It's been a while...

I love to write. I'm not very good at it, but I love to do it. It seems I don't have the time to write. I know I do, it just seems as though I don't. We all have time for anything if we would just "make" the time. I have this blog and I've written only one thing in the past year. And even that was a copy of a report I had done previously. Good grief!! I see so many of my friends that have blogs and they seem to write things all the time. I see race reports nearly before a race is even finished. I'm not talking short one or two paragraph reports but long ones. It takes me forever to write a race report (or anything for that matter). I don't know why, it just takes an eternity. I think I read and re-read, read and re-read. Change this word or that word or maybe try and figure out the correct grammar or structure or verbiage or punctuation or whatever. Like I said, I'm not a great writer---I just like to do it.


Now, if I find (or make) the time to write I come to another hurdle. What do I write about. Seriously. What do I write about? I really never know. Of course when I run a race I can write about that. But what if I get a "hankering" to write something in between races. I seem to always have so many thoughts running through my mind but oftentimes I get lost when I want to put pen to paper. Should I jot down adventures from years past or dwell solely on the present or the "now" or do I focus on the future and the exploits that may bring. 


So where do I go, what direction do I take. Do I just keep punching the keyboard with my one, two or three finger typing technique (yeah I am a horrible typist---perhaps that's why writing anything takes forever!!) with the hopes that the words all come together and make sense? I look out the window of my living room as I write and admire how green the leaves on the trees are. I'm mesmerized by the gentle swaying of the branches. My dog Rikki is sound asleep on the sofa and my other dog Lucy is sprawled out on the floor in front of the "dog" fan . Yes, I have a "dog" fan. Well, it's not really designed for dogs (I don't think). It's just a little fan that I keep on for my girls for when they get a bit warm. They absolutely love laying in front of it!  Such beautiful creatures. Mother and daughter. Rikki the mom, Lucy the daughter. Rescue dogs, pit bull heritage. When Rikki was rescued she was in rough shape and was very timid and jumpy and needy. She had pups while in the shelter so when the puppies were old enough, we rescued one of them. (Lucy) They have been great companions and great running partners. Rikki just turned 11 last month so her best running days are behind her, but boy, does she still love to go for short jaunts. Her PR is 13.6 miles. That was 3 years ago. Lucy turned 5 in June and her PR is 28.4 miles. I love them with all my heart.


Writing about my girls got me thinking about why I have this blog to begin with. Why I wanted to write. Why I have this website. I have it because of running. Because of MY running. I started in June of 2010. I had always been an athlete and tried to stay in shape over the years, but was never a "runner". I started running because of my son. He is an accomplished musician and has had a Top 40 hit. He is a wonderful young man. In 2010 he was struggling with addiction and went into treatment. I wanted to metaphorically go down that "same hard road" that he was going down. That April I signed up for the Twin Cities Marathon. On June 10th of that year I started training. I went 3 miles total with about 6 walking breaks. Since that time I have done 22 marathons and 29 ultras. Running has become a part of my life and I love everything about it.


Running has certainly taken me places I could have never imagined. Perhaps that's one of the things I'm meant to write about. Maybe I shouldn't always overthink things and maybe I don't always need to make a profound statement. Maybe I just need to let the words flow.


I love to write. I'm not very good at it, but I love to do it. I'm going to do this a bit more often. I have a need to write, to put my thoughts down on paper (or more accurately, computer screen). Past, present and future. Please stay tuned. 


Peace and Love,
Ed
#runhardliveeasy
#barebearbutter
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