Not sure how else to start this one...so here goes.
I was looking back at an old post I made in April of 2012. At the time I was twenty-five years old, and after reading it again, all this time later, I think I had more wisdom then than I do now.
What happens to us? What happens to people? One day we have all this joy and optimism. We look at the world, our life, right in the eye, hard, unblinking, unflinching and we say something like, "You can't bring me down. Not today. Go on and try."
But, then something changes - snaps maybe. Breaks down. We wake up one day, look at the world in the eye, and utter nothing. We look down, hoping that maybe it'll stop staring back. Stop staring us down, making us feel stupid. And while we stand there, cowering, we can't help but think, "What happened to you?"
Maybe that's just me. Maybe I'm the only one who looks back and wonders where all that vigor went. Wonder why I can't just simply think, "Runnin' ain't that hard, man. It's just puttin' one foot in front of the other. No big deal." Where is that guy? Where is that optimism when I wake up on a Monday morning? Instead, I see a tired, chubby "man" in the mirror who instead says, "Hey, man. I don't like this as much as you do." It's gone. I'm thirty - a mere thirty years old - and I'm wondering where that optimism went. Only five years pass by, and I've thrown in the towel. Where did all that hope and inspiration come from? I would gladly pay any amount of money to have that again. An almost naive sense of purpose and determination. That guy - that guy from 2012 - he was headed places.
And I guess he did. I mean, he went to South Korea. Went on an adventure away from everything he loved and knew. But he came back, and that wonderful scamp became - well, the person who is typing this now.
I'm trying to find that again. I really am. And I'm not here to mope and complain, but I read that old post and all I could think was, "That's not me. I don't know who I am, but that just isn't me."
We live near Tower Grove Park in St. Louis. I've gone running there numerous times. My distance is increasing, but let me tell you, it is nothing like that other guy. I'm trying to find my purpose, too, but it's a real fight to have the optimism like that guy.
Anyway, I don't mean to be a downer. Nobody likes that. People like people who say crap like, "Push your limits, man. They are nothing but some illusion you set up." Yet, I think people like other people who are honest. Hopefully, though, I'm not being too honest.
Dress me in sackcloth and cover me in ashes. I will go about the streets weeping and mourning. We've lost an inspiration. But, it will be my intent to show him honor. I will honor that brave individual below by living my life the way he lived his. Perhaps, I can at the very least, aspire to be like him. Aspire to run 26.2 miles and go on adventures. Carry on his very spirit so he can continue to inspire us all.
That's it. That's all.
Peace.
Showing posts with label South Korea. Show all posts
Showing posts with label South Korea. Show all posts
Saturday, June 3, 2017
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Have a Seat. There's....a Lot We Have to Discuss.
I'm not going to lie, I have kind of feared this moment for sometime now. Feared what you ask? Writing publicly again. Coming back to this blog which I have neglected for too long. Trying to grab hold of that again.
Yeah, it's been a really long time. I have had a bad record on here for not keeping this current. Entire months would pass without a post. But years?! Goodness. I'm shocked at myself. Stunned and disappointed. My deepest and sincerest apologies for all those who actually liked to read this. When I put it that way...I don't feel so bad. I mean, seriously, how many of you read this? Not too many. And now you've forgotten all about this.
So, it has been nearly three years. A lot has happened in that amount of time. I do mean a lot. Like, that's another thing I feared. "If I were to write on my blog again, what would I say? How would I sum up all that has happened?" Let me tell you, with all that has happened, this is a very difficult and daunting task. I suppose the best place to start would be that photograph down there - yes the one with the 25 year old boy all smug because he had just finished his first (and still only) marathon.
Well, after that I went to IHOP, like all good Americans. It was Phil (pictured to my right [or left, depending on how you look at it] in the photo), Stephanie maybe, some other people (Craig? Was he there? Names don't matter to you guys, what am I worried about?)....and Abbie Lohmann (that name is significant, so pay attention).
Abbie Lohmann. Now, to explain this, we must rewind a bit. I've known Abbie long before I ever decided to run a marathon. I knew her parents, was friends with her younger brother. But Abbie and I...we were friends in the civil sense. Sure, we said, "Hello", "How are you?" things of that nature. Beyond that...we were never really "friends". She thought I was a big, awkward loser. For the most part.
There is a period of me liking her somewhat off and on, and when I realized that I like her, she liked someone else. Someone lean, attractive, athletic, not awkward etc. etc. You know...like superman or something. The Knight in Shining Armor. The Dreamboat. Matthew McConaughey. Cliche cliche cliche....
So, about the time this photograph was taken, Abbie had finally come around. Something snapped in her strange female brain, and she really hasn't snapped back since. She saw change in me. Saw that I was becoming more ambitious. Wearing less comic book shirts and wearing things that, you know, typical people wear. Things without graphics on them. But I had no idea this was happening. I, Mike Lee, was trying to achieve a level of highest male zen. I was my own man, I did not need any woman to come around and interrupt that. They all just decide to go their own way any way. Too difficult to figure out with women whether or not they were in it for the long haul. I decided, well before this photo, that I just did not have time for that. Time to figure out how they felt, if the liking and the relationship was going to be a serious thing. I had ambitions! Things to do, and little, oh so little, time to do them in.
