Am I Supposed to Feel Sorry for Them?

Well, I don't. Too bad. Actions have consequences, amigos. Trolls belong under a bridge. I especially like Javier Diaz' quote, which I've highlighted.

Miami Sex Offenders Live Under a Bridge
By JOHN PAIN, Associated Press Writer
April 6, 2007

MIAMI - Five convicted sex offenders are living under a noisy highway bridge with the state's grudging approval because an ordinance intended to keep predators away from children made it nearly impossible for them to find housing.

Some of them sleep on cardboard raised slightly off the ground to avoid the rats. One of the men beds down on a pallet with a blanket and pillow. Some have been there for several weeks.

"You just pray to God every night, so if you fall asleep for a minute or two, you know, nothing happens to you," said 30-year-old Javier Diaz, who arrived this week. He was sentenced in 2005 to three years' probation for lewd and lascivious conduct involving a girl under 16.

The conditions are a consequence of laws passed here and elsewhere around the country to bar sex offenders from living near schools, parks and other places children gather. Miami-Dade County's 2005 ordinance _ adopted partly in reaction to the case of a convicted sex offender who raped a 9-year-old Florida girl and buried her alive _ says sex offenders must live at least 2,500 feet from schools.

"They've often said that some of the laws will force people to live under a bridge," said Charles Onley, a research associate at the federally funded Center for Sex Offender Management. "This is probably the first story that I've seen that confirms that."

The five men under the Julia Tuttle Causeway are the only known sex offenders authorized to live outdoors in Florida, said state Corrections Department spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger.

"This is not an ideal situation for anybody, but at this point we don't have any other options," she said. "We're still looking. The offenders are still actively searching for residences."

But she conceded a point that many experts have made: This "is a problem that is going to have to be addressed. If we drive these offenders so far underground or we can't supervise them because they become so transient, it's not making us safer."

County Commissioner Jose Diaz said he had no qualms about the ordinance he created.

"My main concern is the victims, the children that are the innocent ones that these predators attack and ruin their lives," Diaz said. "No one really told them to do this crime."

The men must stay at the bridge between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. because a parole officer checks on them nearly every night, Plessinger said.

They have fishing poles to catch food, cook with small stoves, use battery-powered TVs and radios and keep their belongings in plastic bags. Javier Diaz has trouble charging the GPS tracking device he is required to wear; there are no power outlets nearby.

The whoosh of cars passing overhead echoes loudly under the causeway, which runs over Biscayne Bay, connecting Miami and Miami Beach.

About 100 feet away are the bay's blue-green waters, where a family with young children played in the water this week. In the near distance, luxury condominiums rise from the coastline.

Javier Diaz said he and the other men fear for their lives, especially because of "crazy people who might try to come harm sex offenders."

No shit, Sherlock! But what about the kids you molested? Did they not fear for their lives, too?"

The five committed such crimes as sexual battery, molestation, abuse and grand theft. Many of the offenses were against children. The state moved the men under the bridge from their previous home _ a lot next to a center for sexually abused children and close to a day care center _ after they were unable to find affordable housing that did not violate the sex-offender ordinance.

Twenty-two states and hundreds of municipalities have sex offender residency restrictions, according to a California Research Bureau report from last August.

Laurie Anderson or Biofeedback?

I recently downloaded Laurie Anderson's "O Superman" onto my iPod and I've never had a song have such a sedative effect on me. That's not necessarily a bad thing but when I even THINK about this song, I go into mellow mode. I actually use it as a sleep aid on the bus.


I think I'm onto something.

Awwwww!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvWNaqLIH0M


Do you know how cute you are?

Catching Up on Movies

TK got me a portable DVD player for Xmas and it's gotta be my fave gift. The funny thing is that when we had been out doing Xmas shopping and saw it in the store, I remarked that it was really cool but it was the type of item I would never buy for myself. Believe me, this was not a subtle hint. Anyone who knows me, knows there is nothing subtle at all about me.

Well, whaddya know? There it was on Xmas morning and I have to say it makes my commute into the city a whole lot more bearable.

So, after the Academy Awards, I am finally catching up on all the movies I never got to the theater to see. A short review follows:

A Prairie Home Companion--A real disappointment. I'm a Garrison Keillor fan by proxy. That is, my brother in Oregon raved about this guy forever and I finally familiarized myself with him and I have to say, he's captivating. I genuinely enjoy his stories about Lake Wobegon and whatnot.

That being said, the movie fell flat. There was a terrific cast: Keillor himself, Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin, Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones, John C. Reilly. Geez, even Lindsay Lohan was good. If you like country and western, you'll like the music. My fave was Lefty and Rusty (Harrelson and Reilly were awesome with their dirty ditties). But this was supposed to portray the last live radio show of APHC, so the characters should have pulled out all the stops when it came to reminiscing about the past. That didn't happen. All of their stories were predictable, lame and boring. I didn't get the "feel" of APHC; a good reminiscing movie should pull you in to the action, make you feel like part of the extended family. I just didn't get that.

Honestly, I think I learned more about Garrison Keillor and APHC from Wikipedia!

Some other things that annoyed me:

Virginia Madsen as the "Mystery Woman" ghost. WTF was that all about? Too contrived and totally unnecessary!

Kevin Kline's character. He was supposed to be a security guy. He was dressed more like a guy who got lost on the way to a barbershop quartet competition. Totally didn't get his character.

Things I liked:

Garrison Keillor playing himself.
The guy who did the radio show sound effects.
Rusty and Lefty's jokes.
The music.


Art School Confidential--I wanted to love this movie but that didn't happen. I liked some things about this film but I can't say I loved it.

It was a product of Terry Zwigoff, the same guy who directed Ghost World, which I DID love, so I just expected the lovefest to carry on over.

Granted there were some VERY funny scenes and the acting was decent. Plus, there was an actor in it I have never seen before named Matt Keeslar who was the hottest thing this side of wasabi paste. Where the hell has he been hiding? Note to directors: PLEASE cast this hunk in other productions!

Basically, it's a parody of the pretentious people one might find at art school. Now I've never been to art school but I have been in writer's workshops (Breadloaf) and let's just say there are pretentious characters in any artistic setting. You have the crazy chick, the phony intellectual, the druggie-punk, the closeted gay, the ass kisser, the hippy-vegan, you get the picture.

Now in case there's someone out there who hasn't seen the film, I don't want to put any spoilers in here. Suffice it to say that the movie takes a *comic* twist at the end which really didn't bowl me over. If I had to sum up this film in one sentence, I'd say, "It's a comedy about what an artist will do to get some notoriety."

But something was gnawing me about this film, hours after having viewed it. Where have I seen this theme before? And then I remembered: The King of Comedy, with Robert DeNiro, Jerry Lewis and Sandra Bernhard. Same message but funnier. Genius, if I say so myself.

Reviews to come: Jesus Camp and Little Miss Sunshine.

Nice Way to Start the Day

So I'm standing in the nasty waiting for the 280 Express bus when this car pulls into the service station next to the bus stop. The window rolls down and a young Arabic guy asks me what time the 280 EX is due. I tell him and then the driver, who appears to be his mom in a headwrap, says to me, "Why don't you get inside? Don't wait out in the snow."

I hesistated for a second. C'mon, fess up, you would have, too! I don't know these people from Adam. They could whisk me away to a mosque somewhere and I would never be heard from again. But my gut, which is usually pretty reliable says, "Trust them."

Well, I'm glad I did because they were the nicest folks you'd ever want to meet. The son, Ahmed, who appeared to be in his early 20s, works in the financial industry. While he was telling me this, his mom, beaming with pride, told me that he got his MBA from Fordham. She herself is a pharmaceutical chemist who turned down a high-paying job in NYC because she didn't want to commute. Smart woman!

In all my years commuting, I don't remember anything like this ever happening, whether it was at the train station in Montclair or the bus stop in Verona. God forbid, some rich yuppie would offer me shelter from the storm. I'd have a better chance of winning the lottery.

Just shows to go ya, you can't judge a book.

Good Start

Had my first 5K race of the season on March 10 and I think I did pretty well. Tough course, tough weather (32 freakin' degrees and very damp), tough crowd (lots of fast runners...the overall winner was a 40 yo man who clocked in at 15 and some change, with a 5:01 pace. Egads!)

Clocked in at 25:15. That's a little bit faster than I was running at this same time last year. And I felt pretty good, albeit a little out of breath more than unusual. But then I discovered that almost everyone I spoke to, even the best runners in our club, felt breathless.

So, although the weight training and cross-training has been paying off, I simply need to get back on the roads again and build up my lung capacity. Now that it's getting lighter at night (coupled with the early DST), that should be happening real soon.

In other news, my trainer/nutritionist at my gym had said he wanted to see me once race season started so he could go over my calorie intake, possibly bumping it up a bit to keep up with the demand. I hadn't seen him in a month or so I was very curious about my BF measurement. I stopped journaling my food intake because I feel I can do this with my eyes closed now. I was pretty good about sticking to the plan even with a few setbacks (dining out with friends, bad weather pre-empting my outdoor training, etc.)

So, needless to say, I was quite surprised when he told me I was down to 16.7% BF! Evidently, my body is not done yet. All told, I have lost 10 lbs. of body fat and gained about 10 lbs. of lean muscle. My scale weight is about the same, though. Really, I don't want to go any lower than this, folks. He told me to add about 200 calories of some good carbs (whole grains, sweet potatoes, fruit, etc.) every fourth day. That works out to be Sunday and Wednesday for me which is good because Sunday is usually race day and I need the extra calories then.

I also need some new clothes but that's another blog entry, another time.

Let's try this again!

I tried posting this pic last week and then one day it was gone. Something to do with the Blogger server, I s'pose. But ain't it purty?

