Two months away from Alaska!

Among the many things in Alaska that I am looking forward to this year will be fishing for Salmon, Halibut, and King Crab in the North Pacific, as well as my opportunity to reunite with "Sexual Chocolate"...

Photo compliments of my friend Jim who learned how to use photoshop this week.

On being reviewed

There is a website named Yelp.com that people can go to and make comments about local businesses either recommending or advising against their service. Why anyone would take advice one way or the other from complete strangers with no qualifications or requirements other than Internet access is beyond me, but I was curious if anyone had done any reviews about the store. I went to the site today and typed in the running store's name to see if anyone had praised or panned us lately and I found my name mentioned... Here is some background: A couple walks into the store to find Heather and I alone. We talk to them for a minute and they decide that I would help the girl, while Heather helps the guy. Using a Freudian slip, Heather asks the guy to take a seat and remove his clothes instead of his shoes and the four of us have a good laugh. The rest of the sale was uneventful, we helped them, they were happy, they paid, and left. Here is the review:


"Went with my girlfriend today. They put us on the treadmill and video-taped us running and then played it back in slow-mo to see if we had any quirks that needed accounted for in shoe selection. Then we tried on several pairs and took them for a test run outside (around the back where no one could see us :P ). The people who helped us, Heather and Chris, were awesome and had a wealth of knowledge to share. Oh yeah, and Heather hit on me right in front of my girlfriend. Awesome place! :P"


-picture of the couple included in the review from yelp.com




This is what is wrong with the Internet today. Any jackass can have a cute young girl misspeak to him and all of sudden he gets to go online and tell the world that he is getting hit on by her and anyone can walk into the store and meet her as well. Perhaps he should stop patting himself on the back and pay a little more attention to his own girlfriend, who actually did flirt on me while he was around back trying out his shoes where nobody could see him. Hahaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!

13th Anniversary

Today is the 13th anniversary of my first full day of sobriety. I spent it rather unceremoniously traveling across the country, coming back home from my trip to Boston. I thought about the anniversary for most of the day and being alone afforded me the opportunity to replay most of that day in my mind. I was a much different person back then, obviously, but for most of the people who read this blog and didn't know me back then, the differences are unimaginable. There aren't any pictures of me to show you from April 19th, 1994 thank God, mostly due to the fact that at this point I was never invited to get togethers of any kind where pictures might be taken due to the embarrassment I would cause, or simply put, "it was just too sad to hang out with you" according to what my friends would say to me later on. But to give you an idea of what I looked like try this. Close your eyes and picture me weighing about 150 lbs, my skin was jaundiced, my eyes had a yellow hue all caused by my digestive system shutting down. I had large bags under my eyes, at 26 years old I looked and felt like an old man. My legs were very skinny (yes, even skinnier than they are now) and I was just a very sick person. The day I stopped was pretty uneventful, I was "jonesing" a bit but I had my Marlboro lights and some cokes in the fridge to get me through the first night. The three consecutive days without sleep, the shakes, cold sweats, stomach in knots, and a few other reactions to detox that I will spare you here were yet to come. Suffice it to say, you are now reading the blog of the "Turn Your Life Around" poster child.


The one thing I remember the most about that first day was the fear. I thought I was about to lose all my friends since they surely wouldn't want to hang out with me if I didn't drink. I also was afraid of how my life would turn out, I simply didn't know and that scared the hell out of me. As we all know now, things turned out pretty good for me. Actually, much better than pretty good when it comes to friends and my life in general. Not only do I have lot's of friends, but for the most part they are all pretty amazing people, each in their own way. One of my secrets to my sobriety's success is to surround myself with great people. (btw, that would be you guys) Without them I would be nowhere. Without them I would have nothing. It is because of them that my life is as great as it is. And best of all, they all help me stay clean and sober without even knowing it.


On Saturday, Colleen and I went to the Expo in downtown Boston and I immediately went to check in and get my race bib number. When I handed the woman my California drivers license, she looked at it and said "oh my, you sure did come a long way to run the marathon..."



If she only knew just how far I'd come....

Famous last words

"I wonder if I should bring long sleeves to Boston or if I should just wear the singlet... Maybe I should check the weather report and see what to expect. NAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!"

BOSTON

5 days and counting! I am starting to get that excited feeling I had this time last year. The days leading up to the Boston Marathon are unlike any other race. Most races are all about the finish time and weather or not I prepared myself enough to do well. I always strive to PR and I use that as motivation for my training. But with Boston it's a little different. The Boston Marathon is a very special race. Not only does it mean a lot to those who attempt to qualify, but the entire Boston area is in a buzz over the event for the entire weekend. You never forget that you are a part of something spectacular, it's such an amazing feeling. When I think about what Boston means to me I usually come around to thinking of John Dean. I'll never forget John training so hard to qualify, coming up short by a few minutes at P.F. Chang's in Phoenix, and few years later he was gone. He was never was able to realize this goal of his. I will always respect and honor this event and it is because of John that I appreciate this race as much as I do. I'll never forget how fortunate I am to have the opportunity to run the Boston Marathon. This year I am running it with Karen Dean, Rich Williams, Tim and Heidi Schenone, David Fenster, Anissa Mohler and Stan Tsu. And best of all I will be spending my whole week with my good friend Colleen! I have a feeling this trip is going to be even more special than last years. And THAT is why I am excited. I trained to PR, but this year it is about so much more...

Going OFF!!!!

Everyday since my last post, I walk by my tree on my way out to my run and I see more change. This thing is going crazy! If the tree keeps growing at this rate, I'll be taking naps in a hammock hanging from it's branches next year!