steve-o
Introduction To The House of Carr
Introduction To The House of Carr
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Still Content

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When I was thinking about a title for this post, I figured "Contentment" would be a good summary. Then I realized that I just wrote a blog post with that title back in March.

I guess I've been thinking a lot about contentment this year.

Just this past Sunday I concluded my sermon from Paul's letter to the Philippians where he offers,

I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.

Paul unveils this secret in the next verse:

I can do everything through [God] who gives me strength.

They say that you can always tell what a minister is struggling with by what he preaches, so you might assume that I'm haven't a hard time with contentment right now. But that's not the case.

Actually, I'm more content than I've ever been. But even when you're content, you must constantly remind yourself of it. Otherwise, you may begin to replace the ultimate source of contentment [read: God] with other things. And almost always, the replacement is detrimental to our ultimate contentment.

Yesterday I read about another high-profile minister who had an affair. This guy had a national audience who was held captive by his every word; he was seen as the measure of success. And yet this wasn't enough to make him content— he had to have more. Unfortunately, the result of his drive cost him his job, perhaps will cause Christians to lose faith in the church, and will be a scar on his family life the rest of his life.

I'm not saying this to kick a guy when he's down, as he's obviously not the only person this has happened to. Examine any recent major scandal [Berlusconi, Madoff, steroids] and you discover that it's usually the result of someone trying to manufacture contentment. It would be foolish for us not to heed these examples as a warning in our own lives.

Ask yourself what you're chasing in this world and why. It might seem antithetical to the American dream, but maybe you need to find a pace where you can just be happy with what you've got.

By the way, it's things like this that make it easier for me to maintain my level of contentment.

All Talk

I have these ideas, see. Lots of ideas.

But they don't always come to fruition. For instance, about three years ago I had this idea about a Tetris book. Unfortunately, they owners of the franchise didn't see the vision. But that don't stop me [grammatical mistake intended] as I'll keep the ideas a comin'.

My problem is that I sometimes view these ideas as long-term projects and, every once in awhile, someone else beats me to the punch.

Case in point: I read today about a new documentary entitled Google Me. The creator Googled himself, making a list of people who share his name so he could interview them; it supposed to be a journey of discovery. Nice idea.

I swear, I had it first.

But since I'm not a film-maker, my idea revolved around a book with the same premise. I had a bookmark folder in my web browser with a collection of other Steve Carr's around the globe [the soccer player, the movie producer, and the atheist are a few examples] for awhile. Occasionally, when I was board, I'd search deeper in my Google searches so I could identify better candidates to interview.

You might counter that it was my apathy that kept it from actually happening. I offer that it's just not the kind of book someone would pay me to do without a successful track record. And since I haven't had a lot of down time, it was one of those shelved ideas. I guess I can de-shelve this one.

So there's another idea that I missed out on. But the well's not dry, as I've got plenty of other ideas. Feel free to offer up those ideas you had that would've made you rich.

I won't be losing sleep about it.

Don't Say Anything!

I'm not exactly sure when it happened— most likely, sometime in the last week or so:

We have now reached the point where we cannot have adult conversations in front of Kaelyn.

During the last 40 months of parenting much about our lives has changed. But one thing that wasn't affected was our ability to openly talk freely in front of the little girl. I could rant about anything, indict anyone, and even freely offer up borderline words while driving and she'd be oblivious. It was a good life.

Sometime last week I said something under my breath [for the life of me, I can't remember what but it was definitely PG, if not PG-13 (at the very least it wasn't Disney material)] and Kaelyn repeated it verbatim. Apparently this wasn't an aberration as tonight, while Kaelyn was with us in the kitchen, I told Kelly I was going to give her some potato chips. Kelly, in a low voice, responded, "don't say anything about that because she doesn't need it." Although she missed my earlier mention about the chips, Kaelyn heard everything her mother said and repeated, "Daddy, don't say anything!"

It's all different now.

Sure, we'll continue to spell out words in order to throw her off the scent, but at the rate she's learning her letters we might not have much longer until I'll have to learn sign language.

I guess I'll actually have to start watching what I say. Perhaps this discipline will benefit my life in other ways as well.

27 May

'Bout time for an update. I thought I was up for some more frequent blogging, but a vacation got in the way.

Yeah, we were on vacation last week and didn't blog/Facebook/Twitter about it. I don't want people knowing what I'm doing all the time anyway. Kelly posted a synopsis of our getaway here. Much thanks to my in-laws who watched Kaelyn while we were gone so we could celebrate our 10th anniversary [um, one year late].

I do have some more posts in the queue but, because I'm catching up from the short week, it'll take me a couple of days to get them out. Until then, chew on this:

1. Want to learn a little something about my neighborhood? Join me this weekend for a preview tour of Architreks in Walnut Hills. I've been a tour guide for Architreks for three years now and was thrilled when they said they were interested in doing a tour here. Find out all the information over at Dan's blog.

