Transition is the word I’d use to sum up 2011.
- I moved to San Francisco and generally fell in love with California.
- I re-discovered my passion for the outdoors and an active lifestyle.
- DAG successfully pivoted in more ways than you know and had our biggest year ever.
- I became a runner with half a dozen medals to show for it including my first marathon.
- Asia! Surfing! Hawaii! Volcanoes! Black Rock City!
- Food. Oh boy is the food for real. I never realized how good food could be — now it’s a passion.
- I co-founded a fresh business that should officially launch in the near future. (Updates here.)
- So long convertible, hello hatchback.
- Shared the beach with Jackson — now he loves chasing waves.
With the best year of my life behind me, I look ahead to 2012, and smile. Genuinely.
The bucket list for 2012:
- Kitesurfing.
- South America — Costa Rica, Argentina, Colombia, Peru, and Brazil.
- Asia, in particular I want to better understand how to do business in China.
- Run the SF Marathon in 3 hours and 30 mins (2011, 03:51:42).
- Grow DAG by 20 percent.
- Successfully launch Crumbly.
- Coachella, Outside Lands, Burning Man, oh my.
- Teach Jackson to roll over.
This morning I ran five-miles on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Since I’m used to running in a perfect climate, I decided to try and beat the heat and humidity and get in my run before sunrise. Whoa, even at 5a. it’s still miserable running in the heat. Today’s run was a good reminder of the importance of gear — like electrolyte water and a fuel belt which I did not bring with me (I had to make due with water fountains).
Despite the heat, it was an amazing run that I won’t soon forget.
It was extremely peaceful with few distractions and quite interesting as a flood of memories from the near decade I spent in Washington joined me for the journey.
A few memories worth jotting down:
- Playing softball with my colleagues from Capitol Hill on the mall;
- Those hot summer nights when we watched movies organized by the good folks at “Screen on the Green,” and coincidently where I first saw Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and then subsequently came to realize just how true that movie was;
- The Washington Monument which continues to be inspiring, beautiful and the one touristy thing I never experienced;
- A little island in Constitution Gardens that I always enjoyed;
- The World War II Memorial that reminded me of my late Grandpa and how much I still miss him;
- The US Capitol where I had the privilege of serving a US Senator and Member of Congress; and
- The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden where I came to appreciate and love artists like Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, and Alexander Calder.
As I concluded the run I realized how much running is an important part of my life and how difficult it would be to stick with in such a humid climate. It was also a realization that Washington, DC, despite how much I love my friends, colleagues, and clients, is no longer my home.
Instead Washington will forever be a nice place to visit and reflect on the moments I had here during a five-mile run around the National Mall.
I did it. I ran and finished my first marathon and achieved my personal goal of doing it in less than four hours. My official race time was 3 hours 51 minutes and 41 seconds with an average pace of 8:51/mile.
Originally I was scheduled to run the SF half-marathon so I signed up for the 10-week half marathon training program. I showed up for the first “long run” of five miles and blew it out of the water and felt like I had more room given that I had been running on my own with a nifty iPhone app, RunKeeper. The next day I decided to push myself and see if I could do a half (13.1 miles). Though it was challenging, a personal distance best, I finished it and felt great. So I switched my program over to the full-marathon.
The next weekend I knew I was with the right crew reaching another new distance best of 16 miles. From there I continued to improve my speed and form to be as efficient as possible. I also started leaning out as I was improving my eating and reducing wasteful intake.
I learned a few lessons along the way worth sharing for those who are considering training for a marathon (or a half). And, trust me, anyone can do it if you really want to. Let me note that I’m humbly putting-forth these items as things I’ve learned… every day I meet folks who run marathons religiously and plan to do so forever that would likely have their own suggestions.
1. Gear Matters. If you look like a runner, you run like a runner, and you ultimately become a better runner. The short(ish) shorts, the technical tees, the running shoes… there is a reason why runners wear these outfits. They’re awesome technology that keep you dry, help you move efficiently, and protect your feet and legs. I recently heard that running one-mile on pavement places two tons of pressure on your legs. Go to a legit running store and get fitted for a pair.
