Bad leg, bad leg

I've been having some calf and achilles pain lately. Can you say "too much mileage"? anyway, it's the same old thing. I'm hoping rest and a variety of treatments will get rid of it.





Everybody's favorite accupuncurist, Tami Hansen, tried to put a little chi back into my calf. The wires send a little electrical jolt thru the needle into the body. I feel like Jack Bauer, getting tortured. Not. It's just a little buzz. (next time I've got to get a photo of Tami) (once the needles are in there is no moving around)

Leg is still aching so I'm cross training at the gym. Gina and I went to the pool to do some water running. Tomorrow I've got 2 different PT appts.

Keep your fingers crossed that this nonsense goes away SOON !
thanks.

Racing

Ahh, an afternoon at the Lost Sock Laundry. Whatever did I do for fun before the digital camera era?


The 20 year old Braun (ava braun) coffee pot finally died. We replaced her with Eva Braun.


Hey, I almost forgot, Gina and I ran in the "Love 'em or Leave 'em" 5k, here around the lake last Sunday. We ran as a team, they combine the 2 times and average out.. We placed 4th in women's masters. I'm presuming the top 3 teams were 40 somethings, not 50 year olds with bad heels and a previous day's long run.

It was Gina's second outdoor run since this injury has laid her up. She looked pretty good coming to the finish line. The left foot is still bugging her but I think it's to the manageable stage. She's gotta be ready for the St. Patty's Day Dash and beer garden. :)

Upgrades

jeez, my blogger posting site was letting me carry on with the "old" version and begging me to move to the new, excuse me... beta version. and well, it's no longer beta, and is the only way to go. so I got one last chance to stay old school.. and since i'm not in the mood tonight to learn new tricks....

So, running is going pretty well. A slightly achey achilles tendon but nothing to worry about, yet. ice, ice, baby. Last Saturday, coach Lesley dropped me off on Mercer Island, and then I ran home (15 miles) It was a beautiful morning. I could see the snow capped Mt.Rainier over my left shoulder, and way off in the distance, Mt. Baker, over my right shoulder, as I ran across the I-90 bridge. tres cool.

Tomorrow I've got 17 miles to run. I shall head west, but that will only get me 5 miles before the Puget Sound, then south, across the Chittenden Locks to Magnolia, down under Ballard Bridge, past SPU, across Fremont Bridge, along the Burke Gilman, past the UW, and back up to home. Today, while doing errands, I planted a couple bottles of Gatorade. Gotta hide them so the bums don't see them and well, let's just not think about those possibilities.

Remodel is coming along. Tile in bath area is done. There is still some backsplash tile to be done in the laundry area. The marmoleum tile floor is in and looks great. Gina's design is very cool. And Brian was able to follow the design chart, almost exactly. He said he needed to move the centerline over, I don't know, an eighth of an inch. Got permission from Gina to do so. I told him I hoped he was correct/sure. You don't want to be arbitrarily messing with Gina's figures.

Brad is painting this weekend. The moldings and baseboards and what nots are installed. Everything is looking good. Which is why we are over there, about every half hour with some inane questions, but mostly to make sure they aren't dragging stuff across the tile or setting stuff down where it really shouldn't be... you know... guy type actions. :)

We picked out some drawer pulls today. You do know how many gadzillion there are, right? We decided to not get overly concerned. It is just a laundry room. And then we stopped by a drapery/blinds place. The lady was very helpful and will come to the house next week to help us decide some things.

We are awaiting official word that the President's Day sales have begun so we can go buy a tv for the room. LCD, of course.

Last week we purchased a new bed. That's a slimey job. Just like car salesmen. And of course, just like the tv's, I Googled and got WAY TOO MUCH INFO. Overwhelming, so we just went to the store with the obnoxious commercials, and got the "end of year sale price, I'm not supposed to give it to you but I'm gonna, and I'm gonna throw in this mattress cover for half price, here let me show you what happens when I spill my coffee on it..........." The only good thing was we got in there just before several other people so we didn't have to hear it all 3 or 4 times.

