A few years ago I passed a small kidney stone and I have to say it was quite painful.
Yesterday I noticed some blood in my urine, after my run in the morning. It then seemed to clear up, but was there again after my second run. This can be running induced. I did feel some discomfort and felt that it might be a stone, however I also had the feeling that it might be some thing in my bladder. The blood problem has gone away and I am optimistic that every thing will be OK.
Sorry if I just grossed anyone out, but this is life and all it entails.

It is a beautiful sunny Spring morning out there. I had such a nice run this morning.
Here in New York there are so many flowers popping up, everywhere I look I see Daffodils, Crocus, Aconites, etc.
My running seems to be going well and I am quite happy that the training schedule I have decided on seems to suite me.

Today was one of those wet Spring days. While I was getting ready to go out and run this morning, it was pouring down with rain. By the time I got outside the rain was very light.Utpal and I went out to Flushing meadow, at one point we passed some Cherry trees that were just coming into flower. My head cold seems to have gone and I felt pretty good out there running. After completing our 10 miles we had a little breakfast at our local cafe.
By the time I went out for my second run around 3:30 in the afternoon I was still feeling good. I decided to run what I call my 5k loop. So my total for the day was 13+ miles. I have had a good week.

My race this morning was affected by a combination of many different things. First of all after my run run in the afternoon yesterday I developed a stomach problem, which was followed by a headache. I am not sure if this is a reaction to my current training or I have picked something up. When I woke up this morning I had a head cold.I must say that not of these things will stop me going out to run. The weather conditions were cool and a light rain. When the race started I felt OK, but with the first few 100 meters I had some pain from my lower back, so I backed off the pace. After that everything was fine, if somewhat slower. I finished in a time of 16:01, which of course I am still happy with and will be able to go out and run this afternoon.

You can feel the energy of Spring when you are outside.When I have gone out for my runs the last couple of days, I have been inspired to go a little further or maybe a little stronger.
It the the third weekend of doubles and for the last 2 weeks Utpal has come out with me on Friday and Saturday afternoons. It turns out he ran on his own this morning, so did not come out with me this afternoon. I tend to run a little harder on my own.

There is an Elm tree just around the corner from where I live, it looks as though it has seen the wars a bit. Every year around this time it is full of beautiful red flowers.

The trees that the city planted last spring are just now preparing themselves for the new journey that nature has in store.Along with some of the more established trees, they are showing lots of buds.
I was planning on running just 2 miles this afternoon as I usually do on a Thursday in my current schedule. However there was a light spring rain falling and when I got out there, I just got inspired and ran 3 with a little bit of a push. Of course it will be my first double of the weekend tomorrow.

I talked with my sister and she filled me in on all the family news. It seems one of my second cousins had a serious operation recently and seems to be recovering quite well. I of course wish him well.
I found out some information about my father the other day that was a bit of a surprise. It seems that when he came to England after the second world war, he maybe took a different birthday. The year was the same, but a different month. Sometimes the past creeps slowly up on you.

When I was at college in the north east of England many years ago, I used to take the train up to Edinborough some times to visit friends. I will never forget walking down Prince's Street one Spring and being almost knocked out by, the amazing fragrance of hundreds of Hyacinth that were planted in flower beds all along the way.
I have seen some Hyacinth coming up in a garden nearby and it has reminded me of this experience from long ago.We are still having cold mornings and mild days.

A cold one again this morning, a few degrees below freezing. Nice easy run, with the legs not feeling too bad.
I did buy my ticket for Slovenia, it is one way, but I will be back in August. It's just that ticket will be a round trip from there.
Still have the sniffles, right now not as bad as yesterday. Not sure if it's something new or a left over from something before.
I have a meeting with a lawyer this lunch time. To do with the court proceedings for the estate of the friend who was killed in October. Nothing serious I just have to sign an affidavit. Oh well! that's about it for now.

This is my second week of my twice a day runs. I seem to have gotten over my lower back problem, but was really sore this morning as we started out on our run. It was cold, just above freezing, but quite pleasant. Again we ran about 10 miles and there were periods of time when I felt quite tired and for some reason my right hip was a little sore. I have fallen into a pattern of taking a short nap in between runs on my double days. This afternoon when I went out the second time the temperature had increased by more than 20 degrees and so was a pleasant easy run. Though for some reason I have sniffles.

My 2 mile run this morning was done with a certain amount of caution. Due to the stiffness in my lower back earlier in the week, I wasn't sure how much I could push. I started out quite slow, I was not sure exactly how slow since I didn't get a 1 mile split time.I tried to keep my shape as they say in English football terms and I felt my breathing was good. I ran twice yesterday as per my training schedule and was happy to run 15:51. The temperature was 30F (-1C) and I tend to run a little slower when it is cold.

Mother nature has such a sense of humour! It is the first day of Spring and as I went out for my run this morning it was beginning to snow. As I look out of my window now I can see big snow flakes falling. Of course they are melting as they touch the ground, but it is an interesting start to the day.
My back feels about 95% better, so my run was fine. I still plan to go out again this afternoon and in fact I saw Utpal on my way home and he said he was ready to go out with me on my second run.

