Jackdaws

I have been glued to this novel by Jack Higgins which tells a story of six "brave heart" women that are parachuted down to France to blow up a telephone exchange that is a nerve centre for communication for the Nazis, between France and Germany. They are led by this extremely intelligent and gutsy woman named Felicity. She hand picks 5 women from common walks of life in London. The prerequisite being that they speak french and must each have a required function ie one is a telephone engineer, one a crack shot, one has handled explosives etc. They are all given a crash course in subversion, in two days!

As I went for a leisurely recovery run cum warm up cum strength training work out, I thought of Felicity and how she displayed "courage under fire" and resourcefulness. She has so many personal trials and professional commitments to deal with, and so little time; yet, she plans meticulously, evaluates situations, keeps her emotions under check, displays fortitude and faces the most dangerous and trying assignment with guts and gumption. I liken my current situation of being swamped with so much seeming adversity, to what Felicity was faced with - though hers was life threatening.

As I arrived at work, I was clouded in gloom but a thought provoking story, mailed by a close friend, followed up with some stock taking and a reasonably satisfactory review helped me to cheer up. I felt sprightly and jaunty as I took on some tasks that were long pending and needed my attention. It is amazing as to how a mind that is caught up in a depressive mood, can forget to attend to one' own basic priorities. It is only after my spirits lifted that it suddenly occured to me that I need to do this or that and OMG, how could I forget that:-) Lessons learnt and now I must banish all negative thoughts cause after all.......

This is Christmas season so there isn't any reason
we can't dance the christmas polka
Hear the sleighbells ringin', everybody singin'
and dancin' the christmas polka
Christmas trees and holly make everyone so jolly
and love just fills the air.........

That hammered feeling

The past week has been a tornado. I left for Delhi on Monday and thence to Hisar in Haryana, road. We then travelled a total of 1100kms in 4 days, covering Patiala, Ludhiana and back to Delhi. The weather was nice and the food was absolutely delicious, but the work pressure offset it all. I was not able to do any of my workouts as I am loathe to run in temperatures that are sub 15 deg C:-) The copious food and rum added to the obnoxious conditions necessary to plummet endurance.

I returned on Friday and decided to attempt my very first "2-a-days" equivalent. I went for a gentle run (a run-walk actually) of 14K on Friday at about 4:30pm. I came back feeling refreshed and ridding myself of guilt pangs for living the good life these past few days. The evening was spent at a lavish wedding with the glitterati (including Azim Premji, J J Irani, Keki Dadiseth, Anand Mahindra, Soni Razdan, Dolly Thakore et al) The delectable spread of food and wine was enough to send one dizzying without even tasting it.

I now have to figure out the absolutely daring that I mustered to set my wake up call on Saturday to do a long run. The debilitating precursors; a hard work out within 16 hours of another, Scotch whisky enough to rattle the liver, food and desserts that are confined to the category of extravagant, blubber that shows no sign of receding and sleep deficit thats making me a zombie. So, I go out on this run and attempt 31K and whaddya know; I stagger the last 10K like a doddering, foggy, consumed by age-related dementia, old man, listlessly reaching home to flop on the floor as if I'd just crossed the sahara without water:-)

I felt the effects of that run for a few hours and I had the misfortune to contract a virus that gave me the runs, when I, in a fit of low blood sugar, ate a meal of fried rice at the "Desi Deli" at Hyper City. I moaned and groaned, writhing in agony at the demon that seemed to be devouring my GI tract. The net effect was that the total calorie deficit due to 2 long runs in 16 hrs and the lack of appetite owing to the diarhoea, caused me to lose all the weight I'd put on thus far:-)) Not bad, not bad at all.

Of masters runners and failed time trials

Last week was a stacked schedule for me, with travel and commitments to Bryan and NRC. I was compelled to treat it as a "recovery" week on the running front. I was able to squeeze in some gentle 6Ks and thought I'd do a 10K time trial on Friday evening, in Coimbatore. Friday, because I wanted to have this run in place before the tippling sessions begin with my sales group.

