Friday, October 31, 2008
For Every Kid Who Was Picked Last in Gym Class, This Run Was For You
The Marathon, believe it or not, was fun. Mostly because I made that race my bitch.
Of course, I think it may seem more fun in hindsight. But most things in life do, so that's OK.
The day started off about 5:30am when the alarm went off. Actually, I'd woken up about every half hour through the night, my body obviously afraid of sleeping through the alarm and sending months of training down the drain.
After a Diet Pepsi, a couple granola bars, a hot shower to warm up, 2 ibuprofen pills, and some stretching, it was time to go to the race. Stan drove me down the street to where the shuttle buses were taking people to the Runners' Village in the Pentagon parking lot, but they didn't have enough buses and the line was huge, so I walked up to the Metro stop to take the train. Already, things seemed to be going differently than the plan, and this was not good.
Once at the Pentagon I had a long walk to get to the drop-off point for me gear, and from there to the starting area. Along the way I found Ethan, Vu, Louise, and Vinh, which was comforting. Ethan and I had to pee already so we hopped into some bushes, as the Pentagon went from "world's largest low-rise office building" to "world's largest outdoor toilet." We were rushing to get to the starting corrals, which I hate to do, and as a result I didn't stretch out completely. I was sure this would create a problem for me, but it never did, so yay for that.
We got to the corrals after the race had started but with over 20,000 runners, it would take a while to get to the starting line anyway. As it was, we crossed the start 13 1/2 minutes after the gun went off, and knowing that time allowed me to do the math every time we saw a clock and calculate our pace. That turned out to be a real confidence boost.
Ethan and I stuck together, while the others started out slower. The first couple miles were a little cramped as the runners hadn't spread out yet, some of the roads were a little narrow, and some people were already walking! Now, I'm all for following whatever program you need to follow to get through the race, but I'm of the opinion that if you're walking during the first couple of miles, maybe you shouldn't be in a marathon. I mean, we all signed up for this 6 months ago, so we all had the opportunity to prepare for this. One friend of mine started even though she'd injured her back recently, and she ran for miles and miles before she had to slow to a walk, so in my mind these folks had no excuse.
But forget them. Ethan and I ran the roads and we were feeling good, and I saw we were keeping a 10-minute mile pace, so hooray for us.
One lady along the side of the road said "wow, they must be miserable." I yelled "not yet!" as we ran by, heh heh
The weather was great, the temperature just right, mist rising from the Potomac River as we ran along it, all in all a great morning to be out running. The crowds were out in force early on, some who'd come to cheer on particular runners, others who just happened to live along the route, and some very, very confused tourists. Things spread out a bit as we crossed the bridge into DC and started heading through Georgetown. We got into a wooded area near Georgetown University for a few miles, and after we turned and headed back toward the commercial district I realized that I needed to pee again, and we were about to run out of trees. I told Ethan, and he needed to syop too, so we did for less than a minute and took care of business. I knew that anything I drank from then on would be sweated out and would never hit my bladder, so I was good for the rest of the race.
Vinh passed us soon afterwards. He says we passed him later and then he passed us again, but I never saw him. He ended up finishing about 12 minutes ahead of me. Ethan and I hung together through the crowds of Georgetown, and then down to dreaded Hains Point..."dreaded" because it is away from roads and Metro stops so there are almost no spectators there, and it gets eerily quiet, which does not help your motivation. In years past this has been the Mile 18 point, but they changed the route so that it's now Mile 13, so you're not quite as tired when you hit it and don't need the boost from the crowd as much. Despite the lack of a crowd, hitting the halfway mark did provide a big boost. And also, there was a guy handing out Twizzlers.
I should mention something about food. In addition to the water/PowerAde stands every two miles, there were also food stands a few times. We got oranges at one, flavored caffeinated goo at another (it tastes much better than it sounds), caffeinated jelly beans at another...plus there was the occasional stranger handing out pretzels or candy, a sketchy thing in my opinion but Ethan was a big fan of it ("I come for the food!"). I had to stop eating because my stomach started to hurt.
As we came around the Lincoln Memorial we hit Mile 16 and I yelled to Ethan "we're into single digits now!!" I should add that we were still maintaining about a 10-minute, 6-second per pace mile at this point, which wasn't bad at all. As we hit Mile 17 I told myself "OK, all that's left is a normal Saturday morning run," though I don't normally start those runs having already run 17 miles. Sadly, as we approached Mile 18, Ethan started having more pain than he could handle (his foot was giving him trouble) and he had to walk for a bit. we had agreed that if one of us could keep going while the other slowed, he'd keep going, and in this case I was the one who could keep going, so I did. I ran up one side of the National Mall and thought to myself, "wow, that's a cute guy standing there watching," and a couple seconds later said, "oh, that's Stan!" Sure enough he was where he'd said he'd be, and he snapped a pic and waved. I kept going, hitting the turnaround point at the US Capitol Building, and came down the other side of the mile, getting past Mile 19. There was a high school band playing there, and they were pretty good. I felt some pain coming up in my knee and popped 2 more ibuprofen, hoping I wouldn't have an inflamed ligament slow me down. Also, it occurred to me that I'd been worried about my left knee for months, as that's the one that I injured in a race in April, but I'd never paid attention to the right knee. I started feeling some twinges there and thought, "oh no you don't."
