Farewell to funk

I'm like most people in that Monday is my least favorite day of the week, but today I actually don't mind it. I'm still trying to climb out of the funk I fell into last week. I don't know if it was the result of a bad day at work or just seasonal malaise, but I felt mentally tired and just sort of blah in general. I'm ready for a new week and a new start.

Why is it that it's so easy to forget compliments yet so hard to forget criticisms? Even when you know you didn't do anything wrong and the giver of said criticism is clearly an unpleasant person and possibly a nutcase, it is still hard to let go of bad experiences sometimes. I get annoyed with myself when I let other people get to me. So many good things happen in life and I shouldn't let one bad thing leave a stain on my otherwise good day.

Segue to completely unrelated things.

As expected, I am in love with my new Tempur-Pedic mattress and I'm thrilled to have a queen sized bed after so many years of sleeping on a double. (I take up a lot of space in my sleep. I'm not sure what I do but I think it involves some kind of ninja-ing.) Now there's a room in my house with nothing but a huge bed (filled with pillows, memory foam and a warm comforter), nightstands and reading lamps. It's the sleep of champions up in there!

I recently learned that Hitler was a vegetarian and animal rights advocate (I'm reading Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat: Why It's So Hard to Think Straight About Animals by Hal Herzog) and I can't stop thinking about it. So Hitler thought mass extermination of Jewish people was ok but eating meat was disgusting? It's mind bogglingly insane. Add it to the list of things I will never understand.

Last week I went to the Dunkin Donuts drive thru to get hot chocolate, but when I got back to work I realized they had given me some random coffee drink instead. I tried calling the store, but no one answered so I e-mailed customer service to explain that I received the wrong order and didn't want it because I don't like coffee. Then they sent me coupons...for free coffee. Classic.

Saturday morning was chilly and windy so I wussed out and went to the gym instead of running outside. The treadmill's timer only goes up to 60 minutes, so I decided to see how far I could run in that time. I got in a little more than 7 miles. The treadmill is nice because it's a softer landing than pavement, but I forgot how boring it can be to run in place for an hour. I had my iPod and I picked a treadmill in front of the window so I could watch people coming and going outside, but I think next time I'll have to bring a magazine or something to cover up the display panel so I don't have to watch the time tick by sooooooo sloooooowly.

Goodbye funk of last week. On to better days...

Lyric of the moment: "This is just one of those lonely nights. The good times gonna come..."

Tuesday's random thought buffet

On Saturday, Raymour and Flanigan will deliver my new love, a queen sized Tempur-Pedic mattress. I'm not thrilled about paying $2000 for a bed, but this is the most comfortable mattress ever. And it comes with a 20 year warranty, so basically for $100 a year I get to sleep on a cloud. I don't mess around when it comes to sleep.

But I may never leave the house again.

Fall is definitely in full swing. All my weekday morning runs are now in the dark, which sometimes makes me feel like I am running in a dream and sometimes makes me feel like I am running in a horror movie.

I don't understand why people in horror movies cannot run without falling. Stop looking behind you and just get the hell out of there.

Part of me wants to run more races, but I'm not really feeling any of the upcoming events in Rochester. I don't like racing in and of itself, so I look for races that involve some kind of awesomeness (like running on an airport runway) or novelty of place or distance. I will probably register for the Pumpkins in the Park 5K because I love Cobbs Hill and potentially one of the Thanksgiving Day races (I think there is a new one in downtown Rochester this year so I have to look into that).

My stupid hip is still not 100% and sometimes my knees hurt a little. I stopped going to acupuncture because, while it's great for managing pain, it isn't going to do anything to fix whatever it is that's wrong with me. The pain is not severe, it's mostly just annoying, so my new plan is to ignore it until I can figure something else out.

I bought Saucony Kinvaras and I've been wearing them on shorter runs. My hip complains less when I'm running in them and I like the way my legs feel all loose and springy afterwards.

I wish I had a regular running buddy, except I don't know how to go about finding one.

Dear universe, hint hint.

