Setback

I shouldn't say setback. More of a delay?

I woke up at 5 this morning, coughing at this dry scratch at the back of my throat and fighting the urge to vomit. Got up at 8:00 to find it 54° (as usual) and overcast. A great day for running, in my book.

I feel like I could run (and I definitely want to), but I'm worried about pushing myself when I should maybe be letting my body rest. I'm not taking my mom swimming today since I started my period yesterday (I use GladRags), so I'm not in any kind of hurry this morning. I might wait an hour or two and see how I feel then. I really don't want to take a day off, not when I only just started Week 2, but I think I should err on the side of caution and give myself a break. This 5k isn't going anywhere without me. I can pick up the slack when I'm feeling better.

So I'm just going to eat a couple of oranges and see how I feel in a little while. I have had so much to do lately, I think I might have spread myself a little too thin.

Also, there's something wrong with Tank. Last night I noticed him whining and he was following me around the house like he thought he was in trouble for something. At one point, he yelped when I walked past him. I let him out and he urinated just fine, but it was too dark to see if he pooped. I brought him back in and examined him. He did seem a little tender when I palpated his abdomen, but he kind of always does that. I moved all four of his legs around and then slowly cranked his head up and back. When I tried to move his head to the right, he yelped.

I've noticed that he doesn't stretch and shake like he used to, and he's not lifting his leg to urinate. I think he either hurt his neck somehow and/or he's got the beginnings of some lovely old dog arthritis.

He ate dinner just fine and isn't dehydrated. I went into the office to watch The Hitcher (Seannnn Beannnn) on my computer and Tank fell asleep next to my chair. He was lying on his left side, and when I reached down to scratch his tummy, he couldn't lift his head up very far.

Definitely something wrong with his neck.

When I woke up this morning, he was in bed with me. I haven't allowed him on the bed in ten years, but I knew he wasn't feeling well, so I let it slide.

I have to return some movies to the library, so I think on the way home I will stop by my sister's and get some of Meathead and Lady's Tramadol. Hopefully that will help. I wonder what he could have done to hurt himself? It seems like he turned ten and then hit the wall. How can this little puppy, who was no bigger than my foot when I met him, be old!? He's such an incredibly active dog, it's hard to see him incapacitated. Last year he got sick and we never could figure out what was wrong with him. He was shaking and kind of lethargic. I think I gave him some subQ fluids and he was better in a day or two. Tank is kind of a wimp when it comes to pain/illness, I think.

I hope we both feel better soon.

Booby track. I mean trap. No, I mean track.

Track
Originally uploaded by BlindTurtle.

Uploaded pictures of my track (click on the photo to see more). Anyone else wanna limp?

I'm off to clean out my car. The trunk, too. I'm sick of clutter.

Week 2, Day 1

I made it through the first day of Week 2! Barely.

Okay, it honestly wasn’t that bad. Until the halfway point. It was right about then that I became convinced I was going to keel over. That is, if my calves didn’t give out first. I try to keep a positive frame of mind while I’m running; think about good things that motivate me. Today, I reflected upon the state of my underwear. At first I thought I’d accidentally been stealing my mother’s netherwear, but then I realized they were mine; and they were all baggy on me. And so, my mantra for today’s run was: ”Myassisgettingsmaller...myassisgettingsmaller...myassisgettingsmaller...”

I’m getting ahead of myself.

I woke up bright and early at 8:00 because I knew I had a full day ahead of me. Plus, I knew it was going to be hot, and I wanted to get my run in before it became unbearable. I was in a hurry and so didn’t have time to eat anything but half a Luna Bar and some water. I was cold this morning but determined to run in shorts. Glad I did, too. It was 54° with no wind, and I had a pretty good sweat going by my second run.

I was really looking forward to Week 2, if only for the change in music. While I don’t like techno music, I have to admit, I do like these new songs.

So I started out the first run, did pretty well. Thought to myself, ”It’s not as bad as I thought it would be.” I’ve really been paying attention to my breathing and my form, and though my calves started hurting, the sides of my legs were perfectly fine. I guess every week brings a new set of sore muscles?

