Lost in the City

Arizona, here I come!

The long awaited trip finally started yesterday. I was overly stressed out at the beginning, particularly by the renting-a-car-and-drive-at-night-to-a-new-place part. It turns out it went well. Now let's hope the trip will continue in the same fashion!

The flight was great. Of course, it was long and tiring, but I got window seats from Paris to L.A. and then from L.A to Phoenix, and we had a clear weather most of the time, to I was able to watch great landscapes and take a lot of pictures. The flight over Greenland and Northern Canada was particularly magnificent. The desert was pretty cool as well. I'll post pictures when I get back.

I stayed with Chad for that first night. Chad is a couchsurfing host who took me in. We had a good time in the evening and this morning for breakfast.

Then... then I split for Hohokam Stadium, "the Winter home of the Chicago Cubs", where I had a wonderful _sunny_ day. The Cubs lost... again... Let's just say that Dempster wasn't at his best. The game still was a lot of fun. There was a great couple from Colorado sitting next to me, and that made the whole afternoon very enjoyable.

I am now at David's, another Couchsurfer who will host me for a couple of nights.

Tomorrow, a trip to Sedona is scheduled. Then it will be another Cubs-Angels game on Sunday... and then I'll be on the road again.

The new Ludi version is now available... it's version 26.2 as in 26.2 miles. Yes, I did it! I ran my first marathon today in Chicago!!!
Since it couldn't have been drama free, we had some serious heat going on during the race. So much heat that the marathon officials cancelled the race around noon! BUT, even if they cancelled the race and times were not officially taken, they allowed all those who had crossed mile 13.1 to finish. Since I was way beyond that point when it happened, I got to cross the finish line!
First impressions? My legs are killing me! Seriously, it was tough. I walked several times in the last 10Ks, partly because I was dead on my feet, partly because we didn't know what was going on with the race. They were saying the race was cancelled, that times wouldn't count, and were encouraging everyone to walk. But I didn't want to walk to the finish line, so I ran and walked for the last stretch... which got me to the finish after 5 hours of running. My knee bothered me a little at the beginning, but it passed very quickly, so all the pain I experienced during the race was "good" pain.
The heat didn't bother me. Hey, I grew up in southern France, where 87°F is nothing to be afraid of!! ...particularly if you consider that the temperature wasn't that high when we started the race at 8 am. I just tried to be cautious: I didn't skip a gatorade or a water station, by mile 5 or so, I started pouring water on my neck at every water station, and a few miles after that, I started pouring it on my legs as well. That was enough to keep me in great condition until the end.
Now, I'm already thinking about the next one... the one I'll get to really train for, without having to preserve my leg and knee. And I'll be aiming at 4:15 or less.

…out in the bright sunshine
There’s no place for me like Wrigley Field
With that team of mine
I hear the call of the Ivy on the wall
God’s own green grass let’s play ball”
(Alan Barcus)

I made it!! Yes, I actually saw the Cubs win a game at Wrigley Field! That was a wonderful experience.

I started my journey on the red line, riding the El up to Addison station, which is right next to the ballpark. I had been there several times before, as you know, but it was obviously very special today. Eager as I was to enjoy the Wrigleyville atmosphere on a game day, I arrive quite a bit early on site. I mean early like more than 3 hours early… Hey, I also wanted to watch batting practice, and that starts 2 hours before the game, so I actually wasn’t _so_ early. Ok… maybe still a little bit. Well, this gave me time to wander around, look at all the cub gear, and be in the line early, which got me a little fluffed Snoopy in Cub away uniform, the give-away of the day. Just enough to revive the kid in me.
Frankly, I was afraid I would be disappointed by Wrigley Field. I had been waiting to step into the Friendly Confines for so long and had heard so much about it that I almost expected the disappointment, even if several fans said they had been afraid of the same thing and weren’t disappointed at all in the end. Well I was many things when I walked in, but disappointed wasn’t one of them. It was amazing. The closeness of the field, the layout of the ballpark, the ivy, and the general atmosphere as the fans started to come in.
The atmosphere during the game was something too. Did I mention it was a Cub-Cards game? Since it is the big Midwest rivalry, there was a lot of tension in the air. Many Cards fans had made the trip or (for those living in Chicago) dug up their Cards outfit. The result was a lot of Cubbie blue, but quite a bit of Cardinals red as well in the stands.
The game itself wasn’t thrilling, as just a few players got on base, BUT it ended with a victory, which was good enough for me, particularly since it made the Cubs advance to Central Division first place. And I got to hear “Go Cubs Go” and see the “W” flag wave in the wind.

