Lots of Developments

A major bottleneck has been removed in the process of emptying my condo. Got the OK from the building manager yesterday to have movers up to empty the place. So the ball is really in my court and I have to make more progress in pulling out the relatively few things I want to keep.

I got three bikes listed on Craigslist, and sold one right away. It was only $300, but it was a good feeling having a little money coming in for a change. Sold the very unexciting Specialized comfort/cruiser type bike that Sarina left here a few years ago. The very exciting (to me, anyway) Vitus 979 racing/road/city bikes have gotten a lot less attention. Did get one inquiry today, but no appointment to see it yet,

My friend Steve, who is a realtor, came over for coffee this morning, and advised me to keep most of the furniture now, for staging purposes, but to get rid of everything else. That makes a lot of sense, since there is a chance a buyer might want some of it, and I'm not counting on getting a lot of money for it now. If I wanted the realtor to stage the place, it would cost something (probably outrageous), and at worst I can get some cleanup company to get rid of everything from Utah.

I called the estate liquidator lady, and she is interested in all my crazy dinnerware from the '40s and '50s - Fire King Jadeite and Homer Laughlin Harlequin. I've got probably a couple hundred pounds of that junk, so I sent her photos of all the stuff I hope she can sell. Even if I only break even, will feel much better about disposing of that stuff this way than seeing it go into a dumpster.

Used a Lancaster County pork shoulder from the freezer to make some green chili. Had gone to the Italian Market Monday and got tomatillos, poblano and jalapeño pepper, and cilantro. Super easy Instant Pot recipe and it seems very tasty. Thought of the Colorado Warnocks while making it. Going to save it for dinner tomorrow, but brought a bowl down to our friend Dawn at the front desk, who has been such a lifesaver. She called me a little bit ago and said she was tearing it up. She said it made her want to "jump up and slap her mama!" Cut lots of fat off the pork roast, and will try to render it tomorrow and make a roux with masa corn flour to thicken it up. It's pretty soupy as is.

I need to make better progress, and I didn't get a whole lot actually done yesterday or today. But having a little bit of a plan and a roadmap in place now will help me focus on getting rid of the non-furniture stuff. Just need to bear down and make better progress.

The insurance company called about my accident in Iowa. I assumed I didn't even have collision coverage, but I do, albeit with a $1,000 deductible. I think the damage - scrapes across both passenger doors and the front quarter panel - will likely exceed that, so that's a good think. I think this is the first insurance claim I've made in nearly 45 years of driving.

Weekend Update

Woke up to a beautiful day today. Slept well Friday and Saturday, following two sleepless nights previous. Had much more energy today, and after my 8am meeting, got to work. Made a big "contractor bag" full of trash after going through my clothes closet. Got that disposed of and loaded most of my packed up stuff into the car. That Honda is going to fill up fast, I'm afraid. But it was a good feeling to start loading the car and make some space down here.

Went to the basement storage space and retrieved a couple of big boxes, some packing tape and bubble wrap. Now can pack the relatively small number of dishes and breakable kitchen stuff I'm taking.

Ran into Kerv, the head maintenance guy, and tried to get the lowdown from him on getting my stuff moved out. He confirmed that the building does not want outside movers coming in, but offered his services, along with his crew. I've been thinking about that this afternoon, and am now thinking that I'll go ahead and have the estate liquidation lady come in and identify the things she can sell. I can get Kerv and co. to load up that stuff, then to clear everything else out of the place once I've sold all I can myself. I'm thinking I can get maybe $400 for electronics, $600 for this Kurzweil synthesizer, and maybe a couple of thousand for four of the six bikes I've accumulated.

Tomorrow's goal is to get the bikes, electronics and synthesizer photographed, catalogued and on Craigslist. I hear by word of mouth that it's a good time to be selling bikes, and these are nice ones. I am keeping the old Vitus that Dad and Yancey built, and one other. Going to check with local bike places to see if someone can package them up to either ship out west or strap to the top of the car.

Good night - time to get some rest.

TGIF

Got a good bit done today - the last two deep drawers in the kitchen and the downstairs closet are empty, and all the kitchen gear, my electric and other tools are boxed up and ready to load in the car. Still have to select some dishes, cups, platters, etc. to box up, but that will be pretty small. The pile of things to be sold or dumped is many times larger, as it should be.

