Gil Can Run!A blog on Running and all the crap that runs through my head while doing it

Dec 11th Woke up early and ran

Yep I ran a mile and barely looked at my watched and still did about an 8 minute mile. So weird. I’m switching the link back to Mapmyrun, I think the Garmin link doesn’t work right. Meanwhile it’s weird that I was in shorts and a tec shirt, first thing in the morning, in December, in the Northeast. It was dark out, fog everywhere, but not cold. It’s starting to really freak me out.
So tomorrow is Roxbury, I’m feeling as well as I can expect, and hopefully I will have a good race tomorrow. Also went to a local sporting goods store to pick up my bib for Sunday as well. That race will be all about how I’m feeling in the morning. Will I have a martini before the race? Who knows? So I have a running-packed weekend ahead of me.
Also, I was admonished today for saying I wasn’t going to make my running club’s Holiday Party this week. It’s mostly a budgetary concern. But I have been told (more so than asked) to simply skip dinner and show up after to hang out for the awards. I suppose I can do that. I guess sometimes folks like having me around or something. It’s strange to me, I think I’m a jerk! But that’s something to do this coming week, looks like I’ll have a busy Thursday, as I also have to meet my dad at the State library to look up some family records. Looks like a frenetic end of the year for me! Also, I got to use the word frenetic in a sentence, so life is good.
With that, I give you some Christmas cheer with my favorite rendition of a song that when I was a kid I could have sworn it was about cannibalism. They talk about tender and mild infants! Frankly, I prefer my food to be spicy, the word mild doesn’t usually factor into my cuisine choices, but you know, Christmas carols are supposed to be more milquetoast. And now the 5 cent words are flying! But yes, I always used to think why would anyone care if an infant were tender, or mild? I don’t think the texture and flavor or baby meat is the appropriate subject matter for any song lyrics, but they went and did it on this number! (Please recognize that I get they mean alternate definitions of the words tender and mild)

Have fun, keep running and remember; If Gil can run, then so can you!

Dec 10th Episode 27 is all about the PMA!

Yes you can! We do talk a little about the Climate Change reality we live in, and then I just get into how you can do things, you are a capable human being with loads of skills and you just need the right knowledge. Don’t listen to what years of industry and advertising has tried to get us to believe. They try to sell us an attitude that we can’t do things, that we need them for their product or service, because we don’t have the skill, we don’t have the time, we don’t have the whatever. But we do and we can, we are so cool, and even cooler when we get out and take advantage of our innate abilities to build and create. It makes you feel better too! Doing stuff is good for the soul. Get out there and get it done! Keep the PMA!

Podcasting is back up and running, I uploaded Ep 26 earlier, still can’t get 23-25 working properly, but enjoy this one!
Also I ran a mile today.

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Dec 9th I ran a mile

Yep, just one mile on this Wednesday. I kept it pretty quick, another 8 minute mile, and decided that next year I will actually do some track work. I want to do a legitimate sprint and see how fast I can do classical sprint distances. 100m, 200m, 400m. I did a fair clip for a short bit, 9mph just to push a little today, Maybe I could do a 6 minute mile if I work on it.
So this is the home stretch, 2 weeks until Christmas. I think I have everything set as far as presents for the nieces and nephew. Have to finish getting the house ready for the family. That’s all I’m pretty much focused on. Hopefully I will hear back on a couple job apps soon. All in all this is looking like a good Crimbo for me. Hey, I have a warm home and a bed to sleep in, that’s not rented via an insurance company, so I suppose it’s alright. But make sure in all the craziness to give back too! Definitely important to help those who need it most all the time, but particularly this time of year, that’s the real reason for the season, so with that I give you another of my favorite Christmas songs. Almost all my favorite Christmas songs are punk rock. So enjoy the Vandals!
Have fun, keep running, and remember; if Gil can run then so can you!

Dec 8th It’s Tuesday I suppose

I got my mile in to keep the Holiday streak alive. Meanwhile, Manchester United was knocked out of the UEFA Champions League. That’s pretty horrible. They had their chances, they finally scored goals tonight, but it was not enough. My mile was good though, still sub-8. Next three days I’m going to take it way easy though, nice and easy pace, if I do more than a mile or not. I haven’t decided if I will just do the minimum tomorrow. I don’t want to wear myself out for the weekend, but I also want to do more than one mile. It’s tough to decide.
I really need to find a job soon, this sitting around all day does me no good at all. I’m constantly tired and feel crappy. It just doesn’t take me enough time to do all the other things I do, so work makes the days go a little faster I suppose, and also keeps me active and outside the house. Hopefully something turns up soon.
Other than that I’m just out of it today, watching United get kicked out of Champions League kind of killed my mood today. Such a shame, and so pointless. All they had to do was score one goal last match and they would have been through, instead, they better win the Premiere League now. And that’s my day, so have fun, keep running and remember; If Gil can run, then so can you!

