It’s been a hard year. I’m under no delusions that 2021 will be magically different starting tomorrow but I am grateful that 2020 is coming to an end. Tonight will be a quiet night. I’m going to catch a live stream concert by Jason Isbell on fans.live at 9 Eastern. I’m grateful for fast internet and streaming technology bringing entertainment to my living room during the pandemic. ...
I ran nearly six miles today in an hour and nine minutes and almost all in heart rate zone 2 (which for me is between 134 and 150 beats per minute). I set the second fastest time ever on one of my segments which is astonishing because my heart rate was relatively low and I wasn’t pushing myself. I was thinking of when I started running a few years ago and how tough it was to run for just 90 seconds. I’m grateful for the body’s adaptability and my improved cardiovascular health. ...
We had a bright and sunny day here in Maryland. I’m grateful for the sunshine. I wrote a blogpost about all the good things that happened in 2020. I’m grateful for perspective — the ability to see the good things in the middle of the chaos. ...
I promise, this post will highlight some good things that happened in my life in 2020, but first I have to acknowledge some unavoidable and inconvenient truths about this past year. There is no doubt that when the history books are written, 2020 will go down as an epic shit show of a year. In early 2020, it was evident that a major epidemic was brewing in China – a virus which would eventually break free of the Chinese government’s efforts to contain the damage and become the COVID-19 Pandemic. We watched in horror as first, Europe and then the United States struggled to control the virus. We watched an epic failure on the part of the Trump administration when they at first ignored the virus, then downplayed it, prematurely declared victory, and finally walked away from it while we suffer death rates in excess of 9/11 on a daily basis in the United States. ...
It’s pretty warm today and I’m grateful to be able to sit outside in my Adirondack chair with a cup of coffee as the sun warms my face. I spoke with my therapist about my struggles over the past few weeks this morning and I’m grateful for her reminder to be easy with myself. ...
Today is my son’s birthday. There are times when he drives me right up the wall but he’s also a really awesome boy. I’m grateful to be his father. We went to Shake Shack for his birthday lunch, just the two of us. I’m grateful for a little time alone with him. ...
I went to bed early last night and woke up late this morning. I enjoyed reading an article about form and fascia in Runners World last night. My wife made coffee this morning. It’s a rare treat for me to have someone else make the coffee. ...
Today was the strangest Christmas ever but I’m grateful that all of us in the family are healthy in the midst of this pandemic. I’m grateful for the 4 mile run that I took this afternoon. My headspace was bordering on severely depressed and some time outside made a huge difference. ...
We went to drop off gifts at the family’s today and got to see my mom, my uncle, and my brother and his wife and kids. It was short, and was out in the wind. But I’m grateful for the time together. ...
With the holidays upon us I have a few days off. I’m grateful for a little downtime. I took a nap after my last meeting of the day and it was refreshing. I am grateful for that nap. ...
I’m grateful for the flexibility and the mobility that my job affords me which means I don’t have to stress about how to manage my son’s time off school over the holidays. I plan to go for a run this afternoon and I’m grateful for the ability to run. Running helps me calm my monkey mind. ...
I’ve struggled to come up with three things to post today. It’s one of those days when the weight of the world feels heavy on my shoulders. I am grateful to know that I don’t have to shoulder that weight alone. ...
I’m stealthy. I’ve always been good at keeping secrets — hiding things. I hid my feelings of guilt and shame about my father’s suicide when I was a kid by telling people all about it as soon as I got comfortable with them. If I told them the story quickly, and without a lot of feelings, then they would think I was over it — that I’d made peace with it. I told people that it was something that had happened, matter of factly, like it was as insignificant as what I’d had for breakfast. ...
We are almost to the winter solstice, which is cause for celebration. I am grateful that there will gradually be more daylight everyday starting in two days. It’s grey today, but not too cold. I got out for a walk with my son and we spoke with the woman who’s cat my son has loved forever. She told us that Peanut died a few weeks ago but that he lived to be twenty years old! I’m grateful for the memories of my son sitting in the middle of the street petting Peanut. ...
I took a walk this morning and it was pretty darn cold. I’m grateful for my down sweater which kept me warm. My wife called me this afternoon because the car wouldn’t start. I’m grateful that my dad taught me how to properly use jumper cables so I could get the car started and back home. ...