Monday:
Well… I didn't write anything for Monday and now I can’t remember what happened. I ran. I went to work. I went to my other work and packed up my classroom.
Tuesday:
I set the alarm for 4am so I could be out the door by 4:45am at the latest. At 4:45 I was about ready to leave and Norm comes into the den and says “are you leaving without me?” I told him since he was in bed and not making an effort to get ready run I assumed he wasn’t going. But he did want to go so I had to wait for him. This meant we didn't leave until 5am. Fine, but I am not having enough time to get in the miles that I want and I also need to get in weights at least twice a week. Oh yeah… when am I suppose to stretch?
Today I joined Norm on the struggle bus. My knee seemed to be bothering me more today. I was also having some stomach pain. It was just a sucky run. The kind where you just don't care.
At 2:30pm when I got home from work I told everyone to be quiet or die and took a nap. I lecture on how to nap the right way so you don't experience sleep inertia, but didn't follow my own advice and was so groggy when I woke up.
Wednesday:
Did about 1500 feet of climbing and tried to sort out a new route. I think I find one I like. I like running up to the towers on Shaw Butte. I can do it from he back side, which is close to my house and avoid people. Seriously, no people on the route we take. But I hate coming down the falling apart road of Shaw Butte. Too many people and most of them paying no attention to what they are doing. It’s such a pain and the road has to be 6 to 8 feet wide. There is no reason we can't share it people.
One of my high school students at the community college asked me if I know Paul Bonnet. Of course do! I see him all the time, he lives a few streets over. As we started talking we realized we know a lot of the same people. That was kind of fun.
Thursday:
I decided to try to sleep in, but Norm wanted to be helpful and make sure I got up for my run. He gets up and starts making coffee and now I can’t fall back asleep. We just did a short 4 mile run so I could get home and get weights and stretching done. I think for the next 2 weeks I am going to have to run a few miles so I can get home for weights and stretching.
I am going to Western States next weekend to pace a local runner. This week has been full of updates and changes. The other person who was going to crew is no longer going. This means Norm and I will be crewing until I start my pacing duties and at that point Norm will be on his own to crew. And after the finish we have to jet back to Phoenix, well as fast as one can jet back a 13 hour drive. So hopefully all the logistics work out and every things falls into place.
Yesterday I saw a puppy on a Facebook post that for some reason tugged at my heart. It breaks all my rules! No puppies and no pit bull mixes. No need to lecture me about pit bulls, read the research on foxes and you will know it takes 3 generations to breed out aggression. I am not against them, I just didn’t care to own one. Until now I guess. Hank is coming for a visit tonight.
The day also came with some bad news. In the morning we had heard of a shooting at 28th street and Sweetwater. I oddly thought “that’s by Kelvin’s house,” But the realized that was wrong, his house is closer to Cave Creek. In the afternoon the kids told me that Kelvin had been killed by a friend. If you live in Phoenix you have probably heard the story by now. This is the 2nd kid that my kids know that has been killed by a friend with a gun. It just makes me sick and so sad. These kids are so young.
Well… I didn't write anything for Monday and now I can’t remember what happened. I ran. I went to work. I went to my other work and packed up my classroom.
Tuesday:
I set the alarm for 4am so I could be out the door by 4:45am at the latest. At 4:45 I was about ready to leave and Norm comes into the den and says “are you leaving without me?” I told him since he was in bed and not making an effort to get ready run I assumed he wasn’t going. But he did want to go so I had to wait for him. This meant we didn't leave until 5am. Fine, but I am not having enough time to get in the miles that I want and I also need to get in weights at least twice a week. Oh yeah… when am I suppose to stretch?
Today I joined Norm on the struggle bus. My knee seemed to be bothering me more today. I was also having some stomach pain. It was just a sucky run. The kind where you just don't care.
At 2:30pm when I got home from work I told everyone to be quiet or die and took a nap. I lecture on how to nap the right way so you don't experience sleep inertia, but didn't follow my own advice and was so groggy when I woke up.
