The Tortoise and the Hare

In an unprecedented turn of events, I ran for the third time this week.

For some backstory, my agency has a wellness program and an exercise studio. I take yoga classes in my building twice a week -- Monday evenings and Thursdays at 1:15. I was supposed to go to yoga today. Unfortunately, we had a training session today. I had planned only to go to the morning session because I had actual work to do. So, even though I wouldn't have been in training, I felt like it would have looked disingenuous if I skipped the training, but went to yoga. Instead, I decided to go for a run during the lunch break scheduled during training. In retrospect, I'm not sure that my logic makes sense.

I ran with PL, who I think heads my agency's wellness program. In addition to daily yoga classes, we also have running groups; a hare group (for fast runners) and a tortoise group (for slow runners). I feel like the tortoise group should change its name to the "just as good" group. Labels schmabels. PL organizes the runs for the Hare group. He was a bit delayed in sending the announcement out about today's scheduled run; since no one was probably going to join, he ran with me and said that we could go as slow as I wanted. We did a 4 to 5 mile run around the mall to the WWII Memorial and back. All in all a nice run.

It felt good. There was good conversation, and surprisingly, I was able to run and talk at the same time. I used to be good at it, but after falling off of the running wagon for awhile, it was hard. I also ran further today than I have since I broke my foot, or more accurately, since I ran the Cherry Blossom 10-miler in the spring. I think that I slowed PL down a lot. Next time, I'll tell him to try and run faster and pace me.

Marine Corps Marathon 2008 After Action Report

I know I am a few days time late on this... had to fly to Mobile on Monday and I've been up to my eyeballs in work. If you've read Leah's entry from a few days ago you'll know that I ran the Marine Corps Marathon this past Sunday - my 5th time - and as times go, my best so far (3:44:45), although it wasn't pretty at the end...

The MCM is one of my favorite weekends of the year. Not only is the race itself run with the precision and attention to detail one associates with the Marine Corps, it's become an annual tradition for a bunch of our friends to come into town and we'll spend the weekend hanging out with them. I started running the MCM in 2003 with my friend Dallas (he had run the previous year, but I was deployed somewhere in the Med). Since then, we've signed up to run it every year, although an ankle injury sidelined me in 2006 and Dallas is battling a bum knee this time. Leah and Karl joined us a year later, and until she hurt her foot this would have been her fifth. Karl tends to make it every other year as he has been deployed or had his orders changed at the last second... And not just for runners - we've had just as many people come into town to watch and cheer for us every year. Dallas's wife Becky has become the ultimate MCM spectator, mastering all the best vantage points and ways to get between them.

For those unfamiliar with the MCM - it's one of the largest "open" marathons in the US, open meaning you don't have to have a qualifying time to register for it (eg the Boston Marathon). With two exceptions, the course is generally flat and it runs through some of the more scenic parts of DC. You have hundreds of volunteers and thousands of spectators cheering you on. For first time marathoners I highly recommend it.

Coming into town...

Now, most years we end up getting some hotel rooms in Arlington and walking to the start line (sleep is valuable on Marathon day). 30,000 people converging on Arlington at 7 am can make transportation challenging. However, this year since I was the only one running we decided to skip the hotel rooms... Anyway, on the way to the race I realized I had forgotten band-aids. I won't get into graphic detail on why they are necessary, but any guy who has run a long race will know exactly why you need them. In my desperate search for band aids I ended up stopping at no less than 3 gas stations on the way to the Navy Yard.. which isn't exactly the nicest part of town. As luck would have it, all 3 didn't have any. I ended up stopping at a 7-11 where the clerk tried to tell me they didn't have any either... but then this drunk wino who appeared to be passed out in the corner got up and pointed out they actually had some on the shelf (thanks dude!).

So I parked at the Navy Yard (free parking) and walked over to the Metro by 6:45... The race started at 8, but the L'Enfant Plaza was mobbed, and the station at the Pentagon was fully packed. Now... if you've never run a marathon before, you have to understand that most people hydrate, hydrate, and then hydrate some more. Unfortunately, this means that everyone is looking for a porta potty... but since they want to avoid having to go again while their running, they will wait to the last possible second. So as you get closer to the actual start time, the lines get longer and longer... Anyway, Brooks Sports had a promotion I had never seen before - they had this special, VIP porta potty, complete with individual stalls and scented air fresheners. The catch is you had to buy some Brooks paraphernalia or wear Brooks shoes. As I am an Asics kind of guy, I decided in the interest of not having to wait in line to go ahead and buy the Brooks MCM hat. Unfortunately I couldn't find the stupid thing on Sunday morning, so I can't give you an account of the special porta potty until next year...

