I learned trigonometry in high school (OK, barely) and dissected a (bulbous, slightly glazed over, am still slightly traumatized) frog's eye.  I learned how to make quiche in Grade 10 Foods class and I know how to tell you in French that your car has run over my foot. But no one ever taught me basic law, economics, or common sense.  I think a third period class on how to whip up a killer spreadsheet and how to gently manhandle an overly demanding boss would have been so much more relevant than say...obscure chemistry or pottery class.  But there's no school of common sense, nor any shortcuts on the road to the most spe... [More]

I'm brushing my teeth with my left hand, yanking my foot through my jeans with my right, and staring down a strange splotch on the bathroom mirror.  It may be pre-schooler spittle, it may be leftover cat vomit: it's nothing a little vinegar and lemon can't combat, right? I put down the toothbrush and lean to rinse my mouth with water and I notice something besides the disturbing splotch: there are deep grooves in my shoulders, ripples of muscles that have never been there before.  I examine for a bit: cool.  I dig the groove.  The wretched shoulder presses at Crossfit are doing something other than causing mass amounts of... [More]

I arrive at the gym at noon with my iPod in hand,  green earbuds wrapped around my armband in neat circles and I kind of cringe when I admit to Coach Lu that my back - the left side, by my ribs - is feeling pretty effed.  I don't understand it, I can't explain it, but I'm kind of addicted to these intense, almost spastic workouts that have me gasping for air and whinging with full-fledged exhaustion at the end of ten minutes or so. And it makes me a bit sad to potentially have to sit one out. I scan the white board to see if the Crossfit Workout of the Day might be something I can do without tweaking my back (definitely not situps,... [More]

This was the brainchild of Black Hockey Jesus, who I firmly believe is one of the funniest and most talented writers in the blogosphere.  He also doesn't mind a little controversy and this challenge, encompassing some of my fave bloggers of all time, is one I'm super stoked to watch and contribute to.  Check it out.

I am in the process of writing a post about my recent conversion from vegetarianism back to some meat eating (note: I am very careful to buy local, organic, and free range) - but in the meantime, I wanted to post an ad that got my pulse racing yesterday. It's a Nike ad, and it's empowering and upbeat and motivating and it says exactly what I tried to convey in my last post: we have control, we can force fate.  In so many cases, the power is within us to make measurable differences in our lives, bodies, spirits.  We can force our fate rather than sit by and have it dictated to us. I want to run half marathons with my son when I am ... [More]