Once we got past the Mall came the worst part for me...the 14th Street Bridge back into Virginia. It was the worst because there were very few spectators, the road's not in the best shape, and a LOT of people were walking, which meant lots of weaving on my part. I heard the time from an announcer and knew I was slowing down, and my lower back and butt were starting to hurt. This was not good. I saw quite a few people quitting, and this was not helping my morale. But I pressed on.
Once i came off the bridge into Virginia I quickly passed Mile 22 and the crowds were back in full force. We were entering a neighborhood called Crystal City, which is where I work, and the crowds are always very lively here, because it's later in the morning and they're awake. As I passed Mile 22 I thought "if I had to, I could walk the rest of the way from here and still finish," but there was no way I would stop and walk in front of this yelling, screaming crowd. Also, there was the minor matter of a goal I'd set for myself: no walking.
Crystal City rocked. Not only did I see some folks from work, I also saw Stan again, who had Metro'd back in time for me to come by. I passed Mile 23 in this mob scene and now was in some serious striking distance...only 3 miles left, and hey, 3 miles is just a short run at lunch, right?
My dad, who never says much that's positive, had told me "the marathon starts at 20 miles...everything before that is just a long run." He was right, and I was really feeling the effects of the race at this point, but I was determined to keep pressing on. I got a great boost from the crowd at Crystal City, my pace picked up again, and I was still smiling.
Coming out of Crystal City we soon hit a quiet patch back near the Pentagon. I didn't need quiet, I needed noise, and my pace slowed again as I approached Mile 24. I was a little worried...after we'd looped around I'd watched the runners coming in the opposite direction (entering Crystal City as I was leaving) looking for Ethan, Louise, and Vu. I didn't see any of them and wondered just how far behind me hey could be. As it turned out at the end, they were about 20-30 minutes behind me. But at the time I didn't know, and was getting concerned.
There was a very long, very dead stretch of road for the last 2 miles, i was still running...slowly, but running nonetheless. there were plenty of walkers but I was determined not to be one of them. Yes, the "I could walk it in from here" thing occurred to me, but I really wanted to finish this at a run. Mile 25 was a great point, and my pace picked up again, as I was determined to end this at a good pace. I could see the crowds ahead, and the balloons marking Mile 26, which would then turn into a hill for the last .2 miles. the crowds were going crazy, and since the runners were so spread out at this point it was almost like they were all there just for me. I found my speed increasing, my back getting straighter, my pain fading, wanting to look good in front of all these folks. I ran harder, ran faster, passed the balloons and started up the hill. there were bleachers up there, people going crazy, screaming, yelling, and I realized I was one of them, determined to get across that finish line at a fast pace. I was screaming at myself he last 100 yards, running right along the grandstand, and even though this wasn't exactly the Olympics and I was about halfway back in the pack of runners, I crossed that line as if I was #1.
The immediate feeling was incredible. I could not believe I'd actually done this. A year ago I'd congratulated friends for doing it. 9 months ago my aerobic workout consisted of 30 minutes on an elliptical machine. 7 months earlier I'd run 10 miles for the first time and injured myself in the process. Less than 4 months before I returned from Asia and restarted my training with 3-mile runs. And here I was, finishing a marathon, ahead of an awful lot of people, and doing it nearly nearly an hour faster than I'd estimated when I signed up in April (and 15 minutes faster than my best-case estimate before the race). This was truly amazing.
I learned a lot these last few months, which is why I write so much about running in this blog. Stuff like nutrition, fitness, physiology that's been cool. But I've also learned a lot about myself, and about how you really can do anything you set your mind too, if you're willing to work at it. Frankly, I'm pretty proud of the progress I've made this year. I took on the goal of a marathon primarily as a way to keep running, to give myself a goal so I'd keep working out after getting back from Afghanistan last year and feeling so good about my physical fitness. Obviously, the goal morphed a bit over time, and the race itself became the important thing. I need to refocus now, get some balance back into my workouts, but I know I can, because I've really learned how to balance my life these last few months.
As Ethan would say, "Hooah."
