Grass

Spring is here. We as humans spend Saturdays like this one getting our lawns in shape.

I don't have a lawn of my own, but I was once a landscaper. I farmed grass. Every March 15th we would begin uncovering the earth as we prepared many lawns for the grass to return from its winter dormancy. Within a couple of weeks grass would grow faster then we could cut it.

As humans, we devote huge amounts of time, energy and money toward grass farming. Outside of spouses and offspring grass is held in as high regard as the family dog. As a living being, grass has become very successful at co existing with humans. We grow grass for ornimant, recreation and as feed for animals. Imagine if we devoted this same energy toward growing vegetables.

Some of my favorite music is devoted to grass. The city I will do Ironman in is known for its grass. Opening day will feature some very well groomed grass. Tiger woods will probably make a fortune this weekend walking around on grass.

Ironyman observes: Grass has done a good job of getting humans to promote its growth as a life form. I think it a little funny how our favorite plant is treated by our favorite mammal.

But alas the grass has outsmarted the dog as it has dupped us into criminalized the defamation of a lawn with dog poop.

Anyhow, happy spring! Watch your step.

Bad connection

I sit here in a coffee shop 1/2 way between home and the pool. I missed my connection and it is raining, cold and nasty out. I am not thrilled about bagging the workout, but that is what is happening. So tomorrow, I will come this way again to get the swim in.

Yesterday I was able to get outdoors on my bike for a bit. I mostly focused on re-establishing my handling skills. It was nice to ride. I am growing tired of the trainer.

Other stuff:
My dad is having a book published in July. The book is a history of Eagles Mere (our family vacation community for four generations)and is being published by the local historical society. One of the last entries was about my ironman training on the mountain last summer. I am not sure if he included the fact that I suffered intestinal distress from the well water.
Maybe he will trade me a book for a CD.

I mentioned this in the last post. I am not moving into the house with Zac and Nichole. I am grateful to them for asking me to be a part of it, but I am happy where I am.

This Sunday is the Race for Recovery. This is a 5k I did last year with Dane. Hopefully Nichole will make it. My plan is to run fast.

Saturday night I will be playing my music here in the Coffee shop I am sitting in now.
On that note, I must go catch the next bus home.

60 seconds in my brain

Business is slow this week.......... I got to leave early from work................... It was also a day off from training...................... Kind of weird to have nothing to do all day.............. I spent most of the day learning the new software I have been downloading lately...... It is all open source stuff based on the linux stuff.......... Mostly office tools and web tools............. The stuff works really well.......... It is all compatible with MSOffice, Macromedia, photoshop, and any audio editing software.......... I did a little web design and watched a PBS history of the War with Iraq. It appears mistakes were made....... The web page looks good though.....I have a gig this Saturday.......Sunday is a 5k in Ohio City............Sunday I help Zac and Nichole move........I am not moving...........At least not from Coventry...........Training is going very well.......... I lost one day last week to a cold. ............Aside from that it is moving along as planned........ I have hit every long run. I have been adding speed. Swimming and cycling have seen solid consistant workouts. I am in shape.... I am ready to REALLY start training..... I am ready for spring. The cold seems coldest in march........ not from the temps so much as the lingering cruelty.......... soon, it will be....Opening day is less then a week from now. ..........The tribe have pitching depth.!!!!! A lot of it. Should be fun.......I am listening to John Coltrane..... I love good jazz and baseball.......I love a cool march evening with McCoy Tyner banging out those twisted yet beautiful chords.........

The Chosen One

As I read the paper today I reflected on the issues in Tibet and the Chinese reaction.
I also was reminded by the front page that LeBron is the best basketball player in the history of Cleveland sports.

Other athletes to hold this distinction are Jessi Owens, Bob Feller, Jim Brown.
Each of these athletes stood against injustice. Owens crushed Hitlers vision of the perfect race, Feller left baseball to fight in WWII, and Jim Brown has always been a leader with his work on inner city social issues.

Lebron has always stepped up to the plate when it comes to giving and creating opportunity. So he can not be accused of being selfish. He is not. He has been very generous. But I can not say he has achieved the same level of sacrifice the others have.My proposal for Mr Cavalier is to announce to China his intention to LeBroncot the Olympic games unless they step down and free Tibet. I believe his influence on sponsors could be huge. The ripple affect of his decision could reach athletes around the globe. The pressure on China to do the right thing right now is in his hands. Lebron could influence a peaceful end to China's rule in Tibet.
If this were to happen, then his early title as The Chosen One would be clear.

