For Whom the Dogs Bark

No running this weekend, or for a few days before that, still waiting for my heel to behave.  We think it is the peroneal tendon but I haven't been to anybody. 

I drove to Utah to pick up my son and his stuff, as he is moving to Houston to begin medical school.  We are starting back this morning but we will be back on Thursday and Friday for he and his wife's graduation from BYU.  They are staying at her grandparents' home, somewhere off of exit 282 on the east side of the freeway.  Her grandparents are on a church mission in South Africa.  I trucked in about mid-afternoon yesterday and packed the truck.  Then we went to an Indian restaurant in Sandy last night with another couple who are their friends.  The food was very good, I think Indian food might be a good alternative to pasta loading, but you would have to stick with the mild stuff for obvious reasons.

Here is the truck, ready to go.  Looks pretty good for a packing job by a lawyer, but it is kind of like a race, everybody looks good at the starting line.  We'll see if the load makes it to Texas or not.

74F, 94% humidity, wind WSW 3 mph and clear.  Great morning for running, finally.  I'm back in Houston and I decided to try out the ankle.  It was a little bit sore walking around in bare feet, but once I got my shoes on and loosened up for about a quarter mile it was OK.  I ran gradually faster throughout, 2.13 miles in 21:07, average pace 9:56, splits 10:54, 9:04 and 1:10 (9:08).  Heel felt pretty good for the most part, but I won't know much until I see how I make it through the day.  I felt pretty winded doing this run, but I am pretty sure I haven't lost a lot of conditioning in only two weeks.

The load in my truck made it back to Houston just fine, it looks identical to when we left, but is now safely parked in my own garage.  And no conversations with the good men and women in uniform patrolling the highways of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas.  I admire them greatly, but I prefer to let them do their job and me mine.  Drove a total of 2,830 miles in 4 days, about the same as a good Saturday for Crockett.

78F, 93% humidity, calm and clear.  Good running weather this morning.  Ran 4.06 miles in 47:40, average pace 11:44, low heart rate, regular shoes.  Foot felt pretty bad to start and not that good throughout, though I didn't have much trouble running.  Every once in a while it would feel like the strength was gone for a couple of steps.  Kind of worried, but when I got back to the house and walked around for a while it didn't hurt like it did yesterday.  Maybe a slow slog is just what the doctor ordered.  It is almost noon now, and still no pain or stiffness, so maybe I have turned the corner.  If so that is exciting, I think there is still time enough to get a BQ in Hartford in October.

80F, 85% humidity, cloudy, wind WNW at 3 mph.  Beautiful day for running.  Ran 6.17 in 1:13:33, average pace 11:55 per mile, low heart rate, regular shoes.  I would ordinarily be griping about the slow time, but I am in awe about my ankle pain disappearing completely during the day yesterday.  After the run it didn't stiffen up, and I walked around all day with zero pain, and again during the run today there was no "warmup" to get going, it was good to go from the first step.  I am so happy I don't even care that I am obviously out of shape.

Headed to the airport in a few minutes, back to Utah for my son and daughter-in-law's graduation from BYU.  He drove down with me to Houston over the weekend for his white coat ceremony at the medical school here in town, now back to Utah to finish up there.  We will be back here on Saturday and it may be a while before I come to Utah again, unless I do some more races there.  With all the issues we have with a couple of our kids, it was nice to sit in the ceremony yesterday as they welcomed the entering class into the medical school.  This kid has it together -- the best missionary I ever saw, studied hard in school, married a wonderful wife and getting on with his life.  (Now if he could just keep track of his car keys.)  It gives us hope for the others.  One thing for sure, you can't take credit for the successes of your kids unless you take responsibility for their failures too, and I ain't signin' up for that one.  I'm just a spectator with a checkbook.

86F, 78% humidity, wind S. 8 mph.  Clear night out, went out late after returning from Utah, as it turned out to be impossible to get any running done with everything else going on there.  Ran 8.01 in 1:16:12, 9:31 per mile, regular shoes.  This was a difficult run, my body does not like running late in the day.  It was hot, but I got it done, no issues with my feet.

Graduation at BYU was a fun, superb weather.  Got out of my car in the visitor lot and my brother pulled in right behind me from Virginia.  His daughter was graduating and I didn't know it.  No issues in my family, just bad communication skills.  Some would call that an issue, but I just call it bad communication.  Counting my son and his wife, we had four members of the family graduating.  My nephew who lives in Orem (I knew he was graduating, thank you) graduated way high in his class.  It was his brother who placed way high in London's Run in Arizona last February.  Something about that family, maybe the mountain air.  (His dad, my brother, blogs on here as Stephen and is getting ready for his first marathon, TOU.)  Here is the happy quartet.

Son, daughter-in-law, niece and nephew.