Being sick sucks!

There are only a few days out of the year that I get sick to the point of being useless. Today is one of those days. Went to the gym with my wife yesterday afternoon (our romantic get away..haha), and I was only doing core work. No running, just core. And I felt, well, kinda crappy. I pushed through it blaming the weather and berating myself for being lazy. After the gym we had to run home and get the kids. We had tickets to the Caps vs Coyotes game. GO CAPS! Everything was going fine at the game until some woman decided she needed to get by us while on a power play and 25 seconds left in the period. I am usually and laid back guy, and would just bite my tongue as I got up to let her by. Not tonight. "Really? You could not wait 25 seconds?" I was very annoyed, which also let me know something was up with myself. Of course the boy friend of this woman glares at me, I glare back....he sat down. The rest of the game I felt something brewing inside of me.

After the win, we went home. It was a struggle. My head was throbbing. When we got home I popped a couple Advil. Sleep came easy. Waking up, different story. I awoke with the headache and realized, I am sick. I am like a lot of men, a baby when sick. A sniffle, no problem. Ache or pain, I can deal. Stomach ache, I will manage. All at once, someone kill me now please.
So, being useless today, not being able to run or finish that home improvement project, has left me here at a keyboard. As I finish up here, I try to find a bright light. I have a new book, Marathoning for Mortals. My favorite race registration opens this week. I am purchasing a Garmin watch this week (I hope). And I may go see my Mom next weekend in Indiana.

As I sip my tea, I think it could be worse. Not trying to beat the drum of "Poor Haiti", but I could be one of those people. And yes, I did send money the other night to Haiti. My kids empty their penny jars into or donation jar we keep in the laundry room. That is one our rules. If you leave money in your jeans, it goes in the donation jar by the dryer. Only fair I think. I you have so much money that you forget it in your pockets as you toss me you dirty jeans, you don't need it! And I have had my share fall out of my pants. Once the jar is full, we will donate to St. Judes, my wife's favorite charity. I am also considering running that marathon in December, if I can lose whatever illness I have caught before then. Again, men are babies when they are sick. I accept that.

First Blog

Hello all. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Jody Harvey, known to my kids as "Big Daddy". Why "Big Daddy", maybe because I am bigger than them? Maybe because I had some weight issues a few years back (not that I don't think I could lose a few more pounds).
Some background on myself. Married for 16 years. We have 2 kids (age 13 and 14). I grew up in southern Indiana. I live in the DC area now. So, due to my accent, some would call me a hick or redneck. It is funny, because this "hick" speaks two other languages and has been to more countries outside of the US than most of these Washingtonians. But I am not judging...as they are. Spent 5 years in the Army. Deployed once to Bosnia. After that, I stayed in German for another 8 years. Moved back to the US in 2005, or was it 2006? Anyway, it was quite a move for the entire family. My wife adapted to to DC area faster than I could. She is European, so I guess that is why...maybe? It is not that I hate this area, I just think there is a fair amount of narrow minded people here. And folks don't know how to drive here.
So, there is some background on me. Now, why am I here. Well, I am just starting to blog. And I wonder if anyone would be interested in what I may have to say. I don't want to rant and rave. Complain about politics.. I live in the DC area.. I get enough of that. This is more of a community runner's blog. Sharing my thoughts and opinions of running. Sharing my accomplishments. Seeking advice from other runners.
I started running in the Army. Well, we were kinda forced to. I played a little football in high school. Was never a strong runner. Started smoking at 16. While in the Army I continued to smoke while keeping up with Army standards. I ran a 10K once while in the Army. All I could think of was..."This is stupid!". After I got out of the Army, I stopped exercising. This is where "Big Daddy" started to develop. Beer + lots of food = Big Stomach. Few years ago, the kids hid my smokes. I was furious. And when I saw how mad I was, I looked at myself. I didn't like what I saw. Kids said they were doing this to me because they didn't want me to die. I quit smoking that next weekend. It was long and hard. My wife got me a bike for my birthday to try and help me. I started biking trying to substitute for the addiction. I started riding 20 miles at a time. It wasn't enough. I needed more. I saw a local 10K, The Cascades 10K Fire Chase in Sterling, VA. I just signed up for it without thinking and started running. At first, I went back to my first opinion on long distant running, this is stupid. But then I started to notice the weight coming off. Then one day, I caught that first runner's high. I traded one addiction for another.
That is how I got my start in running. So, I keep running for a few reasons. Weight issue, health issue, mental and physical fitness and to keep from going back to smoking. But the main reason, I cant let my kids down.