This morning I ran another 5.3 miles. That makes 130 miles for the month of September and 1100 miles so far for 2022. One of the things I’m most pleased with this year is my consistent running. When 2022 started, I was still picking myself up from last year’s CIM and my glorious “marathon year.” With my CIM run, I achieved a goal I had in mind since 2019. What’s more, not only did I get a good time for the run, I had a good time during it. This…
Month: September 2022
Day 89: “No Loss of Enthusiasm” (Original Music)
Tonight I decided to share this hopeful piece I wrote a few days ago. The title comes from a quote by Churchill: “Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.” This goes out to my buddy, Erik. You know why!
Day 88: The Top 7 Purposes of Your Money
Whether we realize it or not, we are all money managers. That is because on a daily basis every adult makes decisions about where each dollar they receive will go. If someone is focused solely on paying rent and buying groceries, they are nonetheless directing their money to a specific purpose: getting their basic needs met. If they are maxing out their credit cards constantly, they are making a choice to forfeit part of future earnings (and perhaps a substantial part) to service debt. Whether or not our financial decisions…
Day 87: Well-Being Returns
There is a cozy autumn feel this morning, and I am most appreciative for a sense of well-being. I just enjoyed a nice breakfast, after eking out a 5-mile run. The run was effort because I was still tired after Saturday’s 23-miler, but nonetheless, it felt good to accomplish. Meanwhile, I enjoyed the morning cool and the chilly autumn breeze. I am wearing a light, hooded sweatshirt. After months of hot weather, it is nice to have reason to wear a sweatshirt again. I originally bought this sweatshirt for the…
Day 86: Four Hours of Running, Two Days of Eating!
Saturday’s 23 miler went well due to proper mental physical and mental preparation. Perhaps the biggest surprise for me is how much I ate, especially following the run for the rest of the weekend! My appetite resembled how it felt after my first solo marathon. I just kept eating (and drinking… with plenty of electrolyte-enhanced drinks). Witness: Chris’s Weekend Eating 9/24 and 9/25: Saturday Before run (5am): oatmeal (1/2 cup) 1 banana (frozen, chopped) pea protein (1 tsp) water (1/4 cup) During run (6am-10am): waffles (2) gels (2) chews (1…
Day 85: “Playful Ruse” (Original Music)
Last weekend I watched “The Green Mile” again and was inspired to write a piece emulating some of Thomas Newman’s scores. I have loved many of his soundtracks, including “Shawshank Redemption,” “The Green Mile,” “American Beauty,” “Erin Brockovitch,” “Meet Joe Black,” and “Passengers.” I really like his interesting rhythmic experimentation and original use of scales. Enjoy “Playful Ruse”
Day 84: A Lengthy, Easy-Going Triumph
My 23 miler today went great! Distance completed: 23.22 miles Time spent running: 4:06:59* Average pace: 10:39 min/mile Mood: Overjoyed! 🙂 Two days ago I wrote the keys to today’s run, namely: Maintain slow pace (11 minutes + per mile) and take walk breaks Stay properly fuelled. Stay properly hydrated. Stay present and positive in the latter miles. Rest up properly afterward. Here’s how each went: Maintain slow pace (11 minutes + per mile) and take walk breaks Pacing went really well. I kept to about 11 minute miles throughout…
Day 83: The Day Before…
The Day before… I admit it. I feel distracted today, preoccupied, like a bear in hibernation, or a computer on standby, I just want to chill. I skipped out on going to the cafe this morning, opting to go back to bed. I worked on a composition, and though something came out, I stopped in the middle of it, which is pretty rare. I usually feel a sense of complete work, at least for that day. Today I didn’t have the energy for it. I’m reminded of how I feel…
Day 82: This Weekend’s 23-Mile Run
Saturday I will be running 23 miles. This will be the longest training run I’ve ever done (!). I’m stoked. (Side note: Shout out to my buddy Eric, who is running the Berlin Marathon on Sunday, his first marathon! Way to go, brother!) Saturday will be the second of four 20+ milers I am doing for marathon training (I am using the Galloway method, which I wrote about here). Three weeks from now I will be doing a 26-miler, followed three weeks after that with a 29-miler 🙂 I’m feeling…
Day 81: A True Test of Risk Tolerance
If you follow investing topics, or read up on personal finance, you will often hear about risk tolerance, which is the concept that as an investor you want to choose investments within a level of risk you can tolerate. You want to take enough risk that there is reward potential, but not so much that you are tempted to bail on your investments when the going gets tough (ie sell in a panic), or that you suffer inordinately in times of volatility. In a perfect world, your investments let you…