Ain't lost yet, so I gotta be a winner.

Week 11 Total: 35 miles
Training to Date: 287 miles

Question: Run today, when it is cold and dry, or tomorrow when it may be warm and wet? What I really want to avoid, have avoided, is destroying my feet. I am prepared for a forty degree run, though it may be less than pleasant. The other night I ran in 40 degree temps and both knees hurt for two days.

However, once I get an idea in my head, it is hard to stop it. I got up at 5 AM, drank coffee and snacked, waiting for the necessary to occur, before stepping out at 6 AM.

I chose long pants. And gloves. Good call, very good call.

Distance: 20 miles
Duration: 3 hours, 6 minutes
Route: Cleveland Heights to Lakewood
Band-aids: check
Lip balm: check
Bottle: check
Body glide: check?

Factory of Gladness!
Temperature: 39º
Climate: cool, very slight mist at times
Pre-Snack: banana, toast
Road-Snack: GU 2x*, cereal fruit bar
Hydration? yes!
Stretches? yes

*GU Roctane Island Nectars. Gross! Also the old stand-by, Vanilla Bean (cuz I -heart- caffeine.)

Thank you, Gypsy, for letting me pee.
The aggravation of carrying a sloshing water bottle for twenty miles was entirely worth it. The last two miles were a bit of a slog, keeping the end of Lake Avenue in sight ... but then running around the block to get to my parents' house to make it a true 20-miler.

Podrunner:
Step Sequencer (164 bpm)
In The Meantime - Spacehog (168 bpm)
Tiger by the Tail (163 bpm)
I Will Dare - The Replacements (167 bpm)
Bolt (160 bpm)

A little Replacements in there, in honor of my brother, who is visiting from the Twin Cities to see The Velocity of Autumn tonight! He took me out for brunch at the Root Cafe, before driving me back to the Heights.

I KNOW WHAT I AM DOING.

It is the distance, that makes life a little hard.

The Tall Guy
Wow. I can't believe I ran five miles, three nights in a row. Just not feeling it, any day this week. Until I get out there. Must be trying to accomplish something.

Okay, here's an idea. Leave Saturday at 5:30 AM, run across town, arrive at my parents at 8:30. Let my brother take me out for breakfast in Lakewood, and drive me back to Cleveland Heights, Nice idea, in theory. Questions include 1) how do I drink? 2) how to I void?

Distance: 5 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Temperature: 41º
Climate: cool & clear
Weight: 165 lbs.
Hydration? red wine
Stretches? no

Chilly. And yet, shorts. My knees hurt.

You're Not Alone Genius Playlist
Block Rockin' Beats - Chemical Brothers
Female Of The Species - Space
Worst Day (171 bpm) - Calvin Harris ft.
You're Not Alone (TLGB Remix) - Olive
Strangers (168 bpm) - Portishead
Traveller (Kid Loco's Once Upon A Time In the East Mix) (160 bpm) - Talvin Singh
Little Fluffy Clouds - The Orb
This Is Not A Love Song - Nouvelle Vague
Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad? - Moby

Second weekend of The Velocity of Autumn begins tomorrow. Notices have been outstanding, so they tell me. Tickets are going fast. Here is the Plain Dealer review, I will hold off on reading any of them until the show closes, if I am still interested.

I watch it crush me and then I die.

Once again, don't want to go out. Spoiled rotten by that glorious weather ... but the fifties aren't bad, either. Better than the alternative. Thanks to my wife, who encouraged me to get out. It has been a soul-harming day, and I am grateful for the endorphins.

Distance: 5 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop


This evening the Noble-Oxford PTA won the Reaching Heights Spelling Bee -- my wife was on the team! I was amused that their third round word was MENISCUS. As in, my husband was a depressive pain in the ass when he tore his MENISCUS.

Temperature: 52º
Climate: cool
Weight: 165 lbs.
Dinner: shells carbonara
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

Awesome run. Great playlist. Right where I am at. And I run fast, still. Even today.

