Monday

Good morning! Don't you just love Mondays? Oh, not that much? OK, whatever. It is Monday again, and the week will be over before we know it. Take it one day at a time and live each one fully. How's that for a little pep talk to start your week? Not sure where that came from.

I had a busy weekend. As I mentioned in last post, I went to Louisville for John's brother's funeral. Afterwards I met my cousin for lunch, after calling him on the way down. I made it back to Mitchell mid-afternoon, stopping by our church gym to check on the set-up for the toy sale. Everything was under control.

Friday night was rainy, really rainy. I had made a vow I would go swimming. You should have seen/heard the fight I had with myself about it. My stay-at-home self made the most convincing, compelling argument for not getting out to go swim. In the end, my disciplined self, which has been mostly absent in November, manned up and said, "Shut up! We're going to the pool!" Off we all went.

Friday night at 8 p.m.  when it's raining hard -- the pool would be virtually empty, right? Wrong! There were probably 15 people there. Don't you people have a life!! Evidently they are like me. Oh well, I always seem to end up in lane 1, which is a little wider than the others. I saw Danny G come in, so I hollered at him to join me. I'd rather swim with someone I know than a stranger. My favorite partner is Timmy G, and I'm sure I will be with him soon.

Anyway, I had not been in the water since October 30, so it was a little rough getting going again. I did 500 yards, really trying to begin the journey toward dramatic improvement. I got myself to where I could do Ironman in a respectable way, but it was/is not fast enough for shorter tris. Now I begin the process of becoming respectable in sprints and Olympic distances, positioning myself to do well with a decent bike and run.

Saturday was a big day at church. We had our coat giveway and the ReGeneration Toy Sale, all at the same time, so I was going back and forth between buildings. It's hard to get a specific number, but I think we served around 350-400 people with the coats and other things we gave away. We had two other churches help us out by bringing things: Woodville Baptist brought hats, gloves, and scarves, while Tulip Street Christian brought a bunch of shoes.

Our Toy Sale saw us selling considerably more than $5,000 worth of toys! The average price is probably 2-3 dollars. People were lined up at the doors long before it started. It was a crazy! In a good sort of way. Hundreds of people came and shopped and left with lots of things. I love it when really poor people are able to get nice things for their families.

Before all the things happened Saturday, I went for a 7 mile run. I can tell my body is out of alignment. I will try see a chiropractor this week. I hope to run a little more this week, moving toward the 25, then 30 mile per week mark. I will make it a slow careful climb, avoiding injury hopefully. I need to get on the bike also.

OK, I better get busy. Thanks for coming by.

Friday

Good morning! Hey, it's Friday again, if that matters to you. I'm good with it, like all the days of the week. It's supposed to warm up, I hear. I have this crazy thought that perhaps, just maybe, I can ride my bike outside sometime soon. I am really missing the bike.

I could ride my old Softride bike on the trainer, but I don't really like riding inside, though I will have to at some point. I did make a move toward that this week. I took my trainer over to the Energy Lab, next to Dr. Lucky's office. I put my bike on it and have it almost ready to go. I need to hook up my Garmin GSC Sensor, pump up my tires, get my attitude right, and then I will be ready to go.

Yesterday was a good day. I got a lot of work done, preparing for Sunday, plus other stuff. I am working with a frail elderly couple. I've known them for a while, and I am concerned about them. They are poor and declining rapidly in physical and mental health. They have no phone, so yesterday I went and got a TracPhone, took it to them, and got it set-up. The problem is I don't think they will figure out how to use it. I have some professional folks coming in today to evaluate their situation.

This morning I am heading to Louisville. John He's brother died unexpectedly. I am going down for the funeral. John's a good guy and I am sorry he lost his brother.

Tomorrow is a busy, crazy, great day around the our church facilities. We have the famous ReGeneration Store Toy Sale going on. It's nuts but fun. We also are giving away coats to anyone who needs one. We have 100s of coats ready to go. We have lots and lots of wonderful people who make both events happen and bring honor to God.

I hope to squeeze a 7 mile run in in the morning before it all starts. I ran with Roy and Bill last night. It was pretty good. I worked hard to keep up with those two, which is what I want to do. I want to go fast again. It's all relative. I do want to work toward qualifying for the Boston Marathon.

OK, here we go...

Wednesday

Good morning! How are you today? Looks like the weather is about like it was went I went to bed, cloudy and in the low 30s. I heard a weather guy on a radio station say yesterday we might not see the sun until the weekend. This is not good for the SAD folks.

I had a good day yesterday, wall to wall. My best time for study and thinking is early in the morning, and presently I am preparing to speak a couple of weeks on the genealogy of Jesus. Scintillating stuff, right? Well, actually, I think it is pretty interesting!