The MCM has a free bag drop off run by UPS. They give you this big clear bag that you can dump your warm-ups in. You get provided this sticker with your bib number on it that you're supposed to affix to the bag and hand into the bag drop off. So, I spent at least 15 minutes on Saturday night looking for the stupid sticker, and eventually gave up on it. I get to the bag drop off ready to ask for a write on label - and the UPS guy asks if I looked at my bib... Whoops, the sticker was on the back of my bib, which of course was the first thing I put on my running singlet the night before. Lesson learned.

The Race

Sunday morning started out cold - low 40s - but with a projected high of 70 by the afternoon. After 2 days of rain, we a bright sunny day. The problem is I tend to always do the same thing when its cold - I go out waaaaaaaaaaaaay too fast. I was shooting for between an 8:00-8:15/mile pace... After breaking out of the bottleneck in the first 3 miles, I ended up running between 7:30-7:45 until just about the half. Knowing I would probably end up paying for it later, I did my best to throttle back, but still ended up running into a large brick wall at about mile 14. Unlike the last time I did this (start out way too fast, in 2004) I managed to keep a respectable pace (8:00, then 8:30, then finally 9 and bit slower) all the way to the end.

Recovery

Many of the top running experts swear that an ice bath as the best and fastest way to recover from a marathon. If you do it right after a marathon, the cold prevents inflammation of your muscles by constricting blood flow (the same reason behind icing and injury) and prevents swelling. I have always read about ice baths in the past, but the best I have been able to do is a cold shower. We generally stay in a hotel in Arlington, and the logistics of getting an ice bath setup in a hotel room would be tricky.

Seeing as I had to travel the day after the race and spend the week crawling around a ship (which means plenty of ladders and stairwells), I figured if there was ever a time to do it, now was it. So after we dropped our friends off at the airport, I got some ice (3 16 lb bags) - filled the tub up with water and dumped the ice in. Now, my online research indicated that I was supposed to stay in for 5-15 minutes... And I knew it would be cold, but this was beyond any kind of cold I had ever experienced. I had to break it up into smaller periods and the longest I think I was able to stay in was about almost 2 minutes. I have to say though, 3 days later, I have very little soreness and I am probably hit the treadmill today after work. And so the cycle begins again...

Cheers and jeers

Best new running fuel: Sports bean (w/caffeine!). No more goo for me!

Best sign: "Go ahead, ask her now" followed by "Say yes!"

Best costume: Sponge Bob Square Pants (didn't see Kermit the frog this year)

Best wish I had a camera moment: Between miles 10 and 11, running up the hill into Georgetown... it was foggy, and we were running into the sun, so all you could see is people running into the mist. Looked like something out of a horror movie.

Least favorite part of the course: 14th street bridge (as usual) or Crystal City

Least favorite runners: The people who line up in the 3:30-3:40 starting chute, and immediately start walking.

Least favorite change to the course: Running around the Georgetown Resevoir in the opposite direction as last year.

Intervals

I ran at lunch again today. LP was supposed to run with me, but cancelled at the last second. I guess she has an excuse because she's coming off of a back injury, but of course, that didn't keep me from giving her a hard time. All in good fun. It worked out well in the end, because I did some intervals.

In case it has escaped notice, I'm only loosely adhering to the training program; running a few times a week and doing some harcore yoga twice a week. For I, who have never really exercised all that regularly, that's really something. The program calls for interval running, but since I haven't looked at the program in so long, I can't remember the exact prescribed intervals. I did it the ghetto way using landmarks. It felt good to really push myself. I thought a lot about how I could make my stride quicker and more efficient. Not that it did any good, but I felt myself getting into a rhythm.

Disappointingly, I don't think I was any quicker today than I was yesterday, even with the intervals. At least I'm trying!

Yeah, that's right

Not only did I run yesterday, but I went to yoga too.

All By Myself....

Can you hear Celine Dion's voice in your head? Maybe it's scary that I can. For those of you normal folk out there who don't have Celine playing in your head at random times, I'm referring to the cover she does of the Eric Carmen power ballad "All By Myself." And no, I'm not that musically astute. I only know who sang the original because I looked it up on Wikipedia, so it might not even be true.

But, I digress. What I mean to talk about is that I actually ran all by myself at work yesterday. Since I broke my foot, and even before then, I rarely ever would run by myself. I would tag along with Eugene or run with my work running group. Yesterday, I actually wanted to run and dragged my lazy bum to the locker room, suited up, and went for a nice run. I appreciated the solitude although I like running partners. The solitude was nice because I could go at my own pace and didn't feel obligated to stop at intervals like I do when I run with the group. I was also able to go further. I ran the entire mall this time instead of only 2/3.

Actually, the song might not be too irrelevant. While Eric Carmen or Celine belt out "don't wanna be, all by myself," I, in contrast, did want that yesterday -- to prove that I have the motivation to run on my own.

I wish I were in pain!