Surfing On A Rocket Genius Playlist
Surfing On A Rocket (158 bpm) - AIR
The Sky Is Broken (163 bpm) - Moby
Left Bank - AIR
Temptation - Moby
Mourning Air - Portishead
Sexy Boy - AIR
Wandering Star (160 bpm) - Portishead
Mike Mills (158 bpm) - AIR
Natural Blues - Moby

Cooldown:
Suite II Overture - Janelle Monáe

I've waited hours for this.

I done lost my pep. After all the extra-curricular activity of the past, I don't know, several months, I am feeling a bit adrift, and not much like running.

The girl was told in gym class that kids need to exercise at least sixty minutes a day, so this afternoon she obsessively asked me to time her running up and down stairs, around the block, doing crunches, working the Ripstik ... the only problem is, she is a hardcore soccer player, she is not one of those children the First Lady is concerned about.

I watched as she ran a half-mile in exactly five minutes. Let's hear it for the girl.

But I am. I need to get out there. Doesn't help that we went from that glorious summer weather to, well ... spring. But spring is nice, too.

Distance: 5 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

And that was, in fact, a very nice run. The weather may have been chilly the past two days, but picked up during the day today and was warmer this evening that pretty much the rest of the day. What was up with my starting the year by running out Monticello two miles, and then straight back? Must have been an aversion to my neighborhood sidewalks, but still, that seems a lifetime ago. I should head out that way again, who knows, maybe tomorrow, to remember.

Temperature: 55º
Climate: cool and kind.
Weight: 167 lbs.
Dinner: ham, asparagus, baked potato ... and a lot of condiments.
Hydration? yes
Stretches? perfunctory

And another personal record - I have never had so many runs during the month of March. Previous record: 16 runs in March 2007.

Boys Don't Cry (12" Extended Version) Genius Playlist
Love Song - The Cure
Brand New Colony - The Postal Service
Psycho Killer (Live) - Talking Heads
Munich - Editors
Suck My Kiss - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Faust Arp - Radiohead
Close To Me - The Cure
Jigsaw Falling Into Place (166 bpm) - Radiohead
That's Entertainment - The Jam
She's Lost Control - Joy Division
We Will Become Silhouettes (155 bpm) - The Postal Service

Cooldown:
Reckoner - Radiohead

How long before Thom Yorke performs the theme song to a Disney/Pixar movie?

It's not getting better, man. It's just getting old.

Angry young man.
Week 10 Total: 31 miles
Training to Date: 252 miles

So. The play is open. I am ten weeks into my training, eight more to the big race. There are several looming deadlines at work (there always are) and I have to finish cutting Henry VIII. There is a copy of The Handmaid's Tale sitting on my shelf waiting to be read. And I am toying with my version of iambic pentameter. Doors never close, they just lead to other open doors.

Distance: 4 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Last night I did a pathetic thing. Not sure I want to detail it, for the sake of the person involved, who is probably so used to such things that she barely notices them. But she probably does. I should have said something, not in sympathy, but to show I was listening, that I heard her, instead of nodding absently like everyone else.

Temperature: 45º
Climate: cool & misty
Weight: 165.5 lbs.
Snack: cereal fruit bar
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

Normal spring weather. The magnolia tree has already done its thing, there are petals all over the ground. Sometimes it snows in April.

Watch The Tapes Genius Playlist
Watch The Tapes (153 bpm) - LCD Soundsystem
Mistaken For Strangers - The National
Road to Recovery - Midnight Juggernaught
You! Me! Dancing! (165 bpm) - Los Campesinos!
Poor Places - Wilco
Norway - Beach House
Faust Arp - Radiohead

Cooldown:
FM (Tensnake Remix) - Junior Boys

Dark dance music for your misty morning Sunday.

Velocity.

The Velocity of Autumn by Eric Coble
Beck Center through April 29
Starring Dorothy Silver
Photo: Kathy Sandham
Ennui sets in. Almost eight weeks to go, feeling not just tired but disinterested. I am sure this is a direct result of post-opening night let-down. Yay, I did something big ... now what?

Well. Train for a freaking marathon, I guess.

Distance: 12 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop 2x

And then we run, and I feel much, much better. Next week, according to my schedule, I am supposed to run 20 miles. The first of three twenty-mile runs prior to the event. This is a good idea, for my last training session, six years ago, I ran one 20-miler and it was like summiting Everest to me. Last week I ran 18 miles, and thought, eh. Hurt a little for a day. Not much. Still got on with life just fine.

