Kickin' it Old School.

Alright I made the decision to buy a bathing suit on Thursday... as my previous one had a see through back side. Rather than make the world suffer by exposing my cavernous can, I decided to stop into Sports Authority to get a new set of trunks. Well apparently I decided to skimp out on coverage to save some dough so I decided to rock the brief or as others know it as "the grape hanger", "The Banana Hammock", " Good Ol' Little suit", ""Man-kini" Bottom" , figure at worst case senario I can toss them on under a worn out jammer. ( I'm really liking Kastaway's $23 jammer deal...I'm going to take advantadge of it.) Anyway, my choice of swimwear aside, this week has turned out to be an old school training week. Wednesday I got back into the pool and realized just how out of shape I had gotten. Thursday I ran about 7 miles and swam another 3000 yards, this time it felt a little better. Yesterday another 6-7 miles of running, my planned swim was kaboshed by "get us out of the house before we go insane" movie night with my sisters.
Today 100k ride in Middlebury with Josie. Sunday my sister, Christina graduates high school, she and Melissa will be moving to Newport in September So I'll have an excuse to visit the island.
So that's all for me.

Lettin' it all hang out.
R.D.

Outta shape..

Last night I hit the pool at the Southington YMCA.
Other than splitting a lane with an elderly woman doing breatstroke it wasn't too bad....other than I'm out of shape. My main set was 3x500 on 7 min. and I was touch and go on them.
That's what I get for only one pool session a week for the last two weeks. So tonight more flogging in the pool. Also I'm at a debate on equipment, I need new running shoes and a new bathing suit. The running shoes still have some tread but they are slightly above the 5oo mile mark.
The bathing suit well, lets just say my jammer is turning into see-through leg tights. Both are at the breaking point and I really don't want to have to throw down on both at the same time. Especially since I need to renew my Y memebership. $44 a month ....man part of me misses the undergrad discount.

This weekend I start riding again...I'll blow the dust off the old Stomper and get some much needed road time in. Patriot is rapidly approaching and I want to haul ass at stupid rate of speed...especially on the run. Last year I died a most horrible death at about mile 30 on the bike this year I still plan on throttling the bike granted I want to do it on the second loop...not the first like last year... it's just so hard when you're in the top 5 overall for most of the day..also I would like to do a sub 1:40 half marathon...so can you guess where my focus is going to be for the next month. I ran a 8 miler on Monday in about 1:13 so hopefully I can match that split again today. Before I hit the pool.

Well time to get in touch with my inner Rocky

R.D.

Let the Beatings continue....

Well it's back to the training front. Some life issues have creeped up, they always do. For one my Internet is down at the homestead so I'm blogging on company time and at CCSU via the Alumni free computer lab deal. But I need to train and train like a wild beast. This weekend 200k of doom and gloom is on the table. Tonight I get back in the pool for the first time in a week. My running and riding will get into routine, things are falling into place. I have to wait for one of my professors to come back from a conference to take care of an incomplete and I should have that mystical piece of parchment mailed to me. ( hopefully with the words Cum Laude on the bottom.) Regardless I need to get in shape because quite frankly $300 from the Patriot would be a good thing right about now.
I got my CPR re certified and I'm debating getting my guard cert redone as it expires at the end of June. Guarding would be extra money and I would need the cert to coach, granted I know the high school kids are holding a monopoly on guard jobs and I really don't want to be bossed around by a 16 year old. Granted Swim seasons aren't too far off so I'm definitely thinking about coaching especially if I start teaching.
Well that's it for me I've got a date with chlorine.

Lord of the lane line
R.D.

Waiting for that sheet of paper....

Well I handed in my thesis: God hope it was good enough.
handed in my past due work for the incomplete and now it's hoping my grades are good enough to pass. I don't think either effort was my best work. My thesis was more of an anthropology paper than a history one....that's the problem with contemporary issues I focused too much on the contemporary and not enough on the past.