Weird title, right? Well, today was the Marine Corps Marathon. I ran it the past four years, and this year would have been my fifth guaranteeing me automatic registration from here on out. I was supposed to run this one, but I broke my foot awhile back so couldn't run. Not being able to train wasn't the issue, as my marathon training usually borders on pathetic or non-existent. The impact of 26.2 miles on my healing foot would have been too much.

Usually, around this time on marathon day, my body is in a lot of pain, and it's hard for me to walk. I wish I felt that way now. I really enjoy running every year. Sure, it's punishing since I don't train properly, but I enjoy the run, the spectators, and the feeling of accomplishment. Also, I hate spectating at races. I always feel like a dweeb -- like people look at me and wonder why I'm not running. I got that feeling when I went to volunteer when Eugene ran the Ragnar. Of course, people probably don't think like that about me, but maybe it says something about my general approach to life.

At any rate, I was proud of Eugene. He never really trains that hard for marathons either, usually because I make him run with me on long runs and hold him back. This year was no different, but he still managed to eke out a PR. I'll let him explain more about that. I was able to see him at the 17 and 20 mile points, and found him really easily after the race. One of the funny moments was when both DD, one of his friends who runs with him every year, and I both thought that this other guy was him when we saw him from a distance. When he got closer, we both realized that he didn't look anything like Eugene. I guess I'm a bad wife for that.

I'm looking forward to next year. Here's to staying healthy.

The Wagon and the Saddle

So, after lofty and grandiose statements about my ambitious 10-K training program, I have fallen hard off the wagon. I have my excuses, though. Let me chronicle my backslidden path. I was supposed to begin my training program on October 19, which is a Sunday. Unfortunately, I got really really sick the Saturday before. I was sick for the rest of the week running a temperature of 103 and unable to eat for days (justified in skipping, I think). I finally recovered the next Sunday, but did I start exercising again? No. I was supposed to go to yoga Monday, but skipped to do work. The next two days, instead of running during lunch, I went out to lunch. (not so justifable) On Thursday, I went to yoga; I'll interpret that as the strength training portion of the program. I finally ran today with one of my work running buddies, but she had a headache, so we didn't go as far and stopped a bunch of times. At least I got out there, though. This puts me a week behind in training. Here's to getting back in the saddle.

The beauty of Sharkbite

A few weeks ago I was kind of hard on some of the help at Home Depot. In particular, the one plumbing associate that tried to convince me that 1 inch CPVC pipe does not, in his words - "not exist in this world" (I found it at Lowes about 20 minutes later)... However, all their associates don't all fall into this category. There is this one guy - Tom - who has pointed me in the right direction on a few occasions. Plus, he introduced me to the Sharkbite system.

If you have an older house like we do, we have lots and lots of copper pipes running through the walls. Unfortunately, whenever we want to do any kind of plumbing work, it means we have to cut the existing copper pipe. Even if you transition to CPVC, it generally means welding at some point. Now, I have done plenty of welding before, but it can be dangerous, it's difficult when operating in cramped spaces, and you don't have much room for error.

Enter the Sharkbite.

Officially, it is known as the Sharkbite push-fit connection system. They are fittings that you literally push onto the end of the pipe. Basically, it uses two stages of fittings - the first being a series of "teeth" that grab the pipe, and the second that uses an o-ring to create a seal around the end. The really cool thing is you can use them to transition between pipe diameters, between different types materials (eg CPVC to Copper or vice versa). They are rated to 200 PSI AND are approved for in wall and underground use. But the best part is you can dissemble the connection in about 2 seconds using the disconnect clip. And then you can put it right back together. Oh, did I mention you can rotate the pipes as well?
The most common applications are standard couplings - you have 1/2 inch pipe coming in, 1/2 in pipe coming out - but they have all kinds of other designs, including straight connectors (threaded on one end), elbows, reducers, check valves, ball valves, T-connectors, and even pressure/temperature gauges. Something I have found particularly useful are the Sharkbite end stops. Whenever I am doing pipe work, and there is residual water pressure in the pipe, I like to slap the stopper on the supply side to prevent water from getting everywhere. It's basically a one way fitting like I described above, and like I mentioned before, it's very easy to disassemble.
Now, there aren't perfect. First, they are kind of pricey - around $5-6 for a regular 1/2-1/2 fitting. Some of the bigger sizes run upwards of $10-12, compared to 25 to 50 cents for the comparable CPVC fittings. Second, as much as I praise the rapid disconnect capability, you need to be careful each time you connect and disconnect. I have noticed that it is easy to damage the interior "teeth," and this can lead to leaks. Third, while the rotating feature is handing in many applications, it can make it tricky for others. Using 1 in connector to threaded nipples, I placed a new whole house water filter coming off our well pump. Unfortunately, since both the Sharkbites rotate, it makes getting enough torque on the housing difficult when changing filters. You also need to make sure you allocate the proper 1 inch on the end of the pipe, and that it is free of all nicks and burrs.