My health is gradually improving. I threw the crutches away back in March and started running for real a few weeks after. I have made good progress since then. I started with occasional 5-minute runs. It quickly morphed into 10 or 15-minute runs every other day. Now, my average run is 30-minute long. I tend to run 5 times a week… even if I sometimes happen to run every single day of the week. Well, that may be pushing it, so I’m trying to stay reasonable, particularly since my knee has been bothering me during the past week. It doesn’t mean I won’t try for a new record soon. For now, my longer run (last Saturday) lasted an hour. Not bad, right?
Oh, and I have a running mate! Well, for now at least…. We’ll see if this lasts. Thierry is a colleague from IRSN. We aren’t in the same department, but we are on the same floor. I had spotted him at the stadium before, but he hadn’t figured out who I was (well, I _do_ look different in running gear compared to work clothes!). The seminar solved that problem. Since then, we ran a couple of times together, as we were at the stadium at the same time. It would be nice if we could do that a few times a week. First because time passes more quickly this way, second, because he runs slowly, which is good to keep me in check, third, because I don’t have to walk all the way back to IRSN alone!

That was fun! As part of Dominick’s visit to France, we dashed down South for my mom’s birthday, combined with mothers’ day, fathers’ day and my father’s birthday. It’s amazing all we could squeeze in a single day!
We started with a bike ride. At lunch, we celebrated my dad’s birthday and got a piece of the infamous “charlotte aux fraises”, his birthday cake. We then drove to the beach, which is about half an hour away.
That’s where we had some baseball fun. Well, frankly, it was more than fun: I had a blast! I played catch with Dom and my father while my mom took pictures. Then we switched to batting practice. That was great! After that, we drove back home in time to have drinks with my aunt, uncle and cousins. Finally, we celebrated my mom’s birthday. Her cake is a “Black Forest”. It has been since I came up with this idea a few years ago. You see, since she is the family’s baker, she never had ‘her’ cake when we grew up. She would have a different cake every year, depending on my dad’s mood. There once was this memorable strawberry pie, whose sticky syrup almost glued our teeth together... Anyway, when I started baking on my own as a teen, I came up with the Black Forest idea, and have been making it ever since for her birthday. Very good cake. Of course: with cherries, chocolate and whipped cream, how could it not be delicious?

These three things haven't apparently anything in commun, I know... but actually they do. Or at least they did today. See, this afternoon, before going north to meet my parents and my niece, I played catch at the Jardins du Luxembourg with Brent, an Hawaiian.
I met Brent on Craigslist. He replied to an add I posted looking for someone to play catch. So we hooked up at the "Jardins du Luxembourg" around 4:00 and thrown for about two hours. That was a lot of fun. We got a lot of curious stares and made an impression on a lot of kids who are not used to see baseball gloves around. By the way, the gardens were crowded. It was nice and sunny outside, and a Saturday too: perfect recipe to have Parisians go out to the park.

