Dont' Panic

There are many wise words printed on the pages of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, but none more so than the words printed in large, friendly letters on the front cover, “Don’t Panic”. And these are words that I would have been wise to heed in recent months. Last week, I posted about how I was disappointed with my training for the Cherry Blossom, that I wasn’t in the weight room enough, that my times weren’t where I wanted them to be, that I wouldn’t set a PR. Don’t Panic. This week, I ran my best times yet. On Tuesday, I ran 4.5 miles at an 8:35 pace, a pace that projected over 10 miles would shatter my PR in the 10 mile. The next day, I came close again. Now, there’s still a long way to go, and a lot can happen, but the lesson is clear. Don’t Panic.

I also posted about a month ago about an English Bitter that I was brewing for a Super Bowl party. I was excited about it. It was a recipe that I had wanted to brew for a long time. I blew my Christmas gift card purchasing the ingredients. It was going to be served to a large crowd at a Super Bowl party. It was our first time entertaining many of these people. And I blew it, or so I thought. I missed the target gravity by a mile. And I panicked. I thought I was going to end up with a watered down beer, and a disappointed crowd. But I should have listened to the Hitchhiker’s Guide or at the very least, to Charlie Papazian, who coined a similarly useful phrase, “Relax. Don’t Worry. Have a homebrew.” The beer actually turned out quite well. In fact, well enough that those lucky enough to have drank it, rate it along side my Clementine Hefeweizen (best beer ever according to my wife). Not bad for a miss.