Why does it feel so hot?

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Beating the heat with a summer read

This ebook thing may have finally grabbed a foothold/reached a tipping point/exploded onto the market (or whatever buzz-phrase you want to use).

There was a story last month that ebooks are now outselling hardcover books at Amazon. And not just barely, but by 50% to 80%. I am sure there are many reasons why the ebook is finally being accepted on a larger scale by the reading public, but a big part of it is price. Typical prices of the electronic versions of books run about $10, whereas the hardcover version is usually around $25.

But the biggest barrier has always been the price of the reading device itself. The Kindle originally sold for around $360, a price a casual reader was unwilling to pay. The Kindle started as a niche product sold to readers that spend more on books than on cable tv, and to people that travel on a regular basis since you can carry hundreds (now thousands) of books in a small package. No matter how well the electronic reader simulated or enhanced the experience of reading a hardcover book, only a small part of the market was willing to spend that kind of money on a new gadget.

But the price of the Kindle has been dropping over the past year or two, first to around $260 and more recently to about $190 as more electronic readers entered the market. Amazon saw a dramatic increase in sales once they priced it below $200, even though the iPad was released around the same time.

Amazon has recently released the third version of the Kindle, which will begin shipping early next month. It is smaller, faster, holds more books, has a better screen and longer lasting battery. The $189 version now has both 3G cell service and WiFi to download books, and there is also a $139 version if you only need WiFi to shop for books. Now that an improved version is selling for almost two-thirds less than the original, it will be interesting to see if there is an even larger leap forward in the adoption of electronic readers and books.

Some are predicting the demise of the paper version of books in the not too distant future, but I think this is pretty unlikely. Some folks will always prefer the paper version, and there are still benefits over the electronic version, like being able to lend a book to a friend. I still read more paper books than Kindle versions at this point. Part of it is a backlog of books I have already bought, and the desire to save money by picking up books at the library. I currently have three books ready for me at the library, so I need to get cracking.

However, right now I wished I had a Kindle book to read. One of the unadvertised benefits to a Kindle book was discovered recently by my roomie. You can slip the Kindle into a ziplock bag and read it while being cooled by the water misters we bought to beat the heat. Try that with a paperback.

It is currently 90 degrees, and that is inside the house.

Warning!

There are warnings on a number of packages, including the galvanized nails and treated wood I used when deck building in Washington. The warnings go something like this:

WARNING! This product contains a chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.

Of course I never had to worry about these - I mean, the chemicals only cause cancer in California, right? Now...aw, crap!

Characters that leap off the page

There was a recent podcast of Nancy Pearl's Book Review with the theme, "What fictional character would you like to meet?" It was an interesting discussion, and the callers came up with quite a few interesting characters they'd like to meet in person, and maybe find out what happened after the book ended. Some suggested "bad" characters that they didn't exactly want over for dinner, but they still wanted to get to know them better.

One caller had a nice turn of phrase to describe characters you become invested in. She had just completed the seventh book in a series, and the last book in the series so far. In describing her attachment to the characters, and the disappointment in finishing the last book (so far), she said, "I feel like I have friends who aren't talking to me anymore."

Quote of the day

"To doubt everything or to believe everything are two equally convenient solutions; both dispense with the necessity of reflection." 

~ Jules Henri Poincare

My virtual running partner

I have enlisted a new running partner to help me as I prepare for the marathon this time.



A running gadget won't necessarily make you run any faster, but I have to say that it can sure make the necessary training a lot easier. The Forerunner 310xt is one of the latest GPS sports watches from Garmin. I had been using a Polar watch that had a footpod to estimate my running distance. It worked well enough, but the desktop software stopped working so I couldn't upload any of the data, and the heart rate monitor was also becoming very faulty.

There are a few different Garmin GPS watches with varying features, but I decided on the 310xt primarily for the battery life. The other watches would typically last 8 or 10 hours, but the 310xt is advertised to last up to 20 hours. Not terribly important for running, but I can imagine being out on the bike all day, and it would be disappointing if it pooped out before I did.

