It is 4:30AM

It is 4:30AM

I am trying to prepare myself for a 12 mile run.

5 minutes ago I was in my bed dreaming.

In 5 more minutes I will be on the street running and running. . .and running.

I have tried to talk myself into postponing this run until tomorrow . . .so I can go back to bed for the next 1:45 and dream. But I can't . .. For some reason I don't have much will power when it comes to eating but when it comes to knowingly going outside in a matter of minutes and beating the crap out of myself I blindly follow

It is now 8:45PM

I ran 12 miles and was home at 6:40AM

I drove 300 miles today for my work

It was hot today.

Finally signed up for Sunday's half marathon.

This evening I sat on my front porch drinking a Blue Moon listening to the low rumble of thunder thinking how lucky I am to have the God of the thunder watch over me and my little family.

My run was good. My legs have ached today and I feel a little beat up but I kicked this 12 mile run right in the face this morning and for that . . . I will sleep good.

I listened to The First Aid Kit, Ryan Adams and The Lumineers ALL day today. This is the song that will pop into my head tonight when I wake up in the middle of the night .it is called Ghost Town.

Chicago . . .

I have been racking up the miles this week.

5:15AM
70 degrees
3 miles

Chicago today and tomorrow. I am looking forward to running with my son in the morning through the city and to the lake.

I still have not signed up for the half marathon next Sunday . . .not sure why.

My heart is sad for the brevity of life. My heart is sad for hearts so sad that they must take their own life.

I just discovered the band "First Aid Kit" last night sitting in my chair flipping through the channels. They are going to make my half marathon playlist . . .I'm certain if they found that out they would reture knowing that their career has hit its pinnacle . . .

4.5 miles tonight . . .

A rare run in the evening . . .

7:00pm
4.5 miles
80 degrees
I could smell what people were having for supper and I could smell lawns being mowed.

Runs like tonight were what got me addicted to this 7 short years ago.

This is the song that got me through my 275 mile day:
(Iron and Wine)

I ran 11 miles this morning . . .

5:30AM
Me
God
16 ounces of water and about 6 tic tacs.
I left at 5:30 and got home at 7:05
I hit one hill at about mile 7.

I am fairly certain that I have a strained groin . .. it is not pulled as I have had that before. This is not a very "cool" injury.

I liked "me" today as I pushed on through the quiet morning. Putting the demons at bay as they crept up . . .I hit the "hill" pissed off and was re-energized when I reached the top.

I scared a doe by the college and watched it run up in front of me for a quarter mile or so . . .it would turn periodically to make sure I wasn't gaining ground - I wasn't!

At about mile 7 my legs started to fill up with lead.

I finished my run strong. Walked the half block to the "wall" and stretched. Warmed up day old coffee, sat on the front porch and put ice down the front of my shorts trying to numb my strained groin (my wife was REALLY not impressed by that move either ).

I ate a peanut butter sandwich . . .downed 3 Motrin and will move on with my day.

I am not in very good shape. My gut is jiggly. My groin hurts. My knees are shot. My hairline is receding as we speak. I have a blister on my right foot that is black . . .but I still have enough fight in me to wake up at 4:45AM on a Sunday morning and run 11 miles so that I can spend the rest of the day with my kids . . . .so take that demons.

This is the song that I was listening to when I started up the hill: (It's by Neon Trees)

My day . . .

Strawberry Shortcake coffee
Walk downtown with my wife
Cleaned my mom's store . . .realized that a person could read every book in the world and the bible 1,000 times but if a person never experienced the living God for themselves then all of that is merely words on a page.
Farmers Market. Cold Chai Tea and iced green tea.
Lawn mowed. Little baby bunnies scared out of their nests . . .
nap
ping pong
Discussion with my wife whether I am going to run the Des Moines Marathon in September or The North Face Endurance Challenge (31 miles) in Kansas City in November. Discussion didn't go too well!!!
trail run by myself for 45 minutes in the 90 degree heat.
Dad's house in the country.
Ride on the Mule.
Hammock.
Pizza
Fishing . .Tanner caught 6 bass in 15 minutes.
Chorus of frogs.
Read old letters my Great Grandparents wrote to each other.
25 minute drive home in the dark night on country roads with deer, crickets and humidity.
Bon Iver through the speakers . . kids that call me "dad" and a wife that still loves me after all of these years.
11 mile run at 5:30AM tomorrow morning . .it is 10:30pm . . .I must sleep.

This is one of my favorite bands . .The Lumineers.

his song was the theme song for my day:

Bon Iver
Holocene

5 miles . . .5AM

5AM
5 miles
Country road
had church at mile 3 watching the sunrise.


I think that I am going to run the Quad Cities Marathon again in the fall.
I am going to get up even earlier tomorrow to run 3 miles.
My life is complicated . . .running makes it OK.
I have an 11 mile run scheduled for this weekend . . .

I have been thinking about this Hootie and the Blowfish song today. It reminds me of when our son was born. It seems as though I have lived a hundred different lives, I miss all of them.

9.3 on a Tuesday

4:50AM
55 degrees
9.3 miles
I can't think of a better way to start a work day.
I ran my weekend route on a weekday . . .I felt like I was cheating.

At about 5:45AM I saw a ball of fire through the trees . . .when I hit the clearing it was bouncing off of the lake.

All I could do was look up and say, "Thank You."


I pulled this book off of my library shelf and started reading it. I am highlighting cool lines and phrases every 2nd paragraph.

6am Saturday

It is 6AM.
My training does not call for a run this morning but I do.
Short 2 miles. Slow. No music. Enough to start a sweat and get the cobwebs out.
I am not very good with life when the cobwebs dangle.

Stubborn Love . . .

Stubborn Love.
Can't get this song out of my head.
It's by The Lumineers.

I ran Tuesday and this morning at 5:15AM. At 5:15 it is just becoming light and the birds are just waking up. 5 miles yesterday. 2.5 miles today. I got a new Brooks Night Lite running jacket. It is green and very amphibious. My favorite part of my run is the end when I walk the half block to the "wall" and stretch. I have not been injured in a long time and am convinced that the "wall" has something to do with that. I'll post a picture tomorrow . . . . because everybody out there I am sure is dying to see a picture of the brick wall that I stretch my quads and hams on.

This is the song that is repeating itself in my mind:

10 miles yesterday

Sunday
1:00pm
85 degrees
humid
10 miles
Got real dizzy at mile 7 and felt like I just shotgunned 14 beers.
After 5 minutes and showering in the drinking fountain I continued on.
This 10 miles in the heat was a big internal, mental victory for me. I wanted to stop several times and pushed through it.

Went to the Y this morning . . .

5 miles tomorrow morning . . .I am going to watch the sunrise.

cobwebs and mud.

3 miles on the trails.

85 degrees.

Sweat.

Cobwebs.

Mud.

Water.

Ran with my son.

If this was my last day on earth (and it may be) this was a good way to spend it.

10 miles tomorrow . . . .85 degrees. The battle is on!

Quiet week on the pavement . . .

It has been a quiet week on the pavement. I've racked up a few miles this week but have racked up even more calories.

I am going to run trails tomorrow and have a 10 miler scheduled as part of my training on Sunday.

I have not run 10 miles since my marathon.
I welcome the agony.