MEN... who (k)needs them ?

Between the sleepless nights caused by hot flashes from what is most certainly "Early Onset MEN opause", and the knee pain from my damaged medial MEN iscus, I am not a happy camper these days.

Here I am playing doctor with the films from the MRI.


good lateral meniscus (one a 15 yr. old would be happy to have, says doc Anderson)

bad medial meniscus

ok, so the meniscus is that sort of triangular/arrow looking thing betwixt the large shapes... and it should be all dark, the little white-ish area denotes some tearing.

But on a GOOD note, check out my toes these days. looking pretty good, wouldn't you say?

The bruising on my left foot is a result of my plastic hairbrush (weighing about, what? half an ounce?) falling and hitting exactly on one of those veins. Lumped up immed. and then bad bruising.

Anyway, I have a surgical consult on Thur. morning to decide if arthroscopic surgery can help the situation.

Meniscus Surgery
The meniscus is a C shaped pad of rubbery cartilage inside the knee joint. It is similar to a shock absorber and cushions the knee during movement. It may tear when placed under too much stress causing pain. Arthroscopic surgery will involve either removing a damaged section or repairing with sutures. Recovery will take approximately 4-6 weeks and physical therapy is usually needed.

Coach Lesley is thinking positively (and so am I) and does not think that even surgery would throw off the schedule TOO badly. We'll see.

And hey, I lived thru the Boston disappointment once... ok twice.. :)

Stay tuned.

I don't KNEE'D this

Yes, it's been 10 days since posting on this blog. Ten days of knee pain. sheesh. OK, so mid Feb. I come down with this lame knee ache. It starts to get a bit better. Then relapses badly. But then starts to get better. and better. and better. OK. Then I decide to do a 4 mile run on the treadmill (cuz I'm so sick of the cold wet weather and I just wanted to run in shorts). And cuz it's so boring on the treadmill I decide to up the speed, and up it a bit more. And it was fine. Til later. And this time the relapse was/is worse. I'm scheduled to see the doc tomorrow. It is getting a bit better. I can ride and swim.. can even run but that hurts. arrghhhhh.

Did I mention I can ride ? Yesterday Gina and I rode around Lake Washington (approx. 55 miles) It was a beautiful day. We still bundled up. Shed a layer here and there. But it was 4.5 hours of fun. And today we got back on those bikes and rode from here to Seward Park and back (approx 30 miles). and each day I spent the ensuing hours icing my knee.

One of the reasons for no blogging lately is the knee totally stiffens up while sitting here.
So, I'm outta here !

Week 13 Totals : Apr 21 - Apr 27
Swim Time = 1hr. 4 min. (2900 yards)
Bike Time = 8hr. 9 min. (100 miles)
Run Time = 1hr. 0 min. (6.25 miles)

Total Training to Date
Swim Yards = 18hr. 12 min. (51050 yards)
Bike Miles = 51hr. 58 min. (755 miles)
Run Miles = 38hr. 37 min. (241.85 miles)

Mercer Island Poop

We swam at the M I Pool, and rode the M I Loop, so anagrammically I'm calling it the MI Poop.

Here's how i described the day to coach:

by the by, we did our swim and mercer is. poop today. it took all day. but only cuz when we got to our pool the guy (Russ) said closed.(and yes we did call before but no answer)... til the health insp. comes and gives them the ok, which he figured would happen, then we could swim (actually he nicely gave us directions to bellevue pool but i don't do bellevue). insp due some time before 11. so we waited. (insp. showed at 11, which we also predicted) we figured we'd have the whole pool to ourselves. and then he tells us "a disgruntled ex employee called the health dept" OMIGOD i said was it diane? the nut job from last week? yep. we really hate her now.
and then some old lady showed up, wearing a big ol neckbrace (should she be driving?) so i told her it was closed, to save her the steps to the pool. then she starts chatting... i mistakenly asked how she broke her neck... that story was gonna be endless... til the guard poked his head out to say "we passed!". gotta go lady... then i hear her at the desk moaning about who's gonna teach water aerobics.... sure enough a little later, 2 ladies in the pool, and russ the guard doing the motions on the deck. quite cute.