I also kept my eyes straight ahead and took in the scenery. Normally when I run, I watch the track. Mostly because of the potholes. But if I stay in the inside lane, it’s pretty safe. So I looked ahead and it helped. I brought my crappy digital along this time and took some pictures. Will upload them tomorrow.

After my run, I took my mom swimming. We forgot about the new Fall hours, so we completely missed her class. Thursday we’ll have to be there a little before 10:00, which means from now on, I’ll have to get down to the track by 8:00 so I’ll have time to do my aerobics and ab workout before we go swimming.

The upside is, we pretty much had the whole (smaller, warmer) pool to ourselves. It was just us and three other people (old folk). One of them was the mother of my mom’s friend, so we talked to her for a while. She lives at the senior center and said that one of her friends called another friend crotchety and Molly said, ”Well, if she’s crotchety, what the hell does that make me?”

I love her.

Plus, she’s got this really awesome swim cap.

I swam laps back and forth while Mom and Molly gabbed. I’m not sure how many I did, but it definitely got my heart rate up. After Molly left, I made my mom do some of her exercises and then doggy paddle along next to me for a while. Then we sat in the hot tub for about ten minutes. I was glad for that, since I’m pretty sure my legs are going to be sore tomorrow. If they’re not, I’ll be surprised.

I haven’t been feeling too well, but I’m pretty sure it’s the change in weather. Whenever the seasons do the changing of the guard, I get all forked up. Bleh. I was determined not to let it mess up my running, but if I had felt bad at all out on the track, I would have turned around and gone home.

I went to my sister’s house on the way home from the library and brought Lady back with me, since I’m taking her for acupuncture tomorrow at 12:30 and she really needed a bath. While I was at it, I gave Tank a good scrubbing, too. Speaking of which, he turned ten on Sunday! I made him some vegan doggy cookies. I’m usually not that much of a dork when it comes to my animals, but yeah. I spelled out his name and age. Why not? The “A” broke when I put it on the plate, but it all tasted the same to Tank.

Birthday Boy!
Originally uploaded by BlindTurtle.

For lunch I had a veggie brat with sauerkraut and mustard and in a little while I’m going to make Wonderful Winter Squash for dinner. I figure I’ll serve it with some brown rice and a big salad.

I’ve gotten a couple more donations for my Walk for Animals! I know some pretty awesome people. I’m already thinking of a nice thank you for them. Brittyn is local, so I plan on finally bringing her those cookie cupcakes I promised her after she broke her poor little jaw.

Driving home from the pool today, there was a pear in the middle of the road. And me without my goddam camera. Speaking of which, I’m starting to seriously think about selling my photographs. I got my friend’s brother’s wedding photos back from Blue Moon last Saturday and the folks there asked if they could put one of them in their customer show (and on their website). You could have knocked me over with a feather, I tell you. I’ve had a couple of people approach me about buying a print of this or that, so I think it’s about time I start looking into building a darkroom.

Really looking forward to Thursday!!!!

Week 1, Day 8

Not feeling at all well today. Went to see Barack Obama last night and I think sweating for an hour and a half and then driving home with the windows open really wasn’t a good idea. (It was totally worth it, though.) I’m very sneezy and cold, but I’ve been cold the past couple of mornings, so I’m hoping it’s just allergies.

For breakfast I had a whole wheat english muffin with a tablespoon of peanut butter on each half, plus a cup of this Odwalla AntioxiDance thing I bought on sale at Safeway yesterday.

I got up at 8:20, but I didn’t make it down to the track till almost two hours later. I’m just having a really hard time getting going today. It was 58° this morning, and I was kind of cold, so I put on my track pants. I took Tank out for a walk around the yard (pee/poo) and was actually pretty comfortable, so when I went back inside, I put shorts on instead.