I have been using if for about a month and a half, and it has been really useful for training. Having any sort of watch that measures distance helps tremendously. You don't have to plot out things ahead of time, and you can try out new routes on the fly and it will keep tallying up the miles. I chose to get the version with the heart rate strap because I find that to be helpful feedback on training and effort.

The watch comes with a USB sensor that you plug into your computer to communicate with the watch. It works well, and as soon as the watch is within a few feet of your computer, your workout data is sent to the desktop and/or online program for review. There is plenty of data for a numbers geek like me - time, distance, pace, heart rate, elevation gain, lap splits, and even a map of your route. My old Polar watch used infrared communication, and the technology seems to have largely died along with the watch.

The Garmin has been particularly helpful during my interval training. At times, the workout for the day can be pretty complicated, and I would otherwise need to be writing down my repeats on my hand.

You can set up the interval workouts ahead of time, and the watch tells you what to do when you are out on the road. It keeps track of the intervals, goal pace, number of repeats, and beeps to tell you when the next interval or rest period begins. If you like, it will even give an audible signal to tell you if you are running too quickly or slowly. It has made these workouts so much easier to do (except for the actual running).

There is also a screen on the watch that has a "virtual partner". Your virtual partner is set to run a specific speed, either a general pace you specify, or one that is programmed into your workout. When you are out on a workout, the screen compares how you are doing against the virtual partner, showing for example that you are 3 seconds or 50 feet ahead. I didn't think I would ever use this, but I find myself checking the screen to see how close I am to hitting my interval pace. It is an easy visual to know whether I need to pick up the pace or I can ease off.

One major disappointment was the ability to send workouts to the watch. The desktop software allows you to set up workouts easily enough. The hassle comes in when you try to set the desired pace. There are ten stock speed zones in the software and the watch. The software allows you to customize the zones, and I spent some time setting up paces for my intervals, tempo and long workouts. But for some reason, the customized speed zones do not transfer to the watch, and the stock ones are used in any workout you set up. The stock zones are so broad that they are worthless, and range from slower than walking speed to faster than world record time.

I emailed Garmin product support to see why this was happening, and apparently it is a design flaw in the software. It seems a rather major flaw to me - why have the ability to customize the speed zones if they can't be used on the watch? I was able to find a work around after some internet research, a fix that Garmin support seems clueless about. It is less convenient, but it does work.

I found the Garmin 310xt for 20% off, and there was also a $50 rebate when I bought it. It was still a bit of an investment, but I think it is worthwhile as I try to take my training to another level. I have to say that I am very pleased with it overall, and I hope to put a lot of miles on it over the next few years.

*

The little asterisk has become a pretty powerful bit of punctuation lately. You see it all the time at the end of a sentence, telling you to look to the end of the page to find more information. Of course, these days it is usually a fine-print disclaimer. Things like, "The FDA has not evaluated this claim" following some proposed health benefit, or "Side effects may include:" followed by a list of things often less appealing than what you are trying to avoid in the first place.

Lately, I have seen sentences followed by an asterisk with no accompanying explanation, fine-print or otherwise. It seems the asterisk is now self-contained and has come to mean, "The proceeding claim is incomplete, misleading, or an outright fabrication. Please disregard, and keep reading at your own risk."

Maybe politicians and "news" outlets should be more upfront by saying "asterisk" once in a while.

Fueling mid-flight

By the time I show up at the start line of the marathon in October, I will have put in almost 400 miles of running. This will require about 40,000 calories to complete. How do you stay properly fueled for this? You look for sales and buy in bulk:

Training update

So I am six weeks into marathon training under the new program. So how is it going you might ask? You might not ask, so I will ask for you.

