National Novel Writing Month

It's here!  Well, almost.  It's time for:

The fun begins November 1.  Is your pen ready?

Yes, running can be entertaining...

I became a runner this weekend.  When I started running, I had it in my mind that I could only be a jogger until I could consistently cover a 5K (or greater) distance while running continuously.  Finally, I did it.  3 times in a row, no breaks.  In fact, I blew past the 5K mark.  I am finally a runner.

Actually, I was a runner the moment I turned up the speed on the treadmill and pushed off.  But it took me this long to get over my mental hurdles.  Truly, it was a nonsense rule I had made up for myself.

Well, whatever.  I'm now a runner.  I run.  How cool is that?!

To celebrate, here are some vintage Adidas ads.  Note, this site is not safe for work.  Do not click on this link unless you can do so without repercussions!

Runners, Yeah We're Different

Running on...

A new personal best today:  I completed a 5 mile run.  Six months ago, I would have said that could never happen.

Compost, the Universe, and Everything

A couple of days ago, the spousal unit was getting ready to dump a batch of gluten-free pumpkin beer that had gone bad.  I know, it was very sad. It had been pretty tasty before it turned, too. Buh-bye, beer!

Anyhow, as he was preparing to dump, one of us (jokingly) said, "I wonder if you can compost beer?"  Since my hands were free, I sat down in front of the Magic Box and googled the subject.  Up popped a very useful website:  75 Things You Can Compost, But Thought You Couldn't.  I wanted to post it here as a resource.  I've already looked at it several times.  Hopefully, we can reduce our garbage output and increase our compost pile.

By the way, yes, you can compost beer.  And dryer lint.  And cotton swabs.  And more.  Really.

Running on...

I have to share - today I reached a personal best.  I started jogging a few months ago, following the Couch to 5K program.  Today I jogged 2.25 miles without stopping.  Yay, me!

Now, a little history here.  I am not a natural athlete.  I've never been a runner.  I like to walk.  I like to relax.  I think couches are great!  But a series of events converged a few months ago, leading me to realize I want to run a race.  I also want to increase my fitness, have more energy, fit into my clothes better, blah, blah, blah.  But mostly, I want to run a race.  Run the whole damn thing.  And finish it. So I started Couch to 5K.  I can walk a 5K, and in fact, I have walked several.  So training to run a 5K seemed like a logical progression.

Since I'm not a natural athlete, and have some old injuries, I've stretched the training out quite a bit.  It's taken me over 12 weeks to get to the week 6 workout.  I have to be very careful about stretching and warmup.  I still managed to strain each knee early on, but they eventually healed and now they are getting stronger.  And they lasted 2.25 miles today.  Now I'm ready for a nap...