2. My summer to-do list is growing. Unfortunately, I have a lot of computer work to do, including the design and redesign of four websites. Oddly enough, I'm sorta excited about it.

3. Jade Kendall preached for me this weekend, becoming the first person outside of Echo to speak at our church. I love Jade and his ministry, as they're dedicated to my dad's old neighborhood. He's also teaching an urban ministry class this week at CCU. I'm meeting them in Walnut Hills tomorrow so they can observe our neighborhood. The class is eating at the local soup kitchen and then walking over to the church building where I'll tell them about our ministry. I'm really looking forward to it.

4. A couple of Sundays ago, we said bye to Tye. Tye VonAllmen has led worship at Echo since a few months after we started up. He's now on staff [along with his wife] up the street at Crossroads Church in Oakley. Since his schedule is now so packed, he's stepped down as our regular guy. Fortunately, Tye'll be back every once in awhile to fill in for us. In addition to their weekend appearances at Crossroads, you can always catch Tye and Andrea playing around town.

5. Random thought: the movie Drag Me To Hell looks like the absolute dumbest plot for a horror movie ever. Loan officer who refuses mortgage extension is cursed by witch? Sadly, it will gross millions this weekend.

6. Picked up my diploma at Xavier yesterday. I'm now officially finished there. I'm still trying to figure out how to get those ridiculous parking passes of my windshield.

7. How 'bout those Reds? This could be a very fun summer. Even though I could tell you all about their play this year I have yet to see a game in person. Even though it's only a half-hour walk to the stadium, I enjoy being able to watch the game on TV while getting some work done.

8. Keeping with the sports theme, how hilarious will it be when Denver and Orlando play each other in the NBA Finals? Not exactly the Kobe-Lebron final that everyone wanted.

9. One last sports comment, I was thoroughly disappointed that Manchester United lost to Barcelona in the Champion's League Final this afternoon. Even when they were down two goals with ten minutes left I thought they could win it [they did it in '99].

10. Today was Kaelyn/Daddy day in the Carr house. It's usually a wonderful time of daddy and daughter bonding. Unfortunately, today Kaelyn cut her own hair with her new kiddie scissors, face planted into the sidewalk roughing up her chin, and fell getting out of the Explorer hitting face first into the grass. And somehow, she was absolutely wonderful all day. These are the days I'm glad that she won't remember anything that happens before her fifth birthday.

Fin.

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X'd Off My List

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I graduated from Xavier today.

Didn't go to the commencement ceremony, though. I've been there and done that and had no desire to do that again. The Xavier registrar called me yesterday afternoon to tell me I could walk and I said I wasn't. She sounded disappointed. I hope she gets over it.

Yesterday afternoon I had my thesis defense. It went very well. The professor in whose class I received my worst grade was one of the readers. The first words out of her mouth were that mine was the most compelling paper she's read since she's been at Xavier. That made me feel good [and vindicated?]. All the readers suggest that it should be eventually published and perhaps the topic of a dissertation. Again, I felt very good. Sometime this summer, I'll post the summary of what I wrote about on the blog.

Overall, my experience at Xavier has been quite positive. One of the main reasons I went to school there was to be challenged— both academically and philosophically. I've emerged from the other side emboldened, better prepared to do the work set before me. I interacted with a diverse collection of views and individuals and appreciate what it's meant to me.

Thanks to all for the encouragement you've given me throughout this experience. And a shout-out to my brother-in-law Josh who received his Masters degree this weekend as well.

So now, a little breather, then back for more this summer. As I said earlier, I'm returning to Cincinnati Bible Seminary to begin work on yet another Masters Degree [I figure third time's a charm]; this time, I'll be exploring Church History. Never thought I'd be going this far in academics, but I feel like I'm hitting my stride. And I love being an adjunct professor, so the more education, the better opportunities I'll have to keep teaching. In the immortal words of Billy Madison, "Back to school. Back to school, to prove to Dad that I'm not a fool. I got my lunch packed up, my boots tied tight, I hope I don't get in a fight"

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Preferring Bats in the Belfry

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Here's a follow-up post to yesterday's pandering for someone to buy Echo a school building.

When I was a child, our church met in an old building on the corner of Price and Grand Avenue in Price Hill. The Westminster Presbyterian Church sold the building to Cincinnati Bible Seminary [now Cincinnati Christian University] in the 1940's for use as a chapel. This purchase allowed for a new church to be started in it: the Price Avenue Church of Christ. Once the college built their own multi-purpose facility, they gifted the building to the church. Unfortunately, the building was not properly maintained and the church couldn't afford the upkeep on the facility, so it was razed. Here's a picture I found online from the Cincinnati Public Library:

I loved that old building. We [the people of the church] actually tore it down by hand; our family spent every Friday night there for years doing demolition. I believe it was finally leveled in 1988, nearly 100 years after it was constructed. That was, for me, the end of an era in worship.