At least that's what I told myself. Now, another nice anecdote to wedge in here is that, on her 23rd birthday, in the year of our Lord 2011, at the top floor of the Baily's Chocolate Bar, we had shaken hands with the sincere promise from both sides that we would never marry one another. I had said something, went on a "I'm my own man" speech (I had at this point had a whiskey or two), and generated a general disgust from Abbie. I believe her exact words were, "I will never marry you." I said, with the utmost emphasis and diligence, "Deal". And so we shook on it.
Now, let's come back to spring of 2012. She liked me. I was not aware. Until she started texting me. A lot. And responding to each of my texts rather quickly. This was uncharacteristic. But, I had confused signals from her before, so I shrug it off. It was until May of that year her cousin, during a talk on a drive from an art fair in Illinois, dropped a major hint. From then on I noticed Abbie's flirtatiousness more. I realized, that yeah, I do kinda like her.
We liked each other. Talked a lot that summer. This was also the summer I had decided to do something I have talked about on here (I dunno, it's been so long since I've read any of these posts). I was going to finally go to South Korea and teach English. A friend of mine, when I had told him I had dreamed of doing this, said he actually had an old college friend who now lived and worked in Seoul, South Korea. Our church has many other churches globally, and this friend was going to the one in Seoul. He knew some other foreigners who were doing exactly what I wanted to do. My friend spurred me to follow this dream, and said he would put me in touch with his friend in South Korea. Now, my mind was set to follow through with that.
Now. The dilemma. I liked a girl. I was anticipating going overseas for a full year. In my mind, I had to pick one. Both could not work. So, I thought about it a lot. A LOT. And decided, I would forgo the relationship and follow my dream.
I talked to Abbie's brother. He said that maybe they could both work. A year is just a year, right? If you never try, you'll never know. He advised me to talk to her, lay it out there, and see what she comes back with. So I did.
One night in August, we were texting. She knew something was off. She asked why. I said I was thinking a lot lately. She asked what about. I knew then that I had to call her, tell her how I felt. Now, at this point, she knew my intentions of going overseas to teach. She thought it was great and really wanted me to do it. But now I had to tell her that I liked her, which I had not done yet. I also had to talk about the future, long distance and all that. I was shaking. I didn't call immediately. But I did. And one of the most awkward phone conversations in history ensued.
"Hey Abbie."
"Hey Mike."
"Soooo....what do you think about me going to Korea for a year?"
Ugh. Seriously, Mike? What was your intent? I imagine that with that question I was trying to draw out from her the confession that she liked me. But she held her poker hand close.
"I think it's great. I think that you should go after it. It's one of your dreams. If you never do it, you'll regret it."
Yeah. Yeah, I probably would. So knowing that the next logical step was to tell her, I went ahead and explained how I felt about her. She reciprocated. I don't remember much from the conversation after that. But the following night we talked for a while on her front step of where she was living at the time. We talked about a lot of things. The past. The present. Eventually we got to the future. "It's just a year. We can make it work." I took that as a green light. I wanted to go to Korea, but I also wanted to be with her. But...maybe it could work.
A few weeks later, we went on a nice date with another couple. Under the St. Louis Arch that evening, much to her surprise, I asked her to be my girlfriend (surprise because I had been taking my sweet time with everything up until that point, so she no longer anticipated me asking to happen that soon). There's a lot more to that date, and it's kind of funny, but that's a whole other blog post.
During the next five or six months we dated. It was great. We had a couple bumps, but nothing serious. I was going through the long, long, long process of getting ready to go to Korea (Also, a whole other blog post). It was like a side quest in a video game.
In late February of 2013, I was all ready to go. I had my visa, and had been accepted to a school where I would be teaching kindergarteners and elementary students for an entire year. The school had set up my flight. I was supposed to leave on the 22nd of February, but we had a bad snowstorm on the 21st, so my flight was cancelled and I had to rebook. Which, the lady gave me a very long, and round about flight itinerary. Needless to say, instead of having a pretty quick, straight shot from St. Louis to Chicago, Chicago to Seoul, in the course of a day and a half, my entire weekend was spent with delays and mishaps. Another story (see why this is so difficult?) So I left Friday evening from St. Louis, got to Incheon Airport in Seoul on Monday night. Long time traveling.
I got there. I felt a lot like Samwise. "If I take one more step, I'll be the farthest from home that I've ever been." It was a bit daunting, being in Seoul South Korea, one of the biggest cities in the world and most definitely the biggest I've ever been too. I met some really cool people. Over the course of a year, I got to do a lot of fun stuff, teach some fun and extraordinary kids, and a visit to Japan was wedged in there (That....THAT was the dream. Nothing like sushi in Kyoto, Japan). I would love to go into some of the stories. I had meant to blog about my adventures in Korea, and greatly regret that I did not do so. Lot's of craziness. But...perhaps another time.
During this time, Abbie and I continued to date. We had weekly Skype dates and talked regularly through apps like Couple and Kakao Talk. There was also a week in the summer when Abbie and one of my good friends (the one from the marathon photo) came to visit. It was...strained, to say the least. That was one of the most difficult things I had ever done. But we made it. We got into a fair share of fights, disappointments, but we didn't give up. Then I came back, and that actually presented a new set of challenges which took some time to overcome.
