Cyber Tailgate Saturday!

Put on those school colors. Pour plenty of charcoal in the grill. And get ready to fire up those laptops for a Cyber Saturday Tailgate party! The opening weekend of college football is here. Don’t get me wrong - I love pro football, too, but for me nothing compares to the hype, spirit and excitement of the college gridiron.

My niece, Meagan is a cheerleader for the West Virginia Mountaineers football team, picked to contend for the national championship. Let’s get this season kicked off with links to the ‘Neers, plus my five other favorite college teams:

West Virginia Mountaineers Football – http://www.wvu.edu/~sports/men/football.htm
My niece is a cheerleader, my sister and brother-in-law, Sheila and Roger and their family have season tickets in Morgantown. How can I not root for them?! Go ‘Neers!

Texas Longhorns Football – http://www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com/
Austin is one of our hangouts – once you catch Horns fever, it sticks! Jackie and I were excited to be at DKR Texas Memorial Stadium for the 2005 National Championship celebration. QB Colt McCoy and WR Limas Sweed have Texas ready for another big campaign. Hook ‘em Horns!

Alabama Football – http://www.rolltide.com
QB John Parker Wilson is one of the top, up-and-coming players in the nation and a whole new era begins with Coach Saban. Roll Tide!

California Golden Bears Football – http://calbears.cstv.com/
Highly-touted running back, Desean Jackson leads Jeff Tedford’s Golden Bears toward another competitive year. Roll on you Bears!

Virginia Cavaliers Football – http://virginiasports.cstv.com/
I had season tickets at Scott Stadium a few years ago – great atmosphere! Al Groh leads his Cavaliers into a tough ACC schedule. Go Hoos!

Wisconsin Badger Football – http://www.uwbadgers.com/
Since my college – Bradley University – didn’t have a football team, the Badgers were my adopted team during my college years. Camp Randall Stadium is one of the rowdiest places in the nation on game day! Go Badgers!

Talk to you soon. Until then, pick up the pace and run your own race,

- Jeff

Golden Eye

I’ve often heard that to relate to today’s teenagers, you have to see the world through their eyes. If that’s the case, understanding my son begins by glimpsing his photographs – and it’s a beautiful world to behold.

When my 16-year-old son, Murphy, becomes focused on something – really interested – he relentlessly pursues it until he virtually masters it. His infectious enthusiasm has lead me to become involved in ambitious activities I would have probably never considered: skateboarding, snowboarding (which is one of my new passions!), even better understanding tornadoes and storm chasing. These activities have stretched my comfort zone, opened my eyes to new possibilities, and often left me bruised and battered. But most importantly, they have given me a priceless opportunity to spend more time with my son in an atmosphere of healthy fun and friendship. I can honesty say that Murph is one of my favorite people I have ever met – how lucky am I that he’s also my son?

Another common interest that we share is photography. While I have always taken insignificant snapshots, Murph has really worked to develop his natural talent to produce what I think are some stunning results. Through the lens, he sees his surroundings in a special, unique way – he has what I call “the eye”. Very humble and unassuming about his photographs, he consistently amazes me with the vibrant images that are created by his efforts.

Shooting with a Minolta 35mm film camera (so he can “learn the way people used to take photographs”), and working with a Kodak digital camera, Murph is now actively saving toward a professional-grade Nikon D80 digital camera, so he can take his work to the “next level.”

Through his many interests and positive personality, Murphy consistently inspires me to explore opportunities to become the best I can be at whatever it is I am doing. And from all perspectives, that’s a wonderful gift for a son to give a father.

I invite you to take a closer look at Murphy’s photography at http://flickr.com/photos/murphyr. And feel free to leave comments on his site.

Talk to you soon. Until then, pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Virtual Tuesday!

