The Most Fucking Worthless Academics I've Ever Seen

I'm taking the US Army Command and General Staff Officer Course through correspondence.

My latest piece of homework was returned no-go. The sad thing is that it's a paper that I probably could've written with minimal effort as a college student. The hard part is sequestering myself for long enough to actually fucking write something that meets the standards of the course.

The only reason I'm doing the school by correspondence is because I don't want to go on three months of FGFOT (Field Grade Fucking Off Time) doing a course that is potentially not going to teach me something but is a regulatory requirement for eligibility for promotion.

Of course, my curriculum covers largely irrelevant bullshit like major combat operations against a Soviet combined arms army. Like that's going to ever happen now.

My ire at having to do required schoolwork that I patently think is a giant crock o' shit is magnified by the realization that I really don't give a flying fuck about the schoolwork and I'm just trying to check the block to get the required diploma.

This validates just about everything I thought about the coursework from the start, which is to quote an old armored cavalry idiom, WAFWOT.

What A Fucking Waste Of Time.

8.5mi, 71:24

The Bats, "Courage"
The dB's, "We Gold"
Velocity Girl, "Labrador"
Peter Liepa, theme music to the old computer game Boulder Dash

WX at 1000: 44 (7), DP 32 (0), BP 30.24 (1024), winds E 7, RH 60%

Odometer 2: 288mi

Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading.

Tomorrow is supposed to be snow, so I figured I'd get in a long run today. Since most of it was on trails, it was a good productive long slow run. Combined with last night's pushups and situps, maybe there some workable improvement. Maybe.

I have no earthly idea why I was thinking of Boulder Dash, a game I haven't played in, oh, about 18 years. Seriously.

Splits
1.70 13:52 13:52 08:09
2.32 33:30 19:38 08:28
2.72 57:25 23:55 08:48
1.70 71:24 13:59 08:14 08:28

The Sum Total of Today's Activity, with 9 Minutes to Go

I had been planning on a long slow distance (LSD) run this morning. It was derailed partly by having to take a friend to the emergency room last night at about 10:30pm. And bringing the same back, at about 3:00am.

Needless to say, I didn't do shit all morning long. I didn't get into the swing of things until the afternoon, and even then, it was only after drinking 16 ounces of some pretty shitty coffee (if I ever find myself in a situation where I have to brew coffee for survival, I'm pretty well fucked).

Sum total for today:
130 pushups, mostly wide-arm. Sets were in 40, 30, 30, 30 blocks.
100 situps in one iteration.

LSD should follow in about 6-7 hours.

5.0mi, 39:30

The dB's, "We Gold"
disappear fear, "Boxers"

WX at 0700: 33 (1), DP 30 (-1), BP 30.08 (1018), winds NE 1, RH 86%

Odometer 1: 288mi

Z3 quick.
Resting heart rate before start = 60

I woke up a little later than I'd expected. Consequently, I seriously thought about skipping today's run. Instead, I decided to do a much flatter course than I routinely run. It constitutes the last 2.5 miles or so of the 7.6 mile run I routinely do and it's almost all pavement. Not surprisingly, today was pretty good, although I need to improve back to where I was in the fall.

I probably don't want to do this run too much in the interests of not fostering unrepentant laziness or indiscipline in my training program or whatever else.

Splits
2.5 19:53 19:53 07:57
2.5 39:30 19:37 07:51 08:00

5.1mi, 43:21

Julie Brown, "The Homecoming Queen's Got A Gun"
Julie Brown, "I'm A Blonde"
The Replacements, "Left of the Dial"

WX at 0700: 51 (11), DP 50 (10), BP 30.12 (1019), winds NW 5, mist, RH 93%

Odometer 1: 283mi

Z2-Z3 low.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading this morning. Oops.

Slow easy recovery run today. In spite of stretching, today was still a grind in some respects. It would have been a much worse grind had I not stretched.

The 120 pushups and 50-some situps and other related ab work last night might have been a contributing factor, particularly in the hip flexors.

I have no idea why Julie Brown songs stuck in my head this morning. If I find myself mysteriously drifting to a video store this week to rent Shakes the Clown, be afraid. Be very, very afraid.