I am surrounded by surreality every moment

I have a great opportunity.I can live near an amazing park for cycling and running. I can live near an independent natural food market. I can live with my best friends. I can save $150 a month in rent while building equity in the house. But, I am not sure it is what I want to do.

I love my neighborhood and my little apt. I walk out the door and the park bench smiles. The street signs are kaleidoscopes. I am surrounded by surreality every moment. If I must drink, I am able to do it within walking distance. I like my solitude. My cafe is close. The video store is closer. The city pool is over a hill. I am surrounded by parks and culture. My parents are within 2 miles. Coventry is my home.

I am sure I am making Zac and Nichole crazy with my indecision. I was not really giving it to much thought until Sunday when I saw it for the first time. I can't say I left the place feeling as though it was where I would spend my days. I usually get a strong gut reaction about these things. It didn't happen.

The woman in the coffee shop said I already knew what I was going to do. The part that sucks is that Zac and Nichole really want me to make the move. I don't want to let them down.

Big race questions

Wow, what a week. As we mark the 5th year of war and watch our economy crumble, we are challenged to deal with the race issue. Many of us struggle to see it within our own worlds, but it is there. If we are to move forward as a nation, we will deal with it.

The Issue is deep. It deals with respect. Not just between white and black, but for all people and living things. The race issue is one of perception, how we see others and how we relate with them.

As I grew up in a very diverse community, I was unable to see race issues until Jr High School. I had read Ann Frank and To Kill a Mockingbird when I was young, but it was something alien to me until I saw it in school.

My dad celebrated men like Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and Jessi Owens as if they were the most important Americans ever. As a journalist he covered MLK and the civil rights movement. He later was able to converse with South African Episcopal Bishop Desmond Tutu near the end of Apartheid. His respect for these men was great and he maintains that same respect for all people. My dad had broken the chain of bigotry within our family.

My brother, sisters and I attended public schools in Cleveland Heights. Though the community is diverse, it is not always tolerent. Divisions were obvious to my mom as she saw black and white students receiving different educational approaches from the school. She became the PTA president in an effort to effect change. She has given much to help the community come together as a Girl Scout leader and in her years working to help locally owned black businesses succeed.

My parents always respected others and often went to great lengths to make sure that all were given equal opportunities, injustice was confronted, and that history was recorded accurately. I think much of who I am is a result of this upbringing.

I am really excited by the prospect of our nation facing the race issue and tensions in a meaningful way. Barak Obama has addressed an issue that is very much alive.

Kanye West following Katrina expressed these feelings in a very honest plea. America still suffers the long lasting effects of slavery and Jim Crow. Fear still controls many of our behaviors. Our desire to ignore these unresolved issues has left us with much resentment and anger toward one another.
Racism is often difficult to see as it appears in so many subtle ways. Can you imagine buying a home in a nicer neighborhood and knowing that by purchasing the house you are also devaluing every home around yours becouse you are black?. This is just one instance of racism in todays America.

My hope is that we as a culture can come to respect one another and live mindfully together. My hope is that we can look deeply into all things.
War with Iraq for our safety, is 89,000 civilian deaths amongst Iraqies. A paper bag is a forest, an eco system, and a home. A burger is a mother. An immigrant is somebody that wants the best for their family.

America has an unbelievable opportunity before it. I hope we take it and become what we believe we can be. The first step is to aknowledge the problem.
Barak Obama is doing that.

Yuck!

I woke this morning with a stuffed up head. I don't want to be sick for long, so I am relaxing at home and contemplating training. I have a swim workout at Oberlin and a 2:20 hr run planned. My guess is taking the day off will do more good then harm. It is just a little tough to give up a Saturday to recovery.

Last night after my swim, my friend Xela came over for a little jam session. We have been friends for years. We have done a lot of work(music)together including me producing one of his CDs. The jam was fun. We had a three person audience here in my studio.

Tomorrow in a addition to the swim and run, we have a memorial party at the Rock Hall for Jack. It should be interesting. I am a little curious about who may attend.

Monday is of course St Patricks day. Rocco's once again will be hosting the St Baldricks event to raise money for Cure Search. I won't be shaving this years(I have the past 3 years), so I won't be requesting donations. However if you would like to donate, MarySunshine will be shaving at the St Baldricks event in Louiseville. That event happens to be at 4th street Live, home of the IMKY finishline.

