Currently I am training for the Shamrock'n Half Marathon on March 13th. It begins and ends at Raley Field in West Sacramento.http://www.shamrocknhalf.com/. Should be fun since a lot of my running group will be there also. I think I need to figure out if I am going to be wearing any goofy St. Patrick's Day clothing items. More then likely I will be running in capris so I guess I could find some men's underwear to wear over them.
The other race that I have registered for is the Bay to Breakers in San Francisco on May 15th. http://baytobreakers.com/. I am really looking forward to this one. I understand it is one of the oldest organized races in this country. This year will be the 100th Anniversary of the race. I'm thinking I will probably only run this once so the 100th anniversary sounded like the right time for me. It was pretty expensive though. I had race fees, then mailing fees, then bus fees, then I decided to get the tech shirt instead of the T-shirt which cost me an additional $30 so all in all $120. The nice thing is I get to spend the day before in Berkeley with Brett. We always have a good time together and I love Berkeley.
Mini Distance Widget
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
More about Brett
It's almost been 32 years since I got the phone call from parents that my brother was at a hospital in Modesto. My first thought was that he had been in a car accident. He and a friend were taking two girls to Turlock Lake for the day. It was Memorial Day so there would be a lot of traffic on the way there. Turlock Lake was the closest lake to Modesto and had a really nice beach. My parents wouldn't tell me what had happened but to get myself to the hospital as quick as I could.
My brother was in the ER. He was hooked up to machines, he had a tube down his nose and I think through his mouth. He was awake and scared. Can you imagine how terrifying it would be to have no feeling below your head? I found out that he and his friend had decided to cool off after they got to the lake. They had both ran out into the water to about hip level and dove in. Brett hit something on the bottom of the lake, his friend kept swimming unaware that something had happened. He at one point turned around and saw Brett floating in the water and laughed thinking he was playing around. When Brett didn't respond he swam over to him and grabbed him and brought his head above the water. Brett had been holding his breath and told his friend he couldn't feel anything. His friend they yelled for help and some guys came over and helped drag Brett up to the beach. They called an ambulance and it took him to a hospital in Modesto about 30 miles away.
We found out much later what had happened to Brett at the beach. He had no feeling below his shoulders but his head hurt really bad and my Mom could feel an indentation on his skull. Turlock Lake had boat races during the summer. People would make cement blocks and use them for ballast and then toss them over the side when the race was over. This is what Brett hit. Later the day that he was injured, some boaters pulled into the beach and jumped out of their boat onto the cement block that Brett had hit. It weighed about 50 pounds. They then brought it onto the shore.
My family endured some very hard times that summer. My brother was transferred to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center because they had a spinal cord injury unit there and would be better taken care of. My Mom packed her clothes up and didn't come home until August. We had friends in San Jose so she stayed at alternating friends houses so she could be with Brett.
My brother's spine was unstable so he had to be put into what is called a halo. Basically as I remember it, they drilled 4 holes into his skull so that they could insert screws that would connect to a piece of metal that encircled his skull (like a halo). The long metal pieces that were screwed into his head came down to a body cast that would then stabilize his spinal cord. If his spinal cord was not stabilized it would begin to disintegrate and would kill him. After about 6-8 weeks it was determined by his doctors that the halo was not working. The only option was surgery. The had to cut open his hip and take bone fragments from there and fuse them to his neck which would be wired together for stability. Fortunately this procedure worked and his spine was stabilized.
Part of the reason I am laying bare my brother's life is to introduce people to the disabled. They really are your neighbor, your high school friend, your sister. The one thing I noticed after spending many days at a spinal cord injury unit is that paralysis by an accident was by and large something that happened to boys/men. The other people in his ward were young men. They had been paralyzed by surfing, motorcycle and car accidents, gunshot. If you lead an active life this can happen to you. Be careful out there people.
My brother was in the ER. He was hooked up to machines, he had a tube down his nose and I think through his mouth. He was awake and scared. Can you imagine how terrifying it would be to have no feeling below your head? I found out that he and his friend had decided to cool off after they got to the lake. They had both ran out into the water to about hip level and dove in. Brett hit something on the bottom of the lake, his friend kept swimming unaware that something had happened. He at one point turned around and saw Brett floating in the water and laughed thinking he was playing around. When Brett didn't respond he swam over to him and grabbed him and brought his head above the water. Brett had been holding his breath and told his friend he couldn't feel anything. His friend they yelled for help and some guys came over and helped drag Brett up to the beach. They called an ambulance and it took him to a hospital in Modesto about 30 miles away.
We found out much later what had happened to Brett at the beach. He had no feeling below his shoulders but his head hurt really bad and my Mom could feel an indentation on his skull. Turlock Lake had boat races during the summer. People would make cement blocks and use them for ballast and then toss them over the side when the race was over. This is what Brett hit. Later the day that he was injured, some boaters pulled into the beach and jumped out of their boat onto the cement block that Brett had hit. It weighed about 50 pounds. They then brought it onto the shore.
My family endured some very hard times that summer. My brother was transferred to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center because they had a spinal cord injury unit there and would be better taken care of. My Mom packed her clothes up and didn't come home until August. We had friends in San Jose so she stayed at alternating friends houses so she could be with Brett.
