After some food, water, and soda, I almost feel like a person again. Today’s run was 24 miles in the hot, humid heat. If that fence in the photo wasn’t there, I might have jumped into the water. The idea was that having the fence partially in the photo would be cool, but the effect is not quite what I thought it would be. I took another photo where I placed the focus on the fence itself, but that worked even less. Who cares, honestly. Continue reading “6/2/18”
A bunch of stuff happened today, some of it good and some of it frustrating, and so I’m in this kind of seesaw mode. It’s crazy when I think about it – I know everything is going to be just fine, but I feel uneasy and apprehensive nonetheless. And I know some of the things I’m worried about wouldn’t worry anyone else. But that’s okay because anyone else probably worries about altogether different and unrelated things. So I shouldn’t worry about what other people worry about. I can only worry about me and my worries. It’s my birthday, by the way. Continue reading “6/1/18”
The photos don’t always have to do with running. In fact, they almost never have anything to do with running.
I woke up early this morning to take my car to the shop, again. They didn’t fix what they said they fixed. It’s almost like they did absolutely nothing because the same exact thing happened again. When it rains, the floorboards (not sure that’s the right terminology) under the driver and passenger seat get wet. Wet enough to saturate the carpet. It’s pretty awful when it rains for an extended period of time, because I can’t open the windows to air it out, otherwise the rest of the interior would get wet, too. It gets to smelling like mildew. The mechanic’s explanation, which checks out on Google, is that the sunroof/air conditioning drains are clogged. This is not an intuitive thing. Of course, just when my car seems to be trouble-free, a non-mechanical issue arises. A smelly non-mechanical issue. Honda Problems. Continue reading “5/31/18”
I skipped writing an entry yesterday because Dana arrived back home from a wedding in Indiana. Sometimes there are more important things than journal entries.
Look at those tiny match sticks in that petal. I Google imaged magnolia flower and I guess it’s common for those things to pile up inside the flower like that.
Today I had an excellent run. 14 miles at 10:00 pace, even. Continue reading “5/29/18”
It was really, really windy today. There weren’t very many people downtown compared to a usual Sunday. It rained off and on, sometimes heavy but not for longer than a few minutes. I ran with no music so it was peaceful and serene. Just me and my feet.
This is going to be a shorter entry than usual. I have plans with friends I haven’t seen in a while. Since I moved back, in fact.
The run today was very good. 14 miles at 10:15 pace. Continue reading “5/27/18”
After the run today, instead of getting directly into a cold shower, I went out on the back porch and just sat in the rain. It was a slow, relaxing rain at first, but then the Ice Cream Truck came by playing its song, and this was somehow dramatic, a cue to the rain for more intensity. As the music faded, the rain seemed to slow. Then the wind started blowing harder, and the little palm by the big oak tree started thrashing. For a moment after all this had happened, was still happening, I looked down at the pavers under my feet and just observed the rain drops coming down. So peaceful. And the skies then opened up and poured out the last big bucket of rain for that hour. Continue reading “5/26/18”
On Monday, I dropped my car off at the repair shop in Pinellas Point. My mom came and picked me up and we went to the Indian Mound just down the road. Most people don’t know this tiny little area in between two houses in the pink streets even exists, and my mom was one of those people. The history of the place is somewhat hazy, due to some contradictory signage in the park. There is a violent story about the place that ends in a clubbing-to-death. Then there is a story about a princess and a famed conquistador. Seemingly overruling both of those accounts, there is a sign positioned nearby that states the historical signage was left there to preserve the mystique of the site, in essence. Finally, the most official and accurate looking display names the Tocobaga Indians as the builders of the mound, and details their way of life and history. It’s super interesting to see this little piece of St. Petersburg history so unassumingly positioned in a residential neighborhood. Continue reading “5/25/18”
Another photo from yesterday. I love that place.
It was hot again today, big surprise. Today’s heat was the normal type of searing Florida heat. The kind that feels like a wide, hot laser beam is slowly melting your flesh. It’s still of a degree that is bearable, however. For a period of time, anyway. I was out there for 1 hour and 42 minutes or so, wearing white. White hat, white shirt, white shoes, like you’re supposed to. Every little thing helps. Just brace for the days when it gets to 98 degrees and 85 percent humidity, I keep telling myself. This is nothing. Continue reading “5/24/18”
Fort Desoto is one my favorite places in the world. It’s minutes away from the city and as soon as I get there, I feel like I’m on vacation. It’s peaceful. Once you get out on the beach, you can’t hear the cars anymore. It’s beautiful. It’s (almost) untouched natural Florida. It’s “being outside” at its best.
Many memories of mine are associated with Fort Desoto. I came here when I was a kid, a teenager, and I come here now as an adult. I feel comfortable here, like some small part of it belongs to me. (Possibly because I’ve paid the $5 entry fee so many times. It used to be free!) If I ever go away from Florida again, Fort Desoto will be one of the first places I visit when I come back. Continue reading “5/23/18”
First things first, I’m on a new training plan so instead of the usual 8 today, I ran 12. Pace was 10:18. I had a lot of fun, like most days after a day off. My legs were light and I had what felt like endless energy. I still ran 5 minutes and walked 1 minute for the most part, though. With the new plan, I’ll need to conserve a lot more energy. There are longer runs during the week compared to the home-made plan I was on previously. It was nice, though. Whenever I felt like I wanted to run more than 5 minutes, I did. I just never let myself walk more than one. (I had to make a pit stop to pee in the bushes and that was the only exception. It’s crazy how much stopping dead slows the pace clock, as opposed to walking.) Continue reading “5/22/18”
runjournal 