Runtober

So that's it, a run every day for October at an average of 5.32 miles per day.
Now for No-Run-Vember

Octoberfest

Day 31 at last.  That's 31 days of running a minimum of 4 miles each day.  I'll be finishing off the month with a few miles at lunchtime, so watch this space.

Running Home.

Day 28 today of what is becoming quite a difficult Runtober.  Only 3 days left and the 148 miles to date are taking their toll.  If my memory serves me correctly (and it probably doesn't) I used to be well over 50 miles each week in the '80s, peaking at around 100 miles for a couple of weeks as a marathon approached, so around 36 per week for the last 3 weeks is not really excessive.  This morning's 5.5 miles took me up to the 148, and this matches my previous best month in recent years (July 2014).  This included a marathon in the Outlaw triathlon, so with my self imposed 'at least 4 miles each day' rule I'll top 160 minimum and I'm happy with that.

Reboot Required

I usually listen to the PM program on the way home from work.  It's usually informative and educational, and doesn't take itself too seriously unless the situation requires it.  On more than one occasion I'm listening and thinking that the subject would make an ideal topic to write about here, but more times than not the idea leaves my head completely.  Last night was one of those times, and although I can distinctly remember thinking 'I must remember that one', I can't.  ...although I can remember the actual act of noting it to myself.  Very odd, and just another example of the strange ways the human memory functions.
I might have waxed on about this in a previous episode, but computer memory is very much like human memory.  It needs to store the information, and also needs to know where that information is and that is where the above seems to fall down - I didn't make a note of the memory address.

It Aint Half UKIP

A headline in The Guardian compares the antics of Nigel Farage with a sitcom, and although I didn't read the article, I can just imagine a Farage character in an old fashioned sitcom from the 70s.  Jimmy Perry died a couple of days ago - the co-author of Dads Army and other classics and I'm sure he would have been able to write a good script.

Day 26 of Runtober, just 5 days to go.  I managed to get out first thing this morning and felt reasonably good considering the cumulative effects.  I think the worst day was Monday after a particularly tough cyclocross and a 38 mile bike ride on the Saturday seemed to make my legs feel twice as heavy.
I'm wondering what I can do next.  The 100 day run streak is one target I'd like to reach, but probably never will - there's bound to be a day when a run is very, very difficult to squeeze in without upsetting one's spouse and that would never do.

Old Habits..

I would like to think that the fax was dead, but we just had an incident at my place of work where a legal company insisted on sending a fax because it was more secure.  No matter that the sent fax would appear on a piece of toilet paper that anyone could pick up as they walked by.  It reminds me of when we were phasing out telex and replacing it with fax.  Same thing applied then, and some companies were literally years behind some.
I wonder if telex is still used?

Fuel

Media outlets in India have been accused of stoking up feelings against Pakistan, because they have to fill more and more time with 'news' and therefore invent and exaggerate stories.  This is exactly what happens in the UK, although we don't have a Pakistan to worry about.   We tend to exaggerate anything to do with a celebrity especially if it's relating to a TV program such as X Factor, Bake Off, etc. etc.  Chris Evans is 'Under fire'; Gary Lineker was 'Slated for...' and so we go on filling as much space as possible with meaningless dross.  Luckily war is not imminent with either Chris Evans or Gary Lineker.

The Summit of Achievement

Over at an EU summit, Theresa May has reminded her European chums that the UK is alive and kicking and should be included in all discussions unless it's about the UK leaving, in which case she will wait outside the door.  I made that bit up about the door, but that was the inference.
The UK is in a bit of tricky situation though - we have said we want to leave but are still members, and so far haven't officially told anyone we're leaving.  They can't even pay us off like they would at my company, so there will be plenty of tough talking instead.

Can't Wait!

So Mr Trump is 'keeping us in suspense' over what he thinks about rigged elections, voter fraud etc.  This reminds me of a pal of mine who often ends an argument with 'I'm not saying' when he knows that if he does say, it will be a weak point and be knocked down. 