Awww! New Lycos Doggie!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwNXgE0Pzy4

What Country Is This Again?

You would think that making an appointment to have a mammogram would be no big deal, right? Think again.

First, some background. I am a 49-year-old middle-class woman with a decent-paying job. I live the NY metro area. I have had yearly mammograms since the age of 40, not because there's any history of breast cancer in my family (thank God!) but because I have a conservative gynecologist who insists that his patients 40 and older have one every year. OK, I can deal with that.

But it's not just him. These days, you can't pick up a magazine, read a newspaper or watch TV without seeing ads for mammograms. If you're a woman, you are bombarded over and over with the same message: Mammograms save lives. OK, I'll buy into that for the sake of argument.

Today is February 26. I call the imaging lab that I've used for the past decade. I've always been able to make an appointment on a Saturday morning, no problem. It might not be this Saturday, or next Saturday, but I was able to get a Saturday morning appointment within 2-3 weeks of my call.

Not only have they pretty much done away with Saturday appointments altogther (they only have them once a month), you can't even get a friggin' MORNING appointment until April! That's right, you read that correctly. My appointment is for a Monday morning in late April.

Well, I realized that it's not the "order taker's" fault but I did make a remark that the scheduling is not fair to working gals like myself. She was very nice and asked if I would like to speak to her supervisor. I said, "Why not?"

The supervisor, too, was very pleasant. Here is what she told me, in a nutshell: Basically, very few med students want to take up radiology anymore due to numerous lawsuits against them (I was not aware of this). Therefore, due to the shortage of radiologists, many imaging centers no longer offer Saturday appointments. In addition, it's very tough to get ANY appointment for about two months or so.

This burns me up on a lot of levels. First, you read about doctor shortages like this happening in the inner city, particularly with minority women on Medicaid or with no insurance whatsoever. You read about doctor shortages in remote rural areas. You hear about doctor shortages in places like Eastern Europe, the sub-Sahara, and even "progressive" countries with socialized medicine. This is not supposed to happen in "enlightened" metro New York, however. I mean, don't people from overseas come here because we supposedly have the best medical care in the world?

Secondly, waiting two months is not a good thing. Two months can be the difference between "early diagnosis" and "point of no return" for some people. So, no, waiting is NOT a good thing.

Third, once again, we have the insurance industry raising its ugly, pointed little head. Why, all of a sudden, are there all these lawsuits? Why weren't they there 10 years ago, 5 years ago? Can we spell G-R-E-E-D?

Really, I am perplexed. If somone has answers, I am all ears.

Countdown to Spring!

You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!

I swear, if I hadn't seen this in The Times I would've thought I was reading The Onion:


http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/22/garden/22depression.html

But the funniest thing of all were some of the comments on Gawker.com:


"This twat stayed up until 3 a.m. fretting about her kitchen backsplash? Jesus God, why hasn't there been a revolution in this country yet?"


So this Toth woman became so depressed she actually found herself cooking in her new kitchen? Someone please hold a telethon...

Warning: Product Raves

Normally I don't use my blog to hawk products but I just have to share my thoughts about two really great ones: Lux Hair Mousse and Creme de la Mer.

1. Lux Hair Mousse--The parent company is Unilever and unfortunately, Lux Hair Products are only sold in Japan and a couple of other Asian countries. A co-worker brought a pump container back for me and declared that I MUST try it. It is amazing. You put a dab on towel-dried hair and it makes your hair shiny and smooth. I know there are other similar products out there but this stuff is best I've ever tried.

I emailed Unilever asking if there is any store near NYC that sells these products. Someone sent me back a nice but disappointing note saying, sorry, but no, right now there are no plans to sell them here. Bummer. I HATE when companies do that.

(Another example is Nestle's Coffee Crisp chocolate bars, which are only sold in Great Britain and Canada. I don't even eat candy bars but a friend from the Big White North sent me one and it's to die for! It tastes like a Kit Kat with a mocha/ coffee center. Yum. You can order them online but it costs a fortune because you have to order them by the box. Frankly, I don't want or need a big box of candy lying around.)

2. Creme de la Mer--I heard about this amazing moisturizer when I worked at the Empire State Building last week. The makeup guy was doing the face of one of the brides, a woman of a certain age...MINE!, who was complaining about fine lines and dryness. He told her that the only thing that really works, short of going to a dermatologist, is this Creme de la Mer, which can be purchased online or at Bergdorf's.

I've been having the WORST dryness around my eyes this winter, probably due to the dry air and lack of precip for much of the season. Being that I suffer from eye dermatitis, the dryness just aggravates everything. I decided just to spring for the eye balm.

I warn you this stuff ain't cheap. (It's $120 for .5 oz!) But a little dab'll do ya and IT WORKS! I use it morning and night and it seems to have cleared up the dryness and itchiness. It's amazing how quickly it worked, too. Sure beats cortisone cream anyday.

It has a nice fragrance to it, too. A cucumber, seaweedy smell, but gentle.

I Guess My Mother Had Heartburn

Mind you, I'm not complaining but my hair has been known to break combs! Seriously, I don't get haircuts, I get hair thinnings.


From today's Times' Health Section:

The Claim: Mother’s Heartburn Means a Hairy Newborn

By ANAHAD O’CONNOR
Published: February 20, 2007
THE FACTS It is an odd adage that has stuck around for ages: women who suffer heartburn during pregnancy will have babies with full heads of hair. But doctors have long shrugged it off.

Until now, that is. In December, researchers at Johns Hopkins University conducted a study intending to put the claim to rest. To their surprise, they ended up confirming it. The study, published in the current issue of the journal Birth, followed 64 pregnant women, about 78 percent of whom reported having some heartburn. After the women gave birth, two outside observers looked at pictures of their infants and rated their levels of hair.

Of the 28 women who reported moderate to severe heartburn, 23 had babies with average or above-average amounts of hair. Conversely, 10 of the 12 women who reported no heartburn had babies with little or no hair.

Other studies have shown that in pregnant women, high levels of estrogen and other hormones can relax the sphincter at the bottom of the esophagus, causing heartburn. The same hormones, other studies show, can influence fetal hair growth.

The lead author of the study, Kathleen Costigan, who runs the fetal assessment center at Johns Hopkins, said the findings came as a shock.

“We’ve heard this claim hundreds of times, and I’ve always told people it’s nonsense,” she said. “Since the study came out, I’ve had to eat a lot of crow.”

THE BOTTOM LINE Heartburn during pregnancy may mean a greater likelihood a baby will have a lot of hair.

That's What I THOUGHT You Said....

Of all days, I had to come in early yesterday (the yucky, ice-in-your-face-snow day) because a colleague of mine asked if I would help her out with an event at the Empire State Building. Every year about a dozen or so couples get married atop the Empire State Building on Valentine's Day. Most of couples have some sort of compelling story: cancer survivors, back from fighting in Iraq, father's dying wish, etc. It's a nice story, though, it really is.

I had helped her out previously at the Empire State Building Run-up and I guess she was so impressed, she asked for my help again. But I'm happy to do it. She's a nice woman and now I have someone to hit up when I need help with an event.

Anyhoo, it was about 8 AM and I am walking down 34th Street, wind and ice in my face, when a young woman approaches me with what looks like a small packet of something. I could see that the package had little subway dots on it but at that hour, I wasn't even mildly curious. I politely waved her away. It was cold, I needed my coffee, plus my head was so bundled up, I could hardly hear what she was hawking. It sounded as if she was saying "free condoms" or something like that. But, I said to myself, "Nah, too outlandish. Can't be. It's freakin' 19 degrees out, it's 8 AM on a workday, and the last thing I want to think about is getting nekkid, even for sex."

But sonofagun. I turned on the evening news later and that's exactly what it was! A FREE CONDOM! Because it's Valentine's Day, get it? And, Lord knows, that's the only day of the year that you have to worry about having unsafe sex, getting an STD and getting preggers.

17.7% Body Fat. OK, We Can Stop Now

OK, people. This is as low as I go. And that's after two weeks of really not being that good. There was my brother's birthday (chicken parm, baked ziti, chocolate cake); Tom's granddaughter's and son's birthdays (a combined celebration); dinners out with friends; you get the idea. So, I was REALLY shocked to see that I lost additional body fat. That makes almost 10% total since I started around Christmas!

But now my trainer and I are both in agreement that it's time to go on maintenance. I won't be meeting him every week anymore but I will see him a week before race season begins (March 11) to tweak some things, ie., actually add a few more quality calories.

Sounds good to me. :-)

Awesome!

This was taken with my crappy cell phone camera but it was an event of such importance to me that I couldn't wait to take a photo, ANY photo.

This is the first flower to bloom on my orchid plant in my office this year. Somehow this baby picked the coldest week this winter to make its appearance but nevertheless, it has arrived and brings promise that no matter how depressing this life gets, there is always a beacon of hope.

And, there are seven other buds waiting to burst as I write this.

A little history:

Last spring, I did a non-work-related favor for a client of mine. To thank me, this lovely woman had a beautiful orchid with white blossoms delivered to my office. I had never owned an orchid before but I know they have their following. In fact, a co-worker down the hall from me has about half a dozen of the plants in her office.

Well, the plant looked great for about 2 or 3 months and then one by one, the petals began to fall. I was so saddened by this. I consulted my colleague and asked if the blossoms would ever come back. She said, "Maybe." She suggested I continue to water it weekly and even give it some fertilizer. I did this for several months but nothing happened--until this past week!

I did read up on orchids a bit. From what I understand, most varieties are hardy plants, surviving droughts and extreme heat in various parts of the world. So, even if you forget to water them one week, it probably won't kill them.

I promise to take more (and better!) photos with the digital next week. Be prepared to orchisized!

