A Gas Problem

I like to walk during my lunch break. Ideally I run and workout before work and go for a leisurely stroll during the first half of my lunch break. On Wednesday this week I decided to walk to the UPS store for some Amazon returns. There are 2 ways to get there: the shorter direct route on a very busy 4 lane or the longer quieter route through the neighborhood in which I do most of my runs. I forgot my headphones so I was walking with my phone on loud speaker streaming Dean Karnazes book A Runner's High: My Life in Motion. So I'm this random guy walking by your house with a clothes filled walmart sack listening to an audiobook out loud. Yup, that's me.

As I'm approaching the only road crossing, going from neighborhood to the other, I see a firefighter I know directing traffic. I recognized his mustache hundreds of feet away. It's an amazingly groomed, super-manly mustache. He asked what I was doing, and I informed him I was walking to the UPS store. He informed me they had a huge gas leak about 50ft away and they were diverting traffic. I said, "Oh ok. Who farted?" (dad joke). We both laughed agreeing with the high quality dad-joke. And I kept on walking, right through the gas leak zone. It was a pretty strong smell. Haha. On my way back, I had to navigate past city work vehicles as they had now arrived on the scene to fix the issue I assume. They were locating pipes with their fancy equipment while just walked on by. The gas smell was stronger on the way back through. Haha.

It was a great walk. Next time I'll have my hat and headphones for sure.

St. Jude Spotlights

Hey guys go check-out my page "St. Jude Spotlights" for interviews with patients and their families. We are raising money for St. Jude and want to highlight patients/families/employees. But beware, it's emotional!

Gone Too Long

 It's been far too long since I've written. I didn't really run much last year. After my achilles injury, I wasn't really motivated to get out on the road. Well, that and I was lazy. I started working out but not consistently running or doing any cardio. I started running again this year and have actually fallen in love with the distance.

I have purged a lot from life in the last year, things that were taking up my STEAM* resources and weren't necessary or even enjoyed.

• I've almost completely cut out TV, we don't have cable/satellite and I don't really care to stream much. Basically my school of thought is: if it's not ok for the kids to watch it then I shouldn't be either; garbage in, garbage out. Plus, if I have time to sit, I'd rather read or talk to Nealy instead of staring at the TV.
• I've severed the tie to soda. That wasn't easy at all. I love a good regular Coke or Mtn Dew. It's nearly impossible to eat mexican food or pizza with water to drink. I can do it, but I have to have the will power to do so.  I've converted to water now or an occasional kombucha.
• I'm still working on cutting out more processed foods. I'm definitely not the king of eating clean, but we have cut out a lot of processed foods at home. Our goal is "less processed, more whole" not "non-processed".
• I've started running more this year with an emphasis on "enjoying the moment". I signed up for the half again this year for St. Jude and have huge goals to crush. I want to run a sub 2hr half marathon. It would be an amazing accomplishment if I can do so.
• Nealy and I are being more intentional in going on dates with couple friends or just with each other. That's not something we've done a lot of in the past. Our kids are to the point that they are happy for grandparents to keep them while we go out, almost excited for us to leave. HAHAHA.

This year has been great so far, and it's only going to get better.

See you out there...