Everybody, let's move.

So that happened.

Twenty years ago, I was in pre-training preparation for my first marathon. Scheduled training would begin in July. By April I was already running much more than I ever had in the past (and keeping a log of every run right here) and had developed shin splints.

It felt like running on broken legs. I found shin bandages -- which I wore upside-down the first couple times -- iced my legs after every run, and eventually found exercises which helped strengthen the front of my shins.

At the time, a friend said, "Oh no, shin splints. Those never go away." She was wrong. Lots of people were wrong about all sorts of things as I continued my training.

I also mused about how I would have water to drink as my runs got longer. So many things to learn!

Distance: 3.1 miles

Duration: 28:09
Pace: 9:04

A Saturday entirely to myself. No work related responsibilities. No evening plans. The elder is in Cincy, the wife at the store, and it's Independent Bookstore Day. And I am home, doing laundry, cleaning house, listening to podcasts, and enjoying myself. And now I will run, on this cool, damp day in April.

Route: Forest Hill Loop
Temperature: 49°
Climate: overcast, cool & damp
Mood: driven

2006 Playlist

Another Sunny Day - Belle & Sebastian

Tracking Treasure Down - Gabriel & Dresden

Punkrocker - Teddybears ft. Iggy Pop

Say It Right - Nelly Furtado

Everybody Ona Move - Michael Franti & Spearhead

Bad Ass (Rogue Element Mix) - Crystal Method

Stretches: yes
Water: yes
Weight: 161 lbs. (-4.0)

Keep going.

Planks: yes
Push-ups: yes

Sit-Ups: yes

Sweet serotonin rushes.

The old man is not well, his eye is ulcerated and requires medicine and attention. Friday night he woke me up several times, to get under the covers which is nice except when he gets in and out of bed.

Distance: 3.1 miles

Duration: 26:44
Pace: 8:37

Also, the new cat likes to get on top of me when I sleep, which is usually pleasant, but if Tiger is under the covers, then that's an issue. Anyway, it was a bad night's sleep. 

Route: Forest Hill Loop
Temperature: 57°
Climate: overcast & beautiful
Mood: all right

Today, I will travel to Cincinnati to attend a recital/gig. The wife remains at home to care for an old cat.

2017 Playlist

Formidable Cool - Wolf Alice

Waving Through a Window - Ben Platt

On Hold - The xx

Green Light (Chromeo Remix) - Lorde

Serotonin Rushes - Fujiya & Miyagi

We Got the Power - Gorillaz ft. Jehnny Beth

High Ticket Attractions- New Pornographers

Bad Liar- Selena Gomez

Twenty years ago, on April 10, 2006, I was lamenting the fact that, though I had taken a running kit with me to London, I hadn't done any running. By that time in my life, I had gotten used to -- nay, looked forward to -- taking a run in New York City. Not that I had done it a lot, but I did a few times when I was there for the 2004 NY Fringe.

"Ran roughly four miles. Man, Sunday it is a free-for-all, everyone running in every direction. Keep your head up."

Millennium Bridge, 2006

But that was because I was squatting at an apartment two blocks from the Central Park on the Upper East Side. I knew my way around that part of New York. 

What's On Daddy's iPod?
Transatlanticism - Death Cab for Cutie

In spring 2006, we were staying at my brother's place in Battersea. I had not yet started using mapping programs to find my way around unusual places. The next year, when we returned for the I Hate This tour, I took a run in London and another in Plymouth. I had learned how to prepare.

This weekend, I am preparing by running at home on Sunday morning, and then hopefully on Tuesday, so I don't need to run in Cincinnati at all.

Stretches: yes

Water: yes
Weight: 162 lbs. (+2.0)

We're eating more junk food! Lot of grazing. And cookies. Time to bear down again.

Planks: yes
Push-ups: TBA

Sit-Ups: TBA

Straight to your heart.

Twenty years ago, on February 14, 2006, I noted how I felt running would prolong my life. I said that I hoped our elder child to be "older than this before I die." I was thirty-seven then. They are now twenty-three. So I just need to hang on another fourteen years.

