If you had so much as a pulse last week you know that Michael Jackson passed away on Thursday afternoon at the age of 50. If you have no idea what I am talking about, get out from under your rock! What was most striking about this tragic event was the fact that for the rest of Thursday as well as the following three days all other stories that had captivated the media over the past few weeks were nowhere to be seen. We no longer bore witness to the atrocities happening on Tehran’s street, not one news channel discussed aspects of our country’s financial meltdown and possible recovery, health care – schmelthcare. Before the news of Jackson’s collapse hit the airwaves we found out that 70s icon Farrah Fawcett had passed away after a three year battle with cancer, by mid afternoon her death was a mere side note. And the way the “King of Pop’s” death played out in the media is certainly a phenomenon of our time and our society as a whole.

While I was watching the non stop coverage and outpouring I could not help but think back just four years ago to the People v. Jackson Trial in Santa Maria. Back then the media showed us every move of a frail Michael Jackson whose behavior became more bizarre by the day. I am sure we all remember this. He certainly had a core group of loyal friends waiting for him in front of the Santa Maria courthouse every day but for the rest of America and the world he was portrayed as a guilty man before the trial even started. His freakish appearance did not help him but if we as a country are this eager to vilify a person so readily based on their looks that says more about us than the defendant. It also makes no sense as most criminals look like the average Joe. We tend to forget that this person is a human being, a son, a brother, a father even and instead just look for the next scandalous headline.

After Jackson’s death was confirmed text messaging, Twitter updates, blogs and Facebook were inundated with messages. Most were saddened by his relatively young death and the way his life had ended so sudden. But there were definitely messages that echoed the sentiments that had overshadowed Michael Jackson’s life for a decade: “At least our children are save now”, “One less child molester on the street”, and worse. I am thinking: how do they know this? Have you ever stopped just for one moment and considered the possibility that he was falsely accused? And what would that say about you?

Personally I never believed the accusations were true. Anyone can fall victim to false claims, but people in the public eye, celebrities, are especially vulnerable as we know. Add to that bizarre behavior no matter how slight and you have a good story in the making, a story that could potentially be quite lucrative. During the trial the only thing that was proven to me was the fact that not everyone is fit to be a mother and I never questioned the motivation of the plaintiff’s mom. It was clear where she was coming from!

I was a teenager in the 80s when Jackson’s career reached its peak and his music broke records that stand to this day. Back then he was young, handsome and his talent was (and still is after all these years) unmatched.

To this day most of the music on my iPod are Michael Jackson songs.

No one denies that Jackson had become more and more weird over the years and the endless work he had done to his physical appearance certainly added to the freak factor. What is interesting however is the fact that since Thursday’s news we seem to have gone back in time, remembering mostly the man Jackson once was, at the same time feeling sorry for the man he had become. A man broken by a childhood that was defined by the brutality and mental abuse of his father, a man who for the rest of his adult life tried to reclaim his lost childhood and that clearly did not like what he saw in the mirror. Often we as a public ridiculed his looks and behavior and forgot where he had come from, what he had been, and how he arrived at a place where he looked as if he had already crossed over.

It is sad and unfortunate that only after his death do we get to see how much he was loved and admired by so many, something he sought out all of his life.

Let’s think about that for a moment before we start the next witch hunt.

Today’s Running Tip: There will be no tip today!

It is Thursday, peeps, and you know what that means: the Runners’ Lounge is at it again. Getting us to write about our most favorite subject again: the joyous aspects of running. Today we are being asked to elaborate on the aspects of our sport that no one ever told us about before we became die hard runners.

I said it before and I say it again: I was a recreational runner for over a decade before I ventured into the world of competitiveness, racing, and true long distance runs, and because of my past I naturally thought I knew it all. And even though I definitely had some experience putting one foot in front of the other for a few fast miles and how totally addictive this motion can be, once I started training for my first marathon I quickly realized that I had entered a whole new playing field.

I did not know…

…about the joys of group runs! For all those recreational years I never once ran with another person. Never! Not once! Then I joined Team In Training and not only did I have to run with one other person, I started running with a whole group of people. I loved it right from the beginning and could not believe how much I had missed out running by my lonely self for all those years. I still like solitude on runs, but I also seek out group runs whenever I can. Over the years, running with a group of runners, especially runners faster than me, has helped my stamina and made me a faster runner.

…how much I can talk about running! Seriously, put me in a room with like minded people and I will never get bored talking about every aspect of running in fullest details. Finish times, splits, running routes, food, races, other runners (those we know personally and those we admire from afar), nothing is off limits.

…how little I care about answering nature’s call in public! Going in public is considered a rite of passage amongst runners. And once I started taking running seriously I became extremely creative in finding hidden spots along my training routes that serve as quick stops. I am usually very good at taking care of business at home but every so often nature calls in the middle of a run, especially a long run, and there is nothing worse than trying to hold it.

…just how long a marathon is! It’s long. 26.2 miles long. Drive that distance consciously in a car sometime.

…how important it is to eat! I talked about it before: I don’t like to eat. Never have. But I have also come to realize just how important it is to fuel properly before long runs and races. I learned a hard way!

…how much I could embrace the Rest Day! In addition to never running with another person during my years as a recreational jogger I also never took a day off, unless I was sick. Then I became more serious and even though the first rest day of the new training season never gets easier, I have come to embrace the day off from running wholeheartedly over the last few years.