Over the last year, I have literally used these all over the house. I will be posting some pictures over the next few days. Anyway - if you are looking to do a quick and dirty plumbing project... this may be the way to go.

Always maintain situational awareness

For instance, when standing on a ladder while painting the ceiling, always be aware of where the ceiling is in relation to the top of your head. Or wear a hat.

No, my head is not that shiny, it really is paint.

Starbucks Gold

Well it's official, despite all my denials and claims to the contrary, I am a Starbucks addict... I got my new Starbucks Gold card in the mail last week. I really didn't think I went there THAT much, but apparently I rate special status. Of course, if Starbucks conducts data mining on its customer purchase history, and they saw I bought 125 gift cards last year (we gave them out as wedding favors). Word to the wise, if you are ever planning to do something like that, I would recommend you go online to Starbucks.com and do the mass order. When you do it in the store, they have to manually actually activate each one, which takes a bit of time... and seeing as I chose to do it on a busy Saturday morning at the Bowie Town Center, it didn't win me any friends with all the other people waitin for their lattes...

Anyway, getting back on topic, the Gold card is basically is a standard Starbucks card, except it offers you a 10% discount. It's been a hoot walking into Starbucks and watching the barristas "ooh" and "ahh" since I guess these are still relatively new. Note to other Gold card holders: they have to actually run the card once as a Gold card, then run it again as a regular Starbucks card. Otherwise you won't get your 10%.

It's also been fun to show it off to my friends and family... some, that I won't name, who refuse to admit they are dripping with jealously (Leah, Laura). But rest assured for all you, eh, little people, you will have the option to get your own Gold card soon enough. Looks like you'll have to dish out $25 to get one though :)

Ragnar Redux

Packing for the Ragnar...

As I am starting to think about the MCM (yikes, 6 days away!) one thing I failed to discuss about the Ragnar Relay was how we had all over packed. So nearly a month later, I'll talk about some lessons learned for those brave (or stupid) enough to do the Ragnar (or another long distance relay).

This is the list we used - some of it was required by the race, some recommendations, so we just added on our own:

Required:
2 Reflective vests
2 Flashlights
2 LED lights

Other:
First aid kit (including those little band-aids for the, eh, guys)
Toilet Paper
Tape
Safety pins or bib belts
Maps
Phone/ipod chargers
Portable DVD player (brought it, but never really used it)
Febreeze
Headlamps
Batteries
Baby wipes
Bodyglide
Rain shells/towels
Excedrin (if you're like me and will suffer caffeine withdrawal)
At least 3 changes of clothes
Coolers for ice & drinks
If you have one, bring The Stick.

Some other thoughts... (keep in mind I write this from a perspective of an ultra team with 6 people, it may be different for a regular 12 person team).

The Ragnar organizer's publish a race bible. Read it thouroughly, there is a lot of good info in there.

Transportation: Mini van - too small for 6 people and all their gear. Try and get a 15 passenger van if you can. This gives you enough room to stretch out between legs. Apparently there are restrictions with some rental companies on who is allowed to rent a 15 passenger (who being individuals vs organizations), so look into it early.

Maps: I don't remember if the race required us to laminate a color printout of each map leg, or Kevin did it on his own, but he brought them along and they came in especially handy for some of the harder courses. I brought my Garmin Streetpilot GPS along as well, and it proved very useful in finding some of the more difficult to locate exchanges (especially at night and in the rain).

Food: Plan ahead on who brings what food... and keep in mind that if you are cramped on space, stuff will get smooshed. We all brought lots of snack food type stuff, cliff bars, gel, power shots etc. However, at about 2 am we all had a serious case of the munchies and got sandwiches at a gas station (thanks Tony!).

Water/Sports drink: You're running between 15-30 miles. Enough said. Although, go easy on the Gatorade... 6 bottles of Gatorade in 24 hours and I swore I would never drink anything with sugar in it again.

Hygiene: 6 people running 15-30 miles in a cramped space for 24 hours = potentially stinky van. Luckily, we thought ahead and brought baby/shower wipes and these 2 gallon size zip-loc bags for old clothes. Make sure you bring enough changes of clothes for each run, and then something to wear in between. Keep in mind you get those spiffy t-shirts from the Ragnar Relay itself. If you have some kind of team costume (we didn't feel so creative) keep in mind it's gonna get sweaty...

Music: If your not technologically challenged - bring your ipods and such. This race, unlike most, actually lets you wear headphones for the majority of the course. Darren actually brought his portable XM stereo and plugged it into the van's aux input, so we were able to listen to satellite radio for most of the ride.

Flashlights: Maybe it's the SWO in me, but use red filtered lenses at night... much better for the driver's night vision.

Don't forget to bring trash bags...

