Training Archive: PG

trail running 39:45 3.84 mi (10:21 / mi)
ahr:132 max:154 rhr:47 weight:139.5lbs

Late afternoon on the ridge, easy pace, except for the uphills, which are never easy, even if I'm not pushing. But overall the effort was just right. Longer run tomorrow, maybe I'll do the 10-mile course, thinking of running the race in two weeks.

Note

So an experiment for today, not that I have time for it. But the plan is to keep track of what goes on at work, and to see if it seems like a representative day. We shall see.

1. First client, married couple, 2 year old boy. Guy got laid off last March, factory job, company going out of business. She's an orthodontal assistant. Nice couple, hard times even though he's still getting unemployment and they get the 65% subsidy for their Cobra payments for health insurance. They've gone crazy a couple of times waiting for these benefits to be extended, as Washington has done, but not until the last moment. Makes you wonder, as they play their political games, how much they realize or care about the impact on ordinary lives.

Oh, and her dad died last January and her mom died last month. Not a good year. Take care of the taxes, but most of the time is spent with talking about retirement accounts, and how to avoid liquidating them, or at least making it less painful from a tax perspective. Not an easy visit, though I know I am helping them.

2. A little time before the next client, so pull out a partially done return, woman moved to Vermont last summer, nurse, bought a house up there, we filed for the 8K credit, but she was getting audited because we'd claimed deductions in prior years for her paying interest/taxes on her dad's mobile home. All a bit shaky, but she just got word she's getting the 8K, very much needed as her finances are very shaky despite making 60K, a worthless boyfriend being part of the problem.

Anyway, I call her and catch her someplace on a road in New York state, she pulls over (to be legal), and we go over things, she answers a few questions, then I finish up most of her return, but before I'm done....

3. In comes next client, a state cop, plus his wife, sta-at-home mom, plus a rambunctious 3-year-old. He looks pretty ragged, old clothes, about a week's worth of beard, but everything's cool, he's just got a new assignment, undercover in Springfield,

Plus, and this really blows my mind, he'd dropped his stuff off yesterday, so most of the work was done, because he had to go to Boston this morning.

Why'd you have to go to Boston?

To dive.

In the Boston harbor?

Yup?

Why?

Had to check out a ship?

For what? Drugs? Explosives?

Yup, anything.

Where was it coming from?

Yemen.

Find anything?

Nope.

So he and 5 other guys were in the water by 6 am, and now it's 10:30 and he's back here, and just as relaxed as could be. Some people are made for the work they do, and he seems to be one of them.

Note

#4. Next client, couple, nurse and bartender, she works up in Vermont, getting on in years. Want to move to Florida but have to sell home first, and to do that they had to replace thier septic system last year. 23K. They get a credit on their MA return worth up to 6K, but it's still a lot of money. Otherwise pretty simple, except he over-contributed to his IRA last year so I give them instructions on how to correct that.

Next client is waiting....

5. Another couple, nurse and truck mechanic. She's also going to school to up her qualifications, so they are benefitting nicely ($2,500) from the new college credit. His company handles among lots of other things the recycling for Brookline (one of the rich towns around Boston). Apparently in the last year the quality of recycled stuff left out on the curb has really dropped, people used to put out much more stuff, sometimes almost new, but materialism has taken a hit in the recession.

And we spend a while talking about Kansas, because she may end up going out there on a temporary job to take care of an ailing aunt. The guy's main impression of Kansas is lots of tornedos.

Meanwhile, a number of other calls, a couple of other returns dropped off so I'm further behind, nothing new this time of year.

But first things first, off for a run....

C • Kansas 1

trail running 57:32 5.85 mi (9:50 / mi)
ahr:138 max:155 rhr:48 weight:139.5lbs

13 hills, beautiful day, just fine. Some snow/ice, so a little careful on the downs, but a lot of bare ground. Legs felt ok.

Note

6. Another couple, quite old, retired for quite a while. Simple return. Also did return for their son, he's not all there mentally, but a very pleasant fellow, has a job at BJ's, made 8K in 2008 and 9K in 2009, one of the few people so far who has gotten a raise. But he also got diagnosed with colon cancer this past year, had a bunch of chemo treatments, pretty miserable. He didn't come in, he was back at work, more power to him. And more power to his mom and dad who have raised him all these years.

Time for a quick bite to eat, first since breakfast....

7. Next a guy, age about 60, has worked all his life in construction sales, last decade at an electrical supply house. Open heart surgery last April, got laid off while he was out (probably age descrimination), unemployed since then, and there is no work. Nothing. That's where home contrusction is. Owed a net of $42, delighted, was expecting to owe a grand.

8. Next appointment was late, so I did a quick one, female probation officer in her 30s. Never actually met her, do her parents, she mails me the stuff, very easy.

And also finished up the Vermont nurse (see #2).