Wednesday:
Did about 1500 feet of climbing and tried to sort out a new route. I think I find one I like. I like running up to the towers on Shaw Butte. I can do it from he back side, which is close to my house and avoid people. Seriously, no people on the route we take. But I hate coming down the falling apart road of Shaw Butte. Too many people and most of them paying no attention to what they are doing. It’s such a pain and the road has to be 6 to 8 feet wide. There is no reason we can't share it people.
One of my high school students at the community college asked me if I know Paul Bonnet. Of course do! I see him all the time, he lives a few streets over. As we started talking we realized we know a lot of the same people. That was kind of fun.
Thursday:
I decided to try to sleep in, but Norm wanted to be helpful and make sure I got up for my run. He gets up and starts making coffee and now I can’t fall back asleep. We just did a short 4 mile run so I could get home and get weights and stretching done. I think for the next 2 weeks I am going to have to run a few miles so I can get home for weights and stretching.
I am going to Western States next weekend to pace a local runner. This week has been full of updates and changes. The other person who was going to crew is no longer going. This means Norm and I will be crewing until I start my pacing duties and at that point Norm will be on his own to crew. And after the finish we have to jet back to Phoenix, well as fast as one can jet back a 13 hour drive. So hopefully all the logistics work out and every things falls into place.
Yesterday I saw a puppy on a Facebook post that for some reason tugged at my heart. It breaks all my rules! No puppies and no pit bull mixes. No need to lecture me about pit bulls, read the research on foxes and you will know it takes 3 generations to breed out aggression. I am not against them, I just didn’t care to own one. Until now I guess. Hank is coming for a visit tonight.
The day also came with some bad news. In the morning we had heard of a shooting at 28th street and Sweetwater. I oddly thought “that’s by Kelvin’s house,” But the realized that was wrong, his house is closer to Cave Creek. In the afternoon the kids told me that Kelvin had been killed by a friend. If you live in Phoenix you have probably heard the story by now. This is the 2nd kid that my kids know that has been killed by a friend with a gun. It just makes me sick and so sad. These kids are so young.
Hank our new puppy.
Friday:
Hank stayed the night with us. Some one around here is always awake so I didn't have to wake up to take him out, but Enzo woke me up to tell me he was breaking out in hives. He had been cuddling with Hank and his arms and hands were covered in hives. I have the same problem. Having the dogs in the house doesn't cause me a problem, but I can't have them lay where I lay or sit. I can’t have them rubbing up against me a lot or I break out in hives. Unfortunately for Enzo, we were out of Zyrtec.
I had decided to sleep in. This meant I got to sleep until 5:30am. Not late for most people, but late for me. This also meant that when I left at 6:30am it was already pretty warm outside. I was happy with how good I felt. Especially since I did weights the day before for the first time in a week. The goal was to stay between 6:40 and 6:45 after the 2 mile warm up. Everything felt good until I got to mile 6. I started getting a cramp and I was struggling to stay on pace. When I got to Granada Park I was a little over half way through mile 6. It’s always a pain to hold pace through the park with all the turns and cars and people. I decided to just walk into the park and see if I could get the cramp to go away.
Coming into the park an older gentleman says to me “You keep this up and you will be fighting over the last string bikini at Victoria’s Secret by July 4th.” I responded, “I don’t know about that, I might be too old for a suit like that.” But after he walked away I wondered if I should be insulted because he implied that I was close to looking good, but still needed to do some work or was it an oddly worded compliment? Or should I be insulted that he would say such a thing to me? Insulted is out. Yes, it is a somewhat inappropriate comment, but I can’t get all upset over stuff like this.
I finished the 6th mile and felt better. The cramp had gone away. I ran my best mile on the 7th mile. I thought I was running about 5:45 pace so I was surprised the see the average was 5:36. But it was not smart to try to keep this pace and I backed down for the rest of the run. I am definitely feeling happy with my speed, especially since I had to neglect it for a while to focus on climbing again.