The other gear I love is somewhat optional but I’ll never run without it.
a.) Garmin Forerunner 210 Watch (GPS enabled and heart rate monitor): Nothing improved my running more than this device. Knowing your heart rate and pace helps you better understand your body and how far you can push it. For training, I always run with an average heart rate of 151-160. For races, I run at 161-174. As you train, you’ll obviously notice you run faster without your heart having to work as hard. I was also able to ditch carrying around my iPhone which is nicer than you’d think.
b.) Yurbuds Headphones: If you know me, you know that music is central to my life. Running is actually an amazing time for me because it gives me a few hours to escape with loud music. I’ve looked everywhere for decent headphones suitable for an aggressive, athletic lifestyle — these are them. They’re waterproof, block out the noise around you, and are loud and crisp. Also, I have both the over-the-ears version and the buds — I only wear the buds and they never fall out.
c.) Electrolytes: I’m pretty sure that I’ve been dehydrated for most of my life. Indeed, electrolytes help your body better absorb water. Add in the minerals and sodium (and a dash of flavor!) that most electrolyte tabs have and you’re one step closer to being hydrated. Most bottled water has electrolytes added but tap water does not. With bottled water, you’re also not getting the sodium you need to keep you from cramping up. I’ve tried a few different tabs and mixes and have found that they’re all about the same for me. Be mindful of choosing tabs without added sugars.
d.) Fuel and a Fuel Belt: If you’re going for a run over three or four miles, you need electrolyte-infused water and possibly some sort of fuel (more for longer distance runs). I use a Fuel Belt which fits snuggly around my waste to carry everything. I prefer fuel gel packs called 2nd Surge because they have all of the carbs you need with the addition of protein and caffeine. The double espresso goes down nicely. Some runners like “Gu,” but I’ve found it to have the consistency of toothpaste and somewhat hard to get down on long runs. The reason why you need the gels is not because it’s a substitute for food but it’s quickly absorbed energy that your body can use immediately. After an intense workout, you should try to have something more legitimate in your stomach like a protein shake within the first 20 minutes.
3. Dedication to a Healthier Lifestyle. Of course you have to train hard during sessions but just as important is taking care of your body off the track. That means eating only nutritious, whole, organic foods, cutting out the sodas (including diets), sugary juices, and beverages like beer (one or two here and there is fine). If it’s processed, skip it. Start cooking more. You need 8-9 servings of vegetables and fruits a day and your body needs a lot of complex carbs when training. Whole grain breads and pasta, and sweet potatoes are a standard. I should note that I’m not a food or nutrition expert — merely asked knowledgeable folks I trust and searched online and tried to be aware of what I was about to eat. The best formula I’ve seen for better understanding caloric-intake is to take your body weight and times it by 10. Then add 10 percent of the total figure to that number. On a rest day, that is how many calories you should eat of nutritious foods to maintain your weight. If you run, add the calories you burned to the total figure (about 100 calories per mile). Start taking a daily vitamin and add a vitamin C tablet to the mix. Changing your eating is the fastest way to lean out — but it is a daily challenge, particularly with the fast-paced, on-the-go lifestyle that we all live. Rest and sleep are also vital for a successful program so don’t overtrain and burn yourself out.
4. Running Alone Sucks. The truth is, I would have never reached my goals without the awesome trainers and fantastic community of runners brought together for the SF Marathon Training Program. In fact, most of us have already signed up for their first-ever fall training program and signed up for our next couple of races. Beyond the community that builds with people of all ages and backgrounds, they keep you honest with the program and push you harder. Find a group outside of your circle that is as dedicated as you are. We stayed connected with a private Facebook group and it’s a hive of helpful information shared among friends with mutual interests.
5. Have Fun. As I’ve noted on this blog before, I hated running. But you quickly realize that it’s likely because you weren’t doing it right (form) and hadn’t broken through some distance barriers that seem to hold you back. Now, I love it. And I always try to run with a smile — it helps you realize that you are, in fact, having fun. Now, to be sure, I’d say I only smiled about 33 percent of the time during the marathon — it was a real challenge — but when I crossed the finish line, you better believe that I was glowing with happiness.
Every runner has to find his/her own path but these are some of the lessons I’ve learned along mine. I’ve signed up for my next few races this November, the US Half Marathon in SF and the Santa Barbara Marathon. Whether or not I continue to compete, I expect I’ll be a runner for life.
[Ed. note: I may write a blog post over at the OneNineNinety regarding my passion for running a marathon and how I'm putting forth to you the brands that helped me along the way. The story of how I'm a brand activist, if you will. If you end up training for a marathon -- inspired by my story -- or trying any of the brands I recommend, let me know your experiences.]
Recently, I had a conversation with a friend who had trained six months for his first marathon. He lamented that two weeks before the race, he sprained his ankle. His marathon experience was limited to cheering his training buds on from the sidelines. He hasn’t run since.
