It's been a hard decision, but I think I need to come clean. I've been trying to hide it for awhile, and struggling with it, so it's time to just get it out in the open: I like all the stupid Kesha songs I hear on the radio.
There, I said it. Does it make me a horribly sick person? Maybe... but the songs are just so stupidly funny and completely catchy that I simply can't help myself. Clearly she has no talent what so ever, but the songs are just addicting. Think of me what you will, but it's the sad truth! I love the end of the one song where she goes "I like your beard". It's like she's talking just to me!
Okay, on a more serious note, I can't believe we are already into May. May for crying out loud! The year is almost half over and I don't even remember how it started! I'm enjoying the nicer weather, and so is Megan. She spends more time outdoors than inside these days, and that's a good thing. Casey is SO close to walking... I think she might be walking before her first birthday in 3 weeks.
I've been wanting to get some more "In-Depth" posts up, like I did with running and work. The next two subjects are going to be weight and parenting. Both tough subjects, but I think it would do me some good to get my ideas out. Look for those later this month.
So speaking of music - another new cheesy song on the radio that I currently like:
B.o.B - Nothin' On You ft. Bruno Mars [Official Video]
You can make fun of me if you want. It's okay. :-)
And on the note of parenting, I should go now and attempt to work on one of my biggest issues as of late: getting Megan to bed at a decent time. Wish me luck!
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Friday, April 30, 2010
Do It Yourself
In the end, my washing machine was fixed, and it was free. But once again, I found myself having to get it taken care of myself. Yes, the sales guy at Home Depot was trying to help but ultimately he was useless. He called GE a few times, and said they would take care of me, but he never bothered to either give me the extension of a GE customer service rep or a case number. All he could give me was a name. So in the end, after calling GE multiple times, I finally just said "Screw this" and pleaded my case to the next representative I got. She agreed to help me and we had a service guy out on Thursday and he fixed the washer for free. So Linzy, call rep from GE, thanks for helping me out!
I've known for quite sometime, that my inability to ask for help is one of my bigger character flaws. I recently confessed to a friend of mine how I find it hard to have faith in other people. I think that might be part of why I find myself drawn to friendships with people with strong religious convictions. A small part of me likes to think they are more honest or trust worthy. Sadly, even that is a form of profiling.
The overarching problem is that my pessimistic personality spills over into my view of what might motivate other people. I operate under this assumption that most people only either care about themselves, only do things motivated in self interest, and if push came to shove, will always look out for their own self interests first.
A lot of my decisions are based on the assumption that I have no one to rely on but myself. It's sorta like social security. In my mind, it doesn't even exist. I assume that when I retire, the only money I'll have to pay for the rest of my life will be the money that I earned and saved. That might be an extreme example, but it illustrates my point.
The reason I consider this such a character flaw, is not so much the "no one would ever help me if I needed it" attitude that I have, but more so, the indirect side effect of not being able to rely on other people. It also means it's very hard to look to others for help in other areas such as emotional or yes, maybe even spiritual support. (and before you get too excited, I'm refering more to the "values and meanings by which people live" type of spirituality, not religion per-say)
I also assume that eventually I'm going to have to ask for help. At some point in my life, I'll need support of one kind or another. And maybe by then I'll get past my inability to rely on others for good. In the meantime, I'll keep hanging up on random people that call my house because I just assume they want something from me. I'm sure someday I'll hang up on someone calling to tell me I just won a million dollars.
I've known for quite sometime, that my inability to ask for help is one of my bigger character flaws. I recently confessed to a friend of mine how I find it hard to have faith in other people. I think that might be part of why I find myself drawn to friendships with people with strong religious convictions. A small part of me likes to think they are more honest or trust worthy. Sadly, even that is a form of profiling.
The overarching problem is that my pessimistic personality spills over into my view of what might motivate other people. I operate under this assumption that most people only either care about themselves, only do things motivated in self interest, and if push came to shove, will always look out for their own self interests first.
A lot of my decisions are based on the assumption that I have no one to rely on but myself. It's sorta like social security. In my mind, it doesn't even exist. I assume that when I retire, the only money I'll have to pay for the rest of my life will be the money that I earned and saved. That might be an extreme example, but it illustrates my point.
The reason I consider this such a character flaw, is not so much the "no one would ever help me if I needed it" attitude that I have, but more so, the indirect side effect of not being able to rely on other people. It also means it's very hard to look to others for help in other areas such as emotional or yes, maybe even spiritual support. (and before you get too excited, I'm refering more to the "values and meanings by which people live" type of spirituality, not religion per-say)
I also assume that eventually I'm going to have to ask for help. At some point in my life, I'll need support of one kind or another. And maybe by then I'll get past my inability to rely on others for good. In the meantime, I'll keep hanging up on random people that call my house because I just assume they want something from me. I'm sure someday I'll hang up on someone calling to tell me I just won a million dollars.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Weekend of Free Stuff
At first I planned on blogging about the horrible weather conditions on Saturday morning, how cold and miserable I was during my race, or how the rain put a dent in my otherwise decent DVD selling later in the day. Instead, I'm going to shift gears and actually talk about something positive! Me? Positive? No way!
First off is my camera problem. About 3 weeks ago my brand new camera went kaput. I had just bought it at the beginning of October! I blamed Megan because it stopped working one evening after she brought it up to me from downstairs. Added to that was the fact that the last thing the camera recorded was a series of 16 very suspicious movie clips recorded by Megan (when no one else was around).
Andrea brought the camera into Best Buy, and the Geek Squad sent it off to Cannon since it was still under the 1 year manufacture warranty. I get an email from the Geek Squad after a few weeks, and long story short, they give me a brand new camera. But here's the best part. The model I bought (A1100 IS) is no longer available. So instead, I get a free upgrade to the next model in the PowerShot line, the A3100 IS! It's an even better camera then I had, and it's brand new!
Well, that got my day off to an awesome start. But then, later that afternoon, Andrea calls me downstairs because the washing machine is going nuts. My limited handy man skills tell me it's pretty messed up (the inner portion is just sitting completely off center). This washer is ALSO almost brand new, replaced just last April! However, we were a few weeks past the 1 year warranty so I was worried this time. I decided my best shot was to go to Home Depot (where we bought it) in person and see if I could work some magic. I always seem to have better luck showing up in person.
So what happens? After walking around the store for awhile without finding any good assistance, I decide to swing by Appliances one more time. By pure blind luck I just so happen to run into the very same salesperson that originally sold me the washer. (only now he is working in Flooring). I stopped, we chatted, and another long story short - he got on the phone with GE today and informed me that they are going to be able to help us out, despite being past the official year warranty. Granted the washer isn't fixed yet, but I have faith it will be by the end of the week, again, for free!
