Paris!

It's official - I'm a three time marathon finisher - Austin, Chicago and now Paris. It was a beautiful race that went through the heart of Paris starting on the Champs-Elysées and winding through beautiful gardens with views of the Eiffel Tower.

While I did not make my time goal, I did finish faster than before and was on target to make my goal or close to it until the last bit. But most importantly – I enjoyed it even despite a couple of little hiccups, including hail and almost fainting! I finished in 4 hours 49 minutes.

I hit the "wall" at the 30K, a bit earlier than I expected. But the Geneva crew was there to cheer me on! I pulled through with lots of orange slices and the notes from Mom and Dad filled with laughs from Greece and inspiration. Thankfully, I was in good spirits when the hail hit shortly after! I ran the last 8 miles smiling and even encouraging a first time NY marathon runner with Team in Training. Actually, I think she beat me in the end – good for her!

Here is a pic from the start with Rocco, Gio and Ivy. Congratulations!

3 Weeks to Paris

It's official, I did my last big long run today. I'm finally tapering! I did 30K/18M solo, which was a true test of my body, mind and spirit after having just recently recovered from the flu. I pulled every trick in the book to get the job done, but enjoyed the challenge. Special thanks to Coach Kel and Amy, my old running buddy, both there in spirit whether they realized it or not. I ran Austin with Kel and Chicago with Amy so they have a special place in my running heart. They are two of the most energetic, inspiring runners I know. I would not be the runner I am today if I hadn't met them. So a big thank you! I'm taking you to Paris with me as well ;) I'm off to Greece for a 10 day vacation with the PlowParents this weekend, so we'll see what that does for my running...

Chocolate and Women

I attended a great event at a multinational corporation (let's call it "Chocolate" for the purposes of this). It was all about creating "shared value" in the communities it works in. As a former PR pro, I was skeptical. I know good spin when I see it. But I've also had opportunities to work with amazing leaders who believe in good business, so I can spot those pretty quick as well and Chocolate had some good eggs.

The company has been heavily criticized over the years for promoting infant formula in developing countries in the 70s - and rightfully so (and by now if you're bright you've broken the code of Chocolate). But today, it seems to have a good formula. There approach is beyond compliance, philanthropy and corporate social responsibility (CSR) and all other buzz words. Their values are incorporated into their business model, something that many claim, but fail to deliver. Case and point: another giant that rhymes with "lap." They're great at CSR by many standards, but their business model fundamentally limits their ability to control issues like child labor because of price pressures and supply chain setups. (Of course, I'm over simplifying for the purposes of not boring you with a rant and more code words, but you get the point.)

So I clearly drank the Chocolate water and and am a beliver that big companies are not all bad. Granted, they are certainly not perfect...and many are far from it. But maybe they would be closer to perfect if there was just more chocolate. Profound, I know.

Now for the women part...At the event, it also came to light that the women's movement somehow missed Switzerland. (which has nothing necessarily to do with Chocolate.) I think I've mentioned before, there are actually cantons in Switzerland that just gave women the right to vote in the 90s! Unbelievable. In job interviews here (as in other countries) it is perfectly normal to ask a woman what her plans are for having children. Now while there is something to be said for being transparent, something tells me they don't actually ask men that question... Certainly if I decided to start a revolution and become the next Gloria Steinem, I would not necessarily kick it off in Switzerland, but there does seem to be some work here.

A fresh start

When I was in elementary school, I loved it when the teacher rearranged the desks. It was like when my mom rearranged the living room furniture every 6 months or so. It felt like we moved to a new house even though everything was exactly the same. Funny, because while I loved this as a kid, I grew up to despise change in my 20s, even the furniture rearrangements... I'm back to embracing change a bit more now days.

It's the beginning of my second semester and I get a whole new team for the remainder of the program. I'll spare you the details, but my team finished a nightmare of a project at 11:57 pm, just 3 minutes before the deadline and after many late nights...

On the bright side, I learned some key lessons like that the slacker to hard worker ratio must never equal one. And my favorite, is that "relevant theory" is defined differently in other cultures. Evidently, some define it as anything found on Google written by a PhD at any point in time about any subject so long as there is one word in common with what you are looking for -- in this case "change." Interesting... But the good news is that two guys with a sense of humor (and some sharp writing skills) can make it all better.

Some Swiss Fun...

Here is a picture from my first day back on skis - a little day trip in France with some girls from the program. Not bad for my first time back on skis after a 17 year break. It was amazing how much came back to me - just like riding a bike, as Dad promised. The parents had me on skis by the time I was 4 or so and we skied every Christmas until I was about 13. I'm not nearly as fearless as I was back then, but all those lessons certainly paid off.
And here is a picture from the Festival International de Ballons in Chateau-d'Oex near Montreaux. It's equivalent to the big festival in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was a gorgeous day in Switzerland. Here is a picture with K, the roommate.

Happy Super Tuesday Mom!

Happy Super Tuesday to all, but most importantly my mom! Today is her 60th! Hopefully those voting in the primaries will deliver good results for Mom on her very special day!

And sorry for the radio silence. More to come soon on the happenings here including a ski trip, balloon festival and travel to Budapest, Vienna and Prague. Stay tuned!

A culture packed week

In the last week, we have celebrated Thanksgiving, Africa, St. Andrew's Day and L'Escalade. Still to come: Scenes de Silence. In the mean time, here is the recap:

Thanksgiving was a blast. The roommates and I celebrated T-day the Italian way with some pizzas and calzones. But then we all celebrated the traditional way on Saturday (belated due to an econ exam). It was a day full of cooking, just like home. Kirstin and I cooked a turkey, our first -- and quite impressive if I do say so myself! It was even more like home when everyone shared what they were thankful for over dinner. Such a memorable experience - sharing my first Thanksgiving away from home with people from 20 other countries and all so eager to share and learn about what Thanksgiving is all about.

This last Friday, the class celebrated Africa with people who have lived and worked in Africa sharing their experiences. Kenya, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Nigeria, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Uganda and many other areas were represented. The food was delicious -very similar to southern cooking actually. The experiences of those who have lived in Africa were impressive - some in post war conflict zones doing development work. Others grew up there and shared with us the values that make Africa unique and perhaps not so different from where we are all from. A place where family matters and the young generation is eager to make a difference.

The culture didn't stop there. On Saturday, we celebrated L'Escalade with the Swiss by doing the annual race. Geneva celebrates L'Escalade every year to commemorate when the city was attacked in the 15th century and saved (as the legend goes) by a woman who pored hot soup over the heads of the attackers (google it if you want the full story). Anyway, funny that women saved the city, but women only received the right to vote in 1990 in some cantons in Switzerland! I actually complained a bit that women were discriminated against because we only did a 5K while the men did a 7K. Yet, post race, I was glad to have been a woman. The hills were brutal. But it was a blast - a full day event cheering our team on as they ran at different times.


That same day, Kirstin, Rocco and I were treated to a Scottish celebration in honor of St. Andrews Day. Natalie and Michael cooked haggis, nips and stovies. I might have just butchered that though...in American English its haggis, mashed potatoes and pureed turnips. And we sipped a lovely 16 year old malt whiskey. I'm still not certain what St. Andrews Day is all about, but I'm officially a fan of the Scottish life and want to do a whiskey tour.

More to come as the cultural experience continues...