Running in DC

The nice thing about working in Washington is having ready access to some great running routes. Having been stationed in some interesting places around the country, and then travelling around the world, I have come to appreciate DC's relatively decent weather, abundant side & crosswalks, and a nice mix between buildings/parks/monuments as well as the scenery along the Potomac and Anacostia rivers. On ambitious days I'll run from the Navy Yard, up around the Capital, down through the Mall, across Memorial Bridge, and head up either into Georgetown or down to the Pentagon (hoping nobody's noticed I am taking a rather long lunch break), and come back via the Key or 14th St Bridges. Some days I'll go one way following Orange or Green lines and hop the metro to get back to my building (but don't worry, I try not to sit near anyone on the train).

Of course on the flip side, the bad thing about working in DC is that well, it's DC. You never know when you are going to get tasked for last minute travel, called into some meeting, have to respond to someone's inquiry, revise a plan/procedure/budget, etc. Although I guess the same could be said for lots of other people everywhere, or maybe I'm just grumpy because my running plans got interrupted today...

Which got me thinking to some of the other places I have had the pleasure of running...

Newport takes a close second, especially running downtown, the Cliff Walk, or up and down Bellevue Ave. As I was stationed there mainly in the winter months, I usually didn't see that many other people running. However, having grown up in Syracuse I have no problems running in the cold. Wimps.

Norfolk/Virginia Beach probably wouldn't have been a bad place to go running - actually now that I think of it is actually pretty decent with miles and miles of trails, the beach, the boardwalk, and plenty of big, flat, parks. The only problem for me was life was so incredibly busy for us down there I had to grab my runs where I could get them. I remember running in Virginia Beach every night between 11:00 and 11:30 pm, grabbing a quick shower and then going to bed (my roommates probably thought I was nuts). I remember one time when I got up at 3 am and went for a run, only to be almost hit by my roommate Jerry's car as he was driving to work for early underway. It was either running at crazy hours, or running around the piers on the base in Norfolk, where you are always dodging cars, power cables, and steam lines.

I'm ambivalent about New Orleans (pre Katrina). The primary factor down there is the weather - it's either raining, or it's hot, or a mixture of both. You either run at 6 am or 9 pm, or lose about 20 pounds in sweat by running in the middle of the day. There are lots of nice places to run - especially on the now infamous levee trails that run up and down the Mississippi River. Audubon Park was also a nice place to run with its 2 mile loop and the surrounding garden district. Of course, you had to be careful where you were running as a wrong turn could get you into a very bad neighborhood rather quickly...

Pascagoula is, well, not a very pleasant place to go running. You're either on one of the main roads or you risk going into a side street where the MASSIVE bugs will get you... After Katrina, the roads were so full of debris I resorted myself to running laps around San Antonio's flight deck. For those of you interested, according to my GPS it is about 10 laps for a mile around the flight deck a LPD 17 class Amphibious Transport Dock (close to 9 if you do it in the well deck).

Which isn't to say being on a ship wasn't so bad. I've run in places like Ireland, Spain, Turkey, Brazil, Italy, Greece, and Bahrain (running in Bahrain, not very pleasant). A friend and I went running in Spain and once rain into a tunnel going up a big hill - only to discover that the tunnels over there don't necessarily have lights (we turned around rather quickly). Underway of course it a different story. You can only do so much treadmill before go nuts.

The Piano

“That's it, from now on I'm not looking forward to anything! Oh my god! Tomorrow there's a two for one sale on piano benches. I can't wait, ooh, ooh, ooh!” ~ Homer Simpson

So, a few days ago I made a reference to how the piano gummed up my carefully planned weekend. Let me tell you the whole story. I had started Columbus Day weekend off with a long list of things I wanted to get done... re-seed the lawn, finish work in the powder room, clean out the garage and basement, finish the baseboards in our bedroom etc. So Leah and I set off Saturday morning for Homestead Gardens to check out their fall festival and make use of the generous gift card our realtor gave us when we closed on the house last year (Thanks Marcy!). On the way home, we stopped for lunch (see Leah's Saigon Palace entry on her food blog) and then got a frantic call from her parents.

First we'll start with yard sales. Since becoming a homeowner I have come to appreciate the value of picking things up second hand. Half of my tool collection comes from things I've found at various places on Saturday mornings (craigslist and e-bay are also favorites). When it comes to yard sales, Leah's parents are definitely the ultimate deal finders. In this case they had come across a miniature upright piano with full size keyboard. The exterior was in fair condition and it was badly in need of a tuning, but it was definitely playable. The owner was moving to Texas and couldn't find anyone to take it. He had actually already moved it into a 10 yard dumpster in his front yard - but he was so happy about not having to throw it away he offered it to us for - wait for it - 10 bucks. Leah has played the piano her whole life, and one of the things on her "really want to get but we can't afford it right now" list has been getting one for the house.

