Saturday, March 27, Day 27 of challenge: Ran: O miles/ Ran so far: 65.4/ Miles to go 934.6
It was another beautiful, but windy day in Dallas but I couldn't really enjoy it. I woke up not feeling well. Not sure if it is allergies or fighting off a cold. Got to school for a 12:30 luncheon for the Sumners Scholarship Program discussed in yesterday's post. Then we had the Student Bar Association Crayfish Boil and Carnival. Enjoyed seeing everyone, even if I did not feel at my best. Then I went with Gym Rat to look at another condo community. Ok, all my friends in New York and California, I am sorry but Dallas is soooooooo affordable. I have watched a few HDTV shows where people are looking at 1000 square foot condos for hundreds of thousands of dollars or more. We looked at a two bedroom, two bath, nice area, 1000 plus square feed, newly renovated complex, The Piazza, with courtyards and all the updates (granite counter tops, stainless steel sinks and appliances, big closets, laundry room and hard wood floors, etc. And the price? $125,000. You can find a parking space to buy in Manhattan for that price.....Of course, Dallas is not Manhattan, but still.....
Afterwards we went to Pandera's for a sandwich and I watched a little tennis at my friends apartment then fell asleep on his couch. I woke up only to eat some cheap fried chicken from Albertsons that I had purchased on the way home from Gym Rat's apartment because, when we were looking at the condo,someone had been frying chicken and I could not get the smell out of my mind. I love fried chicken. And I ate three thighs and had a glass of my box Cabernet then went to bed early. I hope I will feel better Sunday for a run....Being sick and having bricks for feet is not fun....but speaking of bricks for feet, that reminded me of a cruel song my brother and I used to sing to our shy older sister, Joyce. It was based on the old tune Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue, etc. Only we changed the words to be:
Five foot Six,
Legs like sticks,
Feet like bricks,
and has some hicks!
Has anybody seen my sister?
Maybe my brick feet this week is just Karma for tormenting my poor sister....Joyce...I am sorry....I promise not to sing that song again! Life is Good! (even if I don't feel so good :) )
Monday, March 29, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Day 26th Ouch...my leg hurts. Good News, Bad News Who is to say?
Friday, day 26, ran 1.5 miles/ total so far: 65.4 / Miles to go: 934.6
It was a beautiful day and I left work in the sunshine intent on running 5 miles at the Katy Trail before going to a dinner at the Petroleum Club for the Scholarship Program that was responsible for my coming to SMU Law School. The Hatton Sumner's Scholarship is a full ride and this is the weekend the Trustees invite 30 some odd students to interview for 5 or 6 slots. I remember my interview weekend 34 years ago.
But first, the background. I had decided to go to Vanderbilt Law School. I had been invited to a weekend at Vanderbilt for a scholarship program they had called the Patrick Wilson Scholarship. It was a $5,000 a year scholarship which was a big deal back in 1976. The Sumners, all inclusive scholarship, was about 8,400 a year. The Patrick Wilson Foundation had a similar weekend interview event...only it lasted two days and they only invited 15 students. Five would get the scholarship. On Sunday afternoon you were told to go to your dorm room and wait for a phone call. If it did not come by 4 pm you did not get the scholarship and if you got the call you had to accept on the spot or they would go to another candidate. I waited knowing it was my manifest destiny to win the scholarship or else, how could this poor boy from Tyler, Texas who had gone to Tyler Junior College and then a small liberal arts college, Centenary College of Louisiana, have been selected to be one of the finalist for the Patrick Wilson Scholarship?
I did not get the call. I kept looking at the clock from 2:00 when we finished our interviews until 4 o'clock. But no call. Devastated I started packing my bags. Then at 4:30 the phone rang, but it was not the Foundation. It was from the Dean's Office. He wanted to see me. In his office he said he was sorry that I had not received the scholarship, but they really wanted me to come and they would give me the same amount of money: half in a scholarship and half in loans. I was pleased to be "wanted" even if I was disappointed not to be a Patrick Wilson Scholar.
Back at home I determined to go to Vanderbilt. A few days later there was a Pre-Law weekend event at Centenary College and Dean Charles Galvin from SMU was on campus talking about the law school. He told us about this Hatton Sumners Scholarship. One of my academic advisers, Dr. Walter Lowery, told me I should apply. So on the last day to apply, I sent in my application. Not long afterwards came the invitation for Hatton Sumners Weekend, I would only need one suit for this event so I packed my brown pin stripe and left the burgundy suit and burgundy patent leather shoes that I had taken to Nashville for the all weekend Patrick Wilson affair at home. Only later, in retrospect, did it occur to me that perhaps that burgundy suit had something to do with me not getting a phone call in my dorm room at Vanderbilt.... but what did I know?.. I thought I was styling in my JC Penny suits that fit in perfectly well at Commercial National Bank, Shreveport LA, where I was a teller. More about me as a law school fashionista in a later post!
At the Hatton Sumners weekend I remember being asked, since my LSAT score was good but not as good as some of the applicants, but my GPA was really high, if my grades were so good because I did not go to good schools? I was upset and said something like, "No, but I am sure If I decided to come to SMU I would do well as I had always done well." I left the weekend thinking even if I got this scholarship I am not sure I would come. But when a couple of weeks later a letter announcing that I had won the scholarship arrived, there was no doubt that I would go to SMU and I am forever grateful to the Foundation for allowing me to go to SMU and not to have to borrow. I am sure that the decision to go to SMU was one of the most monumental in affecting the course of my life. And not getting the Patrick Wilson meant that I applied for and received the better Sumners Scholarship and the rest is history.
Which brings me to the Good News, Bad News, Who is to Say part of this post. If you have been reading these entries you know that I often say the Good News is or the Bad News was, etc. It is a way of thinking about life that I have adopted from an old Chinese proverb. I have told this story at every orientation since I came to SMU and it has become a part of the culture of the place. Recently the students made a music video of me telling this story for a production called Follies. The story goes like this:
There was an old man in China whose wealth was his horse. He used it to work and to go to the village. One day the horse ran away to the mountains. All the villagers came to the old man and said, "Old man, such bad fortune, your horse has run away." The old man merely replied, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
A couple of weeks later, the horse returned with 5 wild horses. Suddenly the old man was rich. All the villagers came to the old man and said, "Old man, such good fortune, you now have 6 horses and you are a rich man." The old man merely said, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
Later the old man's only son broke his leg trying to train one of the wild horses. All the villagers came to the old man saying, "Old man, such bad fortune. Your only son has broken his leg." The old man merely said, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
While the son was recovering, the warlord in that region declared war against a neighboring region and conscripted all the able bodied young men who went to fight and many were killed. Of course, the old man's son was spared because of his broken leg. All the villagers came to the old man saying, "Old man, such good fortune, you one and honorable son has been spared." And of course, the old man merely said, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
At this point in the orientation address I turn to the students and say, "So here you are in you first day at SMU Dedman School of Law and here I am, you Dean of Students. Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?" Many times students will come to my office and start the conversation with the words, "Dean Camp, the Good News, Is.....but the Bad News Is....." It is helpful to realize that at the moment when anything happens to us we do not know where it will lead, or in the words of the famous radio commentator, Paul Harvey, we do not always know "The rest of the story."