In 14 days, I’ll finish my first marathon — as fast as I can. The training process has been awesome/painful/enjoyable.
In my head, I’ve already crossed the finish line — confident in my training and prepared to endure. So much of running is clearly mental — constantly pushing your body to do what your mind tells it to do. The body no longer fails like it did before I started training.
But now, so close to achieving this goal, I’m watching every single step I take very closely. I don’t fear injury, but I’m being cautious. Part of doing that means putting my ambitions and energy to run far/fast on the back-burner.
I probably won’t be seeing you at the finish line but know that I’ll be thinking about my friends, family and all those who have encouraged me along the way.
For the past couple of months, I’ve been training for my first marathon, the SF Marathon, which takes place on July 31.
Funny thing is that the training itself has been one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had. Sure, the long runs 14, 16, 18, 20 and 22-miles this Saturday, have been challenging. But I love being challenged — and there is nothing that compares to the feeling you get when you stop moving and your body slowly calms down.
The physical side of training has been epic. I’m working out or doing something active at least six times a week. But the training off the street — the nutrition and dedication to rest has also been rewarding.
Throughout the process I’ve had several milestones. I ran my first half-marathon trail run with a pace of 7 minutes and 45 seconds per mile in the freezing cold, pouring rain. I didn’t want to drive out to the East Bay that early morning — but I did. This past Saturday, I was off my game with regard to nourishment and sleep before my 20-mile run. Again, I didn’t want to do it — but I did. Yesterday, at the track, I clocked my fastest timed-mile ever, 6 minutes and 20 seconds. And I could have gone faster but they told us not to risk injury.
Training isn’t something you do for one event. For me, it’s a fresh lifestyle. I’ve already signed up for my next couple of half-marathon races this year and I am considering running another marathon still this year.
Like you, I used to hate to run. My shins used to hurt like heck. And I even remember when running three-miles seemed like a long run.
If you have ever had a goal to run a marathon — Just Do It. You’ll enjoy the entire process and perhaps find yourself enjoying a better quality of life.
This song inspires me when I run far and fast. Perhaps it’ll do the same for you.
One of Jackson’s new favorite playgrounds is the beach. Whether it’s at Stinson Beach (as pictured above) or closer to home at Crissy Field, he loves to run with the other pups, chase receding waves, roll around in the sand, and generally enjoy the simple life.
Can’t say that I blame him, either.
Unfortunately, a routine visit to the vet today revealed the downside of letting your pup enjoy the beach. He was diagnosed with an ear infection caused by too much sand in his ears.
After some writhing on the inspection table to flush out his ears, we were sent home with some meds and instructions: Flush your pups ears at least twice a month. Got it.
Now back at home, Jackson looks pretty happy sprawled out on his side sleeping with his ear on the pillow. Doubtless this beached pup is dreaming about his times at his favorite spots where he chases the waves and explores beached debris.
After four years, today one of my favorite bands, Austin-based Explosions in the Sky, released their latest album, “Take Care, Take Care, Take Care.” Whoa, is it good.
Like no other band, their elegant yet complex music inspires me. Each song is an emotional journey that challenges me to find the words that are absent. To wonder what they were thinking when they composed the piece. The only thing better is to see these guys perform live.
After my first pass of the album – “Let me in” embedded below is doing it for me. Give it a go. Enjoy.
This is one of those pictures I’ll cherish for the rest of my life. It represents those moments — which now, are often — when I was in a place that I truly love: Lake Tahoe.
But it also symbolizes something significant. A pivot in my life. A realization that I now have something that had been set aside — the opportunity to seek out a passion for being outdoors doing something challenging.
Too often we forget about the importance of seeking our passions. We dismiss that they soothe the soul and offer moments of clarity and intense joy. That happiness revitalizes us by strengthening our core, preparing us for what’s next.
I took this photo a few months ago when I was walking Jackson in San Francisco and it still makes me smile. These little cardboard houses were placed perfectly to provide any casual photographer or iPhone Instagram’er a shot that couldn’t be refused. Doubtless hundreds or thousands of photos have been taken and shared casually with friends and family.
Today I took a stroll through some of my photos and thought about this photo and the moment I had at Corona Heights dog park with Jackson. It made me smile and wonder, what were these little cardboard houses all about?
So I searched a bit and found out exactly what they were: Art. A statement about society, albeit a “little” one. How clever.
San Francisco is filled with little things that make me smile. Finding those things and taking a moment to dig deeper is what keeps me going.
