Night Rider

Things could've been worse yesterday. It started early and the weather was again, cold and wet. Erica's Public Policy comp(rehensive exam) was in the morning... 8:30 - 12:00, break for lunch and then 1:00 - 3:00. I showed my support by going out at a quarter til 7 and grabbing some McDonald's breakfast. I hope it did the trick.

I was pretty excited for her, so I wanted to stop by Claddagh and have dinner and congratulate her in person. I was uploading some files anyway at work, so I thought I could do this and then stop by the Miranova on my way home just to make sure everything was going as planned. I ended up taking a shot that I never intended taking, which certainly enhanced my buzz. So I eventually made my way home around 11 at night... somewhat drunk. I stopped to snap a couple of pictures along the way. It was a nice relaxing ride.

But it was up'n at em this morning for the Race for the Cure. Hoffmann was kind enough to swing by and pick Erica and I up. I had convinced him to run this race with me... his first. We all three ended up running it together and it was a good time. Tons of people but we got a great parking spot... so it was in and out. I regret not bringing my small digital camera just take some shots along the way. It wasn't like we were in a rush... I just forgot. Next year, I'll know better.

Big Babies

Babies are great. They give large families common ground. Don't be fooled... there is no "perfect" family. We've all got our issues, and the older everyone gets, the more apparent those issues become. And then "BAM," another generation of babies enters the scene and diverts the attention away from our own idiosyncrasies just in the nick of time. Makes us forget about ourselves, which is a good thing. On the right is my dad holding Chloe, Lea's (another cousin) daughter, at the Mother's Day get-together Sunday.

On Monday, I had some syncing of computers to attend to at the office, so I scheduled a long overdue trip out to the east side to visit my niece. My sister, Meghann, went out as well for dinner. It was tasty. My brother grilled steaks for the two of us... turkey for the girls. Nothing like eating a meal you didn't have to cook.

But it was good to see Lauren. It's so much easier to hold them when their necks work. She was fun and held the better part of my attention... aside from eating. She was just so cute. So I'm looking forward to getting back and seeing her again. Once moved, they'll be closer... not by much, but it's closer nonetheless.

Only A Motion Away

Mother's Day was spent at Fountain Park in Piqua with the Tyler family. It was supposed to be a day of fun in the sun but instead became a day of "watch the rain." Even a break in the rain would've allowed a toss of the football or a spike of the volleyball. Not once were the puddles stilled.

I know how I felt about it so I don't really know how my cousin's son, Connor, made it. He and his bright red trike were quarantined to the 50 square foot patio space under the shelter. That's like giving a fat kid broccoli... sure, it's edible but it's hardly a substitute for pizza.

But as usual, there was lots of food and plenty of chit-chatting. Enough to keep us all occupied for several hours. In all honesty, I've felt like these get-togethers need to last a smidge longer. For instance, at Easter, I ended up playing some volleyball outside with my sister and another cousin, Cheyenne. By the time I came back in, it was time to go. No one sticks around anymore. I can't even tell you the last time we played cards. Maybe I'm just not remembering old times all that well, but I remember these same gatherings lasting well into the night... running through the gamut of usual activities... hide 'n seek, euchre, dessert, etc. When did everyone get in such a hurry?

Dreary Day Dreamin'

I can't put to mind a more dull Friday than this one, the 9th of May. What gives? It's a cold 53 degrees and the sun hasn't been out since Tuesday. It was out for a bit Wednesday morning, but I'm pissed about the whole thing so I'm not going to count it. Stretches like this without sunlight wear me down... make me tired and lethargic.

Really, I think I'm just wore out. Played volleyball Wednesday night until 11pm in the rain. Woke up early Thursday and had a jog, turned around and played more volleyball in more rain Thursday evening. This league is going to be tough, but it's fun to get after it. So the past couple days have left me sore all over... wanting only a couch, afghan and a warm cup of coffee. Most especially on a day like this.

