Yep, even I can tell that this post is going to be boring. Sorry!
No running tonight – I had thought of going to the gym to lift weights, but then I remembered – I had manure and top soil at home that need to be put down on my vegetable garden, and since each of those weighs 40 pounds, I figured those could be my weights. In New England, it’s not safe to put veggies out in the garden until at least the end of May (sad, I know, our summers can be pretty short sometimes.) Besides, I’d like to try to run about 8 miles tomorrow between the TNT training and my own afterward, so I figured giving my legs another night of rest wouldn’t kill me. And I just love the idea that I will be eating some of my very own veggies again this summer. Once the farm stands open up, I just hate having to get veggies at the supermarket! The tastes just don’t compare.
My little brother left me a voicemail earlier telling me he just did a 30-miler today to get ready for his Finger Lakes 50 Mile run in July. My big sis’ reaction – “he’s sick.” 🙂 She’s in South Bend this evening since Steven’s Sunburst Marathon starts at the bright and early time of 6 a.m. I guess his goal is to do the marathon between 4 hours, 30 minutes, and 4 hours, 45 minutes. She and I were joking that when Jamie runs with me in October, he may need to run ahead and come back or do laps around me if he feels the urge to run faster than I can keep up.
You want to know something that is sick? I just got my new issue of Running Times magazine this evening. They have an article in there talking about the Kenyans. I guess now the time a Kenyan likely has to run a marathon in to make the team is 2:05. Ok, I would be lucky to do a HALF marathon in that time!
Ok, I’m off to write out some more thank you notes – I am trying to keep up with them as best as I can, but thankfully, I have been receiving a lot of generous donations from folks, so as long as I am always a few behind, that’s actually a good thing, right?!
The first is my reason for not running tonight. My friend Nicole is getting married this Sunday, then leaving me (the audacity!) to move to Florida with her new husband, Kevin. I was over at her house putting together wedding favors. It took us all of 10-15 minutes, so of course I was really there to see her one last time privately before the craziness of her wedding day. She is just an amazing person, always smiling, always laughing. She and I are the kind of friends where we can go for a while without seeing each other, yet when we get together, we just pick up where we left off with no awkwardness, and it’s like no time has passed. We rationalized our eating chocolate cake for dessert, and lasagna, as my fuel for training. (Hey, I told you in an earlier post that I love food, remember?!)
The second is to my brother-in-law, Steven. He is training to run a 50K run (if you’re not good with math, don’t worry. Just know that it is equivalent to 31 MILES) at the same time as my nut of a younger brother, Jamie, in the Finger Lakes, in July. (He’s promised “there will be violence if your brother kicks my ass doing 50 miles while I run 31 miles.”) 🙂 He was on target to run 24 miles this week, so he figured, what the hell, I’ll just run a marathon. Hey at least this way he can get hydration support! He’s running the SunBurst Marathon, and I just noticed on the website – you end up at the end of the race running in the Notre Dame football stadium – how cool is that? I am very happy for him that they allow headphones. Why couldn’t they do that at the Maine Marathon, I ask, why, for the love of all that is good and holy don’t they allow it with TNT stuff??!!
GOOD LUCK STEVEN, YOU’RE GOING TO DO AWESOME – JUST IMAGINE I’M YELLING OUT THE CARAVAN WINDOWS OBNOXIOUS THINGS LIKE “LOOK AT THOSE SEXY LEGS, BABY, WOOHOO!” like I did a few years ago at the Toledo marathon… ha ha ha 🙂
Good luck, Annie, my big sis, in not getting lost driving around South Bend, while now doing this with not one, not two, but THREE kids!
The third is to my cyber running buddy, Lisa, in San Diego. She is running the Rock and Roll Marathon on June 1st. I just know she’s going to do great. She has the right attitude. People like Lisa amaze me. To have kids, and to be able to also find the time to train is so impressive to me. I see how much time it’s taking me, and I don’t even have little ones depending on me, unless you count my two cats and my parakeet. I’m so excited to read your blog afterward.
I know you guys will be busy over the next few days so I wanted to get these shout-outs out there quickly tonight. Lots of positive vibes being sent your way!
Middle-of-the-Pack Girl 
