I'm thinking that I'm tempted to go to the track and run a mile by myself without someon else walking, to see if I can go any faster. I'm sure I can, I sure wish someone would run it with me (hint, hint, S.)...
So yeah, I don't know...
Oh my daughter just called... she just graduated to the next level in swim lessons. She is a level 3 swimmer now!
Okay, going to go now :-)
Have a good day all......
I've been doing almost anything to avoid posting this. I want to because it needs to be documented, but at the same time it is kind of embarassing and I expected more from myself. My mile race was last night, but you all know that because I was totally stressing over it.
I ended up with the "fast" ladies of the evening. I'm glad I went with them because they went first and I would have missed pictures if I had gone in the second heat. Also someone in the fast group cracked my mental toughness by walking... if SHE can walk, dammit so can I.
We went out fast. I made sure I was towards the back of the pack so as to not impede someone who actually knows how to run on a track. I know that these races are tactical and you need to plan in your mind how you are going to execute the distance. Even paces, with a kick 300 meters to go and all that. I had it all planned out, too... first three laps would be around 1:50, then the last lap would be by ear... either hold steady then sprint in, or pick it up and sprint in. There was a wind on the homestretch, too. And tracks are weird to me, you feel the head wind, but when it should be to your back, nothing. There is no push down the backstretch... weird.
So, the first two laps were both about 5-10 seconds too fast for my pace, then the girl walked on the third lap... so for some reason I decided to walk/run the last lap, and sprint in... lame, I know!
I got my offical time this morning 8:42.3
In my defense I've only ran a timed mile 4 times, including this one, actually 5, but two were in the same day and the second one I threw out the window and walked.
7th grade gym class, beginning of the year: 9:26
7th grade gym class, end of the year: 9:26
12th grade gym class, end of the year (after giving birth to a child)
1st period: 9:59
2nd period: ????
Last night: 8:42.3
So with all that said, I set a PR in the mile :-)
I made it to everything, I got out of work on time, and I got registered for the half-marathon (13.1 miles) that will be taking place on July 8th... so another chance to try to prove my worth as an athlete. I'm not doing so well thus far this season... But it will be really fun to see the difference between this summer and next summer after basic and all, I'll be totally in shape and weigh less! And I'll have a winter of no snow, and that will really help jump start things for me!
Okay enough of this
Dorkness OUT!
I'll relent and admit I was mistaken in an assumption. But people need to realize you can't nit-pick me on a race day. You won't like the reaction you're going to get. I'm not the nice civilized person, that I normally am on a race day. I am a very tightly wound coil that could spring without a moment's notice and if you've ever had a spring from a giant trampoline come back on you, you know what I am.... I could take your whole finger off in one swipe... BACK OFF!
But to show that I am wrong I'll share this tid-bit, and will also ellude to the fact that I'm definately not the only one in the wrong... I know I'm being petty, but like I said... race day!
I am sitting here after a weird night of sleep. I had "stress" dreams. They aren't nightmares because they do not elicit fear in me. I don't wake up drenched in a cold sweat. I wake up, instead, pissed off and ready to fight. I am stressing about my schedule today. As evident from one of the dreams, which was me still at work at 7:15pm. I usually get off between 4:30 and 5:30... it depends on the doc. But in my dream it was 7:15 and I had just gotten 4 more patients... I'm mad, crying and messing up the draws so they are taking longer than they should. My race tonight starts at 6:30, then I have to be one block down for soccer pics at 7pm. The race is only one mile, and it should be fine, but my tummy is heavy over the prospect of missing something important. Gosh!