Runners and cheerleaders
Adrian, Cheerleader-in-Chief. Unfortunately, Troy was unable to run
Ethan, Louise, Vu, Vinh, and me. Everybody finished!!
Stan has been incredibly supportive ever since my training started. Thank you!!!
All done. For now.
Of course, I think it may seem more fun in hindsight. But most things in life do, so that's OK.
The day started off about 5:30am when the alarm went off. Actually, I'd woken up about every half hour through the night, my body obviously afraid of sleeping through the alarm and sending months of training down the drain.
After a Diet Pepsi, a couple granola bars, a hot shower to warm up, 2 ibuprofen pills, and some stretching, it was time to go to the race. Stan drove me down the street to where the shuttle buses were taking people to the Runners' Village in the Pentagon parking lot, but they didn't have enough buses and the line was huge, so I walked up to the Metro stop to take the train. Already, things seemed to be going differently than the plan, and this was not good.
Once at the Pentagon I had a long walk to get to the drop-off point for me gear, and from there to the starting area. Along the way I found Ethan, Vu, Louise, and Vinh, which was comforting. Ethan and I had to pee already so we hopped into some bushes, as the Pentagon went from "world's largest low-rise office building" to "world's largest outdoor toilet." We were rushing to get to the starting corrals, which I hate to do, and as a result I didn't stretch out completely. I was sure this would create a problem for me, but it never did, so yay for that.
We got to the corrals after the race had started but with over 20,000 runners, it would take a while to get to the starting line anyway. As it was, we crossed the start 13 1/2 minutes after the gun went off, and knowing that time allowed me to do the math every time we saw a clock and calculate our pace. That turned out to be a real confidence boost.
Ethan and I stuck together, while the others started out slower. The first couple miles were a little cramped as the runners hadn't spread out yet, some of the roads were a little narrow, and some people were already walking! Now, I'm all for following whatever program you need to follow to get through the race, but I'm of the opinion that if you're walking during the first couple of miles, maybe you shouldn't be in a marathon. I mean, we all signed up for this 6 months ago, so we all had the opportunity to prepare for this. One friend of mine started even though she'd injured her back recently, and she ran for miles and miles before she had to slow to a walk, so in my mind these folks had no excuse.
But forget them. Ethan and I ran the roads and we were feeling good, and I saw we were keeping a 10-minute mile pace, so hooray for us.
One lady along the side of the road said "wow, they must be miserable." I yelled "not yet!" as we ran by, heh heh
The weather was great, the temperature just right, mist rising from the Potomac River as we ran along it, all in all a great morning to be out running. The crowds were out in force early on, some who'd come to cheer on particular runners, others who just happened to live along the route, and some very, very confused tourists. Things spread out a bit as we crossed the bridge into DC and started heading through Georgetown. We got into a wooded area near Georgetown University for a few miles, and after we turned and headed back toward the commercial district I realized that I needed to pee again, and we were about to run out of trees. I told Ethan, and he needed to syop too, so we did for less than a minute and took care of business. I knew that anything I drank from then on would be sweated out and would never hit my bladder, so I was good for the rest of the race.
Vinh passed us soon afterwards. He says we passed him later and then he passed us again, but I never saw him. He ended up finishing about 12 minutes ahead of me. Ethan and I hung together through the crowds of Georgetown, and then down to dreaded Hains Point..."dreaded" because it is away from roads and Metro stops so there are almost no spectators there, and it gets eerily quiet, which does not help your motivation. In years past this has been the Mile 18 point, but they changed the route so that it's now Mile 13, so you're not quite as tired when you hit it and don't need the boost from the crowd as much. Despite the lack of a crowd, hitting the halfway mark did provide a big boost. And also, there was a guy handing out Twizzlers.
I should mention something about food. In addition to the water/PowerAde stands every two miles, there were also food stands a few times. We got oranges at one, flavored caffeinated goo at another (it tastes much better than it sounds), caffeinated jelly beans at another...plus there was the occasional stranger handing out pretzels or candy, a sketchy thing in my opinion but Ethan was a big fan of it ("I come for the food!"). I had to stop eating because my stomach started to hurt.
