See Diva Run

I love to name my posts after lines from songs. This post was very nearly titled “Drunk all the time, feeling fine on elderberry wine” — not because I was drunk, feeling fine or have ever tasted elderberry wine, but because it just seemed so much more interesting and funny than may actual week. I have spent the last 7 days in a life and death struggle with technology, and most of the time, the technology was winning. I worked long and hard to have a system ready for an important deadline, which we were going to demonstrate Friday afternoon. One minute before the meeting was due to start, we had to cancel it, because another system (that I don’t support) that was vital to the process was down. The manager is going out of town, so it will be another week before we can reschedule. Isn’t it ironic? At least I was able to take the weekend off.

Friday evening I got serious about figuring out why my site wasn’t working properly with IE7.0. In the middle of one of my tests, my laptop stopped communicating with the network. Since other computers in the house were still communicating, I assumed it was my network card. That killed Friday evening and most of Saturday. Eventually the other computers stopped communicating as well. I recycled all of the network equipment, and everything came back. Maybe the song line for that little adventure should be “I’m just sitting here wasting time”.

Late last night I gave up on fixing the theme, and decided to load a new one. I got confirmation from Pat that this one works with IE7.0. When I finally got around to checking it myself, I got this little message at the top of my content:

I noticed you are using Internet Explorer…
If you didn’t know already: IE does not display this site correctly, due to web standards. Most importantly IE is susceptible to viruses, and spyware; due to Microsoft’s inability to patch it’s own browser in a timely manner. So I highly recommend, a safe, more standards compliant browser such as Mozilla Firefox.

Quite frankly, I think the browser you use is your business, but after all of the screwing around with trying to please IE7.0, I thought the message was pretty funny… and ironic!

The new theme has a lot of cool features, and many of them are not working at the moment. So far, it has taken a lot of time, and that is one thing I don’t have a lot of.

With all of the technical difficulties, it is a wonder that I found any time to sneak over to the Runner’s Lounge to check out all of the exciting new features that Amy and Tom have built into the site. They have done an incredible job. If you are a runner, be sure to check it out.

Speaking of cool new sites, Pat has set up a blog for people training for P.F. Changes Rock n Roll Arizona Marathon & Half Marathon. If you are planning on running this one, be sure to visit http://rnrmarathonaz.blogspot.com

So many cool places to hang out, so little time. Isn’t it ironic?

Are any of my readers old enough to know who I’m quoting?

When you were a kid, did you ever think you had gotten away with something only to find out that you mom knew the whole time? As usual I’m in over my head, and looking for corners to cut and other ways to squeeze more work into my day. I worked 12 hours Sunday, and still managed to squeeze in 8 miles on the treadmill. It was nearly 8:00 p.m. by the time I finished, and then I went back to work. A rest day on Monday meant I could work for another 14 hours, and so it has gone all week until tonight. I’ve been so busy I haven’t even had time to check on my favorite blogs. Tonight I hit the breaking point. I worked a little beyond my 8 hours, but even though people were still e-mailing with requests, I shut down my laptop. I’ve been getting my runs in, but always late in the day, and with each run my leg has felt more tentative. Perhaps if I had been doing all the stretching and core work that I know I need to do, but can’t quite seem to make time for because I’m busy trying to set a record for how long a person can stare at a computer monitor without blinking, or taking a bathroom break. I faintly recall that I have friends, family and a life that has nothing to do with databases, but I don’t remember what they look like. I have a big deadline Friday, but strange new problems have been cropping up and require my attention. I’m running out of attention. For a while I thought I was getting away with it, but now I realize should have paced myself. The running helps a bit, but I need to follow up with stretching, core training and enough sleep. And now, I think I’ll stretch a little and go to bed….

Update: Here is a link to the Stealin’ video on youtube. This is one of my favorite songs.

