It Defined Me….

Daily writing prompt

Describe a phase in life that was difficult to say goodbye to.

I was on the verge of turning 33. Too young for a mid-life crisis or deep existential awakening but having been married for 3 years I came to the realization that I desperately needed a hobby, preferably one that got me out of the house for hours at a time. It was at this point that I took up long distance running.

I’m not sure exactly why I turned to distance running besides the fact that it fit my two criteria, get me out of the house and it took lots of time. Whenever I would see people running down the road it seemed like an activity that they didn’t seem to be enjoying. Runners always appeared to have a pained look on their face that seemed to ask “why am I really doing this ?” Perhaps the real reason, if they were being truthful, was that they needed a hobby that got them out of the house for hours at a time.

Admittedly my journey to distance running does seem a bit strange in retrospect. I had never run on the track or cross country team in high school and although I worked out and was in relatively good shape, running wasn’t something I did consistently, but I had always been intrigued by distance running and the ability to train to endure pain and discomfort that seemed to accompany distance running. And quite frankly it fit my personality of enjoying solitary pursuits in some grand quixotic activity. I had always been amazed at the story of the first marathon runner, a messenger in an ancient war who ran 26 miles from the plains of Marathon to deliver the news of a great victory…..he collapsed and died soon after, a Homeric death if there ever was one.

Initially I told no one of my new passion besides my wife. Partly because I wasn’t really sure how long I would commit to it and partly because I knew people would become puzzled and confused about my desire to do an activity that left me exhausted and uncomfortable. Eventually I did begin telling people of my plans to run a marathon. People I told would be silent for a moment with a confused and puzzled look on their faces, before eventually saying something like “now why would you do that ?”

But once I started doing it, I loved it. I bought magazines, yes magazines, that were devoted solely to distance running and all aspects of training. I studied training programs, experimented with different workouts, trained before work then switched and tried training after work to see what was more effective, before work was way more easier to accomplish effective or not. I bought running shoes and then more shoes. My wife stopped accompanying me to the shoe store knowing I would be there for at least an hour trying on shoes and talking training, despite my obvious bribe of taking her to dinner afterwards.

Running became who I was and what I did… it defined me in ways I was sure non runners could never understand. And when I lined up at the starting line of my first marathon with 20,000 other runners I knew I had found my people and my passion.

One marathon led to another and then another, even traveling out of state and meeting up with an old college buddy who had also discovered distance running. And of course there were shorter races almost every weekend in my area. I started noticing the same familiar faces at each starting line, and I soon began to realize who was fast and who I could realistically beat.

When my wife became pregnant one of the baby shower gifts was a running stroller so I could keep running and take my son with me, perhaps my first bit of parental multitasking it accomplished two very important tasks, giving my wife a break and getting my son a nap as he soon fell asleep in the motion of the rolling stroller.

I soon began going to races pushing him in the stroller, no longer preoccupied with being fast, I took great joy in passing as many other runners as possible while pushing a stroller. After a couple of years my son outgrew the stroller, his legs were dangling over the edges. It was at about this time I tried to get back to marathon training. Perhaps it was fate or simply trying to do too much too soon but I quickly developed a stress fracture in my foot which was misdiagnosed initially and when finally properly diagnosed set my recovery back months. Unwilling to have surgery to remove the small offending bone, I began to realize my days of running marathons had suddenly ended.

I turned to other activities, activities that also took hours and required I vacate the premises. Hiking and biking soon replaced running but although each was satisfying they pale in comparison to distance running. I admit part of the allure of running marathons was telling people I ran marathons, and then seeing their bewildered looks. Running defined me in ways that no other activity ever has, no matter how many miles I ride my bike and although my creaky knees are probably partially attributed to running I wish I could still do it.

Peace and love,

John

How About a Walk

Daily writing prompt

What are your morning rituals? What does the first hour of your day look like?

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Some days getting out of bed seems difficult. It’s too cold, too dark, too early and the demands of the day feel far too overwhelming. Who amongst us hasn’t contemplated burying themselves deeper under the blankets, pulling them over our head and wishing we could stay there forever or at least until the sun comes out. But we know the longer we stay hidden under the blankets the further we fall behind in our daily responsibilities…..ugh, responsibilities….those things that people count on you to do. If only there were less responsibilities and more time wrapped in blankets dozing in that early morning slumber.