No BF reading today

My trainer called out sick last night so I have no BF reading to share today. No biggie. I ended up staying in the city and meeting my sister-in-law for a bite and a Guinness, at an Irish pub no less. Good way to spend another blustery night.

I am getting a little sick of the cold. I hate having to bundle up every morning. I hate wearing hats and gloves. Supposedly, we're supposed to have a heat wave of 32 degrees by the end of the week. Yeehah!

Send This Chica to Cuba!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osdUv7v6K6g

Ack, I Have a Headache

Well, not literally. But a figurative headache, while not as physically painful, is still the pits. Why do I have a figurative headache you ask?

It's because of this:
http://www.baristanet.com/2007/02/montclair_time_chill_out.php

Read it and weep. I don't mind having an intelligent argument with people who have differing opinions but when it disintegrates into name-calling and such, well, have a nice day. This seems to be the case more often than not with Baristanet. I still love the site and do plan to return, just not today.

And for the record, I DO believe that there is such a thing as global warming but I don't believe it's caused entirely by man. There have been fluctuations in the Earth's climate for hundreds of years. Man, in the entire scheme of things, has only been here a short time. We are a pimple on the ass of eternity or something like that.

Do I believe in composting, driving hybrid cars and recycling? ABSOLUTELY! I always did, even before Mr. Liberal Tree Hugger came to town.

And, some of these people are SOOOO hypocritical! They stick up for Nancy Pelosi and her big jets, all the Hollywood limousine liberals, and all the Baristaville soccer moms who drive these enormous behemoths. THAT'S OK, by the way, because because they are doing it for [trumpets please!] THE CHILLLLDRRRUNNN.

Pass me a barf bag. NOW!

18.25% BF

Down to 18.25% body fat this week. Yawn. I'm pleased but because I'm getting closer to goal, the percentages just ain't that big a deal anymore. I may quit when I reach 17% and just go on maintenance.

The other good news is that the pain in my back is totally gone, hopefully never to return again. Race season for me starts March 11 with the Newark Distance Classic. Normally, I do the 20K (12.4 miles) but this year I'm just doing the 5K since my goal is to improve my times in the shorter races. There really is no reason for me to do the longer races since I'm not doing a marathon this season. It's kind of a relief not to be training for them. Heck, I've done them for the last 5 years or so. I need a break!

Tom made me laugh yesterday. We were talking about that big hoax in Boston, perpetuated by Turner Broadcasting Co. In case you don't know what I'm talking about, Turner Broadcasting was doing a promotion for this new lame cartoon series targeted towards "insomniac stoners," as I've heard it described. They hired a promotions company to place these light boxes around select cities but I guess Boston never got the memo.

Basically, the city was in a uproar because they considered it a possible terror attack. The bomb squad was called, extra cops were put on duty, traffic was rerouted, you get the picture. Mayhem. Supposedly, Turner is being fined for all the extra manpower and aggravation. I'd be upset if I lived in Boston, too.

In fact, once we heard it was Turner Broadcasting, we REALLY wanted Boston to pull out all the stops. Ted Turner, if you recall, was married to that c__t, Jane Fonda. Tom speculated that their marriage ended because she yelled, "PULL OUT NOW!" one too many times.

Back, psoas, whatever, feels better

Today I can honestly say that I feel like my backside is on its way to healing. I must confess that I did take a half of one of Tom's muscle relaxants last night but what the hey? Didn't hurt and I had a great night's sleep.

My chiro doesn't like drugs. Well, usually I don't, either, but sometimes you just need the added mobility, serenity, et cetera, that only a pill can give you.

Minor, minor pain today but I definitely don't feel that annoying tightness anymore.

Cheer up, Love. My stocks are in the toilet, too.

New Toy?

Tom was flipping through one of the hundreds of catalogs we receive every year --we especially love the ones with stickers on them that say, "This is your last catalog unless you place an order!" and it's usually the ONLY catalog we've ever received from said company--and came across a neat toy/invention.

It's a turntable that has a USB connection for your computer. This means that you can record 33 and 45 RPM vinyl records onto CDs and mp3s! Wowwee! I have been waiting for something like this for a long time. I've always bemoaned the fact that I own sooo many records but can only play them on my turntable. Granted, you can find a lot of songs on iTunes but not EVERYTHING, especially if it's some really, really obscure punk band from the 80s. So this is the answer to my dreams. It's $249 but I'll just charge it. I almost never use plastic but I am really making a concerted effort to save for a house so I don't want to dip into my savings for luxury items. But something like this doesn't come along every day.

***

Had my second session with the chiro today. It went well. He found some more aches and pains that I didn't know I had...:-) It's 8 PM now (my session was at 9 AM) and all I feel is a really minor dull ache so that's a good thing. He said I may feel an ache for a day or two and then I should be pain free. Let's hope so.

I was able to get in 8 miles today and a 45-minute workout with the weights, avoiding anything to do with the lower back. I want to wait until this thing is completely gone. It acted up last week when I got up off a weight bench after lifting a 12-pound weight over my head and back.

It's something called the psoas, something of which I've never heard. It's a tissue that runs deep within the buttock and is literally a real pain the ass! Very common in runners, I am told. He gave me a few exercises to keep it from acting up again. He also told me that I should try to stabilize my lower back as much as possible while this thing heals. The stability ball might be a better choice than the weight bench although I always feel like I am going to fall off the ball! Guess I have to get used to it.

Yes, I HATE Farkin' Teenagers...

Got a problem with that?


Ga. Teens Admitt to Killing Dog in Oven
By Associated Press
January 26, 2007, 3:51 PM

ATLANTA -- Two teenagers accused of duct-taping a puppy's snout and paws and cooking the animal alive in an oven pleaded guilty Friday to animal cruelty and other offenses. Prosecutors said Joshua Moulder, 17, and his brother, Justin, 19, broke into a newly refurbished community center, where they tortured and killed the 3-month-old puppy, damaged computers, broke glass and splattered paint on the walls.

The brothers then brought neighborhood children to see the dead puppy and threatened to kill them if they reported it, prosecutors said. They will be sentenced next month.

Oh, I would love to be a fly on the wall at that sentencing. Let's just hope they get a judge who HATES FARKIN' TEENAGERS as much as I do. I hope they live the rest of their pitiful, scabrous lives in prison.

Did I mention that I HATE TEENAGERS?

18.6% and counting. Plus Kindercrap Rant.

18.6 % body fat last night. Getting there, getting there. Trainer and I both have a feeling that once we get into spring, I'll get there faster. That makes sense. With the longer days, I'll be able to run outdoors longer. Whatever. I'm happy. Hope my race times reflect this change. I should just go up to the Verona track and time myself on the mile.

Tom had his measured at the Caldwell Community Center. They uses one of those machine thingies which are not as exacting as the caliper method but close enough. His was 14.5%. No surprises there as he's on the lean side and he's a man.

The most accurate way to measure body fat is underwater weighing but very few places offer this method. Most likely, you have to go to university lab, specifically one that studies obesity and diabetes. Very big, I understand, in places like New Mexico and Southern Cal.

***

Visited my cousin on Sunday who lives down near the shore. It's been a while since I've seen her since one of my brothers got into some sort of tiff with my cousin and her brother so I just assumed she was mad at me, too. Plus, in all honesty, even though she's the only first cousin I have that's close to my age, we don't have that much in common. We did have some fun times together as kids, though, and to this day, we can't stop laughing about some of them.

A couple of weeks ago, she called me. "Hello, this is your cousin ________. I don't know if you remember me or not, but I was just wondering how you were doing." It was good to hear from her. I called her back and we arranged to get together.

My cousin was unable to have children of her own so she and her husband adopted a baby boy three years ago. He's a cute kid but what a handful. After spending time with them, I am reminded why I never wanted kids of my own. He. Just. Doesn't. Stop. For one minute. Lots of energy. Into everything. Interrupts constantly. (All kids do this but I could never understand parents that put up with it). Plus, the house looks as if it had been tortured by the Apaches. Kindercrap ALL over the place: the living room, the computer room, the kitchen, you name it. In fact, the only room in the whole house that had any semblence of order was the kids' own room.

The living room was the worst. All kinds of toys littered the floor, so much that you couldn't see the floor itself. Mind you, she knew I was coming over. I would hate to see the house when no company was expected. I should mention that my cousin does not work, either. So, WTF?

The best part was that she was showing me some pictures and wall sconces that she planned to hang up. She just swept through the room, oblivious to the mess, "And this is where I'd like to hang this..." I mean, dayum, what difference does it make what you've got on your walls when the room looks like a bomb hit it?

It's not just my cousin. I see this is almost all the homes I visit that have young children. The kids and their toys have literally taken over. Not to sound like an old fart, but geez, whenI was a kid, I was allowed to play with my toys in my room, outside or in our finished basement, which doubled as my dad's office and a kid's playroom. My mother would have had a fit if I left toys all over the house.

My cousin apologetically told me that the living room looks like this because she doesn't have a basement. Lame excuse, sorry. I would bet the farm that if they DID have a basement, they would find a way to fill it up with junk, too, as she and her hubby appear to be packrats on top of having a messy kid.

This just reaffirms my Child-Free philosophy that today's parents are so obsessed with their offspring that they'e let them take over. I can just kids all over America raising their little sticky fists, announcing: "We want the living room and we want it NOW!"

USATF-NJ 2007 Awards

New Look

Just playing around with some of the new features on this blog. Whaddya think? I like it. I think the polka dots are more in tune with my personality.

Pictures of USATF Awards Ceremony to Come

They're edited and all but need to resize them for the web. Should be up in a day or two.

