I thought the route I picked would get me somewhere between 13 and 14 miles.  I was wrong, and thought maybe I'd finish up and make it 13 after I got back in the 'hood- but the last mile home the rain started coming down.  I thought for a while about how tough RAD and Terri were last week running in the snow, sleet, and cold.  I thought to myself, "if they struggled through the horrible elements, I can try too!"  I thought that until I got to the driveway and ran into the garage where it was dry and warm.  MR was waiting for me and thought it was silly to go out another 1.7 miles.  I gave up my resolve to finish and went in for a warm shower.  

Sorry RAD and Terri- I'm just not as tough as you gals are!  54 degrees and rain took me out of the game.  I did manage a 1 and a 3 in my numbers, so there was a 13 there for 2013 either way.  Happy New Year Y'all!

am run in the hood

pm run home from work

tired of cloudy cold days

morning run- what a treat to see the sunrise in the morning again!  No clouds to break up the happy mood of the happy sunshine!

first few days back at work after a 2 week break of sleeping in and staying up late made me cranky and tired- feels like a cold is coming on too.  Not the new year "bang" I'd hoped for- guess the cannons misfired.

at least I got to see the pile of  "cotton candy" that's still on the side of the road this week.  The bag's gone, but the fluffy pink stuff is still there!

Ran the All American trail today as part of my training for the trail run in February.  I felt good after 14 miles, so I feel confident about 18 in February as long as my fitness level remains.  I'll probably not get back out to the trail again before then.

MR rode along and got a good workout riding through the sand and along the rolling hills.  Got stuck in some deep sand a few times.  It'll stop a bike in no time at all!

There were lots of people out on the trail today.  Runners, walkers, and a cute young couple that were in the bushes off the side of the trail enjoying eachother's company.  The trail's been closed for months due to hunting season.  It just re-opened yesterday.  I haven't been on it in a couple of years- it was nice to be back out there.

Here's a riddle for the day:  What's worse than leaving your bike on top of the car when you pull into the garage?  Doing it twice.  MR's bike fared pretty well- it'll need a new front rim.  The car, bike rack, and brickwork above the garage didn't fare as well.  Lucky for us, we already know how to get them all fixed and replaced since we did it before 3 years ago.  :-(

90 minutes elliptical- needed to finish the book I've been reading.  "Life of Pi" is a good story.  I'm not sure how the movie is, but I enjoyed the book.

morning came too early- got in 2.16 miles before it was time to get ready for work

pm ran home from work 5 miles.

Did my 10k route to the p-town light and back in the morning.

after work I went to my first zumba class ever- and I had a blast.  There were parts of me jiggling that I didn't know could jiggle.  I could hear Bill Cosby giggling in the background.  I'll be back to the zumba classes a couple times a week until it stops being so much fun.

Morning run to the chicken farm and back.  The smell this morning was horrible!!

 Pm ran home from work- it was beautiful with the sun out and in the 60s.  My legs today are sore from zumba yesterday, so I was a little slower, but it was worth it!

2 days after zumba and my legs are still feeling the sorry soreness from the pirate booty shake down.

My plan to stay in bed until noon eating pancakes and chocolate covered raisins, thus storing and conserving my energy for a nice long run didn't work out the way I'd imagined it would.  It was one of the toughest runs I've been on in a while, but there were some great parts of this run too. 

best parts of run: 2 horribly decaying opossum, one super smelly deer rib cage with legs and some smelly meat still attached lying in the ditch, 70 degrees and sunny.

bummer parts of run: into full wind for the first 5 miles, had to change plans around mile 7.5 for bathroom emergency stop, needed to stop for walk break/rest when it was time to re-fuel (usually I just gu up while I run). 

I was glad when it was over, but I was also thrilled that it was such a beautiful day out for a run.  Sun and 70 degrees in the middle of January is delicious!!  I wish I would have had some company, but MR's big wheel wasn't up for the long distance and Wyatt was home sick.  It was just me & the Duke (and he doesn't say much).

little 2 mile walk around the hood with MR

Around 3 am, I felt something crawl over my foot in bed.  After  a frightening few minutes, I realized it was just MR's hairy foot (not Hobbit hairy, but hairy nonetheless).  I laid in bed for over 20 minutes and couldn't go back to sleep, so I got dressed and headed out for a run.

At 3:50 am, it was 53 degrees outside and just perfect!  No moonlight, some starts, a little bit of spotty cloud cover and a light breeze.  Best part of the run was there was almost no one else out on the roads and I had them all to myself. Just me & the Duke out on the roads.

I saw a car at mile: .36, 5, 5.4, 6.8, 7 (2 cars), 8 (2 cars)... so in 9 miles, I saw 8 cars.  And most of them were in the 2nd half of the run.  After 5 am, the traffic started picking up.

I stopped at 5.56 to adjust my knee brace, and when I tried to start my watch back up, it gave me an error message that the memory was full.  I just ran the rest of the way home and figured out my overall pace by doing a little time/distance math.  I was happy with my overall AP and saw that the last 4 miles were faster than the first 5, so it was a good morning run.

I decided to run home today instead of staying for Zumba because it was beautiful outside and it may be the last day without rain for a while.  It was over 70 degrees and sunny.  I wore my shorts and tank top and even though my legs were tired from my awesome morning run, I enjoyed the run until the last mile when I hit the gnat patch again.  It's just a half mile stretch, but it was soooooo icky.  It's the down side of not having freezing cold temps to kill the bugs.

Zumba tomorrow.

Lucky for me, I didn't have anything waking me up at 3 am, so I slept in as long as possible. It was marvelous.  I didn't get 9 miles in, but totally worth less miles for the sleep.

I went down a road I usually don't run in the dark by myself.  I didn't have any troubles, but it's a winding road with lots of turns and I think it's just a bad road to run in the dark.

Nice paces.  After mile 2, my legs were tired, but we kept on truckin' and I managed a nice progressive run. It was beautiful outside- 64 degrees with a cool breeze.  The weather is changing though; the wind is blowing from the north now instead of the south like it has been for the last 4 days.  It's supposed to rain for the next few days.  Glad I had a little taste of delicious weather before winter comes back.

Hadn't planned on running exactly as far as I did yesterday- but when I pushed stop on my garmin in front of my house, it was.  Coincidence, because I ran through the hood today since it was too foggy for me on the busy road in the dark.

Zumba after work.  I just love doing zumba.  We did it on the stage in the auditorium and I was having fun pretending like I was performing zumba moves for the audience.  

My sinuses are slowly filling up with sticky dried-out rubber cement-like snot.  More so on the left side than on the right, and so w, hen I woke up, the left side of my throat hurt too.    I decided to go out for a short run to get the snot reducing machine warmed up, and then run longer on the treadmill after work.

My plan didn't work out the way I'd hoped, and by 2 pm I was ready to sell my soul for some relief.  I took 3 decongestants and it didn't do a thing.  So by 4 pm, I had given up my dreams of an afternoon run.  I really hope I start feeling better soon.

I have a neti-pot and some distilled water with my name on it. 

Took the day off of running to try and fight this cold.  I was up at 3 am again today, but cooked chili, corn bread, and 2 cool-aide pies instead of going for a 9 mile run.  Yum!

I thought I heard a critter chewing my plant in the corner of my room when I woke up at 3 am.  I snuck over and listened as carefully as I could to find out where the mouse was in the plant, but it was too dark to find it.  I turned on a light in the room next door to help me catch the mouse in the act.  It took me at least 5 minutes to figure out it was just dead leaves on the back side of the plant blowing in the  air from the heat vent.  My imagination at 3 am is a little too crazy for my liking.

Slept in and tried to rest.  Less snot, but still tired.  I spent the first half of the day with MR cleaning out my closet and dresser.  As motivation, there were back to back episodes of hoarders on tv playing as we culled the herd of clothes.  6 full kitchen trash bags later, he was on his way to the good-will store and I set off for some kind of run.

It was sunny and in the low 50's.  Really perfect weather for a run.  I went 9 miles and it felt good.  It wasn't a fast run, just a slow, easy run.  I hope that next week I'll be ready to get a good long run in.

Highlight of the run:  A woman on a golf cart in the yard of a home that burned down, with a border collie that was running circles around and "herding" a large all white turkey.  Rather than asking myself "what's wrong with this picture," I had to ask "what's NOT wrong with this picture?"

Speaking of pictures, here's one of MR's tire rim from the garage/house vs the bike rack throw-down a few weeks ago.

10K route again to the light & back. Had a little run in with a mean old dog and his super cranky owner. Dog got a shot of pepper spray. Wish it could have been the owner instead.

Nice to run in the sunshine on the holiday.

Up again with the dark, cold sky. Beautiful stars, but 29-30 degrees. Not the 64 I enjoyed last week.

I did enjoy the mess out of zumba  after work.  I didn't know it was legal to have that much fun in a band room :-)

Nu running today- this morning was mini-me's birthday and MR and I surprised her at seminary with cupcakes, yoo-hoos, and a dozen roses.

The zumba class was amazing- as usual.  I'm happy I'm enjoying some cross training and cross strengthening.  It's been cold this week and having an indoor fun workout group is really nice.

Barely above freezing, but still beautiful to be out and see such a beautiful dawn at the end of my run.  

The weather warmed up to 44 today, but the wind picked up too.  Lucky for me, 90 percent of my run home was right into the blustery cold wind.  I had a choice to treadmill or run outside, and I don't regret my choice at all.  Enjoyed the last hour of daylight and a warm soup dinner with grilled cheese sammich when I got home.  Some days the world is good and right.

Twenty one degrees outside this morning.  Coldest morning all season.  I managed to warm up and have a good run- even got extra warm at one point, but not hot enough to consider taking off a layer.

The cat in the ditch was waiting for me again- I've been seeing his eyes reflect in my headlamp the last couple of mornings I've been out.  He was in the bushes this morning when I went out and on the other side of the street when I came back....unless there's more than one.  

Beautiful sky this morning- as I ran north east, 1/3 of the sky was high clouds that were painted a dark pink/red.  It was just amazing and breath-taking to see.  The dead opossum on the side the road was still hanging out and giving me a thumbs up (paws up) as I ran by too.

Went out on a new route today because I couldn't stand the thought of running the same route again.  I figured if I went out too far, I could just call MR to come pick me up after I'd met my goal.  I wanted to run between 16 and 18 miles.  

I listened to podcasts on how stuff works and learned all kinds of useless trivia that made the hours pass by before I knew it.  I had to stretch at mile 9, then I had MR meet me with water and took a little break at mile 13.  At mile 15, I was feeling out of it and stopped for a gu, water, and a stretch.  18 miles was a long way for me to go- it's been more than a year since I've run so far and my legs were tired and worn out, but it felt good to get the miles in.  I feel confident I'll be able to do the run next month.

My miles ended up being perfect for the route I took.  It was exactly 18 miles to the entrance to my neighborhood.  Couldn't have planned it better if I'd tried.  I saw the white turkey again- it seems to live in a fenced in area in the yard of the burned down house.  I'm guessing someone nearby is taking care of it.  There were 3 opossum on the roadside at various stages of decay, and something that could have been a  fox or dog. 