Lyric of the moment: "It's not where you are, it's where you're going. And it's not about the things you've done, it's what you're doing now. Everybody gets knocked down, everybody gets knocked down. How quick are you gonna get up?..." (This song has been in my head since yesterday)

If you build it, I will climb on it

Yesterday morning I filled up my water bottle and took off on a mini adventure run. I usually run the same handful of routes, so it was nice to head out with no specific plan in mind. Nice but potentially a bad idea since I have a terrible sense of direction and a tendency to not pay attention where I'm going. But it all worked out. I ended up running about 8.5 miles from my house to the canal trail off S. Clinton, taking the trail to Edgewood, then to Monroe Ave and back home. Lately all I want to do is run and explore and listen to Mumford and Sons.

After breakfast, we went to Griffis Sculpture Park, which I thought was near Buffalo but is actually closer to Middle of Nowhere, NY. I was not a fan of the 2 hour drive, but the park itself is neat. There are all these cool sculptures on trails through the woods, and the best part is that you can climb on them! Although, the only people who seemed to be taking advantage of that were me and some small children.

Lucky didn't care about any of the sculptures, but she was super excited to go on her first road trip and sniff new counties. I was super excited to climb on giant insects and towers.

 

Lyric of the moment: "Sounds of laughter, shades of life are ringing through my open ears, inciting and inviting me. Limitless undying love which shines around me like a million suns. It calls me on and on, across the universe..."

Weekend adventures

Saturday morning I went to the group run at Fleet Feet. I miss the pace groups but it's still nice to have people to run with. I wound up running with a group of 3 guys who I'm pretty sure are all way faster than me. I kept up with them for the whole 8.5 miles, then they all started sprinting at the end and I was thinking "Dudes, it's not a race." I've never been a fan of competition. I don't think running, or life, is a contest. Sure, I want to keep improving, but most importantly I just want to keep going. But on Saturday I just went with it, because I figure running with those guys is great training and can only make me faster and stronger.

Later that afternoon, my parents and I went to my cousin's high school cross country race. She's super fast and finished the 3 mile race in about 20:46! You wouldn't think that running would be inherently exciting, but it can be fascinating to watch other people run. Especially if it's a hot guy. Running shirtless. Into a library.

Saturday night I went to my friend's bachelorette/lingerie party. I'm not sure who started the whole buy your friends lingerie before their wedding trend, but it seems to have taken off. I don't really understand the wearing of lingerie. Why spend money on an article of clothing, the sole purpose of which is to get someone to rip if off you? I think it makes some women feel more confident or something. Personally, I would feel ridiculous and probably wouldn't be able to stop laughing. But my friend loves lingerie and I was glad to see her so happy. Plus, who doesn't like a party with penis shaped baked goods and games of "pin the junk on the hunk."

On Sunday my mom and I went to the Hilton Apple Fest. I was disappointed that they didn't have any Honeycrisp apples and they were sold out of hot apple cider, but I did get some kettle corn, which is the main reason I go to festivals in the first place. Also, arts and crafts booths are always entertaining. People make the most creative and crazy stuff. My favorite booth at the Apple Fest was the "Pet Angels" people, who make stuffed animals with angel wings in memory of your dead pets. What the...? Seriously? Who would buy that? Although I guess it's better than having your pet taxidermied. Better in that it's slightly less creepy but still way up there on the crazy scale. It takes all kinds I guess.

Lyric of the moment: "Autumn’s sweet, we call it fall. I’ll make it to the moon if I have to crawl..."

Go for a spin

Tonight I went to spinning class at the gym for the first time. I don't know why I had never tried it before now, but it's really fun. The music was a little loud and sometimes I couldn't understand what the instructor was saying, but it was a great workout and I think I'll go again sometime. My favorite part was the standing up, out-of-the-saddle position - it felt like running but without all the pounding. Next time I'm sitting on the side not facing the clock though. An hour of running goes by in no time, but an hour on a stationary bike in a small room seemed a lot longer.


Lyric of the moment: "What you want, you are, you always were..."