As we came around the Lincoln Memorial we hit Mile 16 and I yelled to Ethan "we're into single digits now!!" I should add that we were still maintaining about a 10-minute, 6-second per pace mile at this point, which wasn't bad at all. As we hit Mile 17 I told myself "OK, all that's left is a normal Saturday morning run," though I don't normally start those runs having already run 17 miles. Sadly, as we approached Mile 18, Ethan started having more pain than he could handle (his foot was giving him trouble) and he had to walk for a bit. we had agreed that if one of us could keep going while the other slowed, he'd keep going, and in this case I was the one who could keep going, so I did. I ran up one side of the National Mall and thought to myself, "wow, that's a cute guy standing there watching," and a couple seconds later said, "oh, that's Stan!" Sure enough he was where he'd said he'd be, and he snapped a pic and waved. I kept going, hitting the turnaround point at the US Capitol Building, and came down the other side of the mile, getting past Mile 19. There was a high school band playing there, and they were pretty good. I felt some pain coming up in my knee and popped 2 more ibuprofen, hoping I wouldn't have an inflamed ligament slow me down. Also, it occurred to me that I'd been worried about my left knee for months, as that's the one that I injured in a race in April, but I'd never paid attention to the right knee. I started feeling some twinges there and thought, "oh no you don't."
Once we got past the Mall came the worst part for me...the 14th Street Bridge back into Virginia. It was the worst because there were very few spectators, the road's not in the best shape, and a LOT of people were walking, which meant lots of weaving on my part. I heard the time from an announcer and knew I was slowing down, and my lower back and butt were starting to hurt. This was not good. I saw quite a few people quitting, and this was not helping my morale. But I pressed on.
Once i came off the bridge into Virginia I quickly passed Mile 22 and the crowds were back in full force. We were entering a neighborhood called Crystal City, which is where I work, and the crowds are always very lively here, because it's later in the morning and they're awake. As I passed Mile 22 I thought "if I had to, I could walk the rest of the way from here and still finish," but there was no way I would stop and walk in front of this yelling, screaming crowd. Also, there was the minor matter of a goal I'd set for myself: no walking.
Crystal City rocked. Not only did I see some folks from work, I also saw Stan again, who had Metro'd back in time for me to come by. I passed Mile 23 in this mob scene and now was in some serious striking distance...only 3 miles left, and hey, 3 miles is just a short run at lunch, right?
My dad, who never says much that's positive, had told me "the marathon starts at 20 miles...everything before that is just a long run." He was right, and I was really feeling the effects of the race at this point, but I was determined to keep pressing on. I got a great boost from the crowd at Crystal City, my pace picked up again, and I was still smiling.
Coming out of Crystal City we soon hit a quiet patch back near the Pentagon. I didn't need quiet, I needed noise, and my pace slowed again as I approached Mile 24. I was a little worried...after we'd looped around I'd watched the runners coming in the opposite direction (entering Crystal City as I was leaving) looking for Ethan, Louise, and Vu. I didn't see any of them and wondered just how far behind me hey could be. As it turned out at the end, they were about 20-30 minutes behind me. But at the time I didn't know, and was getting concerned.
There was a very long, very dead stretch of road for the last 2 miles, i was still running...slowly, but running nonetheless. there were plenty of walkers but I was determined not to be one of them. Yes, the "I could walk it in from here" thing occurred to me, but I really wanted to finish this at a run. Mile 25 was a great point, and my pace picked up again, as I was determined to end this at a good pace. I could see the crowds ahead, and the balloons marking Mile 26, which would then turn into a hill for the last .2 miles. the crowds were going crazy, and since the runners were so spread out at this point it was almost like they were all there just for me. I found my speed increasing, my back getting straighter, my pain fading, wanting to look good in front of all these folks. I ran harder, ran faster, passed the balloons and started up the hill. there were bleachers up there, people going crazy, screaming, yelling, and I realized I was one of them, determined to get across that finish line at a fast pace. I was screaming at myself he last 100 yards, running right along the grandstand, and even though this wasn't exactly the Olympics and I was about halfway back in the pack of runners, I crossed that line as if I was #1.
The immediate feeling was incredible. I could not believe I'd actually done this. A year ago I'd congratulated friends for doing it. 9 months ago my aerobic workout consisted of 30 minutes on an elliptical machine. 7 months earlier I'd run 10 miles for the first time and injured myself in the process. Less than 4 months before I returned from Asia and restarted my training with 3-mile runs. And here I was, finishing a marathon, ahead of an awful lot of people, and doing it nearly nearly an hour faster than I'd estimated when I signed up in April (and 15 minutes faster than my best-case estimate before the race). This was truly amazing.
I learned a lot these last few months, which is why I write so much about running in this blog. Stuff like nutrition, fitness, physiology that's been cool. But I've also learned a lot about myself, and about how you really can do anything you set your mind too, if you're willing to work at it. Frankly, I'm pretty proud of the progress I've made this year. I took on the goal of a marathon primarily as a way to keep running, to give myself a goal so I'd keep working out after getting back from Afghanistan last year and feeling so good about my physical fitness. Obviously, the goal morphed a bit over time, and the race itself became the important thing. I need to refocus now, get some balance back into my workouts, but I know I can, because I've really learned how to balance my life these last few months.
As Ethan would say, "Hooah."