Wyatt said she'd be ready to run again next week, so I hope I get a chance to run with her a while.

Aarrggghhh...... I hate Mondays.  Monday morning is always so hard to wake up and get out.  Then all the stupid people feel the need to cross my path throughout the day and I end up wanting to throw them all overboard or volley cannons into their starboard side.

Best part of the day was the mega cookie pie and ice cream that mini-me whipped up for dessert.

I ran home from work, and it was a wonderful 50-something degrees outside.  I thought a week of freezing temps would have killed off the gnats, but there were more out today than ever.  I breathed in a bunch, hacked up a couple, spit out a few, and I'm pretty sure I still have one stuck inside my nasal cavity.  Maybe a neti-bath for the nasal cavity later tonight for fun.

A little foggy out in the morning, but the fog was low and the moon was full and bright.  So nice to have him back out with me in the morning.

As I was running in the fog, there was a clearing near a field and I looked out and saw a white stallion standing in the clearing looking at me.  "Hello Goober!"  It was a neat thing to see.

I listened to a podcast and learned that mice, horses, and platypus are the only 3 mammals where the male species does not have nipples.  What do you know?  I doubt it will ever be the final jeopardy question that will win me the big bucks, but I'm a better pirate for the knowledge I've gained.

zumba after work...sort of. Two busses broke down on their way to drop off students, so I got to man the phones for an extra half hour.  I burned 30 calories doing it, so yippie.

Took a couple benadryl last night before bed and felt like a groggy headed ninny-muggins this morning.  Got out for a run, watch was dead, so I ran a familliar route that I would know the distance on.

Goober horse was in the same place I saw him yesterday.  No fog today, lots of wind.  Learned things about Andrew Jackson and Martin VanBuren- useless trivia, but it helps the time pass.

I'll do zumba after work- hope the busses are fixed today.

Did I mention it was 64 degrees out this morning and I wore shorts and a long sleeved shirt?  The shirt got too warm and I had to push the sleeves up. At 6 am. :-p

Up all night, sleepless in the south- wind, rain, and chickens awake & about at midnight made me wonder what was going on.  They are never awake after dark.  Ever.  I threw them in the hen house & shut the door.  Maybe the wind had  blown them off their perches?

So I stayed in bed and slept in- went running home from work.  Thought the wind would have died down by then.  I was wrong and it was wicked windy the whole way home (except for the last .4 mile just before getting home.  I thought it was blowing straight on as I ran South-west, but I was unhappy when after 3 miles, and went straight west, it just got worse.  GAK!

Felt like I was running in syrup.  Fairly sustained winds of 20-25 mph.  And it was supposed to be warm (54 degrees, but the wind made it feel more like 40).

Windy.  So windy, I couldn't hear my earbud for the first half of the run (heading south).  So I heard half the story on how meth is made.  It was 38 degrees, but felt much, much colder. 20-30 mph sustained wind gusts.

The pace going out was the slowest I've run in perhaps 10 years.  The pace coming back was nice and fast.  I could actually feel the wind pushing me along!!

I'm tired of running in the wind, and may resort to sneaking in the high school and using the treadmill tomorrow.  I hope the weekend roaches don't mind company.

The treadmill was waiting for me when I got to the school at 8 am.  MR came along to keep me company and I was thrilled to have Wyatt come and join me for almost 2 hours.

The treadmills look down on the main gym, and at 9:30 when the wrestling competitions started, I had some interesting entertainment.  I've never spent much time at all watching greco-roman wresting, and it was interesting to watch.  I don't like the parts where they shoved each others heads into the mat and shove their faces along the mats, but there's some interesting stuff going on in the world of "real" wresting.  My favorite part was when one guy would pick the other one up and slam them on the mat.  That and when one spectator didn't like the ref's calls and he ran out on the mat and smacked the ref on the back.  Dag-nab-it!  There was almost a little bit of tension and I thought it could be a possible hockey fight on the wrestling mats, but I was let down when everyone decided to just sit down and let the kids keep wrestling.

The wrestling takes center stage on this blog entry because 20 miles on the treadmill is so boring I don't have anything else to say about it.  Wyatt left, MR went online and did stuff on the laptop, and I just kept running till I was done.  I'm glad there was the wrestling match at the school on a Saturday so I didn't have to run in the windy cold again.

We tried to go bowling after my run, and I had such a hard time just walking the ball down the line- hitting pins wasn't on the agenda today.

2 mile walk with MR and we found four $1 bills on the road along our walk.  It was the only time I felt lucky, especially after the spanking the 49ers took from the Ravens.  The Ravens deserved to win that game.

Had to get some sleep this morning because I stayed up wwwaaaayyyyyyy too late watching that ridiculous stomping from the Ravens on tv.

After work I did Zumba and then spent some time on the treadmill waiting for mini-me to finish tutoring. Did a couple fast miles.  I wore a heart rate monitor while running (haven't done that for a long time) and I was surprised that my heart rate stayed as low as it did.  I guess that's a good thing, but makes me wonder if I need to try harder sometimes.

I ran my 10k route in the morning and then ran home from work for the last 5.  Nothing special- too many clouds to enjoy the sunrise or the sunset.  At least the dogs all stayed inside and didn't try to kill me.

Desire to sleep trumps desire to run more miles.

Zumba today?  maybe. 3 pieces of cake, sweet potato fries, and super hot cheetos are my food for the day..........so far.

morning run. MEH.

sick

sicker

sicker-est

sicker-ester

still sick

is there no hope??????

HRH The Quiet Pirate Ship has been attacked on the high seas by the evil and ruthless Dread-virus Roberts and his merry band of lung phlegm buccaneers.  Please send help ASAP.

They were originally mistaken to be a few local fishermen out at night in their boat on a pleasure cruise through eel infested waters.  

It's a lonely Valentine's day, and I can't even be consolated with the fact the running can be my only valentine.  But running is my true love- and nothing can stop true love- not even lung phlegm; all it can do is delay it for a while.

I tried.  I really tried.  Had to stop after each mile to take a few minutes to breathe.  I thought I wanted to try 9 before I left home, but after mile 2, I knew that wasn't in my best interest.

I'm glad I turned around and went back home after mile  3 because the last 1.2 miles it started raining icy sleet/rain.  It was nice to get out and run after 10 days.  It ended up snowing after I got home.  Would have been happier running in the snow than the sleet, but it was nice to be warm inside too.

I think I am finally finished being sick.  Early morning 10k and zumba after work.  Perfect day.

Tried a little speed work today.   I wanted to quit after mile 3, but tried to keep the pace up.  It was nice to feel my heart racing and my legs screaming out for me to stop, because it's been too long since our relationship has been in such a fabulous place.  

Zumba after work.  

Legs were sore this morning.  2 days in a row of zumba and running wasn't the best way to ease back into exercise after nearly 2 weeks off.  It was such a bad idea that I topped it off with a run home... it was amazing and perfect.  The sun was out (and still up), and it was a beautiful afternoon for a run.  

I am supposed to run the 18 mile trail run on Saturday (2 days away).  I'm pretty sure I could pull off 18 miles, and probably even 18 trail miles.  I'm just worried because it's supposed to be raining all day Friday and Saturday.  Downpour rains.  The trails are already horribly wet and I'm not sure how I feel about trying to run on them after hours of rain.  I'm a bit worried about slipping and hurting myself (it's a 9 mile loop to the parking area), or getting sick again from being out in the rain and cold for hours on end.  I mentioned to someone at work that I wasn't sure if I was going to run it or not.  I was a little irritated later when she went to the office next to mine and I over heard her say, "Some people that think they're runners, but they won't run when it's bad weather outside.  They're not runners, they're just people who run."   She evidently considers herself a real "runner." 

I feel like I need to  run just to show that I'm a real runner and show that smarty pants- but will it be worth it if I get hurt or sick?  Then I wonder why I feel like I need to prove anything to her- I ought to make her walk the plank.  I'm just hoping the weatherman is 100% wrong about the weather.

It said "Trail Run."  I didn't plan on signing up for running, swimming, skating, and body surfing.  Honestly one of the toughest runs I've ever done- so one of the most rewarding and satisfying to complete.

It had been raining since Wednesday.  Everything was already saturated, wet, and slippery. Best advice ever from Brent- "bring an extra pair of shoes and socks."  I wouldn't have been able to finish without them.  Thanks for helping me out Brent!

I had a wonderful call from Terri on the way to the race to check and see how I was doing & if I was ready for the run.  The call got me pumped up and ready to run.  Thanks for the support Terri!

There were more people at the run than I had expected with the poor weather.  They said 250 signed up, but there certainly weren't that many who were running.  The 9 mile and 18 mile runners started out together (18 mile was just the 9 mile loop twice).  Ray's widow said a few words, and we were given a crash course on how to run the trail and trail running etiquette, then there was a countdown from 10 and we started running.  I stayed in the back of the pack because I had no illusions that I was going to do anything in this run other than just try and stay safe, dry, and finish.

The first 2 miles was all on the road, which was full of huge puddles and made the "stay dry" walk the plank of the proverbial pirate ship.  Then we headed for the trails, and while they were terribly wet, hilly, slippery, and often full of sticky clay, it was beautiful.

Most of the run was on bike trail paths.  From mile 2, until mile 9.2, it was all trails.  Some were green/easy difficulty, most were blue/moderate, and I saw some signs for double black diamonds, but we didn't run on those.

I had a rain poncho I'd put on for the run to stay dry.  Eventually, my feet were wet and the rain let up, so I took it off around mile 4.5.  This photo was sometime before that.

When I did take the poncho off, I realized how quiet and peaceful it was out on the trail.  Up until that point, all I could hear was the rustle of the plastic.  I wished I would have taken it off earlier.  I did have my garmin wrapped in a plastic sandwich bag to keep it dry.  Don't want to have to buy a new one due to water damage.

At mile 8, the trail flattened out (which my quads appreciated) but the water puddled up really bad on the trail and by the time I got to the 1/2 way point, my shoes were full of water and mud.  I could feel big hot spot blisters forming on my arches and it the fire was getting hot.  I ran the road section we started out on, and by this point, everyone and their dog and run on this wet, muddy road at least twice (some of them 4 times because it's an out and back).  There was not one dry place to run on the road.  It was just 2 inches deep muddy water in the shallow places, and shoe sucking clay mud in the deeper parts.  I had to make a decision at this point.  Stop and call it quits, or change my shoes/socks and do it all over again.  I saw MR waiting for me at the intersection with some gatorade (what a great guy....waiting for me in the rain and not knowing when I'd ever show up)- and I told him I didn't need a drink, I needed him to dig around in the car for my shoes, socks, and body glide.  He ran to the car, got the stuff together, opened the back hatch and waited for me.