Had fun and all but as with last year, the ceremony still needs a shot of good organization. Tom & I won some raffle prizes, too: a $50 gift certificate to Sneaker Factory, two pairs of running shoes, and a book on Boston Marathon. I REALLY wanted to win one of the prepaid race packages but, oh well, next year.

Obtentious

Some of the best ideas come to me in bed. That is, before I doze off to sleep, you pervs!

Anyway, I was thinking of a word that describes both obnoxious and pretentious people. Mind you, one can be obnoxious and not pretentious and vice versa. So I came up with obtentious. What brought this on, you might ask?

Well, let's go back about 25 years to my second job out of college. I was a reporter for a newspaper that shall remain nameless. This woman, who shall also remain nameless, worked on the advertising side. Let's just say she was trouble from Day 1. Obnoxious AND pretentious!

For our purposes, let's refer to her as "Elise." Elise always wanted to be someone she was not: rich, beautiful, classy. In reality, she was middle-class (oh, the horrors!), average-looking and classless. But she was an excellent actress: She proceeded to ACT like someone rich, beautiful and classy and the rest of us could just pound sand.

Elise would not only polish her nails in the office, she would perch her naked foot up on her desktop while polishing her toesies! I am NOT making this up. She was newly-married to a school teacher but that wasn't good enough for our Elise. She insisted her husband go to law school and became like a wildebeest in her determination to make him into an attorney. I think he had very little say in the matter.

One of her jobs at work was to mark up the ads on the pages (this was before desktop computers). When she was finished she always BELLOWED out my name to come and retrieve the proofs as if I was her personal servant, instead of picking up the phone like a human being and asking nicely. Since she was not my superior, I would just take my sweet old time to go get them.

Fast forward to 2007. I was doing a web search for a client and came across a picture of her on a web site with one of her daughters, named (are you ready for this?) Remy! Can you think of a more obtentious name? (Remy Faith, yet--oy.) Remy is the name of the deli-restaurant where I buy my coffee in the morning. It should NOT be the name of someone's child in America.
And Faith? I hope the kid grows up to be an atheist, just to spite her mother.

How pretentious. How obnoxious. How Elise.

Eraserhead Is Back!

Yes, according to the Village Voice (a publication whose politics I despise but they have great stories on art, film and literature), Eraserhead, directed by David Lynch, will be at MOMA from January 18 through 24! Such a short run but I really want to try and make it if I can.

http://www.villagevoice.com/film/0703,lee,75564,20.html

I actually wrote a Letter to the Editor, praising the article for bringing back such fond memories. I hope they run it. I gave them both my work and home phone numbers and would love to be there if BF gets the call.

"Hello, this is Blah-Blah from the Village Voice. I am calling for Martta (insert last name here). She wrote a letter to the Voice about Eraserhead..." I would LOVE to see the expression on his face when he gets that call, that "WTF is Eraserhead?" look.

I am evil. And, in Heaven, everything is fun.

19% Flat

Had my body fat measurement last night and was at 19% flat. Meh. Well, at least I am headed in the right direction. My trainer says that because I am closer to my goal, the decreases will not be as dramatic.

I had a talk with him about what's a healthy range. He said if I wanted to stop now, I could, but if I wanted, I could go as low as 14%. Lower than that is for professional bodybuilders--no thanks! But he reiterated that I should not get discouraged if I take a few weeks to get there. I can handle that, I guess.

He asked me how I was feeling and I told him pretty good. I have more energy when I run up hills. I even told that him when BF & go grocery shopping, I can now carry 3 bags up the 2 flights of stairs with ease. It used to be an effort to carry 2. (WhenI told this to Tom, he said, "Good, you can carry them all up if you'd like!" LOL!)

Kept My Date with the Chiro

Yeah, I went to see the chiro on Monday. Got there exactly on time which is a freakin' miracle since Paramus is like a whole other universe to me. In fact, Bergen County in general is daunting to me. Don't know why. Maybe it's all those stories I used to hear about how scary Route 17 is. They're greatly exaggerated, in my opinion.

To make along story short, my problem is actually less severe than I thought it was. I expected the worst: He was going to tell me that I have a herniated disc, that I should stop running immediately and accept that I was going to walk hunched over like a gorilla for the rest of my life. Actually, what I have is a tissue adhesion, very common in runners, due to overuse (guilty) and due to trying to rev up your mileage too quickly (also guilty). I also have a pronated left foot which I knew about already.

I also expected the worst in terms of pain. But I have to honestly say that I've had massages that hurt more than what he did. Yes, he pulled and prodded, stretched and poked, but I didn't cry out in agony. One thing I will say is that he definitely knows his anatomy. He was able to zero right in on the source of my problem.

The bottom line? I feel about 90% better. Honestly. I don't get that annoying dull pain when I turn over in bed or bend down to tie my shoes. He says that one more visit should do it. Way cool.
************************************************************************************
Saturday night is awards night, yippee! Me and Tom and some other folks from our club are going. I am getting two 3rd Place USATF-NJ awards. In 2003, I got a 2nd place award but never got two before. I am psyched. At my age, I have to be.

I also got a call from a fellow club member, who's also on the USATF committee, saying that she needs, and I quote, "some attractive women to help sell raffle tickets, so I thought of you." I have to say that she really has a good sales pitch going there and more power to her. I haven't felt very attractive lately due to my allergy which has raised its ugly little head again--or I should say raised the skin around my eyes. And made it red. And gave it this horrible dry, lizard-like appearance. Are you grossed out yet? :-)

Yeah, I haven't had allergies in God knows how many years and then we get this freak winter with the 72 degree days and such. That means all the little mold spores that are normally dormant during the winter are ALIVE AND KICKING! I had to go back on the meds (Zyrtec), the cortisone cream and the eye drops which help but don't help 100%. Plus, Zyrtec, as with many allergy meds, is a mild depressant. Normally, not a problem but I am a bit pre-disposed to depression (especially as I get older) so I do tend to go into a funk. I try to hide it as best as I can though. Oh, and I did I mention that the Zyrtec makes you have weird dreams, too?

And the presciption cortisone cream relieves the itching but it dries out the skin terribly.

Supposedly, starting today we're supposed to go through a cold spell so that has helped a bit. But, gee, I hope it stays cold for a bit. Just to kill the mold. Kill them all, let nature sort them out!

Miracles of Miracles

Today my butt-thang doesn't feel that bad. Really. And, it really is coincidental that The New York Times ran an article today (Jan. 11) in the Health Section that basically says when an athlete is injured, he or she should keep on moving. This goes against the old tried and true advice about resting, staying off your feet, etc. It said that too much rest can actually work against you, atrophy your muscles and so forth.

Naturally, if you are in debilitating pain, you should see a doc before continuing to exercise but most muscle inflammations can benefit from cross-training or doing the activity you normally do (such as running) but not as much of it. So there.

Actually, this comes as no surprise to me since my running coach's motto is "Motion is lotion," meaning that gentle movement actually helps heal minor muscle aches and such.

I'm still keeping my appointment with the chiro on Monday, though. I want to make sure this thing is gone for good and never coming back.

19.8% and Counting...

At last night's body fat check-in, I was at 19.8% which puts me in the "Athletic" range. Hallelujah, and pass the French fries, LOL! But seriously, I am thrilled and will probably be even more ecstatic once I visit the chiropractor on Monday. This dull pain in the butt is well, a pain in the butt.

According to the chart, I can go as low at 14 -15% and still be in the "healthy" range. Professional athletes can go lower but hell, I am not one of them. My scale weight has changed little but according to my trainer, I've gained muscle weight. That being said, I don't fret over what the scale says so much anymore.

I do feel stronger but the real test will be how I'll do when race season starts. I did do a personal record in the 4-miler on December 31 and that was only a week or so into the program. This stuff really works.

Is it difficult? Not really, but it does take discipline.

Can you cheat? Once in awhile, yes. But just once in awhile.

Is there anything I don't like about it? Yes, keeping a food diary. I always found this a bit anal but it does work. Hopefully, once I arrive at my goal and can do the program with my eyes closed, I can dispense with the diary.

Song Going Through My Head...

Ever have a song go through your head for no reason? Well, this classic by the Stadtler Brothers just whizzed into my head today and would not leave for a good part of the morning. No matter, I kinda like the song and it reminds me of happier, more innocent days.



Countin' Flowers On The Wall

I keep hearing you're concerned about my happiness.
All that thought you're giving me is conscience, I guess.
If I were walking in your shoes, I wouldn't worry none.
While you and your friends are worrying 'bout me, I'm having lots of fun.

Counting flowers on the wall,
That don't bother me at all.
Playing Solitaire till dawn,
With a deck of fifty-one.
Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo.
Now, don't tell me I've nothing to do.

Last night I dressed in tails, pretended I was on the town.
As long as I can dream, it's hard to slow this swinger down.
So please don't give a thought to me, I'm really doing fine.
You can always find me here, having quite a time.

Counting flowers on the wall,
That don't bother me at all.
Playing Solitaire till dawn,
With a deck of fifty-one.
Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo.
Now, don't tell me I've nothing to do.

Well, it's good to see you, I must go,
I know I look a fright.
Anyway my eyes are not accustomed to this light.
And my shoes are not accustomed to this hard concrete.
So I must go back to my room and make my day complete.

Counting flowers on the wall,That don't bother me at all.
Playing Solitaire till dawn,With a deck of fifty-one.
Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo.

Now, counting flowers on the wall,
That don't bother me at all.
Playing Solitaire till dawn,With a deck of fifty-one.
Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo.
Now, don't tell me I've nothing to do. Don't tell me I've nothing to do.

So It's My First Video, OK?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRETm9U0O10

Yes, this is my lame first attempt at creating a 17-second video on my digital cam and then uploading it to YouTube. Expect new and improved scintillating content over the next few weeks, possibly me singing to Labrador retrievers. Woo-effin-hoo.

