1st Marathon - Oakland, 2012

So I wrote a really painfully long reflection on this race. If by any chance you want more detail than below, email me and I'll send it along.

Best to read this while listening to Elton John's Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters. It was stuck squarely in my head during the entire race.

Short version
There were two parts to the race, miles 0-15, and the rest. I'm proud of miles 0-15; I flew beaming down the wet streets beneath partly-cloudy skies. It was as fun as running can be - whenever I became too focused, there were the folks of Oakland out for some analog entertainment. I ran mostly alone, in sixth or seventh place overall.

The splits were as follows:

Start through 15:
1 - 5:55 (thrill of the start, rolling through the turns of downtown oakland, spending time with the frontrunners)
2 - 5:56 (still in with the front group. feeling out of place as they all look like semi-pro runners)
3 - 6:24 (ungracefully removed my undershirt. decided to ease-off on the pace a bit)
4 - 6:06 (the-man-the-legend-plus-artist Rob Wilson was out cheering along Telegraph)
5 - 6:26 (slight uphills has a pronounced effect on my pace)
6 - 6:56 (again, just starting into the hills, bit slower than I'd intended. passed by some hotshot relay runner, but didn't realize he was such until 8 miles later. brain function minimal.)
7 - 7:28 (steepest hill section. not too shabby)
8 - 6:23 (lake temescal)
9 - 6:56 (another insignificant uphill takes its toll on my pace)
10 - 6:16 (saw ultrarunning stud Lon Freeman out in Montclair. Didn't recognize me on account of my haircut and "beard")
11 - 7:04 (last of the hills and past the temples atop Lincoln)
12 - 6:00 (flyin' down)
13 - 6:23 (more downhill thrillz)
14 - 6:03 (75 ft elevation drop. still flying)
15 - 6:44 (wump. International Blvd. Flat course from here to the finish, but soon the fun begins...)

So at this point you can see that the hills jostled my pace a bit, but as I came down onto International Blvd, things were looking good. Things were looking fast. Miles 12-14 represent a 350 ft. drop in elevation, so maybe that's masking the early signs of fatigue.

16 through finish:
It was an old nemesis, one that had cost me time and position in a race once before. My IT band. fuck. It began tickling during mile 15, and perhaps the dreaded band detected I wasn't willing to give it any quarter, so it just plain seized-up on me. From that point I knew several things:

a) dreams of maintaining a anything near my goal pace were gone,

b) stopping to stretch would do no good,

c) stopping would only increase the risk of not finishing and

d) that I might, despite my best efforts, not finish.

For those unfamiliar with IT band irritation, it's like with every step somebody's tickling the outside of your thigh so much it hurts. For those familiar who've used the foam roller thingy to address their pain, each step became as painful as using the roller.

By the time I saw my parents on a streetcorner in Chinatown, I was in a lot of pain ("Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown.") Seeing mom and pop gave me an emotional boost, which wasn't reflected in my time. Señor Pain began dismantling the connection between emotion and performance. There was only one speed: keep going. There was no slowing, no acceleration. The splits tell it all, a slow fall from grace:

16 - 6:43 (the f***in IT band takes its grip. passed by the first guy to pass me in miles.)
17 - 6:57 (pain. parents. shouted 谢谢大家! to some Chinese supports. They laughed. another guy passed me.)
18 - 7:10 (pain)
19 - 7:20 (pain. dropped another position.)
20 - 7:42 (pain. archway of fire.)
21 - 7:59 (pain. passed by eventual female winner. Burning Man art car with horses head.)
22 - 8:09 (pain. Ella Baker volunteers somewhere in this stretch. Took water from them though I didn't need it because they seemed so nice.)
23 - 8:03 (pain. didn't see mom and dad or the cheerleaders as I came upon Lake Merritt. just pain.)
24 - 8:16 (more pain. knew by this time that I'd finish, but was deeply unsure about qualifying.)
25 - 7:43 (pain. a bright spot! knew by this mile market that I had it.)
26 - 8:07 (still in pain)
26.2 - 1:27 (Christina and Brian were waiting along the way to the finish line! Fairly sprinted across. So relieved.)

Finish time: 3:02.48. Good for the Boston Marathon by a mere 2 minutes and 12 seconds. I'm proud of these miles only for the grit it took to get through them. Determination - I haz it. Post-race massage? Yes, I'll haz that too.


And the rest:

I feel intense gratitude for all the volunteers out on the course, my parents and friends who came out in support, and to David Wild especially for prepping for the race with me. I've a slight feeling of survivor's guilt - I thought David too would qualify for Boston. He missed his goal time by about ten minutes, but came away from the race feelings stoked on his performance. And fast - 3:16.06.