Sadly, as the karmic laws of the universe must always prevail, once again when good things happen to me, it means my brother is getting shit on. You see, it's been clear to me for a long time that my brother and I are on opposite sides of some cosmic scale that has to remain in balance at all times. When good things happen to me, bad things happen to him (trust me, this is no joke). So while I was enjoying all this free stuff, my brothers wife was in the emergency room, with a follow up emergency surgery. She is okay now and back home, but I'm sure they will be looking at a few thousand dollars in medical expenses. Why is life so unfair like that?
First off is my camera problem. About 3 weeks ago my brand new camera went kaput. I had just bought it at the beginning of October! I blamed Megan because it stopped working one evening after she brought it up to me from downstairs. Added to that was the fact that the last thing the camera recorded was a series of 16 very suspicious movie clips recorded by Megan (when no one else was around).
Andrea brought the camera into Best Buy, and the Geek Squad sent it off to Cannon since it was still under the 1 year manufacture warranty. I get an email from the Geek Squad after a few weeks, and long story short, they give me a brand new camera. But here's the best part. The model I bought (A1100 IS) is no longer available. So instead, I get a free upgrade to the next model in the PowerShot line, the A3100 IS! It's an even better camera then I had, and it's brand new!
Well, that got my day off to an awesome start. But then, later that afternoon, Andrea calls me downstairs because the washing machine is going nuts. My limited handy man skills tell me it's pretty messed up (the inner portion is just sitting completely off center). This washer is ALSO almost brand new, replaced just last April! However, we were a few weeks past the 1 year warranty so I was worried this time. I decided my best shot was to go to Home Depot (where we bought it) in person and see if I could work some magic. I always seem to have better luck showing up in person.
So what happens? After walking around the store for awhile without finding any good assistance, I decide to swing by Appliances one more time. By pure blind luck I just so happen to run into the very same salesperson that originally sold me the washer. (only now he is working in Flooring). I stopped, we chatted, and another long story short - he got on the phone with GE today and informed me that they are going to be able to help us out, despite being past the official year warranty. Granted the washer isn't fixed yet, but I have faith it will be by the end of the week, again, for free!
Sadly, as the karmic laws of the universe must always prevail, once again when good things happen to me, it means my brother is getting shit on. You see, it's been clear to me for a long time that my brother and I are on opposite sides of some cosmic scale that has to remain in balance at all times. When good things happen to me, bad things happen to him (trust me, this is no joke). So while I was enjoying all this free stuff, my brothers wife was in the emergency room, with a follow up emergency surgery. She is okay now and back home, but I'm sure they will be looking at a few thousand dollars in medical expenses. Why is life so unfair like that?
Friday, April 23, 2010
Day off?
I took the day off work today, for no other reason then Andrea telling me "It's about damn time you took a day off!" Am I working too much? Maybe. Being off today just reminded me once again that I still have the easier job between me and Andrea. I'm friggen beat!
We started off the morning with a trip to the YMCA, where I did a quick 5 miler on the treadmill. Casey did "okay" this time - she cried like CRAZY when we dropped her off at the kids stuff area, but they never called Andrea down to pick her up and by the time we came back she was mostly calm.
After that Megan and I spent an hour at a park, went out for lunch, drove into Minneapolis to pick up my race packet for tomorrows race. Came home, played outside for a few hours, had dinner, more time outside, and blam all of a sudden it's 9pm and I am tired as hell. How on earth does Andrea do this every day all week?
So yeah, tomorrow I have my first race of the year, and the 4th time I will be doing the Get in Gear 10k - the first race I ever ran. The weather looks like it's going to be absolutely horrible, cold and raining. Gotta love it. In the 4 years I've done this race, the weather has only been marginally good once.
The bad weather tomorrow is going to be a double slap in the face. You see, around my place they are having a HUGE neighborhood garage sale. It's a yearly thing, and everyone gets involved. You can find some amazing deals and tons of stuff for kids. Normally it wouldn't bother me too much that the rain is going to ruin the garage sales, but I decided at the last minute to put in a ton of work to sort and arrange my DVD collection in hopes of selling some off. Now it looks like I might not be able to sell any due to the weather. My neighbor at least bought a few already.
I'll report more later on the results of the run, the crappy weather, and my attempt to make a few bucks selling DVDs.
We started off the morning with a trip to the YMCA, where I did a quick 5 miler on the treadmill. Casey did "okay" this time - she cried like CRAZY when we dropped her off at the kids stuff area, but they never called Andrea down to pick her up and by the time we came back she was mostly calm.
After that Megan and I spent an hour at a park, went out for lunch, drove into Minneapolis to pick up my race packet for tomorrows race. Came home, played outside for a few hours, had dinner, more time outside, and blam all of a sudden it's 9pm and I am tired as hell. How on earth does Andrea do this every day all week?
So yeah, tomorrow I have my first race of the year, and the 4th time I will be doing the Get in Gear 10k - the first race I ever ran. The weather looks like it's going to be absolutely horrible, cold and raining. Gotta love it. In the 4 years I've done this race, the weather has only been marginally good once.
The bad weather tomorrow is going to be a double slap in the face. You see, around my place they are having a HUGE neighborhood garage sale. It's a yearly thing, and everyone gets involved. You can find some amazing deals and tons of stuff for kids. Normally it wouldn't bother me too much that the rain is going to ruin the garage sales, but I decided at the last minute to put in a ton of work to sort and arrange my DVD collection in hopes of selling some off. Now it looks like I might not be able to sell any due to the weather. My neighbor at least bought a few already.
I'll report more later on the results of the run, the crappy weather, and my attempt to make a few bucks selling DVDs.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Separation Anxiety
As Casey nears the 11 month mark, we are struggling with some serious separation anxiety. I can't remember when it started, but it must have been almost 2 months ago now. I saw it develop on our Monday night date nights. For the last 2 months, every Monday night Andrea and I were going to a marriage course, "Date Night with a Purpose" it was called. It included private candle lit dinners for two (catered by Roasted Pear!) each night followed by a short informative talk. There was also babysitting provided.
Each night was very hard on Casey, and she would instantly start crying as soon as we dropped her off. It would last for a good 20-30 minutes. A few nights we ended up leaving early to just go comfort her. It's also putting a damper on Andrea's opportunities to go to the YMCA. She can hardly drop Casey off before they are calling her back down because the YMCA staff can't comfort her.
And if that wasn't bad enough, we can't even leave her with Grandma either! This all adds up to some rough times ahead. Mostly it's going to get old fast if Andrea and I can't find time to spend together, do a date night, or even go to a movie together. This weekend I want to see Kick-Ass so badly, but I'll have to go see a 10:30pm showing just so I can see it by myself.
With Megan, it was never this bad at all. Maybe she might whine a little bit, but she could quickly get engaged with something, anything, by whoever it was that was watching her. With Casey it is much worse, we can hardly leave the room. At night when I get home from work, she just clings and clings to me all night until bed time.
I know it should pass, but man I hope it doesn't last much more than another month or two. If it does, I might have to take drastic measures and do things to help get her over it, such as leaving Casey with Grandma for 15 minute periods, working up to an hour, to basically teach her it's going to be okay.