When I got home from work yesterday I spent about an hour on my computer. When I decided to go out for my run my lower back was really stiff. I managed to get a run in, but later it felt like I had strained something in my back. I did a few things to try to make it better, but finally decided that the best thing was to go to bed and sleep. I had a long strange dream, which when it started to repeat itself made me wake up, only to find out that it was an hour past my usual waking up time. I contemplated taking the day off since I was still a little sore, but went to work any way. It is still not 100% but is feeling better, so hopefully another nights sleep will sort it out.

On my way home from work today I walked past a flower bed with about 30 miniature daffodils, in full flower in it. It was so nice to see the golden faces standing there in the full sunshine.

I saw this in a newspaper a couple of days ago;
Stress relief
Doctors say the best way
to deal with stress is to
relax and find an outlet for
anxiety. Here are some
suggestions:

Eat properly
Cut out sweets and unhealthful
foods
Exercise
Pursue a favorite hobby
Lose weight
Stop smoking
Cut back alcohol consumption
Spend time with family
Maintain regular social contacts.
So you see it's as easy as that.

So today is St Patrick's Day. It was a reasonably busy day at work.
Yesterday I thought I had seen the first outside flowering Daffodil of the year, in a park that I ran by locally, but today I confirmed that it was just the white skeletal remains of a leaf, that was stuck between the unopened buds of a group of daffodils.
So I guess I will have to wait a few more days to see the champion of spring flowers in bloom.

Slept really well, but with all the running I've been doing the last few days that is understandable. So I went out nice and early this morning and ran a couple of easy miles. Then after a little breakfast I went back to bed. I listened to my body and it told me to go to sleep for a while. It's Monday so I sorted my washing and put a load in the machine. I feel pleasantly sore from my new training schedule and I am quite happy with how the first weekend went. I did go out for a fast couple of miles in the afternoon.

After 2 days of running twice a day, I went out this morning and my legs let me know what I had been doing. I like the feeling of being able to fall asleep quite quickly when I go to bed. This is just the kind of training I feel I need to prepare for the 6 day race. I did similar workouts 2 years ago when getting for 24 hour races. It gets the body used to running on tired legs.

In other news my beloved Wolves won their game on Saturday as did second place Birmingham, third place Reading lost. So there is a little cushion as the season nears it's end, but it is not over yet.

I felt strange before the 1 mile race this morning, The temperature was just above freezing, but with bright sunshine. The feeling I had was almost like nerves, but there was no reason for me to feel that way. Anyway as soon as the race started it was gone. In the early part of the race I had no idea of how fast I was running and at the 1 mile split my time was 7:47, which I think is 2 seconds slower than last week. In the second mile I felt much better and tried to maintain my pace. Everything was good and I felt like I was pressing through to the end of the race. I finished with a time of 15:24, which means my second mile was 7:37. So all in all an 18 second improvement on last week.

This is the second month in a row that we have had a Friday the 13th, I wonder how often that happens? This morning was the first time for more than a week that the temperature was below freezing. Did not feel so great when I went out for my run, but had a pretty decent one anyway.
Need to clear out some of things in preparation for my move, have to work on doing that this today and on the weekend.
Enjoyed Sadhak's gig last night and for some reason stayed up till after midnight, maybe I was a little buzzed fro the hot chocolate I had.

Walking to work this morning, I looked up to see a big old moon shining down. The sky was clear and dark, and there it was a Spring full moon. Well I am not sure if it was full, but it looked like it to me. I am not sure if it has been due to the pull of the moon, but all this week I have been tired when I got home from work. Today was no exception, so I took a nap before I went out for my run.
My friend and co worker Sadhak, singer/song writer is performing at a local coffee shop this evening, so I will pop along and see him.

This will not mean much to most of you, but all four English football ( soccer ) clubs have made it to the 1/4 finals of the Champions League. The draw will be made on March 20, it is likely that 2 of them will play each other for a place in the semi finals.

My cousin Jo', who has been living in New Zealand for the last 7 years, is moving to Australia it seems. I was chatting with her sister Mandy today and she says the move is on April 26.

I am seeing more and more crocus as I walk home from work, a couple more warm days and we could see some Forsythia showing it's face.

It has turned a little colder, but still above freezing. Any possible trace of snow has now gone.
My running seems a little better too.
One of the routes that I take home from work brings me by a new auto parts place that has recently opened. There is a sign outside that reads " Tinting window ". Now unless there is an auto window that becomes automatically tinted when the Sun shines, I think it is supposed to read window tinting. This is kind of confirmed by another sign in the window of the store that reads " window tints ". Sometimes the guys that make the signs do not have a complete command of the English language.
I did take a little nap in the early evening, it just seemed like I needed one.

It's hard to believe that at this time last week there was snow everywhere, because when I looked out my front door this morning I could not see any.
Well the clocks went forward an hour here in the US and although it is not officially Spring for another 11 days, it sure is beginning to feel like it.
This is only the second time in the last 13 or 14 years that I have been in New York at this time of the year, I am usually in Europe now, but things of course will change in May.

So it is one week after the 50k Championships. What a difference a week makes, last week it was 30F and snow flurries, this week it was 44F when Utpal and I went out for our Sunday run. After running the 2 mile race yesterday on tired legs, they legs were not too lively this morning. These Sunday runs are about 2 friends spending some time running together and talking about the past week. So we managed to eek out about 7 miles and have a pleasant run. It is 7 weeks to the start of the 6 day race, so I now have about 6 weeks of decent training to put together.

