Get 'er Done

Got up. Got out there. Got it done.

That's about all I can ask from a very busy Monday!! But, I will take the bonus of tomorrow's Rest Day!! See you then!

The Domino Effect

This Rest Day started out wonderfully smooth. Then this little plan and that little idea changed which changed parts of the course of the day and spilled right on in to tomorrow morning. Tomorrow morning is when I run, people, let's not mess with the start to Monday!!

But, messing happens. And, that's when that commitment you made to do whatever it takes -- whenever it takes -- to keep that promise to yourself to keep yourself healthy and strong comes into play. Even if you get crabby about it. Or cry a little bit. As long as you're going forward, that's all that matters.

So, while I let my brain go on overdrive to figure out the reconfigued Monday plans, I decided the body needed to go into motion as well. Rest Day, Schmest Day, there's still too much summer to be still!!

Off to the pool it was to defend my BACON (aka: HORSE) basketball title:

The one on the left almost got me ... but, not quite!

And, with that, the weekend is a wrap! I'll see you after the morning run because, oh yes, it's still happening!! Start your week off with something great, and I'll check in tomorrow!

And, That's What "Good" Feels Like

Post-run, post-shower, post-bagel, Aaron and I had the following conversation:

Aaron: What are you thinking about? (yes, yes ... he asked me ... guys can do that, too, you know)
Me: That my run felt really good.
*pause*
Aaron: So, is it ever weird to you that you would ever say a 9-mile run felt 'good'?
Me: (no pause required) Yes. It's still kind of weird.

And, it is. Very weird. And, very good. Here's how it went down ...

I was up and at it pretty early today. For all of my getting out of bed at the very last minute shenanigans plus petting the dog plus stretching (that's right ! I said it and I did it!!), I actually got out the door exactly when I intended. I'm pretty good the morning crunch and getting it done without it feeling too crunched. The weather was as promised -- cool and crisp and soooo fab for running especially for August!! Between the weather and stretching, I was totally set up for a really good run!

Just out the door, around the corner and down a hill, there was a in-great-shape tv stand/end table thingy sitting at the end of someone's driveway just screaming Take Me!! Thanks to our summer-o-house projects, I've actually been in the used-furniture market for just  such a table! And, free is better than the "$5 would be great" thoughts I've been having. Note to self: See if it's still there later! (That would be a much bigger monetary score than a penny or two, just sayin'. And, the Food Bank doesn't want the furniture I find, just the cash.)

Bet'cha didn't see that coming as a running topic this morning! You just never know what you'll find or where your mind will wander while galavanting through the streets of your city.

Okay, I know I've not featured a WOD lately because, frankly, it was like I ran out of new ones. I'm sure I'm wrong about that, but they need to catch my eye, or I move on. This morning, these two little ones caught my eye. It wasn't even that they are out of the ordinary, though. It was because they're just there in the middle of nothing, growing on their own with no like-friends around, and they just keep on hanging in there. I've seen them for the past three weeks. It was time to give them the recognition I feel they deserve:

Two wee ones just hanging out looking cute!

And, while these are hardly out of the ordinary, they looked fantastic with the sun coming through them:

These were the best to pick as a kid!!

Okay, around the bend from whatever-those-are-called is the first of three hills I was not particularly looking forward to. But, believe it or not, I sailed right on up! I have to admit to being in a bit of surprise. I thought the last few weeks of running through Slumpville would hamper such an effort. Seems not! Spoiler alert: The same thing happened on the next two hills, too! I had not one thought of walking, slowing down, crying, saying bad words ... none of it! Who knew?! I was very pleased, and it gave me all sorts of confidence about this upcoming Half. Fab.U.Lous!

The run was good to me on the monetary side of things, too! I found a total of 15 cents (yeah!!!) including this!

I love finding the silver!

I had three drive-thrus on my route, by the way, and not one of them produced. Not. One. Sheesh! One of them is even my go-to! It's about to lose its go-to status if this keeps up. (Can't you hear it crying over the loss of such a prestigious designation?)

Okay, in addition to fabulous money finds, I ran today with a rather kicky running do. During the route, I gave it a status check:

Just awesome. It's my favorite, "Hey, mom, want me to do
your hair?" outcome ever!!

Pit Crew #2 did that for me last night. I decided to see if I could actually sleep on it so I could run in it. Totally worked!! Frankly, given all of the bobby pins in there, I didn't know how much sleep I'd get, but I had to try. She was pretty excited that I kept it in for the run, so that was worth the little bit of extra head tossing I did last night!

Oh, and along the route, I saw these ...

... They're in bloom everywhere right now. I have only seen them from a distance which is where I've always seen them as pink. Or as dark purple. But, never have I seen them pink and purple! Sweet!

I'd apologize for not talking more about running through this entry, but I'm not really that sorry. You know me by now and know that running is a whole experience for me in addition to the run itself. If I were totally focused on running, I'd have quit by now. All of these ways I've found to entertain myself kept me going. And, going. And, going. And, that has added up to saying that a 9-mile run can, indeed, feel really good!

At the end of my run was a short cool down walk where Aaron met up with me!

And, when I got home, I was greeted by PC#3 and by my personal hairdresser:

By the way, the table I saw in the first quarter mile? It's all cleaned up and in our basement with a plant on it. Whee!!