After the uniqueness of that century old building, the rest of my church-going was unspectacular. The rest of my church attendance throughout my childhood took place in a bland annex building constructed on the plot east of the old building. While in college, the chapel services I'd occasionally attend occurred in a gymnasium. My first ministry was at a church whose building resembled a UFO [use Google Street View for full effect]. Our next church was a boring 1970's sanctuary originally built for Jehovah's Witnesses. And the inside of my last church's building could easily be mistaken for a convention center. All these buildings were functional, but far from impressive.

Hence, my current love for the building Echo rents— pictured above, it's over 80 years old, filled with beautiful woodwork and stained-glass. Overall, it has a certain character that I hadn't enjoyed since my youth attending church in Price Hill. I used to think my affinity towards the building was only about my personal taste, but it might more indicative of the trend in our country.

A recent Southern Baptist survey discovered that people who don't go to church prefer older, "churchy" buildings to more contemporary looking ones. To be fair, this wasn't an exact survey, as it asked opinions about aesthetics. Regardless of the legitimacy of this sampling, I do think the message to be true. And I think it has something to say about Americans' conceptions of church.

First, these older sanctuaries immediately convey a link to the past; it gives people a sense that this faith has roots. I'd propose that people of "my generation" are not quite as enamored with the newness concept in architecture as previous ones were. Sure, you might have a bookstore and a coffee bar, but can the new structure offer history?

Along those same lines, I'd say that older church buildings, especially those that pre-date World War 2, are a unique experience for Americans. This isn't Europe where ancient cathedrals abound. Walking into an older church building separates the worshipper from our fast-paced society. These buildings were built before air-conditioning, before television. Heck, the church we rent has fewer bathrooms than some houses. It's not normal, and sometimes a departure from normalcy helps us clear our minds.

One of the benefits of doing ministry in the city is access to these old churches. Fortunately, it seems that more people actually prefer them. We're just trying to take advantage of it.

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If You Want To . . .

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I have all these dreams about ministry in Walnut Hills. Since we're on a thirty year plan, I don't get "over-visionary" about things we HAVE TO do right now. I like to think that God provides in response to our faithfulness— so our job is to be patient and trust that God will give us what we need. The timing thing shouldn't be rushed.

One of those dreams I have is for a permanent facility to call our own. I know it'll eventually happen, so I try not to worry about it.

That said, perhaps God will use someone else to assist us on this journey. For example (off the top of my head), in the second week of June, Cincinnati Public Schools is auctioning off the old Windsor School* in our neighborhood. It's a gorgeous structure that needs to be used for something positive— why not a church/community outreach center?

So if you're feeling a little generous (perhaps even a tad guilty— with the kind of guilt only a significant financial donation could resolve), you could go ahead and buy the building and gift it to Echo Church. I'm sure it'll cost less than $500,000. And I bet they'll even take a personal check. We'd gladly name one of the bathrooms after you.

I'll clear all lines waiting for a response . . .

. . . waiting VERY patiently, that is.

UPDATE: I recently learned that the roof of the older part of the school is in horrible shape. The cost of repair would be so ridiculously high that you'd have to raze the whole complex. Too sad that such a beautiful structure wasn't properly maintained.

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*Dan has some brief information on the facility at the bottom of this page if you're interested.

Who's The Baby?

I really don't care for the Celtics. Yeah, I liked Larry Bird and appreciate what Bill Russell was able to accomplish, but the old Garden is gone and Kevin Garnett annoys me.

So when Glen Davis (a.k.a. Big Baby) hit that dagger to beat the Orlando Magic the other night, I was disappointed; the sooner the Celtics are out of the play-offs, the better, I say. However, the lingering moment of that incident was, after hitting the shot, when an exuberant Big Baby accidentally knocked the hat off a teenager as he ran back up the court. You really have to see the video to understand this. The kid was seated right next to the Magic's bench on the sideline. And in order to see better, the kid was less than a foot away from the line so, when Davis avoided knocking into a ref, inadvertently made contact with the kid.

No harm, no foul, eh?

Apparently not, because kid's father had to be "that guy" and demanded Davis and the NBA apologize for the contact. My sympathy is non-existent here for numerous reasons:

1. The kid was practically one foot off the court, closer than many coaches or players stand. His position opened him up to getting touched. He should be thankful it wasn't Shaq barrelling down the court.

2. The actual contact was minimal. Yeah, it was enough to knock the kid's hat off, but you get more contact than that making your way to the nacho line.

3. It wasn't as if it was a toddler getting plowed over. This kid is probably bigger than I am.

4. The kid's dad has to be loaded; you can't sit that closely to the sideline in an NBA play-off game without mucho dinero. Am I supposed to feel bad for a kid who has better seats than many of the bench players?

No apology is needed here. No matter how much I dislike the Celtics, I declare that Davis did nothing wrong. Anyway, that's not even why I brought all this up.

What really set me off was the language that the kid's father used in order to make this demand. Davis, the kid's father claimed, was acting like a "raging animal with no regard for fans' personal safety."