It's 6 days since the 50k race and a beautiful morning. There was bright sunshine and although the temperature read 42F, it felt warmer. I felt pretty good as I started the 2 mile race, but was not quite sure how fast I was running. There is a short steep hill about half way around the loop, I always try to maintain my leg speed up this hill and sometimes re pass runners who have passed me just before. About half way through the second mile I started to feel my legs were tired from the race last Sunday, but I just tried to keep my form. I had gone through the first mile in 7:44 then ran the second mile a little slower in 7:58, for a finishing time of 15:42. Which is not as fast as my friend Amanda thought I should run, but still my fastest time so far this year. I can usually get it down to around 14 by the summer.

Finally the weather has turned warmer and it felt nice on my run this morning.. It looks like the weekend will be really nice.
I finally filed my State and city taxes, it's probably the last time I will have to do them
I watched a couple of movies today. one of them was Frozen River, which was up for a couple of Oscars. I liked it.

Finally it seems as though the tiredness is going form my legs. I did feel generally tired at the end of my work day, but after a short break when I got home, I went out for a run. I realized that I am 7 1/2 weeks away from the 6 day race I will run at the end of April and feel that I am in pretty good space right now. The fact that the weather is getting warmer may have something to do with it also.

Maybe it's the cold weather, but I am sleeping really well and when I leave for work I feel good. Then as the day progresses I start to get really tired and my legs feel wasted. I know I ran a 50k race 4 days ago, but it feels as though I should be a bit more recovered than this by now. It is supposed to get warmer from now on. Maybe I'll have a better idea of how I am by the weekend.

Everything felt a little better when I woke up this morning., but the temperature outside was 14F ( -10C ) and my walk to work was sometimes on rough frozen terrain. When I got to work my legs felt quite sore again, during my last hour at work I started to feel tired. However when I got home I saw that Wolves had won their latest league game albeit by a score of 1-0. This of course made me feel a little more awake and I went out for a run, which also loosened things up.

Woke up to 6 to 8 inches of snow on the ground and it was still snowing. My legs and feet had been quite sore during the night, but I slept quite good. It was not possible for me to go out and run early as I would usually do on a Monday, so I waited until the afternoon.By about 2 pm most of the roads were quite passable so I went out for a short run to shake things up a bit. It is quite cold out and there is a strong wind, which is blowing some of the snow around. Oh yeah! By the time it stopped snowing there was another 1 or 2 inches of snow and the temperature is 23F.

Drove out to Long Island early this morning with Ray K, who had driven up from South Carolina yesterday. The weather prediction was for snow with some accumulation. It was col, around freezing and there were some snow flurries during the race, but also a very short period of sun. I will write a full report on my running blog tomorrow, but I will say that I ran 6:14:45, which was only 3 minutes slower than my time in Chicago 2 years ago.I expected to run a little slower, so of course I am happy.

It seems to me that life is just a series of adjustments, or at least in order to move forward in our lives we have to keep making adjustments. I think Darwin said something like, adaptation is the secret to success in nature. We make plans and sometimes certain things are in place to make things easier, then these things may change. If we want to keep moving forward we need to adjust to the new situation. We must cheerfully accept the challenges in life and get on with it. Whatever life throws at us we can figure out how to go on. I said to someone yesterday sometimes you just have to survive for now and eventually things will improve.

It is so nice and sunny out there today and the temperature is mild, but things are supposed to change on the weekend. There is snow forecast for Sunday, which should make the 50k race kind of interesting. I have battled much worse, so it will be just a case of go out there, have fun and do my best.No point in feeling sorry for myself.

Due to having a lot of things to do when I got home from work today. I went out for my run a little later than usual. The result was that I got to see the night sky. It is very clear and the moon looks like a smiley face, but with a really thin smile and the pole star is like a huge bright shining diamond way above.
My run felt good, so once again I think I am ready for Sunday.

Yesterday was such a strange day for me. Just after leaving my house in the morning, I saw a lot of police cars heading down the street towards where I was going. Then a fire engine joined them. When I came near to a local park, there were maybe 5 or 6 police cars in there. I do not know what was going on and didn't find out later. When I got to the street where my work place is located another fire engine came by. There was a strange energy in the air. By the end of the day and even into today I felt very tired, I forgot to post anything on my blogs.
This afternoon an old friend gave me some disappointing news and that made me feel tired too. Maybe I'm reacting to the return of cold weather and the fact I have a 50k race in 4 days time.

So I have been having these conversations with my namesakes in Croatia and finding out, that there are so many connections to the people from my father's village. It was even said that the village of Donje Dubrave is the village of Jakovic's. It seems that a large number of the 30 or so Jakovic's I have found so far, have a family member from the village.
The morning was nice and brisk and I had a good run to start the day. I just have to stay loose and in balance for the rest of the week.