Also several phone calls, including a guy I did a couple weeks ago, getting a big refund but owed maybe $1,500 in child support. He's pretty unhappy. It seems the feds grabbed it from their refund, the state grabbed it from their refund, plus they docked it from his bank account. Yeah, he's owed them a long time, but taking it three times seems a bit much. He ought to get two of the grabs back.

9. Woman arrives half an hour late (mis-communication, thought she was scheduled at 6 and not 5), but another simple return so it's done quickly. Really nice, pretty too, single mom with 5 kids, left her husband when he got rounded up in a drug bust, an activity of his she wasn't aware of. So she got a job, makes 22k as a medical receptionist. Announced today, quite proudly, that she had just gotten a promotion, now head receptionist. Very nice. And she'll get about 9K back, about $2,500 of it due to the stimilus law changes.

Note

10. Moving on, next is a young couple, got married last year, bought a house. He's works for a car dealer doing inspections, she's a receptionist, somewhat flighty. She got laid off in the late fall.

Straightforward return, plus they're getting the 8K credit for first-time homebuyers (he actually used to own a home, but he timed this purchase so it was 3 years and a couple months after he sold the last one, so he qualfies), but things get complicated because if you file for the 8K, you have to mail it in with a copy of the settlement statement because they've had fraud problems, so you won't get the money for a couple of months. So they go back and forth between filing jointly and filing separately, and finally we do it jointly. Sort of a pain in the butt.

11. And then a couple, 50-ish, a kid in college. Got to do the girl's return, plus the girl's return for 2007 which dad forgot about and has been feeling guilty about. No problem. Except she got some unemployment, and they don't yet have the form, so have to wait on that. And parents' return is more complicated, MA and CT and rental property in PA and a bunch of investments, but still no deep thinking required. This won't get done anytime soon, this is just a meeting to give me most of the info and ask questions.

During which one of them mentions about the last month being a bad month. How so, I ask. Well, getting robbed and a home invasion. Two separate events. The getting robbed was where he works at the credit union, the perp is still on the loose, that was not so traumatic.

The home invasion was, as it sounds, at home. One evening in mid-January, probably 15F outside, they're both at home, the front door opens (they don't lock it normally), in comes a guy dressed in just jeans and a t-shirt, stoned out of his mind. Talking in little bits and pieces, making no sense at all.

Husband tries to talk to him. Wife is in another room, figures it's a friend of husband. Things deteriorate, even though the husband is being preety non-threatening, and then the guy grabs a banjo stand and comes after the husband. He mostly defends himself, then is in the process of wrestling the guy to the floor when two more guys come in, friends of the crazy guys, and they help subdue him. And by then the wife has called 911 and the cops come and the crazy guy gets carted away.

And husband and wife lock the door from now on. And she is stiill a bit shaken. And his back is still sore.

Back to taxes, a few more questions and then they are off.

12. Next appointment, last one of the day is late. I call them up. They can't come, forgot to call. Husband used to work for Verizon, a cable guy, the ones that have to go out in storms and climb the poles. The office he works out of was part of the northern New England part of Verizon that got sold to Fairpoint, and ever since, the wife says on the phone when I call, everything been's screwed up. They just got a call that the W-2s were all wrong. So they will come in sometime in the future.

So now time to get another snack and make a little progress on the growing backlog....

C • home invasion 1

Note

8:45 pm. Did a couple more returns, decided that was enough for today. Took care of the daily e-filing, 16 federal and 21 state returns, downloaded and installed a couple of new software updates, and headed home for dinner.

A perfectly fine day, the best part hearing the story of the guy diving in the Boston harbor this morning, the home invasion a close second.

An interesting experiment, keeping track. Except not quite as productive a day (as far as getting work done) as it would have been otherwise.

And no way I would do any training if I didn't block out time every day in the early afternoon. Because there's no way I would go out right now.

Note
weight:140lbs

The good thing about running before work is the satisfaction from having done it. The bad thing is that what I've really wanted to do for the rest of the morning is take a long nap....

track 12:35 2.4 km (5:15 / km)
shoes: x-talon 212

At the Smith track with Dave, warm-up, included a couple of faster laps.

track 24:33 5.6 km (4:23 / km)
ahr:154 max:167 shoes: x-talon 212

3 x1600 with a 400 jog between. 6:44, 6:40, 6:35. Just fine, progress from when I did this a month ago and the 1600s were 6:52, 6:49, 6:46. Wonder what another month will bring.

No cheerleaders to contend with, for better or worse.

track 4:37 0.8 km (5:46 / km)
ahr:132 max:139 shoes: x-talon 212

And a little bit after.

Note that yesterday's massive snowstorm brought us between an inch and two. I think I'll let the sun handle the shoveling.

