Marathon Man - The Welcome

Today was the first day of the real Team in Training experience. We all met at a local Junior College and had our first 'run'. Many ran, many walked. I walked. A journey of 26 some miles begins with - a walk.

Afterwards we, probably 50-100 people,  gathered and introduced ourselves. At first everyone clapped after someone gave their three sentence statement on why they were running but a coach discouraged that. "You really don't want to clap after someone says they're running because their mom died of Leukemia."

And there was a lot of that.

It's not really a random sampling, but everyone had a cancer story. It was a very depressing 45 minutes. There was a Lymphoma survivor who was going to run his first marathon. There was the woman who had been running for many years but probably wouldn't this year because she'd been diagnosed with breast cancer a few months ago. And people were running for the aunts and uncles and friends and co-workers who had been diagnosed with some form of cancer.

After the meet and greet we all received our official TNT tee-shirt (I can quit now?) and training manual and a schedule. I'm off to the races.

If you're just joining us, details can be found here.

Evernote is very cool

Evernote is my new grab bag for data-like stuff. (as opposed to my Timbuk2 bag, which is my grab bag for real stuff.)

Primarily  because:

1) It syncs! You can get, add or edit your data on the web, on the desktop and on the iPhone. And sync works.

2) You can encrypt snippets within a note. So, I have login info for client sites and I encrypt just the password.  The other info is readily available without having to encrypt the entire note.

3) It's free! (they've started throwing ads at me, fine keep it up). Your use is capped at the free level, but I've not come even close to hitting the cap.

4) Throw all kinds of documents at it (free account is limited to pdfs, I think. Paid version will let you add more). I have a 2 meg pd of the SF Muni system. I've started throwing pdfs of receipts in.

5) On the iphone you can add voice notes. On the desktop, you can add 'iSight' notes (it's a Mac thing.). 

6) It'll parse the text out of graphics. So, take a picture of receipt or business card or something and upload it and search for it later based on the text! (crazy.)

7) Email and or Twit directly to your 'notebook'. It's painfully easy to get data into the system.

Just too cool for school.

Last Laugh

Arnold Schwarzenegger succeeded Gray Davis as governor of California after a recall election, against Davis, in 2003. Schwarzenegger's approval rating right now is inverse to his approval rating when he came into office. (33% approval, 55% disapproval).

 Gray Davis only lasted 10 months into his 2nd term. No one has seriously talked about recalling Arnold, of course. The citizenry probably realizes the folly of that step.

 There are fundamental flaws in how California is governed, caps on income, but none on expenses, minority control of the legislative budget process, the majority party is funded by state unions (which have made being a prison guard a very lucrative job). And we keep electing actors to various state positions.

 Conditions have worsened since various angry-mob reactions to government were passed, starting (of course) with Prop. 13, term limits and the recall. Thoughtful, deliberative democracy (the one that lives only in my imagination) isn't really on the agenda.

 Being an elected official in Sacramento is an act of self-aggrandizement rather than one of leadership.

 Gray Davis is now an 'of counsel' at an LA law firm and will be the keynote speaker at his alma mater's (Columbia) graduation ceremony this year.

Verdict is in and I wasn't there

I had mentioned that I got called for jury duty and asked to be excused after the judge said it'd be a four week trial. Well, the verdict is in and it was closer to a six week trial.

Of course, I understand my potential inconvenience pales in comparison to that suffered by the victim in the case. But jeez, I'm glad I'm not out 6 weeks of income.

Marathon Man

I've signed up with Team in Training to run the CowTown Marathon on October 4th.

Some Background.

I've never been much of a runner. But a little over 10 years ago I started a regular jogging routine to try and get back into shape. I also joined Weight Watchers. I was fairly successful, dropping 30 lbs and getting closer to my target weight. But two years ago I developed plantar fasciitis and am well on my way back up.

One of the things that was helpful when I was trying to lose weight was to involve my friends by posting my progress.

These days I have lunch every Friday with a friend who has run marathons for years. He started later in life (i.e., isn't a punk kid) and got his start by participating in a Team in Training event. That got me thinking about a way I could combine exercise with peerpressure support.

So, a couple of weeks ago I decided to sign up with Team in Training.

I Want Some Good To Come Of It, Besides My Good Health.

Many of you may know that my sister is fighting lung cancer right now. I've seen first hand the day-to-day issues that someone with cancer has to deal with. My sister has been pretty lucky - she has insurance, she has a cadre of friends who help out and her family has been supportive. But, as the saying goes, there are a lot of people who are less fortunate.

Team in Training supports research, which is all well and good, but they also have a support component for patients.

So, Team in Training is going to train me. And you're going to support me, by supporting them. Please click on this link and pledge some money for a good cause. Thanks.

Sorry, was that too subtle?

Please click on this link and pledge some money for a good cause

Things I have lying around

The Boy Scout compass that got me through multiple adventures. Well, this and a competent scout master. It was on a book case, not packed up anywhere. No wonder there's so much clutter...

A Sister Update

It's been a while since I updated you on the sister. For those just tuning in, one of my sisters developed lung cancer. (no, she never smoked). When we last wrote, the sister had visited the Stanford Cancer Center and learned that her doc had been doing everything right and there was no magic bullet. That was last fall.

Since then a couple of things have happened. First, she tried a maintenance drug, Tarceva. The goal here was to contain the cancer rather than try to kill it. The benefit of the approach was that she'd hopefully have an improved 'quality of life'. I.e., the day to day stuff would be better, even if the cancer wasn't going away. However, the cancer should have been contained by Tarceva.

Sadly, that wasn't the case. Right after Christmas last year we learned that the cancer had spread in some cases and grown in others. Not good news, so she went back to standard chemo.

The good news about the chemo she's been on since January is that there have been fewer side effects. Since October 2007, when she was first diagnosed, the sister has been in the hospital three times (all brief stays) as a result of reactions to her chemo. The current drug has had milder side-effects. She's taking this month off from chemo and will resume again in May. The next Petscan, to find out how it's going, is at the end of the month. (drum roll, please)

One of the newer problems, which started last fall, was that she developed cataracts. I've heard this attributed to the chemo as well as steroids she takes to keep her energy up. Who knows. In any case, tomorrow, she goes in for cataract surgery. There will be two different surgeries, one for each eye. When she's done, at the end of the month, not only will she be cataract free, but for the first time in eons she won't need glasses. She also has an astigmatism which the insurance won't pay to fix. The Dr., however, is donating his services for that part of the process. Thanks doc. 

There you have it. Day to day she is fine.  She participates in her kids' school events, is active in church and has traveled some. (I had one friend who assumed she must be a shut-in. Not at all. No cartwheels, but not shut-in.)

She's chronically optimistic and upbeat. Her faith remains the cornerstone of that resiliency. She continues to have a cadre of friends who pitch in to assist her and to be her friend. Her family continues to help where we can, of course.