In July of 2014, Abbie and I went to go visit my friend Dave and his wife, Kathryn in Portland. I had always wanted to experience downtown Portland. I had visited Oregon before when Dave and Kathryn were married in 2010. Their wedding was held rather far away from Portland. This time, this would be the time to visit Portland. Abbie stayed with her aunt and uncle, while I stayed with Dave and Kathryn. We spent a few days with Abbie's aunt and uncle. We spent one day at the Oregon Brewfest (There's a beer called the "Megadank". If anyone can find this for me and send it, I would be extremely appreciative. It had so much hops. The IBU was literally off the charts, according to the little pamphlet. And I do love a really hoppy beer [Oregon is a magical land of hops]). We also spent a day driving up the Oregon cost, stopping at little towns, lunching at a one of the Rogue Beer restaurants. There was a beach we stopped at, which was gorgeous. This is were "Haystack" rock is. Honestly, the name of the beach eludes me at the moment, which I should know due to what happens later.
See, a week before we left for Portland, I bought Abbie's engagement/wedding ring. I had numerous ideas of how I would propose (A hot air balloon was one). Many of which were thrown out due to logistical things. Yet, I probably should've went with one of those original ideas. But I'm Mike Lee, so I felt confident to do this. And so...
That beach with Haystack rock? Yeah, we went back. Dave took us there. The sun was low in the sky. Abbie and I walked out to the edge of the water (not without some grumpiness and apprehension on her part. She just wanted to sit down and relax on her beach towel). I awkwardly (this is a common thing, for sure) said something "romantic" (arguably) and got down on one knee, begging the question we were certain of the answer. So on July 28th, 2014 I was engaged. The woman who shook my hand, vowed never to marry me, is now going to have to make a very different vow. Course, I guess the same is true for myself.
After that, wedding planning happened. We're just about done with that. The big day is coming up: May 9th 2015.
Now, I work at a law firm as an administrative assistant. I've been living with Phil for the last year, but will be moving to Abbie and I's future residence soon (Also, another story. Seriously, if only I had kept up with this dumb blog I wouldn't have to play catch up).
In the words of the Grateful Dead, "What a long, strange trip it's been..." I'm hoping (very much so) that there are more adventures to come. Life and has been...well, quiet since I've come back. I say that in a somewhat relative manner. No big adventures. And running? Oh man, forget that. I've tried so many times since I've been back. I ran some in Korea, but ever since I came back here...ugh, I can hardly go a mile without getting winded. A MILE! And I happily ran 26.2! For me, it wasn't even a workout unless I did five miles. Those days...well I hope they are not dead. I was less fat, that's for sure.
Well, I hope you feel caught up. I'm sorry that not a lot of details were spilled, but seriously, it's been three years. You a get a nutshell synopsis, until I decide to write about all those other things I teased you about in this post.
Hopefully I will return. I'll try to not make it so long next time.
**TEN YEARS LATER***
"Hey guys I'm back. Finally. So. Where to start? I have children now. That's crazy."
Yeah, it's been a really long time. I have had a bad record on here for not keeping this current. Entire months would pass without a post. But years?! Goodness. I'm shocked at myself. Stunned and disappointed. My deepest and sincerest apologies for all those who actually liked to read this. When I put it that way...I don't feel so bad. I mean, seriously, how many of you read this? Not too many. And now you've forgotten all about this.
So, it has been nearly three years. A lot has happened in that amount of time. I do mean a lot. Like, that's another thing I feared. "If I were to write on my blog again, what would I say? How would I sum up all that has happened?" Let me tell you, with all that has happened, this is a very difficult and daunting task. I suppose the best place to start would be that photograph down there - yes the one with the 25 year old boy all smug because he had just finished his first (and still only) marathon.
Well, after that I went to IHOP, like all good Americans. It was Phil (pictured to my right [or left, depending on how you look at it] in the photo), Stephanie maybe, some other people (Craig? Was he there? Names don't matter to you guys, what am I worried about?)....and Abbie Lohmann (that name is significant, so pay attention).
Abbie Lohmann. Now, to explain this, we must rewind a bit. I've known Abbie long before I ever decided to run a marathon. I knew her parents, was friends with her younger brother. But Abbie and I...we were friends in the civil sense. Sure, we said, "Hello", "How are you?" things of that nature. Beyond that...we were never really "friends". She thought I was a big, awkward loser. For the most part.
There is a period of me liking her somewhat off and on, and when I realized that I like her, she liked someone else. Someone lean, attractive, athletic, not awkward etc. etc. You know...like superman or something. The Knight in Shining Armor. The Dreamboat. Matthew McConaughey. Cliche cliche cliche....
So, about the time this photograph was taken, Abbie had finally come around. Something snapped in her strange female brain, and she really hasn't snapped back since. She saw change in me. Saw that I was becoming more ambitious. Wearing less comic book shirts and wearing things that, you know, typical people wear. Things without graphics on them. But I had no idea this was happening. I, Mike Lee, was trying to achieve a level of highest male zen. I was my own man, I did not need any woman to come around and interrupt that. They all just decide to go their own way any way. Too difficult to figure out with women whether or not they were in it for the long haul. I decided, well before this photo, that I just did not have time for that. Time to figure out how they felt, if the liking and the relationship was going to be a serious thing. I had ambitions! Things to do, and little, oh so little, time to do them in.
