Where's the Bunny?

There are 1,000 “Bennys” and only 1 “Bunny”.  That one Bunny is hiding somewhere in the Bennys.  Can you find the Bunny?

Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny 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Benny Benny Benny Benny Benny

Sun, Mar 24-Sat, Mar 30

Sun Mar 24: AM. In Chicago for the Shamrock Shuffle 8k Run.  Ran the 8k in 27:32.  Felt tough, especially the last couple miles.  It wasn’t awful, but I’d hoped to be a little faster.  I wasn’t used to running in such a large, competitive race—I finished around 260th.  I think it mostly helped psychologically to have so many people around me, but it also made me feel like a very small fish in a big pond.  My mind was telling me, “Go faster!  There shouldn’t be this many people in front of you.”  But my legs and body were hurting and unable to push any harder.  The weather was pretty good—cloudy, a little windy and in the low 30s.

Mon Mar 25: AM. A 78 min run on the Lakefront Trail along Lake Michigan and on the Chicago Riverwalk.  It was cloudy and 48°.

Tues Mar 26: No AM run—tired, slept in.  PM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark, very windy, and 33°.

Wed Mar 27: AM. A 50 min run on the Capital City Trail including a mile with Jonah in ~5:40.  It was dark and in the upper 20s.  PM. A 40 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and 33°.

Thurs Mar 28: AM. A 60 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path to Picnic Pt.  It was sunny and 27°.

Fri Mar 29: Only ran once again today.  Been beat lately.  AM. A 32 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was sunny and 22°.

Sat Mar 30: AM. A 60 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path to Picnic Pt.  It was cloudy and 36°.  PM. A 78 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was partly cloudy and in the 40s.

Tomorrow I start the big push.

Sun, Mar 17-Sat, Mar 23

Sun Mar 17: AM. A 90 min run around Lake Monona.  It was sunny early, then became more cloudy later in run.  Very windy.  Temp in the upper 20s.

Mon Mar 18: AM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  Felt tired.  It was dark and 23°.  PM. In Deerfield, A 60 min run on the Glacial-Drumlin Trail.  It was sunny and in the low 30s.

Tues Mar 19: AM. A 40 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 30°.  PM. In Deerfield, A 35 min on-shift run doing loops around the ambulance station.  It was sunny and 50°.

Wed Mar 20: AM. A 60ish min pastry club run over trails and residential streets.  It was sunny and 28°.  PM. On the track, did 6x400m (76, 78, 75, 73, 75, 73), then ran a loop around Lake Wingra in 45 mins.  It was sunny, a little windy, and 32°.

Thurs Mar 21: AM. A 78 min run on the Capital City Trail and SW Path.  It was dark till the sun rose about ¾ into run, giving way to mostly cloudy skies.  Temp of 23°.

Fri Mar 22: AM. A 48 min run on the Capital City Trail and SW Path.  Little slippery in spots.  It was snowing and 29°.

Sat Mar 23: AM. A 32 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was sunny and 20°.  PM. In Chicago, A 30 min run in the downtown area and on the Lakefront Trail.  Resting for tomorrow.  It was sunny and in the mid 30s.

You better believe it

“Go ahead,” My fat-ass-good-for-nothing-gluttonous mind tells me.  “Eat another doughnut.  Have another scoop of ice cream.  Drink another beer.  One more won’t hurt you.  Besides, you deserve it.  You’re training for a marathon.  You need those extra carbohydrates.”  

I’ve been listening to Mr. Fat ass a little too much lately.  My diet’s been awful and I’ve been feeling very lethargic the past several days.  I think I’m gaining some weight.

Earlier today, Mr. Warning came knocking at my door.  As soon as I opened it, he started hollering at me: 

“It's going to happen!  If you don't quit fooling around, it's going to catch up with you!  If you don't stop pushing your luck, it's just going to reach out and grab you!”

Mr. Warning is right.  I really need to watch it.  No more eating like a glutton.  From now on, I am going to be Mr. Healthy.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

Once again I, a simple solitary sufferer doomed to failure, am running through the streets of Madison asking myself that same question that has been asked so many times over and over again: “Is it possible for a man who is brave, solitary and simple to obtain true happiness in this 21st century world, this exciting world of passion and evil?”  Yes, I ask that question knowing that today will bring me yet another chapter, another page, another paragraph, in that exciting narrative drama of man in the 21st century.  Am I prepared to accept it?  Am I prepared to deal with it?  Am I prepared to face the fire and dig deep at crunch-time, at that critical stage of the race when things really get tough?  Oh, but I must fear not.  Fear not!  For I am a great believer in that wonderful little statuary, those monkeys of the past who saw no evil, heard no evil, and uh…

What was the other one now?  Shucks!  Son of a gun.  Just after I thought I was off to a good start it slipped my mind.  What was it that that third monkey did?

