Week 3 continued and a little of Week 4: Boston!

July 17-July 20

Friday: 7 miles on the Charles River Walk
Start Time: 8:00 am
Starting Temperature: 64 degrees
Post-run fuel:  Hostel breakfast of toast, peanut butter, bagel, cream cheese, yogurt, oatmeal, and coffee.
Notes: I like cities because they frequently follow a grid system. This means I can be dropped randomly in any part of the city and still have some idea where I'm going. When I moved from Suburbs, Long Island to Phoenix, my sense of direction improved greatly (don't verify this with my husband...). Boston, it seems, is not one of these cities. So, when I planned out a route on g-map-pedometer, I was setting myself up for failure an adventure.

Don't believe me? Please look below at my route in BLUE. I meticulously plotted out a route that would go near the Charles River Walk, Fenway Park, and the Emerald Necklace (a popular trail in Boston that is part of Boston's Half Marathon course). I planned to end my route at a T station that would get me back to the hostel.

If you look at my route in RED, you will see where I actually went. I stayed on course for a magical half mile. Look at all these photos I took while I was on course!

 
Then I did nothing else that I planned. I made it to the Charles River and got lost and more lost. I stopped and looked at my map several times but couldn't really figure out where I was because Boston's roads go in every freaking direction. So, I got a photo of Fenway from the wrong side of a big freeway and turned around. Then I went round and round in circles a trapezoidal-type pattern until I got in my 7 miles before the end of the run.

All this was okay because I got in my weekend run on Friday, which meant I could relax for my cousin's wedding weekend. I would give this another try on Monday.

And now for something completely different...

Crazy Jenga-ing at a Boston park for grown-ups

     Cousins!

Monday: 6 mile run to Fenway and 2nd (failed) attempt on the Emerald Necklace
Start Time: 7:30 am

Starting Temperature: 82 degrees
Post-run fuel: More hostel breakfast, yum!
Notes: Craig and I ran together for a mini-tour. Once again, we didn't follow the pre-planned route AT ALL, but this was okay because there is a neat little park that follows Commonwealth Avenue.  We made it to our points of interest: the Boston Marathon finish line and Fenway Park.

After that Craig headed back and I continued on my own with my second attempt of the Emerald Necklace. 

There was a sign RIGHT there!

One of my cousins had explained that Boston summers are filled with construction. I verified this on Monday's run. My intention was to run a total of 6 miles and finish at a nearby T station to take back to the hostel. Good news: I made it to a T and am not forever lost in Boston. Bad news: I lasted about a quarter mile on the Emerald Necklace before getting confused by construction and passing by the path.

I found the trail on my way back. Too late.

Once again, I ran some loops to get my distance in and finished at the Fenway T station, which (SURPRISE) was also under construction.

Okay. But I didn't bring my rappelling gear.

It took me about 10 minutes just to figure out how to get to the station. Upon leaving Boston, I feel disappointed that I didn't get to run all the routes that I found. To hell with touristy sight-seeing. I want running tours!

Blue = planned route
Red = real-life route

Epilogue:
I showered and changed after my run and left the hostel room, which I was sharing with FIVE men. I returned to the room later and was immediately overwhelmed with the smell of a locker room. Ugh! I wish I could blame any one of the men in that room But, alas, it was stinky old me. Or rather it was two sets of my sweaty running clothes stuffed into a bag in a poorly ventilated room during a humid Boston July. My apologies to the kind Japanese men and Scottish men and men named Craig. I promise not all American hostels are this foul.

Total Marathon Miles: 88

Week 3: Long Island and memories

July 12- July 15

Sunday: 3 miles out-and-back in Southold with Cait
Start Time: 7:00 am
Starting Temperature: 68 degrees
Post-run Fuel: coffee and a bagel with egg and cheese
Notes: Forever and ever ago, back in the year 2001, I became a runner. I had dabbled in running before. I was on the cross-country team for one season about 4 years earlier. I joined the team to hang out with my friends and because the coach was a teacher who was borderline crazy and liked to teach history in character and also die his hair purple. This was where I experienced my first runner's high, causing me to sprint the end of a race, passing a whole bunch of people on my team (but no opponents, of course). I still remember the look of surprise of friends Jess and Kris as I flew past them. Why didn't I continue with running? Not a clue.