Splits
1.5 12:35 12:35 08:23
2.1 30:52 18:17 08:42
1.5 43:21 12:29 08:19 08:25

5.1mi, 40:37

George Sanger, defend mission background music from the games Wing Commander and Wing Commander 2

WX at 0700: 44 (7), DP 42 (6), BP 30.02 (1016), Calm, mist, RH 93%

Odometer 2: 279.5mi

Z3 hard.
Resting heart rate before start = 60

Two things that preceded today's run that point to improvement:
1. Stretching. Today was much, much faster than yesterday, and the weather was not the only citable aspect. I probably need to start stretching again; while the "stretch to avoid injury" piece is debatable in some circles, the "stretch to loosen muscles up" definitely works. That would explain the -51 second delta from yesterday on the first 1.5 split.
2. Hydration. While drinking a liter of water before the run is irksome (and extends my pre-run wait about 40 minutes), it probably doesn't hurt. I don't worry about hyponatraemia for runs under 10 miles in any event; I'm pretty certain my sodium intake is more than sufficient (along with every other American in the universe, it seems).

Today wasn't a PR (about two minutes), but a little statistical analysis on an earlier run points to the value of stretching before going out the door. Since there's all of that much decrease in speed since the Cold From Hell(tm), I achieved one of the goals of this winter, which was to generally not lose any mileage or training base.

Splits
1.5 11:34 11:34 07:43
2.1 28:54 17:20 08:15
1.5 40:37 11:43 07:49 07:53

5.1mi, 43:12

Mike Oldfield, first portion of Tubular Bells (i.e., the part that played in The Exorcist)
Chris Stamey, "14 Shades of Green"

WX at 0800: 55 (13), DP 53 (12), BP 30.08 (1018), winds WSW 12, mist, RH 91%

Odometer 1: 278mi

Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 60

I felt like ass today. Today was planning on being a 7.6, and I stopped at the 5 mile mark because my legs were just too smoked. Given that I haven't run consistently since last week, I think sustained mileage every day rather than the standard long-mid rotation may be in order. I just have to be careful since I need to start doing more strength work in the next few weeks.

Alternatively, I may go for shorter, harder runs rather than the longer runs since I think I have a fairly good handle on endurance. It's speed I'll be needing in the next few weeks.

Splits
1.5 12:25 12:25 08:17
2.1 30:41 18:16 08:42
1.5 43:12 12:31 08:21 08:23

5.1mi, 41:51

Throwing Muses, "Ruthie's Knocking"
"Heatmiser" from "Year Without A Santa Claus"
Wire, "Come Back In Two Halves"

WX at 1100: 48 (9), DP 35 (2), BP 30.41 (1029), winds NE 5, RH 61%

Odometer 2: 274.5mi

Z2-3.
Resting heart rate before start = 59

A pretty easy run that turned surprisingly quicker than expected. I normally run in the early morning, but with no work, I was able to get a run in during better conditions. I was also placating my kids' desire to watch Schoolhouse Rock on disk before starting.

Overcast and a little rain never hurts either.

Splits
1.5 12:26 12:26 08:17
2.1 30:02 17:36 08:23
1.5 41:51 11:49 07:53 08:08

The South By Southwest Connection

I was farting around on the WWW before starting my run this morning and decided to pull up South by Southwest. While there are other events associated with SXSW, the part I always will hold dear is the music festival. My first year on active duty was marked by attendance at SXSW '95 and that's a powerful reason to consider settling in Austin.

Bands I would consider seeing...
American Music Club
Jon Auer (of the Posies)
Mary Lou Lord (who was an unscheduled busker in '98 when I last went)
Magnapop
New Model Army (who absolutely fucking rocks)
The Reputation
Amy Rigby (formerly married to Will Rigby of the dB's)
Chris Stamey (formerly of the dB's, among others)

And unbelievably, Grey De Lisle, who I normally associate with Clifford the Big Red Dog as the voice of Emily Elizabeth.

More to follow when I have time to elaborate.