Of course, finding the piano turned out to be the easiest part of the day. This thing was easily 300 lbs, and as most big, bulky things generally are, not very easy to handle. Then came the part of transporting it back to our house. Leah and I both drive small cars, which is definitely not helpful when we do as much yard/lumber/drywall work as we do. When it comes to moving large objects, I generally end up borrowing her parent's mini-van - but in this case the it was already full from their own morning deal of the day (a nice wooden filing cabinet). In any case, I seriously doubt that we could have lifted it up into the back without some additional muscle. And here the owner made another generous offer - he offered us the use of his boat trailer to haul the piano back to his house. He even offered to hook it to his own SUV and follow us back.

Now, his boat trailer was, well, designed for his boat (imagine that), a small pleasure craft with a fairly sizable keel. You may see where I'm going with this - the trailer basically was v-shaped to accommodate the boat, and the piano was flat. It wasn't easy, but we managed to get the piano loaded into place and relatively stable (I say relatively). We then took the only rope he had available - synthetic towing line for water skiing - and we wrapped that thing so securely I think even Mike A. (the Combat Cargo Officer on my last ship) would have been proud.

Next came the transit. With Leah and me in the lead, the piano on trailer in the middle, and Leah's parents taking up the rear, we kicked off what had to be the strangest looking convoy Annapolis has ever seen (Seriously, how often do you see a piano tied to a boat trailer with a water skiing tow rope?). We were limited to about 30 mph to avoid shaking the piano loose. I remember one time I was driving on RT 50 and I saw a mattress sitting in the middle of the highway, and then about 1/4 mile further down there was a van pulled off to the side of the road, pieces of broken rope still tied to the roof, and a bunch of distressed looking people looking back at the mattress shaking their heads. I had that image in my head the entire time we were driving. To make matters more complicated, this was the weekend of the Boat Show AND the Renaissance Festival, so we faced some stiff traffic going home (in addition to the small jam we caused on Defense Highway).

Once we got back to our neighborhood it was relatively easy. We were actually able to man-handle the trailer all the way to our front door, and then it was a simple matter of getting the piano onto furniture coasters and sliding it into the living room. Like I said before, we need to do some work on the exterior and it needs a tuning, but it makes a lovely addition to our slowly growing furniture collection.



Unfortunately, I did hurt my back getting the piano out of the dumpster - not quite at the Karl or Laura wimpy "oh I hurt my back" level (just kidding, wanted to see if you guys are REALLY reading this blog like you said you would, and right about now Karl's saying "Them's fighting words"). After a very short but painful run on Monday I am having doubts on the Marine Corps Marathon next weekend. We'll see how it goes. Major props to Leah's folks for finding this great deal - I just hope their next find isn't so heavy.

The Hutchity Hutch...

I was hoping to spend some time this weekend refinishing our new, albeit antique, china hutch that we picked up in Cockeysville last weekend. We have spent a lot of time and money on rennovations... two reasons that a lot of our rooms have very little furniture in them (literally have rooms that are nearly empty - or only have tools in them). We decided recently that with all our old dishes and wedding china that the kitchen cabinets were getting a bit overcrowded, and we really need a china hutch for the dining room. But, as with so many others out of my past, this particular story starts at Wegmans.

All two of you who will ever read this blog know that I (like most people who have lived in upstate New York) am a Wegman's freak. Somewhere along the line I have managed to convert Leah, and on my last trip to Moorestown I think I opened the door for some guys I work with. For the uninformed, Wegmans is a grocery store - but not just any grocery store. I can't do it justice here so I will have revisit the topic in a post completely devoted to Wegman's greatness. While Wegmans is planning to build a new store in Gambrills (only 7 miles from our house!), there is so much drama revolving around that project we're not sure when it's going to open. So, whenever we get the itch we drive 45 minutes to nearest Wegman's in Hunt Valley, MD.

Anyway, the day after Ragnar I was feeling I like owed myself a treat, so I made the suggestion to Leah that we go up to Hunt Valley since we hadn't been there in a while. She agreed - but didn't tell me until I got in the car her REAL motive was to also hit a bunch of antique stores that are up and down York Road in Cockeysville. Well, sure enough at the second store we visited we found this small hutch that was in relatively good condition. Best of all, it was CHEAP!



But of course, the color is all wrong for our dining room table, where my work is about to begin.

We did some research on the internet and discovered this post about a guy who uses a technique of stripping old furniture, spraying self sealing lacquer onto it, then spray painting it to give it a "distressed" look. Unfortunately, this guy is VERY specific about the types of lacquer and spray paint to use, which in my tour of the Annapolis area paint stores I have discovered both products are discontinued and hard to find. On the flip side, I now know the location of every single paint store in the Greater Annapolis area...

Unfortunately, my weekend plans got waylaid by the lawn and the piano (see upcoming post), and it looks like I'll be on travel for the better part of the next few weeks. Refinishing the hutch may have to wait...