At least that's what I told myself. Now, another nice anecdote to wedge in here is that, on her 23rd birthday, in the year of our Lord 2011, at the top floor of the Baily's Chocolate Bar, we had shaken hands with the sincere promise from both sides that we would never marry one another. I had said something, went on a "I'm my own man" speech (I had at this point had a whiskey or two), and generated a general disgust from Abbie. I believe her exact words were, "I will never marry you." I said, with the utmost emphasis and diligence, "Deal". And so we shook on it.
Now, let's come back to spring of 2012. She liked me. I was not aware. Until she started texting me. A lot. And responding to each of my texts rather quickly. This was uncharacteristic. But, I had confused signals from her before, so I shrug it off. It was until May of that year her cousin, during a talk on a drive from an art fair in Illinois, dropped a major hint. From then on I noticed Abbie's flirtatiousness more. I realized, that yeah, I do kinda like her.
We liked each other. Talked a lot that summer. This was also the summer I had decided to do something I have talked about on here (I dunno, it's been so long since I've read any of these posts). I was going to finally go to South Korea and teach English. A friend of mine, when I had told him I had dreamed of doing this, said he actually had an old college friend who now lived and worked in Seoul, South Korea. Our church has many other churches globally, and this friend was going to the one in Seoul. He knew some other foreigners who were doing exactly what I wanted to do. My friend spurred me to follow this dream, and said he would put me in touch with his friend in South Korea. Now, my mind was set to follow through with that.
Now. The dilemma. I liked a girl. I was anticipating going overseas for a full year. In my mind, I had to pick one. Both could not work. So, I thought about it a lot. A LOT. And decided, I would forgo the relationship and follow my dream.
I talked to Abbie's brother. He said that maybe they could both work. A year is just a year, right? If you never try, you'll never know. He advised me to talk to her, lay it out there, and see what she comes back with. So I did.
One night in August, we were texting. She knew something was off. She asked why. I said I was thinking a lot lately. She asked what about. I knew then that I had to call her, tell her how I felt. Now, at this point, she knew my intentions of going overseas to teach. She thought it was great and really wanted me to do it. But now I had to tell her that I liked her, which I had not done yet. I also had to talk about the future, long distance and all that. I was shaking. I didn't call immediately. But I did. And one of the most awkward phone conversations in history ensued.
"Hey Abbie."
"Hey Mike."
"Soooo....what do you think about me going to Korea for a year?"
Ugh. Seriously, Mike? What was your intent? I imagine that with that question I was trying to draw out from her the confession that she liked me. But she held her poker hand close.
"I think it's great. I think that you should go after it. It's one of your dreams. If you never do it, you'll regret it."
Yeah. Yeah, I probably would. So knowing that the next logical step was to tell her, I went ahead and explained how I felt about her. She reciprocated. I don't remember much from the conversation after that. But the following night we talked for a while on her front step of where she was living at the time. We talked about a lot of things. The past. The present. Eventually we got to the future. "It's just a year. We can make it work." I took that as a green light. I wanted to go to Korea, but I also wanted to be with her. But...maybe it could work.
A few weeks later, we went on a nice date with another couple. Under the St. Louis Arch that evening, much to her surprise, I asked her to be my girlfriend (surprise because I had been taking my sweet time with everything up until that point, so she no longer anticipated me asking to happen that soon). There's a lot more to that date, and it's kind of funny, but that's a whole other blog post.
During the next five or six months we dated. It was great. We had a couple bumps, but nothing serious. I was going through the long, long, long process of getting ready to go to Korea (Also, a whole other blog post). It was like a side quest in a video game.
In late February of 2013, I was all ready to go. I had my visa, and had been accepted to a school where I would be teaching kindergarteners and elementary students for an entire year. The school had set up my flight. I was supposed to leave on the 22nd of February, but we had a bad snowstorm on the 21st, so my flight was cancelled and I had to rebook. Which, the lady gave me a very long, and round about flight itinerary. Needless to say, instead of having a pretty quick, straight shot from St. Louis to Chicago, Chicago to Seoul, in the course of a day and a half, my entire weekend was spent with delays and mishaps. Another story (see why this is so difficult?) So I left Friday evening from St. Louis, got to Incheon Airport in Seoul on Monday night. Long time traveling.
I got there. I felt a lot like Samwise. "If I take one more step, I'll be the farthest from home that I've ever been." It was a bit daunting, being in Seoul South Korea, one of the biggest cities in the world and most definitely the biggest I've ever been too. I met some really cool people. Over the course of a year, I got to do a lot of fun stuff, teach some fun and extraordinary kids, and a visit to Japan was wedged in there (That....THAT was the dream. Nothing like sushi in Kyoto, Japan). I would love to go into some of the stories. I had meant to blog about my adventures in Korea, and greatly regret that I did not do so. Lot's of craziness. But...perhaps another time.
