November 2005 Archives

... as a hole in the ground.

NO DINGOES WERE HARMED IN THE MAKING OF THIS BLOG

There's a section of in the corner of my front yard that I have been battling with since the day I moved in. It was overgrown with weeds back then, and every time I tore them out, some completely different weeds would grow in their place. Never grass; always weeds weeds weeds. I've wasted many a weekend trying to keep it under control, but last weekend I decided that enough is enough. I was going to win the battle once and for all.

I had sheduled in a day off work on Tuesday to kick back and relax; do some reading, a little research, and maybe some tinkering with scripts here on btt. Instead, I hired a skip so I could load it up with tree cuttings and weeds, as well as the odd log and piles of gravel I knew to be under the weed garden. At 5:00 Tuesday morning I started in on it with the mattock.

It wasn't long before I was forced to accept that the job was perhaps a little bigger than me, but I was still determined to win the battle. After some deliberating and weighing up my options, I decided to hire a dingo. I'd never ridden a dingo before, so I was tempted to follow Jeff's advice and get the video camera rolling so I would have some material to send to Australia's Funniest Home Video show. At times it bucked, other times it swayed and tried to slip out from under me in the loose dirt, but I held on, dug in, and tore away at the task at hand. No video though.

I didn't get to finish my yard work yesterday. A storm hit around mid-afternoon, so I retired indoors to goof off on the computer for a little while. I showered, grabbed an afternoon snack, and sat down to read any messages I may have received. Less than an hour later, the power was knocked out.

I briefly thought about reading for a little bit, but a quick look around me made me realise it was probably a little too gloomy for that. Keep in mind that we're just entering summer here so it usually doesn't get "gloomy" until around 6:30. That was still a few hours away. The storm clouds were THICK.

FLAT CHAT, PINE GAP...

I knocked out another short run this morning, and while my shins do still ache a little there seems to be no real indication that I should reduce the training from my plan of once per week plus walking. Each week they handle the running just that little better, and I think I'll find myself easing into once every 5 or 6 days as I lead up to my goal date of starting a real running routine around Christmas.

Plus, in the 7 weeks that I've been logging my training here on BTT I've lost most of that weight I packed on earlier this year, so that's sure to help the shins a little too. I celebrated a little tonight and treated myself to an extra unplanned brisk evening walk.

Around six weeks left until Christmas, so I may just hit that 90kg target in time for my "official" start to my running program.

Neat-o.

AND THEY GAVE ME A GUN

"At 11.00 am on 11 November 1918, the guns of the Western Front fell silent after more than four years of fighting."

Today is Remembrance Day - originally known as Armistice Day - marking the 87th anniversary of the world war 1 armistice. This morning as I headed out for my early morning exercise (cycling today), I couldn't help thinking how very different things might have been. And, really, how easy I have it.

The usual greetings, "good morning"s, and smiles were all there as I crossed paths with others out for a bit of exercise, but behind it all were the persistent thoughts of things I take for granted. So many from that generation never had the opportunity at my age to do the things I'm always putting off for later. Many more didn't even make it to my age. I find myself sitting here at a loss for words.

300,000 young Australian men went to the first war - all volunteers, as there were no conscriptions in Australia at the time. Out of a total national population of a mere 5 million, that's a very high percentage of the young male population. They quickly earned a reputation for their gallantry and courage under dreadful conditions, and were often used by the British command as the first wave of an assault. This lead to heavy Australian casualties; 60,000 dead (with around 35% still lying in unknown graves) and 156,000 wounded or taken captive.

It gives me a lot to think about, and I'm even more pleased that my first major running event will be at the Anzac Day marathon. The last 'Digger' may have passed away in 2002, but the great Aussie spirit they showed the world still lives on. It may not be a notable contribution on my part, but I'll be honored to participate in the event, in their memory.

Today is cycling day, and the rain ain't gonna stop me. Just need to slip on the cycling gloves and I'm off. Seems simple enough, right? [sigh]

I washed yesterday. Two gloves went in, and... hmmm... looks like one of them grew fingers and decided to go sight-seeing. I've looked in all of the places I can think where it might have ended up, but it's a mystery. So, I swear that all morning I've been glimpsing the occasional red and black blur from the corner of my eye, stealthy yet swift - like Thing from the Addams Family scurrying across the room.

It was spooky at first, but this is Australia after all, and I came to realise it's probably just the spiders hunting down snakes. Still, when I do find that missing glove, I'm going to make a point of weighing it down with a heavy lamp or something at night... just in case.

THERE I GO, TURN THE PAGE

I mentioned the other day that I would be holding off from running until around Christmas to give my shins some rest. Since then, my shins have been feeling fine. While I'm still going to wait, I figure the occasional short run here and there isn't going to hurt, and might actually do some good.

So, after waking up really early this morning and feeling surprisingly well rested, I decided I'd try running today instead of my planned walk. The shins held up well and I only felt the mildest of discomfort at the end. I enjoyed the run and felt good the whole way, but I'm going to stick to my guns : no more running for at least a week (though to be honest, I'm already hungrily making eyes at next Saturday).

On a side note, I've started adding a little extra info to this site. I'm still fleshing it out, but you may notice some extra links over to the left.

Until next time: Nanoo, Nanoo!

I just learned that one of my Aussie sporting heroes, Eliza Jane Stankovic, competed at the L.A. Marathon last March, only a few days before I arrived for my vacation with our beloved Jeff and his wonderful wife.

Oh, had I known! - my vacation would have started a week earlier. I couldn't make it to either the Olympics or Commonwealth Games, so it sure would have been a treat to cheer from the sidelines in L.A.

Well, there's always Melbourne '06...

Eliza, after contracting meningicocal disease at age 16 was forced to have multiple amputations, including both of her legs. For a time, she trained in track and field through the use of artificial legs, but later decided to take up wheelchair sports. Within a year Eliza qualified to represent Australia in the 2002 Commonwealth Games. She placed second closely behind world record holder Louise Sauvage.

I've been out for a couple of runs over the past week or so to test out the shins. I limped away from it with one certainty : They're not ready. It's my own fault for taking so much time out rather than dealing with the problem when it first arose, but at least I'm working away at it now.

So, I'm going to continue for now to focus on my general strength, flexibility, and endurance through cycling, walking, swimming, and some weight training and stretching exercises. I'll revisit the running around Christmas - hopefully 10kg lighter (that's 22lb for you Imperial heathens!) and with improved shin muscles and general fitness. Hopefully I'll get a special Christmas present in being able to go for a simple run once again withough the shins plaguing me for days after.