Distance: 26.2 miles
Time: 5 hrs. 25 mins. 27 secs. <--PR by 29 mins and 22 seconds!
Route: Rock N Roll Mardi Gras Marathon, New Orleans, LA
Number of Ninjas: 0
I beat the alarm clock. The past few weeks, I haven't beat the alarm clock. I rolled out of bed at 4:40am and got ready to go. I knew that it would be cold at the start, so I brought a sweater that I had intended to donate to Goodwill...that way I could chuck it at the start and know that it would for sure get donated. I had a long sleeve base layer, the t-shirt and capris. I had my trusty Bubba Gump hat that has become a trademark and a good luck charm. Don't worry, I wash it after every race. So the funk isn't quite that bad. I grabbed my iPod, a wheat bagel and peanut butter and was out the door. I met Stephen (my friend Kathy's husband) downstairs at 5:30. He was running too, so we decided to walk to the start together.
Damn. It was freezing. The good thing about modern running shoes is that they ventilate and wick moisture wonderfully. The bad thing is that they ventilate a little too well. Meaning, by the time I went to my start corral, I couldn't feel my toes. I wish I had worn some gloves, but I like my new ones and didn't want to chuck them or have to carry them the whole time. Oh well. I knew they'd warm up eventually. I wished Stephen good luck (he was 5 corrals ahead of me) and walked back to mine. I recognized a girl immediately...turns out she's the vet tech at the vet's office that we go to! Such a small world. She was running the half with her sister and friend. I wished her good luck and we made our way to the start line. I chucked my sweater to the side about 20 feet from the start. The sun was coming up and I knew that I'd warm up soon.
I crossed the start line at 7:31am. What a fantastically beautiful morning! The weather gods did not disappoint us! I didn't use my Nike+, but I used my stopwatch on my wristwatch instead. I started off strong...probably a little too strong. I ran my first mile in about 10:20. I decided to slow myself down. I had a long way to go and I knew that I couldn't keep that pace up. By the second mile, I had to pee. Really. Bad. I looked at the lines for the porta potties, and I guess everyone else did too. I noticed that most of the people in line were halfers, so I decided to wait until the full marathon split off from the half marathon. It proved to be a wise decision, but I was still mad at myself for having to stop. Luckily, it was the only one I had to make during the race.
We split off from the halfers at mile 5 and ran through Audubon Park. We approached it from the opposite direction that we had come from 2 year ago. Still just as beautiful! I noticed a girl that was running about the same pace I was. We kind of went back and forth for a mile...she would go in front for a bit, then I would go in front. Finally, I asked her if she minded if I paced her and ran with her for a bit. She happily said yes and we ran for a bit. Her name was Kaylee and she lived in New Orleans. She was recovering from a pulled hamstring and hadn't run in 10 days. She was a really nice girl and had a good, upbeat attitude. We ran together until mile 12. Her mom was cheering her on and she stopped to walk and talk with her mom. I wished her good luck and kept going.
I spotted our cheering section at the halfway point. I was quite happy to see them. At this point, I was tired, but physically still felt pretty good. I gave the kids high-fives and kisses and off I went. I figured now it was all downhill...less than halfway to go. And yes...it really did go a little downhill from there.
The full course met back up with the halfers at Decatur Street, which runs on the outside of the French Quarter. It wasn't quite as awesome as running directly through the Quarter on Bourbon Street, but it was still pretty cool. We ran by Margaritaville and I thought of Mary. She runs with me every time I run...I know it sounds cheesy, but it's true. I always think of her...especially on the long runs. I think she is my sister from another mother. :) I thought a lot of my friends back home...not in a wistful way, but in a fun trip down memory lane kind of way. Before I knew it, I was coming up on mile 15. I saw the mile marker and I started to get tired. My quads hurt and I was just tired and felt thirsty. I had regretted my decision to forgo the camelbak during the race early on, and was really regretting it by mile 15. They had an ample amount of aid stations, but I was just so used to being able to take a slurp any ol' time I needed to. Note to self: bring it next time, if there is a next time.
