Smoke 'em!
Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 3:24PM I have the devil’s luck. By the “devil’s luck”, I mean that I can find trouble, adventure, excitement, or anything out of the ordinary without even trying. In recent weeks, I’ve changed tires, provided first aid, given directions, and more for total strangers. To be honest, that’s not even a comprehensive list of situations I’ve found myself in lately. That list leaves out things that might not be funny; and things that are personal, such as rough spots in my life, problems that friends have, and professional situations. Fortunately for everyone, while I have the devil’s luck in finding these situations, I don’t act like the devil, as I always help people. I’m a problem solver. It’s what I do.
The problem with solving problems is that, after a while, it becomes tiring. Whether it’s physically tiring, like wrestling rusted bolts of a tire, or mentally tiring, in dealing with a difficult problem, or emotionally tiring in dealing with a complex set of personal issues, the fatigue builds up. I find – for me – that one has to have an outlet to deal with these stresses – whether it’s offbeat jokes, or something else, that outlet has to be there, otherwise I find one goes something something crazy at the slightest provocation down the road. Since I don’t want to go bat-shit crazy or something something crazy, one of my outlets is running.
In this respect, I’m lucky in two ways. Number one, I like running. (Seriously, if you don’t like running, don’t do it. You’re going to hate life. Trust me.) Number two, I live in Southern California, where I can run outside, well, every day, realistically, as the weather is never bad enough to stop it. In the past, I’ve always relied on it as a great way to decompress, think things over, and in some cases, come up with ideas. This year, however, I’ve really gotten back into running as a sport, and not just as a way to reduce stress. Last year, I didn’t run much – in part because I took damage on some of my trips; and in part because that damage took a while to heal.
This year, I’m back, and back with a vengeance. So much so that I’ve been out and about competing in a number of races. While I’ve been doing really well, overall, there’s still room for improvement as I go along. But for the runners out there, and for the interested parties, I announce the first ever “Race Week” here on the blog, where I’ll detail some of the races I’ve participated in recently, talking about the courses and providing what insights I can. And, if you’re ever in the Southern California area, you might see me out training at Torrey Pines State Reserve, or Mission Trails, or anywhere where it’s outside. Just don’t stop me if you have a problem. Just kidding. I’ll probably already be stopping and offering you help. So, see you out there, competitors!
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