Anyway, here is a very cute video update from a few weeks ago. Show casing the great singing voice on Andrea!
Each night was very hard on Casey, and she would instantly start crying as soon as we dropped her off. It would last for a good 20-30 minutes. A few nights we ended up leaving early to just go comfort her. It's also putting a damper on Andrea's opportunities to go to the YMCA. She can hardly drop Casey off before they are calling her back down because the YMCA staff can't comfort her.
And if that wasn't bad enough, we can't even leave her with Grandma either! This all adds up to some rough times ahead. Mostly it's going to get old fast if Andrea and I can't find time to spend together, do a date night, or even go to a movie together. This weekend I want to see Kick-Ass so badly, but I'll have to go see a 10:30pm showing just so I can see it by myself.
With Megan, it was never this bad at all. Maybe she might whine a little bit, but she could quickly get engaged with something, anything, by whoever it was that was watching her. With Casey it is much worse, we can hardly leave the room. At night when I get home from work, she just clings and clings to me all night until bed time.
I know it should pass, but man I hope it doesn't last much more than another month or two. If it does, I might have to take drastic measures and do things to help get her over it, such as leaving Casey with Grandma for 15 minute periods, working up to an hour, to basically teach her it's going to be okay.
Anyway, here is a very cute video update from a few weeks ago. Show casing the great singing voice on Andrea!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Work: In-Depth
Ahhh, the ultimate taboo subject. For awhile I've been wanting to give an update on work status, but always chicken out at the last second. I figure it's about time to let it all hang out, what the hell!
I could be working right now. In fact, I just got done doing about 20 mins of misc. stuff. At the core, that's the gist of the problem. I've hinted a few times at the way work is invading my thoughts but it's getting pretty bad. The question is why?
I work on some decently fun software. It's got enough complexity as to be challenging, but not too much as to be completely unmanageable. The core of the application was written in the early 2000's and since then, has never gone through any type of rearchitecture. Piece after piece, feature after feature, bolted on in any way it could be. In the end, the app still functions, looks pretty much the exact same as it did 10 years ago, and is just insanely complicated. (for reference, I started in June 2006)
In 2009, I started up the idea of starting fresh. Rebuilding the software from the ground up using latest technologies, techniques, and platforms. This wasn't an original idea by any stretch of the means. It's just that all the previous people to push the idea had either left the company or were too busy dealing with other things. Those facts, combined with the particular position I am in, made it the obvious choice that I needed to be the next to attempt to push for it.
So for a few months, I started pushing. Trying to gain momentum with some of the engineers at levels above me. It didn't seem to take off. The cost of such an effort didn't seem to have an ROI (return on investment). The software works... if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Shortly after that, I went out on leave while Casey was born and when I came back the momentum had completely died. I chucked my idea as simply a bad idea and went back to the normal daily grind.
Then earlier this year, one of the engineers who helped build the original software started up the effort again, specifically calling me in to help, and in a lot of ways, shutting out all the "naysayers". He could see the cliff we are hanging off, and how badly we need to rework parts of the software. So once again, I decided to give it my all. I've determined the cheapest possible solution, wrote up an entire high level scope document, and prototyped the entire damn application.
Why? Because I care about this software? Because I think it will be that much better? No. For two reasons. First, it would be a lot more fun to work in the latest technologies, and second, because it would be fun to hear the "Wow" factor if it ever actually happened and got released. Oh, I suppose the third reason would also be money. I wouldn't put this much effort in if I didn't honestly think it might actually allow us to retain and get new customers, which in return results in better profit sharing and ideally, better raises.
Did I mention I don't get paid enough for the effort I put in?
I could be working right now. In fact, I just got done doing about 20 mins of misc. stuff. At the core, that's the gist of the problem. I've hinted a few times at the way work is invading my thoughts but it's getting pretty bad. The question is why?
I work on some decently fun software. It's got enough complexity as to be challenging, but not too much as to be completely unmanageable. The core of the application was written in the early 2000's and since then, has never gone through any type of rearchitecture. Piece after piece, feature after feature, bolted on in any way it could be. In the end, the app still functions, looks pretty much the exact same as it did 10 years ago, and is just insanely complicated. (for reference, I started in June 2006)
In 2009, I started up the idea of starting fresh. Rebuilding the software from the ground up using latest technologies, techniques, and platforms. This wasn't an original idea by any stretch of the means. It's just that all the previous people to push the idea had either left the company or were too busy dealing with other things. Those facts, combined with the particular position I am in, made it the obvious choice that I needed to be the next to attempt to push for it.
So for a few months, I started pushing. Trying to gain momentum with some of the engineers at levels above me. It didn't seem to take off. The cost of such an effort didn't seem to have an ROI (return on investment). The software works... if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Shortly after that, I went out on leave while Casey was born and when I came back the momentum had completely died. I chucked my idea as simply a bad idea and went back to the normal daily grind.
Then earlier this year, one of the engineers who helped build the original software started up the effort again, specifically calling me in to help, and in a lot of ways, shutting out all the "naysayers". He could see the cliff we are hanging off, and how badly we need to rework parts of the software. So once again, I decided to give it my all. I've determined the cheapest possible solution, wrote up an entire high level scope document, and prototyped the entire damn application.
Why? Because I care about this software? Because I think it will be that much better? No. For two reasons. First, it would be a lot more fun to work in the latest technologies, and second, because it would be fun to hear the "Wow" factor if it ever actually happened and got released. Oh, I suppose the third reason would also be money. I wouldn't put this much effort in if I didn't honestly think it might actually allow us to retain and get new customers, which in return results in better profit sharing and ideally, better raises.
Did I mention I don't get paid enough for the effort I put in?
Saturday, April 10, 2010
4 Year Old Wisdom
I had wanted to get another in-depth post up this week, but the time just wasn't there. Instead I'll switch gears and post some words of wisdom from Megan.
Last night my neighbor mentioned how he was watching the original Star Wars with his kids for the first time. I thought maybe Megan would enjoy watching them, so we headed home and I popped the movie in. As it started, I tried to explain to Megan who the "good guys" and "bad guys" were, to give her a frame of reference. After about 20 minutes into the movie, she just turns to me and says:
Today Megan and I were on our way to the grocery store, and she had another wonderful quote. Just out of the blue, she goes:
We didn't actually have any plans this weekend, so today we just picked things at random. We decide to start off the afternoon at the Mall of America. Megan is just over 42' inches now, which means she can go on almost all the rides at the MOA. So for the first time ever, I shelled out some money so we could go on some rides together. What I didn't know - is that if you have a child just above 42 inches, some of the rides require that they have a chaperone. But here is the cool part - the chaperone rides free! How cool is that?
We started off on the Ferris Wheel, which didn't allow a free chaperone. That was a rip off, so then we moved on to the Merry-Go-Round, which rocked. But from there... Megan wanted to do the "Orange Crush" roller coaster. This ride only needed the rider to be 42' inches, so being the insane Dad that I am, I said what the hell! Either she will love it or be permanently scarred for life.