Tomorrow is Rest Day!! Gotta love that!!! I'll see you from there!

Long

You know those days that feel so very, long, and that's not a good thing? But, then there are those days that feel quite long, and it is a good thing? Today's day was behind Door Number 2: A long day. And, it was good.

It's a good thing it was long because this seemingly  little project took a very, long time. But, it's finished!!

It didn't get hung where I originally thought. Not only have I come up with a
better plan for that space, but I also decided to give all space options a very
close look before asking Aaron to bang very large holes in the wall (to support
that sucker!). It was a good call!! Oh, I should disclaim that behind the running
medals are soccer ones. They get to join the ranks because they were all earned
as an adult when it hurt a lot more to fall down (and get up) than when I played
as a youth. So, those badges of survival honor are there, too. I haven't run
as many Half Marathons as this seems. Yet.

And, rounding out the long trifecta, I've mapped out tomorrow's quite-long run. I'm feeling quite good about it, though, with a lot of credit going to fact that I know the morning air should feel crisp and clear of humidity. I cannot ask for much more than that!

So, here's to a great one tomorrow, and I'll check in after!

Are We There Yet?

I might be feeling back in the saddle, but that doesn't mean it's not annoying to have my running partner stop five times in the first mile to take care of her business! And, that was only the first mile. I stopped counting after that. Even though the frequency declined, I stopped the count for my own sanity.

Today's featured photo is that of Elly actually running :

"I'm not sure what the problem is, here."

But, this I cannot deny:

This is most definitely true in our case with our dog!
Multiple potty stops and all ...

I guess all of her stopping gave some excitement ... or unpredictability ... or variety ... I don't know, it did something for the run! And, really, I love having her with me especially on a morning where it was so lovely that how could I blame her for wanting the run to take as long as possible ...

Tomorrow, we rest!! You know, I keep seeing such comics and/or sentiments as this from the Run Like a Girl Facebook page ...

... and, I just do not have this problem!

See you tomorrow on the beloved Rest Day!

What Goes Around Comes Around

I feel the need to whisper what I'm about to say: I think I'm back.

But, you know what, that deserved way more than a whisper. So, here we go:

I THINK I'M BACK!!!!

After my first-of-the-run chat with God, I was acutely aware of how good I felt. I didn't ache. I wasn't sore. I wasn't crabby. I wasn't wishing I were in bed instead of running. I wasn't sluggish. I wasn't even distracted. Things were just in motion. And, it felt good.

I kept trying to find other reasons for feeling good but not because I was trying to find something negative. And, I wasn't trying to credit something external (like the gorgeous weather of this morning) for how I felt. (Because, let's face it ... the fact that I went to bed after midnight could easily trump the most perfect of running weather.) I really was just in an investigatory mode looking at all factors involved and seeing how they were working together to create the experience.

And, everything was working great!

The effort through the slump seems to have paid off on the other end. Just the way I knew it could. That's why I can't give up nor give in when it's happening. I just have to keep going.

I've not mentioned it, but for the past few weeks (aka: Slumpville), I've been keeping up the Half Marathon training schedule while simultaneously pondering not doing the race itself. It's been more than pondering, though. I have been actively fighting with myself. It started because I've just felt tired. We'll call that understandable. But, I could feel that morphing into self doubt about my ability to run another one in just a few weeks. We'll call that self doubt crazy talk. Worse, I was drawing on my experience of running this particular race two years ago where I truly struggled almost the entire way. I gave it my all, and it didn't feel good.

Such a pretty scene Aaron caught!! I wanted to feel awesome
during this run soooo much ... it was fine, but it was not
awesome.

And, during Slumpville, I've felt how I remember feeling back then. Even if it isn't true, even if I've actually been doing better now than I did then, it's what I remember.

Put two and two together, and I have felt fear creeping in. And, that's when my rationalizations to bail began -- not the least of which telling myself that there's no one who would question my change of plans. No one.

But, I would. And, that's probably why I've not brought it up. I know what I really want. And, frankly, I know what I'm capable of. I also know a challenge is exactly that: A challenge. It's not the defining outcome. It's something to get through. And, right now, I feel I've gotten through this one.

Well, I haven't gotten through it all by myself ...

Sweet doggie ...

I'm so thankful for such a solid start to the day! OH! And, I'm also thankful for the morning prizes!

Two cents for the Food Bank, pretty-in-the-sun marble for my
stash of treasures!

AND I'm thankful Elly was eager to interrupt her post-run water break to come take a picture!

That water on her nose is from her tongue flipping it right on
up there when I called her to the door. She knows what's up!

And, frankly, I'm thankful for our pretty sittin' spot:

Elly likes to investigate before giving her
day's approval.

Keep on going if you're not feeling it today ... it might take a whole mess of tomorrows for it to feel right again, but it comes back around!

Okay, we're back at it tomorrow for the week's short run! Here's to a great one today!! See you after the morning run!

Take It From Her

A very special than you to Lizzy for embracing the true spirit of Rest Day today while I went on with the normal day!

She's a pro ...

It wasn't too restful for me, but I'm not complaining. (But, I am tired!) I'm back at it tomorrow ... so's the pooch! We'll check in and see report the run in the morning!