See Diva Run

In some respects, it seems like just days since I wrote my goals for 2008 post. In other respects it seems like a lifetime. I did work on those goals throughout the year, but with limited success. Injury limited my running. Depression had me eating comfort food. I shopped less, and continue to look for new homes for much of the stuff I have. I discovered the freecycling.org web site, where you can post things you have to give, and search for things you need. It’s a great way to keep stuff out of landfills. I’ve got a few running items that I’m going to offer through the blog, as they are light and easy to mail. Since I’ve been living downstairs with Jasmine, there has been almost no television, but probably too much Internet.

Since they were good goals which can be improved on, I will continue to pursue my list from 2008, but I do have some specific goals in mind for 2009.

1. Instead of setting goals for speed or distance, or even limiting myself to running, my goal for 2009 is 260 hours of activity. That averages out to 5 hours per week. It won’t make me any kind of endurance athlete, or give me anything to brag about, but it is more than the 30 minutes most days that are recommended for good health. If I can do more, great. The idea is just to be healthy, and not obsessed with a fitness goal that has unhealthy side effects.
2. The events of 2008 reminded me of the need to be flexible. Plans are great, but you need to be able to change or cancel them when your friends, family, and beloved dalmatians need you. I want to be more available to my family in 2009.
3. There is one monkey I absolutely need to get off my back this year, and that is the f#*!%g degree that I have been working on for what seems like forever. I’m on track to finish in July. I will be so happy when I don’t have to waste precious time on that nonsense! Who really cares about Enterprise Portals anyway?

I had really hoped to have the Tahoe Triple be part of this list, but there is no way I can do the training and still do the other things I need to do. RunDoctor says I should not be making any long term distance plans until we’ve determined what is wrong. I thought I had determined what was wrong, but when I explained it to him, he looked at me like I was crazy, and told me I need a bone scan. I’m nearly positive nothing is wrong with my bones, but he is positive nothing is wrong with the soft tissues, so there you are. I have a moral problem with continuing to waste medical insurance on this, when there are sick people who really need it. I’ll ponder it a while.

One last goal for 2009 is to do a better job of keeping up with my blogging friends. The moral support I get from you has really kept me going this year. I want to do the same for you. Wishing you all the best for a happy, healthy 2009.

1. I drove my car today, for the first time in 17 days.
2. I drove it to see Dr Webber, my chiropractic Angel of Mercy. He worked on all the usual suspects, and also adjusted my ankle. I didn’t know ankles were adjustable. I’m going to have him do it again Wednesday!
3. While I was out, RunDoctor called and canceled my appointment for a third time. If he isn’t available Wednesday, I think I might just give up on him. Maybe having the ankle adjusted regularly will solve the problem.
4. I had a fabulous run in the wind, rain and slush today. I followed it up with a one mile cool down walk, as my heart was pretty revved up!
5. After the cool down walk, I got out my Triathilates DVD, and tried the Function workout. It’s taken me 6 months to give it a try. Living with an incontinent old dog gives you reservations about doing floor work. No matter how much I mop, the floor still smells. It was a great core workout, and something I need to get back to working on. I’m going to try it again later this week, and also the Fusion workout. A review will happen sometime after that.
6. I’m trying to limit the amount of time I spend sitting at a computer, so if you are missing my brilliant comments on your blog, I promise I’ll start catching up Friday.

Did you know that shredded paper is compostable? Finely shredded paper isn’t recyclable, because the fibers aren’t long enough, but you can mix the shreds with your leftover vegetables, egg shells and yard debris to nourish your garden.

I made a big fuss out of Christmas when the kids were little, but have steadily cut back over the years, until there are few remaining traditions. I don’t bake, or decorate (not even a tree), or shop. Well, I shop a little, but mostly online. This year I picked up a few items while traveling, but the guys like video games and DVDs, and they are very good about keeping up their Amazon.com wishlists. A couple weeks ago I went to the Amazon.com web site, clicked the mouse a few times, and was done. The problem being the snow that has kept me at home has played havoc with the mail, too. According to the tracking information, the packages should have arrived Monday. They didn’t. One package arrived Tuesday. We were suppose to be at our son’s house in Arlington at 4:30 on Christmas Eve, but when I checked the mailbox at 3:30, the snow was undisturbed. Text messages were flying back and forth, and our son said we should forget about the presents and just come spend time with them. Fortunately, a small avalanche had tumbled out of the pine tree and buried Mr Diva’s car in the driveway, buying me a little extra time! I checked again at 4:00, and there were fresh tracks! I grabbed the mail and headed for the house to shove the remaining gifts into gift bags. I’m a big fan of the gift bag for 2 reasons. The first and most obvious being that I’m profoundly lazy. The other reason is that unlike my mother, I don’t reuse wrapping paper, but we pass gift bags (and the tissue paper) back and forth year after year. So I rushed into the laundry room, where I’d stored the rest of the gifts, and shoved them into bags. I was afraid that Mr Diva would walk in, so I shoved all of his gifts into the dryer!