Didn't sleep well the past two nights, but got a nap after morning AA meeting and got down to work. Spoke to the building manager, who had no further news on the ability to move out my stuff or have any non-residents come up.  She did say that, "we can't legally stop you from moving out" which maybe was her way of giving me the green light while still covering her tail. She said she usually talks to the head of the condo board on Fridays and would let me know Monday if there were any developments. If no encouraging news then, maybe I'll go ahead and make plans, condo board be darned. (Utah must be rubbing off on me!)

Had IOP aftercare meeting this evening, and realized, after someone asked me, that I hadn't left the apartment since Tuesday. He suggested that I take some time this weekend to get out and do some walking, and get a cheesesteak! That's probably a very good idea, and the tastiest kind of "homework" I've been assigned in quite a while.

First Full Workday

Happy to have gotten a good bit done today. Made two big contractor bags of trash, then went out to Home Depot for more. Stopped by Sprouts and got some badly needed fresh food. Back home, started tackling the kitchen. Dusted off the Instapot (literally) and made spaghetti for dinner. Washed sheets and made up bed. Foot was pretty good all day, but now that I'm sitting down, it's throbbing like crazy. Spoke with with my sponsor Bill this morning. Apparently they had a big hurricane-like storm move up the east coast a week ago and he was without power for three days. Looking forward to my 7:15 AA home group tomorrow morning, then making some more progress here, then 8pm Aftercare meeting in SLC via Zoom. Have to talk to building manager about specific rules for non-resident access to the condo for now. Apparently they lifted the "red" status for Philadelphia county a week ago and we're now "yellow." Hope that means at least some non-resident access allowed.

Home, sweet home.

Got the AC running and am about to take an epic nap. Our wonderful friend Dawn was working the front desk when I arrived. Kelly, I can't thank you ever enough for cleaning up my  place.

Salt Lake City to Philly - Mile 0

My Personal Recovery Plan

Tonight I complete the 8-week Intensive Outpatient Program, "Recovery Works!" at the University of Utah's Neuropsychiatric Center. It has been an been an outstanding experience and has given me insight into my behavior, addiction, and how it has led me to where I am now. And some great new friends and an introduction into to the recovery community in Salt Lake.

I am leaving Salt Lake City for Philadelphia tomorrow, and plan to blog here daily to keep family updated on my progress in Philadelphia.

Central Park Reservoir - 8 miles

In New York this weekend for the Matzevah (tombstone unveiling) for Barbara's late father Julian. His apartment finally sold and closed early this month, so we're staying in a hotel in midtown. There's a great view of the Empire State Building out our hotel window. Ran about a mile north to Central Park this morning. Weather was overcast, but temperature was perfect - probably high forties. Took the roadway around the park, but detoured when I got to the Central Park Reservoir. If you've ever seen the old movie Marathon Man with Dustin Hoffman, he does his training on the running path around the reservior. It's a gravel path about a mile and a half long. I did one and a half loops and returned up the west side of the park and back to the hotel to make 8.33 miles. Kept a respectable 7:47 pace, considering I had to stop for traffic a number of times between the hotel and the park.

Could feel the knee acting up a little during the first half of the run. Guess I will have to take a few weeks off to let it heal, but I wanted to finish out the month and to break 500 miles for the year to date, both of which I did today.

Did a few other runs in the past week which I didn't get around to blogging:

Thursday, April 28
Gang From Work 5.65 miles

Tuesday, April 26
First Summer Weather Run 7.16 miles @ 7:35/mile

Sunday, April 24
Home From Rittenhouse Square 2.28 miles
Jog With Paul 3.77 miles
Run to Paul's 3.01 miles

Boston Marathon 2011

Target: 26.2 miles @ 3:30:00 (8:00/mile)
Official: 26.2 miles @ 3:25:08 (7:50/mile)
Garmin: 26.42 miles @ 3:25:06 (7:45/mile)

Stats from the BAA race day results website:

Bib	Name	Age	M/F	City	St	Ctry	Ctz
10651	Warnock, Murray	47	M	Philadelphia	PA	USA
5k 10k 15k 20k Half 25k 30k 35k 40k 0:23:30 0:46:12 1:08:56 1:32:07 1:37:06 1:55:22 2:19:35 2:45:59 3:13:49 Finish: Pace Proj. Time Offl. Time Overall Gender Division 0:07:50 3:25:08 6257 5323 765

Started the day at 5:30. After I got dressed and walked out into the hall, there was Doug, standing in the dark, waiting to wish me a good race. What a great kid!

