Minor Setback

Well it was inevitable I suppose. I got a cold. I've been pretty lucky with no sick days at all over the past 12 weeks of training. The timing was as good as it could get really. It hit Sunday night, and has pretty much cleared up now. So I ended up skipping my Tuesday 5 mile run so I could take it easy and recover. But I was back out today for 9 miles. Unfortunately the weather was not great, with cool temperatures and gusty winds. My nose was running too much which made things difficult, but other than that I was able to keep on pace for the full distance. I was glad as I was worried the cold had taken more out of me. Since Tuesday was my shortest run of the week I'm not too upset about missing it, but I may try to make it up with a short run on Saturday. I'll see what my schedule allows. Sunday I will be doing 18 miles, and it is supposed to be warm again so I bought a water bottle carrier with an extra bottle to get me through.

Sneaky Creeky!

Today the Armstrong family participated in the 2006 Cherry Creek Sneak. A great time was had by all as you can read on Melissa's blog, and we both improved our times from last year. Melissa walked the 5K in 46:31, and I ran the 5 mile in 40:30. Last year I ran the same in 42:38, so I improved my pace by almost 30 seconds per mile. It was a good race and it will build my speed for the marathon that is just over a month away. This week has been a bit of a break for me with only 20 total miles, this should give me enough of a rest to push through the next two weeks with 32 and 39 total miles to go. After that I start my taper before the race. It's been a long road, but I'm going to make it!

Homeward bound

Well the conference is drawing to a close and I'm looking forward to heading home today. This has been by far the best ENC I have been to. I really enjoy meeting new people when I come to these meetings and reconnecting with old friends. It's great to see how far some of the people I've met in the past have gone, and I guess I should really count myself among them when I see where I am today. I've learned a lot, and I have a lot that I can bring back to my job. As we are ending the testing phase soon, I am really getting excited about firing up some new pulse sequences and seeing what contributions I can make. It has made me appreciate my job even more.



This morning I'm not going to be able to see any of the talks I wanted to, so I'm going to head down to the ocean for a little walk before heading up to San Jose. It's a nice drive, but with the drive and sitting in the airport/plane it will be nice to stretch my legs a little. I don't think I would have been able to stay awake in the talks anyway. This meeting has a cumulative effect on me, even though I did not drink much at all. It's the "up until 1 and awake at 7" every day that takes it's toll. Tonight I'll be able to sleep in my own bed, and see Elijah and Melissa. I really have been missing them, and I can't wait to see them tonight.

Worthwhile to note

I thought I'd post a brief reflection that I had today on my run. It was actually 2 years ago at this very same site that I started running. Kind of historic. It was a very pleasant 4 miles with that on my mind, I've come a long way.

Asilomar

Well I blew off the breakfast coffee in favor of a latte and email session at the lodge, so I have a few free minutes to blog. It's been a great meeting here, although the cold damp weather is getting to some people. I don't mind that much, especially when it comes to my runs. Sunday was a great run! 16 miles and 4 of those on the beach. At the end of it my legs were tired and sore, but I felt like I could probably pulled out another 10 if I had been running the marathon. The biggest effect of my training has been my body's ability to bounce back. After a shower I felt almost no pain, and I was still able to wander around the vendor suites at night. Tuesday was also great, although at 5 miles I barely felt like I had worked the kinks out. It was aerobic interval training though, so it was kind of fun being able to run fast as part of the workout. Today I will squeeze in a 4 mile run between my morning session and lunch. This week has been really rejuvenating, and with only 20 miles total it is just the little break I need before plowing into the last 3 big weeks of training. At least I feel like I will be able to handle the race when it comes.


This conference has been a breath of fresh air, and I have a lot of ideas that I want to try when I get back. I'm always glad to meet people here, and sometimes I am surprised by where my past work has had an impact. It just reminds me of how lucky I am to have a job that I enjoy as much as I do and to be surrounded by people who are so supportive of me.

Into the teens!

Well sortof. Today was supposed to be 14 miles, and it was, but I was not able to run all of it. I ran for 1:55 before I had to stop because I was out of water. The heat of the sun was just too much and I did not want to push myself through the last couple of miles without anything to drink so I walked from there. That's been two weeks now that I haven't been able to finish my long run and it's beginning to erode my confidence level. I'm hoping next week's run at sea level will give me a better idea of how I will be able to perform for the actual race. I'm going to have to start running earlier in the morning though so that my strength is not being sapped by the afternoon sun. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, however. This month is the biggest month with 16 miles next week, a race the week after, and 18 and 20 miles for the two weeks after that. But after that my taper starts and my mileage scales way back to allow me to recover for the race. It's that thought that keeps me running now.

Trying to beat the heat

It's warm again today, and is supposed to be windy this afternoon, so I decided to go on my run earlier in the morning to beat the heat. It sort of worked, by the end of my run it was 79. But I guess that's better than going at high noon. My winter training made me pretty good at running in the cold so now it is tough to start getting my body to deal with heat better. I've been taking a water bottle with me, but sometimes with that sun beating down on you there is not enough water in the world. Still I did today's 8 miles in 1 hour 13 minutes, pretty close to on pace. It was a good workout, and when there is not a cloud in the sky the vast blue of it is even more striking. With only 7 weeks to go before the big day I'm starting to get excited. Just a few more really long runs to go.

Sunny Days

We've had quite a nice string of weather since the snowstorm on Friday. It really feels like spring out there. I took the opportunity in the weather to start my sprinkler system back up this weekend so that I can start greening up my lawn. My runs have been really nice as well and it is a welcome change from all the wind I was battling there for a while. Sunday was 12 miles again and after 6 of those miles I felt strong enough to pick up the pace a little. Unfortunately my legs ran out of gas around mile nine and I had to walk/run for the last few miles. That'll teach me to listen to my body. I think it was likely related to how long it had been since breakfast and how hot it was outside. Next week I'll have to be more careful not to overdo it. Today's run was much better, and I felt really strong. I threw in an extra minute of hills for my workout, and was able to pick it up to about an 8 minute per mile pace at the end. I think that will be my goal pace for the Cherry Creek Sneak at the end of the month.


Tonight we are off to a little pub up the street from us to celebrate my birthday with my parents. I will probably have shepherd's pie, and maybe a wee dram of scotch to cap off the night. How can you go wrong with a birthday dinner like that?

This week's runs

I caught a break in the weather this week, and had two good runs. Tuesday it was 79 degrees and beautiful out. But it was so hot that my run ended up being really difficult, especially with the 7 minutes of hills. I realized that I need to start bringing a water bottle with me as I couldn't get to the water fountain fast enough on my return. Today's run was much better, we were supposed to have rain and high winds today, which I was not looking forward to, but most of that weather seems to have given us a miss this time. Most of my run was sunny and in the low 60s, which was perfect, and it was only right at the end that an approaching storm dropped a few drops on me. Needless to say, I haven't had a long run where I haven't been fighting a headwind in so long I had forgotten how great they are. I had no problem covering the 8 miles I had to do today, and was able to run a negative split for the first time in weeks. It felt really good and has given me a boost of confidence right when I needed it most. There was one fly in the ointment though, which was the swarms of mosquitoes I battled for some parts of the run, but this small nuisance did not overshadow the positive aspects. It struck me as well that the distance for today's "semi-long" run was the same as my long run from a couple of weeks back at the Aurora reservoir. It's nice to be able to see my improvement like that.

Oops

I tried to calculate how far I had to go today while I was running and I ended up running a mile farther than I was supposed to. I guess that means I should lay out my plan before I go so that I don't make any more mistakes. It was a nice realization though as I was feeling a little down about my pace. I ran 13 miles and it took me 2:05 so that puts me almost on pace for the marathon. I was a little slow because of the wind unfortunately, but it wasn't as bad as last week. I think that I have to start cutting the hilly portion of my run out of the long day as it is getting really difficult to make it up the last 3.5 mile push after running almost 10 before that.


The party was a great success yesterday, which made it especially difficult for all of us to make the "spring forward" time change. But we made it through and with an early-ish night tonight we'll be back on track. This week I'm hoping to finish up all of the tests I'm running at work, which will leave us ready to start getting users in. It's an exciting time for everyone. Well, gotta go enjoy some leftover ice cream cake!

More wind

Today it is windy again, but at least it was only 7 miles. Unfortunately, the wind was at my back on the way out and in my face on the way back. So I tried to take it fairly easy on the first half, and made it to the turn around point in 32 minutes, but the return trip was still brutal. On the final little hill I felt like my legs had nothing left in them, but as soon as I turned around I had no problems. It took 34:30 to get back, almost a full minute per mile slower than my normal pace.


Still, it was nice to get away from work for a little while. And the sun felt really nice even though I had to wear my jacket with the wind chill. I'm looking forward to my run on Sunday though, they are still predicting high 60s and no mention of wind. I'll get to go a little farther into Cherry Creek state park so that will be scenic. I've got a BBQ this weekend too so I've got a lot to look forward to.

National Atheists Day!

April 1st is National Atheists Day


The fool says in his heart,

"There is no God."

They are corrupt, their deeds are vile;

there is no one who does good.

