back from trip

back from paris

busy w/ house move
so more later

the marathon (video)

music by phillip glass

attempt one

okay,
early morning and i'm awash in emails asking where the
pix and marathon update is. apologies all. was in a van for
most of yesterday, driving back with the family
from vancouver.

i want you to try this and see if it works. it should. a handful
of photos from the trip.

so, vancouver: mm & i honeymooned
in vancouver 7 yrs prior so it was a strangely surreal experience
to be running past buildings we went in, parks we walked in 7 yrs ago.
Oh, to add to the irony we found ourselves staying - by sheer chance -
in the exact same hotel we had stayed in on our honeymoon.
given the nature of why i was running (ie brain tumor)
i couldn't help but to be a little reflective already but
to recognize things on the course that i had visited previously
but in a life from 100 yrs ago and to recognize
the decor in the hotel
restaurant where we ate on our honeymoon in a life
from 100 yrs ago was the height of strangeness. did
a number on me.

so, the race: i got down to the staging area about 45 minutes early. just kind
of stood around, keeping to myself. i was wearing a t-shirt
w/ "brain tumor survivor" written on it in marker. standing there
before the race started, surrounded by thousands of folks i felt
naked and exposed. it wore off when the horn sounded
and we started running.

i bumped my run/walk ratio down for my legs sake and it
hurt to take the walks b/c i didn't want to at first, felt
strong. mile by mile people around me started to flag and
i became grateful for adhering to the ratio. saw mm around mile
6. we planned to re-meet at mile 11 which happened to be
directly in front of our hotel.

at mile 11 saw mm and sue and mom/dad & carrie. it was threatening
rain so mm handed me a plastic rain poncho which i had
to put on a mere few minutes later and was quite grateful for as
the rain continued off and on until the very end

the 1/2way pt was deep inside Stanley Park. i was already exhausted
and my legs burned and my mind began to contemplate
not finishing, or walking the rest, or also not finishing.
these are little tricks the mind plays. so i played one back
and adjusted the run/walk ratio, bumping it down further, telling
myelf you just have to run for X minutes, now go. By the time
i looked up i was seeing my family again and only had 9 more miles to go

you lock into a zone when you run a marathon. about mile 18
i locked in and - despite the pain, which was growing w/ each successive mile,
and the fatigue, both physical and mental - i knew i would finish. let me qualify: i knew i would finish anyway but i reached a certain point
where the worry floated away, the concern for each wince or ache vanished. i locked in
and just enjoyed myself

crossing the finish line was fantastic. met up w/ the family, got my tshirt.
went back to the hotel and had a bath
and ate a cheeseburger and had a beer. epic.

that's the best i can do for now
in the next couple days should have more official marathon
photos
and hopefully some video
keep yr eyes peeled
best
bp

update:
here's some official marathon pix

done

i'm back and i've done it
been trying to post a photo but blogger is
giving me trouble
i'll try to do some tomorrow
along w/ a semi-coherent narrative of the
event itself

training run 5/4/07

this proves to a month of months:
tomorrow we leave for vancouver, run the marathon on sunday
next thurs we (ostensibly and barring complication)
close on a house
the following wednesday we fly to los angeles
and then on to london & paris
whew

been cranky & edgy these past couple days
find myself worrying about things like
the race course, the weather on race day
fatigue factor by mile X and on and on and on

i'm almost up to 4200$ though

so, this AM
I strapped on the shoes and set out for a final
training run - for this marathon anyway - thru
laurelhurst park. tried to go real light
and not push it. felt gratitude
at being alive and being able
to draw breath.
i'm not really concerned with time
or where or how i place on Sunday
i just want to finish standing up
that's it

onward

training run 5/2/07

did a light run in the light rain this AM
in laurelhurst park. only a few days to go
my friend tim told me about something
called taper madness which I wasn’t familiar
w/ but which I must have some strain of
b/c I’ve been a little loopy the past few days.
it’s hard to tell though how much of that
is brought on by all the crazy events around us
or just my personality or some combination therein.

mm got a lovely short story rejection
the other day “deeply impressed” w/ her
writing. close but no cigars. she’s had a few of
these editorial backpats. which is good
news even if it doesn’t feel like it