The Geek Squad will be confiscating my Power User card shortly

Lately, it feels like I've been on a mission to simplify my life and make it more efficient. Today, I did something I never thought I'd do.

For the past several years, my main desktop computer has been a venerable Shuttle SS51G, one of the classic small form-factor PCs marketed at build-it-yourself types and one of the first to feature an AGP slot for bring-your-own-video. The AGP slot had been home to a BFG Technologies card with an nVidia 5200FX GPU. It was a nice graphics accelerator for games, but I could tell that it made the system run hotter and noisier. The number one game I had been playing on the PC that benefitted from the accelerator was SimCity 4. Since I'm not playing it anymore, that just meant that the system was consuming more power than necessary all the time.

So today I decided to pop that graphics card right out of there. This means I've got the monitor harnessed to the mighty SiS 315 built on the motherboard. That's right, I've decided that onboard video is good enough for the mundane tasks for which I use the computer; my gaming needs are now met with my Nintendo DS and Wii now. The Shuttle box is now cooler, quieter and surely less hungry for watts.

Meanwhile, I wonder if someone who deliberately downgrades his computer's performance can be considered as having lost his techie soul....

Sonic Drive-In Saved My Morning Commute

After coming home today and eating dinner, I decided to head out to clear out some junk. OK, it was more like I just wanted an excuse to drive by the local Sonic for a cold and frosty dessert.

I jumped into the driver's seat of my Honda and discovered that the motor wouldn't crank! My records show that the last time I bought a car battery was in '04, which further confirmed my suspicion that
I was faced with a dead battery. After an unplanned trip to AutoZone and a nearly hundred dollars later, I find myself dropping in the new juicebox at 9 p.m. at night. Fun.

Anyway, I'm back home again after taking the new Duralast Gold battery for a test drive and finally taking advantage of the 99-cent shake special at Sonic Drive-In along the way. It's a good thing I was in the mood for a drive out. Otherwise, I wouldn't have discovered the dead battery until tomorrow morning. And not getting it to crank when I need to get to work would have certainly made me a crank!

Thank you, Sonic cravings!

Twenty-one weeks and counting....

It's official; I'm in for Rock 'n' Roll San Antonio. I'm not feeling that great running-wise, so I was comfortable signing up "only" for the half marathon. Unlike last year, when I was primarily working on endurance in anticipation of 26.2 in Houston, I think I'll be looking to build speed this time.

I hope I'm not jinxing myself by saying that I'd like to see a 2:05. I've got five months to make it happen....

File under "Stores I Should Visit Some Weekend"

Bernie's 19th Hole: West Bellfort Avenue @ Keegan Road

"The Worst Pies In London"

After tonight, I'll never forget to tip the lady that cuts my hair!

Being in the right place at the right time paid off, and I got to indulge in some musical theater appreciation tonight. I saw Sweeney Todd at the Hobby Center.

I sometimes have a hard time correctly hearing song lyrics, so the exposition was pretty rough for me to follow in the beginning. But once all the main characters were set up, the story of a vengeful barber and a pie-maker desperate for business unfolded amazingly. All of the actors were also vocalists and musicians, and they swarmed around the stage engaging in all three activities. There were virtually no stage entrances or exits. When actors weren't the focal point of a scene, then they just hung around the periphery and provided the music for that scene.

I ought to see more live theater in the future. Even in the Internet age, it's still a compelling art form.

Heights Fun Run

Superman, I certainly am not. While our yellow sun fortifies the Man of Steel, it wilts me in the summer. So from March to November, one of the questions I try to answer before signing up for a race is, "How shaded is it?"

The Heights Fun Run is a community gem on the Houston running calendar. The course is a pancake-flat out-and-back on tree-lined Heights Boulevard, which runs north-south. I ran this race two years ago and remembered how nice it was to never find yourself face-to-face with the rising sun.

