Sluggish

Went on a five mile run after class tonight, and it was a struggle. I'm sure one reason is because I've also struggled with my diet all this week. Pizza, cola, burritos, Quiznos subs and some sugary sweets aren't giving my body the energy it needs to take run the distances I'm logging at an optimal level. You'd think I'd have a little better handle on my diet with my half marathon just a week and a day away. In the past when I've trained for a specific event, my diet has fallen in line with my running, but not this time. I need to stick to my mantra that "food is fuel."

Mile Marker 400

My eight mile run this evening put me over the 400-mile mark for the year. So far this year I've logged 403.5 miles in 2 days, 20 hours, 49 minutes and 26 seconds. A couple of notes about today's run....

1. Running is better with music. Although I've had it for about four months, today was the first time I ran with my MP3 player. (I'm open for any songs you might think would be good on a running playlist, so if you have any suggestions leave them in the comments.)

2. I brake for snakes. My route today took me a couple laps on a wooded, paved trail around Lake Johnson. Near the end of my run I came upon what looked like a copperhead or maybe a cotton mouth slithering his way across the trail. (All I know is it wasn't a black snake). Rather than try to run by him, I decided to jog in place while he finished crossing the trail. Like Indiana Jones said, "Snakes! Why did it have to be snakes/"

Ladies, wanna get married?

If you're a single woman who desperately wants to be married but is struggling to meet your soulmate, then listen up. I have a can't-miss remedy that is sure to get you down the isle to say "I do" real soon. Just go out with me a few times. Seriously.

Today I found out that Emily, a girl I went out with a few times when I first moved to Raleigh two and a half years ago, got married over the summer. That keeps alive a strange but obvious pattern in my dating life. Including Emily, the last four girls I've gone out with have married the guy they began dating right after our relationship ended.

There's Heather, a girl I dated in high school and early college, Susan, a girl I dated early in college, Sharon, a girl I dated during and immediately after college and now Emily. So ladies, if you want to get married, just go out with me a few times and then get ready to meet your soulmate. That's a better deal than eHarmony! So if I can't be Mr. Right, I'll settle for Mr. Right Before. (All insterested ladies should leave their contact info in the comments section below.)

Running Calendar

Like my good friend Adam, I logged a seven mile run today as part of training for an upcoming half-marathon. Adam and his wife Kim are training for the Baltimore Half-Marathon on Oct. 15 while I'm getting ready for the Cannonball Run Half-Marathon in Greensboro, N.C., on Oct. 8. I'm using that race as a staging ground for my first full marathon attempt.

When I started this blog, I announced that I was going to make a go at this year's Country Music Marathon in Nashville, Tenn. That was before some tendinitis in my knee limited my training and relegated me to doing the half. I had hoped to run this year's Chicago Marathon, but those plans were altered when I had to stop running altogether and take some physical therapy over the summer for the aforementioned tendinitis.

Now that I've been cleared to run again, I've set my sights on my goal of completing my first marathon, having registered for the Walt Disney World Marathon in Orlando, Fla., on Jan. 8, 2006.

More Miles Saved

Pedaled my way to church and back this morning for a round-trip total of 16 miles.

Miles Saved

My trusty computerized odomoter on my bike informs me that I rode a grand total of 12.9 miles today, so that's 12.9 miles I didn't put on my car. My trips included a ride to work this morning, a trip to my barber this afternoon and a ride back home in the early evening.

Conserving Fuel, Saving Money, Helping the Environment

In response to the spike in gas prices related to Hurricane Katrina, I've decided to start biking to work on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. I made the first trek this morning. Granted I don't live far from my office (just over two miles), but every little bit helps. As my friend Trey likes to say, "little is big."

I would try to bike every day but since I drive about a half an hour to Wake Forest for evening classes at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary on Tuesday and Thursdays, it won't be feasible to bike on those days. But I am going to try to bike to places other than work when I can. This afternoon I plan to bike to my barber for a haircut. I may even start biking to church on Sundays.

In addition to conserving fuel, saving money and helping the environment, I'm also hopeful that riding regularly will whip me into better shape.

Crescent City Chaos

In no way can I begin to imagine what the people stranded in the flooded city of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina are enduring, but my thoughts and prayers go out to them. I have a bit of a connection to the area as I was once a student at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Technically, I did most of my studies at the seminary's main extension site in the suburbs of Atlanta, but did travel down to the main campus on two weeklong occassion for class workshops. Word is that much of the seminary campus is underwater just like most of the city. The seminary president and other administrators have relocated and set up shop at the extension campus in Atlanta where they will determine what to do next.