easier said than done

I always thought I ran with more of a mid-foot or flat strike than a heel-first strike. So, I thought migrating to more of a fore-foot strike would be easy. Famous last words.  Actually, making the change is easy, sticking with it is hard.  As you first start out, it’s not too hard to strike with the front of your foot, take shorter strides and not reach your foot way out in front of yourself. But, after a few blocks, after going up a hill or two, your calves start to complain. You also start breathing heavier and you’ll want to go faster if you’re used to running. It really does take some continued practice and concentration. I’ve been at this for 3 months now and I still find times when my running form needs to improve. In short, it gets harder to maintain form the more tired you get.

running injuries

The whole idea of running in a minimalist style is to get back to the way things used to be.  Back when people had less leg injuries and aches and pains — as well as no running shoes — thereby allowing you to do what you love more and sitting with ice packs on ankles and knees less.  My ankles, shins, knees and back have never hurt once running this way (and they used to hurt all the time). My calves have been a different story (albeit expected). They took a while to get used to this and remained sore until they adjusted to the abuse.  Also, the tops of my feet would ache in the morning.

The pain went away after I got up and walked down the hallway and the feet seemed to stretch out a bit.  That one baffled me. No one ever mentioned top of the foot pain.  I discovered that my plan to gradually increase my distance and speed was not nearly gradual enough.  You really do need to take it slowly.  If you do too-much-too-soon, you’re going to hurt.  If you don’t recognize you’re doing too much and back off a little bit, you’re setting yourself up for a more serious foot injury.

minimalist running in the cold sucks

I mentioned this to a friend of mine who also is a minimalist runner. His response? “Suck it up buttercup.” And, he’s probably right, but I’m going to list this one anyway to make you aware of it. It’s not that your feet are ever that warm running in Wisconsin in the winter, but running through the frost barefoot is quite literally, a numbing experience. As in, I can’t feel my feet. Granted, I run in the Five Fingers, but that 4mm of rubber doesn’t really insulate your foot a whole heck of a lot.  Especially once the mesh gets wet. There is one silver lining to this that my friend also points out, if your feet are numb, they don’t hurt either.  Well, at least until they start to thaw out.

bizzarro running

I used to despise running up hills and love running down them. Well, that’s now turned upside down.  Running up hills is so much easier now.  Why? Because the fore-foot strike and the shorter strides are what you normally do going up a hill. So, there is not much change.  On the other hand, going down hill and trying to land on the fore-foot is a lot harder than it sounds.  But, think of it, when you’re running downhill with a traditional shoe, what part of your foot touches the ground first? I don’t know about you, but for me it used to be the heel.  Try that in a minimalist shoe or barefoot.  Landing on your heel hurts like hell. You have to pay special attention while going down an incline to the way you step.  Now I hate going downhill and love the long gradual uphill slope.  Kind of masochistic I know, but it’s the truth.

the dreadmill

One thing that hasn’t changed is that the treadmill sucks no matter what running style you use. It’s boring, it’s too easy to shorten a workout by just getting off and it doesn’t mimic real terrain.  I didn’t like it before, and I still don’t like it now.  But, in Wisconsin in the dark months, it’s a necessary evil.  Unless you want to give back all your hard work and start all over again in March or run with numb feet.

I’d still do it all over again and you’re not taking away my Vibram’s, but I don’t want to give the illusion that it’s all rainbows and unicorns.  There have been some bumps along the way, but it has been worth it.

the setting

The application vendor support guy shows up to install some new software package. Their application needs access to the database server and needs to own the application’s database(s). Fair enough, we can do that. Then they tell you that user also needs to have sysadmin privileges on the server it’s self. Being a good DBA, you’re first response is, “Hell, no!”

But, that’s never worked before and wanting to be a kindler, gentler DBA you decide to come at it from a different point of view with, “What are you doing that you need sysadmin privileges for?”

