Saturday, January 29, 2011

TGI(w)F* w=was

Friday afternoon was one of those weird wonderful days in Eastern Kansas, with the temperature in Lawrence moving into the mid 50s, and the wind becoming negligible. I took off from work early in order to have a vegan lunch at my parents' house (my parents aren't vegan, but they are very accommodating for their children), do a bit of banking, and of course, go running.

The lunch was a nice veggie stew and salad. Dessert was a fruit salad that contained mangoes and (my fav) papaya along with all the other usual suspects in a fruit salad. Banking followed. I was changing banks for a couple of my accounts, because the bank I use for me real estate loans was not one in which I had an account. I can't quite explain this. I have bought 5-7 houses and apartments with them over the years, but had failed to open an account. Well, they have wonderful people to work with, offer great service and a lot better schwag than other banks. So I did open the account. If you want to know the bank and you live in NE Kansas, write me and I'll tell you.

By the time that was done, I was tired, but the road beckoned. I dressed for (running) success, but when I stepped out the door, I realized I was over-dressed. Now for job interviews and the like, it is better to be over-dressed than under-dressed. But, if you're like me, and have issues with dehydration and profuse sweating, over-dressed is not always the way to go. So I put on very light-weight not-quite-tights and a light long-sleeve shirt and set out.

The first few miles were a bit demoralizing because with all of the melting snow, my feet got pretty stinking wet. I knew I'd have to do the run with squishes accompanying each footfall. But by the time I got out into the country, I had forgotten all about my feet, and just settled into a slow pace (9:15/mi) and enjoyed the view. I took along my new hand-held water bottle rig. It was a bit irksome at first, but overall, I like it better than the water belt I usually take. I also had a Cliff shot that I consumed midway.

The run was pleasant, if uneventful. But when I returned to my house, I found that I was pretty ragged. It was odd, because I hadn't felt that way on the run. For the next five hours, my stomach was cramping and upset. I tried (WARNING: TMI moment coming up fast) a bowel movement, and succeeded in filling the toilet up with blood. That was disconcerting. I also had a headache and an odd feeling of satiation. And, perhaps the strangest thing, my feet hurt. They hurt as though I'd had them beaten with a belt. I took a shower and a nap, and forced down a small salad and a tortilla. For my feet< I pulled out some Gold Bond cream. I used Bio-Freeze on my calves, and arnica on my knees.

I spent most of the evening watching the Australian Open while pondering my physical deterioration. I went to bed around 11 and slept through the night. When I awoke this a.m. all was well (whew). I am, however, taking the day off. Tomorrow I'll do a shorter run and see how that goes.

Finally, if you have a chance, watch the Finals of the Aussie Open. If you don;t know the women's result, I won't give it away here. But it was a wonderful match. Tomorrow, Andy Murray is trying to be the first Brit (well Scott, actually) since the 30s to win a major. But Djokovic is also looking to be in top form. Enjoy your tennis and running.

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