TUESDAY

TUESDAY

I'm settling into this solitude thing. The trick is not to be alone. Not all the time. I've seen three Springsteen shows in the last ten days. Coached practice every day. Headed over to the local with a book just to be around noise. I'm recording podcasts about The Long Run — no need to tell all of you that it comes out this Tuesday. Pretty sure I've stated that one too many times in this space. I also recorded a great interview with NPR's Morning Edition yesterday. Day Two of the Arcadia Invitational track meet is going on as I write, though I won't be attending. I didn't go last night either. When it's a choice between driving two hours each way in traffic and then fighting for a parking spot or watching a live stream before a roaring fire, I will take the computer every time. I know this breaks the thing I said about not being alone but I've only got so much emotional bandwidth. Getting back from Springsteen at midnight twice this week put me in no mood to make yet another drive to LA.

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LOOKING FORWARD

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LOOKING FORWARD

If you are in Orange County (California) in a couple weeks, know that I have a signing at the Aliso Viejo Barnes & Noble on April 25 at 1 pm. Give a little talk, sign a few books, pop to the brewery around the corner for a small after party. It's in between Boston Marathon week and Orange County Marathon week, so running will be in the air. It's also the start of track and field's postseason, meaning no lack of running/runners/strategy discussion.

A lot happening between now and then.

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LONG LAKE AND THE LONG RUN

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LONG LAKE AND THE LONG RUN

I am in Long Lake, Wisconsin at my college friend Dan Brown's hunting camp. The docks have been pulled out for the winter. A thick coat of ice still covers the surface. I flew in after coaching at The Ten Saturday night. One of my girls broke 5:00 for the mile for the first time. Got up at 5 the next morning for the drive to LAX. On the way, I saw a shadowy figure on the darkened tollway and swerved at the last minute. It was an owl, of all things. Enormous. Gray feathers. Flew away just in time. I have a thing for large birds of prey. Hawks, falcons, golden eagles, and owls. I would have been devastated if I had killed it. There's been quite enough death in my life recently.

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COMFORTABLY NUMB

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COMFORTABLY NUMB

Laid my sweetie to rest on Friday. I hear there's war with Iran, gas prices are soaring, and March Madness is in full swing. But I've been in a different place these past three weeks since she passed. She's all I think about. I haven't practiced my guitar or worked on my Duolingo French. I walk. I run. I feed the dogs. Keep the house clean, always using Windex to clean the counters because she thought that was important. I'm not hungry often, which is a first. I'm careful with my alcohol because I don't want to become a cliche — that guy who loses his wife and goes off the deep end.

LEARNING CURVE

LEARNING CURVE

I got away last week. Got a dog sitter and took off. Spent some time in solitude to clear my head. Long walks. A few dinners with friends. A couple really nice runs. Carried a notebook wherever I went so I could make notes for the eulogy. Then I wrote it in a single two-hour session, a few thousand words to define a life that deserves two thousand pages.

CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE

CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE

I called my sister Mary late last night. I was on the back porch drinking IPA and playing guitar. She couldn't talk. "I'm in a casino," she said, whispering as if no one speaks loudly in a casino. "I'm walking into a concert."

Before I could ask which band she was seeing, we said our goodbyes. I dearly love my baby sister. This morning she sent me a video from her seats, Chris Isaak singing "I Can't Help Falling In Love With You." Typing those words now, I feel the actual title should be tighter. I'd make it tighter. Too many words. Dilutes the impact. But you know the song. We all know that song.

BOOK SHAPE

BOOK SHAPE

Sunday morning in the backyard. Six weeks and two days until The Long Run hits stores. It's going to be 90 degrees today. Now might be the best time to hit the trails and log a few miles before it gets too hot. But I'll ride the Peloton instead. Weekends are when the electric bikers and horse people crowd O'Neill. The solitude I crave is nowhere to be found. Weekdays I have the place to myself but Saturday and Sunday is for the masses.

OLYMPIC HANGOVER

OLYMPIC HANGOVER

My barber made small talk during a recent haircut, asking me which sports I favor. We proceeded to talk about the end of football season, the sorry future of the Lakers and LeBron, and a little bit about the Angels just to agree that the owner sucks and needs to sell the team.

We did not talk about the Olympics — the best thing in the sports world for sixteen days every four years. Some people just don't watch the Olympics. To them I say: you don't know what you're missing.