Right before mile 16, I spotted a familiar person. It was Stephen! I was happy to see a friendly face, but I knew that because I had caught up to him, that he was probably in a good amount of pain. I asked him how he was doing and he said that his knees were killing him. He had decided to run a mile and then walk a half mile, run a mile, walk a half mile in order to be able to finish. He asked me how I was doing and I told him that I was alright minus the fact that the quads were hurting and I was just tired. He was still running a little ahead of me at mile 18 and then he stopped to walk. I felt horrible for passing him. He wished me well and I returned the sentiments. I kept plugging away.
By mile 19, I saw the faster runners coming back from the lake and recognized one of them--Justin Ball. I yelled good luck to him and cheered him on when I saw him. He waved and kept going. I was starting to slow down. My legs were in pain and I was really tired. I would walk through the water stations and then run between each one. However, each stop became more and more painful and it hurt to start running. I didn't care though. I knew the fastest way to finish would be to push through the pain and just keep running. At mile 21 and 22, we ran along the shore of Lake Ponchartrain. It was so pretty. It kind of reminded me of running through Balboa Park in San Diego. It was just so beautiful in its own way. It was hard to believe that something so beautiful could wreak so much havoc during Hurricane Katrina. When we turned around to go back from the lakefront, I realized that this was pretty much the homestretch.
I kept telling myself that I could do it. After all, there were only 3 miles left...c'mon girl! You've got this! You run 3 miles all the time! When I broke it down into the small increments, it helped. I never hit the wall and I am so grateful for that. I didn't hit it last time and I didn't hit it this time. When I ran to mile 25, the cheering squad was there. I saw Lynley and Kathy and the kids. All the kids were cheering and Gavin, Payton and Dallas ran a little ways with me. I gave them all high fives and kept going. I had to walk just a little...there was a slight incline that my quads were yelling at. I saw them at the chute through mile 26. Then I ran through the chute and across the finish line.
I finished it in 5 hours, 25 minutes and 27 seconds. I had initially hoped to break 5 hours, but when I checked my split at the halfway point, I knew that I wouldn't be able to do it. However, I quickly adjusted my goal to just trying to beat the projected finish time of 5:30. I'm really happy with my time and with my finish. I'm happy that I ran the race I wanted to run. Of course, being a Virgo means that I am a perfectionist. I can think of a million things that I could have done differently and maybe if I do another one, then I'll make some minor adjustments. But for now, I'm telling that perfectionist to shut up and eat some cake, because damn it, I just finished my second marathon. That is a feat in itself for this girl. For someone who was never a runner, I'm proud to say, I'm a runner.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Prelude.
Because we had such an adventurous weekend, I decided that I needed to split the race report into two sections...prelude to the race and the race itself. :)
We had a crazy week that led up to taking off to New Orleans. We had snow days, busy work days, busy school days and a birthday! Lauren turned 5 and the weather turned ugly. We had a snow day that was minus snow. Go figure. :)
We left for New Orleans on Friday morning. Kathy and Stephen (Stephen ran the full marathon as well) and their family had gone down the night before. Lynley and her gang (awesome cheerleaders) were supposed to leave around 11am or so. We dropped the dog off at the vets office and off we went. I got a text from Lynley and it turns out that they were right behind us! We did a few stops and poor Bean just wasn't herself that day. Her eyes kept watering and she wouldn't eat anything or drink anything. By the time we got to the hotel, she looked miserable. We hung out for a few minutes and she seemed to get a little better. We decided to hit up the aquarium with Lynley and her crew. We figured that Friday would be better than Saturday. I think we're a little spoiled. While the Aquarium of the Americas is cool in its own right, but the $60 it cost to get in wasn't quite worth it. We've been spoiled by the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Churami Aquarium in Okinawa. The kids had a great time though (the adults did too), so that's all that mattered.
It was still a little early, so we decided to head over to the Riverwalk Mall and eat an early dinner at the food court. We stopped at a sports store and I noticed that Bean just wasn't looking too good. I held her and walked outside. We sat down and she was sitting on my lap. Then I heard it. A burp followed by the chunkage. Yep. She horked. The poor kiddo. Lynley ran inside and told the store clerk what had happened and the clerk managed to call security. In the meantime, she managed to nail pretty much the entire length of Mark's sweatshirt. He took the poor girl outside and the security guard came over and called housekeeping. At least he was able to go home with an amusing tale of a bunch of tourists standing around a pile o' puke.