Psalm 14:1

Still kicking my butt

Today's run was only 5 miles with 6 minutes of hill workouts but it still kicked my butt. I guess it's not really training if you aren't working hard. I think it's mostly the additive toll on my system, which is why in the weeks before the marathon the training is really scaled back considerably. I should be in good shape and fresh by then.

Must be my scottish roots showing through...

From Melissa's Blog:

You scored as William Wallace. The great Scottish warrior William Wallace led his people against their English oppressors in a campaign that won independence for Scotland and immortalized him in the hearts of his countrymen. With his warrior's heart, tactician's mind, and poet's soul, Wallace was a brilliant leader. He just wanted to live a simple life on his farm, but he gave it up to help his country in its time of need. William Wallace 75% Indiana Jones 67% Maximus 63% Lara Croft 54% Neo, the "One" 50% The Terminator 50% The Amazing Spider-Man 46% James Bond, Agent 007 46% Batman, the Dark Knight 42% Captain Jack Sparrow 38% El Zorro 33% Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

Wind Blows

Yup, my run was crappy today because the wind was really blowing today. I'd take damp and cold and below zero weather any day over the 30 mph wind gusts in my face that I had today. The only thing that got me through it was knowing that as the wind was directly against me the whole way out, that it would be at my back on the way back for the hills I had to face. It was very unpleasant, but I made it. Now that I am up over 10 miles every week the long runs are starting to feel long, and my legs are letting me know that afterwards. I must admit that the training is tough, and it is made even tougher by the fact that I am my only motivation. It is one thing to commit to running 26.2 miles on one day, but that commitment also means that you have to run long runs every week before that. It wouldn't be so bad if the weather was nice everyday, but I've had a string of bad luck and the weather has been nasty for the last 3 of my long runs. Today was the worst of all and has left me feeling rather disenchanted. Well 6 weeks of training down, 10 to go.

I was dying out there

Man my run kicked my butt today. It was probably the most difficult run I have had to date. I think the combination of a fair headwind on my way out and the increase in distance I had on Tuesday contributed to the difficulty. You wouldn't think that a single mile would make a big difference, but when you are boosting your mileage every week it takes its toll. This training plan has been a very challenging experience, but rewarding as well. I can't wait for the accomplishment waiting for me at the end! To join the ranks of those who have finished those 26.2 miles will be an honor.

So this is spring?

We got a few inches of snow on Monday, ironically the first day of spring. But Tuesday was sunny for most of the day so I took advantage of the break in the weather to do my run. Tuesday is the short run, so it was only 5 miles with 6 minutes of hill workouts. But running through the snow sure made it feel like more than that. Still, I was glad I could fit it into my day, I always feel better the afternoon after a run. Tomorrow is a seven miler, but most of the snow will have melted off the trail by then. And for a change it is supposed to be really nice for my long run (11 miles this week) on Sunday. I've noticed that I'm going to have to start putting on sunscreen soon, this is the first winter ever that I have had a tan on my legs!

I always suspected as much!

You scored as Goofy. Your alter ego is Goofy! You are fun and great to be around, and you are always willing to help others. You arn't worried about embarrassing yourself, so you are one who is more willing to try new things. Goofy 75% Ariel 69% Peter Pan 69% Donald Duck 69% The Beast 56% Cinderella 50% Sleeping Beauty 44% Snow White 38% Pinocchio 31% Cruella De Ville 25% Which Disney Character is your Alter Ego? created with QuizFarm.com

Just in Time

I decided to go for my run as early as I could today as we were due to get a storm tonight. It turned out to be good timing as about 20 minute after I got back it started to rain fairly hard and now it is snowing big wet flakes. I would have got kind of wet if I had been stuck out there in that. It was a nice run though, with overcast skies I didn't get too hot. Today was 10 miles, which is kind of a milestone as it is exactly half of the longest distance in my training runs. Now on to enjoying the rest of my weekend!

Friday at last

This week has been incredibly busy for me, but really fulfilling. I've learned a ton of new things and got a lot accomplished. Hopefully though next week won't be quite as hectic. This week was the first week that I have "missed" a training run. I didn't actually miss it I guess, I just didn't do it on the day I was supposed to. I had far too many things to get done on Tuesday to get to my 4 mile hill workout, so I moved it to Wednesday. Since it's a fairly short run I figured I would recover in time for Thursday's semi-long (7 mile) run. It ended up working out pretty well, although I much prefer having them spread out in the week. Sunday is a 10 mile run which I am not really looking forward to. It seems that the past two weeks the worst weather has been saved up for my longest run. We'll see how it turns out, but if it is too nasty outside I'll have to rough it in the gym. What could be more exciting than running around an indoor track 100 times? Yuck!


I'm getting my taxes done tomorrow, so here's hoping for a refund. At least getting organized for my appointment tomorrow will be easier with the wonderful filing job that Melissa has done. Seldom does a day go by that I do not marvel at how wonderful my wife is, and that goes doubly so when I am as busy at work as I am right now. She is the glue that keeps me together and I praise the Lord for bringing her into my life.


Gotta go, I have one more experiment to start before I leave for the weekend.

9 Damp and Chilly Miles

That was today's run, it's 30 degrees here and was snowing for the whole run. With my cold weather gear though it wasn't too bad, but it still was more unpleasant than most of my runs have been. Yesterday I was baking most of the afternoon. I made banana bread and chocolate chip cookies. Good stuff! Elijah has been really grumpy most of the weekend but today he slept most of the afternoon, so perhaps he was over-tired. It would be nice to have him back to his old cheery self. This week will likely be just as busy as last week, but I should finish most of the tests if all goes well.

Crazy Busy

I started the testing for our system this week so I've been really busy at work. I've got a lot of it done though and am in good shape to finish next week I think. I managed to squeeze in my runs though, shorts and t-shirt on Tuesday and full winter gear on Thursday. It wasn't that cold really but I'd rather be too warm than too cold. This weekend I have to do 9 miles on Sunday, which will be a chore if the weather does not improve. I'm thinking about running a different route this time, but it would be uphill all the way home. We'll see how I feel I suppose. Other than that I'm just looking forward to being home this weekend. It feels like I've hardly been there at all this week.

Aurora reservoir

Today I drove up to the Aurora reservoir for my run. The perimeter trail for the reservoir is 8 miles, which was the distance I needed to cover today. I figured it would be a nice change of scenery and it was. An added bonus was the relatively flat terrain compared to what I usually run on the weekend. I kept up my 9 minute mile for the full distance, which really gives me confidence that I will be able to build my mileage and keep the pace constant. The reservoir is really nice, with lots of places to fish and even has an archery range. We'll have to take Elijah there some time. The weather was gorgeous, in the low 70s and sunny. With the view of the mountains and fighters from the air force base flying above it made for a great run.

Na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na Spiderman!

Your results:
You are Spider-Man

Spider-Man 80% Superman 70% Iron Man 65% Hulk 65% Green Lantern 65% The Flash 55% Robin 45% Supergirl 40% Catwoman 30% Batman 25% Wonder Woman 20%

You are intelligent, witty, a bit geeky and have great power and responsibility.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

Wile E. Coyote

Wildlife for the day was a coyote with a nice fresh prairie dog lunch. Mmmm, tasty! Today's run was a good stress relief. A little under 7 miles in gorgeous weather. Not too hot, but nice and sunny. For my run on Tuesday it was 75, but it was rushed and not as relaxing as today. Oh well, I suppose that's the way it goes sometimes. Now I have two days of recovery and 8 miles on Sunday.


Work has been good this week but busy. Tomorrow will be hectic too, so I'm taking advantage of this momentary lull to blog. It looks like next couple of weeks will be especially busy too. Yikes! Well it just goes with the territory I suppose. I'm looking forward to this weekend though. A trip to Caribou Coffee perhaps and Home Depot run. We might go swimming as well for the little tyke's B-Day. He's easy to please at this age thankfully.

Weekend recap

My runs this weekend were both very enjoyable. 4 miles on Saturday, and 7 miles on Sunday. 4 miles is starting to feel like less and less of a run, and I kept up a 8.5 min/mile pace over the whole thing and still felt great at the end. My 7 miles yesterday were awesome as well. Last week I ran my 6 mile route backwards so that the majority of the hills would be on the first half of my run. Yesterday I took the usual "forward" route and left the big hill for the end, followed by a nice little downhill cooldown. It worked out really well and I was able to average a 9 min/mile pace without getting too winded. I think this bodes well for the rest of my training. This week is 4 miles, 6 miles and 8 miles on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. For the 8 mile run on Sunday I'm thinking about going out to the Aurora Reservoir, which has an 8 mile loop around it. It might be nice to have a flat route for a change. Weather was great this weekend, with highs in the 60s. I was out in my shorts and t-shirt and we even got out for a family walk. I'm looking forward to doing that more in the spring and summer.

On the go!

