Last Best Day

I wish I were clever enough to have dreamed up the title to this entry, but I am not.  All the credit goes to John "The Penguin" Bingham, my running hero.  In his latest book he has a chapter devoted to the "Last Best Day."  You never know when you are going to have your last best day.

Certainly, in one way the Indy Mini Marathon last weekend was not my last best day.  I did set a "personal record" (PR), but not in the usual way - it was my slowest Indy run yet (2:44:28 to be precise, but my slowest ever was last year's Sunburst at 2:46:28).

Chicago Marathon 2008

So lets review my blog from January 2.  I did not loose the 10 pounds, I did not routinely train (only an average of 2 runs per week, and only the weekends exceeded 2 miles at a time), I did not accomplish a finish time of 2:15.  The weather was hot and humid; the race was completed under a "yellow" caution flag and honestly should have been red. 

On the other hand, this year had some really good parts.  I lined up in the "cheap seats" having failed to make the cutoff for a seeded start.  There was a gal who was running her first half marathon - I encouraged her with the thought that she would only have one "first" and should really be intent on enjoying every step. 

Another person in the corral acknowledged my comment and we started chatting.  She had completed her last "chemo" treatment on Thursday and was lining up on Saturday.  She is in her mid-50s and we talked about our "race strategy."  We were both on the walk/run plan.  Her plan was to run 2 minutes and walk one; mine run 200 paces, walk the next 50.  During the first 11.5 miles I exceeded my plan - I ran 200 to 240 paces and walked between 50 and 70 each time.

After the 11 mile water stop, I was digging in my little bag of "run fuels" for a Leman mint (better than a sport bean in my book) when I heard another gal talking about being "under trained."  I commented that I thought running a 2-miler once a week with the longest long run at about 7 miles might qualify in that category.  We started talking and walking.

What fun!  It turned out she also is an engineer (in her mid-50s), lives in Indy but degrees from Michigan and Standford.  We walked and talked much of the remaining distance.  Who cared about the finish time - it was hot and we were "under trained."  It was a great day!

Maybe last weekend was my "last best day" because of the stories I heard and shared.  After all, I finished the race, I didn't cramp up, and I wasn't put on a gurney like several of the 250 runners who required medical assistance.  Older but slower - still a great day.

"Our last best day is lying in wait out there somewhere." -~ John
"The Penguin" Bingham

Green Belt - big whoop

I am happy to report that the big inhibitor has been vanquished.  My attention has been focused on a "non-value added - required" activity at work.  The company requires every employee to become a "green belt" in the Six Sigma system of lean manufacturing.  It was a huge struggle for me.

The details are too painful to repeat.  However, to give you a sense of the issue, I began the "on line" training shortly after I arrived at the plant (November 2010 to be precise).  There were on-line modules to watch and then an example of how to use the various "tools" to discern who "stole the "Loma Nica" (or what ever) from the museum.  The cute little example was irrelevant and the tools were poorly presented during the training.

I completed half the modules by February 2011, but then my availability slacked off as work started to expand.  By late summer I finished most of the modules, but lacked the sense of urgency to complete the course.  I had already applied the basic concepts and was deeply involved in an improvement process that offers savings to the company of up to $4 million/year. 

October came with a warning from the training department - complete the modules and pass the test before a specified date, when the on-line training was being migrated to a different platform.  The night before the migration I stayed late and attempted to pass the test two times.  At 9 PM I was getting tired (after all, it had been a few months since the training and I could not remember all the words related to each concept).  I said to myself I would try again in the morning and sent a note to the head of the training department.  Over night the system migrated.

All my training was erased.  I had to begin the training over again.  All the modules, the hunt for the thieves, and so forth.  A group banded behind me to get me through the experience.  With help and a struggle I finished the test.  I had passed.

Alas, it was not the end.  Oh no - just subjecting one's self to the training modules (twice in my case) and suffering through the exam were not enough.  I had to document my project.

A week of late nights writing, researching the activities, reading through old e-mails, and looking over other documentation resulted in a 15-page report.  I submitted it to my mentor/black belt.  He kindly pointed out that I needed to "document the tools."  I thought I had.  He indicated I had written a good history of the project, but ... .

I tried more.  I had help drawing strange flow diagrams to show the steps in the process and the decision points.  I submitted my report again.  More criticisms.  My black belt sent me example graphs and charts.  Use these for the tools.  I did not quite grasp the concepts.  It was like my freshman year in college with the professors seemed to speak in a foreign language.

I kept revising what I had written and added half-hearted attempts at the forms.  I submitted again.  It wasn't until threatened by my mentor - "do not submit another draft until you use the forms that are required (see website)."  I finally got it! 

The report was NOT about the project (silly me).  It was only to document "the tools."  I finally submitted my "Green Belt report - Six Sigma Tools" with all the graphs and forms shown on the website.  I had a typo and a couple blanks on one form.  I fixed them and submitted.

The mystery black belts (I think they are hidden on some sacred mountain located on a corporate property in a mystical location) reviewed my submittal (a 4-page tool report (one of which was a form) with my 15-page report (containing the stupid forms) attached.  I passed on my first submission. 

I am changing my signature line.  It now includes the pedigree letters:  PE, BCEE and GB-NVA-R.

"Genius is nothing but a great aptitude for patience." ~George-Louis de Buffon