Rai Tai's New Writeups

January 6, 2010 (person)

2010-01-06T03:05:14Z

At noon on January 1, 2010 I found myself in a big crush of people, milling around, ready to run up and down a giant hill in the cold for the sheer thrill of it.

That's not quite true. I am running because I have a reason to run. This 5k was part of my training for a bigger run on February 6th. In exactly one month, I will be running in my first ever half marathon. It will likely be only my second scheduled race. It's a challenge, for sure, as I've never run that far in my life and I'm not quite sure how to go about it yet. I am training, but is it enough? Will I hurt myself? Will I be able to finish? Do I have the strength of mind and body to push through it? I'll have to, because as I said-- I'm running for a reason.

This half started out as just a good idea. However, it snowballed, and now about 10-20 of my classmates will be…

January 3, 2010 (idea)

2010-01-05T03:35:09Z

Workout log for December 27, 2009 through January 2, 2010

Tuesday, December 29, 2009: After a failed attempt at a long run on Sunday, I am back to trying to run my half-marathon schedule: Today was a 4 mile run on Fort Gordon and it went reasonably well. 2 laps isn't so bad and I feel like the shin splints I got in Charlotte are gone.

Wednesday, December 30, 2009: Five miles today at Barton Field. The only thing saving me was a unit of soldiers who walked onto the field, planted a flag, and then all gathered around to mill aimlessly. Something to look at for my last two miles and by God, I made it through.

Friday, January 1, 2010: Today I did something I've wanted to do for a very long while: I ran a 5k. The New Year's at Noon run is a cleverly worked in holiday run that caters to those of us who want to party away the old year but start out the new year with some slightly better decisions. I finished,…

FitQuest 2010 (idea)

2010-01-01T08:12:50Z

I'm sure you know the drill -- the New Year is a time for shedding past indiscretions, mistakes, and habits and trying to pick up some newer, shinier, all-around better resolutions for your life. For lots of people, that means trying to live a healthier lifestyle. Hit the gym, the track, the pool, the Wii Fit, and try to drop some of the pounds you've taken on over the holiday season! But for lots of people, this also means trying something new, getting tired of it, and quitting long before the end of the year rolls around, requiring the whole doofy process to start over again.

So this year, maybe we should try to encourage each other to do it together. Do you have an exercise regimen you follow, or want to start? Do you have a particular sporting event or athlete you enjoy or admire? Is there a certain healthy recipe you'd like to share with…

Adventures in veterinary school: Year Two (idea)

2009-10-06T03:01:16Z

It's hard to believe, but yet another year of vet school has come to a close, like a bear trap on the leg of an unsuspecting hiker. All told, the second year curriculum is as difficult as the first but for different reasons. Where the first year of vet school grabs you by the hair and tosses you without warning into the deep end and then provides a ramp to climb out to the shallows, the second year just begins to cudgel you over the head in the third week and never really stops. That is to say, our first test of Sophomore year was during the third week of school, and every consecutive week featured a number of no less than 2 and no more than 4 tests all the way up to the end of the semester. Never before have I realized that holiday breaks are not only convenient and pleasant, but…

My menage a trois (person)

2009-09-18T23:21:18Z

She pushes my door open, silently, as she does. She is not one to enter with fanfare or theatrics. Just some nights, some indeterminate nights she nudges the door open and I only have that brief sliver of light to warn me and then she's there, slinking in to my bed and sliding beside me under the covers.

I don't mind, not really. There are times when I want to tell her please, go back to your own bed, to the couch, anything, I just want to be alone, but most of the times when I'm honest I want her with me. She's like a little secret that my better half can't really puzzle out. She's got enough sense not to try her luck when he's home. She knows better, knows how that would ruin the secret for both of us and isn't willing to test it. In his eyes, there is he and I and she does not fit in to his picture of bliss at all. She's not willing to see how much he wants to stretch his boundaries, not when she's seen how much I value my relationship with him. I…

June 18, 2009 (person)

2009-06-18T18:30:04Z

Last year, I wrote Adventures in veterinary school: Year One and tried to detail my very hectic and weird and wonderful life up until that point. This year, I have been working slowly but painfully on Year Two. It was going to say this was the hardest year. This was the longest year. This was the most painful year.

But it was going to say we got new friends, we got through it, we got out, we are now D\.

I was going to say I was in a short film, we got screened, it was amazing.

But it turns out, this was the most painful year.

The film is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nki1nEVHcSY

I don't know if you saw Twilight. I haven't. I've heard it's not a great film, but it is a cult hit. So was this. So was the Powerspring video. I think we did a great job. Josh, the film's star, my classmate, was killed in a car accident this morning. That's his real accent, his real smile. Sweet guy, silly, funny, willing to joke around and be a…