So this morning I lined up with the other folks behind the mats at the 18th Street intersection. (Oooh, they added chip timing since the last time I was here!) The pre-race announcements before the national anthem included the news that the race director had passed away from a heart attack just this past week. The event ended up being a great success with a strong turnout, so he leaves a nice legacy.

After the horn sounded, I realized that I had probably lined up a little too far back as I was darting around a lot of slower runners. I reached 9th street, the first mile marker, in 8:13. In retrospect, I think I might have made a mistake by skipping the water stop here.

I made the turnaround at 5th Street, then began the "countup" of intersections to the finish line. I reached the second mile split at exactly 17 elapsed minutes. I got to 9th Street again and began to struggle with maintaining pace. Even without the sun beaming down on us, it was still what I call an "80/80" morning, where the temperature is at least 80F and the humidity is at least 80%.

So I turned down the throttle and just cruised through the next nine intersections, returning to 18th Street and meeting the clock in an elapsed net chip time of 27:25. After returning my timing chip, I discovered that the faster runners had claimed the breakfast tacos I was craving. Drat! So I had to settle for bagels, bananas and hot tamales. The tamales were yummy, so I can't really complain.

While waiting for the awards/door-prize presentation to begin, I did take a few pictures:

The kids run is getting ready to start....


And they're off and running....


Hamming it up in a realtor's driveway on the boulevard after the race....



A fist full of hard-earned tamales....


My goal for this race in the future is to be fast enough to catch a taco.

Taquerias Arandas

Just because there's not enough Mexican food in this blog....

Houston Area Race Calendar

** last updated: 21 December 2008 **

Not satisfied with the race calendars I was finding out there, I decided to compile one of my own.

I typically find out about races online by checking the Active, EZToRegister, HARRA, Luke's Locker, City of Houston Mayor's Office of Special Events (check the parade and street closure listings) Sugar Land Finish Line Sports, On The Run, and Signmeup sites.

Simple, right?

YEAR-ROUND
Run The Woodlands 5K (The Woodlands, 2nd and 4th Saturday of every month)

JANUARY
Texas Marathon (Kingwood, held on New Year's Day, next on 1 Jan 2009)
Chevron Houston Marathon, Aramco Houston Half Marathon, Ep5K (downtown, next on 18 Jan 2009)
Mardi Gras Beach Run (Galveston, last on 26 Jan 2008)
Rockets Run 5K (downtown, next on 31 Jan 2009)

FEBRUARY
Mardi Gras Marathon (New Orleans, next on 1 Feb 2009)
Bridge Fest 5K (Kingwood, next on 7 Feb 2009)
Christopher's 5K (downtown, next on 7 Feb 2009)
Surfside Beach Marathon/Half Marathon (Surfside Beach, next on 14 Feb 2009)
Gimme Some Sugar 5K/10K (Sugar Land, next on 14 Feb 2009)
AT&T Austin Marathon (Austin, next on 15 Feb 2009)
Steps for Students 5K (Houston inner-Loop, last on 22 Feb 2008
Park to Park Run (Houston inner-Loop, next on 21 Feb 2009)
RunWild Half Marathon (downtown, next on 22 Feb 2009)
Rodeo Run (downtown, held on same morning as rodeo parade, could also be in early March, next on 28 Feb 2009)

MARCH
Texas Independence Relay (Gonzales to Houston, ending at the San Jacinto Monument, next on 7-8 Mar 2009)
Methodist Health Stride4Stroke (Rice University, next on 7 Mar 2009)
Houston SPCA Mutt Strutt and Runway Race (Bush Intercontinental Airport, next on 7 Mar 2009)
Bayou City Classic 10K (downtown, next on 14 Mar 2009)
Top of the Morning 5K/10K (Sugar Land, next on 14 Mar 2009)
Seabrook Lucky Trail Marathon Weekend (Seabrook, next on 14-15 Mar 2009)
"Lookin' Good" Shamrock Strut (Rice Village, next on 21 Mar 2009)
Resurrection Run (Clear Lake, held Holy Saturday, could also be in April, last on 22 Mar 2008)
SCOPE Fun Run (Texas Medical Center, next on 28 Mar 2009)
Run for the Rose (Reliant Park, next on 29 Mar 2009)
Angie's Half Crazy Half Marathon (Clear Lake, next on 29 Mar 2009)

