The Boss

It's been there for well over a year ~ I guess I can't run for fan-of-the-year ~ Anita, Kirsten and I finally went today to the Rock Hall to see the Bruce Springsteen Exhibit.

Did you know that they charge way too much for admission?  But they do give a "greater Cleveland" discount ~ so it only cost us $18.00.  We took a picture for a woman from Florida and rode in the elevator with people from New Jersey.  It's weird to see Cleveland as a tourist hot-spot!  Especially in late September.  I don't know why that seems so weird.  I like Cleveland and I'm glad others come here...
The Hall really is put together well and The Springsteen exhibit was worth seeing.  I found his music notebooks to be interesting.  It was very cool to see his words in his handwriting.  It made the very public songs much more personal.  How many times have I scribbled thoughts into notebooks complete with cross outs and doodles.  It would be hard to bare my soul, so to speak, to the world.  There were also many posters advertising his early shows.  "This Friday"  ~ now the dates are set months in advance and I have lots of time to anticipate a great show.  "Admission $2.00" ~ didn't I spend $102.00 to see the last show?  There was also the leather jacket he wore during Born to Run ~ it was SOOOO small. 

The exhibit is on the fifth and sixth floors with a circular staircase going up to the sixth floor.  On the walls are the words to the first verse of Thunder Road.  So, of course, we have to sing the song as we walk up!  And when we get to the top the MTV Unplugged concert is playing.  Red Headed Woman started just as we entered the floor.  It's fate ~ someday I will meet him, and it will be amazing.  (I'll have to practice a reaction so I don't just flop around.)

Happy Bruce Springsteen Day, Girls.  Thanks for a great time :)

Race Days

Since I ran the 1/2 marathon in May, I've decided my next goal is to run a 5K in under 22 minutes.  I just think that would be a really cool accomplishment, and honestly, a little harder than just finishing a 1/2.  I worked hard to run 10 minute miles when I first "re"started running a few years ago and I've gradually improved my time from there.  The very first 5K I ran was the 2009 Race for the Cure.  I did that in the very inexact time of 24:30 (I didn't have a chip so I relied on the clock...and I subtracted some for my delayed start.)
I ran the Pirate Triathlon this past July in 20:50 ~ but that was nowhere close to 3.1 miles.
A week ago, Saturday, September 11, 2010 I ran the Race for the Cure for the second time, and I bought the chip for a more exact time.
 an aside: Since my Mom's bout with breast cancer, the mission of the Susan G. Koman foundation has been near to my heart.  It takes money and awareness to bring good minds to research and find new and better treatments.  I am thankful everyday for the women who went before and were part of the research and development that allowed my mom to have a survival story.  I will continue to support the cause in the years to come.
So we signed up as a team ~ "Here's to the Girls!".  Some walked and some ran.


Kirsten, Craig, Jen, Brynn, Anita, Becky, Amy, and Heidi

 We went to the Survivor Ceremony before the race, which is quite emotional, so you start this race with tears and not so much adrenaline as you might want.  And it's so crowded...we ran on the sidewalk just to get around people to start the race.  But it was a beautiful day in Cleveland, Ohio and I ran the race in 24:17.  I was pretty happy with that improvement.

This past Saturday, September 18, 2010 we entered the Northshore Border War Triathlon as a relay team.  We being Trisha swimming, Helen riding, and me running.  Mike also has a team ~ and wouldn't you know it, we were the only two relay teams in the whole event!


Helen, Becky, Trisha before the race

 We placed second and won a valuable trophy.  The best part ~ I ran 23:53.  I'm chipping away at the time.  Dad says I need to run one mile daily at 6:00 and then I can easily run three miles in under 22 minutes.  I think I need to plan my training and see what I can do.  This might be exciting.

it must be me

Two days in a row with weird people experiences...

Today was Time Warner Cable technical support.  Our cable running through the DVR has been weird the past week.  On some channels the picture is kinda "pixelated".  There are whole lines/squares/rectangles of random colors and the sound goes like the computer is buffering.  It only happens on some channels and some are perfectly fine.  I called last week and they rebooted the DVR.  That didn't work so I called back today.  Steve from India listened to my explanation, but I couldn't tell if he understood me or not as he made no affirming sounds whatsoever.  He rebooted my DVR and had me check all the cables.  Because I can't stand the silence I start giving him updates as the thing reboots, "There are 3 squares.  Now 4."  etc.  I get the feeling he's not real chatty (my big hint was that he wasn't talking back to me) so I stopped giving updates.  Just as the thing is done, he asks, "What is on the TV now?"  I tell him it just finished and the TV picture is black.  I then realize the DVR has powered off, so I ask, "Should I turn the DVR power on?" 
No reply
So I ask again.  "Yes."  he says, rather sharply.
I do and then go on to explain that channel 3 is still showing that "pixelated" picture. 
No reply
I change the channel and tell him that channel 4 is working, but channel 5 is bad.
No reply
I continue the reporting of the different channels.
No reply
I ask if there is something else I can try.
No reply
"Do I need to get a new DVR?"
No reply
"Hello?  Can you hear me?"
"Yes, I can hear you."
"Well I just was wondering because I asked a question."
No reply
"Should I return this DVR?"
"Yes, you need to go to your nearest Time Warner Cable office and take your DVR."
"And they'll give me a new one?"
No reply
"When do they open in the morning?"
No reply
"Hello?"
Nothing.

Very helpful, Time Warner Cable.

Purple Circle

When you go out into the world you experience some really odd things.  It seems that I have many weird experiences at the grocery store, and today was no exception.  I do have to put in the disclaimer that I think people probably talk about me to their spouse when they return home from the store because I do walk away from my cart and leave it in the middle of the isle.  I even talk to myself about the stuff I'm looking at ~ sometimes I've even had cross words for myself because I've forgotten something WRITTEN on the list and had to go all the way back to isle 2.  So I get that I'm just as odd as the next guy, but...
Today, I finish shopping, pick a lane, unpack my cart and wait, because the guy was rather slow ringing me out...putting the Gatorade into bags...which was annoying, but certainly not a new experience.  The first for me was the little old man behind me.  He unloads his cart not using the plastic stick to indicate where my stuff ends and his starts.  That's really not a big deal because I know what I bought and he knows what he bought, but he didn't respect my space.  There's the belt, the computer screen, the credit card machine and the little check signing tray.  The person unpacking can have the belt, but the current customer gets the computer screen on ~ am I right?  This guy must not have taken that class in grocery store ettique school because I'm standing at the check signing tray waiting for slow guy and old guy's cart is INCHES away from bumping me.  I'm trying to watch the computer screen and make sure stuff isn't rung in more than once (because that does happen: "I only had one Gatorade."  "Really?  Oh yeah."  If I hadn't been watching that time it would have cost me $7.49.) but now I have to lean over his cart to see.  In fact, he has a better view of my purchases than I do because he's right in front of the screen with his cart still between us.  At this point, he's trapped himself.  He's come in so far, the woman behind him starts to put her stuff on the belt.  He can't go forward without hitting me and he can't go back without hitting her.  I wanted to laugh at the craziness of the situation, but I couldn't think of a polite way to laugh at the impoliteness.  When my order was finally rung up and stuffed into my cart, I had to stand in the next checkout lane and lean over the guy's cart to sign the credit card machine. 
My purple circle got no respect.