Better to Laugh

Yesterday, I did not have my finest hour.  The new copier at work would not do what I wanted it to do, and I had a complete breakdown.  I think fatigue and PMS had something more to do with it, but that copier not doing what I wanted was the final straw.  The tears came streaming down, and I could not stop them.  My friend, Kara, came in and thought the tears were about my father-in-law, who just had surgery.  She laughed after I told her about the copier, and she said, “Well, I am so relieved to know it isn’t your father-in-law.”  The weird thing, I felt so much better afterward.  Sometimes you just need a good cry.

Today, I ran a 9.3 mile trail race at Fort Ben.  I ran my fastest long run time pace at 11.27 minutes per mile.  That isn’t breaking any land speed records, but for me, through the woods and on hills, it is awesome!!  I did strain my ankles, but I think it is minor.  Oh, and I almost got lost again (see Running Through the Woods blog).  I was looking down, so that I wouldn’t stumble on some tractor tire ruts, when somebody started yelling, “Left,” and I looked up to see I was headed for the horse barn.  The race was so much fun; it was a perfect morning for running.   My goal is to always try and not be last.  Today, I was second to last, but I wasn’t last!  :0)

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I am training for a trail marathon in December, and I am trying to eat right, get in the miles, etc.  At lunch today, one of our first graders got to buy ala carte for the first time.  He was so excited!  They had drumstick ice cream cones today, and he has been wanting one for a long time.  He started to eat it from the bottom first, then he tried to eat around the crunchy stuff on top.  “I love ice cream!” he exclaimed as he licked his dripping cone.  It looked so good that I decided to splurge and get one.  I was trying to eat it inconspicuously when, from across the room, I hear his excited little cartoon voice yell, “Hey PE teacher, you got ala carte, too?”  At least my 2nd period health class was not in there to witness my consumption of food from the top of the food guide pyramid.

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Think Halloween is scary with its vampires, ghosts, spiders, witches, and ghouls?  Not nearly as scary as the next two months of candy, pies, cookies, pumpkin rolls, pitch-ins, and monstrous calorie packages disguised as gifts.  This afternoon I have eaten two handfuls of candy corn and peanuts.  There is a bag of opened trick or treat candy in the kitchen, but I will resist the evil temptation.  I did not lose 50 pounds to gain some back over two months!  Ugh!

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I am training for a trail marathon on December 5.  I haven’t gotten serious about training until recently, mostly due to a hamstring strain.  I finally got a long trail run/walk in last weekend at Brown County State Park.  I was running alone, because Terry is way faster than I am.  I got lost, because I couldn’t see the trail at times through the leaves.  I finally climbed out of a ravine through thorny bushes saying to myself, “I don’t think I am on the trail anymore.”  Duh…what was my first clue, the fallen logs I had to climb over or the thorny underbrush catching on my pant legs and scratching my arms?  People with ADD probably shouldn’t run on barely visible trails – one distraction (look, a squirrel!), and you are done.  Anyway, I came out of the ravine at someone’s campsite; imagine his surprise, as he is relaxing in his camp chair, at seeing a middle-aged, gray-haired woman climbing out of the woods where there is no trail.  I told him that somehow I got off of Trail 9, and he pointed me in the direction of the trailhead.  I eventually got back on the path, Terry and I passed each other, and I almost lost the trail again.  I love a challenge!  It was so much fun, I am going to do it again!

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