Going the distance....

As I went running on my usual route today and was struggling, I remembered the time I used to run 90 to 100 miles a week, every week. There was a time when my yearly total of miles run would be more than three thousand...and I had no car at the time! 

Why do people consume their time doing something as mundane as running? For me, it is the time to think and ponder....

Racing through a hairy situation...

As I was leaving my office building to get to my car today, I was hailed by two of my students who were leading a group of prospective high school seniors and their parents on a campus tour. I was introduced to the group as "my favorite professor" by the two, one of whom was part of our Turkey group. This was one day when I was dressed casually, without my tie. Further, due to a concatenation of circumstances, I had not been able to see a barber for a while and my hair (or whatever is left) had grown quite a bit. Right after this encounter I went to a hair stylist Melissa who did a wonderful job cutting my hair. Unfortunately by the time everything was completed and I got my library books (Women's Wicked Wit and In Defense of Food), there was no time left for running. 

Well, running to live or living to run....

Running out on coffee

Anyone who has seen the movie 'Blues Brothers" appreciates the bluesy songs about the woman running away with another man and leaving the kids behind...
The time has come for me to cut back on my favorite drink, good coffee. While coffee, even in excess, is not as vile a habit as other vices, it is becoming imperative that I curtail its consumption. In Turkey I greatly enjoyed the "Ayran" buttermilk drink. Perhaps I will migrate to a yogurt based drink as my next mainstay!

Running off a happy day

A bad case of sneezing, cold, and other ailments had put a damper on my outlook and on my running.Today I had a great time with the parents of a student of mine, and after coming home, decided to sneeze and drip my way through a run. I went for a a 5K run, but it felt like a 10K to my runny nose. Now for the showers and dinner- a nice end to a rewarding day.

Missed it by a nose....

The worst part of catching a really bad cold, which I did on Friday, is that it runs down one's running schedule. Add cold weather and incessant rain to the mix, and it results in a whole lot of wetness. To add to the Chinese torture, one of my best friends send me an email that ran like this.."On March 15, our condo here in Tucson got drowned. Bad news: our condo and much of our stuff is drowned. Good news: nobody was injured; it's just stuff."

The scale of events is always important in the frame of reference. Here's hoping that my running will jog forward on terra-firma.

Took a tumble in Istanbul, but back on my feet in Chicago

Recently I became acquainted with a young lady from San Jose who is also a runner. She told me yesterday that she was back to running five miles twice a week. I became somewhat embarrassed and went out and ran about 3.5 miles today. Slowly getting the feeling back in my feet.
Right after we landed in Istanbul a couple of Saturdays ago, I raced a student up the steps of a hill and took a couple of falls. This hurt a bit, but slowly the running is coming back to me.

Running in Mevlana's Land.

I was in Konya on March 25, 2009. After visiting the all girls school Guventas at noon, we came back to our hotel at around 3PM. It was about 45 degrees, but I decided to run. I put on my shorts and my T-shirt and ran around the Aladdin Hill a couple of times. Then I ran into the the city and explored the town. It was getting old, but I ran for about 45 minutes.It felt marvelous to run in the land of Mevlana. I was deeply honored to have the opportunity. I returned, showered up and took a walk in the city. Konya is a fascinating town, and I learnt a lot through running on its streets. The following day, March 26, I got up and walked for about an hour in the morning before leaving for Mevlana's museum. In the afternoon I walked around in the town again.