18 May 2018 - Electric Daisy Carnival - Las Vegas, NV, USA

I love Electronic Dance Music (EDM). While it wasn't until a few years ago that the genre really took off, I've loved it since I discovered a few artists during the 90s (RedNex and Real McCoy). For about a decade I have been vaguely aware of music festivals around the world that celebrate dance music. One that has been on my bucket list is Electric Daisy Carnival produced by Insomniac Events.

This year the event occurred a month (May) earlier than usual and I am told this was due to heat/temperatures encountered last year. The location was the Las Vegas Speed Way, featuring 7+ unique stages, carnival rides, and a number of community meeting places. We (about 130,000 of us) started partying Friday night and finished each day around sunrise. The whole weekend was a blast.

Overall the event was very fun. The main rule was to show acceptance for everyone and care for each other. Some people dressed in creative (and sometimes rather revealing) costumes. The girlfriend and I opted for Unicore onesies and got a lot of positive comments!

Of course, the best part was getting to enjoy some of my favorite DJs. Here is a video of my experience:

6 May 2018 - Orange Count Half Marathon

This is one of my favorite races. While last year started with rain, this year had the potential to be the perfect running weather. This would be my 3rd time on this course and apparently, this has classified me as a legacy runner.

It was a beautiful morning with perfect temperatures. I decided to take it easy this race as I had finally healed from last race's injuries but had not had enough time to train. This course makes me so happy.

In the end, I  finished the race. My time was horrible, but I was happy to complete the distance injury free.

11 March 2018 - Tustin, CA Half Marathon

It was a rainy Sunday Morning. I was fresh off a long trip and in no way wanted to run my 21st half marathon. But there was something interesting in this race. Each runner would get to run through a large wooden building that has stood since World War 2. The wood part was the biggest surprise for me. From the outside, I thought these massive hangers were either cement or tin.

As I continued my run, the sun came out. It was mostly a run along city streets but did have a nice visit to historic old town Tustin. In the end, I finished the race. It was a really nice time, in fact, an accidental PR. However, I did injure myself...something with my knee/IT band, so there was a consequence to missing a few weeks of good training.

Here is the map/strava feed:

22 February - Johannesburg, SA - Sick on the Road...

Scary story: I got sick. With what? I don't know. How? Still a mystery. The worst part...I was about 6,000 miles from home and my doctor.

Around the second week of my work trip, I started getting really bad headaches and fever. I tried to power through Monday's work with some ibuprofen but it just got worse. Eventually, I found myself bedridden for the next 3 days.

I had a few co-workers cover my class remotely as best as they could. I went to an emergency room.

They gave me an IV and pumped me full of some fever meds. The doctor ran a few tests. One of the blood tests gave a hint that my liver enzymes were at a level of 600 (forget the measure- I registered 60 last year for FLD, and normal is <20). In the end, the doctor wrote me a prescription for some Tamiflu (useless + nausea-inducing) and an antibiotic. 

I survived. Maybe I was just being a giant man baby, but I felt like I got pretty close to death on this trip. That would have sucked. For someone who gets all his shots/vaccinations, this was a really scary experience. I lost 12# in one week.

17 February 2018 - Cape Town, South Africa

I have a 2-week work trip in Johannesburg and decided to take the 90 min flight to Cape Town for a nice weekend. While the mother city is currently experiencing a water shortage, they have no shortage of wine. Here are a few highlights.

We did a little bit of chocolate tasting as well...

It was also fun to see some traditional winemaking.

9 Febuary 2018 - London, UK

Just a short stopover on my way to South Africa for a work trip. I've now been to the United Kingdom more than half a dozen times. To this day I still find something new to enjoy along with all my old favorites (especially food).

As usual, I also had to do a little food tour of some of my favorite markets. This is why I am fat.

Finally, I ended my little stopover with a trip to the British History Museum. This place is free to see and has one of the nicest collections of Egyptian and Asian Artifacts I have ever seen. I also took a liking to the display on mechanical clocks.

4 February 2018 - Surf City Half Marathon

I decided to run this nice February race for the second time. Last year they changed away from the unique surfboard medal and got many complaints so this year they went back to what works. I wanted one!

The starting line was its usual energetic self. I took a few moments to absorb the positive energy.

The race started and I was well on my way. I'd been disciplined with my training since December so I knew this was going to be a good day. Last year I did this race in 2h 45m...while I wasn't working towards beating my Golden Gate race time, I did want to do better in this year's race. I also wanted to get another mile 7 selfie of a selfie taker.

I finished! What a great run!