If I Die In My 1st Marathon...

1. I should back track. If I'm to survive my 1st marathon, please note that I promise to purchase a watch in preparation for my 2nd. I will also study a pace chart, thoroughly get to know the course and do long runs that span longer than 7 miles.

2. Big Sur to Monterrey isn't a bad location to keel over. Amongst the redwoods and with an ocean view.

3. I want to be cremated, my ashes tossed in the Pacific. I want a memorial service with many friends and family, a post-party with Marty doing something stupid (probably a female), and a picture of me shirtless and a caption reading, "The Incredible Hul-labaloo"

4. A picture of me doing stand-up with a caption reading, "please don't laugh."

5. For some of the meaningful things I've tried to say to take on some sort of meaning, and furthermore, application in others' lives.

6. To know that jokes and goofing around have a meaning far beyond the exultation a punchline exudes.

7. If you want something, do it now. Don't wait. Don't rationalize it until later. Do it now. Hence 26.2.

8. The Simpsons is a great education.

9. Why I could die happy at 23 and why I'm running a marathon:

"...Hans felt...at peace with himself and what he was doing. He had always been terrified of plane turbulence, as if he might die with the best inside of him, but now he could fly through a violent storm sleeping like a baby. Strange indeed." - The 4-Hour Workweek, page 39.

and... "you don't need to prove nothin' to nobody except yourself." - guess the apropo movie title

Yellow: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI8I6qcxWyU

Running and News Converge

I was scanning PBS.com today and found an article on their home page about "environmentally conscious kids." A major point within the article, written by Alan Fortescue -- the Director of Education for the Earthwatch Institute, was how parents educate their children on the environment. The answer: "...one thing does more to foster environmental consciousness than anything else; this is simply the act of getting children outdoors." (to read the whole article: http://www.pbs.org/parents/experts/)

Experiential learning or learning by doing.

Good for PBS, but visit any classroom and I'll bet you'll find a solid percentage of students who are bored from sitting in a classroom. My last year of college I worked at a non-profit organization called Florida Campus Compact. Our job was to serve, enhance and promote service-learning in colleges and universities in Florida. What is service-learning? Basically, its getting a grade based on actually going out in the community and performing service for an organization affiliated with the subject you're learning about.

I'm a solid believer in this type of learning. When you get out of school, there's no road map. No course schedule. No block scheduling. Its all an elective. Inventors and innovators don't sit back and follow every instruction. They get to know the rules and they try to break them to see if they can make the system better.

(Picture of where my first marathon will be in Big Sur, CA)

On a personal level, running has brought me closer to the environment. My love for trails, for the smell of freshly mowed grass, for fields and pines, all comes from my experience running. Some find this same love through cycling, through hiking, through science and discovery. Thus this proves one more point. Health, science and the environment are all related. When we throw money at these things, creating jobs and drawing many more to the outdoors, the economy becomes deeply ingratiated, too.

Admittingly, I stopped reading the whole article as I've written to this point. Before publishing the post, however, I went back one more time to look over the PBS article. Turns out, there's a pretty interesting fact that sort of relates to my prior points.

"A recent study of 300 of the world's most innovative thinkers and leaders showed clear links between childhood immersion in nature and an out-of-the-box creativity and tireless commitment to society."

Matt Costa: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgSHVf_DftU

Performing is Different

It is. Live performing brings out adrenaline. Because, even though you may know the act, you never know the performance. The act is what's planned. For the artist: it is the set list; for the athlete it is the practiced shots or culmination of workouts; for the skilled test taker it is the note taking and endless hours of study.

Performing keeps us alive, though. Because for all that we can control, for all of our work ethic and practice, we can't control the questions asked, the conditions of the course or the audience and stage we'll be performing at.

How cool is it to not know?

The key to being our best (and at the same time, the very counter intuitive part) is focus. It is easy to get swept up in the perceived pressure of performing. If you're a runner who races, you can't help but notice the hundreds if not thousands of other competitors. Not to mention, all the tents, the race clock, the line for the porta potty, the pre-race and post-race chatter, etc. etc. How do you stick to your act? How do you not go out too fast? Your practiced miles and trials?

Focus.

And focus on you.

And focus on the act that you have practiced.

The winner of the race, just like the doctor, just like the Broadway actress, just like the polished comedian was made a long time ago. On muddy trails. In libraries. In evening acting classes and endless summer camps. In dirty clubs with little to no sound systems and even smaller audiences.

I look at performing as a result of a culmination of work. The one who can focus back on the work the best is the one who performs the best. But sometimes we get caught up in the moment. The crowd is too much, the environment is difficult, the pressure is overwhelming.

But take away the competitive aspect. Better yet, take away all the shit you cannot control.

