I was the sports editor of the daily student newspaper when I was in college, and once, the radio station scheduled me for a 30-minute segment to talk about football recruiting. I was excited, but once I got in and saw the red “On Air” light, I froze. I stumbled and bumbled my way to the first commercial break and the hosts were kind enough to let me off the hook after a mere seven minutes. I’m going to have an audience on December 14, and I’m cautiously optimistic that things will go better this time.
Standard introduction: If this is your first visit here, I’m a marathoner and a father of three โ but not in that order. My middle child, 6-year-old Jack, is severely autistic and next year I’m planning on running 60 marathons in his honor to try to raise money and nationwide awareness for Train 4 Autism, a wonderful charity.
Running Update
I didn’t do a long run over the weekend. Heck, I didn’t even do a short run over the weekend. I’ve been beyond stressed over a lot of things going on in my world and I just couldn’t run this weekend.
I had a nice run yesterday, though. 15.1 miles at a 7:50/mile pace. This morning, I ran 8.15 miles of nothing, but I’m extremely stressed out about some things that have nothing to do with anything I’ve ever discussed here, so I cut my run short because I couldn’t focus. But I’m kind of getting back to where I was, and I’m still optimistic at this point that I’ll be ready to make a legitimate run at sub-3 in Tucson on December 13. Speaking of Tucson, …
I’m More Nervous About This Than I Am About Running 60 Marathons
I’m going to be speaking at an elementary school in Tucson the day after the race. There’s going to be an assembly for kids from 3rd grade through 6th grade and I’m going to talk to them for about 30 minutes. I think I’m going to be talking to them about helping others, believing in yourself and challenging yourself, health and physical fitness.
That speech will be right after I throw up. The last time I spoke in front of anybody was in my college speech class in the summer of 1997. There were about 15 people in the class. I might as well get used to this, but still! Yikes! Do you think they’ll get my jokes?
If You Don’t Know What An IEP Is, Be Grateful
We had an IEP for Jack yesterday, and I guess it’s one of those things that parents of special-needs children get to deal with. Basically, it’s a once-a-year thing where parents meet with the school district to set educational goals for the child.
The school is evaluated on how well the student does meeting the goals, so the goals can’t be unrealistic. But at the same time, parents want to see progress, so the goals can’t be too simple. Finding that middle ground is a challenge that’s a way of life for anybody involved in special ed. It can be a decent experience, or it can be a bitter battle. We’ve had both.
I’m not going to get into specific details about yesterday’s meeting. That’s not saying anything one way or the other โ that’s just saying that some things shouldn’t be written about in a public blog. Despite 2 1/2 hours, though, we didn’t finish and we’ll be continuing the process in a couple of weeks.
I will say that it’s pretty depressing sitting through an IEP, looking at the numbers about how Jack tested out. He’s definitely behind. I don’t think I even want to say how far behind in various areas. But I know that I’m still optimistic that he’s going to get better. He’s got a lot going inside that head of his and he’s going to break through this shell that’s currently limiting him. I like what I’ve seen from him lately and I’m cautiously optimistic.
But like I said, if you don’t know what an IEP is, be grateful.
Good Luck To A Good Friend Of Operation Jack!
This Sunday, Ally Phillips is running her first marathon in Tulsa. I love running vicariously through other people, so I get to run a first marathon this weekend! The experience of your first marathon is awesome, one you’ll never forget. I always say that the most important part of running a first marathon is running a second marathon, because that’s how you know you’re making a lifestyle change and a fitness commitment beyond crossing the marathon off the proverbial list of things to do in life.
So Ally, good luck, and have fun!
Have A Great Day Everybody!
That’s all I have for today. I could probably come up with more, but this thing is already long enough. Plus, I wrote this last night and I was getting tired.
Shelly Overton says
So, there was this mushroom who walked into a bar and sat to have a beverage, the bartender turned and said we don’t serve your kind here, the mushroom said “why not, I’m a fungi”. One of my favorites……Happy Tuesday Sam!
Melissa Hose says
No matter how well they go, IEPs always make you feel as if you’ve been slapped repeatedly. It is the only place that I know of, where you talk incessantly about your child’s shortcomings, to further their success. :-/
You’ll do great in your speech to the kids. Just speak from your heart. Kids don’t listen to words, they know whether you’re sincere or not.
Tiffany Felsenfeld says
Even though you said you love running vicariously through other people’s first marathons, I’m not quite sure if you liked running with me through mine. ๐
Plus one to what Melissa said. Just speak from your heart!
Cami Seretti says
Knock, Knock…
Who’s there?
The Interrupting Cow.
The interru-
MOOOOO!
Have a great day Sammy Sam!
Ally Phillips says
Ahhh, thanks for the shout out! And for the great support as I get ready for my first marathon. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Can’t wait for Catalina!
You’ll do great talking to the kids–just be yourself, don’t take yourself too seriously and don’t get too stressed about it…. this coming from a former pre-school teacher…. You’ll do great!
Have a great week ๐
-A
adair renning says
I second what Melissa said about IEP\’s. We used to think the schools were doing *everything* possible…..then I started attending autism conferences and learning what Asia was REALLY entitled to. Our IEP\’s went from nice, chatty 2 hour affairs to 3 day events, because we wouldn\’t back down. Good luck, and stick to your guns! PS…had a great time with the T4A folks last Tuesday!!
Erin Fortin says
Why did the girl break up with her vampire boyfriend?
Because he was a pain in the neck!
(hehehe)
Good luck on your speech! Just be happy, friendly, passionate, and speak from your heart! Kids love listening to speakers with personality and spunk. You’ll be great ๐