I swear, this blog is turning into a baseball blog... It's not really my intent, but what can I say?
So I'm down South at my parents right now, getting ready to take the train back to Paris in a little while. I decided to spend a few days here when I still can, because starting in April I won't have vacation for a year.
I have been serious about my rehab since the accident, and I still am. In Paris, it's either indoors cycling or swimming. Here, I took my bike out for a ride on Sunday and Monday. I biked a route I hadn't been on for a long time, with a nice hill in the middle, and I can't believe how fast I climbed that one. The only time I went so fast was when I came back from a "cycling vacation" in the Alps - where I climbed most of the major mountain passes.
On Tuesday, I did something totally different though. I had brought my baseball glove, ball and bat from Paris, and my mom had borrowed a couple of gloves at the Junior High she teaches at... so I went to the town's stadium with both my parents to play for a while. We played catch at first and tried some batting after that. It was really fun. The only thing left to try is real pitching... I'll find a way.
Time to sign off now, so I can get ready and take my train back to the capital city. There is some leafleting waiting for me as soon as tomorrow morning.

So I've been silent for a while... not really because I forgot about my blog, more because I didn't have much to say. But now I'm thinking I should post a message anyway to give you some general update.
I've been in Paris for about a month now. The health is slowly improving thanks to daily training. The job hunt is going well. I have a few interesting leads, enough not to be stressed out about the whole thing (so much) anymore.
Now I wouldn't be myself if I failed to comment on the beginning of spring training. I bet some of you won't even know what the hell I'm talking about. Others, knowing about my cubbies' obsession (obsessed, me???), will for sure. Anyway, The Cubs are playing in the Cactus league, with home games in Mesa, Arizona. Since I won't be able to catch games on tv this year, I signed up for the yearly package of MLB. No idle sleepless nights for me: I'll be able to listen to the Cubs' victories live now (Oh stop rolling your eyes, please...). The first game was on Thursday. The Cubbies lost big time against the Giants (9-2). On Friday, it was 9-6 against the Angels... and yesterday, they got a tie with Oakland. Call me hopeless, but I really believe they can do good this year (yes, really). Not just because this year is last year's "next year". I like Piniella as a manager. I think he has what he takes to change the spirit of the team. The pitching rotation sounds good... Zambrano did good on Friday, and I'm hoping Prior and Wood won't crowd the disabled list this year. Then there is Soriano. Although he didn't hit much during the past games, I'm confident he'll come around soon enough. Ok, I get it, enough about the Cubs.
By the way, yes, I know the Bears lost the Superbowl. They didn't deserve to win this one, they just weren't in the game. But they still had a great season, and I enjoyed every second of it! Looking forward to next year.
One last thing... not baseball related (now, how amazing is that, uh?): I decided to check out craigslist Paris a few days ago, and I noticed it's growing. A year ago, almost everything was blank. Now, it's getting interesting. I might even find a temporary gig if my job-hunt takes longer than expected.
Well, those where the news... see you in a bit!

This morning, I'm full of hope, let's hope I'll be bragging and not whining tomorrow at the same hour. Yes, that's it, the Bears are up against the Colts in the Superbowl. Since I'm not in Paris yet but still at my parents, no way I can go out and watch it in a bar... I don't think there are so many Bear fans in Nîmes. BUT, the good news is one our public network is broadcasting the game. So it'll be a long night (from midnight to 4:00 a.m.), but at least, I'll spend it at home, not bugging a friend who doesn't care for football but happens to have the cable.
I'm wondering what the broadcast will look like here. In the US, it's commercials all the time, just like for any other game except today they'll be better and much more expensive. Here, they wouldn't get people to stay and watch if they put so many ads... so my bet is: ads between the quarters, and explanations the rest of the time. Most of the viewers will be football fans, but some won't, and are expecting info about the rules, the strategies, the players etc. We shall see. Looking forward to it!

Ce sera donc Bears contre Colts pour le 41e Superbowl. Après avoir remporté de justesse le titre de division contre les Seahawks de Seatte (27-24) la semaine dernière, les Bears ont battu les Saints de la Nouvelle-Orléans à plate couture (39-14) hier après-midi. Les deux matches se sont disputés à Soldier Field. Une grande année pour le football à Chicago.
Le prochain match se jouera dans deux semaines à Miami. Premier Superbowl pour les Bears depuis la grande année 1985. Ils étaient alors emmenés par le fameux coach Ditka et chantaient le Superbowl shuffle. Espérons que Lovie Smith aura autant de réussite. Go Bears!!!