http://betterthanyouare.com "Try to be better than yourself." - William Faulkner Sat, 14 Mar 2009 01:00:18 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Got last month's power bill, month two of only using our clothes dryer for a brief de-wrinklin' of clothes that have been dried the way nature intended, and found our savings have increased.  Two months ago, we had a 27% decrease in electricity consumption over the same period a year ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/03/04/the-savings-continue/ Shin splints suck. I, apparently, am the definition of the beginner runner, the zealous convert, the veritable King of Too Much, Too Fast, Too Soon. It started a week ago, when I did this run, a 9.6 mile long, slow run. I felt fine during it - got rewarded with some ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/02/14/you-know-what-sucks/ Once upon a time, not too terribly long ago really, I was the kind of guy who would throw a soda can in the trash, rather than the recycle bin, just because someone else in the break room had told me to be sure to recycle. I know, terribly ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/02/02/a-hint-of-green/ Was up and out early (for me) this morning, with shoes to the pavement just after 9am.  My goal today was a long, slow run of at least 8 miles, possibly 10 if I felt like it -but with my recent spate of injuries, I knew that 10 would be ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/01/31/todays-long-run-013109/ Got up early today - fine, 10am - and went for a long run as part of getting back to my marathon training plan. It was a beautiful morning in Denver: sunny, with nary a cloud, and a brisk 30 degrees.  I put on my running tights, socks, Brooks, a long-sleeve ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/01/24/around-the-block-again/ The local high school running track, that is. Despite some minor lateral ankle pain, I decided to give this running lark another go this morning. All in all, the run went well - covered four miles - but did walk now and again, and had some minor pains in toes ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/01/17/back-on-track/ OK, so perhaps there isn't really such a thing, as all computers take power to run, and when we dispose of them, even for recycling, it's often some destitute stranger in a strange land who is disassembling them with little in the way of protection from the nasty inside. However, that's ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/01/13/enviro-friendly-computing/ As part of an ongoing effort to de-clutter and simplify our house, I began to review the many books in my library to see which ones I would be willing to send on to someone or somewhere else (typically Goodwill, or perhaps a friend who I thought might enjoy it). ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/01/12/mooching-books/ It's been a long two weeks of resting the right foot, icing it a few times a day, and dropping Ibuprofen like some sort of junkie (although in the last week, I upgraded with a prescription from the doc for a better NSAID with a side-effects and hazards list three ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2009/01/10/almost-ready-to-run-again/ I am a runner. I never thought I would type a sentence like that, at least those words in that order, as I often type sentences that involve personal pronouns, verbs, and nouns. Even once I was hooked on working out, lifting weights three to four days a week and doing cardio ... http://betterthanyouare.com/2008/12/31/run-fat-boy-run/