of loss, in sweat.
Seriously. I stepped on the scale on Saturday morning and Sunday morning both, and I was down two pounds on Sunday. I sat in this horrific heat wave, in a tent, selling tickets for RibFest this weekend. I did ride my bicycle there on Saturday, and lovely man that he is, Eric picked me up after I worked from 11:30 am until 10:30 pm. I would have ridden home, had I needed to, but it was nice having him take me and bike home.
Man, I was completely wiped after just sitting out in the heat. Makes me wonder what the people wandering around were feeling like!
The bad news about my weight loss, was that it was completely temporary. I am back to where I was before, and more. I'm thinking I just might have to get myself back into a meeting. My clothing is not fitting again, and in the stores, the sizes are going up. Not where I want to be.
I was thinking about going to the gym after work, but once again, I made excuses. Tomorrow is a new month, and a month for no excuses. At least tonight I got both checkbooks balanced (finally) and I will be working on getting the guest bedroom together for guests that are coming this weekend. I need to buy a mattress. The other one went with my stepson when he moved out....
On that note, off to use my muscle!
~a
Monday, July 31, 2006
Saturday, July 29, 2006
Has it really only been one week?
Wow. Work has just been nutso crazy.
My parents and sis were here last Sunday. At my parent's house on Thursday evening, my father asked if I had noticed anything in my bathroom.
My answer to him:
"Well, I put in 12-hour days on Monday and Tuesday, leaving the house at 4:30 am both days, Tuesday I didn't get home until after 10, then Wednesday morning, I packed and left... so no, I didn't notice anything."
Evidently he fixed the toilet. It had not been flushing properly, so he said that he told Eric how to fix it, and Eric told him that it did not really matter because we were going to get a new toilet, so my dad fixed it himself. Who would have thought that adding more water would fix the problem? So now we don't have to purchase a new toilet, or go through the hassle of installing it. I had asked Eric if it was possible to fix it, and he told me no... but let's not go there. Enough about toilets already. I'm sure it was fascinating.
Work has been a mixture of bad and good. Monday sucked. Not only did I need to get up at oh god early to drive an hour to be at a meeting at 5:30am (no lie), they basically told me that I was full of crap, and that I was sent by "the company to put a positive spin on things". Um, no, you asked me here as a subject matter expert, then tell me I know nothing, so really, why was I there? Because I enjoy being yelled at? Yah, that was a great start.
Tuesday was marginally better, as days go, but it also started out pretty miserably. I had to catch a flight at 6am. So I had carefully printed out my itinerary the night before, to make sure that I was going to the correct airport. The code on the sheet said MSP (Minneapolis-St. Paul International, for the non-travelers). So I parked in the ramp there, and lugged my laptop and assorted reams of paper (so it felt like anyway) to check in. I can't find a ticket counter with my airline name on it. Walked from one end to the other, then was told that my flight left out of the Humphrey terminal. So I had to get on the light rail, and walk for what seemed like forever to get to the correct ticket counter. GRRRR. If it's at the HHH, please put that on the itenerary! I would have parked over there, as it is much easier anyway! I talked to the travel service, and they agreed, the only way I would have figured out that it was at that terminal was to get on line, and check which gate the flight was leaving from. Like I am going to boot up the ol' computer at 3:45 am! But the day progressed better from there, the meetings I had in Milwaukee were pretty productive.
Tuesday afternoon, I was on a plane heading back. Of course the plane did not leave on time, as it made funny noises when the brakes were applied, after we had pushed back from the gate and were moving to line up for takeoff. They had to go back to the gate to have people make sure that all of the doors were closed properly! Therefore, I got back, just in time to go to my friend's house for book club. I was of the opinion that I was not really fond of the book. I had been reading it the weekend before, and it just made me depressed. Other folks seemed to like it. It was pretty well written, and it engaged you, but the subject matter just left something to be desired, I felt. Plus it was the writer's first novel so there were several holes in it that just did not make sense or that should have been filled. The other thing was that it proclaimed that it was not "Chick Lit" and it so much was.... The book was: The Bitch Posse by Martha O'Connor.
Wednesday, I packed, got some time in at the office, then hopped in my truck to go to Alexandria, MN. More work meetings. I did not participate in the "team building" golf outing, I thought it was more important to get on a conference call that our VP had scheduled, plus I had been working on putting together all of the stats for said meeting, so I kind of needed to be there.
Thursday was meetings, then I went to pick up my sister and niece, and we went to the outlet mall to support our economy. I really seem to go in streaks on feeling like I have money to spend, to feeling poor and pinched. The poor and pinched usually happens when I manage to balance both checkbooks, and pay all of the bills. I have not been doing such a good job of that lately, as I have a.) had the time, and b.) dread doing it, since I leave it for too long because of a. I did pick up a new winter coat for $32 at the London Fog store that was going out of business. That made me happy.
Friday, was also a rather interesting day. We were out performing a job performance analysis on an employee that had been held out of service. There had been some complaints about him that he could not do his job, which is very physical work. I don't want to get into details, becuase of confidentiality issues, but I ended up calling the test off, becuase this employee was exhibiting very obvious signs of heat stroke - so we are rescheduling for after this hot weather breaks.
It just makes me glad that I am doing something about my health, and trying to stay in shape, so I can go out in the heat without it making me ill.
On that note, I am going to dust off my bycycle, and head over to sell tickets at RibFest. I know it will be a warm ride, but I gotta do it!
~a
My parents and sis were here last Sunday. At my parent's house on Thursday evening, my father asked if I had noticed anything in my bathroom.
My answer to him:
"Well, I put in 12-hour days on Monday and Tuesday, leaving the house at 4:30 am both days, Tuesday I didn't get home until after 10, then Wednesday morning, I packed and left... so no, I didn't notice anything."
Evidently he fixed the toilet. It had not been flushing properly, so he said that he told Eric how to fix it, and Eric told him that it did not really matter because we were going to get a new toilet, so my dad fixed it himself. Who would have thought that adding more water would fix the problem? So now we don't have to purchase a new toilet, or go through the hassle of installing it. I had asked Eric if it was possible to fix it, and he told me no... but let's not go there. Enough about toilets already. I'm sure it was fascinating.
Work has been a mixture of bad and good. Monday sucked. Not only did I need to get up at oh god early to drive an hour to be at a meeting at 5:30am (no lie), they basically told me that I was full of crap, and that I was sent by "the company to put a positive spin on things". Um, no, you asked me here as a subject matter expert, then tell me I know nothing, so really, why was I there? Because I enjoy being yelled at? Yah, that was a great start.
Tuesday was marginally better, as days go, but it also started out pretty miserably. I had to catch a flight at 6am. So I had carefully printed out my itinerary the night before, to make sure that I was going to the correct airport. The code on the sheet said MSP (Minneapolis-St. Paul International, for the non-travelers). So I parked in the ramp there, and lugged my laptop and assorted reams of paper (so it felt like anyway) to check in. I can't find a ticket counter with my airline name on it. Walked from one end to the other, then was told that my flight left out of the Humphrey terminal. So I had to get on the light rail, and walk for what seemed like forever to get to the correct ticket counter. GRRRR. If it's at the HHH, please put that on the itenerary! I would have parked over there, as it is much easier anyway! I talked to the travel service, and they agreed, the only way I would have figured out that it was at that terminal was to get on line, and check which gate the flight was leaving from. Like I am going to boot up the ol' computer at 3:45 am! But the day progressed better from there, the meetings I had in Milwaukee were pretty productive.
Tuesday afternoon, I was on a plane heading back. Of course the plane did not leave on time, as it made funny noises when the brakes were applied, after we had pushed back from the gate and were moving to line up for takeoff. They had to go back to the gate to have people make sure that all of the doors were closed properly! Therefore, I got back, just in time to go to my friend's house for book club. I was of the opinion that I was not really fond of the book. I had been reading it the weekend before, and it just made me depressed. Other folks seemed to like it. It was pretty well written, and it engaged you, but the subject matter just left something to be desired, I felt. Plus it was the writer's first novel so there were several holes in it that just did not make sense or that should have been filled. The other thing was that it proclaimed that it was not "Chick Lit" and it so much was.... The book was: The Bitch Posse by Martha O'Connor.
Wednesday, I packed, got some time in at the office, then hopped in my truck to go to Alexandria, MN. More work meetings. I did not participate in the "team building" golf outing, I thought it was more important to get on a conference call that our VP had scheduled, plus I had been working on putting together all of the stats for said meeting, so I kind of needed to be there.
Thursday was meetings, then I went to pick up my sister and niece, and we went to the outlet mall to support our economy. I really seem to go in streaks on feeling like I have money to spend, to feeling poor and pinched. The poor and pinched usually happens when I manage to balance both checkbooks, and pay all of the bills. I have not been doing such a good job of that lately, as I have a.) had the time, and b.) dread doing it, since I leave it for too long because of a. I did pick up a new winter coat for $32 at the London Fog store that was going out of business. That made me happy.
Friday, was also a rather interesting day. We were out performing a job performance analysis on an employee that had been held out of service. There had been some complaints about him that he could not do his job, which is very physical work. I don't want to get into details, becuase of confidentiality issues, but I ended up calling the test off, becuase this employee was exhibiting very obvious signs of heat stroke - so we are rescheduling for after this hot weather breaks.
It just makes me glad that I am doing something about my health, and trying to stay in shape, so I can go out in the heat without it making me ill.
On that note, I am going to dust off my bycycle, and head over to sell tickets at RibFest. I know it will be a warm ride, but I gotta do it!
~a
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Weekend's wrapping up!