Unfortunately, you are routinely disappointed with an answer like, “I just know the application won’t work without it.”

And there it is.  You tried to control your rage, but deep down you knew this answer was coming.  Why?  Because you have heard that answer from every other vendor that’s come by your cube, that’s why.  Not once have you had a vendor surprise you with any kind of sufficient answer.  The best you can hope for is that they tell you its only temporary for the install and that the application itself doesn’t need sysadmin privileges to run on a daily basis. They still don’t know why it’s needed for the install, but at least they’ve acknowledged that’s a bit too much power for a runtime user.  Unfortunately, even that answer is in the minority.  And people wonder why DBA’s become bitter old coot’s sitting in the corner mumbling about the next person that asks them for something is going to get shanked with this thumb drive…er…I mean…how can I help you?

listen up, vendors!

So, as a public service I’m going to provide some advice to all those application vendors out there on how to explain your need of system privileges because you don’t need sysadmin privileges for everything you think you do.

1. I need it to create objects in the application database. – No you don’t. If the user already owns the database, it should have no problem creating and modifying the objects in the database itself.  If it doesn’t own the database, it still doesn’t need sysadmin privileges or even db_owner privileges.  You could just grant the db_ddladmin role to the user account and you’re in business.
2. I need them to create a database – No you don’t.  The user can be granted dbcreator privileges. In this case, Microsoft was kind enough to give the role a title that describes exactly what it does.
3. I need them to add logins – No you don’t. The user could be granted securityadmin privileges. How about managing user privileges in the database? Take a look at db_accessadmin.
4. I need them to create and run SSIS packages – No you don’t. The user can be granted the appropriate role(s) in the msdb database: db_ssisadmin, db_ssisltduser and db_ssisoperator.  That must be new, right? Um, well only if you don’t count db_dtsadmin, db_dtsltduser and db_dtsoperator.
5. I need them to do bulk inserts – No you don’t. Have you ever even looked at the server roles? There’s one in there just for you: bulkadmin.
6. I need them to add and modify SQL Agent jobs – No you don’t. Again we can visit the roles in the msdb database and grant you the appropriate level of permissions with the SQLAgentOperatorRole, SQLAgentReaderRole and SQLAgentUserRole.
7. I need them to add new categories for agent jobs – No you…wait, actually you do need sysadmin privileges for that one.  And I recently ran across an install that was doing just that.  So, they actually did need those privileges. I could have added it for them, but it was wrapped up in the install package and the installer wasn’t even sure when it did that or why.

MUST.CONTROL.FIST.OF.RAGE.

at least try, please?

The answer is yes

I’ve heard all of those questions since I started my experiment in minimalist running.  Why would I do such a thing?  Like most folks who enjoy running, I’ve had my share of running related injuries and I know some folks who have avoided injuries by switching to barefoot running and minimalist shoes.  Like many others, I’ve also read Born to Run and was very intrigued by the science behind it.  Lastly, the timing just worked out.

lEARNING HOW TO RUN

Everyone told me I needed to learn how to run all over again.  When you don’t have the benefit of all the padding, air cushions, gel cushions, etc. of the traditional running shoe, your can’t run with a form that allows your heel to strike the ground first as your heel doesn’t have any padding.  But, if your foot strikes with on the forefoot, the natural design of your arches and the tendons in your feet and legs will absorb the impact.

My Avatar Blue shoes

After nearly 40 years of wearing traditional shoes, it takes some serious concentration to change the way you run.  As I said, the timing worked out to give this a try.  The doctor had given me a month without doing anything strenuous after some surgery, so I had to build my endurance back up anyway.  I also had worn out my last pair of running shoes and needed to buy something new.  Lastly, City Sports had some Vibram Five Fingers shoes on sale.  I’m guessing they have them on sale because no one likes the color.  The other colors all cost a lot more.  But, since this was an experiment, I decided I didn’t really care if they looked more like a women’s shoe color.

