Author Archives: Al

Road Trip II

Posted on December 14, 2012 by Al

“Look, this sign: this place is so small, they’ve really got the name on both sides of the sign!” Continue reading →

Posted in Aspen Stories, Family | Comments Off on Road Trip II

Road Trip I

Posted on December 12, 2012 by Al

…The cushioning of all that snow over the usually knee-jarring mogul field had a deliriously clearing effect on my brain. I suddenly saw that skiing in these bumps was simply a matter of moving my knees from my chest down to my ankles and back again as quickly and painlessly as possible. Continue reading →

Posted in Aspen Stories, Family | Comments Off on Road Trip I

Running Fast and Slow

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Al

Without going into the molecular details of muscle contractions, what’s going on when we train at different speeds is really all the same thing. We are increasing all the elements necessary to make muscle contract. Continue reading →

Posted in Triathlon Central | Comments Off on Running Fast and Slow

Comeback Kid

Posted on December 8, 2012 by Al

2-3 years from now, we may begin to realize that the US economy has much more resilience, innovation, and growth potential then we’ve been assuming since the housing bubble burst here. And China, for all its size, its monolithic state capitalism, and aggrandizement of manufacturing expertise, may just find itself running out of steam, just as Japan did 25 years ago. Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Economics | 2 Comments

The “Fiscal Cliff” and Health Care

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Al

Probably 2/3rds of all care is being paid already by all the public sources of payment and subsidy for health care and insurance. Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Economics | 1 Comment

Bubbles: Two Steps

Posted on November 20, 2012 by Al

<iframe width=”420″ height=”315″ src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/_EC-HhYwRU4″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>

Posted in Hawaii Stories | Comments Off on Bubbles: Two Steps

The Passage of Power

Posted on November 11, 2012 by Al

As someone who grew up in the sixties, and may very well have chanted, “Hey, hey, LBJ! How many kids did you kill today?” I never could have imagined that someone would write a book which could make me want to follow the course of that man’s life. But Robert Caro turned that trick. Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Economics, Reviews: Books, Movies, Music, TV | Comments Off on The Passage of Power

Ironman World Championships [aka Kona] 2012

Posted on October 17, 2012 by Al

One of the songs on my pre-race playlist since 2001 has been U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” I don’t know what it is that I’ve actually *found*, but I’m more at peace now than at any time during that whole adventure. Continue reading →

Posted in Hawaii Stories, Injuries and Recovery, Races, Triathlon Central | 1 Comment

The Orange Tribe

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Al

I can feel the stiff breeze coming in from the northwest, bringing soft little specks of rain. One lone lighhtening flash plays of the coast near Captain Cook to the South. I almost feel at home here. Continue reading →

Posted in Hawaii Stories, Training Diary, Triathlon Central | Comments Off on The Orange Tribe

Tuesday Morning, Coming Down

Posted on October 9, 2012 by Al

“Cheryl, look, there’s a whole pod of dolphins out there!”. Cheryl had brought the binoculars with her, arriving last night (3.5 hours late; another story). “Where?” “Out there, directly past the stand-up paddler, by the orange buoys.” At least 10 … Continue reading →

Posted in Hawaii Stories | Comments Off on Tuesday Morning, Coming Down