C • snow 6

C • Words of wisdom 5

treadmill 43:19 [3] 5.0 mi (8:40 / mi)
ahr:120 max:151 rhr:49 weight:139lbs shoes: roclite 305

I wanted an easy day and it was reasonably unpleasant outside, so the treadmill beakoned, 5 miles flat, 9:31, then the rest @ 8:27. Just right.

No snow so far.... :-)

Entertainment was the second half og a This American Life story about a mysterious house, OK but not great, and then the first part of a Fresh Air interview with an autistic woman, totally fascinating.

C • Was that Temple Grandin? 7

yoga 45:00 [1]

Early start of a long day.

trail running 31:29 3.2 mi (9:51 / mi)
ahr:136 max:152 weight:139.5lbs shoes: mudclaw 270

Usual trails on the ridge. The plan had been to go for an hour, but time was short, so I cut the run short. Didn't feel zippy so that was probably just as good. Although it was a real nice day out, sunny, mid-30s, no wind.

Snow coming, supposedly. Probably treadmill tomorrow.

Way too busy at work. Lots of interesting stories but no time to write them up. But overall so far I would say the following --

An unreal number of people claiming some amount of unemployment. With extended benefits, sometimes a lot of unemployment. There are still lots of people who still have their jobs, but for those who have lost them, it is very hard to find another. Because even the companies that have a lot of business aren't eager to add employees.

Up until today I had had almost no one who had bought a brand new car in 2009. Note that around here a "new" car means a car you haven't owned before, might actually be quite old. "Brand new" means they are the first owner. And then today, three different clients had brand new cars in 2009.

Whereas a lot of people are taking advantage of the energy credits.

And overall, people are still getting married, having kids (not necessarily in that order), breaking up distressingly often, getting older, falling apart, dying. Was there any reason to expect this year, just starting to come out of the Great Recession, to be any different? Life goes on.

C • different 3

trail running 37:52 3.93 mi (9:38 / mi)
ahr:136 max:154 rhr:51 weight:139lbs shoes: mudclaw 270

A short run on the ridge, though a little bit harder effort than I intended. It just sort of happened. Entained by Fresh Air, an interview with Rosanne Carter, quite nice, maybe that's why I forgot what the plan was.

Conditions on the trails are getting pretty good. Not too much ice left and it's avoidable. But some snow is predicted for Wednesday, so that will spoil things. Maybe we'll get lucky and it will stay to the south again (or to the north, either one is fine with me).

Note

Had a very nice dinner last night at a new place (for us), the Gill Tavern, celebrating Valentine's Day.

Note

There were some impressive numbers from the weekend storm, but the most important (and most appreciated) data aren't even reported -- not a flake to be seen in Sunderland.

Note

I suppose it shows either incredible self-confidence, or incredible stupidity, or perhaps some of both.

There have been any number of comments in recent years, particularly from the relatively younger set, about the image of orienteering as primarily something that old guys do. And therefore not a sport attractive to younger folks.

And even if it is true that there are some old guys that do it, the emphasis should be on the younger, flashier, prettier set. And ditto for any marketing.

And old guys should be kept hidden away.

Especially old guys with beards.

Especially especially old guys with beards wearing pajamas.

So then how does one explain the cover of the January issue of the Swiss O' Magazine?

Are they making a play for subset of old guys with beards wearing pajamas, the subset that likes to run around with radio antennas? Is that an untapped demographic?

Should we be including this in USOF's strategic plan?

Or, maybe, have the Swiss just gone bananas?

C • ? 8

road running 1:55:02 13.02 mi (8:50 / mi) +550m 7:49 / mi
ahr:141 max:156 rhr:47 weight:139.5lbs shoes: roclite 305

Time for a longer run, since Sunday is the only day it's possible, and fortunately the weather was cooperating, sunny, upper 20s, and windy, but not so windy that it was unpleasant. Did a loop that was an old favorite of mine, Stillwater - Bardswell Ferry, so named after the two bridges across the Deerfield River. Endless hills. Just a good run to work on HTFU. Used to be able to do it in about 1:40, and was pleased today to be under 2 hours.

All back roads, maybe a third to a half dirt, but even the paved ones had enough winter sand on them that there was no sense of just pounding the asphalt. And the section around 11 miles that isn't plowed for about a mile was just fine.

Just an occasional car, plus a couple of hardy cyclists. And no discernible activity at the Cosby estate (pretty much all the land on both sides of the road between miles 8 and 9), though as usual it looked immaculately well taken care of.

Legs felt a little tired up the first long hill -- you start will just about a 20-minute climb -- then pretty good for about the next hour, and then tired again on the last couple hills.

Feels excellent to have done it, and not so bad during the doing. Nice entertainment as usual, mostly a TAL on guns, and then a Wait Wait Don't Tell Me for when I was getting tired, didn't demand much thinking.

C • 3