Rare moments of social normalcy

I turned 23 on October 23, 2004 and somehow I got the idea to make a list of 23 things I wanted to do while I was 23. That list, and especially #23: take a big risk, was the start of the crazy and ridiculous adventure that has lead me to where I am today. At the time, I was painfully awkward and shy (and arguably still am, to some extent), so the biggest risk I could think of was to move in with strangers. I had no qualms about skydiving, riding in a hot air balloon or the other random craziness on the list, but moving in with people I had never met scared the crap out of me. So of course, it turned out to be one of the best things I had ever done. Ok, so there were inevitably some sucktastic moments. Life isn't all unicorns and ice cream cake. But overall, the awesome far outweighed the awful. The whole experience forever shaped my life philosophy. And I still keep an informal and ever-expanding list of things I want to do, time and money permitting.

I was never one of those people who simply "knew" they wanted to be a doctor or lawyer or actor or whatever. I never had a clear vision of my future. And honestly, I still have no idea where I'm going or what I'm doing. But I realized that I wanted to have a life full of new experiences, challenges and travels, and once I set about trying to make that happen, my life took off in unexpectedly hilarious and infinitely amazing ways.

Incidentally, it was Jeff, one of the strangers I ended up moving in with, and then living with for 4 years after that, who gave me the nickname Robot. Shortly after I moved in, Jeff said he had never seen me eat anything besides ice cream and I asked so many questions (several of which have become infamous, including "What is in quiche?" and "How much is the tuition at Hogwarts?") that he thought I was a robot  from space, fueled by sugar and sent here to learn about humans. All of Jeff's friends started calling me Robot, and some didn't even know my real name for a long time. I thought it was hilarious.

It seemed oddly appropriate. I have always felt out of the loop when it comes to many human social behaviors. I don't drink or smoke or belong to any religious group. I don't eat meat or fish (Jeremy is a vegetarian and after we started dating 3 years ago, I naturally ate less meat, found I didn't miss it, and later gave it up completely). I may never get married and I don't want to have kids. I don't understand why anyone would want to ban gay marriage or go to war or wear socks with sandals. So basically, I fall outside of many social norms and, as a result, I am used to getting a lot of "are you some kind of robot?" looks when such topics come up in conversation. I will happily come to your wedding and listen to stories about your children while you eat a steak wrapped in bacon and drink beer, it's just that none of it appeals to me personally.

But don't worry, I'm not one of those robots Sam Waterston warned about on SNL...

"Robots are everywhere, and they eat old people's medicine for fuel. Well, now there's a company that offers coverage against the unfortunate event of a robot attack, with Old Glory Insurance. You need to feel safe. And that's harder and harder to do nowadays, because robots may strike at any time. And when they grab you with those metal claws, you can't break free, because they're made of metal, and robots are strong."

Still, I need to keep working on reducing my social awkwardness.

Also, I need to stop reading books about ultramarathoners. My brain is getting ideas that my body can't accomplish.
Lyric of the moment: "Binary solo! 00000010000001100000011100001111..."

Barktoberfest 5 mile race

Today, Jeremy, Lucky and I went to Barktoberfest at Lollypop Farm, which is the shelter where we adopted Lucky last year. I ran the 5 mile race and Lucky did a lot of sniffing and peeing.

The race course was a nice mix of trails and roads, with a few hills in the middle but a nice downhill to the finish. My time (37:56) was faster than my first 5 mile race in July, but the hip pain is still nagging me and the rest of my body feels a little worn out too. Sigh.

I really don't want to but I'm going to take this week off from running and do cross training instead. All my bones and muscles and inside parts performed like champs this summer, taking me farther and faster than I ever expected, so they've definitely earned a little rest time. Hopefully my body will heal itself and I can get back to running soon. I want to keep running for the rest of my life, so I should probably factor in some rest and relaxation time occasionally.

Lyric of the moment: "Some of us are different. It's just something in our blood. There's no need for explanations, we're just dogs on the run..."

Win some, lose some, awesome

Not awesome:

*I wanted to get a pair of Vibram Five Fingers but unfortunately they won't fit my feet due to my freakishly webbed toes. There's always that one dude at every race who runs in the Five Fingers or barefoot. I want to be that dude! Sadly, it seems it's not meant to be.

*I randomly got stung on my knee the other day. It was so not the bee's knees.