This ride qualifies as a "real" roller coaster, despite no huge drops or anything. It is fast and the 3 spin turns are really fast. After the first 10 seconds of the ride and I got worried, but then all of a sudden Megan starts cheering and laughing and just having the time of her life. After we got off, she begged me to go again. Damn straight we did it again! It was awesome!
Here is a video from someone riding this coaster. It should give an idea of how fast this was.
Kind of ironic to find this video on youtube, but not at all if you were Megan. You see, just a few nights ago she turned to me and said:
Last night my neighbor mentioned how he was watching the original Star Wars with his kids for the first time. I thought maybe Megan would enjoy watching them, so we headed home and I popped the movie in. As it started, I tried to explain to Megan who the "good guys" and "bad guys" were, to give her a frame of reference. After about 20 minutes into the movie, she just turns to me and says:
Bad guys are just a part of life.I couldn't agree with her more.
Today Megan and I were on our way to the grocery store, and she had another wonderful quote. Just out of the blue, she goes:
I wish we had a flying car.Don't we all?
We didn't actually have any plans this weekend, so today we just picked things at random. We decide to start off the afternoon at the Mall of America. Megan is just over 42' inches now, which means she can go on almost all the rides at the MOA. So for the first time ever, I shelled out some money so we could go on some rides together. What I didn't know - is that if you have a child just above 42 inches, some of the rides require that they have a chaperone. But here is the cool part - the chaperone rides free! How cool is that?
We started off on the Ferris Wheel, which didn't allow a free chaperone. That was a rip off, so then we moved on to the Merry-Go-Round, which rocked. But from there... Megan wanted to do the "Orange Crush" roller coaster. This ride only needed the rider to be 42' inches, so being the insane Dad that I am, I said what the hell! Either she will love it or be permanently scarred for life.
This ride qualifies as a "real" roller coaster, despite no huge drops or anything. It is fast and the 3 spin turns are really fast. After the first 10 seconds of the ride and I got worried, but then all of a sudden Megan starts cheering and laughing and just having the time of her life. After we got off, she begged me to go again. Damn straight we did it again! It was awesome!
Here is a video from someone riding this coaster. It should give an idea of how fast this was.
Kind of ironic to find this video on youtube, but not at all if you were Megan. You see, just a few nights ago she turned to me and said:
Everything is on youtube.How correct she is!
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
Running: In-Depth
You might have noticed my updated side-bar. I haven't used the running web site linked to my blog, Buckeye Outdoors, since last November. Since then, they have updated the web site to allow direct linking to my Garmin running watch. Cool stuff!
I've done 4 runs since the weather turned nice, and (fingers crossed), so far so well. My foot isn't 100% but it isn't painful or getting any worse either. Most days, I don't even notice the plantars. I'm going to take this as a good sign that I can keep it up.
On Saturday, I ran my first "long" run of the year. It just barely made the double digits, but that's my qualification for a long run. Although I felt good for most of the run, I was pretty beat by the end of it. Interestingly, I ended up being more worried about my heart rate then my bum foot. An AVR of 175 with a max of 188 was much higher then I'd want for that particular pace.
Thankfully, the next run right after that, at the same pace but a slightly different time of day was better. AHR of 158, and although I only did 6.65 miles, my heart rate profile was much closer to what I would expect for that pace. This was encouraging for my goals this years.
Yes, despite my injury and woah-is-me attitude, I have running goals for this year, just like I did last year. Last year I had a goal of running 1,500 miles. This is a goal I never talked about or even mentioned on my blog. In fact, there is only one person I ever told this goal to. This year is no different. I have running goals, and they are once again sekret.
Like almost all my goals, I have fears. Fears I won't be able to achieve them, fears of failure. In some ways, I think it is these fears that keep my goals sekret. It's better to fail silently, than to admit failure. My first four runs this year have my attitude slightly more positive, and as long as my injury doesn't get any worse, I think I'll be able to achieve my goals for this year. Time will tell.
I've done 4 runs since the weather turned nice, and (fingers crossed), so far so well. My foot isn't 100% but it isn't painful or getting any worse either. Most days, I don't even notice the plantars. I'm going to take this as a good sign that I can keep it up.
On Saturday, I ran my first "long" run of the year. It just barely made the double digits, but that's my qualification for a long run. Although I felt good for most of the run, I was pretty beat by the end of it. Interestingly, I ended up being more worried about my heart rate then my bum foot. An AVR of 175 with a max of 188 was much higher then I'd want for that particular pace.
Thankfully, the next run right after that, at the same pace but a slightly different time of day was better. AHR of 158, and although I only did 6.65 miles, my heart rate profile was much closer to what I would expect for that pace. This was encouraging for my goals this years.
Yes, despite my injury and woah-is-me attitude, I have running goals for this year, just like I did last year. Last year I had a goal of running 1,500 miles. This is a goal I never talked about or even mentioned on my blog. In fact, there is only one person I ever told this goal to. This year is no different. I have running goals, and they are once again sekret.
Like almost all my goals, I have fears. Fears I won't be able to achieve them, fears of failure. In some ways, I think it is these fears that keep my goals sekret. It's better to fail silently, than to admit failure. My first four runs this year have my attitude slightly more positive, and as long as my injury doesn't get any worse, I think I'll be able to achieve my goals for this year. Time will tell.
Friday, April 02, 2010
Crampons
Any geek that has ever played Dungeons & Dragons knows what crampons are. Why? Because they are always available for purchase in the equipment list, and someone always asks, "What are crampons?" Friday I was on the elliptical watching my new favorite show: Cash Cab. A game show where random people in a taxi cab are asked semi-easy trivia questions. At the end, if you make it, you can go double or nothing. The answer to the final question was "crampons", and I knew the answer but the 3 guys in the cab didn't. Obviously they had never played Dungeons & Dragons.
Every single day, from Thursday to today, I tried to sit down and blog. And every single day, 5 minutes into it, something would need my attention. Something isn't adding up because usually I could get some time to myself each night either playing video games or reading, or something.
This week I'm going to start putting in a little more blog effort and post in depth about recent on-goings, from finishing a 20 year book saga to my running, work, and all the rest. For now, since I once again have sat down to blog with only 20 spare minutes, I will keep this post short.
This weekend was great overall, awesome weather. Got a run in on Saturday (check out the new running side-bar). Also went to see Clash of the Titans with my brother Saturday night. It was fun, but nothing spectacular. I enjoyed it.
Today we drove down to New Ulm and visited the in-laws for Easter Sunday. I ate entirely too much candy today, so good thing I'm starting running again. Been floating in the upper 180s, reaching 190 the last 2 months. Time to put a stop to that and get back down to an even 180 for the running season.
Well, I hear the oven beeping so dinner is ready. Gotta jet, but expect more posts this week then the usual once a week.
Every single day, from Thursday to today, I tried to sit down and blog. And every single day, 5 minutes into it, something would need my attention. Something isn't adding up because usually I could get some time to myself each night either playing video games or reading, or something.
