The Marathon & the Mandolin

The Chase.

Did my hometown 8K on Memorial Day, which was a lot of fun for a number of reasons, primarily because it goes by the house I grew up in, the house where my mom still lives, and I remember being a kid and standing in my front yard and watching the runners go by. That's how long they've been doing this race.

This was maybe my fourth or fifth time to run it, and while I didn't PR by any means, the two formerly demoralizing hills did not break me. The old break-it-into-small-chunks method served me well. "Stay in your rhythm until the next mailbox...and the next...and the next..." And so on.

And it of course thrilled me when my 13-year-old placed second in his age division. He was running with my younger brother, the very fit tennis coach, and it goes without saying that they both came in several minutes ahead of me. A great day all around.

Did a small 5K this morning. Downside: Very hilly, got warm very quickly. Upside: 3rd in my age group. (And no, there weren't just three in the whole age group. Probably about 8 or 10.)

Music: It's in your head, changing your brain - CNN.com

via www.cnn.com

Good stuff here, though this is not exactly new information. Gratuitous name-drop on my part: I interviewed Wooten for Bassics magazine right after his first solo album came out.

I told a cyclist friend of mine about my recent reading list (see post below), and his response was, "You need to be reading more about beer!"

Was looking at my books-read list this year, and the subjects of said books are, in chronological order:

• Triathlon
• Business/productivity
• Decluttering
• Atlanta Braves fandom
• Self-help/productivity
• Triathlon
• Beer
• Music
• Triathlon

In Defense of Polymaths - Kyle Wiens - Harvard Business Review

Polymath is one of those words more likely to show up on the SAT than in everyday conversation. But the reason we don't use the word much these days has less to do with vocabulary than it has to do with practicality: there aren't a lot of polymaths around anymore.

via blogs.hbr.org

I like to think of myself as a polymath. The trouble is that salesmanship is not one of my, ah, maths.

Chris Thile: Tips on how to crossover from guitar to mandolin

via www.youtube.com

Yes!

For Athletes, Dealing With Pain May Be A Big Gain : Shots - Health Blog : NPR

via www.npr.org

Or, as I call it, "settling into middle age."

Coffee linked to lower risk of death - latimes.com

Researchers have some reassuring news for the legions of coffee drinkers who can't get through the day without a latte, cappuccino, iced mocha, double-shot of espresso or a plain old cuppa joe: That coffee habit may help you live longer.

via www.latimes.com

So, for this week at least, marathons + coffee = good.

The risk of dying while running a marathon is low, new research by Johns Hopkins has found - baltimoresun.com

via www.baltimoresun.com

Classic "good news/bad news/good news" story.