One way to trick myself to get up and moving is to begin the day with a morning walk. I do this even though I realize that I’m getting up earlier than I need to and I’m robbing myself of extra sleep under a warm comforter, but I feel it’s worth it. Living in the mid-west can make these early morning walks difficult and far less appealing than in a warmer climate. Depending on the time of year it’s still dark and cold, and the moon still glows reminding me that perhaps I’m foolish to be out so early. But with my earbuds in my ears and a winter hat covering my head plus enough layers to stay warm I set out to begin my day.

I find it fascinating to see the my neighborhood at this unique time, night drifting away and morning slowly announcing her arrival. I’ve seen deer browsing through our apple trees eating the fallen apples off the ground and even standing on their hind legs plucking them off the trees. They graze uninterrupted until they sense my presence, they freeze and stare at me for a brief moment and then silently hurry away bounding at an astonishing speed. Other nocturnal creatures scurry away as morning approaches like vampires avoiding daylight.

The birds are the first thing I usually notice, especially in the warmer months chirping and singing a beautiful natural wake up to the world. The singing of the birds means that sunrise is not far behind. Frequently as night disappears into daylight the sky is streaked in a mosaic of colors so wonderful I usually stop and appreciate the beauty before me as if standing before a work of art hanging in a museum, but this is a work of art I’m part of as it surrounds me and with it a new day presenting opportunities and possibilities that are endless.

Could I have these same feelings while burrowed under my comforter dozing in a morning slumber….probably not, and I find that my morning walk gets me going and feeling a positive vibe. I’m more likely to accomplish more if I begin the day with a walk although I have discovered that the morning nap after the morning walk is quite a wonderful feeling too.

Peace and Love,

John

Gimme A Break

Daily writing prompt

Do you need a break? From what?

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If only it was so easy to just have a break. I think we could all use a break from something. Work would rank high on the list of what people would like a break from. Then there are other obligations and commitments that can be overwhelming at times. Taking care of a sick or elderly family member can be both physically and mentally draining. Other times it’s just the drudgery of everyday tasks that we long to escape from. As I sit here looking out my sunroom window I realize I just want a break from winter.

Most years I try to fully embrace winter. I always say there’s no such thing as bad weather just bad clothing choices. As someone who worked outside for most of my career I got used to all kinds of weather. The heat of summer, the damp rains of fall and yes even the snowy clutches of winter. I also enjoy winter activities like skiing or a winter hike on a crisp, raw day. But I’ve come to realize that I really only enjoy those activities if the the sun is shining. So perhaps it’s not winter I need a break from but the gray drabness of it that accompanies winter in the midwest.

I swear we can go a week without seeing the sun. We get up each day in darkness, soon the darkness fades to reveal an endless gray sky and a landscape covered in snow. Everything looks the same and only two colors dominate our vision, gray and the white of snow. I feel like I’m living in my own black and white film.

And because it’s only the beginning of February I know there are still weeks of this bleakness. On gray overcast days I just want to stay inside and hibernate with some soup simmering on the stove and a book that takes me away from my existence. I wouldn’t mind winter if only we had more sunshine.

So yes, I’ll gladly take a break from the depths of winters cold grip and gray drabness and as soon as a sunny day comes along I’ll be out there enjoying it no matter the temperature.

Peace and Love,

John

So Many to Read, So Little Time

Daily writing prompt

What books do you want to read?

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For the last few years I’ve been keeping track of the books I’ve read. Each year I try to read more than the previous year. This past year I read 17 books….. I believe that’s the most I’ve read in a year but I know it pales in comparison to some people, my wife is a voracious reader who can easily read 1 or even 2 books a week.