We are staying with bro-in-law Jeremy and his partner Geoff in Newton, MA - a pretty Victorian suburb about 4 miles from Boston center. Jeremy gave me a ride out to the race start in Hopkinton. Although we didn't have good directions, we found the dropoff with no problem. Had to wait about three hours before the race start, and it was cold! Temp was in the forties, but it was the heavy wind that really made it chilly. I had a sweatshirt, but was one of the very few people who didn't wear some sort of long pants to cover up before the race.

Did not have the nerves that afflicted me so badly at the Philly marathon. Ate 1.5 PB&J sandwiches and a quart of Gatorade. Sat in on a sports psychologist talk for about half an hour, and I think that helped keep positive thoughts.

Was happy and psyched once the race started at 10:20. Although the first mile was crowded, with a lot of jostling, we finished in under 8:00. The weather was beautiful - sunny, and the wind that was so frosty at the staging area was now at our backs. There was lots of downhill for the first half of the race, and after 13 miles, had averaged 7:21/mile. Fastest mile was the fourth at 7:08.

Was a little concerned with the pace, but did not feel like I was straining at all, and thought that the downhill would be balanced by uphill for the second half of the race. Was looking for Barb, Doug, Jeremy and Geoff, and saw them at mile 17. By this time was starting to feel tired - the uphills had just started, and it was great to hear their encouragement!

After mile 19, the hills began for real, and I realized that the fast pace had taken a toll, even though it had been downhill and felt effortless. Reached my limit during mile 21 and had to walk .3 miles to catch breath and finish a hill. That was the slowest mile - 9:48. Had to walk twice more briefly before the end of the race, and it was all I could do to keep at an 8:30 trot for the last three miles.

After crossing the finish line, was able to keep on my feet OK and grab a water bottle, but almost completely lost vision for a couple of minutes - everything went white, and could only see the outline of figures. Chris texted me with the official time, and I found a curb to sit on. Was overwhelmed by support and good wishes while still catching my breath - text messages from Chris, Raminder, Tony, Paul, Colette, Larry and Yancey and email from Mom, Dad and Bob. After half an hour of recovery and finding my way through the crowd, met up with the family.

Final time was 3:25:08 - 7:50/mile pace and halfway between my stated goal of 3:30 - Boston qualifying time for my age - and fantasy goal of beating 3:20, which would be about 7:35/mile. Knee didn't bother me at all during the race, although I could sure feel it afterward. Sent Dr. Sennett, Dr. Gay and PT Jeff O'Neil thank-you's after the race for their care.

We all went out for a seafood dinner - I had the lobster - after the race. Have a couple of black toenails, and it is painful going down stairs, but otherwise I'm in good shape.

Many thanks to all friends and family who were generous with support and indulgent listening to all my running talk. This was a much tougher race than the Philly marathon and I really could not have made it without your help.

Week Minus 1 - Last 2 Workouts

Wednesday - Intervals (7.48 miles)
Target: 10-20 min warmup; 6X400m @1:35 (400m RI); 10 min cooldown
Actual: 2 mile warmup; 6X400m @1:22 (400m RI); 2.5 mile cooldown

Thursday - Tempo (5.26 miles)
Target: 3 mile run: 1 mile easy, 2 miles @ 8:00/mile
Actual: 5 mile run: 1 mile easy, 2 miles @ 7:12/mile, 2 miles easy

Got the last two workouts in before the race. Would have preferred to do them earlier in the week, but didn't feel like going out in the rain and wind Monday & Tuesday.

Yesterday, I went out from work with Chris and Raminder, then took off on my own for the two tempo miles. Those were supposed to be at marathon pace, and I was trying to feel for a pace that felt slightly aggressive, but sustainable over a long period. The 7:12 I ended up with was probably faster than I'll want to go, but it was nice to feel that I have a little slack to play with. I have been warned that the first few miles of Boston are slightly downhill, and it is easy - especially with all the excitement and other runners - to start out too fast. So I'll have to keep an eye on that. It can be difficult to slow your pace, especially during a race.

Had my last session with the physical therapist Wednesday morning. He taught me some dynamic stretching exercises that he recommended for warming up for the race. He said that the current thinking is that static stretching immediately before a race can hurt your performance and that warming up is much more important for performance and avoiding injury.