So my Good News, Bad News about today is that once I got to the Katy trail, my shins started hurting and my calf cramped. My legs felt like two led pipes sunk in cement. My resolve to run 5 miles faded and I was only able to run 1.5 miles. I realize that I may have been pushing myself a little too hard too fast at the beginning of this one year, 1000 mile journey. I do not want to get hurt and I want to finish. I will wait and see how I feel tomorrow, Saturday before decided what the next step is. Maybe being a little hurt this early is a good think, a wake up call to take things easy and build up the miles....So I did not run my five miles today and my legs hurt...Good News, Bad News, Who is to say? But I do know that Life is Good!
It was a beautiful day and I left work in the sunshine intent on running 5 miles at the Katy Trail before going to a dinner at the Petroleum Club for the Scholarship Program that was responsible for my coming to SMU Law School. The Hatton Sumner's Scholarship is a full ride and this is the weekend the Trustees invite 30 some odd students to interview for 5 or 6 slots. I remember my interview weekend 34 years ago.
But first, the background. I had decided to go to Vanderbilt Law School. I had been invited to a weekend at Vanderbilt for a scholarship program they had called the Patrick Wilson Scholarship. It was a $5,000 a year scholarship which was a big deal back in 1976. The Sumners, all inclusive scholarship, was about 8,400 a year. The Patrick Wilson Foundation had a similar weekend interview event...only it lasted two days and they only invited 15 students. Five would get the scholarship. On Sunday afternoon you were told to go to your dorm room and wait for a phone call. If it did not come by 4 pm you did not get the scholarship and if you got the call you had to accept on the spot or they would go to another candidate. I waited knowing it was my manifest destiny to win the scholarship or else, how could this poor boy from Tyler, Texas who had gone to Tyler Junior College and then a small liberal arts college, Centenary College of Louisiana, have been selected to be one of the finalist for the Patrick Wilson Scholarship?
I did not get the call. I kept looking at the clock from 2:00 when we finished our interviews until 4 o'clock. But no call. Devastated I started packing my bags. Then at 4:30 the phone rang, but it was not the Foundation. It was from the Dean's Office. He wanted to see me. In his office he said he was sorry that I had not received the scholarship, but they really wanted me to come and they would give me the same amount of money: half in a scholarship and half in loans. I was pleased to be "wanted" even if I was disappointed not to be a Patrick Wilson Scholar.
Back at home I determined to go to Vanderbilt. A few days later there was a Pre-Law weekend event at Centenary College and Dean Charles Galvin from SMU was on campus talking about the law school. He told us about this Hatton Sumners Scholarship. One of my academic advisers, Dr. Walter Lowery, told me I should apply. So on the last day to apply, I sent in my application. Not long afterwards came the invitation for Hatton Sumners Weekend, I would only need one suit for this event so I packed my brown pin stripe and left the burgundy suit and burgundy patent leather shoes that I had taken to Nashville for the all weekend Patrick Wilson affair at home. Only later, in retrospect, did it occur to me that perhaps that burgundy suit had something to do with me not getting a phone call in my dorm room at Vanderbilt.... but what did I know?.. I thought I was styling in my JC Penny suits that fit in perfectly well at Commercial National Bank, Shreveport LA, where I was a teller. More about me as a law school fashionista in a later post!
At the Hatton Sumners weekend I remember being asked, since my LSAT score was good but not as good as some of the applicants, but my GPA was really high, if my grades were so good because I did not go to good schools? I was upset and said something like, "No, but I am sure If I decided to come to SMU I would do well as I had always done well." I left the weekend thinking even if I got this scholarship I am not sure I would come. But when a couple of weeks later a letter announcing that I had won the scholarship arrived, there was no doubt that I would go to SMU and I am forever grateful to the Foundation for allowing me to go to SMU and not to have to borrow. I am sure that the decision to go to SMU was one of the most monumental in affecting the course of my life. And not getting the Patrick Wilson meant that I applied for and received the better Sumners Scholarship and the rest is history.
Which brings me to the Good News, Bad News, Who is to Say part of this post. If you have been reading these entries you know that I often say the Good News is or the Bad News was, etc. It is a way of thinking about life that I have adopted from an old Chinese proverb. I have told this story at every orientation since I came to SMU and it has become a part of the culture of the place. Recently the students made a music video of me telling this story for a production called Follies. The story goes like this:
There was an old man in China whose wealth was his horse. He used it to work and to go to the village. One day the horse ran away to the mountains. All the villagers came to the old man and said, "Old man, such bad fortune, your horse has run away." The old man merely replied, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
A couple of weeks later, the horse returned with 5 wild horses. Suddenly the old man was rich. All the villagers came to the old man and said, "Old man, such good fortune, you now have 6 horses and you are a rich man." The old man merely said, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
Later the old man's only son broke his leg trying to train one of the wild horses. All the villagers came to the old man saying, "Old man, such bad fortune. Your only son has broken his leg." The old man merely said, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
While the son was recovering, the warlord in that region declared war against a neighboring region and conscripted all the able bodied young men who went to fight and many were killed. Of course, the old man's son was spared because of his broken leg. All the villagers came to the old man saying, "Old man, such good fortune, you one and honorable son has been spared." And of course, the old man merely said, "Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?"
At this point in the orientation address I turn to the students and say, "So here you are in you first day at SMU Dedman School of Law and here I am, you Dean of Students. Good News, Bad News, Who is to say?" Many times students will come to my office and start the conversation with the words, "Dean Camp, the Good News, Is.....but the Bad News Is....." It is helpful to realize that at the moment when anything happens to us we do not know where it will lead, or in the words of the famous radio commentator, Paul Harvey, we do not always know "The rest of the story."
So my Good News, Bad News about today is that once I got to the Katy trail, my shins started hurting and my calf cramped. My legs felt like two led pipes sunk in cement. My resolve to run 5 miles faded and I was only able to run 1.5 miles. I realize that I may have been pushing myself a little too hard too fast at the beginning of this one year, 1000 mile journey. I do not want to get hurt and I want to finish. I will wait and see how I feel tomorrow, Saturday before decided what the next step is. Maybe being a little hurt this early is a good think, a wake up call to take things easy and build up the miles....So I did not run my five miles today and my legs hurt...Good News, Bad News, Who is to say? But I do know that Life is Good!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Day 25 - A hard 2.5 and a couple of Hot Chocolate Cookies!
Thursday March 25th, Day 25; Ran 2.5 miles/ Total so far: 62.9/ Miles to go 937.1
I did not sleep well last night. Knowing that I needed to get up at 4:30 I kept dozing off and waking up. When my phone alarm finally rang I was awake and just shuffled into the Kitchen to make some coffee. Actually, I have to make my coffee in my breakfast room because the wonderful high end red it will grind the coffee for you coffee pot is too tall for the kitchen counters of my 60's style house. I had bought the coffee maker along with other red Kitchen Aid appliances when I lived in a cool Loft at Mockingbird Station for three years when I first started working at SMU. Most people get an apartment for their kids when they go to college. I left my son in charge of the house (he was in law school) and got the aparment for myself. I lived there for three years until his moving out to get married and the bad housing market convinced me that I needed to trade my urban chic digs and become a suburban boy again. Mockingbird Station kitchen cabinets were high above the marble counter tops and the coffee maker fit just fine. Not so at Casa Summit, my current abode. So I have put the coffee maker on the breakfast room table.