Is there a Dwight Schrute disrupting your office? Starting to feel like Michael is your boss? Is there a Jan practicing inter-office stalking? Well, then it’s time for a virtual sanity break. Escape to these fun-filled web sites, beginning with one from our friends at Dunder Mifflin!


http://www.dundermifflinpaper.biz/ - This fictitious corporate site features everything you need to know about “The Office” workers and their dysfunctional employer. You can even apply for a job. (But be careful – you just might get hired!)

http://careerbuilder.com/monk-e-mail/ - Why fight the monkey business in your office when you can join it? With Monk-e-mail, you can choose a chimp, dress him up, type in what you want him to say, then email to your favorite primate!

http://candystand.com/index.do - Navigate the Alps on a snowboard. Go to bat against the league’s best pitcher. Or just strive to become a pinball wizard! You can do all of this – and much more – at this virtual arcade.

http://spencerpratt.com/ - Get inside the warped mind of one of reality TV’s cheesiest villains. One of the “stars” of MTV’s hit show “The Hills”, Spence invites you to visit his site and “feel free to hate on me . . . daily!” Now who can resist an offer like that?

http://parisflyer.com/ - Looking for a little chocolate kick to get you through the day? Chocolatier John Paris offers his Flyer Candy Bars through this appetizing site.

Got a site you love, too? Feel free to add it to the Comments section.

Talk to you soon. Until then, pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Momentum

For me, hitting the town on the weekend has always been about guzzling Gatorade instead of foo-foo drinks, pedaling bikes instead of pursuing parties, running long mileage instead of chasing trouble. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against anyone's choice of weekend activities, but for me it's an opportunity to tack on even longer mileage than I do during the week.

Typically, I'm up with the sun so my workouts never interfere with family activities. Saturday is for long morning miles on the bike; Sunday, it's logging long distance on the run. Both courses take me through diversified settings within the city, from fountain-filled parks to the skyscrapers of the urban jungle.

Along the way, I come across an interesting selection of people and personalities. The convenience store lady who smiles instead of grimacing when I hand her wadded-up, sweaty-wet dollar bills for a bottle of water. The street corner newspaperman who always shouts, "You go, boy", as I stride or roll past him. The bakery shop owner who always nods a friendly hello while sweeping the sidewalk in front of his store. These are my people - and this is my club. (And for all of you who refuse to sit near me on the MetroLink train on my way home after my 18-mile run across the river into Illinois, that's okay, I understand. You're still my people, too.)



This feeling of unspoken camaraderie extends from the training grounds to the race course, as well. As I've gotten older, I've found that endurance racing is less about competition - less about beating the other guy. When you are in a pack of runners at Mile 22 of a big race, it's amazing the power of momentum - the feeling that we are all moving in the same direction toward a common goal and can't or won't be stopped. It's an almost cleansing, spiritual feeling that is therapeutic for the mind, body and soul. Like my wife, Jackie, always says, "Don't be against something - be FOR something else."

This year, I'm striving to take that spiritual feeling to a higher level. On November 4th, for my 22nd marathon, I'm running as an official teammate of Lance Armstrong as one of 100 LiveStrong Army Runners in the New York City Marathon. We'll be racing through the five boroughs of New York City with 40,000 other runners, encouraging everyone to LiveStrong. If you would like to be a part of this positive momentum, you can visit my personal web page for more information at https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=158934&supid=77548719 - and be sure to sign the guest blog so I can personally thank you!

Talk to you soon. Until then pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

The Bookstore Beat

One of the perks of a career as a freelance writer is that the world is your Virtual Office. Just give me a small space to set up my laptop, good reception for my BlackBerry, and (ideally) access to wireless Internet and the doors of Jeff Roberts Ink™ are officially open (not that they ever officially close – just ask my wife about my late-night work habits!).

Over the past few days, the Borders bookstore café has served as the headquarters of my transient work habits. Located near the magazine section, it consists of 10 or 12 tables with a small snack and coffee bar – I’m sure you’ve seen the type. Anyway, my natural people-watching tendencies lead me to discover a whole new subculture of activity that occurs on a daily basis.

While there is a seemingly endless variety of bookstore café characters, four types of personality classifications come immediately to mind:

The "Coffee House Canoodler" – Obviously barred from authentic coffee bars for her obnoxious behavior, this over-caffeinated piece of work loudly voices her displeasure at the limited selection of coffees and lattés available at a bookstore. (This ain’t Starbucks, honey – order your vanilla mocha with extra whip, shut up, and step aside.)

The “Bookstore Is My Babysitter” Dad – This creative kid watcher effortlessly projects disinterest as he monotonely and repeatedly tells his swarming brood of youngsters to “leave me alone and go look at the books, leave me alone and go look at the books.” The end result, of course, is that these little happy, grimy faces end up at my table, staring over my shoulder at my laptop, all the while squealing, “Hey, mister – whatcha doin’?”

