Good morning!  Hope that you are doing well and having a great weekend.  We've had a very hot week with temperatures topping 100+ four days in a row.  Surprisingly, running has gone well and I ran 32 miles this week.  I'm really starting to feel like my old running self as I close week four of my recommitment to running.
This week I've really been able to once again the beauty in running.  I live just one mile from a soft gravel trail that follows a canal that runs through Broadripple to downtown Indianapolis.  What I love about the trail is that it's embedded in the middle of trees, which shade you from the sun and make you feel like you're in the middle of the woods instead of a large metropolitan area.  This week I've seen deer, geese, ducks, turtles, storks, and a few other normal things.  However, what absolutely topped it off was the half naked man I found passed out in his car this morning.  Yes, as I started my run this morning I nearly stumbled as I was shocked at what I saw.  There was a very nice high end BMW parked and I was looking at it as I was running to my normal path.  As I approached I noticed a guy passed out in the front seat.  As I approached, I could not believe that he was not only passed out but wearing ONLY a tank top.  No pants.  No undies.  Just a tank top.  Now, I know better than to interrupt what I assume was a drunk guy passed out and naked.  So...I just kept running.  But...I made up a little tune for you.  When your reading this, sing it to the Goyte song, "Someone that I used to know."  Here goes:

Every now and then I think about when I first saw you
Just a guy, passed in his Bee-e-mer
But...why'd you have to wear no pants?
It was awkward and embarassin'
I thought that I could let it go
But..now your just someone that I don't want to know

(refrain)

You could have just passed right out
Left your clothes on and saved me from typing this song
But I guess it could not be that way
You had to much to drink and could not drive away
I guess that I should be haaaapp-eee
That you did not drive and give my car a ta-aa-aa-pee
Still, I wish you had gone away
Now your just someone that I don't want to know

If you have trouble singing the song, call me and I can sing it for you.  Have a great a week.  Laugh quite a bit.  I'll make sure naked guy in the beemer leaves.  Happy running to you...

Celebrating Running & The 4th!

Good morning and happy Fourth of July!  It's one of my favorite days of the year and I typically celebrate the 4th with some sort of run or race.  This morning was no different as I ran 6.75 miles in very hot, humid, and steamy conditions at 7a. 

Running Cross Country in California, Fall 2007

Today marks my 18th Fourth of July as a runner.  Hard to believe that the first 5K race I ever ran was 18 years ago today.  I'll never forget driving down to Nashville, Tn with my friends, Luke and Seth, and their mom, Pam, on July 3 so we could run this 5K in Nashville on July 4.  Seth, who at the time was the real runner of the group, had picked out this race to run.  Pam agreed to drive Seth.  Luke, an elite tennis player, was not going to run but was there to support his brother, who was prepping for his first year of high school cross country.  Me?  I was confused because I wanted to be a basketball player, the coach had just told me the week before that I was not going to play during my senior year, and I was slated to go out for cross country the next month but had not been training.  I was lost, hurt, and feeling a bit out of sorts.  It was a tough time, athletically speaking.

But...I decided that I might as well give running a try.  I lined up for my first 5K and like many young guys I  thought that just because I could run 6-8 miles fairly easily meant that I was going to be able to win the 5K.  The gun went off and I took off.  I went through the mile in 5:30, which at that point was near the fastest mile I'd ever run.  I was ahead of Seth and I recall running by Luke and he was cheering.  Then...the wheels fell off.  My fitness caught up with me and I began to slow.  Seth passed me.  Other's passed me.  The heat finished me off.  I ran the last two miles at a 7 minute per mile pace.  As I finished, I recall thinking that there was no way I was going to be able to be a great runner by the fall.  It was tough because I really wanted to be a great athlete during my high school career and due to my limitations as a basketball player and spending three years trying to play with limited success, I was beginning to feel like I was a failure.

In life, we have watershed moments, which I would define as moments when we have a chance to really change our future for the better.  While I was not successful at my first 5K, my Cross Country Coach's voice  was in the back of my head saying, "Skillman, you're meant to be a runner.  Stop wasting time on basketball."  And...although my time was not great for my first 5K, it served as a motivator to get serious about running.  From that point forward, I began to train each day, to run what the coach asked, and to give 100% to running.  The Fall of 1994 is one I'll always remember because each week my running improved, I was able to contribute on a very good team that finished fourth in the state, and I learned how to be successful at something.  More than that, though, I learned that in disappointment lies opportunity if you open your eyes and never stop believing in yourself.  For each of the past 18 Fourth of July's, I've run.  Sometimes, I run races and other times I just go for a run down the street, like today.  Every Fourth of July, though, I think about July 4, 1994 when I learned what it was going to take to be a "runner" and how that single day changed the outcome of my high school athletic career and created a life-long "runner."  Looking back, It was truly a watershed moment, one in which I found a life passion instead of continuing down a path not meant for me.