Now I'm not Al Sharpton, but that's downright racist.

You might say I'm being incendiary by calling this, but I can't avoid seeing it. Throughout our country's history, the common degradation of the black male is that he is nothing more than an uncontrollable animal. This is the rhetoric that was used to prevent African Americans from home ownership, employment, voting, and even freedom. Making a connection to Davis' euphoria to animalism is ridiculously irresponsible. Is this kid's dad a racist? I have no idea. But that is indeed a racist statement. It goes to show us that even electing a black president isn't enough to cure our country's race issues.

I know some of you might be turned off at my pointing this out, but living for almost four years in a predominantly black neighborhood should make me more aware of this kind of thing. Do not be deceived: language is powerful. Even if it's a simplistic "those people," it testifies to how we view the world. We all have issues with people, but having issues with peoples is out of line.

Dumb can be forgiven. Prejudice needs to be purged.

UPDATE: Apparently the father finally realized how amazingly ridiculous he reacted and apologized.

My Moms

The longer I live, the more I appreciate the role that mothers play in this world.

No matter how hard I try, if it comes down to me or Kelly, Kaelyn is going to want her mommy. There's a certain nurturing aspect that I will never obtain that is inherent in mothers. It has to be a gift from God in exchange for the whole pregnancy/childbirth thing.

Mother's Day is always an excellent opportunity for me to reflect on the wonder mothers in my life:

My mother who is absolutely amazing and one of the most godly women I've ever known

My grandmothers who were nothing alike but who created the family structures from which I benefited.

My mother-in-law who is ceaselessly giving and constantly blesses our family even from far away.

My wife who is the perfect mother and example for our daughter who will one day [WAY in the future] be a mother herself.

To all the mothers in my life and all those reading, thanks for your most valuable ministry.

Happy Mother's Day!

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The Tweet and The Cross

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Still not a Twitter fan, nor am I a follower.*

I came across this Time article about how many churches have begun incorporating Twitter into their worship services. It's not necessarily a unique concept, as churches have been doing the same thing with text messages for a couple of years now. But what I wonder is, why even invite this into church in the first place?

The person obsessed with contextualizing the old, old story to a fast paced world will insist it is critical that we acknowledge the way in which our world communicates. But as the article I linked to a couple of weeks ago displayed,** does Twitter actually promote the kind of communication that the church should truly want? And more than Twitter itself, I think this comes down to an understanding of church worship.

Despite the way that many media conglomerations and companies have recently taken advantage of Twitter, it is a platform the elevates the individual for the world to see. Juxtapose that with the church, a word that means "assembly" or "community," and worlds collide.

You might already be thinking that there is much in the church, especially in the worship service, that accentuates the individual. This might be true, but it should not be. The point of corporate (communal) worship should be: NO ME, MORE WE, ALL FOR HE. When Christians gather together to praise God, we do so with united voices, not with a singular voice. Music should be sung together, prayer should be offered together, communion should be taken together, and the exploration of God's word should done together. Even though the community is sometimes represented by singular voices in these instances, they should be mindful to be representative of the entire church.

At Echo, we've been studying through the book of 1 Corinthians and one of the primary issues that plagued that church is that they had a community full of people who wanted their voices to be heard. They brought a "me" mentality into worship where they would literally outshout other worshippers. As Paul tells them, not everyone's voice should be heard during worship; we all have different gifts, some more upfront than others. The worship service is not the place for inclusiveness and individual expression. This might not seem very postmodern, but it is biblical.***

The one quote from the article I found disturbing was the following direction from the pulpit: "if God leads you to continue [to Tweet] as a form of worship by all means do it." Call me cynical, but when I read that, I can't avoid hearing, "you do whatever makes you happy and it's good with God." And maybe it really is, but is it really what's good for the community.

Corporate worship should symphonically combine voices instead of distinguishing them. Rather than hiding in our hi-tech world, we need to deprogram ourselves in order to emerge from our technological burrows. Where else do we have such an opportunity to allow people to disconnect from their grid?

Text and tweet if you must, but turn off the cell phone in church.

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*It might seem that I have declared war on Twitter. It's really not the case. Tweet yourself to death and have a great time.

**My favorite pull quote from that article: "The broadcasting of the spectacle of the self has become a full-time job."

***Aaron preached on this text at Echo last week. Unfortunately, we didn't get it recorded. If you want the text, you could always email him and ask him for it.

Turn The Page

My parent's house sits on quite a bit of wooded land; connected with all the neighbors' properties, it made a virtual wilderness. With all those trees, wandering through the woods was always a difficult trek. But then you'd come to an open field and you were relieved because you knew you could walk across with ease.

Lately, I feel like I've been wandering through the deep woods but there's finally a clearing ahead. And there's a smile on my face.

Starting in the summer of 2007 I've been pushing through academic endeavors; since then, I've either been taking classes or teaching classes non-stop. I had my last class at Xavier last night and will finish my degree with a thesis defense next week. And I'm not teaching any classes this summer so I'll actually have a legitimate summer break. I'm very much looking forward to the next few months. I think I might actually read a few books that I feel like reading and there are some church projects and house projects that I'm going to tackle.

