I'm baaaaack!

Yes, I'm still here. I've had so much on my plate lately that blogging just didn't feel like a priority. I've been writing a ton, in my journals and my creative writing prompts, but it's mainly about stuff I'd prefer to keep off this blog since it concerns other people or it's just stuff I'm not ready to share with the world yet.

So, to keep it short and sweet ...

I didn't graduate like I was supposed to. I have so many conflicting emotions about this that I don't know how to explain, other than to say that it just plain sucks.

Xena deciding if she wants to be inside or outside and Wesley "helping" me with my yoga.

I'm back at my parents' house. I'll miss spending all the time with the pups (and trying new recipes every day), but I'm glad to be home again. I have missed my bed and having cable. I won't miss having to run on the obnoxiously hot country roads, though. Every single long(er) run I planned, I had to cut short because the heat got to me. Being stunk out of the bedroom at 2am by 2 very gassy (and unapologetic) dogs will be gladly left in the past as well. lol

Just to give you an idea of how our daily walks went ... This is a CALM day compared to what I normally dealt with. :)

And on the running front ...

Oh, hello dirt line! I've missed you! :)

This week saw my return to Oak Openings with a 4.5-miler and a 3.14-miler on some of my favorite trails from the Mallard Lake trailhead. I can't begin to tell you how great it felt to get out there and just run trails for the love of it. I ignore the pace on my Garmin and just run where I feel comfortable. Of course, I have a motive for this other than just escaping to the shady trails on these obnoxiously warm days ... my next 5k is about half on trails, but I'll talk about that in my next post (which is already started).

Other than my 2 runs at Oak Openings, I went to group run at Second Sole Thursday night. Nothing too special, but the smooth road gave me a chance to think (instead of watching my feet so I didn't trip over a root or hole, lol) and get in a speedier run.

I also got in my longest run in a couple weeks on Saturday. My friend M called saying he and his wife, E, were in town for the weekend and were looking for a relatively straight and easy, preferably shady, trail to run. I offered to meet them at the string of metroparks along the river, enclosing the old canal path. The end of the trail is close to my house and it's been a favorite of mine for as long as I've been running. M wanted to do some fartleks so he went ahead while E and I hung back and chatted. She's been dealing with some knee and ankle issues so we decided on a 9:1 run/walk ratio just to make sure we're taking the time to drink water and check on our "injuries". We ended up putting in about 7 1/2 miles ... and they felt great! :) Running with E (and M once he wore himself out) gave me a chance to bounce some ideas off them and say out-loud some things I've been quietly contemplating for a few weeks now. Teaser, I'll discuss it more in my next post. ;)

Have a safe and happy Memorial Day, everyone. And thank you to all our service men and women ... past, present, and future.