I wanted to do an update on the exercise. I finally got my rear out of the house to go running. I did 3 miles this morning, easy, and acutally ran the whole way. And it felt great.Yesterday did not go according to plan. But what does? I went downstairs to get a dent made in the laundry, and the basement, as always really was making me depressed. My husband, much as I love him, is not into making things organized. At all. He has all of these books on how to organize, and how not to be messy, but things are always a disaster. As much as a perfectionist he is about some things, this is not one area that he feels the need. Pretty much ever. He saves all of this stuff, because he might want/need it someday. But if you can't find anything, what good does it do you? And then all of the crap masks all of the stuff that you really need, like the lawn sprinkler. It's pretty shameful actually, our lawn. You wouldn't know that Eric has a degree in landscape technology by the shape of our yard.
So I spent about 4 hours in the basement, straightening. And ignored eating for a long time. When I could not stand it any more, I ate a couple of tofu & Spinach eggrolls (Trader Joe's, and quite yummy I might add) and the rest of the Pina Colada from the night before. Then Eric came home, and I pretty much yelled at him for all of the crap all over. He said the least I could do would be to greet him first... which I had told him hello when he came home... but I was in a much better mood later than I had been when I was discovering more crap, on top of crap, under crap.... at least I did something about it instead of being pissed off and eating because I was pissed off.
Today was a day with my sister, my parents and my two nieces. We went out to brunch, then headed to the mall. Lots of trying on of clothes ensued. I ended up with three nice outfits, and my sister got a bunch of stuff for my nieces - school clothes shopping, if you believe that for July! But, things are less expensive here, because there is no tax on clothing.
Anyway, I had to go into the office this evening to get something done (got a call from one of the VP's as I was in the dressing room) and I won't have time to do it tomorrow before he needs the info. So I get to go home and fold all of my laundry. Joy.
Woo hoo, carrots.
~a
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Cribbage and Frozen drinks
That was the theme of last night...
I had a friend over last night to "even" out our cribbage games from last October. We were camping last October, and having a mad, mad, mad time of it. Friendly game, lots of laughing, but we stopped after we had each won one game.
So we played 3 games last night. I won two. Woo hoo!
And I made dinner, so she brought the fun drinks. B-52's and Pina Colada's.
Moving on, until last night, I have been journalling, but no exercise. It's been a crazy week with work and other stuff. My boss was in town for a meeting on Thursday, and I thought we would be able to meet to talk about my PMP (Performance Management Plan, yanno, what I am supposed to do this year, etc) but the meeting went extra long, and he had to leave before it was over to catch his flight. He pulled me out of the meeting as he was leaving to tell me that there are more changes happening in our department, and there is a 99% chance that he will not be my boss anymore. Which really sucks, 'cause I like him, and I think we had a good understanding of what is going on, and he was giving me really good support with the folks here in the US and now I get to have someone new. And I don't know who it is, because I am terrible at guessing these things. I hope that I can work with them though!
My sister is going to be here tomorrow, and we are going to go shopping. I think we just might brave the Mall of America - we can entertain my nieces some at the amusement park there. I also want to go to IKEA which is next to there - it's time to get a bed in at least one of the guest bedrooms... Curt took his bed and the two futons when he moved out (my stepson), so we only have one bed (ours) in a 3-bedroom house. We do have a pull-out couch, but I want to have an actual guest bedroom. (The third bedroom will be my office/sewing room.)
On that note, I need to get some laundry started, then I am going to look over my bicycle to see if I can go for a ride. I need to get going if I am going to make that 1000 minute challenge... especially with the week I have next week!
ta
~a
I had a friend over last night to "even" out our cribbage games from last October. We were camping last October, and having a mad, mad, mad time of it. Friendly game, lots of laughing, but we stopped after we had each won one game.
So we played 3 games last night. I won two. Woo hoo!
And I made dinner, so she brought the fun drinks. B-52's and Pina Colada's.
Moving on, until last night, I have been journalling, but no exercise. It's been a crazy week with work and other stuff. My boss was in town for a meeting on Thursday, and I thought we would be able to meet to talk about my PMP (Performance Management Plan, yanno, what I am supposed to do this year, etc) but the meeting went extra long, and he had to leave before it was over to catch his flight. He pulled me out of the meeting as he was leaving to tell me that there are more changes happening in our department, and there is a 99% chance that he will not be my boss anymore. Which really sucks, 'cause I like him, and I think we had a good understanding of what is going on, and he was giving me really good support with the folks here in the US and now I get to have someone new. And I don't know who it is, because I am terrible at guessing these things. I hope that I can work with them though!
My sister is going to be here tomorrow, and we are going to go shopping. I think we just might brave the Mall of America - we can entertain my nieces some at the amusement park there. I also want to go to IKEA which is next to there - it's time to get a bed in at least one of the guest bedrooms... Curt took his bed and the two futons when he moved out (my stepson), so we only have one bed (ours) in a 3-bedroom house. We do have a pull-out couch, but I want to have an actual guest bedroom. (The third bedroom will be my office/sewing room.)
On that note, I need to get some laundry started, then I am going to look over my bicycle to see if I can go for a ride. I need to get going if I am going to make that 1000 minute challenge... especially with the week I have next week!
ta
~a
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
quick update
I'm out the door early this morning, I am meeting one of our supervisors to go hi-railing, but I wanted to update the exercise.
I actually walked to the library to return a book last night after the all-you can eat crab dinner... It almost feels like I am cheating on exercise when I walk, after all of the running I was doing, but hey, at least I am still getting out there, and moving, right?
I have a shiny new bicycle helmet, so I really need to get out the bicycle to start riding. I found out this morning I didn't get into the TC10, so it looks like I am going to do the biathalon with my friend at the end of September (a run-bike-run). I need to have goals to work towards.
And I have started journalling again. This will be day 3. I am aiming for 7 right now... but no ticker for that yet!
Later,
~a
Monday, July 17, 2006
Back from Canada, eh?
Yep. Back in the land of cell phones and e-mail and internet.
Well, I did get back on Saturday, but yanno, there are things that need to get done after being on vacation for a week. The cats demanded a lot of attention, and followed us around for about a day and a half. Now they are back to being normal cats, if you can say that our cats are normal!
Let me say, I am sure glad that we got the new truck. Sitting waiting to go through customs in Fort Francis/International Falls without A/C on Saturday would have been completely miserable. It took us 2 hours to get through. At which time, we parked at the closest store and made use of the bathroom facilities!
It was a relaxing week of vacation. I fished. I hiked. I walked. I read. I watched movies on my laptop. I slept late. I swam in the lake. And of course, I ate too much junk food. There were some really great hiking trails fairly close to where we were staying (a half-hour walk) so I made use of the trails several times during the week. I startled and was startled by a very large deer, which of course I did not see until it started running away, because I was watching my footing. And here's the tally after the week:
I went out in the boat more times than I thought I would, and actually fished and casted more, because I am finally getting the idea of how to acutally use a bait caster reel. But I can only throw it in one way, and I get kind of freaked out if I have to change, 'cause I am paranoid about catching the lure on the boat, or whoever is fishing in the boat, or on crap in the boat...
That being said, there was a big one that got away... a fish I mean. I had a very large Muskie on my line that fought for a bit, then got off the hook before I could get it to the boat. Eric figured that it was over 50 inches. Yep. Big. And it got away, really...
One of the bad things was the sleeping arrangements. The cabin that we were in had all single beds. You can push two of them together, and they look like a king sized bed, but if you try and move over, you encounter the "crack" which you get paranoid that you are going to fall into, or get stuck, or it's just plain uncomfortable, since the beds are older and sag a bit in the middle. That, and it was kind of hot, and the cabin had no A/C. I guess I'm spoiled. At least we were not in a tent...
On another note - I went to stay at my parent's house last night - I had to be up that way for work this morning, and my sister is here from Oklahoma for a month (she tellecommutes, so can work anywhere, provided she has high-speed internet) with my two nieces. I thought we would have a nice visit last night, but guess what I ended up doing? Just let me say, it makes me glad that my stepchildren are grown, and that I don't have to deal with this sort of thing... So my sister was looking at my younger niece's hair, and was seeing nits. Yep. Lice. My older neice had had a run in with it about a week and a half ago, and evidently something got missed. So I spent about an hour going through her hair, getting everything I could find out. My sis had washed their hair with the pesticide shampoo, but evidently that stuff is only like 85% effective, and only on live ones. You still have to manually get all of the nits out. So the two nieces and my sister went to bed with mayonaise on their heads. (Evidently this suffocates the live ones) and my mom and sister spent a bunch of time vacuuming floors, couches, and pillows, and washing bedding last night. And I slept poorly because I had nightmares about lice.
Yep. Glad about the no kid thing, once again!
Anyway, I'm home. Back into the office tomorrow.
~a
Well, I did get back on Saturday, but yanno, there are things that need to get done after being on vacation for a week. The cats demanded a lot of attention, and followed us around for about a day and a half. Now they are back to being normal cats, if you can say that our cats are normal!
Let me say, I am sure glad that we got the new truck. Sitting waiting to go through customs in Fort Francis/International Falls without A/C on Saturday would have been completely miserable. It took us 2 hours to get through. At which time, we parked at the closest store and made use of the bathroom facilities!
It was a relaxing week of vacation. I fished. I hiked. I walked. I read. I watched movies on my laptop. I slept late. I swam in the lake. And of course, I ate too much junk food. There were some really great hiking trails fairly close to where we were staying (a half-hour walk) so I made use of the trails several times during the week. I startled and was startled by a very large deer, which of course I did not see until it started running away, because I was watching my footing. And here's the tally after the week:
I went out in the boat more times than I thought I would, and actually fished and casted more, because I am finally getting the idea of how to acutally use a bait caster reel. But I can only throw it in one way, and I get kind of freaked out if I have to change, 'cause I am paranoid about catching the lure on the boat, or whoever is fishing in the boat, or on crap in the boat...That being said, there was a big one that got away... a fish I mean. I had a very large Muskie on my line that fought for a bit, then got off the hook before I could get it to the boat. Eric figured that it was over 50 inches. Yep. Big. And it got away, really...