It’s right on the tip of my tongue.

I saw no evil, I shall hear no evil, … It’s right on the tip of my tongue …something—he shall kick no evil?  No.  He shall, uhhh, ...It’s something to do with evil…

I don’t know what it was that the other monkey did.

Over on State Street there are these three monkeys.  They are sitting on a bench.  The first monkey is covering his eyes so he doesn’t see any evil.  The second monkey is covering his ears so he doesn’t hear any evil… I pass by there all the time, and uh, oh shucks!  You remember it!  It’s right in front of State Street Brats!  Come on, you remember those three monkeys!  I’m not making it up!

What was it that last monkey said?

I don’t know son of a gun I don’t even think there were any monkeys now it’s all falling apart

Go ahead and ask yourself these serious sinister questions: Is it possible to achieve better living through alchemy?  Where is the treasure buried?  If a tree shall fall in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it still make a sound when it falls?  What did the third monkey do?  Who knows.  Was there even a monkey?  Or is it a figment of my imagination?

Hehe… By the way have you ever had yourself a bowl of figments and cream?  It’s kind of nice, especially if you use heavy cream and you allow the figments to ripen.  Oh, and green sprinkles—you can’t forget about the green sprinkles on top.

Sun, Mar 10-Sat, Mar 16

Sun Mar 10: AM. A 2 hour run on the Capital City Trail and Lower Yahara Riverway Trail.  Ran with MSRC group at 7ish pace for the first hour, then ran 9 mins with Isaac at around 5:50 pace, ran the rest of the way solo at 6:30ish pace.  Legs were a little tired.  It was sunny and in the upper 20s.

Mon Mar 11: AM. A 60 min run on the Capital City Trail and SW Path.  It was dark and 32°.  PM. In Sunny P, A 40 min run in Sheenah Park and on residential streets.  Sun was setting over clear skies with a temp around 60°.

Tues Mar 12: AM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  The sun was rising over partly cloudy skies with a temp of 51°.  PM. In Sunny P, A 30 min run in Sheenah Park and on residential streets.  The sun was setting over mostly clear skies, temp of 60°.

Wed Mar 13: AM. A 60ish min pastry club run on residential streets and on the Capital City Trail.  It was sunny and 35°.  PM: On the track, did 2x3200m (both in 11:59).  Felt tired.  I’d planned on doing 4x3200, but my legs were beat.  It was cloudy and in the mid 60s.

πhurs Mar 14: AM. A 90 min run around Lake Monona.  It was lightly raining and in the mid 40s.  PM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and around 40°.

Fri Mar 15: AM. A 60 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path to Picnic Pt.  The sun was rising over clear skies, temp of 31°.  PM. In Sunny P, On the SPHS track - Did 3x800m (2:42, 2:37, 2:39).  It was getting dark and hard to see.  Temp around 50°.

Sat Mar 16: AM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 41°.  PM. In Milwaukee, A 78 min run on the Oak Leaf Trail along Lake Michigan.  It was mostly cloudy, windy, and around 50°.

The truth comes out

Most of what I write is shit.  It’s all just a bunch of nonsense.  Fiction.  Make-believe.  Pretend.  I have a terribly bad habit of over exaggerating things.  

In my last post, I wrote that I overslept and didn’t get out of bed until 6:47.  That was a lie.  I hopped out of bed at 5:30 am and was out the door running by 5:45 am.  When I finished that run an hour later, the sun still hadn’t risen yet.  The reason why the sun hadn’t risen is because of daylight savings time.  This past Sunday, the clocks sprung forward one hour.  By 9:00 am, Mr. Sun was high up in the sky, lighting the world.  He surely didn’t burn out or go cold on us.  The world is still here, spinning around the sun like it’s always been.  

The only real truth on this blog is in my weekly training overviews.  I typically run everyday and usually twice a day.  Otherwise, almost all of the other posts I’ve written are just made up and over-embellished nonsense.