I dressed for my run and stepped out of the Coimbatore Cosmopolitan Club, onto the "race course" (a 2.5K track thoughtfully provided by the municipal corp) to do a brief warm up. I am not sure whether the warm up was inadequate or whether my legs were still in recovery mode, but I found that as I zipped off, my legs suddenly started going dead. I held on to the scorcing 10K pace but had to ease off after just 1 km, throwing in the towel. I didn't allow myself to feel too bad about it as I told myself that this was recovery week, afterall. I just cruised thru' a gentle 5K and went to a sand pit where some local guys do strength training.

I met an old gentleman, who I recalled maybe touching 65 now. He and another guy are regulars and I have known them to be fighting fit even at this age. In fact they participate in the national masters athletics. The ol' chap came over and spoke in broken english monosyllables. He indicated his knees and said, "pain!" and grimaced. I asked him whether it was just one knee to which he replied in the affirmative. I realised it was ITBS and asked him to do a stretch which would confirm my suspicions. He winced as he felt the expected shooting pain as he did the stretch and smiled in amazement. I then gave him some strength and stretch routines to rehab the injury. He must have felt better because he pumped my hand and spoke some Tamil words. I think I just made him my "student":-))

On Sunday, the NRC had organized a press meet and it was kinda intimidating to address so many journalists. This was at the request of Nike because they wanted me to talk technical on the subject, although the lead coach, Melvin, is trained by NIS, but probably not articulate enough. Bryan watched on the sidelines in silent wonder and had a shy smile when he had his pic taken while doing some stretch routines, for a photo op. We enjoyed the experience and returned home to well-earned double half-fried eggs:-)

Weighty issues

I have put on some blubber; a result of enjoying my evening appertif and an overdose of carbo-loading:-) While, I can see that the effect is definitely deleterious on my endurance, I am told by my friends that it makes me look better (than the perennial emaciated look). I had consciously refrained from indulging myself on weekdays before I left for Istanbul; but, I now seem to relish, everyday, the relaxing stupor that a "small one" brings on, when I put my legs up on a "mudhaa" and tickle Dojo under the chin. I guess I will either have to cut back on fattening cuisine ( read roast pork, fried rawas and mutton shakuti) or add more mileage to my weekly runs. The later seems unlikely, given my already stacked up schedule.

The effect of some sleep deficit compounded by the weight of blubber seemed to show in my speed workout today. I was clocking 7 secs more in my 1000m repeats - a bloody depressing realization! I brooded the possibility of returning to pre-Istanbul abstention but found the prospect even more depressing. I need the buzz to blunt the effect of stress on the work front. I will resign myself to slower times in the Mumbai Marathon rather than endure the withdrawal symptoms of weekday abstention:-)

Sounds of Silence

The weekend was quite a packed schedule for me. I put in a decent long run by waking up a bit earlier than usual for me and then hurried home to wash up and scurry to office. What a life! I really wish I had saturdays off but then I can only wish:-) Anyways, I returned from work at about 2:45pm to relax with a glass of "Ouzo" and a lunch comprising fried fish. I managed to catch some "shut-eye" and planned to take Bryan out to his favorite chinese restaurant, "Mainland China".

The food at MC was very delectable and nearly authentic chinese; though, the prices are quite steep. I enjoyed two large pegs of "Old Monk" and could have purchased 2 bottles for the price they charged me:-) The drive back was relaxing yet a wee bit filled with anxiety, lest I be caught by some breathalizer wielding cops.

Next morning I rose at 4:30am to go to the "Nike Run Club" and I could hug my boy Bryan for waking up this early on a sunday morning to do a workout. It is indeed commendable for a 14 yr old to do this and gets full marks from me on this account. NRC was real good this time as there were a lot of beginners and I was able to introduce, for the first time, an extended warm-up, that everyone told me, they enjoyed. Bryan and I went to my ol' time favorite "Kayani's" and ate a nice breakfast of eggs sunny-side up, chicken frankfurters, bun-maska, Pau and irani chai.

