Triathlon training

Hanneke and I have been finishing up our triathlon training this week in preparation for the race on Saturday. On this past Saturday, I did a little more than a full sprint triathlon to see if I was ready. I swam the 1/3 of a mile in the indoor pool on campus, biked 20 miles on a hill setting on a stationary bike, and ran 5K on an indoor track. I was tired but not exhausted afterward. My ankle did hurt a bit after the run, though, as usual.

Sunday, Hanneke went to the swim clinic and then we both met some friends at the lake on Sunday afternoon. Our friends have run the triathlon previously, so we were meeting to try swimming in the lake that the race will use. It was strange, cold (even in my wetsuit), and unnerving, but manageable. I went back on Monday early evening with two other friends and we swam in it again (since they could not make it to meet us on Sunday due to a late plane). Then we went out to run 5K on the triathlon trail but we got lost and ended up running more like 10K. I stopped running at the end because my ankle started to hurt. I iced it last night but it feels okay today. I will not exercise today just to give it a day off. We'll see how it feels tomorrow.

We also watched Appaloosa last night since I wanted to rest from the workout. Appaloosa is the 2008 western movie with Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen. We both thought it was a good movie. It was also a refreshing change since I haven't seen a western for a while.

Battlestar Galactica Series Finale

Well, at long last BSG comes to an end. I'm mostly writing this post because I enjoyed the series so immensely that I've been pondering the approach of the series finale tonight with both anticipation and expected regret. Both emotions played out as I guessed. The finale was enjoyable, full of many of the qualities that I liked so much about the series. But of course, a finale is a finale, and no matter the resolution the conclusion leaves an emptiness. What ever will I do with my Friday nights now? Exit sarcasm.

Like most things of this sort, most movies or performances or other conclusions of events that I participate in, I tend to fill the newly-created emptiness with bigger thoughts. Thoughts about who I am and who I want to be. I like that about these things, that they encourage me to think about where I fall in the arch of what I hope things will be in life.

I don't know that there are any epiphanies in those moments, maybe I just feel the contemplation with a heightened emotional edge. But in them, I do think about wanting to be more than I have been. I don't think I've found my purpose yet. But I'm still looking.

I will end this post, I suppose, with the same guarded optimism that BSG concluded with; a recognition of the loss, however materialistic, of a friend, but with an eye towards better things to come. Only time will tell if those better things arrive. I'll remain the optimist.

So say we all.

Brian and Rex, napping

Front yard update

One nice thing about Brian having a bit of extra free time over the past couple weeks is that he has been paying special attention to the flowerbeds in front of the house. As a result, the flowers are looking really good. This first picture shows the glads (bulbs planted several weeks ago). They are coming up strong, and the largest one in front is at least 8 inches tall at this point.



The snapdragons have also been appreciating the attention, especially the careful watering. Here you can see them, blooming away, in front of the glads.

Another view of the snapdragons...

And last but not least, these are the plants I put in when Brian was planting the bulbs. They are also doing well. with more flowers than when they were planted.

Watchmen

Earlier this week, Hanneke and I decided to go see a movie and have dinner together. Han wanted to go to the beach that day instead, and I wanted to just stay home and hang-out, so we compromised on the movie and dinner. I think we both enjoyed it ultimately, though I know Hanneke is still hoping to go to the beach sometime.

The movie we saw was Watchmen. It's based on a comic or graphic novel that I have never read or really heard of. We both enjoyed the movie a lot, it was pretty fantastic. A warning to our blog visitors - it did have a handful of gratuitously adult scenes (of every sort), but nothing that was surprising for an R-rated film. It pushed the envelope at times, but did so intentionally. Don't take your kids.

Watchmen was an action-packed, darkly humorous, and overall strange film. It did a lot of things that I don't really recall seeing done well before, including managing to deliver some monologues that would have been tough to sell in many movies or with many other actors. There is a line delivered by a character named Rorschach that is probably the best line I have ever heard in any movie, hands-down. I can't recall enjoying any part of a movie previously like I did that one line. I won't quote it because it would spoil it for any of you who go see it. Sadly, there were also a few lines that made me cringe. Still, overall, I give the movie a 4 of 5, and maybe even a 5.

That's it for now.

Triathlon training today

The triathlon is not far away and fast approaching. Today we biked a bit over 17 miles and then afterwards I ran just about 2K. I feel confident I could have run the total 3K I planned. Instead, since my ankle hurt, I decided to stop early. We will both be busy each day working to finish getting ready for the triathlon and I will need to do more swimming (where I am the least practiced at this point).

In the last few weeks, we have both done some planting in the yard. The bulbs are all starting to come up and many of the things we planted as seeds are also now above ground. Our old grill was also on its final legs, so we got a new one (the very inexpensive miniature kind, like before). We used it tonight since it's warming up here.

Nothing new to report otherwise. A new Justice was appointed to the Court last week and I imagine I will hear something, one way or another, soon.