So, the question is, I guess, do I depart before dawn and try and reach my parents' house by breakfast? Got a week to figure that out.

1. Wishing a "chappy chello" to smiling Orthodox families taking a walk through Cain Park.

2. Hey, Erin! It's Spring! Turn the water fountain on!

3. Passed Karl, driving by on Euclid Hts. Blvd. on my second lap. Yes, sir. It was a good run.

Temperature: 63º
Climate: cool & overcast. sweet.
Weight: 163.5 lbs.
Snack: banana + sunbutter & fruit yogurt smoothie
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

Podrunner:
Furioso (167 BPM)
Mustapha Dance * - The Clash (128 BPM)
Overground (165 BPM)

* Just a note, including a down-beat songs in the midst of long, bpm-orietned playlists doesn't really do anything for me.

Moving through the landscape at a million miles an hour.

It was in Lugo, 1984. Someone got a copy of a music magazine, and the guys, Adam and Arden, were gawking at this picture of German pop singer Nena. She had hairy armpits. They thought that was really gross.

I looked at the picture, at her exposed underarm. I was intrigued. You might say aroused.

And I knew something about myself I hadn't known before. Isn't it nice to know a lot?

Distance: 4 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Temperature: 64º
Climate: warm
Weight: 164.5 lbs.
Breakfast: melon, cupcake
Hydration? yes
Stretches? no

Living In A Spanish Disco Playlist
99 Luftballons - Nena
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun - Cyndi Lauper
Relax - Frankie Goes to Hollywood
Locomotion - OMD
No Way Out - Jefferson Starship
Let's Hear It For the Boy (12" Version) - Deniece Williams
State of Shock - Michael Jackson & Mick Jagger
Street Dance - Break Machine

You wonder where the hell you are.

Oh, I get it. First day of Spring, suddenly every in Lakewood remembers there's this thing called "running." I swear, driving by Lakewood Park was like being one of the cars in FROGGER.

Distance: 5 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

At the start of marathon training, I said it would be necessary to:

Get a new pair of shoes.
Stop eating any processed snack chips.
Lose between ten and fifteen pounds.
Have a water bottle with me at all times.
Play more. Facebook less.

I have done all of those things, except for the part about the water bottle, which I am working on. It's nice to set goals and accomplish them!

Now I really ned a new glasses strap. All sweaty. In March.

Temperature: 82º
Climate: hot!
Weight: 165.5 lbs.
Meal: spaghetti & red sauce
Hydration? yes
Stretches? no

155-159 BPM Playlist*
Talk To Ya Later - The Tubes
The Future's So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades - Timbuk 3
Racist Friend - Special AKA
Tokyo Storm Warning - Elvis Costello & The ATtractions
I Predict A Riot - Kaiser Chiefs
I Don't Want To Fall In Love - She Wants Revenge
Halo - Beyonce
Harborcoat - R.E.M.
Angst In My Pants - Sparks
A Million Miles Away - The Plimsouls

*Most excellent BPM for hot, sunny weather.

Eleven

Otters who look like Benedict Cumberbatch.
Saturday was a bit overwhelming ... as confident as I was running eighteen miles, going out for an extended meal and a show threw me considerably. And Sunday we had a triple run-through technical rehearsal for The Velocity of Autumn, and had no time to take a recuperative follow-up three-mile run. I am sore. I am bruised. I am very, very tired.

And yet, I feel bright and alive, more mentally competent than I have in ages. Positive. Engaged. On my feet. On my game. However, I need to sleep more, and I need to drink more water, all the time, every day.

Distance: 6 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Audio: I Hate This (radio drama)

Temperature: 63º
Climate: Nice.
Weight: 167 lbs.
Snack: no
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

So don't you dare talk to me about running.

Nine miles out. Time to head back.

Week 9 Total: 27 miles+
Training to Date: 221 miles

The last week it has been my hip. My right hip, hurts to stand from sitting, hurts to lie down on at the end of the day. The wife suggests butterfly stretches, which is a nice idea and all except they make a man look stupid.