But in 2001, I was 17 going on 18 (cue Sound of Music in the background) and my metabolism stopped being so friendly. I started noticing, um, consequences, for the 6 oreos I ate as an after-school snack, the super-sized milkshakes I drank at my dad's house, the ice cream binges at home (in my defense, if I didn't eat the ice cream quickly, my sister and mom would get to it first). Eating healthier didn't sound like much fun, so I started running. I went to the local sports store, Bob's, and found myself a pair of Adidas pants*, Puma shorts, and running sneakers. My very first running route was from my house to Cait's house, about one and a quarter miles away. Exhausted from the feat of running all that way, I'd hang out with Cait and her mom while I drank a glass of water. And then I ran home.

Since then, Cait got into running and even ran a marathon a few years ago. I would like to include a picture of the two of us from 2001, but I don't have any digital photos from then. So just imagine a short nerdy brunette with short hair that NEVER curled under like I wanted it to next to a tall nerdy blonde with long hair and big thick glasses. Instead, I'll include an image of our Southold running route, because Southold rocks.

*Edit: I wore these pants yesterday and Craig said, "The 1990's called and they want their Adidas wind pants back." 

Monday: 6 miles to Argyle Lake
Start Time: 6:00 pm
Starting Temperature: 80 degrees
Post-run Fuel: pumpkin ravioli
Notes: 

This is another run that jogged (pardon the pun) my memory. See the lake? Well, that was home for my first half-marathon training. I didn't follow any sort of plan. I just ran once or twice during the week. Then on the weekend, I would run to Argyle Lake and run around it a bunch of times. I didn't have a GPS running watch or gmap-pedometer back then, so I had to go old school and CALL THE TOWN to find out the distance around the lake, which is three-quarters of a mile. Every week I'd add another lap or two. It was 4 miles round trip to the lake, so by the end of training I ran about 10 laps around the lake. The mommies with their strollers were quite impressed.

Tuesday: 3 miles with Bailey and Winnie
Start Time: 10 am
Starting temperature: 77 degrees
Post-run fuel: water
Notes: I don't think anyone is more excited for my returns to Long Island than Bailey. I'm his favorite running buddy and he is eager to run with me every day that I am home. He practically tackles me as I walk in the door and his body shakes with excitement. If I go without him, he will whine and whine. He doesn't need to bring a water bottle because he loves drinking from puddles. Often, he is so excited that he has to stop to poo mid-stride during our runs. I guess I should mention that Bailey is a dog, though I also have human friends who share many of these qualities. Bailey is a Cocker Spaniel who would run 8 miles with me in his prime. Now he's getting older and out of shape, so 3 miles is about his limit. Winnie is a Chihuahua, with a 1-mile limit.

I rarely run with both of them. They like to criss-cross and they run at different paces and one time their leashes crossed, leaving Winnie right in my path. I kicked her and since she is a 10 pound Chihuahua, she flew as if I had just punted a football. Luckily, I can't punt a football very well.

But for today, I made a special exception. I took both of them for the first mile, dropped off Winnie, and then continued for 2 miles, allowing Bailey to stop to drink out of puddles.

Wednesday: 7 miles to Gardiner Manor Park
Start Time: 8:00 am
Starting temperature: 77 degrees
Post-run Fuel:  An egg and an english muffin
Notes: This route is another favorite on Long Island. The route from my mom's house to the start of the park is along unpleasantly busy roads, but the park itself is a two-thirds of a mile path that leads from the hectic roads to the Great South Bay. The path is lined with trees and cattails. Off the path there are woods for about a half mile in both directions. At the end of the path is an unmaintained stretch of beach, covered in seaweed and other plant life. Between the path and the bay, there is a lot of swampy marsh. In short, it's the kind of place that someone would hide a body if it weren't so well-traveled by walkers and runners and dogs. It's also the kind of place that someone might hide to take care of a bodily issue mid-run, not that I would know anything about that sort of thing.

Total Marathon Miles: 75

Week 2: Tour de Tempe

July 5 - July 10

Sunday: Tempe Town Lake 3-mile loop
Start Time: 8:30 am
Starting Temperature: 95 degrees
Post-run Fuel: English muffin and an egg
Notes: Craig joined me on this run. I write these notes one month later, so I remember not much at all. However, I recall that the main reason I wanted to run around the lake was to see the after effects of Independence Day activities. We ran over the Mill Ave bridge, where they set off the fireworks and we saw some remnants of that. Other than that, Tempe cleaned up quite well overnight.