Two cups of coffee later, dressed in sweats, off I went to meet my friend and former collegue from Jones Day and her running group. I got to the Dedman Gym parking lot about 5:15. Amazing how much quicker I can drive the 6 miles from Richardson to SMU that early in the morning when the traffic is light. I ditched the sweat pants (no I was not naked, I had on running shorts underneath) but kept the sweat shirt and a baseball cap. More heat escapes from the top of your head they say than any other part of your body (not sure I agree....I have seen some angry people blow a lot of smoke and hot air out of their mouths). It was chilly, but I knew I would warm up when I started running. Not wearing a watch, I did not know exactly what time it was when I reached La Madeline Restaurant next door to await my friend. We were supposed to meet at 5:30. Shortly a herd of runners came by and I made the mistake of thinking they were the group I was supposed to meet. One of them was a law student who shouted out the familiar "Hey Dean Camp" line. I followed them to the track and started running laps.
This group was doing interval training. Short fast runs followed by spells of walking. Another group also arrived and was doing intervals. I did not want to do intervals. At this point in my running, I am a LSD man (not a druggie...Long Slow Distance - although some might argue that my runner's high takes me on a trip, especially if they read some of these posts). I just kept running laps on the outside lane. I never saw my friend but found out later she was there and never saw me. Bizarre. I guess she was in the second group. It is dark at 5:30 in the morning, even with the lights around the track. It was a beautiful, crisp morning and the track setting is pretty. Stately buildings and the Gerald Ford (no not the President Ford, the other Gerald Ford) stadium surround the track, except for the Doak Walker Plaza with his Immortalizing Statute (see an earlier blog for the significance of statutes and immortality). The buildings and plaza are back lit and everything is so clean and pristine. The only problem was that I was hurting and it was hard to enjoy. I had not had enough sleep after my Lays potato chips and wine dinner and my body complained. I just kept running and decided I could do anything for 30 minutes so I was going to run 2.5 miles, which I did. I was very happy to stop and walk another half mile. For a fleeting moment I thought maybe I would run some more....very fleeting because of another problem that developed......
One of the problems that all runners have experienced, especially if doing morning runs is, dare I say it? morning runs....the other kind, the "coffee is kicking in and telling you that you have to go" runs. It was fortunate that the gym was right next to the track. I was saved from the embarrassment of an accident.
After the gym I went to the Starbucks for a smoothie and another cup of coffee. It is an interesting crowd who people that Mockingbird Starbucks at that time in the morning. Businessmen and students, newspapers and laptops. I do not know what one girl was reading on her lap top (or perhaps watching since she had on earphones) but her face kept going through a whole range of emotions. Even though I knew I should not be watching, I kept glancing at her. I felt like I was watching a silent movie actress who had to use an expressive face to portray the emotions that the dry subtitles could never express.
At the gym I had realized that I had forgotten my dress shoes. I decided it was not worth driving back to Richardson for them, especially considering what the traffic would now be like. I just thought people at school could see me in my running shoes and khaki pants and sweater. I had no important meetings where I needed a tie and to look Dean-like.
Even though I was tired, I have to admit I felt good and I was glad that I had run. I remembered how good it used to feel to run every morning. I will have to work more morning runs into my schedule. I will also have to increase my miles if I am going to burn off the sugar calories I keep consuming. Today at lunch I had two hot triple chocolate chip cookies from the University cafeteria washed down with whole milk....I paid the price later in the afternoon for that sugar high...but the view from the sugar high was nice for a while.
Going to be early tonight to catch up on my sleep. Life is Good.
I did not sleep well last night. Knowing that I needed to get up at 4:30 I kept dozing off and waking up. When my phone alarm finally rang I was awake and just shuffled into the Kitchen to make some coffee. Actually, I have to make my coffee in my breakfast room because the wonderful high end red it will grind the coffee for you coffee pot is too tall for the kitchen counters of my 60's style house. I had bought the coffee maker along with other red Kitchen Aid appliances when I lived in a cool Loft at Mockingbird Station for three years when I first started working at SMU. Most people get an apartment for their kids when they go to college. I left my son in charge of the house (he was in law school) and got the aparment for myself. I lived there for three years until his moving out to get married and the bad housing market convinced me that I needed to trade my urban chic digs and become a suburban boy again. Mockingbird Station kitchen cabinets were high above the marble counter tops and the coffee maker fit just fine. Not so at Casa Summit, my current abode. So I have put the coffee maker on the breakfast room table.
Two cups of coffee later, dressed in sweats, off I went to meet my friend and former collegue from Jones Day and her running group. I got to the Dedman Gym parking lot about 5:15. Amazing how much quicker I can drive the 6 miles from Richardson to SMU that early in the morning when the traffic is light. I ditched the sweat pants (no I was not naked, I had on running shorts underneath) but kept the sweat shirt and a baseball cap. More heat escapes from the top of your head they say than any other part of your body (not sure I agree....I have seen some angry people blow a lot of smoke and hot air out of their mouths). It was chilly, but I knew I would warm up when I started running. Not wearing a watch, I did not know exactly what time it was when I reached La Madeline Restaurant next door to await my friend. We were supposed to meet at 5:30. Shortly a herd of runners came by and I made the mistake of thinking they were the group I was supposed to meet. One of them was a law student who shouted out the familiar "Hey Dean Camp" line. I followed them to the track and started running laps.
This group was doing interval training. Short fast runs followed by spells of walking. Another group also arrived and was doing intervals. I did not want to do intervals. At this point in my running, I am a LSD man (not a druggie...Long Slow Distance - although some might argue that my runner's high takes me on a trip, especially if they read some of these posts). I just kept running laps on the outside lane. I never saw my friend but found out later she was there and never saw me. Bizarre. I guess she was in the second group. It is dark at 5:30 in the morning, even with the lights around the track. It was a beautiful, crisp morning and the track setting is pretty. Stately buildings and the Gerald Ford (no not the President Ford, the other Gerald Ford) stadium surround the track, except for the Doak Walker Plaza with his Immortalizing Statute (see an earlier blog for the significance of statutes and immortality). The buildings and plaza are back lit and everything is so clean and pristine. The only problem was that I was hurting and it was hard to enjoy. I had not had enough sleep after my Lays potato chips and wine dinner and my body complained. I just kept running and decided I could do anything for 30 minutes so I was going to run 2.5 miles, which I did. I was very happy to stop and walk another half mile. For a fleeting moment I thought maybe I would run some more....very fleeting because of another problem that developed......
One of the problems that all runners have experienced, especially if doing morning runs is, dare I say it? morning runs....the other kind, the "coffee is kicking in and telling you that you have to go" runs. It was fortunate that the gym was right next to the track. I was saved from the embarrassment of an accident.
After the gym I went to the Starbucks for a smoothie and another cup of coffee. It is an interesting crowd who people that Mockingbird Starbucks at that time in the morning. Businessmen and students, newspapers and laptops. I do not know what one girl was reading on her lap top (or perhaps watching since she had on earphones) but her face kept going through a whole range of emotions. Even though I knew I should not be watching, I kept glancing at her. I felt like I was watching a silent movie actress who had to use an expressive face to portray the emotions that the dry subtitles could never express.