APRIL
Bellaire Trolley Run (Bellaire, next on 4 April 2009)
Pope John XXIII Fun Run (Katy, last on 12 Apr 2008)
Dulles Dash (Sugar Land, last on 19 Apr 2008)

MAY
Running for the Arts (Spring Branch, next on 2 May 2009)
Sprint for Life 5K (Texas Medical Center, next on 9 May 2009)
Pearland Pear Run (Pearland, last on 10 May 2008)
US Vets 5K (Bear Creek, next on 16 May 2009)
American Lung Association Houston Stair Climb (Galleria area, next on 16 May 2009)
Astros Race for the Pennant 5K (downtown, last on 31 May 2008)

JUNE
Impact a Hero 5K (Sugar Land, held Saturday following Memorial Day, last on 31 May 2008)
Houston Heights Fun Run (Houston Heights, last on 7 Jun 2008)
Dad's Day 5K Greater Houston Prostate Cancer Run/Walk (downtown, last on 14 Jun 2008)
Run By The Bay (Texas City, last on 21 June 2008)


JULY
Run Wild 5K (Galleria area, held Independence Day, next on 4 Jul 2009)
Freedom 5K (Sugar Land, held Independence Day, next on 4 Jul 2009)
Lunar Rendezvous Fun Run (Clear Lake, last on 19 Jul 2008)

AUGUST
Maribelles 5K on the Bay (Seabrook, last on 2 Aug 2008)
Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer 5K (downtown, last on 9 Aug 2008)
Beneezy Purple Monkey Fun Run (Alvin, last on 30 Aug 2008)

SEPTEMBER
Fired Up 5K (Sugar Land, held Labor Day, last on 1 Sep 2008)
Watermill Express 5K (downtown, last on 18 Sep 2008)
Bellaire Fall Fever 5K (Bellaire, last on 27 Sep 2008)

OCTOBER
Komen Houston Race for the Cure (downtown, last on 4 Oct 2008)
USA 10 Miler (Clear Lake, last on 12 Oct 2008)
D'Feet Breast Cancer Run/Walk (Galveston, last on 18 Oct 2008)
Energy Capital Run (west Houston, last on 18 Oct 2008)
Run To Cure HD (Sugar Land, last on 18 Oct 2008)
Koala Wellness/Luke's Locker Houston Half Marathon (downtown, last on 26 Oct 2008)

NOVEMBER
Monster Mash Road and Trail 5K/10K (Sugar Land, last on 1 Nov 2008)
Monster Dash (Pearland, last on 1 Nov 2008)
Tour de Donut (Katy, cycling-plus-donut-eating race, last on 2 Nov 2008)
HMSA Classical 25K (downtown, last on 9 Nov 2008)
Rock 'N Roll San Antonio (San Antonio, last on 16 Nov 2008)
Katy YMCA Turkey Dash (Katy, held Thanksgiving Day, last on 27 Nov 2008)
TXU Energy Turkey Trot (Galleria area, held Thanksgiving Day, last on 27 Nov 2008)
Sugar Land Surgical Hospital Turkey Trot (Sugar Land, held Thanksgiving, last on 27 Nov 2008)

DECEMBER
Pearland Jingle Jog (Pearland, last on 6 Dec 2008)
YMCA Houston Jingle Bell Run and Walk (downtown, last on 9 Dec 2007)
Dallas White Rock Marathon (Dallas, last on 14 Dec 2008)
Sugar Land 30K (Sugar Land, last on 14 Dec 2008)