"If I Don't wake Up Tomorrow"

Look, grampa made a pile of snow with his little orange tractor!















See you later!



Here I am!

This is my secret way in and out!











But can grampa get in?



















Apparently yes!  Hi Gramps.



Can we both get in?



Yup! and i'm taller than grampa!







Well actually not! Im standing on a ladder!



















Now I standing on the bottom and gramps is squatting down.




Like I said...if I don't wake up tomorrow...my life is complete!

Computrainer, week 3, day 2

"This is epic Grampa"---Colby Andrew Rooyakkers

Love

Peter

"Power"

My grandson and I have often talked about how it sucks to be a kid.  Always there is someone telling you what you can, or can not do!

Tonight I don't feel like writing a post and because I ain't some kid I can do just as I like!

Easy day today.  Busy day tomorrow.

swim 1000 metres, weights


"When I was a little kid we had a sand box. It was a quicksand box. I was an only child... eventually."---Steven Wright

Love
Peter

"Snow Day"

Another foot of snow last night!  So I had the undeniable pleasure of an entire extra day with my grandchildren.  Mom was working and Roo had a bunch of uptown stuff to do.
I've often wondered who gets paid on these days.  The teachers?  The bus drivers?  The bus companies?  Probably everybody eh?
I know I ain't getting paid so I just took it pretty damned easy.  I really just laid around all day!  Made grilled cheese, baked some muffins and kicked the kids outside to play in the snow.  Finally I got up enough energy to go for a run about 3 pm.  Right after that I was back on duty though, as Colb had hockey.  This grandparenting stuff has long hours, and doesn't pay very well!!!
Yah right!

Run,  15 kms

"After 58 years on this planet I've finally discovered my vocation.  Grandparenting is the most important thing I do, or that I have ever done.  I am determined to get good at it.  Regardless of my success level, you couldn't pay me enough to give it up!"---Peter W Rooyakkers

Love

Peter

"YUP"

All I had to do was decide!

I was up at six!
The driveway was fine but I decided to stay up anyway.  I had breakfast, and then did about an hour of housecleaning.  I needed to do this just to make the house presentable for the cleaning person.  I don't understand how this works, but I stopped arguing about it years ago.  The good thing is that we are giving up this luxury in the interests of financing our retirement, so probably I'll have lots more time on my hands now.  If only Roo wasn't so messy!

I was on my bike by 8:30!
 I'm enjoying the ride (pun intended), in a whole new way this time around. Doing 3 sessions per week, instead of four, is definitely the right balance.  It allows me to put 2 days between the hard sessions.  I also just love what it's doing for my cycling brain.  I honestly don't know what it will translate to in terms of endurance or speed, but I am certainly getting more comfortable with a higher cadence.  This is all on account of my discovery of the coaching software.  We'll see what the future brings.

I was out of the house by 11:15.
There are a few Xmas related advantages to being retired, not the least of which is that I'm gonna spend a lot less money.  Our children are all grown up and most of them have jobs, so they don't need stuff from us any more.  That just leaves the grandchildren, and since Roo has already bought them everything they want, we don't need to spend much there either. (just kidding hon).  the other advantage of course is time.  I think I finished all my shopping today, and it's a month til Xmas!!

I was back home by 2:30.
And straight out to the garage to fix something.  Sure enough, there were 3 separate jobs staring at me, and I got them all done to my satisfaction, and trust me, that's saying something!!

I was back in the house by 4:30.
Perhaps you can imagine my smug feeling.  I felt so ahead of the game, that I sat right down and wrote this post.  Time to cook up some supper!  Spaghetti I think.  And then relax!

Computrainer, Week 3, Day 1

"A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval."---Mark twain

Love
Peter

"Waiting For Inspiration"

....and waiting
....and waiting.

I'm actually quite tired.  Today I did have to blow out the driveway at 6 am, and unfortunately didn't manage to "doze" off again.

In reference to yesterdays post I acknowledge a bit of a quandary when it comes to wasting days away. When I'm tired from my training I don't always feel like fixing or building something, and any day that goes by without some such activity, usually leaves me feeling a bit unsettled.  This is worse in the winter time since I need to go through the hassle of getting dressed to work outside.  I kinda need to plan my day.  In the summer I just wander outside, and something always presents itself.  Once I get an activity underway the listlessness seems to go away.

So you can understand the quandary.  Especially in winter, the training becomes the problem, while at the same time keeping me sane!

And that was the kind of day I had.  I managed to bake a couple dozen muffins, which helped a bit, but didn't completely dispel the hum-drums.

