Belligerent and Poetic

So...my goal Saturday was to run 7 miles. I didn't quite do that, in fact, I almost didn't quite run at all...

My first thought when I work up at 6am yesterday was: "geez, it's dark out there...it can't be 6:00 yet!" So, I closed my eyes for a minute and then realized that it WAS 6:00 (... 6:05 by then) and I was supposed to be at Lake BP by 6:30...

Now I can get ready for a morning run pretty quickly, but I'm not THAT fast...a girl needs her coffee and all. Also, the track club was meeting at the north end of the lake, which has no restroom that I know of (there's probably one at one of the little league fields, but it would be a crapshoot* to bet on whether or not the restrooms would be open or not).

Lying in bed considering all this, I momentarily thought about not running at all. Elsie and Betty were not going to be there, but then I remembered that I told Mik I would be there, and so I pushed myself out of bed, started the coffee, got dressed (by then it was 6:16), and texted Mik that I'd be there but I'd be late.

Then, in a moment of clarity (musta been the coffee kicking in) I decided to start my run at the south end of Lake BP instead of the north end, which is where the track club was meeting, that way I'd still be able to see Mik and some of my track club friends on the way...good planning, yes? And that plan worked out pretty darn well. I got to chat with Anne and see her new shoes since she was hosting the run. I saw Stoney (twice) and I saw Mik who turned around and ran with me for a bit. (Turns out she started at the south end too...)

But mostly I ran alone, which was fine. I had lots to think about. It was a busy week. I have a few more busy weeks in front of me. I'm going to run the Las Vegas 1/2 Marathon in about 9 weeks. I've had a really hard time, most weeks, of getting more than two runs in, one midweek and one on the weekend, and this past week, I didn't even get in one midweek run.

So as I ran, I had to come up with a training plan for myself for the next two months. My first goal is to continue doing strength training on Monday and Wednesday mornings before I teach. This is when I was going to PT, but since that seems to have ended, I'll do it on my own. I've got hand weights and a big long driveway, so we'll see how that goes.

On Tuesday and Thursday, I'll run. Yes, I'm going to start going to the track club Tuesday night workouts again. It's good for me. I'll get my Thursday run in either on Thursday afternoon, after work, or on Friday morning. On Saturdays, I'll do long runs with the track club, building about a mile or 15 minutes longer of running a week, until I get to two weeks before the race, then I'll taper a bit.

So that's my training plan. I've published it. I expect you all to harass me when I break from it.**

On the insurance front...

Heffers have long know about the classic ballad "Cows with Guns." I think Daisy shared it with us a few years ago, probably in response to one evening when I decided (after decidedly too much wine) to recite cow poetry. (I am NOT making this up).

My favorite cow poem? ((ahem, ahem))..

Distant Hills

The distant hills call to me

Their rolling waves seduce my heart.

Oh. How I want to graze in their lush valleys;

Oh. How I want to rundown their green slopes.

Alas, I cannot.

Damn the electric fence

Damn the electric fence***

What does any of this have to do with insurance? Nothing really, but all your email, and a nice conversation with my mother about my insurance, her insurance, and the ridiculousness of our health care system has made me feel rather militant and belligerent. I was talking about this and Turbo shared with me, "hey mom, I found a YouTube video of "Cows With Guns."

Maybe THIS will scare the insurance company...

Hey, have a great day and a great week. Shoutouts to all who ran Chicago and Long Beach this morning.

______________________

*Yes, I'd already typed "crapshoot" when I realized I'd made a really bad pun.

** Oh yeah, that 7 miles ended up being 5.77 miles; 1:03; 10:58 pace

*** I really have no idea who wrote this. I think it was on a Boynton birthday card. That I've saved it all these years on my computer? What can I say; it spoke to me.