I didn't get a chance to post yesterday as I was on the go all day. Yesterday was supposed to be quiet! Oh well, I still was able to squeeze in my hour run, which was very pleasant. I confirmed that my pace was too fast by going a little slower at the start. I covered more distance than last week in the same time, and my split was almost exactly even. I could have run in shorts and a T-shirt, but I brought my jacket just in case and ended up regretting it. Quite a difference from a week ago, but that's Colorado weather for you. Looks like we'll be busy again tonight, but I am looking forward to a nice relaxing weekend.

4 miles plus 4 minutes of hills

I had to go to Boulder today for a meeting and I didn't get to go for my run until 3. It was nice though, still not shorts weather, but well into the 40s. My pace was a little fast for the start so the hills kicked my a$$ again. I wish I had a better scale for the distances I run at work, either I was much faster than last week, or I'm not recovering enough in between my runs. I guess the solution to both is to go a little slower. I think it's mostly the pace of the 4 mile runs, I'm at work, I'm a little wound up, I think "hey, it's only 4 miles" and it all results in me going too quickly. Well that'll learn me!


I forgot to mention that I bought new socks for running. The arch support on my new running shoes means that a much larger portion of my arch now touches the insole. Over my long runs this has led to a blister the size of a couple of quarters on my arch. It's not that bad as there is not so much pressure on that part of my foot, just rubbing. But after my run on Sunday I was fed up. Cotton socks just hold the moisture next to your foot, which for an hour long run means that 8 oz of sweat are between your foot and your shoe. This means that by the end of an hour long run it feels like you have lined your shoes with sandpaper. The socks I bought are meant to wick the moisture away from the foot so there is not as much chafing. Today they felt really good, and my foot was not overly wet when I was done. Thursday will be the real test. The weird thing is that they are ankle socks, which I have never worn before. It feels very strange having my ankle all exposed like that, what will the neighbors think!?!

Happy Birthday Zelda!

Here's to 20 years of innovation!

Still cold...

...but not as cold as yesterday. It was 6 miles today, but my route ended up taking me 6.8. This weeks workouts are the same as last week. I think the pace was good this week so I'll try to keep it about the same. One week down, 15 to go.

Winter Blast

We've had really cold weather lately. It got cold on Thursday, really cold on Friday, and stayed really cold today. It was 6 degrees for my run today. But Thursday and today were sunny so it wasn't so bad for a run. Today was 4 miles, and was really pretty with the steam rising off the asphalt. The only part of me that got cold was my thighs. Tomorrow it's a 6 mile run and it is still supposed to be cold, but not as bad as yesterday. It's nice to be able to unwind with a morning run on the weekend.

Day 4

Today was an hour run. Unfortunately the weather has taken a turn for the worst so I had to bundle up a bit. It's 17 degrees out, so if the wind had been up I would have skipped it, but the sun came out, so in the end it was quite a pleasant run. It's supposed to stay cold over the weekend too, so my Saturday/Sunday runs will be less pleasant than usual, but having conquered today, I should be able to tough it out. I can't complain too much, it was 55 degrees on Tuesday for my last run and it is February after all.


I finally got my confirmation from the Rock n' Roll Marathon, so it's official. San Diego, here I come!

Day 1 (well Day 2 technically)

Today was my first run of my training program, yesterday was a rest day. It was a 4 mile run with 4 minutes total uphill time. I ran out to Bluff lake, but did not do the circuit of the lake. Instead I ran up and down the hills there a few times to make up my 4 minutes. Worked out pretty well actually, but I could tell that I had run more hills today than usual. They say no pain no gain and they are half right. The pain is half the equation, but thankfully the recovery tomorrow is the other half. I'll sleep well tonight!

I'm Scooter!

You Are Scooter

Brainy and knowledgable, you are the perfect sidekick. You're always willing to lend a helping hand. In any big event or party, you're the one who keeps things going. "15 seconds to showtime!"

The Muppet Personality Test

Sunny Days

I've had great weather for both of my runs this weekend. Yesterday was cold, but with the sun I hardly noticed it. Today I went out expecting it to be just as cold, but ended up being too hot with my jacket and pants on. I took the same route both days, 5 miles long. Yesterday I was slowed a little by icy sidewalks and it took me 47 minutes, but with the nice weather today I was able to shave 2 minutes off that time today. So my total mileage for the week is 20 miles, and I'm in good shape to start training this week. 16 weeks to San Diego!

Time to blog

It's been a few days now and I haven't had time to blog. Work has been busy and the last thing I've wanted to do when I got home was be on the computer. My runs have been good this week though. 5 miles around Bluff Lake on Tuesday and Thursday, but at my 9 min/mile pace. I was surprised at how my lungs were able to keep up with the faster pace over that distance. Even with the faster run I was still able to enjoy the local wildlife, with the eagle and deer making appearances on both days. On Tuesday I was less than 20 feet away from the deer. Hopefully the weather will improve a bit for the weekend, it got cold today and the first flakes of snow are falling now. I'm not looking forward to shoveling the driveway tomorrow.

The Big Game

Today is the Big Game and I'm excited to see it on our big TV with all our friends. It will be a great cap to a great weekend. Friday night we had some friends over for dinner and ended up talking and playing games until 11:30. Then yesterday we took a little trip to home depot to buy a floodlight for our back patio, a must for grilling in the dark. I had fun installing that, and for once I picked a gorgeous day to work outside.


I had two good runs this weekend, but no wildlife to speak of. I was out for an hour yesterday for 6 miles. As I said it was gorgeous, so I was able to run in just a T-shirt and shorts. It was great! Then today I ran down to the track at the local high school for some intervals. Unfortunately today it is windy and cold, and I needed my jacket. I should have taken my pants too instead of shorts as my legs got really cold. The track was nice as I was able to get a better idea of the pace I need to hit for my training runs. I ran a couple of loops at 10 minute per mile pace, then did a couple of 9 min/mile circuits followed by easy jogs around, then an 8 min/mile loop/easy jog and another 9 min/mile loop/easy jog. Then it was back home. The whole run took me 50 minutes, and was a really intense workout. While my distance has improved over the last year my pace has declined and I was surprised at the effort required to hit my target 9 min/mile. But that's what training is for I guess.


The highlight of the weekend was a guys night out last night, with a friendly poker game. We had a blast and were at it until almost midnight. I spent the last week preparing for it the best I could, reading through my poker book and playing a few hands against the computer. The practice ended up paying off as I ended up being able to hold my own and was actually one of the final two at the table!


Well, gotta go get ready for the party. Go Steelers!

Deer John,

Great run today, the wind held off for me until after I got back. Sam the eagle was back again today, but the star of the show was a herd of whitetail deer just on the other side of the pond from me. It was a 45 minute run around Bluff lake again, although it was interrupted by a phone call. I think the hardest part of this job is never being able to be away from the phone. Oh well, that's what vacations are for. I was really busy at work today, and I barely had time to go out, but in the end I was glad to have gone.

Stupid wind

Well running wise this weekend was a wash out. I was hoping to go for a long run on Sunday, but a big wind storm blew through and I did not feel like picking sand and gravel out of my teeth and hair all night. But it was beautiful today, so I got out for a nice 50 minute loop through Bluff Lake again. This is rapidly becoming my favorite run at work. It's long enough to be a good workout, with a couple of hills and of course lots of wildlife. It will be even better once they finish construction, and take down the stupid signs that are blocking the whole sidewalk.


I also put my marathon training schedule into my calendar today (I'm doing the beginner plan). I was a bit surprised as it looks like it will not be as intense as I had first thought. That's good as I want to build my confidence with this marathon, not destroy the desire to ever do one again. It looks like I'll only have to do a couple of runs during the work week and then long runs on the weekend. With the timing of the race, the longest runs will fall right into some of the nicest months of the year here in Colorado, I'm looking forward to that. It all starts on Valentine's day!

Crazy Like a Fox!

Today I managed to find half an hour to go for a run. This was quite a feat with all the goings on around the lab today. Today's wildlife encounter was a fox about 15 feet away from me. He looked a little startled to see me, and I didn't hang around for long. So this week that was 2 bald eagles, a falcon of some kind, a fox and too many ground hogs to count. All in all a good week of running, although I've been too busy to really write about it.

A Salute to All Nations (But Mostly America)

Went for a 50 minute run at lunchtime today. I ran down "ground-hog trail," which I named for the hundreds of ground-hogs that live along it, to the Bluff Lake Nature Center and back again. I was running along, enjoying the view of the mountains when I look to my right and see a huge bird in a tree near the trail. When I got close enough, I realized that it was a Bald Eagle! I had to stop and reflect on the size and majesty of this bird, it was quite a treat. After my circuit around Bluff Lake I came back and it was still sitting in the same spot, keeping an eye on me. I couldn't help but wonder at the damage this bird could do with its beak and talons if it decided it didn't like the look of me. The whole experience left me really appreciating being able to run in Colorado.

Long Run!

Today was gorgeous, a little cool, but nice and sunny. I went for my long run, 6.8 miles, took me 65 minutes, and it is a hilly circuit. We have a lot of hills near us so it is a part of every run here. On one hill I was passed by a bicyclist on the way down, and then I passed him on the way up the other side. I think that's the longest run I've taken here since we moved. I used to go that long all the time when we lived in Denver, but my mileage fell off in the fall. This weeks total mileage is over 28 miles, so if I can keep that up I'll be in good shape to start marathon training in February. I think running every day helps as it sets a routine that is easy to keep up. If I miss a day, then that becomes my rest day for the week. Tonight I'm relaxing and enjoying time with Melissa. There truly is no place like home.