One of the bad things was the sleeping arrangements. The cabin that we were in had all single beds. You can push two of them together, and they look like a king sized bed, but if you try and move over, you encounter the "crack" which you get paranoid that you are going to fall into, or get stuck, or it's just plain uncomfortable, since the beds are older and sag a bit in the middle. That, and it was kind of hot, and the cabin had no A/C. I guess I'm spoiled. At least we were not in a tent...
On another note - I went to stay at my parent's house last night - I had to be up that way for work this morning, and my sister is here from Oklahoma for a month (she tellecommutes, so can work anywhere, provided she has high-speed internet) with my two nieces. I thought we would have a nice visit last night, but guess what I ended up doing? Just let me say, it makes me glad that my stepchildren are grown, and that I don't have to deal with this sort of thing... So my sister was looking at my younger niece's hair, and was seeing nits. Yep. Lice. My older neice had had a run in with it about a week and a half ago, and evidently something got missed. So I spent about an hour going through her hair, getting everything I could find out. My sis had washed their hair with the pesticide shampoo, but evidently that stuff is only like 85% effective, and only on live ones. You still have to manually get all of the nits out. So the two nieces and my sister went to bed with mayonaise on their heads. (Evidently this suffocates the live ones) and my mom and sister spent a bunch of time vacuuming floors, couches, and pillows, and washing bedding last night. And I slept poorly because I had nightmares about lice.
Yep. Glad about the no kid thing, once again!
Anyway, I'm home. Back into the office tomorrow.
~a
Friday, July 07, 2006
Finally, a day off!
And it was great. I finally got out and ran, and it felt wonderful. Although I think I might have overdone it... I figure I did around 6 miles. And it made me crash/nap for about two hours this afternoon. Well, I suppose that combined with the deep cleaning of the bathroom, the four loads of laundry, and the vacuuming of the stairs helped too.
And I think I need some time off. I am looking forward to our week of vacation, but I do need to get packing yet. My brain just about turned off yesterday evening after being in the office for over 10 hours, trying to get everything together before I left.
And it's totally amazing what a sparkling clean bathroom will do to lift your mood.
So tomorrow, it's off to the wilds of Canada, where I am assuming there will be no internet access, so I will not be here for a week or so. (Not to say that Canada is uncivilized, but we are going to a fishing camp, literally in the middle of nowhere!)
ta!
~a
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Sun and Fun
I had good intentions of getting things done around the house yesterday.
Until I decded, screw it, it's a beautiful day, I would rather spend some time floating in my friend's pool, with a tasty beverage in my hand.
I will have to say, that we did get the sheets on the bed changed, and the bedroom picked up, and my stuff unpacked, and cooked up some of my farm share food before we left... and we were on the road somewhere around 12:30.
It was relaxing, and refreshing, and lovely. I'm glad I decided to do it. I even managed to swim some laps in the pool when everyone else was running around getting things ready for eating dinner. I am going to try and join Jess in her 1000 minutes of exercise in July. So here's my start:
Tonight, I should be able to get more stuff done around the house. I have a bunch of laundry to do before we leave on vacation. We will be going to the exotic locale of Minaki, Ontario. Eric will be doing lots of Muskie Fishing, and I will be relaxing with a book in hand, and I also plan to get a good start on studying for my certification exam. I will probably go out fishing a time or two, but I tend to get bored after not catching anything after an hour.
On another note, we did finally get to see The Devil Wears Prada, and I did enjoy it, although there were a couple of major differences in the book that they changed for the movie. But I don't think it took away from either. It was still fun and cute. Eric said he was not bored, so that was a good thing. I think the most amusing part of the movie was the older ladies sitting next to us though - they kept gasping when Miranda said cutting things about Andy's wardrobe, and when Nigel told Andy that a size 6 was the new 14... among other such remarks. I knew they were coming, and gosh, it's a movie about the fashion industry!
Food today has been okay. I didn't pack anything this morning, because I didn't know how long my morning meeting would run, but I did make some light popcorn for mid-morning, and had a frozen meal in the freezer here, so I guess that would be about 9 points so far today. Tonight, I am planning a salad with a pork chop (leftover) shredded on top. I need to get back at portion control, and exercise - the scale is not being nice again. And I know it's pretty much all my fault with the out of control eating. I need to stop feeding my face when I get disappointed or mad about something. And I need to quit eating when I am not hungry. Easier said than done.
I read an interesting article the other day that made me kind of sit back and think. Failing to run. It talks about one person's perspective on how he needed to fail to be able to get back into running. About how making your life more complex, just makes you ragged, and accomplishes pretty much nothing. Getting back to basics, and enjoying the simple things in life. I really feel like that some days, like all of the things in my life are ruling my life. I truly enjoy the volunteer activities I do, but sometimes I wonder why I spend all of the time that I do with them. If I don't get back to the basics of myself, I will no longer be able to do those things that I enjoy.
I don't remember exactly the last time I made Sunday dinner. I enjoy that. I have tons of fresh produce in my fridge that needs to be washed and cooked into something tasty. My bicycle has been neglected for too long. I bought a new bicycle helmet on Monday, and I need to go out and use it.
I'm looking forward to having a week off to refresh and recharge. I just need to get there.
~a
Until I decded, screw it, it's a beautiful day, I would rather spend some time floating in my friend's pool, with a tasty beverage in my hand.
I will have to say, that we did get the sheets on the bed changed, and the bedroom picked up, and my stuff unpacked, and cooked up some of my farm share food before we left... and we were on the road somewhere around 12:30.
It was relaxing, and refreshing, and lovely. I'm glad I decided to do it. I even managed to swim some laps in the pool when everyone else was running around getting things ready for eating dinner. I am going to try and join Jess in her 1000 minutes of exercise in July. So here's my start:
Tonight, I should be able to get more stuff done around the house. I have a bunch of laundry to do before we leave on vacation. We will be going to the exotic locale of Minaki, Ontario. Eric will be doing lots of Muskie Fishing, and I will be relaxing with a book in hand, and I also plan to get a good start on studying for my certification exam. I will probably go out fishing a time or two, but I tend to get bored after not catching anything after an hour.
On another note, we did finally get to see The Devil Wears Prada, and I did enjoy it, although there were a couple of major differences in the book that they changed for the movie. But I don't think it took away from either. It was still fun and cute. Eric said he was not bored, so that was a good thing. I think the most amusing part of the movie was the older ladies sitting next to us though - they kept gasping when Miranda said cutting things about Andy's wardrobe, and when Nigel told Andy that a size 6 was the new 14... among other such remarks. I knew they were coming, and gosh, it's a movie about the fashion industry!
Food today has been okay. I didn't pack anything this morning, because I didn't know how long my morning meeting would run, but I did make some light popcorn for mid-morning, and had a frozen meal in the freezer here, so I guess that would be about 9 points so far today. Tonight, I am planning a salad with a pork chop (leftover) shredded on top. I need to get back at portion control, and exercise - the scale is not being nice again. And I know it's pretty much all my fault with the out of control eating. I need to stop feeding my face when I get disappointed or mad about something. And I need to quit eating when I am not hungry. Easier said than done.
I read an interesting article the other day that made me kind of sit back and think. Failing to run. It talks about one person's perspective on how he needed to fail to be able to get back into running. About how making your life more complex, just makes you ragged, and accomplishes pretty much nothing. Getting back to basics, and enjoying the simple things in life. I really feel like that some days, like all of the things in my life are ruling my life. I truly enjoy the volunteer activities I do, but sometimes I wonder why I spend all of the time that I do with them. If I don't get back to the basics of myself, I will no longer be able to do those things that I enjoy.
I don't remember exactly the last time I made Sunday dinner. I enjoy that. I have tons of fresh produce in my fridge that needs to be washed and cooked into something tasty. My bicycle has been neglected for too long. I bought a new bicycle helmet on Monday, and I need to go out and use it.
I'm looking forward to having a week off to refresh and recharge. I just need to get there.
~a
Monday, July 03, 2006
A funny thing happened on the way to the movie theater
So I got home Friday afternoon, and we were checking movie times, and decided we were going to try and make the 5:05 showing of "Devil". We were pushing it to make it there for that time, as Eric was trying to get ready, shower, etc. but we were in the parking lot at about 5:05. Walking quickly to the doors of the theater, and my cell phone starts ringing.
I look at the number that is showing up, and it's the main switchboard at our downtown office. I will admit, I saw that and swore profusely, then answered the phone. Yep. Weekend plans went down in a puff of smoke... the call was to tell me that we had had a derailment in western Minnesota, and I needed to get out there - first report I heard was 23 cars on the ground. One hazardous car of ethyl alcohol residue, but nothing leaking. But still...
So I didn't get to see my movie. I didn't get to go for a bike ride. I didn't get to meet my friend on Sunday morning to run around Calhoun (which I inadvertanly stood up, as I totally forgot about it until I got her message when I checked on Sunday evening). And I ate way too much, and too much crap trying to stay awake and alert with enough energy.
I didn't eat enough good food on Friday night, and was up until about 2am, and then I got about 5 hours of sleep, and was back at the site. My legs were feeling really fatigued, and I was not 100% mentally there... my classic signs of low blood sugar, so I ended up eating a couple of rice crispie treats. After the egg bacon and toast breakfast they were serving.