It was a big day for the Database Diva. After nearly 6 months of trying to organize a running Meet Up group, I got to meet a few people. Through the group mailing list I learned about the Snohomish County Running Club that meets at mile 0 of the Centennial Trail at 9:00 on Saturday mornings. I stopped by on my way to Machias and met a few people. If I can drag my lazy butt out of bed, I’m going to try and make the Saturday group a weekly event. From there I headed out to Machias and had the unique experience of being early. The sun was peeking through the clouds and it was turning into a pretty nice morning. I used the time to get some extra stretching in, as I usually feel like I’m 80 in the morning.

I was watching the parking lot, trying to guess which vehicle Jim, the other running DBA would be driving. When the maroon Corvette whipped into the parking lot, I was pretty sure he was the guy. DBAs seem to come in two flavors, flashy and utilitarian. The utilitarian types are the majority, which is why people don’t expect us to be colorful and interesting. Jim is definitely colorful and interesting. He is also a whole lot faster than me, but he politely put in a 7.5 mile run at a 9:30 pace. I’ve been feeling worn out all week, and that was about as fast as I could go. We talked about databases, the Las Vegas Marathon, which we both ran in 2005, the Disneyland Half marathon, the Goofy Challenge and other races we have or will run. I had a great time and hope our paths cross again. I love my message board & blogging friends, but it’s nice to run with real people, too!

Life is like a box of chocolates…

I’m going to try and meet up with a local running club tomorrow. I’m excited and a little bit nervous about the prospect of running with real people and not just my “imaginary friends”. Part of me wants to apologize for my rather mediocre race record, but another part of me is trying to decide which awesome finisher’s shirt to wear. My mind started to wander toward some of my recent adventures, and that is when I had the startling revelation….

Holy crap, I’m Forrest Gump!

Seriously, I wander through life, stumbling into amazing adventures, and never being quite sure how I got there. Need more proof?

1. I am not a smart man. Seriously. I’m a freaking brilliant woman, but I am not a smart man!
2. I haven’t been to the White House, so I haven’t had an opportunity to pee there, but I did pee at Congress! A couple of years ago I attended the funeral of former Congressman Lloyd Meeds. After a graveside service at Arlington National Cemetery, we attended a ceremony at one of the Congressional office buildings and I made a point of using the facilities, just so I could tell people about it. If I ever write my memoirs, that is going on page one!

   How did I end up at Congress? Well, Congressman Meeds daughter Michelle is one of my very dearest friends. A good friend knows your faults and likes you in spite of them. A great friend knows your faults and likes you because of them! Michelle is a great friend.

3. I haven’t appeared on the cover of a magazine, but my photo does appear on page 45 of the June, 2007 issue of Northwest Runner, where you can see me running around Green Lake with Monk Monkey


Photo by Paul Merca

4. I haven’t played ping pong in China, but I did get invited to a Nike super user summit in Portland. Care to guess where Nike shoes are made? While there, I got to meet running celebrities Adam & Kara Goucher, contenders for the U.S. Olympic team. Where will the 2008 Olympics be held? I also got to meet Alberto Salazar, a very influential runner in the 1970s and 1980s. More importantly, what bizarre twist of fate caused Nike to choose me from the thousands of people who have a Nike+ chip and account on their web site? If I’m not channeling Forrest Gump, what other explanation is there?
5. I haven’t run from coast to coast, but I have run 1,500 miles since October 12, 2006 and I have run on both coasts and in 7 of the 50 states.
6. I don’t catch shrimp, but I really like to eat them!

Update: It just occurred to me that my friend Paul Merca will probably go to China to cover the Olympics. We have the same birthday. His adventures are much more amazing than mine, but they are more by design than by accident. Maybe he can play ping pong while he is there?

Some readers have mentioned a problem with my blog since I switched themes. It looks OK to me, but in some browsers the boxes are truncated and things don’t display correctly. I have tried with several browsers on different machines, but I can’t duplicate the problem, so I need your help.

This is a picture of what I hope you don’t see.

The page should have a light gray box that extends to the bottom of the screen, with a slightly darker stripe down the side with the menu. If the text is extending into the darker gray area like in the photo, please leave a post, and let me know which browser you were using.

Thanks!