My brother's spine was unstable so he had to be put into what is called a halo. Basically as I remember it, they drilled 4 holes into his skull so that they could insert screws that would connect to a piece of metal that encircled his skull (like a halo). The long metal pieces that were screwed into his head came down to a body cast that would then stabilize his spinal cord. If his spinal cord was not stabilized it would begin to disintegrate and would kill him. After about 6-8 weeks it was determined by his doctors that the halo was not working. The only option was surgery. The had to cut open his hip and take bone fragments from there and fuse them to his neck which would be wired together for stability. Fortunately this procedure worked and his spine was stabilized.
Part of the reason I am laying bare my brother's life is to introduce people to the disabled. They really are your neighbor, your high school friend, your sister. The one thing I noticed after spending many days at a spinal cord injury unit is that paralysis by an accident was by and large something that happened to boys/men. The other people in his ward were young men. They had been paralyzed by surfing, motorcycle and car accidents, gunshot. If you lead an active life this can happen to you. Be careful out there people.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Fartlek, fartlek, fartlek
FARTLEK. Try saying that fast three times!! Went out for a run this morning by myself. I haven't done that in months and months. I was going to listen to my favorite running podcast, but stupid me dragged the podcast that I listened to last night over to my shuffle so instead I listened to music. I'm such a running geek now. I listen to running podcasts.
There is something so great about running in the morning. The sun had just come up so there was still a bit of color in the sky. There was plenty of blue sky too. It was probably about 45 degrees so I had on my capris, long sleeve shirt, gloves and hat. At first you always think, I don't have enough clothes on, I'm cold. After about 5 minutes you don't even notice the cold anymore.
I've been running now for almost 2 years. The first 3-4 months were just as much a physical battle as it was a mental battle. I say battle and mean that because I always hated running. I played soccer for 20 plus years and tried to run distances as little as possible. I got in shape by playing the game and never stop playing which meant I went from one season to another without a break. Basically soccer 12 months a year.
Back to running...so running was very much a mental battle. Telling myself that I could run the distance required. Sometimes I talked myself into feeling sick or tired and I would stop and walk. I soon realized that to be able to run I was going to have to get over that mental issue. I was going to have to step up my game on the mental challenge of running. I probably took the easy way out by running with my IPOD Shuffle. I have to say that the music helped me run that first year. Looking back, most of the music I never heard. I would tune into the songs that were my favorites of the moment but the others were just background to my thoughts.
There is a lot of thinking to running. You can change the world, change your life all in the space of your run. I have talked to people I no longer see. I have had conversations with people that are dead. I have relived moments in my life. It is weird what will come into your mind when there are no distractions to keep them out.
Today I just enjoyed the morning and that I felt good. There weren't many people out at 7:30 am. On the way back I had a mile and a half to go so I thought I would do some fartlek training. Fartlek means speed play in Swedish. I ran from stop signs to telephone poles, whatever was easy to use at that moment. I actually got my speed up 8:30 per mile then would slow down to 10:15. It was fun. The time went by fast and I wondered why I had never done these before on my own. I guess I thought I would look stupid running fast and then running slow if anyone saw me. I realized that for one thing no one knows what you are doing out there and can't really tell fast from slow and the rate of speed I was running. Who cares what people think anyway? That felt good letting that go.
I had a realization as I was walking up my driveway. I feel at peace. I feel happy. I just burned 400+ calories and started my day with a smile on my face. I am no longer ambivalent about running. I love running. I am a runner.
There is something so great about running in the morning. The sun had just come up so there was still a bit of color in the sky. There was plenty of blue sky too. It was probably about 45 degrees so I had on my capris, long sleeve shirt, gloves and hat. At first you always think, I don't have enough clothes on, I'm cold. After about 5 minutes you don't even notice the cold anymore.
I've been running now for almost 2 years. The first 3-4 months were just as much a physical battle as it was a mental battle. I say battle and mean that because I always hated running. I played soccer for 20 plus years and tried to run distances as little as possible. I got in shape by playing the game and never stop playing which meant I went from one season to another without a break. Basically soccer 12 months a year.
Back to running...so running was very much a mental battle. Telling myself that I could run the distance required. Sometimes I talked myself into feeling sick or tired and I would stop and walk. I soon realized that to be able to run I was going to have to get over that mental issue. I was going to have to step up my game on the mental challenge of running. I probably took the easy way out by running with my IPOD Shuffle. I have to say that the music helped me run that first year. Looking back, most of the music I never heard. I would tune into the songs that were my favorites of the moment but the others were just background to my thoughts.
There is a lot of thinking to running. You can change the world, change your life all in the space of your run. I have talked to people I no longer see. I have had conversations with people that are dead. I have relived moments in my life. It is weird what will come into your mind when there are no distractions to keep them out.
Today I just enjoyed the morning and that I felt good. There weren't many people out at 7:30 am. On the way back I had a mile and a half to go so I thought I would do some fartlek training. Fartlek means speed play in Swedish. I ran from stop signs to telephone poles, whatever was easy to use at that moment. I actually got my speed up 8:30 per mile then would slow down to 10:15. It was fun. The time went by fast and I wondered why I had never done these before on my own. I guess I thought I would look stupid running fast and then running slow if anyone saw me. I realized that for one thing no one knows what you are doing out there and can't really tell fast from slow and the rate of speed I was running. Who cares what people think anyway? That felt good letting that go.
I had a realization as I was walking up my driveway. I feel at peace. I feel happy. I just burned 400+ calories and started my day with a smile on my face. I am no longer ambivalent about running. I love running. I am a runner.
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