Tomorrow will be a better day!

Run 7kms, swim 1000 metres, weights

....and isn't this a pretty little statement....

"Between the wish and the thing life lies waiting."---Anon

Love
Peter

"A Sobering Number"

22 X 365 = 8030

No! That cant be right?

Do the math again!

22 X365 = 8030.

One more time!

22 X 365 = 8030!!!!!

Holy Crap!

You will probably recall my intention to live til I'm 80, and that indeed gives me another 8000 or so days.

I don't know what result I expected to see when I put the numbers into the calculator, but it surely was something with more digits. I don't want to frighten anyone out there who loves me, but 8030 sounds like a very small number. Oh, and not to forget that I've already used up 11 of them since my birthday.

When's the next leap year? I can still gain a few back!!

You see the thing that got me doing the math in the first place was the sense that maybe I peed this particular day away. I say a sense, because I'm still evaluating.

Here's how it went.

I got up at about 6:15 to check to see if the driveway needed any attention to allow Adrian out to work. Nothing needed done there, and so I crawled back into bed and tried to go back to sleep. That didn't work so I got up and made myself a coffee to accompany a couple of Deb's fabulous muffins. After reading for a bit I managed to dose off again, and then after a bunch of stalling headed to the basement for my long ride.

A couple of hours down there, a bite of lunch, and then off to London to do a little Xmas shopping for the grandchildren. Spent a couple of hours in stores, and after a torturous 1 1/2 hours through blowing snow and a major accident induced detour, arrived back home.

Then supper, write a short blog post, and the day is over!

I would say I peed the 8025th last day of my life away, wouldn't you?

Ah, but wait!

I forgot something.

While I was in London, about mid afternoon, I got a phone call.

It was from this guy.



You see he had a small technical car problem, which I was able to help him out with. And as I think back now, when we parted, he specifically said, "Thanks for the life lesson, Dad"

How the hell am I gonna top that tomorrow??

Basement ride. 2:15

“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”--- Mark Twain

Love
Peter

"I Warned You!"

I believe we got at least 18 inches!` That's the biggest snowfall we've had in a few years, and probably more than all of last year combined.

Of course I don't care cause I got my little orange tractor. Without a word of a lie, I used it once last winter, and on that occasion it wasn't really necessary.




But my tractor isn't the only reason I don't fear winter. I like the snow and the cold, simply because I choose to do so. I learned a few years ago (when I was sick), how critical sunlight is to my well being. Even if it's cloud filtered sunlight, it still has a major impact on me. And lo and behold, by early afternoon I was out running, and the sun came out with me!

And yes there are still lots of extra challenges in winter running, but they're simply issues to deal with.   Dress properly, slow down, wave nicely at the motorists, and breath deep!

And that's it for today except a word of encouragement for Gail.  Please know that people having been trying to use the "slow, easy training burns fat" excuse ever since some exercise scientist lighted on that bit of knowledge.  Unfortunately, while apparently true in and of itself, it is one very small piece of the puzzle.  Fat burning happens very slowly, which is why one would want to use it while racing.  On top of that, without the metabolism boost we get from elevating ones heart rate, and from building muscle mass through hard training, our fat burning effectively stops as soon as we end the slow, easy workout.

So the answer to your question is, some of each.  Slow and easy, hard and fast.  Kinda like blending sex when you were 18, with sex when you're......well....older than 18!

Run hills.  9 kms total

"In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer."---Albert Camus

Love
Peter

"The Ice Man Cometh"

I was pretty grateful for my trainer today.  I don't dislike winter at all but just the thought of riding my bike out there makers me shiver.  But I'm grateful for my trainer for other reasons as well.  I had kind of an a-hah moment today when I learned something that I thought I already know.  Here's the scoop!

Most people have probably heard of fast twitch muscles, and slow twitch muscles, and have some idea of the difference.  That's me!  I have some idea.  For instance I know that Ben Johnson used primarily fast twitch muscles (well, and a bit of stanozolol) to run 100 metres in something under 10 seconds.  I also know that Wilson Kipsang used primarily slow twitch muscles when he set a new world record for the marathon a few months ago.

I also know that fast twitch muscle primarily burns glycogen, which is stored in the muscle, and once used up is slow to be replaced.  Slow twitch muscles however tend to burn fat before glycogen, and fat lasts much longer. Trust me on that one....