Home at Last

Yesterday I left sunny CA to go to snowy CO. Our class finished two days earlier than we thought, so we were able to get a morning flight back yesterday rather than coming in at 11 tonight. That was a nice treat. Elijah showed me his new trick and we spent some time goofing around, but it was still not enough. Oh well, that's what the weekend is for I guess. I had to come in to work today to start catching up on all I had to do, but I still found time for a 40 minute run. It went pretty well considering I'm back at altitude. Since the snow has ended and the sun come out it's perfect weather for a run, just a little sloppy in some parts. Quite a difference from the run I took on Wednesday in Palo Alto. I still liked today's run better though.

Almost Done

Today was the penultimate day of the course! If you are not sure what penultimate means I highly suggest reading A Series of Unfortunate Events. We did nothing but troubleshooting today, which I really enjoy. It's like solving a little mystery. Tomorrow will be more of the same after we wrap up all the little administrative details. I'm still hoping that we will be able to get out on standby on Thursday so that I can get home to see the family; I'm glad that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.


Did a fast run today, only 25 minutes but at a 7.5 min/mile or so. I'm not sure exactly how fast I was going as I decided not to bring my watch. It was a good workout regardless. I took a different route though and ran out of sidewalk at some point. I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised given how often people walk in California, but it's still a pain. I'll probably get to go again tomorrow, but I'm guessing Thursday will be tough. With any luck I might get to go when I get home. We'll see I guess.


I'm not sure where we'll be going to dinner tonight. I'm thinking maybe Italian again. I have to swing by Trader Joe's again and pick up some peanut clusters for Melissa. I'll probably grab something for me too, just to get me through these last couple of nights. Chocolate can make almost anything better.

Day 6 - Pneumatics

Today was a good day at training, we got to do a little more troubleshooting. We have pretty much covered everything now, so the next two days are basically just troubleshooting. Our instructor "breaks" the console and we have to fix it. It is good practice for the real thing. Melissa gets back home today so I will start getting pictures of Elijah again in my mail. The last movie I got from her he was climbing stairs so I'll have to ask her about that tonight.


Did a half hour run today at a 8.5 min/mile pace, which was a good workout. Yesterday's run was 7.2 miles it turns out, so that put me around 10 min/mile. This is good to know because it means my pace hasn't fallen off significantly with my lack of training. If I keep the 10 min/mile pace for the marathon that would put me at 4:20, so the training pace I'm shooting for is 9.1 min/mile. I think I should be able to accomplish that goal.


Went to Chef Chu's for dinner tonight. In case it's not clear from the name it's a Chinese restaurant. I think this may have been my favorite dinner so far. We shared a couple of dishes and still came away under $30 for the two of us. The place was hopping busy, and it's clear why with the quality of the food and the prices. I'm getting really tired of restaurant food, but at least we haven't had to eat at the same place twice so far.

If you're going to San Francisco...

Today we went into San Francisco for the day. Originally we were planning on going up to the wine country, but after looking at the length of the trip we decided just to walk around San Francisco instead. We found a parking garage near Union square and walked down to the waterfront along Powell street. We mostly just walked along the waterfront checking out the sites as we went. I got clam chowder in a bread bowl for lunch at the Boudin bakery. We walked back through Union station and drove back to Palo Alto with the top down (we got a convertible for no extra charge). It was fairly cool today, but the sun was out all day. It was perfect weather. I got back in time to have a little run, so I took a long trip around the Stanford campus. I was out for 75 minutes, it was really nice. Went to dinner at Baja Fresh, and stopped in for ice cream at Coldstone. After being away from my wife for a week I really need dessert to get me through the night. At least it's only a few more days now until I go back.

Go Broncos!

Way to stick it to Tom Brady and the Pats, that interception by John Lynch at the end was great. He's definitely one of my favorite players on the team, a great leader for that defensive line. We'll find out tomorrow who we get to play next!

Road Trip

Took a little trip down to Monterey today. It rained on and off most of the day so it was good to be indoors most of the time. The aquarium was amazing as always, although it seemed more expensive than I remember. It really made we want to go diving though. We got back to Palo Alto in time for me to do laundry before dinner. I had to find a laundromat nearby, and hang out there for an hour, but it was better than having to check a bag. I'm not even sure I own enough clothes to last me two weeks. Tomorrow we're considering heading up to Sonoma to check out a couple of wineries. Hopefully the rain will hold off for us. Tonight I'm just watching the game and packing it in early. Go Broncos!

Day 5 - RF

I was dragging a bit today after yesterday. I guess that should teach me. Still had an interesting day, and a good troubleshooting session to cap off the day. So one week down and one to go. Tomorrow I'll be making a trip into either Monterey to see the aquarium, or to San Francisco, depending on the weather. I'll have to fit time in to go to a laundromat as well. As for tonight it's off to bed early for me, although Thunderball is on TV so I'll probably watch that first.


Had dinner at an indian restaurant tonight, which really cleared out the sinuses. I had a lamb curry, called Rogan Josh. It was very tasty. We hit Trader Joe's on the way back and I got some Peanut clusters to snack on tonight. It really sucks being away from home on the weekend, I miss Melissa and Elijah a lot.

I'm getting too old for this

Had free dinner/drinks tonight on Pfizer's dime. Great Mexican food and conversation, plus smoothing out our relations with Varian. I'm getting too old to be out this late.


Had a good run today though, half an hour and my legs started feeling normal again. Was a little creaky after yesterday. I found out today that I will not have a running partner for the marathon. I'll probably go for it myself anyway. Still a bit of a letdown though. Oh well. Tomorrow, more RF training, then a weekend to get through. I can almost see myself back home now, after the weekend I'll be on the home stretch.

Day 3 - Hardware at last

Today we finally started on the hardware part of the course. It was really interesting and I learned a lot. Plus at the end of the day we got opportunities to fix the console after it had been "broken." Today the problems were pretty straightforward, but they progress in difficulty as the days go by. Should start getting more interesting from here on in.


I got to run both yesterday and today. I took it easy yesterday and went for a half hour, but today I really got into it and was out for an hour. I went right into the Stanford campus and circled around the "quad" area. It's a nice campus, but I think that CU Boulder is more scenic. The rain is still holding off for the most part so I'm trying to get my runs in while I can. Depending on what we decide to do this weekend I'll probably take those as my rest days.

Tomorrow is the Stevenote!

Day 1

Well after day 1 of the course I am slightly disappointed. It looks like it is not nearly as intensive as I was hoping, and a lot of what I was hoping to do is not part of the course any more. But I will make the most of it. The hotel (motel) that I am staying at is a bit of a dive, but is close to the training center, so at least I get a walk out of it. I just got back from a nice run. Stanford is about two miles from here so I took a little jog up there and skirted around the campus a little before heading back. It was a nice little 40 minute trip. I got passed by a runner from their track team so I took a few mental notes on his form and tried to do it myself. He had his elbows way back behind his back, which really straightens out the back and opens up the chest. I can see that after a long distance run, form like that will keep you in the running where a curved back would keep you from breathing properly. In a marathon it's really what you can do at mile 20 when the body starts to break down that counts, any little bit can help. Tonight we are going to the Fish Market for dinner. It came well recommended by some co-workers, so here's hoping for some good seafood.

Still running

Yesterday was a rather busy day at work, but I still managed to sneak in a 45 minute run in between the helium fill and the nitrogen fill. The rest of the day was spent preparing everything there for my absence. I was glad to be able to go for a longer run. I kept the pace lower and was able to finish the 45 minutes no problem. This tells me that my endurance has not suffered that much, only my cardio has been affected. But with 4 days of running in a row (yes I went today too for half an hour) I can definitely feel my strength returning. With my trip to California these next two weeks I hope to be able to get in a few good runs. I just hope the rain will let off for me. I'm going to have to find time to go in the evenings I think as my days will pretty much be filled with the training sessions. I'm really looking forward to all that I will get to learn, and it's likely that if I do blog over the next two weeks it will only really appeal to NMR jocks. But it's going to suck being away from my family for that long. Elijah seems to be developing so quickly that it feels like he will be ready to move out by the time I get back. As it is I'm just enjoying the weekend, and looking forward to the next one I will get to spend home.