The scale this morning is clearly reflecting all of the crap that I ate this weekend. And the sad thing is when you start going in that direction, your body keeps wanting that much food, and even if you have eaten something, it says that it wants more. And more. And when you don't eat because you decide that you have had way too much, it calls you a bitch, and your stomach rumbles with the hungries.
I was released from the derailment site at about 11:30pm on Saturday, after being there at about 7:45am. I drove to my parent's house and crashed for the night. Sunday, I lazed around there, reading, talking with my parents, then I dozed off around noon - and slept until about 4pm. I guess I needed the sleep.
There's some holiday stuff going on tonight, and tomorrow, but since I lost my weekend, I don't think that Eric and I will be going anywhere. I have too much that needs to get done around the house. Since it really does not get done without me there. I came home to piles of clean laundry on the bed. And my clothes hamper missing - Eric had brought the clothes downstairs, but didn't bring the hamper back up. And I want to organize the office - move some furniture out, move other stuff in. And the bathroom needs a deep cleaning, and I need to do some stuff with the food from my farm share. And I REALLY want to go see that movie!
Eric has the day off, and is planning on loading up the motorcycle to bring it somewhere to be fixed. I have been bugging him to get that done since it conked out on me last August. I am looking forward to being able to ride a bit again this summer.
That being said, it's back at it. I probably could have taken the day off because of the time I put in this weekend, but I am planning on taking Friday off to prepare for our vacaiton. We are going to Canada fishing for a week, starting on July 8th.
Later!
~a
I look at the number that is showing up, and it's the main switchboard at our downtown office. I will admit, I saw that and swore profusely, then answered the phone. Yep. Weekend plans went down in a puff of smoke... the call was to tell me that we had had a derailment in western Minnesota, and I needed to get out there - first report I heard was 23 cars on the ground. One hazardous car of ethyl alcohol residue, but nothing leaking. But still...
So I didn't get to see my movie. I didn't get to go for a bike ride. I didn't get to meet my friend on Sunday morning to run around Calhoun (which I inadvertanly stood up, as I totally forgot about it until I got her message when I checked on Sunday evening). And I ate way too much, and too much crap trying to stay awake and alert with enough energy.
I didn't eat enough good food on Friday night, and was up until about 2am, and then I got about 5 hours of sleep, and was back at the site. My legs were feeling really fatigued, and I was not 100% mentally there... my classic signs of low blood sugar, so I ended up eating a couple of rice crispie treats. After the egg bacon and toast breakfast they were serving.
The scale this morning is clearly reflecting all of the crap that I ate this weekend. And the sad thing is when you start going in that direction, your body keeps wanting that much food, and even if you have eaten something, it says that it wants more. And more. And when you don't eat because you decide that you have had way too much, it calls you a bitch, and your stomach rumbles with the hungries.
I was released from the derailment site at about 11:30pm on Saturday, after being there at about 7:45am. I drove to my parent's house and crashed for the night. Sunday, I lazed around there, reading, talking with my parents, then I dozed off around noon - and slept until about 4pm. I guess I needed the sleep.
There's some holiday stuff going on tonight, and tomorrow, but since I lost my weekend, I don't think that Eric and I will be going anywhere. I have too much that needs to get done around the house. Since it really does not get done without me there. I came home to piles of clean laundry on the bed. And my clothes hamper missing - Eric had brought the clothes downstairs, but didn't bring the hamper back up. And I want to organize the office - move some furniture out, move other stuff in. And the bathroom needs a deep cleaning, and I need to do some stuff with the food from my farm share. And I REALLY want to go see that movie!
Eric has the day off, and is planning on loading up the motorcycle to bring it somewhere to be fixed. I have been bugging him to get that done since it conked out on me last August. I am looking forward to being able to ride a bit again this summer.
That being said, it's back at it. I probably could have taken the day off because of the time I put in this weekend, but I am planning on taking Friday off to prepare for our vacaiton. We are going to Canada fishing for a week, starting on July 8th.
Later!
~a
Friday, June 30, 2006
I need a goal
I need it for motivation. I do so much better if I have a deadline in hand. Or perhaps a plan that is laid out that I need to follow... well, that and a goal.
I'm not sure what I am trying to say. I got out of bed yesterday and went for a run. I was thinking I would do the same thing this morning, but I got to sleep after midnight last night - Eric got home from fishing at about 11, and then it was time to chat a bit...
I guess I need to have something I am working towards. Something big. When I had the half marathon in front of me, I knew I had to train in order to do it. The next race I am signed up for is a 5K in September. And I have the attitude that a 5K is nothing, a walk in the park, so to say. I'm considering doing a duatholon in August. Run-bike-run. But I have not signed up for it yet. I want to start going to spinning classes again. I stopped when I started concentrating more on my running. And I need to start again.
And the eating. I have written down what I have been eating since Monday. It has not stopped me from eating whatever I feel like eating in the evening. Why is that? I had one OP core day. The rest was just, to put it mildly, crap. I think when I do core, I need to incorporate more fruit and milk-type products - I just need to cut down on the empty carbs.... but not cut carbs out alltogether. Last night, I did avoid the beer that was offered and stuck to water, but then we went out for Mexican food, and the chip basket was right in front of me. I know, I know, don't make excuses.
There was a funny story from last night though - I went out with some friends of mine that I have not seen in a while. We get out on the patio at the Mexican place, after having drinks somewhere before that, so we all ordered soft drinks and water. Diet Coke with a lime, Sprite, Diet Coke with a lemon, Coke with a lime, water. Waitress starts to leave, turns around, and says "Well, I normally wouldn't ask, but the stings are out - Can I see an ID?" We all kind of look at each other, and say okay, but I asked why she needed to see an ID if all we were ordering was pop... she misheard the Coke with a lime, thought she heard Carona with a lime. She's a little embarassed about the confusion and leaves. We start making jokes about how now we get carded for soft drinks - 'I'm sorry, I'm going to need to see your ID. Oh, you're too old to be drinking a caffinated beverage this late at night, I'm afraid I am going to have to cut you off!'
It was pretty funny. Or you had to be there.
Tonight Eric is taking me to see The Devil Wears Prada. I am giddily excited about going to see the movie. I even spent too long at the computer last night watching clips from the website. And taking one of the stupid movie quizzes. And he said something about Chinese food for dinner. Perhaps I will actually stick to moderation instead of trying to stuff myself.
I'm going to try and unearth my bicycle out of the basement and go for a long ride tomorrow. Every time I do it, I remember how much I love riding my bike. I do need to get a new bicycle helmet though. Mine I think is about 14 years old. You are supposed to replace them every 5 years or so...
Feels like it is supposed to be a long weekend. Yet, I don't have Monday off, so it will be pretty much the same old weekend drill for me. With an extra day off next week. On a Tuesday. Yeah, that pretty much sucks. Not that I will hate having the day off, but I won't get to relax at all, as we are planning on driving up to my parent's house for the day. Then we will get to deal with holiday traffic. Oh joy.
Anyhoo, that's what's up with me. And you?
~a
I'm not sure what I am trying to say. I got out of bed yesterday and went for a run. I was thinking I would do the same thing this morning, but I got to sleep after midnight last night - Eric got home from fishing at about 11, and then it was time to chat a bit...
I guess I need to have something I am working towards. Something big. When I had the half marathon in front of me, I knew I had to train in order to do it. The next race I am signed up for is a 5K in September. And I have the attitude that a 5K is nothing, a walk in the park, so to say. I'm considering doing a duatholon in August. Run-bike-run. But I have not signed up for it yet. I want to start going to spinning classes again. I stopped when I started concentrating more on my running. And I need to start again.
And the eating. I have written down what I have been eating since Monday. It has not stopped me from eating whatever I feel like eating in the evening. Why is that? I had one OP core day. The rest was just, to put it mildly, crap. I think when I do core, I need to incorporate more fruit and milk-type products - I just need to cut down on the empty carbs.... but not cut carbs out alltogether. Last night, I did avoid the beer that was offered and stuck to water, but then we went out for Mexican food, and the chip basket was right in front of me. I know, I know, don't make excuses.
There was a funny story from last night though - I went out with some friends of mine that I have not seen in a while. We get out on the patio at the Mexican place, after having drinks somewhere before that, so we all ordered soft drinks and water. Diet Coke with a lime, Sprite, Diet Coke with a lemon, Coke with a lime, water. Waitress starts to leave, turns around, and says "Well, I normally wouldn't ask, but the stings are out - Can I see an ID?" We all kind of look at each other, and say okay, but I asked why she needed to see an ID if all we were ordering was pop... she misheard the Coke with a lime, thought she heard Carona with a lime. She's a little embarassed about the confusion and leaves. We start making jokes about how now we get carded for soft drinks - 'I'm sorry, I'm going to need to see your ID. Oh, you're too old to be drinking a caffinated beverage this late at night, I'm afraid I am going to have to cut you off!'
It was pretty funny. Or you had to be there.
Tonight Eric is taking me to see The Devil Wears Prada. I am giddily excited about going to see the movie. I even spent too long at the computer last night watching clips from the website. And taking one of the stupid movie quizzes. And he said something about Chinese food for dinner. Perhaps I will actually stick to moderation instead of trying to stuff myself.
I'm going to try and unearth my bicycle out of the basement and go for a long ride tomorrow. Every time I do it, I remember how much I love riding my bike. I do need to get a new bicycle helmet though. Mine I think is about 14 years old. You are supposed to replace them every 5 years or so...