So from that bit of knowledge a fellow might jump to the conclusion that when he pedals his bike very fast he would be using fast twitch muscles, and burning his limited supply of glycogen.  And conversely when he reduces his cadence, he would be burning fat and saving up his glycogen.  Right?

Right!

But wait!  Just the other day I told you that pedalling faster is easier over time, and in actual fact saves your muscles from burnout??  That's a clear contradiction!

So off to the Internet to understand this, and now I got it!  It was damn near some kind of epiphany!  You see I had this idea that a fast muscle contraction meant fast twitch.  Nope, nope, nope!

You see it's the force of the muscle contraction which determines the type of muscle fibre that is engaged, rather than the speed of the contraction.  Which explains another thing which I already knew but never connected, and that is the fact that weight lifting is primarily a fast twitch, anaerobic activity.

So there you have it.  When you pedal fast (but easy) you save your muscles.  When you push a big gear you're asking for trouble.  Nowhere is this more true than in long distance triathlon when you have to have enough left in the tank after your bike ride to be able to run a marathon.  I always knew that, but somehow understanding it better, motivates me to focus on it.  I can tell you that I have never used a cadence sensor on my bike, but I can also tell you that will change in the spring.  Of course  the beauty of the trainer, and the other previously mentioned reason why I appreciate it, is that it gives you constant feedback both on power output, and cadence.  Here's a nice article explaining the merits of good cadence.

And that's where my readers come in.  I need to find some work so I can raise an extra $2000 so I can get a pair of these. 

You see I can't go to Roo cause I've been giving her the gears about cutting back our spending, but I really want to have them.  They will in essence give me all the same data I get riding on the trainer.  And the beauty of it is that all that data can be displayed on the bike computer I already own!!  So if you need a ditch dug, or a laneway shovelled please let me know.  Of course if you just want to donate the 2 grand that would be okay as well.  Again, let me know.

Computrainer ride 1.5 hours,  average 94 RPM (that's over 8000 revolutions of the pedals)

"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."---Mario Andretti

"You get old, you slow down."---Ben Affleck

Love Peter

"Fridays My Easy Day"

Weights and thats it!

Swim meet at the pool.

Love
Peter

"Annoyed"

Not seriously, but just enough to chase any wisdom out of my head.  Unfortunately that don't take too much!

You see my expensive freakin GPS watch stopped working!  It had initially frozen up, and once I figured out how to get it to power down, it would no longer power up again, or even charge!  Hmm...

I omly discovered the problem this evening when I went to review my workout data for the day.

I'm gonna worry about it tomorrow.

Run, 20 kms 1:45.

"After all, tomorrows another day"---Scarlett O' Hara

Love
Peter

"Instinctive or Intuitive"

I probably misuse these 2 words on a regular basis, but I suspect I'm not the only one. When I look a the definitions it seems that the best way to distinguish is the old nature and nurture thing. Instinct is something you tend to be born with as a species, where as intuition seems to be more of a learned skill.

Either way, I know that they have both steered me wrong so many times. I'm a creature of quick decisions, and while that has at times reaped great rewards, it has also often caused me pain. I suppose the difficulty lies in determining when to follow your gut, and when to take a little time to think it out. It probably makes sense that when you have the time, you would be best served by using it, rather than barrelling forward. 

And where am I going with this?

I have no idea!

Let me think about it while I tell you of today's experience.

You will recall me telling you about my new found computrainer knowledge, in which I now know how to program workouts, such that the machine itself dictates your intensity.

Because I am used to using it the old way where I had to constantly monitor my levels to see that I was maintaining, it is quite refreshing to simply put your head down and pedal. Never the less, when I start getting tired it is instinctive/intuitive to slow down. Guess what? It doesn't work! As you decrease your cadence (pedalling speed) the machine increases the resistance, and now all you're doing is pedalling slower, but with more push back. Your heart rate goes up and it feels like your going uphill. With both your body and your mind screaming that you can't keep it up, in actual fact what you need to do is speed up!! Yup! As soon as the computer recognizes the cadence increase it backs off the resistance and now you're rolling again. Of course your body still doesn't like the increased pedalling madness but in fact it is easier to maintain, and your heart rate goes back down.

It's because of this counter intuitive phenomenon that I am excited about the possibilities this time around. I have been notoriously guilty of pushing too big a gear, which although it may be okay for shorter races, is very destructive over time. I need to teach my legs to become comfortable with the higher cadence. I think this is gonna work.

