By Guus , 16 March 2009

Longest run

This must have been the longest run I've ever done. Not in miles, I once did 14 miles, but definitely in time: 2 hours and 47 minutes. I ran 13 miles in preparation for my first half marathon of this season in two weeks.

It was pouring with rain so my feet were wet and heavy throughout the run. The course was twice golf course and twice Whole Foods, and the golf course trail was covered with water on many places so I had to run through mud and water a number of times.

Still, it felt pretty good and I am happy I did this run. For the first time ever I did an ice bath after the run. Scientific evidence that it helps you recover is scarce, but it did feel good (remember, my legs were very cold to begin with). At night I took two Advils, and that helped me greatly. Normally after a long run like this I sleep pretty bad; feverish. I slept great last night.

By Guus , 13 March 2009

jump the shark

Jumping the shark is a colloquialism coined by Jon Hein and used by TV critics and fans to denote that point in a TV show or movie series' history where the plot veers off into absurd story lines or out-of-the-ordinary characterizations, particularly for a show with falling ratings apparently becoming more desperate to draw viewers in. In the process of undergoing these changes, the TV or movie series loses its original appeal. Shows that have "jumped the shark" are typically deemed to have passed their peak.

By Guus , 12 March 2009

Travels in Hyperreality

This is a collection of letters that Mr. Eco wrote to a local Italian newspaper through the years.

An interesting part of the book was reading what went on in the mind of an Italian philosopher in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970. His left-wing sympathies are very clear, and one of the worst thing to happen to a theory would be for it to be declared 'fascist'.

I especially liked the chapters on Thomas of Aquino, which is one of the specialties of Mr. Eco. The chapters on the United States were a little too 'easy' for me, too much stereotypes.

By Guus , 12 March 2009

Cross country running

I never knew what exactly "cross country running" is. Well, tonight I ran a cross country course, and I know now what it is. It was the start of the March series, a weekly run organized by NCRC at the Cary Academy, not too far from my work.

Cross country is "a sport in which runners compete to complete a course over open or rough terrain. The courses used at these events may include grass, mud, woodlands, and water". There was no water in the course we ran, but it was nice varied 5k course with a few small hills and nice trails through the woods behind the Academy. My time was about 27 minutes, based on people finishing just in front of me (I need to get watch battery replaced).

These runs are fun to do, with a friendly group of people. There were about 40 runners tonight.

Topic
sports
By Guus , 11 March 2009

'Sir'

Twice in the past week a student called me 'sir'. The first time it happened, when a girl was asking how to find the Page Auditorium, I shrugged it off as a one-off incident -- perhaps she was just an overly polite person.

Last night when I went for a run I had to evade a guy who was painting graffiti under a bridge, and he said: 'oh, I'm sorry sir', without any irony.

Am I getting old?

Topic
dailylife
By Guus , 10 March 2009

From cold to hot

Tonight (a Tuesday) I ran for roughly 90 minutes. To Whole Foods, twice the track and back. Felt great.

I tried the same last Sunday (and was hoping to do a golf course also), but had to quit after 60 minutes and walk home. It was too warm! A nice problem to have. Around 80 degrees.

Funny -- a couple of days before that I ran in the snow.

By Guus , 10 March 2009

Time for spring

Cold weather a week ago.This is a picture of the weather a week ago: we had two days of very cold weather, ice and snow. Barely a week later, it was over 80 degrees Fahrenheit (26 degrees Celsius).

On Sunday I went for a long run but I had to give up at one point because I just wasn't adjusted to the hot weather yet. A nice problem to have -- I love these temperatures. Supposedly next weekend it's getting a bit colder again, but I think that the winter is over. Daylight Savings Time is in effect now also, so the time difference with Europe is an hour less now.

Cold weather a week ago.

Topic
dailylife
By Guus , 6 March 2009

Warble fly

Warble fly is a name given to the genus Hypoderma, large flies which are parasitic on cattle and deer.

By Guus , 4 March 2009

Dutch shopping on St. Maarten

Bitterballen.St. Maarten provided a wonderful mixtures of French food, tropical beaches and Dutch grocery shopping.

The island was not "as Dutch" as Curacao was -- the island felt more American, and more French obviously, but there was certainly plenty of Dutch influence and the grocery stores had a lot of Dutch brands and Indonesian condiments such as ketjap and seroendeng.

A wonderful shopping experience!

Bitterballen.

In Philipsburg we had Dutch snacks the day we arrived, including bitterballen and kip sate with Indonesian peanut sauce.

Volkskrant.

Later in the week, in Marigot on the French side, we bought some delicious French things for breakfast -- and a Volkskrant.

Dutch goodies.

We went shopping for Dutch (and French) groceries a few times during our stay, and we came back with a suitcase full of goodies. One of the supermarkets even had freshly baked raisin rolls (krentenbollen). They weren't quite as delicious as true Dutch ones, but it was still nice. I'd like to see if I can bake them myself.

Topic
dutchusa
By Guus , 3 March 2009

Tickets for A Prairie Home Companion

Yesterday I bought two tickets for A Prairie Home Companion, a live radio show that will be in Durham in May.

I started listening to A Prairie Home Companion when we moved to North Carolina and got a car -- on Sundays I'd tune in to the show. It's a wonderful, mellow and friendly show and I'm looking forward to see them in action.

Topic
theater