This week I'm going to start putting in a little more blog effort and post in depth about recent on-goings, from finishing a 20 year book saga to my running, work, and all the rest. For now, since I once again have sat down to blog with only 20 spare minutes, I will keep this post short.
This weekend was great overall, awesome weather. Got a run in on Saturday (check out the new running side-bar). Also went to see Clash of the Titans with my brother Saturday night. It was fun, but nothing spectacular. I enjoyed it.
Today we drove down to New Ulm and visited the in-laws for Easter Sunday. I ate entirely too much candy today, so good thing I'm starting running again. Been floating in the upper 180s, reaching 190 the last 2 months. Time to put a stop to that and get back down to an even 180 for the running season.
Well, I hear the oven beeping so dinner is ready. Gotta jet, but expect more posts this week then the usual once a week.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Poker Night Success
Party last night was an awesome time. 8 people total, which worked out perfect for the amount of space, chips, and everything else. The funny part is that the group of people just ended up being my standard AD&D group of friends plus 2 other friends. And a lot of us hadn't even seen each other in some time, so it was great to just socialize for awhile using poker as the excuse. Had some college hockey playing in the background, pizza, snacks and good times.
We started the first hand going over the rules and trying to emphasize the first few hands being "practice", but with real betting. What happened next was hilarious. Now, keep in mind, technically speaking, this is some low stakes poker. Betting starts out with white chips, that from a dollar value, are .02 cents a piece. Yes, 2 pennies. But what happens? A few people have really good hands and all of a sudden people are throwing around their highest value chips ($2 dollar chips). Off the first hand, one person basically took 2 people down half their chips. So much for "practice" hands!
First person went out shortly after 7pm, and the game lasted until just before 11:30pm. Some highlights include one guy getting pocket Aces TWICE in a row. The odds of getting dealt pocket Aces is around 220 to 1, and this guy got it twice! I got pocket aces once, but didn't show them (won the hand without being called). The highest hands all night were full houses, no 4-of-a-kinds all night. There were a quite a few number of Full Houses though, including a hand where two guys both had full houses. One had 7s over 6s and the other had 6s over 7s!
In the end, I made it to the final two, but I was severely short stacked. I won a solid all-in with 3 10's when my opponent had 2 pair 10s and Jacks. But he had so many chips that he could just keep bleeding me. I tried a few bully moves that didn't work out. Despite all that, as it got down to the end, he goes blind all-in against me (all-in without looking at his first 2 cards). I had Ace & 2 of spades, a solid opener. So I said what the hell and called. He flips his cards over, 10-4 off suit. I'm clearly ahead at this point. Flop comes up... 10-4-Ace. So now he has 2 pair and I have a pair of aces, but I'd need a 2 or Ace to come up to win. What happens? Another 10 or 4, I honestly don't remember. Point is, he gets a friggen Full House off a blind all-in! Crazy. So I came in second, but had a great time.
Everyone had so much fun, that I might even be motivated to do one more this year, in late fall before the winter sets in.
We started the first hand going over the rules and trying to emphasize the first few hands being "practice", but with real betting. What happened next was hilarious. Now, keep in mind, technically speaking, this is some low stakes poker. Betting starts out with white chips, that from a dollar value, are .02 cents a piece. Yes, 2 pennies. But what happens? A few people have really good hands and all of a sudden people are throwing around their highest value chips ($2 dollar chips). Off the first hand, one person basically took 2 people down half their chips. So much for "practice" hands!
First person went out shortly after 7pm, and the game lasted until just before 11:30pm. Some highlights include one guy getting pocket Aces TWICE in a row. The odds of getting dealt pocket Aces is around 220 to 1, and this guy got it twice! I got pocket aces once, but didn't show them (won the hand without being called). The highest hands all night were full houses, no 4-of-a-kinds all night. There were a quite a few number of Full Houses though, including a hand where two guys both had full houses. One had 7s over 6s and the other had 6s over 7s!
In the end, I made it to the final two, but I was severely short stacked. I won a solid all-in with 3 10's when my opponent had 2 pair 10s and Jacks. But he had so many chips that he could just keep bleeding me. I tried a few bully moves that didn't work out. Despite all that, as it got down to the end, he goes blind all-in against me (all-in without looking at his first 2 cards). I had Ace & 2 of spades, a solid opener. So I said what the hell and called. He flips his cards over, 10-4 off suit. I'm clearly ahead at this point. Flop comes up... 10-4-Ace. So now he has 2 pair and I have a pair of aces, but I'd need a 2 or Ace to come up to win. What happens? Another 10 or 4, I honestly don't remember. Point is, he gets a friggen Full House off a blind all-in! Crazy. So I came in second, but had a great time.
Everyone had so much fun, that I might even be motivated to do one more this year, in late fall before the winter sets in.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
There we go
Could this week be the true start to spring weather? Sure hope so. I took the chance this weekend to try my first outdoor run of the year and only my 3rd run since Feb 1st (the other 2 being short treadmill runs when the ellipticals were full). The run went well, although turned out to be a bit colder then I realized. 7.75 miles at a decent pace. In the end, my foot felt no better or worse, so... More outdoor runs to follow, probably starting with this weekend. Fingers crossed that no "new" pain develops.
Our colds are still kicking our ass, which is dragging me down a bit this week. It would be nice to have everyone healthy again by this weekend. Casey has it the worst, simply because there isn't anything she can do. It's still hard for her to get a good nights sleep, so she is extra moody and tired (which in turn, makes the rest of us tired). I'm thinking we should be free and clear within a week. Again, fingers crossed.
I'm looking forward to this weekend, as I'm hosting a poker night that I planned out a few months in advance. Small, myself and maybe 5-6 others. Small stakes, nothing huge, but it should be fun to just get together for a guys night. I did a poker night in both 2005 and 2006, and then sorta just stopped doing it for 3 years. Figured it's about damn time to start it up again, so bring on the 3rd "not-really-annual" Poker Night!
Our colds are still kicking our ass, which is dragging me down a bit this week. It would be nice to have everyone healthy again by this weekend. Casey has it the worst, simply because there isn't anything she can do. It's still hard for her to get a good nights sleep, so she is extra moody and tired (which in turn, makes the rest of us tired). I'm thinking we should be free and clear within a week. Again, fingers crossed.
I'm looking forward to this weekend, as I'm hosting a poker night that I planned out a few months in advance. Small, myself and maybe 5-6 others. Small stakes, nothing huge, but it should be fun to just get together for a guys night. I did a poker night in both 2005 and 2006, and then sorta just stopped doing it for 3 years. Figured it's about damn time to start it up again, so bring on the 3rd "not-really-annual" Poker Night!
Thursday, March 18, 2010
From Tired to Busy
Being overly tired was the worst thing to happen leading into the day light savings time weekend. On top of that, we had a full weekend of travel, spending time with family, and all sorts of stuff that just kept us going all weekend. In the end, no one adjusted very well to the time change and it's been dragging on everyone all week.
