the one with the really long run

this is the famous tyson's corner landmark we all call "the toilet bowl." i stayed at a hotel across the street from it from the beginning of july until mid august. all that time i managed to run in spurts here and there. i really disliked running there. i'm very happy that now that we're all moved into our real house, i can enjoy running around the neighborhood, or even better, taking to the trails in the woods behind the house. the trails aren't as extensive as the ones i enjoyed back in switzerland, but i can easily use a 1.5 mile link over and over again. and that's what i did today. i ran it 3 times. it took be a little over 2 hours. i walked for a couple of minutes every mile or so just to make sure i didn't "over do""it. at my "advanced age" i'm all about that! i just wanna keep being able to keep on keepin' on. i'm just sayin'.

this is the last weekend before the Army 10 Miler so i went out and ran and ran for 2 hours along the trails. with cooler temps and lower humidity i was in heaven. i'm not sure how far i technically went, but if i did a paltry 15 minute mile then i probably managed about 8.6 miles. if i kept up my average pace of around a 12 minute mile, then i managed about 10.75. hmmm. i don't think i went that far, so, i'm guessing my distance fell in between somewhere. i wanted to cover 8 miles today, so i'm satisfied with that.

supper tonight - mr. wonderful took me out to the local chinese restaurant. yeah, baby. no cooking! good food! and now....football.

have a great one.

summer's last hurrah

after mother nature teased us all this past week with low humidity and temperatures in the mid 70s, on saturday she gave us a reminder what summer in virginia is all about. with humidity higher than air temperatures, i ventured out early saturday morning to join in a 5K run by the Navy Federal Credit Union. although the actual air temperatures were only in the upper 70s, my hopes of "PRing" quickly faded about half way through when i felt like i had wrapped myself up in "Glad Wrap" and i was pouring sweat and my breathing was labored. i am definitely not used to this, even though i've been struggling all summer long to run in it as much as i could. so, anyways, not wanting you to read my obituary instead of my blog, i broke down and walked....and walked quite a few more times when i felt like i needed to. sigh. i was able to "kick it in" the last 100 meters, and that was fun and i crossed the finish line "in style!" ha. my time? well...36:30. slower than the last two 5Ks i did. sigh. i was 13th out of 18 in my age group. sigh. and i was 101st out of 158 women. my consulation is i wasn't last, and a year ago, i wouldn't have been able to do this at all! and yeah... i got a free t-shirt.

rare dinosaur sighting!

did you know, i'm so excited today! one of my favorite bloggers has reappeared after a long silence!! see Dinosaur!

in my personal running news: yeah...i'm still plodding along. the heat and humidity have been hard for me after my seven years in europe. ugh. but last weekend i was able to get in a little over 5 miles. it was nice and slow, and i was hot and uncomfortable the entire time, but somehow it felt marginally better than the 5 miles i did the week before when the weather was actually cooler.

i am SO ready for fall weather!!!

our house is unpacked. almost all of the pictures have been hung and most of the clutter has either been sent on to the salvation army, or dealt with. nina is happy because both of "her kids" are at home.

i'm sipping coffee now ....trying to battle the demons in my head who say DON'T RUN TODAY!! it's only 74 degrees but it's 91% humidity. yuk. oh well