At the gym I had realized that I had forgotten my dress shoes. I decided it was not worth driving back to Richardson for them, especially considering what the traffic would now be like. I just thought people at school could see me in my running shoes and khaki pants and sweater. I had no important meetings where I needed a tie and to look Dean-like.
Even though I was tired, I have to admit I felt good and I was glad that I had run. I remembered how good it used to feel to run every morning. I will have to work more morning runs into my schedule. I will also have to increase my miles if I am going to burn off the sugar calories I keep consuming. Today at lunch I had two hot triple chocolate chip cookies from the University cafeteria washed down with whole milk....I paid the price later in the afternoon for that sugar high...but the view from the sugar high was nice for a while.
Going to be early tonight to catch up on my sleep. Life is Good.
Day 24 - Day Off "Betcha can't eat just one!"
Wednesday, March 24, 24th day of Blog. Ran 0/ Total so far: 60.4/ Miles to go: 939.6
Gambling status: Bought Weekly Grand and Lotto ticket - no prize :( Total invested so far in this habit: $6/ Winnings: $4/ Net: Minus $2. But there is always Saturday!
Hump days are hard days. My legs were sore after Tuesday night's 5 plus mile run. Lawyers Inn lunch set me back, again. We had a "Faculty Forum," which we have at least three or more a month. These are luncheon presentations by either a member of our faculty or a visiting scholar. The presenter talks about a research project in progress. Normally the paper in its current draft form is circulated before the lunch. During the presentation the audience asks questions. The point is to get critical comments during this time to help the author as they complete the paper. Some presenters appear to appreciate critical comments more than others.
In addition to these general faculty forums, we have colloquiums in various areas of the law with similar formats. This year the speakers are all talking about issues in tax law. Before that it was on immigration law. And then, of course, in the Fall there are "job talks" where candidates who are seeking faculty appointments come and present papers about topics that they are working on and which they hope will be accepted by prestigious law reviews. But here the emphasis is a little different, as they are trying to convince the faculty that they have the intellectual firepower to receive an offer. Of course, if they have the intellectual firepower, they generally receive more than one offer and so the law schools compete against each other like football powers trying to recruit the hot shot High School stars. All this is complicated by two career families where spouses need to also find gainful employment to entice candidates to accept offers.
Add to all of these forums the many faculty and committee lunch meetings and meetings for student groups, etc., and you realize that the bottom line (and it does impact the size of many bottoms here) is that there are far too many opportunities to enjoy Lawyers Inn catering. And Wednesday I could not resist the lemon pie even though it could not approach the pecan pie from the Tuesday lunch.
Wednesday night I taught my Property class again but before class I had to stop by my bank and make a deposit. The problem with this bank is that it is next door to Jack's Burger House, a local hamburger joint that opened in the 1950's and still has one of the best traditional burgers around, even though it has changed owners. I still remember walking down to Jack's when I was in law school for one of his famous chili burgers and seasoned fries. We called it the "Greek Burger" back then, even though the sign said Burger House, because Jack was Greek and the fries had that seasoning. Old Jack would make his own chili in the winter and whenever you ordered a burger he would ask in his accented English "Ya wants chilllleeee ons zat burrrgerrr?" And if it was cold I usually succumbed to the temptation and got the chili, and grilled onions, of course.
So after making my deposit and because I was hungry, I could not resist the smell of Burger House. I went in and sat at one of the 5 counter stools and ordered a cheese burger with everything. Of course, it is a different place now. The three men working there spoke to each other in Spanish and there was no pot of chili on the stove. But Jack's picture and some old newspaper articles (including his obituary) are still on the walls. I like to think that he smiled as I sat down, from wherever old Greeks go to make heavenly chili.
I had told a former student who has been encouraging me in my running that I would meet her and a group of runners Thursday morning at 5:30. They meet several times a week and I believe are training for a race. After class I decided I needed to take the night off and rest. Actually, I mean, not run and as for the rest, days I teach are long ones and by the time I got home it was 9:30. I was not particularly hungry but I did want "a little something".
I am sure that all families have their particular words, code language if you will. Mine certainly did. When we wanted a snack we would ask for something to "narch" on. I do not know where that word came from. And I did not know that everyone didn't narch until asking for something to narch on at a friend's house one time and seeing the blank look on everyone in his family's face. Another family expression we had stemmed from the fact that when my older sister was a baby she was often constipated. She would stand in her diaper and apparently it was very hard for her "to do her business" (another expression - right). One time mom or dad commented that going to the bathroom was "a real job for Joyce" and from then on, if anyone needed to go to the bathroom they would say then needed to "do a job" and of course the product of doing a job was called "a job." So I can remember when a rock and roll song came out in the early 1960's when I was in elementary school and the chorus was "Get a Job" I found it so amusing. Imagine singing about such a thing.
Anyway, Wednesday at 10:00 pm with a glass of box Cabernet wine in one hand I went looking for something to narch on. There it was, the half full not half empty - half full) bag of Lays left over from my Kroger shopping binge of earlier in the week. The owners of the company are right with their ad campaign. There is no way you can eat just one Lays potato chip. And my problem is that after a glass of wine and it being more than 4 hours since the the Burger House cheese burger (sans fries...remember I am on a diet) once I started narching I could not stop. When the bag was empty, I rationalized my gluttony with the justification that I had gotten that potato chip temptation out of the house! (something I do too often where I eat the offending food instead of throwing it away). The whole process reminded me of the story about the woman who went to the self help seminar where the speaker said that to reduce stress you should take a day and finish as many unfinished things around the house as you could. She promptly went home and finished the oreo cookies, the potato chips, the last piece of chocolate cake and the the bottle of red wine and, at least for a moment, had to agree with the speaker that she felt a lot better.
As I went to bed I realized that it would not easy to rise at 4:30 for my 5:30 run the next day. I questioned my sanity and wondered if I would really do it. My friend had informed me that even if it was raining, they would still run, telling me, "after all, we are not made of sugar." After all my desserts this week, I was not sure that was a correct statement, at least for me.
Check out Thursday post to see if I made it. Life is Good.
Gambling status: Bought Weekly Grand and Lotto ticket - no prize :( Total invested so far in this habit: $6/ Winnings: $4/ Net: Minus $2. But there is always Saturday!
Hump days are hard days. My legs were sore after Tuesday night's 5 plus mile run. Lawyers Inn lunch set me back, again. We had a "Faculty Forum," which we have at least three or more a month. These are luncheon presentations by either a member of our faculty or a visiting scholar. The presenter talks about a research project in progress. Normally the paper in its current draft form is circulated before the lunch. During the presentation the audience asks questions. The point is to get critical comments during this time to help the author as they complete the paper. Some presenters appear to appreciate critical comments more than others.
In addition to these general faculty forums, we have colloquiums in various areas of the law with similar formats. This year the speakers are all talking about issues in tax law. Before that it was on immigration law. And then, of course, in the Fall there are "job talks" where candidates who are seeking faculty appointments come and present papers about topics that they are working on and which they hope will be accepted by prestigious law reviews. But here the emphasis is a little different, as they are trying to convince the faculty that they have the intellectual firepower to receive an offer. Of course, if they have the intellectual firepower, they generally receive more than one offer and so the law schools compete against each other like football powers trying to recruit the hot shot High School stars. All this is complicated by two career families where spouses need to also find gainful employment to entice candidates to accept offers.
