My confession

Please forgive me, it's been ten days since my last run...

"Run 8 miles this morning and all shall be forgiven"

And that's how it went this morning. I spent the last 10 days not really wanting to run, but not wanting to not run. Last weekend I just was not motivated to run. I wanted to do something (other than work) and running was just not it.

And I was okay with that.

Normally, I am in a foul mood because I want to run, but I can't. Last weekend though, I just didn't care. And I really was surprised by that. I thought, no problem - I'll just get in runs during the week to make up for it.

Never happened.

I think there was one half-hearted attempt one morning, but then I just went into work early instead. Work has been consuming my time a lot in the past 2 months. At first I was alright with it. I was feeding off the adrenaline rush of a constant deadline to keep a project moving. Then the inevitable happened. Everything seemed to hit all at once - the perfect storm. I was working on two projects in design (and two under construction) and all of a sudden schedules for both design projects aligned and I found myself needing to be in two places at once and I was at a loss for what to do. I was almost frozen like a deer in headlights.

I've never been one to ask for help. Part of it is I am a control freak (probably the biggest part). I accept this although others may not and I do what it takes to get my work done - but usually at a cost. I spent a lot of long nights and early mornings to keep things moving, skipped runs and certainly anything resembling a good night's sleep. And I think it has finally caught up to me. I've said it all before -- life is all about balance, and my life is far from being in balance right now. This morning's run was a first step towards regaining that balance, but I have a lot to do.

My spring half-mary is a little different this year, but I think it is exactly the kind of race I need. I am going to run the Anti-Mini Marathon on May 7th. It's a little unconventional, but it looks to be a very runner friendly race. My plans to run the spring trail run series is out the window. I've had a conflict on a couple of the races, so it looks like I'll have to wait for the fall series and look for trail runs during the summer. Still deciding on my full marathon for the fall. I am leaning towards the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon this year, but we'll see.

Getting back to my run this morning: I had a pretty good run. I actually wanted to run and felt ready to get back out there. I started early - before the sun was even up and I finished just as the sun came over the horizon. There were birds chirping and flowers blooming. It was great to take it all in. And as I was in the final stretch of my run, "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" came on my iPod -- we had it played at Everett's funeral and it just seemed so fitting for it to play when it did. The sky was lightening up to a beautiful blue, the sun was the orangey-pink color that sunrises often are and birds were flying overhead. It felt like a good morning wish from Everett and just made my run that much better.

Run Down

After the week I had the previous week and then my "long" run last weekend, I was sure I was spreading myself a little too thin. I felt uninspired, tired and just generally unmotivated. I was sleep-deprived, stressed over work and not feeling myself. Massive amounts of coffee just was not making a difference.

Another extremely busy week and I about hit my breaking point. I decided to take Friday off. I of course did not go to bed early and did not sleep in, so it ended up being a wasted effort to relax. Steph had me go with her to an exercise class at the Y and it nearly killed me. I am hoping it is the lack of sleep that caused me to feel sick and weak at the end of the 45 minutes, but I am not sure. As I type this, my legs are a little sore still.

I did get some decent sleep (for once) last night, but I am still not feeling myself. Here it is a beautiful sunny day and I don't feel like heading out on a run. I almost wish it were a rainy day out - then I'd almost have a legitimate excuse for not doing anything outside. I think if I get moving and do something I'll feel better. I hate not accomplishing anything. It is a little early to really do much official yard work, but there is enough to keep me busy outside to get prepared. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the things that need done this year. The list is endless, so I won't bother going into details.

This does not bode well for my training for an undeclared half marathon this spring... I have until May for any of the races I was looking at and my training was a little ahead, but still... I have lost some momentum and I don't like it. Perhaps it is the fact that I have not signed up for a specific race, but I'm not sure.

Any words of inspiration from anyone out there would be helpful.

Finally...