So now I'm in hope and pray mode that my grades were good enough to pass and maintain at least a 3.0 average and I can get my sheet of paper, start working a more fulfilling gig. Otherwise I'll be cashing checks and balancing classes again in the fall, granted I'll probably be taking classes in the fall any way but those are supposed to be helping my grad school ambitions, not going into year 7 on trying to get this damned bachelors. ( 2 years Fordham...1 year off, 1/2 a year of credits not transferring, 3 years of course work at CCSU amid all sorts of family crisis seriously 1 major one per year.)

All that aside the chips have fallen and it's time to get back into training. Start packing and ironing out housing for the summer, settle my fiscal mess...the BA will really help in this. If I have my BA take my GREs, take a Latin refresher as well as either Spanish or Italian and start working on my writing sample, for entering a Phd Program...yes I know I'm a glutton for suffering.

If I get the dreaded..."yeah Mr. Duguay you're six credits short..." letter...after screaming, pulling out a large chunk of my scalp and curling up in the fetal position saying "damn it why do I do this to myself." I'll knuckle down suck it up and see if I can do an Independent study for my thesis.

In my "hopefully" last semester of college I have learned the following:

an 18 credit course load, a 40 hour a week job and training for an Ironman at the same time is not really a good idea.

My professors and co-workers should be up for sainthood.

I don't have alot of friends but the ones I got are good ones. ( damn hope I didn't write like that on my thesis.)

Red Bull is Austria's greatest gift to Mankind.

One Person can single handedly save Colombia's legitmate market economy.

Jstor is my homeboy.

It is quite possible to live for 4 months getting 5=> hours of sleep a night.

Juan Valdez es mi amigo bueno.

Well for right now it's back to the grind.

Waiting by the mailbox.
R.D.

Edit 1: Got news back from my thesis advisor: The paper got a B.

Changes in the air....

Saturday I walk...Monday I hand in the thesis
God knows when in June I get my sheet of paper...

My Undergradate career is at an end...no more posts of how I have to burn gas getting to good old Uconn's bastard sibling...I mean CCSU.

To celebrate I worked out for the first time in over a week..3200 yards in the pool. Now I've just got to finish shit and get myself into shape for Patriot.

Also last week I went to my sister's comencement ball at Salve Regina in Newport, seriously 5 to 1 girl to guy ratio I so should have gone there.... I went with one of our mutual friends...I'll just code name her as The Spanish Teacher, needless to say the Spanish Teacher is kinda cute and I've known her for quite a while...and not in the Biblical sense ...to cut any smart alec comments off at the chase. So is she Bob-o's next romantic interest?

Also Melissa Graduated and now holds the title as the first in the fam to graduate from college...man if I hadn't partied too hardy at Fordham....
but on that note as I stand here with my bachelor's almost in hand...I'm left to debate what to do with my life.

Do I go after my masters in basket weavin...I mean history and persue a career in education...
Do I do my current plan and take my sciences while teaching and apply for med school?
Do I go after a PhD and become Dr. Bob-o expert on Italy, Britain and living off Ramen?

It sucks that I could be pretty happy doing any of the three...I guess the summer will tell.

So on that note it's back to the grind and the debate...

On the threshold of something big.
R.D.

Juan Valdez is my Homeboy....

That's right people it's finals week. Sleep has been replaced by writing...training has been replaced by writing...and to fuel that writing I'm sure I've single handedly helpped increase Colombia's legitamate GDP. I could go on a rant but I'm tired of staring at computer screens more than the back of my eye lids. On the thesis I have enough for a rough draft...essentially half the paper...I feel my ideas are a little all over the place but as long as I can put them togehter coherently it's all good...final copies aren't due until the 20 so I have a week to write 10 pages.

My Modern Germany final paper is due Friday...so I'll be working on that tonight and tomorrow before heading off to Salve....only 6 more pages on the Pope's actions or lack thereof in World War II...

Anth Mid term (to handle an incomplete)...I discovered file courrpted are the two most painful words in the English Language so I had to rewrite it...in fact I need to find the articles that we used last semester for one question... arrg! I just want this thing done.