I think I'm finally recovered today, since I got to sleep in until 8am. I was up with Casey a few times during the night, but nothing too bad. Me and the girls all have colds right now. Andrea has avoided it so far, so she might be in the clear. The rest of us are just miserable. I'm hoping this is the last round of colds we get for awhile as we lead into spring.
Speaking of spring, the girls are definitely enjoying more time out side lately. You quickly forget how "new" everything is to a 10 month old. Stuff outside to see, touch and smell are all still new to her. To Casey, the coolest thing in the world is to just hold her near a tree branch so she can grab it.
Meanwhile, Megan asks me pretty much every other time we go outside if she can take her training wheels off! She's not quite ready for that, but our neighbors daughter is a year older than Megan and she might get this off this summer. So of course, Megan wants the same. So typical!
Here's a recent video of Casey practicing walking with assistance outside.
I think I'm finally recovered today, since I got to sleep in until 8am. I was up with Casey a few times during the night, but nothing too bad. Me and the girls all have colds right now. Andrea has avoided it so far, so she might be in the clear. The rest of us are just miserable. I'm hoping this is the last round of colds we get for awhile as we lead into spring.
Speaking of spring, the girls are definitely enjoying more time out side lately. You quickly forget how "new" everything is to a 10 month old. Stuff outside to see, touch and smell are all still new to her. To Casey, the coolest thing in the world is to just hold her near a tree branch so she can grab it.
Meanwhile, Megan asks me pretty much every other time we go outside if she can take her training wheels off! She's not quite ready for that, but our neighbors daughter is a year older than Megan and she might get this off this summer. So of course, Megan wants the same. So typical!
Here's a recent video of Casey practicing walking with assistance outside.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Tired
No other words come to mind right now. I'm seriously worn down. If I put my head on a pillow right now I think I'd pass out before I closed my eyes. So why am I blogging? Cause Megan took a huge nap tonight and isn't remotely tired. Ah well. I should stop getting to work at 6am, might help.
This weekend was pretty tough driving around, seeing runners everywhere I looked. I was feening pretty hard to get out there. My foot condition hasn't changed significantly over the last 5 weeks of no running. If anything, it maybe feels slightly better. I have no real pain anymore unless I really crank on the stretching. I'm probably going to end up at the foot doctor again in a few weeks and discuss any other options. It might just be a giant waste of time and money, but I need something. One way or another I'm going to start running outside again in early to mid April.
Once I start running again, I see 3 possible outcomes. I'm trying to mentally prepare for the worst of those, but it's not coming easy. The best possible outcome of course is that running outdoors again with orthopedic shoe inserts will somehow magically readjust my foot and help it heal and go back to normal. Odds of that happening? I'm going to say less than 10%. Second outcome is that the pain I have now just stays more or less the same. I mean, even at the "peak" it never actually hurt. It was just a minor annoyance, mostly in the morning (which is a lot better thanks to the night splint). The last outcome, and most likely outcome, is that running again aggravates it and results in worse pain.
Of all the things I wanted to do this year, quitting running for good was not one of them. But if after I start running again, the pain gets worse, I'm not sure what other options I would have. The thought of being done running for good is not something I can swallow right now. So I'm just going to have to take one day at a time and see how this spring goes.
This weekend was pretty tough driving around, seeing runners everywhere I looked. I was feening pretty hard to get out there. My foot condition hasn't changed significantly over the last 5 weeks of no running. If anything, it maybe feels slightly better. I have no real pain anymore unless I really crank on the stretching. I'm probably going to end up at the foot doctor again in a few weeks and discuss any other options. It might just be a giant waste of time and money, but I need something. One way or another I'm going to start running outside again in early to mid April.
Once I start running again, I see 3 possible outcomes. I'm trying to mentally prepare for the worst of those, but it's not coming easy. The best possible outcome of course is that running outdoors again with orthopedic shoe inserts will somehow magically readjust my foot and help it heal and go back to normal. Odds of that happening? I'm going to say less than 10%. Second outcome is that the pain I have now just stays more or less the same. I mean, even at the "peak" it never actually hurt. It was just a minor annoyance, mostly in the morning (which is a lot better thanks to the night splint). The last outcome, and most likely outcome, is that running again aggravates it and results in worse pain.
Of all the things I wanted to do this year, quitting running for good was not one of them. But if after I start running again, the pain gets worse, I'm not sure what other options I would have. The thought of being done running for good is not something I can swallow right now. So I'm just going to have to take one day at a time and see how this spring goes.
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Back on Track
Once again find myself breaking my self imposed rule of at least 1 blog post a week. Last week I just couldn't find the time, despite being fascinated reading through posts by Sunnybrook Farm. Considering how much I whine about finding a way out of a system I hate, I only joke about dropping off the grid. Reading about someone that actually did it was cool.
The lack of posts last week came mostly from work. I've been pouring WAY too much into it the last month or so. One night this week, Andrea looked at me and asked, "What are you thinking about?" And I said, "I'm thinking about how pissed off I am that I can't stop thinking about work."
The opportunity to bring the project that I work on out of the 90s and into the latest decade has presented itself again. I've mentioned this over half a year ago and I'm not sure this time will be any different. I've jokingly referred to it as "Project Unobtainium", but it isn't too far from the truth. No matter how cool I can make something look or how many value statements I can come up with, some senior executive that doesn't know what Windows 7 is, won't understand why it might be a good idea to re-architect our software for that platform. But I figure I'll give it one more shot, and when the competition begins to steamroll us, I can at least say I gave it my best shot, instead of just "I told you so."
The lack of posts last week came mostly from work. I've been pouring WAY too much into it the last month or so. One night this week, Andrea looked at me and asked, "What are you thinking about?" And I said, "I'm thinking about how pissed off I am that I can't stop thinking about work."
The opportunity to bring the project that I work on out of the 90s and into the latest decade has presented itself again. I've mentioned this over half a year ago and I'm not sure this time will be any different. I've jokingly referred to it as "Project Unobtainium", but it isn't too far from the truth. No matter how cool I can make something look or how many value statements I can come up with, some senior executive that doesn't know what Windows 7 is, won't understand why it might be a good idea to re-architect our software for that platform. But I figure I'll give it one more shot, and when the competition begins to steamroll us, I can at least say I gave it my best shot, instead of just "I told you so."
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Interesting Turn
Fun to have people reading and my blog being motivated to share opinions. Almost motivates me to just post non stop about hot button topics like religion all the time. Almost.
I do want to expose my kids to as many different opinions and world views as I possibly can, so they can figure out for themselves (in the long run) what works for them. And the reason I want to do that is because, I don't think any particular world view is any more correct then the next. My choice to be atheist is just as valid as my friends choices for religion. Neither is the right choice or the wrong choice, they are just personal preferences. The important thing is to figure out for yourself what "fits" for you.