The show I am rehearsing opens with me crawling into the second story window of someone's apartment. This is done in clumsy slow-motion, and hopefully it's funny to watch. I have scored a large bruise on my right knee, not to mention several splinters in my hands. Hi-diddle-dee-dee.

Distance: 18 miles
Duration: 2 hours, 49 minutes
Route: MLK to Dead Man's Curve and back.
Band-aids: check*
Lip balm: check

Investigation. It is March 17 (St. Patrick's Day) but unseasonably warm. Are any facilities open? Will there be water available? I could have checked, I have been driving this route, to and from rehearsal, for two weeks. But I have made no time for it. Stepping into the unknown.

Temperature: 59º
Climate: warm
Weight: 164 lbs.
Snack: banana & GU
Hydration? yes ... barely
Stretches? yes

1. Stopped in to void at the depressing Coffee House at University Circle.

2. Water fountains shut off at Wade Oval, VA Hospital. Getting concerned.

3. Lots of folks heading into town at 8 AM.

4. Cereal fruit bar on North Marginal Road.

5. Port-o-john at East 72nd Street Park. Last cleaned Monday. Sorry, ladies.

6. Halfway mark at 1 hour, 25 minutes. Now we run into the sun.

7. *Somewhere my "waterproof" bandages washed away. Might need to shave.

8. 13 miles in just 2 hours. Now five miles ... uphill.

9. GU with Gandhi.

10. Legs very heavy. Otherwise feel great. I believe if I had brought some water, I might not be having this problem.

11. One mile to go, stopped in at CH-UH Rec Center for some cold, refreshing WATER!

12. Beer at 10 AM. I ran 18 miles, what's your excuse?

Podrunner:
Out With a Bang (165 BPM)
Boys Don't Cry (12" Extended Version 1986) - The Cure (171 BPM)
Corybantic (162 BPM)
Wonderwall - Oasis (173 BPM)
Apogee (166 BPM)

+ MONDAY UPDATE: My schedule on Sunday made a recuperative run impossible.

I run with all my heart.

Smell it.
Work. Rehearsal. Run. That is all.

Distance: 4 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Temperature: 50º
Climate: beautiful.
Weight: 167 lbs.
Breakfast: cold cereal & milk, pear
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

The days move on, and I have let up on post-run stretches. I have found that some days that is a good thing. But it is not wise to never stretch. No, it is not.

165-169 BPM Playlist
Too Dramatic - Ra Ra Riot
Enid - Barenaked Ladies
About You Now - Sugababes
Birdland - Maynard Ferguson
The Metro - Berlin
In The Summertime - Mungo Jerry
The Perfect Drug - Dkay.com/Die Krupps
My Baby Portable Player Sound - Pizzicato Five

Been running so fast.

On the Verge
O.U. School of Theatre, 1989
There are already marked difference between my last attempt at a marathon and this one. I have scheduled for myself a more intensive training session, with more long runs, soon. And yet, I do not obsess about them. In fact, training takes up very little of my mind during the day. I run when I run, and then I do not think about it.

That's not exactly true -- I do think about it, taking a little time in advance to plan playlists, and to map runs, to set out clothes for tomorrow, in my diet and general health. A small amount of preparation means I do not fret, I do not worry.

At least, not about running.

The long runs come, and they go. 15 miles were accomplished last week, and I moved on with my day. Last Saturday, 12. And it was done. This Saturday -- 18? Maybe, maybe not, it's a good weekend for it. I would like to try heading to Dead Man's Curve via North Marginal Drive and back. However, unlike my summer training, bathrooms and water fountains are not accessible. I will figure something out.

Distance: 5 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

I also compose these blog entries whenever an idea strikes me, as opposed to right after a run, when my mind is entirely blank.