So I needed to go back through some photos to seek inspiration for the day since there's really nothing to shoot. This was one of the first pictures I took with the D40. TNT and I took a walk around Hemm's farm in Piqua sometime between Christmas and New Years. I used to spend a little bit of time down there. My dad grew up with Jim Hemm and he and his wife, Rosie, are my god-parents. It hasn't changed a whole lot over the years. Paul Sherry (of van dealing fame) has done all he can to manipulate the land with an industrial park and a double-fenced "estate" to the south. But the little farm continues to be a stronghold for day's gone by.

Dre Day

Wednesday morning at the bus stop with Erica on our way downtown. The day started out nice enough, but there is deceit in that sky. It's supposed to rain for the next two days. We can't really complain as our spring has been relatively uneventful. The only real problem is that I slept through my alarm this morning deciding to run in the afternoon instead. I also have a volleyball game this evening. It's the last one of the spring session at Flannagan's... and it's looking like it might be a rain-out. I've always felt like the weather's had it in for me. I hate when rain is forecasted for a volleyball day. I play Wednesday and Thursday... and the two days it's supposed to rain this week?.. you guessed it, Wednesday and Thursday.

But this is hardly the first run-in Mother Nature and I have had. But that's the kind of weather you get around here. Some days are great, most days aren't. You learn to take advantage of the good ones. Not like those California kids.

Speaking of California kids, I like the 5th & Westwood signs in the background... as Dre would say... "up to no good." And he ain't lyin'.

Balanced Breakfasts

It's Tuesday morning. Erica was enjoying her Raisin Bran and Simply Orange OJ in the dining room and nothing seemed to be hurried or forced... so I leaned against the sink and admired it for a moment.

Just a couple of weeks and she'll be graduated and ready to begin the adjustment to life sans frantic pace. The real world doesn't require you to earn two simultaneous graduate degrees, work a 24-hour week for nothing, hike people's food and drink around on a Friday night for tips... all the while trying to be a person with a family and friends. It's funny how they always say that school prepares you for the real world. I'm not sure how realistic that is.

I've certainly never had the frequency of all-nighters that I was warned about. It turns out that when you don't work in a steel mill of a design studio, they actually care about you more than money.

So, as out-of-whack as everything is at this point, I'm sure that life will soon be returning to somewhat of a normal state. And then again, there is a wedding to plan.

Oh, The Places We'll Go

These four feet have been around the block a few times. Erica and I headed to Indy this weekend for my 5th mini-marathon... it would be Erica's 3rd.

2007 left me defeated and embarrassed. I wasn't going to let that happen this year and I took it more seriously than I had ever done before. Luckily, the hard work paid off for both of us. I really never had experience actually "training". Neither had Erica. We would just go out and run without much of a plan. It was around February that she hopped on runnersworld.com. They provide anybody and everybody with free training plans based on your present performance, desired distance, the amount of time you have to train and how hard it is you want to train. It's a pretty amazing little tool. So with a 12 week schedule in hand, I set out on the road to redemption. I would honestly say that without this schedule, I wouldn't have hit my goal. It was the combination of speedwork, tempo and long runs that made the difference. I could feel it in the last 5K on Saturday. And as much as Erica would tell me over and over again how ready she wasn't, she blew away her previous best by more than five minutes and came in under two hours with a 1:58:09. I was more excited for her than I was for myself. I bested 2007's time by nearly 20 minutes with a 1:36:36. I remember as a kid in the driveway shooting baskets that I'd never miss a shot from the same spot twice in a row. I'm glad that I still have the same fight in me.

On a sad note, my friend Nick wasn't able to run this year because of back spasms. It was literally a last second decision not to run and I know it tore him up, but it's more important for him to be healthy for some other races we have going on this summer... as well as later in life. So I didn't have my running partner and no one really felt like talking out there, so that really sucked, but I know he'll be a force in 2009. He was missed.

And I didn't take any pictures for one reason or another. The party at Nick's afterwards was a good time despite the 30 degree temperature drop and then we met up with my parents, my grandma, sister and my Uncle John in Dayton for lunch on Sunday afternoon. It was a great weekend and I'm already looking forward to next year.