Shameless blogging

The purpose of this post is solely to get another entry into a give away contest at by my favorite running blogger - Shut Up and Run. She is giving away some cool stuff just because she is a cool gal! Check it out. She is even giving away stuff for MEN - and she is still cool!

One of those mornings

It was one of those mornings.

I almost didn't set my alarm because the weather said there was a 100% chance of rain at 5:00. I know it will surprise you, but the meteorologist isn't always right. So, I set my alarm anyway.

I knew it wasn't good when through our open window I couldn't hear the pitter patter of rain drops or the trickle of water down the rain spout. I took a peek out the door and the sidewalk look dry. So dry in fact, that I didn't go out from under the porch and do my turn around with arms out and hands up to see if I could feel a rain drop. I did check the radar before leaving and the rain was approaching... but not was not here.....yet.

As I pulled out of the garage I saw the first few drops on my windshield. At first I had the naive thought that it was just condensation from dew. I know that those of you who are more with it than I am at 5:00 will have already asked.... dew? In the garage??? Yeah well, I will chalk it up to positive thinking rather than stupidity.

However, on the way to the meeting spot it became clear that it was indeed sprinkling. Luckily the Cousins didn't check the weather and they showed up too. We decided to run a loop that didn't take us to far away and brought us by our cars mid run. The rain steadily increased - of course. It wasn't that bad until we headed back east which turned out to be gale force winds (with rain). I really don't think I am exaggerating.

Christy bailed when we neared our cars. She said the dog had had enough. Dog??? I will have to tell Bryan to take the dog back to the breeder since it is apparent that if it can't run in rain then it can't be a good hunting dog.

Mike and I decided that we were wet anyway, so we might as well finish the run. Not the smartest move we have ever made. We did stick to a mostly north/south route to avoid the wind, unfortunately it is one of our longer loops. So although we avoided the wind, we ran longer than normal.

It started a conversation though..... It could be worse, we could be running 26.2 miles. Hmmmm.. So what would I do if race day was weather like this? I have been fortunate that the 5 marathons I have done have been without rain. Some heat, some wind, some cold, but no rain. I don't know if I could do 26.2 miles in steady somewhat cold rain. How would I avoid being hypothermic by the end? I think I would be tempted to bail and look for another marathon the next weekend. Hard to say.....except to say it would be MISERABLE.

Goofed

Big story coming up, but it is true!

I didn't show up to run today even though I signed up. Unlike others, this is UNUSUAL for me. I think it may be the second time it has happened to me. So, of course I have a good story to go along with it.

Last night we were dreaming of sugar plums when the dog barked. Normally this is not a big deal, but immediately afterwards we heard a fairly loud scratching nose. I thought it was just the dog pawing at his rawhide and the raw hide was caught in a corner, but when I went to investigate the second time the scratching noise started, I found him happily dreaming of sugar plums on my son's bed. Huh.

Of course, at the same time I found my youngest (who was not in his bed with the dog) on the couch. He said he was sick. Time to get the "puke bowl" (no cute names in our family) and a blanket.

I headed back to bed and the loud scratching started again it was even louder in our room. Jim discovered that we had an animal trapped in the drain spout which was right outside our bedroom window. Closing the window helped to minimize the animal's desperate clawing, but not to the level that we could go back to our sugar plums.

Jim left for the guest bedroom. I grabbed my ear plugs and another pillow to put over my head. See! - It was loud!

At 4:17 I woke up and thought "15 more minutes of sleep"......zzzzzzzz

I then woke at 4:37 and thought in my sleep induced brain that I might as well get up because my alarm would be going of in a minute. Note the sleep induced brain part - in actuality 4:37 is 2 minutes after my alarm. More sleep induced issues to come....

Knowing that Jenny and Wendy were returning from their winter hibernation today (translation - they were emerging from running in the gym all winter to come run outside with us) I happily headed to the bathroom. There I did my duty (sorry Shut Up and Run Blog, I just can't be has honest as you when it comes to my bodily functions) and brushed my teeth. As I was brushing my teeth, I looked at the clock and thought "Huh, did we not change this clock when Daylight Savings ended?" (or started, I can never keep it straight and really don't care enough to try and keep it straight beyond the "spring forward (set clocks ahead), fall back (set clocks back))" Then I looked at my wristwatch and sure enough 5:38!!!! AAARGH!!!!

Apparently, I had slept through the alarm when I had my ear plugs in. Dang! Plus, I didn't even get to back to bed for another 30 minutes of sleep. Well, I did, but I then heard hacking noises in the living room. I came out and found my youngest puking into the now appropriately named "puke bowl". Plus, I had to explain my whole story to all of you before nasty e-mails start flying around!

Yes, the animal's desperate attempts to escape have currently ceased. Now, I am waiting for a smell to start......