Completely Conspicuous

It's so nice to be sitting here and not sweating. After a brutal H&H stretch where temps ventured into the 100s, we finally have some relief tonight. It's a comfortable 75 right now. It was so hot that I actually brought the AC unit up from the basement and set it up in our guest room; we hadn't used that thing since the summer of '02, when Hannah was a baby. We actually slept in the guest room the last two nights because it was unbearable in our bedroom upstairs on the third floor of our house.

I took tomorrow off from work so we can drive back down to New Jersey. The River to Sea Relay is Saturday; we're heading to my bro-in-law Matt's place in northern Jersey, and then he and I will drive down to Clinton, where we'll meet our four teammates and stay in a hotel. The start of the 92-mile race is in nearby Milford. The race is for seven-person teams, but our seventh (and fastest) runner had to bail because of a family obligation, so two of our runners will run three stages. I checked the forecast today and it's supposed to be in the mid- to high 80s and sunny, but it shouldn't be as humid as it has been, so that will help a little. The longest stage is 9.65 miles; I'll be doing runs of 8 and 5.4 miles. Wish us luck. Full report next week when we get back.

So I haven't posted all week because I've been working on something: a podcast. Yep, after talking and thinking about it for more than a year, I finally just did it. The show is called Completely Conspicuous and will be a weekly (hopefully, if I can get my act together) discussion of things that interest me in news, music, pop culture and sports. I actually structured the show with different segments and spent a few days writing it, so it's not like I just sat in front of the microphone and talked off the top of my head. I used Castblaster software and published it through the Podshow Delivery Network, which provides free hosting and other tools. The first episode is 15 minutes long and is not perfect by any means, but I wanted to get it out this week before I left just to prove I could do it. I had hoped to add music from the Podsafe Music Network, but I didn't quite master the process so I went without this week. But I expect to have a few songs mixed in next week. Do me a favor and download it if you have the time and/or inclination, and let me know what you think. It was recorded last night in 90 degree heat; I had to close the window to reduce traffic noise and the door to not pick up Deb on the phone in the living room. I probably need to project a little better. I probably need to do a lot of things better. But it's a start.

Mind the gap:

• Another year, another Blue Jays third place finish. They've been within striking distance of the Sox and Yankees all season, getting as close as 2.5 games out a few weeks ago. But they went into Yankee Stadium this week and got swept, putting them 8.5 behind the division-leading Yanks. The starting pitching has been abysmal; after perennial Cy Young candidate Roy Halladay, nobody else has stepped up. Big-bucks free agent signing A.J. Burnett has been woefully inconsistent, with only two wins on the season. Urgh.
• It was good see the ol' Webnoize crew at Dr. Doobs' house out in Shrewsbury. The kids and the adults all had a good time. In an email exchange after the fact, we noted that none of us gets together with a certain group of friends more than the five of us do. I guess working for a failed dotcom was worth it, after all.