During this time, Abbie and I continued to date. We had weekly Skype dates and talked regularly through apps like Couple and Kakao Talk. There was also a week in the summer when Abbie and one of my good friends (the one from the marathon photo) came to visit. It was...strained, to say the least. That was one of the most difficult things I had ever done. But we made it. We got into a fair share of fights, disappointments, but we didn't give up. Then I came back, and that actually presented a new set of challenges which took some time to overcome.
In July of 2014, Abbie and I went to go visit my friend Dave and his wife, Kathryn in Portland. I had always wanted to experience downtown Portland. I had visited Oregon before when Dave and Kathryn were married in 2010. Their wedding was held rather far away from Portland. This time, this would be the time to visit Portland. Abbie stayed with her aunt and uncle, while I stayed with Dave and Kathryn. We spent a few days with Abbie's aunt and uncle. We spent one day at the Oregon Brewfest (There's a beer called the "Megadank". If anyone can find this for me and send it, I would be extremely appreciative. It had so much hops. The IBU was literally off the charts, according to the little pamphlet. And I do love a really hoppy beer [Oregon is a magical land of hops]). We also spent a day driving up the Oregon cost, stopping at little towns, lunching at a one of the Rogue Beer restaurants. There was a beach we stopped at, which was gorgeous. This is were "Haystack" rock is. Honestly, the name of the beach eludes me at the moment, which I should know due to what happens later.
See, a week before we left for Portland, I bought Abbie's engagement/wedding ring. I had numerous ideas of how I would propose (A hot air balloon was one). Many of which were thrown out due to logistical things. Yet, I probably should've went with one of those original ideas. But I'm Mike Lee, so I felt confident to do this. And so...
After that, wedding planning happened. We're just about done with that. The big day is coming up: May 9th 2015.
Now, I work at a law firm as an administrative assistant. I've been living with Phil for the last year, but will be moving to Abbie and I's future residence soon (Also, another story. Seriously, if only I had kept up with this dumb blog I wouldn't have to play catch up).
In the words of the Grateful Dead, "What a long, strange trip it's been..." I'm hoping (very much so) that there are more adventures to come. Life and has been...well, quiet since I've come back. I say that in a somewhat relative manner. No big adventures. And running? Oh man, forget that. I've tried so many times since I've been back. I ran some in Korea, but ever since I came back here...ugh, I can hardly go a mile without getting winded. A MILE! And I happily ran 26.2! For me, it wasn't even a workout unless I did five miles. Those days...well I hope they are not dead. I was less fat, that's for sure.
Well, I hope you feel caught up. I'm sorry that not a lot of details were spilled, but seriously, it's been three years. You a get a nutshell synopsis, until I decide to write about all those other things I teased you about in this post.
Hopefully I will return. I'll try to not make it so long next time.
**TEN YEARS LATER***
"Hey guys I'm back. Finally. So. Where to start? I have children now. That's crazy."
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Run, Rabbit, Run
Hello, Hi, Welcome, Bienvenido, Ni hao, Konnichiwa, Bonjour...so on, so forth.
I'm going to level with all of my viewers here: I got completely bored of the blog. Which is why, once again, it's been over two months since the last post. South Korea gave up on me. China gave up on me. Even David gave up on me. We haven't had one of his snarky comments in a long time (which, by the way Dave, you're off comment probation. You can come back now).
I ended up running the half marathon here in the great St. Louis city on Sunday April 10th, 2011. It was exciting, terrifying, electrifying, mind blowing, etc. etc. For those of you who are even the least bit physically inclined, I STRONGLY recommend running in any sort of race like this. It is an unforgettable experience. Yes, there is a lot of pain and hard work involved, but it is worth it. People are constantly cheering from the side lines of the race. You're running with thousands of other people who also trained and worked hard to reach this point, and there's a sense of unity. You're not racing against them but with them. The only thing you could be racing against is time and yourself. I guess that's the reason I never liked team sports. You're always working against somebody, and for me in gym class it was generally more against my team mates. Super competitive people made me feel inadequate. That's the reason why I hate playing football. I could never understand the game, we always played it in gym class, and I was always hounded by meat head jocks when I missed the ball (if they even bothered to throw the ball at me, that is). But I'm not bitter or anything. I think I'm pretty much over it (says my psychiatrist).
Running, biking, swimming...this are things that don't need competition. You can just do them. I guess you can just throw a ball back and forth instead of playing an actual game, but I'm going to be honest here and just flat out say it gets a little stale after awhile. At least running and biking have some change in scenery.
I'm getting a little off track. Enough about team sports and my scarred teenage years.
Yes, the race was great. I finished in 2 hours 28 mins. I regretfully didn't drink enough water along the track, took one of those Gu energy packets (these make you sick and ruin your life. Especially when you need something sustaining like water) around mile 8 and started to lose stamina a little after mile 9. I had trouble just moving at the same pace and ended up walking the rest of mile 9. After that I intermittenly ran/walked until the last mile. I had to finish that last mile strong, so I ran it and sprinted the last hundred feet or so to make it in under 2 and half hours. I didn't get my sun shirt out of the deal, but I got a lot of snacks, a neon green shirt, and a medal, which was good enough for me.
