I've been a lousy correspondent lately; I'm so sorry! I made a to-do list, which is always a major mistake, since I'm so competitive and they bring out the worst in me. On there were things like "wash windows" and "patch screens" and "fix sink." It's a very time-consuming list, and includes things like washing the windows and doing small house repairs that I've never done before. So I'm cranking through the list instead of posting here. I'm sorry I've missed stuff!
Nic--it sounds like your race was great, and that your students are being lousy right now. I'm sorry about that; I hope your summer vacation will be rejuvenating for you.
Gaye--wow, you've had a tiring week!
Jo--I can't believe how much you've accomplished on your relocation project!
Jen--I'm so happy for you, finding a peaceful place for your birth.
This morning I decided to do a long run, even though it was cold and I waited tables last night into the wee hours. I knew I was going to a wedding shower and a kids' birthday party today and wanted to be able to eat crap.
My iPod was dead when I left the house (why didn't the thing charge? It was plugged in all night!), but my Garmin picked up satellite reception incredibly quickly, which is unusual. I decided to just run without music. It was surprisingly peaceful and nice; I might try running with silence more often. I did eight miles, and it felt pretty good once I ran away from the chill in the air.
Wedding shower was crummy; it was for a high-school friend with whom I've stayed in communication. The one other high-school friend I expected to see there bailed, so I ended up with another girl from high school I don't know as well. She's in the wedding, so spent much of the time talking to the two other girls at the table (a friend of hers, plus the bride's sister) about tonight bachelorette party, to which I wasn't invited and wouldn't have attended anyway. I spent some time wandering around the restaurant, which is a beautiful space located in an old mill building, and pretending contentment while nobody talked to me. And guzzling water to stave off an overexertion headache.
The food, I must say, was excellent. There was a buffet, really good coffee, and beautiful cupcakes. Even all of these years after high school, it seems the social thing is still not my best subject. I did manage to maintain a conversation with girl at my table I didn't know; she's a biker and sometimes runner so we talked a bit about races and training.
After leaving that party early, my body rebelled against my decision to run eight miles while having my period, and then eat restaurant food and drink coffee. When you guys do a long run, does it result in gastrointestinal distress for the rest of the day? What do you eat after a particularly taxing run? Should I go for comfort food? Straight carbs? An apple? I'm reluctant to plan another long run if it's going to result in an afternoon of stomach misery.
Anyway, the second party of the day, a birthday party for my first-grade DD's classmate, was awesome. It was at a karate place and almost her entire class was there. It's a nice group of kids, who were able to spend two hours running and playing competitive games without a single conflict, bad sport, or hurt feeling. I was able to chat with a couple of the other moms, plus watch the kids interacting, and it was a lot of fun. If it weren't so pricey and she wasn't already fixated on ballet, I'd consider enrolling DD in a class.
We'll see if tomorrow brings more running. If the weather is nice, I might see if we can check out this maple syrup place after church. I guess they give awesome tours and hold free tasting of maple stuff. Yummy! I wonder if I could buy a huge jug of maple syrup to last us awhile.