Hills for breakfast, hold the gnats

50F, partly cloudy.   2.25 E, 2 MP (+- for hills: 9:22, 8:51), 1 E. 

Pretty good run. Such a gorgeous morning.  

ETA - Everyone go say an encouraging word to my blog buddy, Barb (see my favorites list), who ran over 26 yesterday for her long run.  She and I have the same BQ goal time and I've really enjoyed reading about her exotic running life in Mali.  

55F, rainy & breezy.  1 mile slow, 1 mile moderate (~9:45), remainder slow.  Probably my last run before Saturday. 

Oh the doubts.  Sometimes I think it would be best to take some kind of drug that mimics a lobotomy during the last week of taper.  See you on the other side. 

I want a do-over.  Not any time soon, mind you.  But that was pretty much a waste of good marathon. 

It was a wonderful marathon course. Really wonderful.  And I got to share some time before and after the race with friends.  But the fun-o-meter tanked early. And hard.  More on this in a moment...

Jefferey & Carolyn, spending some time with you guys and seeing you do well was a huge lift for me and will be the one of the things I remember most fondly about this race.  Also present were a couple of runners from my running club. We actually got coordinated enough to have dinner together yesterday, 10 folks total with added family members.  Great fun. 

A few days ago we all expected cool, wet weather, the angels sang down on me, and all was well.  But the day dawned with blue skies and bright sunshine. Dang.  But everything was copacetic for the first quarter of the race. 

By halfway, I was struggling a bit, but still on a good pace.  By 16 I was nauseous and slowing.  (Nausea is a typical heat reaction for me.)   By 18 I had a blister. I don't think I've ever had a blister in a marathon (one in a half-m last summer).  

Somewhere around mile 20 I was slowing enough to be sending distress messages to Mr. Sno & SnoFlake on my iPhone. Somewhere around mile 23, I threw up. Overwhelmed by self pity, I cried a little then pulled myself together. After that, I was just hanging on and trying to keep moving forward. 

Course description: The first 4-5 miles feature a lot of ups and downs. Nothing too horrible, and the temperature was still tolerable at that point.  I planned to run a couple of 10 minute miles, then a couple of 9:30s, then go to 9:00-9:10s once we flattened out. All 5 of these miles were around 9:30 though.  

A stretch of road in mile 4 was being re-paved, so we had an unpleasant couple of minutes of gravel. A big hill right after the mile 4 marker was early enough that I tried to just keep an even effort and forget about the pace.  From around mile 6 to maybe 9 there was quite a bit of shade and I was hitting most of my miles very close to 9:00, with one under 9!  I was walking 15-20 seconds through each water stop, drinking one cup and pouring a second on myself.  Took salt pills and Nuun from mile 10 on. 

I was at 2:03 at mile 13.  Not ideal, but not bad.  The course has a turn around at mile 15, that turned out to be far enough past 15 to mess with my mind a bit.  All the way from 13 to 15, I kept thinking we were going slightly up hill, but at the turn around I found it was an illusion.  :(  

At 16, we were headed "home" and things started to fall apart.  The sun felt so very hot.  I sat down somewhere around mile 20 to add vaseline to my blistering foot, which may have saved the rest of my race from becoming a total death march.  In a way, it's amazing I came in when I did considering the puking, the pain, and the general discouragement.

The hill at mile 25-26, about which I worried in my comments section yesterday, was surprisingly manageable.  For sure, I slowed way down, but in my condition I expected I'd have to walk it, which I did not.  The last .2 goes flat and then down steeply, and my legs did fine on that.  I felt like I was limping, favoring the foot with the blister, but Mr. Sno says I looked strong. What a great guy.

I'm sorry about the negative report, and the negative results.  If good friends and a desire to make people proud of me could work miracles, I would have a BQ to share instead of a blister and a bunch of tears.  But for someone who hasn't trained much in any temps over 55 for 9 months, 70s (in the sun - 60s in the shade) was just too much for me. 

After the marathon, Carolyn's family and mine had lunch together, then spent the afternoon walking/hobbling around the beautiful Yaquina Head Lighthouse and Museum.  Being by the sea is very soothing and helps put things into perspective.  Huge thanks to my friends, and my wonderfully supportive family.  Newport Marathon, I'll see you again. 

Being home is always a great relief to me, since I am not a fan of travel in general.  But I do miss the ocean, and having other people cook.  ;)

The worst thing, however, is some sadness and anxiety we've had.  When we were about 2.5 hours from home my cell phone rang and it was the pet/house sitter.  She hadn't wanted to frighten me or ruin my vacation, but my outdoor ("Cat Who Must Be Obeyed") was last seen Saturday night.  He's still not home this morning.  Our hope is that someone took him in (or stole him, depending on your point of view). He's a stunningly beautiful cat, and may have been extra friendly to someone in our absence.  If that's the case, he will soon be free, since trying to make him an indoor cat inevitably leads to howling and protest-peeing.  I'm trying not to think of the other possibility, which involves coyotes. 

