made to run

i have been made to run.

when i write "made," i don't mean as in designed to run. i mean "made" as in forced to run against my will. i don't want to run--at all!! today my husband and i are suppose to get out there and run 10 miles. 10 miles!! my entire body revolts at just the thought of having to run. my brain says, "heck, no!" my knees say, "please don't!" and my heart can barely be heard. even my nose says, "you know that you can't breathe through your nose when you are sitting down just resting..." and it's true. i have a ....i forget what the allergist said. a slant inside my nose?? my nose slants to one side on the inside?? i don't know, but i can't breathe right. that's what i know. running and trying to breathe with a slanted nose is nearly impossible.

we will see...

not Finished!!!

so here it is...

last week, i went out and wrote "finish" on the spot where our nine mile trek would end. like i have mentioned in the earlier post, i finished the required miles. ironically, the more i see the picture, the more i wonder if it was a sort of harbinger of my training ending. once again, we will have to wait until tomorrow.

goodnight, good people...

falling off the wagon

there i went---i fell of the wagon this week. last sunday, my husband and i ran 9 miles. and my knees have been hating me ever since!! so, i only ran on tuesday for thirty minutes. the pavement went silent from my knees not pounding it this week. the saddest part is that my husband only ran on tuesday, too. but, tonight he went and ran 9 miles! talk about feeling left out and left behind!! i decided on wednesday that i would not run again until monday, which by the way is tomorrow. i need to stop being a crybaby and get out there and kick some concrete! we will see if i put my knees where my mouth is tomorrow, won't we?

in training

i have signed my husband and myself up for a half marathon in november. i don't remember exactly when i signed on the dotted line, but it has been several weeks. soon after i started my training, i came down with a sort of bronchitis and could not run for a week; the week that was suppose to be my second week of training. nevertheless, i timidly started again, trying to redeem lost training time. as of tonight, there are six weeks left before the event. i will not call it "the race" because i will surely not be racing on that day. i will only be trying to finish!!

my husband and i ran/jogged for 75 minutes tonight for the low price of $25.00 for the sitter. this would be the time to do one of those commercials: jogging for 75 minutes, aching feet, knees, ankles, $25.00 for the sitter...getting one step closer to finishing the "event": priceless...


my point in blogging tonight, however, is to begin a sort of weekly jogging journal.

how i felt tonight: my husband always starts out faster than me. i trail about 10-15 yards behind him for the first 20 minutes or so. i pretty much hate running for the first 20 minutes every time i run. but, then, about the 25 to 30 minute time, i start feeling my legs getting stronger. i feel ready to stretch them out--widen my stride and pick up my pace.

in the end, my left knee began to act up, my toes felt swollen, and i was once again hating running. but we finished...

next week: 90 minutes...

what did i get myself into?

good luck, mommy!

as i was driving my girls to school on wednesday, i let them in on my big plans for the day.

"i want to clean all three bathrooms today!" i told them with some trepidation because i wasn't really sure i could pull it off.

yes, you see, that would entail a herculean effort on my part. i have been SO tired, and dare i say it? LAZY!!

they both looked at me and said, "good luck, mommy!"

since i have been home this semester, it seems like i'm calling eva (the woman who helps me clean) more than when i was taking my crazy and record five classes in the fall and spring semesters.

what have i been doing, you might ask?

well, i have been trying to organize my girls rooms, my kitchen, their bathroom linen closet, and other things. i also have been reading, eating, and sleeping. my three faves!!

what i haven't been doing is clearing out the forests of paper that i have from my school work, their school work, and everyday mail.

so, on wednesday, i thought to myself, "no, you can't call eva today. you must do it on your own, save money, and be industrious. In opus, maiestas."

but, is there really dignity in cleaning three toilets? can you clean toilets summa cum laude? i will not get a transcript with grades for housework, fortunately for me.


well, i came home, took a nap, and then gave myself an impromptu pep-rally when i woke up! "mommy, mommy, she's our toilet bowl-cleaning-girl! if she can't do it, no one can!"

ladies and gentlemen, i cleaned all three bathrooms, swept and mopped my entire house, AND i did it better than eva!" the last bit is probably because this is my house, and i have a vested interest in a sparkling toilet, thus, i use more elbow grease.

throughout the day i kept hearing my girls wishing me luck as they scurried toward the school crosswalk. i guess they knew i needed it! :)


good luck to all the mommys that are facing a house full of chores!

now, martha...

i've been reading "the path to power" by robert caro. it is an interesting book about lyndon b. johnson. eye-opening--and that is just the introduction.

but, i guess because i've been reading about people moving to texas, i was remembering an old co-worker named andy. i always remember him saying to me, when on occassion i did not want to (um...um.) let him in on something. or just plain didn't want to answer his question. he would always say in in west-by-God-Virginia accent, "now martha, you can go to hell for lying, the same as cheating..."

i always found that hillarious!!!

here is to Andy Anderson! (wherever you are!)

summer reading kickoff

i have officially started my summer reading. actually, i began by finishing my winter reading. i had to put "my life in france" by julia child in a drawer next to my computer desk when school started in january. i began reading the book during the winter break.

it is a lovely book. i couldn't wait to finish reading it as soon as school let out. i don't know what i will read next. i'm thinking of reading "wuthering heights." i've never read the book, only watched some of the adaptations.

i know that i loved, loved, loved, "jane eyre." and i think i would like wuthering heights, too.

we will see, so far the summer is my oyster..:)

see ya!!