He pulled off the wet and dirty shoes and socks while I tried to dry my feet and rub them down with body glide.  My fingers were so cold that I couldn't tie the laces up on the shoes- he even did that for me.  My hero for the day!!!  Who else would drive 6 hours, just to turn around and wake up at 5 am, drive 2 more hours, stand in the rain and wait for me 4 hours, then humor my sad and sorry sore legs for the rest of the day?  Only my MR MR!

My feet felt great in the dry shoes and socks.  I didn't have any further problems with blisters on my arches for the rest of the race.  I only saw one other person on the trail.  I followed him for a while, then he stopped for water and I ran ahead.  At mile 13.5 I tripped over a root and went body surfing on the trail.  Scraped up my arm a little bit but all my running parts worked fine- so I got up and kept running.  Thankfully, no one was anywhere near me on the trail, so my pride was still in tact.

I tripped once more a few miles later, but I was able to reach out and grab a tree to keep myself from falling on the ground.  At mile 15.5, I found myself in a very, very dark place.  The skies had gotten so dark that it was as if the sun had set- the rain picked back up and was back in big, fat droplet form, and I couldn't focus.  Which makes focusing on the trail very, very difficult.  I tried rubbing my eyes and blinking, but nothing was helping.  I finally had to stop on the side of the trail and drink and have some gu.  I was on track to take more gu at mile 16, but realized that since my pace was so much slower than normal, I should have been refueling sooner than I had been doing.  The guy I had passed miles earlier ended up passing me while I was getting my wits back about me.  That was a soul crusher, because I was pretty sure I was the last person out on the trail.  Nothing like knowing you're the very slowest person out there to pull you out of a funk. 

But I kept running- and thought of how if this didn't make me a "runner," then nothing would.

Sometime during mile 17, I saw two other guys on the trail in front of me, and I was able to pass them.  They were at least twice my age, but I was so relieved and happy not to be the last person out on the trail.  Thank you Frog-jacket man and Beard-man for being there to make a silly pirate happy.

The volunteers were amazing and always had a smile and encouraging word to say.  I stayed warm in the rain because I was running, but it had to be miserable for them.  They were great- thank you for sticking around for me to finish the race!

As I came down the last quarter mile stretch, there was MR, standing in the rain and waiting for me.  There were a few volunteers at the finish line, and a couple with the oranges and bananas and drinks.  One of them even called out my name and sounded as excited that I was crossing the finish line as if I'd been the first one to cross it.  I cried.  It took everything I had to finish the run.  Perhaps I would have quit if I hadn't been alone out on a trail with no way out- it's hard to know for sure- but I dug deep and finished.  There were the 2 men behind me and one woman people said was out there behind all of us.  That was it- the toughest run was the "worst" PR run, but one of my proudest run.  So this PR is for "proud run."

Here's a photo of the finisher's trophy/keepsake they passed out to all finishers.  Their time clock said 3:30 when I came across.  I'm not sure what that would make my pace, but I used my garmin (it was on when I was moving- I stopped it when I stopped for shoes, gu) and it said my avg pace was a 10:53.  Fine by me.

 It turns out that only 5 women attempted to even finish the 18 miler.  I was #4.  MR said I could have gotten a skateboard trophy for being #3.  All I can say is that those 3 women who came in before me earned every bit of those trophies they got.  I don't wish I was one of them- I am just grateful I was a finisher.  I hope woman #5 was able to finish- they said she was out on the trail.  I can not be disappointed with my time or my #4 place when I was only one of 5 women tough enough to even try to do it.  I earned my pirate name today.

Thank you to Brent, Terri, MR, and the folks at the race that made it such a memorable and wonderful day.

wowwie wow wow, I am sore

Tried zumba after work- I've never done zumba without sweating.  I wasn't capable of moving enough to work up a sweat today. But it did feel good to move a little.

elliptical in the morning

zumba in the afternoon.  much better today than yesterday

walk in evening 

Finally able to run!  The first mile was slow, oh so slow, as my legs got used to the movements and worked through the soreness.  By mile 4, I'd cut 2 minutes off my pace and felt good.  Horray!!

zumba after work 

Does the .01 really matter?  I often wonder if I should even include it.  Because today, honestly, I pushed the stop on my watch as soon as I heard the beep beep for mile 5.  But you know what?  After 100 days of running, that .01 is really going to add up!

I had considered running in the morning and afternoon, but I'm weary of too much too soon after Saturday, so I had little trouble rationalizing an extra hour in bed.  

The run home was lovely.  Cloudy, cool, and a wee bit windy- but that was all quickly forgotten as I got lost in the joy of the jog.  I thought the run couldn't get any better when I spotted another HUGE pile of pink cotton candy on the side of the road.  But life sometimes has a way of making good runs awesome, and I found this plastic little busted up pagoda-looking topper on the side of the road and managed to run home the last 2 miles with it jutting out the front of my reflective vest.  Awkward? Yes.  Worth it? Heck Yes!

As an added bonus, you can see the paint on the top of my car that has been removed and/or gouged out from the "bike vs garage door opening" episode.

Easy run in the morning to wake up the legs and get my day started off right.  The sun is coming up earlier and it makes my morning runs delightful when I get to start off with the moon and come home with sun.  I always enjoy the months when we get to enjoy the full moon in the early morning and he joins me for my runs.

Went out later in the day today so I could do errands first, and with hopes that the weather would warm up some during the day.  It was overcast and in the 40s all day.  Gloomy weather.

My plan was to run to Wyatt's house, take a short run with her, and then run home.  We'd discussed running times, and I let her know when I left my house.  I was disappointed when I got to her house and she wasn't there.  Wesley's quote, "Life is pain you highness. Anyone who tells you differently is selling something" kept echoing in my mind.  

I tried to steal some water out of her hose to fill my water bottle, but I couldn't get the darn thing to work and I didn't want to break it.  So I had to take a little detour to a greasy gas station and beg for some water from their tap. So my pain was subsided with a dollop of kindness from the greasy gas station ladies and their warm tap water.  Thank you ladies- you made my day!

I ran home, taking a different route than I'd gone out on, and added an extra mile or so going through a new subdivision.  I checked my watch as I was exiting the subdivision, and I knew how many miles it was from there to my house, so when my watch died sometime later, I didn't stress about it.  With 2 miles to go, I found a busted up guitar on the side of the road.  I wanted to take the end of the arm with all the twisty things on it home with me, but they were attached to a bunch of stuff via the strings.  So I had to settle on this little nugget of wood.: (I'm not certain what part of the guitar it came from)

I am tempted to run back there on Monday morning with some wire cutters and take the good part home with me.  Something to look forward to :-) You know a good pirate doesn't just leave the best booty laying around for any old joe to come and take!  "You are trying to take what I have rightfully stolen."

With only 1/2 mile to go until I get home, the freaking sun finally decides to come out.  Oh the injustice of it all.  So instead of running 15.7 miles, I took a loop through my hood so I could spend a little more time with the sun and I ended up with 17 miles.  Totally worth it.

Let's have a little picture story problem to start off the week:

What happens when you take one pair of running shoes.....

And you add one pair of wire clippers?

You get the treasure of the week!

 This was the one and only reason I woke up this morning and got out on the road....the hopes that it would still be there waiting for me.  I was worried for a few seconds that it was gone, but a few more steps down the road, and there it was!  Like El Dorado shining in the morning light.

 After work, zumba started a little late, so I ran a couple miles on the treadmill, then went down for zumba, and finished up with a mile or so of speed work.

I was hungry for dinner today!  I think I'll listen to a little guitar music before I head off to sleep :-)

I actually got up extra early this morning so I could make breakfast for my little buccaneer.  She took the ACT test in school today and deserved a good breakfast.  

I ran my 10k route- down to the blinking light and back.  I found my treasure in the first quarter mile.  The other 6 were rather uneventful.  Just a nice run, beautiful sunrise, good pace.

treasure of the week #2 

 Zumba after work.

took a day off from running and did zumba after work

Went for a morning run and got to see a beautiful sunrise.  I'll miss the early sun up next week when daylight savings time kicks me back into the dark ages in the morning.

It wasn't extra fast, or extra slow.  Just got it done.  I had planned on running home as well, but a school bus drove into a ditch and I ended up staying late to answer the phones.  So mini-me came and picked me up.  I spent 90 minutes on the elliptical after dinner while I read and then watched TV.   

My legs weren't ready to run this morning after doing the elliptical last night.  Took me a long time to warm up, and they never stopped feeling tired.  Tired legs are good reminders of what it's like to run a marathon.  

I got to sleep in an extra hour today and I was looking forward to a warmer, sunnier run than I usually get in the morning.  I'm not sure what it was like an hour earlier, but it was still cold.

Hope Saturday is warmer. 

I had the perfect plan.  Sleep in, housework, then run when it was nice and sunny/warmer outside.  I'd be finished by the time mini-me got home from her camp-out and then I'd have the evening to catch up on my reading and cook dinner.

Everything went well until at mile 1.2, I saw a guy from church drive by and I realized I was supposed to be helping with a community blue and gold banquet that I was helping to host at the church house.  I turned around and ran home, jumped in the car, got half way there and realized I'd left my purse at home, turned around, went back to the church and found out it was all locked up.  Scout families were starting to show up and I didn't have a key.  It was a nightmare brought on by my own penchant for planning.  In 15 minutes I had the building open and helped get the tables & chairs set up so the different groups could decorate their tables.   This is the 3rd or 4th year I've helped host the group, and it's always a huge turn out.  I can't believe I forgot about it.  I also can't believe that things worked out as well as they did for me being such a dolt.

I ended up running at the park 1/10th of a mile away from the church.  It has a 1 mile loop.  Mind numbing loops, but a just punishment for my foul-up.  I figured this way if they needed me for anything, they could call and I'd be close by to help.  When I finished my run, they were getting ready to start the program, so I went home and showered, then came back to help clean up.  My day was pretty much over by the time it was all cleaned up.  I did get a good second workout trying to push the giganto vacuum around the hallways, putting chairs and tables up & down again, and clenching my teeth while I tried not to scream at little boys smashing cupcake frosting into the carpet.  If they were mine, they would have been walking the plank!

Morning run and afternoon zumba.

afternoon zumba- sweat so much I needed a splash zone pained around me

Morning run.  Ran at a faster pace than I've been doing- just to see if I could. 

Had a fun time with Terri and Ann at the marathon.  I needed an excuse to see my running buddy, and this was a great excuse.

The weather was great- the rain held off and the sun actually came out for a while.  I was disappointed in the "Rock and Roll" people who put this race together.  Not enough port-a-potties, poor bag drop off planning/execution, and it seemed like the race was targeted for the half marathon 24000 and not the 6000 marathon runners. 

The end zone was empty.  Boxes of stuff to help yourself if you could find it.  Bags dropped on the hillside to pick up yourself, and the beer tent closed early too.  A pirate does not take kindly to having the beer tent closed, even if the pirate doesn't want the beer.  The option needs to be open!  I wouldn't sign up for one of the races in the Rock & Roll series again.  BUT I would run one with Terri again if she signs up :-)

Mostly because Terri is GROOVY!!