February 14, 2006 Playlist

Remember the Time - Michael Jackson

Closer to God - Nine Inch Nails

Party Machine - Hoodoo Gurus

All Night Long - Peter Murphy

Burning Love - Elvis Presley

Atom Bomb (Atomix 1) - Fluke

Dead Man's Party - Oingo Boingo

Run On - Elvis Presley

Distance: 3 miles

Duration: 28:36

This weekend we took the train to Poughkeepsie for a celebration of life event. I have suffered a cold the past few days (it started in while I was teaching Wednesday afternoon) and while I could have taken the mile long walk from Toni's cousin's place to the hotel, I am weary of being cold.

Temps pick up this week, for a bit. But will the pavement in East Cleveland be clear enough for the first outdoor run of 2026? We shall see.

Site: Heartwood Hotel at Vassar (exercise room, treadmill)
Temperature: 30°
Climate: cool & clear
Mood: addled

2012 Playlist

Another Night - Claptone

Five Seconds - Twin Shadow

Sweet Nothing - Calvin Harris ft. Florence Welch

I Knew You Were Trouble. - Taylor Swift

Default - Django Django

Youth Without Youth - Metric

Can't Hold Us - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Ray Dalton

Stretches: yes
Water: yes

We're reading more books! I made it a goal to read twenty books (or full length scripts) in 2026, and recently finished both Dark Renaissance by Stephen Greenblatt and Monsters by Claire Dederer.

"Love is not reliant on judgment, but on a decision to set judgment aside."

- Claire Dederer, Monsters

Now onto the play script, Up Your Ass by Valerie Solanas. Happy Valentine's Day!

Suddenly, a new burst of energy has occurred.

On February 9, 2006, I wrote about "the route." This was the route I regularly ran, ever since I moved to Potter Village. I would weave up and down the streets in the my neighborhood, and then perhaps do one large loop that, again, did not take me very far from home.

I had not realized this yet, the first side street I would take had (it still has) a significant incline, which was taxing on this inexperienced runner who wore nine year old sneakers and had only stopped smoking less than five years earlier.

Distance: 3 miles

Duration: 24:31

BTW the halftime show was fucking epic.

Route: rec center
Temperature: 2°
Climate: just cold
Mood: all right 

It's a winter, you know? Like we've forgotten what that is. It's cold for a while, and there's snow and ice. Then it gets warmer and we have spring. It's good for the planet to have a winter. And the forecast is, it's over.

2002 Playlist

This Love - Maroon Five

Fuck the Pain Away - Peaches

Do You Realize?? - Flaming Lips

Breathe In - Frou Frou

Music Plus 1 - Cornershop

8 Mile - Eminem

Stretches: yes
Water: yes
Weight: 160 lbs. (-0-)

One things I have learned reading over the first few posts from this blog, is that pain a temporary. It comes, it goes, I feel it in different places. But it's not permanent. Eventually, perhaps but not yet. But shit, my back hurts.

Planks: yes
Push-ups: yes

Sit-Ups: yes

See you Wednesday.

Charge me up now.

March 2006
(That's a dye job.)

With the life I am currently living, it makes sense that I completely forgot to acknowledge the fact that this blog is twenty years old. "Daddy Runs Fast" began on January 10, 2006. My first run of the new year. I was 37 years old. I was about 170 lbs. I was complaining about belly fat. I had plantar warts. I had a lingering hamstring pull. I would soon develop shin splints. I thought myself old.

I am glad that at that time, I considered 170 lbs. to be "10 pounds overweight." That I knew then what my ideal weight is — which is where I am now. A thing to be proud of. On that date, I ran two miles, and that it was hard. I would run a marathon that November.

January 10, 2006 Playlist

Holiday - Green Day

Mirror In the Bathroom - The Beat

I Don't Want Your Love - Duran Duran

Tear You Apart - She Wants Revenge

Not much changes. I imagine I am no older now than I was then.

Distance: 3 miles

Duration: 25:15

I currently have back pain. This began last month, when I participated in stage combat choreography and lasted through the holidays. It went away but recurred this week, I believe because I tried doing some bicycles instead of sit-ups.