In the end, you're only competing against yourself. Screw others and the circumstances. The coolest thing about performing is discovering self. It's amazing, and it will trump winning a god-damn trophy any day. And when self-discovery is your big picture, you're mind automatically focuses on self and doesn't get caught up in all the hoopla of the performance. It's a bit weird, but true. When you change your end goal to self, embrace the moment for what it is, indirectly, you will become a better competitor. You'll rise above your competition without trying. Why? Because your competition is so focused on what you and the rest are doing. They get sidetracked by the same crap you wanted to but were too disciplined to fall for.

I once knew a coach who looked at a cross country team who won a major cross country meet. After the meet, he took the trophy the team won, and in front of them, threw the trophy in a river. The team beat all the other teams, but they won based on talent, not on performance. They're performance was lack-luster and if thrown into a different arena, maybe the other teams would have kicked their ass. That didn't matter -- the level of competition. It was good enough compared to the others in the same field, but not to the standard they had set for themselves.

This isn't to knock the idea of competition. It's healthy and necessary. However, competition should mostly be saved for the practice range. It's healthy for game-planning, strategy, research.

It is only when performing that one can get in "the zone." The Zone is the zone of one's self, not of me and another performer. So my thoughts: find something you enjoy and start to schedule performances. Feel the adrenaline, the nerves, and the fear that underlies it. Work your butt off to get better when you perform. But always perform. And never worry about your rank. That's all crap anyway. Let self-satisfaction and decency be your guide.

U2 Where The Streets Have No Name: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpVbLm4TN3g

Topanga Canyon Morning Run

Today's run began at 9am PST. Sadly, it was the longest I've gone for a while, just over an hour. Not bad, but for someone slated to run a marathon in a month, I may want to pick up my game.

Nonetheless, this morning was great. Cool, wet, muddy, windy and rainy until on my turnaround when the sun broke through. With the exception of the near wipe outs as I made my way through tight, sticky turns on the trail, I was brought back to the joy of the old cross country days.

There's something about plowing up hills and holding the arms out as I try to maintain balance on the downhill while flinging wet clay from my shoes that seems both adventurous and natural to me. The thing about running trails and terrain is that when I'm doing it, my mind is no where else but on the trail. The few times my mind has trailed off in the past, I've payed in the form of embarrassing falls, such as the one by Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia. At least the summer campers who witnessed me get the skid marks enjoyed it!

Most surprisingly, I found Topanga Canyon, a state park centered between the valley and the foot of Malibu's Pacific Ocean to have an oddly independent and isolated feel to it. Unlike many of the arid and dry southern California trails I've been on, much of the trail I trudged up had more of a North Carolina feel -- very green, pretty wet, skinny trails in some areas, tight turns, lots of nature/wildlife (I discovered a deer within the first minute), and yes, hilly. I liken it also to those air freshener or potpourri commercials I would see growing up. Or the tampon one where the woman is frolicing in a green, yet moutainous area while "there she goes" is playing in the background...youtube it, I swear. Damn, if there's one commercial that makes me want to buy tampons that's the one.

As you can see from the picture at the top, Topanga has this sort of Boone, NC feel to it. As you take Top. Canyon Rd. off the PCH, you start to feel like in a little mountain town. Small mom and pop stores and little artsy festivals. If you live in LA and you're in for an escape without escaping, this could be a good place for you.

Song: Carolina On My Mind, James Taylor and The DixieChicks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LvhF0uSEAE

Justin

The Running Scene and Scenes in General

Skinny jogging pants, Nike and Adidas hats, anorexic men, band-aided nips, the occasional breath-right nasal strip, maybe some ipods, and then the beer garden. This is a generalization of the common scene you'll see after a 5K, 10K, half-marathon, or God-forgive, a 26.2 mile race. OH, and I forgot bagels. Lots of bagels.

The chatter: "could've gone faster, but i've been at pretty high mileage for the past month" or "my knee's been bothering me, or I would've been up there."

Am I generalizing? Yes. Stereotyping? Yes. But stereotypes persist for a reason. Scenes are scenes are scenes. How many coffee shops have you driven by where gaggles of cyclists are hanging out sipping on a cup of joe and chattering about their ride? Or networking events for tech, business, or entertainment, where people thumb each other while getting loaded on over-priced mixed drinks, imported beer, and ego.

And I understand the importance of these events. And I understand the postive nature that scenes can have. Belonging is important, right brothers of Sigma Chi?

My point in writing on this particular topic is that we can all be better networkers, fraternity brothers, runners, if we acknowledge the scene we walk into. Scenes somehow tend to provoke competition and subsequently, self-importance. We try to prove things to others through talk. In the words of many, talk is cheap.