3 out of 4 Ain't Bad

So, I have off today, but I am proud to say that I ran 3 out of 4 days that I went to work, which I might add is unprecedented for me. The only day that I didn't run was Wednesday because of lunch plans with Eugene that fell through. I was going to not run on Thursday but then I changed my mind. I think that I've become addicted to my lunchtime runs. Unfortunately, I only had a long sleeve shirt and pants and it was super hot, especially since I usually refrain from the long sleeves unless it's 40 degrees or cooler.

The Power of Accountability

So, I ran yet again today! Impressive for me. I honestly can't remember the last time that I ran two days in a row. I was contemplating not going, but Q, one of my running buddies, called me, and I felt compelled to go. She said that she was contemplating not going either but felt bad because I may have made the effort to schlep my running gear in. Lucky for me (and her), she didn't know that it's really not that difficult for me. We did about 2.5 miles again, walking a little more than yesterday. My legs felt tight for part of it. We sprinted at the end and I won this time, but she said that today was especially hard for her, so I really can't brag too much.

Munchie Run

One of the downfalls in my lackluster running regimen (if you could call it that) is that I could never find the right time to run. Let's go over the possible times to run, as contemplated by the old me:

Before work: It pains me to wake up any earlier than I have to. So no.
During work: I would have to shower and then reapply cosmetics and it would take WAY too long.
After work: I was just at WORK. Why would I want to work out after work?
On the weekends: By the time I'm done sleeping in, I have social obligations to attend to :)

I figured I needed to start running on a regular basis, and the "during work" option is the only one that doesn't involve sleep deprivation. Also, I've become amazed at my speedy showering skills and just stopped worrying about the cosmetics. Who am I trying to impress at work anyways?

Training to Train - 10/6

I've started running at lunch with a group of women from my office. I'm the only one in the group that has done distance running or races. The group usually runs for five minutes and walks for two and have built up to that interval over a few months or so. They're a great group for me to run with while I'm rehabbing my foot and "training to train" or preparing to start the formal 10k training program. We ran/walked for 2.3 or so miles today and sprinted at the end. I didn't win the sprint, which was sad to me since, again, I'm the only one in the group that has done racing or distances. At any rate, it will be sad when I can't run with them anymore when my training program picks up. They're fun people and aren't directionally challenged like I am and can plan runs better.

Later on, I did myself proud. I went to yoga at the end of the day. Even though I had paid for four sessions, I missed the first three. I haven't been to yoga since mid-end summer when I broke my foot. It kicked my butt today. We didn't take any breaks and moved quickly from pose to pose. It was like aerobic exercise and I was dripping with sweat. I felt like jelly afterward, but in a good way, if that makes sense.

The Slower Half

So, I (Leah), am a slow slow runner. I average about a 10:30 pace or so. My fastest marathon time (I've run 4) is 5:25. My one claim to fame is that I once ran a 10k in 58 minutes. Not exactly setting the world on fire. I've never really cared that much. Usually, my goal is to not die during a race. Oh believe me, I've come close. I'll have to write about my one and only disastrous trail race (which I finished, but it was not pretty). To sum it all up, I've never really tried to run fast, and I certainly have never trained for a race (except a marathon, the goal again, being not to die and to cross the finish line).

I'm sick of being slow, especially since Eugene is so much faster than I am. Our runs together consist of me looking at his back and him circling back to run with me. Seriously, when we run together, I think that he runs double the distance than I do with all of his circling back and running in place. I usually just whine about it, but this time I have actually decided to do something about it. I am going to train for a 10k, which is something that I would have scoffed at before, thinking "who needs to train for a 10k? I could walk 6.2 miles!"

So, what's the big change? Two things. First, I broke my foot in the summer and couldn't run or do yoga (which I love) at all for two months. It drove me nuts. Granted, I wasn't really exercising that much before, but I really wanted to exercise because I couldn't. It's like the syndrome where you had an opportunity to date a guy and decided against it, but when your friend starts showing interest, he starts looking a lot better. No, I am not a slimey person and have never interfered with my friends' romantic interests, but I liked the analogy. I'm glad it works with things that are good for you. Maybe I'll be banned from dieting one day and decide that it looks really appealing. Ok, that will never happen, but it was interesting to contemplate. Second, I have an overwhelming desire to one day, smoke Eugene in a race.

Anyways, I digress. Back on track. I have set my sights on a 10k on 12/14 and am doing an 8 week Hal Higdon program. http://www.halhigdon.com/10ktraining/10kadv.htm We'll see how that goes. I have to start 10/19. For now, I'm just trying to get into the swing of regular exercise.

The Ragnar Relay

First entry. This is a bit back dated, but as I recalled the events of last weekend to Leah, between laughs she made the comment "you really should blog about this." So, here I am... Work plus the Army 10 miler yesterday has delayed my initial post, but hopefully I'll be able to keep up in the future. I actually logged into blogspot this morning to see if the leahandeugene domain was available. Well, it was taken, but it turned out only because I had taken it over a year ago!

