Easy Morning

I got out this AM for an easy run--temp was below 10°F (3 different thermometers gave 3 different temps, but they were all below 10°) with small, gritty snow flying. Lucky my route this morning took me into an area sheltered by trees so the wind wasn't really a factor. Old neighborhoods with 70-year old houses and 90-year old trees make for nice, sheltered running.

I got in a little extra running this morning. I walked out of the house, crossed the street, and reached into my shirt pocket, where I keep my bus pass. No bus pass. I ran back to the house, up the stairs, and started rummaging around on my nightstand. No bus pass. My wife says "Here, take some cash," and hands me some money. As I put it into my pants pocket, guess what I found?

So I ended up running for the bus this morning. Nothing like a little speed work to start your morning commute.


Sledding was a lot of fun.



It's a long hill, with trees at the bottom. More than once, I got bounced off the sled near the bottom of the hill. Oed thought that was hilarious every time it happened.

After the sledding, we went for a walk through the park, throwing sticks into the creek, looking at the swamp, accidentally scaring some ducks. We're supposed to have snow all week, except Thursday, when the temp will be in the 30s. I hope the snow doesn't all melt so we can get back out next weekend.

Winter cross training

Today will be a cross training day.

I actually got out this morning for a couple of miles in the snow and wind. The temp was about 15°, and the wind wasn't too bad. I think I'm becoming re-acclimated to the winters.

This afternoon, I'm taking Oed out for an afternoon of sledding. That counts as cross-training in my book.

Winter's Here!

Snowy, chilly morning today. The temp was around 24° with snow and wind--the wind chill was around 10°. The first half of my last mise was straight into the wind--glad it was on a residential street, since I could only see about 5 feet in front of me, keeping my eyes on the ground.

I have been less interested in the current Olympic Games than just about any previous games. Why? It seems like every time I turn on the TV, it's figure skating. Now, I understand that figure skaters are great athletes, but I'm just not interested in figure skating. When figure skating is on, I turn off the TV. I haven't seen a single ski jump (and, for the record, I think women should be allowed to compete in the ski jump) and only a little cross-country skiing. I've enjoyed the speed skating, but I haven't seen any hockey, and almost no downhill skiing.

Cold morning

I got out for a quick run this morning. Almost stayed in bed--it would have been very easy to just roll over and sleep some more. The temp was around 20 degrees. Still no snow on the ground, although we had some falling most of the day yesterday.

One of my co-workers is from Virginia, and detests snow. We all have a good time pointing out to her when it's snowing outside.

The St. Patrick's Day run is probably a no-go for me this year. I'm not ready yet, after the Achilles problems, and then the knee pain, with the race being only 18 days away, I don't think I'll be ready. April--got to look for a race in April to start the race season.

Running for the Bus

That was all the running I did this morning. I overslept, and got out of bed about 15 minutes before I had to be at the bus stop. The bus runs a little bit early (about 3 minutes) this week, since there's so little traffic, so I had to get to the stop a little early.

I'm having a good week so far--yesterday, my wife and I locked the keys in the car while it was running. That's the first time we've ever locked the keys in the car, and we've had power door locks for oh, about 12 years, so I guess we're ahead of the game.

rotten weather

Got out this morning for a quick run. Temp around 10 degrees, wind out of the west, still strong, but nothing like the winds on Friday. They topped out at 77 mph. Over in Buffalo, the winds caused some lakeshore flooding--the wind just blew the water up onto the shore.

This weather right now is the worst kind of winter weather. It's cold out, cold enough to keep you inside most of the time, but we haven't had any snow to speak of. You can still see the grass through the snow. That means no sledding, no cross-country skiing (not that I know where my skis are, these days), in short, no winter activities. The kids stay inside. The parents go crazy. Fortunately for me, I will be leaving for work tomorrow. The kids have the week off for winter break. Fortunately, we've gotten to know several people in the area who have kids, so Oed will have something to do. Unfortunately, most of Electra's friends are going out of town for the week. Restless teenager at home.

Update:

Glad I got out when I did this morning. The wind was just starting to pick up when I finished. While I was walking to the bus this morning (about 1/4 mile) I was picked up off my feet by the wind a couple of times.





This is where I catch the bus. Those traffic lights in the background are hanging from galvanized pipes rather than cables. The traffic lights were being blown horizontal by the wind gusts. The top wind speed recorded so far today is just about 60 mph. We only have about 11 hours of the High Wind Warning left today.

10:00 AM: Even better, now. The snow has started, although it doesn't look like we'll get any accumulation at all. Pieces of the building where I work are now falling off. The fire department has closed one street and two entrances to the building.



It looks like a very uncomfortable evening commute is ahead of me.

Early morning run

I got out for an early morning run this morning. The weather has been incredibly warm this week--the temp today was in the high 50s. I don't think we've had a single day this winter with the temperature in the single digits. And hardly any snow. I was hoping Oed and I could go sledding this weekend, but all of the snow is gone.

It was rainy while I was out this morning. I could have gone in shorts this morning, but I get out my running clothes the night before, and I got out the tights last night, so tights it was this morning.

I just may run in the St. Patrick's Day race next month.

Hey, two!

Two posts, without long gaps in between!

Got out this morning at 5 am. I think I'll start posting that early just to be sure that I'll get my post in after a run. The roads were slick--a very thin layer of snow all over everything, just enough to make it annoying. Short steps, avoid the payloader (still wondering why a payloader with such a small amount of snow) and go for the bare pavement whenever possible.


Funny incident at work the other day:

My department, up until very recently, consisted of three guys, two of us in our 40's and the third not much younger. Our department was called "The Boys" because, let's face it, three guys together are going to act like boys. The department across the hall is all women, so of course, they are "The Girls."

Recently, two of "The Girls," A and B, transferred into our department, which means we have to stop acting like boys and start acting like men. Oh, well. "The Girls" have an office pool based on the "Survivor" show--I have no idea how it works, and I don't watch the show, so I'm clueless about the pool and the show. One day, a third woman, S, who's in her 20's, came into our department (I have the best coffee in the office) and was talking with A about the pool. Apparently, this time around, the Survivor teams were divided by age and sex (true?). S said that she likes the "old guys" because they seem to work harder, they seem nicer, etc., etc., etc. B comes up with "Now we know why you like coming over here..."

Holy sufferin' cats!

Has it really been that long since I posted? With my schedule at work and my family at home, I don't get a chance to update all that much. I run more than I update, though.

It has been sporadic, though--I was having a little Achilles Tendon difficulty, and then in January, I hurt my knee walking across the street in downtown Rochester. The knee is better, though--there wasn't any swelling and there isn't any more pain, so I've been running again, about every two to three days. Seems like every time I make a little progress, I get slapped back down.

This morning, I was out at about 5:00, and passed a town-owned payloader clearing the snow off the street. I don't think they really needed a payloader--the areas where he hadn't cleared yet had around an inch of snow, so a plow would really have been just fine.

Work's settling down a little bit--this is our slow season, so I've got a bit of time to get caught up with everything at home and at work.