Temperature: 55º
Pavement: wet. slimy & smelly
Climate: GORGEOUS
Weight: 166.5 lbs.
Breakfast: Grapefruit & scrambled eggs with ham & cheese
Hydration? yes
Stretches? no

155-159 BPM Playlist
All the Young Dudes - Mott the Hoople
Collapse - Soul Coughing
Working In The Coal Mine - Devo
Someone to Talk To - The Police
The Generator - Lilys
Man In A Suitcase (Live) - The Police
Head Over Heels - The Go-Go's
Maniac - Michael Sembello
On the Verge - Nick Robinson
The Eton Rifles - The Jam
Cool Places - Sparks
Come Out and Play - The Offspring
Reptile - The Church

You walk. I'll run.

Yesterday was a day for family. After the 12 mile, the wife spent time writing while the rest of us cleaned house, and played outside, and enjoyed a meal together (dinner, for the first time in forever) and then played Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games™.

When did I decide I do not like video games? How does that happen?

This morning I woke early to run lines. Coffee, and a script.

Week 8 Total: 29 miles
Training to Date: 194 miles

Distance: 4 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Pulled a muscle in my back cleaning house yesterday. That does not bode well, considering the trick I need to perform at the top of the show I am working on. However ... my shins no longer complain, my hips are no longer aching. My body is getting acquainted with effort.

Temperature: 50º
Climate: glorious
Weight: 167.5 lbs.
Snack: cherry yogurt
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

160-164 BPM Playlist
Don't Change - INXS
Lake Shore Driving - Duran Duran
Alex Chilton - The Replacements
Like Eating Glass - Bloc Party
Mexican Radio - Wall of Voodoo
Don't Box Me In - Stewart Copeland ft/ Stan Ridgway
Digging In The Dirt - Peter Gabriel
Other People - Prick

Cooldown:
Is That Love - Squeeze

Gorgeous day. Perfect for spending indoors all afternoon in rehearsal.

Just be strong.

Distance: 12 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop (2x)

Temperature: 32º to 36º
Climate: cool & dry
Weight: 166 lbs.*
Breakfast: pancakes w/syrup, applesauce & yogurt
Snack: banana, coffee, fruit leather
Hydration? yes
Stretches? no

1. 165 bpm is truly daddy's sweet spot.

2. Carbs and sugars 90 minutes before a run do not make for good energy. Yawning pains by mile three.

3. NEW SIDEWALKS ON TAYLOR! Heights, I LOVE you!

4. End of first lap, stopped at home for snack and water. Changed out of warm-weather hat and put on shorts.

Podrunner:
Breezy (165 bpm)
Top Five (Staircase Mix) (160 - 180 bpm)

*That's what the scale says. I do not believe my mustache weighed that much.

This won't stop until I say so.

"I want to run every day, every other day, get back into a rhythm, a need. And to have legs and lungs that can take it. I need to work up to this, lately if I try three or four mile runs, it wrecks me for the rest of the day. That's not how it's supposed to feel."
- Jan. 1, 2012

Ladies and gentlemen ... 45 Playlists For 45 Years.

2012 Playlist
We Found Love - Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris
Moves Like Jagger - Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera
Stay Gold - The Big Pink
Midnight City - M83
Somebody That I Used To Know - Gotye
Blackout - Breathe Carolina
Wait So Long (Manic Focus Remix) - Trampled By Turtles

We found gloves in a homeless place.

(Thx, CDX.)

Distance: 3 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

DID YOU KNOW ... I have a drawer just for running clothes?

Temperature: 37º
Climate: cold, windy.
Weight: 169 lbs.
Breakfast: banana, mango, kiwi w/grape nuts & yogurt
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

We conclude where we began, with snow. March 9 ... well, that is the earliest I will ever complete a string of annual playlist runs, making it into the weather (such as it has been) every day or every other day. And those lists ... there's another one with every passing year.

So what. Big deal. Moving on.

I know I'm running, baby. But I need you now.

As the tour winds down, rehearsals for The Velocity of Autumn ramp up. No more mustache wax nor silly accents. But I do have to begin each performance by clumsily falling through a window. Already my right knee hurts. Today I am wearing a brace for my run. And rehearsal.