Feels like it is supposed to be a long weekend. Yet, I don't have Monday off, so it will be pretty much the same old weekend drill for me. With an extra day off next week. On a Tuesday. Yeah, that pretty much sucks. Not that I will hate having the day off, but I won't get to relax at all, as we are planning on driving up to my parent's house for the day. Then we will get to deal with holiday traffic. Oh joy.
Anyhoo, that's what's up with me. And you?
~a
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Have not dropped off the face of the earth
I just have not felt like writing anything lately. My life is pretty unexciting, and I have nothing inspirational on my mind at the moment.... just busy with everyday stuff, mostly work.
I did make some inroads into some home projects last weekend though. I actually got my ass out of the house to go running on Saturday morning, then proceeded to totally sabotage myself at our Jaycee board retreat on Saturday afternoon/evening. I am not even sure what I had to eat that day, I just know I drank enough, and sat in the pool for way too long and ended up coming home and feeling completely bloated and miserable. Perhaps I should take this as the kick in the ass that I have been needing.
So Sunday, I finally hemmed the draperies I have been meaning to do for at least 6 months. I needed to let them hang to see how they woud need to be hemmed.... yeah, but not for that long. I also did the alterations on my friends clothes, and I put the decorator fabric over the roman shades in our bedroom, and even though they are not the most perfect thing in the world, I think they look great!
Eric even shocked me the other day, and got out the vacuum and vacuumed the living room and the hallway. And he did dishes yesterday morning. I asked him if he was feeling okay.
Eric has taken the boat to work today, so he will be going out fishing this afternoon after he gets off of work. I am going to take advantage of my time alone to get the house shaped up a bit more... the bathroom could use a good cleaning, and I have laundry that needs to get dealt with. A bicycle ride might not be out of the question either.
I have started writing down the food that I am eating too. Not that I am keeping to a program, but I will approach it with baby steps. I would just like to get back into the smaller sizes that I have in my closet. Sucks that I can't wear the cute shirts and pants I have.
Anyway, I need to get going, lots of stuff going on in the office today, and the President and CEO will be in for a visit sometime today - best to get in at a decent time.
Later y'all!
~a
I did make some inroads into some home projects last weekend though. I actually got my ass out of the house to go running on Saturday morning, then proceeded to totally sabotage myself at our Jaycee board retreat on Saturday afternoon/evening. I am not even sure what I had to eat that day, I just know I drank enough, and sat in the pool for way too long and ended up coming home and feeling completely bloated and miserable. Perhaps I should take this as the kick in the ass that I have been needing.
So Sunday, I finally hemmed the draperies I have been meaning to do for at least 6 months. I needed to let them hang to see how they woud need to be hemmed.... yeah, but not for that long. I also did the alterations on my friends clothes, and I put the decorator fabric over the roman shades in our bedroom, and even though they are not the most perfect thing in the world, I think they look great!
Eric even shocked me the other day, and got out the vacuum and vacuumed the living room and the hallway. And he did dishes yesterday morning. I asked him if he was feeling okay.
Eric has taken the boat to work today, so he will be going out fishing this afternoon after he gets off of work. I am going to take advantage of my time alone to get the house shaped up a bit more... the bathroom could use a good cleaning, and I have laundry that needs to get dealt with. A bicycle ride might not be out of the question either.
I have started writing down the food that I am eating too. Not that I am keeping to a program, but I will approach it with baby steps. I would just like to get back into the smaller sizes that I have in my closet. Sucks that I can't wear the cute shirts and pants I have.
Anyway, I need to get going, lots of stuff going on in the office today, and the President and CEO will be in for a visit sometime today - best to get in at a decent time.
Later y'all!
~a
Friday, June 23, 2006
Back in the saddle again
I feel like I need to start over.
Again.
Yeah. I felt so good after I did the half marathon. I told myself that I would not use that as an excuse to slack. Yet I have. I have not run for a week, and I am feeling sluggush and way less toned than I did earlier.
It's been a week of bad eating, and no exercise. NO WONDER I feel like a lump. I doesn't help that I decided I needed to try on some swimsuits this afternoon. Yep, really feelin' like a pudge.
My ass is going running tomorrow morning. No excuses.
So as I was driving today, muching of baked Doritos. (Well, at least they were baked...) I was thinking about all of the silly little phrases I have, kind of like the inside jokes with people. There are quite a few. Ones that I use in the oddest situations, or just out of the blue - so I thought I would write them down:
"Have fun stormin' the castle" (When someone is leaving)
"It was great, it was much better than Cats, I'd see it again and again" (When I am being facetous about liking something, or when something was rather boring)
"It's a bwack Isusu Twoopah!" (Think of a Brooklyn accent - I say this when I want to make a friend of mine laugh)
"Nobody likes a skinny Santa" (yep, when I am trying to get someone to try something, or just when I am eating too much)
I know there's more, but I hear DH has just gotten home, and we have an early morning tomorrow.
Yeah, and 10 points if you can figure out where they came from...
~a
Again.
Yeah. I felt so good after I did the half marathon. I told myself that I would not use that as an excuse to slack. Yet I have. I have not run for a week, and I am feeling sluggush and way less toned than I did earlier.
It's been a week of bad eating, and no exercise. NO WONDER I feel like a lump. I doesn't help that I decided I needed to try on some swimsuits this afternoon. Yep, really feelin' like a pudge.
My ass is going running tomorrow morning. No excuses.
So as I was driving today, muching of baked Doritos. (Well, at least they were baked...) I was thinking about all of the silly little phrases I have, kind of like the inside jokes with people. There are quite a few. Ones that I use in the oddest situations, or just out of the blue - so I thought I would write them down:
"Have fun stormin' the castle" (When someone is leaving)
"It was great, it was much better than Cats, I'd see it again and again" (When I am being facetous about liking something, or when something was rather boring)
"It's a bwack Isusu Twoopah!" (Think of a Brooklyn accent - I say this when I want to make a friend of mine laugh)
"Nobody likes a skinny Santa" (yep, when I am trying to get someone to try something, or just when I am eating too much)
I know there's more, but I hear DH has just gotten home, and we have an early morning tomorrow.
Yeah, and 10 points if you can figure out where they came from...
~a
Monday, June 19, 2006
Nine minutes
According to the online race results, I ran the half marathon nine minutes faster this year than last. My finish time (gun time) was 2:33:23. Which means I finished two hours and 33 minutes after the gun went off. Of course I did not cross the start line for a bit after the gun went off. I will just have to wait to get my postcard, I guess, to see what my chip time was.
Friday, my DH took a half day of vacation to go with me to Duluth, to cheer me on, etc. We had been up quite late the night before, at the Twins game, so about halfway there, he asked me to drive while he rested. Which was fine with me, as I knew that he would be driving home the next day. Traffic leaving the Twin Cities was pretty nutso, but it cleared up pretty well, and we made decent time getting there. I picked up my race packet, then we headed into the spagetti dinner. Masses and masses of people there.
After that, we left and I showed Eric a spot near the DECC (where I would get dropped off the following morning, and where the race would finish) where he could do some fishing to kill the time when I was running. From there, we went to Superior to where we would be staying for the evening. Eric made nice with the people we were staying with, as I looked through my packet of information. I guess I was pretty self-absorbed at the time, I don't remember talking all that much. Seems to me I did the same exact thing last year. Is it bad form to ignore your hosts when you are getting prepared for a long race?
Anyway, I was completely tired at about 9pm, so I headed off to bed, setting the alarm on my cell phone. Eric joined me pretty quickly after that, and we drifted off to sleep. For some reason, I woke up in the middle of the night, paranoid about getting up in time, and had to wake up Eric to tell me what time it was, as I was not close enough to my phone to see it. It was about 2:15am. I was awake for probably half an hour, then fell back asleep. Woke up with the alarm at 4am. Got dressed, packed up my stuff, and we were out the door by 4:30am. The busses were to pick up participants between 5:00 and 5:20 am to take us to the start of the race. We got there at about 4:40, and I got on the first bus. It filled up quickly, and we were on the road and to the start area at about 5:10. Over an hour to race time. So, I sat on the side of the road, before the starting chute with a group of women, chatting and stretching. At about 5:45, we dropped our sweats to be transported to the finish area, and got into the starting chute, where all of the port-a-potties were located this year, to go before we started the race.
Then it was waiting, waiting, waiting for things to start. I was standing with one of the people I had been sitting with earlier, trying not to freak out with the crowd around me. Yep. I'm not claustrophobic, but I am afraid of large crowds of people standing around. I made friends with a group of 6 people who were behind me that gave me a semi-circle of space to be in... That and my headphones with Lorena McKennitt playing in my ears helped immensely. Seriously, my heart was pounding and I was breathing heavy more from the crowd of people, than from being nervous about the start of the race. Seems like it gets worse as I get older too...
Finally, they played the Canadian National Anthom, then the Star Spangled Banner. Then I guess the starting gun went off. I was too far back in the pack to hear it. Everyone just started moving forward. Jog, walk, jog, walk. Then to the start line. Like a lot of people, I reached up and slapped the overhead banner, and I was on my way.
To be perfectly honest, I don't remember a lot of the race. It was foggy, so there was not a lot to look at, and I was listening to my headphones, kind of in a zone. Mile 1 went by. Mile 2 went by. Mile 3, I stopped to use the port-a-pottie again. Mile 4, Mile 5 was where senic 61 joined express 61, then across the Lester River into the East side of Duluth. There were quite a few spectators there. Mile 6 water stop was the first place I walked (besides the pottie stop). Mile 7, Mile 8... my longest training run was 8 miles. Kind of hit a bit of a wall there. 5 miles to go. I told myself, I can do 5 miles... walking, running, getting to Lemon Drop hill. I made myself jog to the top. At that point I did walk to the side and stretch my hamstrings.
