More Running Thoughts

Yesterday I had a brief post about a new online community for runners. A side note was about my attempts to recapture my love of running. Running, now, is a significant amount of work. 20 years ago, it was fun; meditation in motion. I thought about it and hit one key thought: weight.

I weighed about 175 in my running/cycling heyday. When I started reclaiming this lifestyle, I hit 208. Now at 194, things are more pleasant. But those 20 pounds will still affect my feelings. I’m sure that getting my weight closer to an ideal will really help. And getting my fitness level up will, too.

The other thing I noted: a lifetime of terrible eating habits. Since I lived physical activity and would run/bike for hours, I never paid attention to what I are. At the point in life, eating a good diet is crucial to accomplishing my goals. Actually, I think I need to focus in a great diet.

My fitness tracking tools show a nutrient breakdown of my diet. Truly, it’s sad how pathetically few nutrients I get from food. I need to take a multivitamin to get crucial elements. I want to develop a diet that gets me my fully nutrient load, while also not jamming me full of sugar.

Clearly I have work to do.

New Running Online Community

Over the past few months, I’ve been working hard to get my fitness level back up. Years ago, I was a hard-core runner and cyclist, with many hours/miles logged. Though I’ve slipped on cycling, it’s still a regular part of my life. However, running has not.

Back then, there was a zen quality to running and cycling. Now, cycling still has that quality. Running, however, is simply work. There are moments, when I run, that I feel my mind slip away into the rhythm of my cadence. Moments, fading into work.

Having accountability, connection, makes the return to this level of fitness much more fun. So, seeing on GeekWire that Brooks and MapMyFitness have started a new community makes me feel good. Run Happy looks like it might really add something to the fitness community. I look forward to seeing how this evolves.

The All Powerful Snooze Button

Laying here listening to my wife’s alarm go off, I’m struck by a significant societal shift which took place during my lifetime: the snooze bar. 

I remember a world where these things didn’t exist. That your alarm clock rang once a day. Heck, you needed to remember to arm the thing before you went to sleep. I suppose some folks rewound the clock and moved the alarm hand forward a few minutes. But most didn’t. Ring, then up; no other methodology existed. 
Now, we tend to gradually awaken. With smartphones and such, you can choose pleasant tones to gently rouse you from slumber. Speaking for myself, my alarm starts earlier, with a more gradual waking process. 

I’m not sure what, if any, deeper effects have been brought about by this. Something to explore. It’s hard to imagine that a significant shift in a culture’s circadian rhythm won’t have some larger impact.  

A Story of Epilepsy and the Power Of Love

The Story Collider podcast has become a deeply integrated into my psyche, and my life. I stumbled  upon the series via Radiolab. On my commute today, I listened to Sara Peters and Peter Aguero’s story about Sara’s epilepsy.  This was very well done: by the end I felt connected to them.

So, I highly recommend you spend a few minutes of your life watching the video below (the podcast was recorded at TedMed 2013, so, thus, you get video). Your life will be the better for it.

(It wouldn’t be a bad idea to subscribe to Story Collider, too. Just sayin’.) 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRqqRFr5ceQ&w=560&h=315]

Real Estate and the Web

Been spending a fair amount of time today looking at different website options for my company. At this point, I’m not terribly impressed with any of them. Makes me think I should go and build my own. 

My dream system has all the components of your standard transaction well integrated. CRM, transaction steps, offer tracking, listings, key dates…all that sort of thing, That and tightly integrating our blogs, YouTube channels, Twitter feed, etc. Want to maximize SEO for our work. 

Chatting with some colleagues, I have some other options to explore. The most interesting, to me at least, is the notion of building a whole site on my own via WordPress. Then I would add the functionality I want with plugins. Seems very doable, and would feed my inner (and outer) geek. 

Perfection’s Obsessive Pursuit Destroys Effectiveness

The obsessive pursuit of perfection can destroy effectiveness. How easy would it be, continuously review, rewrite, redo a project. Keep revolving within this loop until its perfect, or we die. I would expect that giving into this loop, perfection would only be achieved well after the project’s usefulness was long past. 


Now, we need to keep mind for quality. Try to make whatever we’re creating as effective as possible. Yet, something is better than nothing. 

Deliver the best you can. Fix, with diligence and haste any material mistakes, smile about the non-material. Be proud of your work, and the problems it solves. 

Fireworks and Living in the Neighborhood

Sitting up last night, appx 1:30 am, listening to the booms and watching the flashes of my neighbor’s festivities got me thinking. This area has several interesting conundrums regarding fireworks.

I live in unincorporated Snohomish County. Whatever ordinances might be in place are pathetically enforced. Lives would need to be at risk in order for the Sheriff to respond. (Not to disparage my local officers…community police work is pretty challenging as the Sheriff’s staff is run quite thin. One reason to vote for incorporation into Lynnwood…whenever that finally comes). Lynnwood isn’t much better. Technically, exploding and airborne fireworks are verbotten. However, I saw several exceptions to that which were purchased (apparently) at local stands. Anyway, locals know that little will be done to enforce those controls…at least on the Fourth.

Edmonds has had a ban for years. I loved the Fourth when I lived down there since it was quite calm. The war-zone ambiance was completely lacking (unlike my current neighborhood).

Marysville has the tough issue of immediate proximity to Boom City. Enforcement would be an exercise in futility, I’m sure.

Anyway, just some random thoughts. Don’t know if I’m fully for, or against, fireworks bans. I enjoy the things fine, but also like being able to sleep at night.

What do you think?