Distance: 5 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Temperature: 54º
Climate: cool, clear & windy
Weight: 166 lbs.
Breakfast: cold cereal w/milk, grapefruit
Hydration? yes
Stretches? no

2011 Playlist
You Make Me Feel - Cobra Starship ft. Sabi
Make Some Noise - The Beastie Boys
Ritual Union - Little Dragon
Need You Now - Cut Copy
Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.) - Katy Perry
Calling All The Monsters - China Anne McLain
Life's A Happy Song - The Muppets
Na Na Nothing - Mike Doughty
Breakthrough - Lemonade Mouth
Brazil - Eric Bobo & Latin Bitman
This City - Patrick Stump ft. Lupe Fiasco

Since we got Netflix last month, the kids have been tearing through Good Luck, Charlie. Tell me I am not the only one who thinks Bridgit Mendler looks like she's forty.

Let's run away and don't ever look back.

The 5-Mile Neighborhood Loop
Distance: 5 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Daily runs get longer. Must build endurance, can't do it by either trying to rush through my run, to get it over with, nor can I simply plod along with my head down, taking smaller steps. I need to keep my head up, and use longer strides.

Once I have completed the 45 Playlists I need to find music to listen to which will inspire me. I have been logging bpms in my iTunes for years now, and have 5 bpm interval lists which I will try experimenting with. Unfortunately, it's a lot of the same stuff I always hear.

There are a couple of old favorite, 45-60 minute workout podcasts I'd like to listen to, and there's always P0DRUNNER. Suggestions, as always, are welcome.

Temperature: 48º
Climate: cool, breezy & bright
Weight: 167.5 lbs.
Snack: banana
Hydration? yes
Stretches? no

Now ... having said all that, about running five miles ... we had a tour date this afternoon, right here in the Heights at the temporary home of the Cleveland Sight Center. As we were loading out I had my eye on my watch. Time was getting short if I were to run five miles before I needed to pick my kids up from their extra-curricular activities. By the time I got home I had forty minutes to spare.

I ran my ass off.

2010 Playlist
Tightrope - Janelle Monáe ft. Big Boi
We Speak No Americano - Yolanda Be Cool & DCUP
Down For the Count - Girl Talk
Gonna Get This - Hannah Montana ft. lyaz
OMG [Almighty Mix] - Usher ft. will.i.am
Teenage Dream - Katy Perry
Waka Waka (This Time For Africa) - Shakira ft. Freshlyground
Velvet - Queue Up
Dynamite (Mixin Marc Remix) - Taio Cruz

I put on my shoes and I'm ready.

New shoes! New shoes! $40 Asics at Marshall's. Thank you. Yesterday the girl and I trained for her half-mile run during CLV Marathon weekend. Quarter mile out, quarter mile back. We keep this up we'll soon be able to make it around the block.

Damn. Really should have quit marching band and tried out for cross country. My life would be totally different.

Week 7 Total: 30 miles
Training to Date: 165 miles

Distance: 3 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

Stiff drink + post-midnight bedtime = headache. Still, can't watch Mad Men without gin.

Temperature: 34º
Climate: patchy wet snow
Weight: 170.5 lbs.
Breakfast: toasted bagel w/cream cheese
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

Allow me to explain the weight bump. Yesterday morning, I ran fifteen miles. Yesterday afternoon, I ate an entire pizza. And what did you do yesterday? Now, let us talk about chafing.

2009 Playlist
Something Good 09 - Utah Saints
The Fear - Lily Allen
Sea of Heartbreak - Rosanne Cash ft/ Bruce Springsteen
Ready for the Weekend - Calvin Harris
Quicksand - La Roux
This Must Be The Place - Miles Fisher
When Love Takes Over - David Guetta ft. Kelly Rowland
I Like You So Much Better When You're Naked (169 bpm) - Ida Maria

Cooldown:
I Gotta Feeling (FMIF Remix) - Black Eyed Peas


It's all true.

What happened?

Diana asked what might be on my 2012 Playlist ... so let me ask you, what running songs should I include on my playlist for the year-so-far next Thursday?

Distance: 15.25 miles
Route: Heights Fifteen
Duration: 2 hr. 15 min.

Very busy, this boy, on the workfront. Touring, deadlines, creative writing (or editing) with a promise, and always, homecare. Recently I have been waking at roughly 3 AM to be just barely awake. The wife notices I fidget, but then so do I. It's not alcohol, because I have not been drinking any. It's just whatever is rolling around my head.