We had a lovely evening with the kids, and were home by 11:00. I probably should have wrapped Mr Diva’s presents then, but I’m quite the procrastinator. Finally, at 9:00 this morning I decided it was time to pull the gifts out of the dryer and get them ready. Mr Diva finally rolled out of bed around 10:30, and I’m happy to report that he out-procrastinated me! Eventually he finished wrapping my gifts (he used to make the kids do it), and let me come upstairs. We had a nice brunch of whole wheat coconut pancakes with coconut and raspberry syrup and organic eggs. Our one enduring Christmas tradition is that 24 hours of A Christmas Story plays in the background throughout Christmas morning. This morning, the satellite dish was offline, so we listened to Christmas music. As I was putting the pancakes on plates, I heard voices in the living room. Ralphie was going after Scut Farkas. Now it felt like Christmas! To my amazement, Jasmine gave me the gift of not making a fuss while I spent time upstairs. We watched the whole movie twice before I headed back down for doggie duty. Good behavior ended when Mr Diva put the ham in the oven! I’m planning to go back upstairs in a few minutes to have a piece of pumpkin pie while watching Christmas Vacation.

I hope you’ve all been enjoying a happy day with the people and pets you love the most.

Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

The subject for “Take it and Run Thursday” at The Runner’s Lounge this week is running green. This is a subject that is near and dear to my heart. I grew up in the 1960s, in the days of “Keep America Beautiful” and the crying Indian. My parents grew up during the Great Depression. Between that and the sacrifices they made during World War II (my dad served) with rationing and shortages, my parents were firm believers in not wasting anything, including money. We didn’t buy much, but what we did buy was often “gently” used. We grew vegetables in the summer, and picked fruit from local orchards and farms. Mom canned some of it, and froze the rest. Containers were used year after year. We bought local beef, eggs & milk (mostly from friends and family members). My brother-in-law was into hunting and fishing, so we were pretty self-sufficient. My mother was a seamstress. She made all of our clothes, except for coats. She often recycled the fabric from old clothes into new ones, and instead of buying new furniture, she re-upholstered our old furniture. Anything that could be put to use, was put to use. When things broke, we didn’t replace them, we repaired them. My mother didn’t drive, so we only traveled by car when someone took us. We did most of our daily activities on foot. I walked to school every day, as did any kid who lived less than 2 miles from school. None of this was done for the purpose of being green, it was just the way we lived.

In 1970, I went out with my class to pick up litter on the very first Earth Day, and started developing an interest in what we called “ecology”. Fast forward a few years, and I have a job, a family, and a feeling like I’m doing something wrong because I don’t want to grow and can my vegetables or make my own clothes. Consumption kept the economy going, and I did my part, but watching the local woods turn into neighborhoods, and the ever increasing footprint of civilization left me troubled. Where do the animals go when they bulldoze their habitats? What does this have to do with running, Diva? Why nothing, I’m just rambling until I get to the point. I do that.

My point is that green isn’t just a buzzword for me, it is a set of values that I grew up with, and struggle to maintain in the modern world where everything is disposable. Most things that are convenient, are also wasteful. This presents challenges, because most of us are very busy, and the only way to cram everything into our schedule is to do what is convenient. On the other hand, the Pacific Northwest is so precious and magnificent, I want to do every thing I can to keep it that way, so here is what I’m doing:

• Use less - in particular I’m trying to use less water, electricity and petroleum.
• Buy less - this is tricky because the economy is based on consumption, but I try to avoid buying things that are going to end up in the landfill. My biggest issue is with plastic containers and packing material.
• Recycle more, and use recycled products. I donate all of my usable running clothes & shoes to charity when I no longer use or need them. Running shoes that are no longer usable can be taken to any Nike Store to be recycled. Let’s keep our old shoes out of the landfills! You can even purchase running clothes made from recycled polyester.
• Do less - if you know about your carbon footprint, then you know that travel by jet is a big contributor. I am a frequent flier, and my job is in the aerospace industry, so I’m not going to ground myself, but I am giving more thought to where I travel, and the impact it will have. In particular, I’m choosing races that are closer to home, and have a reputation for being green.
• Buy organic foods - from a local source, if possible. It’s healthier for you and better for the planet.
• Keep informed - the November issue of Runner’s World, and the September issue of Northwest Runner had great articles about running green. If you had a chance to read these articles, pass the magazines along to a running friend, and when you are done with them, recycle them. (I’m not done with mine yet!)

I must confess that recent events have me engaging in some very ungreen behavior. While I typically drive 6,000 miles/year, I’m currently making a 56 mile round trip to the chiropractor 3 times per week, and, because my body can’t handle the hills right now, I’m back to running on the treadmill, instead of in my neighborhood.

Related posts “A healthier planet is in the bag”
Whidbey Island Half Marathon

Did you know that there are different kinds of plastics used for plastic bags? Most grocery bags are made from #2 plastic. This type of plastic is in demand, and the bags can be recycled by taking them to most grocery stores. #2 plastic bags are usually somewhat transparent. The opaque plastic bags used by retailers like Target are made from #4 plastic. The #4 plastic is also recyclable, but they require a different recycling process than #2 plastic. They should not be dropped off at the grocery store. Since we are all good citizens now, we usually use our reusable bags, but every now and then you find yourself at the store without them, or you buy a little more than you can fit into your bags. I have a bag stash in my kitchen. Today I sorted out all of the #2 bags and stuffed them into my reusable bag so I could take them to the grocery store to be recycled. That still left me with a pretty good supply of #4 bags for lining the waste basket in the bathroom, and for “poop scooping” when walking with Jasmine.

Yeah I know, this had nothing to do with running either. But it was on my mind… I am sore and stiff and achy from all of my cross training, but I’m getting stronger, and when I return to running I am going to be a running machine!