We debated on what to do next...she said she felt better, so we decided to head upstairs and grab some dinner. Mark grabbed a fried shrimp po-boy and I had some red beans and rice. Gav was the smart one and had a slice of pizza. We decided to hit up the Cafe du Monde in the mall to grab some beignets to go. You can't come to New Orleans and NOT have beignets. That's pretty much sacrilege. We made it back to the hotel and Bean was looking a little better, so we gave her a nectarine. Which in turn, came back up maybe 5 minutes after she consumed it. :(
The next morning, she still wasn't looking too good. She didn't eat much for breakfast and sure enough, she ralphed when we got back to the room. I decided to head to the race expo with the Hunts, while Mark and the kiddos took it easy. I walked down with them and then grabbed my stuff and headed back. I told Kathy to just go ahead and do stuff without us. If Lauren wasn't feeling good, then Mark and I would pull shifts with her. I got back to the hotel and what do you know? That little stinker is 99% herself. She's eating and drinking water and keeping it all in. So, we decided to head down to the French Quarter. We didn't want her overexerting herself, so we drove down there. We ate at Hard Rock Cafe and then meandered around the Quarter for a bit. Then we headed over to the Louisiana Children's Museum for a bit. I started to get a little tired, so we headed back over to the hotel. Mark took the kids swimming and I took it easy.
For dinner, we got take out from a restaurant across the street. Reginelli's Pizzeria is AWESOME. Decently priced and EXCELLENT chow. I had pesto tortellini and Mark had a calzone. Kathy had the same as myself and Stephen had pizza. We also got the garlic spread and the Spinach-Artichoke dip. It was fantastic! Will definitely go back there for noms. Seriously good. We went back up to the room to get ready for the party. The three girls (Payton, Lauren and Raegan) all have February birthdays, so Lynley bought a cake and we had a little birthday celebration for them...complete with presents! :) Chocolate + presents = happy campers.
...and this is where this blog ends....time to race. :)
We had a crazy week that led up to taking off to New Orleans. We had snow days, busy work days, busy school days and a birthday! Lauren turned 5 and the weather turned ugly. We had a snow day that was minus snow. Go figure. :)
We left for New Orleans on Friday morning. Kathy and Stephen (Stephen ran the full marathon as well) and their family had gone down the night before. Lynley and her gang (awesome cheerleaders) were supposed to leave around 11am or so. We dropped the dog off at the vets office and off we went. I got a text from Lynley and it turns out that they were right behind us! We did a few stops and poor Bean just wasn't herself that day. Her eyes kept watering and she wouldn't eat anything or drink anything. By the time we got to the hotel, she looked miserable. We hung out for a few minutes and she seemed to get a little better. We decided to hit up the aquarium with Lynley and her crew. We figured that Friday would be better than Saturday. I think we're a little spoiled. While the Aquarium of the Americas is cool in its own right, but the $60 it cost to get in wasn't quite worth it. We've been spoiled by the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Churami Aquarium in Okinawa. The kids had a great time though (the adults did too), so that's all that mattered.
It was still a little early, so we decided to head over to the Riverwalk Mall and eat an early dinner at the food court. We stopped at a sports store and I noticed that Bean just wasn't looking too good. I held her and walked outside. We sat down and she was sitting on my lap. Then I heard it. A burp followed by the chunkage. Yep. She horked. The poor kiddo. Lynley ran inside and told the store clerk what had happened and the clerk managed to call security. In the meantime, she managed to nail pretty much the entire length of Mark's sweatshirt. He took the poor girl outside and the security guard came over and called housekeeping. At least he was able to go home with an amusing tale of a bunch of tourists standing around a pile o' puke.