That's how I started my day, and I ended my day with a good meeting, getting home around 9. Instead of working 9-5, I think I did 5-9. Of course there was some down time in there, but not much. There were some interesting things along the way. I was able to visit a guy who has been really sick, taking him a few hundred dollars we raised at the Give Thanks 4. He was tearfully grateful. We visited for a while and then prayed. He is doing well.

Lots of others things took place throughout the day, and then it was time for the Tuesday Night run. Eventually, maybe sooner rather than later, this will be called Tempo Tuesday. Dr. Lucky has visions of eventually doing 10 miles at a fast pace, which IronBird argues is more of a steady-state run. Semantics. Whatever it is, it will be a demanding workout, running miles around a 7 minute per mile pace, if I can handle it.

Last night 4 of us gathered--Dr. Lucky, The Bird, John He, and me--for what I thought was going to be an easy 5 miler. About 1.26 miles in (GPS! ha ha), the Bird stops us and says, "Aren't we going to do a hard mile?" I said, "No!" Dr. Lucky said something similar, I think, but said it low enough to not be heard.

A discussion took place, and result was we would run the first mile of our tempo course. I was concerned about it, because I have not run hard since January/February. I quickly stretched a bit. Bird's watched messed up, so he delayed, while Lucky, JohnHe, and me took off. The result: Bird - 6:20, Lucky & JohnHe - 7:07 (I think), and me? 7:27. Good enough for me! It's a start. Here is the overall run.

The conditions for the run last night: dark and damp. I could do without the darkness, but I really enjoy running in a very light mist. It was in the low 30s but not bad at all. It was an enjoyable time with good friends, just what I needed after a day of trafficking in a world of hurt.

Today is going to be a good and busy one! Thanks for stopping by!

Tuesday

Look what Cora found!

Good morning! How are you today? Looks like a relatively mild start to a relatively mild day. Yesterday's continual drop in temps sure had the feel that we would be in the 20s or teens last night, but it stopped somewhere in the 30s. This is good!

I went out yesterday morning in the wind and the rain. My determination and discipline have arrived in time for December. November saw me, in some ways, let myself go. I had been working for about 2 years on Ironman. I wasn't totally focused or disciplined during those 2 years, but it was never far from my mind.

After Ironman was over I had to give myself permission to relax for a month, which I did. Honestly I don't feel good about much when I am not disciplined physically. It carries over into all areas of my life. December will see me eating better and training more. I am not going to be "all or nothing" about it, just a little more focused. For now.

A spring marathon, the thing I vowed I would not do, is going to be my focus. It's a risk, but the worse thing that can happen is it will be too hot and I won't be able to run it fast like I want. My thinking is Louisville and Boston -- qualify for Boston (2016) by running the Derby Festival Marathon. My running buddies, for the most part, are focused on this event, either the half or full. Training goes so much better when a group is working toward the same goal.

Yesterday was good. After the run, I did what I do all day. There were lots of interruptions, which are my ministry in lots of ways. I helped a few people along the way, working with people grieving and people struggling without enough, enough of lots of stuff.

Today should be another good day. I have several things I hope to accomplish along the way. Who knows what else will happen? It's always interesting. I am looking forward to the Tuesday Night (pre) Tempo Run at 5:15.

Have a good one!

Monday

Give Thanks 4

Good morning! Here we go into a full week. I think I was confused more than not last week about what day it was. I love Thanksgiving week, but it throws me off - ha ha.

The big event for me last week was the Give Thanks 4 Road Race. This was our 5th running, and it went really well. We got close to the 200 mark, but waking up to cold, windy, icy conditions probably hurt our "day of" registrations. We had great volunteers, lots of runners, and a great time.

The only problem was ice. There were ice patches on the course. The "hump" on Doc Hamilton was especially dangerous. Our bike escort for the females crashed. She was OK, thankfully. I really enjoy putting on the Give Thanks 4, and it would not be possible without lots of good help from good people.

I had a cold most of last week, which affected my running. I did few miles, mostly the slow variety. I allowed myself all of November to recovery from Ironman. I am usually pretty disciplined but for November I kinda let some things go. So light training plus lots of eating equals more of me. December equals a return to discipline and more training. I am looking forward to it.

We have a new minister at church, Daniel Lee. I am very excited about his arrival and his work. He is going to work in two areas primarily: 1) youth and family, 2) worship. He is going to do very well in both and beyond, I am confident. We had a good start yesterday, after his arrival late Friday night.

OK, I think I am going for a run soon to get December off to a good start. I hope you have a great day!

Tuesday

Good morning! I hope you are doing well on this new day, another gift from God. Each breath you take is a gift and a sign you are totally dependent upon him for life. Trying making your own breath of life - ha ha.