Other than that, things have remained pretty quiet. Not a lot happening and that's not okay but I can deal with it. Summer is here, or at least in my professional opinion. So, no more snow storms with ice, no more chapped lips, no more dry knuckles. Just sweat and sunburns for me.
That's all I have. I didn't really have anything loaded for this issue of The Living Blog. I'll whip up some good material for next time. Thanks for stopping in.
I'm going to level with all of my viewers here: I got completely bored of the blog. Which is why, once again, it's been over two months since the last post. South Korea gave up on me. China gave up on me. Even David gave up on me. We haven't had one of his snarky comments in a long time (which, by the way Dave, you're off comment probation. You can come back now).
I ended up running the half marathon here in the great St. Louis city on Sunday April 10th, 2011. It was exciting, terrifying, electrifying, mind blowing, etc. etc. For those of you who are even the least bit physically inclined, I STRONGLY recommend running in any sort of race like this. It is an unforgettable experience. Yes, there is a lot of pain and hard work involved, but it is worth it. People are constantly cheering from the side lines of the race. You're running with thousands of other people who also trained and worked hard to reach this point, and there's a sense of unity. You're not racing against them but with them. The only thing you could be racing against is time and yourself. I guess that's the reason I never liked team sports. You're always working against somebody, and for me in gym class it was generally more against my team mates. Super competitive people made me feel inadequate. That's the reason why I hate playing football. I could never understand the game, we always played it in gym class, and I was always hounded by meat head jocks when I missed the ball (if they even bothered to throw the ball at me, that is). But I'm not bitter or anything. I think I'm pretty much over it (says my psychiatrist).
Running, biking, swimming...this are things that don't need competition. You can just do them. I guess you can just throw a ball back and forth instead of playing an actual game, but I'm going to be honest here and just flat out say it gets a little stale after awhile. At least running and biking have some change in scenery.
I'm getting a little off track. Enough about team sports and my scarred teenage years.
Yes, the race was great. I finished in 2 hours 28 mins. I regretfully didn't drink enough water along the track, took one of those Gu energy packets (these make you sick and ruin your life. Especially when you need something sustaining like water) around mile 8 and started to lose stamina a little after mile 9. I had trouble just moving at the same pace and ended up walking the rest of mile 9. After that I intermittenly ran/walked until the last mile. I had to finish that last mile strong, so I ran it and sprinted the last hundred feet or so to make it in under 2 and half hours. I didn't get my sun shirt out of the deal, but I got a lot of snacks, a neon green shirt, and a medal, which was good enough for me.
Other than that, things have remained pretty quiet. Not a lot happening and that's not okay but I can deal with it. Summer is here, or at least in my professional opinion. So, no more snow storms with ice, no more chapped lips, no more dry knuckles. Just sweat and sunburns for me.
That's all I have. I didn't really have anything loaded for this issue of The Living Blog. I'll whip up some good material for next time. Thanks for stopping in.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Going The Extra Mile
As soon as I welcome South Korea, they don't even bother to come on to the site again to look at their personal welcome. Come on, South Korea! I know I didn't stay up all night putting together this amazing welcome, but I at least considered you in my writings! You should be so proud and fulfilled. First it's me. My last name is Lee. I'm pretty much Korean anyway (except for that part where all of my ancestors came from Western Europe, the makers of measles and colonialism). And second, I love you guys. Really, I do.
But, I'm not completely abandoned. Another country has made a number of visits this week. And that country is...
CHINA!!
Yes, the will-be Successor in the global market (least, that's what I've been hearing all these years) has actually put forth the effort to visit my site. So, in this installment of "Revenge of the Living Blog" I give a big, WARM welcome to our Chinese pals. Thanks China for giving up your time to read some crazy American's blog. I really appreciate it. Keep it up too. It'll get really interesting here on the blog, I promise. Also, Happy New Year! Year of the Rabbit. I'm sure it will be a good one. I'll eat a lot of vegetables, hop around, and when an animal or human sees me I'll remain perfectly still with my eyes wide open and nose twitching in an effort to celebrate properly.
And South Korea...you can scroll down to see your welcome. If you wanna come back to the blog. Whatever. I don't care either way.
Recently I started training for a half-marathon. I officially started training little over a month ago right after I registered. It cost $85 to register. I know I was entering late, but that's a lot of money to run for a couple hours. I mean, I obviously didn't have too many qualms with the price since I paid for it in full. But I better get a couple bottles of free Gatorade and a really rad shirt. One that's neon blue with a cartoon sun wearing hot pink sunglasses doing a thumbs up. Then just below this cartoon sun it says, "Way to go, dude!" If I don't get that, this whole endeavour is going to be a complete waste. COMPLETE...
This half marathon I'm participating in is of course leading up to one of my life goals, to fully run a whole marathon without stopping. It would be a big deal to me, especially since there was a time in my life when I was fat and tried to do sports. 12-14 was the era of "chubby". Dark, awkward days those were. I had a bowl cut, which my mother cut WITHOUT a bowl (she's a skilled artisan. She doesn't need a straight edge. Her eye is a straight edge. In Apocalypse Now when Marlon Brando talks about a dream with a slug crawling across the edge of a straight razor, he actually speaks of my mother's eye. A slug crawls across her eye without being cut). My cheeks puffed out. My face and belly were very round. Yet, when I was 11 and 12 I participated in Cross Country. Becoming winded very quickly and the force of my belly weighing down my little 4'8 (approximately) body didn't stop me from running with the big leaguers. I was an athlete. I may have come dead last each time I competed, but I FINISHED.
