East Run v.2010

Today I took the oppurtunity to run in a 5k. I ran again in the UC clermont 5k that I ran in last year. Last year I wasn't all that sure what to expect from myself, both in overall time and my actual conditioning level. This year I had a better idea of what to expect. I knew that I was in good enough shape to complete the event. Running on the treadmill is a great way for me to hide and not have to spend much time outdoors. The surface stays the same, and the weather is what I want it to be. Running outdoors can be very varied. Rocks can be ran on, the weather may be cold, dogs may want attention. Last year I didn't know how my I would react to running in such a different environment. This year I wasn't as worried. I forgot to wear my wristwatch so I couldn't keep my own time/pace. I was wanting to finish under 29 minutes, but came in at 26:44, so I was pleasantly surprised. I was even faster than my time of a year ago, which was 28:04. Neither of those times are spectacular, but this event is not a real draw for running folks apparently. I managed to finish 23rd overall this year, but was once again 3rd in my age group.

While I was running I kept wondering if I could push myself to do even better. Back when I was actually competing back my high school XC days, I would want to focus on catching up to the guy ahead of me. I don't seem able to do that in an event nowadays. The person ahead of me doesn't seem important. I am really indifferent to the person ahead of me. I also can't really find a reason to try and run faster. I don't feel that I could run faster, but know that I probably can. I think what may have helped me some is varying my training routine. Up until last month, all I would really do is a fat burning routine on my treadmill, or P4. I decided to try out some different things. I did a cardio workout, an interval workout, and a speed workout. They all seemed to help, but what really helps running or any fitness level probably is the situps I do. Having a good stomach does more than anything for being in a good physical condition. I almost think if I did the 250 situps in 10 minutes routine, I could still run just as well. That might be enough to keep me in good enough shape to adequately finish a 5k.

I am also staying up later tonight to watch the Kings of Leon on SNL. They came out with a new CD this week, but I never managed to get out to a store to pick it up. I read a review that described the album as good, but not their best work. I also hope I can find the Mumford & Sons album with lion of a man on it at the same store. I heard some other song from the album on the radio and I am looking forward to hearing more of thier stuff.

times typed "oftern"-0

Wedding TImes

This past weekend I went to absentmindeds wedding and had a great time. It was really cool to see someone I know become married when I got to see some of the early relationship. I remember the first time I meet his wife, we were at a bar and everyone else kept saying that Sara was coming. I was confused, because we already had a friend named Sara, and she was bellied up to the bar with me. The whole thing happened when I moved away from C-Vegas to start teaching. I leased out my room to absentmindeds cousin, who was dating Sara’s sister. By the time the spring rolled around, I was sitting in bar confused as to who some of the new people were and trying to make random bets with Sara. They had just done random bets in an episode of the Office, and Sara was bored so I bet her Kobe would get 30 points in the game on TV. I lost that bet but the night did get fun when absentmindeds cousin got thrown out of the bar.

At any rate, it was good seeing some of my old college roommates. They are all just as fascinated with tobacco and the process as ever. I must have spent ten minutes telling them how the market was going away in three years in Ohio.

I also took the opportunity to drink too much. While the main issue is that I overdid it and drank more than needed, there may be an underlying issue. Most of the time, or at least recently, I have had a known amount of alcohol to drink and stopped at a reasonable amount. At this wedding, there was an unknown amount of beer to drink, as to which I thought I needed to drink as much of as possible. It kind of reminded me of what I did this past New Years at my sisters place. I bought a small bottle of whiskey, and know that I wasn’t going to drink more that that. As a result, I nursed my whiskey and 7-UP drinks all night and didn’t even finish the bottle. If I could figure out a way to do a similar thing at future occasions, I might not scare my DD and punch the dash of my truck.

times typed "oftern"-0

Farming days

Well the farming season has left me dulled to blogging for some time now. The year is going pretty good, my corn was slightly above average. Initial figures put my beans at lower than what I hoped for, but the market is going up and I managed to capitalize on that some. It's like the one manager of the elvator said, when fuel goes up, so does the grain market. I don't mind seeing the higher fuel prices this time of year, it means my grains are bringing in more money.

Speaking of high fuel prices, I can't stop thinking about if I should buy a newer truck or not. My current truck is in good shape, but I would like to get a diesel truck that that would be more of a farm truck. This means a flat bed that can pull our gooseneck trailers and has enough pull behind it to haul or heavy loads. I think I might be able to get something decent for under 20 grand and sell my truck to my brother for a good price. What I really need to caution myself on is the tax break though. I may be able to afford a high tax bill sometimes, but that doesn't mean I should just admit defeat and get nothing for my money. If I don't stand to gain anything by buying a tax write off for farm use, then I will wait things out.

I'm heading up to a wedding this weekend also. My good friend from college, absentminded, is getting married to a girl he met after I moved out to start teaching. The big issue is that the drive is about 4 hours there and then 4 more back. That will be a fair amount of driving. The last wedding I went to I drank enough by 10 to want to head to bed, but I imagine this wedding is going to be worse in that aspect. I am not sure how many of my old drinking buddies are going to be there, but I imagine it will be a fun weekend regardless. My stories will be just as boring, so I will likely drink just as much back as I did back in those days.

times typed "oftern"-0