And as a metaphor for real life, I can only suggest a comparison to marriage. In the complicated way of relationships we tend to move from one gut decision to the next. I can only count my blessings that my partner is so different from me. I think that has saved us many a time. When I'm tired she pedals faster and vice versa. It's only when, out of selfishness, that we lose awareness of the other persons heart rate that we get into trouble. 

Computrainer intervals, 80 minutes
"Intuition is a suspension of logic due to impatience."---Rita Mae Brown

My intuition comes up with better stuff than my head, I think."---Ben Whishaw

Love

Peter

"Retired?"

I suppose many people would consider getting up at 7 am sleeping in, but for me that was my normal time, most of the years I was working.  The difference is that before it was because I had to get to the office, now it's because I have to get to the fridge!

So regardless of the time a retired guy gets up, what's he supposed to do then?  Relax?  Maybe go for a walk?  Maybe tend to his plants, or sit in front of the TV.

This was my day.

Breakfast for me and the kids....Colby likes his in bed, and so do I!
Drive the kids to school.
Back home to research information on my computrainer
Running.
Lunch
Repair Migs computer
Swim
Weights
Drive nephew Mitchell to work
Transfer Mig's computer files
Make protein bars for my wife....she likes them!
To the arena to watch Ky play
Supper.
Bake muffins.
Write blog post

It's now 10 pm...retired my ass!  Damn, I'm liking it!!

swim 1000 metres, weights

"Crazy people don't sit around wondering if they're nuts." Jake Gyllenhaal

Love

Peter

"Thank Goodness"

I was starting to run out of things to do!! Since we put this roof on 4 years ago I've head at least 3 significant issues. Clearly we had some bad shingles, at least 3 or 4 bundles. They appear to have the appropriate amount of adhesive but they just don't stick! Kinda frustrating!






At the same time I'm grateful that I have the time, and thanks to son Jon, the knowledge, to fix it.







Actually I need to do it properly in the spring cause I shortened the top shingles rather than tearing the caps off. It was still breezy up there this morning, and while thankfully it was above freezing. this old body doesn't bend too well in the cold....just like the shingles.

And yes I guess it was obvious that Colby and I were riding in the combine with Farmer Bill on Saturday. I gotta tell you, it is an impressive piece of machinery. It mows down twelve rows at once, and everything is computerized and GPS controlled. It has a joy stick and a touch screen, as well as 3 on board cameras. The best part however is that it's quiet and comfortable, and Bill, Colby and I shared hours of great conversation. I learned a lot from both of them!

Computrainer long ride...2 hours

"Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories"---Anon

Love
Peter

"Memories"

Can you figure out what's going on here?

He spent 2 1/2 hours sitting there.  He asked a thousand questions and offered a thousand opinions....or facts rather, from Colby's perspective.  It was a wonderful experience for me as well.  It was so relaxing.  I think we'll both have fond memories.  At his suggestion, his little sister took a turn as well, but by then my phone was dead so I didn't get a decent pic.  So....do you know what you're seeing?  Maybe it's obvious?

I fervently believe that the greatest gift god gave me was the privilege of being a part of this child's memories.  How could I ever whine about the minor inconvenience of the circumstances around this situation???  It's like being a father all over again, but with the necessary tools to do a better job.  As I sit here at the computer and look into his eyes, I am humbled!! And yet at the very same time I feel pride.  While I know I still have so much I can learn, I believe that I'm doing a good job of being a grandfather/surrogate father, particularly in balancing the two somewhat different roles.  

That was yesterday.  

Today, inspired by my dear friend Deborah, I decided to try to make some muffins.  You see, Deb is the worlds greatest amateur chef, and she often takes pity on us by providing one or another bit of culinary magic.  As much as I hope she never stops, it occurred to me that muffins I could maybe handle  by myself.  I found a recipe for low fat, banana, raisin muffins and 1/2 hour later....voila...  I didn't even screw them up, and in actual fact I was quite happy with the outcome.  Nutrition info says 210 calories, with less than 25% of them from fat.  That works perfectly for me!  I can probably have 3 every morning.  I just hope that Adrian doesn't like bananas!!

Colby scored them 8 1/2 and even Roo ate one!  Life is good.

On the training front, today was a wee bit of a relief.  You see on my long run on thursday (if you consider 20k long?) I had some serious cramping in my left calf, and I was worried that I had pushed it a bit too much, too soon, again.  Friday was an easy day, and yesterday was bike day so I hoped that by today I would be able to run again.  No problem!  I think the 12 degree weather helped.

Game on!