And we've got the carpet ordered. Another Google job wasted. We'd picked the carpet but I thought we should know exactly how they would try to screw us at purchase time. Install, the carpet pad, etc etc. But we bought Karastan which is good stuff and they don't mess with you then.

Moon shot

The big ol' moon was setting on a clear Thurs. morning.

Today's long run was supposed to be 13 but I cut it short at 11.5 or so. It was freezing out and leg muscles were getting pretty tight, so I stopped just short of a bunch of little hills on the trail in the arboretum. I felt nothing positive would come of that last mile so I hopped into Coach Lesley's waiting vehicle.

I've just staved off starvation with a pile of chips & dip. We're going to try the pizza and wings from a new joint in the neighborhood tonight. Looks like I'm eating all my Super Bowl crap the day before the big event. Guess it's raw veggies for the game. HA !

Remodel Guys

The new siding on the new wall. Kind of looks nice natural, but it'll get painted white.

Brad, aka, The Cookie Monster. Good thing he wasn't here in Jan. for ALL of Marilyn's xmas cookies. Gina did share some today. Yes, there are still some left.


Brian, Randy and Joe (with back to us) Joe will be doing the tile, too. Randy has to do all the freezing outdoor work. He's thinking of moving back to sunny California after this job.


The paint scheme ! a chair rail will divide the colors.
Yes, kind of Seahawk-y or Mariner-y ish colors.


The frozen ground that will get a new sidewalk. The grapevines, well...I'm sure they'll be fine. I haven't killed them yet. and I've tried. no, not really.

26.2 miles with no bathroom breaks

OK, so the goal for this marathon was to run it in 4 hours 5 minutes or less, so that I could qualify to run in the Boston Marathon. At about mile 22 I was wondering if I really wanted to run another marathon.

I chose the Phoenix race because it had best chance for good weather, and it's a very flat course. The weather was fine. COLD but not wet. The tv stations kept warning about the SEVERE FREEZE ALERT.... wrap your pipes and plants. It was under 30 F at the start, and I passed two time & temp signs that said 32. I think by the end it might have been 40. I started with 3 shirts and finished in my tank top. Wore my gloves the whole way. The better to high five spectator kids along the way and not get their germs. Really, it was fine, but a few extra degrees would have been nice. Oh, well, at least the weather can't do anything to the topography of the course. Still flat.

One problem occurred at about mile 7 or so. My knee started up with the same ache I experienced in the half ironman last summer. Something I never had before and never again, til race day. It was annoying, not as bad as then. And of course a toe nail came loose about mile 19. That was pleasant.

I was running under a 9:00 minute/mile pace for the 1st 9 miles. Then my pace slowed a bit, anywhere from 9:00-9:48. At about mile 16 or so, the 4 hour Pace Group caught up to me. These are folks I should have been with all along but who knew where they were ?? anyway, hung out with this group for a while. Now I know why the Kenyans run in packs, it does make life easier, physically and mentally. The leader (who promises if you stick with her you WILL get a 4 hour finish time) was mentioning that they had a two and a half minute cushion at mile 20 so everyone could 'relax'. She walked thru the water stations. I was slowing down, not on purpose, and when I saw Gina at 21, she told me to keep the group in sight. So I did, and would catch up at each water station. I kept up this yo-yo effect until mile 25 water station when they slowed again. I mean, please, the end is in sight. So I 'sprinted' and ditched them for a 3:59:20 finish time !!

Bet you were wondering when I would get around to spilling that most important fact. That averages out to a 9:08 pace. Those higher ones were when I did stop to walk thru aid stations, and one time I stopped to actually stretch to see if it would help the knee issue. It didn't. Just a time loser.

