This evening, I ran.

around, and around, and around. Since i wanted to test out my leg in a safe environment, I headed off to the track at Dartmouth College. After fighting the traffic (due to the Salsa Concert (?)), I managed to get close enough to the track to see a sign that read "Track Closed". rats. There are only 2 (yes, 2) tracks within 25 miles of here. maybe more (miles, not tracks). I headed toward the other one, about 5 miles away, at Lebanon High School.
Some activity in the parking lot lead me to believe that the track was occupied, but this turned out not to be the case. I settled in and did two miles between 1:57 and 2:17 per lap. Seemed comfortable. When those two miles fell, I picked up the pace for a mile, trying to keep it under 2 minutes per lap.
That mile fell in:
1:43
1:49
1:50 and
1:47. NICE!
 Stopped for a drink of NUUN, and then did two more miles, trying to keep a fairly easy pace of right around 2 minute laps.
By the time I was finishing up a group of youngsters, probably aged 9-12, were gathering at the track. a coach-like figure kept telling them to "run two laps". It was GREAT to see those kids out there on the track.
All things gathered up, then off to LC for the ride home. Tonight our oldest is taking his mother to the movies for the opening of "eclipse". I hope that they have as much fun at the movie as I had at the track. Can't wait for tomorrow!

je suis arrive

i have been blogging for a while now, in various places, and have grown to be 'comfortable' here. i like the title, the topic, the followers, the lurkers. i try to get to their blogs and leave comments, compete in virtual races, actual races, enter contests (i have actuall won one (ncrunnerdude's AudioFuel give away). Since that incident, I have become and avid fan of their product, and have joined some other folks in reviewing some beta products. Very cool.
I have family followers, and then there are some members of my family that don't 'follow' so much as they have my postings land in their mailboxes. (hint: please open the actual blog and leave comments. i love comments!)
i have considered not blogging any more, and got some feedback on that, too. as you can probably tell, i have decided to continue blogging. (yay, me!)

i must admit, though, that one of the most interesting and exciting things that has happened to me is that today, while I was reading one of the blogs that I have recently begun following (running through pheonix) i noticed that I AM ON HIS BLOG-ROLL! see????

To return the gesture, I have since added him to my list. Check it out over there, or click here. He's a nice guy, husband, Dad, runner, gardener. heck, we could almost be twins! Did I ever mention that I once lived in Tucson, AZ for nearly 3 years? Would live there again, too, except maybe not IN Tucson. just close enough to drive in and enjoy some good food every now and then.

In short, thank you for continuing to lurk/stalk/follow/comment here.

Your validation lends to my accountability.

Shark Bait

when I was a young warthog, i subscribed to National Geographic World, a magazine for kids. all kindsa cool kid stuff in it. one thing that I learned is that sharks are attracted to shiny objects. (at least they were back in the late 70's or early 80's). when i swim in the ocean (which i try to do as infrequently as possible), I remain congisant of this tip and try to dress more like a seal than like a shiny fish.
so?

today, as I was walking around the house getting ready for work, I noticed a shiny object low in my periphery. at first i was alarmed, and began flailing my arms around, hoping to appear larger than i am, so that the sharks wouldn't start circling. it must have worked (otherwise i couldn't be typing this. duh). not even land sharks (shown here, courtesy of google images and SNL back when it was FUNNY...)

at any rate, after i made sure that my life wasn't in danger from shark attack, i saw it again. what the? what could this be? you wanna know? wait for it...

i was my own BELT BUCKLE.

welcome back, old friend.

crap sandwich

ever have those days (or at least periods during the day) when you just want to eat crappy food? I don't mean like an extra bite off of a candy bar, or a few more chips.
I mean like the WHOLE BAG of chips, with DIP. Washed down with COKE-A-COLA and chased with a giant BURGER. Add to that a banana split.
Or is it just me?

have you seen Gene?

No, I have not been running. I ran in the CBHM two weeks ago, then I ran the Tuesday after that, and not since. Oh, how I have wanted to. Oh, have I have NEEDED to….alas, I cannot.

