Graduation and two weeks to go

Three weeks ago was Ben's 6th grade graduation from Woodstock Elementary School; I was so proud watching him doing to hipster walk across the stage to get his diploma. Now it's on to 7th grade where I will feel justified to start telling him that grades matter even if they don't appear on any transcript.

Ben and Sam have become really good skateboarders in the last three months. They have a half pipe at home and it is their new obsession.


















They make it look so easy so I had to try it out recently. All I did was try and push off a couple of times and then glide on the board and I ended up wiping out on my hip, foot and wrist. I am OK but it could have resulted in a broken bone. Horror.

Two weeks to go until the Ironman and getting pretty pumped up for the race although I am ready for all of this training to be over. Today I am running 16 miles, and biking 60-80 tomorrow, with a lifting workout and swim thrown in there somewhere. While working out twice a day has completely eliminated most other activities from my life and I have definitely become the boring, singularly minded person that I always mocked, it is amazing the amount of energy I have at the end of the day, despite having exercised for 2 plus hours.

The biggest sign that I have crossed the line into complete obsession is my recent body shave. Anyone who tells you that they shave their legs and upper body to save time or improve their ability to recover from road rash is lying. At its most noble, body shaving gets you further into the Ironman state of mind; at its most plastic, it is a surrender to the god of vanity. I am clearly motivated more by the latter.