Tuesday: Running for Brews 5-miler around Tempe Town Lake
Start Time: 7:00 pm
Starting Temperature: 105 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Fresh Squeezed IPA and potato chips
Notes: Blasted Barley has delicious potato chips.
This week's theme was "Shark Week". Some people get really creative with these themes. Evidence:

Wednesday: 3-mile run to Tempe Marketplace (with an Orbit bus ride home)
Start Time: 8:15 am
Starting Temperature: 95 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Fried tortilla with beans, cheese, and peppers
Notes: I love the Orbit. It's a free bus system that goes all around north Tempe. On this particular day, I ran to the shopping center, enjoyed some shopping, and then bused home.

Thursday: 5-mile out-and-back on the Crosscut canal
Start Time: 8:30 am
Starting Temperature: 88 degrees - Cool and cloudy, but the humidity more than made up for it
Post-run Fuel: Too gross to eat; jumped in the pool
Notes: The crosscut is my new favorite out-and-back. The path parallels a stream with some little waterfalls. It's a noticeable uphill on the way out, which makes the way back amazing. I was on such a high that I went into full lip-syncing-and-finger-dancing-while-running mode, even while passing several cars on the Mill Ave bridge. So if you find a picture floating around the internet of a woman who looks like she's simultaneously running and seizing, that might be me.

Friday: 11 miles to and from Belmont Lake on Long Island
Start Time: 3:00 pm - this is not my ideal running time, but at least on Long Island, 3 pm in July will not give me heat stroke.
Starting Temperature: 83 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Chocolate milk and dinner with childhood friend Danielle and her family and her adorable 3-month old (sausage and peppers)
Notes: I arrived on Long Island at around 6 am Long Island time, 3 am Tempe time. I planned to do my long run on Saturday, but ended up getting the energy to run on Friday. I also knew that getting it done on Friday meant I wouldn't need to be in a rush on the morning that I'd be starting a weekend trip with some of my very favorite ladies.
Energy or not, I still wasn't completely excited about starting a run so late. As I started my run, my mp3 started mid-song: "Miserable, and you're just getting started." (gold star if you can name the band who sings this WITHOUT internet assistance) I definitely yelled back at it, "I know!" But by the time I made it to the path to Belmont Lake, I had made up my own song:
Summer runnin' happened so fast.
Summer runnin' had me a blast.
Found a trail perfect for me.
The whole thing shaded by trees.
Summer run, I've just begun.
But, oh, those runner's highs.
Well oh well oh well oh...

On a separate note, I had some extra miles to kill so I let myself get lost around the park. I have run around this park many times, but never before saw this building (photograph courtesy of the internet):

What is it? It looks like a lighthouse, doesn't it? Except that this park is very much inland. There's a lake, but I'm pretty sure that a lake with the circumference of a mile doesn't need a lighthouse. Is it a water tower? I tried to find out on the web, but those people are just as confused as I. Finally, I went to the park's actual website (genius, I know) and found a map. On the map, it is marked as a water tower. Success! Though I really was hoping it was a displaced lighthouse with an interesting background story.

Total marathon miles: 56

Week 1: Let's get this thing started

June 28 - July 4

Sunday: San Juan 8 miles
Start Time: 5:30 am
Starting Temperature: 93 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Pancakes, bacon, and rosemary potatoes at Matt's Big Breakfast
Notes: I decided to count this toward marathon training, even though I'm a day early. I only needed to do 5 miles, so I'm already kind of an over-achiever.

Tuesday: Running for Brews 5-miler
Start Time: 7:00 pm
Starting Temperature: 103 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Strawberry Bottle Rocket beer
Notes: Upon moving to Tempe, I urgently shopped around for running clubs. I enjoy running alone, but I knew I would need some social motivation, especially when the truly long runs kicked in. Running for Brews is the first club I tried out a few weeks ago. They have weekly themes, this one being "Red, White, and Brew" in honor of the upcoming 4th of July holiday. Most runners in this group run 3 miles, but there's a 5-miler group that I joined this week. And afterwards everyone has beer.
Craig: "I get the feeling you'll be drinking a lot of beer during marathon training."

