momma needs new shoes

time for me to replace my running shoes.

can i admit that i'm extremely overwhelmed and suffering from reverse-culture shock?

i'm staying across from a giguntus mall in northern virginia...and today i walked in there and i kinda freaked out a little.

whenever i run into the Giant (grocery store) to pick up something like bread or milk i'm entirely confused by the endless choices.

i've also driven more in the last few weeks than i have in the last 7 years. omg. people do NOT obey traffic laws in northern virginia. is it just me?

i also forgot that people in northern virginia, especially close to D.C. do NOT speak to strangers nor do they establish eye contact. say hello or good morning to someone and you're going to get the hairy eyeball unless they are from somewhere else, y'all. kinda funny.

and...don't even get me started on going into the D.M.V. now that was stressful. wow.

so....
if you're still with me...
i need to get some new running shoes. can anyone in my area who stumbles upon my blog recommend a running shoe store? or a running shoe? i'm on the last legs of my adidas supernovas that i bought in bern, and my right achilles tendon and heel are starting to hurt again.

in other news, our house is being re-painted and re-carpeted as i write. we should be able to abandon the hotel-life and move in by mid august. think of me when i'm unpacking all my *stuff*. in fact, i'll probably have a really groovey garage sale before too long to unload some of my treasures from mexico, venezuela, colombia, panamá, france and switzerland.

i'm making an concerted effort to keep running. i had to run in "tyson's corner" this morning. it sounds like quaint farm land, when in actuality it is URBAN SQUALOR. i've stuck to a 1.22 mile loop around the several blocks by our hotel which keep me from crossing any major intersections. not too bad if you don't mind feeling like you were sucking on a tailpipe by the time you're done.

today i did a little over 3 miles on my loopy-loop at about 9:30 a.m. it was soooooo humid out there i felt like a biology experiment by the end. interesting things happen when the humidity is higher than the air temperature. you just keep getting hotter, and hotter and hotter...and sweatier and sweatier and sweatier. ahhhhhh. the dog-days. i can't wait until summer is over so i can run in cooler weather again.

hope you've had a good run today!

it's not the heat, it's the stupidity

hi...
just stopping by to let you know i'm still alive. ha.
still in a hotel
waiting for the house to get painted and recarpeted
living out of a suitcase
eating out every night
trying to run in the mornings
but i'm finding it stupidly difficult to get into a routine.
i have the upmost admiration for you folks out there who travel and still keep up with your running. you are my inspiration.
the hardest part of running for me is just getting out the bleeping door in the first place. so...
i've been a stupid girl and have come up with all kinds of excuses this last week and didn't run as i should have.
but ENOUGH of that already.
in personal news #1 son just signed on with the USMC -- he's a "pool-ee" (sp?) and is heading off to bootcamp in october. you should see his face - he's SO excited and scared S-less at the same time. (me too...but don't tell anyone.)

y'all have a great day! summer is just flying by.

it's all relative

I spent a wonderful week in Tallahassee with my Mom and Dad, and also attended my 30th High School Reunion. All of this was major fun.

I managed to get some running in, although I must confess I was really a wimp and the heat and humidity kicked my you-know-what. I did two runs early, early in the morning and still only managed to run about 25-28 minutes. When I was finished I was sopping wet. The third run I did on a treadmill, under a ceiling fan, in the AC at a gym. ahhhh. i know, i know. it's not the same, but i promise you i worked hard on the treadmill - was on it for 1.5 hours. i did two consecutive 30-minute hill workouts and then "ran" another 2 miles on flatness. treadmills and AC are a half way decent compromise when dealing with high humidity and heat i suppose, although i wouldn't call it running ....it's more like "bouncing." ha

Now I'm back in northern Virginia and just finished about a 3 miler through my sister's neighborhood about 7:00 am. Whew. The temps this morning sure felt awesome compared to Florida. Just thought I'd share....I've been reading about fellow runners out there in 100+ heat in places like Arizona. How do they do it?

photo: Tallahassee Canopy Road (from the interweb)

(see this Article about Tallahassee)