~6.5mi, 61:43

New Model Army, "The Hunt"
New Model Army, "My Country"
New Model Army, "Waiting"

WX at 0800: 24 (-4), DP 21 (-6), BP 30.37 (1028), winds Calm, RH 85%

Odometer 1: 273mi

Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 60

I decided on something a little different today, so a little trail running was in order. Also included was some railroad tracks. I ran a little harder today than I would've had I been confined to roads, and the last mile on pavement was a useful indicator.

Splits - None applicable today.

5.1mi, 43:00

Orchestral Manoevres in the Dark, "If You Leave" (No shit. I'm almost mortified that this became a running mantra.)
Let's Active, "Forty Years" (Much better. I feel vaguely cleansed.)

WX at 0700: 28 (-2), DP 21 (-6), BP 30.13 (1020), winds NW 6, RH 74%

Odometer 1: 266mi

Z2-Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = forgot again.

A recent post on the Dead Runners Society list focused on the loss of training base after some time off. The poster (someone whose opinion I respect greatly for his insights on training tips) said two weeks is about all it takes to lose training base. This is probably holding true since my legs are starting to feel the effects of training again. The mornings are also exercises in some willpower since it's taking more concerted effort to get out the door, which I hope will change as it gets warmer.

A mite chilly this morning...a big change from wearing shorts yesterday.

Splits
1.5 12:38 12:38 08:25
2.1 30:33 17:55 08:32
1.5 43:00 12:27 08:18 08:21

The Other Gratuitous New Toy

After listening to jwer, my landlord, and most recently, my father-in-law, we decided to fork out for a Dyson DC14 Animal. We got the uber-swanky version with the quick-change telescoping handle.

While I cringe at the thought of paying $550 for a vacuum cleaner, I gotta admit the Dyson is the most über-badass vacuum cleaner I've ever used. I think back to the vaguely crappy Sears canister vacuum cleaner my parents had during the 1980s, one that was pretty close to the one that my father-in-law had until recently...

But for $550, it delivers on its promise of policing stuff up (particularly given our dog, a German Shepherd-Boxer hybrid who sheds with reckless abandon but not so much that you actually notice it in progress). I scoffed at its looks (the Dyson vacuum cleaners have a serious look of the 1970s-science fiction movie. I've refrained from calling it the Logan's Run vacuum cleaner. If it came with 1970s-era Jenny Agutter, maybe I'd reconsider...

7.6mi, 62:31

"The Shot Heard Around The World" from Schoolhouse Rock
The JudyBats, "When Southern Bells Ring"

WX at 0700: 41 (5), DP 28 (-2), BP 29.98 (1015), winds N 5, RH 60%

Odometer 2: 269.5mi

Z2, some Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading

First run in 8 days. Yep, you read that right, 8 days. I'm in the process of kicking my annual Chest/Head Cold From Hell. I usually seem to get one every winter, I'm getting through the one for this year. Most of the time I can get by them but this one was bad enough where I was seriously impeded from doing anything at all, in spite of having some of the best running weather you can get.

Today's weather was no exception. A little cloudy, but clear. I also attribute today's uncharacteristically fast splits for effort (particularly the first 1.5) to having 8 days of no running.

Splits
1.5 12:09 12:09 08:06
2.1 29:51 17:42 08:26
1.5 42:20 12:29 08:19
2.5 62:31 20:11 08:04 08:12

The New Phone of 666

My new toy is a Motorola V265.

It replaces a Motorola V120e, which I got for, well, free when we signed up with Verizon.

I got it for a few reasons.
1. It was free (for the most part).
2. It took all my old accessories. More specifically, my headset, chargers, and most importantly, data cable.
3. It is supposed to get better reception than my old phone, which was actually pretty good.

The only thing I knew I was going to lose on my new phone was battery life. The Old Phone of 666 had fucking legendary battery life. An anecdote: when I was at the National Punishment, erm, Training Center at Fort Irwin two years ago, I was out in the box. I was able to receive an analog signal in the Verizon extended network, meaning I wasn't getting charged for airtime to call Maura's bat-phone (since it was on the same share plan). In three days in the box I could count on three calls, all about a half hour long, transmitting in analog mode. I did switch the phone off, but the battery was that good. No shit. No charging in the meantime. For what I paid, that phone was the muthafuckin' heat! Added in with 1XRTT capability, I was averaging data rates in excess of 120Kbps while on the road in scenic Charm City.