Not for another 4 days. You see, on Friday 11JUN10, I rolled a VERY large rock (seen here) onto my ankle and inverted it. so much so, in fact, that my knee hit the ground. Or not. sure felt like it, though. As a result, I developed a divot on the OUTSIDE of my lower leg, about 7cm up from my ankle bone. Took 3 days for it to swell. Never turned colors, just swelled.
So I waited a week before getting it checked out. X-rays later, no bone damage, just soft tissue. The NP who examined me told me to lay off of it for at least another week. I told her that the only thing I could promise is that I wouldn’t RUN on it, but that work and yard work had to continue. She wasn’t happy, but was willing to accept it.
At least one of us did.
So I thought I’d be a smarty-pants and jog up our driveway. BAD IDEA. Ouch, ouch, ouch. Since then, I have been a dutiful servant to the pain and have wrapped it, elevated it, iced it, and worn combat boots for support while working in the yard.
Juneathon continues to be mostly core and upper body work in the form of earth moving. I am planning on producing a slideshow to showcase the work that has been done. Stay tuned for that within the next week!

HAPPY SOLSTICE!!

HAPPY SOLSTICE!!

"i like beer....

...it makes me a jolly good fellow". Problem has been, though, that for the last 10 years or so, alcohol doesn't like me. I don't mean in the way that it doesn't like Nick Nolte,  Kid Rock, or this guy:

but I mean that I have developed an allergic reaction to it. At first I thought it was the hops, since I had been inclined to drink beer that was 'hoppy'. So I switched to wine. This tied in with a trip I took to Sonoma Valley, CA back in 1999 or somewhere around there. But wine caused me to break out in hives from the shoulders up, too. And HOT? yep. without looking I could tell you where the hives were. no itching, just heat.

So i backed off. There was one occasion that i recall where i tested my antibodies on a bottle (yes, bottle. dumb.) of cabernet. It was not a pleasant experience for anyone involved. (my continued deep apologies to the fam....).

So i just stopped. Honestly, though, I missed the flavors. I was (mostly) just a one beer guy. I had 'earned' the badge of "beer snob", and I wore it proudly.

Ffwd a few years, and I am reading running blogs. Seems that there are quite a few fellow snobs out here in runner-blog-land. I have found a niche, and I like it here. But I haven't tried the beers, mostly suggested and reviewed by Jamoosh over at Last Mile Lounge.

Until about a week ago. I had had a tough week working in the back yard, trying desperately to create a vacation spot to rival any of the Gulf Coast's attractions  nice yard for our kids and the daycare kids. So I decided that I would try a beer. And if I got hives, well, I would self medicate with Benadryl and take a nap. No biggie, right? Right.

On my way home from errands, I went to try to find me some Dog Fish. And I did. I thought that it would be an appropriate way to test out my new bottle opener, seen here:

 My snobbery has left me with a few steadfast rules. Here is an important one: Don't drink beer that comes in either a can or a twist-off bottle. I must admit that I was a bit nervous that Dogfish might, just might, break that rule, inwhich i would never get to taste it. Lo, this was not the case, and the opener functioned VERY well. Here is an attempt at a one handed action shot with my cell phone:

My father once occupied an office at a top secret location (Red House), and on the wall behind him he had a bumper sticker that read: "Don't eat yellow snow, don't drink yellow beer". Sage advice. The Dogfish I chose was the 90 Minute India Pale Ale. After I poured it, I was very, very happy to see that two bases were covered and that I could get on with enjoying the beverage.

So I did. Lemme say that i was NOT disappointed at all. True to IPA form, there is a wonderful hoppiness to this beer. It dances around the palate, but only lingers on the tongue long enough to make you want to take another drink. No aftertaste. Smooth going down. I could have stood to drink another, but then again, it has been so long since I have had a drink, I don't think that I would have stood for much longer after consuming a second. I only bought one, so the temptation didn't even exist. Huzzah! for planning ahead.

In other news, I received some comments outside of the blog regarding my saying sayonara to juneathon. I greatly appreciate the feedback, and will continue to blog as i am able to exercise. lifting shovels full of dirt and such is considered a workout. don't think so? feel free to stop on by. I have extra shovels.....

peace out! geno

in my next life.....