Runners and cheerleaders
Adrian, Cheerleader-in-Chief. Unfortunately, Troy was unable to run
Ethan, Louise, Vu, Vinh, and me. Everybody finished!!
Stan has been incredibly supportive ever since my training started. Thank you!!!
All done. For now.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Set a Goal, Achieve It. Simple as That
The full commentary will wait until I'm better rested, just know that I successfully finished the Marathon. Here are the stats:
I finished in 4 hours, 36 minutes, and 53 seconds. That's an average pace of 10:34 per mile.
I placed 9,072 out of 18,261 finishers.
Out of 11,120 male finishers, I was number 6,263.
And out of 1,716 men aged 40-44, I was number 1,023.
The average time overall was about 4 minutes slower than mine, so YAY for being above average!
Ethan, Vu, Vinh, and Louise all finished as well. Some friends met us afterwards and we all went for pho. And now I am tired.
Here are some pics from the Washington Post, I hope to have some of my friends' pics up here tomorrow showing the whole crew and I.
I finished in 4 hours, 36 minutes, and 53 seconds. That's an average pace of 10:34 per mile.
I placed 9,072 out of 18,261 finishers.
Out of 11,120 male finishers, I was number 6,263.
And out of 1,716 men aged 40-44, I was number 1,023.
The average time overall was about 4 minutes slower than mine, so YAY for being above average!
Ethan, Vu, Vinh, and Louise all finished as well. Some friends met us afterwards and we all went for pho. And now I am tired.
Here are some pics from the Washington Post, I hope to have some of my friends' pics up here tomorrow showing the whole crew and I.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
And Here We Go
If all has gone according to plan, the starter's gun has just gone off and I'm in a pack of thousands of people surging across the starting line. You can track me using this map. I'm bib number 5569.
Labels: Running
On Your Mark...
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Time to Start Getting Into that Zen-like State
24 hours until the starter's gun.
Labels: Running
Mental Prep
Tonight I went with friends to pick up my runner's packet for the Marathon. That was pretty exciting...I guess it's really going to happen in about 28 hours. And it turns out the weather is supposed to be beautiful, which is a lot better than the rain being predicted 10 days ago.
If it seems like I'm making a big deal out of this race, it's because I am. Not just because it's my first marathon, but because it was a year ago that I said "I'm going to do this," and now here we are. In January my aerobic workout still consisted of 30 minutes on the elliptical machine, and now here we are. By April the farthest I'd run was 10 miles, and now here we are. In July I started running again after missing more than 2 months due to an injury and travel, and now...here we are.
I've been lucky to have the support of friends here, especially Ethan, Vu, and Stan. But there's a part of me that's feeling some personal satisfaction as well.
Naturally, I'll be feeling a lot more of that satisfaction in about 37 hours, when hopefully I'll have crossed the finish line.
If it seems like I'm making a big deal out of this race, it's because I am. Not just because it's my first marathon, but because it was a year ago that I said "I'm going to do this," and now here we are. In January my aerobic workout still consisted of 30 minutes on the elliptical machine, and now here we are. By April the farthest I'd run was 10 miles, and now here we are. In July I started running again after missing more than 2 months due to an injury and travel, and now...here we are.
I've been lucky to have the support of friends here, especially Ethan, Vu, and Stan. But there's a part of me that's feeling some personal satisfaction as well.
Naturally, I'll be feeling a lot more of that satisfaction in about 37 hours, when hopefully I'll have crossed the finish line.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
What Was THAT All About?
By midafternoon today I was feeling pretty poopy at work -- headache so bad I felt nauseous, kinda dizzy, that sort of thing. I ended up leaving a little early. My 45-minute commute home was not a lot of fun. I got home, took Tylenol, and crawled under the covers about 5:15, just to rest a little. Next thing I know, it's 8:30. Most unusual. Anyway, after eating a little something I'm feeling a bit better now. I just hope I'm not sick...the Marathon is in just 5 days.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Happy Birthday Stan!!
Today Stan turned...well, I won't say how old he turned, as it's up to him to reveal that if he wants. Let's just say he's not in his early 20s anymore (according to his definition).
The day started off with him getting some random birthday e-mails, some from people he knows, some from people he doesn't. I'd sent a quick note out to friends last night asking them to flood his mailbox as a surprise, and sure enough, they did. I have the best friends. Anyway, he got a big kick out of that, so thanks to all who did it.
Tonight we went to a French restaurant downtown that I've enjoyed in the past. Stan's never had French food so I wanted to surprise him with something new that I was pretty sure he'd like. We both had great appetizers (me: escargot, Stan: pork and garlic sausages), then Stan had a chicken dish in a pastry and I had ostrich (DanielHenry and Froggy, don't hare me, these were mean ostriches I'm sure, not the kind you ride in a park). We finished with some nice desserts and the waiter picked up on a "birthday boy" remark from me and ensured Stan had a candle in his peace melba. Awwwwww.