"A happy childhood can't be cured. Mine'll hang around my neck like a rainbow, that's all, instead of a noose."---Hortense Calisher

"The father who would taste the essence of his fatherhood must turn back from the plane of his experience, take with him the fruits of his journey and begin again beside his child, marching step by step over the same old road."---Angelo Patri

Love

Peter

"Tired"

But good tired.

 Computrainer tempo ride, 1.5 hours. 

Love
Peter

"Everything's Good!"

There's just not enough hours in the day to do all the things I want to do.  And now I'm either too tired or to lazy to post.

Swim 1000 metres, weights

Love
Peter

"Feelin Great"

At fifty eight!

Run 20 kms.

Love
Peter

"Going Backwards?"

It's a strange thing, this idea of retirement.  When you work all your life to accumulate wealth, to gain freedom, to move forward with great plans, always aspiring to the next level, the next opportunity, and then suddenly you apply the brakes, it indeed feels a little like going backwards.

To be quite frank it has been many years since I made a decision to buy or not buy something based on whether I could afford it.  Rather the decision was usually based simply on whether I wanted it!  Not that we spent lavishly, but within reason I always had confidence that whatever it cost, I would be able to fund it.  I had confidence in my earning capacity.

The funny thing is that I still have that confidence, but not necessarily the will, to do whatever it takes, which is of course the reason for my current situation.  I think there is great value in the soul searching that I'm forced into on account of this situation, but that doesn't mean I like it.  Certainly there is a major addiction factor that has become part of my makeup, part of who I am.  I am addicted to buying stuff, I'm addicted to the power and influence that comes with having money, and I am addicted to the sense of self importance that comes with that same affluence.

And there-in lies the problem.  All of these very things have become my measure of progress through life.  And now everything  feels different.  Living on a budget, no one to tell what to do except my wife and my grandchildren(yah right!!!), and no future to aspire to!!

But it is what it is.  I can either accept the going backwards feeling, or I can try to change it.  I learned many years ago that I didn't have to accept feelings just as they are,  but in order to change them, one has to change what one does, and what one thinks.  What one does includes of course what you say, and so just blogging about my challenge can be a positive if I choose to do make it so.  Changing what I think is a bit tougher but I also believe it will come along with changing habits of action.

So, since I know that one of my addictions is shopping I decided to let it run a bit, but in a slightly different way.  Doing something different in order to feel different.  I went browsing at the thrift stores!  Salvation Army, Goodwill, and Bibles for Missions all hosted a visit from yours truly.

 Look what I found! Somehow this article epitomized my situation, and heightened the need for change.  You probably recognize this as a pants hanger.  But it's no ordinary pants hanger.  Actually I've never seen a double hanger like this before.  I paid $.25 for it!  But there's more!  Rare as it is just by being a double, it has an even more unique feature.  You may notice that the right hand clamp looks a little different than the other two.  Yup!  The 3rd leg is homemade.  At some point, one section of this hanger either got broke, or lost, and someone actually went to the trouble of making a replacement.   Unbelievable eh? They could have relegated it immediately to the dustbin, or at the very least reduced it to single hanger status, but no!  Some frugal handyman actually took a hunk of wood, rounded off the ends a bit, drilled 2 holes in it, and glued it on to the wires. Amazing to me.

So this hanger is gonna serve as my inspiration going forward.  It's gonna remind me to fix things when I can, buy second hand when it makes sense, and to satisfy my shopping addiction at the Salvation Army rather than Walmart!!

Why?  Cause I don't like this backward feeling!!

On the training front I had a reassuring day. In order to make my schedule fit the days of the week the way I wanted, I would have to move immediately into my first formal bike session today.  Normally you would never do that the day after your test, but I had a feeling that it would be okay.  Primarily because I didn't have a great test day, crazy as it seems.  Sure enough I did the workout without much difficulty.  Of course it hurt but there was never any doubt about completion.

And to throw a wrench into all this retiring and training talk.  A friend told me today about a potential job opportunity. It's a job I'm uniquely qualified for!  Shit!!  I need to decide by Monday if I have any interest!!  Shit!  Shit!!

Computrainer, week one, day one.  

"I feel like I'm going backwards, actually, as I get older. I'm regressing. I feel more and more like a kid, which is kind of a fun feeling."---Rachel McAdams

"Ultimately it doesn't matter whether you go forwards or backwards: you need to live your life as well as you can."---Eric Roth

Love

Peter

"Fat Chance!"

Somehow, working  hard to maintain ones health and fitness seems to heighten the awareness of creeping old age.  If you don't make these efforts you can blame the downward spiral on your lack of attention, but when you work your butt off and still constantly lose ground, then the blame can not lie elsewhere!

