Andrew's blog
9 March 2010
If You Can Fill The Unforgiving Minute...
...with sixty seconds worth of distance run...
...hen you clearly have no grasp of distance running whatsoever. Sixty seconds? I can't even tie my running shoes in that time. Distance running, as I am discovering, is ruddy 'ard, Rudyard.
So thought I as I set off this morning for another insomniac's outing. I awoke in a Southend Hotel (that sounds like the first line of a Good Night Out story, but sadly it isn't) at around 4:30am today feeling somewhat irritable, thankful and guilty.
Irritable: who wants to be awake at 4:30am?
Thankful: I am warm and in a comfotable room with four walls.
Guilty: The current Mrs J is not in such a room. We are having a bedroom built upstairs at home, and as the back (outside) wall of our bedroom has been temporarily replaced by a tarpaulin it is like being on the first floor of a tent, only colder.
So I set off for a quick run. Not a bad idea rather than sit here feeling sorry for myself. And I did get one thing right, at least, so here is Andrew's top tip of the day which will no doubt change everyone's life for the better:
When going running before dawn, always head West. That way, although it is dark, on your return you will always be running into the sunrise. Spirits lifted, hamstrings and calves worked, job done.
Oh yes, now I have to go to work. Oh well. Time for a shower. Have a great day.
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Posted by Andrew at 6:29
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5 March 2010
B ack L O G
I don't know why, but my blogging has tailed off over the last few months, a fact which both my readers have commented on.
I have been doing some soul-searching to find out why. Here's what I have come up with, while sitting in a Starbucks somewhere in London:
a) Maybe I am too lazy
b) Maybe I am too busy
d) Maybe I have nothing (interesting) to say
e) Maybe my job has evolved rapidly over the past few months and my energies have been focused elsewhere
d) Maybe I am missing the real reason.
Having beaten myself up sufficiently, I think the reality is that while there are elements of all of the above, I think that the answer lies in better time management. I vow to be more ruthless (sorry Ruth) and post more regularly.
I may be guilty of having lost sight of my goals.
As it turns out, I had a look in my blog folder and found that I HAD written quite a few blogs, but for some reason not bothered to post them. Not sure why this is either, so over the next few days I will post the BackLOG and get them off my chest (and off my hard drive).
Psycho-analysts you may now have an official field-day.
Hopefully this will prove cathartic. Have a great day. AJxx
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Posted by Andrew at 8:48
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3 March 2010
Half Marathon
Stormy Weather...
Is it a song? Is it a forecast? No, it’s my memory of my first attempt at the Tonbridge Wells Half Marathon (semi-snickers) last Sunday in what was surely some of the worst weather I have ever tried running in.
Being super-organised, I had left it too late to enter for the Brighton Half Marathon, a race which was to form part of my preparation for the BIG ONE in April – my first (and very possibly my last) attempt at a Marathon.
Fortunately, my wife’s cousin David could not take up his place, so he let me run for him (I know, probably very illegal, but all in a good cause and for charity!).
I admit I nearly didn;t bother getting out of the car, but having plucked up the courage to do so I was keen to see whether the miles I have been trying to put in since August had made any difference. My previous best time was around 2 hours 15 minutes, not earth-shattering, but my dream was to run in under 2 hours.
It was tough. At first, we all delicately skirted the puddles, but after a while nobody bothered – "it’ll keep my feet cool", said one runner in a very positive frame of mind! And the hills! Maybe I have been spoilt running round Brighton, but there was one hill (Spring Hill?) halfway round the course that was described as a ‘conversation stopper’; I liked that.
The description, that is, not the mile-long killer climb.
There’s more to tell, but to cut a long story short:
One hour, 58 minutes and 45 seconds later, I crossed the line, got a high five from Dame Kelly Holmes, and started wolfing down bananas as though it was 1946 and they’d just been re-introduced.
A soaking, a personal best, and another step towards achieving my ultimate marathon dream. Next challenge on the route is the Worthing 20.
It’s a race. Bet you can’t guess where it’s held or how far it is...
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Posted by Andrew at 9:57
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9 February 2010
One Train– Two Odd Things.
This morning I was on a train heading for a secondary school in North London. Having been fully caffeinated, I went in search of the train toilets.
The big loo nearest my carriage was one of those with a curved sliding door; the sort you always worry will fly open at the wrong moment. This was moot, since it appeared not to be working, so I pressed on. Barely half a mile later I found the next toilet, one of the older type – a very tiny cubicle.
To add to the fun, the lock didn’t work. Not that this was much of a problem, to be honest, as with me inside it was virtually impossible for anyone to open the door. Nevertheless, this didn’t prevent me from wedging myself against it as far as I could.
So maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised to hear the rapid voice. But I was.
“THIS IS THE DRIVER. PLEASE STATE THE NATURE OF THE EMERGENCY.”
It took me a second to realise what had happened. Inside this anti-tardis (even smaller on the inside that it appears on the outside) I had braced myself and my elbow had pressed against the emergency button.
I decided to come clean. “Um, sorry, there’s no emergency, I just accidentally pressed the button with my elbow.” True, but it sounded so lame. The response was equally blunt, and sounded something like “”WHICH TOILET ARE YOU IN – IS IT ONE OF THE BIG ONES OR ONE OF THE SMALL ONES?”
I wanted to say that ‘small’ hardly did it justice, but in the circumstances thought better of it. “Um, small”, I replied, wondering for the first time whether anyone outside could hear this humiliating conversation. “PLEASE MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN TO THE DRIVER WHEN YOU LEAVE THE TRAIN” said the voice. Yeah, right.
I returned to my seat and was relieved to see that nobody sitting near the cubicle was sniggering. I sat down and started to sign some books that I was taking to the school.
The man opposite was on his phone – nothing unusual about that, I thought.
As he caught my eye he suddenly said, “So, doing a show today?”
For the second time I was temporarily wrong-footed. “Um, yes” I responded, showing what I thought was pretty magnificent spontaneity.
“I saw your name on the book and looked you up on the internet.” I wasn’t sure whether to be flattered or slightly scared...
As it turned out he was a very pleasant chap – a former teacher, hence his interest, and now a railway inspector. Good job I had a ticket, I thought.
And all this before 7:30am. What will the rest of the day hold, I wonder?
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Posted by Andrew at 8:00
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1 December 2009
I Don't Believe it!
I 've just seen on Sky Sports (so it MUST be true) that the country ranked 16th in the FIFA rankings ahead of the 2010 World Cup is...
...wait for it...
The Ivory Coast!
So at least now we know who will knock us out on penalties, then.
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Posted by Andrew at 13:47
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