We debated on what to do next...she said she felt better, so we decided to head upstairs and grab some dinner. Mark grabbed a fried shrimp po-boy and I had some red beans and rice. Gav was the smart one and had a slice of pizza. We decided to hit up the Cafe du Monde in the mall to grab some beignets to go. You can't come to New Orleans and NOT have beignets. That's pretty much sacrilege. We made it back to the hotel and Bean was looking a little better, so we gave her a nectarine. Which in turn, came back up maybe 5 minutes after she consumed it. :(
The next morning, she still wasn't looking too good. She didn't eat much for breakfast and sure enough, she ralphed when we got back to the room. I decided to head to the race expo with the Hunts, while Mark and the kiddos took it easy. I walked down with them and then grabbed my stuff and headed back. I told Kathy to just go ahead and do stuff without us. If Lauren wasn't feeling good, then Mark and I would pull shifts with her. I got back to the hotel and what do you know? That little stinker is 99% herself. She's eating and drinking water and keeping it all in. So, we decided to head down to the French Quarter. We didn't want her overexerting herself, so we drove down there. We ate at Hard Rock Cafe and then meandered around the Quarter for a bit. Then we headed over to the Louisiana Children's Museum for a bit. I started to get a little tired, so we headed back over to the hotel. Mark took the kids swimming and I took it easy.
For dinner, we got take out from a restaurant across the street. Reginelli's Pizzeria is AWESOME. Decently priced and EXCELLENT chow. I had pesto tortellini and Mark had a calzone. Kathy had the same as myself and Stephen had pizza. We also got the garlic spread and the Spinach-Artichoke dip. It was fantastic! Will definitely go back there for noms. Seriously good. We went back up to the room to get ready for the party. The three girls (Payton, Lauren and Raegan) all have February birthdays, so Lynley bought a cake and we had a little birthday celebration for them...complete with presents! :) Chocolate + presents = happy campers.
...and this is where this blog ends....time to race. :)
Monday, February 7, 2011
Meltdown.
I think we're all entitled to a meltdown every now and again. Sometimes people have spectacular meltdowns: you know the kind where the waterworks are flowing, yelling ensues and possibly the breakage of a few treasured items that you may come to regret in the morning. Other times, the meltdown may be more silent, no yelling, no breaking of things and no waterworks. These kind of meltdowns, while definitely more secretive are just as spectacular.
I think I may be in the middle of a spectacular silent meltdown. My brain seems to be going into shut down mode, even as I type this. Everyone knows that I'm a busy person. I get a lot of comments about how crazy I must be and yadda yadda yadda. Yes. I'm busy. Yes. It was my choice. Yes. I made a HUGE mistake in over scheduling myself. Yes. I TOTALLY regret it. I thought that Mark's job would basically be keeping away from the house at all hours of the day. He's done this kind of job before and I was completely unprepared for it. He would leave at 6am and not come home sometimes until 9 or 10pm--only to get up and do it all over again the next day. Weekends consisted of him going in at least one day. Needless to say, I decided that I didn't want to be left with a lot of time on my hands to wallow in self-pity. So, I did what any other spouse would do--I decided to keep myself busy.
Busy is very much an understatement. I work part time, take classes for my master's degree, volunteer with the Barksdale Officers' Spouses' Club, raise the kiddos and run. Any time leftover is usually dedicated to inhaling food or sleeping. I thought I had it under control until yesterday. For some reason, yesterday is when everything seemed to unravel in my brain. It wasn't any one thing in particular. I have 2 papers due today and have only partially completed one. I know that I will finish them today (and most likely, they will be total crap), but my brain just doesn't want to cooperate. I want to veg on the couch with the kids. I want to be able to roam a store without having to run to a meeting. I want to just escape for a little while. The only problem is that if I escape for a little while, I know that everything will just pile up and still be waiting for me with an even greater sense of urgency. Again, I realize that I did this to myself, so I am expecting absolutely no pity whatsoever.