Add to all of these forums the many faculty and committee lunch meetings and meetings for student groups, etc., and you realize that the bottom line (and it does impact the size of many bottoms here) is that there are far too many opportunities to enjoy Lawyers Inn catering. And Wednesday I could not resist the lemon pie even though it could not approach the pecan pie from the Tuesday lunch.
Wednesday night I taught my Property class again but before class I had to stop by my bank and make a deposit. The problem with this bank is that it is next door to Jack's Burger House, a local hamburger joint that opened in the 1950's and still has one of the best traditional burgers around, even though it has changed owners. I still remember walking down to Jack's when I was in law school for one of his famous chili burgers and seasoned fries. We called it the "Greek Burger" back then, even though the sign said Burger House, because Jack was Greek and the fries had that seasoning. Old Jack would make his own chili in the winter and whenever you ordered a burger he would ask in his accented English "Ya wants chilllleeee ons zat burrrgerrr?" And if it was cold I usually succumbed to the temptation and got the chili, and grilled onions, of course.
So after making my deposit and because I was hungry, I could not resist the smell of Burger House. I went in and sat at one of the 5 counter stools and ordered a cheese burger with everything. Of course, it is a different place now. The three men working there spoke to each other in Spanish and there was no pot of chili on the stove. But Jack's picture and some old newspaper articles (including his obituary) are still on the walls. I like to think that he smiled as I sat down, from wherever old Greeks go to make heavenly chili.
I had told a former student who has been encouraging me in my running that I would meet her and a group of runners Thursday morning at 5:30. They meet several times a week and I believe are training for a race. After class I decided I needed to take the night off and rest. Actually, I mean, not run and as for the rest, days I teach are long ones and by the time I got home it was 9:30. I was not particularly hungry but I did want "a little something".
I am sure that all families have their particular words, code language if you will. Mine certainly did. When we wanted a snack we would ask for something to "narch" on. I do not know where that word came from. And I did not know that everyone didn't narch until asking for something to narch on at a friend's house one time and seeing the blank look on everyone in his family's face. Another family expression we had stemmed from the fact that when my older sister was a baby she was often constipated. She would stand in her diaper and apparently it was very hard for her "to do her business" (another expression - right). One time mom or dad commented that going to the bathroom was "a real job for Joyce" and from then on, if anyone needed to go to the bathroom they would say then needed to "do a job" and of course the product of doing a job was called "a job." So I can remember when a rock and roll song came out in the early 1960's when I was in elementary school and the chorus was "Get a Job" I found it so amusing. Imagine singing about such a thing.
Anyway, Wednesday at 10:00 pm with a glass of box Cabernet wine in one hand I went looking for something to narch on. There it was, the half full not half empty - half full) bag of Lays left over from my Kroger shopping binge of earlier in the week. The owners of the company are right with their ad campaign. There is no way you can eat just one Lays potato chip. And my problem is that after a glass of wine and it being more than 4 hours since the the Burger House cheese burger (sans fries...remember I am on a diet) once I started narching I could not stop. When the bag was empty, I rationalized my gluttony with the justification that I had gotten that potato chip temptation out of the house! (something I do too often where I eat the offending food instead of throwing it away). The whole process reminded me of the story about the woman who went to the self help seminar where the speaker said that to reduce stress you should take a day and finish as many unfinished things around the house as you could. She promptly went home and finished the oreo cookies, the potato chips, the last piece of chocolate cake and the the bottle of red wine and, at least for a moment, had to agree with the speaker that she felt a lot better.
As I went to bed I realized that it would not easy to rise at 4:30 for my 5:30 run the next day. I questioned my sanity and wondered if I would really do it. My friend had informed me that even if it was raining, they would still run, telling me, "after all, we are not made of sugar." After all my desserts this week, I was not sure that was a correct statement, at least for me.
Check out Thursday post to see if I made it. Life is Good.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Day 23, 5.2 Miles Pecan Pie Picking on Me
Monday, March 23rd, Day 23, Ran 5.2 miles/ Total so far - 60.4 Miles/ Miles to go - 939.6
Busy day at work and devastating on the diet. After starting the day with a nice oatmeal with fruit breakfast, my first stumble was a faculty lunch meeting in Lawyers' Inn at the law school. The food is good, but the desserts are to die for. Fresh pecan pie with whip cream. I did not want to eat a piece. I knew it was a belly buster....but, it was pecan pie and I succumbed. I had another Lawyer's Inn meal that night for Admitted Students in the Evening Program. This time the dessert was strawberry shortcake with real shortcake...not that flying saucer looking sponge cake we all buy at Kroger when it is displayed right next to the strawberry boxes. Now you know why I ran a little over 5 miles after dinner. Makes for a late night though and a tired next day.
Sitting in Lawyer's Inn reminded me of my first year in law school. At that time Lawyer's Inn was a law school dormitory and I lived on the third floor. Years later it was converted into offices as the tastes and finances of law students changed and law students no longer wanted or were willing to share a room and shower at a communal bathroom down the hall. But in 1976, I enjoyed the convenience of living in the Law School Quad. That is, except for my roommate. He had this annoying girlfriend who lived in another state and would call very late at night to get the cheap rates. Her high pitched voice screeching "Is Karl there?" in the middle of the night I can hear to this day. For some reason, I was always the one answering the phone it seemed. I can't remember now if that was because there was only one phone and it was on my side of the room or if Karl was just a heavy sleeper. In any event, this went on for two semesters until I got married and moved across the street to Hillcrest Manor (described in an earlier blog).
The most bizarre inconsiderate act by Karl involved a week when this girlfriend just showed up, expecting to stay in the dorm room. The rooms were small with two twin beds. Neither she nor Karl had told me of her visit nor asked if she could stay. Unlike the old TV Show with John Ritter, Three's Company, I had no desire to share the room with them and fortunately a friend down the hall had an extra bed since his roommate had dropped out. My friend let me bunk in his room that week. Karl never said a word. No thank you or I am sorry or I appreciate your understanding....nada, zip. I lost track of Karl after that first year and have never seen him at any reunions. If he married that girl then perhaps he got his just rewards and that would be a sufficient punishment in my eyes to cover his transgressions against me!
Oh and the food back then in Lawyer's Inn could not compare to the fare today that keeps tempting me to indulge....
Life is good!
Busy day at work and devastating on the diet. After starting the day with a nice oatmeal with fruit breakfast, my first stumble was a faculty lunch meeting in Lawyers' Inn at the law school. The food is good, but the desserts are to die for. Fresh pecan pie with whip cream. I did not want to eat a piece. I knew it was a belly buster....but, it was pecan pie and I succumbed. I had another Lawyer's Inn meal that night for Admitted Students in the Evening Program. This time the dessert was strawberry shortcake with real shortcake...not that flying saucer looking sponge cake we all buy at Kroger when it is displayed right next to the strawberry boxes. Now you know why I ran a little over 5 miles after dinner. Makes for a late night though and a tired next day.