Meanwhile, in medialand, Tony Blackburn returns to the BBC after his spat earlier on this year regarding his evidence to the Saville enquiry.  Can't remember what it was about, but thought at the time that it was an odd reason to resign, and also odd of the corporation to castigate him.  Anyway, he's back and according to The Mirror the BBC is facing a 'Furious backlash' for not apologising to him.  Hmm, from whom I wonder?  Does anyone really give a monkey's?
Sounds to me like Tony has some good PR people working for him.

Managed to drag myself out for 5.3 miles this morning, thereby ticking off the daily nice and early - 'eating the frog before breakfast' as I like to tell everyone.  Day 20 today, and the daily average is up at 5.12 miles, which is better than expected.  The last day is a week on Monday and I'd like to think I can have a big last week, but will probably fizzle out to the same as normal.

I Can See For Miles and Miles.

'Man, by his very nature is a political animal' - Discuss.  Well, at least let's have a laugh about it.
I think it was Aristotle who said the above, but I don't think he is 100% correct.  It definitely applies to a lot of people, probably the majority but I have come across some that have no interest in the politics of life at all let alone 'real' politics.  On the other hand, I know some people that live and breath politics whatever they are doing.  As usual, I sit on the fence and am only interested in it if I put my mind to it, and then you can't shut me up!

Did my day's run at lunchtime again today - 5.6 miles.  This is 1.6 less than if I did it in the morning, but even though it's further it has always been faster and feels like it takes less effort.  Therefore,  I'm contemplating doing this on a more regular basis rather than the early versions.

Cooling Off Period

A damp, dark morning meant that I didn't run early as planned, although my heart wasn't in it anyway and when I saw that sunshine was forecast for lunchtime, a small adjustment was made to my schedule.
Luckily I brought some clean kit in yesterday so a lunchtime 5 miler is on the cards albeit a bit colder than lately.

This paragraph is penned a couple of hours after the first, and I'm back from my sweaty 5.6 miles.  Started off a bit cool, but soon warmed up so no tracksters required yet.

Streaky

It's quite handy to blame 'rigged elections' when you lose.  If you highlight this well before the actual event, then you can also employ the 'told you so' tactic and you've cracked it!  Well, almost.  Winning the election would be the preferred option I suppose, but then purge the 'rigged' word from your tweeting history.

Running news, and I'm well past halfway in my Runtober escapades.  4 miles early this morning chalked up day 17 and feeling fine so far.  Bit of a sore throat threatening at the weekend but it seems to have subsided now, and maybe that's the only thing that might scupper the 31 day streak yet, but we'll have to see.

Size Is Not Everything.

How big is the universe?  Answers on a postcard please.  Very big is the most likely reply.
..and can you state 'infinite' as being the size?  The big bang theory assumes that the universe started from a big bang, and has been expanding ever since and therefore I don't think it can be infinite at this point in time, or indeed at any time if it is constantly expanding. i.e. if you state it is infinite now, but is expaninding, then it is already bigger by the time I write this and therefore was not infinite a moment ago.  Its all very interesting, but it is mainly guess work, and I doubt that we will ever know.

Meanwhile, Gary Lineker advises the BBC that they can't take Match of The Day for granted.  Too true, in fact why not take it off the TV for a season to e if we miss it?

Food For Thought

There's a bit of a story today about Tesco and one of it's suppliers Unilever.  It appears that Unilever want to increase it's wholesale prices to reflect the increase in it's cost due to the pound being devalued (if I understand it correctly).  Tesco has told them they will not pay any increase, so Uniover have obviously stopped supplying them.  This has led to quite a large number of products not being available in Tescos, and (typically) the press have focused on one of Unilever's big brands - Marmite as a way of grabbing readers attention.
I'm not sure how many brands Unilever have, only that it is one of the biggest (if not the biggest) producer of home products so to use a product which is only bought by half of the population is a bit odd.  Marmite is a marmite type of product i.e. you either like it or you don't.  Anyway, I'm sure they will arrive at some sort of agreement, and now I know why I couldn't purchase a few of my favourite items when I used the Tesco online service last night.

