marathon training again.  And if I don't start up again in the next few weeks, a 2011 race is out of the question.

And that is NOT an option.

In the meantime, I've started the 100 Pushup Training Program.  I don't like it.  Why?  Well, to begin with, it involves pushups.  And I have weenie arms.  I think you can put together on your own why I am less than enthused...

But I'm doing it.  And I'm going to do 100 pushups. Eventually.  I just finished Day 2 of Week 1, so I have a ways to go. 

At least it's something to keep my mind occupied...

Okay, enough of that, time for a positive attitude!  Yay, pushups!

4th of July musings

With the holiday, there's not much going on here today.  A few movies, a bit of reading, some general lazing around, and a barbecue, and I call this day a success. 

One thing I wanted to write about today was that I have been in an awful mood, and I've been taking it out on cyber-space.  Back in May I wrote about giving up negativity. It sure seemed like a good idea at the time.  But the idea seemed to get shoved aside in a hurry as soon as I had some stress enter my life.  Funny how that happens...

I still think it's a good idea, however.  So I'm renewing my efforts to drive negativity out of my head.  At least a bit.  So as of now, and for the next month, no more negative posts. Nothing but positive news here.

And bunnies.  Because bunnies are cute. 



Happy 4th!

Slow is good

So I'm feeling pretty stupid today.

I think I mentioned before that I'm a slow runner.  By definition, most people refer to anyone who runs slower than 10 minute miles, or 6 miles per hour, as a slow runner.  A guy named John Bingham has capitalized on this, creating a name those of us "back of the pack" runners: penguins.

I'm proud to be a penguin!  Really, I am.

But I was hoping that someday I wouldn't be the slowest penguin out there.

This summer, with regular training and 18 months of base miles behind me, I decided to make my move.  I was going to go from the back of the back of the pack to the middle of the back of the pack.  Eventually, I would move to the front of the back of the pack.

No problem, right?  Just throw in a little speed work here and there, and start running a smidge faster.

And it worked for a couple of weeks.  I went from a 12 minute mile to an 11:45 min mile.  Then an 11:30 minute mile.  One day, on a shorter run, I pushed the whole way, and actually avereaged 10:59 minute per mile.

Oh, the joy!  I was speeding up!

And my legs were feeling it.  Did you know that going faster than you are used to, whether that means 5 min miles instead of 6 or 11:30 minute miles instead of 12, puts a lot of strain on your hamstrings?

Um, well, I didn't.  But now I know.  And I also know (now) not to run on a strained hamstring.  But I didn't know that a week ago.

So now I'm nursing an aching hammy, and am thoroughly cursing my own stupidity.  Plus, I'm in withrawal...no runner's high since Monday!  Not yesterday, not today, probably not tomorrow or Friday either.  I really need a fix...

But I also really need to heal this hammy.  I have a 9 mile run scheduled for Saturday, and my marathon training plan doesn't allow for a lot of wiggle room.  So I'm resting my leg now.  And going crazy.

Laughter helps - today someone shared this video.  What a riot!  Although, a couple of times, I wondered if someone had bugged my house.  Some of it hits a little close to home...



I am a runner!

Why do it at all?

I am a slow runner.  Very slow.  Extremely slow.  Tortoise slow.  Slow.

Really, I'm slow.

I am a back of the pack runner.  When I line up for a race, I go to my assigned corral, which is based on your expected finish time, and I go to the back of it.  If there are any corrals behind me, those people will pass me as we cross the start line.

But I'll pass them again around the halfway point.

What I lack in speed, I make up for in endurance and sheer determination.  I love my long runs.  So far my person record for distance is 14 miles, and it was a great experience.  I can't wait to get into the 20 mile (and longer) runs in my marathon training.

But, like I said earlier, I'm slow.  It's not so much a race for me, as a test of will.

Will I last the distance?  Will I be able to finish?  Will I be able to walk after?

I know I'm never going to win anything other than a finisher's medal.  And that's fine with me.  As long as I beat the closing of the course, I'm good.

My goal each time I toe the line at a race is to beat myself.  If I've never done that distance before, then I want to finish.  If I have, I'm running to set a new personal record (PR) in that distance. 