Something else I've realized (and you might have too) is that my blogging has become much more infrequent over the last 10 months or so. Since I've been doing a ton of writing for teaching and homework and sermons, I've felt a bit empty when it comes to writing here. And that's unfortunate because some of you who I hardly see anymore are able to stay better connected with our lives if I'm constantly posting. And Facebook just don't get it done.

Even though school's out for summer, I'm actually going to pick up the blogging again. Just posting this past week about my marathon prep reminded me that it's not as difficult as I imagine it might be.

So if you don't use an RSS reader and you've not been checking in with the House of Carr, I'll try to give you a reason to come around the neighborhood more regularly.

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Finished

A very cool day for our city . . . and also for me.

Here's my play-by-play if you're needing something to put you to sleep:

I woke up at 5am hearing rain outside. At the time, it didn't phase me because I was feeling good. I slept well the past couple of nights and was almost giddy about the race. I kissed Kelly good-bye and headed downtown. Found a parking place on 4th Street near Central Avenue where I played Solitaire on my iPod Touch. I [purposely] locked my keys in the car and headed to the starting line about fifteen minutes before the race. As a result, I knew I'd be back in the pack, but thought that might help with spacing.

It didn't.

It was packed down; I think I heard there was about 14,000 people running this morning. It took me eleven minutes to get to the starting line . . . and then I got frustrated. For the first six miles, there was no room to move; twice during the first three miles I practically came to a complete stop. My 9-minute mile goal was suffering, so I tried to make some moves to make up time. I expended a lot of energy doing so [something I knew I shouldn't do] but I was feeling good and did so anyway. By the time I saw Kel and Kaelyn at the entrance to Eden Park (Paul, Carol, and Emily were there too) I got my pace back to 9-minutes.

I owned the Gilbert Avenue/Eden Park hill [as I should have in my own backyard] and made up some serious time out of East Walnut Hills through Hyde Park. I handled the trek through Fairfax and Mariemont well, meeting Kelly and Kaelyn there. Leaving back through Fairfax, passing the Frisch's Mainliner off Wooster Pike was my mini-wall. But the sight of people walking on the side [despite the fact that they had earlier passed me up] kept my going. My pace slowed a bit in the East End through Columbia-Tusculum, but when I hit the final five miles coming down Eastern Avenue [now gentrified Riverside Drive] I was feeling very good.

Until the very last mile.

I couldn't believe it, but I had nothing left in the tank at all. I'll be very interested to see, but I'm pretty sure it was the slowest mile I ran all day. All morning I had been doing math, making sure I was at a pace to do the four-hour run. I knew in that last mile I was getting close, but I briefly thought "hey, just over four-hours wouldn't be TOO bad." But as I saw Kaelyn and Kelly [with half-marathoners Dan and Angie] about two-tenths of a mile from the finish, I just pushed out everything that I had.

I finished my 26.2 miles in 3:58— just two minutes shy of four-hours. I wrote a few days ago that such a finish would make me "happy." I'd like to upgrade that to "very happy."

It was a great day, one I'll never forget. Let me give you some random observations:

  • I love my family. Kelly and Kaelyn spent a lot of time in the car today just to see me for a few seconds at a time. Their patience and support during this training was critical to me being able to do this. I cannot say enough about how cool they are.
  • I love this city. I know there were a lot of organizations that man different stations that use this as a fundraiser, but everyone is so great. And the many people throughout the course that aren't actually part of the race that hand out gummy bears and orange slices. It is very, very cool.
  • In addition to the crowd at the start, I think the early rain might have played a part in going a little slower. My socks were wet early on and my feet aren't looking great right now. No excuses, though. I'm not sure I could've shaved off any more than ten additional minutes off my time.
  • Never say never [even though I frequently do] but I'm not sure if I'll run a marathon for a long time. Shaving off minutes isn't a huge motivation for me. Doing the half-marathon next year is a definite possibility.
  • Perhaps this is too much information, but I felt like I had to use the bathroom at mile 4. I never went the entire race. Felt like I needed to go when I crossed the finish line, but I didn't go for another hour after the race.
  • I just saw a local TV personality up at the UDF in Mount Adams. He's a very good runner and he said the course felt slower out there today [he picked up 15 minutes on his finish from last year], so maybe there's something to it after all.
  • I'm so thankful for all the encouragement people have given me in the past few months throughout today. From emails to phone calls, people have been very good to me. I love my life.
  • This whole experience makes me respect people who have run marathons even more. And the advice that they have given me was truly valuable. Thanks Audrey and Alex and everyone else.
  • And thanks for tolerating a week full of posts about this. I'm glad I'll have all this to reflect on later. And maybe now that I've done it, you might understand that anyone can do this.