Elliptical in the morning to work out the sore/stiff muscles.

Zumba (as much as possible) after work, then I did a few miles on the treadmill using my "new' knee brace.  I wanted the same kind of brace I'd been using the last 2 years, but the brace shop stopped carrying that brand.  The guy promised me that it was even better than the old one, but I'm not convinced.

Running was slow, very slow.  But I've got to start somewhere :-)

morning elliptical

afternoon zumba- a little easier today than yesterday

later afternoon run- the sun was out, it was 70 degrees, and the blossoms on the bradford trees & azalea bushes.  It's going to get cold again, so I had to get out before spring goes away.   A dog I'd never seen out before came tearing across a yard and into the road after me.  It was a small black dog, who was barking and growing as he ran toward me.  I shouted, "STOP!  GET YOUR DOG!"  No one came, so I ended up having to kick the dog to keep him from biting me.  The dog didn't go away, but he stopped trying to attack me.  Guess getting kicked is better than getting shot, but I wish his owner would have just kept him under control to begin with.

90 minutes elliptical.  give the knees a break, and spend some time with mini me.

Morning run of 5.7.  Chilly morning, 38 degrees, but beautiful.  The stars were out and very bright- due to the moon being chased beyond the horizon before I got out to run.

The run back was magnificent- started with just a hint of dark blue on the eastern horizon, and slowly, over the next 15 minutes,  the sky spread open with the dark blue lifting, and a dusty red on the horizon.  When I finished my run, the gap was filled with a gentle rainbow of colors.  What a treat.

Afternoon run of 5 miles home from work.  Note to self: when The Weather Channel has warnings in your area for high winds, don't expect any great paces. In fact, just hope the wind doesn't knock you backwards.  All but the last .5 miles was into wind.  I was glad my knees and legs cooperated.  It was really nice outside- except for the big wind gusts.  The great part of my run was finding treasures.  TWO treasures today.  

First was the cotton candy, which someone thought would be cute to drive their tire through....

 And the second was this terrific disc titled, "Lil Keke.........Loved by Few, Hated by Many".  If my Pirate name wasn't already QP, It'd be Lil' Keke. 

Some days, it's good to be a pirate.

Housework in the morning while I waited for it warm up a little.  I was hoping for a little bit of sunshine.  I finally saw some at mile 9, and it encouraged me to run an extra mile so I could see more of the sun.  I think I may have been an Egyptian in a former life.

Just after mile 2, as I was approaching a house that often has a big dog out chasing and barking (I had a few words with the owner on MLK day in January), I noticed a big dead dog on the side of the road.  I don't think it's the same dog, but I kind of wish it was.

The rest of the run was rather uneventful.  Listened to podcasts and thought about spring break coming and how I hope it's nice weather then.

My pace was slower than I thought, but I'm giving myself a break since I did 26 last Saturday.

4.02 in the morning.  The weather app said it was cloudy but not rainy.  It lied.  It was drizzly the whole time.  I had to take off my glasses and run blind the last mile because it was easier to see without them than with them.  I did tempo miles and I was happy about the paces I was able to get.

zumba after school- not sure if it's just me or not, but it's kind of getting old....not as much fun as it used to be.

Then I ran on the treadmill after zumba while little one did her math tutoring.  I started at 6 mph and every half mile I added .2, so I ended at 7.4.  It felt good, but the last half mile did feel like a workout.  A good workout.

This week I'll be sharing photos from the marathon with Terri.  Here's one of the guy who carried the Coast Guard flag the whole time.  We passed him just before/after/before around the time we passed by the Coast Guard building on the Anacostia river.

Proud of him, proud of our Coast Guard, proud of our military.

am- an hour on the elliptical

pm- zumba, then 4.7 on the treadmill.  I didn't do speed like Monday, but I'm pretty sure it's not good to do speedwork every day.

The photo for the day is from the Marathon with Terri- It's "Miss America."  She's with her friend in the photo.  We'll call the one in the jacket "1st runner up." We would leap-frog each other for the whole second half of the race.  I told her that when I talked about my run, I was going to talk about her.  She had on full make-up, and if I had to say so myself, she was one good looking Miss America!

'Murika

niggles.......I think that's what RAD calls them.  Foot niggles, knee niggles, other knee niggles.  I don't have any reason to push the miles right now, so I'm going to back off for a while and let the niggles work themselves out.  I think the elliptical will be getting some one-on-one time with the pirate for a while.   Which is fine, because I have a huge book I want to finish re-reading before Friday. 

90 minutes on elliptical in the pm today.

Bonus for the day:  It's Big T's day.  That's the day when our awesome principal has the traveling food truck come and feed us snowcones & chili dogs for lunch.  I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself.  I'll need to put a cork on the end of my hook so I don't scratch anyone in my overly-excited state.

The photo for today is of Terri and Ann on the bridge.  Aren't they cute? We were having entirely too much fun for a marathon.

You never know what kind of adventures will befall a pirate once she sets out on the open seas roads.

I was going to run home from work today.  It's 5 miles home- taking the most direct route.  The sun was out, it was 55 degrees (we got out 2 hours early, so I had a sunshine/warmer advantage that I usually don't), and the road was calling to me.   I was already feeling great because we'd gotten out 2 hours early and it's the start of our 10 days of spring break.  I wasn't sure the day could improve.

As I started running home, I realized one aspect of my perfect running trifecta was amiss....the wind...it was very, very windy.  Which is a good thing for setting sail on a trip to spring break land, but wasn't very exciting as I tried to run into it.  I thought of RAD and her blustery run on Saturday that she pushed though for 30+ miles, and realized I really couldn't complain. 

At mile 3 I decided it was just too nice outside to head home, so I took a detour that took me along the cypress lake with the beaver dam, the burned down house, and the cattle ranch.  It added another 5 miles onto my total route, so I ran a total of 5.  From mile 5 to 8.5, it was straight into the blustery wind.  When I finally turned at mile 8.5, and the wind was behind me, I felt like I was on top of the world. 

Then, around mile 9, I saw a 7 turkey vultures in the field to my left.  I was contemplating what kind of dead critter they were after when I had to stop in my tracks at one of the most beautiful sights.  The mother of all pirate booty-loot lay there shining with the sunlight gleaming off the metal.  Of course it was coming home with me!

Yes buccaneers, it was adjustable cane.  In fine shape, if I say so myself.  I shoved the bottom of it down the back of my shorts (so the liner would keep it from sliding out) (and I did have capri running pants on under my shorts as well) and started for home.  I soon realized I needed to secure the top of the cane as well, so I took off my reflective jacket and used it to hold the cane against my back.   I was on my way home and didn't mind the handle banging against my head, because hey, we all have to sacrifice for the better good.  It did occur to me after a few good knocks to the head that the cane was adjustable and so I fiddled with it a little and made it shorter, thus eliminating the head beating I was taking. 

When I was almost home, it occurred to me that perhaps, the owner of the cane was the dead critter those vultures were eating, and it made me a little sad.  But they won't be needing the cane either way ;-)

I'm sure this is just an omen about what an awesome spectacular spring break I'm going to have.  A wonderful run, a delightful treasure, and 10 miles worth of sunshine of my shoulders.  No pains from those niggles either.  It's a beautiful day in the life of a pirate.

And lest I forget, here's the race photo for the day today.  It's me on the bridge over the Anacostia river into Southeast Washington DC.  Not a place I'd normally head on foot by myself anytime of day, but fun when you're with Terri and Ann (and Miss America too).  If I remember correctly, we'd just passed by the stadium on South Capitol Street where the Washington Nationals play baseball.  Anacostia Naval Annex/Bolling AFB is in the background.   

I'd put off exercising all day, and then when I did finally get on the elliptical, just a few minutes after I'd started, I had a surprise visitor and never finished.  Procrastination paid off after all.

Beautiful day for a run.  MR rode his bike and we went around p-town and on a few back roads before heading home again.  I was certain the mileage would be higher than it was, but I wasn't going to take any side trips to get more distance today.  

Glad spring is finally here!

4 mile run with MR, then when we got home, he hopped on his bike and I ran another 4 in the hood while he kept me company on the bike.  Everything is in blossom right now, and other than the stinky smell of the bradford pears, it is a delight for the senses.

Ran my 10k route to the blinky light and back.  MR rode his bike and we discovered that in the same area I'd found the cane, there was a huge part of a car (maybe a rear bumper?) and this made me wonder even more about my old person in the field being eaten by vultures theory.  But the vultures were gone, so I'm guessing so was the old person.  Either way, the cane is safe :-)

The vultures were out on the road though, a mile or so further down, and munching away on some sad little raccoon.  

Ran with MR to the RR tracks and back.  Found a treasure!

For those of you not familiar with the 504 Boyz, I can only say that they've got swagger.  And by that I mean, "I have no idea what I'm talking about."

The CD is now attached firmly to my treasure box with a nail through the disc so no one will ever know what they're missing out on.  Sorry folks...it's the music that shall not be played.

Enjoyed another morning of sleeping in and running while the sun was up.  At least I'm supposed to believe it was up, because it was so cloudy that I'm not convinced it was actually anywhere in the sky today.  

MR rode along even though it was cold and windy, and even sprinkling a little bit.  He's a good first mate!

Rained the rest of the day.  Which is good for spring, but not spring break.

Decided to take a break from running today (planning a long Saturday run) and went for a "hike" with MR.  There wasn't a lot of elevation change, but it was full of mud, sand, and tree roots.  We took the lakeview trail to see the dam.   The dam wasn't really what I thought it was going to be, but the views of the cypress trees growing along the shore with Spanish moss hanging off the branches was beautiful.  

At the end of the hike, there was a boardwalk that connected the trail to the parking lot.   I  don't know how or why, but as I was walking back to the car on the even, dry boardwalk, I felt a painful jolt in my knee.  My good knee.  Stupid.

I put a light weight knee brace on it and iced it when I got home.   6 miles of gnarly roots, and I get hurt on the safe part?  What's up with that?

Still having pain in my knee from who-knows-what happened yesterday.  Kept the knee brace on, iced it off and on, took some pain meds, and went to see a Civil War re-enactment.  Bit of a mixed bag going to those here in the south because despite their best enthusiasm and efforts, you know they're still going to lose.

Best quote of the day, overheard from a woman who was staying in the Union camp.  A visitor was walking through her camp and jokingly said, "y'all better be careful- those rebels are getting awfully close!"  The woman replied, "Actually ma'am, I myself am a rebel.  I am being held here as a prisoner of war for the weekend."  

Best part of the battle was at the end, when the field was littered with bodies from both sides and the fighting had stopped, all the casualties stood up and walked back to their respective groups to re-join the ranks.  I wish all battles could end that way.

In the afternoon, I went out for a bike ride with MR.  I was worried my knee wouldn't cooperate, but the bike ride didn't cause any pain- and it was wonderful to get out and move my legs and feel the breeze on my face.   We went just over 10 miles- it was wonderful!!  Then we made eggrolls and hushpuppies to celebrate :-)

Morning bike ride with MR.  11+ miles.  Beautiful day out.