I had breakfast and coffee, watched a few Run Flat Stay Low videos and got ready for my second run. I would normally do this later in the day, but it is suppose to be 106 degrees today. I need to get the speed work done, but I also need to get climbing done. There was a lot of hiking. I am definitely not heat acclimated. But I got 6 miles at 1800 feet of climbing done. I came home and scarfed down left over pizza and a bottle of Skratch. Next up, nap time! I slept for about 45 minutes. Mt friend Yehudis is having us for Shabbos tonight before she moves to Israel. I hope I can stay awake. I might need a second nap. I am also going to have to eat a 1st dinner before I go for Shabbos because I will not be able to wait until after 8:30pm to eat.
Late afternoon our dog Otto was acting funny. He was falling around and his legs didn't seem to be working right. I’m not a vet, but it seemed to me like a stroke. He looked like he was experiencing hemi spatial neglect. We took him to the vet. At the vet he was displaying pre seizure activity. We spent hours waiting while they ran tests. We left thinking Otto might have cancer in his spleen with a crappy prognosis. Later in the evening we got a call that another ultra sound showed that it wasn’t his spleen, but there is a mass in his liver that has ruptured. The concern was that the he would need emergency surgery over night before we could get an ultra sound to see what exactly the mass looks like.
Saturday:
The news this morning is Otto is stable. They gave him some pain medicine so he is resting well. He may not actually be in pain, but just anxious. But as long as he is comfortable I am okay with it. The ultra sound doctor is coming some time this morning. Right now we are waiting to hear when he is showing up so we can meet him there and then make a decision on what to do next. FYI kids – become an animal ultra sound technician and you will never worry about money.
So, no running this morning while we wait to hear when to be at the vet. I am clearly not getting my 30 miles done today, but hopefully will get a little something done this afternoon. Unfortunately pretty much all of Arizona is under an excessive heat warning.
Late morning we met the doctor at the vet. Otto has 3 masses on his liver. This means he is not a candidate for surgery. The plan is to take him home and make him as comfortable as possible for his final days. We were told he probably has days to a week, but you never know. The kids bought him a cheeseburger on the way home.
In the middle of the night Ava woke me because she thought Otto was having trouble breathing. It did seem his breath was rapid and shallow. He sat with him a bit and his breath slowed down. I stayed with Ava for a few hours and then we both decided to get some sleep. I promised her I would get up at 4am to check on Otto. At 4am he seemed to be doing okay. I had a cup of coffee and struggled to stay awake. I ended up going back to sleep and asking Norm to keep an eye on him.
Friday:
Hank stayed the night with us. Some one around here is always awake so I didn't have to wake up to take him out, but Enzo woke me up to tell me he was breaking out in hives. He had been cuddling with Hank and his arms and hands were covered in hives. I have the same problem. Having the dogs in the house doesn't cause me a problem, but I can't have them lay where I lay or sit. I can’t have them rubbing up against me a lot or I break out in hives. Unfortunately for Enzo, we were out of Zyrtec.
I had decided to sleep in. This meant I got to sleep until 5:30am. Not late for most people, but late for me. This also meant that when I left at 6:30am it was already pretty warm outside. I was happy with how good I felt. Especially since I did weights the day before for the first time in a week. The goal was to stay between 6:40 and 6:45 after the 2 mile warm up. Everything felt good until I got to mile 6. I started getting a cramp and I was struggling to stay on pace. When I got to Granada Park I was a little over half way through mile 6. It’s always a pain to hold pace through the park with all the turns and cars and people. I decided to just walk into the park and see if I could get the cramp to go away.
Coming into the park an older gentleman says to me “You keep this up and you will be fighting over the last string bikini at Victoria’s Secret by July 4th.” I responded, “I don’t know about that, I might be too old for a suit like that.” But after he walked away I wondered if I should be insulted because he implied that I was close to looking good, but still needed to do some work or was it an oddly worded compliment? Or should I be insulted that he would say such a thing to me? Insulted is out. Yes, it is a somewhat inappropriate comment, but I can’t get all upset over stuff like this.