At what seemed like an eternity, the "Official" Run 4 Everett website and race registration is now open and ready! If this wasn't so important to us, we may have just scrapped the idea. Getting a race started is not as easy as I thought it would have been. Finding the right race director is key - we learned the hard way, but thankfully early in the process. Sponsorships have been on both ends of the spectrum. Some came wonderfully easy, others have not.

So if anyone is reading this, and you are looking for a race to do in August -- the 20th more specifically, we have a race for you. Go to run4everett.com and browse around and feel free to sign up. It is a first year event, but we are working hard to make it a fun day for all who attend. IF you cannot attend, but wish to help, there is also a link to donate directly to Kate Cares - the organization we are trying to raise money for.

Thanks and hope to see you there!

The Running Community

I've always felt the running community was a tight-knit group. I just took that as gospel. While working with Steph to pull together Run 4 Everett for August, we have met some truly amazing people, who are dedicated to running and, quite honestly, being good people. Unfortunately, we've met some posers too. The one's who claim to be about the sport, but in fact, are in it for the quick buck it seems. My faith in the running community has been wavering...

We met a guy yesterday who's been a runner probably over 40 years. Knows the sport, loves the sport and is just an all-around great guy (at least that is my first impression, and no one usually comes across that way to me who isn't genuine). We met to go over t-shirt type, logo design and we came out of the meeting with so much more. He is a wealth of knowledge (not to mention connections). Probably not 30 minutes after we left, he had contacted a running store we have been trying to talk to weeks and we got a response from them not 30 minutes after that! They've offered to donate gift cards  for the raffle and/or race awards... This one small gesture alone has me believing in the running community again. Thanks Marty!

Coffee, Tea or Me

Anyone who knows me knows that I live much of my life around coffee.

Let me  rephrase that.

"good" coffee.

After all, life's too short for bad coffee. I will be the first to admit, I am a snob when it comes to coffee. I used to drink whatever just to get through long nights in studio at college. Then is carried over when I began work. But as I have moved on in my life, my love of coffee has grown and my palette has become more sophisticated. I have a friend form Seattle to thank for this by the way...

I believe my interest really grew back in 2005 on a trip to Key West. While there we stopped at a coffee roaster (Baby's Coffee), actually not just any coffee roaster, but the southernmost coffee roaster in the United States. Long story short, I was getting a lot of my coffee from there for quite some time. Roasted in small batches, always whole bean, it was something I looked forward to at Christmas time when I'd get a few pounds... it never seemed to last long enough though.

Since then, I've ventured into local roasts here and when on vacation I ALWAYS try to find a local roaster to taste their creations. Most of the time I am not disappointed.

Not too long ago I was introduced to tea. Maybe that's not quite right - I've had tea before, but mostly it was a drink for when I was under the weather with a cold or flu. I think some of the lackluster image of it stemmed from that, but it never gave me the same satisfaction as a good cup of coffee.

Until a couple of months ago.

Steph got me a cup of tea in the middle of the afternoon as a "pick me up"and I'll admit I was slightly disappointed when she said it was tea (hoping for a coffee), but when I tried it, I was pleasantly surprised. It was an amazing taste and on top of that, it had an awesome level of caffeine in it. I later found out it was a blend -- chai / mate with as much caffeine as a cup of coffee -- that sold me. I ended up going back to the tea store and getting some as an alternative to coffee (shudder the thought). I am still quite the die hard coffee drinker, but having an option isn't too bad.

I did have a bit of a disappointing day yesterday when I broke one of my beloved coffee mugs that I've had since college -- from the same Seattle friend. It had an image with "just say no to decaf" saying on it. It served me well every weekend for 16 years. It will be sadly missed as it was a nice large mug with a big handle. I have plenty of others to fall back on, but it won't be the same...

On a running note, I got out for a 15k today. It was a little sloppy with some slushy spots along the way, but overall felt great, hit a lot of hills and still managed an 8:58/mile average. Looking forward to the trail run series that starts next month. I now feel ready for them as well as a half marathon. I think I've decided on the Geist Half Marathon for this spring. I have two days to sign up before prices go up, so guess I had better get to it...

Now, time for a cup of coffee. Until then keep on running.