Random Ramblings

Tomorrow is Girls' Day Out...yippee! I lurve getting together with the girlfriends: Anne, Lynne, Cat, Barb and Joan. All friends from my running club. We're going out to lunch and then out to a movie. Looks like we're seeing "Dream Girls" since about half of us have seen "Holiday."

"Holiday" was cute, very entertaining. And Jude Law, bastard that is he, is not hard to look at. I really want to see "Dream Girls," however, because of Jennifer Hudson. I hear she steals the show from Beyonce.

Worked a little bit harder with the weights yesterday and today I feel it a bit, but in a good way. Not too sore but sore enough to know that I worked out. I feel as if my posture is getting better, too.

Had a deep tissue massage today and boy oh boy, she really got in there and worked that sciatic nerve on the left side. I really have to keep on top of that or it will turn into real sciatica and that is NOT a good thing. Lots of stretching that puppy.

BF & I had dental appointments and this marks my 35th year of being cavity-free. Tom was amazed. I am lucky that I inherited my mother's good teeth. My brothers were not as lucky. But I also think it has a lot do with flouride being introduced to the water when I was young. A lot of folks are against flouride but I think it has done more good than harm, especially where dental disease is concerned. Also, I HATE any kind of soda pop and my brothers both love Coke. That may have something to do with it, who knows?

I always hated carbonated beverages. I find they don't quench my thirst and actually make me thirstier. I basically just drink water, green tea, coffee, red wine, beer and fresh juice made in a juicer. None of that commercial crap. You might as well drink pure sugar water.

We bought a really cool picture frame tonight. It looks like a window with 12 panes, 4 across and 3 down. Cherry wood, really pretty. We're want to fill it up with running pix but it takes 4 x 6 photos so we need to get busy and take more of that size. The USATF dinner is coming up so we'll get some more there.

My favorite Christmas gift? A portable DVD player! We actually saw this in a store and I remarked to Tom that it was something I would never buy for myself. Well, whaddya know? He got me one. I am loving it. It will sure make the morning commute that much more tolerable.

Sometimes I read on the bus but those overhead lights are so dim that it's uncomfortable to read. Which is a darn shame because I love to read. But I love being headache-free more. Damn DeCamp! Spring for some freakin' lightbulbs that work halfway decent, why dontcha?

More on Texas

The 10 O'clock News is depressing but not as depressing as my family in Texas.

Got a picture text message on my cell phone of a sun rising from my niece on Christmas Eve. This is her way of letting me know that she needs to talk to me. A normal person would just call but well, I think you get my drift.

Not that I don't love my niece. I do, very much, but she has her issues. She's 33, a single mom (by choice, but I don't think she actually knows who the daddy is), claims she's been diagnosed with ADD (she always reminds me of this whenever she gets herself in a fix), and is a drama queen. She used to have a drug problem but has been clean for three years. She's not unintelligent but emotionally, she acts 14.

At least she's trying to pull herself up, though. She's going to school to learn how to fix computers, she works and appears to be making the effort to be a good mother. However, one of the things that continues to pull her down is her OWN mother, my *lovely* ex-sister-in-law. As immature as my niece is, she's even more so and plays these manipulative games with my niece and everyone else. It's really sad.

She had been helping my niece out financially but as soon as my niece does something (real or imagined ) to tick her off, she pulls the plug. I told my niece that she should make every effort to become independent from this witch as soon as possible. Yes, it's going to be tough, both emotionally and financially, but most things in life that are worthwhile are worth fighting for.
I told her that I am there for her.

After my brother and Witch got divorced, she married this guy she met at her high school reunion. I met him once, at my nephew's wedding, and don't really have a good recollection of him, one way or the other. An impression, good or bad, was not made. Well, a few years ago, he ran into some financial problems with his business. Based on what I've written, can anyone out there in the peanut gallery guess what happened next? That's right. Instead of working things through, Witch leaves Guy #2, who, I learned, committed suicide the week before Christmas.

Now Witch has shacked up with Guy #3, a Colombian *artist* of sorts (sounds more like a bullshit artist to me), who lives in a tiny apartment above someone's garage! Well, my niece tells me that HE is now having financial AND health problems and I'm just waiting for the next installment of this sagging saga. I think we all know how it ends up.

But ya know? If I have to listen to another installment, I think I may drink myself silly.

Well, Wet My Feet and Call Me Ducky!

Had my weekly weigh-in/body fat measurement yesterday and I was shocked to learn that I have lost 3 pounds of body fat in a little more than a week's time! My actual weight was up by 3 pounds (nutritionist said it was probably water gain from all the salty foods over the holiday) but he was more interested in the body fat number. I could not believe it. After a week? And not even sticking to the diet that diligently?

So now my body fat is at 22%, 4% away from my goal. I expected to reach my goal in say, 3 months or so. Dayam, this stuff really works.

Had another workout today with free weights and it went pretty well (this after running 9 miles with Tom in the morning!). I have to say I was a bit apprehensive about this since I haven't worked out with free weights for quite some time. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to even do a decent amount of reps with a 5-pound weight. But I was fine, even able to do 8 and 10 pound weights for the different exercises. Naturally, as I keep doing them, I will keep adding weight (up to a point). For now, though, it's fine. She wants me to be slightly sore the next day, not in horrible pain.

I have a massage tomorrow (Gee, this staying home from work could grow on me!). Really more as a therapeutic session than one for relaxation although I do enjoy them immensely. I was supposed to do two sessions after the marathon on Nov. 19 and I've only done one. I really need it as I feel the piriformis acting up again. Very annoying kind of pain. Not debilitating but a dull throb, not while I am running but when I bend over or get up from a seated position.
Working with a trainer should help to counteract some of this, so I am told. A strong core is key.

News from the Dysfunction Junction

First of all, Merry Christmas, if anyone happens to be reading this now or on Christmas Day!

That being said, it's always Jerry Springerland when I call my niece in Houston, Texas, to check in on her. Thank God that she and her siblings have seen fit to finally divorce themselves from their toxic mother (my brother's first wife). No one said it was going to be easy but most things in life that are worthwhile are not.

That being said, since it is Christmas Eve, I'll spare you all the gory details for now. (I still haven't digested them all myself). I will revisit them later in the week but not before I've had a good night's sleep!

Tomorrow morning, I have to wake up early and bake oatmeal cookies for BF's family. Then after we exchange gifts, it's off to his son's house.

He told me not to go overboard this year being that we treated ourselves to a flat-screen TV back in November but I can't help myself. I got him:

badly needed luggage
a gift certificate for a massage
a gift certificate to our fave sports store
some tools and stuff he needs for his car
a tiny tool kit for his bicycle
new wallet
new keyfob
2007 datebook
and some other stuff I don't even remember!

He's tough to buy for. First of all, he doesn't need any more clothes. He's one of the few men I know that has more clothes than me. Not that he's a clotheshorse, he just NEVER THROWS ANYTHING OUT. A few times a year, I literally have to beg him to give away some stuff to the Salvation Army, the U.S. Vets, or other such charity or else he would not be able to close the drawers in his bureau or the closet doors.

He's a periodical and newspaper reader, not a booklover.

So, basically, I try to buy him things that he normally wouldn't buy for himself (i.e., the massage).


Well, I am off to try and fall asleep, despite all the caffeine I've had today. Maybe I'll find some Ambien in my stocking tomorrow.

Christmas Carols for the Demented

1. Schizophrenia -- Do You Hear What I Hear?

2. Multiple Personality Disorder --- We Three Kings Disoriented Are

3. Dementia --- I Think I'll Be Home for Christmas

4. Narcissistic --- Hark the Herald Angels Sing About Me

5. Manic -- Deck the Halls and Walls and House and Lawn and Streets and Stores and Office and Town and Cars and Buses and Trucks and Trees and....

6. Paranoid --- Santa Claus is Coming to Town to Get Me

7. Borderline Personality Disorder --- Thoughts of Roasting on an Open Fire

8. Personality Disorder --- You Better Watch Out, I'm Gonna Cry, I'm Gonna Pout, Maybe I'll Tell You Why

9. Attention Deficit Disorder --- Silent night, Holy ... oooh look at the Froggy ... can I have a chocolate ... why is France so far away?

10. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder --- Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells ...

Some Random Musings

This blog is really starting to look lame because it needs more photos. I will have to take care of that, won't I? Supposedly, BF's sister took a really cool picture of me holding a red umbrella in Cape Cod (so she says). I'll be seeing her this weekend so hopefully I can can borrow it to scan in.

Got my blood work back from my cardiologist and everything looks good. My LDL cholesterol could be better but my good cholesterol (the HDL) is so high (78) that she said it almost cancels out the bad. Still, I want to bring it down a mite and working with the personal trainer might do that. My blood pressure reading was 90/70...egads! (in a good way, of course!)

And yes, that is my Christmas present to myself. I am biting the bullet and have signed up for a personal trainer who will supposedly help me get my core (torso) in peak condition, thereby making me a stronger and faster runner. Also, it will help protect me against injury.

I seem to have reached a running plateau. I got down to 24:11 this past season in the 5K but just can't seem to get over the hump into 23-land. Hopefully, this program will help.

I will try to be diligent about writing about my progress here. One of the things I hope to accomplish is a reduction in body fat. Now, when I tell this to people they look at me like I have three heads because I look slim for the most part. But you have to remember that people who excel at running or other aerobic sports have very low body fat. Paul Tergat, for example, who holds the world' s record for the fastest marathon with a time of 2:04, has 4% body fat! Lance Armstrong has 9% body fat.

Now before you think that I'm comparing myself to these two, I am not! First of all, they are male and they are professional athletes. I am just making a point that one of the reasons they excel at their respective sports is because of their low body fat percentages.