Once in town, the church parking lot was pretty full. Luckily, nobody parks in the back, so I was able to get a spot. I could see a woman and a puppy on the track, and by the time I got there, they were walking by. The puppy was a golden retriever, probably six or seven months old. I was unable to resist, so I knelt down and loved on him for a few minutes while talking to his person. He fell over for no reason, so I rubbed his belly.

There really is nothing like a puppy to completely turn your whole day around. By the time we parted ways, I felt a thousand times better.

The run was good; I really feel prepared for Week 2 now. I’m not saying it won’t be hard, but I think another three days of Week 1 would be redundant. It’s really windy today. So windy that I had to actually turn up the volume on my iPod. I normally have it as low as possible to protect my hearing. The breeze felt great, though. The times it died down, I worked up a good sweat. It’s going to be 91° on Tuesday. What great weather for kicking my running up another 30 seconds! I’m going to try really hard to get up much earlier than usual in order to beat the heat. The pool reopens next week, so I’ll have that to look forward to. I’m not swimming in the little (warm) pool, though. Not when it’s in the 90’s. It’s the big, cold pool for this bitch!

For shits and giggles, here is my yearly total:

Running: 9.0 miles
Time: 4h 34m 00s
Avg. Pace: 30:27/mile

Tomorrow is Tank’s 10th birthday, so I’m going to make oatmeal peanut butter dog biscuits for him. I’ve never tried it before, but we’ve got these bone-shaped cookie cutters, and really? Ten is a big deal for a dog. Today, I have to go pick up seven rolls of wedding photos from Blue Moon. God I hope they turned out. That was my first time photographing a wedding, and I know I did a horrible job.

Week 1, Day 7

Not much to report today. It was 54° this morning. I contemplated putting on my workout pants, but I was already getting ready to leave and didn't feel like changing. Yes, I'm that lazy. It was overcast, too, but I put sunblock on regardless. Never go outside without sunblock, kids! Even if it's cloudy.

I wasn't too hungry when I woke up, but I always eat a little something so I can take my ibuprofen. This morning I had a bowl of fruit (grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew), and it did a pretty good job of tiding me over. For lunch I plan on having leftover spaghetti squash and some corn on the cob. There's a farm down the mountain that puts out a huge bin of corn every year at this time. It's getting to the end of the season, sadly. They sell them six for a dollar, and they are so fucking good. Seriously the best corn I've ever eaten. They're going to be selling pumpkins and corn stalks soon, which is so much fun. I plan on getting some corn stalks to set up here. This is my very favorite time of year. I know Fall is the time when everything is getting ready to retire for the season, but it is when I feel the most alive and happy.

For dinner I plan on making a vegetable stew with herbed dumplings. I need to swing by the store to get some thyme and potatoes. I also need to go to New Seasons for some almonds and raisins. I also want to get some dried figs. I was always leery of them, but then Evan let me try one when we all went to Cannon Beach last month and now I'm hooked.

The run was really incredibly easy today. I wasn't even the slightest bit out of breath after my runs. And! I had the track all to myself. Some kids came out to the playground during my cool down and it occurred to me that school is back in session. Lucky for me the track hasn't been used by the school in ... I don't know exactly. A very long time. I think if the school let kids run around a bumpy, overgrown track with potholes, there would be a lawsuit in their very near future.

I've just finished my ab workout and now I must shower before I take my mom on her Thursday errands. Next week the pool reopens, probably just in time for my period. Pffffffffft. I also have some flowers to plant. I love working outdoors.

Week 1, Day 6

Back on track!

Got up late and didn’t want to run this morning, but I did it anyway because I wasn’t about to let myself slack off anymore. This time around, I walked at a much more brisk pace, and once the warm up was done, I went and stretched for a long time. I think that really helped me recover after the runs. I felt pretty stiff and sore; still messed up from the drive to and from Seattle on Sunday. It’s amazing how a simple act like driving a car can mess me up. Getting old sucks, especially when it happens far sooner than it’s supposed to.

Back to running. Recovery was much quicker today. My legs didn’t really start hurting until the 5th or 6th run, and I wasn’t all that out of breath afterwards. My heart sinks to think of running for a minute and a half next week... But! I’m gonna do it. I can totally do it. I rule.