The rest of the morning was consumed in a visit to my mother who stays with my brother in Borivali. I gave my mother a gift of the Madonna, which lit her eyes up. I caught up on Goa' gossip with my brother, while I sipped a beer. The evening was just spent lazing around and musing about the "sounds of silence" that fill my world.

In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestones
Beneath the halo of a street lamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp...

People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never share
No one dare
Disturb the sound of silence

Coping with changes

Ever since I opted to work with the Nike Run Club, I have been doing an increasingly complex juggling act with my workouts. Like it is always stated: you have to give something else up if you want to add something to an already tight schedule. The guy that has suffered (and I feel awful about it) is Bryan. I have stopped dropping him at the bus-stop since the last one month and poor Minoti, who sleeps the latest, gets dressed to do this chore.

Bryan is now an adolescent at 14 yrs of age and I have spent the last 11 yrs waking up and helping him get ready for school. He acts grown up now and does not absolutely need me to drop him at the bus-stop but I do feel he misses this. And so, today I ditched my workout and spent time making his favorite protein drink and dropping him on the "bullet". He felt nice about it and I could see it in his eyes. I again felt a sense of melancholy as I was consumed with nostalgia at the times I spent with him during his growing phase. I think that my repeated bouts of melancholy are due to the fact that I miss these aspects of being the father that I have been to Bryan.

I went to Aarey and rehearsed the warm-up that I have sequenced for the Nike Run Club. I was interrupted by Rajesh, who has just completed the 50K Bangalore Ultra, for some guidance on how much recovery time he should be taking. I wound up my workout with a quick round of strength and flexibility before returning home. On the way out of Aarey, I saw that one of the dogs that was bitten on its neck, had died. I drifted into a pensive mood again as I recalled my intense love for strays. I truly appreciate the efforts that Rajeshwari does to take care of them. I support the effort financially and feel nice about it. I think I will go to church today - I miss the quiet moments at "Holy Name Cathedral".

Guitar Man

I had a nice time at Bangalore with the Nike Run Club, learning a lot of things to add to my repertoire of strength and stretching routines. They'd flown me down and had me lodged in a swanky hotel, with car and driver at my disposal etc. I had a surprise opportunity to visit the Bangalore Ultra bib collection-cum-pasta lunch venue, courtesy, "Runners for Life". It was a fine afternoon meeting up with runners, some of whom I'd known for years and others that I'd known from mails exchanged. There was Bhaskar, Sunil Chainani, Rahul Verghese, Srini, Amit and others that were introduced with a "Meet danzico" :-). I was really surprised that so many runners actually read posts and remember you. I am now not able to introduce myself, to the running community, as "Daniel" anymore:-)

There was the pasta lunch which had international class to it. There were olives, salads, pickles, aloo tikkis, veg pasta, spaghetti bolognaise, chocolate mousse and a nice fruit drink. It appears that someone with real knowledge of carbo-loading had gotten the chef to prepare this lunch. I don't remember when was the last time I'd eaten so well, with as many helpings:-) Thru' all this I drifted into a reverie as I listened to "Guitar Man", a track I used to play on the guitar at IIT-B, especially since my roomie, Percy used to ask me to play it every night. I felt a touch of melancholy for no apparent reason as I heard the words.

Who draws the crowd and plays so loud, Baby it's the guitar man.
Who's gonna steal the show, you know Baby it's the guitar man,
He can make you love, he can make you cry
He will bring you down, then he'll get you high
Somethin' keeps him goin', miles and miles a day
To find another place to play.

Then he comes to town, and you see his face,
And you think you might like to take his place
Somethin' keeps him driftin' miles and miles away
Searchin' for the songs to play.

Then the lights begin to flicker and the sound is getting dim
The voice begins to falter and the crowds are getting thin
But he never seems to notice he's just got to find Another place to play,
Fade Away. Got to Play. Fade Away. Got to Play.