Well, I have little to report on the endurance front. In fact, since I did nothing in that category, I have nothing to report about me. I do have a friend, though, John H, not the usual John H, who is doing great! He is becoming a running, lower his time as he increases his distance. Good job, John Hudson!

I did not go swimming last night. Why? Because I did not want to! I have that luxury presently. I am giving myself all of November to do what I want or not do what I don't want, within reason of course. I am getting pretty eager to get going again, but resting is good too.

This evening I was going to run with my buddies, but Cora changed that. Instead I will run 5.6 miles this morning, so I can take Cora out to eat to celebrate my 56 years of life. Sorry guys, if there is choice between you and Cora, I don't even have to think about it. You know I still love you too, right? Tim the Elder understands very well, I'm sure.

OK, we are reaching far into the record category for preregistration for the Give Thanks 4. It's almost making me afraid! It should be an exciting day. The numbers are putting me in a heightened state of preparation, though most of it is already ready. We did order more shirts yesterday.

Here we go! Thanks for stopping by.

Monday

Good morning! It's Monday, and you know that's OK with me. It is a bit windy out there, so I need to watch for flying trash cans, etc. Really.

How was your weekend? I hope you enjoyed the mild temps. I found the warmth to be quite pleasant, after the really cold stuff last week.

Isn't is sad/bad I'm struggling to remember what I did Friday night - ha ha? I think we had a quiet evening at home. Yes, that's it, a quiet evening at home.

Saturday I had a nice run with 8 other guys. We are all still in the recovery stage from Ironman or from the Monumental Marathon, so everything is pretty relaxed and enjoyable. There is a lot of talk about what we are going to do in the Spring. It's looking like Louisville half marathon and full marathon are going to be the things we will focus on. I am thinking pretty hard about the full and trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon again. It would be for the 2016 race. We'll see.

I think after the event in Louisville, the next focus will be the Terre Haute triathlon. I am glad about this, because I need to go back over there and swim better. In fact, I need to ride better and run better also. I am pretty sure I can improve all three.

Saturday afternoon I got on my roof with leaf blower and cleaned my gutters. It is the best/easiest way to do the job. The only problem was frozen water in the north gutters. It was thawed enough I could grab it and pull it out. The upside was all the leaves were stuck in the ice. They came out easily with the string of ice.

Yesterday I did not speak, so I had a little extra time in the morning. I decided to take advantage of the time and the warm weather. I went out and ran the Give Thanks 4 course. That went pretty well, better than I expected. I like the course.

Speaking of the Give Thanks 4, we have 35 more preregistered people than last year! And we had 175 run the race last year, so I am hoping we go north of 200 runners, which is amazing. I think everything is coming together nicely for the race. I have to spend some time finalizing volunteers today and doing lots of final prep stuff.

Rebecca and Micah came home Saturday evening. They were on their way to Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving. It was nice to see them. I smoked chicken, brisket, and ribs for the nice meal we had Saturday evening. They left yesterday morning. I hope they keep an eye on the big winter storm heading their way.

OK, that's what I've got for this morning. Busy day/week ahead but a good one! Thanks for stopping by.

Friday

Good morning! It's Friday but I guess you already knew that. It's going to be a bit warmer today, which is a good thing. It is amazing, though, how quickly we (at least I) adapt to whatever the weather is. I found yesterday's 30 to feel quite OK, after the teens and twenties. This early cold snap, I think, will make the rest of the winter more manageable, at least our perception of cold. The problem, like last year, will be the duration, since we are starting so early. Oh well, enough weather philosophy.

Even though a bit sleep deprived from Wednesday night/Thursday morning's activities, I felt pretty good most of yesterday and got a fair amount accomplished. I did go see my friend and spent some time with him and his brother. I encouraged them to work on getting some transportation. They really need to be connected with church and with some of the four AA meetings we have in our church building. They desire both.

The day got better as it progressed. It ended with a good 5 mile run. Bill, Roy, John, Tim B. and I all ran, and since we all sport GPS watches, we ran a full 5 miles. We all knew it was the right thing to do, though Bill mildly chided us for something. I know that's hard to imagine, for those who know him - ha ha. I love my running buddies. The run felt really good last night. Running with friends has allowed me to speed up easily. I am really looking forward to working hard at running again.

The real highlight of the day was stopping by to see Cora. After the run, I went by there. Kedra, after a trip to Walmart, also came, so we had a nice little visit. Little Cora lights up my world. She is changing so quickly. Pure joy!

I have a funeral today. It's going to be easy and hard - easy because the lady was such a good one, hard because of the difficulty of saying good-bye for now. It's all going to be OK.

Tomorrow a run at 8 a.m.