Gatorade Gina ( G G ) did a fabulous job of meeting me at the 5,10,15 and 21 mile marks with drinks and good cheer. At the second spot she mentioned she might not be at the next ones due to more road closures than we anticipated. I said "no worries"... After the race she tells me this story... "So, when the cop pulled me over he said he could give me 2 tickets... one for driving on the sidewalk and one for driving around a barricade." But he didn't. And she bit her lip to keep from telling him her opinion about why that road didn't need to be blocked off. He told her to turn around and go back. He left. She waited. Then drove thru the next barricade. Ann MUST have her gatorade.

So, as the title of this posting suggests... the real accomplishment of note is the fact that I did not stop for ANY porta potty breaks. Of course, I pee-ed about 18 times in the half hour before the race but... bathroom breaks are also why I run a bit faster in the first several miles, to bank some time for nature's call. I'm calling it My Marathon Miracle.

And for my pet peeve of the race, people who wear their iPod... and insist on chatting with their running partner... at full volume.. Dude, the rest of us don't have earplugs in, so quit YELLING your strategy for a 3:50 finish. I guess I should be happy he wasn't singing along with his iTune. I must have been getting a bit cranky.

Post race activities included reclaiming my gear bag, along with the other 39,000 runners. Then trying to find the agility to change into warm clothes. The stiffness set in immediately. But it went away with a few recovery drinks. One was even a sports drink. The other 3 were adult beverages while watching the end of the Seahawk game at the closest sports bar. Back at the hotel I jumped into an almost ice bath. Well, that was after some food and more drink in the lobby bar with our new friends, the Pistachio nut salesman and his lovely wife, Bunny.

Massage, steam and jacuzzi and I'm ready to go again !
Well, once these 3 toes are no longer open wounds.

26.2 miles of fun

start of the race... me and 10,000 running buddies


the cold early morning drop off

mile 10

the lead pack of Kenyans and Ethiopians... no, those are not my white legs, I'm sure I'm just out of the photo.

Finish line area, cleff-er idea, the musical decorations for the "Rock n Roll" Marathon

mile 21 finally warm enough to strip down to a tank top. but still cold enough for gloves.

Gatorade Gina double checks her calculations and driving map.

The toe nail that came loose at mile 19.

post race beers with Mike, da Bears fan.

24

We are heading to Phoenix for a long weekend. You might think it is so we can be away where no one can bother us during the 2 day 4 hour season premier of "24".

But really it's so I can try and run a marathon. The PF Chang's Rock n Roll Marathon on Sunday. Gina is going to be my Gatorade Sherpa. This race has decided to use an oddball sports drink that is gaggy, so she will be at various spots along the course, Gatorade in hand. She says she'll try and snap a photo or 2, too. The only downside is that the Seahawk game starts at 11:00am. So she'll need to be at a sports bar by then. So I might not see her after mile 20. But that's ok. We've scouted out a joint that's fairly near to the finish line, near Ariz State campus. Then I'll crawl my way over to watch the final half, hopefully. If I could run 8:00 / mile I could see the whole game. But that ain't gonna happen.

So, full report on the flip side.

And please, do not call us during 24.

Renovation Updates

Despite lousy, freezing, raining, snowy weather, Brian and his troops are making huge progress. Basic plumbing is in and passed inspection. The framework has passed inspection. The "sparkies" are in doing their thing now, and presumably will pass electrical inspection. Soon the insulation (a novelty for this house) will be in. Same guys will put in some vapor barrier stuff in crawl space. We hope to bring them back to do same to the real crawl space, something that's been on the "to do" list since we bought this place 13 years ago. Then drywall goes up. Then painting begins. Or is it the tile guy then painting?? whatever.