My other dream gleans with the stress of me thinking I'm going to make a fool of myself. There are going to be two heats of the mile for women, the slower women and the faster women. In my dream no one else was signed up for the slower race... and they didn't want me to run with the fast people, I'd mess it up by getting lapped or something like that. I begged them to let me just run it alone, for my time... The race official lets me go on my own. I realize that the footing isn't good, it is wooden slats, and some are broken and missing, my footing isn't so good and I am forced to run in a zig-zag kind of a way, adding way more steps... then I'm running through halls in a building, again footing is bad, like it is an old condemned building with debris all over making passage difficult. Then there are stair cases... WTF? So need I remind you folks this is a TRACK race, 4 laps around an oval... within eye sight of everyone at all times... holy cow if someone gets this stressed over a MILE maybe they should rethink racing???
Actually I'm thinking I need to just take a deep breath and know it will be fine, I can run with the 60-70 year old folks and it will be okay, and I need to get out of my comfort zone more often so it isn't so uncomfortable when I do!
Dorkness OUT!
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I had a good run last night. I had my son ride his bike along side me. It was just he and I, and it was awesome.... he talked non stop for a full 30 minutes and I jogged along with him. I ended up going faster than usual without feeling like I was putting in too much effort. He liked the nice houses, too.
I have shin splints... I'm a bit sad about them, but I've been icing and massaging them here at work with lotion... and I let really ice cold water run over them, knee down to toe this morning in the shower.... tooo cold! But it made my legs feel tingly for a while after. I got some more anti-inflammatories and hopefully I'll be good!
Okay, I think I'm done for now, again!
I read other blogs... really I do have time to do that even though I'm so danged long winded and post happy on this one... I came Across this entry this morning... enjoy...
I'll be back later for some more fun and games, but for now I'm going to find some food!
I'm sitting here thinking about what my pace needs to be for the mile this Thursday. Ultimately I would LOVE to be able to run a 7 minute mile, will I? Probably not. I don't think that I have one that fast in my legs, quite yet. I'm kicking myself a bit here, wishing I had taken my dieting seriously earlier than now. 8 pounds lighter would definately make me a little faster... But alas I have what I have. I would like to prove to myself that I can go faster than the one gear I have been going. I want to break through a mental barrier that says that 9 1/2 minute miles is all I am capable of.
For now, all I can do is go into it with an optimistic attitude and see where I'm at. I know I am better than the 14:14 1.5 mile from a few weeks ago. I know I can do better than what I am showing. I need to inch my way down to that 14:59 2 miler and 10:55 1.5 miler to get my warhawk award. Of course knowing when I'm going would tell me how much time I have to prepare. Part of me wishes that I could push it off another month or two, instead of trying to go around the 3rd week of August. What will be, will be. I am merely here for the scenery.
Dorkness OUT!
I always knew the family wasn't quite right. Now I have proof! My aunt has tested positive for the Factor V Leiden Gene Mutation. Yeah, what is that? Well, while coagulation wasn't my favorite part of anatomy, or phlebotomy classes, it is best described as a domino effect. All of the dominos have to be present for the cascade to work. When one of the factors are missing or not working, then the cascade is either halted or weakened. While there is more than one way to skin a cat, there is also more than one way to form a clot when you cut yourself.
While this mutation would explain my ease of bruising that I've perpetually had, I doubt I've got the mutation... but alas I will get my blood drawn here in a bit... as soon as I track down someone qualified to do it... since I could, and have drawn my own blood, I don't think the hospital looks fondly on that kind of action.
I didn't run last night. I'm a bit disappointed in myself, but I think I got some well needed sleep, instead. I don't exactly feel a lot better today. I feel achey, but par for the course. I am sure it is for female things rather than the "hefty" 24 miles I ran last week ;-)
Oh yeah, on a side note... I got a phone call while I was in the shower. I noticed that it was from my x-in-laws... my father in law left a message that said that he had a BLT waiting for me and that they (he and his wife) love me .... awww
So I arrive to drop off my kids, and he is sitting outside waiting for me, breakfast in hand, because he didn't want to miss me. And he assured me the bacon was just how I like it! So that was cool, a BLT and tropicana oj and a napkin :-)
I had a patient just tell me why pets are better than kids... if you need to you can chain a pet up in the yard... while you could probably chain up your kids, you'd probably get turned in :-)
Have a good one, all! I'm off to email my first sgt to see what's going on with our training dates.
