Medium Short: Uphill Practice

Entering the lean-in-and-love-the-journey phase of the work

For my birthday, I treated myself to an early morning hill repeat workout on one of Montreal’s steeper streets using a snowbank to keep count. For my past two birthdays I ran my age (i.e. 50km, 51km) but jamming in a 52km run on a Tuesday morning didn’t fit with the marathon training schedule. Hill reps were gift enough. (Photo by me)

Welcome to the latest Medium Short, a weekly accountability practice highlighting what I am reading, writing, and doing along the unmarked trail towards #IndustrialHealing. This is a personal update — my more professional writing is, as with all of my articles, freely available through this link.

I’m tired, but it’s a good tired, like that exhilarated feeling that comes from playing outside all day. I’m glad it’s a good tired because I am getting deeper into things that take a lot of energy — mostly indoors, mostly JBS Matereality, with a dose of author interviewing, coaching, and outdoor marathon training. There’s no time for bad tired now. This is the fun part.

Here’s what’s what.

Reading: while talking to the author

Why my excitement about the Boudica series? Because along with beautifully written myth-busting visions of Rome’s invasion of Britain, it is highly relevant to what’s happening now.

I am lucky to know the author, Manda Scott (she hosted me on her podcast, and I was an invited speaker at Thrutopia). So I took a leap and asked if I could explore more deeply what all is going on here and she kindly humoured me.

This was a bit surreal: Talking to a friend who is a best-selling author (I didn’t know this when we first met — I was just doing what Garry Turner told me to do) whose books I’m in the middle of reading, having my mind blown, and my dreams literally shaped by the stories… well, zoinks!

I’m still processing our conversation, both technically, and cognitively. But I share the recording here for anyone who wants a peek.

I’ve also been reading a lot about running, feeling inspired by those sharing new and better ways to move through time and space. I love what Montrealer Amélie Morency is up to with her efforts to run a sub-20 minute 5km. It’s a treat to hear from someone…