"I want to be a Luna Moth", quoth a daycare parent who shall remain anonymous. and NO, it isnt' me. honest. though the idea has it's merits.

what?
yes. this morning, while running errands, I spied this little creature on the side of Cumberland Farms:

I saw my first Luna Moth while I was at Camp Shelby, MS a few years back. I had never seen one up close before, and BAM! there it was, on a loading dock, at about the same time of day, but in a bit more humid weather. So today i took the picture at left, and sent it to Tracey. She replied with a message that Z wanted me to bring it home to show the daycare kiddos. Sounded like a good idea, but I had no way of getting it home.

FFWD to later in the afternoon,  and I had to go run more errands. (yes, i am effecient like that). this time, however, I took a rubbermade container with me, just in case the moth was still there. And lo, it was!

So I snagged it.

Once home, we put it into a small screened in 'cage' suitable for insects and such. Z was right, the daycare kids thought that it was pretty cool. For about 10 seconds. Which, in my mind, is a WIN.

We decided that we might want to keep it for a day or so, just to show off for the next group of kiddos. So, being the interested observer that I am, I googled Luna Moth to find out what it likes to eat, etc. This is what I found....

"Although rarely seen due to their very brief (1 week) adult lives, Luna Moths are considered common. As with all Saturniidae, the adults do not eat or have mouths.[2] They emerge as adults solely to mate, and as such, only live approximately one week. They are more commonly seen at night." Link to article here.

huh. so......I was off the hook. No need to sacrifice my lettuce to Mothra. Being the kind humanitarians that we are (okokok...SHE is), my wife and I decided that we should probably let the moth go free to go about it's 'business' sooner rather than later. One of the parents spied the cage on the table, so we felt compelled to share our new knowledge. This illicited the above comment, to which we shared a chuckle.

We opened the cage later in the evening, once the sky had darkened, and the little bugger just hung out on the ceiling of the porch. When i left for work around 1055pm, it was still there. Be free, little porn star, be free!

juneathon days

i am officially throwing in the towel on Juneathon. rules state that i need to exercise AND blog about it daily. i simply cannot blog about it daily. my daily exercise often consists of simply the 4-5 miles of walking that i do every day while at work, and not really the focused 'exercise' that this is all about. but the concept is great, and perhaps some other time (ummm....next June, maybe?) i'll be able to actively participate.
thank you, jog-blog, for hosting. I'll keep following and watching the rest of the group. very inspirational and fun to do. keep up the great work!

CBHM race review (FINALLY!)

yes, i realize that this is SO late that it could almost be called next year's preview. so?

As we know, I didn't train much for this race. blah blah blah, i just didn't. i should have. i didn't.
In the few days leading up to the race, I didn't taper my 'other' activities. I just kept on working in the back yard, trying to get as much done before the real work started as I could. blah blah blah. I shoveled, relocated the sandbox.......wait. this is s'posed to be a RACE review, not a MAY-JUNE review. sorry.

ffwd to race day. When i woke up at 0600, i was bummin'. why? POURING rain outside. but then i thought that this might not be a bad thing. Running in the rain helps keep me cool. Anyone else feel that way?
Race instructions said that shuttles would take us from the finish area to the start, beginning at 0800 and ending at 0845 sharp. Growing up in a household where if you were 'on time' for something you were actually 'late' for said thing, I was at the parking area at 745. I think I was literally the 7th car there. This meant i was corralled waaaaaaaay faaaaar away from the entrance/exit to the field. well organized parking, i must say, but seemingly only one way out. seemingly (foreshadowing....). my friend Suzan showed up around 8, and we decided to go ahead and get on the shuttle (school bus) and head over. why not, right? probably 20 minute ride, race starts at 1015, who knows how big the lines at registration were going to be....
WELL......we get on the bus, and BAM! who is the first person I see????? The flipping Chief of Medicine at the hospital that employs me (VA Medical Center). He's a retired Bird Colonel from the Army. Yea. NO PRESSURE to finish ahead of him. None. Suddenly, all of the lack of preparation came pounding down on me. All of the missed miles, the multiple taps of the snooze button. All of it. Crap crap Crap. Conversation went like this:
me: Hey, Good Morning, Sir!
him: Hi Gene! I didn't know you were running this.
me: Yes, Sir, I am. Thank God you aren't in my age group.
him: No, and I am probably a bit slower, too.
me: I'm not so sure, Sir. (now being pushed along by the crowd) Have a great race!
him: You, too.
so.....not so bad. feeble attempts at flattery and humor over with, we rode the bus. Suzan sat behind me and talked non-stop. I had to turn around to hear her, which meant that around 5 minutes into the ride i was nauseated........
we get to the start venue (Suicide Six ski area), and the rain is still relentless. Luckily there were large tents set up for registration/bib retrieval, so we didn't get wet getting our bibs. BUT.......the tables were a bit too close to the front of the tent...lotsa dead, dry space behind the folks....lotsa wet runners waiting in line outside....

