Blog Ideas

So I think I need to organize this blog a little better. Not that anyone other than my mother and wife read it, but it could use a little direction.

I'd like to blog about:

(1) Running

(2) Reading

(3) My Life

(4) My Opinions

(5) Other things I find interesting

RUNNING:

I think, rather than any sort of daily or running-day updates for the blog, I'd rather shot for a weekly update on my running progress. Well, I haven't decided which day of the week this will be, look for a specific day of the week to be devoted to running.

READING:

My goal is to read three books a month. Therefore, there should be at least 3 blog posts about the books I read. My family's book club meets early in the month, so there should be one then, and I think I will just post the others as I finish the books. No specific days for these posts, I think.

MY LIFE:

Definitely no certain day of the can be devoted to these updates, so I will update these blogs as things in my life happen.

MY OPINIONS:

Again something more off the cuff for these, but I think I will try to devote a day of the week or every-other-week to these posts. These will include quotes, things I recently read, or just general blabbing.

OTHER THINGS:

Not sure what's in this category, but I assume there will be things--new hobbies for example--that aren't really opinion or important enough to be considered "a life event." These will be random posts, for sure.

Well, this is what I hope to be the NEW organization for my blog. Hope this is helpful in providing more clarity and enjoyment when reading my blog.

Cheer!

-S-

BOOK: Ethan Frome

This was the second time I read Ethan Frome. The last time was over a decade ago in grade school. This America Classic by Edith Wharton is a short story about love and life. My family noted that, like most "classic," Frome is quite sad. While many stories of love offer a more upbeat and gleeful perspective, this one offers a more realistic, warts and all look at love.

Ethan Frome is the title character and protagonist, though not the narrator of this book. The story unfolds his love affair with his wife's cousin, who comes to live with them. As his wife grows more sick, she kicks out her cousin in favor of a more capable bed-hand. Ethan is not happy with this situation and the story tells of the budding love affair's trials.

Overall, it's a quite read with a tragic ending. If you like classics, then this one is for you. Our family rated it a 7 (out of 10), and would recommend it to most people.

Happy Reading!

-S-

Next Book: Loving Frank by Nancy Horan and Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri.

RUN: 4 Times, but my shortest Distances

There are two many runs to quantify here, so I will just give you the totals for the day.

RUN (4): 3.52 miles in 26:39 minutes (7'32"/mile pace).

Some good runs, and especially my run with Kylie. She's doing great.

-S-

ARTICLE: Financial New Years Resolutions

I am pretty big into New Year's resolutions right now (maybe because New Years was last week). One of the neat articles I read recently is worth sharing. It's from Mint.com (a great online financial tool, if you ask me).

10. Make or Update your Will

9. Set up an Automatic Savings Plan

8. Get Rid of Useless Crap

7. Start a Business

6. Simulate Bad News

5. Plan for Financial Good News

4. Talk to your Relatives about a Gift Moratorium

3. Look into a Roth IRA Conversion

2. Take a Nice Vacation

1. Don't Buy a House

Check out the article!

-S-

RUN: Third times a charm

Did it again. Three runs today--this time I ran to and from work! Plus I ran a sprint. I didn't run with Kylie today--she needed a day off (or so I think).

Anyway, the first run was to work. And, yeah, I didn't get in a shower before playing with the kiddos. Oh well, they'll forgive me. The run was good, because I run towards the sunrise, which was beautiful pinks and blues this morning.

RUN(#1): 3.25 miles in 25:15 minutes (7'46"/mile pace).

The next run was a short sprint down to Mass Ave.

RUN(#2): 0.29mi in 2:03 (7'02"/mi).

The final run was on the way home. The weather was nice, and my body wasn't too sore.

RUN(#3): 2.73 in 20:39 (7'32"/mi)

I might run to work again tomorrow morning. Not sure if Kylie and I will run tomorrow either.

-S-

RED SOX: New Sox on Beltre

So the Sox signed Adrian Beltre, who was with Seattle last year (and the 4 before that) and became a superstar in Kansas City. He is a great third baseman with a pretty good bat. Luckily, it was a one year deal worth $9 million, and Beltre has the option for next year at $5 million.

He broke into the majors with the LA Dogders, and was at the time the youngest player in the major leagues. In 2004 (with the Dodgers), he finished 2nd in the NL MVP voting. That year at age 25, Beltre batted .334 with 48 home runs and 121 RBIs. He had a .388 on base percentage and a whopping .629 slugging percentage. His 1.017 OPS was good for fifth in the league, and he had 376 total bases. All remain career highs.

He was a free agent after '04 and signed a five-year, $64 million deal with the Seattle Mariners. His best season with them was 2007, when he batted .276 with 26 homers, 99 RBIs, and an .802 OPS. Beltre never had an on-base percentage above .327 with Seattle, and his peak slugging percentage was .482. But last season, he hit just 8 homers and drove in 44 runs in 111 games. He was plagued by a shoulder injury last season, and also had to go on the disabled list after taking a grounder in the groin (he was not wearing a cup). In both 2007 and 2008, Beltre won the American League Gold Glove award at third base after recording fielding percentages of .958 (2007) and .964 (2008).