Brian took Gina and I on a field trip last week. We got to ride in his big truck. We went to a stone slab fabricator place. Looking for seconds/leftover piece for the laundry counter. Found a great one. And it was fun to see how that shop operates, (templates for sinks, bullnosing, etc) Fancy hi tech stone cutting machinery. Then we went off to look at some Marmoleum. Floor stuff that is now Gina's new fun project....designing the pattern for the tile pieces. She's got some great colors and scheme going. Yesterday Brian got to see how Gina operates when designing. I often find myself being measured while sitting, lying down - how far to reach for light switch? where would my arms be while soaking in tub? In order to visualize things she uses 'found objects' to see how a design will work ( like will the bucket fit in this size sink? how far to reach for faucet, etc) He caught on quickly and was soon participating using a sponge to demonstrate how close the tile backsplash would be to sink edge. My job is once we know some estimated dimensions then I get to Google til I find the undermount stainless steel 10" deep sink. Or watertank dimensions or faucets or heaters or light fixtures....



She'll take this one, please.


Disaster zone.


New hot water heater... showers for hours !


Brian reads the plans.


World famous "Measurer"

Did I Forget ?

That our California buddies were in town for the holidays???

And I didn't get any good shots of Annalise, sheesh. dumb. But it's official now. A.B.B. is taller than me. That only took 14 years, 345 days. They'll be back in a day or two, after carousing in Portland for the New Years. Oh, wait, I did get one good one.


Annalise B.-Brown and her cousin Charlie Brown


What fun is having a blog if I can't post photos of Traci's butt ?


Happy New Year.

Happy New Year !

Post race beer garden. UM hats ! this photo taken by a couple of Buckeyes ! how weird is that?

Ahhh, a refreshing dip in Lake Washington. water was warmer than the air.

Ten minutes to game time.... just enough time to blog about this morning's race. The Resolution Run, Trip n Drip version. It's a 5K. You can choose to jump in the lake or not. You know we do. Gina is still on injured list so she graciously took photos for the blog.

Tooting horns here.. unofficially, I took 1st place in 50 yr old Drip division with a 23:45 time.

GO BLUE !

Christmas means presents !

Yes, yes, we went to church, too. But I can't take photos at Mass.


the "off list" gift. nicely done Susie.


The rookie chef (the print says something about cooking with wine, or while drinking wine)


Just wondering if any of these is a jigsaw puzzle.


Susie's thinking of doing her own blog. you go girl.


Steve's new Kenworth chapeau.


Ann's new biking sleeves. Yes, just the sleeves.


Susie's new slippers, and those are festive xmas sox she has on. you go girl.


Scott's new bad-ass drill.

Boys fighting over the toys. (tools)
It's not the holidays without a little squabble.

Did I say it was Christmas ?

That must mean Marilyn's cookies are baked and decorated and ready for consumption.


Steve prays to the beef gods for medium rare prime rib.


This is a festive photo of the uneaten green jello.


Happy Holidays from the Cookie Chef.


The fruits of her labors.


Green beans, Tori Spelling style. aka, wrapped in the elixir of life. NO, not the rum, the BACON !
although, that rum did spice up the egg nog nicely.

Dedicated Runners

Well, we spent a few days in Wapato, WA for the Christmas holiday. And the drive over the mtn. was fine, but there was a ton of snow in Wapato. But that doesn't mean the training stops... oh no... We grabbed the snow shovel and on Sunday we went to the high school and got a little exercise as we shovelled off a lane all the way around the track. Great ! we are now all set to run the next day. UNLESS a freezing rain occurs during the night, making all un-snowy surfaces more like an ice rink... rats. But that doesn't mean the training stops...oh no... we got a little running in, finding the footing to be a bit safer in the snow so we ran next to the nicely shovelled lane. And hey, look, is that Gina running? yes, she gave herself a little Christmas present. No, she shouldn't have, but it was Christmas, afterall. Give a little.

Seattle Half Marathon Report

I love requests !! thanks Pam.

So, you might recall a month or so ago I was hoping for a finishing time of "anything BUT 1 hour 47 minutes and odd seconds" . The last several years have all been that. So, long story short (you wish) I ran a 1:46:26. Yahoo ! good for 2nd place in my age group. That is the highest I've placed in this race.