By request for Melissa

I fixed our garage door on the weekend. It seems that I have found my niche as a handyman of sorts (it's kind of what I do at work too). Ever since the cold weather hit, the door from our house to our garage has not closed properly. It was fine in the fall, but now that winter is here things seem to have shifted a bit, in this case enough that the latch for the door did not line up properly with the strike-plate. At its worst you had to really pull up on the door handle in order to get the dead-bolt locked and unlocked, and the latch would not latch at all. It was easy to see what the problem was as the gap between the door and the frame was not the same all the way down, but I did not have any ideas how to fix it. A quick trip to the internet later and I was able to find a solution to the problem. The first thing to try was to tighten the hinge screws. When I did that I found that most of the screws were turning without tightening at all. So I decided to take the door off the frame altogether and start from scratch. I stuck matchsticks into all of the screw holes with some glue and waited for the glue to dry before nipping off all the parts that stuck out with a utility knife. Then I drilled pilot holes for the three long screws (the rest I discovered were self tapping which is why they kept turning instead of tightening) and got Melissa's help to hold the door while I got ready to attach it to the frame. It is a fire door, however, so that is not an easy task, the thing weighs a ton! After getting everything lined up I slipped a shim (in this case a cardboard coaster) in between the bottom hinge and the frame. This pushed the bottom of the door out a little and moved the latch up. When all the screws were back in place, I gave it a test close and it latched perfectly! Now it closes easily, and the dead-bolt can be unlocked without two hands (a big plus if you are carrying a baby in from the garage).


I really enjoy having these little jobs to do around the house. The week before it was a leaking sink drain. At the rate that they seem to pop up though I can imagine that if I did not stay on top of them that it would eventually become an overwhelming task. Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of tools, so these things inevitably require a trip to Home Depot. Thank God we live close to one. Elijah is quite the little helper too. Helping to crawl all over my legs while I have my head under the sink, helping to moisten all of my tools before I use them, he does it all.


On another note, I went for another run today. Just 25 minutes again, but at a little slower pace. I need to get into running more days a week for my training so I figure I might as well start now while the miles are still low. The weather is great for it today too.

The holidays have not been good to me!

Well I can't really say that I guess, the holidays were great to me. At the expense of my body that is. The lack of running coupled with the overabundance of tasty Christmas treats have done a number on me. I definitely feel a little soft in the midsection, and my pants fit just a little more tightly now. The most evidence for this is from my running though, today I was pooped after a 25 minute circuit. Granted I started off a little faster than I should have, but I was eager to get back into it. Plus, I got new shoes and I wanted to try them out.


When I first started running I did it in a pair of Big 5 $10 sneakers. After those wore out, I found a pair of Brooks trail runners at REI on special for $40. They happened to fit pretty well, but I think I got lucky on that. I ran in those for a year and a half. This year for Christmas I got a gift certificate to Runner's Roost, so I went in to actually be fitted for a proper running shoe. They checked my pronation (the motion of the foot from side to side when walking or running) and took a video of my feet on the treadmill while I ran. The result of all this was that the Brooks shoes seem to fit my foot pretty well (which is why I got lucky, the other shoes I tried did not fit well at all) but that I needed a shoe with more stability to support my feet a little better. Today was my first chance to get out and try them on the road. I'm glad that I decided to limit my distance though as these shoes need to be broken in a little, but I can feel a big difference in the support they offer. I'm looking forward to ramping up my miles this month in preparation for my marathon training.


I conducted a little experiment on Monday night that really appealed to my inner chemist. I polished our silverware. It does not get much use around our house, so it has never been polished before (almost 9 years now). Needless to say, some of it was in really bad shape. Being the lazy man that I am I have never really got into the idea of buffing each item to a shine. I remembered some years back reading about a method that cleaned the silver electrochemically, so I investigated further. It turns out that the reaction is a simple redox (reduction/oxidation) reaction. Silver tarnish is actually a reaction of silver with sulfur compounds from the atmosphere. Anywhere you get humidity with suitable concentrations of the byproducts of fossil-fuel combustion you get tarnish. This pretty much happens everywhere, but if you happen to live near an airport in California, you really get tarnish! The reaction that you want to have happen to reverse the tarnish is:


Ag₂S + H⁺ + 2e^- ⇔ 2Ag(s) + SH^-


This is a reduction reaction (gain of electrons, reduction/loss of electrons, oxidation) with a half-cell potential of -0.272 V. In order to drive this reaction to proceed we need an oxidative process with a large positive half-cell potential. It turns out that the oxidation of aluminum is just such a reaction:


Al(s) ⇔ 3e^- + Al³⁺


with a half-cell potential of 1.677V. Balancing the equation we get a redox reaction of:


3Ag₂S + 2Al(s) +3H₂O → 6Ag(s) + Al₂O₃+ 3H₂S


Note that the generation of hydrogen sulfide gas means that it is a rather stinky reaction, but on the plus side all of the silver that was turned into tarnish is redeposited on your silverware, rather than ending up on a rag. So in order to get this reaction to go you just need to drop your silverware into a container lined with aluminum foil and filled with an electrolytic (i.e. salty) solution. It turns out that you also need to add a little baking soda to the mix in order to make the solution slightly basic. This softens up the oxidized aluminum on the surface of the foil and allows the bare aluminum to react more efficiently. Of course all reactions are not just about thermodynamics (as the designers of the Hindenberg knew), there is kinetics to think of as well (as the designers of the Hindenberg found out), so it doesn't hurt to add a little heat to the mix to help things move along. In the end, bringing a pot of water to a boil with a fair shake of baking soda and salt added, and pouring this over your silverware in a pan lined with aluminum foil, will leave your silverware shining brightly, and your kitchen smelling slightly of rotten eggs. This will leave you feeling vaguely suspicious that you are getting something for nothing, until you think of the huge amount of energy required to remove aluminum from bauxite ore, at which point you may think more seriously about recycling your aluminum cans.

Finally!

Christmas is finally here! (I know it's not officially here yet, but for me the long weekend has begun and marks the beginning of the celebration for me). It's been a few very busy weeks for me at work, and I really needed the break. I haven't been running in a couple of weeks as Varian has been working with the system pretty much full time, which doesn't leave me any time to myself. It has been a great learning experience though, and very rewarding work, even though it has been non-stop. Anyway, today I finally got out for a run. The weather has drastically improved since the last one, and it is 60 degrees today but windy. I had to take it easy though as I gave blood this morning. I really notice how frustration builds up more easily when I don't run. I've really got to make the time for it.


This weekend holds a lot of food for us. Tonight we are going to go check out the new Qdoba near us to have a little break from cooking. Tomorrow we are having ribs, which is one of my specialties, and on Sunday I'll be baking a ham. That's a first for us, so hopefully it will turn out okay. Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas time is here

Well with our Christmas party a big success yesterday, it really feels like the Christmas season is upon us. It was great to kick back this weekend with our friends, especially after the week I had. The cold day on Wednesday was only the beginning, it ended up with a major flood Friday at 5. It will be interesting to see how next week shapes up after that. Thankfully next week is the last "full" week I will have before I get a few 4 day weeks for the holidays. I can't wait!

Take a few days off...

...and you feel it when you get back. Man, that run kicked my butt today. 35 minutes, but barely. I was going a little too fast I think. Nice to get back outdoors though after being sequestered inside for three days. It got really cold here this week, but now we are almost back to normal. 30 degrees today, and nice and sunny. Had to get one in today, I doubt I'll have time this weekend. P-A-R-T-Why? Because I gotta!

I should have known...

...it was going to be one of those days.


I got my first 3 am wake up call from the magnet today. It called to say that it was cold. Turns out the heat to the building went out. After driving in to see if someone was fixing the problem I returned home to try to get an hour more sleep. By the time I came back at 8:30, the heat still wasn't fixed and one of our fire sprinklers was starting to drip onto our spectrometer computer. When I went up into the ceiling to investigate I found that the pipe had frozen. Thus began the mad dash to get facility people in to turn off the water and drain the sprinkler system so that we would not get drenched. The heat is back on now, but for some reason the NMR room takes forever to heat up so I'm sitting here in my parka and sweater freezing my ass off. I have asked Melissa to pick me up early, I can't do anything else until we warm back up anyway. This sucks.

Okay, maybe I am crazy

It's 32 degrees out and there's a brutal wind from the northwest; I just got back from a run. 35 minutes, but I tried to run at a slightly faster pace today. I had my hat on to keep my ears warm, not bad actually. We'll see about Wednesday, it's supposed to be 9 degrees. Yikes!

Apparently I'm crazy

Melissa told me today that she thought I was crazy. Crazy like a fox! I had a long and tiring day yesterday and was not able to squeeze in a run even though it was a gorgeous day. Today we woke up to 3" of snow, but it is calm and 27 degrees so I was determined to go out for a run. It turned out to be one of the best. It was quiet and the snow cushioned every footfall. With a fresh white blanket of snow the world always looks so peaceful. That's one of the things I really missed while living in California. I found a great route around the local high school and even passed some cows on my way (that shows you how far into the suburbs we live). Could have gone forever but my circuit took 35 minutes. Now for some Christmas baking this afternoon.

Xmas FAQs

Okay, I rarely participate in these things but I could not resist. Christmas is just too important. Credit to my wife for starting this.


1. When is the best time to open presents?
As late as possible to frustrate those who are too anxious!

2. Have you been naughty or nice this year?
See above.

3. Real tree or imitation tree?
Real tree all the way, although I am embarrassed to say I do own a fake one. It was a good deal!