And that's the main reason I find it SO utterly difficult to participate in any formal organized gathering of any religious type. Because usually (not always), that group of people want you to think just like them. And if you don't, you're labelled as "wrong". Whether it's a Christian church wanting to convert you to a belief in god, or a liberal Unitarian church where everyone bashes conservatives and republicans. Either group comes with preconceived notions of who is right and wrong and what beliefs are right and wrong.
Which brings us right back to my subjective view of life and truth. Something that is hard to describe, but it is central to almost all my beliefs. I profess my love of the classic existential philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, and how reading his essays was the first time in my life, I ever read something about a world view that "fit" for me. Where for the first time in my life, I said "Wow, this is exactly how I've come to view the world.".
Yet still, despite that, there is a small part of me that wonders. Is subjective truth just a way to live your entire life without taking a particular stand on a subject?
I do want to expose my kids to as many different opinions and world views as I possibly can, so they can figure out for themselves (in the long run) what works for them. And the reason I want to do that is because, I don't think any particular world view is any more correct then the next. My choice to be atheist is just as valid as my friends choices for religion. Neither is the right choice or the wrong choice, they are just personal preferences. The important thing is to figure out for yourself what "fits" for you.
And that's the main reason I find it SO utterly difficult to participate in any formal organized gathering of any religious type. Because usually (not always), that group of people want you to think just like them. And if you don't, you're labelled as "wrong". Whether it's a Christian church wanting to convert you to a belief in god, or a liberal Unitarian church where everyone bashes conservatives and republicans. Either group comes with preconceived notions of who is right and wrong and what beliefs are right and wrong.
Which brings us right back to my subjective view of life and truth. Something that is hard to describe, but it is central to almost all my beliefs. I profess my love of the classic existential philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, and how reading his essays was the first time in my life, I ever read something about a world view that "fit" for me. Where for the first time in my life, I said "Wow, this is exactly how I've come to view the world.".
Yet still, despite that, there is a small part of me that wonders. Is subjective truth just a way to live your entire life without taking a particular stand on a subject?
Monday, February 22, 2010
Target Audience
I'm usually pretty perceptive of changes in my normal routine. For as long as the "Followers" feature became available, I've had 3 followers. The 3 blog links on my blog roll. All of a sudden today I have 10 followers! (and I lost one of my original 3!) Oh, I must be getting famous.
Has my recent post on religion grabbed people? Should I do a full month of blogging about "Why Shawn is Atheist" or "How I think I developed morals without religion"? It's funny how much feedback I got on my recent post. Thanks to those that left comments. My Mom says to me, "The things you say amaze me." She's either amazed at what I say or I'm simply crazy. My brother tells me I get him "fired up". But if what I say gets people worked up one way or another, I must be on to something. Honestly though, I'm not really on to anything. I just enjoy being an instigator of thought.
And in the meantime, I'll try not to let the possibility that more than 3 people read my blog effect the way I do business around here.
Has my recent post on religion grabbed people? Should I do a full month of blogging about "Why Shawn is Atheist" or "How I think I developed morals without religion"? It's funny how much feedback I got on my recent post. Thanks to those that left comments. My Mom says to me, "The things you say amaze me." She's either amazed at what I say or I'm simply crazy. My brother tells me I get him "fired up". But if what I say gets people worked up one way or another, I must be on to something. Honestly though, I'm not really on to anything. I just enjoy being an instigator of thought.
And in the meantime, I'll try not to let the possibility that more than 3 people read my blog effect the way I do business around here.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Rest for the Wicked
Tonight Andrea and I talked about one of those hard topics. Religion. More specifically, teaching religion. For some families, it's not even a question, let alone a hard one. You are given a belief structure from your parents in whatever religion they are a part of and then choose to accept or reject it.
For whatever reason, I don't feel I was ever "taught" religion, or in a more broader sense, taught how to figure out my place in the world/universe/whatever you want to call it. My thought is that religion provides answers for people to a lot of those hard to answer questions. Why am I here, what is my purpose, what happens when I die, etc etc. But I honestly don't know if that is the case, not being a part of any religion. Maybe it just gives a framework for finding answers to those questions but still leaves the actual answering up the individual.
But none of that is the point. The point here is I want to arm my daughters with at least some skills that give them a starting point to find those answers for themselves. The question is, what is the best way to go about doing that? Would taking them to a specific religion church do that? Or would trying to expose them to lots of different religions in some way be better? Either option seems tough.
I know the one thing I can't do is lie to them about my own beliefs, and that's maybe the hardest part. Being atheist is a tough proposition in it's own right. Trying to get someone to understand my belief structure, and how it is possible to be atheist and still "care" about things, life, other people, and still strive to be a "good" person, is not easy. On top of that, there are all these studies out there that show religions people tend to be happier or healthier or that church-going kids have better GPAs. Sadly, neither of these are motivators for me but they do at least force me to ask myself, what is best for my girls?
For whatever reason, I don't feel I was ever "taught" religion, or in a more broader sense, taught how to figure out my place in the world/universe/whatever you want to call it. My thought is that religion provides answers for people to a lot of those hard to answer questions. Why am I here, what is my purpose, what happens when I die, etc etc. But I honestly don't know if that is the case, not being a part of any religion. Maybe it just gives a framework for finding answers to those questions but still leaves the actual answering up the individual.
But none of that is the point. The point here is I want to arm my daughters with at least some skills that give them a starting point to find those answers for themselves. The question is, what is the best way to go about doing that? Would taking them to a specific religion church do that? Or would trying to expose them to lots of different religions in some way be better? Either option seems tough.
I know the one thing I can't do is lie to them about my own beliefs, and that's maybe the hardest part. Being atheist is a tough proposition in it's own right. Trying to get someone to understand my belief structure, and how it is possible to be atheist and still "care" about things, life, other people, and still strive to be a "good" person, is not easy. On top of that, there are all these studies out there that show religions people tend to be happier or healthier or that church-going kids have better GPAs. Sadly, neither of these are motivators for me but they do at least force me to ask myself, what is best for my girls?
Saturday, February 13, 2010
8 days between posts!
Epic fail! This week was weird, and I didn't deliver on my promise of pictures from the Apple Valley Midwinter fest. I ended up going to work every other day this week, which sorta made the week fly by. I was working from home on Tuesday because I didn't feel like getting trapped in 3 feet snow drifts in my driveway. Thursday I had the day off so we could get some family pictures taken and so Andrea could get our taxes done and go to Megan's conferences.
Foot update: Still not 100% healed, but definitely better. Random pain throughout the day is very rare, and it usually doesn't hurt unless I really stretch and push/massage the area forcefully. I'm still hopeful for late March.
Anyway, not much else to report this week so here are the pictures and videos from Midwinter fest, as promised. First up, Megan got a cool balloon bracelet.
Everyone at the ice sculpture, and just Megan with a better shot of the finished product.
Foot update: Still not 100% healed, but definitely better. Random pain throughout the day is very rare, and it usually doesn't hurt unless I really stretch and push/massage the area forcefully. I'm still hopeful for late March.