Where did mile 9 go? Mile 10, my time from the gun was 1:55 or so. That's about the time I heard "go Anneke!" Eric had decided he was going to watch the race and cheer me on at that point, then would move further ahead to see me closer to the end. Mile 11, getting into downtown, running on bricks, hearing all of the people cheering the runners on. Where was the mark for mile 12? Turning to run towards the DECC, up the viaduct, then down. Here comes the first wheeler from the marathon. (As it turns out, that was about the time I was running past Eric, so he was distracted from seeing me at that point). Turning the corner by the lake, seeing the woman who was down on the curb with medical attention... thanking the powers that be that it was not me.
Then I turned the corner to the last stretch. Running. Tired. Could not pick up the pace at all. Having one of the race officals shouting that we were all winners. Seeing a group finish in front of me, then me by myself... they announced my name for all to hear. Seeing a time of 2:33:23 on the timing clock. Getting my finsher's medal.
I did it.
Perhaps next year, the marathon.
~a
Friday, my DH took a half day of vacation to go with me to Duluth, to cheer me on, etc. We had been up quite late the night before, at the Twins game, so about halfway there, he asked me to drive while he rested. Which was fine with me, as I knew that he would be driving home the next day. Traffic leaving the Twin Cities was pretty nutso, but it cleared up pretty well, and we made decent time getting there. I picked up my race packet, then we headed into the spagetti dinner. Masses and masses of people there.
After that, we left and I showed Eric a spot near the DECC (where I would get dropped off the following morning, and where the race would finish) where he could do some fishing to kill the time when I was running. From there, we went to Superior to where we would be staying for the evening. Eric made nice with the people we were staying with, as I looked through my packet of information. I guess I was pretty self-absorbed at the time, I don't remember talking all that much. Seems to me I did the same exact thing last year. Is it bad form to ignore your hosts when you are getting prepared for a long race?
Anyway, I was completely tired at about 9pm, so I headed off to bed, setting the alarm on my cell phone. Eric joined me pretty quickly after that, and we drifted off to sleep. For some reason, I woke up in the middle of the night, paranoid about getting up in time, and had to wake up Eric to tell me what time it was, as I was not close enough to my phone to see it. It was about 2:15am. I was awake for probably half an hour, then fell back asleep. Woke up with the alarm at 4am. Got dressed, packed up my stuff, and we were out the door by 4:30am. The busses were to pick up participants between 5:00 and 5:20 am to take us to the start of the race. We got there at about 4:40, and I got on the first bus. It filled up quickly, and we were on the road and to the start area at about 5:10. Over an hour to race time. So, I sat on the side of the road, before the starting chute with a group of women, chatting and stretching. At about 5:45, we dropped our sweats to be transported to the finish area, and got into the starting chute, where all of the port-a-potties were located this year, to go before we started the race.
Then it was waiting, waiting, waiting for things to start. I was standing with one of the people I had been sitting with earlier, trying not to freak out with the crowd around me. Yep. I'm not claustrophobic, but I am afraid of large crowds of people standing around. I made friends with a group of 6 people who were behind me that gave me a semi-circle of space to be in... That and my headphones with Lorena McKennitt playing in my ears helped immensely. Seriously, my heart was pounding and I was breathing heavy more from the crowd of people, than from being nervous about the start of the race. Seems like it gets worse as I get older too...
Finally, they played the Canadian National Anthom, then the Star Spangled Banner. Then I guess the starting gun went off. I was too far back in the pack to hear it. Everyone just started moving forward. Jog, walk, jog, walk. Then to the start line. Like a lot of people, I reached up and slapped the overhead banner, and I was on my way.
To be perfectly honest, I don't remember a lot of the race. It was foggy, so there was not a lot to look at, and I was listening to my headphones, kind of in a zone. Mile 1 went by. Mile 2 went by. Mile 3, I stopped to use the port-a-pottie again. Mile 4, Mile 5 was where senic 61 joined express 61, then across the Lester River into the East side of Duluth. There were quite a few spectators there. Mile 6 water stop was the first place I walked (besides the pottie stop). Mile 7, Mile 8... my longest training run was 8 miles. Kind of hit a bit of a wall there. 5 miles to go. I told myself, I can do 5 miles... walking, running, getting to Lemon Drop hill. I made myself jog to the top. At that point I did walk to the side and stretch my hamstrings.
Where did mile 9 go? Mile 10, my time from the gun was 1:55 or so. That's about the time I heard "go Anneke!" Eric had decided he was going to watch the race and cheer me on at that point, then would move further ahead to see me closer to the end. Mile 11, getting into downtown, running on bricks, hearing all of the people cheering the runners on. Where was the mark for mile 12? Turning to run towards the DECC, up the viaduct, then down. Here comes the first wheeler from the marathon. (As it turns out, that was about the time I was running past Eric, so he was distracted from seeing me at that point). Turning the corner by the lake, seeing the woman who was down on the curb with medical attention... thanking the powers that be that it was not me.
Then I turned the corner to the last stretch. Running. Tired. Could not pick up the pace at all. Having one of the race officals shouting that we were all winners. Seeing a group finish in front of me, then me by myself... they announced my name for all to hear. Seeing a time of 2:33:23 on the timing clock. Getting my finsher's medal.
I did it.
Perhaps next year, the marathon.
~a
Friday, June 16, 2006
The point of no return
You're engaged, you're committed, then things go to hell and what can you do?
That could be said about a couple of things.... I went on my run this morning, and wouldn't you know it, things just started moving... I had to run into a gas station to use the rest room. What convenience stores still require a key to access the restroom outside? Yeah, this one did. The key was attached to a rubber scraper. I just shudder to think about what had accumulated on that thing...
Well, I am going to Duluth tonight, to get my race packet, to start the race at 6:30 tomorrow morning. Yesterday, I was starting to wonder if that was actually going to happen. I got a message from my running buddy, who was going to go with me anyway, but not run, that she was not going to be able to go with me. And the place we had planned to stay was no longer available either, due to some unforseen circumstances. But I said to myself - dammit, I am going to go.
I looked on line to see if there were any "reasonable" rooms available, but yeah - not paying over $200 for a hotel room for a night. I tried the parents of my best friend from high school, but crap has taken over their household (they run a photograpy business) and it would have been difficult for them to let us stay there (we could have as an absolute last resort).
Finally, I talked to my parents, and my dad made a call to a former co-worker of his that still lives in Superior who will graciously be putting us up for the evening. Eric will be going with me to cheer me on. I still would have gone by myself, but this is much better. You know, after you run 13 miles, you really want someone you actually KNOW to congratulate you.
Wish me luck. Think about me at 6:30 CDT as I am starting out!
~a
That could be said about a couple of things.... I went on my run this morning, and wouldn't you know it, things just started moving... I had to run into a gas station to use the rest room. What convenience stores still require a key to access the restroom outside? Yeah, this one did. The key was attached to a rubber scraper. I just shudder to think about what had accumulated on that thing...
Well, I am going to Duluth tonight, to get my race packet, to start the race at 6:30 tomorrow morning. Yesterday, I was starting to wonder if that was actually going to happen. I got a message from my running buddy, who was going to go with me anyway, but not run, that she was not going to be able to go with me. And the place we had planned to stay was no longer available either, due to some unforseen circumstances. But I said to myself - dammit, I am going to go.
I looked on line to see if there were any "reasonable" rooms available, but yeah - not paying over $200 for a hotel room for a night. I tried the parents of my best friend from high school, but crap has taken over their household (they run a photograpy business) and it would have been difficult for them to let us stay there (we could have as an absolute last resort).
Finally, I talked to my parents, and my dad made a call to a former co-worker of his that still lives in Superior who will graciously be putting us up for the evening. Eric will be going with me to cheer me on. I still would have gone by myself, but this is much better. You know, after you run 13 miles, you really want someone you actually KNOW to congratulate you.
Wish me luck. Think about me at 6:30 CDT as I am starting out!
~a
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
40 minutes, 39 seconds
That's how long it took me to run my 4-mile route this morning.
The race is on Saturday. I am nervously anticipating the event. I have even started to visulize some of the landmarks I remember from last year as I run. I just want to finish with a halfway decent time, and finish healthy.
My bonus is that I am planning on going to a wedding reception that night. I might have a few AP's to spend on cake that evening, hmmmmm?
Work is kind of nutty. Waiting for some people to get here to work on some things related to the accident. And to top it off, we had another serious incident yesterday. But with the first happening, I am still in town, rather than on my way to North Dakota, which if I was, I probably would not be going to the race this weekend. And the fun never ends.
So I finally looked at the Sunday newspaper last night. Sometimes I read stuff, but mostly I just look at the ads and pull out the crossword and Suduko to do in bed to relax at night. There was a section in the paper talking about how to get a better fit on a bra. One of the things I hate are women who wear a bra that is too small, and they get a "double breast" you know, when there are two bumps where there is only suppose to be one? They also talked about a "triple breast" fit. Yah, where it not only overflows out the top, but also out the bottom... I really hope I never get to witness that one!
So what are some of your clothing pet peeves?
~a
The race is on Saturday. I am nervously anticipating the event. I have even started to visulize some of the landmarks I remember from last year as I run. I just want to finish with a halfway decent time, and finish healthy.
My bonus is that I am planning on going to a wedding reception that night. I might have a few AP's to spend on cake that evening, hmmmmm?
Work is kind of nutty. Waiting for some people to get here to work on some things related to the accident. And to top it off, we had another serious incident yesterday. But with the first happening, I am still in town, rather than on my way to North Dakota, which if I was, I probably would not be going to the race this weekend. And the fun never ends.