90 min on elliptical in the morning then I rode the bike 5 miles to work and 10 miles home.

Knee was a little "off" today.  Took some pain meds to try and help.  I did pilates in the morning and then rode the 5 miles into work.

After work, the weather was beautiful outside so I decided to take an extra detour on my ride home.  I ended up with 14 miles.  I know it seems like small beans for all the hard core bike riders out there, but it was a good ride for me.  The wind was blowing around 13 mph out of the Southwest (the direction I was riding into) so I was pushing into the wind most of the time.  I was tired when I got home, but I had a wonderful surprise on my front steps- my shoes finally arrived!  So I had to put them on and take them for a quick run around the block.  It wasn't easy for me to make the transition from bike to run.  I can only imagine how that would feel amplified for someone who had already swam before biking.  Kudos to those of you who do!

I felt like I was running very slow.  I was surprised that I wasn't and my pace ended up being pretty good considering how I felt.

My tired legs were very tired after that.  I was cooking dinner when mini-me came home and asked me to go on a bike ride with her.  So I turned off the stove and got back on the bike.  We went around 5 miles.  I was having a tough time keeping up with her, but we got to enjoy a little bit of time outdoors together.  I think between 6 and 7 is a scary time to be out on the roads though.  Lots of traffic and the sun is at the angle where it's in the eyes of the drivers and makes it hard for them to see me. 

The prettiest little flowers (they look like bluebells) are flowering on my walkway now.  They're a better spring-time photo than the dead critter I saw on the ride home.

I haven't been sleeping well, and last night was the worst of the week.  If I would have gotten up to exercise this morning, I would have only gotten 4 hours of sleep.  So I stayed in bed and settle for 5 1/2 hours.

Afternoon was shopping with mini-me and visiting a good friend in the evening.  I'm sure another day of rest is probably not going to hurt my knee either.

Finally got some sleep last night.  It was awesome.  I would put a photo up here of how awesome it was, but my camera doesn't have an "awesome" filter on it, so it wouldn't look right if I were to post it.

After school I got to run home- it was in the 70's and beautiful.  I took a little detour to run down into a new neighborhood they're building.  The sign says there will be running trails in the community, so I hope they start working on those soon!

When I got home, I was feeling good and took the mile loop around the hood.  It was great to be able to run again!  My knees cooperated and I didn't have any problems.  It was a slow start for my pace, but by the end I was on target with where I'd like to be. 

The azaleas and dogwoods are all in full bloom right now.  It is beautiful.  The cherry and pear trees are almost all full of green leaves now, but I love the dogwoods and the bright colors of the azaleas.  Here's a photo of one of the dogwoods in my backyard.  I took it after my run.  I love spring.

Knees felt good after the run yesterday, and I want to do a long run on Saturday, so I took the day today to let them recover and rest.... and to let myself get some much needed catch-up sleep.

A simply wonderful day for a run.  I took mini-me to her ACT test and then drove to p-town for my run.  I'm getting tired of the same running routes, and since my mileage isn't long enough to go too far away, I went 5 miles from home to enable myself to run new roads.  

I'd taken my bike on the roads a couple of years ago, so I knew pretty much where I was going, but it was still exciting to be on a new route.  The roads were very runner friendly, and I didn't have much traffic at all.   I did get to an intersection at mile 6, and I wasn't sure which way I should go.  I've never figured out how to use the map portion of my garmin, but I decided that if worse came to worse, I would just turn around at mile 7 and back track.  Lucky for me, just before mile 7 I realized where I was and I got to run a different road back, keeping the whole run fresh and new.

I did go into a little redneck gas station around mile 9 to get some water for my water bottle.  The gas stations I've been in have always been really nice about letting me grab some tap water for my water bottle, and this was no exception.  I'm grateful that they're willing to let me steal a couple cups of water for the run back.  I had a couple dollars in my running belt, but I was happier with free tap water than paying $2 for a bottled tap water.

On the road home, I found my treasure for the day.  It is titled "Sounds of Blackness - Africa to America- the journey of the drum." 

It's scratched up pretty bad, so I won't be able to listen to it.  And since there's no shosholoza on it, I'm not feeling like I'm missing out on anything either.

I did miss out on sunscreen though, and wasn't prepared for the skin crispining I got.  Time to get the sunblock out.

Best part of my day- when RAD finally answered her phone and I heard her voice say, "I'm Okay!" 

I'd just been checking her stats online when Wyatt and MR both called me worried about her.  I'm running into the middle of the school atrium (where I get phone reception) and crying while I am trying to get her to answer her phone.  It just happened to be at dismissal time, so the whole student body got to see me have a crazy moment.  It was another hour or so until she told me that she'd found Smooth, and then my worries were all at an end.  

Prayers of comfort and blessings to all those who are in Boston tonight. 

Oh, and I ran home from work.  Cried most of the time trying to come to terms with my emotions.  It was an emotional day!

I cried watching the women's and men's top finishers live online.  I had everyone in the office watching it with me.  It was such an amazing happy time!

I cried with worry and torment waiting to find out if RAD & Smooth were okay.

I cried with relief when I found out they were safe from harm.

Now I'm crying thinking about all the crying I did.  Pirates aren't supposed to cry, but today was a dark day and this pirate didn't feel much like a pirate, more like a jelly fish.

Morning run- really foggy out.

Not sure what I did in the morning, but I'm pretty sure it involved sleeping in.

After work, mini-me decided she wanted to help with stage crew for our school's musical that opens on Thursday, and she was going to be out all night, so I went for a run.  Why not?

I did my 9 mile swamp run.  It was beautiful out.  Spring is everywhere!!

elliptical

Didn't want to do nothing, but didn't want to do much of anything either.  So I settled on something.  Quick run in the hood before work.  Nice to have the sun coming up early again.

I enjoyed running out away from my normal roads last Saturday, and I wanted to do the same thing again today, but I wasn't feeling as "crazy adventurous" as I was last week just going out and hoping I could find my way back.  So I tried out mapmyrun.com  and I loved it!  I was able to switch things up enough to get some brand new roads and just the mileage I was looking for.  It was pretty spot-on with the estimated mileage too.

I ran past an old country store along side some train tracks that reminded me of the Whistle Stop Cafe in "Fried Green Tomatoes."  I wanted to take a photo, but it seemed like such a hassle at the time that I didn't.  I'll be back down that way again since it was such a cute little area (and not a lot of traffic).   As one of the roads I was on intersected a local highway, there was a biker's group doing a ride for charity with police escorts and everything.  I used it as a chance to stop and wave at the parade of bikers and policemen.  Reminded me of all the support I saw on the tv the night before when the law enforcement finally caught the brother in the boat.

It was windy the last 4 miles of the run.  All head-on 15 mph winds.  Woof- that's a tough way to end a run!  Or should I say AARRRRGGGHHHH?

5.6 in the morning and 5.13 in the afternoon.  It was actually cool again today and I had to wear gloves in the morning and long sleeves/jacket in morning and afternoon.  I'd brought my gloves in the afternoon but didn't wear them.  I put them in my jacket pocket and when I got home, they were gone when I got home.  I had to bribe mini-me to go drive and see if she could find them for me.  She actually found them- and they were less than 1/2 a mile from home.  I could have walked back and found them myself but I was done being out in the wind at that point.  The wind was 17mph.  Getting tired of the wind.

Morning run.  Where is the moon?  I haven't been out every morning like I used to, but I miss the moon all the same.  

morning elliptical

after work, ran my 9 mile p-town loop.  I was excited because the wind had finally shifted and was blowing from the SW instead of the NW.  I was glad to have the wind in my face the first half of the run instead of the last half.

What I hadn't planned on was someone being out spraying herbicide/pesticide in the fields on a day when there are 15 mph winds.  I kept smelling something different in the air, and I just couldn't figure out what it was, until after smelling it for 2 miles, I finally saw the tractor spraying the fields.  I'd been breathing that crap for 2 miles!!  No wonder I was feeling icky!

The good news was that after mile 3, I got completely behind the fields (from the wind standpoint) and had a really good 5 miles of fresh pollen-filled air.  The last mile I was back in the windfall from the fields, but I was almost home and didn't care as much.

I saw my first road-kill snake of the season.  It was a good 2 1/2 feet long, so not a baby snake at all.  Oh goody!  On the railroad tracks, there was a short train stopped and it had a real old-fashioned caboose.  It was bright red and said "Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road" on it.  I tried so hard to get a good photo of it, but the trees made it difficult.  It made me happy to see.

I was excited to see that the insecticide was working, because when I got home all of the gnats all over my face and neck were dead. 

Ran home from school.  Enjoyed the nice weather, the lack of wind, and fresh air without pesticides.  Of course when I got home I had to apply bug killer to my own backyard, but it was granules and I didn't breathe any of it in either.  The fire ants are already out and building mounds of potential death traps on the sides of the roads.  So now I've got snakes and fire ants on my list of running hazards for the week.

30 minutes elliptical.  I had plans on running home after school since mini-me had the car with her getting ready for prom.  But then I realized I needed 2 binders full of papers for checking kids in at prom and didn't want to run home with them.  So I got a ride home and ate chocolate covered strawberries and candy covered apple slices all night while I sat on my tukus and played bouncer at the prom doors.

I had so much typed up...but when I went to spell check "repertoire,"  it all disappeared.  So I'll sum up.

1- sat outside in pollen land for 4 hours last night before going to bed, too tired to shower, woke up with my eyes glued shut and throat on fire (after taking the zyrtec)

2-woke up feeling like an ornery pirate.  For my "day of service" contribution, I did everyone a service by staying home and resting & reading.

3- drug myself out around 2pm.  Went north-east (into the city instead of away from it like I always do) and got to do some hills.  Good run.

4-the "tobacco and groceries" store I stopped at for water (got it out of the sink in the bathroom) smelled like they'd had a hookah party back there recently. 

5- saw a car get pulled over on the by-pass road.  There's a photo of it I'll put on here... it's the only place I ran that didn't have businesses or homes, but did have a sidewalk.  Why?

6-local fauna for the day-  super dead & flat snake, flying grasshoppers, black butterflies, gnats, and huge dogs that didn't understand they were taller than the 3 foot fence keeping them in the yard.  Dogs can jump, can't they?  No one told these dogs. I wasn't going to be the one to do it either.

7- **bonus**  Sonic has brought back it's coconut cream pie shake for the summer.  Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Clause.  He came in April this year.

Photos:

The bypass road with a sidewalk, but no houses for 3 miles.....

Wildflowers blooming along the side of I-95

Wisteria.  It's a weed out here.  People from this area don't understand why anyone would want to plant it in their yard.  But this time of year, it's beautiful!

