Run DMZ

This almost 50-year-old poem's making the rounds in blogland. Read it. Remember it. Repeat it often. "There Is No Indispensable Man" by Saxon N. White Kessinger, Copyright 1959 Sometime when you're feeling important; Sometime when your ego's in bloom Sometime when you take it for granted You're the best qualified in the room, Sometime when you feel that your going Would leave an unfillable hole, Just follow these simple instructions And see how they humble your soul; Take a bucket and fill it with water, Put your hand in it up to the wrist, Pull it out and the hole that's remaining Is a measure of how you will be missed. You can splash all you wish when you enter, You may stir up the water galore, But stop and you'll find that in no time It looks quite the same as before. The moral of this quaint example Is do just the best that you can, Be proud of yourself but remember, There's no indispensable man.

I’ve been feeling funny all afternoon, and for once it has nothing to do with alcohol, aspirin or cookie dough. About three years ago I flew to Long Island to interview the then-CEO of Computer Associates for a magazine cover story . It was a great conversation, where I learned how his impoverished origins influenced his management of a controversial Fortune 500 company. The entire time we talked, I couldn’t help comparing notes since we were the exact same age and had had some parallel experiences during our youth. I even mentioned it to him. Of course, he went on to run one of the world’s largest software companies, live in multiple mansions and buy a professional hockey team. I, on the other hand, stuck much closer to my humble roots. And yet I couldn’t help but like the guy, even when, upon my asking about certain federal probes, I though he protested his innocence too much. They were indeed hollow declarations, made, we now know, around the same time he paid millions to a minion t...

Today’s 16-mile run of beachfront loops leading back to Buccaneer Beach in Oceanside was going to be a winner. I knew it soon as I woke at 2 a.m. with a tummy ache. A pattern has emerged this training season. Long runs preceded by little sleep and poor diets have ended up better than those I more carefully plan with ample shut-eye and three square meals. Friday was no exception. I woke at 6 for work after arriving home from New York just several hours earlier. To stay awake, I dined all day on Diet Coke and stale Easter candy, with some mixed nuts, chips and a pepperoni sandwich thrown in to balance out the carbs. Jelly beans…egg-shaped Smarties…speckled malt balls…all were consumed in colossal portions. Why, if I’d thought of it, I’d have gone to the grocery store across the street to load up on stale Peeps too. Instead, I made a pasta salad so the evening would not end as sinfully as it began. I had trouble falling asleep due to all the crap and caffeinated soda, and I woke too early...

Did I ever mention just how awesome the people are that I run with on Tuesdays and Saturdays?! In addition to providing high-caliber training and outstanding companionship, they volunteer at aid stations on our long runs and take pictures for our private Web site so we have something to remember for the moment and for years to come. I've hesitated to pull pictures from it due to respecting people's privacy. And even when given files in e-mail, posting's been difficult. But Blogger's cooperating today, and with permission (I hope) here are some photographs taken by people in our track club, or in one case dating someone in our track club. Thank you, Kevin and Joe, for taking such great shots! (And to Lisa, Jim and Scott for all your contributions too) Now everyone else in blogland can see that even when the weather sucks here, the scenery doesn't. Running along La Jolla shores during the low tide under dense cloud cover. Our first water stop, just coming up off the b...

While I'm waiting for the Limoliner to take me to Manhattan, I thought I'd do a little rumor control in case any of my dear readers come across some world-class Asian athletes. You see, this week I stayed at the same hotel as some Boston Marathon runners, including the Korean Marathon Team. I didn't get in until well after the race, and I kept a low profile that evening. However, when I went out the next morning for a run, I immediately came upon some of the Koreans doing a little recovery run in their brand-spankin'-new neon yellow BAA windbreakers. I smiled as I zoomed past and they waved. A few blocks later, I ran into them again and this time I said hello as they gingerly moved up a hill that I plowed through. I did the same to a few more packs before heading a little farther out. When I returned 40 minutes later, the Koreans had all gathered in the lobby. As I entered they all smiled at me and then the buzz began. As I waited for the elevator, I looked back and the...

Last year I wrote weekly essays for our Rockin’ ‘n’ Runnin’ Web site, and this entry is an updated version of one of my favorite runs in the program, which we’re doing again Saturday. I’m recycling it here for numerous reasons (and posting ahead of the run to avoid some confusion). Essentially, I’ve no time to blog for about a week. Soon as I return from the run, we head to the airport to pick up our traveling daughters; then I need to prep the house for Sunday’s Easter feast with my entire family. Sunday night I get ready for the following morning’s weeklong business trip. It also seems a little fitting, given the pivotal event that week was my parents’ retirement, and almost exactly a year later, they are heading to their new home in central Oregon. Plus, there’s a little lesson about hyponatremia in it, so you might learn something other than I’m still full of shit. Way back when my sister and I were planning our first marathon, we relied primarily on word of mouth for training tips...

"FYI: - Did you know that Donkey's [sic] kill more people annually than planes and that turtles can breathe through their butts. Inquiring minds want to know."