I finished the 6th mile and felt better. The cramp had gone away. I ran my best mile on the 7th mile. I thought I was running about 5:45 pace so I was surprised the see the average was 5:36. But it was not smart to try to keep this pace and I backed down for the rest of the run. I am definitely feeling happy with my speed, especially since I had to neglect it for a while to focus on climbing again.
I had breakfast and coffee, watched a few Run Flat Stay Low videos and got ready for my second run. I would normally do this later in the day, but it is suppose to be 106 degrees today. I need to get the speed work done, but I also need to get climbing done. There was a lot of hiking. I am definitely not heat acclimated. But I got 6 miles at 1800 feet of climbing done. I came home and scarfed down left over pizza and a bottle of Skratch. Next up, nap time! I slept for about 45 minutes. Mt friend Yehudis is having us for Shabbos tonight before she moves to Israel. I hope I can stay awake. I might need a second nap. I am also going to have to eat a 1st dinner before I go for Shabbos because I will not be able to wait until after 8:30pm to eat.
Late afternoon our dog Otto was acting funny. He was falling around and his legs didn't seem to be working right. I’m not a vet, but it seemed to me like a stroke. He looked like he was experiencing hemi spatial neglect. We took him to the vet. At the vet he was displaying pre seizure activity. We spent hours waiting while they ran tests. We left thinking Otto might have cancer in his spleen with a crappy prognosis. Later in the evening we got a call that another ultra sound showed that it wasn’t his spleen, but there is a mass in his liver that has ruptured. The concern was that the he would need emergency surgery over night before we could get an ultra sound to see what exactly the mass looks like.
Saturday:
The news this morning is Otto is stable. They gave him some pain medicine so he is resting well. He may not actually be in pain, but just anxious. But as long as he is comfortable I am okay with it. The ultra sound doctor is coming some time this morning. Right now we are waiting to hear when he is showing up so we can meet him there and then make a decision on what to do next. FYI kids – become an animal ultra sound technician and you will never worry about money.
So, no running this morning while we wait to hear when to be at the vet. I am clearly not getting my 30 miles done today, but hopefully will get a little something done this afternoon. Unfortunately pretty much all of Arizona is under an excessive heat warning.
Late morning we met the doctor at the vet. Otto has 3 masses on his liver. This means he is not a candidate for surgery. The plan is to take him home and make him as comfortable as possible for his final days. We were told he probably has days to a week, but you never know. The kids bought him a cheeseburger on the way home.
In the middle of the night Ava woke me because she thought Otto was having trouble breathing. It did seem his breath was rapid and shallow. He sat with him a bit and his breath slowed down. I stayed with Ava for a few hours and then we both decided to get some sleep. I promised her I would get up at 4am to check on Otto. At 4am he seemed to be doing okay. I had a cup of coffee and struggled to stay awake. I ended up going back to sleep and asking Norm to keep an eye on him.
Norm keeping Otto company
Even Snow took a turn keeping Otto company
Sunday:
I got up at 7am to give Otto his pain meds. He didn't seem to be in pain and he seems more like himself when the pills wear off. He also doesn't drink much when he is on the pills and I don't want him to dehydrate. I decided to skip the pills unless it seems he needs them.
No running. today. By the time everything around here has settled down it was already 9am, 90 degrees out and Norm was having his dizzy spells. I don't want to leave the dog, I don’t want to leave my husband and it is stupid hot outside. Third week in a row that training went down the drain.
I got up at 7am to give Otto his pain meds. He didn't seem to be in pain and he seems more like himself when the pills wear off. He also doesn't drink much when he is on the pills and I don't want him to dehydrate. I decided to skip the pills unless it seems he needs them.
No running. today. By the time everything around here has settled down it was already 9am, 90 degrees out and Norm was having his dizzy spells. I don't want to leave the dog, I don’t want to leave my husband and it is stupid hot outside. Third week in a row that training went down the drain.
I did get a nice surprise from the Nanny Goat race