So...there were a few non-negotiables.

1. Had to have tri-mode. I almost never use 800 MHz analog, but when I do, it pays off big time. I found I spent quite a bit of time in 800 MHz digital based on places I went.
2. Had to have 1XRTT connectivity. My fat ass will be in Pennsylvania for a large chunk of this summer and the place I'm staying probably won't have broadband.
3. Had to be compatible with our existing set of chargers and headsets. Headsets, not a big deal since they're all using 2.5mm plugs. The chargers were a little more problematic, but as it turns out, Motorola has largely standardized it, so staying Motorola had some benefits.

A couple of added functionalities I got with the V265.

1. Speaker phone. Not sure how much I'll actually use it, but who knows?
2. Camera. Not sure how much I'll actually use it, but it's actually been useful once.
3. Polyphonic ringer. I could sit down and program the Imperial March into the New 666, but I have every intent of uploading it in MP3 format when I get around to it. Or Mike Oldfield's opening from Tubular Bells. Or something equally satanic and antisocial.

It's too early to see what to think of the battery life for now. On a more encouraging sign, I'm getting about 115Kbps from the phone where the Old 666 could only eke out maybe 35-40Kbps on even a good day. Data reception like that only bodes well for voice...

Now I have to think of how I intend to trick out the New Phone of 666.

The Sound of SCRAAAAAAATCH

Today marked my seventh consecutive unsuccessful attempt to get a jump since the beginning of January.

I stood a better shot of it today than any other day - I was up front on the second lift. The first lift had dropped and it was looking promising; the prevailing winds at the drop zone were 5 knots once you got down to tree level (although they were 30 knots at drop altitude!).

Getting in the plane for lift two, I weas optimistic since the wind had only picked up to eight knots.

On the approach, the winds gusted to 15 knots (two above peacetime allowable) and we started the required ten-minute wait until the next drop. We got about seven and a half minutes into the approach when the wind gusted to 15 again and we started another approach. Apart from the three times we circled over the Rockingham NASCAR Speedway (for want of any better place to go while waiting), it was a somewhat bumpy, albeit uneventful ride. After the second ten-minute warning, the jumpmaster team was instructed to land and unload the jumpers. The alternative would've been to stay in the air and unnecessarily hassle jumpers as they waited to exit.

Coming off, I spoke to the airborne commander (the overall leader in charge of the operation) and he was hearing from the drop zone "the winds have been reading 15.5 the last two readings." He rhetorically said "you think we should get the jumpers ready to go?"

For some reason, I started laughing uncontrollably. I think part of it was my answer to the question "do you think this'll get cancelled?" My quip back ended up being "I don't want to cause a panic if I come back and start derigging my shit."

Five jumps. That's all I really would like. How hard can it be?

6.2mi, 52:45

The Greenberry Woods, "Oh Christine"
The Greenberry Woods, "The Sympathy Song"
The Greenberry Woods, "Trampoline"
Kitchens of Distinction, "Smiling"
Throwing Muses, "Shimmer"
Antonin Dvorak, Adagio-Allegro molto from Symphony No 9. in e minor "From The New World"

WX at 0700: 55 (13), DP 50 (10), BP 30.00 (1015), winds Variable 1, RH 81%

Odometer 1: 261mi

Z3 low.
Resting heart rate before start = 56

Today was slow, slow, slow. Aerobically, today was a Z2 kind of run. For muscular effort, today was definitely a Z3 kind of run, so maybe I need to do some legitimate wogging for some legitimate recovery.

The weather was good, although it's supposed to rain later today. With luck the rain will be late enough where I can scam a jump. Red in morning, sailor's warning, and there was a nice evil shade of red this morning at sunrise, albeit through some overcast skies.