Naturally I forgot to take photos of any of this. Though we took a photo outside the restaurant.
Afterwards we headed back to his apartment for presents. I got a little help from Stan's friend Grover in delivering his gift.
Last night I went out with my friend Kim for his birthday. Kim and I modeled together for a photo shoot in January and became friends after that, though we don't see each other nearly enough. We were both gone at different times during the summer, and now it turns out he's moving away while I'm in Asia. Alas. But we had a nice night Wednesday. I convinced him to venture out to Virginia and we went to a nice restaurant, then out for drinks later. A very relaxing night was had by all and i think he had fun. I know i did.
Weird story: I was telling Stan about dinner and what I had and he said "yeah, you ordered that the last time." "Last time?" When had Stan and i been there? It turns out we went there for lunch after my colonoscopy. Wow. They must have given me some very good sedatives that day because I totally do not remember going to lunch there. As Stan told me more details I started getting some hazy memories, but really...wow.
Friday night we're celebrating Danny's birthday with hot pot. Yay for hot pot!!
The day started off with him getting some random birthday e-mails, some from people he knows, some from people he doesn't. I'd sent a quick note out to friends last night asking them to flood his mailbox as a surprise, and sure enough, they did. I have the best friends. Anyway, he got a big kick out of that, so thanks to all who did it.
Tonight we went to a French restaurant downtown that I've enjoyed in the past. Stan's never had French food so I wanted to surprise him with something new that I was pretty sure he'd like. We both had great appetizers (me: escargot, Stan: pork and garlic sausages), then Stan had a chicken dish in a pastry and I had ostrich (DanielHenry and Froggy, don't hare me, these were mean ostriches I'm sure, not the kind you ride in a park). We finished with some nice desserts and the waiter picked up on a "birthday boy" remark from me and ensured Stan had a candle in his peace melba. Awwwwww.
Naturally I forgot to take photos of any of this. Though we took a photo outside the restaurant.Afterwards we headed back to his apartment for presents. I got a little help from Stan's friend Grover in delivering his gift.
Last night I went out with my friend Kim for his birthday. Kim and I modeled together for a photo shoot in January and became friends after that, though we don't see each other nearly enough. We were both gone at different times during the summer, and now it turns out he's moving away while I'm in Asia. Alas. But we had a nice night Wednesday. I convinced him to venture out to Virginia and we went to a nice restaurant, then out for drinks later. A very relaxing night was had by all and i think he had fun. I know i did.
Weird story: I was telling Stan about dinner and what I had and he said "yeah, you ordered that the last time." "Last time?" When had Stan and i been there? It turns out we went there for lunch after my colonoscopy. Wow. They must have given me some very good sedatives that day because I totally do not remember going to lunch there. As Stan told me more details I started getting some hazy memories, but really...wow.
Friday night we're celebrating Danny's birthday with hot pot. Yay for hot pot!!
Labels: Friends
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Whew!
I am racing to get this done before Blogger goes down for maintenance in 12 minutes. Wish me luck.
Last weekend I was at my parents' home which has always provided an excuse for not posting, seeing as they live out in the country and only had dial up access and anyway I'd be leaving "footprints" on their computer if I tried to update my blog. But now they have DSL, and with their new computer they have Safari, which of course has private browsing, which of COURSE means I could watch all the Northern European snuff films and view all the leopard bestiality sites I want to without them knowing about it, so surely I could post too. So that excuse has gone right out the window.
Guess I just need to pause and figure out what's going on.
Of course, "pausing" isn't something I've done much of lately, I suppose.
You know, I thought running would offer me some time to just get out and clear my mind, but all it did tonight was give me a chance to reorganize my "to do" list. And it took me all 13 miles to do that.
Yeah, 13 miles. Half a marathon. I maintained a pretty consistent 10-minute pace so I'm happy with that. If i could keep that pace during the whole marathon (in 12 days, I might add) I'd be thrilled, but I have a feeling I'l slow down a tiny bit after the halfway point. Then again, from all I've been told the marathon is a lot different from training because this time there will be people along the road cheering you on, as opposed to people passing you on bicycles yelling "Left. LEFT!!!" So the motivation factor (also known as the "I don't want to puke on myself in front of all these people" factor) tends to be higher.
OK, I'm not going to get this done before Blogger goes down. So I'll go write some e-mails or check the Nigerian scam ads for a while and hope it returns in about 10 minutes like they promised.
...
...
...
We back? Cool.
