haulin' aspen, eucalyptus and oak

Trail Running is a messy business.

Yesterday I ran with a seventy-one year-old Norwegian man named Allert. He runs with the Racy Ladies. Allert broads over the women runners like a kindly old grandpa. He makes sure we are hydrated and educated on routes. He makes sure we stretch after every run. We ran a dirt trail in the variegated shade of the tall eucalyptus trees and I listened to him talk of his emigration from Norway and his travels around America. Allert is slight man, lean and sinewy. He told me he used to be two inches taller. Last weekend, he placed second in his age category at the San Francisco Half Marathon. He has no intentions in slowing down or taking it easy in his old age. I wanted to hug this man who I had just met.

I am really enjoying trail running. Don't get me wrong- it is totally kicking my butt- and my shoes are a filthy mess, but I am having fun. I am, however, spending a senseless amount of time cleaning the dirt from under my toenails.

Now to a small bone I have to pick with my readers. The response I have gotten to the Top Rockstar contest has been- well, underwhelming. Come on people! If you don't have a blog, put it on your my space page. If you don't have a my space page, blog or web page, you are probably over the age of thirty, not super web savvy, may or may not wear Dockers and not really into hip new music sites anyway, so you are excused.

run for your life

My life has been a little crazy. I've been on the run, both figuratively and literally. Thus, no posts.

We took a weekend trip to see our best friends from our law school days. They are like Army buddies to us. Friendships formed in the trenches are deep and lasting. They knew us when we didn't have two cents to rub together, when we were down and out. They were right there with us. Friendship between us really isn't a choice, they are family.

My computer crashed for the second time. I feel like Darth Vader. Shut my computer down and I'm just a blob of quivering flesh unable to function. It's scary really. I have been running to friends houses to check my email and such. The super "helpful" people at HP have told me that I must box up my computer and send it to them for diagnostics. I should have it back in an undisclosed amount of time. I'm so thrilled I could just gouge my eyes out.

I have been working on some ideas for articles for the Top Rockstar blog. I'd like to do some interviews with some fairly successful indie artists.

And I'm running. I need to lose about ten pounds of muffin top and I have found, for me, the fastest way depudgify is to run like hell. I joined a group called Racy Ladies. I'll be running 5-7 miles with this group twice a week. They are trail runs and I find them really challenging. I plan on running a long (8-12) mile run along the coast on Saturday mornings.

Amy, Dave, Ryan, Sugar Daddy, Me, Dad

Running is in my blood. My father has run for years. He does marathons, ultra marathons and super long trail runs. He is amazing. He and I are alike in that we really don't enjoy organized races that much. I ran a marathon a few years ago. I won't do it again. It wasn't the distance, it was the people. I can't stand the hype. As mean as it sounds, when people cheer from the sidelines, I just want to cover my ears and get away as soon as possible. I'll run the distance again, I'll just start from my front door and run with my dad.

My little sister convinced me to run in the North Ogden Cherry Days race on the 4th of July. I only agreed because my whole family, minus my older sister and mom, were running. I ended up having a good time, even when I ran the wrong way (evidence of my directional impairment).

The contest for the $50 iTunes gift card is still going (see previous post). Help me spread the word! The soft launch is August 15th.