Got a busy day ahead as I'll be off work next week for the Boston trip; after work have to get home to pack and prepare the house. We'll take the train up tomorrow morning, and spend the next three nights with Barbara's brother Jeremy outside of Boston. We'll spend Tuesday and Wednesday in central Boston and see the sights. Kathy, any recommendations? I want to see the stained glass atlas ceiling in the CS Mother Church, which we only saw from the outside last time we were there.

Have gotten emails and phone calls from friends and family in advance of the race. Thank you guys - Dad, Kathy, Hallie, Yancey - so much for your wonderful support. I'm feeling like I can go into this race relaxed and without nerves and just enjoy the fruits of all the training.

If you want to look up results on race day (Monday the 18th) before I've gotten around to posting, I imagine there will be a "results" link at the Boston Marathon website. My bib number is 10651. The race will start for my wave at 10:20a.m. EDT, so I hope to be finished by 1:50p.m.

Week Minus 2 - Distance (10 miles)

Target: 10 miles @ 8:00/mile
Actual: 10 miles @ 7:35/mile

This last double-digit run before the race is supposed to be at marathon pace. This program is for an 8:00 pace (or 3:30 total marathon time), but I've been trying to keep about :30/mile under all of the tempo and distance times. The goal is to train for a 3:20 marathon, and be satisfied with any time between 3:20 and 3:30. So I'll be satisfied with a 3:30, and very happy if I can break 3:25, and have bragging rights if I can break 3:21, which is my brother-in-law Joel's best time!

The run went fine, had only a banana beforehand, and did not feel low-energy. Mile 10 was the fastest at 7:14. One interesting thing about Boston is that there is a long uphill stretch from mile 19 to mile 21. That's a key stage of the race - the first marathon I ran, I wasn't 100% sure I would make it until after mile 20.

Week Minus 2 - Tempo (7 miles)

Target: 6 mile run: 2 miles easy, 3 miles @ 7:14/mile, 1 mile easy
Actual: 7.23 miles: 2 miles easy, 3 miles @ 6:32/mile, 2.23 miles easy

Good run with no knee pain until afterward. Really concentrated on speed for the three tempo miles - first one was 6:13. Weather was nice - bright sun and in the 40s, but windy. Had the wind to my back for the fast mile.

Week Minus 2 - Intervals (6.3 miles)

Target: 10-20 min warmup; 5X1000m @4:03 (400m RI); 10 min cooldown
Actual: 2 mile warmup; 5X1000m @3:45 (400m RI); walking cooldown (no mileage)

Have been feeling worn out lately, but managed to get all the sprints in before knee suddenly started having sharp pain when starting cooldown jog. It didn't hurt walking, so got back to the office and iced it. It's been OK since.

The intervals went well; managed to keep well under the target times without really max-ing out the effort. Mileage is going down this week; and next week are only two token short workouts before the marathon on the 18th.

Scenic Saturday Jog

6.42 miles

Paul and I jogged from his place down to the river path. It was a beautiful day, although only about 40 degrees, and lots of people were out on the path. Lots of crew boats out on the river - looked like there was going to be a regatta later. We jogged down the Benjamin Franklin Parkway on the way back, and stopped to get these shots of the Civil War Sailors and Soldiers Memorial and the Swann Memorial Fountain. There is no water in the fountain yet, so I got to see some of the statuary close up. These sculptures were done by Alexander Sterling Calder, the father of Alexander Calder, modern sculptor and inventor of the mobile, and son of Alexander Milne Calder, who created the famous statue of William Penn that stands on top of City Hall.

Week Minus 3 - Distance (13 miles)

Target: 13 miles @ 8:00/mile
Actual: 13.02 miles @ 7:37/mile

After a couple of days of cold rain, and even some sleet this morning, it stopped long enough for a run at lunch time, I tried to push it just a little, to find my fastest sustainable pace for the marathon. Started at under 8:00 pace, and kept at about 7:40 for the first half. Sped up a bit for the second half. Last mile was fastest at 7:24. I think I should be able to sustain a 7:45 pace for Boston. That should buy me some slack for the uphill section of the race between miles 19 and 21. If I can finish with an overall 8:00/mile pace - 3 hours, 30 minutes - I will be satisfied.