I'm disappointed that I couldn't, after all my preparation, find out what my heart and lungs can do in the final ten miles of a marathon. Nonetheless, the result was still pretty damn strong - 14th overall, 13th among men, 1st in my age group. I'm hungry for more - I'm planning to take time to heal, rebuild my form from the ground up, and strengthen my body. Next time, I'll see where my true limits lie. Streets of Boston perhaps.

Four in Taipei, One in Kaohsiung

This cabbie was quite a character; somehow we began talking Taiwanese politics. He began by espousing quick contempt for the KMT [which currently holds the presidency] and their ever-closer relationship with Mainland China. His comments about the PRC rang extreme to my ears; he claimed that after undergoing the Cultural Revolution Chinese people there lost both religion and ‘human heart/feeling’ (他們沒有人心). It’s hard to say how much of this he said just for my benefit and how much he would live-out were he to meet a Beijing citizen face-to-face. When asked about the Democratic People’s Party (DPP), he seemed less heated, but I think said they weren’t very effective.

In the span of ten minutes, he registered as a critic of the two party system on the island. For my part, I tend to think that Taiwan’s politics tend towards bitter bickering, not unlike things in the US, although infighting appears more blatant here. Legislators hold protests on the floor of the legislative chamber and (I’ve been told) brawls as well, that are ostensibly media stunts. Century-old biases infuse Taiwan’s politics, running back much longer than my grasp of the island’s history, but my colleagues have told me boxing politicians weakens the international image of Taiwanese democracy. I’ll make no more inflammatory comment than this at the present juncture, as it’s not my place to criticize the Taiwanese system.

The cab driver said he’d been driving for many years, and during that time has taken many KMT politicians as passengers.

The next two individuals were studies in solitude.

The first I met on the third floor of the World Trade Center Exhibition Hall. He sat down at the table across from me, his black hair graying at the tips and wearing a beige ‘PGA Tour’ jacket that reminded me strongly of my grandpa. “Where are you from,” he asked in accented English, but with perfect grammar.

We chatted: he’s a 57 year old Penn State graduate (PhD in some kind of energy-related engineering), retired and claims to be rather poor, still three years from claiming his pension. The number sixty felt very arbitrary to me just then. Mister Tsui came just to enjoy the air conditioning, a refugee of a wife who’s stingy with the cold air in their home.

Both in body language and words he exuded a calm excitement to speak with me. ‘My daughter doesn’t like talking with me,’ he grumbled, ‘neither does my son.’ At first I thought he meant they aren’t willing to speak English with him, but he clarified that they just don’t like talking with him.

I begged-off and headed to a meeting leaving him there to enjoy AC and retirement.

The second was a woman on the subway who got chatting with Yanisha. People love talking with Yanisha, she’s very charming from the get-go. This lady seemed about forty, and mentioned she’s Christian. She told of her time working in Sydney, Australia, and said she prefers there to Taipei. Just before Yanisha and I disembarked, we asked if she has a family. She answered, ‘no.’

I find myself reflecting and dwelling on these strangers.

The night wore on, and we passed through the night market and rode the high speed railway back to Kaohsiung. Midnight had passed and the last subway car with it. We called a cab.

It took me a minute to notice the mouth and eyes of the driver: he said he’s 43 but looked 60 in the passing lights. His teeth were stained red like a kid who’d eaten Kool-Aid powder straight from the packet, and his eyes sank deep into baggy wrinkles, about the same color as his mouth from bloodshot. Local men sometimes chew ‘beetle nut,’ which is mixed with some addictive chemicals… it’s equivalent to chewing tobacco and the cab driver said keeps him awake at the wheel. He gripped it lightly at times, both hands at 12 o’clock, allowing him to spit refuse into a cup and replace with fresh ‘nut.

We whipped through the near empty streets, blurring the neon reflections bouncing off the river. At a stoplight the driver crept past the law-abiding citizens waiting for the change, and apparently satisfied that the five-0 was scarce simply ran the light. Hoper’s Nighthawk would have suited this fellow nicely, though he’d look a bit underdressed.

He dropped me off near home; I forgot to get the #%** receipt for travel reimbursement.

Grinding

Day 1: Drag tired brain to work, shuffle papers around, shoot rubber band at Yanisha, home, eat.

Day 2: repeat

Offices aren't built that same way as playgrounds, the occupants happiness and need for fresh air are rarely considered. Monkey bars are out of the question. Yet somehow I thought this summer would be a walk in the park.

I'm not as hopeless as this sounds, internships are good experience, and this one especially will open doors for me. I'm meeting nice people and lots of people, and my Chinese is getting better. Hopefully my growing collection of business cards, if preserved and organized with care, will sell for millions someday: "wow, you have Badger's rookie card! hao lihai!"

We have a case of Texas Select in the office, and though I'm the only one who drinks it, I need something to get me through. It's the best non-alcoholic beer I've ever had at 9am.

Reflecting upon my last post, it was so upbeat. It's hard to enjoy the beach when all the sunlit hours are spent in a changeless grey cubicle.