The new program is much more structured, has a bit higher mileage and definitely more speed work than plans I have done in the past. So far, I have completed all of my running workouts (three a week), and have hit most all the interval paces. I have also made it to the pool once a week, and I am up to about a half a mile a session. The biking has unfortunately been pretty spotty. In the past, I would normally bike on Sundays, but that hasn't worked out very well so far this time around.

It is quite the change of pace (ha!) to have such a detailed plan for my mid-week runs. In some ways, it has made it that much more interesting to head out the door with a specific plan of attack for the day. Particularly on my interval runs each Tuesday, I have to remain pretty focused and present to maintain form and pace. I have mentioned in the past that having a long term goal on the calendar helps me get out the door for a run. These challenging mid-week workouts have raised the interest level a notch, which makes it a little easier to get out of bed early to run before work (but only a little).

At the same time, the increased structure of the mid-week runs has made me almost look forward to the weekend long runs. Here is where I can just run how I feel, without constantly checking to see if I am running at the correct pace. My mind is allowed to wander a bit more and I can look at the scenery more than my watch. It is still a challenge to get the extra miles in, but I seem to be approaching them with a more relaxed mind.

So, how do I feel? A bit faster, a bit fitter, and a bit run down. The weekly interval sessions are getting a bit more manageable, and I have had more success hitting and maintaining my pace as the weeks go by. I have also noticed that my heart rate is averaging about 5 to 15 beats lower on my long runs than it was last year. I assume that the interval work is helping my body to work a little more efficiently, and I am taking that as a sign of progress.

But I am also feeling pretty worn down this week. Working and running in the heat, coupled with my sleep issues has me feeling smoked both physically and mentally. I was planning on getting in a bike ride this afternoon, but I think it would be best if I just take it easy. I think a few extra hours of sleep will do me much more good than a few extra miles on the road.

So overall, I am feeling pretty good about my prep for the marathon. 66 days to go!

Happy Birthday Annabelle

Knocking a screw loose

Sometimes it takes a smack upside the head before you will make a change. Sometimes that smack upside the head is an all too literal one.

I have worn an earring for about 15 years. My girlfriend at the time and I went to the mall the day after Christmas one year, and I left with my ear tagged. Turns out I ended up going to the same mall chain that Harrison Ford went to when he got his earring. Really butches it up, don't you think.

After whatever the healing period was, I replaced the silver stud with a silver hoop. It was a small hoop with a couple darker cross hatches. It was pretty simple, and some people didn't even notice I had one for a couple years. I didn't think too much about it, and would often forget about it myself.

And I never changed it. The same earring for more than 15 years. The only time it would come out was when I was getting X-rays at the dentist. Until last week.

I was at work and we were putting up an aluminum header for a cool, peaked roof cover. I was up on one of the top steps of the ladder, and I guess I shifted my weight the wrong way and suddenly the ladder shot out from underneath me. As I was falling, I managed to catch myself by grabbing one of the lower beams, so I ended up dangling just a couple feet off the ground rather than hitting it hard. But I smacked the left side of my face on the way down. As I was falling, I let go of the header I was holding above my head. It landed on the same lower beam, and that is probably what I hit on the way down.



I didn't notice it until I was home, but when I smacked my ear I knocked the earring out. I looked around the jobsite the following Monday, but I wasn't able to find it. So it was finally time to replace my 15 year old earring. I went down to Old Town and wandered around the shops, but of course most all of the earrings were shiny, dangly ones. I ended up finding some simpler ones at the Five and Dime shop of all places. I bought another hoop and will probably get a simple silver stud for those black tie events I never get invited to.

Since they were only about eight bucks a piece, I got a couple of fun ones. This is the current one.

Quote of the day

"Be who you are and say what you feel,
because those who mind don't matter,
and those who matter don't mind."

~ Dr. Seuss

Weighing in

Weight has been a hot topic in the household lately. My housemates have a bit of a competition going to see who can be the first to lose a certain amount of weight. We have also been watching "Biggest Loser" and "Losing it with Jillian" on Tuesday nights for inspiration. The focus on exercise and eating better has been pretty successful. One of us has fit in a dress that has not been worn in a long time. I'm not saying which of us that is.