Route: rec center
Temperature: 12°
Climate: sunny & cold
Mood: all right

2022 Playlist

Selfish Soul - Sudan Archives

Down - Hot Chip

Snap (170 bpm) - Rosa Linn

Dashstar*-VIP - Knock2

Good Ones - Charli xcx

Lost Track (162 bpm) - Haim

Stabilise - Nilüfer Yanya 

Power Station - Cory Wong

Circuit Board - Raveena 

Take Me to the Good Times - The Suffers

"Twenty Twenty-Two?" Was that actually a year? A year that happened? That's silly.

Stretches: yes
Water: yes
Weight: 160 lbs.

Planks: yes
Push-ups: yes

Sit-Ups: yes

Clock’s running.

Runner's World, 3/3/2025

When I was a young man I might ask myself, when did I run last? Then I started keeping this blog, and now I know. And that's it.

Distance: 3 miles

Duration: 24:11

Ran out of sertraline, having difficulty renewing. Should I lay off the stuff for a while? I don't think so. But then, what if I tried?

Three miles. No stops.

Route: Rec Center
Mood: ?
Stretches: yes
Water: yes

Weight: 160 lbs.

2018 Playlist

Don't Lose Ur Head (166 BPM) - Christina Modestou (from "Six")

Hollywood - Gorillaz ft. Snoop Dogg & Jamie Principle

Heaven On Their Minds - Brandon VictorDixon (from “Jesus Christ Superstar”) 

This Must Be the Place (Naïve Melody) - David Byrne (from “American Utopia”)

Television - Idles

5 Out of 6 - Dessa

Ripping through these playlists. Onto the twos!

The last generation.

Thank you, Ms. Turner.

Recently I lost interest in keeping my playwriting blog. It happened to coincide with the conclusion of my studies, and that may actually have been part of it. I'm not sure. The wife suggested, only once, that it might be a sign of depression, this lack of interest.

But I'm not depressed, not right now. I have been, in the past year. But I feel positive, engaged, seeing people, having fun (natural fun!) and every time I think of a topic for a blog post I also think, that sounds like work, and not work that you want to be doing right now.

Kept that blog for twelve years. Kept this one for over seventeen years, and will continue to do so as long as I continue to run.

Distance: 3.1 miles

Duration: 29:00
Pace: 9:21

Route: Forest Hill Loop

Temperature: 48°
Climate: sunny & cool

Mood: good

Tina Turner Playlist

Come Together * (w/Ike Turner)

River Deep - Mountain High * (w/Ike Turner)

We Don't Need Another Hero

Addicted to Love (Live)

Better Be Good to Me

It's Only Love (w/Bryan Adams)

The Acid Queen

What's Love Got To Do With It?

Stretches: yes
Abdominals: 90 sec.

Upper body: 10 rep. (2x)
Water: yes

Breakfast: coffee w/cream, fruit smoothie bowl w/blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, birthday granola & agave

Lunch: Hot Tito combo (pop & chips) from Geraci’s

Happy Hour: IPA (1x)

Dinner: blue cheese burger w/bacon, cheese curds

Salty, salty.

Baseline: 195 lbs.

Current: 179 lbs. (+0.5)

Goal: 175 lbs.

Get started. Get stupid.

Keep going.

Last year I ran twenty-six times in June. And I hurt myself. I don't even remember that. My hip was in pain. I think that was the result of running every single day. It was a mania, I guess. I was then, as now, trying to slim down to a manageable size. I was 185 lbs. in June. I was able to drop another five pounds, but then put it all back on by the holidays.

Running every day, I didn't write about it. Too busy? In quarantine? I had nothing to say? It was a difficult, depressing time.

Not that tings are rosy and bright. But they are better. I was exposed to lots of hillbillies this weekend. Really testing the limits of this vaccine.

I have been in a creative frenzy this past year, too. The writing, the schoolwork, all the Zoom productions. But I'd like to make exercise something that is part of my head, what I think about, and not just something I do and get over with, to try not to think about. Some of my favorite moomenst I am thinking about running. Or actually running.

