Fargo Marathon 22 May 2010

check these out:

http://www.mtecresults.com/runner/show?rid=1800&race=18

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/34169342

3:57:57 is a qualifying time for entry to the Boston Marathon April 2011 (for men age 60-64 on race day, which includes me)

Yeah!!!

There's a Tiger

Treherne, Manitoba: Gateway to the Tiger Hills.

The 2009 Run for the Hills was held today in (and out) of Treherne. Julie injured her leg off the start of the 10k, sat down for a few minutes, and ran it anyway. Go Julie!!!

I ran the half marathon, rationalizing that it was "just a training run" for the full marathon I am runnuing in Toronto next month. So what an incredible thing that I ran it 11 and a half minutes faster than my previous best, in 1:54:39.

Go Tiger ..... mean Bob!!!

Updated Newfoundland pic album (some new) and The Kitten (Rumi)

http://picasaweb.google.ca/drbob1951

New kitten, back from trips, longest run

If Newfoundland went well, Minneapolis went very well. I was surprised to have liked St. John's as much as I did. I would go back if I could. We still find ourselves singing the music we heard (and bought) with songs like "Sarah, Sarah" and "I'm da B'y". Minneapolis did not surprise me. I knew I liked it there. We did the Mall of America, the State Fair and Apple River (COLD by the end of the day), and had a fabulous visit with my ex-inlaws (who got together as a family to see us and had pictures from 1971 to give me, with my parents, and aunts and uncles and my grandmother!).
Our new Burmese kitten is named Rumi, after the Sufi poet of that name. She is (of course) more Budhist than Sufi, but she is very open minded and noticed that the themes and sentiments in the Sufi poetry are easily accepted by most Buddhists.
She travelled well, mostly on either my lap or Julie's, and ate, drank and used her new litter tray at all the right times. She sleeps cuddled up beside (or on top) of one of us, or under the covers. She is the right cat for us!
Today I ran 20.2 miles, in 9:36 per mile. In 6 weeks, I will have a chance to run 6 miles farther, and if I can run it an average of 30 seconds a mile faster, I qualify for Boston in 2011. If not, this was the farthest I have EVER run, and that is enough.
Let me see if I can get a picture of Rumi to upload for this page: (the picture chose to add itself to the top, (with my approval)).

This is a Puffin. It speaks for itself.

Being at a psychiatry conference

The title of this entry could be a straight line: Being at a psychiatry conference is like......
It is like being glad it is now. I had a conversation with someone I have known for MANY years, who I introduced to Julie. He came and asked (after she had left) how many times I had been married now. He thought Julie was my third wife. I told him no, she is my fourth.
I reviewed it for him (since he asked and must have wanted to know...why else would he have asked....). I was married when I was 20 years old for 13 months. I had chosen that as a means to get out of my parents' home. Perhaps I "should have" just moved away, but I didn't. I got married for 13 months, in 1971.
Then, in 1979, I did it again. This time I chose someone upon whom I "couldn't be" dependent. I was right. That ended after 9 months.
Soon after, I met the mother of my first three children. We were together for 13 years, married for 8 of those. In retrospect, I am not entirely surprised it ended and I have already spent enough time speculating on what "might have been". It wasn't.
I met Julie about 8 years ago, at synagogue. We celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary on August 20th (last week). We are planning to celebrate many more "now" moments together, with every indication that it is a strong relationship and strong friendship and strong partnership.
I told my friend that if I had done ANYTHING differently in the past, I wouldn't be me. And my life wouldn't be my life. In fact (although I didn't tell him this) the world wouldn't be the world. Check out Julie's most recent blog entry and my comment there (plantdoc1952.blogspot.com) if you need more "proof" of this interconnectedness.
It is good that the path Julie and I both took lead to now. It is good that we are each happy (more or less) being ourselves, now. And with that, life is Good, now. One now, one breath at a time, filled with Metta (Loving Kindness) for self, for teachers/mentors, for family, for friends, for strangers, for difficult people, for enemies, for all creatures.
Ok, I guess I still have some work to do :-)

I remember bragging

I remember coming to work and telling Heidie that I ran 3 ten-minute miles. I was SO happy with myself.
I just ran 6.39 miles at an average of 8:28 a mile, WITH hills.
I am still bragging, just farther and faster.
Hi Heidie :-)