The last time I had mine checked it was around 21%. Not awful, but as a female runner, it should be around 18%. That is my goal (unless my trainer tells me otherwise).

In other good news, looks like I will be getting third place USATF awards this year for both the Mini 1 and Mini 2 categories for road racing! Woohoo! I was really trying for the Mini 2 category (medium-distance races, 5 Milers, 8Ks and 10Ks) so the Mini 1 category (5ks mostly) came as a BIG surprise. I consider myself a better mid-distance runner than shorter distance runner. The awards dinner takes place in January.

Finally, A Judge Who Gets It Right

Italics are mine--Martta


Jury recommends 90-year sentence for teen in Spring pipe attack
By BRIAN ROGERSCopyright 2006 Houston Chronicle


A jury recommended today that Keith Turner be sentenced to 90 years in prison for his role in a savage attack in which a plastic pipe was kicked into the rectum of another teenager, causing severe injuries.

Turner, 17, showed no reaction as he stood and listened to the verdict.

His mother, Janis Turner, sobbed loudly upon hearing the decision.

The verdict means Turner must serve at least 30 years before he can become eligible for parole.
The jury convicted Turner of aggravated sexual assault on Friday for the April 22 attack at a residence in Spring.

Later on Friday, during the trial's sentencing phase, Turner's mother said from the witness stand that he is a loving son with a good heart, but had fallen in with a bad crowd.

"He's not a bad kid,'' Janis Turner said, sobbing. ``He's making bad choices.''

[No, Ms. Turner, he's a bad kid. Some people are just bad seeds].

Turner's 18-year-old friend, David Tuck, was sentenced to life in prison last month after being convicted of aggravated sexual assault for the same attack.

Gus Sons, 16, whose home was the site of the attack, testified that Turner had held the 1½-inch-diameter pipe in place and Tuck had kicked it deep into the unconscious victim's rectum.
The victim testified in both trials that he does not recall the attack or the day leading up to it. He said he has undergone about 30 surgeries to repair massive internal injuries.and has more to go.
Sons told jurors that he, Turner, Tuck and the 17-year-old victim had been drinking and using drugs before the attack took place.

He said Tuck knocked the victim unconscious because the group suspected that the victim had stolen some of the drugs. Sons also said his younger sister, Danielle, then 12, had accused the victim of trying to kiss her.

Sons said Tuck shouted "white power!'' while beating and kicking the Hispanic victim.

You racist piece of shit. I hope you die in prison and rot in hell!

brian.rogers@chron.com

Thoughts on the Philly Marathon

I actually did better at Philly than my expectations. I told Tom that I didn't think it was unrealistic that I would do something "around 4:30." The operative word here being "around." I didn't want to be disappointed if I didn't make my goal. And "around" can mean anything from 5 to 15 minutes in either direction. LOL!

I haven't done a marathon since Jersey Shore in 2004 so I really didn't know what to expect. Yes, I had done a few long runs prior, but in all honesty, none more than 18 miles (LBI). But I was determined about two things: I was going to stick to a pace between 10 and 10:30 minutes/mile no matter what and I was going to take 1-minute walk breaks every 2 miles whether I felt like I needed them or not.

This worked well until I got to the halfway point at 13.1. When I arrived there, I could have sworn that I just passed Mile 12 about a few minutes ago, 7:52 to be exact! I asked a runner next to me what was going on and he said that the 12 mile sign was actually for the half-marathoners. Well, that kinda threw me off base a bit because I was taking my walk breaks at the even number miles. Now, because of that snafu, I would have to change it to odd numbers. Not a real big deal but when you're running 26.2 miles, you don't need any added confusion thrown in along the way.

I actually felt pretty good up until Mile 21. I felt better doing this race than I did doing LBI because there was virtually no wind. It was a beautiful course, too, never boring. You went through shopping districts,the downtown Philly area, a park, alongside a river, even along a roadcalled Kelly Drive, which Tom pointed out. And, with the exception of acouple of small ones, no really big hills to worry about. The crowds were enthusiastic, too.

The stiffness hit at Mile 21. Fortunately, I had been taking inGatorade at all of the water stops so that helped to offset some of the cramping somewhat but it's not a permanent effect. You have to keep taking it. At this point, my walk breaks went from 1 minute to 1:15 minutes to 2:00 minutes. I didn't care anymore. I just wanted to finish. Amazingly, according to the course clocks and my watch, I was pretty much right about where I wanted to be timewise.

At mile 23, I saw a woman running with a bunch of balloons and a sign that read 4:15 pace. She soon passed me by, however, and there was no way I was going to catch up to her. It's true what they say, the last 6 miles of a marathon are a beast. As I got closer and closer to the finish line, people kept yelling "You're almost there!" At one point, I shouted back, "Where's there?" and they laughed. Seriously, it seemed as if the finish was nowhere in sight. And there it was, finally!

The clock said 4:25:05 but my watch (chip time)said 4:20:05. (As Tom, the Lottery King, later pointed out, my bib number was 4205...weird! Only Tom would make this connection.) This was not a 10minute pace, but a 9:55 pace--31 FREAKING MINUTES OFF MY LAST MARATHON IN 2004!! ! No wonder I felt tired, achy and queasy.

Afterwards, all I wanted to do was sit down on the curb but I was afraid Iwould not be able to get up again. I ambled on over to the food tent, looking remarkably like someone trying to take a sobriety test. I could not seem to walk a straight line no matter how hard I tried. I got a banana, some water, found a chair, called Catherine and Tom to let them know where to find me. Although I had stopped running five minutes ago, it seemed as if my whole body was still racing. I don't know if was from the physical effects of the marathon or just looking at my running watch in disbelief.

What a (use your own expletive)!

Gawker.com has something called the Douchebag Awards, intended for people who act like, well, douchebags. Maybe I should start something similar here although I would have to change the name of the awards to something else, lest I be accused of being a copycat and a plagiarist.

I found this little gem in my emailbox last night:

Do you have nothing better to do then sit on your computer and discuss the personal lives of people who you do not know? I am speaking about your comments about the Carbones being "numerous and breeders". People in the 1940's and 50's were know for having more than the typical 2.5 children of this generation. I would like you to know that May and Sam Carbone have left a legacy of healthy and successful adults who contribute to society. They are teachers, engineers, architects, mothers and fathers.

Sincerely,
Jaime
Granddaughter of May and Sam Carbone


My first reaction was wha...? I don't know any of these people, I don't know anyone in East Rutherford, I don't remember making this comment, and who is this (use your own expletive)?

But I decided to do a little investigation. Since it was obvious she was referring to Baristanet.com, I went to the site and typed "Carbone" into Google. I DO remember a discussion about East Rutherford and a reference to the Carbone family. But, I repeat, I DID NOT MAKE IT!

And sure enough, there it was, the aforementioned comment, attributed to another blogger who shall remain nameless.

So, Ms. Jaime, I ask you this question: Do you have nothing better to do then sit on your computer and discuss the personal lives of people who you do not know?

May I also suggest that although "May and Sam Carbone left a legacy of healthy and successful adults who contribute to society," that you might not be one of them?

No Surprises Here

Who needs an October surprise when you have asshats like this putting his proverbial foot into his mouth?

www.nydailynews.com/front/story/467194p-393105c.html

Keep 'em coming, Dems!

Happy Morning!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQI2KlAurOg

A friend of mine from Canada thinks this is the funniest thing she's ever seen. I find it mildly disturbing.

Some Ramblings

I'm a great-auntie! My nephew and his wife from Houston welcomed A.J. Rose into the world on October 27! Details to follow but I hear mama and baby are doing fine. Geez, it wasn't that long ago when my nephew Harris was a baby himself! (Actually, it was 34 years ago but who's counting?) :-)
***********************************************************************************



Baristanet introduced this CAPTCHA feature which is driving me (and probably others) loco.

Evidently, they've been plagued with spam so the CAPTCHA is designed to keep out the spambots by making humans type in some numerals and letters. Fine, I understand. Craigslist does the same thing.

However, if you post at say, 6 PM and you try to post again 5 minutes later, you're shit outta luck. Try your post again in 3 hours! No, I am not being facetious.

I know that they're trying to make improvements to the site but they've asked for our feedback and I vented about it. You asked for it, you got it, Toyota!

I hope my comments have not fallen on deaf ears. If they have, I will have to look for my entertainment elsewhere. Oh no!

************************************************************************************

Yesterday, Tom & I did this cross-country 5K down in Holmdel. To say the course was challenging would be an understatement. Hills, treacherous paths through the woods, not to mention 25 MPH winds. Neither one of us had great times but our goal was to actually incorporate this as part of a longer run in preparation for the Philly Marathon on Nov. 19.

Well, we went around the course 2-1/2 more times, ran out on the flat road a bit and then called it quits. We had wanted to do about 20 miles but only ended up doing 16. The wind was beating us up!

I almost never get tired on long runs but I felt wiped afterwards. Another friend from the running club said that running in those conditions is tantamount to doing a longer distance. That made me feel a little better about it.

Curious to see how I'll do in Philly. Tom needs to do 4:15 to qualify for Boston. I don't care if I qualify for Boston but I would like to do around 4:30. Marathons are not really my event. I do better in the 5Ks, 10Ks, half-marathons. Marathons just take a lot out of you and you really have to put in the time and mileage to do well.

This is my last marathon, folks. You read it here.

And the Point Is?

I am a fan of Joyce Carol Oates but for the life of me, I can't figure out the point of her latest short story, titled "Landfill," which was published in the October 9 issue of The New Yorker. It is categorized as fiction but according to a Letter to the Editor published in the October 23 issue, it appears to be based on an actual event. I'll get to that later.