It's been a while and we've had some even "better" weather recently, but you might recall that this Thanksgiving weekend was, as usual, WET & COLD. But WETTER & COLDER THAN USUAL. Lesley and I arrived at the race in typical ATR style.... very early... the better to warm up and pee a hundred times. But it was so WET & COLD we sat in the car for the most of the time. It was trying to snow out and I wished it would. Better snow than huge freezing rain. But freezing rain is what we got.

Coach Lesley ran the race with me to help pace me. Thank God, cuz at mile 8 I was ready to take anytime OVER 1:47. She did not let that happen. We started out at just under 8:00 pace trying to not go out too fast but I do need to "bank" some time in the first half of the race before it gets too hilly. The rain subsided, in the I-90 tunnel. :) actually, it was ok along Lk. Washington, but the rain returned by Madison Park, and the hills. Gina was hanging out at 23rd Ave. I saw her just after fording a stream. So much for the "keep the shoes dry" efforts. This spot is the only place on the route that the Metro buses are allowed to cross the runners' path. As Gina waited for us she witnessed the ingenious system that is used. Pylons and crime scene tape, that we've always seen but wondered why it was there. Remind me to tell you about it.

I missed my buddy Carmel in Interlochen but she may have been seeking shelter under a tree. And all the fans in rain gear were anonymous. What a trooper for being out there, though. Thanks Carmel ! As we ran along parallel but beneath the freeway we saw big showers of water pour down from the cars above going thru puddles. Thankfully we did not get one of those early douches.

About this time I was fading, but Coach was having none of it. I was wearing my billboard T-shirt "Coach Lesley.com" so couldn't let the brand name down. She pretty much verbally drug me thru the past couple miles. In the finish line photos you can see her eyes directed towards the clock, WE HAD TO BEAT 1:47. And we did, even my gun time was 1:47:56 .

We waited a couple minutes hoping to see Karen Buttram finish, figuring she'd be right behind us, but we were so chilled to the bone that standing still was not an option. We did cross paths a few minutes later at clothing pickup and got to trade a few comments on the day. Blaspheming the weather gods.

As I mentioned, 2nd is the highest I've placed in this race. (the weiner was 4 or 5 minutes ahead of me) I'm usually in top 10, closer to 10, but my theory is those faster 50 yr.olds took one look at the weather, knew it would hamper their times, and went back to bed. You snooze, you lose.

Best part of the day.... the hot tub and then 5 hours later boarding a plane for Maui.
Worst part.... for the first time in 12 years Gina did not race. Damn those feet!

For those of you with # fetishes, here are the mile splits.
Gotta love that Mile #11. It saved the day. I'll spare you the Heart Rates details.

8:36.8 (minus 20 seconds to start line)
15:35.9 (miles 2 & 3)
8:01.6
8:06.8
7:51.8
8:19.9
9:05.7
8:10.4
9:02.3
7:16.8 (must have been down hill)
7:57.9
8:38.5 (mile 13.1)

Remodel

While we were gone, Brian and Randy got a lot done.. even though weather conditions were lousy. On the 19 degree day, they had to dig the ditch to lay some new foundation, or whatever they call it. They were going to pour cement into it. Randy said it was like digging thru permafrost.

We felt bad for them... brought them some maui chocolates to enjoy.

We've got another 2 feet added to the house. WOW ! Expansion-city.

Of course, they left on Friday saying "think about a cathedral ceiling" . Just to get Gina's panties into a bundle. She has thought about it, even tried drawing some plans, but it just is not going to happen. Not needed. They think it would make for a great " TV room " . It's the bedroom. And that change would impact the pillars, and this whole remodel is about the tub and pillars ! :)

And I love catching them in the cell phone act. All contractors " Man your Phone" !

And our new roommate, Charlie Brown. Isn't he cute? I got him for Gina's birthday. She's a big fan of the C.B. Christmas show. He had to room over at Val & Kathy's house for a month, as Ifound him but had no where to keep him secret. Every inch of our house is used for storing all the stuff that came out of the remodel side.

He makes us smile everytime we look at him. I think everyone should have one , the more smiling the better.