Don't get me wrong.  I think it's a good thing.  if you're constantly aware of what's happening to your body, and to your mind for that matter, then you can adjust gradually, and hopefully develop a habit of  "gracefully surrendering the things of youth"(desiderata).  The option of course is to have a significant emotional experience at some point, when like a sonic boom, the realization that you're old, and sick comes crashing in.

Yup!  I'll take my present reality for sure, even when I have days like today.  After all, if there's any reason for today's little disappointment, it's only that I momentarily forgot that I'm a year older than I was a year ago!

Fortunately I remembered it just 5 minutes into my bike ride.  Unfortunately, by then it was already too late to salvage the workout.  It's been 6 months since I did any strength workouts on my bike, and while my endurance is still probably pretty decent, the quick loss of strength is just the  unstoppable, inevitable, inexorable, approach of old age.  So be it!

And of course that doesn't deter me for a second from striving for new heights.  I know there is still a bit of courage I can drag out of this old carcass, but more importantly I'm even more sure that there's still a lot that my mind can do to offset the physical deterioration.  Primarily that means smarter training.

So, as to the details of my bike test. I finished the 30 minutes at 187 watts.  A far cry from the 237 of last May, but on the bright side, a good improvement from a year ago when I scored 172.  And like I said, I think I would have dome somewhat better if I hadn't started out too hard. Besides, the idea is to gradually improve over the course of winter, and this way the program starts out a bit easier.

So there you have it!  Just under 40 weeks til game day, and I have the first half pretty well planned out.   I will actually do less than I did last year, focusing on quality workouts.  Specifically that means 3 bike rides per week instead of four, 2 swims instead of 3, and slightly shorter long runs.  Two weight sessions per week will remain the norm.  I'm quite excited about it.  It seems clear to me that last year I did too much, too soon, and as a result didn't peak properly.  Of course smashing my face into the pavement is not on this years agenda either.

Once spring gets here I will change things up by adding at least 2 bike/run workouts per week, increasing my swims to 3, adding some hill runs as well as stretching out my long runs.  I think it's all gonna work.

I will also do a few races but probably only one run (Around the Bay 30K), and perhaps 2 triathlons.

Game on my friends!!  I'm gonna kick ass in Mont Tremblant on August 17th!!

"None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm"---Henry David Thoreau

....this ones pretty funny....

"Wisdom doesn't necessarily come with age, sometimes age just shows up all by itself".---Tom Wilson

Love

Peter

"Game On"

I think I'm ready to go!  I won't know for sure til I actually get going tomorrow but right now I think the 2 days off was the right recipe.  No soreness left.  I will start this next chapter by doing my 30 minute bike test.  Basically this involves riding as hard as I can for 30 minutes straight.   Ouch!! It is of course preceded by an extensive warmup.

It's gonna be real interesting to see how much bike fitness I've lost since my last test back in May.  I scored 237 watts that day, and I don't realistically expect to get anywhere near it.  No matter though.  When I started the program at this time last year I was at 172, and anything I can achieve above that, theoretically puts me ahead of the game.

I'll let you know.

Love
Peter

"And Along Came a Day"

And they always catch me by surprise.  Today I went with my youngest son to tour his workplace....a place where I was once the General Manager, and where I know many people.  To repeatedly hear what a great employee your child is, from people who you respect, is perhaps the most pleasant sensation one can experience.  Of course I tell them that he takes after his mother.  Oh, and by the way....I had nothing to do with him getting the job in the first place!!

We then had a late lunch together, and thereby put the icing on one of the nicest afternoons of my life!

I don't even care that I never worked out today, and the high I'm on is gonna carry me through tomorrow as well, as I intend on taking another full day of rest.

"How pleasant it is for a father to sit at his child's board. It is like an aged man reclining under the shadow of an oak which he has planted."---Voltaire

Love

Peter

"Draggin My Ass"

I'm not sure what this is all about but I remain exceedingly tired.  I had to take a walk break this morning just to get around the block.  I had an early lunch only to fall asleep shortly afterwards.  I managed to get myself off to the pool which refreshed me a bit, and loosened up my legs, but right after supper I was ready for another nap.

Every day I tell myself it's just psychological but  that hasn't made it go away.  If  I don't feel significantly better tomorrow I will force myself to take a couple of days of complete rest.  One good thing that comes from feeling this way is that it tends to put my arrogance in it's place a little bit.  I am reminded that there are people out there that regardless of their attitude are unable to enjoy the level of activity that I can.  Sometimes I forget that, and in turn forget how to empathize.

