Almost there... and what this is all about.

The last 2 weeks have been landmark ones.

The last saturday the group ran 10 miles together. It was one of the warmest days yet and we were running on an exposed trail in mountain view. I had run 8 miles before and was quite optimistic. Little did I know what lay in store. The sun it seems, has the capacity to drink up your energy from a million miles away in half the time you expect it to... by the time I approached the halfway mark of 5 miles, I thought I was going to collapse.

But then I gathered myself, drank a lot of water and started on the return trip. After about 3 miles, I felt like ALL my energy had drained out of me. No amount of drinking of water or eating energy supplements seemed to make the tiniest of differences. Every step of the last 2 miles seemed a herculean effort and felt like it was taking eternity. I remember thinking to myself that it was simply the hardest thing I ever did.

I stopped a few times to gather myself and carried on.. I had to finish it. And I did. I marveled at the trail, the weather, the sun and myself and was thrilled with what I had done.

The follow up run this weekend was a 11 miler... at a much more shaded trail but with a lot of ups and downs. The cloudy start to the day made sure the Sun was kept hidden and completing the first half was almost easy. Little did I know what lie in store. All the unevenness of the trail and the steep up hills was having a toll on the IT band in my leg which stabilizes the knee while running.

As I started back from the halfway point, I got a rude reminder about the presence of this tissue and found it extremely hard to carry on. As I was contemplating stopping, the pain wore away and I continued on slowly but steadily. As I continued to run, the pain deadened and I did not think of it. I finished the 11 miles in just a minute over 2 hours and felt elated. I am now 2.1 miles away from a half marathon! I was finally here!

As I proceeded to go eat something after the run and then home, the sides of my knees were screaming at me... since then I have been nursing the muscles in the proper ways and I think they should recover over the next few days... but this is what it is all about.

Continuing on in spite of the pain and discomfort. I thought of all those unfortunate enough to be suffering from either Crohns or Colitis and the pain and discomfort they have to put up with in their daily lives. Although my legs feel so sore, I am happy and proud at the same time about what I am doing.

So here I am.. almost there. I am going to run 13.1 miles, whatever happens. And I need your help to make it all the more meaningful. And remember every small amount counts.

Contribute to my fund!

Halfway there....

Today was the day we were all going to cross the halfway mark. 7 Miles would take us just over halfway of our final goal! It was a beautiful california spring morning and we were going to run by the lake at Sawyer Camp.

This was a sort of psychological barrier for many... just over halfway to the final 13.1 miles. Most of the team had also been out partying the previous night at a bar for a fund-raiser event but everyone was there at 8.30 am to do their run! The dedication to the run was impressive and made it worth the while for me to be there too.

The run itself started off well.. I've apparently built up my endurance levels over the past one month or so and the first 5 miles were a breeze. The last 1-1.5 miles then became a really hard hill to cross... my legs were giving up but I plodded along and finished it. And I started wondering what the last mile at the end of the half marathon would feel like.... I have miles to go before I sleep!

It is also time for all the runners to confirm their commitment to the fund raising goal. By the end of the week, we had to fill up the paperwork and sign up to commit a minimum amount of $2600. I have been raising money thanks to the generosity and support of many of you and reached almost $600... but I have a long ways to go and I really need your support! You can help the fight against Crohns and Colitis and make people's lives better.

Yes, I want to help!

The 6 Miler!

Another week went by and it was time for the next weekend training session with the team...
This time it was a 6 mile run. Having done 5 miles the last week, I was feeling quite good about this one and ready to attack it.

It was a beautiful summer morning as we all assembled at 8.30 am at our meeting point.. and this time the honoree for the event was invited. The honoree was Harold, a young boy who is suffering from both Crohn's disease and Cerebral Palsy. He was accompanied there by his parents and little sister.

I remember his story from the first time we saw him at the information session. His father talked about how Harold suffered from Crohn's disease and as such a young child, they had to take immense care about his diet and lifestyle. And then.. they found out he had cerebral palsy too. How Harold and his parents cope with not one but two such debilitating conditions is beyond my comprehension. His father had said, it was a whole different game.. it was tough. I thought that was understatement and tried to imagine, without much success what a day in their lives would be.

And I just thanked the powers that be and mother nature that I was not in such a position. And yet, here they were as a family, looking cheerful and thankful for what they had. And that's when we started on our 6 mile run.

I finished with energy to spare and felt thrilled! I was almost halfway there. I am confident I will finish this.. but I need your help!

Yes, I'll help!

My first 5 mile run to which I almost did not go...

Well.. here's my first update.. Today I went running with the group... and I almost did not go. My back decided to start troubling me on the day of my first long run... I was supposed to run 5 miles for the first time.

I woke up at 7 am and realized my lower back was starting to hurt. Do I go? Do I not? I had been waiting to try out the first 5 mile run for a while and even relaxed the last 2 days so that I am in shape. And now the darned back...

I went anyway... As we gathered around, one of the participants updated us on how her son was going in for surgery on monday to get his colon and appendix operated ...
And then another participant told us how her nephew had been suffering in the hospital and had lost 15 pounds in a week. He is 29. I am 27.. I shuddered at the thought of that happening to me.

And then I felt glad I'd gone after all... I ran, slowly but surely with my mentor and finished the 5 miles. We ran at a slow, relaxed pace, stretching on the way and I my back held up.

So here I am , another saturday, a little more... a small but sure step towards my goal.