Zeee-Dub !!

http://propix.propixonline.com/view.php?pic=316%20-%20HIP%20HOP%20HONKIES%20-%20E/34005.jpg&which=7&page=1

This link should take you to a photo of Wendy (Gina's Wyoming rellie) starring in a dance competition, not sure which one... Dancing with the Stars?? America's Next Top Dancer? Survivor:Dance off the Island? Project Dance Costume??

We are waiting for the video. They won their division, so congrats on that.

Z-Dub is slang for Zumba Wendy.. She's been teaching that class at her gym, and some birthday parties, so I guess she hires out.

And in case the link doesn't work, here's a couple pic's... One of Wendy, and her son Super Lee, in a quiet moment. One of the few photos of Lee where he's not holding a fish he's caught. And a photo from last year's dance show.. or is it her part time job?

Daffodil Classic Bike Ride

On Sunday Gina and I headed to Orting, WA to participate in the Daffodil Classic Bike Ride. We rode for 62 miles (4hrs, 25) We started early to beat the rain. It was a bit chilly but we had several layers on. And our new bike jackets, gloves, and toe booties. (cute little things that covers the toes of the bike shoes and keeps the wind and cold out) $ $ $


Mt. Rainier

Mt. St. Helens

http://www.twbc.org/events/daffodil/2008ElevProfileEatonville61.pdf

We did not really ride up either of these mountains but were close enough for good looks. These are not my photos, grubbed them off the internet. I've got too much food, spare tubes, rain gear to carry my camera when I ride. There were a couple good hills that we rode, and a fierce headwind on the final 20 miles. All in all, it was a good day. We actually rode outside without the temp's being in the 60's. and survived. Don't tell Coach.

Oh, and because spring has not sprung around here we saw NO DAFFODILS.

and lest I forget,

Week 11 Totals : Apr 7 - Apr 13
Swim Time = 1hr. 10 min. (3100 yards)
Bike Time = 6hr. 18 min. (92 miles)
Run Time = 4hr. 15 min. (26.8 miles)

Total Training to Date
Swim Yards = 15hr. 14 min. (42450 yards)
Bike Miles = 40hr. 16 min. (609 miles)
Run Miles = 34hr. 55 min. (218.1 miles)

Bracket Master

So, for once in my life I won the March Madness bracket pool. And lucky for me, tons of folks at the gym entered, too. That meant big bucks ! And bragging rights. Also, for once in my life I mostly went with higher seeds, but I did go for some upsets ( I picked Siena first round )
Cat, the gal that works at the gym took 2nd place, which means the only 2 women to enter, WON ! We've been high fiving all week.

I figure you really wanted to see a picture of my bracket. Am I right ?
The real one is under glass, framed, and hanging on the wall.

ace. I'm not THAT weird.

Spring Ahead, Rocky

Rocky forgot to change his clock. Came out during the daylight. Got the crows all fired up. They started screaming, which upset the robins. (it's like a wildlife refuge here) And got our attention. He walked around the house and up onto the neighbor's garage.

The bad part about these photos is that they make me see that our back yard really looks like a dump. That white garage is the lady behind us. We are thankful that when she painted her house pink, she asked what we'd like on the back wall. But those boards are part of our fence and the grape vines just look shabby. Hmmm, who is the outdoor worker in this family? Oh, me. Hmm

Am I a Biker, or what?

I guess I should say "cyclist". Well, really I guess I should say "geek". Don't worry, my helmet is down in the garage. I don't even ride the half mile to the gym without it. Esp. after a fellow gym gal scolded me. She was a nurse in the head trauma unit at Harborview. ok, ok.

How do you like the new jacket ? Gina has one, too. To add to the geek factor of wearing the same outfit. Hopefully it just screams " HERE I AM, SHARING THE ROAD WITH CARS, DO NOT HIT ME". to all the folks driving while cell phoning.