Splits
1.5 12:08 12:08 08:05
2.3 31:22 19:14 08:22 08:21
2.5 52:45 21:23 08:33 08:28

Batphones 'R Us

A few days ago my cell phone (a Motorola V120e) up and croaked on me. I put it down, plugged in the charger, and the next day, had no display. Previously, I'd called the phone Sisyphus as a tribute to the hapless dude from Greek mythology who was cursed to push a giant fucking rock up a hill for the rest of his existence. Try as he might, he'd never get the rock to the top of the hill. The stone would always roll back down to the bottom and he'd have to start again. Similarly, my batphone was an electronic tether, hence, I was tied to the rock.

More recently, in a spate of bad attitude, I decided to change the banner on the phone to Phone of 666. Not being a Christian, I don't feel particularly bound by the use of the digit 6 repeated three times, but I'm always amused to see how casual use of that number always gets people going. My informal callsign as a commander was "666" when I was talking to one particular battle captain, who used to use the moniker "Saber 3 Chuck" (versus "Saber 3 Charlie") over the radio. As I used to explain, with a troop callsign like "Shadow", and my position as commander, you could actually make a (pretty specious) case for 666 as a callsign. Uh-huh.

About two weeks after the Phone of 666 transformation (along with the startup message "Blood Makes The Grass Grow," probably a better barometer of my mood at the time) . I'm sure it has nothing to do with the electronics crapping out on the phone, but it makes for entertaining coincidence.

Unfortunately, since Verizon Wireless doesn't offer the Motorola V120e (which I actually thought was a pretty decent phone since I got it for free as a promotional offer when I signed on with them) any more, I'm in the position of trying to get another phone. I think I'll be settling on a Motorola V265.

I've resisted getting camera phones, phones with color screens, and more pointedly, phones with polyphonic ringers, particularly ones for which you can download elaborate ringers (which for the most part, have utterly fucking obnoxious hop-hop ringers when you hear them in public). My answer to that was to manually program in the ringers (and the V120e had about the same tonal quality as a battery-powered LCD watch) to something I liked. Not surprisingly, my ringer was the first few measures of John Williams' "Imperial March" from The Empire Strikes Back. Yeah, Darth Vader's theme. Other ringers I had programmed included John Carpenter's theme to Halloween and the theme to the old Warner Brothers cartoon Pinky and the Brain.

Too bad none of those ringers are transferable. Now my dilemma is going to be which MP3s I intend to reduce to phone-ringer size. I think The Exorcist will join Darth Vader in the phone.

So...I enter the modern era and will probably get one of the phones I vilify so much. I'm not sure how I became such a Luddite about technology, but I think my philosophy has been "newer is not always better" for long enough where it includes my attitudes about consumer electronics. Items in the house falling in that category:
TV (8 years old)
VCR (6 years old)
DVD player (3 years old)
Stereo (a Dolby Surround 2.0 receiver that I got 9 years ago that's still going strong)
Computers (5 and 4 years for laptop and desktop respectively)

I think part of my hanging on to shit for so long relates to my distaste for throwing things out. (Not surprisingly, I'm a historian by education and hobby.) Responsible environmental stewardship entails not tossing printed circuit boards out into the trash where they can eventually become HAZMATs. In today's society, the challenge is to figure out what to do with all that stuff. If electronics recycling was free, more people would do it. This is not to be reductionist and to say that someone should be subsidizing it, but I bet a recycling subsidy might not be a half-bad idea.

7.6mi, 60:30

The Roches, "Home Away From Home"
Game Theory, "Toby Ornette"
Anberlin, "Readyfuels"
Craig Safan, opening credits from The Last Starfighter

WX at 0700: 42 (6), DP 37 (3), BP 30.15 (1020), winds variable 2, RH 81%

Odometer 2: 262mi

Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 59

Not a bad little run today. I decided to run the 2.1 leg backwards and the slowers splits on that relative to the other legs became apparent since the hills in the leg were much more apparent.

I've been slacking in the Hindu Squat category. Time to get back on the wagon.

Today's weather was pretty good. That's better than what I could say about the rest of this week; I'm scheduled for two jumps, neither of which are looking too good. One tomorrow afternoon is competing with rain (again). The one for Friday morning has to compete with high winds (in excess of 22 mph).