After all this paper writing nonsense is done I've got to clean my room and start packing...look for a real job and hope that the incompletes were handled so I can get my "sheet of paper" and hopefully start earning enough to pay off my debts...sigh....I wish my life wasn't as complicated as it becomes sometimes.

Well regardless back to the grind...

The human word processor.
R.D.

The Sprint Brick...

This weekend was spent mostly glued to my computer screen as due dates are rapidly aproaching. So far I'm about 4-5 pages into my 18-20 page thesis, and 2 pages in to my 8-10 pager for modern Germany most of that work was done yesterday as I have 2 different versions of each on my computer. ( some how I think I spent way to much time on introductions on the first versions so I restarted.) The modern Germany paper is proving to be more difficult than I thought. In either case this blog isn't about my academics it's about my athletics so here is the bloody gory.

Saturday: as mentioned I've been battling my sinuses/ head cold so I flaked on doing my normal swim workout on Friday..instead I napped and it was good. Saturday I worked, typed some more of my Thesis and decided to go for an early evening 8-9 miler. I did it in a not too shabby 1:11.

Sunday: After being a heathen once again and not going to Church in order to sleep. I got an email from Josie seeing if I was still down for a ride and possibly a run. I know I should have devoted that entire beautiful afternoon to paper writing. I know I should have sat hunched over my laptop with a pot of coffee I know I'm going to be paying for this sin tenfold as I'll mostly like be up late tonight and tomorrow typing away. But I hadn't been on the bike in two weeks, it was sitting in the basement screaming out "Ride me Bobby...Ride me." And so I relented I told Josie I'd meet her at 4:00 for a "short" ride/ run brick.

We met up in Middlebury and decided to do two loops of the Griskus Sprint loop.

The first loop of the ride it was evident my legs had a little rust in them also I was experimenting with different gearing on some of the climbs (Bjoern had noticed I had used a lot of power gears on climbs.) So needless to say on some of the hills I put myself into too low a gear and was immediately spanked by Josie as I was quite literally spinning my wheels and going no where. The first loop wasn't too bad although Josie was proving to be the uber climber. The second loop I contiuned my experiment, this time I had figured out my gearing a little better on the climbs. Granted Josie was still a better climber...after graduation I need to start doing hill repeats ...and lots of them trying to find the perfect balance between cadence and power...also some crossfit wouldn't hurt. Irregardless we did the 20.6 miles at an average speed of 17.5 mph in a time 1:10:48.
The Run I was in my glory. Josie made the mistake...I mean decision to try to run with me. We decided to continue our Griskus Preview by running the run loop. Needless to say I went out like a house on fire...I hit the 1 mile mark in 8:06 granted the markers were based on the course starting at Quassy amusement park ( proud home of the Pat Griskus Tri series, and the Rev 3 triathlon.) so realistically we were about 300-400 meters ahead of the markers. Sub-8 minute mile pace...this was turning out to be a tempo run instead of a transition. I looked back and Josie was about 200 meters back stating "I suck at running." We made our way down the hill to the turn around I hit it and started back and started clapping as I ran past Josie...I think I remember hearing something about hating running and I'm going to hurl.... I hit the 2 mile mark in 16:06 ( remember we are still about a quarter mile ahead of the markers...) I made it back up the hill and o the park I turned around to collect Josie who was about 200 meters behind... " I almost puked.." she stated huffing and puffing...We made it back to the cars in about 29 minutes. She did about 3.5 miles according to her Garmin so she was well under 9 min/ mile pace...with my loop back I did about 3.6 so I was right at the 8 min/mile threshold give or take a couple seconds.
Needless to say training this weekend wasn't a total loss granted I was coughing like I lit up two packs of Marlboro's at the end of it....stupid head cold...so yes if I'm pulling these splits under trained and sick imgaine what I can do when I'm healthy and "in shape" ....be afraid New England Tri Circut...be very, very, afraid.

Well back to the papers....

The Flying Academic
R.D.