Week Minus 3 - Tempo (6 miles)

Target: 6 mile run: 1 miles easy, 5 miles @7:29/mile
Actual: 6 mile run: 1 mile @8:04, 5 miles @6:37/mile

Went with Chris down to the track today. Running with him always seems to improve my performance; definitely went a little faster for the warmup mile than I would have done otherwise. Happy with the tempo portion of the run. I'll bet that's the fastest 5 miles I've ever done. Mile splits were all negative - faster each mile - from 6:55 down to 6:13 for the last mile. No knee pain at all!

Week Minus 3 - Intervals (9 miles)

Target: 10-20 min warmup; 8X800m @3:13 (1:30 RI); 10 min cooldown
Actual: 1.5 mile warmup; 8X800m @3:07 (400m RI); 1.5 mile cooldown

I misremembered the instructions for today's workout, and accidentally substituted a 400m walk for the 1:30 rest interval, which would have been more challenging. So as it was the workout wasn't very hard. Knee bothered me at a few points, but more when walking than running. Seeing the physical therapist again this afternoon.

Week Minus 4 - Distance (20 miles)

Target: 20 miles @8:15/mile
Actual: 20 miles @7:54/mile

Last 20-miler before the marathon and I'm happy to have it over with. Knee hurt at a few points during the run, but only briefly. It is plenty sore afterwards, but will have the weekend to heal up. Kept under 8:00 - if I can complete the marathon at this pace I'll be happy, but didn't feel like I had much energy left at 20 miles today. Ate a Gu packet at 1:11 and 1:56. For the race, I'll try to remember to eat one every 45 minutes.

Thinking positively, I've had six twenty milers in the last 13 weeks, and 4 of them have been below the 8:00 mark. That's much faster than I've trained in the past, and in theory I should be able to race faster than that. Got my bib # for Boston - 10651 - and race information packet today.

Week Minus 4 - Intervals

6.65 miles
Target: 10-20 min warmup; 10X400m @1:35 (400m RI); 10 min cooldown
Actual: 1.5 mile warmup; 10X400m @1:23 (400m RI); .5 mile cooldown

Was in a little bit of a rush today, trying to get this workout done during lunch. Made the target times pretty easily. The intervals workout has gone from being the toughest workout a couple of years ago to probably the easiest today. Of course, that might change when the weather gets warmer, or if I were jogging the rest intervals instead of walking them. As it was, I was able to keep the 10 400m interval times pretty consistent - between 1:19 and 1:26. The first was 1:19 and number ten was 1:20, so I don't think I lost a lot of energy.

Because I lost a day with the rain yesterday, think I'll skip the tempo run this week and just do the distance on Friday. That will be the last 20-miler before Boston, and the longest distance since injuring the knee, so it's important to my mental conditioning that I do well.

Week Minus 5 - Distance (13 miles)

Target: 15 miles @8:10/mile
Actual: 13 miles @7:56/mile

Got another Central Park run in this morning. Was feeling a little weak - my hours have been turned around this week with late movies, and I didn't sleep well last night - so was two miles shy of the 15-mile goal. I think the hills in the park were good training, though. They did seem a little easier than my last run here. I'm sure the slower pace was a big factor. Should have brought a Gu gel pack to help keep the energy up. Had some yogurt and blueberries before leaving, but some oatmeal or a PB&J would have probably been better fuel.

Later Barbara, Doug and I went to see "Million Dollar Quartet" on Broadway. Dad, you would have loved it.

Week Minus 5 - Tempo (11 miles)

11.09 miles
Target: 1 mile easy, 10 miles @ 8:00/mile
Actual: 1 mile @8:09, 10 miles @ 7:34/mile

Today was the first double-digit run since my knee flared up, and it went pretty well. After the first warm-up mile I tried to feel for a comfortable long-distance pace, which turned out to be about 7:45. Tried not to push it, but allowed myself to speed up a little after the halfway point. Had plenty of energy at the end - last mile was 7:05.

Buddy Tony, a veteran of many marathons and the Marine Corps, suggested that I photograph the kinesio taping that the physical therapist did so that I could reproduce it myself. The photo turned out scarier than it looks in real life.

I really think the taping helped. It gently pulls the kneecap out of the way of the IT band that connects underneath it. IT area still felt tender after the run, but it did not bother me during, and the pain bending the knee is much less. Can walk and go down stairs easily.