It was an overcast morning for our Sunday run, but the temperature was around 40F. It was the first time this year that Utpal had run out with me to see the baseball stadiums. When we got there Shea stadium was gone. You can see from the photo that the view west from Willetts point station is completely different

The 50k race is a week and a day away, so it was OK to run the 2 mile race this week. It was a little cold, but nice and sunny. Though I was running quite fast it felt almost like slow motion. I managed to maintain my pace and finished with a time of 15:55, which was only a few seconds slower than 2 weeks ago. I know that next week I will run a more relaxed pace, so I thought that this was a good race. I realized after the race that I am not fully recovered from my cold, but I have another week and it should not really be a problem anyway.

When I went to bed last night it seemed as though the heating in the house was not on, I didn't worry about it, but when I woke up this morning the house was cooler than usual. I checked the furnace and it seemed OK. When I checked the thermostat control the heat kicked on, I think for some reason it was stuck.
I did run early and it was cold and very windy out, the day was cold and windy, but with lots of sunshine.
Spent a few hours chatting with friends and family in various parts of the world.

Walking home this afternoon, I saw an old man sitting in a wheelchair and wearing dark glasses like he had a sight problem. There was a young woman standing next to him who I thought was maybe his carer. Another young woman came out of the store they were in front of, with 2 shopping bags. She approached them and said something. The old man got up out of the wheelchair and they put the shopping bags in it. The old man then proceeded to push the wheelchair, with the help of one of the young women. You see all kinds of things in New York.

Over the last 30 years or so I have accumulated a lot of stuff and now it is time to get rid of it. So things I will recycle, some I will just throw out, this should leave me with a few things to take back to Europe with me.
This afternoon is cool and rainy, it was strange because while walking home it had the distinct feel and smell of Autumn. Maybe it was just a Deja Vu moment.

My day went quite quickly and before I knew it I was on my way home The afternoon was a little warmer than I expected. After checking out my e mails and stuff I went out for a run. Although I am not 100% it felt as though I had a bit more spring in my step. So barring any major setbacks I think with 12 days to go, I am OK for the 50k on March 1st.

Feeling so much better this morning, ran an easy couple of miles. Temperature just below freezing, but pleasant.
Got my laundry done. Sorted out some old clothes, some for recycling. some for the bin.
It was also time for me to finally do my taxes, my last US ones for a while at least. I will get a small refund.
This afternoon watched the FA Cup 4th round replay between Arsenal and Cardiff. Eduardo made his comeback after being away recovering from a broken leg he suffered a year ago. He scored 2 goals and Arsenal won 4-0. Nice game to watch.

Now that Utpal is back from his travels I had company for the Sunday run. I think not racing yesterday paid off, because I felt a lot better this morning. However it did feel colder than I thought it would, at least at the beginning of the run. We went out to Flushing Meadow park. With Utpal suffering the effects of jet lag it was decided to just run around the lake and back. I am quite happy with the run and actually felt fresh at the end of it.
I did chat with my cousin in Croatia and found out that one of the people in my group on Facebook, was actually a neighbour in the village there.

My cold felt pretty bad this morning, but I figured I would go out to the race and decide there if I would run. After trying to warm up it did not seem like a good idea. I felt there was too much of a risk it would make things worse and I only have 2 weeks to the 50k. I just jogged a couple of miles and went home. After resting for a couple of hours I do feel better.
Hey it's Valentines day! It's also FA Cup 5th round and in most of the games there were draws, so there will be replays.
Wolves continued their bad patch and lost at Burnley, they are still top of the Championship, just about.

After waking up this morning still a little under the weather I actually went back for a nap about an hour later. Woke up feeling much better.
I have been noticing that my computer keyboard as been acting a little funny lately. It is an old one I have been using for about 6 years. I have a new one that came with my computer that I bought about 18 months ago. So I decided to switch in the new one. Lo and behold everything is work much faster. First of all I think it is more compatible and also it's just more efficient.
Utpal is back from his trip ( he was in Bali ). He is majorly jet lagged but we did go out for a run this afternoon, though he mostly wanted to walk.

I woke up this morning with a deep croaky voice, yes I had a large frog in my throat.When I got to work my boss said it sounded creepy. It did get better as the day went on, but it reminded me of many years ago, when I sang bass in a choir, though I am really a tenor.
There is very strong wind out there this afternoon, but it is still quite mild.

The soreness in my throat has remained but is not getting any worse. Actually as the day went on my voice began to break up. It is quite warm out there, the temperature climbed all the way up to 54 F. Due to the late start of the England v Spain game, I managed to get a run in and came back 4 minutes into the game. England looked pretty good early on, but Spain worked there way into the game and took an errant pass from England in midfield to score the only goal of the first half. So Spain 1, England 0 at half time.

Around this time of year, for the past 13 or 14 years I have been preparing for a trip to Europe, It seems that almost every time I get a cold or Flu, which on all but a few occasions is gone by the time I leave.
Well this morning I woke up with a sore throat and during the day I was sneezing a lot, though I must say, it did seem to get a little better as the day went on. The fact that we are supposed to have fairly mild weather all week should help.
However this also happens to me when I am preparing for a race and since I have a 50k coming up in less than 3 weeks maybe that is the reason. Could it be psychosomatic or something my body is doing to slow me down a little.

I got caught up in so many things today that I almost forgot to post something on my blog. I have been doing this search on Facebook for people with my last name. I found a guy named Dino Jakovic, who lives in a town close to where my father was from. It turns out his father is from the same village as my father. I will find out more later.