Dec 7th Meatless Monday Runday

Just a mile, had much to do, kitchen table chairs came in, had to work on some electrical, help mom with some stuff. So it was a busy day. And this week is all short runs, as Saturday is Roxbury and then a 5k on Sunday.
So with it just being a mile, I decided to push it, and for not warm-up no stretching, I’ll take a 7:12 mile. I’m still really bad and undisciplined about stretching and warming up and I need to focus and work on that. Last weekend of racing coming up for the year, 70 miles left to run to hit the final goal of 1500 miles for the year, and I feel both relieved and worried at the same time. With just a few weeks left, I’ve stayed injury free and on target all year long. Granted, a fairly mild and dry Summer helped.
Alright, here’s what I had for dinner tonight, it was amazing!
Ingredients
For the vegetables:
1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
1 onion, halved and sliced
For the bechamel:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
10 sage leaves
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups whole milk
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
For the lasagna:
Unsalted butter, for the baking dish
1 cup grated fontina cheese
1 cup grated low-moisture mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
9 no-boil lasagna noodles

Directions
Make the vegetables: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Toss the squash with 1 tablespoon olive oil on a baking sheet; season with salt. Toss the onion with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil on a separate baking sheet; season with salt. Roast, rotating the baking sheets once, until the vegetables are tender, 18 to 20 minutes; set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

Meanwhile, make the bechamel: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the sage and cook 1 minute. Whisk in the flour until smooth; cook, whisking, until the flour is lightly golden but not brown, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the milk until smooth. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the nutmeg.

Assemble the lasagna: Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Toss the cheeses and the flour in a bowl; set aside 1/2 cup for topping. Evenly coat the bottom of the dish with 1/2 cup of the bechamel. Lay 3 noodles side by side on top. Cover with one-third of the remaining bechamel. Sprinkle with half of the remaining cheese mixture, then top with half of the vegetable mixture. Arrange 3 more noodles on top and repeat the layers (bechamel, cheese, vegetables). Top with the remaining 3 noodles, then cover with the remaining bechamel; sprinkle with the reserved 1/2 cup cheese.

Loosely cover the dish with foil and bake about 45 minutes. Turn on the broiler. Uncover the lasagna and broil until browned, about 2 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Have fun, keep running, and remember; If Gil can run, then so can you!

Dec 6th Weird day

Right so I ran. My feet got really sore. I think the new shoes are not broken in fully So I started walking, because why risk it a week out from my final marathon for the year? When I got to the last mile I started sprinting for a bit, see how far I could push it, because I started to feel better. I did alright, not great, but alright. So I had a decent pace, faster than I need for next weekend. But I’m still concerned because I have not felt right since Philly. Maybe it’s just residual crap from the cold.
But when I got home I got lots of work done around the house. Moved some stuff out of the way for tomorrow’s start on basement floor installation. I cleaned my room and got my desk set up, FINALLY. Fixed my brother’s dresser that had been missing a leg since it got back from the moving company. Other than that I have to get moving on the last few projects around here. Some electrical issues in the basement, some drainage issues in the backyard, and little odds and ends like that. It’s starting to feel like a finished house now at least, being so close to completion and I have to say that feels pretty good.
Other than that, the day just goes along as most days do. I’ve been constantly questioning my decision to take an absolute hardline stance on gun control now, and I realized not that I shouldn’t be so harsh, but why was I being so nice for so long about it? Shame on me for that honestly. It’s time we get up off our butts and really make this happen no matter what, because if we just sit back and fall into the same pattern, this is just going to keep happening.
Have fun, keep running and remember; If Gil can run, then so can you!