A brief synopsis: "Landfill" recounts the story of Hector Campos, Jr. of Southfield, MI, , a 19-year-old college student at Michigan State University who is reported missing by his dorm mates in late March. To make a short story even shorter, his remains are found in the Tioga County landfill. But it was well-known that Hector had a proclivity for getting drunk at frat parties and one night, he crossed the line into a drunken stupor and some other drunken frat boys, as a joke, pushed his body down a garbage chute into a dumpster. They claimed they checked the dumpster later that evening but that Hector had somehow vanished. How he ended up in the Tioga County landfill is anyone's guess.

Are you still with me?

If a fiction writer wants to engender sympathy from readers for a particular character, he or she should create qualities in said character that are, um, sympathetic. I read through seven pages of this story and could find no good reason why I should feel waves of compassion for this boy. In fact, the mood of this whole story was about as inviting as a well, a landfill.

Hector, or Scoot as his friends called him, was a mediocre student at best. He would attend his engineering classes either hung over or if sober, thinking about the next frat party.

As far as acceptance into his fraternity Phi Epsilon goes, he and several other pledges were accepted merely to "fill out the membership." Even if he was aware of this fact, he desperately wanted to fit in somewhere.

A girl he had been planning to take to a frat party sent him an email that "something's come up." "Bitch," he thinks to himself, "I knew I couldn't trust her."

His roommates barely tolerated him. When interviewed about Scoot's disappearance, the words and phrases that pop up are "uninteresting," "drunk like an asshole," and a reference to the fact that he, when drunk, would "piss on the toilet seat and the floor and the next day act like it's some goddam joke." So far, I am not feeling the love here.

His relationship with his parents wasn't much better. His extremely over-protective mother would text message and call him on his cell phone constantly. He would erase the messages. His contact with his father in the story is merely illustrated by an urgent request to send money so that he can pledge the frat house.

Scoot's death, while tragic, is anti-climactic. While we are shown the mother's grief and introspection, we are never introduced to any friends from high school, neighbors, cousins, former girlfriends, ANYONE who can offer a glimpse into the life of this kid. He didn't even seem to have a best bud. No pets. Gosh, even the other annoying, drunken frat boys found him annoying. What made him special and, more importantly, why did I just wade through seven pages of this story, waiting for the other shoe to drop?

Getting back to the my point in the first paragraph. Mandee Wilton from Ringoes, NJ (I always loved the name of that town!), writes a letter chastising Oates for characterizing her story as fiction when it so closely resembles real-life events. In her letter, she notes that the story "uses nearly the exact dates, times, descriptions, and scenarios" from a traumatic story of a young man from the College of New Jersey who disappeared this past March and whose body was found later in a landfill. She points out other similarities between the fictional character and the real one; for example, both were 19 and were named for their fathers. Wilton feels that Oates could have, ''Just as easily created a fictional piece of her own, rather than incorporating such significant details...from a well-known, real-life tragedy."

As a writer, I disagree. Since Man has been writing on cave walls, he has taken events from real life and made them into fictional works. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this, providing enough details are changed. I, for one, get a lot of my ideas for my work from newspaper stories. The real creativity comes from getting inside the characters' heads and creating a persona plus being able to create a captivating, compelling story line.

I don't think Oates did that here. If she borrowed from real life, fine. However, the question remains, why did she borrow someone so mediocre and boring? If Hector Campos, Jr., was portrayed as a mean, rotten sonofabitch who kicked kittens and cursed at his mother and who everyone hated with a passion, that would have made for a far more interesting read. Instead, he comes off as just another drunken, boring frat boy, not even as remotely interesting as Flounder from "Animal House."

That Day

I was sitting in my office catching up on emails when a young assistant comes running in to tell me that a plane just hit one of WTC towers. Like many people, I just thought it was a mere pilot error, but got up and walked into the conference room to join my co-workers in watching the morning newscast.

My first reaction was, "What was this pilot thinking?" when we saw the second plane hit. Now we knew it was no accident.

I knew who was responsible the minute I saw this and it came as no surprise. What DID come as a surprise was the collapse of the first tower, and later the second. I don't think anything could prepare us for that.

I am not a person who cries easily but that day was the exception. The same was true for many of my co-workers, of all ages, both men and women.

Needless to say, our CEO called us all into the conference room and sent us home early. Getting home is another story and I'll spare you that one.

I do remember walking up to Fifth Avenue and looking towards downtown. Even from Midtown Manhattan, you could see the billowing smoke all too clearly. It was a surreal expereince but then I remembered it was not surreal, but all too real.

Taking the ferry over to Weehawken (no buses or trains were running), I sat next to a woman who was clearly agitated, more so than I. I tried to distract her a bit by getting her to talk about her pets. It worked for the time being.

The next day, my family was upset when I told them I was planning to go back to work on 9-12, so I stayed home that day, as did most of my co-workers and clients. Not knowing what to do with myself, I got on line at the Blood Bank in West Orange to give back in the only way I knew how at the time.

My tears and sadness quickly turned to anger and that anger has remained to this day, 9-11-06.

Back from Cape Cod

I know, know, I've been remiss about posting. I've just been too damned busy, but in a good way: running, swimming, biking, days trips to the beach, hanging with friends, family. And now, I am told, summer is almost over...boo-hoo!

It's not so much a weather thing, the end of summer signifies buckling down and acting like a (ugh!) grown-up once again. No more lazy, hazy, crazy days. Plus, I absolutley HATE the shorter days, especially around October when we set the clocks back. To a runner, that's anathema. Well, I hear that daylight savings time is supposed to be abolished in 2007. Yippee!

The big news: DBF and I just got back from a week in Cape Cod, MA...what a gorgeous place! If you haven't been, it's a must. We did Martha's Vineyard (you really need a week there-one day does not do it justice), Provincetown (cute, quaint, lots of neat shops and places to eat, very gay-friendly), kayaking on the bay in S. Dennis. I promise that pix are coming. Just have to download them.

I should add this is a very pet-friendly place as well. It seems as if EVERYBODY has a Labrador. In fact, the owner of this one ice cream place we went to has 3 chocolate Labs and even offers a doggie treat on the menu: a scoop of vanilla ice cream with a dog biscuit stuck in it!

In Provincetown, we visited a doggie store and there was a sign inside that said "Absolutely no food, drinks, children inside store. Pets welcome." Gotta love a place like that, I tell ya! Of course, there are the famous Black Dog, Inc. stores all over the Cape and I just hadda buy an orange hoodie shirt with a black Labby on it!

And the architecture! Those of you who know me know I love Victorian and Gothic architecture and the Cape has loads of it, each one more beautiful than the next.

As for the running, I am having a good year so far. I took first place female in our annual Interclub Challenge and me and my swim partner, Anne, took first place female team in our annual biathlon. I've also placed in 1st, 2nd or 3rd in most of my races this year.

BF has decided he wants to do a marathon in Philly this November and now I am convinced as well and have started training for that! This WILL be my last marathon, I promise you that (unless I happen to get into the NYC Marathon lottery next year!). This one will make my 3rd and will also make me a 3-state marathoner: NY, NJ and PA!

Well, it's my first day back at work and I have managed to survive. I love the way everyone tells you how rested you look. Well, that will last for about 15 minutes. :-)

Current Mood: busy
Current Music: Jethro Tull-"Living in the Past"

PRICELESS!

A WTF? Moment

Last night was BF's bowling banquet (no GFs, no wives) so I made plans to have dinner over at a friend's house after work. She made dinner, I brought my air popper and after the movie, we watched "Capote." Well, after a horrendous commute home (torrential rains, bad traffic, a couple of accidents along way which, of course, creates rubbernecking), I just HAD to have a glass of wine or two.

Now normally, wine doesn't do much to me other than mellow me out but for some reason last night, I had a great deal of difficulty staying awake. Anyway, when the movie was over and I was sober enough, I drove home. It was nearly 11:30 and BF was in bed, snoozing to the TV. I decided to check my email. I noticed that my Norton Antivirus had just completed a check and everything looked good, so I clicked the "Finish" button. Well, underneath the Norton box was a little man, no lie, dressed like a butler, holding a tray with what looked like an envelope on it. No, I was NOT hallucinating but I did say, WTF?I probably should have been more cautious but I was curious and clicked on the little brown envelope. Up on my screen comes, "Welcome to Instamail!"

Evidently, this Instamail email program had somehow downloaded itself on my machine. Now I never heard of programs doing that but hey, today anything is possible, right? And sure enough, on my desktop were three Instamail icons. I have a perfectly good email program and don't want or need any more software on my computer so I went into the Control Panel to delete it, no problem.

I climb into bed and try not wake the BF but he woke up and kissed me hello. I told him about having some wine and then coming home to find a little butler with a tray on the computer and he said, "Oh my God." Apparently, a friend had sent him an email raving about this dopey email program and sent BF (who's not the most computer literate person in the world) the instructions on how to download it! Whoulda thunk it?

I told him that I would restore it if he wanted but explained that we really didn't need it and it would just be more crap clogging up our computer. He didn't seem to care one way or another.Well, it made for a good laugh anyway.

Too Hot!

Well, I signed up for this Ridgewood 10K about 2 weeks ago and never expected 90-some-odd degree weather on May 28. It felt more like July!

Anway, there were 2 races, a 5K and a 10K. I figured since the 10K started at 8:45 AM and the 10K at 10, it would be cooler, right? Wrong...it was STILL hot as hell but hey, I managed to do my best 10K of the season at 51:28! Not a PR (a PR for me would be 50:11 or better) but hey, like I said, it was hot as hell. One of my friends actually had to drop out of the 5k because she felt faint. Another elite one-miler also passed out. Geez.