I hope that you have a wonderful Fourth of July.  Enjoy your day and doing what you love to do.  Happy running to you...

Some Momentum

Good morning. Myles and I are writing a short post this morning. Ran 5.25 miles this morning and finished with 21.25 miles for the week. I'm happy with that as its my first week over 20 miles run in a long time. I feel good. Two weeks ago I posted my first blog in quite some time. Two weeks later I feel like I'm starting to live a runners life again. I love our new house and where we live. A personal favorite aspect is that I live a half mile from running trails that span over 30 miles. If I want, I can run on soft gravel trails (much easier on the legs) or run on pavement/roads. My favorite route is the gravel path that runs along a river. It is beautiful and it weaves by the Indiana Museum of Art, Butler, and the International School. Nothing compares to Annadel State Park in Sonoma County, but these trails are awesome. Have a great week! Happy running to you!

Myles Turns Two: A Tribute!

Good Morning! Just sitting outside with Myles enjoying a cup of coffee after a 6.25 mile run. Sarah is sleeping on her last Saturday before residency begins.  Running has been going well and I'm on track to hit 20 miles for the week. I'm excited about that. Today, though, is dedicated to my Myles.

Baby Myles

It's hard to believe that Myles turns two on June 26. We got him in August of 2010 and I had no idea how much he'd change my life. If you are my Facebook friend or follow this blog or Myles on Twitter, then you know how crazy I am about him. And...Myles is crazy about his Mommy and Daddy. Myles has helped make me a better person and therefore I thought I'd share a couple things I've learned from him.

Be Happy: One comment I hear a great deal from others about Myles is that he seems to smile perpetually. You see, he has this overbite and it looks like he's smiling--all the time. It's quite cute and I cannot help but become happier every time I look at him. Myles has a great life, but I'm sure he has bad days. Like...when it rains and he has to go outside to potty, or when it's vet time, or grooming time. Yet, no matter what the occasion, Myles smiles. And that...is a great lesson for all. We cannot change what happens in life, but we can always choose our response. 

Myles Smiles!

Love What You Do: I've said often that I wish everyone could be greeted just once in their life the way that Myles greets me when I come home from work. It's clear, Myles loves being our dog. He absolutely loves it. He follows us around, he sleeps between us at night, he watches TV with us, and he's even sleeping in my lap as I type at this very moment. In life, to really enjoy it, you have to love what you are doing and Myles serves as a great example of that. I try each day to approach my job and running with unparalleled enthusiasm and positivity and it makes a huge difference in my performance and how I impact others. While I've always kind of been that way, Myles is my accountability buddy because I see him give 100% each day to being our beloved boy.


He Loves His Mom and Pop

Patience: A major weakness that I have (just ask Sarah) is patience. I'm awful in traffic and unbearable when frustrated. It's something I struggle with and work on daily. Early on when we first adopted Myles, it became evident that "Myles Time" and "Josh Time" were different. And...often times it meant that "Josh Time" revolved around "Myles Time." At first, it was difficult for me because I'm a go, go, go type of guy. But...I've realized that being a go, go, go type of person negatively impacts my ability to be patient. Myles has taught me a whole new level of patience because in order to raise him to be a well mannered and well potty trained boy, I had to be patient. I'm still working on that, but he helps me daily.


Patience:  Myles refusing to walk when it was time for grooming and I needed to go to work.

There you have it. Be happy. Love what you do. Exercise Patience.

To My Myles (AKA Prince Myles, Bubba, Myles-E-Dise, Myles-E, Myles-Myles):

Thank you for being more like a son than a dog and for the way you love your Mom and Dad.  Happy Birthday! I love you! You are my Myles-E-Dise!