So now that I'm older, taller, and drink less Dr. Peppers a day, I feel like I owe it to the little pudgy fellow of my past to finish a marathon. He put forth his all even thought he didn't have much and for that I thank you. You brought us half-way little buddy, and I'm going to finish for us the race.
Monday I did about six miles without too much trouble. I'm hoping to do at least six or more today. I have to be able to do about 13 miles by April 10th. Pray me some prayers.
That's all I've got. China, once again thanks for visiting. Hopefully we can get together sometime, drink oolong tea. I've got some yixing tea pots, maybe I could come over and stay for a few months. Bike across your beautiful country side, eat some great food, drink some fantastic tea. It'd be great. Hit me up sometime when you've got the chance.
Korea, you can come too.
Peace.
But, I'm not completely abandoned. Another country has made a number of visits this week. And that country is...
CHINA!!
Yes, the will-be Successor in the global market (least, that's what I've been hearing all these years) has actually put forth the effort to visit my site. So, in this installment of "Revenge of the Living Blog" I give a big, WARM welcome to our Chinese pals. Thanks China for giving up your time to read some crazy American's blog. I really appreciate it. Keep it up too. It'll get really interesting here on the blog, I promise. Also, Happy New Year! Year of the Rabbit. I'm sure it will be a good one. I'll eat a lot of vegetables, hop around, and when an animal or human sees me I'll remain perfectly still with my eyes wide open and nose twitching in an effort to celebrate properly.
And South Korea...you can scroll down to see your welcome. If you wanna come back to the blog. Whatever. I don't care either way.
Recently I started training for a half-marathon. I officially started training little over a month ago right after I registered. It cost $85 to register. I know I was entering late, but that's a lot of money to run for a couple hours. I mean, I obviously didn't have too many qualms with the price since I paid for it in full. But I better get a couple bottles of free Gatorade and a really rad shirt. One that's neon blue with a cartoon sun wearing hot pink sunglasses doing a thumbs up. Then just below this cartoon sun it says, "Way to go, dude!" If I don't get that, this whole endeavour is going to be a complete waste. COMPLETE...
This half marathon I'm participating in is of course leading up to one of my life goals, to fully run a whole marathon without stopping. It would be a big deal to me, especially since there was a time in my life when I was fat and tried to do sports. 12-14 was the era of "chubby". Dark, awkward days those were. I had a bowl cut, which my mother cut WITHOUT a bowl (she's a skilled artisan. She doesn't need a straight edge. Her eye is a straight edge. In Apocalypse Now when Marlon Brando talks about a dream with a slug crawling across the edge of a straight razor, he actually speaks of my mother's eye. A slug crawls across her eye without being cut). My cheeks puffed out. My face and belly were very round. Yet, when I was 11 and 12 I participated in Cross Country. Becoming winded very quickly and the force of my belly weighing down my little 4'8 (approximately) body didn't stop me from running with the big leaguers. I was an athlete. I may have come dead last each time I competed, but I FINISHED.
So now that I'm older, taller, and drink less Dr. Peppers a day, I feel like I owe it to the little pudgy fellow of my past to finish a marathon. He put forth his all even thought he didn't have much and for that I thank you. You brought us half-way little buddy, and I'm going to finish for us the race.
Monday I did about six miles without too much trouble. I'm hoping to do at least six or more today. I have to be able to do about 13 miles by April 10th. Pray me some prayers.
That's all I've got. China, once again thanks for visiting. Hopefully we can get together sometime, drink oolong tea. I've got some yixing tea pots, maybe I could come over and stay for a few months. Bike across your beautiful country side, eat some great food, drink some fantastic tea. It'd be great. Hit me up sometime when you've got the chance.
Korea, you can come too.
Peace.
Monday, March 7, 2011
"In Our Day We Didn't Have 3D Graphics. We Had 16-Bit Sprite Images. And We Were Happy."
Before we get started today, I would just like to share some new found knowledge. Recently I discovered Blogspot.com allows me to look at how many people look at my blog (which, to my surprise, is a number larger than 1 [apparently I have some other fans, Dave]). Now, that information on it's own is very exciting. But I have something even better to add to that: People from South Korea read my blog. And quite regularly. I mean, Russia and China and some other spots in the world show up on my viewing statistics, but South Korea appears to be a pretty regular visitor.
With that said, I would just like to give a big American welcome to our South Korean brothers and sisters across the earth who frequently visit "Revenge of the Living Blog". I would like to also say, I love your part of the world, could you possibly find me some work and a place to stay? I would really like to visit (or live) in Seoul if possible. Kimchi is pretty tasty. I've never practiced Tai Kwan Do, but am willing to learn. That's about the extent of my South Korean knowledge.
Now, with that portion crossed off the list, we can finally move onto more important things.
