This Saturday I completed my first 10 mile run in over a year…and what a beautiful run it was. Starting in the Marina green, Lori and I ran over the Golden Gate Bridge and back, with some hill workouts in the Presidio just for fun (well, I’m not sure if I would call them fun but they were much needed). It turned out to be a gorgeous Saturday morning, with the sun warming the coastline as people from all over the Bay Area scrambled to find a prime spot to watch the Fleet Week festivities. Since the Blue Angels were back again this year, there seemed to be more of a buzz in the air than last year (no pun intended).

This 10 mile run was important to my training and my confidence as I prepare for my first full marathon. Much to my surprise, I received an email a couple days ago informing me that I was in fact a registered participant in the Nike Half Marathon on October 21st here in San Francisco. Since I didn’t sign up for the race, nor did I pay the entry fee (at least to my knowledge), it was a welcome surprise to know I will be running my 5th half marathon in a couple weeks. This weekend’s run gave me the confidence I needed to feel comfortable about running this race. Wish me luck!!

First of all, I wanted to say thanks for everyone’s kind words during the last couple of weeks. I am back from Massachusetts and things are getting back to normal now. I am currently taking one class at the Academy of Art University while working full-time at Metaliq, Inc. The class I am taking is Actionscript 3.0. This is my first real encounter with programming and scripting, so I am asking everyone out there for any tips, tricks, or easy to understand knowledge that will help me get my head around Actionscript. Luckily I have a wealth of knowledge at my finger tips from my co-workers, but everyone is so busy that it is sometimes hard to tap into their knowledge.

So, does anyone have any advice for first-time Acionscripters?

On Monday, September 17, 2007 my father David Hackett was laid to rest after losing his battle with cancer. He was buried in Saint Patrick’s Cemetery in Fall River, MA on what turned out to be a beautiful summer day. On a morning filled with such darkness and grief, the sun was shining down as his coffin lay before us draped with an American flag and two United States Air Force officers standing at attention by his side. My father served in Vietnam as a military policeman during the war and I know he would have been proud and honored by the military funeral that was given in his honor.

These final moments I had with my dad were a culmination of a very difficult week. On Sunday night, we saw a constant stream of people who came to pay their respects to their friend, their coworker, their relative…my dad. I was honored to hear all of the stories and compliments that people had to say about my dad. It was great to see how loved he was by the community in which he lived.

Before walking into the funeral home to pay my respects that Sunday night, my last impression of my dad was the seconds before and minutes after his death, a sight that will be forever burned into my memory. This disease that took his life created a man that, in the end, didn’t look my father. As my girlfriend Lori and I walking into the funeral home that night, I wasn’t sure what I should expect to see but it couldn’t have been as bad as what I had seen just a couple nights before.

A billboard was set up with a bunch of pictures of my father when he was still healthy. It was a welcome relief to see him as I had always wanted to see him…a tall man with a full, thick goatee, a pocket protector that housed his reading glasses, and of course always wearing some kind of hat. When I turned the corner and saw my dad lying in the coffin, I again realized how much cancer had devastated the person that was in the pictures I was just enjoying.

When the people came and went that Sunday night, I felt like the worst was over. Little did I know just how overwhelming the sound of a bagpipe and a bugle would be the following day. As I said goodbye to my dad for the last time before being lowered into his final resting place, I told him again that I loved him and that he was now at peace. He would suffer no more.

As the American flag was neatly folded and handed to my stepmother Janice, my father’s life was celebrated one last time by the uttering of this phrase…

“On behalf of the President of the United States, the Department of the Air Force, and a grateful nation, we offer this flag for the faithful and dedicated service of David Hackett.”

Rest in Peace Dad

Yesterday, September 13th, my father David Hackett lost his battle with cancer. Diagnosed with liver cancer, he was given approximately 6 months to live. That time-frame rapidly decreased as the cancer began to spread throughout the rest of his body. His condition declined so quickly that 6 months turned into only a couple of weeks. On Monday of this week, I received a call from my brother telling me to come home from San Francisco as soon as possible. On Tuesday night, I bordered a plane bound for Mass. not knowing whether I would get a chance to say goodbye to my dad.
 
As I got off the plane, I heard the good news that he was still hanging on, what most people in my family thought was him waiting for me to arrive before letting go of this world and entering into the next. On Wednesday afternoon at approximately 2:45pm, my dad let go of the world that had been so cruel to him over the last couple of years and was now finally at peace. He passed away on what would be my 32nd birthday.

