Sick ... well almost

Over the past three days I have been fighting getting sick. Like most sane people, I don't really like being sick. It interferes with my schedule and my running, Nancy knows how that can happen. Yesterday at work I started to spike a small fever along with some chills for good measure. I have a system that will work overtime on this sort of thing so I had some fatigue as well. A nice combination really. So last night I laid about like a common ne'er do well. I like the word and don't get to use it as often as I like, mostly because it makes me sound like Dickens.

ne'er-do-well - n. an idle, worthless person; a person who is ineffectual
unsuccessful, or completely lacking in merit; good-for-nothing.

These are strong words to use against a sick person. So I tried to think of other words that might be more fitting, perhaps I was a miscreant. Another word with a bit of a Dickensian flair.

miscreant - n./ adj. - scoundrel, depraved, behaving badly, an evil doer, a villain

Sounds pretty harsh. I am sure that laying about on the couch is behaving badly in some circles but it does not seem to be villainous or smack of depravity. Maybe I went to far, was I flagitious. Another word not often used.

Flagitious - shamefully wicked, vile, scandalous,

I have been shamefully wicked before and perhaps scandalous depending upon who one speaks with. But I dare say that being a lay about does not quite rise to this level. I think I am looking for something else entirely. I believe what I was looking for was wastrel.

Wastrel: n. 1. a wasteful person; spendthrift.
2. Chiefly British.
a. refuse; waste.
b. a waif; abandoned child.
c. an idler or good-for-nothing

I was idling so 2(c) seems to fit splendidly. I was absolutely a good for nothing last night. I simply came home and laid about all night. Well I had muscle aches, a head ache, chills and fever so perhaps most will understand my slovenly behavior. In short I didn't run so I had to make up some sort of post. Well here it is I hope it entertained in some small way. Sorry if I made anyone's head hurt.

Happy Veteran's Day

I don't usually give too many details about my life beyond running and exercise efforts on this blog. Today, I am going to break that trend. Today is Veteran's Day and as a Veteran I take this day pretty seriously. Additionally it is not just me.

• My father was in the 5th Special Forces Group in Vietnam in the early 1960's


• My step father served in the Korean War


• My Uncle served on the Nimitz during the Vietnam War


• Two other uncles served in the post Vietnam era in the Army


• My Grandfather served in Alaska during World War II, he was one of seven brothers 6 served during World War II (3 died one at Normandy, one in Submarine service and one in the European theatre)

I come from a military family, it means something. I don't take things for granted in my life. During my service I served in Saudi Arabia and Iraq as a Scout in the 2nd Armored Division. It is not my part to talk about the nobility of war or the honor of service. There may some truth to the second but not the first. In war there is only death and destruction, there is nothing else to read into it. Soldiers serve where ordered, it is no different today. However, today I want to talk about my friends. When I served I had the good fortune to be stationed with Sam and Steve. Although I am not related to these two men, they are my brothers. We served on Bradley Fighting Vehicles (pictured to the left). I was promoted to Sergeant during the War and Sam and Steve were Specialists.

During our time in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, we lived on these Bradleys for months. Not exactly plush accommodations. The best sleeping spot was on stacked boxes of 25 mm ammunition. The best food was luke warm soup sent my our friends at the Campbell's Soup Company. I don't know why they send all that soup to us, but I was grateful. Today, I still eat it even though it is not the healthiest you can find on the market. The desert was filled with nasties even when there was no combat (i.e. desert vipers and scorpions). Sometimes we would play volleyball, but this was before we were on the line. After that we would spend our time watching and feeling the payloads of B-52's carpet bombing miles away, the ground would shake. Sometimes British Tornados would whip over our position at incredibly low levels heading to drop some unpleasantness. In short we lived in some strange circumstances that at times were intense. This may have had something to do with the depth of the friendships we formed.

We were friends before we went to war and after we were friends for life. I can say that I feel fortunate to have such good friends. In life you are mainly on your own. We don't want to think this is true but it is a lot. Friends that last a life time are a rare thing in this world of diminishing relation to community. I feel fortunate to have friends like Sam and Steve. I know that no matter what happens I can depend on these guys. I know this because when it really mattered they were there for me. They have been there since and I hope that I have as well. We have become a family of sorts. The bonds that we made during this time, now more than 15 years ago, mean more to me than almost anything.

Sam and I talk almost every week, Steve less frequently. On Veteran's Day I call them both. It is special. I don't know if it was that we were friends and then shared a few near death experiences. I am not sure. But I know that they are my best friends and that will always be true. Sam and Steve, here is to you, take care my good friends. Also, here is to the guys who have served there since and to those that are still there. Take care.

Respectfully,

Rob - formerly Sergeant Rob

---- Also, today I ran 5.5 miles on the treadmill at the gym. I didn't like it but I did it.

Did I mention...

... that I really hate treadmills. That being said I went to the gym today rather than running the streets. It was raining today, I don't mind running in the rain but when it is freezing rain I am given pause. So I went to the gym and ran on the treadmill. I started lifting some weights so that I felt that I really did something. When I was done with the weights, I put in 5 miles on the treadmill. Or so it says. I guess the problem is that I am still standing in the same place at every point on whatever distance I ran. So in the end I got to sweat a lot and didn't really go anywhere or see a thing beyond Sports Center.

