New Adventures with an Old Friend

I have found an old friend, a friend that I haven’t seen in years. We used to spend hours together, in the neighborhood, around town, at the beach, in the mountains. For some of the adventures, it was just the two of us enjoying the solitude. Other times we were part of a larger group. My life was simpler when we were friends years ago, much less complicated. No kids, no job, I could spend time with my friend as often as I liked. I was much healthier and in better shape when we were friends and much of this I can attribute to our friendship. If this friend is so great, how did I lose contact? Who is this wonderful friend that I speak of?

Running! I have taken up running again. Running and I used to spend hours together when I was younger. Getting back in touch with this old friend has been awesome. A couple weeks ago, I was able to get up at 6am and run on Pre’s Trail in Alton Baker Park. Running early in the morning on those days brought back so many memories from my youth. The crisp clean air, the smell from the grass, trees and wildflowers, the chirping of the birds. Wonderful memories of when I could run 10 miles or more if I wanted.

That was a long time ago! Now, I am thrilled to be able to jog for 20 minutes, which I did last week for the first time since running the Butte to Butte in 1997. That was 12 years, 80 pounds and 3 kids ago. I barely trained for that 10k and I was able to average 9 minute miles and finish in just under an hour. Now, I might be able to run 1 mile in 9 minutes but I certainly could not run 2 at that pace. And 6.2 miles, not a chance.

Wednesday afternoon I ran the west loop of Pre’s Trail in the 90 degree heat. Last summer I would have struggled to run from the front door to the driveway. Just sitting in the shade during a 90 degree day would have worn me out. Now, 6 hours after spending 35 minutes on a bike for spin class, I was able to run two 10 minute intervals in the heat. Awesome.

Wednesdays run was by far the most enjoyable run I have had yet. The west loop of Pre’s Trail is a 1 mile loop that circles the Cuthbert Amphitheater in Alton Baker Park. While I was running, I was able to enjoy some atmosphere from the stage where Jonny Lang was preparing for Wednesdays concert. The smell from the vendors preparing for the show added to the experience. How lucky we are to live in Eugene, for all its faults, there sure is plenty to be proud of.

Today, my schedule called for running 25 minutes. I was really looking forward to this workout. 25 minutes! I never thought I would be this far along in my training so soon. I started my run on Pre’s Trail at about 10 am, it was already about 80 degrees, but what a beautiful morning. My run was going pretty good for the first 15 minutes, an occasional runner would jog by and I felt great. I had hoped to be able to cover 2.5 miles in 25 minutes an average pace of 10 minute miles, but I found that to be a little fast and at about 7 minutes I slowed to about 11.5 pace. On the middle loop of Pre’s Trail near the BMX track I saw to young ladies walking dog. I could tell they were in good shape so I, being a man, decided that I would do my best Steve Prefontaine impression. As I approached them on the trail I lengthened my stride despite the fact that 15 minutes into my run I was a little tired. I smiled and said hello as a ran by, trying my best to look like a real runner. I felt just like Pre, minus the long hair and pornstache as I cruised by the eye candy, however, I am sure I looked more like Paul Blart minus the pornstache. It felt awesome to run at that pace and I felt like an 18 year old kid again, for about 30 seconds, until reality set in. I am obviously not ready for that kind of pace! It took a while to catch my breath after my little outburst, but I continued on. As I ran through the trees gasping for air, I sucked a bug right down my throat. Must be some kinda runners karma! Oh well, small price to pay.

I am so happy to be back spending time with my old friend. I look forward to many more miles with this friend and I sure hope he never lets me gain 80 pounds again!

True American Icons

Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson, Billy Mays and now Steve McNair. What do these famous people have in common? Prior to the past month, nothing really. I find it absolutely amazing the amount of media attention that has been focused on the events of these deaths. Well, not all of these deaths, I for one am certainly tired of hearing Michael Jackson songs. The fact is you cannot turn on a TV, radio, or the internet and see or hear a reminder that the “King of Pop” is dead.

Look, I get it. I know the impact that Michael Jackson had on American pop culture in the 80’s. But the past decade he has been nearly irrelevant, other than the occasional tabloid story concerning his eccentricities. And the sexual abuse allegations, have we forgotten about that? For all that Michael Jackson did for American pop culture in the 80’s, he more than made up for by acting like a total loon in the 90’s. We will probably never have answers to what happened with those children, however, the fact that he admitted to having “sleepovers with the boy” put him in a situation that he could never recover from, except apparently by his death.

Enough of that. As I stated I am tired of hearing these stories and I wish they would go away, which brings me to my next point. The airwaves have been filled with stories about Michael Jackson, however on the same day, another American Icon also died. Farrah Fawcett, who lived as scandal free as anyone in Hollywood possibly could unfortunately died the same day as Michael Jackson. Farrah Fawcett is the type of icon that we should have celebrated upon her death. Instead, the celebration of her life was trampled by the death of Michael Jackson. The spotlight that should have shown on her life was instead fixed on the life of Michael Jackson, with only a slight mention of all the scandal and absurd behavior. Tragic.