Off to the side, across the mudding parking lot, were some tents set up for charity runners. And a long table with water. Good volunteers hunkered under umberalls, wearing parkas, etc. TONs of portajohns. No lines, no waiting. Remember, it is now only about 830 or so. Race doesn't start for almost TWO HOURS.

 Not shown in the picture is another line of blue houses as long as this one, perpendicular to the last one seen. The road we started on is behind that blue line. 

So here we are, trying to find a spot to stay dry. AHA! Ski lodge.....bzzzt. The lodge was closed up tight, but there is a deck with a roof....up the ramp we walked, only to find that most of the good spaces had been taken. What? Taken by WHO? we were on the first maybe second shuttle.....dunno how they teleported to the deck, but there they were. we managed to find a spot along the left side, and hunkered down on the deck, backs to the building. (Suzan is still talking, by the way).

People continued to pour in, just like the rain. My butt went numb, but at least my back wasn't sore. I got up to stretch and get warm, but lost my spot to some (nice) folks from Canada. At any rate, blah blah blah, it was now time to get rid of warm ups and hit the blue houses. Two buses were being used to shuttle gear back to the finish. the rain let up a bit, but not much, and i loaded my stuff to go.

Taking a cue from Steve, I took this final pre race photo.... I didn't run in the jacket or the gray shirt underneath. for gear i was wearing my Adidas something or other kicks, Darn Tough socks (LOVE THESE!), random Nike shorts, body glide (x like 3 layers), a skin tight Under Armour shirt I picked up in Camp Shelby, MS, my Stink at Nothing shirt (which i should prolly review sometime soon), my Performance arm sleeves from the late 90's, when i was cycling a bit more, and my Brooks hat, seen in the picture. Oh, and of course my Garmin and RoadID. OH! and since i don't use Hammer, I carried 2 smallish bottles of NUUN in my bottle carrier. Yes, i KNOW it is only a half marathon, but in my first one, i cramped up wicked around mile 9 and didn't want to take that chance again.

As far as gear went, I think i was spot on. the bottle carrier (seen in the picture below...pic cred to Katie!) was a bit much. I have a different one that I will try out in the weeks to come.

 The course is great. Mostly downhill, actually. This photo was taken just after the first covered bridge, in downtown Woodstock, VT. Katie and another friend, Christina (whose hubs finished FOURTH overall) were there with cowbells and signs. very cool, esp given the torrential downpour. at around mile 6, the course runs on a dirt road. this is typically fine. i have no problem with dirt roads. grew up on one, actually, about 2.5 miles off the blacktop. race day, however, had turned that section into grey grease with scattered puddles. the backs of our legs were covered in splatter, which i typically don't mind, and don't even pay attention to. BUT....when we got back on blacktop (pavement), the dirt all washed down into myshoes.....which changed my nice socks into sandpaper......luckily there were plenty of deep puddles to hit and the shoes drained well.

Next year, if it rains, i might just use my trail shoes, or taller socks (DORK!)