I don’t say this lightly: The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, known simply as Coachella, was the best live music experience ever. (And you know how much music means to me.)
One moment sums it up.
It was the third and final night — last band to perform. I skipped out on the Kanye hype to see an Australian band I had not heard before Coachella, The Presets (think Chemical Brothers meets Girl Talk meets Junior Boys meets Cut Copy).
It was clearly the end of a long couple of days: empty water bottle in hand, drenched from dancing in the desert heat, iPhone running out of juice, knees in pain, my festival buddy was pulling the plug, ears starting to crackle…
It hit me that I had given everything I could for my passion for great sound.
Recently I’ve come to the conclusion that every single day of my life is just like the other.
Every day is filled with thoughts of our valued clients or my amazing team.
Every day includes doing something outdoors and trying hard to live a fit, healthy lifestyle.
Every day I’m thinking more clearly about how best to use technology to empower people and better enjoy the precious moments we have with friends and family.
Every day I’m thinking about Jackson.
Every day I’m finding new ways to be efficient and live it all to the fullest.
Every day I try to meet someone new or learn something fresh.
These days are special. But they’re not like all the others. They keep getting better and more fulfilling.
The genesis of this blog was to be a place where I could write short, personal notes for my friends and family. Seeing as I haven’t written anything here since March 2010, I wanted to reflect for a moment on why I stopped.
The reason: Facebook.
Let me explain.
In 2010, I made a New Years goal to reduce the number of Facebook “friends” I had acquired over the years. If you missed the post I wrote on my reasoning, check out “Let’s not be friends on Facebook.”
It took a while to get the number to only those folks I still know and continue to add value to my life. But now I’m there and it was one of the most important things I did in 2010.
All of the sudden, the noise from the unknowns that was polluting my news feed and random comments on my posts disappeared.
There standing before me were those that I truly cared about. And they were there the whole time, it just took trimming back the weeds to see their beauty and enjoy the value their updates add to my life.
So now I’m thinking of a fresh approach to my personal blog — perhaps not merely a channel for others to tune in to, but also a place for me to keep track of my life and highlight the things and places I love for later.
The truth is, I miss writing.
I don’t exactly miss writing speeches for a US Senator or press releases and op-eds for a Congressman. I don’t even miss writing poetry or attempting to write a screenplay (never got beyond the first page).
What I miss is looking at an empty blog post and then filling it with whatever I’m thinking about right then. And the little fixes I get from writing Tweets and status updates — the immediate gratification of getting engagement through retweets or likes/comments — well, now I’m on to something fresh.
So this is Round Two. Welcome back or aboard. You chose to be here for some reason so I trust you’ll be back.
That makes me smile. (And I’m from Ohio — the smile is genuine.)
Hanging out with friends on Sunday night at SXSW a song came on which grabbed me. I quickly pulled out my iPhone, loaded the Shazam app, and tagged the song.
That moving, compelling tune? Fink’s “Sort of Revolution.” Give it a try.
Earlier this week my good friend Robert Bluey penned a blog post, “You don’t have a friend in me,” in which he effectively argues that when it comes to Facebook, one should focus on having a network which is smaller and more meaningful versus accepting anyone under the sun as your “friend” in order to have a big network.
I thought a lot about Rob’s post, concluded he was spot-on, and decided to make a New Years resolution to go on a Facebook Friend Diet. My goal was to get under 1,500 “friends” by July 4.
Over the holiday, in between trips to the beach, I took to the task of tending my own garden — removing “friends” that I had never met, never communicated with, and had zero interaction with. At first it was a challenge. It’s never easy to “remove” someone who had asked for friendship at one point or another. It was particularly difficult to remove folks I may have known at one point or another or colleagues that I worked with at some time. And Facebook itself makes it technically difficult to remove folks en masse.
But then I started thinking about what Facebook is and why it’s so valuable to me. It’s a place for my friends and family to stay connected with me and where I go to stay connected to them. Facebook, friends, is not about “you.” It is instead about “me.” It is about my network. Unique to Facebook, it is also an important place for “me” to stay connected in new ways to the brands and causes I care about and a new water cooler to share with others that support.
I also thought about how I had been treating my network — as Rob pointed out to me in what felt like a direct media intervention — I had been neglecting and abusing them by simply importing my Tweets rather then creating new and engaging content. To remedy the situation I unlinked my Twitter account and stopped “Twittering” within Facebook. The mediums are different — each with a valuable role but only if used appropriately. Now I’m adding content which is exclusive to Facebook (or at least written specifically for the medium). The reward for doing this is that I’m already seeing interactions on my content increase.