Tomorrow, roads (I hope)

Managing Pain

I have been running in pain since early summer. I hurt my foot in martial arts class by coming down hard on my heel and then I ran a lot. This created a nice plantar faciitis injury that I have sported for about 6 months. It just hasn't healed the way it should have. But that is my own fault. I have not given it a chance to get better. It has not bothered me to run at all so I have run. It is getting up in the morning and early day walking that is the trouble. I have on occasion had to crawl or hop up stairs to the bathroom in the morning. I have silently screamed as I first stepped out of bed in the morning. Although this is good for waking up, I can think of better ways.

Ouch!!!

Over the last month I have not run that much. It is really been one race and one training day per week. I have been a little under the weather so I have been taking it easy. At the same time I am a lawyer with a billable hour requirement. My monthly numbers are fine but for the year I want to get to a fairly good number. To do that I have to put in some hours. So for the past month I have been working a good deal. Now the interesting thing is that my ankle/ heel is finally healing. I should have known that extended rest was the key. I just wasn't letting myself do it. My ego was getting in the way. I wanted to run and compete with myself. I still do. You see last year I missed alot of time due to a runner's knee injury and I didn't want to go down again. So I ended up with a nagging injury that was manageable.

However today my foot feels better than it has in months. I know that is because I have been mostly off it for the past month. I think I need to do more of the same to get better. So I will follow what has been better - only two days a week on the roads. That is too bad for me because I would like to get out more. But I also need to heal so that I don't have to crawl up the stairs or wake up in pain from turning wrong.

Time to do the right thing.

2008 Race Schedule

This is my intended race schedule for next year. I will add a few shorter races through the year and maybe a couple of trail runs in the spring. I hope to do a Marathon at the end of next year in the Philadelphia Marathon. Here is the list:

March 9, 2008 - Citizen's Bank Ceaser Rodney Half Marathon - Wilmington, DE (registered)

May 4, 2008 - Broad Street Run (10 Miler)

July, 2008 - Marsh Creek Raptor Run (5 Mile Trail Run)

October 5, 2008 - Army 10 Miler (register in April)

October 11, 2008 - Baltimore Marathon (Half Marathon) - registered

November 2008, Schuylkill River Loop Run (8.4 Miles)

November, 2008, Philadelphia Marathon

Schuylkill River Loop Run - Post Race

Today, I ran the Schuylkill River Loop Run. (skoo kill) I didn't come up with the spelling so don't blame me. This is an 8.4 mile race around some of the nicest parts of Philadelphia for running. The start is at the Art Museum then run up 4 miles to the Falls Bridge and back down Kelly Drive past Boathouse Row to the finish.

Art Museum

Falls Bridge

Rower Statute

Kelly Drive

It is a nice course. This was part of the Philadelphia Distance Run and I liked that part of the course so much that when I found out about this race, I wanted to do it. There is lots of tree cover and on the back half there are lots of statues and family oriented space set aside. Additionally, there are usually rowers on the river. It is just a nice place to run. On to the nitty gritty.

Mile 1: 10:43

Mile 2: 11:02

Mile 3: 11:32

Mile 4: 12:02

Mile 5: 12:19

Mile 6: 12:18

Mile 7: 13:10

Mile 8: 13:44

Last .4: 13:28 pace

Total Time: 1:42:52

I think you can see a trend. I started well but then I dropped off. I hit a groove from miles 3 through 6 but miles 7 to the end was just tough on my body. I did not train as well as I should have but I made it to the end with a 12:20 pace. Good for me and below my expectations by a little bit. The other good news, I placed 3rd in my age group so I got a performance based medal. Huzzah!!! I am tired, I will take a nap now.

Nancy, I received the Viagra based pens and stuff. Thanks. I will use them with pride at my office. I am sure people will notice. Nancy sent me a couple of Viagra pens a mini mouse and $5 as I won our little bet on the first to break the 11:00 mark on three consecutive miles. Happy running everyone.

Sneaking out for a Quick 4

With the Schuylkill Loop tomorrow, I thought a little tune up would be in order. I had a busy day on tap but was out the door this morning for a quick 4 miler. I haven't been running as much as I would like as of late. Life has its demands as we all know. But this morning here is how it went.



Mile 1: 12:30

Mile 2: 12:01

Mile 3: 12:07

Mile 4: 12:08



I was not looking for speed, I was only looking to find a groove and stick with it. The first mile was shaking cobwebs out of my system. Then after that I was looking for something I could sustain for 8.4 miles. That is the distance of the race tomorrow. For the half marathon I ran at a 12:40 pace. I would like to do better for this run. I have run a 5k at less than an 11:00 pace for the 3 miles. I think I would like to average between 12:15 and 12:30 for the race. I will set the pace at about 12:00 and see where that goes. I am still in awe over the fact that I can discuss these speeds. It may not sound like much to the average runner but for me it is fast. I started running back in March at 15:00 to 16:00 pace. However, over the last few weeks I have not been as diligent as usual in my running. I think it was my body telling me I needed a rest.

Tomorrow will be 8.4 miles around some of the prettiest running territory in Philadelphia. Wish me luck.