The finish area was seemingly well organized (there's that word again!). Through the funnel, pick up your t-shirt (cotton, nice, simple design (no sponsors on the back??), but NOT AT ALL true to size. I got a medium, but should have either picked a Large or an X-S so my 4 year old could wear it. Saucony was there, handing out free socks, so i grabbed a pair. quite comfy, actually, even though they are white....

HUGE food and goodie tent. snagged the typical banana, cookies, water, pretzles, and some freebie Hammer Gels. Raspberry flavor only. WHAT?????? yea, kinda tastes like that "jelly" in the packets on the counter at IHOP or Waffle House. bleck.

I called my wife to let her know that I was done (which is always emotional for me. don't judge), and saw that i had a text message from my parents saying that they were trying to meet me at the finish. quick calls back and forth, and i was able to direct them to the finish area, which was at a polo field. (i know. VT doesn't seem like a POLO mecca, but apparently it is.)

Here is where my big criticism of the race comes in. Parking was TERRIBLE. from the finish are, we had to walk about half a mile back to our cars. mostly up hill. dodging traffic on a narrow, windy road. not fun. my folks only managed to get about half way to me, so i met up with them there, and suggested that they go run errands and meet me at the house. glad they did, because it took some creativity on my part to get out of my parking area. walking to it, there is a small road (goat path?) that brings you right to the BACK of the parking area. which was about 4 cars away from my truck......I did the right thing and sat there, not moving, for about half an hour before i decided to drive down the goat path. i got some strange looks, but i am sure that they forgave me once they saw the debacle above. There has GOT to be a better way. The race is in it's 19th year.........

Well, thanks for sticking around through this looong review. it was almost as long as the race. OH SNAP!

how did i do? glad you asked!

I PR'd. yep. by about 12 seconds. totally surprised. I could tell around mile 8 that i had a chance to beat my old time, IF i could maintain my pace. fall off by too much, and no way. so....glad i pushed it and made the PR. Here i am at the finish (credit to Katie again!), trying desperately not to be chicked.

just barely made it.....

chip time was 1:54:03.

Oil Spill Alternative Vacation

Grease got you down?  I don't mean the kind from Al's French Fries. I mean the kind in the Gulf of MAY-he-co. Well, if you had planned to take the fam on a nice holiday to Sea World Tampa or some such place, forget it. Actually, now might be THE time to go. Less crowds, etc. But I digress.

THE PLACE TO GO this summer is our house. yep. I'm not going to post the address here, BUT operators are standing by to take your reservations.....

why?
here's why....

It is HUGE. you can tell, actually, how big it is. See that pick-up truck near the slide? That's a full sized Dodge Ram (yea, it has a Hemi). (disclaimer: in case you were thinking of getting one, it isn't THAT big).

In the event that you are actually in the market for one, we got it at W_L*Mar&. Comes in 2 boxes that juuuust fit inside Elsie (my real trk. Explorer Sport Trak. try not to judge). Tracey and I started working on it around 930 Sunday morning, and we finished right around 10pm. With breaks, I'd say that it took us about 10 and a half hours to complete. A few of the barrel nuts stripped, so we couldn't assemble the puppet show part that would make a wall just to the left of the climbing wall. Tracey called the company this morning, and they will be fedexing replacement pieces (two wooden pieces broke, too).

So be sure to call early to get your reservations in before we fill up. Plenty of parking nearby (shuttle from Tampa leaves every hour on the hour), abundant opportunities for working out while kids play (need to get about 15 more loads of dirt, and lay about 20 more rolls of sod). We have a petting zoo (1dog, 3 cats), and ample opportunity to donate blood to help save lives (of the black fly and mosquito population. no lines, no waiting, no embarrasing screening questions).

On running/Juneathon notes, the only exercise i have gotten in the past 3 days has been focused on core, shoulders, and forearms while working in the backyard. As I type, I have numbness and tingling in BOTH forearms and hands, which is fun. Let's all hope that I don't have to start any IV's or place any Foley's today!

As it is Monday, here's your chance to make it a great week. Happy Flag Day, which is also to say Happy Birthday, US ARMY. Father's Day is this coming Sunday. Don't forget. You have been warned.

