Not bad

This last weekend my Mom came to town to help me have a yard sale.  My aunt died a few months ago, and my mom has been working on cleaning out her house, that she didn’t live in, that was piled high in stuff, because apparently my aunt was a hoarder, literally.  Anyway, with all the stuff that my Mom has been pulling out of her house, she was going to bring some of it to my house for a yard sale.  We were going to do it on Saturday only.

Then throughout the week the weather was predicted to be rainy.  We haven’t had a lot of rain here for the last 3 months (maybe common for other areas, but I live in western WA, rain is common here, even in the summer).  I decided that even if it rained we were going to go ahead with the yard sale, I’ve been saying I was going to have a yard sale since May and finally scheduled it, my Mom was here, we were having it.

And then Friday night I looked at the weather and it was predicting a major windstorm.  Rain and wind?  Nothing would be dry.  Everything would blow away.  So my Mom and I decided to skip the yard sale.  She left some of her stuff at my house and I decided I would have it this Saturday, which is supposed to be sunny and in the 70’s.  And we had a windstorm.  I guess some places the wind got up to 85 mph, not my house, but not very far away.

We decided to do some grocery shopping instead. So Saturday we went to Walmart, no power, they were turning people away at the door.  Okay, we went to Safeway instead (I like Safeway a lot better anyway).  Then I remembered that I was out of running fuel, so I rushed to the running store to get some, closed, no power.  Ugh!  Then I remembered my Nuun and decided that I would just use that.  I haven’t taken a water bottle on a run “only” 12 miles long, but that was all I had so it would have to do. 

Luckily the wind only lasted Saturday.  I skipped my 5 mile run on Saturday because of it, but didn’t want to skip my 12 mile scale back run on Sunday.

I decided to just run my old long route through town.  I’ve done it so many times it was no big deal.  Although, when I looked at it to make sure it was 12 miles, I apparently looked at the wrong day.  I got to about mile 7 and realized I was only 2 miles from home.  I needed to be 5 miles from home.  Crap! So I had to do some figuring out where I could get another 2 miles in.  I hate adding miles at the end of my run, especially on a route I do regularly.  I like to get the added mileage done early so that I end in the same spot so I trick myself into thinking it wasn’t really longer.  (I don’t think it quite works though.) 

I usually end at a Middle School in the middle of a trail that I’ve run hundreds of times.  It’s a 2 mile trail that I used to run out and back one way and then out and back the other because the road I lived on was in exactly in the middle of the trail.  Well, lately I’ve been ended my runs after only running one mile of that trail, so I knew I could run out and back on the part I haven’t been running much lately and then add a half mile on the end of the out part of the trail to get the extra 3 miles I would need.  I did it and it didn’t suck.

I actually felt good about my run this last weekend.  I wasn't exhausted afterwards like I have been.  I didn't feel the need to crash on my couch for an hour or longer.  And my feet didn't hurt as much.  All good things.  Too bad marathons aren't shorter.  ; )

This week, 18 miles scheduled!  I'm sure my feet will be tired.  I'm sure I will be exhausted.  I'm hoping I have my fuel figured out.