4. Favorite Christmas cartoon character?
Herb, the rhinoceros from a Claymation Christmas. Here we come a waffling!

5. Did you ever write Santa a letter?
I think only once or twice

6. Buy any Christmas presents online?
Not this year

7. Save the ribbon and paper or rip right through it?
Open slowly to increase suspense (see #1)

8. Sharing Christmas with family this year?
Yes, friends and family.

9. Ever ride in a one horse open sleigh?
No. Would you believe a one parent open wagon?

10. Ever roast a chestnut on an open fire?
No, I would really have to dislike Chest to do that. Who's named Chest anyway?

11. Favorite Christmas pie?
Mincemeat of course, is there any other?!

12. Favorite Christmas movie?
Scrooged. "Niagra Falls!"

13. Favorite Christmas song?
Currently O Holy Night (Josh Groban knocks this one out of the park), but O Come Emmanuel is a close second

14. People on your Christmas list; more or less than ten?
You put people on your Christmas list!? Weird.

15. Will you have a white Christmas this year?
Knowing Colorado, only in the morning

16. Do you believe in Santa Claus?
Of course!

17. Who would you like to kiss under the mistletoe?
Melissa!

18. Who gives the best gifts?
Santa! (see above)

19. Do you send Christmas cards?
Yes, begrudgingly.

20. What color best represents Christmas?
Red, thanks Coca Cola!

21. Do you own any Christmas music?
Can you say "Boney M"?

22. How many Christmas parties will you attend this year?
That I'm not hosting? 0

23. Does the postal worker get a gift this year?
Yeah, gotta give those guys credit. I wouldn't go for that whole neither rain nor sleet nor snow thing

24. Giving a present to a pet?
Yes. Will the pet appreciate the present? No.

25. Your shopping: All done, half-way done, just started, not yet started?
Not yet started. Yikes!

Blown Away

Good grief! I went on a run today after seminar and just about got blown away. The winds here are about 30 mph, which does not make the 33 degree temperature very pleasant. At least the sun was out. Regardless, despite a stiff headwind on half of the run I still managed to do my same circuit in 35 minutes. My ears are still red from it though, I need to get a little ear warmer!

Running update

I did get to go out running yesterday. It was chilly but sunny, so I ended up being hot by the end. Just a 35 minute trip, but it was a great pick me up for the rest of the afternoon. Hopefully I'll get out again tomorrow, but I have seminar at noon so it will be tough to find the time.

ESKIMOS!!!!!

What a game! I can't believe I got to watch my Eskimos win it in overtime. That was probably the best football game I have ever seen, down to the final minutes for the championship. Ricky Ray (the quarterback) really played a great game. I was thoroughly impressed with his ability to excel against a relentless blitz defense.



I thought I would add an anecdote to this post. The summer before I left Edmonton I won a call in contest for a TV station to meet some of the Eskimo players. We had no car at the time (nor could we afford the bus) so I had to leave 2 hours before the event to walk to the Eskimo house in Edmonton. I left the apartment on time (6 am) and got on the elevator only to have it break down with me in it. I wasn't about to let that stop me getting to see my Eskimos, so I pryed open the inner doors, found the safety release for the outer doors, and sqeezed through a two foot space to the floor below. I got there just in time for the event. In the end I did not win the tickets that were up for grabs, but I won an Eskimos baseball cap that I still wear to this day.



Way to go Esks!

Cable has not let me down!

I found out today that one of our HD channels is going to be showing the Grey Cup on Sunday! Woo hoo! That's worth the five extra bucks we pay for those channels. Last year I was hoping they would be showing the game in Vegas, but we were not at a big enough sports book to see it. So this will be the first year since we left Canada that I will be able to see the big game. To make matters even better, my Eskimos are in it. I hope they stick it to the Alouettes. I want to see them get plucked, all puns intended. Go Esks!


I got out for a nice run today, and since I bought a little bicycle pump a few weeks ago, Elijah was able to ride shotgun in the joggy stroller. Went a little longer than my usual 3 mile route and was out for 45 minutes. I'll probably take the weekend off to recover and try to add a little more mileage next week. I'm definitely feeling like I'm getting in shape again, just gotta keep with it. That will be harder next week when the weather is nasty. I'm going to build off this week's momentum though.

Happy Thanksgiving

It's Thanksgiving here in the US (Canada had theirs already in October), one of my favorite holidays. I actually like the date for the US Thanksgiving more as it is so much closer to Christmas. It marks the beginning of the holiday season and kicks off an entire month of merryment. In preparation for this weekend's festivities I went for a run yesterday at work. It's still like 60 degrees here in Denver and it is nice to be out running in shorts and a T-shirt in November. We are supposed to get snow next week though. My run was only 35 minutes, but it was a good workout and it gave me the energy burst I needed for the afternoon. It turned out to be quite a busy day yesterday for me, even though half the campus jiggered off early. I paid for staying late though as the traffic was terrible going home. What normally takes me a half hour took me a full hour yesterday. I'm glad I don't have to do any more travelling this weekend.



In past years Thanksgiving has been a difficult holiday for us as we have not had any family to share it with. But we have always had wonderful friends who have opened their homes to us in the true spirit of the holiday. That is really what Thanksgiving has become for us. Now that Elijah is here, we will be cultivating our family's Thanksgiving traditions and I want Elijah to learn the kindness and generosity that should be associated with the holiday season. Thanksgiving is about thanking God for the gifts he has given us, Christmas is about thanking Him for the gift of Jesus Christ. We give gifts at Christmas to show our thanks for the gift God gave us. The holiday season is about sharing what God has blessed us with with others. The friends who have opened their homes to us have demonstrated this perfectly, and I want to do the same for others.



Elijah is up from his nap now, so we are off for a family walk. Have a wonderful holiday everyone!

What a day!

It's November 21 and it is 60 degrees here in Denver. It's hard to believe it's late fall. I decided that if I want to get out for longer runs I have to find a better time to do it, so today at lunch I went for a run around the campus. I found that if I went to the gym at lunch it was an hour and a quarter trip just for a half hour workout. So running at work fits the bill a little better. I went out for 50 minutes and covered a fair distance, both on streets and on a nice gravel trail. I could tell I had not been on a run that long in a while though, at 40 minutes I was really feeling it. I gotta keep with it though, the new home transition has been hard on me and my pants are not fitting as well as they used to!

Party Animals

Well we were party animals this weekend. We had our housewarming party on Saturday and a good time was had by all. I got to enjoy some of my scotch with some great friends, and Melissa even got to play her "Shout About Movies" game. Food was simple but tasty and drinks were plentiful. Our first guests showed up at three and stayed until ten. I can't remember the last time I had that much fun. In the midst of the preparation for the party I actually had time to squeeze in my half hour run! I got out again today and hit the gym for a half hour speed workout. It seems like I'm having problems finding more than half an hour to run, but it's better than nothing at least, and the speed work is good. I got on the scale at the gym though and I can see I have some work to do before Thanksgiving, which is next week if you can believe it. I couldn't.

Two-Thirty

I had my dentist appointment today, and it was as pleasant as it could be with someone rooting around under my gums. Not much build-up of anything substantial. It's nice to have clean teeth though. They made me take an antibiotic before the cleaning though, which I have not had to do before. I'm not really happy about the idea of taking antibiotics for no apparent reason, but they seem to think that my heart murmur puts me at risk for a nasty infection with the bacteria that is introduced into my bloodstream during the cleaning. My doctor has spoken to me before about it, I just haven't really taken them seriously. This is just another example of something that was never an issue in the Canadian health care system but here is a big deal. I guess you get what you pay for, and that perhaps all the lawsuits here aren't all that bad if they are keeping doctors and dentists on their toes.



Speaking of staying on ones toes, I did not get to go out for a run yesterday like I was hoping. Melissa had her dentist appointment yesterday and I had to take care of Elijah. I thought I might take him out in the joggy stroller but the tires are flat and I threw out both of my crappy pumps in the move. I guess I need to get a new one. Anyway, I substituted a run yesterday for a long walk instead. Elijah and I took the *long* way to Safeway and ended up being out for an hour and a half. At my pace we probably covered 7 miles. All that fresh air must have got to Elijah though as when we got back he went down for a 2 hour nap. That was a nice treat for Melissa when she got home. I'm hoping to get out for a run tomorrow before the snow hits. Yes, it is 75 here today and tomorrow we are supposed to get snow. Welcome to Denver!

Car repairs

First off here's my accountability: I got to the gym today and went for a 25 minute run. I think the track there is about a tenth of a mile. I figure that because if I run at my 10 minute per mile pace it takes me about a minute to get around. Today was a speed workout so I alternated 2 minutes at a 10 minute per mile pace with 2 minutes at a 6.7 minute per mile pace. It was a good workout but not long enough. As I went at lunchtime I couldn't justify being away for too long. That coupled with the car trouble I had meant I could only spare a few minutes. But any amount of time is worth it I figure, especially when I'm trying to get back in the swing of things.



As for the car trouble, I pull into the parking lot and pull on my parking brake and the button pops off and flies into the windshield. So it took me about 10 minutes in the parking lot to figure out how to set the brake without the button. When I got back to work I called the Saturn dealer to see if they had the replacement part. They did, so I drove by there after work and picked it up. Twenty-five bucks and 5 minutes later the brake was fixed. I'm glad I didn't pay them to put it in as it was really easy and it would not have been worth the $75 worth of labor they probably would have charged.

