neonleonb

I just got my bike serviced at The Missing Link, Berkeley's co-op run bike shop. It was one of the wisest decisions I've made in recent history.  My bike is easier to pedal, though that wasn't terribly obvious on the 5 blocks I rode it so far. What was most striking was the way it shifts perfectly now. It used to click a bit, and have trouble getting into certain gears. Now it changes gears like a dream! I'm delighted.

2 Sundays ago, I did a fund-raising 5K run for Multiple Myeloma, in honor of my mother. I was pleased with my running (I didn't stop to rest, this time), but more importantly, I raised an astonishing amount of money on my mom's behalf.

I hadn't expected other people to donate much (I really do hate asking for donations), but the total donation was $370! (No, that's not $370 factorial, though that would be an impressive donation.) Thank you very much for your help! That, and not the running, was the real triumph. I am astonished and impressed to get so much support for Ellen.

Thank you!

In other news, I also went on a hike to Mt. Diablo. It was very nice, and pleasantly green for California. I'd recommend it to anyone. Here are a few of the better pictures.

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My time was 22:06, setting a personal record for me. My calculator says that's 7:07 minutes per mile, which isn't too bad either.

I'll write a little more about it, but now I've got to go see Mount Diablo.

As you may have heard, my mother has the sort of bone cancer known as "multiple myeloma." I'll be running in a 5K fund-raising race on Sunday, April 5. I always feel awkward asking for donations, but I thought I should at least inform people of the opportunity. If you want to help support multiple myeloma research, you can donate through my mom's team here: http://321cure.themmrf.org/site/TR/RaceforResearch/General?team_id=1500&pg=team&fr_id=1030

EDIT: To donate, click the "join team" link on that page.

Two recent failings:

1. I ran the 5k on Sunday doing better than 8-minute miles, as I'd hoped. Unfortunately, I was also lazy enough to walk for part of it. I can make excuses of several sorts, but basically I just didn't push hard enough. I'll have to see if I can fix that--for starters, by stopping the walk at the top of the hill on my daily run.
2. I bought fancy dance shoes. I'm ashamed to say how much I spent on them, but they're the most comfortable dress shoes I've ever felt, and they'll have suede on the soles. It'll be nice to have them, I suppose, but I may be the only one in the class who has them. Even some of the teachers don't wear the fancy dancing shoes. Now I feel kind of foolish for splurging like that.
   

Morning exercise is hard. I know this because yesterday I went for an evening bike ride instead of a morning bike ride. Granted, I found it no easier than usual, but ... I had given blood the day before. So riding in the morning is as hard as riding after giving blood! And I usually get way more tired after giving blood.

Ruth brought me back some sausage from Italy. When I ate it (with scrambled eggs and cheese), I was filled with energy and played badminton hard all evening and was still energetic at the end of it. Today, I had some salami at ICSI's tea, and my officemate keeps remarking that I'm in an odd, energetic mood. Evidently, sausage is the fuel that really makes me go; now I'll have to keep watching for more sausage/energy correlation. All the more reason not to become a vegetarian, not that I was at risk of that.

Megan and I went on an all-day bicycle-based exploration of San Francisco.

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Last night I played soccer. I still seem to remember a few skills, but I'm so easily tired. I ran for a minute or two, and after that I mostly walked. It's hard to believe that I once played hard for a whole game. But it looks like the soccer game will be a weekly event, so maybe I'll develop some endurance after a bit.

It probably didn't help that it was dinner time, but I hadn't eaten since lunch.