When I got out of my car this morning, I could see Creepy Binocular Man walking the track. By the time I’d locked my car and got my iPod ready, he was gone. Yes!

Last night I took my mom to my sister’s and we bbq’d on the back deck. My sister grilled up some eggplant, spread some “ricotta” on the slices and then rolled them up and put some marinara sauce on them. Sooo gooood. And so bad. Eggplant is a nightshade vegetable, and that’s a no-no for arthritis.

Tonight I’m making spaghetti squash with some fresh herbs from my little three-herb garden. I’m so excited! Squash is great for people with arthritis, as in it’s not a trigger food. I’ve got a great winter squash recipe from Foods That Fight Pain that I need to make again soon. Healthy food that’s easy to make. I love it.

I went to the library today to pick up some hold items. I always make a point of parking as far back in the parking lot as I can whenever I go to a store or something so I can get in a bit of extra walking. I snagged three MST3K movies while I was there (The Atomic Brain, The Sidehackers, and The Unearthly). I couldn’t resist.

The books I picked up were:

• Nightwatch, by Sergei Lukyanenko
  
• A Feast for Crows, by George R. R. Martin

I also snagged something off the sale shelf to be used for 1001 Journals.

Gad I love libraries.

Mom talked me into going to lunch with her at the senior center tomorrow. It’s not something I enjoy (though I do dearly love the elderly) because I hate sitting there eating salad while everyone else stuffs their faces with pasta and pie. But I know she had her heart set on me taking her, and later on I realized it would be a great opportunity to whip out my Holga and take some portraits. It would force me to talk to people, and that’s something I need to do.

In closing, I'm proud of myself for sticking with the running, despite that nagging feeling I have that I should already be doing Week 2. I have also decided to start taking my measurements once a month instead of once a week. I figure I'll probably feel less pressure that way.

And now I must go cook dinner. No easy feat when you're fighting a guinea pig for counter space.

Walk, don't run

I didn't get a chance to run Saturday or Sunday; my weekend was way too hectic. I went up to Seattle for Bumbershoot yesterday (hell, complete and utter hell) to see the Nick Drake exhibit; I brought my mom with because it was a long drive and I was too chicken to drive all that way by myself. Mom is disabled and in a wheelchair, so I spent several hours pushing her up (and braking her down) some very steep hills. I like to think that, though I didn't run, my body thought it was running. When I got home last night, I had to put bags of frozen peas and corn on my knees, they hurt so bad. This morning I'm feeling much, much better.

A Place to Be was lovely, but I was expecting more artwork. On that same note, I was expecting the artwork to be more reflective of Nick and his music. As it is, I'm not a very artsy person, so for all I know, Heath Ledger lying in a bathtub has everything to do with a song about a black eyed dog (i.e. a hell hound coming for someone).

Nick Drake Words & Music was nice. It was a panel with three musicians (one a musician/writer) discussing Nick and playing his songs. Some Seattle writer mediated the whole thing. It was really nice, especially since the usher stuck me and Mom up in the "sky box" since she was in a wheelchair. So we got the Statler and Waldorf view of the stage.

At any rate, I've decided to extend Week 1 another week.

Also of note, on September 29th, I will be doing the Walk for Farm Animals, which will benefit Farm Sanctuary. It was ten years ago this month that I started my internship there in Watkins Glen, and it was an experience that changed my life. Earlier this year, I donated one of my Holga photographs for FS's charity auction. It went for $80 (and was the most-bid-on item), if I remember correctly; so far, I've managed to snag $55.00 for the Walk. I'm happy to have had so many opportunities to give back to them this year!

Anyway, here's my donation widget, if anyone would like to (one-time) sponsor me:



I don't have a goal in mind, but my friend is shooting for $1,000. She's more than halfway there already. I'm only at $55, but I don't have many friends or acquaintances, so I'm assuming I won't break $100. Every little bit helps, though!