By the way, Kelly took some pics from today that you can check out on her blog. She also shares how she and Kaelyn chased me down all morning.

Three Days to Marathon

Going for distance or going for speed?

One thing I've repeatedly read since deciding to run was that a first-time runner should aim just to finish the race and not worry about their time. Early on, I thought I could jive with this. But then I read an excerpt online from some running book where the author claimed that Oprah ran her first marathon in under four hours. Alas, an excuse for me to forget about merely finishing. If I can't do better than Oprah, then I'm giving up . . . on everything.

Then I started training and I started to think that that dude made up the Oprah fact. In order to run a four-hour marathon, you need to run nine minute miles. I started running in January between 9:30 to 10 minute miles. Disappointed, I picked up my time week by week. When I did twenty miles a couple of weeks ago, I nailed my nine-minute mile over the course of the run. I'm thinking that dodging traffic cost me a few minutes during that run. And considering that they say that you pick up a little time on race day and the fact that I've trained well and I'm focused, I think I can do a little better than I original suspected.

So just because I like throwing down the gauntlet, here'll be my reaction to the following finishing times:

— Over 4hrs: satisfied and smiling; perhaps upgraded to "happy" if an injury or weather slowed me down.

— Between 3hrs50mins & 4hrs: happy

— Between 3hrs40mins & 3hrs50mins: ecstatic

— Under 3hrs40mins: astonished

Back to Harpo. True, when I started training I wasn't in the best shape, but I suspected there was no possible way the talk show queen could've done four hours. Turns out (did my best lazy fact checking tonight) that Oprah actually ran the marathon in about four hours and twenty-nine minutes. Really, I'm not sure that makes me feel much better. That means she averaged about 10:30 per mile. If I can't smoke that time, I'll cancel my subscription to "O" magazine.

EDITOR'S NOTE: It was just now that I finally realized that my blog countdown was screwed up, counting down one day early. One of the email alerts I received from the Flying Pig people had a countdown going until Marathon WEEKEND and I mindless used that count. I went back and fixed the titles. Sometimes my fact checking is extremely lazy. Don't worry, though, I won't be lined up to run on Saturday morning.

Four Days to Marathon

A little 'bit about running-wear.

One thing I never thought about was having to to buy runner-specific clothing. I thought it was shirt, shorts, shoes and off you go. You can go that route, but a little wisdom goes even further. The best piece of advice I received early on was to buy a good pair of long-distance running shoes.

In the half-marathon I ran last year, I wore a regular pair of Nike's. A few weeks into my training, I started having some knee issues which eventually forced my to get a compression brace; I ended up having to wear that brace during the actual race. Later, when I was telling my neighbor about my knee issues, he identified the shoes as the culprit. At the end of last year I went up to the running store in O'Bryonville and bought a nice pair of Mizuno shoes.* Throughout my training, they have been completely reliable— both my knees and my feet have felt great. So the most important thing I discovered: if you run the marathon, don't get cheap with the shoes.

The early winter runs demanded that I purchase a some cold weather running gear. While I haven't worn any of that in over a month or so, it was critical in my not freezing during those January/February runs.

As I started running over six miles I discovered that, at least for males, certain things start rubbin' the wrong way. I never experienced this when playing soccer because you're constantly starting and stopping in your motion; I never had the consistent, repetitive running motion that accompanied long-distance running. On those longer runs, I'd come home walking like I just rode a horse or, in my northern hemisphere, feeling like Andy from The Office. As a result, I invested in some Under Armour which eliminates any chafing.**

I will admit that on Sunday, in addition to the shoes and shorts, I'll be wearing only the tight Under Armour t-shirt. This is somewhat amusing as I really don't have the chiseled body that is supposed to accompany the wearing of such a shirt, i.e., my six-pack is more like one of those small Heineken kegs. Still, I'm more interested in utility than aesthetics; the shirt breathes well and has the ability to keep me both warm and cool when necessary. Plus, I don't think I look THAT embarrassing in it (not enough to solicite groans) so I'm going for it.

Shoes, shorts, shirt— that's about all I need.

____________

*I usually only buy Nike or Adidas shoes; this was the first time in a long time I've gone outside the big two. Mizuno, by the way, was the brand Pete Rose used when he broke the all-time hits record.

**I must admit that I have another tool to ward off unnecessary chafing. It rhymes with "gasoline" and, as this is a family blog, I will not describe the where it goes.

Five Days To Marathon

About tunes . . .

I'm not gonna lie: if it weren't for the mp3, I wouldn't do the marathon.

I get bored while running; even though the scenery changes, it can get pretty monotonous. Music makes the difference. I needs my tunes in order to get by.

Sure, the Walkman got people through the 80's and 90's, but it also added enough weight and bulk to be thoroughly annoying while running (not to mention being limited to one cassette/CD). Maybe that's why I never really ran more than six miles. But with the mp3 player, you have a lightweight, portable way to hold a ton of music.

But sometimes, not enough.