Sitting in Lawyer's Inn reminded me of my first year in law school. At that time Lawyer's Inn was a law school dormitory and I lived on the third floor. Years later it was converted into offices as the tastes and finances of law students changed and law students no longer wanted or were willing to share a room and shower at a communal bathroom down the hall. But in 1976, I enjoyed the convenience of living in the Law School Quad. That is, except for my roommate. He had this annoying girlfriend who lived in another state and would call very late at night to get the cheap rates. Her high pitched voice screeching "Is Karl there?" in the middle of the night I can hear to this day. For some reason, I was always the one answering the phone it seemed. I can't remember now if that was because there was only one phone and it was on my side of the room or if Karl was just a heavy sleeper. In any event, this went on for two semesters until I got married and moved across the street to Hillcrest Manor (described in an earlier blog).
The most bizarre inconsiderate act by Karl involved a week when this girlfriend just showed up, expecting to stay in the dorm room. The rooms were small with two twin beds. Neither she nor Karl had told me of her visit nor asked if she could stay. Unlike the old TV Show with John Ritter, Three's Company, I had no desire to share the room with them and fortunately a friend down the hall had an extra bed since his roommate had dropped out. My friend let me bunk in his room that week. Karl never said a word. No thank you or I am sorry or I appreciate your understanding....nada, zip. I lost track of Karl after that first year and have never seen him at any reunions. If he married that girl then perhaps he got his just rewards and that would be a sufficient punishment in my eyes to cover his transgressions against me!
Oh and the food back then in Lawyer's Inn could not compare to the fare today that keeps tempting me to indulge....
Life is good!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Day 22 Day Off and Crazy Eights!
Monday, March 22. No miles, Total so far: 55.2/ Miles to go - 944.8
Yesterday was a busy day and by the time I finished teaching my Property II class at 8:35 I decided my body needed a rest more than a run. On the way home I decided to stop by my local Kroger, just for a rotisserie chicken(did not feel like cooking, had no left overs to warm up and as you shall see from the rest of this post, I was trying to do the Atkins low carb diet), some Activia yogurt and some half and half for my morning coffee. BIG MISTAKE. They say you should never go to the store on an empty stomach and for once "They" are right. I know better. They also say to avoid the middle aisles where all the processed food is, and they are also right. I know all of this, but behavior is not easy to change.
It had been day one on my resolve to "Avoid the Whites" i.e. starches like bread, white rice, potatoes and the biggest evil of all, sugar. I am impatient. I want the belly gone yesterday. After all, if I can run 5 miles, I should look like an athlete, not a pear on a treadmill. All this time in gyms with all those mirrors around has shown me my physique from more angles than I studied in High School Geometry class. Unless I am looking in the mirror face forward from the neck up, I am aware that there is this rounding in the center of my body....like one of those tops I used to play with as a boy with points on both ends and this flying saucer like bulging middle. Like a potter with his clay, I want that middle molded, but it takes time and there seems to be a lot of clay to work with. Remember Santa and his belly like a bowl full of jelly?
I have used may diets, but the one that has worked best for me has been Dr.Atkin's high protein, low carbohydrate eat all the bacon and red meat you want diet. The problem now, however, is that the few times in the past couple of years I have tried it, I have not been able to stick to it. Not sure if it has been less will power or if I have changed or both. But to kick start this molding of my midsection process, Sunday night (after my brunch of pecan Belgian waffle, etc.) I decided to "do Atkins" for a couple of weeks. Monday morning began with a cheese omelet. At lunch, I ate some hot dog wieners and left over chili. The first sign of problems came at a faculty committee meeting at 3 where there was a fruit plate with cheeses, crackers, cookies and dark chocolate brownies. I wanted a brownie. I had a hard time thinking about the topics in the meeting because I was watching others putting pieces of brownie into their mouths without a care in the world. I could taste the brownie. I compensated by eating a lot of cheese (sans the crackers which also was a struggle) and then broke the Atkins regimen by eating some grapes, melon and strawberries (all things that are otherwise healthy, but full of carbs and therefore "Haram" (forbidden) on Atkins). Back in my office, still obsessing about the brownie, I later ate a handful of almonds (a daily cholesterol reducing routine) and then just before class, an apple.
By the time I got to Kroger, it was close to 10 pm and I was really craving more than chicken. Kroger knows how to get me....like the Sirens tempting Jason and the Argonauts. Kroger catches my eyes with big bargain towers of unneeded food. It started when I saw Skinner Pasta, spaghetti, etc. on sale for 50 cents a pack. You can always use pasta, so having some around is a good thing, or so my rationale goes. And look at that price (as if saving 50 or 75 cents on pasta was going to pull me back from the brink of starvation when I had spent many times that on the grande latte the day before at Starbucks). Of course, there was a catch. To get the 50 cent price you had to by eight of the Crazy Eights items around the store. Suddenly, it was like a scavenger hunt. Find the items marked for this sale and save, save, save.....!
I hate to admit it, but I am a succor for these types of savings. I count it to my childhood when we were poor and I remember collecting pop bottles and being proud to turn the money over to my parents to buy baloney. I also remember discovering that my coin collection was missing one day. Later I found out that Dad had taken it to the store...we needed food. If he had told me, we could have sold the coins back for a lot more than their face value, but pride or shame kept us from having that conversation until years later.
Fueled by hunger and the excitement of the hunt, I found myself going to the front of the store where I could get a grocery cart in lieu of the basket I had taken (since I had originally only intended to get the chicken, half and half and yogurt, remember?) On the way back to the pasta I saw bunches of blue berries. I thought, screw Atkins. I am going to continue with my healthy blue berry, banana and pecan oatmeal with fresh squeezed OJ breakfasts! I put a carton of blue berries in the cart along with a bunch of bananas. I then saw some of the Organic Milk that one of my roommates uses and remembered that I had used some of his, so I picked up a carton. Then, back at the pasta display I got two packages of the spaghetti and a couple of bottles of sauce (also on the Crazy Eights special). But now I needed four more items or I would not have eight and would not get the special price....see how the hook was set....I went down the aisles, looking for Crazy Eights items. Aha, found some at the cracker display....I love crackers and after not eating them in the afternoon, and feeling starving since it was now almost 10:15 pm and I still had not eaten, I picked up a couple of boxes. Then I realized I needed some cheese to go with the crackers. As luck would have it, cheese was also on sale with the Crazy Eights, but suddenly I had picked up more than 8 Crazy Eights items, so I had to find more to even out the number to sixteen.
Ironically, there were no more rotisserie chickens left so I had to make a decision about dinner. I love sausage and picked up a couple of packages of the Kroger smoked sausage links. I did get my yogurt but realized I was getting short on wine. Saw a box of Corbet Canyon Cab and decided one box (four bottles worth at less than 10 dollars) would do just fine. Easy to manage portion control...life to be enjoyed one large glass at a time. But to get to the cash register I had to pass down the chips aisle and saw the Lays on sale. In went a bag and then I remembered how much I love popcorn and now you can get it in convenient 100 calorie microwave packages. I put two boxes in the cart (they too were on sale, but not Crazy Eights). To be fair, I was also thinking that in a week my kids would be here for Easter for a few days and having cheese and crackers and chips and popcorn would be a good thing (although I knew that I would be consuming more than my share both before and after they left).
