Monochromatic Outlook

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Chasm City (Revelation Space)

Author: Alastair Reynolds

Publisher: Ace (2003)

Binding: Paperback, 704 pages

Alastair Reynolds has some tricks up his sleeve. I've observed this pattern in the two novels of his I've read so far, Revelation Space and Absolution Gap: I notice at some point when I've gotten a good way into the book that it doesn't seem surprising and that I'm not getting much out of it, then just before I begin to lose interest there's a subtle twist I hadn't anticipated and I get hooked in.

In the case of Chasm City I think I was prejudiced because the book is told in the first person. The effect was that the narrative came off a bit like a dime-store detective novel. I like genre fiction just fine, but I've come to expect more from Reynolds.…Go ahead, keep reading

Today I didn't feel like I had much time to spare—I have a lot to get done—so I decided to take a short barefoot hill run rather than skipping the run altogether. Adding 1.3 miles to the log isn't much, but zero would have brought the average down much more.

I managed to avoid all of the obstacles I saw on the sidewalk in front of me, including glass and nails, but still came away with a blister on my big toe of my right foot. Nothing to be concerned about; I've certainly had my share of blisters from shod running over the years. What's notable is that I've only had blisters on my arches before. This is a blister on a part that actually has contact with the ground. This indicates that my stride does change significantly when barefoot.

The absence of any blisters on my arches means almost nothing though—those are the result of the soles' arch supports causing friction. …Go ahead, keep reading

I would have liked to have gotten out the door before I started my workday, but there were things that were broken and had to be fixed first thing, and I didn't get out the door until after 5 o'clock.

I took a basic loop out past the ballpark and back the other side, very similar to many of the ballpark runs I've done this year. The sun was hot and my knee doesn't seem to be fully recovered but it also doesn't seem to be getting worse.…Go ahead, keep reading

Today's race in Golden Gate Park went more slowly than I'd have liked. Slowing by sixteen seconds in the 5K between June 20th and July 4th didn't bother me, but adding an additional minute and fifteen seconds to that time is a warning sign.

It's easy to guess why I might be slowing. I had an entire week between races and I didn't get out on the road once. I know I said that I had to cut back and take it easy to avoid injury, but I think cutting back to zero might have been taking it too far.…Go ahead, keep reading

I couldn't have asked for a nicer day for a race. The sun was shining but it wasn't too hot, even considering the relatively late race start of 9:45 am. The race course takes advantage of the street closures for the Alameda Independence Day Parade and the runners start fifteen minutes before the parade follows.

Because we followed the parade course, the race had a big audience. People lined the streets the whole way, and the streets were downright crowded near the starting line on Park Street in Alameda. Folks cheered and applauded us runners the whole way, which was a great boost. …Go ahead, keep reading

Seriously, that's exactly what today's short run was: a test. I wanted to know if I feel good enough to run a race tomorrow. Until yesterday I'd been planning on representing my neighborhood at the DSE Potrero Hill 4 Miler, a really fun course around my neighborhood and up San Francisco's real twistiest (or at least most sinuous) street, Vermont Street. It's a course that gets run only once a year and I've been looking forward to running it this year.

Two things got in the way of that plan this year. First is the knee trouble I've been having for the past couple weeks. The Potrero race is only four miles but the hill is fairly challenging and I'm not sure that running a hilly course is the best thing for me right now. I already took three days in a row off from running and today was the first day I haven't been limping when I walk. Taking it easy is indicated.…Go ahead, keep reading

It took a while to get warmed up today.

Some days are like this. I remember the first time I ever ran up Twin Peaks, the first mile was all flat and then it was all uphill. By the time I'd run the flat section I was discouraged and ready to quit. Not just quit by picking another route, but quit running and walk back home. It was difficult and my legs were screaming at me to quit. I felt like a failure.…Go ahead, keep reading

On crankyfitness.com there is a post about good diet and exercise habits that stresses that perfectionism is the key enemy. There's a very amusing dialogue between Crabby and her conscience about getting to the gym. It's really true that the hardest part of running is (often) just getting out the door. That's one of the reasons (perhaps the most important reason) for all the specialized gear: the running shoes, the Dri-Fit or CoolMax clothing, the GPS and heartrate monitor. If I start by putting on my designated equipment, it creates a momentum until I'm ready to go and would start to feel funny just sitting around in all these fancy fabrics and electrodes.…Go ahead, keep reading

I think I'm about done with these Grid Omni 5s from Saucony. I'm supposed to ease into running in the Kinvaras by running with them every other run or so, but I'm finding it uncomfortable to go back to the Omnis. At the very least, I'm finding it easy to blame a poor run on the shoes.

It's not vanity at work, but wishful thinking. I'd love to believe that the pain I'm having in my knee will be magically cured by running in shoes without an elevated heel. I want the new shoes to be the answer to all my problems. Of course, if the shoes are actually a part of the answer, it will be because the answer is my form, not my any magic.…Go ahead, keep reading