I just want six jumps. Is that too much to ask?

Splits
1.5 11:50 11:50 07:53
2.1 28:59 17:09 08:10
1.5 40:52 11:53 07:55
2.5 60:30 19:38 07:51 07:56

3.8mi, 33:15

The Bats, "Courage"
New Order, "Regret" (Fire Island Remix)

WX at 0700: 37 (3), DP 26 (-3), BP 30.36 (1028), winds N 3, RH 64%

Odometer 2: 255mi

Z2.
Resting heart rate before start = 57

Today just sucked. In spite of excellent weather, the body just wasn't cooperating. Some of it could be attributed to cumulative lack of sleep, but regardless, the legs weren't wanting to play. Today was going to be easy regardless, but even after taking yesterday off, if I can barely eke out an 8:51 pace, today is not a day to push the odds.

Splits
1.5 13:09 13:09 08:46
2.3 33:15 20:06 08:44 08:51

The Festival of Fat Americans

Fuck the Super Bowl. There. I said it.

The Super Bowl is traditionally my prompt to do anything that has nothing to do with some annual televised activity. I'm reminded of being in Europe and seeing an utter lack of dumpy people on the streets. It could be because they're not sitting on their ass watching American football in the annual lard-a-thon called the Super Bowl.

Real (i.e., not American) football fans, on the other hand, couldn't care less who's in the Super Bowl because NFL players could only dream of being as well-known as David Beckham. Or something like that.

A brief retrospective:
1997 - went to Crittenberger MPRC at Fort Hood to talk to the unit I would eventually command. They were shooting gunnery that day so I decided to try to get the ear of the squadron commander and the troop commander. I guess it worked out. No glass tit that day.
1998 - Internet relay chat, Copperas Cove, TX.
1999 - Internet relay chat while at the Combined Arms and Services School of Loose Morals...but that's a different story for a different day.
2000 - I don't remember, but I don't recall watching it that year either.
2001 - No recollection, not offhand. But not watching.
2002 - I was at Fort Knox for gunnery. My guys were in the officers' club. I went to the shoppette after making sure my guys were well situated and had a ride back.
2003 - I don't remember.
2004 - I was at a friend's house with Maura and the kids. I saw some of the game. I didn't exceed the 30 minute catastrophic cap. I didn't see the halftime show, but did note the truly fucking sophomoric character of the ads that year.
2005 - Snippets, but most of what I watched during that time was the movie Dumbo since it was on Disney Channel. I was at my in laws' house.

And maybe, the 2004 description describes where my ire at the Super Bowl comes from...although it might actually make the knuckle-dragging elements of American society learn what Roman numerals are what since they'll hit 40 next year. The erudite would use XL...but knowing America, I'll be seeing spots for Super Bowl Quad-X next year.

People raise hell about the Janet Jackson halftime show in 2004...but how much ire was raised about the equally family-unfriendly advertisements that involved some scatological humor and more than a little innuendo? Almost none until this year. Fucking double standards.

7.6mi, 61:06

Chris Stamey, "14 Shades of Green"
Dmitri Shostakovich, Allegro from Piano Concerto No. 2 in F major, Op. 102

WX at 0800: 39 (4), DP 26 (-3), BP 30.31 (1026), winds N 7, RH 60%

Odometer 1: 282.5mi

Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading today.

I almost didn't make it out. I really didn't feel like running. In spite of taking yesterday off, my legs were sufficiently tired that I probably wouldn't have made it out of Z3 for very long regardless of relative effort.

I got in an hour, which is useful, if nothing else, for mental sanity or something like it. Today was a good example of going out and just turning the mind off. Mostly.

Splits
1.5 11:52 11:52 07:55
2.1 29:05 17:13 08:12
1.5 41:13 12:08 08:05
2.5 61:06 19:53 07:57 08:01

6.0mi approximate, 48:52

The Replacements, "I Will Dare"
The Replacements, "Answering Machine"
J.S. Bach, Fuga from Sonata No. 3 for unaccompanied violin in C major, BWV 1005

WX at 0700: 37 (3), DP 30 (-1), BP 30.26 (1024), winds NE 6, light rain, RH 74%

Odometer 2: 251mi

Z2. Resting heart rate before start = 59

My prediction about today's jump was accurate. It didn't happen, as it was raining at weather decision time.
I ended up going home and getting what I felt to be an easy run. If easy is an 8:09 pace or so (and there was absolutely nothing rushed about today's run) then I'm encouraged.