The "Library Loser" – This cheapskate would never even THINK of actually purchasing any of the magazines, newspapers, or books that he drools over while inhaling his FREE muffin sample.

The “Captain Of Industry” – For this guy, it’s not enough to have a quiet place to work outside of the office. Obviously starved for attention, he sets his ringtone to the loudest possible setting and when he receives a call every few minutes, complains about his hectic schedule and busy workload. Of course, when the call ends, he goes back to reading his golf magazine.

The next time I set up shop at the Borders café, I’ll keep my eyes open in search of other classifications of this periodical-loving species.

Talk to you soon. Until then, pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Excuse Moi?

I’ve thrown myself out of a plane from 10,000 feet. Completed an open-water, mile-plus swim – without water wings. Even periodically admitted to my wife that I forgot to take out the trash. But as I stepped through the doorway towards my latest adventure, I knew there was no turning back. Welcome to French 101.

It has been a couple of decades since my last collegiate course, and as I took my seat near the back of the classroom, the tank-top, flip-flop-clad students warily eyed me as if I were an unwelcome parent crashing the party. Little wonder I guess because these kids were only a couple of years older than my son. And the spit-up stains on my shirt from a fast-paced day spent with my baby daughter while working from home instantly labeled me an outsider – a stranger in a strange land.

Thankfully, just as class was about to begin, a disheveled-looking man rushed into the room who appeared to be only slightly younger than myself. Finally, I thought, another fellow adult in search of knowledge – I was not alone. Then he introduced himself as the professor. Ouch.

My intrigue for the French language had been born during an incredible adventure to France that my wife and I had shared a couple of years ago (watch for a blog story, coming soon). To prepare for our trip, I had dutifully listened to my “Learn French While You Drive” CDs. Unfortunately, the extent of my lingual skills consisted of simply being able to say hello or ask where the bathroom was – important, yet limited, vocabulary. I was ready to learn more and push my comfort zone and this class will definitely help me achieve those goals.

Since the class meets only one night a week (plus a weekly Internet session), the “learning” – or at least teaching – commenced at a breakneck pace. Paired into small groups we worked on simple words, phrases, and pronunciation. Then something miraculous happened. I’m not sure whether I was a sacrificial lamb or actually showed potential but my group selected me to represent them to stand and read aloud a page of text. After nervously stammering through the last line, “J’ai une pomme” (I have an apple), they all smiled and golf-clapped their approval. Tres bien!

Just before the end of class, a young woman’s cell phone startled everyone, loudly ringing out with the latest rap tune. She seemed completely unconcerned. The professor tersely asked if she was going to silence the annoying menace and she coldly replied, “Non.” Wow. Seemingly at a loss, the professor quickly looked to me as if seeking the moral support of the only other adult in the class. I simply looked away. I wasn’t going to betray one of my own. No matter what my age, I was now one of them. Just label me, Jeff Roberts, collegiate French student.

Talk to you soon. Until, then pick up the pace and run your own race. Au revior!

- Jeff

Virtual Monday!

Trash that to-do list. Ignore that in-box overflowing with files and paperwork. Let the laundry rot in the pantry. STOP what you’re doing and take a little virtual R & R! Below are some of my favorite Web links that provide a great, enjoyable escape any time of day. Remember – just because you’re at work doesn’t mean you can’t be on vacation!

http://www.cavemanscrib.com/ - Okay, I gotta tell you – much to my wife’s dismay – those Geico cavemen make me cry with laughter. This new site gives you a virtual tour of the “Caveman’s Crib” allowing you to piece together what ACTUALLY happened the night of the big “Does going with Geico make me less of a caveman?” party.

http://the9.yahoo.com/ – Spunky web host Maria Sansone gets your day off to an energetic start as she takes you through the Top 9 Internet links of the day as chosen by viewers. Cool links and funny material.

http://mtv.com/– Okay, I have to admit it – reality TV is one of my guilty pleasures, although I SWEAR my wife makes me watch it. Check out all the drama-filled links to The Hills and Real World Australia.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/ - Who’s number in the world of sports? Catch all the latest scoops and scores with this easy to navigate, well-written gameday resource.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/murphyr - Maybe I’m a little biased – but I don’t think so! My son’s photo web site is an inspiring example of what a young man can accomplish with a lot of talent and a lot of enthusiasm. Watch for more about him coming soon to a blog link near you!