Dorkness OUT!
Today has been one of those days where you just really want to beat the hell out of something/ someone. I am so freaking crabby. Soccer practice was flat, the girls really didn't want to be there, and everytime I sent them for water breaks, they went to the swingsets instead. Hello, not swing practice, soccer practice... say it with me s o c c e r...
I've yet to do my run, my sisters kids are at my mom's house so now I have to drag my feet on putting my kids to sleep, because of "fairness" well the fairness is that I don't dump my kids onto other people, but if I have a legit, reason for needing care (other than work) I get bitched at for it... well excuse me. I take ALL of my kids with me to the soccer games instead of saying oh you're too much of a bother to go, so stay here and we'll come back for you later! Dah!
They're eating popcycles right now which is totally fine, but grrrr I need to head out. I'm tired from not getting any sleep last night, but I want to be a good athlete. I know that I can't be one if I'm lazy and don't work out...
Okay enough of this crap. I've got that race on Thursday so we shall see how that goes. I'm getting antsy for that, and antsy for knowing my departure dates. I am worried about my kids. I know they'll be fine, but will I?
I'm afraid they won't be okay without me, at the same time I am afraid that they will be... how confusing is that? I guess that is where my co-dependancy ways have settled, not necessarily on a man, but on my kids. Can one be worried about being replaced while gone for a small amount of time in the grand scheme of things?
My father in law had made the comment today that between me and my kids' step mom, (x hubby's new wife) there is no comparison. But she isn't the one I'm worried about, I think. I don't think, I don't know... golly what was I talking about, how about nevermind....
better mood tomorrow? he he maybe I'll get more sleep, maybe I need more caffeine :-)
And the things they get to do. My son would very much enjoy this! If I don't need to be there with him, he should be able to go. Of course I need to check his personal planner as his schedule is very busy :-)
Of course in the good ol' days they'd say, we didn't get to do that simulation crap when I was your age, we just got sent off to the real thing. Kids these days are just gettin soft.
Can't you hear the old men talk? Pancakes in their back pocket to keep their buns warm, and it doubled as lunch, by golly!
Ah well, maybe a little softness isn't too bad. We don't have it as rough as it was back then, but you know, that may be alright.
My fortune in my cookie would have been one that I should have called ahead to the restaurant to get:
You shouldn't overspend at the moment. Frugality is important.
So after I order the food, I get that. Huh. But that just tells me I need to find the box of shoes in storage for my daughter and find which box all the stupid socks ended up at. I did, however, reserve a room for the end of July. I am going on a mini-vacation for a weekend down in Anchorage. I'd hate to end up not having a room on base because you really can't reserve those in advance, and well, camping just isn't a vacation for me. That is a fun activity to do with the family, but not relaxing for me at all. For crying out loud you all heard about me just trying to cook in a real kitchen, imagine how it would be without a kitchen... or a microwave!
I emailed my supervisor and told her I couldn't work the 30th of July. I normally don't work Sundays but at the beginning of the summer I volunteered for several sunday night shifts though August. So she was naturally confused making sure I didn't mean June 30th, a friday and a day I normally work. I confirmed it was in fact July and she said I wasn't on the schedule and all is well. So one less thing to do! Yay, I get a mini-vacation. I've been kind of planning it for a few months now, some time away from the locals before I head off to basic. Also I don't plan on going alone... I'll leave it at that.
I hope everyone is having a stellar Monday. I took my thermogenics and I feel flush... tee hee... I decided instead of taking them before breakfast and lunch today, I'll take them before lunch, then dinner, that way I won't feel so wiped out after soccer practice and I'll have a good chance at actually going out for my run. I wonder if anyone will be awake when I come back so I can take an ice bath. Ohhh doesn't that just sound inviting? My shins are still aching me a bit.