But we did actually ride outside today. It was 40 degrees. But we bundled up, and did 5 hot laps around the lake. Then over to the gym to take the spinning class. Then off for a 6 mile run. What fun it all was. I joined up with Darcy and Karen on the run so that made it go much nicer. It's all about the distractions.

Unfortunately, one of our CoachLesley buddies, Jan, did have a spill on her bike and landed "just wrong".. broke the neck of her femur. Is in surgery as we speak. :( doctor has high hopes for a speedy recovery, tho. And so do we.

Is it spring yet?

We are still awaiting warmer temp's before striking out on the roads with our bikes. So Sunday was a 3hour 15 minute living room ride. Mostly entertained by the Mariner game.... til the bottom of the ninth. sheeesh.

Today we went to the secret pool. But the staff did not. It was closed for unknown reasons. We did not leave before some crazy woman, Diane, showed up. In her suit and towel. Obviously she does not shower and change when she's finished. Anyway, she was a nut job. Was certain that something was terribly wrong, cuz she used to work at the pool. Started bossing us fools that hung around... "call the NW Center..give me the phone", as she rips it out of my hands, even tho the 411 had given me a wrong # , I tried to tell her. And of course it's freezing out and drizzly... "can I sit in your car?" as she gets in.. her car was 2' away. Sure, get in. It was like a scene out of Seinfeld. So we stuck around to see what would happen. Sure enough, some supv. dude shows up, cannot work the electronic key pad, she goes to talk to him (cuz she used to work at the pool) he waves her off, she's back in the car says " Just between you and me.... pause pause... he's(the supv.) not a swimmer" Gina and I " No ! " We hang around some more. She goes to talk to him again.. "you gotta wiggle the keypad" Then she comes back and says "you can go now". Um , thanks. So we stayed a while longer, just to prove to ourselves that she was not our boss.


Week 10 Totals : Mar 31 - Apr 6
Swim Time = 1hr. 57 min. (4850 yards)
Bike Time = 5hr. 55 min. (90 miles)
Run Time = 3hr. 34 min. (23 miles)

Total Training to Date
Swim Yards = 14hr. 4 min. (39350 yards)
Bike Miles = 33hr. 58 min. (517 miles)
Run Miles = 30hr. 40 min. (191.3 miles)

A Blogger in her Birthday Suit

ACE !!

APRIL FOOLS !!!

No, the look of dismay is due to needing to still run in long tights, instead of shorts. Sheeeeesh, it is April 1st, after all. and 30 degrees this morning. F not C .

But for birthday fun we ran 5 miles, then went over to the secret pool for 2600 yards of swimming fun. Now I feel the Rinehart gene kicking in which can mean only one thing.............. Nap time.

Too much

I could give this type of info, but I spare you all the details. You are welcome. But some dude whose blog I won't be reading anymore gives about 4 charts and a week's worth of workout details.
OK OK I cannot resist giving you another example of this guy's obsessiveness. (Mario, Italian, now lives in Cupertino and works in the tech sector.... ya think ?) (he's been charting since 2003) And you all should be happy I don't blog how he does about my injuries. He has more info on his blog about his achilles injury than I could shake a willow stick at.

"According to my measurements, the road is 3.37 miles long (from the bridge to the stop sign), and gains 1290 feet. Due to its twisting nature and constantly changing grades, the local gradiometer readings should be considered approximate. Even though I measured the grade every 30-50 yards, I still did not capture all the bumps and undulations in the climb. I did a lot of guesswork to try to pick a sample that was representative of each segment.Altimeter altitude (Altitude linearly interpolated from altimeter samples, and smoothed with a 0.04mi gaussian.) Each horizontal line is 100 feet. Each vertical line is 0.2 miles.Gradiometer grade (Grade linearly interpolated from gradiometer samples, and smoothed with a 0.04mi gaussian.) Each horizontal line is 2% grade. Each vertical line is 0.2 miles.Altimeter grade (Grade linearly interpolated from altimeter samples, and smoothed with a 0.20mi gaussian.) Each horizontal line is 2% grade. Each vertical line is 0.2 miles.Comparison of grades (Green grade is from the gradiometer, magenta grade is from the altimeter, and white is where they overlap.) Each horizontal line is 2% grade. Each vertical line is 0.2 miles. Overall (averaging my first 20 hills), the gradiometer grade averages 0.63 (% grade) higher than the altimeter grade, with a standard deviation of 4.5 (% grade per road). This error may be due to:Uneven sampling -- I take more samples when the hill gets steep.Calibration error (of the gradiometer or altimeter). In the end, though, I think that each individual sample is accurate to within about 2% for that instantaneous segment of road. My results may not always agree with my altimeter, but they are generally repeatable within 1%. I think that I just need to take more samples to generate more accurate graphs"