When I started prepping for the half-marathon last year, through the early months of my training this year, I used a cheap Sansa player a couple of years old. It worked well, but I ran into a couple of problems:

1) Wearing it on the strap around my forearm was messing with my elbow. There was a two-week period where I was experiencing pretty bad pain. I couldn't figure it out, until I finally realized the repetition in the running motion combined with the weight was causing the problem.

2) As I started on the longer runs, this older player was limited in the number of songs it could hold. It had about 40 songs which lasted about two hours. Since the marathon is about double that

So I used these negatives as excuses reasons to get the last generation iPod shuffle. It holds plenty of songs, has a clip that attaches to my pocket/waistband, and is so light that there are times I feel like it's not even there (then, I remember I'm still listening to music, so it is obviously there). It was well worth the investment to upgrade.

When it comes to the tunes, I have a diversified playlist. A lot of rock, some rap, and a couple of tunes of my girls' to inspire me late in the race. Here's a sampling, but don't judge me:

Beautiful Day by U2 Bittersweet Symphony by The Verve This Is Why I'm Hot (Rock Mix) by Mims featuring Purple Popcorn Control by Mute Math Sex On Fire by Kings of Leon Epic by Faith No More Pour Some Sugar On Me by Def Leppard It's Not My Time by 3 Doors Down Take Back the City by Snow Patrol Ladies and Gentlemen by Saliva Won't Get Fooled Again by The Who Lose Yourself by Eminem Pretty Vegas by INXS Do You Want To by Franz Ferdinand Paradise City by Guns N' Roses Numb/Encore by Jay-Z & Linkin Park Icky Thump by The White Stripes  All My Life by Foo Fighters     Touch the Sky by Kanye West     E-Pro by Beck Song 2 by Blur   The Pretender by Foo Fighters Misery Business by Paramore  Jump Around by House Of Pain

What do I need to add by Sunday?

Six Days To Marathon

Tonight, let me talk about food.

One of the reasons I was compelled to run was to get back in shape. I'm slightly obsessed with staving off the aging process to prove I still "got it." My metabolism ain't what it used to be, so I thought: run far, stay in shape. My personal health philosophy is that I'd prefer to exercise more in exchange for eating whatever I want. I know the clock is ticking, and I won't be able to eat what I want forever, but I'm gonna live it up.

There are tons of articles and websites that describe stringent diets you should adopt while prepping for the marathon, but I haven't altered mine much at all. After eating Kaelyn's birthday cake in February I've basically sworn off desserts, only giving in a handful of times (I mean, they were Girl Scout cookies).

What I found interesting was, in those first few months, I really wasn't losing weight. I figured running 25 miles a week would knock off a few pounds, but nothing really happened. It wasn't until the past few weeks that I noticed I was slimming down. The weekend after my 20-mile run, I felt like I was in my college playing shape. Again, this was while I ate whatever I wanted, except sweets.

Now things get really interesting: the last week before the race, your diet is all about the carbo-loading. For someone who doesn't really think about what I'm eating until I'm hungry, this is a little much. I'm going to have to load up, perhaps even gain some weight as I reduce my running, so my body has enough to get through the marathon. Towards the end of this week, I'll be eating like a guy on death-row.

When I wake up early next Sunday, I'll eat a bagel. During the race, I'll drown myself in Gatorade and eat a couple of energy bars on the course.* Even though many people I know [and trust] have urged me to eat the GU (an energy gel high in carbs designed for endurance athletes), I've read too many people who say the texture is like phlegm. No thanks, I'll stick to carb intake plan.

And Sunday after the race? I'm getting some ice cream.

_________

*One of the most bizarre things I've done during training is learning to eat on the run. I though it would be worse than it was. In fact, I'm able to eat an energy bar and run another couple of miles before needing a drink to wash it down.

Seven Days To Marathon

It's bizarre, but as I type this I'm actually a little nervous.

A week from now, I'll be recovering from my 26.2 mile trek. The Flying Pig Marathon starting gun goes off a week from today at 6:30am.

I feel ready. I followed my training program, except for an illness that kept me from a few runs. I monitored how my body reacted during the training. I've run further distances than I've ever run before. I've been blessed with no major injuries. And the seven-day weather outlook seems to indicate a beautiful day for a run.

When I started training, I didn't fully grasp how much of a commitment this would take. I've been running since January. I've run in freezing weather and snow, in rain, and now in abnormally warm April heat. So because of all I've put into this I'm going to devote this week on the blog to describe my marathon prep.

Maybe you'll be interested to see what I've been up to. Maybe you've run or are planning on running a marathon. Maybe upon hearing my perspective you'll be convinced to run one in the future (or decide to never even think of it). Regardless, this is more for me than anything else. Even though everything culminates in the race next Sunday, I don't want to forget the lead-up to the race.

So feel free to share your stories in the comments. At the House of Carr, it's marathon week.

20 April

Still a bit hectic in my life, so all you get is the update.