*I went to a sports medicine doctor, who said I don't have bursitis but my right hip muscles are weak. At least that's what I think he said. He spoke in William Shatner-like bursts of phrases that I only semi-understood. He sort of demonstrated some strengthening exercises that I could do, so I will have an attempt at those. Whatever is wrong with me, I just want it to go away and never return.

Dear body, please heal yourself as soon as possible. If you let me do all the awesome things I want to do, I promise not to think mean thoughts about you ever again. Infinity of thanks.

Awesome:
*Apparently I am now 5'7'' tall. I always thought I was 5'6'' so either I have recently grown an inch or I am finally standing up straight. I think my feet got longer too because some of my shoes from last year feel too small now. Weird.
*Pumpkin bars are back at Wegmans. They're like pumpkin pie but with walnuts and better crust. A deliciously good time.
*I transferred a little more money into my savings account, or as I like to think of it, my "moneys for awesome adventures" account. Little by little, I will get there. Hopefully.

*This picture of me fighting the Brobdingnagian (fantastic new word I learned that means "gigantic, enormous, of excessive size") squirrel sticker on the side of The Nut House on Monroe Ave.

Lyric of the moment: "Ain't nothing gonna break my stride. Nobody's gonna slow me down, oh-no, I got to keep on moving..."

Random reflections on the run

I was sort of in a daze on Sunday after the half marathon. A few times I even caught myself pulling a Lucky, staring off into space at nothing in particular. I don't think I've ever been so tired (or so happy about it).

But now that I can form thoughts again, I wanted to record some of them.

I feel like a bit of an ass for saying this, but hearing your name called as you cross the finish line is seriously awesome. Getting a medal for finishing is pretty sweet too.

Not to mention the ridiculous assorted swag that was in our race packets: A long sleeve t-shirt, 2 kinds of toothpaste, arthritis rub, men's deodorant, Red Bull, a package of craisins, assorted coupons and flyers, and a box of Success rice (which Jeremy and I ate last night for dinner).

During the half I found myself thinking "Seriously? You want to run a full marathon someday? As in, 2 of these! In a row!" But some part of me is still all "Yes, yes I do." At group training on Saturdays, we would all run the first loop together, then the half marathoners would be done, but the full marathoners would go back out on an extra loop to get in their additional miles. Half of me was glad I got to go home and shower, but the other half, like the little kid who wants to sit at the grown-ups' table at Thanksgiving, wanted to go the extra miles too.

I wish I could find a way to zone out during races. I can do it during training runs, but on race day I can't seem to focus on anything other than the task at hand (or foot, as the case may be). I suppose it's nice to be totally in the moment like that. During the half marathon, since I couldn't distract myself from the race, I just went with it and started thinking "You're doing it! You're running a half marathon!" over and over.

I wish I could figure out how to drink water out of a cup while running. I'm great at getting water all over my face and down my shirt, but in my mouth, not so much. Apparently I'm not the only one who has trouble with this. At one of the water stops during the race, I heard the guy running next to me say "Oof, that went up the nose." I hear you, dude.

It's funny how running is both a communal and solitary sport. You're surrounded by a crowd of almost 2000 other runners, and yet you're really only in a race with yourself (and sometimes the clock). Sometimes I wish I had friends to run with, but sometimes I enjoy the alone time.

There seems to be a strange sort of automatic intimacy among runners. You may barely know someone's name before you find yourself in a conversation about dietary habits and nipple chafing and bathroom talk. It's oddly amusing.

And last but certainly not least, infinity of thanks to all the race volunteers and spectators! I don't know why you'd want to get up at the crack of dawn on a rainy Sunday morning and spend hours outside cheering and handing out water, but thank you, thank you, thank you!

Lyric of the moment: "Run, running all the time. Running to the future, with you right by my side..."

Half marathon race day!

I ran my first half marathon today!

MVP Healthcare Rochester Half Marathon

September 12th, 2010 - Rochester, NY

1838 Total Finishers (787 Male, 1051 Female)

I was hoping to get under 2 hours, but I finished way faster than I expected: 1:43:22 (182nd place). It's the farthest and fastest I've ever run, so even though most of my body hurts right now, I feel awesome!

Lyric of the moment: "And I'll run in the rain 'til I'm breathless, when I'm breathless I'll run 'til I drop..."