I did the 5k run for the CCFA this morning. It's the first organized run I've ever done. I wouldn't exactly say I've been training, but I've tried to run the same distance 2-3 times a week over the past month or so. I will say now that I should have planned my training route up and down some hills instead of over flat terrain. As it turns out, the UCLA campus has a decent amount of hills on it. I was sure it would take me forever to run it (I can usually run 5k in about 33:00), especially when I was only 10 minutes in and saw the leader of the pack doubling around already (he finished in just over 15:00). I didn't have a bad run - I finished at 31:07, which was about 111 of 246. That's just barely in the upper half, in front of...well...people walking, old people, and people missing limbs. A little part of me died inside when the guy pushing the baby jogger sped past me. Here I am entering the finish area. I really had to sprint to beat the old man behind me.


Since I'd never been to an organized run, especially a charity one, I didn't know what to expect. There were lots of booths set up from drug manufacturers who make medication for the disease, along with places like Whole Foods (good eating helps if you have Crohn's) and Nike (pushing their iPod integrated running system). I got a ton of swag from the drug companies. I've always wanted a Pentasa stapler! I wonder how annoyed the GI doctors of the city will be when all their patients come in saying, "Hey, what about THIS drug? Why am I not on THIS? They promised it worked the best!"

After the event, a Bluegrass band hit the stage. I abhor Bluegrass music. It's every little bit of country that makes my skin crawl multiplied to the nth degree. It became even worse when I realized they were performing Bluegrass covers of songs like "Take It On the Run" by REO Speedwagon and "I Wanna Be Sedated" by the Ramones. I'd also like to point out that I've never been to a public event where the number of port-a-potties were about twice what they really needed for the size of the group. At least they took into consideration the disease everyone was there to fight against.

The song of the day is "A Lifetime" by Better Than Ezra off their 2005 album Before the Robots. Someone commented when I wrote about "Hotel California" about liking songs that tell a story, and I've always liked that, too. It seems pretty rare that many modern musicians do that. I've liked this band since their 1993 debut album, and this song really caught me the first time I heard it. It's about a girl on her way to her high school graduation who gets in a car wreck and dies. Her friends go to her wake, run in, steal her urn and take it down to the beach to spread her ashes and fulfill what they knew would have been her final wishes. Interesting story, and a great song.