And here's my attempt at capturing the cute little caboose from my Wednesday run:

and last but not least, there's also this cute "little caboose"

Love you, RAD.  She'd kill me if she saw this, but she's too busy to read blogs anymore so I'm going with it.  

it's not a fracture

maybe it's a stress fracture, but too early to tell

take it easy, run a little if it doesn't hurt and come back in a couple of weeks for another xray if it's still bothering you

suck

Pilates in the morning.  

After work, I used the recumbent bike and pushed the pedals with my heels.  Managed almost 18 miles, but it made my back hurt.  Totally worth being able to sweat.

I get depressed when I wake up in the morning and my foot still hurts.  I don't know why the foot pain-killer fairy won't visit me.  Doesn't she know how much I need her?

Tried pilates on the ball this morning.  It was interesting, to say the least.  Most of all I just want to say   AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH. 

pilates on the ball in the am, 1 hour on the recumbent bike in the pm.  

At some point in the day,  I realized that walking on my foot didn't hurt and I wasn't limping.  Progress- it's been slow but seems to be moving forward.

pilates on the ball in the morning.

still some occasional pain in the foot, but I'm able to walk around all day without trouble.  I'll try elliptical tomorrow and see how it goes with more movement and still less impact than running.  

I have big hopes!

Gobs of yard work between the morning rain and the evening rain.

90 minutes on the elliptical.  Kept flat footed and tried to not come up on the ball of my foot.  That's where I find the most discomfort.  

Had a good chat with Terri while I was exercising.  Excited to see her again in a couple of weeks!!

1 hour on the elliptical in the morning.

Found out today that Icleand has a Pirate political party.  They're actually called the Pirate party.  They gained 3 seats in the country's 63 member parliament.  I feel like I may have a future in politics.  But only during the summer months.

baby steps back into running.  It felt amazing to be back outside.  I was surprised how light it was outside in the morning.  Miss 10 days and see what I miss.

I followed with 30 minutes on the elliptical.

After work I did 30 minutes on the bike and worked on reading "Anthem."  I'm finally getting to read all those books I never read in school.  I finished The Great Gatsby on Sunday.  Love books.

Yesterday's short run went so well that I figured I needed to try it again today.  I went slow, and it was a beautiful morning for a run.  I didn't want to stop running, but this image stopped me in my tracks for a photo-op.

30 minutes on elliptical after work.

20 min elliptical in the morning.  I was dressed and ready to head out for a run, and I saw the weather was going to be in the 70s and sunny in the afternoon, so I decided to save my run for the afternoon.

It was an amazing run.  No foot pain except  when I was running downhill.  Not sure why that is, but I hope it's not related to a stress fracture.  I won't run tomorrow, hope to get another little run in on Saturday.

Found out today that pirates in Somalia have created their own stock market.  So if my future in politics doesn't work out, there's always stocks. 

20 minutes on the elliptical

5 miles; 4 with MR and one on my own at the end.

Foot continues to feel good, so I'm happy about that. 

2 mile walk in the evening. 

Happy Mother's Day

Nice 2 mile walk with MR around the neighborhood. 

9 mile bike ride with MR in the morning.  Glad the sun is up so early so we could ride early together.

It was a little cool and windy, but so beautiful outside I can't complain. 

90 minutes on elliptical after work.  45 minutes hard workout, 45 minutes of steady work to keep the endurance up. 

4 miles in the morning, so glad the sun in out, so glad my foot is feeling better!

Then I rode 5 miles to work on my bike, and after work rode 4.5, .5, and another 3 miles home (with breaks inbetween- I was on Pirate business) for a total of 8 in the afternoon.  13 miles total on the bike.  Very windy, but beautiful outside.

I had to wake up at midnight to register for the Army Ten Miler.  It sells out so quickly and MR is already registered, so I had to make sure I got in.  I was so frustrated that it took nearly an hour to register because the website kept freezing up.  If you're going to make me wake up at midnight, make sure you can support the level of traffic on your site so I'm not up for an hour getting cranky in the middle of the night.

A cranky pirate is NOT a good thing!  It took me another hour to be able to fall back asleep.  So I bagged my morning workout and decided I'd enjoy the afternoon weather and get out for a run later on.

But I did register.  So there's one goal for the year- run the ATM in October. 

This afternoon, I knew I needed to run because I had to deal with Grumpy Granny on the phone at work and either I was going to run or someone would have to walk the plank.  Everyone has seen gumpy cat, but grumpy granny likes to say things like, "YOU need to get your **** together" and use horrible phrases that include using every name given for deity.   Look lady, your kid didn't turn in his books- don't get nasty with me- I'm a Pirate.

What I hadn't planned on was it being so hot.  It was 90 degrees at 5:30 in the afternoon.  The only good part of today's run was the 14 mph wind.  I had to run into the wind the whole first half, so on the way home it should have been at my back.  Maybe it was, but I couldn't feel it at all.  I had a stop a couple of times and cool off in the shade.

Foot feels good.  I hope it's not hot like this for the weekend.

Treadmill miles after work.

Another fun birthday weekend and race with Terri in Fredericksburg, VA.

A little mist/rain at the beginning, cloudy and perfect running weather the rest of the time.

We have too much fun on these runs.   

Treadmill after school.  

Got to run with my little buccaneer.  We ran around a big parade field track.  Not sure the exact distance, but we went for an hour and ran more than half the time.  And we ran fast.

We decided the first loop around to walk to one light pole, then run to the next, then walk, then run. The second lap we ran two, walked one.  I was sprinting the whole "run" time.  At one point, he said, "let's sprint the second part."  Wait...I thought he was sprinting too.  I was wrong.  He literally left me in his dust.

3 days later and I'm still a little sore from all that speed work.   

Ran around Ft. Gordon for 45 minutes.  First half was really slow, with sore muscles from the workout the day before.  Lots of hills in Augusta!

morning run

morning run

morning run- speedwork

It's getting harder & harder to wake up on time in the morning.  Then the afternoons are crazy busy and evil hot/humid.

Summer vacation needs to get here soon!

Warrior Dash with MR.  Heat advisory made it wicked hot to run in the afternoon, but we had fun in the hot mud anyway!

This is the last year we'll do this warrior dash- the administrative part of this run just goes downhill every year.  This year we had to wait in a line (in the sun and heat) for over an hour to pick up our packets.  When we finally got to the front of the line, we saw that the lines were divided into all females on the left, males on the right.  Someone should have mentioned that when we got into the line an hour before, because we were both on the left side.  Who comes to pick up a packet with their spouse and then wants to wait in line for an hour alone?  

Then they had the male/female lines separated by last names.  Hope you're on the right part of the line.  Some of the packet workers were kind and help whoever got into their line.  I saw one woman, who I'll call "Beverly," that when a woman and her husband got to the front of the line, she told the man he'd have to go to the back of the line for males (it's an hour wait) and that she wasn't going to help him.  If he wanted help, he could get in the right line or just go ahead and see if someone else wanted to help him who hadn't been working all day.  Really?  This guy had been driving over 3 hours just to get to the race that morning (no packet pickup available the previous day) and she is going to get nasty like that with him? 

 I will not throw my money at races that treat runners like this.  It reminded me of the Rock & Roll folks that were too busy catering to the half marathon runners and all but left the marathon runners to fend for themselves at the finish line.  I won't attend their races again either.  They charge nearly $100 for race entry and need to use some of that money to buy a clue.

After finally getting the packets, it was another 20 minute wait in the sun (again) to drop off the bags.  They had drop off/pick up at the same place, and it was chaos.  To my delight (NOT), Beverly had moved to the bag tent by the time we got to the front of the line.  What is it with that woman?  I wish I could have drown her in the mud pit!!!

The race itself was lots of fun- always a good workout.  They did a better job pacing out the obstacles so the back-ups we experiences last year weren't an issue.  The mud pit was crazy at the end.  It was really, really long and had really deep sticky mud.  My foot got stuck at one point and I couldn't pull it out.  My leg started cramping from me trying to rescue my foot.  MR had to help me pull it out!  It was a true obstacle!  Some people lost their shoes in the pit.  Which wasn't much of a loss if the shoes were just going to the donation pile, but a couple of folks lost the shoe with the timing chip in the laces.  The chip is what you turn in to redeem for your free beer.  So there were some unhappy sober campers at the end of the run.

Luckily for MR, he had his chip and mine to keep him happy.  We both got sunburned on our heads from standing in the afternoon sun in line for 90+ minutes.  Good turkey legs and people watching when it was finished.  On the car ride home the next day, we would see cars with orange mud all over the tailgates/door frames and we'd know where they'd been on Saturday!

Sore from the Warrior Dash.  Last year it was easier for me because I was nearly done with p90x when I did the 'dash.  This year, my muscles are angry about the workout I gave them.  I'll take a few days of sore muscles over 90 days of Tony!!

4 morning miles.  Work was so stressful today I thought my head was going to explode and leave brain detritus  all over my desk.  It was a workout not to scream at people.

Morning run.  It was the perfect weather for a nice run.  Breezy cool air, not too hot, not too windy.  Like Goldilocks, this morning was just right.  Legs still sore, I feel like I'm moving backwards in my fitness level.  I realize I'm not eating the right kinds of foods to give me good energy.  But knowing is less than half the battle.

After school, I was excited to go to the end of the year zumba party.  My foot feels healed up well enough to jump around for a while, and when I heard the word party I didn't want to miss out on it.  

It was a 2 hour party and I had heard there would be working out, and prizes, and partying.  I showed up late because I was finishing up work I had to do, and I was worried I was going to miss all the zumba-ing.  I was sure I would be there in enough time for the party and the food, so I wasn't worried.  WELL, I was wrong about this "party" and there wasn't a drop of food to eat, and they did zumba for the whole 2 hours.  It was fun as sin, but my body wasn't prepared for 2 hours of zumba. 

I had to go home and mow the lawn after the "party".  By the time 9 pm rolled around, I was pooped and falling asleep in bed.  Best night sleep I've had in a long, long time. 

I took the day off.  My body and brain are both exhausted. 

This time of year is so stressful and I get extra worked up when people who have more education and make more money than I do can't read and/or follow directions/instructions and then want me to do their job for them because they are too lazy/incompetent to do it themselves.

Just sayin'. 

morning run. overcast and just a little humid.  not a bad morning run.

snowcone & chili dog day at school.  the bright spot in my week of outer darkness.

Got to run with Wyatt this morning- so much to talk about.  With 1.5 miles to go, I realized I was supposed to be home in  5 minutes- and it is a 7 minute drive from Wyatt's house to mine.  Thus, I was going to be late getting home.  Very late.  

Mini- me had a babysitting job and I was going to make everyone late because I'd spent more time talking and not paying attention to the actual time.   I had to sprint home the last 1.5 miles.  By the time I got to the car I was exhausted!!

She was 20 minutes late to her babysitting job- I felt horrible.  The couple was going to a birthday lunch date. I feel like a rotten pirate P-(

After I got home and mini me took the car to babysit,  I went out for a couple more miles in my 'hood.  It was getting really warm outside.  It was 12:30 and the sun was doing it's job warming up everything, including me.