I was fortunate enough to have the chance to say goodbye to him and tell him that I love him, a luxury that a lot of people do not get. My father and I grew apart from each other as we both grew older. Not to say that we didn’t love each other, but our conversations became less frequent and I think we confided in each other less and less. When I heard the news that he was days (or maybe hours) away from dying, a flood of emotions came over me that I was not expecting. I began to remember all of the good times we had together…playing catch in the driveway, seeing him cheer me on at my little league baseball games, playing pool with him at the Eagles, sitting down with him and his friends having our first beer together in the bar that loved so much.

When I think of my dad going forward I will remember all of those good times we had together, but I will also remember the last couple days of his life. It was a sight and an experience that i wish no one has to ever see in their life. But I will remember those last days because it reinforces in me just how special and precious life really is. Having someone close to you pass away right in front of your eyes is something that has forever changed me.

I have been volunteering and raising money for the Leukemia Society and Team in Training for a few years now.  I have been fortunate enough to know people who have been able to beat cancer and live health and productive lives, but I have never  been touched so profoundly by the devastation that cancer can cause for an individual and a family. To see what cancer had done to my father in just a matter of weeks has made me not only proud to be a part of the fight against cancer but has also opened my eyes to the work that still needs to be done so no one has to go through what I just went through the last couple of days.

Cancer has taken the life of my dad, but it will never take away the memories I have of him. Cancer may have physically destroyed my dad from the inside out, but it will never destroy who he was as a person and a father. It will never destroy my hatred for this disease and my willingness to do all that I can to help find a cure.

On December 9th, 2007 I will be running my first full marathon with Team in Training and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I will be running in honor of my dad, David Spencer Hackett.

We had an 8 mile run this past Saturday morning. It was the longest I have run since my last half marathon last year. We did a hill workout in the Lands Ends/Seacliff area of San Francisco. I was a little worried about the run since it was the longest I had run in a while, but it was one of the best runs I have had in a long time. Now I know what I am going to have for breakfast before each long run…a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a cup of yogurt, and a glass of OJ.

After the run, Team in Training had some massage students giving some stretches and massages to those of us who wanted it. Of course, I made sure to sign up right away and got a great stretch. I am hoping this is something that TNT will be providing after all the long runs. Since I am not much of a stretcher, this is a great way to get in a much needed stretch after a long run.

Yesterday, the 21st annual Bridge School Benefit Concert lineup was announced…and what an interesting lineup it is this year. The lineup includes Neil Young (of course, since it is his concert), Metallica, Jerry Lee Lewis, Eddie Vedder with Flea & Jack Irons, Tom Waits and Kronos Quartet, John Mayer, Tegan & Sara, and Regina Spektor. This year’s concert will be held on Saturday, Oct. 27th @ 5pm and Sunday, Oct. 28th @ 2pm.

Personally, I am looking forward to Eddie Vedder, who just put out his first solo album for the movie Into The Wild. Pearl Jam played last year and rocked the house as usual, but I am very interested to see what Vedder, Flea, and Irons have in store for the crowd. Since all of the bands play acoustic sets, I am really looking forward to seeing what Metallica will come up with as well. I have yet to see them live, but I have heard good things about them.

Tickets go on sale September 9th @ 10am PST through livenation.com

26.2 miles, the distance of a full marathon…and the distance I will be running on Dec. 9th in Honolulu. After 6 season (and 4 half marathons) will Team in Training, I have decided to run my first full marathon. That’s right! Come December, I (hopefully) will be running in the Honolulu Marathon, the country’s third largest marathon will just over 25,000 runners. It is the world’s sixth largest race. It is going to be hot as hell, but what better place to run my first marathon than Hawaii.

We started our training about 3 weeks ago, so we have a lot of training ahead of us still. We are currently at about 7+ miles on our Saturday trainings and so far my legs are feeling ok after a year and half off. I will be writing about my training on a weekly basis so keep your eye out for many more posts.

Fundraising - as part of my training, I will be raising over $3700 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. That will put me at approx. $14,000 that I have raised for the Society over the last couple of years. But, I need your help!! Please help me reach my goals by donating to the Leukemia Society. Click on the link below and help me make this a very successful season!

www.active.com/donate/tntgsf/tntgsfGHacket4

Welcome to my totally redesigned blog site! After a couple years of reading other people’s blogs, I finally thought it was time to start writing my own blog. Thanks to Wordpress.org, I was able to customize this blog fairly pain free. Since I am new to the blogging world, it probably took me longer than most people to set this site up. Luckily, I have a good understanding of CSS, which made the customization a lot easier.  I am still working on the site, so please be patient as I add some elements and make some upgrades. Enjoy!