A new project that is about me.

I have decided to write an e-book. Most everyone is doing it these days, and it seems to be a venture that is both profitable and enjoyable. They always say, "write about what you know" and "find a niche" and all that, so this book will be about me and the intervals I ran at lunch today.

There is a growing trend, in which I have dabbled, to share the minutiae of one's training via social networks. Today, when I "tweeted" my "peeps" about the pending workout, the response was phenomenal! It was then that I decided to take this shit to the next level. E-book.

Here are some notes I jotted down after the run. Now, this is just rough. Keep in mind that the finished e-book will fill in the gaps, be much more polished, and will be well worth the $5.00 or whatever I decide to charge.

Potential Titles:
- "All About My Intervals Today" (really like this one)
- "Feel Bad About Your Training By Reading About How Awesome Mine Is"

Chapter One: Getting Pumped
- Tweeting my peeps
- Gathering up my shit and getting changed
- Oh snap! I forgot my shoes and have to walk back to my office to get 'em

Chapter Two: The Warm-up
- I like to warm up slow and you should, too
- Maybe a little bit on how running in South Tacoma sucks

Chapter Three: The First Effort
- The starting of the watch
- How I pump my arms and how you should, too

Chapter Four: The First Rest
- This can basically be about how resting is nice
- Maybe a poetic bit about how you notice birds chirping when you rest

I'm not really sure how to make the other four intervals sound different from the first one, because they weren't different at all. But I will work on that for the final version.

Chapter whatever: Bringin' it Home
- How I try to not stink up the whole office after a run
- Eating a sandwich

I dunno. Like I said, it's rough. Let me know in the comments what feedback you have and maybe, like, how much you'd be willing to pay for this crap. Thanks! I love my readers!

Laying out the kit...

Brooks Racer ST-4 shoes, broken-in just enough to be comfortable, not enough to risk getting them dirty. Brooks ID singlet, emblazoned with makeshift Tacoma Runners patch. Brooks Sherpa shorts, appropriately named for the epic journey ahead.

It's all about the kit, the one thing I can control about tomorrow's Tacoma City Marathon. Everything else is unknown. Did I train hard enough? Will I be able to get a decent night's sleep? Will it rain? Will I have to stop and poop at mile 13? Is this dull pain in my knee going to explode mid-run? The days leading up to a marathon are fraught with these worries.

Which is why I'm thankful for Lisa, my biggest supporter and race-day cheerleader, sewing on the club patch. This will surely be good for a 5 second-per-mile boost. Her mere presence somewhere out there on the course, good for another 10. When it really hurts tomorrow, I will think about how she accidentally sewed this singlet to the pillow underneath... and I'll smile.

Tomorrow I will regularly check my dad's old-ass Timex Marathon to see just how far I've fallen off my ridiculously lofty goal. I'll think about the miles it's seen, the splits it has frozen in time, and the man who wore it before me. And my struggles will seem small.

In a little over 12 hours, the gun will fire. Shortly thereafter, the anxiety that's prompting me to now scrutinize every aspect of my training, my nutrition (or lack thereof), and the tiny aches in my legs will... disappear. It will be a battle in which my only allies are a pair of really clean shoes, a singlet sewn with love, and a watch that transmits the energy and wisdom of a dozen marathons before.

It's all about the kit.