I like to to keep track of what I’ve read to see if I’m perhaps reading too much of a certain author or genre. I enjoy reading John Grisham books and each year I seem to read 1 or 2. Either he comes out with a new one or I find a title I haven’t read at my local library. I recently found one at the library that I hadn’t read. The story revolved around the theft of the F. Scott Fitzgerald manuscripts from the Princeton library. It got me thinking that I never read any other works by Fitzgerald except Gatsby. It took me multiple readings of Gatsby to truly appreciate it. I was always hung up on the idea that it was just a story of the rich and privileged doing awful things and not being held accountable. Even though Gatsby is hung up on his high school crush it’s still a story of love and loss. I read that Gatsby wasn’t even a big success when it was written and Fitzgerald was bankrupt and so desperate for money and recognition that he was writing screen plays in Hollywood when he died. I think I’ll read more Fitzgerald this year to see if his other story’s are as good as Gatsby.

I’ve always been fascinated with Hemingway. He himself cultivated an image of a man who could drink more, write better, out fight and out womanize anyone else. As with a lot of mythology some of this is true and some of it is pure fiction, but the man could write. Not everything he wrote stands the test of time and some of his subjects are just plain puzzling nowadays, his fascination with bullfighting and traveling around Europe as part of “the lost generation” seems odd. His personal life may have been as tragic as the characters in his books but some of those books are pure genius. The subjects of love, loss and death permeate his great works and I think I’ll continue to read as much of his work as I can.

Being a sports fan I could easily spend a whole year reading nothing but sports books especially baseball. I think of all the sports, baseball is the sport that has the most books about it, perhaps it’s the history and tradition of the game or maybe just the simple pace and day to day nature of it but I do enjoy a baseball book during the long, dark, cold winter months. Reading a baseball book in the winter gives me something to look forward to as the seasons eventually change.

I read somewhere that the best story’s are about baseball, running and horses. Maybe it’s the solitary nature of running, the lyrical day to day grind of baseball and the simple beauty of a horse but I have read great books about all 3 of those subjects. But there are great story’s everywhere…..go find a book and read it

Peace and Love,

John

Curled up in a Corner

Daily writing prompt

What is your favorite animal?

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I’ve always thought it was unfair to label someone a “dog person” or a “cat person.” If you love animals enough to provide a loving home to one, then you probably love all types of animals. Sometimes people have a preference, they grew up with a dog or a cat or perhaps a horse or goat and they have fond memories of that animal.

My wife and I have had a dog and a cat, and although they never did really get along we loved them both. They carved out a spot in our hearts much like they carved out an existence in our home while ignoring the other. We gave them love and they returned it. We played with them, took them on walks, the dog we took on walks, cuddled with them, shared the couch and bed with them and put up with their midnight ramblings and early morning wake-ups.

If I had to pick a favorite…. I would choose a cat. Growing up we had a cat in our family. She lived a long time and like any pet became part of the family. We lived out in the country and during warm summer nights she would stay out all night carousing around the neighborhood, at least that’s what I like to believe she was doing. Quite frequently she would be out hunting….usually at least once a week our lovable cat would leave the carcass of a small critter on the front porch in a proud display as if saying “look what I have brought you, now shower me with love and adulation.”

Mice, birds, rabbits all were left bloody and in some cases decapitated on the front porch. This required a thorough clean-up and scrubbing of the porch, usually by my irritated mother……how us kids got out of that I’ll never know. Mom would sometimes scold the cat as she was scrubbing the porch but the cat usually sat there with an imperious look on her face confused why the gift wasn’t lovingly received. Then she would disappear the rest of the day sleeping a restful slumber until the next night.

Cats have this amazing ability to show no remorse, guilt or even understand why you might be upset. They strut about ignoring everyone, demanding to be fed at odd hours and then curl up and sleep for most of the day indignant if awakened before they have achieved at least 20 consecutive hours of sleep.

I wish I had the confidence of a cat, but I’m frequently empathetic to others and often guilt stricken from doing or not doing something. I always say I have the personality of a cat…..I’ll probably ignore you most of the time, not because I don’t like you but I’d rather just be doing my own thing hidden away in a corner. If I need something I’ll let you know and if you need something from me I’ll always be there……now if only I could sleep as much as a cat, that would be glorious

Take care or your pets….

Peace

John

Play More

Daily writing prompt

Do you play in your daily life? What says “playtime” to you?

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It’s not just me but I don’t think alot of people spend time “playing.”