Things went over the top this morning. I have had some *ahem* girly issues that have been off and on for the past 2 years. I thought that they had resolved themselves, as I have not had to go in for almost 18 months. However, yesterday it reared its ugly head again. I had hoped that when I woke up this morning that it would have magically disappeared. It didn't. I know that I need to see the doctor, as my referral to the OB/GYN has expired. It is a vicious cycle with Tricare...you go to your Primary Care Physician, only to get referred to the on-base OB/GYN. The OB/GYN on base is mean and nasty and will then refer you to an off-base provider. The whole process takes about 6 weeks to finally get seen by the person that you need to see. I am exhausted just thinking about having to go through all of this all over again. I have 6 days until the marathon, 2 papers due today, a social tomorrow night and a fundraiser that I am trying to solicit donations for in my spare time. My silent meltdown has commenced and I just don't want to play anymore.
The papers will get done, the marathon will be run, the social will be fun and the fundraiser is whatever it is. I have already started the ball rolling with the doctors. I have an appointment at 10:20am tomorrow morning and I'm hoping that they can prescribe the first round of meds to see if it will help, AND that they can put in a direct referral to the off base provider. I know it's a lot to hope for, but stranger things have happened. I just know to not do this again to myself. Consider the lesson learned.
I think I may be in the middle of a spectacular silent meltdown. My brain seems to be going into shut down mode, even as I type this. Everyone knows that I'm a busy person. I get a lot of comments about how crazy I must be and yadda yadda yadda. Yes. I'm busy. Yes. It was my choice. Yes. I made a HUGE mistake in over scheduling myself. Yes. I TOTALLY regret it. I thought that Mark's job would basically be keeping away from the house at all hours of the day. He's done this kind of job before and I was completely unprepared for it. He would leave at 6am and not come home sometimes until 9 or 10pm--only to get up and do it all over again the next day. Weekends consisted of him going in at least one day. Needless to say, I decided that I didn't want to be left with a lot of time on my hands to wallow in self-pity. So, I did what any other spouse would do--I decided to keep myself busy.
Busy is very much an understatement. I work part time, take classes for my master's degree, volunteer with the Barksdale Officers' Spouses' Club, raise the kiddos and run. Any time leftover is usually dedicated to inhaling food or sleeping. I thought I had it under control until yesterday. For some reason, yesterday is when everything seemed to unravel in my brain. It wasn't any one thing in particular. I have 2 papers due today and have only partially completed one. I know that I will finish them today (and most likely, they will be total crap), but my brain just doesn't want to cooperate. I want to veg on the couch with the kids. I want to be able to roam a store without having to run to a meeting. I want to just escape for a little while. The only problem is that if I escape for a little while, I know that everything will just pile up and still be waiting for me with an even greater sense of urgency. Again, I realize that I did this to myself, so I am expecting absolutely no pity whatsoever.
Things went over the top this morning. I have had some *ahem* girly issues that have been off and on for the past 2 years. I thought that they had resolved themselves, as I have not had to go in for almost 18 months. However, yesterday it reared its ugly head again. I had hoped that when I woke up this morning that it would have magically disappeared. It didn't. I know that I need to see the doctor, as my referral to the OB/GYN has expired. It is a vicious cycle with Tricare...you go to your Primary Care Physician, only to get referred to the on-base OB/GYN. The OB/GYN on base is mean and nasty and will then refer you to an off-base provider. The whole process takes about 6 weeks to finally get seen by the person that you need to see. I am exhausted just thinking about having to go through all of this all over again. I have 6 days until the marathon, 2 papers due today, a social tomorrow night and a fundraiser that I am trying to solicit donations for in my spare time. My silent meltdown has commenced and I just don't want to play anymore.
The papers will get done, the marathon will be run, the social will be fun and the fundraiser is whatever it is. I have already started the ball rolling with the doctors. I have an appointment at 10:20am tomorrow morning and I'm hoping that they can prescribe the first round of meds to see if it will help, AND that they can put in a direct referral to the off base provider. I know it's a lot to hope for, but stranger things have happened. I just know to not do this again to myself. Consider the lesson learned.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
NOLA Week 12: Last chance workout.
Distance: 8.6 miles
Route: Teague Parkway
Time: 1 hr. 34 mins. 41 secs.
This was it. As Bob and Jillian say, "LAST. CHANCE. WORKOUT!!!" Every time I hit the last run before a race, I always have that mantra running through my brain. Not that I fear getting voted off the island, but that I won't be ready and won't be able to go the distance the way that I want to. Before Sparky says anything, I am ready for this race. I feel that I am as prepped as I can be at this point and I will do the absolute best that I can next Sunday.