-gene-

juneathon day 9, and 3 things.....

not much to report. more lifting, twisting with weights. good core and shoulder workout.

for those of you checking in to read my regular madcap adventures, i apologize for the juneathon reports, but i am also involved in Juneathon 2010, in which several people have committed to try to do some form of exercise everyday in June and then either blog about it (even briefly) or post to FB or Twitter. Winner of the contest is the person who does it the most frequently. What does the winner get? Vibram 5 Finger Classics. for more information, click here.

I still owe the blog a race report. Waaaay overdue. If today's rain keeps up, i will get to it this afternoon. Promise. In the mean time, have a great Thursday.

here are 3 things....
1) Salsa. both the music and the dip.
2) kisses from my little boy
3) Burn Notice. ok, fine, it doesn't really fit with the other 2, or with most things in my life, but i just like the show.

Juneathon day 8 report

 After another hard day of working in the yard (will this project EVER end???) i looked at my training calendar and it called for 50 minutes of running. so at 2045, off i went. turned into an hour run, during which i ran just over 7 miles. good run, scary at times (had to cross a bridge in the dark, over some swiftly moving deep water). but made it!

Still mulling over the Half report in my head, but I am certain that it will work it's way out today.

In other news, when i checked the mail yesterday, I was VERY happy to find a bottle opener. Not just ANY bottle opener, mind you, but one from Last Mile Brewery. I will try to take it for a test spin tonight, and get back to you. My expectations are high.....

race results

official results... 633  55/103  M4044 (chip time)1:54:03 (pace) 8:42 (gun time)1:55:56.3 .


feeling really good. details within the next two days. on vacation, and lotsa, lotsa yard work to do.

Covered Bridges Half Marathon Preview

the signs are everywhere along the route. and even places that aren't the route. good to see. i drove the course yesterday on my way back from dropping Z off with his aunt. course looks good. only 2 hills, really. one is short and sweet steep, the other annoyingly long and gradual. i prefer the steep ones, because you can SEE that you are about to die, and you know WHY you are about to die. the gradual ones? well, to me they make me wonder.....hmmm....i don't remember my quads being on fire three minutes ago. hmmm....why is it that my stride length has shortened? hello? legs? lungs? why do i feel like i am being slowly pecked to death by chickens? (squirrel!)

anyway, the course looks great. i've driven it many times in the past, and i am really looking forward to running tomorrow. big shout out to Suzan and Dr. Goodney for getting me into the race after it was closed. i should have trained better for it, but i am confident that i can rely on my base fitness to get me through in less than 2 hours. speaking of, here are my goals for the race:
1) have fun, enjoy the scenery, finish in under 1:50
2) have fun, try not to trip while enjoying the scenery, finish under 1:54:16 (previous half time)
3) have fun, finish under 2:10

last night it POURED here. when i looked at our back yard, all i could think of was this:

i really hope that tomorrow's weather is better. right now, the sun is trying to shine through. race starts at 1015, so there is hope.
i will be back online sunday or monday for a race review. come on back for pictures of the bridges, etc.
right now, i'm off to have some coffee, clean up the debris in the yard, and try to figure out how to get some work done back there. have a great day!

don't mess with.......

my sister. even at 300 meters (that's a distance of 3 soccer fields, or MORE than 3 American Football fields), she'll pop a cap in yer a$$. before you can blink. just sayin'.
Love ya, WEEB!

no comcast service! no juneathon

no comcast service! no juneathon update. eating then going to bed. miss you, T,B N Z. m...see you in the am!

Was gonna be Fun Foto Friday.....

ok, i guess it still can be. here. har har har. check out the kiddo. he's the best part, IMHO.

but here's what REALLY has my goat this morning. are you ready? perhaps you have heard of this already. if so, i imagine that you are just as ticked off about it as I am. but then again, prolly not, as my emotional spectrum tends to only have extremes......