My future hopefully lies in a job that I can believe in, one that gives me energy instead of taking it away. That's probably one of the greatest lessons to take away from this summer, and echoes advice that someone once gave me: 'finding out what you don't want to do is almost more important that finding what you do want to do.' Well said.

Ok, this time I really promise a more uplifting post within the next couple of days. That said, I won't rule-out another downer within that timeframe as well.

bright spots: coworkers, lunchtime, 5pm ping-pong, hula dancers, biking to work, thunderstorms, Taiwanese news programs

Speedo

Back in the saddle again....

I'm still in shock that I suddenly find myself abroad again, it wasn't necessarily in the plans. Within 24 hours of finishing my last final exam, I was in Taiwan.

Political Note: I changed the URL and title of the blog so as not to be making any kind of political statement. Taiwan-China relations are, well, sensitive, to say the least. 

I'd imagined a sunny, tropical location on the south of the island, green, sunny, beachy, with delicious local fruits etc. Well, basically, that's what it's like down here in the south of Taiwan! I was all set to go to the beach, when I found that in the mad rush to pack, I'd forgotten the single most important item: my speedo. I'm therefore doomed to drag through the water like a homeless limpet in, while 'stylish,' aquatically impractical shorts. 

The forgotten speedo represents the hastiness of this journey's beginning. In that vein, I rushed down to the beach, only to find A) a huge government construction project blocking part of part of the beach (for the 'World Games,' I'll keep you posted on that....) and B) that the accessible portion of the beach requires a 70 TWD entry fee! (approx $2.12 US). The lady there said it's a tax that goes to the government.

Well, as a red-blooded American, you can imagine the rage I felt at having to pay a tax to a foreign government for what I consider to be a public good. Even though I was hoping to enjoy said public good, well, it's just inconvenient. I didn't have any cash with me, so I returned home, dejected. I'll let you know how it is when I forgo my pride and fork over the money.

Upcoming Post: A Religious Experience.

PS Please tell you friends about this blog, 謝謝。

PPS I live in the Yancheng district, so close to the water!

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New York Times covers the Homeless of TianAnMen

New York Times: Beijing Journal

A Home on the Internet Shelters Beijing’s Homeless

By JONATHAN ANSFIELD
Published: March 3, 2009

BEIJING — South of Tiananmen Square, mazelike neighborhoods are being bulldozed and grand shopping promenades erected, but homeless people keep resurfacing. Read the rest of the article.

My view: This problem intrigued me when I was in Beijing; I asked my teacher, "What happens to vagrants in Beijing, and why they can't receive help from the government?"

   She replied, "They can receive help for a period of time, but then are often required to move back home, to their home as recorded on their HuKou (a government issued residence card)." She went on to speculate that they make more money in Beijing as beggars or sellers of trinkets than they could in their hometowns. 

   Later, I translated a post by Zhang Shihe, the subject of the New York Times piece, or "Tiger Temple" as he's known on the net. Read the post on CDT.

To briefly plug CDT, there's something happening on the Internet in China, a growing discontent with the government, often captured by the China Digital Times. The story of the Homeless of TianAnMen shows a strong link between blog discussions dealing in words and pixels, and tangible physical and fiscal change. It is a fascinating development in modern Chinese history, and indeed world history.

TianAnMen Dawn: On one of my last days in Beijing, I met my friend Chris in TianAnMen to watch the daily flag raising ceremony. At dawn, beneath the gaze of Chairman Mao's portrait, the anthem played and the flag rose. These things remind me that, "When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty" (Thomas Jefferson).

I'm a Translator!

Dear readers,

Many of you know that I'm back from China, and so I doubt that I have any readers at this point. If you are still keeping up with this, I hope to post a couple of my memories from China, share stories, and discuss what's happened in the space of my imagining/memory of Beijing.

In the meantime, here's an article I translated for the China Digital Times website. It doesn't have my name on it, but I assure you it was me (with a couple of changes by the editor)!

happy surfing

Happy Holidays!

At Left: Spike, George and myself in front of the Christ-Mao Tree. Christmas day 12:30am. We've got a party planned for tomorrow evening, 8pm, just as the East Coast kids shake their parents bodily from bed. 

I find myself pining for the small traditions, the cookies, the singing in church, having the west coast Willises altogether, and I resolve to spend next year at home. Christmas came quietly this year; although everyone here knows about Christmas, some aren't sure of the exact day, and few Beijingers  celebrate it ('few' of course being a relative term). I'll save my acid remarks for another time (re: xMas in general, and the Beijing version)

For the handful of friends I have left in Beijing, I am grateful. I look forward to coming home to America (which I appreciate eons more from afar). 3 weeks, see you all then! Oh, and I didn't forget, but a small package out of Beijing costs about $50 US (I can only afford that mistake once), so the gifts for everyone will have to wait till mid-january. Maybe you'll be more surprised then? Happy Christmas!!!