I find it strange to drive around neighborhoods and see very few kids outside playing. I was fortunate that I grew up in a neighborhood where there was other kids my age to hang out with. We’d ride our bikes up and down the street seeing who else was outside and if there was enough of us we’d decide to do something. Sometimes there was enough of us to organize a game of some kind. We might play for hours or until one of us was called home, and when I mean called home it wasn’t our parents calling us on a cell phone it was usually Mom yelling down the street to get home or another Mom coming by and passing along a message from your Mom.

That’s how communication worked back then in neighborhoods, every Mom knew the other Mom’s and they all seemed to know each other’s phone number and even if my Mom didn’t know where I was it could be quickly determined where all the kids were hanging out by the Mom’s telephone network.

Sometimes the game we were playing devolved quickly due to arguing about the fairness of the teams or some rule interpretation but we’d do it all again the next day and the best thing was that it was all organized by us kids. There were no parents around to make every game an ultra-organized affair, in fact when a parent did get involved it was very awkward and I think most of us kids were thinking the same thing…..

“just leave us alone to figure it out”…….and usually we did

I’m not sure kids today have enough free time for play. Parents have over-scheduled organized activities for their kids that keep them busy all the time. We all know the parents who are constantly shuttling kids from soccer to dance to piano to karate to robotics to computer coding camp and on and on and on…….

As I grow older I find myself wanting to play more…..perhaps it’s just me trying to recall my youth or I realize that too much time is spent working or taking care of everyday life tasks like taking the car for an oil change or cleaning the leaves out of the gutters. Of course there are ways for adults to play……pickleball seems to be wildly popular and golf is always an activity that adults can enjoy as they age but I find myself wanting to walk more, ride my bike more, go on hikes.

A couple of years ago I bought a kite and on a perfectly windy spring day I flew my kite……I ran with it and launched it and watched as it caught the wind and climbed higher as I released more string. I watched the kite dance on the breeze dipping and swirling, often I had to pull quickly on the string to prevent a full nose dive….it was exhilarating in ways that are hard to describe……yes I felt like a kid again wanting the kite to stay aloft and hoping the string was strong enough and wouldn’t break in the spring breeze. Neighbors driving by were probably perplexed to see me standing there flying a kite but it was joyful and quite frankly I didn’t care what they thought….they might even have been jealous or not, it didn’t matter because as a kid it didn’t matter what other’s thought when you were playing, all that matter was that you were doing it and doing is much better than not doing and besides I’m not ready for pickleball

Peace and Love

John

Changes Happen

Daily writing prompt

Is your life today what you pictured a year ago?

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No…..most definitely not. There’s been a big change from a year ago. I call this new phase semi-retirement or Act 2. Back in September the large multi-national global conglomerate of a company I toiled for over 25 years announced they were consolidating operations and closing the location I worked at, and although I was offered another position at a different location I thought it was best to move on.

My routine of getting up and rushing off to work and working 8 or more hours has been replaced by lazy mornings sitting in my sun-room, laptop open scrolling through news and contemplating blog posts. The birds are getting breakfast at the feeder and in the field behind our house the deer roam languidly searching for any last beans that didn’t get harvested. All the projects that get talked about and never started have been started and some have been completed to be replaced by more projects. To be honest not everything has been started, that book I keep contemplating has not been started….that might be a commitment I’m not ready for.

I spend more time researching travel destinations…..did you know the best time to go to Machu Picchu is in the spring or fall to avoid the rainy season and avoid the crowds of the summer season. If you desire to hike the Inca Trail it’s a four day hike to Machu Picchu but there’s also a train that can take you to the top. So far my semi-retirement travel has been limited to the continental U.S. but perhaps with more free time I’ll expand my destinations.

Also this has been the first year in forever that I sent out Christmas cards. I always had the excuse that December was actually my busiest month so I had no time for cards, but this year cards are mailed, decorations are hung and most of the shopping is complete with still a week before Christmas.