when i got to work tonight, a lovely email awaited me from Price Chopper, one of our supermarket conglomerates. i get them from time to time. no biggie. but today, i received this. Yep. Can you FLIPPING BELIEVE THIS????  I was so upset, I mockingly made a BUNCH of copies and left them in the breakroom at work. Most people got it, that I wasn't serious, but still. I MAY just go to Price Chopper on my way to Home Depot when i get out of work, just to see the 'show'. Dare I take photos? I got over my reaction to the coupon fairly quickly, as i tend NOT to dwell on things that upset me. (huh?) THEN, just when i thought it was safe to go back online I saw THIS on FB (well, not actually THIS, but it was an ad from this company...)......and I was once again taken aback. see that little obnoxious "F"? see belooooow it? YES! you can SIGN UP FOR A FREEEEEAAAAKKIN REMINDER.

why, oh WHY do you need a reminder?

let's examine the items in the FO-TO, shall we? suuuuure. It is Friday. Let's live on the edge. The donut appears to be Strawberry frosted. Nevermind the sprinkles; we ALL know that they have NO caloric value anyway. 230cal, 90 fat calories. 3g protein, 14g sugar, 330mg sodium. ok, fine. i expect that. now onto the beverage...i assumed LARGE iced coffee with cream and sugar. 250calories, 110 fat calories (?!), 3g protein, 35g sugar (???!!!???), 40mg sodium.

ho-lee crap-o-lee-o. just barely under 500 calories, and almost all of them 'empty' calories. let's say you indulge in the products featured in the advert. BAM! if you are trying to stay around 2000 calories per day, 25% have been sacrificed to the coffee and 'free' donut. not so free anymore, eh?

Happy Free Donut Day FRIIIIDAAAAAAAAY!!!!

Three Things Thursday, Night Shift Version

At work now, in the middle of the night. Doubled back from a day shift, and will have to come back Thursday night at 2330 for my final 8 hour shift before vacatiooooooooon! So here's my sleep deprived list for this week:
1) I am thankful for my upcoming vacation. TLW and I have taken the week off to try to get our yard back in order. She has been staring at a very much unfinished back yard every day for over a year, and she deserves to have it finished. My goal for the week is to make that happen for her. SO....if any of you are in the area this week and don't mind getting dirty......stop on by!
2) I am thankful that I learned to appreciate simple things. Well, not ALL simple things (let's not get TOO carried away here....), but simple things like I can take regular oatmeal (not the instant kind...bleck!), stick 'some' in my coffee mug, add 'some' water, and nuke it for about as much of a minute as I can stand to wait, and PRESTO!!! snack time. Sometimes it is pasty, sometimes it is watery.
3) I am thankful that I found my .mp3 player. I thought that I may have left it in the hotel in Lake Placid, and that would have been a very baaaad thing for my Half Marathon this Sunday. Lo, though, I found it!
Juneathon is underway. I've got some good stuff planned out for the 3rd and 4th (yea, right), so tune back in later to find out what exercise I did for each day. Unless, of course, you have a root canal or dance lessons or something fun like that to do. which i am certain that you do.

June-a-thon

Double posting here for 1 and 2 JUNE…….sorry, yesterday’s access was a bit sketchy.

 

June 1^st saw me moving dirt again, instead of running. I must give credit where due, of course. When I let my wife know about my plans to move dirt after work, she asked, via text message, “When r u running?”  to which I replied, “Hadn’t even considered it.” I really like the fact that she is always on the lookout for me. Honestly. I don’t know what I would do without her.

So I didn’t run yesterday, but I did manage to lift weights, in the form of dirt. Who was it that said “Give me a lever long enough, and I can lift the world?” Well, I only had a simple garden shovel…..

Today, though, is National Running Day (www.runningday.org), and even though I didn’t remember that tidbit until AFTER I ran, I got outta bed this morning and ran two miles. It is a simple out and back from our post office to the nearest intersection with a traffic light. Slight uphill in the beginning, for about 200 meters, but smooth, flat sailing after that. I left my music player at home, but had audiofuel singing in my head just the same. I must say that I really enjoy putting my “feet to the beat”!

This morning’s run helped me to reaffirm that running is a good thing for me to be doing. Since this post seems to be full of quotations, here’s another for your enjoyment:

“Running won’t solve your problems, but you’ll both feel a little lighter when you get back.”

True, dat.