Reflections on my first 5k

I had a hard time getting to sleep the night of the 5th of October, 2012.  The alarm woke me the next morning at 6am.  Late for me.  Registration was supposed to begin at 7:30.  I was planning on stretching my bad hip so I would not have trouble with it while I ran.  I ended up cleaning both my bathrooms.  Race day jitters I guess.  I did get a chance to stretch that hip a little.  It always bothers me, and it has since last year.  That was one of the reasons I actually started running again.  Those of you who have known me for a while know I used to run in high school and college.  I had never run in a race before, though.  I started running again in May of 2012.  5k 101 got me going, thanks to the suggestion of a good friend.  I loaded it onto my husband's ipod.  It was a good summer for running, hot and dry.  My hip still bothers me, but I have figured out that it is just stiff.  If I don't stretch it out, I really struggle.  Sometimes I have to stretch it out 2 or 3 times a day.
Back to the race.  I am glad the Bethlehem Preschool 5k was my first run.  It was small enough that I did not feel overwhelmed, yet there were enough good runners there that I could see how fast others can go.  I was amazed that someone passed me going the other way when I had not even made the half way mark.  Not sure why, just was.
It was chilly in the morning, about 33 degrees.  I had never run in weather that cold, so I was a little nervous.  I wore my typical running attire, old Packer lounge pants with a pair of shorts pulled over (no pockets in those lounge pants), a t shirt, long sleeved shirt over it.  I also wore a thin zip up hoodie.  Standing there at the starting line, I contemplated taking that off.  I finally did at the last minute it and tucked it in the bushes of the church.
Starting off, everyone around me was running.  Fast.  I thought, oh boy, I am going to be left in the dust.  After about 2 minutes, we all thinned out and found our paces.  Ferrin is a typical southern IL farming town, much like Hoffman, smaller though.  When I first heard about the race, I figured we would run around the town a few times.  Most of the race was on a rural country road going out of town and back.  Now for all you city folk, a rural country road is still paved.  We ran over a creek, past a few houses, past lots of fields.

You might be wondering about this picture.  I felt so official getting a race number.  Pinning it onto my WI football shirt brought me a certain thrill I had never anticipated.  27 is not an especially significant number to me, but I am sure someone will remind me that it is.  The medal is kinda funny.  I came in first in the 40 to 49 age range for women.  I am not sure how many of us there actually were.  My kids were ecstatic (actually just my three younger ones, Celia was just surprised) when I came home.  I had to keep reminding them that I did not win the race, just a part.  It did not matter to them.  Mom got a medal.  The reason there is a Bible opened is part of my running regime.  Does every runner have a regime?  I would think they would have to.  How else could you keep doing this week after week, month after month, year after year.  Anyhow, when I first start running, I pray.  Starting off is hard for me, finding my rhythm.  It is getting easier, but it is still hard. I try to distract myself from finding that rhythm by praying.  My mind has always wandering something fierce while praying, so if I find myself wandering, I begin to recite psalms.  I keep index cards with me of the current psalm that I am memorizing.  That morning it was Psalm 145.  Actually, I have been working on that one for several weeks.  I have six psalms committed to memory now and it really helps when I feel like I cannot go on any further to start reciting them.  Those psalms help me at other times during the day as well, when I am frustrated, depressed, anxious, blessed, you name it.  It is just a blessed way of communion that the Lord has given me.
The time of 30:08 is a miracle.  Really.  Every morning when I run, I bring a timer.  I walk for five minutes, as per 5k 101, then I run.  I usually set the timer for 40 minutes and then run what I believe to be approximately 3 miles.  When I finally get back home, the timer usually has 3 to 5 minutes left.  When I ran on the 6th and got to the halfway mark, the gentleman timing said, "16:49.  Nice pace."  16:49?  Why if I kept my same pace, I could be done in under 34 minutes.  Wow!  Maybe I can do this!  I do bring an ipod with me and usually listen to it on the second part of the run.  I turned it on and ran just a little faster.  After about 5 minutes though, I was feeling that increased pace.  I took it down a little and tried to get my breath back.  I was able to and kept it at that pace.  Towards the end though, I was so excited to be done and know that I had run the whole time that I stretched out my pace even more.  By the time I crossed the finish line, I thought I was going to pass out.  I did not even catch my time right away, I was just concentrating on not hitting the pavement.  Once I felt like I was not going to die, I went and checked my time.  I could not believe it.  Must have been some tailwind on the way back.  Or the cold air.  I do not think I will do as well the next time.  But we'll see.
This running adventure has truly been a blessing.  I said back in June, after I heard the 5k 101 dude say you need to run in a race, that running in a 5k would be my 45th birthday present to myself.  I am a few months late, but finishing was a gift.  Entering more races is not even a question, I will do it.  I am hoping I will have someone else to run with someday, but for now, being alone is good.  It keeps me focused on the One who gives me the strength to do everything in this life.  :)

Mid Air Shots

I thought I would write sooner than this, but it did not happen.

Today my oldest daughter left for college.  Thanks to the grace of Our Lord through many caring friends, I am making it.

I cannot even remember when Dorothee started loving mid air shots.  Maybe it was when we were in NY on the trampoline in 2009.

Since then, Dorothee has really perfected the art of tucking her legs under, making an expressive face and jumping.  Here she is with others who have learned to love this kind of fun.

While we were away on vacation, even more learned this fun activity.

I love this because it is pure unbridled fun!!  Yeah Dot!  Thanks for sharing this!

July 1, 2012

Welcome to my blog.

This will be a new attempt for me, so don't expect anything spectacular.

This is a picture of a desk I refinished.  It used to be my mom's.  She gave it to me when she and my dad moved out of my childhood home to live with my Opa.  

It had a lot of stain, or paint, or varnish on it.  It was not very pretty.  

I decided to strip whatever was on it and give it to my daughter, Ruth.  

I was not expecting it to take as long as it did.  I started off with a semi paste remover and it was slow going.  I had a great helper in my friend Howard.  He let me keep the desk in his shed ( more like a huge garage, but here in Southern IL, the word shed encompasses many buildings ) and made repairs where needed.  It is such a blessing to know someone who can fix things.  Anyhow, after working with this semi paste for a couple of weeks, I knew there HAD to be an easier way.  And if there wasn't, I was throwing in the towel.  So I talked to an expert, another friend, Stan, from church.  He refinishes furniture as a hobby.  He told me LIQUID stripper worked best.  A little steel wool, dip it right in the liquid and rub away.  Much, much faster.  The stripper was really strong so I ended up using three pairs of latex gloves on each hand.  If it got on my skin, it really burned.  Thankfully, no trips to the hospital were necessary.  If I did get it on my bare skin, I just rinsed it off right away.  

After getting as much as I wanted of the original stain off, I let it dry, then sanded a little more, then put three layers of polyurethane on it.  This was easy, and Mark, my husband, helped me get this done.  It was a spray!!!  So it went quickly.  

So it is done now.  I did not get it done quite in time for her birthday, but it was fairly close.  If I had not been trying to repaint her room at the same time, I might have got it done in time.  As usual, I over scheduled myself.

Thanks!