Building up slowly

So, I got my shoes delivered from the east coast and once the doctor said I was good to go I started running in my new shoes…1 mile.  Normally I run at least 3 miles and usually its 4-5 miles.  Stopping at 1 mile was tough.  My calves didn’t even feel that bad and everyone said they’d be sore.  The last morning I woke up and it felt like someone had beat me calves with a baseball bat.  No running that day. The next day I went 1.5 miles and slowed my pace by 1 min/mile and my calves were a little less sore.  So, I added a half mile each time and took at least 1 day off in between runs until I hit 3 miles.  Then I started adding only a quarter mile per run and increasing my pace slowly.  Yesterday I managed 4.25 miles and this morning my calves feel fine.

I’d do it again

I love my shoes.  Yes, they look funny, but they’re like gloves on my feet.  I love the ability to feel the ground as I run and adjust my gate/pace on the fly.  I love that I can rip off 4 miles at my old pace and not feel any soreness the next day in my joints.  We’ll see how my feet tolerate the cold and snow in these shoes, but so far this has been one successful experiment.

I’ve avoided talking about the Crew all year.  Perhaps I’m as suspicious as any ball player and I didn’t want to jinx anything.  But, if something goes horribly, horribly wrong you can refer to me as the Brewers’ “Steve Bartman”.  It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been wrong.  Heck, just last year I said the Packers had to many injuries to make the playoffs.  I don’t get confused with Nostradamus very often.

But, since the series against the Cardinals starts today and a series win would just about knock the Cardinals out of the race for good, I began thinking about the last Brewers Division title.  I was 10.  The Brewers were in the American League.  Robin Yount was still a kid. To help put things into perspective for the rest of you out there, here’s some info on what happened in 1982.

The fact that it was 29 years ago when the Cardinals put an end to the Brewers run, only makes this upcoming series more anticipated for me.  That and I can’t wait to see what other classless nonsense LaRussa comes up with this time to make him look like even more of a clown.  I have never liked that guy.  Don’t get me wrong, he gets results wherever he goes.  I just have a hard time liking someone who whines all the time.  Just ask my kids what really gets Daddy upset.  They’ll tell you in unison, “Whining and complaining.”

What?  You don’t remember LaRussa’s “its okay for us to pitch inside to your guys, but you better not pitch inside at our guys” rant after Pujols got hit in the wrist, so they went after Braun back at the start of the month?  I’ll grant you there were some Brewers fans being pretty classless as well, but sometimes the old adage is true, “You reap what you sow.”

But its all good.  There’s been plenty of other things to concentrate on since then. 10.5 games up and finishing up what is already the best month in franchise history.  Did I mention the majority of the games remaining this season are at home where the Brewers own the best record in baseball at 50-16?

Celebrate this season Brewers fans.  Savor September and get ready for October.  These kind of seasons seem to come along once a generation.

THE ENVELOPE, PLEASE

On July 16th, I ran my first official 5k race and finished with a recorded time of 26:51 and right around the 50 percentile among all the various running categories.  183 runners, I finished 90th overall.  18 men in my age category, I finished 9th.  The fastest time was 15:48 and the slowest was 39:58.  Average of those to would be, 27:53. I ran it at a 8:39/mi pace and that’s the number I’m judging myself by.  Why?

Finishing in the middle of the pack does very little for ones ego.  Well, very little good anyway.  Can you tell I’m a glass is half empty kind of guy sometimes? Plus, I want to compete with myself.  I could care less if someone else set a course record or if they had to crawl to the finish.  Plus, I live very close to this particular course and have run it enough times to know what’s a good pace for me and what’s a bad pace.  Considering, I’ve only ever beaten that pace once (on June 29th, by the way), I’d say that was some pretty good running overall plus I learned quite a few things.

