Remembering September 11, 2001

Four years ago today, along with millions of Americans, I watched in stunned disbelief and horror at the images on the TV. For some odd reason, I still got ready for work and took the BART to my office in San Francisco's 4 Embarcadero. As I exited the Embarcadero BART station, hundreds of people were headed out of the City. At 8:00 a.m, the station resembled an evening commute.

When I reached the office, there were only a handful of us and we were worried how our colleagues in NYC and Washington DC were faring. We were also nervously watching the skies for any low flying planes. I am very grateful that none of my family or friends were harmed by the events of September 11th, but we are all forever changed.

16 Candles...16 miles

After Saturday's run, my feet felt like they've run over 16 candles. Burn, baby, burn! And a huge blister has taken residence on one of my toes. At Sara's suggestion, I tried the run/walk technique and although it did not improve my time, my post-run recovery is way less painful! Thank you, Sara!!

16 miles was tough. At the last water stop on the way back, I was very tempted to beg a ride back to the parking lot, but ego took over and I mostly walked the last 1.5 miles. To stave off the mental fatigue, I tried tonglen, but my mind could not focus on anyone else's suffering other than my own.

Tomorrow night is the send off party for the Maui team. I'm glad that I have another month to train before Nike. Saturday's run told me mental preparation is just as important as the physical.