There is a man who I see at the gym sometimes who for whatever reason has no use of his legs.  He told me the other day that recently he had fallen on the floor when moving from his recliner to his wheelchair.  He couldn't get up, nor was his wife strong enough to help him.  He had to lay on the floor until the paramedics arrived.  When he told me this story he was laughing, and I truly was amazed and humbled by the mans attitude.  Just a few days later I have managed to forget that humility, so I suppose I gotta thank the good lord for getting me back on track.

And on the ridiculous list, today I read a story about a teenager from Kentucky who refused to take part in her regional track meet because the bib number she was issued was 666!  What a fucking joke!  I guess there's an obscure biblical reference to this number as being associated with the devil.  It makes me puke!  How brainwashed must this young person be to have swallowed this nonsense. It's a fucking number already!!!  Whoops!  There goes my empathy again!

Run 7kms, swim 750 metres 

"Empathy is about finding echoes of another person inside yourself"---Mohsin Hamid

Love
Peter

"On Silver Linings"

Roo has bugged me for some time to get rid of our home phone but I have resisted.  Not because I think we need the phone, but rather because I didn't want to give up the number itself.  We've had that same number for close to 30 years and it's the number that the entire free world has for us.  Every government organization, every doctor and lawyers office, every bank and insurance company.  Then we seized on the idea of porting the number over to Roo's cell phone and that met with my approval.  The beauty of it is that her and I now have a matched set of cell numbers (one digit different) and we still retain the former land line number.  Gradually we will wean various callers off of her number and on to mine as appropriate.  And if we ever decide to go back to a land line we simply move the number back.  Although that will be a cold day in hell since I'm pretty sure that Bell is the only option we have here out in the country?

Anyway, I only give you that preamble in order to lead you to the little moment of inspiration I had the other day.  Because I was so attached to the number I was very nervous about possibly losing it in the change over.  When I made all the arrangements with Telus(they were fantastic by the way), they told me it would be anywhere between 3 and 48 hours to complete the process.  They warned me that during that time we may lose service on one or both of the phones(land line and Roos cell).  Actually her phone went dead almost immediately but the land line continued to function.  I started to get nervous right away about my friends at Bell.  Would they refuse to release the number(even though they have to by law),or worse still, would they just close my account and put the number back in circulation?? Then they seriously aggravated my anxiety with the harassing call I got from Carole.(my nickname for her also starts with C).  

Somewhere along the way I got over that, and even further along the way I realized what the phone call actually did for me.  Without that call my anxiety over my number would have started at 3 hours, and built with every passing minute/hour/day.  I now knew that I had nothing to worry about, at least until the 48 hours was up, since Carol assured me that only over her dead body was it gonna happen any sooner!! And sure enough!  Almost to the minute, Roo got a text from Telus advising completion of the change, and simultaneously the land line went dead!!

The moral of the story.  Often we don't see an obvious silver lining until it's too late to take pleasure in it.  Pain is always obvious, but pleasure in the form of avoided pain, not so much so.  I need to not just be alert to these hidden moments, but  need to actively search them out.  I know for some people this comes naturally, but unfortunately, not for yours truly.  Maybe if I practice?

Basement ride, 60 minutes.

"Every cloud has it's silver lining, but it's sometimes difficult to get it to the mint"---Don Marquis

Love
Peter

"Slowly"

Went to the pool as promised. Then to the weight room where I haven't been in 4 months.  I felt pretty good so I also went for a short run.  That was when I found out I'm still not recovered.   But I did have an inspirational moment.....which I'll tell you about tomorrow. It's 9:30!  Bedtime!

Swim 750, weights, run 7.3kms

Love
Peter

"Get Your Ass In Gear!"

As I recover from this marathon I get a better understanding of why the experts don't recommend it as part of an Ironman training program.  While it is totally acceptable to run one at this point, I suddenly see what the ramifications might be of doing one 3 months before the IM. Because I'm not pressured into getting right back into training, I can clearly feel the healing that my body still needs to undergo, even 3 days after the race.  I'm still sore and I'm still tired.  If this was sometime in May I would have been scheduled for at least a 2 hour run today, and probably at least a 4 hour ride on the weekend.  Today that seems crazy.  It confirms my decision to not go back to Waterloo next spring although I will miss it.  

Or maybe I'm just a lazy old grampa and I should get my ass in gear!!

