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TRAINING PURPOSES FOR 420 TRAINEES

April 20, 2026 by David Gillaspie Leave a Comment

Call a customer service number for anything and you could hear, “This conversation may be recorded for training purposes.” I’ve asked about that before getting into the reason I called, and end with, “I’m doing the same thing, recording our conversation for training purposes.” Am I really? Nooooo. If I were, what would I be […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: 420, 420 trainee, 420 training, blog traffic, Boston Marathon, confused, dazed, Dazed and Confused, goals, marathon, marathon marijuana, medical marijuana, nebulous, negative feelings, running, trainee, training, training purposes, weed, writing goals

A BETTER UNION? BETTER THAN WHAT

July 25, 2025 by David Gillaspie

This team was a better union for sports in first grade. That’s me in the stripes and hat. Some of the same kids in this shot were on my Hood to Coast team eight years later, though none of the adults. Hood to Coast is an Oregon relay race from Mt. Hood to Seaside. 198 […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: amazing grace, better, better union, censorship, comedy, congress, dependability, differences, figure it out, find help, growing together, hood to coast, inclusive, marathon, musical, need help, paramount, political, political correctness, race, relay race, respect, running, south park, stable ground, team, union

LOOKING BACK TO SEE IF YOU WERE LOOKING

July 16, 2025 by David Gillaspie

I was looking back recently after hearing how great things used to be. Baby boomers had it so easy you could buy a house and two cars and a boat and send three kids to college on a part-time paper route for a weekly publication. As a result the entire generation grew lazy and complacent:

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: camel cigarettes, draft lottery, historical, historical references, hood to coast, looking back, looking back to see, marathon, Oregon, Portland, Portland Oregon, run away, running, Salems, smoke, smokers, sports, stepping out, stepping up, story, summer of love, tobacco, vietnam war draft

MARATHON FAMILY MATTERS

June 17, 2025 by David Gillaspie

This is my marathon family. We all lived in Seaside at the time. I couldn’t tell you any of their names because I don’t know them. But they’re still family, temporary family.

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: aspirations, athletic ability, divorced, dreams, family, family life, goal, marathon, marathon family, marathon man, parents, permanent family, real family, relationship, runner, temporary family

SETTLED RULES = LAW OF THE LAND

March 31, 2024 by David Gillaspie

When settled rules are ignored they get angry. Common courtesy wants to fight. Good manners want a go in the octagon. Eventually things calm down in what I understand is called ‘normalized’, as in: The New Normal.

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: blue jeans, cancer cells, coal fired power, college degree, common courtesy, democracy, educated people, good manners, law of the land, laws, marathon, modern world, national champion, new normal, normal, rules, running, scoreboard, settled rules, shared world, small town, social body, sports, wife

FOR OLDER PEOPLE: WHAT’S IT LIKE?

March 4, 2024 by David Gillaspie

Who doesn’t like a question directed to ‘older people?’ This was the question from twitter: I wonder what it’s like for the older people now, who were born in the previous millennium. How can people born in 1999 be old? Easy.

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: achievements, aging, blog, blogger, Blogging, boomerpdx, education, high school, informed decision, junior high, marathon, memory, military, North Bend, older, older people, oregonians, popular, remember, running, seaside marathon, selfish, selfish interests, service, the army, twitter, wife, write, writer, writers, writing

MARATHON LIFE RULE: START STRONG AND FINISH

October 21, 2020 by David Gillaspie

I lived the marathon life rule in my twenties. At twenty-nine I took the plunge in Seaside. The image is at the start of the race. No, I’m not a giant, but maybe in this crowd. One does not simply ‘run’ a marathon without consequences, not if you plan on a one and done event, […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: basketball court, basketball team, boomerpdx, Joe biden, marathon, marathon lessons, marathon race, marathon runner, marathon running, marathon values, vote Joe biden

MUSIC EDUCATION MAKES A GOOD LISTENER

August 11, 2020 by David Gillaspie

From flutophone to virtuoso, music education is an essential subject. One online expert said there are two kinds of music: easy and impossible. They finished with: The path between them is called practice.

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: alexander technique, breath, breathe, breathing, education, essential subject, good listener, Harvard medical school, hearing, listen, LSD, marathon, marijuana, music, smoke weed, weed, Woodstock

LIFE MARATHON ENDS EARLY FOR QUITTERS

July 3, 2018 by David Gillaspie

You’ve heard it, I’ve heard it, we’ve both felt it. We’re tired and don’t know why, because a life marathon doesn’t have a finish line. Eating right, getting rest, and still tired. Is it a baby boomer lament, or just the way it is? Maybe it’s time to sit it out for the […]

Filed Under: BOOMER YEARS Tagged With: baby boomer, Baby Boomers, BOOMER, boomers, hardships, leaders, leadership, life, life marathon, marathon, persistence, resist, running

GREAT ATHLETES, GREAT PARENTS. BETTER RESULTS?

January 2, 2017 by David Gillaspie

First place is what great athletes aim for. In the beginning competition reflected the nature of mankind. Whether you cheer for the first life-form slithering from the sea, or the Garden of Eden story, first place is the only place. First place is the happy place. Losers get disappointment and bitterness. They all come after […]

Filed Under: Sports Tagged With: baby, childhood, great athletes, greek, marathon, mom and dad, parenting, parents, sports, sports writer