Dec 5th Dr. Who Day

It actually passed last week, but that’s not the point. It was the season finale tonight, well there will be the Xmas special. So I got a mile in only. Then I had to go to my sister’s house and babysit my nieces and nephew. It worked out well, apparently I make kids tired. The two youngest were in sleep before their bedtime, and the oldest is old enough, that as far as I’m concerned she doesn’t need a bedtime. (But I’m not arguing with parents, I just know she’s old enough that she’ll sleep when she’s tired, and she’s responsible enough to be awake when she has to be)
So Dr. Who, I’m a fan, what can I say. I won’t call myself a “Whovian” though, I don’t geek out on it, I just enjoy watching. It was a great season ender to say goodbye to a companion though. They always have to meet such tragic ends, but this one wasn’t so bad. Just when I was starting to get bothered by Moffat’s treatment of the show though, I’m coming around again. Peter Capaldi is making it fun I feel. He does a tremendous job. So once the show was done, I drove home.
Being out of a job for the past couple months, it was nice to get the Jeep on the highway, suspension seems sorted, it was a nice ride. Even though there’s so much work left to do if I’m to hold onto it. We will see what comes my way. Alright, I’m tuckered out, watching kids when you’re not used to it can be hard work. So have fun, keep running and remember; If Gil can run, then so can you!

Dec 4th Friday cooldown

Ok mostly, but I’m still pretty upset. So I ran a little further than I originally intended, but not a bad 5.3 miles. Maybe I’ll do a couple more miles on top of today’s route tomorrow and Sunday. It’s tough to gauge, I know I need to take it easy, but it’s just one mile every day all week coming up. We’re trying to do a very tough marathon course in less than 4 hours. Luckily, it’s a small event and I have lots of friends there to help me along. Running seems like a very solitary thing, but on race day, the crowd, your friends, the support, it’s a big difference and it all really helps and it really is a team effort.
So we’re coming up to the holiday crunch time. Just a couple weeks left for some, Hanukkah starts Sunday, I mean we’re in it now. No turning back! Like it or not, ’tis the season! Given I believe in spreading goodwill and cheer all times of year, it doesn’t make anything different. but I keep hoping others will carry the spirit past January for once. I know it won’t happen, but I have to hold out hope. Particularly after the events of the last couple weeks.
So let’s get into it with some good Crimbo musics!

I can listen to Bad Religion doing Christmas music all year long.
So have fun, keep running and remember; If Gil can run, then so can you!

Dec 3rd Episode 26

It was hijacked by the fact I’m beyond pissed off and beyond sick of talking about gun violence. Look either you want to do something or you don’t. If you want to do something then start demanding something be done. If you don’t want to do anything, you think this is all ok, and don’t talk to me anymore and waste my time. Because something has to change. I try and salvage the running podcast with some talk of next week’s marathon in Roxbury, and more of the body image issue and how people approach folks about health, and “looking healthy”.

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Dec 2nd Running in the rain

Yep, put 5 miles in today. I am still fatigued, you can see about midway through I took a little walking break. I can’t believe how tired my legs were, but most of the soreness is gone. My hamstring is not 100%, but it is improving.
Got back and got to grouting the tile. Came out very nice, even though I had to listen to more news about another mass shooting. Soooooo, are we going to ever do anything to maybe stop this madness? It’s been increasing since 2007, this barely ever happened until they let the assault weapons ban expire. This is beyond ridiculous, and the fact that we never do anything, nationally, to help make these things a rarity astounds me. This keeps happening, and they’ll say the same things they always do on the news. Someone will suggest some worthwhile and sensible regulations to curtail the access to weapons, and a wall of people will stand up, talk about how sorry they feel and how we should pray for victims and then say “Nope, we can’t change a thing.” It’s insane.
All violence is wrong, this is true, but I’m sick of it. It’s so out of control, it seems like once or twice a week we’re doing this. Can we all agree that this is not good, this is not normal, and this needs to stop? Can we at least agree on that? Can we also agree that while half of this country is so worried about refugees fleeing violence we created, two people (at least) here have done more damage than any refugee ever has here? Let’s take care of the problems we create, and let’s focus on our own house. Meaning, let’s handle the serious gun problem we have in this country.
And I’m sorry, but as I’ve said, all guns are manufactured, distributed, and purchased legally at some point. The plethora of weapons available, the glut of guns we have are what makes it so easy for them to fall into the hands of the people who do these things.
How many times are the guns used in these events purchased completely legally? Too often. But beyond that, since people want to try and complain about “illegal” guns. Well, where do they come from? The “black market” magically conjures them out of thin air? Nope; made, distributed, purchased legally at some point. We need to do something about that, less guns means less illegal guns, that’s a fact.
Ok, I’m climbing off this soap box for now. Have fun, keep running, and remember; If Gil can run, then so can you!