I was at Xavier tonight. Only two classes left. Unfortunately, I still have a lot to get done. Met with my thesis advisor earlier this afternoon to talk about my paper. While he was extremely helpful, I have quite a bit of writing left. And I still have some course work to accomplish as well. So that, plus the marathon in twelve days, plus everything else, and I have an exciting two weeks in front of me. Rock.

I promise the blog will pick up next week as I'm going to detail some of my marathon thoughts. Until then, here's some things with which you can engage:

Fin.

,

14 April

,

Yes, Steve remembers that he occasionally blogs.

The occasions, however, have been few and far between.

After conquering an especially busy time in my life, I'm on the cusp of completing another. So a few rambling factoids/opinions in case you're interested.

1. I'll be graduating from Xavier in a little over four weeks. I have to finish the coursework from my last class and defend my thesis. In a future post, I'll attempt to summarize that entire academic experience. I've decided not to participate in graduation as I've done that before. Instead, I'll be able to celebrate with my brother-in-law Josh who's getting his Masters.

2. Speaking of Xavier, I think they did well to hire Chris Mack as coach. He's a Xavier guy, so he'll be more likely to stay longer. Just like I still hold that Mick Cronin was a good UC hire, Mack will be good for X. Hopefully at next year's Crosstown Shootout they'll go Huggins/Gillen on each other.

3. The culmination of marathon training will happen in a couple of days: I'll have my last, long training run— 20 miles. Looks like the weather will cooperate, so that's cool.

4. We're going on a sans-Kaelyn vacation after marathon/graduation. Since we didn't get away last summer for our 10th anniversary, this will hopefully fill the void.

5. Easter at Echo is always a little downplayed. Few people think "Easter Sunday NIGHT" so our attendance (as it has been for the previous three years) was a little low. We still, however, had a great time. A great group of our folks who made it out for the gathering. Preaching on Easter is pretty awesome. And if anyone's interested, we're doing the pot-luck deal after church this week. We love to eat.

6. In other Echo news, Emily is finally coming home from London this Saturday. She was there at the very beginning of our church and (I hope I'm not going to far to assume this) she's now back with us. She already has a project to keep her ultra-busy back in the States: Stop Traffick Fashion.

7. I'm tiring of Facebook. I've almost reached 600 friends, but I'm still lonely. Actually, I'm just thoroughly annoyed at it. Sure, I can now "hide" news about friends in whom I'm not as interested, but they constant surveys in my feed is driving me crazy. I'm hiding those like an addiction and yet people continue to find more. Here's my plea to you: STOP ANSWERING THOSE STUPID SURVEYS (yes, the need for all caps is justified here). I have no interest in which muppet most becomes you, or what kind of rock you most resemble. I'll tolerate what you're fixing for dinner or what funny thing your kid said with relative ease, but keep your surveys to yourself.

8. Speaking of Facebook, I also can longer check the site while shows that I'm DVR'ing are on. There is no Facebook "spolier alert." Some of you might doubt my allegiance to certain programs as I don't watch them live, but I save a significant amount of viewing time by waiting to watch them later. In these difficult economic times, I'm hardpressed to encourage you to increase your spending but, if you do, upgrade to a DVR.

9. I'm no prophet, but I predict increased sexual frustration among Chinese males.

10. Baseball's back, and I'm glad. The Reds are going to be OK, as long as Fox Sports stays awake at the control panel. Misnomer if there ever was one: The Best D*mn Sports Show Period.

11. Here's a funny one: I've been accepted into grad school . . . again. I've decided to continue in my educational exploits at the place where it all started: Cincinnati Christian University. I'm going to take some Seminary classes starting in a few weeks and will be enrolled in a couple this fall. There are some who think I'm trying to stay in school the rest of my life. I promise, that is not my intention.

12. I will sleep well tonight as my taxes are finished. Money back from the Feds and the State, but we owed the city as we haven't paid taxes since moving here.

13. My TV updates for you:

  • I'm loving 24 this season. Tony goes from bad to good to bad. It's a soap opera . . . with guns.
  • The Office has its swagger back. I'm feeling it. Parks and Recreation, not so much. I'm afraid it needs to come on strong in order to survive.
  • Speaking of survival, how long can Jimmy Fallon last? I loved Jimmy on SNL, but late night talk is not his gift. I actually feel awkward watching it.
  • The producers at American Idol are screwing up the show. They don't have enough time in an hour to let the people sing full songs and hear from all the judges? The only judge I want to hear from is Simon, and his voice is much more influential in voting than producers realize. So, in essence, not having Simon speak about certain performers is actually influencing votes. And obviously, the fourth judge was a huge mistake. Kris sings the Swell Season, and is now my dude.
  • I love watching the Masters every spring. It was great TV this year . . . until the end. It was like no one wanted the green jacket. I felt bad for Kenny Perry. Really wanted to see him pull that off.
  • This is the first year that I have no horse in The Amazing Race. I find all the remaining teams to be somewhat unlikeable. I'll still watch, though.

All for now.