So I finally looked at the Sunday newspaper last night. Sometimes I read stuff, but mostly I just look at the ads and pull out the crossword and Suduko to do in bed to relax at night. There was a section in the paper talking about how to get a better fit on a bra. One of the things I hate are women who wear a bra that is too small, and they get a "double breast" you know, when there are two bumps where there is only suppose to be one? They also talked about a "triple breast" fit. Yah, where it not only overflows out the top, but also out the bottom... I really hope I never get to witness that one!
So what are some of your clothing pet peeves?
~a
Monday, June 12, 2006
And another country heard from
I have not dropped off the face of the earth. Really.
It's been kind of a hectic week. With the weekend's activities and all. I had oodles of stuff to catch up on at work - then I was planning on getting things done on Sunday when things pretty much went to hell in a handbasket.
And I am serious about that.
If you don't know, I do safety work. You hope that you do injury prevention, but sometimes people get hit, literally. We had a near fatality on Sunday. Basically an ATV and a semi-trailer got into a head-on collision. Who do you think won? So the last couple of days and the rest of the week are going to be spent on dealing with that.
Running on Saturday was not so good. It was another off day. Sunday, I was going to go in the afternoon, but there was this thing that happened at work that I needed to deal with... Today, seriously, rocked. 4 miles in 41 minutes. And I kept telling myself that I needed to slow down and take it easy. I just need to keep it up, to stay at this level. The race is on Saturday. I was giving serious consideration to not going, because the runs were really starting to be sucky, but today was just incredible. I felt on the top of my game, and then some. I am so glad that I went to the physical therapist.
With that, I'm off to cuddle with the birthday boy. Well, his birthday is tomorrow, but I can start wishing him a happy birthday tonight!
~a
It's been kind of a hectic week. With the weekend's activities and all. I had oodles of stuff to catch up on at work - then I was planning on getting things done on Sunday when things pretty much went to hell in a handbasket.
And I am serious about that.
If you don't know, I do safety work. You hope that you do injury prevention, but sometimes people get hit, literally. We had a near fatality on Sunday. Basically an ATV and a semi-trailer got into a head-on collision. Who do you think won? So the last couple of days and the rest of the week are going to be spent on dealing with that.
Running on Saturday was not so good. It was another off day. Sunday, I was going to go in the afternoon, but there was this thing that happened at work that I needed to deal with... Today, seriously, rocked. 4 miles in 41 minutes. And I kept telling myself that I needed to slow down and take it easy. I just need to keep it up, to stay at this level. The race is on Saturday. I was giving serious consideration to not going, because the runs were really starting to be sucky, but today was just incredible. I felt on the top of my game, and then some. I am so glad that I went to the physical therapist.
With that, I'm off to cuddle with the birthday boy. Well, his birthday is tomorrow, but I can start wishing him a happy birthday tonight!
~a
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Freakishly cold
I hate my cube. It has to be the coldest spot in the whole office. I should just quit trying to wear summer clothing to work, and instead pull out my wool pants and sweaters.
Seriously. I pulled out one of my measuring gadgets (sling psychrometer anyone?) which has a thermometer on it. 66 degrees. Farenheit. No lie. Last summer I would go for long walks at lunchtime to warm up. At the end of my day, I climb into my warm vehicle, and sigh in relief. The really sad thing, is that my area is cold in the wintertime too.
Enough of the complaints.
The Physical Therapy last night seemed to go well. The therapist measured the flexibility in my ankles, and the left was about 10 degrees less than the right. This is what was causing the problem - apparently the tendons around the ankle bones are too tight, therefore I don't have the flexibility in the ankle to do a proper stretch of the calf muscle. So she worked on mobilizing the ankle, and it appears to have much more flexibility today. Hopefully that will help to clear up the problem. Not sure why the ankle was acting that way - the therapist said that she ususally saw stuff like this after an injury, but I don't remember injuring it at all. I also had her take a look at my running shoes, and she said that they were good, looked in good shape and had a lot of good support. One of the bad things is that I am getting a bit flat-footed. I used to have high arches. I guess that is another good reason for wanting to loose weight - less pressure on the feet to prevent me from going more flat-footed.
I was planning on going for a run this morning, to see if things were feeling better, and if I could get a better stretch. I have two alarms set - my cell phone, and the alarm clock. I ususally hop out of bed to turn of the cell phone alarm, then wait for the other to go off before I get up for good. So when I climbed back into bed after the first alarm, Eric decided he needed to snuggle with me. Yeah, a run is not nearly as nice as snuggling with my husband. Ever. Therefore, I need to get my rear in gear and go for a run this afternoon.
Food yesterday was okay, but not great:
Breakfast: smoothie with banana, cherries and soy milk
Lunch: Taco bar. Lots of refried beans, lettuce, tomatos, chips and salsa
Dinner: Chicken Strips, popcorn, and beer.
Tonight, hopefully I will be making the tuna steaks I put in the fridge to defrost, but we have a suprise birthday party to go to at 6:30. Between work and the run I have planned, that does not leave a lot of time for food preparation. And I know that Eric will not be doing it. We talked about having him make dinner one night a week, but I am not sure how that will work out, as really, I won't eat a lot of the things he likes to make. Me not eating beef, and him not liking a lot of veggies makes it difficult... the other night I made him bratworst and leftover mashed potatos, and I had leftover honey mustard chicken with rice, with steamed carrots and parsnips. He would never think about making me a meal that was totally different than his, or if it was something that he would not eat, he would not cook it.
He's still a good man. I'm sure some of my habits drive him nuts too.
On that note, I need to get to some work stuff - I have at least 3 meetings tomorrow I need to prep for, and for some odd reason, people have decided this is the day that they need to call me to ask questions.
~a
Seriously. I pulled out one of my measuring gadgets (sling psychrometer anyone?) which has a thermometer on it. 66 degrees. Farenheit. No lie. Last summer I would go for long walks at lunchtime to warm up. At the end of my day, I climb into my warm vehicle, and sigh in relief. The really sad thing, is that my area is cold in the wintertime too.
Enough of the complaints.
The Physical Therapy last night seemed to go well. The therapist measured the flexibility in my ankles, and the left was about 10 degrees less than the right. This is what was causing the problem - apparently the tendons around the ankle bones are too tight, therefore I don't have the flexibility in the ankle to do a proper stretch of the calf muscle. So she worked on mobilizing the ankle, and it appears to have much more flexibility today. Hopefully that will help to clear up the problem. Not sure why the ankle was acting that way - the therapist said that she ususally saw stuff like this after an injury, but I don't remember injuring it at all. I also had her take a look at my running shoes, and she said that they were good, looked in good shape and had a lot of good support. One of the bad things is that I am getting a bit flat-footed. I used to have high arches. I guess that is another good reason for wanting to loose weight - less pressure on the feet to prevent me from going more flat-footed.
I was planning on going for a run this morning, to see if things were feeling better, and if I could get a better stretch. I have two alarms set - my cell phone, and the alarm clock. I ususally hop out of bed to turn of the cell phone alarm, then wait for the other to go off before I get up for good. So when I climbed back into bed after the first alarm, Eric decided he needed to snuggle with me. Yeah, a run is not nearly as nice as snuggling with my husband. Ever. Therefore, I need to get my rear in gear and go for a run this afternoon.
Food yesterday was okay, but not great:
Breakfast: smoothie with banana, cherries and soy milk
Lunch: Taco bar. Lots of refried beans, lettuce, tomatos, chips and salsa
Dinner: Chicken Strips, popcorn, and beer.
Tonight, hopefully I will be making the tuna steaks I put in the fridge to defrost, but we have a suprise birthday party to go to at 6:30. Between work and the run I have planned, that does not leave a lot of time for food preparation. And I know that Eric will not be doing it. We talked about having him make dinner one night a week, but I am not sure how that will work out, as really, I won't eat a lot of the things he likes to make. Me not eating beef, and him not liking a lot of veggies makes it difficult... the other night I made him bratworst and leftover mashed potatos, and I had leftover honey mustard chicken with rice, with steamed carrots and parsnips. He would never think about making me a meal that was totally different than his, or if it was something that he would not eat, he would not cook it.
He's still a good man. I'm sure some of my habits drive him nuts too.
On that note, I need to get to some work stuff - I have at least 3 meetings tomorrow I need to prep for, and for some odd reason, people have decided this is the day that they need to call me to ask questions.
~a
Monday, June 05, 2006
Wow! You have big calves!
As said the man as I was walking in downtown St. Paul last Wednesday night. I was walking to my car after getting something to eat with my friends. We had gone to the Body Worlds exhibit at the Science Museum earlier.
I had dressed in a cute little flirty skirt (which is getting too big for me, btw - the running is paying off, if not in actual weight but size) and this guy who was carrying a clipboard for some reason or another, and talking to a woman on the street, decided to tell me that I had large legs. My response: "I'm a runner." He then tried walking after me, calling "Hey! Big calves!" I just kept walking. Like anyone would feel like that was a compliment!
I have taken several days off of running again. I plan to get up and run again tomorrow morning - and hoping that my left calf will be nice to me. The good thing is that I have a PT appointment tomorrow afternoon to work on getting back some of the flexibility in that ankle/calf.
Food again has been kind of haphazard. I don't think that I am eating to excess, but have really only been eating when I am hungry. Today was a really hungry day, but I was pretty healthy. Oatmeal for breakfast, a lean gourmet frozen dinner for lunch with extra veggies, a WW yogurt, and an apple, snack was light popcorn. Dinner I had some leftover honey mustard chicken (which I made) with rice, and steamed parsnips and carrots. For desert, I had 3 shortbread girl scout cookies.