Much to my wife’s chagrin there are times during the week I don’t even know what day it is, and as the weather has turned colder here in the mid-west my lazy mornings are stretching into lazy afternoons. I find myself sitting around more and watching stuff instead of doing stuff. These are not habits that I want to continue so Act 2 is evolving and I recently accepted a part-time position at our local community college. I love the idea of working part-time at this point of my life. I’ll still have the flexibility of time but with the incentive and purpose that only a job can provide, and lets face it my allowance around here wasn’t increasing.

As I sit here and think about the changes of the past couple of months I realize that life can throw you some unexpected curve balls and it’s important to be willing to accept change and look ahead, perhaps even if you think your taking a step back it’s really just a precursor to a new situation….Act 2…..the mornings are better, it hardly matters what day of the week it is and finding a new purpose is a revelation to be embraced…….

So look ahead and enjoy the journey, don’t sit around and if possible start planning your next adventure…..and avoid the rainy season

Peace and Love

John

Saturday Mornings

Daily writing prompt

What’s your favorite cartoon?

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When I was a kid cartoons were a Saturday morning ritual. Get up early, grab some cereal and plop down in front of the TV. Especially if the weather was cold or rainy and mom wasn’t yelling at me to turn off the TV and get outside. I loved cartoons so much that I never had a problem getting up to watch them unlike the misery of getting up for school 5 days a week. Perhaps because cartoons only came on once a week that it seemed so enjoyable.

I had many favorites……who amongst us could resist the adventures of Scooby Doo and the gang rolling around in the Mystery Machine, poking their noses into odd situations and then solving a strange occurrence that usually involved an adult in some kind of costume or mask which led to the great reveal at the end where the bad guy, and it was almost always guys, would be unmasked. The great reveal was soon followed by the line that has become synonymous with the show as the criminal exclaimed that he…..

“would have gotten away with it if it hadn’t been for those meddling kids”

I’m glad I watched it as a kid because as an adult I would have so many questions, the two obvious ones would be……..what exactly was in those Scooby Snacks they were constantly munching on, and can someone explain the exact relationship between Freddy, Daphne and Velma ?

Scooby and the gang held my attention for a few years, they even had a season where it seemed like every show had a special guest. I remember Hollywood stars like Phyllis Diller, Don Knotts, Sandy Duncan and even the Harlem Globetrotters joining the gang for an episode of hi-jinks and hilarity. Eventually they found it necessary to add characters and with the addition of Scooby’s nephew Scrappy Doo the entire show seemed to change, and although it remains a fond memory it isn’t my favorite……that distinction without a doubt belongs to the Looney Tunes gang especially Bugs Bunny.

I think the reason Bugs became my favorite cartoon is that he could find himself in any situation and he was clever enough to get out of it. In fact he was far more more clever than the humans he encountered, whether it was Elmer Fudd or some other human, Bugs had the unique ability to devise a scheme that made the antagonist seem silly. The show was unique and daring to put Bugs in situations no other cartoon would attempt….what other cartoon would put their main character in woman’s clothes and make-up and poke fun of the other characters for not recognizing him.

It was through Bugs that I was introduced to opera and although I continue to have no interest nor do I see any opera in my future, I am aware that there is an opera called the Barber of Seville, but I prefer the Bugs parody the Rabbit of Seville.

Whether Bugs was playing baseball and seemingly playing each position as pitcher, catcher and fielder and then smacking home runs to win the game or wrestling behemoths like “The Crusher,” Bugs constantly found himself out-manned, outgunned but not out-smarted. Perhaps it’s because Bugs was usually in an underdog position that he becomes so identifiable. Most of the time life puts us in positions where we feel out-manned, outgunned and on the defensive, but by being clever and using our brains instead of just brawn there is a way to prosper……and let’s face it, Bugs Bunny in a dress with outrageous amounts of make-up seductively walking around and being flirtatious is the most daring and clever thing you would see on a Saturday morning. Long live Bugs and the Looney Tunes gang……

Peace and love

John

Early Bird or Night Owl

Daily writing prompt

Are you more of a night or morning person?

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Ah, the dance between the morning person who’s up with the sun or the late night soul who’s productivity peaks when most people are asleep. I’ve been both of these people at different times of my life.

