Runner's World

On a chilly overcast morning with the cherry blossoms about one week past peak bloom, I woke at 5:30 and caught a ride to Saga city, about an hour and a half from Nagasaki. After making a mess in two of three public restrooms along the way we got to the race site. I spent the next half hour in three different lines; the first to register, the second to sign my name on the card because apparently the first line couldn't lend me a pen, the third was back to the first to do what I tried to do twenty minutes before. I swear the Japanese national pass time is standing in line.I guess it teaches patience, or more likely resignation to a Kafkaesque nightmare existence.But I'm like that guy in the Apple commercial throwing that thing through the giant screen!  I am not a number!! Actually I just fidget and sigh a lot. They know what that really means though.

So I finally got my number (oh, the irony) and after finding a locker, changing, and sleepily trying to safety pin a piece of paper to my chest, there were about three minutes left to race time. Ten seconds of stretching. I joined the crowd covering about half a race track and spotted a guy holding a sign "40:00 - 45:00". That's me! So I pushed my way up to where he was standing. Without any warning (that I heard or understood) the gun went off and people slowly began to shuffle towards the start line. Either everyone had ignored the sign suggesting what time they expected to achieve or they were all lying to themselves. The first two kilometers were tiring as I fluctuated between calming myself down and trying to establish a steady pace and weaving in, out, and around the slow and very slow. I felt like I ran an extra 500 meters in circumventing steps and was feeling pretty flat and sluggish when I hit the half way point. I checked the time : over 23 minutes. Damn! I'm tired, my feet weigh a hundred pounds each, and I have to go to the toilet (number one and two). Can I step it up and salvage a half decent time?

The second five was a painful and thoroughly unenjoyable countdown to the finish line. With one kilometer left the shuffle on my ipod picked out the exact kick in the ass I needed: "That Was Just Your Life" by Metallica. I always seem to get into a back and forth battle with at least one other runner and this time was no different. He would pass me and as I slowly picked up the pace towards the finish I would pull ahead. He rushes past me again and, keeping a steadily increasing, pace I reeled him in. Finally we enter the stadium and hit the track towards the finish line and I floor it. Good bye anonymous foe!

I was glad to see that the second five took less than 21 minutes and I was pretty satisfied that I had emptied the gas tank but was a little disappointed that I was a minute off my best time from last fall. Have I peaked? I hope not. I hadn't been living the healthiest lifestyle in the preceding months, what with so much work and eating fast food because I'm too exhausted too cook. I put on almost five pounds and I could really feel it in the knees and feet.  One step back, two steps forward. Which is a really bad way to run.

Song of the Week

I hope you've been checking out and enjoying the song of the week feature. This week's is a great pop rocker by The View. In keeping with my policy on new music I know absolutely nothing about this band. Good song!

Gonna Crawl

The sun has long since set. The volunteers left hours ago. The last brave runner who refuses to give in to his screaming muscles, his exhausted mind, crawls across the finish line.

The last six months have been grueling, at least by my standards. Starting a new job while still working at the old job was a bold move that paid off. The finish line is in sight now but still seems so far as my knees scrape along the asphalt. The last few weeks I've felt that the quality of work at both jobs had begun to suffer due to mental fatigue. This Thursday will be my last day of dual employment. I have almost two weeks off before I start the new  job as (still hard to say) a high school teacher. Already my mind is working on a way to avoid doing this job for the rest of my life. Is that crazy? Maybe, but I just don't see myself staying anywhere for the next 25 years. Five or ten, maybe. I won't give up the dream, though. I will be a real princess!

Of course I post this sob story here because I can't get the desired response (sympathy mixed with pity mixed with admiration mixed with a back rub) from my girlfriend. She works seven days a week and averages under four hours of sleep a night. I feel a little awkward groaning about waking up at seven thirty. I look to you, dear reader,  to aknowledge my heroic suffering.

Fight!

Although we mostly saw what we wanted to see, there was a lack of drama on this weekend's B.A.D. card. Guerrero didn't look great before quickly and rather nonchalantly forfeiting his fight due to a pretty bad cut. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt if he gives "Air" Yordan a rematch.

It's hard not to think Ortiz is the real thing after knocking out tough, but second tier, Arnoutis. Good stoppage too. Arnaoutis asked his corner what happened about twenty seconds after the ref waved it off. "You lost, that's what". I'd like to see Ortiz take on Malignaggi and perhaps separate Paulie's head from his neck.

We didn't get the climax and release that comes with a knock out in the Kirkland-Julio fight but we did get some nonstop pummeling. After the fourth round Julio looked like he'd rather be doing just about anything else than  fighting. His fists said "Let's fight" but his eyes said "Mommy, I want to go home".

Bandwagoning - Although I was already running along side it, I have jumped on the James Kirkland bandwagon. It may be speeding towards a brick wall or off a cliff but WoooooooWeeee! It's gonna be fun! The only time Kirkland moves his head it seems to be into an oncoming punch. I don't agree with those who question his chin, however. He got hit hard but never seemed dazed or even off balance in the last three fights I saw. O.k. he's been knocked down but he got up completely composed and proceeded to destroy.

Who can stop the tank? I think Santos would knock him out. Power plus skill. I think Paul Williams (I bought a pass for his bandwagon, I ride it so much) could find a solution to his straight ahead pressure as he did against Margarito.

De-Bandwagoning - No fallen heroes this week but I am slowly leaning towards Hatton in the upcoming mega showdown. De laHoya never really imposed his size (as a welter or above) on anyone and ,being the Golden Retard, he can't feed or nourish himself properly and thus came in weighing less than the Pacman, so it's not a gauge of how Manny will match up against strength. Hatton is strong and will outweigh Manny by 10 lbs. Is Manny strong enough? Then he better be fast enough.