groceries, strange records

polenta for lunch, with salt & pepper and lemon juice

It shouldn't be hard to go an entire day eating only the groceries you've bought for the house.  But somehow it is for me.

I don't think my parents or mother- and father-in-law have trouble with this, and I know my grandmother certainly doesn't.  But I do.  In an ideal day, I'd make coffee and breakfast at home, pack lunch, dine at home, snack on what's in the house, and brew at home the too copious amounts of coffee I drink throughout the day.  Does anyone else have this a problem (or is this habit not really a problem)?  Is anyone good at eating only their groceries?  I admire people who can do this. 

I ran 10.5 this morning. (Woke up an hour before the alarm, fretting about writing, taking abuse from my inner Amy Chua...as much as I applaud compartmentalizing, sometimes it's a hard thing to do.)  I didn't run yesterday because I had too much work - I have dissertation chunk due in a few days and it was imprudent to leave the desk. Yesterday was the first day off running I've taken in quite a while -- and here's why.  I tend not to take days off during training seasons, though in order to recover and not burn out I don't run hard every day.

Lemons: great!

There are two reasons for taking minimal time off.  First of all, marathoners need the mileage (unless they're injury prone, in which case people cross-train).  Second of all, life tells us often enough when a day off is necessary. My attitude toward running is, to use a saying associated with cigarettes, smoke 'em while you got 'em.  On a daily level, that means running in the opportune times, whenever it's least intrusive on your life and the lives of those around you.  Practically speaking, this often means running first thing in the morning.  If you accumulate miles during the times of your day, or times of your life, that most easily accommodate running, then you'll be able to take a day off when you have to. I want to find out more about Doug Kurtis -- from what little I know, it sounds like he was a husband and father whose  high level of running rarely intruded on family life. 

groceries, including coffee

Speaking of consistency, hats off to Stefaan Engels who ran a marathon a day for 365 days.  I hope he writes a book (did he blog about it?) and turns it into a movie.  (With Meryl Streep and Amy Adams?)  I know on this blog I complain that we irrationally worship the marathon, but I admire what this person accomplished.  (This, on the other hand, seems a little crazy.)  Another runner I admire is DC Metro area star Michael Wardian.  He's a supervisor at a shipping company and he runs maybe a marathon a month (and occasionally does ultras), usually running in the 2:20s and often winning some of the smaller marathons on the east coast.  Interesting fact: he also holds the world record for marathon run pushing a stroller (I believe his son was in it).