By the time I got to the register I had also picked up a head of cauliflower to make cauliflower cheese soup (a promise to my vegetarian roomer) and a few other odds and ends along with my half and half. That late at night only one register was open and the line was long. I choose to go to the self service and after what seemed like forever, I finished checking myself out, left (sixty dollars poorer though the ticket said I had saved 20 dollars) and drove the two blocks to my house. All this because I thought I was too tired to cook and wanted a chicken someone else had cooked....Should have stopped at KFC and avoided Kroger! And the falacy that you ever "save" money by spending money! I know that is a crock...You save money by not spending. You spend money by spending...sometimes more or sometimes less, but spending is spending and my wallet was 60 dollars lighter even if my stomach was no smaller!
Back at home, I unloaded the car, and then decided what the Hell. I was so hungry I made two sausage sandwiches with white bread and ate two 100 calorie packages of popcorn washed down with two glasses of box wine. Oh, and this morning...I had my oatmeal with fruit and a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice. Sorry Dr. Atkins, I let you down. Maybe my mid section of the toy top is just meant to keep spinning a little longer....I plan to run after work...Life is Good!
Yesterday was a busy day and by the time I finished teaching my Property II class at 8:35 I decided my body needed a rest more than a run. On the way home I decided to stop by my local Kroger, just for a rotisserie chicken(did not feel like cooking, had no left overs to warm up and as you shall see from the rest of this post, I was trying to do the Atkins low carb diet), some Activia yogurt and some half and half for my morning coffee. BIG MISTAKE. They say you should never go to the store on an empty stomach and for once "They" are right. I know better. They also say to avoid the middle aisles where all the processed food is, and they are also right. I know all of this, but behavior is not easy to change.
It had been day one on my resolve to "Avoid the Whites" i.e. starches like bread, white rice, potatoes and the biggest evil of all, sugar. I am impatient. I want the belly gone yesterday. After all, if I can run 5 miles, I should look like an athlete, not a pear on a treadmill. All this time in gyms with all those mirrors around has shown me my physique from more angles than I studied in High School Geometry class. Unless I am looking in the mirror face forward from the neck up, I am aware that there is this rounding in the center of my body....like one of those tops I used to play with as a boy with points on both ends and this flying saucer like bulging middle. Like a potter with his clay, I want that middle molded, but it takes time and there seems to be a lot of clay to work with. Remember Santa and his belly like a bowl full of jelly?
I have used may diets, but the one that has worked best for me has been Dr.Atkin's high protein, low carbohydrate eat all the bacon and red meat you want diet. The problem now, however, is that the few times in the past couple of years I have tried it, I have not been able to stick to it. Not sure if it has been less will power or if I have changed or both. But to kick start this molding of my midsection process, Sunday night (after my brunch of pecan Belgian waffle, etc.) I decided to "do Atkins" for a couple of weeks. Monday morning began with a cheese omelet. At lunch, I ate some hot dog wieners and left over chili. The first sign of problems came at a faculty committee meeting at 3 where there was a fruit plate with cheeses, crackers, cookies and dark chocolate brownies. I wanted a brownie. I had a hard time thinking about the topics in the meeting because I was watching others putting pieces of brownie into their mouths without a care in the world. I could taste the brownie. I compensated by eating a lot of cheese (sans the crackers which also was a struggle) and then broke the Atkins regimen by eating some grapes, melon and strawberries (all things that are otherwise healthy, but full of carbs and therefore "Haram" (forbidden) on Atkins). Back in my office, still obsessing about the brownie, I later ate a handful of almonds (a daily cholesterol reducing routine) and then just before class, an apple.
By the time I got to Kroger, it was close to 10 pm and I was really craving more than chicken. Kroger knows how to get me....like the Sirens tempting Jason and the Argonauts. Kroger catches my eyes with big bargain towers of unneeded food. It started when I saw Skinner Pasta, spaghetti, etc. on sale for 50 cents a pack. You can always use pasta, so having some around is a good thing, or so my rationale goes. And look at that price (as if saving 50 or 75 cents on pasta was going to pull me back from the brink of starvation when I had spent many times that on the grande latte the day before at Starbucks). Of course, there was a catch. To get the 50 cent price you had to by eight of the Crazy Eights items around the store. Suddenly, it was like a scavenger hunt. Find the items marked for this sale and save, save, save.....!
I hate to admit it, but I am a succor for these types of savings. I count it to my childhood when we were poor and I remember collecting pop bottles and being proud to turn the money over to my parents to buy baloney. I also remember discovering that my coin collection was missing one day. Later I found out that Dad had taken it to the store...we needed food. If he had told me, we could have sold the coins back for a lot more than their face value, but pride or shame kept us from having that conversation until years later.
Fueled by hunger and the excitement of the hunt, I found myself going to the front of the store where I could get a grocery cart in lieu of the basket I had taken (since I had originally only intended to get the chicken, half and half and yogurt, remember?) On the way back to the pasta I saw bunches of blue berries. I thought, screw Atkins. I am going to continue with my healthy blue berry, banana and pecan oatmeal with fresh squeezed OJ breakfasts! I put a carton of blue berries in the cart along with a bunch of bananas. I then saw some of the Organic Milk that one of my roommates uses and remembered that I had used some of his, so I picked up a carton. Then, back at the pasta display I got two packages of the spaghetti and a couple of bottles of sauce (also on the Crazy Eights special). But now I needed four more items or I would not have eight and would not get the special price....see how the hook was set....I went down the aisles, looking for Crazy Eights items. Aha, found some at the cracker display....I love crackers and after not eating them in the afternoon, and feeling starving since it was now almost 10:15 pm and I still had not eaten, I picked up a couple of boxes. Then I realized I needed some cheese to go with the crackers. As luck would have it, cheese was also on sale with the Crazy Eights, but suddenly I had picked up more than 8 Crazy Eights items, so I had to find more to even out the number to sixteen.
Ironically, there were no more rotisserie chickens left so I had to make a decision about dinner. I love sausage and picked up a couple of packages of the Kroger smoked sausage links. I did get my yogurt but realized I was getting short on wine. Saw a box of Corbet Canyon Cab and decided one box (four bottles worth at less than 10 dollars) would do just fine. Easy to manage portion control...life to be enjoyed one large glass at a time. But to get to the cash register I had to pass down the chips aisle and saw the Lays on sale. In went a bag and then I remembered how much I love popcorn and now you can get it in convenient 100 calorie microwave packages. I put two boxes in the cart (they too were on sale, but not Crazy Eights). To be fair, I was also thinking that in a week my kids would be here for Easter for a few days and having cheese and crackers and chips and popcorn would be a good thing (although I knew that I would be consuming more than my share both before and after they left).
By the time I got to the register I had also picked up a head of cauliflower to make cauliflower cheese soup (a promise to my vegetarian roomer) and a few other odds and ends along with my half and half. That late at night only one register was open and the line was long. I choose to go to the self service and after what seemed like forever, I finished checking myself out, left (sixty dollars poorer though the ticket said I had saved 20 dollars) and drove the two blocks to my house. All this because I thought I was too tired to cook and wanted a chicken someone else had cooked....Should have stopped at KFC and avoided Kroger! And the falacy that you ever "save" money by spending money! I know that is a crock...You save money by not spending. You spend money by spending...sometimes more or sometimes less, but spending is spending and my wallet was 60 dollars lighter even if my stomach was no smaller!