THERE’S A REASON THE HARE LOST

Running a race is very different than lacing up the sneaks, grabbing the iPod and hitting the streets.  There’s other people there.  Some are in the way, some think you’re in the way and no one is wearing turn signals or brake lights.  The start of the race (even one this small) is a congested mess.  So, to free myself of the congestion, I moved to the side and ran past a bunch of slow people.  Then I saw other people I could pass and moved past them to some open asphalt.  Here’s the problem: First half mile pace = 7:05/mi.  With the temp at 78 degrees and the dew point at 69, the air was very heavy at 8:30 AM.  I never run at that pace, and I paid the price.  My second mile’s average pace was 9:22/mi and my third was 9:21/mi.  And when I crossed the finish line, I could barely breathe.  Compare that to my run Sunday morning on the same course.  I ran the first mile at my slowest pace ever, 9:32.  But, a funny thing happened, my legs felt like the were just getting warmed up and I ran the next 2 splits at 8:25 and 8:36.  That works out to an 8:46 pace and I felt like I could still run 3 more miles easily.  The pace is a little slower than I finished the race at, but I wasn’t completely spent either.  When Runmeter called out my 3 mile time in my head phones, I wanted to sprint to the finish, but I had nothing left in the tank.  This morning I obviously had a lot left. First lesson learned: don’t run too fast, too soon.  Second lesson learned: don’t worry about the times.  This morning I just found a rhythm and ran.  Sure I listened to Runmeter as called out the splits, but  I didn’t really care at first until I realized I was getting faster and feeling stronger the longer I went.

RUNNING BEFORE A RACE…PROBABLY NOT A BAD THING

Since we were leaving for vacation right after the race, we had a lot of pre-vacation planning going on the week leading up to the race.  Plus, I was trying to get stuff done at work so I’d have a slightly smaller stack of backlog work to do when I got back from vacation.  The end result was that I didn’t run at all for 10 days prior to the race and I could feel it in my legs.  When I normally run the stiffness usually shakes out by the time I get to mile #1.  This time the stiffness never seemed to go away.  I even grabbed water at the station the course planners setup at the 2 mile mark — something I don’t do unless I’m going more than 5 miles — hoping the extra hydration would help.  It didn’t.  What would’ve helped would’ve been a couple of runs leading up to it.

WILL THERE BE MORE?

I think so.  It was a lot of fun and I learned a bit about what not to do.  Plus, during my vacation I started reading Born to Run. For all of my runner friends out there, if you haven’t read it, you should.  You’ll really enjoy it.  If you don’t like running or think you wouldn’t like running, it’s still worth the read as it’s quite a story.  Between that, hearing Steve Jones talk about running 1000 days in row and reading the posts by the never ending bundle of energy that is Jes Borland,  I feel motivated to just run.  I don’t know how far, but to paraphrase Forrest Gump, “I just feel like running”.  So, a race or two along the way probably makes some sense.

Now, I’m not planning on running any ultra marathons, or anything with the word “marathon” in it anytime soon, but there are some things in that book that will help make running fun.  Yep, that’s right, I said fun. It doesn’t have to be a chore or a punishment for stuffing too many sugary snacks in your pie hole.  You can go out and just have fun.  Like you did when you were a kid.  Do you remember when everything was more fun when it was done at full speed?  I see that in my kids now.  They don’t walk anywhere.  They run.  Somewhere along the line I forgot how much fun it was just to let loose.  I hope my kids never forget.

He’ll never remember the house he came house to as we moved 7 1/2 months later, but the home hasn’t changed.  It’s been a busy year and I hope you have many more, Caleb.  While your energy seems boundless and sometimes trying for my patience, you never cease to put a smile on my face.

Happy Birthday, Munchkin.

Since then, 10,030 times someone has decided to at least take the time to load a page from my blog into their browser.  That’s roughly 196 visits a month (in 51 months).  I realize that’s not a lot of web traffic, but it’s way more than I ever thought.

To all of you that have stopped by my little corner of the web, thank you very much.  I mean that.