I did, spend a little easy time on the trainer, and tomorrow I'm going to the pool just to get my feet wet so to speak.

Computrainer easy ride 1:20.

Love

Peter

"But Mister ROOOO-yackers"

I don't know why I let that person get to me but after about the 20th time she interrupted me with "but mister roooo-yackers", I was ready to climb though the phone and punch her in the mouth!

You see we're giving up our Bell land line, and I chose to keep the phone number and port it over to one of our cell phones.  We simply do not need a home phone any more.

Within 2 hours of making the changes with our cell phone provider (not bell!) I get a call from Ma.   The only way I can describe the call was pure harassment.  She did everything in her power to try to make my day miserable and I hate to admit it, but she got to me.

In the end they are purposely not releasing my phone number for 48 hours just to piss me off.  As soon as that is done, I will cancel my satellite service with them as well.  Good job Carole!!

Must be cause I'm not working out.  Tomorrow I will try a wee bit of biking and by the end of the week I'll be good I'm sure.  I already feel much better today.

Love
Peter

"Chicken Soup"

But it's for my body, not my soul.  On second thought it was made special for me by Elly, so for that reason alone it is also good for my soul.

Thanks for your help Larry!!

Gotta go.  Its 11:59 pm!

Love
Peter

"Twenty Years later"

Apparently I've lost a few steps.  I celebrated the 20th anniversary of my very first marathon by wearing the same shirt as I did in 1993 in Detroit.  Strange that I still have that shirt, but that only because Roo has been wearing it on and off for years.  Well actually she's only been wearing it on, cause if it were off she wouldn't be wearing it now would she?!

Anyway, I have indeed lost a few steps in the intervening 20 years.  Back then I completed the race in 3:25:29.  Today I was 3:33:18.  That's a pretty hefty drop off of about 3.5%.  I actually thought I would be a bit faster today but the weather was a factor.  It was a great day in one sense, sunshine and zero degrees, but also quite windy.  Unfortunately this race is a point to point event, and with that type of race you can either get lucky, or vice versa.  Today we had very little wind assistance at all, and probably about 15 kms directly into it.  This headwind was predominate from kms 21 to 36, right in the heart of the race.  At km 33 I started taking 50 second walk breaks and that got me to the finish line intact.

I finished 263rd out of 1000 runners overall, and 12th out of 68 in my age group.  All in all, I'm pretty content.  I'm also pretty sore!!  But I heard soup is good for that, so tomorrow I'm gonna go to Guelph to see if I can get some??

So that's it for now.  After a few days rest I start real training.  Tonite I will get the ball rolling by signing Roo and I up for the Around the Bay 30K in  March.  Gotta sign up today to avoid the price increase. Besides it's time for Roo to get her fat ass off the couch, and get some real training going as well!

42.2 km run, 3:33:18

“I run because long after my footprints fade away, maybe I will have inspired a few to reject the easy path, hit the trails, put one foot in front of the other, and come to the same conclusion I did: I run because it always takes me where I want to go."---Dean Karnazes

Love
Peter

"Off To The Races"

The only thing I can predict with some certainty is that it's gonna be cold.  Other than that I really don't know what's gonna happen.  I'm not nervous about it at all, but I am very edgy from not working out.  Gotta get up at 4:15 am and then I'll go and fix that problem, while finding what the day will in actual fact bring.

Love
Peter

"Busy, Busy"

"How are you?"
"Good, but busy.  How are you doin?"
"Yah busy, busy too.  Good, busy though."
"Oh good.  Me too.  Good busy."

Sounds like some kind of condition.  Like having the flu,  but a good kind of flu.  The kind of an illness that a person could be proud of.  Yah, I got the flu but I'm such a positive thinker that I'm gonna make it a good thing.

I sure was busy today.  From the moment I got up until I finally sat down to supper I was busy.  And it was a damn, good busy too.  I think I visited at least 7 building/hardware stores in the London/St Thomas area.  And you know what I accomplished........the square root of fuck all!!

I'm gonna try not to be so busy from now on.  Busy means nothing!  Along with sounding like a condition, busy also sounds like something that happens to you, as opposed to something you initiated.

I think maybe I'm just gonna try to be active.  Active sounds more like a decision.

Tomorrow I'm gonna actively do fuck all, rather than just busily doing fuck all!

"No matter how busy a man is, he is never too busy to stop and talk about how busy he is."---Anon

"Men of lofty genius when they are doing the least work are most active"---Leonardo da Vinci

Love
Peter