Day 13 of Runtober, and I'm still going strong.  Early start today for my 4 miles to avoid the expected rain, although it would have been OK at lunchtime as it turns out.

Boiling Over

I fulfilled my Runtober requirements yesterday by getting out at lunchtime for just over 5 miles.  Already done today's 4 miles before first light although it was a bit of a struggle getting out at 5:15.

There was an entertaining article in today's Guardian that documented a man's plight as he tried for 11 hrs to get a Wi-Fi connected kettle to boil.  I first read the headline as if he was using Wi-Fi to boil the water, but it was just that the kettle base station would not respond to his commands and took the rest of the day to sort out the technical difficulties.  Pressing the on switch was obviously not an option, but a manual over-ride would seem like a good idea.
I'm not too sure about this home automation stuff.  It would appear to be good use of technology, but actually what would you use it for?  This particular kettle could be switched on by someone talking to it.  Is that a good enough reason to buy it?  I guess disabled folk would benefit from this type of functionality, but everyone else?  Not so sure.

Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit

'Outrage at shrinking orange'.  Outrage?  I doubt it, 'Expected' might be a better adjective to describe people's response to the fact that a Cadbury's chocolate orange, that bastion of the standard Christmas present has become smaller for the same price. 

Running news:  I was in a bit of a quandary this morning when I realised it was raining a bit and had already donned shorts and t-shirt ready to venture out at 5 o'clock.  I had looked at the weather forecast as soon as I woke up and found that rain was not due until about 7, but would be raining at 12 so an early one would be better.  So much for the forecast - I should have looked out of the window.  So, a quick decision was made to reconvene at lunchtime (if it's not raining).  Forecast looks dry, but what do they know?

Tough Guy

It's a pity that the US election will be over by November, it's really entertaining.  One thing you can't accuse Mr Trump of is being boring.  The most interesting thing about this latest latest revelation (that he denigrates and talks about being in a position of power over women) is not that he has said such things, but that no-one is surprised and has not really had a huge adverse affect on his ratings.  I don't know what they says about his supporters, but surely their patience is wearing thin by now.  We've heard a few prominent Republicans calling him to stand down but it does seem to me that his overall support amongst the people that matter on polling day remains strong.

Day 10 of Runtober/Roctober and I've maintained my 4 miles per day minimum target.  It wouldn't matter a jot of course if I didn't meet it, but I have standards you know.
The latest cyclocross on Sunday was quite a gruelling affair with a sharp rain shower adding to the fun just before the race.  This meant that the track became quite sticky in some places and got more slippery as the race progressed resulting in my falling off on the last bend on the last lap but thankfully remounting before anyone overtook and finishing in 36th place, 10th in my age group which seems to be the standard for this year.

Week Success

Well, this isn't something you see very often - 2 entries on one day.

Today marks a full week of Roctober - running every day in October and today therefore is a milestone as such.  I don't think I have ever run 7 days on the trot (ha ha!) although when it is possible I did this in the 80s when I first started running.  I have averaged 5.47 miles per day so far without much fuss, the only issue being my trip over the dog on Wednesday which stayed sore for a day or so.  I have a cyclocross race on Sunday which will make an additional run challenging, so I will need to make a decision on an early or late one to fit it in.

Statement of Fact

Pink Floyd Reunite! is a headline in the Guardian.  Ok, not reunite by playing together, but publishing a statement in support of some women arrested in a boat trying to draw attention to the plight of the Palestinians (or similar).  By a happy coincidence, Pink Floyd have a bumper 'Early years' CD collection out soon.  Good job they happened to issue that statement.

