I went for an easy five-mile run after work. I actually felt pretty good—slow, but good. I saw a Merganser floating in the river. I've always thought Mergansers were cool looking birds, so I was glad to see it.  ¶ 8:36 PM

 

I went for an easy three-mile run by the lake today. One small portion of my run was on the road, and as I chugged along I heard a loud engine revving up behind me. Figuring it was one of the local teenage punks driving by in his tricked-out Dodge Neon, I drifted off the pavement to the soft shoulder to avoid being run down by a poor driver. To my surprise, I was passed by a Ferrari F430. I don't know if I was more surprised that I was passed an Italian sports car or that I could even remotely have mistaken it for a Neon.  ¶ 6:46 AM

 

I ran an easy four miles today after work. My legs felt pretty dead. About a mile in, my nose started bleeding. This has happened to me before, but it only seems to occur when I'm wearing a white shirt—not a red shirt, not a black shirt, not a navy blue shirt—a white shirt every time. I saw what I'm pretty sure was a Northern Harrier fly past me at eye level, which was pretty cool. I love me some birds of prey.  ¶ 9:47 PM

 

Yesterday I competed in an orienteering meet at Seward Park. I navigated fairly well, but my conditioning is so poor I ran out of gas toward the end. If I'd been in better shape I think I could have smoked this course. As it was, it was my second best placing for the Winter O Series Challenge. Jake beat me by 44 seconds at yesterday's meet, but I managed to improve my series standing enough that we are now tied for the season with 320 points each. There are two meets left—who will win?

ETA: I looked up the series results from last year, and I saw that I beat Jake by a single point. I hope to repeat that victory.  ¶ 8:52 PM

 

Angie managed to get her car up the driveway this afternoon. We're free!  ¶ 9:24 PM

 

This morning I trudged 30 minutes to the bus stop. Slipping on some ice, I fell once along the way. Luckily, I didn't hurt anything. I arrived at the bus stop one minute late. I didn't see my bus, but I figured since the next one came in twenty minutes, waiting was no problem. I ducked into Albertson's and bought a coffee to ease my time in the cold. I proceeded to stand outside for 90 minutes waiting for a bus that never arrived. The 6:38 never showed up. The 7:19 didn't arrive. The 7:38 was also absent. At 7:50 I cut my losses and trudged back home, shuffling through two inches of snow that had fallen in the interim.

Even though I never made it to work, the day wasn't a total write-off—Zack got to break in his new snowsuit:

  ¶ 5:11 PM

 

Well, the Seahawks lost in a heart-breaker. Oh well.

Angie and I bundled up Zack and walked over to Shakey's Pizza for an early dinner. Our driveway was still impassable, and Angie had a serious case of cabin fever. It was good to get out of the house, and I didn't have to diminish my dwindling supply of food by making a meal. As bad of shape as the roads were in, the sidewalks were worse. Anywhere a plow had been used, hard chunks of ice got kicked up. The chunks didn't get cleared away and turned the sidewalks into a bumpy, frozen, ankle-twisting wasteland.

My right foot was a little sore and swollen today. The ten miles I ran on uneven footing yesterday may have been a little too much.  ¶ 12:34 AM

 

My dad and I were signed up to run a trail race in Kirkland this afternoon, but as my dad was driving over to pick me up—I still can't get up my driveway—it started snowing. We decided to avoid the risk of getting stuck on the road while coming home, and ran a loop of Lake Youngs instead. The trail was snowy and crusty, but it was a fun run nonetheless. My dad slipped on some ice and fell on his ass, which, given his two back surgeries, probably wasn't a good thing. I had a few close calls, but I managed to stay upright. About halfway around the loop, we saw a whole slew of cars stuck at the bottom of hill. It was obvious that the road conditions weren't getting any better. All in all, I'm glad I skipped the race.  ¶ 8:55 PM

 

There is only one word to describe my commute home this afternoon: clustermess. Between the frustrated teen-mom with the screaming two-year-old, the packed mass of humanity on a crowded bus, the schedule that was so far out of whack it may have well been random, and the bone-juddering ride of chained wheels on bare pavement, I nearly achieved a state of conscious brain-death. But maybe I was just torpid from waiting around in 20-degree weather for 35 minutes at the Renton Park & Ride.

Anyhow, it took me two-and-a-half hours to get home—a distance of approximately 11 miles. That makes for an average speed of 4.4 miles per hour, which is a brisk walk. Not that I could have walked briskly, thanks to the icy sidewalks.

Is it spring yet?  ¶ 11:57 PM

 

It started snowing heavily last night, and by the time I woke up this morning there was at least six inches of fluffy white stuff on the ground. I hoofed it to the bus stop and rode public transportation to work. It took two hours to get there. Currently, it's 21° outside, so the snow isn't going anywhere. Looks like I'm riding the bus again tomorrow.  ¶ 10:09 PM

 

There is a saying that goes something like: "There's no such thing as bad weather; there's only improper clothing." That might be true, but I sure didn't feel like going for a run this afternoon. It was 32° and snowing when I got home. I decided to stay in. Yeah, I'm a wuss. I can deal.  ¶ 6:49 PM

 

Today is Zack's four-month birthday. Instead of a present, he received a bunch of immunization shots. Judging by the screaming, I don't think he enjoyed it much. Here's a photo from the happier moments before the leg stabbing:

  ¶ 9:06 PM

 

I ran four miles after work. It was my first workout of the new year. Boy, did I feel slow. My hope is that in 2007 I will run more training miles than racing miles—something that didn't happen in 2006.  ¶ 6:34 AM

 

I didn't run today. After running two races in three days, I decided a day off was in order. I stayed in and made Penne Pasta with Vodka Sauce.  ¶ 6:50 AM

 
Course: The Resolution Run
Distance: 5K
Time: 22:26

Comments: I ran a 5k race this morning. I didn't break a 7-minute-per-mile pace. If I were to actually train, I might have a little more success posting fast times. (Is that starting to sound familiar yet?)  ¶ 10:46 PM