Shine on

Well, the sun is shining and I am sitting in a coffee shop. I am trying the remote post for the first time. I am struggling with weird temperamental networks. I am a little weirded out by the presence of other people while I write. But it is nice to be out of the house.

This new computer is really a major step up from my old PC. I have had that thing for 9 years. It was really nice when Jen and I first bought it. Since then I have made improvements and replaced parts. After I built my production PC, I just used the old one for basic office functions and the internet. It has no sound card or removable disc drive. It ran a little slow, but did what I asked it to.

The new laptop is very fast and offers many opportunities for productive use. I believe I can do many audio production actions on the new computer. It is not anywhere as functional as my dedicated audio box, but editing and some mixdown should be perfect here. Recording is limited to stereo becuase of the lack of any firewire connectivity. I most likely won't attempt that without adding a USB sound device. MSVista is nice, but is a resource hog. I have a gig of RAM and it uses 2/3 minimum. I will be upgrading to 2G before attempting any audio processing.

The main function for this computer will be web functions and business stuff. Updating www.charliemosbrook.com and trifolk will be much easier with the ability to do it from anywhere. I was bummed that I was unable to blog from the UK. I know as my gig schedule grows, my need to maintain both sites from the road will increase. Recording, editing and uploading gigs should happen with some regularity.

It is nice to have my music collection this portable. My mp3 player is 2G. I own a lot more music then that. with 80G free on this drive, I have plenty. The DVD player is a plus. I most likely won't use it often. Maybe to watch a movie in bed or while at a race or gig hotel stay. The DVD drive and writer is great for loading and saving music projects.

All in all I am really happy with the new blog box. After spending the past little while writing at the cafe, I feel more comfortable then I did when I began. I have been spending lots of time setting up the new computer and transferring files. It is a nice distraction.

Toward the end of the winter I usually get my self something fun to play with. I justify it with my birthday and cabin fever. Two years ago I got the Fender Strat. Last year was the mandolin and Mp3 player. Now this year I have joined the gang of nerds hammering away at their laptops in the coffee shop.

Anyhow, I most go run. Did I mention the sun is shining?

Going mobile

So I went out and made a purchase. The original plan to get the 7" linux notebook was aborted. I have picked up a PC laptop(refurbished) with vista for the same money. I am now getting used to it as I am also writing from the coffee shop for the first time.

Shamrock 15k

This one starts with the snow. If you hadn't heard, Ohio had a little snow yesterday. Between"18-"27. The scene was surreal. The city was buried when I woke. The air was cold but the sun was shining. Hope was alive. The city was clearing the snow and the coffee shop was once again open.
I was dressed to run in the blizzard if it should return. I had five layers to keep me warm. I had a choice of foot wear and socks. two layers of gloves, Sun glasses and my Nike storm fit suit. I was ready for the worst.
After coffee I caught a bus and headed downtown. The RTA was right on schedule. Zac and Nichole were also right on time. I never had to stay outside for long periods.
As we headed south toward the race I found the car to be quite warm. I also realized that I had forgotten any water. I was parched and overdressed. Whoops.
Just as we did last year, we missed the turn to the race. So just as we did last year we were running late. I ran inside registered took care of bidness and chose my race wear. Road shoes, tights, two layers and a shell.
We hung with Bbop, drank some gateraid, and lined up at the starting line. The start was signald, and we ran.
Mile 1- 8:04
Mile two 16:40 uh-oh
Water table....take it in, walk, don't splash.
I was able to stay within an 8:20 minute mile 'till we hit the hill. Once we hit the hill, I began to really heat up. The group I had been running with began to pull away. I continued to exert a strong steady effort, but I was way to warm
In the second half I ran a coupl of miles with Chris Phillips of CTC. The last time we talked a lot was at Mountaineer on the bike. Since then we have both finished our first Ironman and signed up for IMKY. We talked for a bit. It helped me to pace with him. I was able to steady my pace again. At mile seven he picked up the pace and pulled ahead. I stuck with the pace established.
I finished up with a 1:26.06. Not my best time on this course. :10 slower than last year.
The weather was much improved from yesterday. The course was clear.
My mistakes:

1. Poor pre race hydration
2. Overdressed
3. Thursday tempo run was a bad idea

These are issues I can do something about. So I will pay better attention to these things in the future.
Overall I felt happy with the effort. This is a tough race physically. My goal was to run hard, but not to hard. I accomplished that.

Congrats to Bbop on his AG glory. Monica and Nichole also had good races.

