I run registration for one event every year. And every year, registration opens one tick past midnight on the same day of the year. Obviously the SCS hasn’t figured that out yet. And yeah, if we overfill, we run a lottery after we close signups.
I hope each of you has a wonderful New Year and pray that you will find peace and friendship wherever and whoever you are.
And, as this is my 84th new year, I will add this that I have learned. One sure pattern for life is to hold tight to your families and loved ones, your deepest beliefs, and your sense of what is right.
Hold tight to your self-respect, your respect for others, and your love of your country
Hold tight to the truth that, while no one is your better, no one is less.
Hold tight – as bad as your pain is, others suffer more.
Know it is up to you – always was and always will be. Hold Tight
And the year starts off with the school janitor and one of the schoolkids eating breakfast together, on a holiday. Nothing at all out of the ordinary there.
One of my coworkers has done a couple “Spartan Runs” which are extreme marathons (last one was 100 miles in about 36 hours….), extreme obstacle courses with things like spear throwing, etc. Even he admits that these challenges are insane. And while he takes pride in the fact that he did it, he manages to not be smug or condescending about it, probably because he admits that they are insane and doesn’t pretend that this is normal behavior.
Sufferfest certainly sounds like the name of his next race if he’s going to do another….
I remember being in Nevada and seeing that section of the casino where people sit at the slot machines aging in place. The glassy stare, the slumped yet alert posture, held there by the cold chains of optimism. And yes, I remember feeling kind of bad for them, but also feeling … empathy. Feeling like I’d seen it before. Knowing that I’d BEEN there before, in a way.
It’s been a while since it was impossible to get into an Ironman or something similar without taking the day off work and typing your whole application out in advance, ready to paste in within the time limit should you be lucky enough to hit ENTER at the right moment to catch a break in the slow broadband and gain entry to the Web site for one of the four Ironman competitions extant, and do it all in the five minutes before the thing sold out. It was like trying to get tickets to The Who’s farewell tour.
Now The Who still keeps having farewell tours and there are a lot more Ironmans and getting into either is not quite the big deal or pathetic scene it once was. At least not quite so universally. But there are events here and there, and as long as there are, there will be Unproductive Athlete Day, or days, early in the year. We’re all looking for that jackpot. Or at least the official Tour t-shirt.
Concretionist over 4 years ago
I run registration for one event every year. And every year, registration opens one tick past midnight on the same day of the year. Obviously the SCS hasn’t figured that out yet. And yeah, if we overfill, we run a lottery after we close signups.
sandpiper over 4 years ago
Caulfield seems to get a lot of free passes for many of his not-so-humorous observations.
sandpiper over 4 years ago
I hope each of you has a wonderful New Year and pray that you will find peace and friendship wherever and whoever you are.
And, as this is my 84th new year, I will add this that I have learned. One sure pattern for life is to hold tight to your families and loved ones, your deepest beliefs, and your sense of what is right.
Hold tight to your self-respect, your respect for others, and your love of your country
Hold tight to the truth that, while no one is your better, no one is less.
Hold tight – as bad as your pain is, others suffer more.
Know it is up to you – always was and always will be. Hold Tight
car2ner over 4 years ago
1st day hikes in the State Parks around here. Time to buy the next year’s season pass.
seismic-2 Premium Member over 4 years ago
And the year starts off with the school janitor and one of the schoolkids eating breakfast together, on a holiday. Nothing at all out of the ordinary there.
cervelo over 4 years ago
There’s something a little twisted about queuing-up on-line to earn a chance at physical abuse…
asrialfeeple over 4 years ago
Happy Hangover Day.
Teto85 Premium Member over 4 years ago
Buy Nothing Month. Day after Thanksgiving until 12th night. Except for food and gas.
Kit'n'Kaboodle over 4 years ago
One of my coworkers has done a couple “Spartan Runs” which are extreme marathons (last one was 100 miles in about 36 hours….), extreme obstacle courses with things like spear throwing, etc. Even he admits that these challenges are insane. And while he takes pride in the fact that he did it, he manages to not be smug or condescending about it, probably because he admits that they are insane and doesn’t pretend that this is normal behavior.
Sufferfest certainly sounds like the name of his next race if he’s going to do another….
Stephen Gilberg over 4 years ago
They don’t say what time it opens?
Night-Gaunt49[Bozo is Boffo] over 4 years ago
Blog Frazz13 hrs ·
I remember being in Nevada and seeing that section of the casino where people sit at the slot machines aging in place. The glassy stare, the slumped yet alert posture, held there by the cold chains of optimism. And yes, I remember feeling kind of bad for them, but also feeling … empathy. Feeling like I’d seen it before. Knowing that I’d BEEN there before, in a way.
It’s been a while since it was impossible to get into an Ironman or something similar without taking the day off work and typing your whole application out in advance, ready to paste in within the time limit should you be lucky enough to hit ENTER at the right moment to catch a break in the slow broadband and gain entry to the Web site for one of the four Ironman competitions extant, and do it all in the five minutes before the thing sold out. It was like trying to get tickets to The Who’s farewell tour.
Now The Who still keeps having farewell tours and there are a lot more Ironmans and getting into either is not quite the big deal or pathetic scene it once was. At least not quite so universally. But there are events here and there, and as long as there are, there will be Unproductive Athlete Day, or days, early in the year. We’re all looking for that jackpot. Or at least the official Tour t-shirt.