In my perspective, when I walk into scenes I try not to take them too seriously. And subsequently, I feel I am at my best. Looser, more honest, more fun, more effective. "Humble Pie" in the words of the New England Patriots, and the proof is in the pudding. I just try to remember, as scenes are scenes are scenes, my work is my work is my work.

Wasting Time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srnxJ6YxrYQ

Justin

78 Degrees and Sunny

Today was a fartlek day. That means I run fast and then slow and fast and slow, but just keep running. It's a fun workout for me because I can control when and how much I change my pace, while getting the aerobic benefits of a moderately-distanced run as well as the speed of a light interval workout.

It was nice because I wasn't bored, my mind wasn't spinning around in circles as it often does on regular runs, nor was I gasping for breath the whole time. In the end I was gasping, but throughout it was fairly smooth. California cherry blossoms in full bloom and summer on the horizon, my mind flash backed to the neighborhoods in Tampa where I began my running. Similar smells, similar feels.

In the movie, "Happy Gilmore," Adam Sandler is told by his golf coach to go to his "Happy Place." My apologies for sounding so corny, but this was sort of mine. Kind of like singing in the shower, running through quiet neighborhoods on clear afternoons has a unique solitude that I've appreciated since I began doing this thing. It's when you do something so much for a period of time, back off from it, and then go back to it and have the same positive feeling that you know you truly appreciate it.

The conclusion of a run and a day like this is the best. When it is all done with, you've cooled down, maybe done some stretching, grab a huge Gatorade, and then sit or lay or drive slow and play some good music. Sort of zen-like.

Tomorrow, maybe my agitated mind will use tomorrow's run to try to grapple with the AIG mess or Obama's selling of the economic bailout (he's in So Cal doing a town hall today and on Leno tomorrow). For now though, I'll use the ignorance-is-bliss card and go for a drive.

Serenity: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-i_AcTz0UU Jack Johnson, Breakdown

Justin

St. Patty's Day - A Little Less Cynical This Time Around

This morning I parked my car on Washington Street by the Venice/Marina Del Rey pier. I was meeting one of my runners for a long run. As we caught up on our walk out to the beach, we walked past several bars and restaurants where local Venetians and those just looking to experience "Deliverence 2" were hanging out. I'm kidding of course. The eclectic culture in Venice is a great experience (just watch out for head lice).

Anywho, I've always looked at "holidays" like St. Patrick's Day with heavy cynicism. Historical remembrence is one thing. Getting hammered by consuming 6 car bombs, 3 Guinesses, enough green beer to satisfy a University of Georgia frat party, and then going home with a girl who looks like Raggedy Anne is a totally different thing.

Nonetheless, I took to it a few different thoughts during the natural lulls in conversation that go on during a long run. Instead of the natural comedic cynicism that resides in me, I thought about Homer Simpson. Just go with me on this. A brilliant quote from Homer, "Alcohol: the cause of-and solution to-all of life's problems."

Now, maybe you're not a drinker (albeit, after reading my blog, you may decide to be). However, the idea that many do use alcohol as a way to blow off steam (I know a doctor who rarely drinks, but after a difficult day in surgery, he will polish off a glass of scotch and hit the sack) maybe isn't such a bad thing? Especially, now-a-days. Financially speaking, St. Patty's day isn't a bad time to hit the bars...when else could you get $.99 shots in LA? Ok, maybe cinco de mayo, but that's to the same point.

The most important reason why I'm shining a positive light on the green holiday this year is because of the comradery I hope it's bringing to people. No, we haven't busted out the bread lines yet, and hopefully, we don't come close to it. But 1-in-4 Americans are jobless, while many others dabble in part-time jobs and spend the heart of their day virally spreading their musings to folks ;)

In many ways, the celebration of holidays is really the celebration for the act of celebrating. To live. To make food. To satisfy those tiny urges we have to throw a party or cook a dish and consume what someone else has created. To give and receive and hopefully, to return the favor. People behaving positively.

Turning back to running, it reminds me of that scene from "Without Limits," the movie highlighting the life and times of American distance running icon, Steve Prefontaine. There's a scene in the movie where all the runners, including Pre (played by the talented Billy Crudup), are sitting in the bleachers of Hayward Field holding a team meeting before the season is set to begin. The legendary coach and Nike Co-Founder, Bill Bowerman (played by the man, the myth, Donald Sutherland), begins a discussion on team hair cuts and how long the length of hair should be--alluding to the pride and physical demonstration in which the team should represent their school, each other, and themselves with. ("Without Limits" Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_O4W7u_wMzY)

Bowerman: What's the standard for how long hair gets before it's offensive?

Pre: It's a completely arbitrary length.

Bowerman: Right.

Pre: So is the length of a meter.

