Blog Switch - head on over!

Hey, friends - I've switched my blog over to www.beezerboyd.com. Check it out!

Half-Marathon Playlist... help me make it!

Okay, so I'm just a few weeks from running/jogging/walking the Seattle Half-Marathon, and I am loading up some MP3's on the player for the run.

What would you put on that playlist? What would keep you going as you meander pitifully through Seattle?

What a Weekend!

Some weekends are just full of it.

YMCA swim with the kids. Eagan's Big Tom. The Library. Mr. Bean's Holiday. Fountain Church Gathering. Dan's Birthday (you rock, Dan!). Rubber Band Fight.

It has been a great weekend!

Krauss & Plant... One Day Away!

Allison Krauss and Robert Plant are playing live in Seattle tomorrow... on my wife's birthday. Couldn't be a better present to give her.

Oh yeah, I guess 2nd row seats would be a bit better...

Well, and I guess free tickets would be even better. And they are free (radio call in contest), and they are 2nd row. Thanks 103.7 the Mountain, you guys rock.

I will be zoned in, watching the Zep Vox, while my wife will be enjoying one of her favorite gal singers. You would think this would inspire joy in my friendship village, but it has also seemed to spawn some envy. So for all my friends with Krauss/Plant envy, I don't know what to say. I guess you could always catch some concert clips on YouTube or something...

Laced Up.

Yes, I ran the four miles yesterday. And it felt great.

Thanks.

I Don't Want To Run

I've slowly been running a bit more each week, getting ready to walk/run the half marathon in Seattle this fall. I love going out and taking the loop, especially with my wife's hot pink MP3 player jangling around my neck.

But not today.

I don't want to run. Once I'm out there, I love it, but honestly... right now I don't feel like it. At all. I feel like eating the heated up leftovers from Saturday's date with Kristy (curry and rice), and just reading a book or something.

But if I made all of my choices based upon how I felt, it could get scary, quick. And I probably wouldn't run that much. I already don't run that much.

So I've got to go for that deeper motivation - I will lace up today. And I will run the 4.

Celtic Jam

It's Wednesday night - checking out the Celtic jam at Tugboat Annie's with Kristy and some friends... should be real good. Nothing like a night out with good friends, food, and a pennywhistle piping in your ear!

So Here's What I Learned...

Now that I am about a week away from my first bike commute, I can be a bit more objective about what I learned...

1. I learned that cycling is pleasurable only to people with iron butts, or who might Tour France, or who might marry Sheryl Crow, or who simply enjoy painful experiences (viva mordeo!).

2. I found out that on my bicycle, I can outrun a German Shepherd barking and chasing me in parallel fashion along a fenceline. This is really good to know, although minus the fence, would he be sauntering along like that?

3. I learned about an ant hill on my normal commute road that I've never seen before - about 4.5 feet tall. No joke. How did I miss this?

4. I learned that I need a gel seat cover, and that my current bike seat feels somewhat like straddling a 2x4 for an hour.

So there you go. Deep lessons from the road.

Bicycle Commute - Lessons Learned

Wow. I rode my bike to the office today - I am out of shape. It took an hour (10 miles), so I think I was semi-puttering. Not so out of breath, but my thighs are on fire!

Still, it felt great. I learned all kinds of things on my trip - I will be posting my lessons soon.

What A Rowdy Pirate

Sunday was Dress Like A Pirate Day at the Fountain. My son is quite a brute:

In case you're wondering, it's not a sword in his hand; it's a sharpie - for signing his leg cast.

So yes... he is a peg-leg pirate.

Plant, Krauss, Shawn Stewart & The Mountain

Locally, there is only one really good radio station available (a la FM, you HD heads.) - KMTT, 103.7 the Mountain. Great music, really listenable DJ's (a luxury these days), and they are always spot on about creative new music and artists months before the bandwagon rolls into town.

I'm sorry; does this sound like an ad? It's not, rather it's more of a thank you. You see, at 10:37am they have a call-in contest to win local concert tickets. And though I often face the constant sound of busy signal, today that was not the case.

Guess who just won 2nd row seats to Robert Plant and Allison Krauss, on Kristy's birthday, no less?

Yep.

Summer In The Park

I'm excited for six summer Sundays in the park for our 10:30am FountainChurch gatherings. Lawn sports, BBQ's with friends - good stuff.

You comin? Maps to the park, info on what to bring - it's all here.

Back to my Americano!

Life is good. My coffee drinking days are back, and in full swing. Two weeks of drinking only water taught me a lot of good stuff - and a huge win was that by several families in FountainChurch giving up our favorite drinks together, we raised $400 - going straight to the 1000 Wells Project!

That's good stuff.

On Track & Going For It.

There's nothing like a public blog for accountability, so... "I am going to walk/run/jog the Seattle Half-Marathon this November." Seeing my wife do Seattle and Eugene, coupled with a few times out taking a run with her has gotten to me.

To prepare, I am on a 22 week plan of running, jogging, sweating, and crawling. Pretty awesome. To you running aficianados, any words of encouragement/caution/etc. would be great, and very welcomed.

I'll keep you updated.

Apple Pie. Get Smart. Still No Coffee.

My son Aiden wants to be a chef. What a stud - he baked apple pie pockets. Awesome.

About to go on a date with my gal - Get Smart and dinner.

Still no coffee. Day five. Headaches are gone, but it's still hard. I really miss my friend.

Day Three, No Coffee...

Ouch. This is harder than anticipated. No coffee.

Some of us families in the FountainChurch are foregoing Lattes, sodas, etc. for two weeks, saving that easily spent cash to send to BloodWaterMission. The translation? Our daily dollars go towards the 1000 Wells Project, who since 2004 have built 340 wells in 11 countries in Africa.

So I decided, not only will I give up buying drinks in town, I'm going without completely. How am I (glad you asked.)? The headache last night melted me into a pathetic puddle.

Maybe caffeine has a bigger hold on me than I thought? I miss my friend.

I stand corrected.

To add to the humor, it wasn't 'Indiana and the Jones'.

Libby calls it 'Indian of the Jones'. This is just getting better.

My little gal.

My Libby is great. She just graduated preschool, and next fall becomes a big kindergartener!

Here's her quote of the day (trust me, there's plenty to choose from):

"So when you and Aiden go see 'Indiana and the Jones', am I going to get to go see 'The Karate Panda Bear' with mom?"

Indiana and the Jones.

Coffee & People

Had a great meeting with Brian, who started Mud Bay Coffee Co. He makes insanely good roasts. We had a long talk about coffee shops, making quality coffee, and why you do what you do in life.

When everything boils down (simmers, reduces), it really is about people. Coffee is a connection, a vehicle, a passion, but whether it's customers, farmers, or employees - it's definitely people.

Although on some days, the coffee makes a real close run for first.

Haiku (one single impression) - Bleeding

This week's haiku prompt: Bleeding.

Bleeding hearts? The old medical practice of letting? Sheep? ... wait, sorry - that's bleating. You could go many ways with the prompt from One Single Impression, so I just went with my first response - bleeding knees, care of my creative, fun, silly and a touch-clumsy wunderkind Eli.

Hobbling over
A big fall from the bigtoy
"Kiss my knee, daddy."