Miles Run:50.74
Miles Biked:85.99
Total Miles:136.73
Stadium Stairs Run*:2244
Steep Steps Run*:1340
Days to Rainier:140
Summit Team:8.55
Aspirin Tablets:42
*for each round trip only the upward steps are counted

Today was pretty great. Aside from all the running. I ran out to Lincoln Park, after sleeping in on my day off. Right down on the Puget Sound the wind was fast and furious. With a high of 33 degrees and a sustained wind of 18 miles per hour, the temperature left something to be desired, but the sun was out and that makes all the difference when you live in Seattle. When I came to the Coleman Saltwater Pool, I took a brief break to do some more dynamic stretching after the 1.3 mile warm-up. Just as I was about to resume, I looked out into the Sound and saw two harbor seals about 25 meters out playing in the white caps. Probably a mother and her adolescent pup.

Just think about it. About 11-ish billion folks have been around since the year 4,000BC. So out of all of them, I get the privilege to sleep in late, turn on my MP3 player, fill a water bottle, grab two pre-packaged bags of trail mix, run some miles to prepare for the hike of a life-time up a giant mountain, oh and by the way I get to stand and watch two seals playing in a scene that can only ever be described as beauty-incarnate. Damn! Thank you God! How did I get the honor to live such a life? What good thing did I do to be rewarded with this? Nothing.
WHY?! I know women who have lived in torment for years; they get horror, and I get sunshine?! I know a man who will never walk again, lives in ever-present fear, and whose worst nightmare is going to bed because when he does he will have even worse nightmares. And I get to run (complaining when I do nonetheless).
Where is the fairness? Why am I not justly given a sentence of suffering, hunger, destitution, and the like?
Man, I am so freakin' blessed. God has been amazing to me.

Dangit, every once in a while the Ghost opens my eyes to the life I live and blows me away.

Pictures. Here is some fresh content! First off a picture from Monday night when I went for my longest run yet: 6.38 miles.

When I started, there was just the mildest hint of snow in the air and bare wet pavement. After an hour, I was still 2.5 miles from home and all the sidewalks were totally white. It was about 24 degrees, and I was glad for the balaclava.
As promised, here are some pics of the stairs and one video of what the view from the top is. When Rainier comes, I intend to show the very same thing.





With that, I bid you all long days and pleasant nights.