Third Degree

As I seem to be getting the third degree from certain individuals, I will give a brief report on my running. The last time I blogged about it I had ramped up my miles to 20 in one week without introducing those miles gradually. I did end up paying for that and was achy the entire weekend after. Since then I have found the time to go running at least once a week, but not as much as I would like. It's a hell of a lot harder to find time to run with this job than it was before, so perhaps some accountability would do me some good. Last night, 30 minute 3-mile circuit, 450 calories burned.

Running update

Now that things are more settled with the house I've been trying to get back into the running groove. Last week I went running once, and this week I managed to go four times. Yes, even with the snow. The gym near my work has a jogging track, so I went there on Monday and Wednesday for my workout. I kind of like running at the gym as I can push myself a little more and not have to worry about running out of gas 6 miles from home. Also, on Saturday I went for a nice hour long run around our neighborhood. Of course it was gorgeous that day, and by today (Friday) the great weather has returned. So I decided to head out for a run today at lunch. So, four runs, probably about 20 miles, this week is a good starting point for my winter training. If I don't get into it now, it will be even harder to go out the door when it's cold and snowy out. The marathon in June is looming large in my mind, and although I won't start training in earnest for it until February, I should be consistently at 20-30 miles per week by then. Gotta start somewhere!

Trip to Home Depot

Well as I mentioned in my last post I had to mow the lawn this weekend. That required me having to buy a lawn mower, which apparently is not such an easy task this late in the season. I drove up to our local Home Depot hoping to buy a little electric mower that would easily handle our relatively small lawn. The week before we had been there and they had had a discount on fully assembled mowers, which we had no room for at the time. I thought nothing of it and assumed that they would keep a stock of mowers on hand at all times. So imagine my surprise when I asked someone if they had any lawn mowers (after looking unsuccessfully for about 5 minutes), to hear that they only had two. "Only two styles to pick from?" I asked. "No, just two lawn mowers." was the response. Ugh. So, not wanting to have to drive halfway across the city to find a mower I went out to look at them. Luckily there was a nice 4.5 HP Briggs and Stratton mower there that I approved of and, due to its clearance nature, it was only $70. So I decided to go for it, and I picked up a snow shovel while I was at it. Always be prepared I figure. So after a quick trip to the gas station to buy gas, I returned home with my purchases. Unfortunately the lawn mower did not come with any instructions so I kind of had to wing it. After I had put in oil and gas, and made several pulls on the starter it was evident that winging it was not going to work. But a few google searches later I had the instruction manual for the Briggs and Stratton engine that gave me the secret. Apparently their attempt to prevent people from chopping off fingers and toes had thwarted me from starting the mower at all. So after activating the safety bar, a single pull got me up and running. I picked the right day to mow the lawn too, as by the time Sunday night rolled around it was clear that the other item I had purchased would come in handy as well. By the time the snow ended yesterday we accumulated more than 16 inches. It was the wet heavy stuff too. Oh well, it's a lot easier to shovel when you know that it will all be gone in a couple of days, I'll probably be mowing the lawn again this weekend.

Friday, finally!

This week has been quite hectic for me and I am glad it is winding down now. At the beginning of the month I volunteered to give a talk for our Biomolecular Structure Program. At the time I had no idea what my schedule was going to be like, but I was interested enough to go out on a limb and say that I would do it. Originally the date was set to be the 28th of September, but fortunately it was moved to October 5. As all of our housing problems went down, the fact that I had to give a talk always was dwelling in the back of my mind, but there was nothing I could do about it. When we finally closed last Wednesday I breathed a sigh of relief and then realized that I now had only a week to prepare. But I figured I could make it. Then Thursday and Friday went by and so many things had to be dealt with at work that the talk got pushed aside. Oh well, I thought, I'll just work on it on the weekend. Well the weekend went by with chores and shopping, and still no talk. Ugh! Thankfully Monday and Tuesday were relatively quiet on the job front so I was able to dedicate two solid days to making the slides and practicing. When Wednesday came I was back in the groove and gave a good presentation. It wasn't one of my best talks (I caught myself using the word "basically" way too much) but it was pretty good and it seemed to engage most of the audience. I think the hardest thing to get over when giving a scientific talk is the fact that someone will always be drifting off during the talk. It doesn't seem to matter how good your talk is, some people just aren't interested and can't keep awake. That's my expereince at least. I did manage to keep the important people awake though and had some great questions at the end (that's always the best way to gauge if your talk hit home or not). I'm glad to have it over now though, and as this Friday winds down I'm really looking forward to relaxing this weekend. Sure, I have the lawn to mow, but that will not deter me from enjoying myself. Plus, I get to have pancakes tomorrow, and take Elijah to see the local fire station!

Relax? Who has time for that?

Well the weekend is over already, and it seemed like it was never there. There were so many things to do and buy for the house that we hardly spent any time there at all. Saturday we had a consultation with ADT to get our security system up and running again. Then it was off to Cherry Creek to get some new drinking glasses. This was something we had been putting off for a while, waiting for the move. We had lunch there then drove back, hitting the grocery store on the way home to get food. By the time we got back I just had time to vacuum before it was time to make dinner. Our dinner was great, roast chicken on the grill on a bed of potatos and onions. It's always good to have an entree that makes it's own side dish. We bought a nice bottle of wine to go with it and I was able to enjoy a glass of that with dinner. We decided to watch the Return of the King but by 9:30 we were too tired to finish it. Sunday we were up and out the door for church and off to our local mega outlet type store for more shopping. We hit Petco to get food for the cat, Bed Bath and Beyond for all sorts of house stuff, and Home Depot for new locks and other hardware items. By the time we got back from all that it was afternoon, and there was just time to eat and put all the locks on the doors before we were out the door again for a walk down Smoky Hill to the Safeway. Pizza dinner, and then we were in bed again by 9:30. Crazy! But the busy days were well worth the sacrifice as now I feel like the urgent chores have been done so that when I get home from work during the week I don't have a billion more things to do. Today I hope to go for a run for the first time in two weeks. Our neighborhood is on a huge hill, so I'm expecting to get my butt kicked.

Spam Comments

For the few of you who comment on this blog you will notice a new addition to the comment form. It will ask you to verify the word that is printed in the window before your comment will be added. I'm getting tired of deleting spam comments every time I post, so this should thwart those wiley comment-bots.

Boy oh boy what a ride!

I haven't posted in a while so I thought I would break the silence. It's been a roller-coaster ride the past two weeks, but now that it's over I feel like I can address everything that went down. The last day I posted I hinted at some of the issues associated with the loan that had come up. They were all annoying but not insurmountable. It usually involved me having to fax over some piece of information to verify this or that. But on Monday the 19th a bomb got dropped on us. The bank told us they could not give us a loan for the house. This happened 5 days before we were supposed to close, and on the actual loan commitment deadline. We were devastated. By the end of the day we had a single long-shot to go on, but were not going to be able to make the commitment deadline, meaning our earnest money ($2500) would have been lost if we could not buy the house. We were assured that by Tuesday we would have an answer yes or no. Needless to say having this all happen well after it should have (all the problems we were having were immigration related and should have been caught during the pre-approval stage) got Melissa all riled up and she started kicking butt and taking names. By the end of Tuesday the answer was no, but another option had become a possibility. Our original loan could not happen but the bank was willing to try to push through a different loan (which ordinarily would have required a 25% down payment for non-permanent residents) with our 5%. But we would have to wait until Wednesday. Finally Wednesday came and we got the new loan. Being completely jaded by the whole process, I was not willing to count on anything anything until the keys were in my hands. That happened yesterday. So now having lost our hopes and dreams, worked through anger and depression, lived with cautious optimism, and moved-out, closed and moved-in in a single day, we can proudly say that through it all we survived an are now homeowners.


Looking back at it now I can see the hand of God moving in all of it. God saved this house for us, it was on the market for months before we saw it at a higher asking price. God got the loan for us, if the immigration issue had been caught at the beginning of the process we could not have got a loan at all and would not have been able to even look at houses. Because the bank messed it up they were willing to go out on a limb to get us the loan we got. I have learned a lot about the way God works through the past few months. He gives us blessings and miracles everyday, but never hands them to us on a silver platter. Like a good Father He wants us to learn and grow from every experience. This means that He will always have his will done in the end, even if we have to do some of the legwork. Would we have got the loan without Melissa's complaints? Would I have got this job if I had applied for it right away? Would I have been able to take this job on our current visa if I didn't know what I've learned about immigration through our time here? Probably not. All of these issues we've had have been God's design. It's easy to forget about your faith when everything goes your way, it's only in the hard times that we really remember who is in charge. Needless to say I will be asking my saviour to bless our house tonight with a dram of Ardbeg; one of God's gifts for another.