Like, things we (Generation Y) will have to explain to our children 15-20 years from now. The last couple generations have been lucky in the sense that we've been able to see technology advance at an astonishing rate (well, astonishing for me. I'm always fascinated by the magic of technology. It might be because I'm not really savy on math or science. That doesn't mean neither subject interests me. I just don't grasp either subject as well as others. I'm a dumb emotional artist rather than someone with a vast amount of logic and patience). We've seen the explosion of the video game market in the late 80's into the 90's. We've seen the mediums of music, video, and games go from cassettes and cartridges to thin discs, enhancing the quality of each medium. Our children (my friend Phil Freeman brought this up) will never understand the phrase "Be Kind, Rewind" ("You guys had to rewind all your movies when you were done watching them?"). They won't understand the proper method of blowing into a cartridge to get a video game to work. They're method of getting a game to work will be to rub the disc on their shirt. Or maybe all the games will be 100% downloadable, like how books, music, and movies are becoming, so they won't have to wipe or blow anything at all.
It'll be a little strange I suppose. Still, I hope my kids are fascinated by the notion of the video game cartridge, just like when my parents and grandparents would describe old methods to me it would instill a bit of fascination.
The other day I was playing Mario Kart for the Wii with my friend's nephew. He's about 9 or 10 right now. Never experienced the 90's (poor kid). This is probably the only Mario Kart game he's ever experienced. Well, this one and the Mario Kart for the DS. Still, I knew he had never played the original Mario Kart for SNES, or even Mario Kart 64. As I was playing the new Mario Kart, I said to him, "You know, there was a time in Mario Kart when there wasn't a blue shell". I think I blew the kid's mind.
It's a small thing, but it gives me that refined feeling that I've lived a bit of this life. I'm getting to a point where I have certain cultural experiences that people born much later never had an opportunity to enjoy. There'll be more added on, I know. This is but a taste, and I like it. Doesn't make me feel old. At least not yet. It makes me feel privilaged, the fact that I have this secret knowledge of previous times in my brain. I, along with a few million others, are keepers of this knowledge, waiting to share when the proper time comes.
Maybe I'm giving us too much credit. As if Super Nintendo is as important as remembering The Depression or WWII. Still, as the up and coming generation, the one that is finally vacating the colleges to start overthrowing the world, we have certain histories (outside of old video games) that we'll have the privilage to tell succeeding generations.
And to that I say, "Remember when there were only a 151 Pokemon?"...
With that said, I would just like to give a big American welcome to our South Korean brothers and sisters across the earth who frequently visit "Revenge of the Living Blog". I would like to also say, I love your part of the world, could you possibly find me some work and a place to stay? I would really like to visit (or live) in Seoul if possible. Kimchi is pretty tasty. I've never practiced Tai Kwan Do, but am willing to learn. That's about the extent of my South Korean knowledge.
Now, with that portion crossed off the list, we can finally move onto more important things.
Like, things we (Generation Y) will have to explain to our children 15-20 years from now. The last couple generations have been lucky in the sense that we've been able to see technology advance at an astonishing rate (well, astonishing for me. I'm always fascinated by the magic of technology. It might be because I'm not really savy on math or science. That doesn't mean neither subject interests me. I just don't grasp either subject as well as others. I'm a dumb emotional artist rather than someone with a vast amount of logic and patience). We've seen the explosion of the video game market in the late 80's into the 90's. We've seen the mediums of music, video, and games go from cassettes and cartridges to thin discs, enhancing the quality of each medium. Our children (my friend Phil Freeman brought this up) will never understand the phrase "Be Kind, Rewind" ("You guys had to rewind all your movies when you were done watching them?"). They won't understand the proper method of blowing into a cartridge to get a video game to work. They're method of getting a game to work will be to rub the disc on their shirt. Or maybe all the games will be 100% downloadable, like how books, music, and movies are becoming, so they won't have to wipe or blow anything at all.
It'll be a little strange I suppose. Still, I hope my kids are fascinated by the notion of the video game cartridge, just like when my parents and grandparents would describe old methods to me it would instill a bit of fascination.
The other day I was playing Mario Kart for the Wii with my friend's nephew. He's about 9 or 10 right now. Never experienced the 90's (poor kid). This is probably the only Mario Kart game he's ever experienced. Well, this one and the Mario Kart for the DS. Still, I knew he had never played the original Mario Kart for SNES, or even Mario Kart 64. As I was playing the new Mario Kart, I said to him, "You know, there was a time in Mario Kart when there wasn't a blue shell". I think I blew the kid's mind.
It's a small thing, but it gives me that refined feeling that I've lived a bit of this life. I'm getting to a point where I have certain cultural experiences that people born much later never had an opportunity to enjoy. There'll be more added on, I know. This is but a taste, and I like it. Doesn't make me feel old. At least not yet. It makes me feel privilaged, the fact that I have this secret knowledge of previous times in my brain. I, along with a few million others, are keepers of this knowledge, waiting to share when the proper time comes.
Maybe I'm giving us too much credit. As if Super Nintendo is as important as remembering The Depression or WWII. Still, as the up and coming generation, the one that is finally vacating the colleges to start overthrowing the world, we have certain histories (outside of old video games) that we'll have the privilage to tell succeeding generations.
And to that I say, "Remember when there were only a 151 Pokemon?"...
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