Is This Thing On?

I joined Team Z. I am all IN for Eagleman. IN!

I joined (and went to first workout!) the Montgomery County Road Runners Speed Development Clinic, which I also did last year. It's a b***-buster, but it works.

I signed up for (and went to class #1) on "Writing the Personal Essay."

So. Is this what mania feels like??

(And just for the record, I am not now, nor have I ever been, nor will I ever be, involved with the gentleman below. He's just some arm candy, people. It is entirely possible, however, that there is a crush going on in my life. I am too much of a lady to say more.)

I am also IN TRAINING to meet Runner Susan on Jan. 30 (not so much in training for the half-mary we're doing.) Training for the RS event mainly involves drinking lots of wine, which I have well under control. I am also in training for the sidetrip to Austin to see Little Miss Runnerpants. I'm not sure what I should be doing for that. Brushing up on my karaoke skills??

Blogland is a wonderful place!

I am off to New York City for the weekend.

Things are looking up.

I am in love with this song. I want to marry it.

Is This Thing On?

Running got hard again.

My workouts this week consisted of:
3 miles last Sunday
spinning on Thursday
5 mile run this morning, Saturday, with the trailsnails, which I limped through, running alongside a 3:25 marathoner, who was kind enough to slow down to snail pace.

Today was also orientation for my new speed development program. The program consists of one track workout on Tuesday nights, and one long run on Saturday mornings. A total of 330 people signed up. How do you get 330 people running on a track at once?? I guess I'll find out. It was a long orientation session, set in a local high school cafeteria, and as our coach spoke, I could feel myself getting hotter and queasier. I'd been under the weather earlier in the week, but thought I had it beat. Maybe not.

Anywho, next Saturday is our first race, a 4-miler, which will help determine which pace group we should be in. The groups are broadly divided, thusly:

* The Red program is for runners whose long run is between 4 to 6 miles and weekly mileage is between 10 to 15 miles.
* The White program is for runners whose long run is between 6 to 8 miles and weekly mileage is between 15 to 25 miles a week.
* The Blue program is for runners whose long run is between 10 to 12 miles and weekly mileage is over 25 miles a week.

and as usual, I don't fit into any of them. My long run is between 6-8 miles but my total mileage per week? um...

Last year's total mileage:
541.6 Mi
in:
101:09:35
for an average pace of
11:13 min. miles

OR we can examine it this way:
Dec 2008 54.6 Mi 11:15
Nov 2008 51.1 Mi 11:14
Oct 2008 42.3 Mi 11:13
Sep 2008 32.1 Mi 12:00
Aug 2008 46.1 Mi 10:55
Jul 2008 34.1 Mi 11:00
Jun 2008 32.1 Mi 11:03
May 2008 30.2 Mi 10:47
Apr 2008 29.4 Mi 11:52
Feb 2008 46.5 Mi 11:20
Jan 2008 63.3 Mi 10:28

541 hours divided by 52 weeks?? doesn't look so good, does it.

Sigh.

With that, I'm off to my sickbed.

Half-Marys, Hail Mary's, Couches & Kitchens

So, two weeks out I finally bit the bullet and actually registered for the Fredericksburg Blue-Gray half mary that I sorta kinda have been half-assed training for. I go through this every year with this race: I'm not ready, I haven't trained enough, I'm going to come in last, blah blah. (Of course it's all true: I'm NOT ready, and I haven't trained enough, and I could actually come in last.) But I gots to have me some goals or else...well nothing happens, is what happens.

So, Dec. 14th I'll be down in hilly Fredericksburg, seeing if there's any way possible I can pull off a half in 2:30. I did 8 miles in a sad 1:37 a few weeks ago, but then 9 miles in 1:47 so who knows, miracles CAN happen.

Meanwhile, speaking of half-fast, I just signed up for the Montgomery County Road Runners Speed Development Program. It meets Tuesday nights and Saturday mornings starting Jan. 10. It's not exactly nearby, but they make it sound so alluring, I couldn't pass it up.

Now I just need to lock in my triathlons (nation's tri? $165!!!! who the hell has that kind of dough! I need a sponsor. Call me.) and all the other races I procrastinate about and get locked out of every year. Sigh.

HOME DECOR

I've lost my camera cable so you'll have to take my word for it, but remember the couch debacle? Well, it turns out if I turn the couch perpendicular to the wall, all my problems are solved! (You people are so damn smart.)

Plus? I ventured into Sears early on Black Friday and bought me a gently used (new, returned) dishwasher...AND a new range. Number One Daughter egged me on. They were both installed today and now the rest of the kitchen looks...really really bad.

You will all be much happier this year with my Christmas pictures when you see my new stove.

Late-breaking addendum

I forgot to mention that I FINALLY started the 100 push up challenge. I'm in week one, level one, day one. I expect I might be there for a while. But come spring, I'm gonna have me some guns!