Monday Ramblings

Good evening! Woo! Busy day! Woke up at 5:30a for a 4.75 mile run, worked until 5p, mowed the yard, cleaned the house. Busy, busy day. Here's a short, quick, brief post (more like rambling). Running has been going well. I ran four days last week and ran this morning. Mentally, I feel myself recommitting to being a "runner" again. It feels good and provides grounding. I talked in my last post about "living a runner's life" and I am getting back to that point. It's so easy to slide away from it. Not as easy to get going again. Last weekend Sarah and I headed to Owensboro and visited with all kinds of family! It was great to see so many family members and it reminded me of how blessed I am to be a part of four outstanding families (Skillman, Gorrell, Speer, Laupus). As I get older I think I've become more appreciative of my family and how lucky I am. Maybe that happens to everyone as they age. Sarah and I were able to babysit our 6 week old niece, Lucy, and it was awesome! My sister and her husband Randy have a precious baby girl. Heck, I even changed a diaper. Have a great evening. Enjoy your loved ones. Thanks for reading! Go run tomorrow!

Living A Runner's Life

Our New House

Good morning! Went out for a very nice 4.75 mile run today. It's amazing how the body just responds to old habits. Let's be honest. My running this year has been anything but Josh-like. Today, though, it felt good. Felt right. I'll expand on that a bit later.

2012 on the whole has been WONDERFUL! The blessings Sarah, Myles, & I have received have been incredible. While these blessings have made it more difficult to find time to run, I would not trade them for anything. In March Sarah matched with IU Dermatology for residency, we bought a house, and Indiana made a Sweet 16 run. In April, I received increased job responsibilities at work and my niece, Lucy, was born. In May, Sarah graduated from medical school and we moved to our new place. Therefore, it's been one crazy couple of months.  Looking forward to the rest of 2012 as the best has yet to come.

I'll admit that running has been hard to dedicate myself to this year, especially when we were moving and learning to take care of our new place. Even when I would get up to go run, Myles would throw a fit and wake up Sarah (he had a difficult adjustment to his new environment). I have felt that pang of guilt about not running and not blogging and the more that the guilt grew the harder it was to get out the door.  I became discouraged about not running and even stopped wearing shirts from old races becuase it reminded me of what I was not doing.  And...that's hard because my wardrobe is 30% running shirts, 30% IU shirts, and 40% work stuff.  Today, though, the stars aligned, I woke up ready to run, Myles was calm, and I just went for it. On my run I got to thinking about how mentally it takes focus while running to complete the run successfully. And...when I'm running well on a daily basis, I'm able to string that focus from one day to the next day and so forth.  I'm better at running when I live the time inbetween my runs as a "runner" rather than "a guy that runs from time to time."  I need to be wearing those running shirts, blogging, and planning my weekly runs because the only way to get back on track is to live a runners life.  It's time to start stringing days together so that it once again becomes more difficult to not run than to run. For those of you who run and follow my blog, I hope this helps in the sense that even the most dedicated runners who love it sometimes struggle with motivation or life balance. We are all human and as runners in this together.

Happy running to you. Enjoy the photo of the house (with the IU flag of course). Hope to write again soon.

April 1

Good morning.  I have not even attempted to write a blog in about two months.  I'm not entirely sure why that is, but I know you cannot force writing when you don't feel up to it.  Actually, running has been pretty spotty as well so far in 2012.  I just have not felt that inner drive to get ready to race.  However, that drive is burning today because as I looked at the calendar and saw it was April 1st I just felt like it was time to get going.  So...I ran four miles, completed my strength training and decided to write a short blog.

March was a spectacular month!  Lots of good things happening for Sarah, Myles and I.  Sarah matched dermatology for residency here in Indianapolis.  Matching in derm is such a tough thing to do and I'm so proud of Sarah for being able to do that.  Additionally, there are some cool things going on at my job that I'm excited about.  Finally, Sarah and I are looking at our housing options here in Indy and there could be some big news on that front here very soon.  So...despite not running all that much, my life is very full and blessed. 

Indiana had a great basketball season that only leaves optimism for the future.  Coach Tom Crean finally has Indiana rebuilt to compete with anyone in the country.  In Indiana, we really appreciate the way he is doing it and it's easy to love this team.  While we came up a bit short in the Sweet 16, we did go down swinging to a UK team that has six NBA players on it.  If UK goes on to win the NCAA Title, which seems highly likely, we will be one of two teams that beat them this year.  While that is no reason to hang a banner, it does confirm that Indiana can indeed beat any team.  Great thing about the Indiana approach is that the majority of our players--most likely all five starters--will return.  And...we add a top 5 recruiting class.  It won't be long until the next NCAA Banner is hung in Assembly Hall.

So...I'll try to blog more over the next few months as time allows and as blog worthy events occur.  Until next time, happy running to you...