This weekend, it really was too hot to eat much of anything - but I think I made up for several of the calories in beer. Our Jaycee chapter was pouring beer at the City Pages Beer Fesival, and then after the event finished, we all kicked back and popped several of the leftover "samples." I am glad that Eric was driving... but I would not have had as much if I had been driving.
Sunday I helped out lining up the Grand Old Day parade. Let me tell you, some people can be complete idiots. Two of us were stationed at the end of the street to head off traffic on Grand Ave, because that is where the parade was lining up, and where the parade route was. It was a one-way street, which half went to Grand Ave, and the other half was a freeway entrance. I can't tell you how many people did not follow my turn-around directions, but instead figured that they would just go the wrong way on the one-way street. We were there with a couple of police reserve officers, but since they are reserve they don't have the authority to ticket anyone. Otherwise, there would have been a lot of tickets! One of the most fun things about the day was that I was assigned one of the golf carts to use, so I got to drive up and down the alleyway, and to cart people from place to place where they needed help.
Just a week and some before my race... I hope I don't make a fool out of myself, and that the PT will help with the leg cramping.
On that note, I am going to veg for a bit and get to bed, so I can get up with the sun to go running...
~a
I had dressed in a cute little flirty skirt (which is getting too big for me, btw - the running is paying off, if not in actual weight but size) and this guy who was carrying a clipboard for some reason or another, and talking to a woman on the street, decided to tell me that I had large legs. My response: "I'm a runner." He then tried walking after me, calling "Hey! Big calves!" I just kept walking. Like anyone would feel like that was a compliment!
I have taken several days off of running again. I plan to get up and run again tomorrow morning - and hoping that my left calf will be nice to me. The good thing is that I have a PT appointment tomorrow afternoon to work on getting back some of the flexibility in that ankle/calf.
Food again has been kind of haphazard. I don't think that I am eating to excess, but have really only been eating when I am hungry. Today was a really hungry day, but I was pretty healthy. Oatmeal for breakfast, a lean gourmet frozen dinner for lunch with extra veggies, a WW yogurt, and an apple, snack was light popcorn. Dinner I had some leftover honey mustard chicken (which I made) with rice, and steamed parsnips and carrots. For desert, I had 3 shortbread girl scout cookies.
This weekend, it really was too hot to eat much of anything - but I think I made up for several of the calories in beer. Our Jaycee chapter was pouring beer at the City Pages Beer Fesival, and then after the event finished, we all kicked back and popped several of the leftover "samples." I am glad that Eric was driving... but I would not have had as much if I had been driving.
Sunday I helped out lining up the Grand Old Day parade. Let me tell you, some people can be complete idiots. Two of us were stationed at the end of the street to head off traffic on Grand Ave, because that is where the parade was lining up, and where the parade route was. It was a one-way street, which half went to Grand Ave, and the other half was a freeway entrance. I can't tell you how many people did not follow my turn-around directions, but instead figured that they would just go the wrong way on the one-way street. We were there with a couple of police reserve officers, but since they are reserve they don't have the authority to ticket anyone. Otherwise, there would have been a lot of tickets! One of the most fun things about the day was that I was assigned one of the golf carts to use, so I got to drive up and down the alleyway, and to cart people from place to place where they needed help.
Just a week and some before my race... I hope I don't make a fool out of myself, and that the PT will help with the leg cramping.
On that note, I am going to veg for a bit and get to bed, so I can get up with the sun to go running...
~a
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Meanwhile, back at the ranch...
Holy mother of pain.
My left calf is killing me. I think it hates me. Really.
I woke up this morning before my alarm. Which was quite a feat, since it was set for 4:10am. I wanted to go for a longer run this morning before my 7:30 meeting. My calf hurt a bit yesterday after my 5-mile run, but I thought I would stretch a bit and it would be fine.
Yeah. Not fine. I was planning on going 8 miles this morning, but it ended up being 5. With me stopping a number of times to stretch, and then more walking than I would have liked. Top it off with the rain that started 2 miles into my run. So, soaked, too early in the morning, and in pain. Quite the trifecta.
Funny enough, I had made a doctor's appointment for today to have him look at my right knee. I fell on it in February, and it still hurts to kneel on it, and I have this funny fluid-like swelling below the kneecap. It is a pre-patellar bursitis. It does not really interfere with much, but I wanted to know what was going on. He offered to give me a lidocane and hydrocortozone shot to reduce the swelling, but 2 1/2 weeks before my half marathon, it was not worth the risk of an adverse reaction, or the risk of an infection. I also had him look at my calf, and now I have a PT appointment for next week, to deal with the tightness. The doctor's note says that I'm a marathoner.... I just saw that.
The doctor called me a marathoner. Holy crap.
So next week, I guess they are supposed to do some sort of ultrasound therapy and stretching to loosen up my "siezed" muscle (my terminology). And they should look at the bursitis to see if there is some sort of non-invasive treatment that can be done.
I guess it's the NordicTrack for me for a bit, to keep up my endurance. Seems to me that did not aggravate the calf. Plus if I do it at home, I won't have far to go if I need to stop. I need to do it, because for gosh sakes, I'm a marathoner!
~a
My left calf is killing me. I think it hates me. Really.
I woke up this morning before my alarm. Which was quite a feat, since it was set for 4:10am. I wanted to go for a longer run this morning before my 7:30 meeting. My calf hurt a bit yesterday after my 5-mile run, but I thought I would stretch a bit and it would be fine.
Yeah. Not fine. I was planning on going 8 miles this morning, but it ended up being 5. With me stopping a number of times to stretch, and then more walking than I would have liked. Top it off with the rain that started 2 miles into my run. So, soaked, too early in the morning, and in pain. Quite the trifecta.
Funny enough, I had made a doctor's appointment for today to have him look at my right knee. I fell on it in February, and it still hurts to kneel on it, and I have this funny fluid-like swelling below the kneecap. It is a pre-patellar bursitis. It does not really interfere with much, but I wanted to know what was going on. He offered to give me a lidocane and hydrocortozone shot to reduce the swelling, but 2 1/2 weeks before my half marathon, it was not worth the risk of an adverse reaction, or the risk of an infection. I also had him look at my calf, and now I have a PT appointment for next week, to deal with the tightness. The doctor's note says that I'm a marathoner.... I just saw that.
The doctor called me a marathoner. Holy crap.
So next week, I guess they are supposed to do some sort of ultrasound therapy and stretching to loosen up my "siezed" muscle (my terminology). And they should look at the bursitis to see if there is some sort of non-invasive treatment that can be done.
I guess it's the NordicTrack for me for a bit, to keep up my endurance. Seems to me that did not aggravate the calf. Plus if I do it at home, I won't have far to go if I need to stop. I need to do it, because for gosh sakes, I'm a marathoner!
~a
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Are you sure it does not grow on trees?
Money, that is.
Well, so driving to my parent's house on Sunday, towing the new boat, the Jeep started to overheat. And then it did - overheat. We stopped on the side of the road, added some fluid to the radiator, waited for things to cool down a bit, then started up again. 5 miles down the road, in a town, thank goodness, it overheated again.
Yep, it was almost 90 degrees. So I called my parents to come and "rescue" us - they could tow the boat, and we would just drive the Jeep without towing anything. And that worked. But, we had been planning on purchasing a new vehicle sometime this year - this was just kind of the last straw.
We are now the proud owners of a Ford F250, with a diesel engine. This sucker will be able to tow anything, and laugh in the faces of any wimpier vehicles. And it should do us well when we drive to remote parts of Canada on our fishing trip in July. And the AC works.
We just have another car payment now. And it's gonna hurt for a bit.
We don't have it just yet - since we were not intending on doing this over the weekend, we did not bring the title with us, and the Jeep needs to be cleaned out. The guy at the dealership said that we can pick it up whenever, and that they would have it for us with a full tank of gas. I said to him "please dont! Please don't fill it with gas!" And we had a good giggle over that one. Nothing like a tank of gasoline to ruin a diesel engine. We are now a diesel family, with the Jetta TDI, and now the Ford F250. It might be a bit more for the fuel, but we will get better fuel economy than if they were gasoline engines. Yep more than you needed to know. More than I ever thought I would know.
And off to earn something, since really, it does not grow on trees!
~a
Well, so driving to my parent's house on Sunday, towing the new boat, the Jeep started to overheat. And then it did - overheat. We stopped on the side of the road, added some fluid to the radiator, waited for things to cool down a bit, then started up again. 5 miles down the road, in a town, thank goodness, it overheated again.
Yep, it was almost 90 degrees. So I called my parents to come and "rescue" us - they could tow the boat, and we would just drive the Jeep without towing anything. And that worked. But, we had been planning on purchasing a new vehicle sometime this year - this was just kind of the last straw.
We are now the proud owners of a Ford F250, with a diesel engine. This sucker will be able to tow anything, and laugh in the faces of any wimpier vehicles. And it should do us well when we drive to remote parts of Canada on our fishing trip in July. And the AC works.
We just have another car payment now. And it's gonna hurt for a bit.
We don't have it just yet - since we were not intending on doing this over the weekend, we did not bring the title with us, and the Jeep needs to be cleaned out. The guy at the dealership said that we can pick it up whenever, and that they would have it for us with a full tank of gas. I said to him "please dont! Please don't fill it with gas!" And we had a good giggle over that one. Nothing like a tank of gasoline to ruin a diesel engine. We are now a diesel family, with the Jetta TDI, and now the Ford F250. It might be a bit more for the fuel, but we will get better fuel economy than if they were gasoline engines. Yep more than you needed to know. More than I ever thought I would know.
And off to earn something, since really, it does not grow on trees!
~a
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