Speaking of the Marathon I told my folks about it this weekend. My dad, a marathon runner in a past life, looked at me and said "are you sure you want to do that?" Good thing I never expect supportive statements from him or I'd be awfully disappointed. I decided not to tell them about the Singapore Marathon.
The Singapore trip is coming together. My Employment Pass paperwork went in last week. On Wednesday I'll submit my syllabus and also send in the lease paperwork for my apartment. I'm starting to make a list of what I need to take, and I already have some friends there who are ready to show me around as well as some friends from Malaysia who are planning trips down there. I am EXCITED!!! Of course, it wouldn't be a "Will trip" without some hassles. For instance, even though my boss (a US ambassador, mind you) has approved my trip, I still need approval from two Human Resources offices AND a lawyer, and I am still waiting on those. Hey, why should they rush, i don't leave for, oh, 3 weeks. Plenty of time!
There are a few people here I want to spend some good quality time with before I go. The evenings and weekends are filling up. This week alone I get to celebrate 3 different birthdays (Stan's is Thursday!!). There's nothing scheduled yet for this weekend, though I think this might be the chance for Stan and I to go to the Richard Avedon photography exhibit, and I'm hoping to see Linh, too. The following weekend is Andy and Terry's Halloween party on Saturday and then the Marathon on Sunday (and yeah, the rest of that day will be shot...after going for pho, that is). The following weekend we have Josh and Angelo's Halloween party Friday night. And then the next Wednesday, I leave. Wow, this is coming up fast.
In other travel news, Olympics tickets have gone on sale for Vancouver 2010. And yes, I'm planning to go. I don't think I'll do the package deal like I did for Salt Lake City 2002, because the prices for the hotel/ticket combos have gotten insane. My plan is to request tickets, and then get lodging on my own (which will still be spendy, but not as much). I want to go, but I'm going to have to do it a little differently this time, and that will probably mean I get to stay longer and see more events. For the record, I'm getting two tickets to each event...later, we'll figure out who wants the second one.
And now, it's bedtime. After watching some Northern European snuff films and looking for new leopard bestiality sites, that is.
Last weekend I was at my parents' home which has always provided an excuse for not posting, seeing as they live out in the country and only had dial up access and anyway I'd be leaving "footprints" on their computer if I tried to update my blog. But now they have DSL, and with their new computer they have Safari, which of course has private browsing, which of COURSE means I could watch all the Northern European snuff films and view all the leopard bestiality sites I want to without them knowing about it, so surely I could post too. So that excuse has gone right out the window.
Guess I just need to pause and figure out what's going on.
Of course, "pausing" isn't something I've done much of lately, I suppose.
You know, I thought running would offer me some time to just get out and clear my mind, but all it did tonight was give me a chance to reorganize my "to do" list. And it took me all 13 miles to do that.
Yeah, 13 miles. Half a marathon. I maintained a pretty consistent 10-minute pace so I'm happy with that. If i could keep that pace during the whole marathon (in 12 days, I might add) I'd be thrilled, but I have a feeling I'l slow down a tiny bit after the halfway point. Then again, from all I've been told the marathon is a lot different from training because this time there will be people along the road cheering you on, as opposed to people passing you on bicycles yelling "Left. LEFT!!!" So the motivation factor (also known as the "I don't want to puke on myself in front of all these people" factor) tends to be higher.
OK, I'm not going to get this done before Blogger goes down. So I'll go write some e-mails or check the Nigerian scam ads for a while and hope it returns in about 10 minutes like they promised.
...
...
...
We back? Cool.
Speaking of the Marathon I told my folks about it this weekend. My dad, a marathon runner in a past life, looked at me and said "are you sure you want to do that?" Good thing I never expect supportive statements from him or I'd be awfully disappointed. I decided not to tell them about the Singapore Marathon.
The Singapore trip is coming together. My Employment Pass paperwork went in last week. On Wednesday I'll submit my syllabus and also send in the lease paperwork for my apartment. I'm starting to make a list of what I need to take, and I already have some friends there who are ready to show me around as well as some friends from Malaysia who are planning trips down there. I am EXCITED!!! Of course, it wouldn't be a "Will trip" without some hassles. For instance, even though my boss (a US ambassador, mind you) has approved my trip, I still need approval from two Human Resources offices AND a lawyer, and I am still waiting on those. Hey, why should they rush, i don't leave for, oh, 3 weeks. Plenty of time!
There are a few people here I want to spend some good quality time with before I go. The evenings and weekends are filling up. This week alone I get to celebrate 3 different birthdays (Stan's is Thursday!!). There's nothing scheduled yet for this weekend, though I think this might be the chance for Stan and I to go to the Richard Avedon photography exhibit, and I'm hoping to see Linh, too. The following weekend is Andy and Terry's Halloween party on Saturday and then the Marathon on Sunday (and yeah, the rest of that day will be shot...after going for pho, that is). The following weekend we have Josh and Angelo's Halloween party Friday night. And then the next Wednesday, I leave. Wow, this is coming up fast.
