Recently in Musings Category

It's been getting darker earlier as the earth makes it's way around the sun. During last night's five-miler (which I wasn't able to start until around 8:15 p.m. due to bath night for Children of Fat Runner and me being a lazy sack of crap in the morning) I wore a reflective vest and a headlamp. While approaching the three-mile point it was pitch black. I live in a rural area with no street lamps; there was very little ambient light from the moon due to it being an overcast evening.

In the distance I heard a dog bark. The wonders of the Doppler Effect told me that I was getting closer to the dog as I progressed. I started to look around for said canine but was not able to locate it. Then, I saw floating in the inky blackness of night, two floating purple eyes that were dancing about in time to the vicious barking of the unseen dog.

Now...a rational person not out in the middle of nowhere would logically put together that the light from the headlamp is reflecting off the dogs eyes. I, in my glycogen-depleted state, assumed that some manner of demon was sent to force me to atone for the sins of my youth, steal my very essence, and leave me to live out the remainder of my days an empty shell of a man subsisting on beef jerky and regret while praying for a death that will never come. Suffice to say it was pretty freaky.

On a lighter note you'd be amazed at how fast you can run when trying to outrun the physical manifestation of every fear you have ever had.

Ran today for the first time since last Wednesday. I was dangerously close to sliding into a vicious cycle of not running until XMas Day when training for the Pine Line officially kicks off. Did four miles outside. Felt great. Blah Blah. Whatever.

Okay...running news is out of the way. Here's what's really bothering me.

Last night after we put the Children of Fat Runner to bed, Wife of Fat Runner was perusing the selections on television and happened upon a made-for-tv holiday movie called "The Year Without Santa Claus." The following exchange took place:

WoFR: A Christmas movie!
FR: You know that's going suck, right?
WoFR: It'll be fun...
FR: There is no way that this movie is not total crap.
WoFR: But, Honey....it's SEASONAL crap!

Seasonal. Crap. I assume this means that because this complete piece of drek is centered around a holiday, it's okay for us to volunteer to have our intelligence insulted. As if the basic premise of the movie wasn't enough to disuade WoFR (which I am sure you can surmise from the title), this movie boasted Delta Burke in a supporting role. Delta BURKE! My God, how much can a man take? I blame myself for this. I should have known better than to argue with a woman who was late to dinner at Brother of Fat Runner's house one Sunday evening because she wanted to catch the end of Grease 2. That's right. Grease 2. A movie so horrible that the best they could come up with was a song about bowling.

We only made it through a half hour of this drivel (including commercials). After WoFR relented and turned off the television, I began to see her point about seasonal crap. It seems that the horrible specials that were aired in our youth were in some way not as crappy as the current holiday fare. Could it be that we are now older and look back on those things with sepia-toned nostalgia? Were they really as bad as a Christmas movie with Delta Burke? I like to think they weren't, but chances are if I were to watch them again, I would think they were pretty much horrific.

So...what are good holiday movies and specials? Here is a small list of Christmas/general holiday viewing approved by the Fat Runner. Watch anything else at your peril.

Not much to say today, except that I hope one of my cherished childhood memories isn't completely obliterated by Hollywood.

Every morning I update myPod with the podcasts I intend to listen to during that morning's workout. During this morning's update process, I went to IMDB on a whim and noticed a trailer for a new children's movie coming out based on the Newberry Medal Award winning book Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Patterson. This really struck me as I can vividly remember sitting in my small fourth grade classroom as Mrs. Judge read to us from this wonderful book. I probably couldn't remember the names of three people that I went to fourth grade with, but I remember Mrs. Judge and I remember the story of Jess Aarons and Leslie Burke.

There are a few genuinly honest and thoughtful folks out there writing personal blogs (Juls, I am looking at you). But in general, there is a disconnect between what blog writers want you to think about them and what they actually think about themselves. It's the same type of syndrome that attackes people when they must fill out personality profiles about themselves. Here is what a typical blogger tries to put forth:

Hi. My name is __________. My blog is awesome. It's better than anything you will ever read. Here you'll find all sorts of interesting things that are totally relateable to your daily life. My writing style is whimsical yet professional. My thoughts on why Abba rocks or how fast my kid can eat a grape are in keeping with universal and transcendental themes of Truth, Love, and Beauty. I will employ all the new and varied trends and tactics to keep you interested. I wll rmv vwls frm sntncs n rdr t mk thm lk cl. I will write all posts with a left-wing/centrist/right-wing bent that will appeal to you and you alone. I don't care if you like what I have to say as I will keep writing it anyway. I don't need anyone's approval as to how great my writing/family/recent trip to the Grand Canyon was. My thoughts and feelings are interesting and there is no reason others won't find this interesting.

Now...what do bloggers most REALLY think (and I am no exception)? Read on.