…that jogging and running are not the same! I have gotten some flack for this in the past but I actually agree with the Pearl Izumi ads! I also believe that anyone who walks a marathon is not a marathoner. If you have ever trained and run a marathon before you understand just how much effort it takes. Walking just does not cut it. The last marathon I ran there were walkers who actually went into a McDonald’s to eat a sundae. Yes, that’s right! I am sorry, but that is not marathoning and anyone who does such a thing is not a marathoner, even if you do cross the finish line in the end!!!

Today’s Running Tip: Take advice from those with more experience than you!

No matter if you are a beginner or have some years of running under your belt, it is always wise to listen to those who have more experience than you.

This past Friday President Barack Obama hosted a town hall meeting with fathers from across our country to discuss the role of fatherhood.

Here is the video the White House released of the meeting and part of his speech:

Personally I have been blessed with a dad who has always been a big part of my life and I cherish his influence to this day. I commend our President for showing us the love he feels for his daughters and reminding us of a father’s responsibility. Malia and Sasha will be better women for it, women who will be able to enjoy healthy relationships with the men in their lives!

While growing up I was always closer to my dad than my mom. He has the patience of a saint and is one of the kindest people I know. So was my mom, really, but patience was not exactly one of her virtues (something I have inherited from her). She did however come up with the phrase that “it does not matter if you have children or not, what matter is the person you have them with”. Little did I know at the time that I would actually experience this first hand, yet one “step” removed.

Because my dad, and my grandpa for that matter, had such a great and positive impact on my life, it saddens me when I see children grow up without their dads. And as much as our society wants to believe that this might not be such a big deal anymore in this day and age when high divorce rates and nuclear families are the norm, I tend to differ. While there are plenty of so called “dead beat dads” around, fathers who ignore their responsibilities and want nothing to do with their children, I also realize that many fathers fight constantly to be included in their children’s lives while the mothers try to keep them out of it. Although I am behind Obama’s message that any man can father a child but it takes a special man to be a father I also believe that the same holds true for mothers. It is very easy to get pregnant but the mere act of giving birth does not necessarily make you a mother, let alone a good one!**
Mothers may carry babies around for nine months, but dads have to put up with all the insanity of hormonal imbalances and “angry pregnant women syndrome” during that time not to mention all the neurosis thereafter.**

Now, let me clarify here that I have never given birth myself, I have however been a step mom for 15 years (and knew Hubby and his kids for six years before I took on this role) and one of the many things I have learned from this experience is that in the end there really are two people who determine who a father is! Hubby’s ex wife decided that he was so inadequate as a father (by her standards! which deserve to be questioned!) she did everything in her power, successfully, to deprive him of being a father to his children. It took a decade but in the end persistence paid off for her, and really it is not about anyone else. Everything and anything has been based around her agenda and money (a “value” the kids, who are now grown ups, picked up as something worth living by as well), and the kids were used as pawn. I often look back over the past 15 years and wonder what could have been done differently, and have come to the conclusion that as long as society’s and family courts’ attitude supports mothers that blatantly take their bitterness out on their ex husbands by abusing the influence they have on their children, and go so far as to using their kids in getting back at their ex spouses, fathers are often hard pressed to live up to their potential.
And the long term effects have every potential to be devastating!

*...although in our house you wouldn't have known it!

**first hand experience made me come to this conclusion

Today’s Running Tip: Running is a great bonding experience!

If you are lucky enough to have a dad that runs, take advantage! Go for a run with him as often as you can. Running strengthens any bond between two people, but especially fathers and sons, fathers and daughters!

This weekend is the official start of summer! And summer is indeed upon us. After a rather “cool” spring the temperatures are finally climbing back into the triple digits here in the Californian desert. I am using the expression “cool” loosely as I understand that “cool” for us desert dwellers is not the same as “cool” for the rest of the world.

Just as we are preparing for Summer Solstice (one of my favorite days of the year!!!) the Runners Lounge has asked us to step up to the plate and talk a little about the gear we feel is essential to get us through the dog days of summer comfortably.

Since I have already written extensively about running in hot conditions a few weeks ago, I don’t want to get back into all the details. Especially since you can find them here and redundancy is rather boring.

One thing I do want to highlight however is the ability to stay hydrated. Invest in a good water bottle that is easy to hold on to and won’t feel like a boulder in your hand. A lot of long distance runners swear by fuel belts and they are certainly a great invention if you are not bothered by wearing something around your waist or on your hips while running. I have issues with the belts and actually prefer to run with nothing in my hand either but I understand the importance of hydration and have gotten used to carrying my water bottle whenever I hit the road, no matter how long or short the run. On long runs I follow a route that takes me past a supermarket and coffee shop which allows me to refill the bottle. The last thing you want is to find yourself stranded without hydration. It is never pretty!!!

Today’s Running Tip: Stay hydrated!

How much you need to drink depends on the length of your run, your pace, and the temperature outside. It is usually sufficient to drink just plain water if your run is between 30 – 45 minutes long. Anything longer, or if it is really warm outside, ,you should choose a drink with a combination of water, carbohydrates and electrolytes, such as Gatorade® PowerAde® or Cytomax®. Runners’ World has a whole Summer Drinking Guide for runners on their website.

1. Barack Obama

2. freedom

3. democracy

4. people who don’t give up

5. being able to follow your dreams