I was also wearing shorts for the first time in a while; the run started deceptively warm since the temperature dropped during the run. The humidity in the air and the low cloud cover helped retain heat towards the ground.

Had we been able to jump in the rain, I maintain today would've been pretty good...but the ceiling was probably too low for safety minimums.

Splits
None today. Overall pace ~ 8:09

7.6mi, 60:46

Philip Glass, closing credits to Hamburger Hill
Pizzicato Five, "Twiggy Twiggy vs. James Bond"
Michael Kamen, Band of Brothers Suite 2

WX at 0700: 28 (-2), DP 26 (-3), BP 30.4 (1029), winds NNE 6, RH 92%, wind chill 21 (-6)

Odometer 1: 275mi

Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 51

Easy start relative to most other long runs netted a mostly successful attempt to get negative splits, although I had no goals (really) for today. I just wanted a good long run. I got it.

Tomorrow's forecast for the jump calls for wet snow and rain. I remain optimistic but privately my judgment is telling me "no fucking way." Unfortunately, next week isn't looking so opportune for jumps either, although I have two scheduled. Sure hope the winter decides to stop short of Fort Bragg tomorrow, just for a day. If not, then I'm going to have to find some place to go for a run out of sheer catharsis...but I quote James Webb's A Sense of Honor when I say "it's not heart that keeps you in this...it's asshole." Nonetheless, all I want is 6 jumps. That's not too much to ask. Really.

Splits
1.5 12:08 12:08 08:05
2.1 29:23 17:15 08:13
1.5 41:17 11:54 07:56
2.5 60:46 19:29 07:48 07:58

5.1mi, 44:01

The Innocence Mission, "Someday Coming"
Michael Kamen, end credits to From The Earth To The Moon
an assortment of running cadences

Examples follow.

when I was a young boy
mama told me
go to the store
get what you need
got me a yo-yo
wound it up tight
now my little yo-yo's
going all night
(no, not one of the politically correct ones.)

when I go to heaven
Saint Peter's gonna say
how'd you earn your living boy
how'd you earn your pay...

(cavalry scout version)
...I replied with a yell and a shout
I made my living as a cavalry scout

(indirect fire infantryman permutation)
...I replied 'cause I got something to say
I made my living hanging rounds all day

(M1 armor crewman permutation)
...I replied with a whole lot of pride
I made my living on a 70 ton ride

when I go to hell
the devil's gonna say
how'd you earn your living boy
how'd you earn your pay
I replied with a fist to his face
I made my living filling up this place

C-130 rolling down the strip
plane blew a tire and the damn thing flipped
64 troopers trapped inside
barbecued, sizzled, Kentucky-fried

in 1814 we took a little trip
in an M3 Bradley rolling down the Mississip
and we shot our rifles 'til the barrels melted down
and we grabbed a couple grunts and we went a couple rounds
they were mentally able and were physically fit
but if you ain't cav, you ain't shit

Everyone has their acts of rebellion. I have mine.

WX at 0700: 30 (-1), DP 26 (-3), RH 30.33 (1027), winds NNW 7, RH 86%, wind chill 23 (-5)

Odometer 2: 245mi

Z2.
Resting heart rate before start = 59
Average heart rate during run ~ 155

For a run where I was supposed to be doing recovery pace, and one which was unbelievably easy in time, I'm still clocking an average 8:33 pace. I can live with that. I was looking for about 45 minutes of easy run, and I got it.

No run planned for Thursday since I'm planning on jumping. On the other hand, it's supposed to rain that day. I will have the ass if that happens again (0 for 4 in my last attempts to jump)

Splits
1.5 12:44 12:44 08:29
2.1 31:17 18:33 08:50
1.5 44:01 12:44 08:29 08:33