Back to iPhone

I tried, I really did. I switched from the iPhone 6 to the Google Pixel 2 XL last year. I had sworn off Android after Samsung decided they thought they knew me better than I know myself and jumped over to iOS. After my iPhone was paid off and with the hype of the Pixel 2 XL, I thought things might be different. It looks like I was wrong.

Now, don't get me wrong, I liked the Pixel 2 XL. The screen size, camera quality, and responsiveness were excellent. I was a big fan of Android Auto over Apple CarPlay because AA will let you scroll around on maps. It was good if we wanted to look at the route ahead to see what, if any, obstructions were up ahead. However, the phone was so buggy with Bluetooth and AA, I just couldn't take it anymore.

More times than not, the phone would fail to connect to the Bluetooth in my car. It would set up multiple instances of my car in the AA settings and I would constantly have to remove and add it back to the phone. The contact list would disappear nearly every time I disconnected and reconnected my phone. Additionally, it was hard to get it to reconnect after shutting off the car and turning it back on. It was, simply put, a pain in the rear.

I tested out some applications on my iPhone 6, which we now keep at home for the kids to have a phone to use, and really liked what I found. The maps don't scroll but, quite frankly, I haven't missed it in the past couple of weeks. The phone connects right away and I have only had one instance where it had trouble reconnecting when restarting the car. Everything functions smoothly and, honestly, I am happier with the iPhone than I was with the Pixel 2 XL. As for the iPhone, I went with the iPhone 8. I just don't like the notch on the newer phones and I wanted the Touch ID capability. And, of course, the Apple CarPlay functionality sealed the deal for me.

FBI Data Hacked

This is scary. Hackers have apparently published names, email addresses, and some street addresses for thousands of law enforcement officials. In today's day and age, with our reliance on data, nothing feels safe anymore. Passwords are cracked, people are victimized by social engineering tactics, and, somewhere, someone sits happier than a kid in a candy store.

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/thousands-identities-personal-information-published-fbi-related-hack-n994366

2019 Garmin Marathon

Waiting to Start!

Saturday was fun…and challenging! I participated in the 2019 Garmin Marathon, choosing to run the half marathon distance. I have yet to reach the 26.2-mile mark. I tried last year, in the 2018 Air Force Marathon, but was swept off the course at 21.2 miles into the attempt. Hopefully, this year, that will change.

I was a little skeptical of how I might perform on Saturday since my last half marathon was in November. I set a new personal record during that run of 2:09:12 but have not run over 6.2 miles since then. However, since my goal is to complete the full marathon distance this year, I knew I needed to start running further earlier in the season. And, that is how I found and signed up for the Garmin Marathon weekend!

Garmin Half Marathon

The course was fun. We had a lot of people cheering us on along the streets and some even yelling from their porches. I felt the first half of the race was mostly downhill, based on the elevation profile, so it wasn’t too intense. Once we hit the mid-point of the race, we started getting into hills. One hill was a monster and certainly zapped my confidence to run any further hills. Admittedly, I have been walking up most hills during my training. I was proud of myself on Saturday since I ran up the majority of the hill to just past the halfway point.

Bib and Medal

Prior to hitting the hills, I really had the intention of beating my personal record. Then, reality set in: it probably wasn’t going to happen. To salvage the race, I decided to settle in and work on my marathon pace. I walked for .15 miles where I needed to and ran the rest. My pace dropped from about 10:04 to an ending pace of 10:39 per mile. Not too bad, considering I am shooting for 11:25 during the marathon. I will just have to keep working on it and improve. That’s all I can really do!

Next up: The Papillion Half Marathon!