Distance: 4 miles
Duration: 37:54
Pace: 9:27
Route: Hocking River Bike Path
Temperature: 67°
Climate: sunny & nice
Mood: good, you know?

My current mental exercise in delayed gratification. I will be eating X later, so I will not eat Y right now. If I did this on Noob (or whatever it's called) I could find out exactly what the calories are in X vs. Y, too. For now, I choose to be merely mindful.

It's not really a diet. I am not eating different. Just less grazing. 

Intake:
Breakfast: coffee (2x) 
Lunch: General Tso's Tofu

Snack: deviled eggs, tapanade w/crackers

Dinner: cheeseburger, onion rings, milkshake

Also, Manhattan (1x)

Okay, holiday's over.

2003 Playlist

Transatlanticism - Death Cab for Cutie

Crazy In Love  - Beyoncé ft. Jay-Z

Toxic - Britney Spears

Let's Get It Started (Spike Mix) - Black Eyed Peas

We Will Become Silhouettes - Postal Service

Seven Nation Army - White Stripes

Move Your Feet - Junior Senior

Hey Ya! - OutKast

Emerge - Fischerspooner

The year 2003 was a big year for me, aurally. We had discovered iTunes. I was listening to Radio K. And then there was the girl. All the music that emerged from being a new father, the father of a living child. It was a rebirth. The latest rebirth.

This is the day of the expanding man.

Home again, and back to work. Also, back on the road. Chris contacted me yesterday about heading out this morning and I was all in. Terrible night sleep, however (three in a row) so we will see how successful this is.

August. Welcome to the the third shift.

Distance: 5 miles
Avg. Pace:
Duration:
Route:

Good run with Chris. Not easy, but what is? Ran five, walked a block. Beautiful day.

Thought the other day, why keep a log? Why not just write down statistics and leave it at that? Too much time spent writing this blog, what is the point?

Who knows. But I have been at it too long to quit. Like Samuel Pepys, perhaps I am leaving behind an account which someone may find a use for. A physiologist, a psychologist, a lawyer. Who knows.

Temperature: 67°
Climate: clear skies, a bit humid
Mood: all right

The time has come, to quit the sugar and processed foods. This is the same diet that made my blood sugar spike, who knows where it is now. Cut the soda, the candy, the chips and all the rest. Last night we got in around dinner time but I was still able to get to the store, and the wife made a meat-free, high-protein meal, one which even included a few beans from the backyard.

Just a few. Too many damn deer and one frisky groundhog.

Baseline: 174 lbs.
Today: 176.5 lbs.
Goal: 170 lbs.
Ideal: 165 lbs.

What's That Lyric?
Deacon Blues - Steely Dan

When everything feels all over.

White Rabbit Red Rabbit
October 24, 7:00 PM

Oh, hai, running.

Lot of stuff going on in our little world. Work, good work. Very good work. Not just for me (though I reflect on that at length in my writing blog) but for all four of us.

I want to, need to be sure to strike a balance between the mind work and the body work. Karl and I were discussing that around the fire in Athens last week, you can push so hard in pursuit of a goal, but once the (literal) race has been run, you can just stand still, and wonder what is left for you to do.

This is true about figurative races as well, you know.

The people around me set a good example, the children are very physically active, and the wife continues successfully with her routine. There are laments, not enough time to get the running in, too many days between workouts. But that's just totally normal. We all feel that.

Distance: 3.2 miles
Avg Pace: 7:37
Route: Boulevard Loop

My goal for the marathon was to run an average pace of 8:30. Did I mention I made 8:29? That's how I did that.

The list of posts at right are the most popular posts in my nine-plus years of keeping this blog. That accumulative, so it takes quite a many view to jump into the list. I don't know why most of them are there, except for passing references to Impossibly Photogenic Guy or Jenn Shelton or perhaps a very popular song lyric.

However, I was very happy to see the TCM post make the top 10. Thanks for that.

Temperature: 43°
Climate: cool and overcast ... hail?
Weight: 158 lbs.
Mood: very glad to be working out

Obsessively eating these days. Mostly almonds, though, so that's better than the alternative.

What's That Lyric?
Let My Love Open the Door * - Pete Townshend