(running) streams of consciousness

This post is about A. And highly unlikely happenings.

You see, I recently started running.  Yes, running.  Regularly, at that.  If you have ever known me for more than a hot minute (I have no idea what that phrase actually means - it just sounds funny, and it seemed to fit), you know that I do not run.  Ever.  Except maybe if I were being chased and my life were somehow on the line. 

But this afternoon, I ran a full 2.5+ miles, clocking in at just under 30 minutes.  (For those of you for whom mental math is not a strength, that comes to slightly less than 12 minutes per mile.)  I know that might seem pitiful to some, but considering that two weeks ago, I had not run "the mile" since early middle school, I am quite proud of myself.

And how am I feeling about the whole debacle?  Not in love yet - I hope it's not just a phase.  I think I have yet to experience that so-called "runner's high", but it has been a semi-nice way to get out of the (parent's) house every afternoon, clear my mind (because I am busy concentrating on breathing, and not falling over), and remind myself regularly that no matter how crummy I am feeling, there are still many things with which God has blessed me, for which I can be grateful! 

~A

P.S. I think I get Asian Glow: Exercise Edition.  My face seriously turns quite hot and a rather impressive shade of red every time I run, and it doesn't go away for at least an hour afterward.  Maybe my body is telling me that I shouldn't run after all...

Lessons from the Great Outdoors

This blog post is, once again, not about CAKES.  It is about E and her adventures in Yosemite, posted at the request of C.

Last week, while backpacking through the high country in Yosemite, I learned many things.  I will spare you from some of the elements of my education that are wildly inappropriate for internet postings.  I will share a few realizations that may prove useful in your future trips into the wild blue yonder.

1. Sealed packages may not contain the items advertised on their labels.  After my first water fill-up on Day 1, I added iodine tablets to my bottle to kill harmful microfauna.  Nothing unusual.  But after waiting the required 30 minutes, I opened the bottle of neutralizing tablets to make my water drinkable. (Iodine tablets kill bad stuff in water; neutralizing tablets kill bad taste of iodine in water).  To my surprise, the bottle contained exactly ZERO tablets instead of the advertised 50.  I was very disappointed to have to drink nasty water all week.  Fortunately, my companions were generous and shared their neutralizer.  Don’t depend on sealed packages, people!
   
   

   

   {Snowmelt is cold to swim in, but good to drink.}
2.  Off-brand batteries just don’t work as well the good old Energizer bunny.  On Night 1, I braved the darkness to use the bathroom in the middle of the night.  Since girls always go to the bathroom in pairs, my sister accompanied me out of our tent.  When we split up to crouch behind different rocks, I realized that I couldn’t see much.  My headlight was useless. Test your batteries, people!
3. Water-resistant is not the same thing as waterproof.  Tent #2 turned out to be water-resistant but not waterproof.  Tent #1, which comfortably sleeps two adults, had to house three through a very rainy afternoon, evening, and night.  Sharing body heat is a great way to stay warm, but 18 cramped hours in Tent #1 taught me that waterproof is important.
4.  Marmots chirp like birds. It might be their warning/afraid call.  Who knew?!

   

   {A fat marmot who lives near a popular trail and probably lives on crumbs left by careless hikers.}

5.  Salmon pouches are not a great idea.  Actually, meat pouches in general aren’t the yummiest thing.  Stick to Snickers bars for dinner with Butterfingers for an extra dose of courage.

   

   {Eating a Butterfinger for courage through the mosquito net.}

    

    

   
   

6. Mountaintop vistas can be stunning. Beautiful and breathtaking.  Unfortunately, cameras do not capture breathtaking all that well.

{View from the top of Parson's Peak.  Half Dome is in the distant right. The lakes are actually very big and far below us.}

 

 

May your adventures be full of drinkable water, chirping mammals, and natural beauty.

 -E

Statistics on statisticians.

This post has absolutely nothing to do with CAKES or cakes.  The closest it gets is fried bananas on ice cream.

Last night, I had the pleasure of dining with some professors, GSIs, and fellow readers in the Statistics department.  I learned some things.

100% of instructors know the names of at least 10% of their students.  This familiarity is a good thing only 50% of the time.

Food that is not on the menu tastes approximately 70% more delicious than food that can be ordered off the menu.

Students cheat on exams.  If you, dear reader, are a student, please do not cheat on your exams. It undermines the integrity of academia and society.  Spend your time studying rather than concocting a clever plan to succeed dishonestly. Your future employers, advisers, and spouses will appreciate a mediocre mark in one of your courses 1000% more than an expulsion.

Very few students die or have mental breakdowns during exams. But it happens. Please take care of your physical and mental health!

-E

Note: Statistics reported in this posting are observational in nature.  For more accurate data, please conduct your own properly-planned, randomized, controlled experiment.  For more details on how to develop such an experiment, pay attention in your statistics course.

Consider a spherical raccoon

Today I considered a spherical raccoon when I confronted one shortly after leaving home at 9:44am.  Confronted is a strong word.  Perhaps I did not confront said animal.  Encountered? Observed as he ran across the sidewalk only three feet from where I stood? Had I left home at 9:43:30, I may have stepped right on him.


I considered this raccoon for the following reasons:
1. Size.  Though the raccoon was only approximately spherical, he was unequivocally large.
2. Diurnal behavior. I am aware that urban raccoons are not strictly nocturnal. They should be.  It is creepy to see a large, approximately spherical raccoon running across the sidewalk of a high-traffic street in broad daylight. 

And so, dear world of internet users, consider yourself warned against the large creepy mammals of Berkeley.  Our only hope is that Lucy the neighbor dog (who may be a large creepy mammal herself) will eat or otherwise eliminate this disturbing intruder. 

-E