Less than 2 months to go

I can’t believe it’s been a month since I last updated this blog.  Sorry for the oversight.  Let me try and catch you up on what’s happened the past month.

• Unfortunately, I can’t say the weather has changed a whole lot.  It’s still cold, windy and there’s always a chance of snow.  Granted almost all of the snow has melted off of the roadways and sidewalks (yay) but snow is continually in the forecast.  Actually, this Sunday, APRIL FRICKEN 5TH…. the forecasters are predicting a storm will roll through the area.  Un-fricken-believeable.
• I’ve been sick for 16 days and counting.  About 2 days ago is the first time I could say that “I was getting better” when someone would ask.  Before that I was still sick, it’s just my degree of sickness and symptoms changed daily.  This is the first time I’ve been this sick while training.  And let me tell you, it freaks me out.  If you don’t believe me, just ask my husband.  He’s the lucky recipient of most of my freak outs.  What’s got me worried is I didn’t/don’t know when to run and not to run.  I mean, I know you have to take care of yourself so you can get better.  But yet, you just can’t stop running until you’re feeling well again.  If that was the case, I still wouldn’t be running.  I did take off a full 2-days of running and that was huge for me.  And it was very mentally defeating.  After that I got back out and pretty much ran as scheduled.  I did cut back a bit on one of my week day runs, but other than that… it’s been running while I’m sick and coughing until I think I may loose a lung whenever I stop.  During the peak of my sickness, when my co-workers were offering to let me lay down in their offices and/or taking long lunches so I could sleep… I still logged 31 miles in 5 days.  That might not sound like a lot.  But trust me… it was!!!!  When I didn’t have enough strength to stay sitting upright at my desk for an extended period of time, running 31 miles was a feat.
• Before my sickness, training had been going relatively well (quick… knock on wood, spit over your shoulder and rub a rabbit).  No major injury to speak of.  A lot of aches and pains but that I can deal with.  An injury versus “bad knees” is a big difference.  It’s  a big difference both physically but just as importantly… mentally.

Speaking of the differences (or similarities) in training… here are some observations between 07 and 09.

• Soreness is easier to deal with than an injury.
• 09…. record setting snow fall.  2nd snowiest winter EVER!!  Seriously, can you comprehend that?  2nd snowiest EVER…. try running through that.  The snowfall in 09 deserves a big, middle-finger in the air from me.  Actually, I’m pretty sure there’s been more than one run that I put my middle finger in the air.
• Because of said, record-setting snowfall… I am much less tolerant of non-shoveled sidewalks.  Hence my confronting two local businesses.
• The record setting snowfall has made me a much more accomplished snow bank traverser.   In 07, I could not get over snowbanks gracefully.  And when you’re trying to stick the landing… it just makes for disaster.  This year, I didn’t try to hurkey my way over snowbanks or stick the landing.  I just crawled up and crawled down them… all the while stinking my middle finger in the air! (Or swearing profusely.)
• I still have anxiety the night (okay… maybe even two nights) before a long run, but a lot less than in 07.
• I’m a lot less cranky when I run.
• Husband thinks I’m still just as cranky as always.
• I’m not able to sing my “this is the longest I’ve ever run” song this year.  So I make up for it by singing other things and playing other fun games.
• Speaking of fun games…. I have to say it’s really amazing what happens when you have logged almost 300 miles to this point… you find anything and everything to help pass the time.  We (and this time I really do mean “we”… husband gets into the games too) have really weird things we do when we’re running on the trail and we see a duck or a goose.  I’m guessing you can use your imagination and figure out what the games consists of.  I just told the husband he better watch out for when we actually spot the woodpecker we heard in the trees!
• I’ve found that because I’ve already run a marathon that people now think it is easy for me.  Let me be the first to say…. IT IS NOT EASY FOR ME.  NOR DO I EVER THINK IT WILL BE.  Running 26.2 miles will always be tough.
• Can of Corn… ’07
• Can of Spam… ’09.  (and when we have a mile left to go… it’s no longer a can of spam but it’s a single serving of spam!)
• Favorite saying at the end of every run in ’07… Hoo Rah
• Favorite saying at the end of every run in ’09… Hoo Rah
• Thing I was most afraid of for the actual race in ’07…. my injury
• Thing I’m most afraid of for the actual race in ’09… tie between the hills and the heat.  But I think the heat will prevail as the winner.  Can’t train for heat.  Especially when it doesn’t get above 45 degrees in WI.
• 07… the route was a rockin!
• 09… the route SHOULD be a rockin!  Does everyone know their mile markers and duties or do I need to create another spreadsheet?!?!
• ’07… ran the marathon in memory of my mom
• ’09… running the marathon in honor of my dad
• ’07… considered myself a running wannabe
• ’09… still a wannabe.  At what point do I become an actual runner?  Because as of now… I’m still feeling like a poser.
• ’07… approximate # of marathoners… 2,000
• ’09… approximate # of marathoners… 20,000
• ’07… beverage of choice post marathon… beer
• ’09…. beverage of choice post marathon will be… beer
• ’07… the day after the marathon, I went to work
• ’09… the day after the marathon, I’m going to be in sunny San Diego w/ friends and family.  Can’t get better than that.

Until next time… gotta run