Goal #1: Run 2 5k’s this year

So far, no races.  Although, I’m registered for 1 on July 16th.  So, I’m going to fudge this a bit for now and say it’s on track.  We’re not stellar, but we are on track.  Whew! A passing grade out of the gates…

Goal #2: Brew 3 batches of beer this year

Ouch!  So far this year, nada.  For the first 3 months, my brewing equipment was in storage with our move, but I had taken that into account and decided 1 batch every 3 months after that should be doable.  Either it’s not, or I’m slacking.  I think it’s the later.

Goal #3: 4 WiSSUG meetings

This goals update is getting more painful.  Another goose-egg.  I knew this one was going to be tough and it is not proving me wrong.  While I still have not made one of these meetings, I still have hopes to get off the schnide and get some of this goal accomplished.

goal #4: More time with my wife and wwme

This one is indeed hard to measure.  Perhaps it should have been two separate goals.  We started off the year doing so much WWME stuff that I think we almost overdid it.  Lately we’ve been slacking a bit.  Despite that, my wife and I have been doing more and more stuff together and working hard at carving out more and more time for each other.  Sometimes we’re not as successful as we’d like, but I think we’re better than before.  So, I think I’d give myself a B on this one for the highest grade of all the goals so far.

goal #5: sell the house and be ready for 1st communion

Done and done!  That was an interesting experience.  Selling a house in a buyer’s market absolutely sucked.  We had people coming to the house and complaining that we had our towels in one closet instead of a different one.  You buy the house and you can put your towels in whichever closet you like, okay?  Another person had to come see the house right away — the day before the open house – because he wanted to see it before anyone else.  He came at night walked around the house and then said he didn’t like the exterior colors.  First of all, it’s just paint.  Secondly, did I tell you he’s a realtor? He knew about the house from the website and the MLS listing.  The exterior color is in the pictures.  He came over at night, so he couldn’t have seen the colors that night.  Thank you for wasting our time and causing us to pack up a 4 month old, a dog and 2 other kids in the middle of winter and leave so you can look through a house you obviously had no interest in buying, jackass.  We had another person who absolutely loved it, but decided to pay more money for the condo down the street so they wouldn’t have to mow the lawn.  Between the extra $30k purchase price and the association fees, they would have saved a lot more money by buying our house and paying someone to mow the grass.

On the flip side, buying a house in a buyer’s market was waaaayyyyy cool.  We got a lot more house for less money than I ever would have thought possible.  Now the house needed some work which helped us get the price down there.  I’ve discovered some more work it needs since then — don’t get me started on home inspectors except that I will tell you 90% of them aren’t worth a minute of your time or a cent of your money — but in all, the house has turned out to be a good deal.  Finally, an A grade.  Yeah!!

goal #6: lose 15 pounds by may 1st

Rats!  Didn’t make this one.  It’s the start of July and I managed to drop 10 pounds so far this year.  Despite missing the May 1st deadline and still not getting to 15 pounds, I’m still okay with this one.  The ultimate goal for me was to be in better shape.  I have no idea how to quantify that other than pounds hanging off these bones.  But, 10 pounds is better than none or 10 pounds the other way.  I can run 5 miles at a crack without needing an oxygen tank.  This weekend I finished my flooring, molding and quarter rounds in the hallway, den and bathroom.  I fixed some crown molding in the kitchen after taking an unused cupboard down, and I replaced the vanity top and faucet in the master bath, all in excessive heat, humidity with no fainting and no injuries.  Now, I lost 4 pounds in the process and gained a newfound respect for tradesmen, pneumatic tools and compound mitre saws, but I was in good enough shape to plow through it all with just my water jug at my side. Then I gained 1.5 pounds back by having a beer or two too many with numerous salty snacks while watching gun powder and magnesium burn in the sky.  Nothing says Independence Day like blowing s$!t up.  But, I have really gone off on a tangent here, so where were we?  Oh yes, I give myself C+ on this one.

summary

So, 4 passing grades and 2 fails on my “mid-term” goals report.  The new house really has consumed more of my time than I thought it would.  Hopefully, I can right the ship on those last 2 goals and push up the grades of the other ones.  The positive part of it is the goals that I have my best scores on are probably my most important ones.  Being there for my family is always what I want first and foremost.  And, until I make more beer, I’ll just have to buy it like everyone else.