And while we are at it, did you know that Ed McMahon was a decorated World War II fighter pilot in the Marine Corps? Me either! Luckily for me there is Wikipedia! I understand that scandal sells, (Michael Jackson, Steve McNair) but why does it seem that outstanding American Icons, (Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett) with amazing real life stories to be told just fade off of our screen while the headlines for the eccentric, scandalous criminals are crammed down our throats? Sure, sex sells, but when was the last time you heard a “good” story from Hollywood? Perhaps we should try reporting on the few positive roll models in Sports and Hollywood and take the spotlight away from the scandal and debauchery. Maybe then the overpaid dirtbags will fade from our screens to be replaced by those that deserve the attention.

Independence Day!

The 4th of July! Just hearing this statement brings visions of firework displays, barbecues in the park, parades, carnivals and baseball games. It seems that Americans have forgotten what this holiday is all about. All week long I have heard talk of the “4th of July”, but not once have a heard the actual name of the holiday, Independence Day. Have we as Americans forgotten why we celebrate? Do we even care anymore?

When I was a child, I remember patriotism as a positive trait. The pride I had in saying the pledge of allegiance every morning. And the national anthem, I still get goose bumps every time I hear it! Is this true for today’s generation? Can school children even recite the pledge?

It seems that with today’s political climate we have forgotten what it means to be an American. Patriotism is not what it once was. So many young people seem to be embarrassed to be American. What a shame this is! Despite our flaws as a nation, America is still the greatest country in the world. It frightens me as I reflect on the past 20 years and see this erosion of patriotism. Where will we be in another 20 years?

Independence Day! While hearing this does not bring the visions of beer, bbq and baseball like “The 4th of July”, it does stir a sense of pride within me. I am proud to be an American. I respect this country, the flag and the government, regardless of who is in the White House.

Independence Day! The day Americans celebrate our independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. The day we should all take a moment and reflect on what freedom means to us.

Independence Day! The birthday of American patriotism and the greatest nation on Earth.

So as we celebrate this weekend with your barbecues, fireworks and parades, take pride in the fact that we are Americans. Honor our country and enjoy all the freedoms it provides.

Fire!!

It's 11:00 pm, and I have just gotten into bed. It is warm in my room and I am lying in bed listening to the hoodlums outside. Just as I begin to fall asleep I am jolted awake by the most annoying sound in the world. The fire alarm in my apartment building is screaming at me to get out of the building. Imagine the smoke alarm in your home, now multiply that by ten.

I jump out of bed and instantly run to Madelyn's bedroom. She is sound asleep, oblivious to the ridiculously loud siren blaring in the hallway. Lindsey is running from room to room, not sure why, although I am sure she is freaking out. I grab a towel and cover the alarm to muffle the sound as Lindsey grabs Madelyn. We grab some clothes and head down stairs from our third floor apartment. As we reach the second floor, I start to smell smoke. Down another flight of stairs and the smell is even stronger on the first floor. I look down the hallway and I can see that there is a small amount of smoke in the hallway. Lindsey and Madelyn are out of the building by now, but I stay behind to check it out.

This is the part where I would like to tell you about the little old lady I rescued or the children I carried from a burning apartment. But that is not what happened. I didn't even get to rescue a puppy, not even a goldfish.

Feeling slightly cheated, I start to realize that the smoke I smell is sweet, like bbq. I remember smelling the smoke just before I went to bed and thinking that smells good! At that point I figure that somebody must watch way too much Food Network. Their cooking skills just scared the crap out of all their neighbors!

I join Lindsey and Madelyn outside in the parking lot. Everybody from my building is standing around looking annoyed. I notice one gal roaming the parking lot who looks much more anxious than the rest of us. Let’s just say she looks nothing like Rachel Ray. I wanted to ask her what's for dinner, but I decided I would move my car out of the complex just in case the whole place goes up in flames. At least I will be able to drive somewhere for the night.

Within 15 minutes, what seems like the entire Eugene Fire Department shows up, lights and sirens blaring. This finally wakes up Madelyn and she can’t believe her eyes, there are fire trucks everywhere! She looks like a kid at Christmas! She sure loves fire trucks. Which is interesting, I thought, because as Madelyn is checking out all the pretty fire trucks, her mom is checking out all the pretty firemen. Hilarious! You can't make this stuff up.

It takes about 10 minutes for the pretty Firemen to clear the building and let us back in. As we get back to our apartment, Madelyn wants to know how the fire trucks got here, and her mom wants to know why all firemen are so hot, even the chubby old ones!Not having a pg answer for either question, I turn on the Food Network and consider fixing a snack.