It was a nice morning, with the temperature already at 40F when I left the house at 10 to 7 .I felt kind of sore and my left hamstring and knee seemed to be telling me something was a little tight. When I got out to Flushing Meadow Park, things were a bit different from last week, though there were still a few icy patches. Once again I went out to Shea stadium and Citi field. My run of 2 hours felt good, but still a little sore at the end.

Due to a lack of officials, I was the starter for this mornings 2 mile race.The other official stayed at the finish line. I was given his watch, which I started the race with and handed it to him as we ran by on the first loop. There were only 6 official starters, not sure why this was, as the weather was much better than in previous weeks. For some reason I was feeling a little sore when I left my house for the race, so I did a little extra warming up before the race.I finished 4th with a time of 15:52, yet another improvement on the previous week. So slowly, slowly I am getting some speed back.
I did a search on Facebook for people with the last name Jakovic and sent out friend invitations. So far I have about 15. I am interested to see how it goes.

I have been sorting through some of my things and the other day I found my diary from 2001. Yesterday I sat down and looked at a few pages, I was interested to see what I wrote on September 11. This is what I wrote;" The day started out so normally. When the flight got to within 3 1/2 hours of New York, we were told that terrorists had attacked. The plane had to go back to Vienna. We would land in London first.The airspace over London was closed, so we landed in Manchester. Then finally on to Vienna, arriving back 13 hours after we left".
My final note was; My running streak ended today
4 years 6 months 8 days.
I don't know why but that is what I wanted to post today.

Today was just a blur.Once again the temperature had dropped down into the low teens F. We suddenly became busy again at work, plus I think we are adjusting to the fact that we are short of guys.,. Anyway before I knew it the end of the day had come. I contemplated going in tomorrow for a couple of hours, then reason made an appearance and I decided not to.
I need to file my taxes and hopefully I will have the time to do that tomorrow.

Woke up this morning with a sour stomach, don't know if it was something I ate last night or what. When I got to work I had a ginger tea and a short time later. a black tea and some plain chocolate cake. Shortly after that I was fine. This was all based on intuition, that's what it told me to do and it worked.
Once again the Sun was shining when I left work this afternoon and the snow is already disappearing off the sidewalks. Maybe it will be gone by the weekend.

I have been back in New York for 3 weeks now, a few days after that my boss went on vacation. Two days after that a workmate lost his battle with cancer. Yesterday I heard that the guy my boss left in charge, slipped on ice while walking his dog and has a compound fracture of his leg. This required surgery both yesterday and today. So things are a bit crazy at work.
The forecast was for it to start raining last night then turn to snow later and accumulate about 1 to 2 inches. It did not rain and the snow did not start until after 9 this morning. As a result it has snowed all day and we have about 3 inches of fresh snow on the ground at the moment.
While out running this afternoon I was reminded of one run I had in Slovenia, it was nice.

While family and friends are telling me there is heavy snow in the UK, here in New York it is like a beautiful Spring day. It feels mild and the temperature by midday has gone up to 47F ( 8C ). Most of the snow from last week has now gone, but just has it has done over the 3 weeks I have been back, it is supposed to snow tomorrow.
I have not been watching the Super bowl the last couple of years, but decided to watch it last night. I thought it was a good game, was not too impressed by the adds. Glad it went down to the wire, when it had looked early on like it might be a blowout.

It's been almost 3 months since I went out to Shea stadium and quite a lot has changed. You can see from the photo that about 3/4 of it has now gone. While I was there taking photo's I met another gentleman doing the same. He got quite emotional when we talked about the history of the place and we took each other's photo's, with the stadium in the background. I ended up running about 11 miles. Meadow Lake was almost completely frozen with just a small section on one side where a few ducks were keeping it open. When I started out it was 1 or 2 degrees below freezing and as I finished my run it was 1 or 2 degrees above.

Due to the cold and somewhat icy conditions today the fee for the 2 mile race was waived. The turn out was quite small ( I think about 10). There was a strong headwind again just like last week. It felt like I was pushing for the whole race, but at times it also seemed like I was in slow motion. The runner just ahead of me looked like he was jogging, but I couldn't seem to get any closer. My finishing time was either 15:59 or 16:00. There was a problem with the clock and times were given from my watch, which I had given to the race director at the start.
Despite all these things I was faster than last week and have slowly improved with each race, so far this year. I think my times were better last year, but the weather was much warmer. Anyway I am happy to go out and try to run fast short races.

Early this morning, after my run I was checking out my Facebook pages. I got an instant message from a running friend of mine in India, we chatted for a little while and then he was gone. Later I talked with another running friend in Ohio. In this new world of technology I can have conversations during the day while sitting at my computer. We can send each other links to web pages and show each other photographs and in some cases see each other live on our computer screens while talking. Yes it's true that some of these things we can do by telephone.
This afternoon I went online and signed up for a 50k race that I will be running in March.

Now that I am back to my old schedule, which I have not been on for about 2 years. Tomorrow is the start of my weekend. After all that snow then rain yesterday it got cold during the night and yes there was major ice this morning. It did get much nicer during the day and my walk home and subsequent run later, was very pleasant. It seems, that for the next few days at least it will be cold nights and milder days.
Oh by the way! I used to play on a football ( soccer) team in my youth , that played in the United Nations league. That's me front row right.