Yes, Mario, exactly. I have been so disgusted by those inaccurate graphs, I could PUKE.

http://trimario.blogspot.com/ just in case you love the data

NUMB ers

Here is the week's data, but the NUMB refers to my butt. Today we spun the bikes for another 2:40. The spin bikes at the gym are easy to ride standing up but on our real bikes on the trainers it's not so easy, so way more time "in the saddle".

I made up a new spinning playlist on the iPod, using music that Gina likes, so we listened to that while watching basketball games. Perfect.

Week 9 Totals : Mar 24 - Mar 30
Swim Time = 1hr. 0 min. (2500 yards)
Bike Time = 5hr. 20 min. (85 miles)
Run Time = 4hr. 3 min. (26.5 miles)

Total Training to Date
Swim Yards = 12hr. 7 min. (34500 yards)
Bike Miles = 28hr. 3 min. (427 miles)
Run Miles = 27hr. 6 min. (168.3 miles)

Santa Barbara Scenery

It's halftime of the games so here goes some photo fun.

Madness = Happiness

Well, I gladly forfeited watching tons of basketball games last weekend to celebrate Traci's 50th. B U T next year? nope, do not plan anything for me, do not even call me. anyone. no, not even you, Mom.

I am right now (well, not right now cuz it's halftime and I'm blogging) watching the WSU game on my tv, AND watching the Xavier game on my computer (free). AND could be watching another game on Gina's computer, if there was another game on at the moment. AND I could buy a laptop and watch yet another game.

SO, next year I am going to be here in front of my screens on the first weekend of the tournament. AND yes, my phones will all be OFF.

I could only be happier if WSU was winning. But I think the cutest coach in the league will come up with something to make the 2nd half exciting. A hot shooting hand would help.

And yes, I NEED Carolina out of the bracket. (cuz I had Notre Dame beating them)

More birthday weekend photos

Well, Traci put on the pressure, so here are tons of photos.... cuz we had tons o fun !
Can you believe that I'm sippin a lovely cheap pinot grigio as we speak? Blog posting is so much easier with a bit of a buzz on.


sippin glasses

WOW I had a great time !


Adrian explains the willow stick theory to Cindy,
Harlan checks his texts. cuz he's a VIP. whatever.

Adrian asks good questions, gets BS answers about bio dynamics.


Seattlites soakin up the sun. ahhh

This pic is TOO good to not post twice .


T. O. grrlz Rulz !!


Donna must have known I was trying to get a shot of that fab belt she had on.
Jale ignores me.


Kids will be kids.

Ever hear of SPF 30 ?

Hurry and open those divine chocolate fortune cookies.


Janet & Pat listen.

Pat swirls.

Pat gulps it down.
Next he will do his Oliver Twist impression "please sir, may I have more?"

Denise, a very suave looking oenophile.
Or at least a one handed oenophile.

John calculates how much Eric makes per tour to afford that(those) Escalades.


The surprise guests ! oh, just siblings

OK, which cheapskate tipped the $1 bill ?

Is that? Omigod, it is.... Jan Smezek !!

Karen did remember her sunscreen.

That's Frank Frankowski, in the background. Driver extraordinaire.. How he stayed on the 101 with Anne K. whispering in his ear I'll never know. I was distracted 6 rows back.

Did you like my California-speak ?? The 101 ??