I had kicked around doing 4.5 miles, but at mile 2.7 I decided I was going to be happy with 3 more miles.  I've been slacking off my miles the last few weeks, and I don't need to over do it on a day like today.

After finishing my run, I had 3 hours worth of yard work to do.  Then an hour of housework.  Wish I would have kept my calorie monitor on!

Rain storms in the morning.  Did 20 min elliptical before work.

Rain storms in the evening.  Getting tired of the Seattle rain.  I have more mushrooms in my lawn than my refrigerator .  Not cool.

It's too close to summer vacation for me and my body does not want to get out of bed before 7 am.  I managed 20 min on the elliptical  before work.

After work, I got in 3.6 miles on the treadmill before my ride came to pick me up.  Then I went home and cleaned out the rain gutters which were full of walnut and oak tree bloom carcasses....and lots of mosquito larvae.  

Then I mowed the lawn.  Until the belt broke when I was 9.8% done with front yard.  2nd time in a month that stupid mower has broken down when I've just started mowing the front yard.  I had nothing nice to say after that.  It was 8 pm by then and getting dark anyway. 

Last day of work for the school year.  Did treadmill after work.  It's so humid outside that anything over 80 degrees is unbearable to run in.  I wanted to get in 4 miles, but my ride came early.

I've decided to go Full Pirate for the remainder of the summer.  To quote The Pirate Handbook, "Now there are those who believe an honest day's work equals and honest day's pay. Bilge! That lily-livered mentality will bring you nothing but boredom, regret, and poverty.  But pirating on the other hand, well matey, that's a life worth living."

Tomorrow I'll secure the plank for our first "walk" of the summer.

Hopefully I'll have time to run amid all my plunderin', fightin', gamblin', & drinkin'.  It's time to unleash my Pirate Soul.

Ran trails at the Paxtuent Research Center in Maryland.  We ran out to heron lake and back.  Beautiful weather, and some nice views along the way.

Ran in DC with MR.  We started just south of the Lincoln monument, ran across the bridge toward Arlington Cemetery, and from there we looped down onto the Mt. Vernon trail and headed north.  We saw a sign for the Teddy Roosevelt Memorial and went there.  It's on an island in the middle of the Potomac River.  We crossed the bridge, and took a little break exploring the monument.

Then we headed back toward DC taking the bridge near the Kennedy Center.  We stopped to see Watergate and the Kennedy Center, then ran back toward the Lincoln Memorial.

This pirate is not a crook  (see image below)

  From Lincoln, we ran along the reflecting pool toward the WWII memorial, then toward the tidal basin where we ran into the Martin Luther King Jr. monument.  I'd never seen it before, and it was really impressive. 

From there we ran back to the car and rented some bikes for the rest of the day.  The bikes are $7 to rent all day as long as you use them in less than 30 minute intervals.  Every! 29 minutes, you have to park them back in one of the bike rental racks, and then you can take them again for another 29 minutes.  If you do keep them longer than 30 minutes, you will be charged additional costs.  It was nice because we could take them to a museum, park them, and then take the bikes back out again when we were done.

Not sure my miles on the bike for the day; we were riding for a good period of time, but with pedestrians and traffic, you've got to go slowly.  And there's only one gear on the bikes.

Went on the rail trail with Terri!!  It was so nice to be running with her again.  The weather was perfect, and time went by so fast.

Both watch batteries were dead, so we just went for a run.  It was warmer than it'd been all week, so we had to take a few breaks to cool off.  

MR and I went back to the Paxtuent Research center to try a different trail today.  We went on the Whippor-Whill trail.  There was a really old cemetery off to the side of the trail.  I was able to make out one headstone that read 1600s for birth/death.  

The mileage is just a guess.  But I feel like it's a good one.

I'm having a great deal of difficulty waking up early enough to run in the morning before it gets hot.

So I've taken to running in the the evening after the thunderstorms have passed.  It was nice out around 7 pm.  I saw 20 airplanes flying to the drop zone for a big paratrooper drop.  That's a lot of folks jumping out of perfectly good airplanes!

Went to zumba in the morning- it was fun as always.

In the evening, I went to run with Wyatt out by her place.  It had finished pouring down rain just an hour earlier, so we were afraid the shoulders would be really muddy.  We took a break and went walking near the corn fields where some of the stalks are at least 11 feet high.  The cobs are already looking full on the stalks.  I so badly wanted to yank a few off and take them home to eat!

Not much wildlife be we did see a small 3 inch long turtle in the grass on our way home. 

Sore from zumba.  Can't sit down or get up without pain.

So I mowed the lawn.  On the riding mower.

Ran around the mall while I had firestone fix my flat tire.  Except the nail was in the tire wall and I got to buy a new tire instead.  I end up with more nails in my tires than I feel are my fair share.  I do not drive through random construction sites with large magnets dragging along my car frame!

It was nice to have a new place to run.  Sometimes the same old places get tiresome.

Got in an early morning run with Wyatt.

 Then we watched Duck Dynasty while she made us biscuits. 

Perfect morning!!

Ran with MR in the morning before the rain.

Found a new pirate ship to pillage on land while the ship is docked for the holiday.

Ran with MR in the humid heat. 

Rain sent me to the gym this morning.  Warmed up with 2 miles on the elliptical, then 4 miles of hills on treadmill running, and .4 miles of walking.  Finished up with 2.5 miles on a recumbent bike.

Walked around the city and put a few more miles on my legs during the day. 

Saw some great fireworks driving homw.

Ran on base with MR.  It was hot and humid.  We had frequent walk breaks.  The run distance is just what we ran.  Total distance is probably another mile+.  We saw a turtle, 2 deer, a fox, and a mess load of groundhogs.

Ran my 10K route to the p-town light.  I had a vicious dog run out onto the road at me twice.  Once on my way down to the light, and again on the way back.  I screamed for the owners to come get their dog off of me or I would shoot it.  The finally came for the dog and I was grateful that a car came and kept the dog off me.  The owners just shrugged at me, saying "what can I do?"  On the way back, it was the same exact scenario.  I finally asked the owners what I should do.

I told them I was going to run on the road, and although their dog was trying to protect it's property, the road was NOT their property, and I would shoot their dog if it came out after me again like that.  I asked them what I could do so I could be safe and their dog would be safe.  His suggestion, "just pet her."  Yeah, like I"m going to put my hand out at the beast that's barking, snarling, bearing it's teeth and has it's hair standing up on end.  NOPE.

He ended up giving me his number so I can call ahead when I'm going to be running by & they'll put the dog up.  I'd like to call ahead and let the police stop by and pick them up for being drunk & stoned before 9 am.  We'll see.

On a positive note, I did see this sad little crushed turtle on my way home.

Another hot and humid run.

No dog days today, just the dog days of summer.

morning run, then afternoon on shore leave getting some sand in my toes.

Ran around the hood, before it started raining again.  The humidity is 95% in the morning, and then it gets hot and rains all afternoon & night setting it up for another humid morning.  95% humidity makes 80 degrees unbearable.

I don't care much for competition.  

Scrubbed floors, shower, windows.  Being a happy helper makes me feel like this:

Ran at the gym on the treadmill.  Did random hills.  Wasn't the way I like to spend my runs, but at least I got a run in.

Ran & explored a new neighborhood.  Hot, humid, and got yelled at & flipped off by someone that was unhappy that I wasn't going fast enough across a marked cross-walk.  Sharing & Caring.

Ran on Ft. Meade and saw this sign where General Patton's HQ used to be:

Right after I passed this sign, the podcast I was listening to stopped playing and The Ballad of the Green Beret from my itunes came on.  Weird.

I stopped at the USO to fill up my water bottle.  And in case I haven't mentioned it yet this summer, it was HOT and HUMID!

Ran around the hood while MR rode the bike. 

Ran with Wyatt.  There was a really nice breeze that helped keep us from catching heat stroke.  Walked a while- good company, good run.

I spent most of the day in the car, but I was finally able to get out around 8 pm for a quick run.  I actually ran slowly, but it was a good run.  If it wasn't for the onslaught of flying ants and darkness, I could have run a few more miles.

One benefit of running so late is that it's cooler.  It was actually pleasant.  I just don't like the idea of waiting so late in the day to get a run in.  Too many distractions and ways to talk myself into something other than exercise.  Like the Samoas Ice Cream in my freezer.

Beautiful clouds in the east on my run.  The setting sun eventually turned them a brilliant red. 

Here's a view looking west:

.

Not a bad way to end my day :-)

Pioneer day with Wyatt.  The run was supposed to be longer, but a puppy decided to follow her home.  Eventually, we resorted to walking so the dog wouldn't get hurt by a car driving by. 

Cute black puppy, but neither of us are interested in adopting it.  Hopefully a nice family will adopt him from the pound.

Missed running in SLC with my sisters today. 

Another beautiful evening run.  I took a photo, but my ipod seems to hate me and will not work anymore.  I am having withdrawals.   It's almost embarrassing. 

The run was amazing until the last half mile when the flying ants decided to fly into my face and get stuck in my sweat.  So nasty.

Nice morning run, not too humid or hot.  Got some yardwork done too.  And I learned about coffins before my ipod broke & stopped working.  Almost ironic.

Sometimes a delayed flight arrival can be a good thing.  I managed to sleep in and get in my run before my Mom arrived.  Someone decided to have a heart attack on the airplane and it set her back a few hours.  Silver linings, people.

I had a nice run while MR rode his bike along & was my waterboy.  He found an amazing treasure- a minion from Despicable Me.  I'd post a photo, but ipod is still broken.  Nothing to listen to on my run either, so MR would sing out the lyrics to the songs on his ipod as we went along.  Good times.

Now I am awake at 12:40 am because some idiots in a trailer just outside our neighborhood are having some kind of yelling competition.  Stereotypes are often based on reality.  Trailer trash is a stereotype, isn't it?  And yes, I lived in a trailer for a while 19 years ago.  Ask RAD if you don't believe me- she's got some good memories.  I'll bet bye-wing does too if they're not repressed too far down.

I recall prostitutes, drug deals, and a very sweet old woman without any teeth.

Ran with Wyatt for 5.34 and then went home and ran with MR for 3.05.  Car ride for the rest of the day on our way to see Buccaneer's graduation.

Ran on Ft Gordon.  They have a huge 3 mile packed dirt track.  It's a huge oval that runs the perimeter of the parade field.  I ran most of it, and headed off to run a big hill I'd seen the last time I was there.  It's actually a ravine, so it goes way down, then way up.  Turned around at the top and did the whole thing again on my way back to the track, where I finished the loop and headed up to the hotel.

Made it out before the heat of the day- always a bonus.  Did a few miles walking around Augusta.  Got my pix taken with the James Brown statue.  Jump back & kiss myself in the Hot Tub!! (It was humid enough & hot enough that we could have actually been IN a hot tub based on the amount of sweat dripping off of me).

Up & out early, running with the soldiers on base.  Headed to the track.  Just did one loop and headed back.  I was happy every time I passed a group running in formation.  Yeah, they were probably the injured groups, but hey, I passed someone!!