One of Beltre's quirks -- beyond not wearing a cup, of course -- is that he has a habit of appealing to the first base umpire on his own check swings, which theoretically could result in him getting strikes called during his own at-bats.

My opinions on the trade are

1) his defense will be great, much better than aging Mike Lowell.

2) he takes walks, but not as many as we would like.

3) he doesn't have the pop he used to, and I hope I see him hitting well, if not for power.

4) Lowell's trade-value just crashed. We will be giving him away for nothing.

RUN: Hey, 3 runs again

So, I really like my Nike+ things. I use my iPod Touch to listen to music (more often a book, to be honest), and the shoes I have are made with a hole in the foot to place the little tracker device. It's pretty accurate, and it makes running a little more fun.

Anyway, first run was with Kylie. Today she did remarkably well. She ran with me most of the time. She always does because she's on a leash, but she wasn't pulling as much as normal. Her pace was great. The times we slowed were mostly for her to find a tree.

RUN (#1): 1.34 miles for 12:06 minutes (8'58"/mile pace)

The next run was home from work. I often have to break this run up into smaller segments because of the stoplights. Today, I only had to break it once (hence the final run). It was an ok run, the sidewalks were still really snowy/icy, which sucks. The traffic was light, and it wasn't too cold or windy.

RUN (#2): 3.09mi for 24:16 (7'50"/mi)

Final run was a sprint once I got close to home. Well, a sprint after I ran a 5k. I just wanted to get home, and I had just walked about a half mile.

Run (#3): 0.25mi /1:34 (6'48"/mi)

Ready for more. I hope to run to work or home tomorrow.

-S-

RUN: Three small runs

So I ran three times today. Not only am I trying to get out and play with Kylie (our dog, a black lab-mix), but I am trying to lose 2 pounds a month until the summer. So far things are going well with both goals. Yes, it's only been three days, but I am feeling pretty good about it.

Today I ran at three different points. My first run was with Kylie. I don't know if you have run with a dog before, but Kylie probably isn't a normal dog anyway. Kylie is a sprint for 1 minute, drag me for a minute, walk slow for a minute, poop, pee, repeat kind of dog. She is much better at NOT running after squirrels or birds, and we avoid other dogs most of the time. A long run for her, though, is only a mile. After that, she is beat and I have to drag her pulling at the leash the whole time. Overall, she loves the snow, and running really make her happy (and need to poop)--it was a fun, snowy-street run with my dog!

RUN (#1): 1.24 miles for 12:24 (9'48"/mile pace)

The second run was shortly after the first one. I dropped off Kylie at home and picked up the keys to school. I left from there and ran my bike-route to work. I was in the road most of the time, which was because the sidewalks were mostly unplowed and there were few cars out. It was cold, and my shoes started to get wet, so I only ran a 5k before walking a little.

RUN (#2): 3.05 miles for 21:34 (7'04"/mile)

My final run was shortly after gaining feeling in my frozen toes and ended quickly after the feeling left again. The sidewalks in Cambridge were just as bad as those in Belmont.

RUN (#3): 0.82 for 5:52 (7'06"/mile)

Overall, a great running day. Just over 5 miles in just under 40 minutes of running!! Let's hope my shoes dry quickly!

-S-

BOOK: Middlesex

MIDDLESEX

My first book for 2010 is the Pulitzer Prize winning Middlesex by Jeffery Eugenides. I thought it was a great book.

While the books protagonist is a transperson, the topic of transsexualism is not a present throughout. It is more a look at three generations of Turkish-Greek family living in Detroit. The story line, while a little slow at first, finishes leaving the reader satisfied and no loose-ends (something I dislike). It's length is not too much, but the subject matter (and the explicits) can weigh on a reader not interested in a child, and young adults, perspective on self-identity and realization.

The author's protagonist uses a well-educated language throughout. While I found myself reaching for a dictionary at times, it was not distraction. Though this book's subject matter make it an adult book, I think a younger adult will find it a better read. As the coming-of-age protagonist is appealing to readers of the same mindset. Many from older generations might find the stories of the grandparents immigration more interesting.

SIDE NOTE: I often listen to books, and I listen to this one. If you like listening to books, I recommend this one, as the reader (Kristoffer Tabori) was great!

Overall, if you like a good (yet long) story and a transexual theme is not a turn-off, then this is a great one. I recommend it to anyone who likes a well-written book. While there is no BIG finish to the book, it ends with no loose ends and the reader feeling warm.

Now go to your library and get this book!

SCORE: Recommend8/Enjoy8

Next Book: Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year, everyone. I hope the new year finds you health and happy.

This is one of my resolutions is to journal more. My goal is to use this blog more to record some of my reflections. I hope you find some of them interesting.

Another resolution is to read more. I am reading a book a month with my mother's family, and I have picked out two other books I chose personally to read each more. Hopefully, I will blog about the books I read this year.

Also, I have been running a lot in the past 6 months. My goal for this year is to run the Boston Half-Marathon in October. I will comment on my blog about my progress, too.

And, as always, I hope to keep you updated on any news from the Ecott-Lancaster's as my wife (Stacey) and I travel, cook, and enjoy life.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

-Seth H E Lancaster-

-S-