Meanwhile, there are some rumblings around some possible irregularities involving Team Sky and Bradley Wiggins.  Both have had to defend the use of TUE's (Therapeutic Use Exemptions) taken to relieve severe asthma just before major races which he went on to win.  I can accept the arguments why the TUE's were needed under the existing rules, but the whole issue of TUEs really need tightening up.
Basically, is it right that a person with a disability i.e. suffers from asthma is allowed to take something to alleviate it but possibly has other positive side affects, whilst the 'healthy' person is not allowed these positive affects?  Not an easy debate and I'm not sure we will ever get rid of grey areas.

Dog Days.

Day 6 of Roctober, and I ventured out around 6 this morning with the dog who hitherto had been reasonably good company.  However, this morning he decided to hang back after about half a mile, then turned round and headed for home despite some encouragement from me to tag along with me.  Therefore, I had to follow him back in case he wandered off somewhere else and put him back in the utility (where he sleeps).  Very odd for a dog that is so very keen to get out normally, and indeed did appear to be his usual keen self until he got to the half mile mark.  Anyway, I ran up to my normal 'minimum distance' mark, which worked out a bit more than the minimum when I included the earlier false start so he did me a bit of a favour.
Apart from the challenge of getting up a bit earlier than normal every day, this run a day challenge has so far not been too bad.  It will be a week tomorrow, and the only issue is a slight niggle in my right buttock, but I get that now and again even without doing much mileage.

End of Days

It looks like the age of 125 is about as far as we will get, although I have a feeling not many of us will get that far.  Things wear out evidently.  That's not too surprising to hear, and although I'm yet to get to half of that age, when I reached 50 I had a 'half way there' party so I'll have to have another soon.

Falling Leaves

So, day 5 run of roctober (see yesterday's post) did not go so well.  I set of with the dog as in the previous 4 days, but after a couple of miles he emerged from the verge just as I was passing and we collided, he with a few yelps, me rolling onto the floor swearing at him.  A bit of skin off my knee, couple of cut fingers where I tried to break my fall and a bent finger nail.  Not very nice and for a while afterwards I could feel the blood trickling down my knee.  Strangely, it was nowhere to be seen when I finished, but I'm sure it was gushing out earlier.
As I type this, my nail is throbbing a little to remind me of it.  Luckily I will live.

To prove how alive I really am, I managed another 5 miles at lunchtime today.  That's the first time I've ventured out at lunchtime at the current place of work, and I am now sat at my desk feeling a little sweaty.  Hopefully as Autumn kicks in it will cool down and will not be so bad.

Running On.

Day 4 of the run every day in October, or 'Roctober' as I'm calling it.  It makes it sound a bit musical, which it isn't, although I do often get a tune in my head when running and can't shake it off.  This morning's tune was Gravity by Coldplay that infected my head during the 4 miles, and was the last song I listened to last night when doing a bit of woodworking in the shed.
I contemplated entitling it Ructober, but that sounds like a rugby position, and although has a sporting ring to it, Roc rather than Ruc sounds better to me.

Cry Wolf!

It's a sign of the times that initial reports that Kim Kardashian had been robbed, were put in 'speech marks' in more than one reputable on-line news outlet as if it was not true, as if someone had been trying to gain publicity that such an event would bring.  As it was, but mid morning the reports were found to be substantiated and the italics had disappeared.  I don't think reports about this happening to a 'normal' i.e. non-reality star would have been reported in this way but ironically, the later news item carried the news that her publicist had made the announcement, so maybe they were wise to be cautious.

It's day 3 of my 'runeverydayinOctober' challenge (bit of a mouthful and not very catchy I know) and I started the day off with a 4 mile run with the dog.  I needed a torch to see where we were going, and there was a bit of frost on the ground.  My car showed 2 degrees when I set off for work an hour later which explains why my legs were quite red when I had finished.  The dog was soaking wet at the end and looked a bit of a sorry sight, but I think he will be expecting the same again tomorrow morning.