And to make this meaningful, I need your help... A small step from your side can and will contribute to making this a really meaningful effort. You don't want more people, young or old, to have their colon removed or lie in a hospital suffering from these diseases.

So do you want to make a difference?

Yes, I do!

Can you cut back on some luxuries?

What I am asking of you is to cut back on some trips to starbucks, or a few drinks at the bar or a trip less to that favorite restaurant. Why? Your cutting back has the potential to improve the quality of lives of many others. Would you be willing to do that? Read on...

Yes, I would!

For the last few weeks I have been out twice a week running at least 3 miles at a stretch. Its a challenge but I am enjoying it! Where do I have to get to? 13.1 miles.
Yes, if the number seems familiar, its for a half marathon. I am running this half marathon to make a difference to millions of lives the world over who suffer from Crohn's and Colitis which are collectively known as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). It seem daunting and 13.1 miles seems like scaling Mt Everest right now but I am going to try!

Why am I running for this cause? Sure, I could have run for Cancer, AIDS or a variety of other illnesses that terminally affect a lot of people. But Crohn's and Colitis are two examples that are under-represented since they are mostly not terminal illnesses. However, they cause a lot of pain to the victims and affect their quality of lives in a very adverse way.

Many cannot be outdoors for more than a few hours for the need of a toilet and many don't have the freedom of diet that most of enjoy. Some victims of Colitis have to have their colon removed, sometimes as early as in their teen years. And contrary to perception, it affects many races including my fellow Indians.

I have been told by friends that someone they know has the disease, I have seen a mother speak out her fears because her son is going to have surgery for colitis and even met someone who has had their colon removed. I am taking this as my cause to help similar people so that the future generations do not have to go through this.

So please consider donating to this cause. It might mean cutting back, but your cutting back on these luxuries of life can help someone else live a normal life.

Oh Yes I can cut back on some of my luxuries!!

Meanderings of an over-active brain.....

One month to the date.... I graduated with a masters degree. It somehow hasn't sunk it yet. I wonder.. why is that? Is it because I have some special bond with where i studied? No. Its most likely because I was so overburdened with work, with worrying about the consequences of slipping up even a bit, of what would happen if I didn't get a "job" or a "visa" for that matter.. (the irony of all that is, I don't have that much coveted visa and I am still very much here!) to gain the experience of a world class university.

I am wondering, how should I view my 2 year stint? When I was back in my country, I used to complain in frustration at the lack of engineering education. Undergrad was a joke. But during those four years, I made hay.. while the sun blazed.. roamed the state to participate in all the festivals, wasted monumental amounts of time arguing with my roomates only to reach no conclusion about anything!

Well... I did get exposure to engineering education as good as it gets anywhere. It was backbreaking.... I don't know where I found the motivation to get through it. In fact, I was so narrow minded, it started to scare me. I couldn't wait to get it over with.

Now comes the funny part. I got an opportunity to intern firstly at a place I initially thought wouldn't be a good fit for me. In fact, the bigger irony is, I almost didn't make it. I have since then continued to work full time at the same place.. and find myself doing something utterly different from what I learnt. And I liked it. Period. Or do I?
There are times when I hate it, there are times when it drives me. Often I wonder where its taking me? Am I doing this with a purpose or am I doing it because I need to work for a living and I am good at what I do? I wonder... does everyone else who claims to like their professions feel the same?

Here I am.... getting into the "work" routine. Sometime back when I was complaining to a friend that I had to start work... she promptly said " welcome to the real world!". Hmmmm.. the real world. Do I want to go to work everyday in the morning, come back in the evening, watch some TV and relax during the weekends? Or do I want it to be chaotic and without order? Do I look for a girl who I can live with for the rest of my life? Or is it too much trouble? The rest of my life.... there's quite a bit left. Should I keep renting accomadation or think about buying a house? Or forget that.. I love cars! Should I get me a new one? Will I still be able to repay my education's financier in decent time? bah!.. too many mundane decisions to make...
Maybe I should start a company that does just that!... makes the mundane decisions of life for them... sound crazy? well... I don't see why. If a person can willingly get his taxes worked out by someone in a different country halfway across our lovely planet... why not this?

Its past midnight, I need to get up for work tomorrow... darn.. the "real" world is catching up with me.. Period.

Goodbye LA??

three weeks on the dot.... I drove out of the city of angels with everything to my name stuffed into a podgy looking car... half jetlagged.... was I leaving for good?
Before I drove out that day, I went over to my uncle's cafe (The Rose in Santa Monica... all u readers shud check it out!) on his insistence for lunch.... then hurriedly met with my cousin to say bye-bye and then hurriedly met with another buddy.. and all the while it seemed as if I was just temporarily going out of LA for a while.

I was late for a long 6 hour drive and as I hurriedly drove out after saying bye-bye to my buddies, it suddenly struck me that I might actually be leaving for good. Whoa!... I just spent one and half yrs in this city and I was suddenly just leaving for good. Why wasn't I having any sense of belonging to the place? I wasn't sad about leaving the place... nor was I happy.

And now its been 3 weeks since.... I've found an apt, car blah..blah and have got set into the mundane routine of a techie in the silicon valley... and I am really liking the place! I discover a new an awesome cuisine and restaurant every 2 days!... Its so strange that when I've lived here for just 3 weeks, I've started to like the place so much .... although I know so few people here... and on the other hand, I've lived in Los Angeles for so long and I don't have any sense of belonging to it.... in spite of knowing so many people there...
weird!!... or is it??