When I left the house for work this morning there was a nice blanket of snow on the ground, snow was blowing everywhere and it was a few degrees below freezing. Later in the day it got warmer and the snow turned to rain. So when I started back home thee was a slushy mess on the streets. While I was out running I would splash through icy cold puddles which would make my feet freeze. This sometimes what it can be like in New York in winter.

Because we have the odd worker out sick, I switched from my usual job and went to where I was needed today. The result was that the day went by really quickly.
There is very little snow on the ground at the moment, but the forecast is that there will be snow tonight and there could be some serious accumulations. So we will have to see what tomorrow brings.

So out it was this morning for my run and it felt surprisingly cold, ok it was 21 F, but it felt colder. At the end of my run I went into my local Bodega and was greeted with smile's and handshakes. When I walked out with my Ginger tea I had a real sense of optimism. It is the first full week with the new President, we sometimes say the start of a new watch.
During the morning I finished preparing my old laptop for my friend. The ant-virus free trail that came with my new laptop expired a couple of days ago, so I installed the one I have been using for a few years now.
Just before I was about to leave the house and get some Lunch, my wrist watch died, so I stopped by a local store and got a new one. So you could say I got a new watch on the new watch.

Still a bit congested and have a little bit of a bronchial cough. But that was not going to stop me going out in 16 degree F weather for my Sunday run. My Sunday running partner Utpal is off in sunnier climes for a few weeks. So it was up to me to get out there and run alone. It actually felt a little colder than I though when I got out there. You know once you get going you soon warm up. I managed to run for an hour and maybe because of my physical condition, felt a little sore at the end, but I was happy went out there and ran.

Later today there will be services for my friend who died earlier in the week, with his cremation taking place tomorrow.

This mornings 2 mile race was kinda strange for me. It was not too cold, but there was a strong wind. It is a loop course, but it seemed as though I was running into a headwind for more than half of the race. It was only during and after the race that I realized I was a little sick. I have found in the past. that if there is something there, the 2 mile race will bring it out. Now I have to spend the weekend getting rid of it.
Speaking of the weekend, it is the FA Cup fourth round and my beloved Wolves are home to Middlesborough.
Last night I watched the second half of The curious case of Benjamin Button. I had seen the first half while in Slovenia 2 weeks ago. I also a saw The Wrestler

First of all the day started off nicely. It is like a warm winters day, not quite Spring but warmer than it has been. I got in a nice run early. I got a call from a friend in the UK that the son and daughter of another friend fro the UK would be coming out to Queens today, so I agreed to meet with them. The son just moved to New York after living in SF for 13 years. They were nice people and were interested to see some of the places their mother visits when she comes to NY. So I got to talk with them and be their tour guide for a couple of hours this afternoon. They had fun and so did I.Their names are Anthony and Jenny.

It got above freezing today and the bright sunshine felt quite warm as I walked home from work this afternoon.
There is a Mosque in my neighborhood and some time, as today, while out on my run in the afternoon I here the call to prayer. It can be quite mystical.

Friends, even those you don't really know, but have a common interest with, can pick you up some times. Just chatting with, or talking on the phone, or even just receiving and e mail, can brighten your day. So please take a moment to make some kind of contact with a close or distant friend.
It was a cold but optimistic day for me, I have connected with some new running friends. There is a new President in the country, who already seems to making people feel better about things. So in this first month of the new year things are looking brighter.

Yes ladies and gentlemen it is now President Barack Obama, there seems to be a lot of joy around at the thought of what is to come.
However the day began with some sadness, when I heard that an old friend and colleague had finally lost his fight with Cancer. I was fortunate to see him 2 days ago and felt at that time, he was saying goodbye. He will be missed.

Today we celebrate the Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr, although his actual birthday would have been last week. It is very appropriate that tomorrow Barack Obama becomes the first Black American president. He is essentially fulfilling the dream that Reverend King talked about.
It snowed again overnight and there was a coating of snow on the ground as I went out for my run this morning. Later there was sunshine, but as I write this post there are big fluffy snow flakes coming down outside I think I have a bit of a head cold and spent a couple of hours napping this afternoon. I have turned to my old standard of eating 1 pound of grapes and we will see how it is tomorrow

Much milder than yesterday, but still cold, 25 F ( -4 C ). There is snow falling, but right on 7am I met Utpal on the corner and off we went for our Sunday run. Of course it was a chance for us to catch up on a few things, but mainly it was jst nice to be out there running in Queens on a Sunday morning. Stopping in at our local cafe
( Panorama ) for a hot tea and scone at the end of our run.

Woke up with a bit of a stuffy nose and it was 8 F out there, that's -13 C. The usual 2 mile race took place and of course I was out there, wrapped up pretty good, so it didn't feel that cold. I do not run that fast when it's that cold. I am just happy to run the race, but it does set my starting standard for the year. My time was 16:20, which I am quite happy with. Many of the top runners are out of town, so I managed to place 6th amongst the men, 8th overall.
It will be strange to watch English football from afar this weekend.