This morning, I didn't get up at 5:30am for a change. I didn't rush out the door and I didn't prep all of my gear the night before. I got up at 8:00am and took my time getting out the door. I think I made it to the trail at 8:45am. I haven't started a run this late (minus last week) in awhile. I wanted to enjoy it and just kind of savor the last run before the marathon. I didn't use my Nike+, but I did time it with my watch. I started up and quickly realized that I had overdressed for the occasion. The sun was shining and it was warming up. I just kept the layers on, as I didn't want to have to figure out how to squish it all into the Camelbak. I decided to run in the new kicks and was happy that I did. It didn't hurt my feet and I could tell that I was overdue for new shoes.
I hit the boat launch area and felt nice and warmed up. I saw a lady by the restrooms talking to 2 other guys and didn't think too much. I noticed that she was wearing the same shirt I was (the Mardi Gras Marathon shirt) and smiled. I kept on trucking and knew that I would probably get passed. Sure enough, the woman came up on my left and I moved over a little so that she could pass me. Instead of passing me, she started talking to me and kept her pace even with mine. I chatted for a few minutes and thought that she'd pass me again, but she just kept right on talking and kept running next to me. She asked how far I was going and I told her that I was doing the whole trail and she mentioned that she was doing 10 miles and would I mind running with her? I told her that I didn't mind the company and we kept going.
Her name was Brenda and she was probably in her 50s. She was shorter than I and had on running tights, shorts, t-shirt, baseball cap and a garmin. She told me that she was from the area and grew up around Natchitoches (which is an hour south). I told her a little about myself as well and mentioned the kids a few times. Then things started to get a little umm...well...awkward? She blew a snot rocket. Now, I don't mind if you blow one. I don't mind if you blow two or three. However, she kept blowing them constantly. I mean one every 30 seconds. After the 7th one, I started to get a little grossed out. As we reached the turnaround, she told me that she really needed to pee. I mentioned that they probably had unlocked the bathrooms at the boat launch by now. She said that she was going head down by the river. I made the assumption that she was going to run a little further, so I just hit the turn around and shot my Gu. I looked down by the river and saw her "watering" a tree. Yep. Didn't mean to see that. Awkward.
She rejoined me and we kept chatting. We were about a half mile from the end when my mouth opened and I said, "Wow! You're really a pro at the whole snot rocket thing!" Cripes, Stacy! Really? Open mouth, insert foot. She looked over at me and I quickly said, "I just make a mess if I try! However, I can hock a good loogey!" Luckily, she thought it was funny and just kept right on gabbing. I seriously need to learn how to keep my mouth shut.
I finished the run and felt good. I was tired, but then again, I hadn't run since Wednesday, so the muscles were a little tired. There it is, my friends. The last. chance. workout. Eat your heart out Bob and Jillian!
Route: Teague Parkway
Time: 1 hr. 34 mins. 41 secs.
This was it. As Bob and Jillian say, "LAST. CHANCE. WORKOUT!!!" Every time I hit the last run before a race, I always have that mantra running through my brain. Not that I fear getting voted off the island, but that I won't be ready and won't be able to go the distance the way that I want to. Before Sparky says anything, I am ready for this race. I feel that I am as prepped as I can be at this point and I will do the absolute best that I can next Sunday.
This morning, I didn't get up at 5:30am for a change. I didn't rush out the door and I didn't prep all of my gear the night before. I got up at 8:00am and took my time getting out the door. I think I made it to the trail at 8:45am. I haven't started a run this late (minus last week) in awhile. I wanted to enjoy it and just kind of savor the last run before the marathon. I didn't use my Nike+, but I did time it with my watch. I started up and quickly realized that I had overdressed for the occasion. The sun was shining and it was warming up. I just kept the layers on, as I didn't want to have to figure out how to squish it all into the Camelbak. I decided to run in the new kicks and was happy that I did. It didn't hurt my feet and I could tell that I was overdue for new shoes.