I've been walking since the marathon, and the legs are pretty weak but improving rapidly.  One of our friends from Newport, a member of my running club who totally nailed his marathon, is on the blog now, but doesn't have an entry available for comment just yet. He is DaveL.  Up and running! Please say hello when you have a chance.

ETA- The official marathon results are up, and I was shocked to see that I placed 14 out of 37 in my age group.  I would expect to be much further back on a fast course like Newport.  Not a great day overall for the menopause set.  

48F, light rain.  Recovery run/walk.

Leg recovery index (1-5):  Soreness 0, Perceived muscle strength 1, Monkeys per leg 5.  

The Cat Who Must Be Obeyed is back!  All signs indicate that he has been held captive in someone's house all week.  He's quite well -- not starved, hurt, or otherwise traumatized.  He certainly hasn't spent the week fighting for survival in the woods.  

I guess I'll try not to complain ever again when he wakes me up at 4 AM to go outside, because that's the sort of behavior that probably won him his freedom. I hope he drove them crazy with howling and peeing all over. I hope he ruined their furniture and kept them up every night.  I have tried many times to make him an indoor cat, so I know what he's capable of when confined.

It was about 4:15 AM when our two other cats leapt off the bed and went thundering down the hall.  I was half awake anyway, but that brought me fully awake and into a sitting position.  Then I heard the unmistakable meow on the front porch.  Words cannot express my happiness!  But I am also so angry at whoever took him.  What I have been through this week is pure misery. As much as I complain about his imperious ways, this is the best, most affectionate, dearest cat I've ever had.

Oh, and I also had a little run this morning.  Almost completely irrelevant...   ;) 

Here is His Majesty, safe at home:

And the wake up crew, who alerted me to his return:

56F, sunny w/ some wind.  Easy run with uncounted, unmeasured strides (or just "speed-ups") to get the legs back 

The cat has been taken again.  I am going door to door today. Not exactly how I planned to spend part of my weekend.  It's a good thing I don't own a gun.  

Everything right now is about the Cat Who Must Be Obeyed (aka Dandelion, Dan-Dan, His Majesty, etc.), so just surf away if you don't care to hear the latest episode.  I'm too cheap for therapy, so my couch session is right here...

After he was released from his captors Thursday morning (and I am convinced now that he was taken), I immediately got a collar for him on which I printed our phone number, and a message on the inside: "cat theft will be prosecuted."  

After he had disappeared again Saturday, I waited until Sunday mid morning and then went door to door along the territory I know he considers to be "his." The flyer had his picture, the usual pertinent info, and a little blurb about why I believe he was taken by someone.  I also mentioned that if the theft was proven, we were prepared to bring criminal charges.  The flyer asked neighbors to let me know if they heard cat howling from inside anyone's house, since he does not tolerate confinement.  All afternoon, I got supportive and friendly calls from neighbors, saying they are used to seeing him around and will keep an eye out.  That was very touching.

By 5 PM he was on the front porch, and he was mad.  He came in "talking about it" angrily and  immediately started hissing at the other cats.  His collar had been removed.  

On one hand, I like to believe our actions frightened the thief and that this will never happen again.  But I don't have to convince you, I'm sure, that this whole thing has really stressed me out.  I don't know what I am going to do, but for now I am keeping him inside and living with the consequences.  

I told Mr. Sno that we can just stock up on enzyme cleaner (for the protest-peeing) and wear earplugs to bed until I work out what to do. I was up from 2-3 AM with the cat, trying to comfort him, get him to use the litter box, etc.  He cries continuously like he's going to commit suicide if you don't open that d--- door, but when I hold him and pet him he still purrs his little head off, the dear.  Eventually I just put the earplugs in and went back to sleep.  

So for now, I have all indoor cats, and they are all safe. Might have to learn to live with the price, if we can stand it.  

I had a very nice, short run this morning in 48F air under partly cloudy skies.  I wanted to run 7, but I slept a little late, for obvious reasons. 

45F, low clouds then fog.  Easy run. 

After a slow warm up, this was the best my legs have felt since the marathon. 15 min core & upper body (same yesterday, but I forgot to log it). 

Project Indoor Cat is progressing.  He's driving me nuts and I didn't sleep much last night, but he is safe.  

45F, rain started around mile 3.  G-A run. 

A little sluggish towards the end for some reason. Maybe it was the rain, which I was not really expecting.   

49F, showers. Easy/moderate run. 

We had another very bad night with the cat, and I overslept again.  So frustrating, but I know it's temporary and worthwhile, so that helps.  He howled half the night. He's howling now as a matter of fact.  The vet doesn't believe a mild/herbal kind of relaxation remedy will do any good with this cat.  She suggested putting him on Prozac for a couple of months.  I need to do some more research on this.   

49F, low cloud/fog.  G-A run. 