I have always been overweight, or "husky" as it was called when I was growing up. There was a brief period (about 9 months or so) when I was "thin", but that was fifteen years ago. I was down below 140 pounds, and I still keep that drivers license in my wallet. The thing that started me on my way to weight loss was a relationship breakup. My stomach was in knots, and food just didn't sound appealing. After some pounds fell away, I decided to start eating a little better.

Matt recently posted a shot of him 20 years ago, and what he looks like these days. Here is my own little version:

This is the picture on that 1995 drivers license still tucked in my wallet:

Me on the 2008 version:

And a picture taken at the end of June this year:

That 2008 photo was hardly my peak (low point?) for my weight. Looking back, I was only about eight pounds heavier than in the 2010 photo. Must be the terrible DMV cameras (or more likely my body fat percentage).

No, I think my highest weight was one Christmas a number of years ago when my wife gave me a digital scale as a present. The scale also measures your body fat percentage, and when a few of us stepped on to be measured, the results were pretty depressing. I don't remember specific numbers, but I was definitely over 190 pounds and 30% body fat.

I dropped a few pounds, but plateaued. Once I started biking, and then running, I was more concerned with what my body could do, than what it looked like. The next round of weight loss didn't happen until the end of 2008. The spark was two-fold this time. We had just started marriage counseling, so once again my stomach was in knots. The other piece of the puzzle was working for UPS for a couple of months, which meant I was running six days a week. I dropped 15 pounds and have been able to keep it off since then.

But I am on another plateau. I am so much more active now than when I was at my 1995 weight, but still 30 pounds heavier. It looks like it was all about what I was eating - diet vs exercise. But I wasn't doing anything all that special back then. The pattern I fell into was generally to have two "good" meals, and one not-so-good meal each day. I was working double/triple shifts at a restaurant at the time, so breakfast would often entail grazing at the salad bar as it was being set up, and dinner would usually be something sensible. Lunch was usually my splurge meal.

I am starting to think about looking into the possibility of making a decision about researching a strategy to create a plan...

Ah, I should just start eating better. Less late night snacking and empty calories. I'm not getting any younger, and I know if I fueled my body better my workouts would be more productive. That, and it is perpetual swimsuit season down here.

Number not found

I'm a numbers guy. I can't remember names, but numbers seem to stick for some reason. But skills and memory are definitely use-it-or-lose-it sorts of things. I used to be pretty good at doing math in my head, but I'm getting slower these days. I used to have everyone's phone number in my head too. Now the only number I can remember for sure is the phone number of the house I grew up in.

With the advent of the cell phone, I rarely dial anyone's number anymore. All I need to do is scroll to their name and hit a button. I've forgotten the numbers of old friends through lack of use, and numbers of people I've met in the past five years I have never had to remember. Once it is punched into the phone, it is "set it and forget it".

Is this a problem? Well, it can be. A friend recently locked her keys (and phone) in her car. She was able to borrow a friend's phone to call around for help. If that happened to me, I would be completely stumped. I'd borrow the phone and then stare blankly at it. Without my phone to get a number, I would have no one to call.

This came across my mind when I was on a very painful run a few months ago. It hurt to walk, and I was seriously contemplating calling for a ride. But of course, even if I could find a phone, who would I call? Even if I called information, most of my friend's numbers would not be listed since they have ditched their land lines. I was stuck walking back.

So I've gone back to paper and ink. I've printed up a phone list to stuff in my wallet to make up for my failing memory. It is printed in 8 point font so I could fit in more numbers. It should work, at least until my eyes start to fail me.

You're welcome

This has been the coolest July in San Diego since 1933. I won't say coldest since the average temperature was around 66 degrees after all. This in spite of the fact that we had that series of days where it was almost 100 degrees only a few miles inland.

Glad I could bring a little taste of summer in Seattle down with me.