Wednesday: Aravaipa 3-miler
Start Time: 6:30 pm
Starting Temperature: 99 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Orange Bomb beer and potato chips
Notes: My first run with this trail-running group. I went with the super-duper fun group, which was a little too "fun" (slow) for me, but that's okay. My goal was to stay on track without getting lost and twisting an ankle. Mission: accomplished. I also met someone from the TLC hiking group, who of course knows friend Jill, thus continuing to support my "7 degrees of separation from Jill Diamond" theory. Finally, I've learned quickly that running groups in this area seem to really really like group pictures.

Friday: Tempe Town Lake 3-mile loop
Start Time: 8:00 am
Starting Temperature: 90 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Cereal
Notes: I love that I can run around a lake on a regular basis.

Saturday: 7 1/2 miles to Liz's, with some detours to make it a 10-miler
Start Time: 5:30 am
Starting temperature: 89 degrees
Post-run Fuel: Liz's homemade french toast, bacon, and raspberry lemonade
Notes: Getting to Liz's was easy, but getting out of Tempe was no small feat. Tempe Town Lake hosts a fireworks show, and the park was already starting to close off. I entered the park without any issue, but then got stuck trying to get out a mile down the path. I finally found an exit, blocked by long folding tables. There was a man standing guard. As I arrived at the tables, the man scolded a couple of teenagers trying to enter. "I'm just trying to leave!" I politely proclaimed, as I ducked under a table and ran off.
Now that we moved to Tempe, I live a mere 7 and a half miles from Lizbeth, my mom's cousin who also happens to be my only family here in Arizona. Liz is an amazing host, and she didn't disappoint on this 4th of July.

Total marathon miles: 29 miles

Ragnar Del Sol Volunteers

On Ragnar Del Sol's 17th leg there is 2 miles of dirt trail that is dark and washed out. Craig was bike support to prevent people from getting lost where the trail washed out.

Along with dancing, singing, and cheering, Betsy and I made sure the runners turned left to go through a fence and not off another way into the wilderness. Many runners told us, "Thank God you're here!"

But at 1 am our shift was done and no one came to replace us. I texted the Ragnar people and they said no one would be coming. So we did the best we could with 1 glow stick, the light saber stick, and 1 blinky light. We stood back to see if the runners would figure it out. Of the next three runners, one tried to go straight into the neighborhood, one tried to turn right and disappear into the wilderness, and one turned left to stay on the course. All three gave us the stink eye for just standing there without giving them any direction.

We texted the Ragnar people again and they said they would send someone to put up more signs. In the meantime, we didn't want people to start getting lost the moment we were gone. Craig decided to bike over to the blinky-covered bridge (which was already well-lit and, seriously, how can you get lost on a bridge?) and took 8 of them to help out our cause. We covered the gate in blinkies and decided there was no possible way people could get lost. The picture below doesn't do justice to how brightly lit this thing was. They would come up the trail (from the left of the picture) and then approach the light saber that pointed them to the left.  They just needed to follow all the lights and make a left turn where Betsy is standing.

Our work was done. We decided no one could get lost now. So we began to walk away to the car. And as we walked we heard a few runners approach all at once.
"Which way do we go?"
"I don't know."
"There really should be someone sitting here."

The First Day Marathon

Today I put another First Day of School in the books. On my way home, I thought about how the First Day of School is much like running a marathon. Before the big marathon, I must stay focused and disciplined. I spend a lot of time preparing so that I meet the goals I set for myself. Such is the first day of school as well. I can't show up to either one unprepared. It would be a disaster. In the case of a marathon, I would cause an injury to myself. In the case of the first day of school, I would cause utter chaos. In either case, I would probably collapse mid-way through. So I spend many days and hours preparing for this one day, exhausting myself little by little before the important event has even arrived!

Before I know it, the day before the marathon or the first day of school sneaks around the corner. I won't get much sleep. I think about all the possible things that could go wrong. I'm stressed and nervous. I tell myself that I'm ready and that I've done all I can do. Once I'm in the midst of it, I will be fine. The anticipation is brutal.

The morning of, I wake up early because I don't want to have to rush. I need time to eat a good breakfast to fuel my day. I always lay out my clothes the day before because I don't want to think about a single thing other than the big event for which I've prepared. I always think I have plenty of time before things begin. Usually it IS a lot of time. But somehow those hours disappear in minutes and suddenly I'm rushing to the portable toilets or the copy room, depending on which event it is.