Back at home, I unloaded the car, and then decided what the Hell. I was so hungry I made two sausage sandwiches with white bread and ate two 100 calorie packages of popcorn washed down with two glasses of box wine. Oh, and this morning...I had my oatmeal with fruit and a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice. Sorry Dr. Atkins, I let you down. Maybe my mid section of the toy top is just meant to keep spinning a little longer....I plan to run after work...Life is Good!
Monday, March 22, 2010
Day 21 Ran 5.3 miles - "To err is Human"
Sunday, March 21st, 21st day of the challenge. Ran 5.3 miles: Total so far 55.2 miles: Miles to go 944.8
Sunday morning found me and Gym Rat at a favorite breakfast haunt, Lucky's. Lucky's is an eclectic old fashion diner. It has been bought by a restaurant chain and is not quite what it once was (frozen strawberries now instead of fresh on the pancakes). But it is still very popular, especially on Sundays for brunch when people line up out the door. It is a Cheer's type of place where everybody knows our names. We are greeted by the gentle giant bear of a host, David. We have our waiter and our table and usually have to stand and drink "serve yourself" coffee for the 10 to 15 minute wait for the table. There are a couple of televisions where you can sometimes follow a tennis game. I felt adventuresome and ate a pecan Belgian waffle with bananas on top (one fruit that the new owners can't skimp on by buying in frozen bulk).
Brunch was followed by a wonderful time at the matinee at Theatre Three with good friend, Tatiana. The play was a British farce and I was surprised and happy to see another friend, Ginger Goldman, in one of the lead roles. She and I had been through four levels of improv comedy classes together years ago. She is a fine actress and I just act up, but seeing her brought back good memories. The stage for this play, consisted of three bedrooms at differing levels where all the action takes place, mostly British banter, dry humor and sarcasm as only the British can create out of our common language.
After post play coffee at the Starbucks down the street from the theatre with Tatiana, I went to the SMU gym. I really did not want to go....once again knowing I would be called upon to account for my running on this blog spurred me on. Once there I ran on the treadmill. The prior night's cold front had ushered in snow for the first day of spring making running outside not an option. (I know, people run in the cold and I have, but I did not want to last night and I didn't have too!) When the adrenaline rush kicked in I knew I could run an hour and I did. Sunday was a good day.
Oh, and the title line about "to err is human"? As I was running my mind wondered to wonderful stories that my Dad used to tell. He was a meat salesmen for a company that sold expensive meat of not always the best quality, or so he would tell me. (Probably the source of his "Be thankful for your problesm, they create your job" advice he always gave). As a result, his customers were always mad at him when he would arrive on a sales calls. They loved him, but not his meat. He had to cultivate loyalty in the face of his product's quality. One time a new salesman who had been sent to travel with my Dad for a week to see how the business was done, quit after three days saying "I can't do this....everywhere you go people are mad at you!"
Anyway, one time when Dad's company had delivered some bad hamburger meat to a Whatabuger restaurant,the manager, who was in the attic of the old traditional A-frame building, was really telling Dad off about how bad the meat was and the delimma this was creating, etc. Dad stood at the bottom of the ladder that Bill, the manager was standing on as he looked for supplies. After the tirade, Dad looked up at Bill, seeing Bill's face stained with sweat from the 100 plus degree heat of the attic, Dad said "Bill, I only have one thing to say." "What's that, Cameron?" Bill replied. Dad retorted, "To err is human, but to forgive is divine." There was a critical moment of silence after Dad's volley. It was a calculated guess that humor was the solution. Bill wanted to remain angry, but looking at Dad's silly grin, after delivery of the ridiculous line, Bill could not stay angry at this crazy man he loved to see each week. "You are crazy, Cameron" was all he could say, but the mood had changed. Life was good again.
I have never had the guts to try Dad's line on someone who was mad at me....maybe I should. If you do, let me know how it works! Life is Good!
Sunday morning found me and Gym Rat at a favorite breakfast haunt, Lucky's. Lucky's is an eclectic old fashion diner. It has been bought by a restaurant chain and is not quite what it once was (frozen strawberries now instead of fresh on the pancakes). But it is still very popular, especially on Sundays for brunch when people line up out the door. It is a Cheer's type of place where everybody knows our names. We are greeted by the gentle giant bear of a host, David. We have our waiter and our table and usually have to stand and drink "serve yourself" coffee for the 10 to 15 minute wait for the table. There are a couple of televisions where you can sometimes follow a tennis game. I felt adventuresome and ate a pecan Belgian waffle with bananas on top (one fruit that the new owners can't skimp on by buying in frozen bulk).
Brunch was followed by a wonderful time at the matinee at Theatre Three with good friend, Tatiana. The play was a British farce and I was surprised and happy to see another friend, Ginger Goldman, in one of the lead roles. She and I had been through four levels of improv comedy classes together years ago. She is a fine actress and I just act up, but seeing her brought back good memories. The stage for this play, consisted of three bedrooms at differing levels where all the action takes place, mostly British banter, dry humor and sarcasm as only the British can create out of our common language.
After post play coffee at the Starbucks down the street from the theatre with Tatiana, I went to the SMU gym. I really did not want to go....once again knowing I would be called upon to account for my running on this blog spurred me on. Once there I ran on the treadmill. The prior night's cold front had ushered in snow for the first day of spring making running outside not an option. (I know, people run in the cold and I have, but I did not want to last night and I didn't have too!) When the adrenaline rush kicked in I knew I could run an hour and I did. Sunday was a good day.
Oh, and the title line about "to err is human"? As I was running my mind wondered to wonderful stories that my Dad used to tell. He was a meat salesmen for a company that sold expensive meat of not always the best quality, or so he would tell me. (Probably the source of his "Be thankful for your problesm, they create your job" advice he always gave). As a result, his customers were always mad at him when he would arrive on a sales calls. They loved him, but not his meat. He had to cultivate loyalty in the face of his product's quality. One time a new salesman who had been sent to travel with my Dad for a week to see how the business was done, quit after three days saying "I can't do this....everywhere you go people are mad at you!"
Anyway, one time when Dad's company had delivered some bad hamburger meat to a Whatabuger restaurant,the manager, who was in the attic of the old traditional A-frame building, was really telling Dad off about how bad the meat was and the delimma this was creating, etc. Dad stood at the bottom of the ladder that Bill, the manager was standing on as he looked for supplies. After the tirade, Dad looked up at Bill, seeing Bill's face stained with sweat from the 100 plus degree heat of the attic, Dad said "Bill, I only have one thing to say." "What's that, Cameron?" Bill replied. Dad retorted, "To err is human, but to forgive is divine." There was a critical moment of silence after Dad's volley. It was a calculated guess that humor was the solution. Bill wanted to remain angry, but looking at Dad's silly grin, after delivery of the ridiculous line, Bill could not stay angry at this crazy man he loved to see each week. "You are crazy, Cameron" was all he could say, but the mood had changed. Life was good again.
I have never had the guts to try Dad's line on someone who was mad at me....maybe I should. If you do, let me know how it works! Life is Good!
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