Out of the blue on Saturday, Tom says, "Hey, let's go the beach on Sunday." So we headed down to Bradley Beach. He picked the best day of the 3-day holiday, in my opinion. Warm, but not HOT, very little humidity, faint breeze...ahhh!

Today, after the race, me and Tom and couple of our running friends ended up at the Verona Pool. Too cold to swim (for me, anyway) but we had a great time just sitting around blabbing. I do have great friends; I am blessed.

But back to work tomorrow....bleh. I think Tom is really pushing for me to start looking for work in Jersey again. He's been leaving the Jobs section of the Ledger out for me to find. Hey, if I could find a job in NJ, I'd be there like shareware. Problem is, everyone thinks I am over qualified (I am not. I don't even have a master's degree, I just happen to have a good title), or that I want this tremendous salary (I don't. I can live on much less than I make in NYC). I really have to work at "dumbing down" my resume. I hate to do that but if it means getting what I want, I will.

Just Can't Get Enough of Chiefy!

Oh God, it's hot!

Off to "da shore"... see ya.

Clueless in Portland

Don't get me wrong, I love my sister-in-law in Oregon but sometimes, well, she's a mite clueless.

I kept bugging her and my brother to send me more photos of my beloved god dog, Chief. She kept promising and promising but nothing ever arrived. So, I decided to be proactive and I mailed them a disposable camera and $$$ towards development so there would be no more excuses.

Well, I waited and waited and predictably, it was always something: "It's been raining out, I've been sooo busy, blah-blah-blah." But FINALLY, yesterday I got letter from them which I opened up with great anticipation...only to find 6 pix? WTF?

There was a nice card enclosed stating, "Thanks for the camera! Sorry it took me so long, but here are the pictures of Chief. We refuse to let you pay for development so here is your $10 back. Hope all is well."

She obviously thought the camera I sent her was for her own pictures since there are 24 exposures on a roll and I only got 6 of the dog. I should add that only 1 or 2 of them are any damn good. I mean, he's a black dog so you have to use the flash, even when you're outdoors but certainly indoors! How can you goof up a goof-proof camera? So, I have one of his with his "birthday bone" and another one with his girlfriend, Mojo, (a chocolate Lab) and an unidentified golden retriver, which I framed. I will post them here once I scan them.

So, I had a good laugh about this but it only means one thing: I have to travel out to Oregon myself to get any decent pictures!

On Rabbits

Rabbits,
creatures of habit,
co-habit,
but don’t blab it.

Mortal Combat!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yia7CbTn__4

Pain I Haven't Used Yet

Ever hear the expression, "Ugly she/he hasn't used yet?" Well replace the word "ugly" with "pain" and that describes my visit to the masseuse to a T.

I always rave about this woman to my running friends and she is worth every penny. I wish I could afford to visit her every other week but for now, it's just when I have a problem, which lately, has been a stiff lower back and the back of my quads.

Well, she literally found pain that I didn't even know I had! I mean, we're talking the minute she laid her big, strong hands on me. I don't recall the last time I had so many knots. They were mostly located in my buttocks and lower back areas and the back of my thighs but she found some in my upper back as well, especially around the neck and shoulders! I guess it HAS been a long time.

She asked me a few times if she was hurting me. I answered "yes" but I told her to keep on keeping on because that was the only way to bring the knots to the surface. Trust me, I know from experience.

She said it my discomfort was mainly due to overuse but she also asked me if I had taken a fall recently. As a matter of fact, I had: Last week on the trail, I slipped on a small rock and landed on the ground. No biggie, no skin was broken, just a little scratched up. But she said that as a result of falling on my right side, my left was trying to overcompensate and that was causing a lot of my distress.

Well, today I feel about 90% pain-free and tomorrow I should be golden. I really need to try to visit her more often. Maybe if I cut back on my Guinness tab??

1:48 and counting!

Last night, I went to the track near my house to do some speed work. After warming up for a- mile-and-a-half, I decided to clock my laps. At the beginning of the running season in March, I was doing a lap right around 2 minutes which, to me, sucks, but it IS the beginning of the season.

Well, my first lap--are you ready for this?--was 1:48! That is the fastest lap I have ever done! Needless to say my additonal 3 or 4 laps paled, averaging around 1:52 but still, not too shabby, considering I wasn't feeling my best last night. I was cold (what else is new?), tired and my lower back stiffness was acting up (I'm getting a much needed massage in Thursday, though).

A 1:48 lap translates into about a 7:12 minute mile, providing you can keep up the pace. That's where endurance comes in. But still, that's encouraging for this early in the season.

Back to being cold. I want to have my thyroid checked out. I have been cold a lot this spring. Tom says it's because it has been, uh, cold. Very astute observation of his, LOL. But I don't remember being this distressed by it before. I think the 10-pound weight loss MIGHT have something to do with it. I noticed that after I lost the weight that heat didn't bother me as much, either, which is a good thing. But I will have the thyroid checked out just in case. It would help if I had a GP, though. Haven't had to see one in about, 25 years! I'll ask my sister-in-law for a referral.

Also need to talk with her about Las Vegas. T has a birthday coming up (65th-yikes!) and I would like to take him to Vegas for a long weekend. He would LOVE it! But I have no clue how much it will cost, which travel agent I should call, et cetera. Pia and my brother have been out there several times so she's the one to ask.

A Poem for My Late Mom

TILT-A-WHIRL

One hot summer night in ‘65
we all went to Palisades Park,
"swings all day and after dark,"

me, Mommy, Daddy and Bobby.
I couldn't get enough
of the rides, the rides, the rides!

Oh, I wanted to be turned upside-down,
spun like cotton candy
until I was pink with dizziness,

holding onto my father for dear life,
while screaming faster, faster, faster!
We stopped at the Tilt-a-Whirl

where you're chained up
inside a cage
and the bottom drops out

while you're spinning,
upside-down, around and sideways.
No one wanted to try it,

except Mommy.
We couldn't believe it.
The same woman who shuddered

when I did wheelies down the big hill
on my bike, who wouldn't put her head
under the water at the town pool,

this same woman was being
transported to another dimension,
where lights danced

in myriad of colors, where
swirling white and silver metal rims
danced above people's lollipop heads.


No one wanted to try it
except Mommy.

We looked up, all of us
never taking our eyes
off that magical silver cage, glowing against the night,

spinning into eternity, cutting
its own path through outer space
with our mother inside.

Oh Yeah, Sign Me Up to Have Kids...

Amazing how many of the psychopathic little bastards there are, isn't it?


Teen Gets 12 Years for Poisoning Milk
By Associated Press

LAKEVIEW, Ore. - A 13-year-old girl convicted of attempting to kill two classmates by slipping rat poison into their milk was sentenced to up to 12 years in a juvenile detention center.
Holly Sweeney was ordered Friday to remain at the Hillcrest Girls' School in Salem until she is 25 with early release possible if she responds to treatment, the judge ruled.

Earlier this month, the judge found the Lakeview girl and her friend, Stephanie Quesnoy, 12, guilty of plotting and executing a plan to kill two classmates they disliked. Quesnoy is to be sentenced May 22.

Running and "Ruggles"

There are as many reasons to run as there are runners, I suppose, but I’ve never met a runner who didn’t enjoy it. The bottom line is that whether you’ve run a marathon in all 50 states, have run for 30 years, or just completed your first 5K, the thing that all runners have in common is the love of the sport.

Try explaining that, however, to my non-running friends and family members, (I refer to them as Ruggles, such as in Harry Potter, where non-magical folk are referred to as Muggles). Don’t get me wrong, most of my friends and relatives (the ones I still speak to anyway) support and encourage what I do. But more often than not, you hear things like: “The only time I’ll run is when someone is chasing me.”

My dear mother told me years ago that if I ran track, I would get muscles in my legs. Heaven forbid!

Or what about the portly relation in Houston who asked me why I run so much? “Because it allows me to eat what I want,” I replied. “But I already eat whatever I want and I don’t have to run for it,” he said, patting his rotund belly. “In fact, they bring the food to me.”

In 2002, I excitedly told a friend in Seattle that I completed my first half-marathon. Without missing a beat, he asked, “What happened to the other half?” I THINK he was kidding. I’m not sure.

And then there’s, “You run in this cold weather?” “You run in this heat?” “You run in the rain?” Yes, yes, and yes!

I have a nephew who’s an orthopedic surgeon down in Houston. While some part of me likes to think he’s proud of his aunt, he always makes “tsk-tsk-ing” noises when I tell him some of the distances I run. “You keep that up and you’ll be coming to see me in few years and it won’t be for a social visit,” he said.

The kid (he will always be a kid to me) has a point, since he tells me that more than half of his patients are athletes or former athletes. But, you know, you can end up in the orthopedist’s office after having spent your life as a couch potato, too. That being said, I prefer my life off the coach and on the roads.

To me, running is as much a part of my life's routine as is brushing my teeth, although running is much more pleasurable and far less routine. Yes, there are some risks (to joints, tendons, muscles, vertebrae, etc.) involved but that can be said of ANYTHING in life that’s worth pursuing. The benefits far outweigh any of the little aches and pains I may encounter along the way.

Best Quote Today

Best quote I heard all day, from a techie friend of mine:

"I'm giving up IT and going into something less stressful, like anally penetrating homophobic male tigers or shit like that."

Guess You Had to Be There

From a friend of mine in The Lone Star State, on Cinco de Mayo:

I’m a failure. The biggest drinking day in the Southwest and it came to nothing. Nada.
I didn’t wake up in another town in a stall with a donkey, a broken piñata, two hookers, used condoms [ribbed, for her pleasure], half a twelve pack of Modelo Especial, empty margarita pitchers and a film crew from Telemundo.

Maybe I have high standards. This is subject to debate.

Instead, I woke up this morning in my own bed, alone.
Next year, I will plan better.