Bluetooth Kicks Ass

On another note, I got a new phone this week. My old one was two years old, and Verizon allows you to get a $100 credit on a new phone when you sign another two year contract. So It gives you a little scratch to buy the more expensive models. I bought the Motorola E815, which I have been waiting more than two years for. When I bought my laptop in March of 2003 it came equipped with the ability to communicate wirelessly with Bluetooth enabled devices. But when it came time to get my new phone the last time, Verizon still had no Bluetooth enabled phones. So I went without. It turned out to be fairly good timing, because soon after Verizon picked up the Motorola V710, which was Bluetooth equipped, but hamstrung into only accepting connections from a Bluetooth headset. This phone turned out to be one of Verizon's biggest fiascos in the geek community, as Verizon kept stating that they would release a software upgrade that would allow the V710 to communicate with computers, but they never did. The end result was a phone that would not do anything you would want a Bluetooth device to do, mainly sync contact and calendar information wirelessly with your computer. Earlier this year the E815 was released and has had not much but rave reviews. The Bluetooth is now functional, and can be used to sync with your computer. Of course Verizon states that this is only possible with the purchase of their connection kit, but those of us blessed with an Apple computer can accomplish this seamlessly with iSync, which comes with the computer.


Anyway, I was happy to have a new toy and I was all set for a day of geekdom setting up the phone with the computer. Unfortunately, Apple foiled my plans and within 5 minutes I had set up the phone and synced all my contacts and calendar info. It was too easy. It works absolutely perfectly, every time I change a contact or appointment on my computer with one click it's on my phone too. And the opposite is also true, with one click all contacts I've added to my phone are on the computer. And my phone doesn't even need to leave its holster. This has been very useful at work as not a day goes by now where I don't have someone that I need to add to my cell phone. Now I just need to get a headset, as it always seems that someone is calling me when I'm driving to or from Boulder. Man, there was a time when I was embarassed to wear my phone on my belt, now I'm talking about a headset! What a difference a different kind of job makes.

Crikey!

I can't believe that some people buy more than one house in a lifetime. Or worse, refinance! Every day it's something different with these people. I keep telling myself that at the end of this I will finally be in a house but as the closing date draws closer all these issues and questions just add to my stress level. I just have to make it through 8 more days.

This vacuum sucks!

Well our new vacuum cleaner was delivered yesterday. Our old vacuum we got when we were married and it has lasted 8.5 years, but it was pretty much useless by the end. There was almost no suction at all. So we decided to buy a Dyson, which everyone seems to go on and on about. We found one on Amazon.com that was factory reconditioned and considerably cheaper than the new ones. Since we knew we were going to be buying a house I wanted to make sure that the old vacuum never got a chance to (not) clean it. Plus we will be able to give the apartment a good cleaning when we move out. We tried it out last night for a bit and the suction is incredible. It pulled up a ton of dust from just a small patch of carpet that had been "cleaned" just a few days before. Plus I no longer have to worry about buying bags. Needless to say, I may actually enjoy vacuuming this weekend.

Home Inspection

Yesterday we had our home inspection done. It was a really neat experience, and I got to know the home we are going to buy a little better. The Inspector had no major comments, and even went so far as to say that our next home buying experience will probably be a disappointment as there are so few houses in as good shape as this one. When you are spending this much on something that sure is a comfort to hear. Melissa was also busy during the inspection measuring everything to see where our stuff will fit best. And she took lots of pictures so that everyone can see a little more of the place. Only 15 more days for us, we can't wait!

Under Contract

Well after much hunting we finally bagged a house. And because it was a long weekend everyone was anxious and we were able to get under contract by Friday afternoon. Melissa has posted some pics on her website. It's a two story, single family dwelling, 1700 square feet with a 300 square foot unfinished basement. It satisfied all of our principle requirements (garage and a big kitchen) and all of the secondary requirements (too many to list). We close on September 23, and move that week. We are out of the apartment September 30, which coincides with the end of our lease. So it's going to be a busy month for us.



Today we are off to Peet's for a cup of tea, and a little shopping at Sears. We're hoping to see if there are some Labor Day sales for things we need. We might do a little furniture shopping too as now we have more rooms than we have furniture. Here's hoping for good deals!

House Hunting

Today is a big day for us, we are going house hunting. We are looking at places that are close to our church. We can't live close to work so we might as well try to live closer to our church community and friends. So hopefully we'll find something we like. We are hoping to move sometime in October, so time is not on our side. The boy is growing fast, and this apartment is not keeping up with him. I had a long week last week, busy, but fulfilling as usual. We have the spectrometer almost completely set up, and just have most of the remaining tests to run. But the major tests are all passed, and the system seems to be functioning as it should. Also, on Friday we were able to get everything moved into its final location, and all the cables organized. It is very neat and tidy now, just the way I like it. I finally broke into that scotch that I got free at the ENC this year. It is McClellands Lowland malt, basically a 4 yo bottling of a lowland distillery. It is renamed so that it's young age does not affect the good reputation of the distillery itself. I was hoping to be pleasantly surprised, but was not. Initially it was a very nice malt, not too strong an attack, with decent flavor and aroma. Nothing really stood out about it, but it was not bad. Unfortunately the aftertaste kicked in, with very chemical flavors. I almost couldn't finish it. Oh well, it was free at least, nothing ventured nothing gained.

Another week

Yikes, another week without blogging. Unfortunately I've just been too busy. I barely even had time to update the news page for the magnet website. I did reasonably well on the exercise front though, I went for 4.3 miles in 30 minutes on Monday and for almost 5 miles on Wednesday in 40 minutes. Today I was just too pooped from work to even think about going out. I'm not sure about tomorrow either as I have to go into work. So Sunday may have to be the day. It's supposed to be much cooler here this weekend so it will be good weather for it. I haven't been sleeping too well lately. There is so much to do at work right now that I find it difficult to shut my mind down. I have no problem falling asleep as I am usually pretty tired, but then I wake up at 4 and can't get back to sleep. It's good because I'm so busy at work that I'm finding it really enjoyable and fulfilling. I just need to be able to turn it off when I go home. Oh well, things are progressing really well with the magnet, so it should start settling down soon. Well, time to hit the sack, hopefully tonight will be better.

Lazy Ass

That's what I've been for the past two weeks. The last time I went running or worked out was almost two weeks ago. That's going to change this week, I'm determined. Today was a perfect day for running, overcast and 56 degrees, so I finally took advantage of it and went for a long run. 8 miles, 80 minutes. So it seems my endurance hasn't dropped too much this summer, it just seemed that way due to the difficulty of running in high temps. It sure makes me realize how much more energy it takes to keep you cool while exercising in the heat. So this week I have to kick it back into high gear, too much work and not enough exercise makes me a very unhappy man indeed. The work is very fulfilling though, so it's easy to get caught up in it. Unfortunately there are not enough hours in the day. Well gotta get on dinner, it's BBQ chicken pizza tonight I can't wait.

Chicken of the VNC

This week I was doing a lot of UNIXy stuff on the computer that is due to run the spectrometer. Since it is not being used right now, it is a great time to get these things taken care of. Some of the problems that I had this week I was not able to fix to my satisfaction, but the main problem I did fix. That was to set up the computer to accept VNC connections. Essentially a VNC server allows you to run a computer remotely without taking too big of a hit on speed. When done properly it can be fairly secure as well. We were having a lot of problems running the program that runs the spectrometer, which is the only program that we want to run really. But it turned out that by setting a few strange variables associated with the program we were able to get it going. So I spent most of the afternoon writing a few scripts to make sure that the connection is set up properly without requiring too much knowledge on behalf of the user. I'm glad I got it to work though as it made for a satisfying end to the week. For those of you still mystified, Chicken of the VNC is a VNC client (a program that allows you to connect to a VNC server) for the Mac, I just thought the logo was great.

Whew!

Boy what a week. I'm glad that is over. I felt like I was running behind all the time, and never had enough time to get everything done. But I did, and I am ready for next week now. I took a trip to Boulder yesterday and barely had enough time to get around to all the places I needed to. It was raining as well which made it not so pleasant. Hopefully now I won't have to head out there again for another couple of weeks. I'm trying to get reestablished at UCHSC, and am hoping I can get a mailbox there rather than having to go all the way to Boulder to check my mail. There are definintely a lot of issues to work out with this complicated appointment, but I was anticipating that anyway. I was just hoping to have a little more time to transition.


Well, tonight I think Melissa and I will go to Cherry Creek North and hit Peets. I want to swing by the Apple store and check out the "Mighty Mouse." For those of you who don't know, hell has officially frozen over as Apple introduced its first multi-button mouse. Just in time too, I'm in the market for a mouse for work. We are going to a friends place tomorrow for a picnic, and then with church on Sunday this may be our only chance to go.

Eraser

Well, I have officially been erased. I sent my letter in to the department yesterday to say that I was changing jobs and today all record of my working with UCHSC was gone. No more email, no more security access, no more nothing. So hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to sort out everything in Boulder and transfer my identity to there. It really pisses me off actually because if you put in for a raise or change in benefits or something it takes more than a month to be processed. But this, one day. I just don't get how ridiculous this campus can be. Oh well, enough ranting. I have another big complaint, but it involves the behavior of a the representatives of a major company. I can't afford a lawyer, so I'd better just not go there even though their comments are hurting our facility.


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