randomness

random thought 1: i went out for a 19 mile run today having eaten 1/4 lb. of fudge for breakfast, skipping lunch, and mcdonalds for dinner. that run sucked balls.
random thought 2: i had a "Glengarry Glen Ross" moment today. a salesman pitched me about switching vendors for a particular product on friday. he was able to do it cheaper. he was trying his damndest to close me and, after i had revealed that i played him off of my current vendor and gotten better pricing from both, tried to guilt me into using him. the old me would have felt bad about this as i used to have a very guilty conscience. ever since this post i've had a new outlook. i didn't feel bad at all...none...not one bit. i was proud that i was completely honest and very direct. i didn't care that i wasn't 'letting him down easy'. i like the new me.
random thought 3: this is probably the most educational product website out there. if you are ever interested in aerodynamics, they tell you just about everything except for the hardcore mathematics behind it.
random thought 4: i will soon have someone else call me 'uncle mike'. Val is due any day now. last report was that she was doing well and feeling good. i secretly hope for it to happen on wednesday.
random thought 5: i go to pick up a brand spankin' new router table tomorrow so i can finally finish that damn dresser. i'm just gonna rip off the trim and route new pieces. trying to sand those fuckers is taking me way too long.
random thought 6: after tonight's 19 miler, this whole ironman thing is a bit intimidating. i'm pooped. and i didn't swim 2.4 and bike 112 right before it.
random thought 7: jesus, it's 1:30. i need to get more sleep.

iron

i am officially signed up for ironman wisconsin. 363 days from today, i'll check off another life goal.

9/11

some people call people who do marathons crazy. "26 miles? i could NEVER do that". whatever. it's not that they can't, it's more that they would never want to. i'm pretty sure that if anybody trained, they could do it.

i don't really mind people saying this but what really gets me all hot and bothered is when people start applying inaccurate titles to me or the event. on numerous occasions i've had people call it 'inspiring'. if, because of me, you are now contemplating training for marathon, then fine. but most of the time it's just patronizing wind coming out of their mouth. i am not inspiring, but sarah is.

what is far worse and borders on pissing me off is the 'hero' term. on 3 separate occasions, 3 completely separate people have applied this term to my running. bullshit. bullshit. bullshit. i do not give selflessly. i do not put myself in harm's way to help another human being. i put myself in harm's way because it feels good when it's over. that's it. a more accurate term would be 'selfish'.

tomorrow at 8:03 when i'm out on my run, i will stop. i'll say a quick prayer for some true heros and some of the most selfless people there ever were. then i'll start running again.

a short story:
my first marathon was in 2001 right after the attacks. it was my first race of any kind. i was in awe of the crowds, the number of runners, the american flags, but mostly by the countless number of police officers. at every intersection of all 26 miles there were at least 2 on each corner. at each aid station, there were 20 or 30. at the finish there were hundreds and hundreds. the chicago marathon organization pays for police support during the race but no budget could have allowed for this. a friend of mine who knew one of the officers told me that most of them weren't getting paid at all. they were all there not because a commander told them to be there. they wanted to be there. they wanted to make sure that we could run our race safely and without worry. they were there for us.

now that's a hero.