The college years was probably the peak of my late night adventures. Staying up late studying, watching TV or just hanging out with friends life at that age was all about late nights. I did occasionally have an early morning class that I’m proud to say I rarely missed but after my first year I learned how to schedule my classes to avoid that situation. The hard part was adjusting my late nights to my parents routine when I came home for holidays or summer vacation. My parents were headed to bed as I was headed out the door. This routine kept going after college for a few years when I could stay out late and still get to work on time.

Unless a job situation requires working the afternoon or midnight shift most people seem to adjust their habits. This mainly happens when you get married and start having kids. Kids have this amazing ability to not comprehend schedules, clocks and the need for consistent sleep. My son was up early, ready to go when all my wife and I wanted to do was sleep just a little bit more. There were also times when he would be up late refusing to go to sleep as if he might be missing out on some great thing we were doing. I tried explaining to him that nothing is happening in this house after he goes to sleep but he really didn’t understand….of course he was only a toddler so any moment he wasn’t awake he probably felt he was missing something.

Now though I’m up early….. I like to get a morning walk and sometimes I get to see the sunrise. I’m most productive in the morning…..working out, planning the day and yes the occasional blog post. I enjoy the idea of being up when others are still in a deep slumber. It helps to have a reason to get up each day, even if my days aren’t as busy as they used to be. Kids grow up and they become the ones staying up late……..sure if I start watching a show I might stay up and watch a couple of episodes but I generally reach a time when I know my day is done and that’s alot earlier than it used to be but I know I’ll be up for the sunrise tomorrow

Peace and Love

John

Can I Have 3 More ?

Daily writing prompt

Name your top three pet peeves.

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This is like when you find the magic lamp and the genie pops out and grants you 3 wishes….your first wish is to ask for unlimited wishes but then the genie says “nope, you only get 3″….. ok fine, 3 pet peeves

The first is technology…..oh technology, my friend, my enemy, my frenemy…… you make everything so easy and so, so frustrating. Need directions, just take out your phone and get turn by turn directions. It’s gotten to the point that I wonder how anybody got anywhere before maps on our phones.

Need to find out which president died shortly after his inauguration because his speech was too long and he caught pneumonia….it’s just a query away on your phone ( I don’t actually know who that was or even if he did die of pneumonia because I didn’t actually look it up but I do remember from history class that did happen )…..my point is before smart phones and Google we had to find information in the encyclopedia or at the library or by asking our parents, and lets be honest 2 out of 3 of those were probably accurate and the other just told you something to get rid of you.

I marvel at all the wonderful technology and information just a few keystrokes away but nothing and I mean nothing gets my blood pressure rising than creating a profile and password for every single stinkin thing on the web. Scan this QR code, create a profile and password, become a preferred member, accumulate points, get a discount………why is it that everybody on the web wants me to be a preferred member with a profile and password. My password book is now multiple pages long and yet most on them still don’t work…… is that all caps for that one or just one capital letter and is that the number one or the special character the exclamation point….UGH, WHY WON’T IT TAKE IT…..I KNOW IT’S RIGHT….my wife’s solution is to just ask for another password and update it…….but I have a book of passwords of multiple pages some of them must work….right ?

My second pet peeve is fake outrage. Everybody is outraged about something and they have a way to express it. Blame the cell phone again or perhaps social media but I blame us, humans for this one. Folks…..are we really devolving into people that whine and complain about everything……please you can’t really be outraged about all the things I see on Facebook or Tiktok or Twitter. I do feel this is just sad attempts at seeking attention for yourself and whatever cause nobody is really paying attention to. And lets face it most things posted on social media are quickly forgotten as people scroll by and there’s so much outrage going on that it’s really just become noise, background noise that people ignore like traffic noise.

The third pet peeve and this one is the cousin to fake outrage…..fake urgency. Just because you can reach me immediately by phone or text doesn’t mean I have to respond immediately. Just because you think your problem is of utmost importance doesn’t mean that I have to solve it right now. Very few things need to be taken care of now….in fact most things can wait, an hour, a day, a couple of days in fact…..so if I don’t answer my phone the first time you call then send me a text but if I don’t answer it right away I’m probably looking through my password book for the right password for my profile so I can become a preferred member and get points and discounts on the web……

Peace and Love

John