Bowerman: Does that make a meter race unfair?

Pre: Of course not. Not when everyone agrees on what the length is.

Bowerman: Then lets all agree. (Pause) No one on the team will have hair longer than his dick...which means everyone gets a hair cut, except Bob.

Pre: Why except Bob?

Bowerman: God's will, Steve.

More than just an elaborate dick joke, the conversation between Pre and his coach make a brilliant point, and an inference to some of the basic premises of the "social contract" theory originally sprouted from philosophers: Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_contract (that's right, Wiki research)

I think it applies on this day. We all wear green, we play games, we cook Irish meals, some of us drink our asses off, but underlying it all, is a sense of togetherness. A sense that celebrating to celebrate has a greater purpose than what may be advertised on the beer signs outside of restaurants. Hence, why I have let up on making smart ass personal asides when I meet someone who declares how proud they are to be Irish when the furthest they've ever come to visiting Ireland is Dublin...Dublin, Georgia. Ok, maybe not all the way.

Song in my head: Holiday From Real, Jack's Mannequin http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-89ECq0Ut4 (sorry, this is a VH1 edited version)

Off to tutor and drink Bud Light with green food coloring.

Justin

Running for Perspective - Madoff, Cramer, Stewart

In a week featuring swindler Bernie Madoff, a somewhat sane Jim Cramer, and a sobering and serious Jon Stewart, I found my running a good place to discover my own reality. My runs, well not all but some, had this sort of guy-standing-sedately-as-a-tornado-chaotically-swirled-around-him feel to it. Kind of like some of those Zack Braff scenes from the movie "Garden State"--like when the airplane experiences turbulence, people go crazy, and he sits mildly, staring blankly.

Some of the runs I do are boring, a struggle to just keep performing the act. These didn't have that feel. No performance and no act. Instead, they felt like an escape to normalcy, where the legs just move and the arms sway and the last thing I'm thinking about is what I'm doing.

My decisions to run this week were instinctive and the time spent was alone, as if I am someone famous and had to have my "Justin Time." On a side note, whenever someone places their name followed by the word "Time," there is a decent chance he or she may take themselves way too serious (or at the very least, publish a blog).

Occasionally, my mind slipped into the week's top news events. On Friday's run, I recalled the Stewart-Cramer interview. I'm usually not defensive of people who screw others for personal gain, which was Stewart's overt inference to Cramer. Still, I couldn't help but feel a little remorse for Cramer. My feelings dissipated, both at the time I watched the berating and in retrospect at effortless mile 4 when I thought about one line, "This is not a fucking game."
http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Stewart_to_Cramer_Its_not_fking_0313.html

Immediately, my mind recalled the American traditionalists who I know. My grandfather--the long-time Ford employee; two of my friends--Merrill Lynch employees; my dad--a banker...people who put much of their stock, both personally and financially, in security. All of them suffering in one way or another from a massive financial storm that occurred in a blink, and without warning. Like the aforementioned tornado.

"So what now," I thought, as a light sweat maintained itself somewhere around mile 6. The truth of the matter is I don't feel like someone who truly knows much about the economy or the collapse itself. I'm just now starting to figure out how to manage my own money (albeit, I am a bit of an entrepreneur).

On Saturday's run, a relatively short 4.7 miler (that's a pretty good estimate) with nearly perfect Santa Monica weather, the running conversation (pun intended) arose yet again in my head. This time I came to, not an answer, but a resolution. Having not looked up the actual definition of an answer or a resolution, I decided an answer means that one feels absolutely right when they come up with an "answer." When one "resolves," however, the absolutism isn't there. In my head, when I resolve, it's like this is what I'm choosing to believe or this is what I'm going to do, whether it is right or wrong this is the best I can come up with.

I resolved in the "value of work." Another phrase brought up by Stewart, I resolved that "the value of work" trumps it all. With all the visions of vanity that lead us to fast money, quick cars, the country club life, and whatever else that may be over the rainbow, the value of work in the least, seems to just make sense. Find something you have passion for, then you'll work really hard at it, and the money will come because you're producing a high-quality product that people will pay good money for. And when the money comes, and it will, you'll have a better idea of what to do with it since you knew what you had to do to get it. Pretty simple.

The sport of running itself is simple. But it's not easy. What gets you furthest in running? Running. Not breathing techniques, stretch routines, plyometrics, training techniques. Those things make a difference, and sometimes a significant difference. But simply running. That's what gets you the furthest in running. Logging miles. Putting in the time and effort. Working. And so to it is our job, our relationships, our passions.

Off to run to a clear day and a clearer mind.

Good Song Coming to Mind: "Keep It Loose, Keep It Light," Amos Lee
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmQFwIKsU1U

Justin