OK so I know it's only 3 days at work, but today is a day o for me. I went out for a run this morning and the temperature was 12 or 13 F ( -11C ), it didn't feel so cold when I was running.
I spent the day catching up on a few things, chatting with some friends about what's been going on with them and telling them what's new with me.
I finally got to see the movie Slumdog Millionaire. I thought it was a good film.
This photo is of the dawn I woke up to in Slovenia about 12 days ago, to me it was very inspiring.

I just heard that an airplane went down into the Hudson river this afternoon, seems a flock of birds stopped both engines. No one died but it must have been really cold in the water. The temperature this afternoon was 20 F ( -7C ).
I have mentioned before my work colleague who has been battling cancer, well while I was away, it seems his condition has forced him to retire and sadly he is quite sick.

I was listening to a John Mayall album at work today and a line in one song struck me, " Life is a slow train climbing up a hill". This may be true when we are young, but as we get older things really do go fast.
I backed into a stand this morning and bruised my right calf, it was really sore for a little while, but seemed to get better through the day.
It's quite cold here and there is snow predicted tonight and tomorrow.

My first day back at work and a few things went wrong today. Well actually some things broke down. I think they wait till I get back and then decide it is time. This happens a lot when I come back from a break.
A week or so before I went away I was having trouble with my desk top computer. The cursor kept freezing and I thought maybe it was a bug. Then just before I left I discovered it was my track ball. Anyway I bought an Optical mouse on Penkridge Market Saturday and that is working really well.

Got an early start this morning. It was pissing down with rain as we drove to Manchester airport.Flight to London was uneventful, the wait for the flight to New York did not take long. I watched 3 movies on the plane, 1 of them being Julia. The next couple of days are going to be catch up days, my run on the streets of Jamaica, Queens felt good.

This is my last day on this trip, I fly back to New York early tomorrow. So this morning I took my last Sunday run up the A449.It got really cold last night, but the weather was kind to me this morning, a little windy but not too cold. I ran out to Acton Trussel, actually running for 67 minutes. I did feel my legs a little bit, maybe the result of the 2 mountain runs and the traveling. I do feel that this has helped me get stronger and will pay off in the Spring.

This is my last weekend in the UK, my last chance to watch some football. I did sit with my nephew and brother in-law and watch the Aston Villa v West Brom game. Villa won 2-1, they were not happy. My niece came over to say goodbye and I did a little shopping, buying a new optical mouse for my computer.
After a good nights sleep I feel a whole lot better today after my long trip back from Slovenia.

My flight was delayed by 1 hour last night.. When we landed at Stanstead it was really foggy. Anyway by the time I got back in to London and to Euston Station, I had missed the last train back to Stafford. I had to stay in London till 5:30 when the next train was due to leave. Then it seems that they close the station for 3 hours during the night. I had lived in London during the 70's, so I know my way around as it were. Not having anywhere to stay for 3 hours I bought a bus pass for 4 pounds and rode the night bus around London for that time..
I finally arrived back at my sister's house at 8am this morning. I had some breakfast and spent a litte time filling everyone in on the past week. Then it was time for a nap, since I had only caught about 2 hours of sleep in the last 24 or so.

Last night it snowed here and was still snowing when my friend Milan and I went out to run this morning. However as I write this post it is much brighter. This evening I fly back to the UK, I have had a good week here. It is just about 4 months before I move here in the Spring, already there so many things planned, one of which will be officially registering my ownership of the farm.

This morning I went to a place called Terme Cetez, it is near the border with Croatia. My cousin came there last night with his family for a vacation. He had with him the pre contract for my Grandfather's farm. I signed the contract and money and key exchanged hands. I now own land in Croatia, the full contract will be signed in the Spring.
Yesterday in the afternoon I went with Marjan to a different part of Pohorje and ran on x country ski trails, for 2 hours. My legs were quite tired when I ran just a couple of miles this afternoon. I am really happy with the few days of winter traing that I have been able to put in.

Today it is trying to snow in Maribor, but having much luck. There will be World Cup Skiing here this weekend. In a few hours I will go back to Ljubljana. My host Marjan has said he will drive me since it is only 1 hour and it takes 20 minutes to drive to Maribor to get the train. It is very nice of him, it will be a much nicer ride.It is hard to believe that I have been here 5 days and will return to the UK in 2 more. Also this time next week I will be probably walking to work in New York.

I had a very busy day, I am happy with everything I did, but did not get to run. This is the first time in 8 1/2 months that I have not run. It has nothing to do with running the mountain yesterday, So I guess that I will have to start another streak tomorrow.The nights are getting very cold here -10 C last night and didn't get much above -4 C during the day.

This morning I ran in a race up a mountain called Pohorje. We started on a snow covered road and then went on to trails and ski slopes. Most of the runners use ski poles or walking poles, it is very difficult, especially without poles. The race is only 3.8 km, but rise 700 meters in elevation.. The last part is like going up a very steep flight of stairs about 200 meters long. It really works the legs and lungs. At the top you get a health food bar and hot herbal tea. Then you go back down to the start and easier way. It took me about 55 minutes and then another 40 to get back down. Later we had a Pizza party and a slide show of the seasons races. It was really nice.

