Distributed Computing

I wrote about my crashing desktop computer awhile back. I eventually bought a Dell Dimension 8200 desktop on eBay for $65.00. A great deal and the computer just hums along. The only downside I can see so far is that memory upgrades must be done in pairs of memory sticks that make the process more costly. Anyway, I started to get back to some of the interests I had on my computer before the whole blue screen of death episode. One of my recent things is to go back to running SETI@Home. SETI@Home is a distributed computing effort to sift through huge quantities of data in search of extraterrestrial signs of life. As a die-hard X-Files devotee this idea appeals to me. Now the software used to accomplish this feat, BIONC, is also used for several other distributed computing applications. There are many worthy projects going on but I settled on Rosetta@Home for now. Here's an interesting description of this project:

As a person who's trying to always become more socially responsible (a life long quest). The concept that my eBay computer might actually share some small credit for truly historic scientific breakthrough is exciting. Since my computer sits idle most of the time, I'm giving it something to do.

Happy New Year

In case you haven't seen this already...





Happy New Year from the shores of snowy Lake Michigan!

Updating my bike miles

I continue to do most of my miles commuting back and forth to work. I was gone for a week in November. I already have about as many miles in December as I had in November.

August bike miles=319.2
September bike miles=174.6
October bike miles=308.9
November miles=163.4

Miles for 2007=3340.5
Miles since June 2006=6279.5

Follow up to my earlier post-I've figured out how to attach my DIY headlight!

"My mind was a mile away..."

On Thursday I went out to the Indiana Dunes to run run my favorite route-Trail #9. It's a great winter day to run. Although it's cloudy, there's not much wind so the weather seems mild even though the temperature is still below freezing. There are only two other cars in the parking lot at Wilson's Shelter. It's easy to imagine that I'm the only person here. For the first half hour I see nobody. As I crest a small hill about a mile from the end of the run, I see a guy walking along in front of me. He's got a walking stick in his right hand but he's not using it. He's just swinging it as he walks along. This guy has done nothing to suggest he knows I'm closing in on him. I'm now only about 20 meters behind him. It's time to announce my presence.

"Hello," I shout. He seems to jump a foot in the air.

As I pass him he replies, "My mind was a mile away!"

"Sorry," I say,"Go ahead back there."

I go around a corner and up and over a small hill. I don't look back, but, I know he's out of sight behind me. Soon my mind is a mile away again too.

How often have I had this experience-countless times. I've heard it referred to as a "runner's high" but it it seems anyone can experience it.

Professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced "CHICK-sent-me-high-ee")coined the term Flow to describe the sensation runners and others have experienced but have trouble describing. He's written several books about it. It's like Michael Jordan being in "the zone."

I'm a member of the coach's association in Indiana. The IATCCC coaches clinic in late January 2008 has a speaker giving a presentation entitled "Flow Theory: The Path to Peak Performance." I don't know about that, but, I'm fairly sure it's the path to peak experiences-a winter run at the dunes.

Stuff

I made it through the trail marathon in Bloomington, Indiana, over the weekend, albeit, slowly. Steve and I camped near the finish, then rode the bus to the starting line. Steve won a slab of wood signifying a top three age group finish. I won nothing. It was good.

Into the Wild was playing at the local theater so we decided to go see it. Beautiful movie but it seems they glorified this guy's journey more than was necessary. He really was a pathetic hero to my way of thinking-a sad way to die. I read the book awhile ago.

I've been bike commuting the past two days and not running. My knees are still aching from the trail run. It reminds me I'm not as young as I used to be. I used to bounce back from a long run and be back running within the next day or two. Now, it takes longer.

It looks like I may be riding home from work tonight in the snow (and the dark). I've still got slicks on my bike so it could get interesting-I'll just take it slow. Combine this and my recent headlight woes (my battery seems to not hold a charge very well over the last couple of weeks) and I'm feeling a bit anxious. I hope my 6:00 PM appointment doesn't show so I can start an hour earlier. I've got a home-built headlight that really works great but I still haven't figured out how to attach it to the bike! Maybe I'll get time this weekend. By the time I get home during the week, I just haven't mustered the energy to figure it out. I did try a couple of velcro-inspired options but it just wasn't secure enough. Buying a new light isn't out of the question but I shutter to think about spending more for the light than the bike is worth. We'll see how it goes.

Falling Back

I'm sitting here on a Sunday morning trying to get motivated for a long run. I'm planning on running the Tecumsah Trail Marathon in about four weeks and I really haven't trained for it (this is becomming a theme for me!). I ran about 20 miles four weeks ago and it felt pretty good. I've been running minimal mileage since then. I'm up an hour earlier then usual because the time changed last night. We move our clocks an hour back and stay one hour different than most of Indiana and Michigan but the same as Chicago. What that means to runners and bikers is that afternoon workouts will be ending after dark. Many bikers have put their bikes up by now anyway. There's a chance of snow in the weather forecast this week.

Our high school cross country season ended a week ago. I always feel a little down afterward. Our team made their goal of running in the state meet-this year for the seventh time in a row. We return all but one runner in our top twelve so our future looks promising. Every year, I struggle to manage my time between cross country and my regular job as a counselor. I'm constantly rushing from work to practice or from practice to work. I suppose I should feel relieved that I can give this lifestyle up for awhile but I don't.

My bike commute miles have been lower the last couple of months, mostly becasue I need the car to get back and forth from work to practice. I have been averaging 2-3 days per week. I've also been doing some modest mileage on the weekends.

I watched a little of the web cast of the Men's Olympic Marathon Trials that was held yesterday in Central Park. I've run that loop a couple of times. That's a tough marathon and an imprerssive time by the winner. By the way I was saddened to learn of the death of one runner, Ryan Shay.


I guess I need to get in gear if I'm going to do this run. We're heading for the dark season.

Where have I been?

Time flies sometimes, doesn't it? Seems like yesterday I was mourning the end of the Tour de France, and now it's a few days from the beginning of Autumn.

I had 319.2 biking miles in August. I was gone for a week at cross country camp so no riding. I'll update my yearly mileage in another post (I may just wait until the end of September now).

I bought a replacement computer on Ebay, a Dell Demension 8200 series computer for $62.00. I think it was a pretty good deal although the cost of upgrading the RAM memory is a little steep because the memory modules must be installed in pairs. I'm hoping to add this computer to the new wireless network I have at home. The primary reason I went with a used desktop is when I went to Best Buy to purchase a cable to attach my printer to my lap top, the cost was $36.00! At that point I figured for a few more bucks a could buy a used computer to connect the printer via the serial cable I already had and network it to the laptop. I'm still waiting for the Dell to arrive in the mail.

I got my yearly late summer, allergy-driven, cold about a week and a half ago. As usual it began with bronchitis-like symptoms. It started after I tried to set a personal best for the bike ride home from work a couple of Thursdays ago because I had a crazy strong tail wind. That night I couldn't sleep because I had this familiar "post nasel drip" (a nice way of saying that crap was clogging my throat!). I tried to ignor my sickness for a couple of days, hoping it would just disappear on it's own, but that didn't work. I eventually took a day to just sleep and read in bed all day. I did get a good ways into the sixth Harry Potter book. I finished it yesterday and am ready for the last book now. I'm almost back to noraml except I'm still coughing more than is normal for me.

We're in the heart of the high school cross country season now. Our team Chesterton High School is ranked in the top 20 in the state so far. Our traditional goal is to qualify to compete in the state meet that is held at the end of October. We're cautiously optimistic about our chances. As I may have mentioned elsewhere, I'm the assistant coach.

That's where I've been!