It was nice to get out for a hard run in the sunshine after a week that included a huge ice storm and a major blizzard.

My base is not being built with the same haste as it was last year. My speed is down. But I feel as though it is much more stable. I intend to peak August 31st.

"It is snowing"

Well thats what the news reporter said as he stood at the side of the road. He or she was sent on this assignment by some sadistic news director. I am not sure how this is news worthy. Some things are just obvious. Did we really need a play by play guy to tell us that the Gators/Gators/Spurs/Red Sox won? Somethings are a little overstated in the media.

When I was young my dad was the reporter used often by the NBC affiliate here in Cleveland to report on the big blizzards. He was at all the great ones. '77, '78,'81, '93, '96, and many more. We always hated seeing him sent out like that.

"We get it!. It is snowing! Now stop sending my dad and the camera man out in a storm that you want us to stay out of.", we would curse.

I would see my dad out there. He made it out alive, so why should I be afraid? I would see storms like this as a challenge. As a result of the bad example wkyc made my dad set, I have come to look at blizzards as playgrounds. So of course I went out for a short jog today.
I enjoy an easy mile the day before a race. It is my ritual. A little snow couldn't stop me.

So here is my recommendation:

Stay off the roads! Unless you are on a mountain bike, or running, or skiing, or you feel like helping stranded motorists, or if you just have to see how cool it looks, or if you wonder what a HUMMER looks like when completely buried, or if your stupid news director thinks I need the media to tell me that it is snowing.

With that I have to get ready for the Shamrock 15k tomorrow. According to the race site, the race is still on.

Election Day Ice Storm

I carefully slid down Lancashire road to go cast my vote today. I wasn't able to vote until 5:30, so I was concerned about the long lines. With such an important race going on I figured the place would be swampt.
Well lucky for me, my polling station has limited parking and is in a ward with many non drivers. With Cuyahoga county being hit with an ice storm, many voters were unable to vote.
So I arrived, presented my mail, passport, voter registration, fingerprints, DNA sample, took a piss test, paid my poll tax and voted.
I really would like to thank Ken Blackwell and the Cuyahoga county board of elections for making certain our elections are run fair and honest with no chance for error.

Later I found out that they ran out of paper ballots in many wards. Good thing I got there early.

Being that the police had ordered everyone off the roads due to ice, I went home and rode my bike. I think now that the polls are closed we are allowed to come back out of our homes.

While at the bank, my teller told me that the chain that kept voters from stealing the pen was too short to reach the Obama chad.

In Memory of Jack Caine

A couple of weeks ago I wrote of my friend Jack. He had just been diagnosed with ALS at the time.
Last night Jack was relieved of his suffering.

"So long, It's been good to know ya"

Jack Caine

This stuff in the back of my mind

• Lately I have been wanting to get a new laptop. Nothing crazy, just something for basic office and web applications. I basically need a light weight mobile office and a way to use my free time more efficiently.

I obviously enjoy the web and much of what it offers. I also enjoy the coffee shop and much of what it offers. I also have lots of commute time that I could be using more practically. I often wish I had internet capabilities while at gigs or races.

I don't need a lot of power for audio applications. I have a production machine that I built from the ground up. It has all the power I need.

The other day I was dreaming of a small laptop that could run on the minimum requirements. I want it to be small, light, and inexpensive. The next day I interrupted a friends very important business meeting to admire his little computer. He gave me the whole sales pitch. It was exactly what I wanted. I plan to purchase this thing soon........

• I was picking out a DVD for todays workout. I thought a comedy would be good. Last week I watched Capote. Fine film, but it sucked on the trainer. So today I wanted upbeat and funny.

I don't know what compelled me, but I saw a Chris Rock and Bernie Mack film called Head of State. I didn't think twice. I grabbed it and headed for the check out.

That is when it hit me. The timing of this selection was very inappropriate. This movie was a comedy about a black man becoming president. I made light of this with the clerk and went home to start my brick. The movie was hysterical.......

• I had two gigs this past week.

Last night was a benefit for St Paul's community outreach in the Detroit shoreway neighborhood. The event was a huge success. The room sounded so perfect.
Thursday I was at Dewey's. I got a ride to the gig from the pizza guy. The show and turnout was nice. I am now booked from August thru December at this venue.
The CD is selling well and receiving nice praise. I have been invited to appear on the local NPR lunch show. I hope to report back on this soon.....

• Next Saturday is the Shamrock 15k........