The Happy Gardener

Got a nice six miler done this morning. And that brings the total to 32.75 miles. The shins felt pretty good after too. Wisely, I stretched the heck out of them. And just to be sure, I included Ice and Tiger Balm. Ice and TiBa is an awesome combo. Until you get some TiBa in your eyes, that is. Don't ask me how. Wanted to add a couple of comments on my earlier post. 1. It may not seem apparent reading the post but much fun was had over this trip. Granted, most of it was the giddy kind of fun that comes out of exhaustion but still. 2. Let's see you Haiku that, my haiku-loving-friend.

I've been light headed for a couple of days. Mostly because I pared down my long locks over the weekend. A nice summer cut and now I won't get the pony whiplash when I run. So I decided that I'll tell you the story of Bald Mountain. This was a hiking/camping/backpacking trip that P and I attempted three years ago during summer. It was, I think, ~ 20 mile round trip. It was somewhere in Vermont ( I am too bored to look it up now) and on the Appalachian trail. The plan was to for us to meet at the trail head, hike up carrying our backpacks (loaded with sleeping bags, camping gear, etc), camp at the top of the mountain (not the Bald One), and hike back down the next day. This is one of those memories. I doubt if I'll ever forget any part of it. We met around 9 or 10 at the trail head. We'd discussed this the previous night and we both planned to bring water filters so we could filter water from streams and other water bodies on the hike so we didn't have to carry t

Had to use that word. Especially now that I've finished reading Oscar Wao. And yes, I am back. First things first. I need to keep track of my mileage on my new shoes and in general. So let's see - as far as I remember there was 3 miler, a 6 miler, a 3 miler, a 4.5 miler, a 7 miler, a 2 miler and a 1.25 miler. And that, my razor sharp whizkid brain tells me adds up to 30 miles, no 14.85 miles, no wait! 26.75 miles. And yes, you will notice that the last two runs were extremely unremarkable. That's the thing. I had a good 7 miler over the weekend, thanks to Y who ran with me and pushed me to a faster-than-usual pace and made sure I finished it, and then a quick 2 miler y'day and my shins were doing fine. All seemed well. And then today, I get on the treadmill and abt 13 mins later my shins went to town. And now, ice is my new best friend. Oh well. So much for those awesome shin/calf exercises that I've been doing religiously for 3 whole days. Next, had a great weekend

So, I was having dinner with friends this evening and was stunned to discover that they didn't know about this contest-sorta-thing that I had going on. Amazes me - how people go about with little knowledge of the wonders all around them. Anyways, I decided that I should remind folks about it. I also thought it would be good to post some rules regarding this contest-sorta-thing. Rules * It is necessary for the reader to leave a comment on one of blog posts so that they be included in the head count (we are aiming for 50). (How else will I know you read my blog, Einstein? ) * Whenever possible, the comment should be less witty/interesting/deep/informative that the actual post. I understand that is a pretty hard thing to do, but oh well. Alright, alright. The comment may be more informative than the post. * It is not necessary that the reader enjoy the post in order to comment on it. * In fact, it is not necessary for the reader to finish reading the post prior to commenting on it. *

It happened! The first celebrity sighting in a long long time. Obama and his daughters. They were at my place and I was figuring out their sleeping arrangements along with my brother and sis-in-law. OK, so you must know that this was in my dream. I must say it's one of the wackiest dreams I've ever had. I was stressing out last night on the whole iPhone vs Blackberry Storm before I went to bed and so it follows that early this morning I dreamt that Mr.O and his daughters were visiting me, my bro and my s-i-l. It was funny. There we were, 3 hosts and 3 guests and we had this one room where I was trying to arrange all the beds and sleeping bags so everyone could sleep comfortably. My sister in law was fretting about making sure every one was comfortered and my bro was a little sleepy and grumpy and I just wanted them all to settle down and go to sleep. The biggest problem somehow was where Aliana (that was his younger daughter's name in the dream) would sleep - not sure why.

Beautiful day. Had to drive ~25-30 miles after work to get to a practice session for an upcoming performance. Had a solid practice session and headed back an hour later. Decided to test out my new running shoes and did a 3 miler on the treadmill. Did most of it at an easy pace and finished feeling pretty good. Stretched for a little and walked out to the car without pain/stiffness. It was a lovely spring evening - cool enough to feel good in a light t shirt after a run. Spent a couple of minutes admiring the glow of fresh green leaves against the light from a street lamp, got into my car and happily drove home. So this is probably a good drill. If I have 30-40 mins of cardio activity to warm up with, I might be able to run 3 miles without issues. It all seems moot. And now for a quick two pages of Wao and bed. We are taking the bike to work tomorrow, precious!

Hope in a garden Hoping it will turn out like last year : or the year before ... And so to Wao and bed.

Another weekend comes to a close. It was a good one. Good weather, good times. I bought my new running shoes yesterday. Of course, the fact that the skies got all dark and gloomy and there was a big downpour on my way back home bodes ill for them. But then, I have never been accused of being a quitter - especially when it's actually a good idea. So I shall bash on regardless. Have you ever wondered who discovered that pineapples were edible? I mean, they almost look like mini-dragons - not exactly inviting. Of course, this discovery must have taken place after the invention of the chain saw. 'Cause that is what you need to cut one - a pineapple, I mean. I tried to cut the one I bought yesterday and after a few scratches and some curses, I decided that it still wasn't ripe enough. Try another day. Oh, that reminds me. I was Trader Joe's yesterday. They have these organic bran muffins in different flavors there. And they are made by a company called - get this - Moral Fib

Does life get in the way of sleep or does sleep get in the way of life? Just finished watching Juno. It's such a warm and sunny story. Loved it. and so to bed.

The plan was to go to bed early so I could get up early tomorrow morning, stretch, pack for the day and bike to work. The reality is that I just got back home after watching Russel Peter's new sketch and a cool video (from Top Gear) of the Bugatti Veyron doing 253 mph at AP's place. That is two zucching fifty three miles per hour. Insane. And waaaay cool. (Mental note : Add the following to the list of things to do the next time I have free time, or the next time I am doing something that I am not keen on doing - look up the list of current Bugatti Veyron owners. This should be possible) So, I decided to update the name of this blog based on Aditya's comment. I have also come up with a name for my autobiography that I will eventually attempt out of boredom : The imperfect Buddha and Other stories. Not sure if I picked up the "and other stories" from A - the phrase seems vaguely familiar. Other things to ponder on: 1. Why was a hammer involved the last time I cooke

I am not a true blue New Englander. I am not proud of the Boston attitude. I don't think Boston is better than all cities South, North and West of Boston (there are no cities East of Boston). We all know that I do not enjoy driving on the crazy New England roads, especially after digging my car out of a mound of New England snow. And I definitely do not think that it is weak to live in a place with milder weather. I don't even use the one big advantage of living around Boston - the Patriots, Celtics, Red Sox and the Bruins. The Patriots I am now luke warm to (after Eli and his men put a stopper on their Super Bowl run and an indifferent season last year - prior to that, I just didn't like them) and the others I barely manage to connect with the right sport. But one thing I am big fan of. I love the New England Spring. Rather, I am foolishly, hopelessly, breathless and wide eyed school girlishly in love with the spring here. It's amazing. A little over a month ago, the r

It's close to 11 pm on a Friday night and for a change, I am happily curled up with my Bill Bryson. He combines my two great loves - a wacky and sometimes silly sense of humor and travel. He is awesome. And so to bed.