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Showing posts from April, 2014

The Most Important Character Arc in Chicago Fire Season 2 Episode 20 (A Dark Day)

Makeup? No. Method acting.  If you watched the latest episode of "Chicago Fire" last night ( Season 2 Episode 20: A Dark Day ) I bet you're probably thinking what everyone else is thinking: Who was that incredible actor with the surprisingly subtle (but inspiring) character arc? Well, the media pressure has been too great and I don't think I can stay quiet much longer, so I've decided to break my silence on this front and come forward (on my own terms). It was me. That's right. Over the course of three days of filming I created that mysterious character that you were all breathlessly watching last night throughout this first episode of what's going to be a three-part story (crossing two episodes of "Chicago Fire" and one of "Chicago P.D."). Now, because the character arc IS so subtle I thought I would break it down here for those who may have missed some of the more nuanced character development (it is a fast-paced episod

Build Your Own 10K: The Ravenswood Run and Phi Delta Chi 5K

My running hair could use a little work The Tough Mudder is only a few weeks away and in terms of half marathon training (the Tough Mudder is only "10-12 miles" but I figure I should be able to at least do a half to compensate for the obstacles and the mud) I was supposed to run 11 miles today. I didn't do that. But I did do a little bit of what could be considered interval training (with a little imaginative considering). Making use of Chicago's crowded spring running calendar I scheduled two 5Ks back-to-back, leaving enough time to run from one to the other: Ravenswood Run (Hermitage and Wilson): 8:00am Phi Delta Chi 5K (Montrose Harbor): 9:30am Luckily, the first race started only about a mile from my house so I met my friend John at his place down the street at 7:30 and we jogged over to the starting line to get a little warm up in. As with most races put on by Fleet Feet, the gear check was easy, the corral system was clear and the takeoff was s

5K March to College: An Interview with Marybeth Lernihan

Last year, one of the more interesting races that I ran was a little weekday evening run called the 5K March to College . Started in 2012, this race is hosted by Companies That Care and is used to promote higher education to the students involved in their mentoring programs as well as to raise awareness about their programs to a greater audience. To that end, a college fair takes place a few hours before the race kicks off and each participant's shirt represents where they currently stand in relation to their college career: Like College College Bound In College College Graduate To find out more about both the race and Companies That Care, I got on the phone with Marybeth Lernihan - a board member of Companies That Care since 2009 and an integral part of the coordination of this year's 5K March to College.

Doyle's Emerald Necklace Road Race

Inside Doyle's Cafe before the race Since I'm in Boston this week visiting Brynn I figured we should be hitting up some of the Boston-area races (especially since neither of us is fast enough to run the Boston Marathon). So, in searching for the most convenient race for us to take on this weekend I stumbled upon the Doyle's Emerald Necklace Road Race - a race now in its 18th year and deemed "legendary" by race organizers. It didn't hurt that this race started at 11am and that the weather was predicted to be sunny and in the mid-60s. Unfortunately, Boston chose not to cooperate and the weather was in the mid-50s and raining yesterday morning as Brynn and I made our way to the starting line (via bike - her on her own bike and me on a Hubway - the Boston equivalent of Divvy). We got to what we thought was the starting line at Doyle's Cafe - a small pub/cafe in Jamaica Plain - and checked in to get our race bibs. Here we found out a few things: 1. T

When There Are Two Distances, Choose the Shorter One: Chi Town Half Marathon & 10K

Starting line of the Chi Town Half Marathon & 10K In the middle of last week I decided that after running outside for the Shamrock Shuffle last weekend and then hitting up the treadmill again all week I needed some kind of race to get me outside again this weekend (well... last weekend now). I did some searching and decided to sign up for the Chi Town Half Marathon & 10K . I thought about signing up for the half but I figured that after running on a treadmill for distances only ranging between 3 and 6 miles all winter I would just end up hurting myself like I did early on last year and ruining the rest of the year for myself again. So I signed up for the 10K instead. Good idea. Good advice that I gave myself a while ago that I hardly ever follow: When an event has two distances, sign up for the shorter one. So, I did some hill work on Saturday (and by "hill" I mean setting the treadmill to random elevation) and then Sunday morning Divvied over to Lincol