The school bell rings or the race gun fires and I'm off. I'm in it now and I just need to hope all my planning pays off. I don't have time to think about eating, drinking, or using the bathroom. There are too many other things going on. People are around to cheer me on and see how I'm doing, but for the most part I'm on my own. There are ups and downs throughout the day, but I'm using up all my resources and all my energy for several hours. I can't help but hit the wall at some point. I might need to take a walk break or tell the kids to take some quiet time. Even so, I have to keep pushing forward towards the finish line, or 3:30 pm.

When my day is done, I breathe out a heavy sigh of relief. I feel a sense of success, even though the day wasn't perfect. I made it through and I'm still in one piece (barely). Once the endorphin high wears off, all I can think about is rehydrating, eating a massive plate of food, and sleep. I'm exhausted and delirious.

In the case of a marathon I say to myself, "Laura, you did it! You ran a marathon! You get to relax and celebrate and take a break from running for awhile."

In the case of the First Day of School I say to myself, "Laura, you did it! You had a successful first day of school. And tomorrow you get to do it ALL OVER AGAIN."

Staunton

Craig and I had a quick visit to Staunton - about 5 hours - before we boarded the Amtrak to head to New York City. Our tour guides, former neighbor Alex and her fiance Nick, led us through the streets of their charming small town. First, we stopped at their apartment. As others cleaned up from our camping weekend, I trudged through the process of printing our Amtrak boarding passes on a computer and a printer that didn't want to cooperate with each other. After everyone finished cleaning up and I was still trudging through the printing process, Craig sat listening to Nick playing the piano, enamored with Nick's self-taught ability.

"Craig, can I borrow your phone?" I asked, hoping I could call the Amtrak people and find out that we wouldn't need a printed ticket. Craig pulled his phone from his pocket and handed it to me, barely giving me a glance for fear that he would miss a second of Nick's impressive tinkle across the keys.

After listening to static-filled, jumbled phone music, an Amtrak customer service representative answered the phone.
"Is it possible to board the Amtrak train without a printed boarding pass?" I asked. "I have the confirmation number," I added in a helpful tone.
The Amtrak rep paused as she researched the Staunton station. "This is an unmanned station so you will need to have your boarding pass printed ahead of time. If you don't have a printer, you can use your smartphone."

I don't have a smartphone.

"I have a laptop. Can I present the boarding pass on my laptop?"

The Amtrak rep sounded slightly alarmed that I didn't have a smartphone. Perhaps she was talking with a bum of some sort who would smudge the delightful atmosphere that Amtrak trains provide. Still, she agreed that I could in fact use my laptop to board the train.

I announced the situation and the solution if we couldn't print the boarding pass, pulling Craig's attention away from the piano just long enough to return his phone to his outstretched hand.

Alex found another laptop that she assured me would connect to the printer, if the computer decided to turn on at all. I creaked open the lid and pressed the power button. The computer showed signs of life, just barely. After it installed the hundreds of updates it had missed over the past few years, it was ready to go. Success!

Craig and I got our things together so that we could stop at Nick's gelato shop, The Split Banana, before we headed out of town. We followed Alex and Nick down the hill which led to downtown. When we arrived at The Split Banana, Craig seemed a bit frazzled and started going through his backpack.

"Laura, do you have my cell phone?"
"No, I borrowed it, but I handed it back to you while you listened to Nick on the piano." I added these details to prove to him (and myself) that I really did return the phone and that it wasn't lying on the floor next to one of the laptops with which I had battled.
"Are you sure? I don't remember you handing it back to me. Where did I put it?"
"Of course you don't remember. You were listening intently to Nick. You probably put the cell phone on the piano."
"Why would you let me do that?"
"I didn't want to be responsible for the phone, so I made sure I handed it back to you. I didn't think about what you might do with the phone! It's probably on the piano."

We decided we'd put the phone situation on hold so we could enjoy our gelato. One of the perks of owning a non-smart phone is that it's not a big deal if it gets lost.

But before we noticed, Nick fled out the door and started running up the hill to his and Alex's apartment. Within a few minutes, my phone rang. It was coming from Craig's phone. I answered it.

"Nick, you found the phone! Where was it?"

I listened to his answer and then glanced over at Craig with that look that all wives seem to develop over time. The look that silently says, "Sometimes, I know you better than you know yourself."