I am getting ready for the Santa Claus Half Marathon. I'm a bit nervous for this one. I've yet to have a "good" race with this one. Mainly because I've yet to toe the line prepared for the distance. I signed up for the later start just incase I actually finish under 2:30. If you start at the 8am time you are automatically assigned a 2:30 time. That sucks, but really they don't stop taking finishing times until 12:30, so I have 3 1/2 hours to finish even at the later start, so what do I have to lose by the late one, and I gain another hour to hydrate and eat!
Okay, enough from me for now. I'll nibble some more on my chinese food, it took me over an hour just to make it down to the reception area to pick it up... they all ordered too, and were all done eating... so I nibble all day, no biggie, I don't mind cold food!
Dorkness OUT!
So Sundays are days off of running. I pretty much took the day off from all other things as well. Saturday morning my mom told me she and dad were going to Anchorage to fish with the drunks from Thursday's post. YAY! But oh there are still two men left behind. Okay.
I go into the house Saturday after the movie and track workout and the men are pretty much staring at a package of chicken legs, it is totally frozen. They ask me some crazy questions about how to load the dishwasher, where is the soap, how do you open the cupboard (child locks apparantly work for full grown men, too). I decide to just shoo them out of the kitchen and make dinner for them. I am a sucker, and perhaps their master plan worked. I know a long lineage of women do the helpless act, and need a knight in shining armor to save them, I can't help but feel I got duped into doing the "womanly duties" I was mildly resentful of this. I could have made something quick and easy for the kids and they would have been fed much sooner. I find them snacks to eat while I go about trying to quick thaw the completely frozen chicken that they had actually just taken out and set on the counter to thaw, and had actually planned on eating it that night! KRAZY!
By the time the chicken is almost ready it is nearing 9pm. I snag some microwavable popcorn and usher the kids out to our casa. We pop up the corn throw on a movie and chill sanz drunk male adults. I take a deep breath, and know tomorrow is another day...
I make hot dogs because I can't find the chicken that was supposed to be left over. I guess I didn't look for it in the FREEZER, goodness what was I thinking? So mac and cheese for lunch, and I pull the chicken from the freezer and put in in the oven to pretty much recook it for dinner, again. The kids end up eating some chicken and some hot dogs. Even an hour in the oven doesn't get it all the way warmed up. I threw a few pieces in the microwave with the hot dogs. Little stove top, little baked beans, and some applesauce and we are all set. I clean up the little messes the kiddos made then tell the men that the food is ready for them. I sigh some relief when I noticed this morning that someone had cleaned the kitchen, and I hope to god it wasn't my mother at 2am when she probably got home!
Speaking of 2am. I wanted to wake up at 3... but dork we are speaking of 2, not three... Yeah, I know but bear with me. I try to lay down around 8. I get a call on my cell, it said private caller, private number. I decide not to answer and let the voice mail pick up. I had just fallen asleep when somone kicked the blinds... must be my youngest. She has been working my buttons all weekend to find the right combination to see what will get me completely unhinged. As I fall asleep about every 45 minutes, some thing wakes me up. I lay for a long time staring at the ceiling. This goes on until about 2 am. I am frustrated and know that I shouldn't run at 3. I debate actually getting up and running when the alarm goes off every 8 minutes for an hour an a half. I decide to reset the alarm to 7. I get a call from S. at around 6:40. We chat a few minutes and graciously he lets me go back to sleep. I don't think I sleep. I think that the little button pusher has a foot race she is going to try on Tuesday, and I don't know where her running shoes are. Should I try to find them tonight in storage, or should I just go to the px and buy some there? My son needs more socks again, so maybe I'll swing by and see the shoe selection. Maybe while I'm there I can find a decent pair of shoes for S. I'm thinking it is time for him to get a new pair too. He says no, but I know better than he :-)
So I guess I will be trying to run tonight from 9-midnight for my long run. I'll put the kids to sleep and let my mom know what's up so if there is any problems... which I'm sure there won't be, any.