Found out my ipod was un-fixable, but the apple store in Augusta was very helpful and instead of making me buy another  $300 ipod, they sold me the same version I had for $100.  I was okay with that.  Now I just have to put all my stuff back onto the ipod.  First things first, my "Stuff you should know" podcasts.  Itunes can wait!

Graduation was today- glad to have the buccaneer back on board for a while.

Took the day off yesterday.  Did yardwork and housework and then ate myself silly at dinner and took a 2 mile walk around the hood to try and quiet the stomach monster I had created.

Went for a run today while MR rode along.  It was overcast most of the time, which helped keep it from getting crazy hot.

Not many treasures, but plenty of cows & horses today.  Some days the cows will run along with me.  Not today- they're probably conserving their energy for following the shade across the pasture.

Evening run in the hood.  It got dark while I was running- not a big deal since I was on familiar turf & not many cars.

Took me all day to convince myself I needed to run more than I needed to crawl in bed.  Glad I did.

Ran the swamp 9 mile loop.  I got hot and had a walk a few times so my total run distance was only 8.11.. I was okay with it.

Ran the p-town loop with Wyatt.  Time went by so quickly having someone to visit with.  My mind isn't the best company lately.

Went hiking with MR.  Had to wear my running shoes because I didn't come prepared.  I'm thinking a few trail miles on them will be okay.

Ran the cemetery trail loop with MR. Such nice weather and good shade on the trail.

Got to run with Terri!!!  Big happy face!

We were going to run outside, but the rain monkey had other plans and we were lucky enough to get a free visitor pass to the gym.  Just like the good old days, except Hannah Montana had been replaced by some video on getting firm muscles under your pants.

Time flew by.  So much to talk about and catch up on.  The good, the bad, and the ugly. 

After we finished, we went to stretch out and Terri asked me, "do you want to do planks?"

NO.

She cooked us a most delicious breakfast with farm fresh eggs and produce from her garden.  Best cantalope ever!!  Thanks for a great morning, Terri.  It made the 7 hour car ride bearable.

Rain.  All day long. Blech.

Morning errands let to an afternoon run, but it was nice and overcast without too much heat.  Out and back- only one little dog that wanted to get kicked, but I was feeling generous today and just yelled at it.

Mowed the lawn after the run since I was already sweaty and needed a shower.  Got a little cardio in when the giant spider swung down to greet my face.  I backed up as fast as I could and that part of the lawn will have to wait till next week.

Got ready & opened the front door to a rainstorm.  So I did 45 on the elliptical.  I haven't done it for a long time and it kicked my trash. So sad.

Planned on running in the pm with Wyatt, and wouldn't you know it- it started raining again.  It was a really nasty rain too.  So we just sat and ate fluffy pink frozen treats and watched the rain fall while we were dry inside her dark, powerless house.

Eventually the rain let up, and we headed out.  Sprinkled a bit, but it was totally worth the beautiful rainbow and sunset we got to see. 

Dog days- sick and tired of dog owners that have aggressive dogs and let them run loose.  Then, when I am yelling and screaming, and the dog is snarling at me so close his dog spit flies onto my leg, the man stands there and tells me, "They won't bother you."

DUDE- THIS is bothering me!!!!  He gets them back in his yard and tells me again that they won't bother me, so I start running again, and the dogs come across the road at me again.  He just stands there with a bucket in his hand saying, "get back here."  Not really working. Considering filing a complaint with the Sheriff's office. 

I did manage to finish my run, but after the adrenaline rush from the dog attack, I was exhausted the rest of the way. 

Early morning run with Wyatt.  Still dark at 6 am, so we switched to 630.  Did a park & run so we could go to a different pasture than we're used to.  It was wonderful.  Best part of all (other than the company) was it was only 65 degrees when we started out.  Probably low 70s when we ended, if that.  It was nice, breezy, and not an infernal oven.

There must have been a micro-burst, powerful winds, or tornado on the street we ran on the night before.  Every house that had a tree over 20 feet tall had at least on tree that was snapped 4 feet above the ground, blown completely over leaving a huge rootball, or had severe limb loss (at least 1/3 of the tree).  Many houses had trees blocking their driveways.  One house had a car in the driveway with a fallen tree on either side of it.  It was a miracle neither of the trees damaged the car.  There was siding from one house all over the street in the front of it, and someone's mailbox sign with their name on it was in the middle of the road.

We both only live 5 miles from this road (in opposite directions), and neither of us saw this kind of damage.   When we first started running, no one was out- but on the way back to our cars, everyone was out in their yards and the chain saws were humming.  Or tractors were dragging- lots of fields on the road.

 Grateful for a nice run, good company, and no trees falling in my yard.

Congrats to RAD and Brent on a great race today!

Another beautiful morning- perfect for a run.  I had troubles with a nasty stitch in my belly and I had to stop frequently to stretch it out.  I had to stop at .5, 1, 2, 3 and 4.  Then the last 3+ miles I ran without any problems at all.  Very strange.  I was even able to increase my pace the last couple of miles.

Went out again for an evening run with Wyatt to discuss events of the day.  I had to stop again at mile .7 to stretch out the same stupid stitch in my belly.  What the heck?  It didn't bother me much again at all during our run, but at mile 2.5 I needed a walk break.  The temps weren't too high, but the sun felt hot and I'll admit my legs were tired.

It has been a very long time since I've run with tired legs.  I forgot for a while what it was all about.  Once I realized what was causing me to feel that exhausted feeling, I was able to just ignore it and push on.  Slowly.

So I got 7.31 in the morning and 4.53 in the evening.  I managed to mop the floors inbetween and made some home made bread.  Like a domestic boss.

Bittersweet sending mini-me off to her first day of 12th grade.  The beginning of the end.  She'll never have another free first day of school again. 

Got up and out earlier, but it wasn't dark- that was nice.  I did some tempo work, but I could feel Tyrone the tapeworm still causing me pain.  A couple hours later I was walking around doing errands while I got my oil changed in town, and it really started hurting.  I hope whatever is causing it will go away soon.

Early morning- out in the dark.  My headlamp batteries need to be recharged after sitting in the bottom of my running basket all summer.  They started out bright, but quickly dimmed- isn't that the story of my life?

The good news is that Tyrone the tapeworm stayed at home today.  I really appreciated that.  I think he was happy that I fed him a few blocks of chocolate before bed, so he gave me the morning off.  It's a compromise I could get used to.

I left my garmin at home.  I had it out and getting satellites online, then locked up the house and by the time I realized I left in inside, it was too much hassle to get out.  I felt like I ran a good tempo today- at least that was what my effort told me.  I did have a little trouble with my knee towards the end.  Could be the increase mileage or the increased tempo- could be both.  I'll take it easy and slow tomorrow and Friday so I'll be good to go for a nice long run Saturday. 

I did get to enjoy a beautiful sunrise, and although it was super humid, it wasn't hot.  It's going to be in the 90s again today with horrid humidity so I am grateful that I got my run in early.

Ran figure 8 loops around the park.  It got hot and I ran slow, but no one seemed to mind.  There was a woman walking with her little dog and when I ran past them, the dog decided it wanted to run along with me.  She jogged behind her dog as it jogged along with me.  After a while, she stopped jogging and had the dog walk, but then when I got 15 feet away, the dog started running again and the whole charade continued for almost a mile.  I am pretty sure she thought it was cute.  I was listening to my ipod and not really in love with her dog being at my heels like that.

I was glad when they finally stopped stalking me.  In fact I was so thrilled that I celebrated by going home and doing nearly 4 hours of yard work.  Wore myself out, but the yard looks awesome.

Rest day- but I did get a workout with OG's all you can eat pasta.  Asiago garlic alfredo- freaking delicious.

Foggy morning, ran 2 miles with MR and then he hopped on the bike and played world's best water-boy for the rest of my run.  I was planning on running 10 more, but at some point when my decision making skills were compromised by the sunshine coming out and baking my brain, I agreed to run a route I wasn't familiar with. 

So my 12 turned into over 14.  We stopped at a gas station to put some ice and water in the water bottles and I actually finished pretty strong.  I needed a nap when I was done, but what else are Saturdays for?

Nice long run for a holiday Monday.  MR was my waterboy again, so grateful for good company and for the fact that I don't have to drag around 3 waterbottles myself.  The last 2 miles I was getting hot and low on water, so he rode home and got me some sweet ice water hook-ups. 

30.8 mile bike ride with MR.  Drink break around mile 16. Wore my cool jersey from Bye-Wing.

4 miles in the morning around the hood with MR.  Supposed to be 4 in the evening too, but Wyatt and I got so busy talking that I missed the last 3 cul-de-sacs we were supposed to run.  My legs weren't complaining about ending early.

Stupid humidity and heat- why won't you let me alone?  I had 3 water bottles with me and had empited them all by the time I got home.  I sweat SO MUCH that I have to keep putting fluids back in.  I even had a bit of gatorade in one of them. 

It wasn't even really a high temperature thing, it was only in the 70's, but it was so flipping humid and the sun made everything catch on fire- including my brain.  I did get to run past the dogs that "won't bother me."  They ran out into the road again today and barked & chased me.  But this time I had my pepper spray and that seemed to help them bother me less (after a shot of red hot love).  I only regret that it was dogs who had to get sprayed and not their owner.  I'll be adding animal control's # to my cell phone and call them the next time those dogs don't "bother" me.

I did get a chance to run by one of my favorite cypress swamps.  The lilly pads are all sporting beautiful blossoms.  You can't see them very well in the photo, but they are pretty.  You can see the beaver dam, which reminds me of something Si says about beavers and the Viet Cong.  "Beavers are just like the Viet Cong.  They hide in holes and only come out at night."  All I can say is that I've never seen a live beaver out during the day. 

Greek Festival- Baklava Ice Cream Sundae, Souvlaki Gyro, Spinach & Cheese pastery, more Baklava, then home for more ice cream.  Carb loading :-)

Early morning at the ball field before our run.  A beautiful orange sun coming up through the trees a while later.  Beautiful morning- in the 60s.  Just amazing.  The kind of morning made for runners. 

I ran .23 waiting for Wyatt to show up.  Then we ran 9 miles together.  I had to hurry home and so mile 9-10 I ran ahead myself while Wyatt walked due to a side ache.  I wonder if the Apostle Paul was a runner- it would explain the thorn in his flesh.

 After hurring home to drive mini-me to a church activity, I decided to run a few more miles.  Parked next to the hilly road and ran hills.  Sidewalks almost the whole way.  Only 1.4 miles of the 7.65 were grass and dirt.  It got warm and I stopped at a BBQ restaurant for some cold water around mile 5.25.  It's amazing how wonderful a bit of cold water can work like magic in the middle of a run.

Dead cat, snake, frogs, and a huge spider waiting on the road to catch and eat me.    There were also hundreds of caterpillars everywhere.  Why do they want to crawl on the road when they have acres of grees stuff to eat where they are?