Anyway, not much else to report this week so here are the pictures and videos from Midwinter fest, as promised. First up, Megan got a cool balloon bracelet.
Everyone at the ice sculpture, and just Megan with a better shot of the finished product.
Friday, February 05, 2010
501st Post
Didn't even realize it, but happened to glance at my post count tonight. I hit 500 posts, with today being 501. Not bad for 5 1/2 years of blogging. When I started this little adventure I didn't think I would last this long. I've come SO close to quitting many times. But in the end I always come back because quite frankly, for whatever reason, blogging can be very therapeutic for me. It's a place to come and bitch and moan without burdening anyone with my worries. The side effect of course is that sometimes my blog shows only the negative side of me, but I try my best to balance it out.
Foot update: Got the night splint this week and I've worn it twice now. It's not bad, and it definitely helps with the morning pain. I don't know if it is going to be a miracle cure, but I have hopes. In most studies, it helps 70-80% of the time. Even if it does, it's going to be a long healing process. I'm doing elliptical for now, but will see how that goes. It feels like it's low impact, but it's hard to tell.
Not much else going on really. Work is still just work. Still trying to make a difference, because why not? It's more fun to try and make a difference and then be forced not to, rather then just straight up not even try. Sure the outcome is going to be the same, but at least that way I can put the blame on some other abstract concept like "the business" making bad decisions.
The girls are doing fine, and Megan starts a new preschool program on Monday. It's a "Playschool" program at the near by Eastview high school. It's a great program, 3 days a week. She will do that in addition to normal ECFE 2 days a week, so she will be a busy girl!
Tomorrow we are doing the Apple Valley Mid-Winter Fest which we try to do every year. It's mostly just so that Megan can do the inflatable jumpers, but maybe this year she would have the patience for mini golf. I'll try and snap a few pictures and get them up this weekend.
Foot update: Got the night splint this week and I've worn it twice now. It's not bad, and it definitely helps with the morning pain. I don't know if it is going to be a miracle cure, but I have hopes. In most studies, it helps 70-80% of the time. Even if it does, it's going to be a long healing process. I'm doing elliptical for now, but will see how that goes. It feels like it's low impact, but it's hard to tell.
Not much else going on really. Work is still just work. Still trying to make a difference, because why not? It's more fun to try and make a difference and then be forced not to, rather then just straight up not even try. Sure the outcome is going to be the same, but at least that way I can put the blame on some other abstract concept like "the business" making bad decisions.
The girls are doing fine, and Megan starts a new preschool program on Monday. It's a "Playschool" program at the near by Eastview high school. It's a great program, 3 days a week. She will do that in addition to normal ECFE 2 days a week, so she will be a busy girl!
Tomorrow we are doing the Apple Valley Mid-Winter Fest which we try to do every year. It's mostly just so that Megan can do the inflatable jumpers, but maybe this year she would have the patience for mini golf. I'll try and snap a few pictures and get them up this weekend.
Monday, February 01, 2010
Difficult Decision
I've come to a very difficult conclusion. I know it's for the better and hopefully the best for my long term goals, but that doesn't make it any easier. What is that decision you ask? I'm done running... for now.
You may remember my off hand comment about Plantar Fasciitis a few weeks ago. Well, I took my week off running, did even more research, and even visited a podiatrist. I've decided I have full blown plantars, and that I need to treat it before it gets worse.
The thing that makes plantars such a horrible injury, is that it is a silent killer. It doesn't hurt THAT much, usually only early in the morning. Stretching it or running on it can actually make it feel better. But running on it is a false approach, because you are doing more harm. I've read more than a few accounts of people who "ran through" a plantars injury only to be completely debilitated later.
The other horrible aspect of plantars, is that there is no easy cure. What worked for one person doesn't work for the next and vice versa. I was even at a running store looking for night splints and the store clerk mentioned how he had plantars once. He says to me, "You basically have to throw every treatment at it. What worked for me was...."
At the core, there are the 3 basic things: rest, icing and stretching. In addition to the basics, I'm wearing orthopedic shoe inserts at all times. One of the most important rules is to never go barefoot, even at home. I'm going to do a week of anti-inflammatory starting soon (tomorrow?) I've also ordered a "night splint" online (couldn't find one in a local store).
The idea behind the splint is that during the night, your foot rests in an extended manner, allowing your plantar fascia to constrict. Then upon waking, you take your first step out of bed and BAM, tear it apart and start the cycle of healing/tearing all over again. The night splint keeps the muscle flexed, allowing it to heal better over night and then be ready to go in the morning.
I need to be icing more, which I will probably start more of this week. I think I'll start icing at work too, where I have more time to just sit. If I don't see noticeable change within 4 weeks, I'll head back to the podiatrist and consider more drastic measures such as professional message therapy or ultrasound cortisone cream. Hopefully it doesn't come to that. I am absolutely committed to getting this taken care of over the next 8-12 weeks. One thing is for sure, no matter what, I will never run on a treadmill again, which I feel is the main reason I suffered this injury. (although, stupid use of a treadmill is also to blame)
You may remember my off hand comment about Plantar Fasciitis a few weeks ago. Well, I took my week off running, did even more research, and even visited a podiatrist. I've decided I have full blown plantars, and that I need to treat it before it gets worse.
The thing that makes plantars such a horrible injury, is that it is a silent killer. It doesn't hurt THAT much, usually only early in the morning. Stretching it or running on it can actually make it feel better. But running on it is a false approach, because you are doing more harm. I've read more than a few accounts of people who "ran through" a plantars injury only to be completely debilitated later.
The other horrible aspect of plantars, is that there is no easy cure. What worked for one person doesn't work for the next and vice versa. I was even at a running store looking for night splints and the store clerk mentioned how he had plantars once. He says to me, "You basically have to throw every treatment at it. What worked for me was...."
At the core, there are the 3 basic things: rest, icing and stretching. In addition to the basics, I'm wearing orthopedic shoe inserts at all times. One of the most important rules is to never go barefoot, even at home. I'm going to do a week of anti-inflammatory starting soon (tomorrow?) I've also ordered a "night splint" online (couldn't find one in a local store).
The idea behind the splint is that during the night, your foot rests in an extended manner, allowing your plantar fascia to constrict. Then upon waking, you take your first step out of bed and BAM, tear it apart and start the cycle of healing/tearing all over again. The night splint keeps the muscle flexed, allowing it to heal better over night and then be ready to go in the morning.
I need to be icing more, which I will probably start more of this week. I think I'll start icing at work too, where I have more time to just sit. If I don't see noticeable change within 4 weeks, I'll head back to the podiatrist and consider more drastic measures such as professional message therapy or ultrasound cortisone cream. Hopefully it doesn't come to that. I am absolutely committed to getting this taken care of over the next 8-12 weeks. One thing is for sure, no matter what, I will never run on a treadmill again, which I feel is the main reason I suffered this injury. (although, stupid use of a treadmill is also to blame)
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