Mileage update

Here are some belatedly posted #'s that I know you have been wondering about. I'm sure the biking times will be going up, soon. As soon as Coach Lesley can convince me that it's warm enough to ride outside. But it's barely 40 degrees today so.................

My knee is doing MUCH BETTER, thanks for asking. Not completely healed and back to back long runs make it act up, but overall better. I was a bit worried for a while.

While in Santa B. we swam in a 50 meter pool. Outdoors of course, it is sunny southern California. It was great ! except that wall is so not where you expect it to be. But the distance really allows you to get into a rythm. But back to reality at our Green Lake Pool tomorrow.

Week 7 Totals : Mar 10 - Mar 16
Swim Time = 1hr. 32 min. (4300 yards)
Bike Time = 2hr. 50 min. (39 miles)
Run Time = 3hr. 21 min. (20.7 miles)
Total Training to Date
Swim Yards = 10hr. 11 min. (26800 yards)
Bike Miles = 19hr. 51 min. (292 miles)
Run Miles = 19hr. 27 min. (119.3 miles)


Week 8 Totals : Mar 17 - Mar 23
Swim Time = 0hr. 56 min. (5200 yards)
Bike Time = 2hr. 52 min. (50 miles)
Run Time = 3hr. 36 min. (22.5 miles)
Total Training to Date
Swim Yards = 11hr. 7 min. (32000 yards)
Bike Miles = 22hr. 43 min. (342 miles)
Run Miles = 23hr. 3 min. (141.8 miles)

Time to Detox

We are back from THE Traci Lyn Brown 50th birthday bash in Santa Barbara. whew ! I'm still working on the photo collection but here's a sampling. Or shall I say "a tasting".


Was the weekend really all about the youthful and playful Traci Lyn Brown ?


Or was it about her buddy ? ME !! It's all about ME !! It's MY BLOG !! It's MY CAMERA !! It's MY GREEN SHIRT !!
I learned this "me" crap from Traci.


Or was it about the wines ? Bio dynamic or not, could I please have a full pour?


Or was this really a Neti Pot User convention?
Hi, My name is Ann, I've known Traci for 27 years and I've had sinus issues for the last 6 years.

McHugh Leprechauns

Krissy. I can't stop smiling seeing this picture.


Eli Manning and Krissy.
I'm loving his shirt.

St. Patty's Day Dress

An annual sighting. This lady wears this beautiful housedress EVERY year to Murphy's Pub. I know this cuz every year I go to Murphy's. I know, I'm in a huge rut. So today I tried to surreptitiously take a photo of it. hence the blur. REALLY, I was only there for 1.5 Guinness's. The lady actually talked to me, she inherited the dress from her mother, but still I could not bring myself to ask for a full photo.

Dan Maher, the blind guy from Spokane, sang all the same Irish tunes as he does every year. Same jokes. And I hung out with Dave, yet another blind guy. Does Guinness have an effect on the eyes?

Road Trip ? Boat Trip? Zoo Trip?

What? oh, OK, so the blog allah wants me to only upload one or 2 photos at a time.. Like I've got nothin else to do ! :) So as usual, there is no order, rhyme or reason to these pictures. But really great captions.


The eagle has landed.

Obligatory lighthouse photo.

The ONLY whale we spotted. darn

let's back up the car a half mile to take a photo of this for Gina.


Just before I make them take the "shortcut".


There MUST be a whale out there somewhere. But really, how do you like my Boston Marathon Jacket? Did I tell you I ran that race last year? I did tell you? ok, well, it was really something.. oh never mind.

On golden pond, AKA the view from our lodge.

You would have thunk we made her hike up and across Deception Pass or something.


Mona looks for cookies.

Gina sure attracts the cutest animals.

Kathy's chums. We horned in on opening night party. Thanks Patty. (for the fun, free food & drinks)

Lodge night. Don't even ask us for the secret password.


That's Mt.Baker in the background. And a couple of 'swells' in the foreground.

Who are these movie stars?

Allah forbid we get out of the car to look at the eagle.

Mangiest fox we ever did see. He came to the car for his close up, though. Gina spotted him(her?) way across the prairie. Good eye, mate.