1. Breakfast on Richmond with Peter Gabriel

2. Gust of wind on Green Rd. knocked one of my feet against the other in an intersection, almost wiped out.

3. Pre-occupied by world affairs on Belvoir, almost hit by a speeding car.

4. Charging into wind on Cedar only made me smile, knowing it would be to my back on Euclid and Monticello.

5. Stopped to seriously tighten my laces. Goodness, my shoes were loose, no wonder I have foot problems.

6. Original plan was to run through Lakeview Cemetery, but I arrived about five minutes before the opened the gate. I know this because the Euclid Avenue entrance was open by the time I passed there.

A. THINGS THAT TROUBLE ME ON LONG RUNS:
Wind, runny nose, cold hands.

B. THINGS THAT DO NOT TROUBLE ME ON LONG RUNS:
Energy, strength, hydration, because I take care of these things.

Temperature: 39º
Climate: cool, dry w/gusts of wind
Weight: 165.5 lbs.
Snack: banana, cereal bar & fruit leather
Hydration? yes
Stretches? no

The last several days I have eaten a lot of cookies.

2008 Playlist
Just Dance - Lady Gaga
Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It) - Beyoncé
A Thing For Me - Metronomy
Poker Face - Lady Gaga
Thnks Fr Th Mmrs - Fall Out Boy
A-Punk - Vampire Weekend
Check Yes Juliet (167 bpm) - We the Kings
Three-Way - The Magnetic Fields
Down to Earth - Peter Gabriel
1973 - James Blunt
Jai Ho - A.R. Rahman
American Boy - Estelle ft. Kanye West
Certified - Calvin Harris
Paradise - Ana Serrano van der Laan
Black & Gold - Sam Sparro
Mercy - Duffy
Here's the Thing - Girl Talk
Breakeven - The Script
4 Minutes - Madonna ft. Justin Timberlake & Timbaland
15 Step - Radiohead
Lights & Music - Cut Copy
Set It Off - Girl Talk
Walking On a Dream [Kaskade Remix] - Empire of the Sun
Campus (163 bpm) - Vampire Weekend
Hold On - Holy Ghost!
Go All The Way (Into the Twilight) - Perry Farrell
Blind - Hercules and Love Affair
Who Knew - Pink
Great DJ - The Ting Tings
Let Me See You - Girl Talk
Halo - Beyoncé
So What - Pink
Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa - Vampire Weekend
No Pause - Girl Talk
Le Disko - Shiny Toy Guns

Thanks for the push up Forest Hill, B. That was well-timed.

I know I should forget, but I can't.

Stay classy, Breitbart. In Hell.
Andrew Breitbart, dead at 43. I can now say I have lived long enough to see Andrew Breitbart dead. And that is the last I will say about that.

Distance: 4 miles
Route: Neighborhood loop

The girl and I have a standing date to head to Marshall's to get new running shoes. We need to train for the marathon. She's running the half-mile on Saturday, May 19!

First day of March. We have not seen anything like "winter" and it is now time for spring. Our thoughts turn now to animals and children, sports and adventure. The great turn of the wheel. Peaceful sunshine and deep reflection. We will greet the first day of spring with family celebrations ... and rehearsals for another show. So it goes. So it goes.

Temperature: 39º
Climate: cool & dry
Weight: 167.5 lbs.
Breakfast: whole wheat pear & cheese griddlecakes w/applesauce & yogurt
Hydration? yes
Stretches? yes

The mustache has finally gone entirely out of control. I cannot maintain this haggard face-atrocity. This time next week I will be in the bathroom at Firestone High School with a pair of clippers and a can of Barbasol. Oh yes, I will.

2007 Playlist
Breakin' Dishes - Rihanna
Tears From a Gun - The Black Ghosts
Stronger - Kanye West
Foundations (169 bpm) - Kate Nash
Split Needles (170 bpm) - The Shins
Big Girl (You Are Beautiful) - MIKA
All Good Things (Spanish Version) -Nelly Furtado
Make It Easy (John Tejada Remix) - Lusine

Cooldown:
Get Around To It - Tracey Thorn

The 45 Playlists conclude next week!