Man I'm tired today. I need to go to rehab and get my race refund (physical therapy, not alcohol/drug rehab). The official results for the MSR came in and mine wasn't any different. So 1:12:24.23 for a 10K. My mile trial is this Thursday and My half marathon is on the 8th... so I'll be looking forward to all of that :-)
Dorkness OUT!
Perhaps I was a bit mistaken about those 800 repeats. Fun isn't exactly what I'd call them. I hit my splits on the first and second repeats with admittedly more than allotted rest time in between. The third was way off, and the fourth last ditch effort was off, but not as bad as the third. I gave up after the fourth and decided to play tag with the kids. I realized then how tired I was when I was having a hard time out sprinting my 4 year old. She is fast, and well, after draining my legs of blood and filling them with lactic acid, she tagged me... oh how embarrassing!
My repeats were
1st 800 4:12
2nd 800 4:07
3rd 800 5:55
4th 800 4:32
Since the requested workout was 5-6 repeats in 4:15>>4:10, the second one was too fast. I momentarily had it wrong in my head. I don't think the work out was too hard for me. I think it is mentally challenging to run on a track. I feel like I'm going so slowly on the track it is mind boggling to me, and my legs feel dead and awkward. So to get better at track running, I need to do more of it, and get used to feeling the burn in my lungs from a fast effort rather than falling prey to the comfort of long slow distances. If I'm going to get fast I need to step it up. Now is a good time to do that!
So, in the series of races I like to run, one of them is a mile on a track that I have successfully avoided until this year. I didn't run in high school. I tried out for shot put because my mom thought I had asthma and mistakenly believed that I couldn't run. Actually I didn't even get to the try outs. We were learning form to comprehend what would be expected of us during tryouts so one one got hurt. The coach laughed at me, and pretty much told me to try running because this was obviously not for me... awww. Well can't run, can't throw... what else is there... oh yeah isn't that the summer I got pregnant :-)
Yeah besides bad high school decisions, I don't know the first thing about running track races, other than you go counter clockwise... Luckily the race will be done in time for me to be present in my pink jersey for the girls' soccer picture. I guess as the coach I'm expected to be IN the picture.
But I am a bit nervous of this race. I'm not fast by any stretch of the imagination. I am afraid of literally making a fool of myself. But I am going to do it, fool or not. It won't be the first time I've felt stupid. I emailed the race director and they are always happy to see more people show up. I think it is free, too. Just sign up and run your four laps when they say go, then go!
Okay, so we shall see how that goes. It is going to happen next Thursday. *deep breath*
Okay, have a good weekend all!
Dorkness OUT!
The abbreviated version was that I came home from the soccer game I coached, they tied 1-1 and played a good game. I was in a great mood and was going to tell my mom about it. I walked in the door and saw my parents had company... and on the counter was crown royal, malibu rum, and a big bottle of wine, YAY! So I imagine they all started earlier than just a few minutes prior... the big fella that comes and visits my 
parents a lot gave me a hug and asked how I was doing... I'm not a big fan of hugging my dad's friends, especially when they've been drinking, but I reason out that it would just be the fastest way through the house. I grab the tetris game and go out to the deck. My mom is there with the female half of the company, that explains the wine.
Also I was kind of gawking at houses and going down roads I didn't know, and some ended kind of abrubptly so I had to turn around and try to find another route. I left still more roads unexplored and that will keep me occupied for my long run on Monday morning. I have a track workout scheduled for tomorrow. I've never finished a workout of this type, but in my mind I like them... called Yasso 800's... so we'll see how that goes... they are designed to predict your marathon pace with all other conditioning being present on race day your minute:second time for consecutive 800's will be your hour:minute time in marathon distance. So if you can do your 800's in 2minutes 30 seconds your predicted marathon time should be 2 hours 30 minutes. This theory was designed by Bart Yasso... hence the name :-)