So what better way to kick off this blog then to recount the story of how I spent last weekend. Somehow I was convinced in early summer to join a 6 man team in running the Washington, DC Ragnar Relay. A little bit about the race itself. The Ragnar Relay is a long distance, round the clock endurance relay that takes place around the country throughout the year. It originated in Utah 4 years ago, and has steadily expanded outward since then. In this case, it mainly followed the Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O) Trail from Cumberland, MD to Washington, DC. 183 miles from start to finish. It was broken up into 36 legs (about 4-8 miles each) and most teams (the sane ones, if you call running 15 miles over 24 hours sane) had 12 people running 3 legs each.

But wait... I said 6 man team. Well, for the slightly more adventurous (aka insane) - there were the ultra teams. Ultras had 6 people running 6 legs each (2 back to back), approximately 30 miles per runner... So, on Friday morning I piled into a mini-van with my teammates Greg (our intrepid captain), Tony, Darin, Kevin, and Tom and we drove off to Cumberland, MD.

Now, I've run 5 marathons and many, many shorter distance races. Without a doubt, this was the hardest race I have ever done. I've also heard now from a few folks who've run a full Ironman Triathalon and they seemed to agree - this was tougher. For me, the difficult part wasn't necessarily the distance. Somehow I drew the 6 legs that had the most elevation (if you go to the website, check out legs 7, 8, 19, 20, 31, and 32). I think my total gross elevation climb was around 3500 ft - over 1/2 mile uphill. You know how you'll be driving some days and you'll come across a big hill? I'm talking about the hill you think in the back of your mind that it's the kind of hill you would never want to run up. Yeah, it was that hill in the beginning of leg 19. To make matters worse, this was the weekend that surprise Nor'easter came through the area. So, in addition to running approximately 30 miles with little to no sleep in a 24 hour period, with lots of elevation in between - we had to do it while battling high winds and rain. Of course, the precipitation was sporadic over the 2 days, but as my luck would have it always managed to downpour when I was out of the van.

I've gone running at night before, but usually only with a reflective belt or vest. Running with a headlamp, flashlight, vest, and blinking LED lights was new experience. Since we were going uphill, and it was at night, the dropping temperatures combined with high humidity and dew point (as any good SWO can tell you) led to most of my first leg being run in a fairly dense fog. Our mini-van, surprisingly enough, did not get too... funky (imagine 6 sweaty guys locked up in a van for 24 hours). Baby wipes are every long distance runner's best friend in situations like these. After each leg we'd also change out of our dirty clothes and packing them away in zip-loc bags...

Of course, the most interesting part of the evening, at least for me, had absolutely nothing to do with running. Throughout the race we would drive ahead in the van from checkpoint to checkpoint, making sure that our runner had everything he needed, getting the next runner prepped... So, we're in a park in western rural Maryland, standing at the exchange between legs 4 and 5 - Darin is waiting to take the next leg from Tony. The trail runs underneath a small bridge. Well, as we're waiting for the exchange, we hear this loud screech, and as we look up to the road - we see this car swerve by, slam into the guard rail on the bridge, and crash to a stop out of sight. Kevin and I ran up the hill and to the car, where the driver had already managed to get himself out and was stumbling around on the road. He didn't have any visible injuries, but it was clear he was pretty shaken (and it was clear he was something else, too... more later). Turned out that being in the middle of nowhere, we had no cell phone signal - so a driver who stopped turned around and headed back into town to call the police. A bunch of drivers started stopping and as so often the case in small towns, everyone knew the guy and was asking if he was ok (who I call "Charlie"). An ambulance and fire truck showed up in relatively short order - but the part that threw Kevin and me for a loop was when the fire chief started yelling at Charlie, asking how much he had to drink, etc. Found out later that the fire chief was in fact, Charlie's son. So anyway, Kevin and I stick around to make a statement to the police, since we were the only ones who apparently had actually seen the accident. We then learn (all kinds of things I didn't know about Maryland) that if you are in a car accident in Maryland, the State Police will send you to the nearest Maryland Hospital. The thing is, we were on the West Virginia border, and the nearest hospital in West Virginia happened to be much closer. So of course the fire chief got into a pretty big argument with the State Police about how he wants Charlie to go to the closer hospital (and we still didn't know he's his son). In the end, Charlie got into an ambulance and was taken to the WV hospital, where I can only hope that he was ok. Although, I hope he won't be driving anytime soon. I think the most fortunate thing is that he didn't hit another car on the bridge - that could have gotten very ugly.

So, that is my story of the Ragnar Relay. In the end, it was long, painful, and tiring, but I had a great time and made some great new friends. If I didn't mention it, the first time I had met Tony, Tom, and Darin was when we were packing the mini-van up. I should mention that in the last week, Greg has found yet another insane, crazy long distance relay in April, and he has gotten most of the team to agree to join up yet again (still working on one). I'll let you know how that one goes.