Crazy weekend coming up. So much so that I don't know how much running I will be able to do.  Thank goodness I'm still in a recovery phase. 

We successfully "walked the cat" with a harness and a leash yesterday, and he seemed to like it.  It wasn't so much a walk as a very slow tour of our backyard. Much standing around sniffing of bushes had to be done. At one point he just sat down and kind of closed his eyes, as if to say "ahhhh."  I may need you dog owners out there to tell me all about fitting the daily walk (or twice a day more likely) into your lives. 

50F, mostly clear. G-A run.  

It felt really great to get out and run today.  The legs were super springy and energetic -- maybe I should take a couple days off more often.   The neighborhood was very quiet and I didn't see a single car driving for the first 3 miles.  Looking forward to bringing the mileage back up this week.  

55F, cloudy w/ pretty sunrise.  G-A run.  20 min. strength work. 

This was to be a progression run, but I never progressed past the "moderate" stage.  I should have run this one yesterday, when the legs were so happy.  A little tired today.   

53F, clear, unusually humid.  Easy run w/ butt kick drills. 

I honestly don't know how you folks who watch TV get any running done.  My 9:00 PM bedtime on weeknights is sacred, but last night I succumbed to watching "just a bit" of a PBS documentary I wanted to see.... and, well, an hour later I was still watching.  

I had the VCR all set up, so there really is no excuse. I guess I have no discipline whatsoever. Thank goodness no one handed me a chocolate cake as well.  Because the more tired I got, the less willpower there was to get up and just turn the thing off.  There was no hope of rallying my resolve "at the next commercial" either, since it was PBS. It was an awesome program ("Harp Dreams"), but I had to sleep in a little to pay for my weakness. 

The bright side is that The Cat Who Is No Longer Obeyed let us sleep ALL NIGHT.  He's giving me what-for as usual this morning, but the longer chunk of sleep was wonderful.  

53-55F, cloudy, w/ very light rain miles 6-10. Endurance run, club run, leg builder hill, and 2 unscheduled MP miles when I realized I was late for the club. 

There was a new runner at the club, beginning again after not running at all for a couple of years. She's been running on a TM the past month, the poor dear.  So I slowed my pace to run 1.5 miles with her, then it was just me and my invisible friends again. A good time was had by all. 

58F, overcast & humid.  Recovery/easy run. 

Two miles of 90 y.o. running, and the remainder back at my true age.  The warm temperature was uncomfortable but manageable at my slow speed. 

53F, cloudy, calm & dry. Easy pace run. 

My legs still are not feeling 100% since Saturday's run, which I attribute to running so many miles in the Piranha's. That's not something I've done before, but I'm sure it will make me stronger.

Absolutely perfect running weather this morning, imo.  Lovely and cool.  I saw two bucks and a doe, but they all seemed to be getting along. No love wars this time of year I guess.  Got a nice picture of them, but too little time at the moment to post it.

For anyone still interested in my cat saga,  he is still indoors and he is still pretty angry about it.  We get the cat alarm at about 3:30 or 4 every morning, and he spends about 90 minutes "talking about his feelings" about 3 times a day.  I never had a colicky baby, but I suppose this is what that's like.  His walking harness proved inadequate and he did a quick Houdini move and escaped from it last week, so no walks until the new Bengal-proof walking jacket comes in the mail. 

50F, mostly clear w/ clouds moving in.  Hill repeats on L.B. hill. 

Though still feeling a bit sluggish when I started out today, the workout really cleaned out the cobwebs.  Wonderful when that happens (which it doesn't always).   And another great day of running weather for me (sorry AuntieEm!).  

The rest of this entry is just free therapy for me so skip or prepare for whining...  So June has not been one of my better months. Low mileage and a "bad" race have left me feeling a bit discouraged. On top of that, I will be attending a four day conference this weekend -yes, 4th of J weekend, but Sunday night is off - to which I am really looking forward, but regretting another hit to my running schedule.  I have decided to just get as much running in as I can and try to move on.  I will be up late every night Fri-Mon so just getting out early for a short jog will be challenging.  I may need to suspend my no-sleep, no-run policy just for this weekend.  I thought people slept less as they get older; when do I get that going? 

The conference is just 45 minutes from my home, so I decided I will just drive home every night.  Part of me wanted to check on everyone-- cats, family, eternal landscaping work (the project just drags on and on) -- but the hefty downtown hotel costs decided it for sure.  No creeping in late either; I have volunteer duties first thing in the mornings (my home chapter is putting on the conference).  Sigh.  

Starting Friday I may need to blog any runs I manage to get in from my iPhone, which as you know is weird - no text unless you comment on your own post.  Then there is the unavoidable worry about what Mr. Sno and SnoFlake will eat for four days.  Stocking the refrigerator and leaving a menu plan may be futile, I have no idea.  All in all, it should be a great weekend and an extremely valuable experience but, like a race, there is a lot of pre-event speculation regarding the things that can go wrong.