All those signs that tell me to “Slow Down” really don’t bug me that much.  And I didn’t go replacing any of them with “Speed Up” signs.  I’ve been tempted to, but I guess I’m afraid that the owner of one of those signs will catch me in the act and bash me over the head.

I wrote a post a few weeks ago called “Night Thoughts”.  It was about a run I went on in the middle of the night.  I really did go for a run in the middle of the night, but I made up some of the details just to make it sound a little more interesting.  In reality, the run was just an ordinary boring run.  Nothing too exciting happened.  I never passed any man drinking Jack or smoking any cigarettes.  The guy I saw was just a regular-looking average joe.  And when I said, “Good morning!” to him, he didn’t tell me to bug off.  He just gave me a blank stare.

I like working on my creative writing skills.  I’m not really as nutty or as crazy as what I may appear to be in my posts so I make up a lot of shit.  I just wanted to clear that up.  Let you know I’m not some kind of nut.  Well, maybe I am just a little bit nutty, but aren’t we all?

One of these days I might actually come along and write something good, something honest and worth reading.  But for now, enjoy the shit.  There will be more of it to come.

Does anybody really know what time it is?

I went to bed last night.  When I woke up this morning it was 6:47.  Darnit, I overslept.  My 5:30 alarm didn't go off.  Oh well.  I brushed my teeth, went for a nice run, showered, and ate breakfast.  By 9:00, the sun still hadn't risen.  That's when it hit me.  It must be 9:00 PM.  I’d forgotten that there were two 9 o' clocks in the same day.  I had slept through the daylight.  Either that or the sun decided to sleep in extra late like me.  Or maybe the sun burned out and the world is going to end.  I don't know.  I'm all mixed up.  Does anybody really know what time it is?  Does anybody really care?

Chicago - Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is?:

Sun, Mar 3-Sat, Mar 9

Sun Mar 3: AM. In Marshfield, A 60 min run on trails in the McMillan Marsh.  It was cloudy and around 40°.

Mon Mar 4: AM. A 2 hour 30 min run on the Veterans PKWY Trail, the Hewitt-Marsh Trail, and on country roads around Hewitt (Yellowstone, Day, H, T).  It was partly sunny, then became more cloudy later in run.  Temp in the 30s.

Tues Mar 5: AM. A 40 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was cloudy and 39°.  PM. A 40 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and around 40°.

Wed Mar 6: AM.  A 60 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path to Picnic Pt.  It was sunny and 29°.  PM. A 40 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and around 40°.

Thurs Mar 7: AM. A 78 min run on the Capital City Trail and SW Path.  It was partly cloudy and 34°.  PM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 45°.

Fri Mar 8: AM. A 60 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path to Picnic Pt.  It was cloudy and 42°.

Sat Mar 9: AM. A 60 min run on trails in Lake Kegonsa State Park.  It was sunny and 28°.  PM. A 65 min run on the Capital City Trail and Starkweather Creek Path.  It was partly cloudy and in the upper 30s.

Sun, Feb 25-Sat, Mar 2

Sun Feb 25: AM. A 78 min run with Kyle and Jonah on the Lake Wingra loop route, Monroe St, the SW Path, and on the Capital City Trail.  Did 2 min pick-ups every other mile.  It was sunny and in the 30s.

Mon Feb 26: AM. A 60 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path to Picnic Pt.  It was sunny and 27°.  PM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and 60°.

Tues Feb 27: AM. A 78 min run on the Capital City Trail and on the SW Path.  It was sunny and in the 50s.

Wed Feb 28: AM. A 45ish min pastry club run on residential and city streets.  Colder out.  Temp of 13° (windchill of -6°).  It was 65° about 15 hours ago.  PM. A 65 min run on the Capital City Trail, the Wingra Creek Path, and on the SW Path.  It was sunny, windy, and 25°.

Thurs Feb 29: AM. A 35 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was sunny and 13°.  PM. In Middleton, A 45 min on-shift run up and down Market St and the South Fork Trail.  It was dark and in the upper 30s.

Fri Mar 1: AM. A 40 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path.  The sun was rising over clear skies with a temp of 32°.

Sat Mar 2: AM. A 15 min shake-out run.  PM. In Stevens Point for the Point Bock Run 5 mile.  It was a gorgeous day, but I ran poorly.  Ran the first couple miles at ~5:24 pace (10:48 at mile 2), then struggled the rest of the way.  Legs felt dead on the last mile.  Finished in 27:57 (~5:36/mi).  Temp was around 50° with sunny skies.