No one really wants to admit to their own mortality or even think about their own death, but parents have a responsibility to their kids.  So, my wife and I finally got our wills done, health care documents and measures, disability insurance, additional life insurance, etc.  so the financial side of things would be taken care of.  But, there are other things that still have nagged at me, like, how do I pass on fatherly advice and so-called wisdom if I’m not here to do it?  How do my kids know that I will always be with them and that I love them more than life itself?

I know, sounds kind of morbid and creepy, right?  Well, then you’re going love my first idea: a creepy “if you’re watching this, something must have happened” kind of video.  Definitely way too creepy for me, so I haven’t done it.  I heard of a mother who was dying of cancer that wrote letters to each of her children to be opened in the future.  Slightly less creepy but that would be the most difficult letters I would have ever written.  So, I skipped that too.  8 years and 2 more kids later, I’m left with that nagging morbid fascination and still no solution.

Then, while running this morning and walking the dog after that, multiple playlists of mine that were on shuffle came up with the same song.  It’s one of my favorite Blues Traveler tunes because I really like the message.  I like it because I find it inspirational.  I know, in a twist of irony Hook is on the same album, but I find this song inspirational nonetheless. It occurred to me, that this is kind of thing I’d love to tell my kids.  I’m hoping I’ll be able to tell them this and many other things in person over the next 40-50 years. But, just in case…

Kids, here’s some fatherly encouragement.  In fact, it’s a message I’d like to convey to all of my family and friends.  So, here you go, Just Wait by Blues Traveler.

If ever you are feeling like you’re tired
And all your uphill struggles leave you headed downhill
If you realize your wildest dreams can hurt you
And your appetite for pain has drinken its fill

I ask of you a very simple question
Did you think for one minute that you are alone
And is your suffering a privilege you share only
Or did you think that everybody else feels completely at home

Just wait
Just wait
Just wait
And it will come

If you think I’ve given up on you you’re crazy
And if you think I don’t love you well then you’re just wrong
In time you just might take to feeling better
Time is the beauty of the road being long

I know that now you feel no consolation
But maybe if I told you and informed you out loud
I say this without fear of hesitation
I can honestly tell you that you make me proud

Just wait
Just wait
Just wait
And it will come

Just wait
Just wait
Just wait
And it will come

If anything I might have just said has helped you
If anything I might have just said helped you just carry on
Your rise uphill may no longer seem a struggle
And your appetite for pain may all but be gone

I hope for you and cannot stop at hoping
Until that smile has once again returned to your face
There’s no such thing as a failure who keeps trying
Coasting to the bottom is the only disgrace

Since we moved off our hill and now have a dig flat driveway, my daughter has been working on riding a bike without the training wheels and she mastered it yesterday.  After one fall and me running along side the bike a few times I informed her that Daddy hasn’t been holding on to the bike anymore.  With a big beaming smile she asked if she could try it without me running next to her.  I sat down and watched her proceed to make 10 laps of the driveway.

After she got tired my son and I went into the backyard and played T-Ball.  That was great and we all had a great time, until he picked up the bat and in so doing smacked himself in the head with the bat.  No one was seriously hurt, but that was the end of T-Ball for the day.

Next up was the swimming pool.  The baby and I got to splash around in the water until he got cold.  We got him dressed and wrapped in a blanket while the rest of the family splashed and played.  Everybody was getting hungry so we went home and watched A Bug’s Life and made popcorn.

Like I said, a pretty great Father’s Day for me.  I hope all the other fathers out there had a great day too.