The healing powers of trees

One of the many perks of running the Portland Marathon is that you are a handed a tree sapling to take home and plant. It's not enough to run a marathon anymore, now you have to accept the responsibility of another life afterwards. In any event, I shoved my sapling into my goodie bag and tossed it in my luggage. Once I got home I pulled the goodie bag out and I thought about where I should plant the thing. He was about the length of my hand and he was just an infant, it even had a diaper covering its roots with some moist soil. I thought about planting it at Rancho but he was so young that I knew it would need some attention to get it started. I didn't want to plant him in the yard and then leave him there once I moved so the next tenant could simply cut him down. So I found a planter box in the back yard and planted him. I then found a spot next to the jade tree so he wouldn't be lonely, and his older sister would inspire him to grow. I watered him a lot and watched him grow a measly inch and a half over the next 4 months. Once again proving that if you want to kill vegetation, hand it to me and ask me to grow it.

Last week I was making my rounds and watering plants when I came across my sapling and it was double in size! He is now sprouting like crazy and the colors of the needles are a deep green. I can't even describe to you how happy it made me. It was simply astonishing that A) I was able to nurture a sapling to life and B) the act of a tree that I planted taking root would give me so much joy. Not only do I feel good about bringing this little guy to life, but I am also doing something good for the environment. This picture was taken yesterday and I put my shades next to him to add perspective. I will be purchasing a real camera so I can take better quality photos sometime next week.

Al Gore, you magnificent son of a bitch, I READ YOUR BOOK!!!!!

Why the Giants are better than the Cubs

Baseball season is fast approaching and its my favorite time of the year. Hope springs eternal during this time as every team has a 0 - 0 record and off season transactions make fans think of October baseball for their beloved teams. The Cubs went out and got much sought after Alfonso Soriano, they hired Lou Pinella to manage the team and extended the contract of pitcher Carlos Zambrano. This team is now loaded with talent and spent their money aggressively this off season to show their players and fans alike that they are serious about contending for the pennant this season.



But the Giants are better.



The Giants also made off season moves to address their needs. They signed Barry Zito to be the ace of their staff, re-signed Ray Durham and Omar Vizquel, as well as Bonds, Klesko, and Aurilia to "solidify" their line up. But the reason the Giants are better than the Cubs is this...

They took the money they should have used to get Soriano, Pinella, and a closer, and spent it on a new kickass HD TV for the scoreboard!!!! When did the GM job go to the stoner college kid with his new Visa card? All we need now is the Nintendo Wii and a bong.

Go Giants! No, really... Just go.

Taper

FINALLY, I can say the word. Only a couple of runs of 10 miles or more and its time to run my race in Boston. I chose to run my last 20 miler in Monterey for a few reasons. One reason was that some friends of mine who are also running Boston (Karen, Rich, Nissa, and Stan) were also there to run their last long run. Another reason is that this is just an amazing place to run. The California coastline is one of the most beautiful places on earth, and we are so lucky to be so close to it. This is where my grandparents, natives of Boston, Massachusetts decided to spend the rest of their lives. It's also the land of my birth... It was a perfect day for running, overcast skies which really brought out the full spectrum of greens in the waves of the ocean and grassy fields as well. A slight breeze to keep us cool, and spectacular views.

Afterwards I had a celebratory lunch at Phil's Fish Market in Moss Landing
(as seen on the Food Network) where I had the Sanddab platter and a big bowl of New England Clam Chowder. A taste of both Monterey Bay and Boston in one meal, how appropriate. The best part about that was rather than walking to my car after such a long run, I now had the option of rolling to it.

Jury Duty

I am on Jury Duty this week, and if my history proves true I will once again be called in to serve. They love me down there, and I will never understood why. I don't mind being called in, the idea of serving on a jury interests me a lot, but just once I'd like to be on a murder trial, or a divorce proceeding involving famous rich people. Something I'd be dying to tell my friends about everyday but couldn't...

I always end up in dry, boring arguments like patent scams or insurance claims. Just my luck, last time I was called into the jurors box on a trial involving a man who got drunk and stabbed his wife to death. The defense attorney's claim was that due to his intoxicated state, he was temporarily insane. In other words, since he was drunk, he couldn't be held responsible for his actions, which flies right into the face of AA theory and the foundation of my sobriety. Once this guy got to me and started asking me questions, you can only imagine how he must have thought I was making stuff up to get off the case...

Attorney: "Are you an Alcoholic or have ever had a problem with alcohol?"

Me: "Yes"

Attorney: "Have you ever been a victim of a violent crime?"

Me: "Yes"

Attorney: "Hmm, OK. Have you ever been stabbed?"

Me: "Yes"

Attorney: "Alright then, were you drunk at the time?"

Me: "of course!"

Attorney: "Sigh, no further questions, the clerk will validate your parking, thank you very much... "

At that point I was wishing Judge Wapner was there to let this guy know from the outset that there was no way he could take me on his jury.

I love living here....

Weather forcast for Sunday, March 11th in Sunnyvale, California

Sunny, clear skies, and a high of 78 degrees. God bless the great state of California.

You Know You Have Bad Teeth When....

I had a dental appointment today to discuss the timing of my next root canal. It had been about 4 months since my last visit and you would have thought I walked into a reunion this morning. It seems that being a regular over the last year where my visits were rarely more than 3 weeks apart have put me on a first name basis with everyone in that office. Dental assistants and cleaning technicians alike came by to say hello, it was amazing. Hell, after all the money I spent there in 2006 I ought to have my own parking space. Actually I do, but my dentist uses if for his new Lexus, that bastard....



Next week's topic: we'll discuss wedding gift ideas for Rick Roth. (hint-He loves reading periodicals....)