Yesterday I had a bit of a pressure headache and jet lag.Some of my friends were moving to a new place and I helped. Did manage to get a short run in late in the day.Of course I am sleeping really well. I am traveling North up to Maribor today. I need to talk with my cousin in Croatia to arrange where we are going to meet in a few days time.

Well I got here. I managed to get a high speed train from Stafford to London, then a short Underground ride to Liverpool St got me to the Stanstead Express.The flight was uneventful, when I arrived the was a little snow on the ground and the temperature was -5C. My friend Gasper picked me up and I must say I was very hungry. I had dinner watched an Italian movie and was out like a light. My internet connection is somewhat iffy, but I will do the best I can.

So it's early and I just managed to get a 2 mile run in.It's a bit frosty outside. I have to get the train to London in a couple of hours, then I fly to Slovenia. Yes I am spending the first day of the New Year going to the country I will be moving to in about 4 1/2 months. It is frosty out there this morning and I expect it will be so in Slovenia too. Will try and keep you informed.

Well it's the last day of 2008. An interesting one to be sure. I have lost some friends and gained a few. I finally made the decision to leave New York after living there for 30 years. I am excited about moving back to live in Europe, in the Spring of 2009, though I know there will be many thoughts of what I leave behind. In a way I have the same kind of feelings I had in my 20's, but as I have said before I always feel comfortable when I am in Europe.

Well the year is winding down, so of course that means last minute things are speeding up.
Had a busy morning with my nephew in Cannock, happy with the result. It's cold out though, -2 C. It didn't feel so bad once I was out there running this afternoon.
I am about 48 hrs away from flying to Slovenia, where I have a mixture of business and pleasure, both there and in Croatia.

I had to go to Cannock, which is a town not far from Penkridge, today. My nephew drove me over there. I was unable to get what I wanted and have to go back tomorrow.The temperature was actually at freezing and for some reason it felt really cold. I have the feeling that I have lost some fat on my body while I have been here and this is why I felt the cold more. I had a nice run out to second tree and actually saw someone out there running in shorts and a T shirt.

Went out for my run just as the Sun was coming up this morning. Unlike the last 2 weeks I did not see other runners out there on the roads. It was not too cold and the run was quite pleasant, running for just over an hour.On the way back I was running towards a golden Sun.

Because of the Boxing day fixtures there are no football games in England today. There was however a game in Scotland, a game between Celtic and Ranger, known as the old firm game.
It's been quite cold outside all day. Went out for my run this afternoon and yes it was cold. I have several routes that I can run in Penkridge and today I ran to second tree.

My sister has a hard time staying asleep for long on Christmas day, so we were up pretty early. Opening presents was in 2 sessions, with a breakfast break in the middle. I managed to get a run in before we were off to my nieces for the Christmas meal. There were 10 of us around the table and of course the food was excellent. We had the traditional turkey dinner, with soy turkey in my case. We are now home and will have a quiet evening.

I wish you all a Happy Christmas, Holiday Season. Be safe and well where ever you are.

The place in England where I grew up is called Gornal, name comes from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning 'The place with two windmills'. The local dialect is said to be the oldest surviving Anglo-Saxon language. I have many friends and family that live in Gornal. The area that includes Gornal is known as the Black Country, this said to be because of all the Coal and Steel industry that was in the area. However it may have some other meaning that dates back to Saxon times. I always feel very comfortable when I am in this place of my roots.
It's Christmas eve, there is no snow on the ground and the Sun is shining. Tonight I will go out to dinner with my sister, brother in-law and some friends then sttle down and wait for Christmas day.

Went shopping with my nephew in Stafford this morning, got the last present I needed to but. I think this is the last day of this mild spell we are having.
When I went out for my run in the afternoon it felt like a cool Spring day. I wore less clothes than I have been and was still too warm.. My nephews friend Paul, who boxes Mauy Thai in Thailand part of the year, stopped by. Utpal made a short video about him a couple of years ago. Check it out on youtube. look for the Utpal Marshal channel.

There is a 14th century church in Penkridge and for the last 200 years or so it has had mechanical clock in it's tower. Someone was required to wind this up. The health and safety has decided that the stairs up to the clock are now not safe. So they have suspended winding the clock up. The clock stopped 1 week before Christmas . The village council now has to find the money to make the steps safe before the clock will work again.

The weather is quite mild and it was quite pleasant for my run this morning. I got so warm that I had to remove my hat after just a few miles. I ran a little further than last week and I am quite pleased.

It's Saturday and there is a full slate of English football on.In fact as I write this post the second and third place teams in the Championship are playing each other.
While I sit here it is wet and overcast outside and it seems it is even colder and snowing in New York.
Later today David Beckham will be presented as n AC Milan player, which is big thing to those who follow football.
Yesterday I also found out that in the Christmas Doctor Who Special, all 10 Doctors will appear at some time, a big treat for the fans.

Yesterday while out on my run I saw a pheasant, he was in the hedgerow next to where I was running and would not stay still, long enough for me to take a photo.
Today was quite fruitful for me. I now have the money to buy the farm in Croatia and also booked a flight to go over there on January 1. So the New Year will truly be a new start for me. To top it off I bought some Cherry scones from the village bakery, they still warm! The weather has stayed quite mild, though it is overcast.