Regarding my New Years Resolution, I crushed it. My network on Facebook is now around 1,300 folks — 98% of which I know personally, have met, and would consider them friends or respected colleagues. There is still work to do but it’s quite refreshing to login and recognize nearly every single person I’ve agreed to receive updates from.
My plan moving forward is to not take any of my “friends” for granted, to continue to tend my garden, and to appropriately use the platform exactly how it was intended. Having an effective online presence in direct media is never easy, there are no short-cuts, and you need to listen to good advice when it presents itself. As always, I am willing to do the work necessary to ensure success and I’m glad I’ve got good friends willing to speak up when I’m not living up to my end of the relationship.
Music is one of the most important elements of my life.
At a young age, I was lucky enough to have an older brother who was in to top-notch bands like The Cure, U2, Grateful Dead, and others. It’s fun to think back to those days when I’d hole up his room in our basement, sit on his water bed, play Zelda or Castlevania on our Nintendo with the sound off, and listen to his collection of music. It was how I spent a lot of my time (when the pool was closed).
Still today I spend a lot of time listening, thinking, investigating, researching, discovering, and enjoying music. My all time favorite web destination besides Twitter + Facebook is Stereogum. When I get home from the office, it’s the first site I’m going to. When I work – I’ll kick on some music and pound through writing a proposal or a strategy memo for a client. When I’m happiest is at a concert with the people that matter to me in my life.
Living in Washington, DC and working in politics, I’ve also found music to be a great way to build and deepen relationships with those who look beyond politics when it counts. Indeed nothing makes me more pleased then seeing a Tweet from someone who I follow on Twitter (or who follows me) responding to something music-related. The typical Tweet goes something like this: “I may not agree with @DavidAll on the issues, but I dig his taste in music.”
In June of 2006, the National Journal did a mini-profile on the music scene in Washington and highlighted me for it that you probably never saw:
Washington may not have a signature song like New York City or San Francisco. But there is a running sound track in the life of the capital. Whether sung by Usher or Radiohead, the tunes accompanying big and small dealings across the city on any given day sound nothing like the music you hear when you’re put on hold. And one of the best ways to tune in is to go out. David All, a spokesman for Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., is among the members of an unofficial live-music caucus made up of personalities from political Washington. It meets regularly, but usually spontaneously, at places like the 9:30 Club, Iota and the Black Cat.
“There’s a small group of concertgoers, friends who kind of stick together,” All said. “The Washington, D.C., area has just amazing music.”
All remembered a recent Pat Green concert that was thick with Capitol Hill staffers; so are many concerts at Verizon Center. But the more eclectic the music is, the more exclusive the crowd becomes — and the deeper the connection goes. Seeing someone from Capitol Hill or K Street at a Decemberists show, for example, is altogether different from seeing someone at a Beck concert. “If you go to a concert like Interpol or the Strokes, you may only see four or five familiar people,” All said. “You kind of click with them because they get it. They get it.”
To conclude a post about what music has meant and continues to mean to me, I’ve thought about what music selection I want to leave you with. Quite frankly, I thought choosing just one music video or song would be easy. It is not.
I’d like to post a video/song from the first concert I ever attended: Grateful Dead, Buckeye Lake (Ohio), 7/29/94 but sadly I can’t find anything good to share. But make no mistake, that concert is what turned me on to live music.
The most influential band to me – the one I can trace my love for British music – is The Cure. Finding just one song to share is difficult, but this excellent, acoustic version of “Lovesong” does a good job of highlighting Robert Smith’s unbelievable song-writing abilities and great voice. Hearing it will always take me back to my earliest memories. Therefore, enjoy.
It’s my “Place in this Universe” — part of an interactive exhibit at the Modern Museum of Art in New York City where patrons were asked to put their back against their wall and mark, with a black pen, their first name next to their height. This act denoted their place.
I didn’t actually write my name, just imagined that this is where I’d put my name. My place.
On Friday I had the opportunity to join one of CBS’ most respected and well-known faces, Bob Schieffer, for a conversation about some of the, erm, fishy, tactics being used by the White House’s “new” media team.
Click here to watch the full video of Washington Unplugged which includes the White House’s Linda Douglas explaining their tactics (and my response). You can watch the excerpt here:
It was a true honor to be a part of this conversation. Bob Schieffer is a stand-up reporter and his staff was great.