In other travel news, Olympics tickets have gone on sale for Vancouver 2010. And yes, I'm planning to go. I don't think I'll do the package deal like I did for Salt Lake City 2002, because the prices for the hotel/ticket combos have gotten insane. My plan is to request tickets, and then get lodging on my own (which will still be spendy, but not as much). I want to go, but I'm going to have to do it a little differently this time, and that will probably mean I get to stay longer and see more events. For the record, I'm getting two tickets to each event...later, we'll figure out who wants the second one.
And now, it's bedtime. After watching some Northern European snuff films and looking for new leopard bestiality sites, that is.
Labels: Friends, Life, Olympics, Running
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Wouldn't THAT be a Surprise
Today is National Coming Out Day.
I am about to drive down to visit my parents.
The two are NOT related.
I am about to drive down to visit my parents.
The two are NOT related.
Labels: Stuff
Thursday, October 09, 2008
On Your Mark, Get Set, Hooah!
After a few days of bringing work home and also a day of my internet connection not working, I'm back online and have a few minutes, and in response to Doctor Paul's Facebook missive, I can finally provide an update.
Sunday was the first of my 3 big races this fall, the Army 10-Miler. It's the biggest 10-mile race in the US and the second-biggest in the world (there were over 18,000 people running).
My results? FanTAStic! I finished the race in 1 hour, 22 minutes, and 28 seconds. That's 6 1/2 minutes faster than my time in the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler last April, running an 8m 15s pace this time rather than the 8m 54s pace last spring. It's nice to see the last few months of training have paid off.
Time 1:22:28
Place
Overall 3984 /18857
All Men 3271/10584
Men 40-44 545/1820
I had planned to go slower than in the Cherry Blossom to avoid injuring myself like I did then. I had no idea how fast I was going until I reached the 3-mile mark and saw a clock for the first time and realized I was moving along pretty well. I kept passing people and each time I saw a clock I knew I was doing all right. When I saw a clock at the 9-mile point I knew that I could run the last mile in 14 minutes and still beat my old time, though of course I sped up rather than slow down. I kicked it in a bit but never felt any pain in my knee, unlike last spring when it started up in the last mile.
A number of friends ran as well, including Ethan, Vu and Troy, who have been my inspiration for all this running stuff. I actually ran faster than all of them, though to be fair, they ran 20 miles two days earlier as part of their marathon training (I changed up my schedule to account for this weekend's race).
So, yeah. I'm feeling good about the marathon, which comes up in less than 3 weeks. I certainly won't be running quite as fast as I did this weekend, as I don't think I could maintain that pace for 26.2 miles, but it's nice to know that I've gotten faster and increased my stamina through the summer. What do you know, practicing really does help!!
Sunday was the first of my 3 big races this fall, the Army 10-Miler. It's the biggest 10-mile race in the US and the second-biggest in the world (there were over 18,000 people running).
My results? FanTAStic! I finished the race in 1 hour, 22 minutes, and 28 seconds. That's 6 1/2 minutes faster than my time in the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler last April, running an 8m 15s pace this time rather than the 8m 54s pace last spring. It's nice to see the last few months of training have paid off.
Time 1:22:28
Place
Overall 3984 /18857
All Men 3271/10584
Men 40-44 545/1820
I had planned to go slower than in the Cherry Blossom to avoid injuring myself like I did then. I had no idea how fast I was going until I reached the 3-mile mark and saw a clock for the first time and realized I was moving along pretty well. I kept passing people and each time I saw a clock I knew I was doing all right. When I saw a clock at the 9-mile point I knew that I could run the last mile in 14 minutes and still beat my old time, though of course I sped up rather than slow down. I kicked it in a bit but never felt any pain in my knee, unlike last spring when it started up in the last mile.
A number of friends ran as well, including Ethan, Vu and Troy, who have been my inspiration for all this running stuff. I actually ran faster than all of them, though to be fair, they ran 20 miles two days earlier as part of their marathon training (I changed up my schedule to account for this weekend's race).
So, yeah. I'm feeling good about the marathon, which comes up in less than 3 weeks. I certainly won't be running quite as fast as I did this weekend, as I don't think I could maintain that pace for 26.2 miles, but it's nice to know that I've gotten faster and increased my stamina through the summer. What do you know, practicing really does help!!
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Poo on Hulu
Trust me, that clip on the 29th was hilarious. No idea why Hulu took it down.
Labels: Stuff