I hit the boat launch area and felt nice and warmed up. I saw a lady by the restrooms talking to 2 other guys and didn't think too much. I noticed that she was wearing the same shirt I was (the Mardi Gras Marathon shirt) and smiled. I kept on trucking and knew that I would probably get passed. Sure enough, the woman came up on my left and I moved over a little so that she could pass me. Instead of passing me, she started talking to me and kept her pace even with mine. I chatted for a few minutes and thought that she'd pass me again, but she just kept right on talking and kept running next to me. She asked how far I was going and I told her that I was doing the whole trail and she mentioned that she was doing 10 miles and would I mind running with her? I told her that I didn't mind the company and we kept going.
Her name was Brenda and she was probably in her 50s. She was shorter than I and had on running tights, shorts, t-shirt, baseball cap and a garmin. She told me that she was from the area and grew up around Natchitoches (which is an hour south). I told her a little about myself as well and mentioned the kids a few times. Then things started to get a little umm...well...awkward? She blew a snot rocket. Now, I don't mind if you blow one. I don't mind if you blow two or three. However, she kept blowing them constantly. I mean one every 30 seconds. After the 7th one, I started to get a little grossed out. As we reached the turnaround, she told me that she really needed to pee. I mentioned that they probably had unlocked the bathrooms at the boat launch by now. She said that she was going head down by the river. I made the assumption that she was going to run a little further, so I just hit the turn around and shot my Gu. I looked down by the river and saw her "watering" a tree. Yep. Didn't mean to see that. Awkward.
She rejoined me and we kept chatting. We were about a half mile from the end when my mouth opened and I said, "Wow! You're really a pro at the whole snot rocket thing!" Cripes, Stacy! Really? Open mouth, insert foot. She looked over at me and I quickly said, "I just make a mess if I try! However, I can hock a good loogey!" Luckily, she thought it was funny and just kept right on gabbing. I seriously need to learn how to keep my mouth shut.
I finished the run and felt good. I was tired, but then again, I hadn't run since Wednesday, so the muscles were a little tired. There it is, my friends. The last. chance. workout. Eat your heart out Bob and Jillian!
Friday, February 4, 2011
Gossip
Gossip is a funny thing. I liken it to a STD. It spreads like wildfire and it's not good. Military wives are notorious gossips. Half the time what is said has come down from many different sources to the point that it's manipulated and twisted and the real story is completely convoluted. I have been both the parlayer AND the victim of gossip. After being the victim of vicious gossip, I have chosen to never spread things about anyone. I will not tell anyone anything without checking first. I figure if someone wants to know something, then just ask the person yourself. If you don't feel comfortable asking, then maybe you should think as to why.
Case in point. I have a friend that is going through a rough patch. It may or may not be something serious, but right now everyone is okay. She texted me to let me know what was going on because she didn't want me to hear it from the gossip circle or from someone else. I appreciated her telling me, so that way I can be there if she needs my help. However, I decided that what they are going through is for them to tell...not me. I can't even tell you how many people have emailed me, texted me or Facebooked me asking me what is wrong with her. Really? Don't ask me. Ask her. Ask HER what you can do for HER. They are very private people and trust me....I will NOT tell you. I realize that for most people, it can seem like I'm being a bitch or mean by not telling. But put yourself in that position for a second. Would you want some indiscriminant person asking about your private, personal life and then having it blabbed all over the place? I know I wouldn't. I respect my friends. Do you?
Case in point. I have a friend that is going through a rough patch. It may or may not be something serious, but right now everyone is okay. She texted me to let me know what was going on because she didn't want me to hear it from the gossip circle or from someone else. I appreciated her telling me, so that way I can be there if she needs my help. However, I decided that what they are going through is for them to tell...not me. I can't even tell you how many people have emailed me, texted me or Facebooked me asking me what is wrong with her. Really? Don't ask me. Ask her. Ask HER what you can do for HER. They are very private people and trust me....I will NOT tell you. I realize that for most people, it can seem like I'm being a bitch or mean by not telling. But put yourself in that position for a second. Would you want some indiscriminant person asking about your private, personal life and then having it blabbed all over the place? I know I wouldn't. I respect my friends. Do you?
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