Marathon Training: Week 5 - Stuff People Lost

Self-portrait - again

I am on hiatus from boot camp this week, so while I am taking a breather on the double-duty work-outs, I am going to concentrate on some good runs this week (maybe sneak in some core work), but hey, it’s the 4^th of July holiday week.  I want to run and have fun (and eat corn on the cob and watermelon!).  Just NOT getting up on 5:30am everyday will feel like vacation alone.  Ahhhhh….sleeping in until 6:30.  What a treat.  It does sound sick, doesn’t it.  6:30? That’s LATE? Are you nuts!?!?! 

Asleep family.  Someone snagged my side of the bed when I vacated

So my weekly pictures are a little redundant, don’t you think? The problem is, when I get home from my Monday morning work outs, there is NO ONE awake in my house to take a nice picture of me.  So I am doing all these self-portraits.   I contemplated having the gardener take a picture of me this morning because I thought it would be nice to have one taken in the backyard, but then I thought…um, NO.  Never mind.  

I am looking forward to this week – the long run on Saturday will be a nice even 10 miles.  I tried a new route last Saturday for the 9-miler, and I liked it, so I am going to add a loop here and there to make it a 10-miler for this week.  I really liked starting early (6:30 on Saturday) – I lucked out and hit some foggy patches around Antonio Parkway, so it never really got super hot.  The route is a long slow downhill for the first half and then, yes, a long slow uphill on the way back (funny how that works, right?).  I kind of wish it was the other way around, but I figure the uphill when I am more tired is good for me – at least that is what I tell myself.

There just always has to be an uphill when you have a downhill, right?

So let’s talk about the things I see on my runs.  I am going to take my camera once in awhile, though in the past I have found that to be more of distraction.  But I am seeing things that I want to document, and it would make it more fun.  On Saturday I found a wallet and a tin of Skoal.  It wasn’t like the wallet had been tossed out a car, it was laid nicely on the sidewalk with the chaw right beside it.  I ran passed it, then ran back.  I picked it up, looked inside, saw the ID, and was momentarily paralyzed about what to do.  And no, I didn’t look to see if there was any money in it.  I could’ve and should’ve run it down to the police substation, which would’ve been sort of on my way.  I don’t know why I didn’t do this.  Instead, I placed the wallet in the bushes next to wear I found it.  I decided I would come back later for it and then take it to the cops.  This bothered me the whole run.  As I was running and being bothered, I came across all sorts of random things tossed on the side of the road.  Don’t you just wonder how those things got there? 

A men’s dress shoe.  Just one.  A very nice Cole Haan dress shoe on the sidewalk. (I had absolutely no thoughts of doing anything about this one).

Trash.  So much trash. Random bizarre trash.  Children’s coloring books, BBQ spatulas (do you just decide to toss that out your window or did it fly off the BBQ that was be transported in the back of a pick-up?) , way too many fast food wrappers and bottled drinks, broken beer bottles.  C’mon people.  Didn’t you grow up with Woodsy Owl and “Give a Hoot, don’t Pollute?”  Granted the bulk of the trash is on the long, desolate stretches of Antonio Parkway, as the streets of RSM are too well tended for this.  I carry my little gel and chew wrappers in my shorts on these runs because I just cannot and will not allow my little bit o’ garbage to be added to this blight!

And of course, the golf ball – I always pick these up.  My route often passes the Dove Canyon Country Club driving range.  Stray balls are hit across the street where I run, and I almost always spot a ball in the gutter or bushes.  Hey, free massage balls!  It’s like a game for me – will I find on today or not?  Plus, how bad can these swingers be to hit the ball way over where across the street anyway?

Empty fuel bottles, Road ID, Garmin, iPod, shades, sweaty bandana and the golf ball. 

Back from the Saturday 9-miler!

As for the wallet, I did drive by later and it was gone.  I am hoping some better equipped good Samaritan did the right thing with it.  Next time, I will be better.

This week: 3 miles this morning, 5 on the 4^th of July, 3 on Thursday and 10 on Saturday.

Run on. Whooya.