Since I'm relatively new to running and races, the PRs will be happening for a while.  It's only natural that I'll continue to get stronger and (relatively) faster for a while.  Well, we can hope, anyhow...

But no matter what, I'm going to continue to run and race.  Because to not do it would be the ultimate defeat.

National Running Day

Running changed my life.

I took up runnign during a time that nothing seemed to be going right.  It was something I could do where I was the one in control, and not something or someone else.  In spite of myriad chronic health issue that will plague me for the rest of my life, I could still run.

I had never liked running before, but that didn't matter.  I was going to conquer this.

My goal at first was a 5K.  3.1 miles.  That was all I wanted to do.  I did notice that I felt good on the days that I ran.  Better than I had in a long, long time.  But I was going to stop at 5K.  Anything else was excessive, right?

Then I started visiting online running forums.

A funny thing happened on the way to the forums...

I started reading about people running 10K (6.2 mile) races.  And half marathons - 13.1 miles.  And (gasp!) marathons!  26.2 miles, all at once!  Were they freaking nuts?

But I thought about it, and something clicked for me.  Even as I wondered about my new found cyber friends' sanity, I began to think about longer distances.  I can't pinpoint exactly when I came over to the dark side, but I think it was right around the time I became hopelessly, irrevocably addicted to the endorphins I was producing, otherwise known as runner's high.

Maybe I would do a 10K sometime.  Maybe...someday...after years of running...a half marathon.  Maybe...

Okay, now I'm freaking nuts.

Well, long story short:  6 months after I started running, I ran my first 5K.  Just before my 1 year running anniversary, I ran my first half marathon.  I'm planning to run my first marathon this November, less than 2 years into my running career.  And I'm looking forward to more endurance challenges, like ultra marathons (anything longer than 26.2 miles) and Disney's Goofy Challenge (a half marathon one day and a marathon the next day, sounds like fun!!).

And one of the best things about all of this is that my beloved has taken up running, too.  He ran the 5K by my side.  He couldn't do the half marathon because of shoulder surgery, but cheered me from the sidelines.  And we are now training together for our first marathon.  Now, that's true love!

To celebrate National Running Day, I went out for a quick run this morning.  My beloved and I normally run together on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so this was just a little symbolic, celebratory jaunt.  I went to a park close by our house, where there's a short looping path.  I often walk there, and so do many other people.  Today, one of the walkers flagged me down.  Being the courteous type, I stopped, to see what I could do for her.

She gave me a look that I think of as "grandmotherly."  You've seen it, that smug, condescending, "you're far too stupid to figure this out on your own, so I have to spell it out for you" look.  Like a grandmother looks.

"You know," she said, "it's better for your joints to walk briskly than to run."

Ha!  That made me laugh so hard, I could barely finish my run...

Happy National Running Day!

The countdown is on...

Today is the next to last day of the Blogathon.  I think I'm gonna make it!

Writing every day has meant a lot to me.  I hope I can keep it up once the calendar rolls over to June.

Just so this isn't a total filler post:

I just finished Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali.  An amazing memior of an amazing person.  It gave me a lot to think about.

Grand total: 18

What are you doing this summer?

The 100 Days Challenge starts today!

The 80-20 rule

The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80-20 rule, basically means that 80% of results come from 20% of causes.

From a business standpoint, that means that 80% of your profits come from 20% of your clients.  Or that 80% of revenues are a result of 20% of your marketing.

This applies to other areas of your life.  How about, 80% of your headaches in life come from 20% of your problems?

For a writer, 80% of your good writing comes from 20% of your writing efforts.

So it makes sense, from a business standpoint, to keep your 20% of high-revenue clients and work on attracting more just like them.  Or figuring out what 20% of your marketing is working, and eliminate the rest.

And find a way to mitigate the 20% of your problems that are causing the majority of your headaches.

But for writers - whatever you do, keep writing!

Pretty powerful stuff here...

An end to worry

Or at least, a way to diminish it.

Another article that spoke to me:  Are You a Worrier?

I am.  But I'm working on it.  Like so many other things...