Around the Bay 2026 is done. And I survived. I completed the race in 3 hours 53 minutes and 36 seconds. I was about 4 minutes slower than my time last year. A mantra that I kept repeating to myself during the run was: You are running your race. You are only competing against yourself.…
Tomorrow is the Around The Bay road race 2026 edition. I’ve picked up my Race Kit: my race bib and shirt. I did my last training run yesterday. I can take it easy until tomorrow morning. I signed up for the race in September, so there’s been a few months to prepare for it. Unlike…
We just got back from Easter dinner at my sister’s place. And I’m feeling grateful. It was a lovely family gathering. Most of my immediate family was there. The only ones missing were our son and his family and two nieces and a nephew. But my sister also invited some of our cousins. We had…
This week, I was at a play reading committee for a community theatre group. We were discussing twelve plays that we had all read over the last few weeks. The group is trying to determine the playbill for an upcoming season. We come from different walks of life and have different tastes. It wasn’t easy…
The Around the Bay race is only two weeks away. The countdown is on. Today, I ran my last long run before the race. 26 km. Next week’s “long run” will be half that distance. It was hard. I didn’t feel like running today. And I definitely didn’t feel like running 26 km. But I…
What lengths would you go to pretend you remembered someone’s name? Would you lie? Would you hug a stranger? Last year, I was at a talk that Alex Neve was giving. He was delivering his first of five Massey Lectures. Pat, Alex’s wife, is Deb’s best friend. Deb and I got married a couple of…
I remember when the book The Creative Act by Rick Rubin came out a few years ago. I didn’t read it then, but I was aware of it. I considered buying the book because I’m fascinated with creativity. I decided to take it out of the library instead of buying it. It wasn’t available at…
Sometimes I choose pain over comfort. That’s why I’m running the Around the Bay race again this year. Running 30 km is a great way to test your will and stamina. I’m a bit behind in my training. As usual. The race is a little later this year, so I have a buffer. It’s in…
Sometimes I get mad at myself because I don’t write as much as I think I should. I don’t reach out to the people I want to touch base with. I don’t read the books I buy or take out from the library. I don’t exercise when I know I should. So many things I…
Last month Deb and I joined a gym. Again. We belonged to one before COVID. And after COVID, we never went back. But we’re getting to an age where we need to be in shape so that we can stay healthy. Not only for our kids, but for our grandkids. Deb has a trainer to…
peter gruner 