Got a few favorite Web links of your own? Feel free to list them in the “comments” section.

Talk to you soon. Until then, pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Lace 'em Up!

“They’re here!” exclaimed my wife, Jackie, as she ripped open the package containing her new running shoes with kid-on-Christmas-morning enthusiasm. There they were, bright and beautiful – Nike Air Zoom Elites. “Wow, those are almost too great looking to run in,” I marveled. “Are you kidding?” she said. “I can’t wait to get these bad boys on the road and scuff ‘em up,” she added with a mischievous grin.

That made me think of a story I came across the other day about Fred Astaire, the famous vaudeville dancer/actor. He said that any time he received a shiny new pair of dancing shoes, he instantly threw them against the wall to ding them up. Astaire said that this served to remind him that the shoes were not to just be admired – they were a tool to help him achieve big goals and help him reach his full potential.

For my wife, her new shoes represent an opportunity to run new places and train for new races – a blank slate of exciting potential. I have really been inspired by her infectious competitiveness, positive attitude and willingness to dive headfirst into new adventures. Over the past few years, she has gone from rarely working out to completing triathlons and half marathons. I was recently amazed by her when she conquered the ultimate endurance sport – the birth of our daughter!

I’ve come to realize that when you surround yourself with positive people, positive things happen. My wife, by her example, has inspired to me to lengthen my stride and aspire higher. Today, I rode bikes with my buddy, George, who is enthusiastically training for his first biathlon. And lately, my writing work has lead me to cross paths with talented people who are dreaming big dreams and making them happen.

It’s all rubbing off on me – or so I hope. I’m running three marathons this year, growing my business, watching my baby daughter two days a week while working, and scripting out a book idea. But here’s the thing – on Monday, I’m going back to college to attempt to add a French minor or major to my resumé. And THAT scares me! I mean how do I reprimand my son for not getting high grades if I fail to do so myself? Once again the pressure’s on – I guess it’s time to lace ‘em up and go for it!

Talk to you soon. Until then, pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff

Starting Line

And we're off! To be honest, I never thought I would create a blog. Those things were always for the self-serving, highly opinionated people who just wanted to hear the sound of their own voice - or at least read their own writing. But I come into this with no preconceived notions or agendas, and quite simply it is what it is. A living thing that will evolve to fulfill its own destiny (now that doesn't sound self-serving, does it?!).

Why a blog, why now? I don't know. I mean, I have never been busier before in my life, so hey why not one more project? Let me give you a Cliff's Notes' version of what's going on. I'm a 43-year-old ordinary guy who is VERY blessed. I have a gorgeous wife named Jackie who also happens to be my best friend - I have never met a nicer or better person. Murphy is my 15-year-old son, who is an aspiring photographer (he has such an eye), an avid snowboarder and skater (he's still teaching me!) and an all-around great guy. The puzzle was complete - or so we thought - until we were honored by the addition of our daughter, Aubrey, now eight months old. She came into this world with a bang and has not slowed down since.

Did I mention I also just started my own business? I'm an advertising writer, and when the agency I had been employed by for 10+ years suddenly took a dramatic nosedive and went under, I decided to go it alone. Did I also mention I found out I was losing my job the day before we discovered my wife was pregnant with Aubrey??? No pressure there. The good news is, the freelance writing business is going well and Jeff Roberts Ink™ has been a success for over a year . . . but it's been a life-changing series of events! I'll piece together the rest of story in the coming blog posts and hopefully provide you with a few laughs, some things to think about and an entertaining read.

Oh, one more thing - "Roberts On The Run" is in reference to my love of endurance sports, especially marathon running, triathlons and cycling. I work out hard every day - it keeps me sane! I'm currently training for the Chicago and New York City marathons this fall in my "spare" time. The name of the blog also seemed like a perfect framework for my fast-paced life - one I wouldn't trade for the world.

Talk to you soon. Until then, pick up the pace and run your own race.

- Jeff