Eat, drink and be merry - a photo journal of my trip to England

Back home!

I arrived home yesterday after a loooooooong 9-hour flight. Since a picture says a thousand words, here's a little photo journal of the trip.

Here's a picture of my cousin Elaine, sister Tracy, other cousin, Jean with Claire and Alistair (Jean's son) on the far right. We are at Basildon, a historic house that was used in the filming of Jean's favorite movie, "Pride and Prejudice".

After that we went to the pub for a family gathering. It was the first time we met a few new members of the family, including Lewis (age 3.5), Amber (age 2) and Theo (just a baby).






Here's another family gathering at the pub. This one is with a different set of cousins (Elaine, in the pink, and her son, Adrian, at the far end of the table), along with Adrian's girlfriend, Shelley, and her two children, Sophie and Cam. My sister and I are in there, too, of course. We stayed at Adrian and Shelley's for the first few days of the trip.


After that, we went to stay with Jean for a few days. She lives up in the Peak District. Here's a photo taken by my sister of me with Jean one night when we were out for dinner.



We also spent a few days with yet another set of cousins in Kent. On our first night with them, they took us out for ...











And even though I was quite full after a large helping of both fish and chips, and declined to have any "pudding", as they like to call it, my dear cousins took the liberty of ordering me a traditional English dessert - spotted dick with warm custard sauce. No, I am not kidding. The photo quality isn't great on this one, but still, I had to provide evidence of this!



My sister came home to Canada a few days before I did. I spent my last day in England with my cousin, Emma having a "girls' day" including lunch at (where else?) the pub! We did eat food, too, including apple and blackberry crumble with custard for pudding.

Sounds like all we did while we were there was spend time at the pub, eh? Well, just to prove that isn't true here's a picture taken at my hosts' home with my two cousins, Rachel and Emma. Believe it or not, we were not just home from the pub!

Guess where I'm going today, now that I'm back home? The gym! And tomorrow I'm hitting the river pathways for a run. Boy, do I need it!

Vacation ramblings...

Ramble #1

We spent a few days up at my cousin Jean's house in the peak district. She said that lots of people go jogging there and I wouldn't look at all out of place. So, I did, following the route (more or less) that she'd showed me. I did get a bit lost one morning and when I saw an older gentleman say "Hello!" and wave, I waved back and said, "Morning!"

He gave me a bit of a funny look and I quickly realized that what I thought was a lane road was actually a rather long driveway - his. So I turned around and made like I was doing a hill sprint back up to the main road.

Ooops.

Ramble #2

I also took the opportunity to debut the new running skirt that I bought at the fitness fair at the race before I left. I remembered the rule "Nothing new on race day!" and I've been aching to try it out ever since. Works well. Cute. But running skirts are definitely not popular (yet?) in these parts of England. So, the running didn't get me funny looks, but the skirt did. We'll save the skirt for when I go back home now...

Ramble #3

My cousins all sound very 'posh' to me; except when they say 'ate'. It comes out more like 'et', with a very enunciated 't' at the end. It sends me off into peels of laughter and I make fun of them by saying, in my best hill billy accent, 'Yeah, I et me some cow and 'den I et me some corn.'

They seem amused, but only politely so.

Ramble #4

Everyone here, regardless of their age, sends text messages - compulsively, like a bunch of addicts. Seeing my more... er... 'mature' cousins sending each other texts is quite endearing, really. My sister said the other day that she didn't know how to text. I thought my cousins were going to fall off their chairs in disbelief. Our cell phones don't work here, but I do believe that a tutorial is being arranged as we speak.

Ramble #5

I am delighted by the clothes lines that people have outside their houses here. My one cousin doesn't even have a dryer; said she's never had a dryer and never planned to. She takes her clothes out of the washer, puts them into a different machine called a spinner, that removes much of the water and then line dries everything. Delightfully quaint, IMHO.

Jolly Ol' England

I've been in England almost a week now, having left two days after running the half marathon. I've been planning the trip for almost two years and it is great to finally be here, visiting with family I haven't seen in a long time.

My sister, Tracy, who lives near Toronto is also here visiting we are getting the chance to see each other, as well.

I've been out running every day, except for today (Sunday) which is my usual rest day. I usually run every other day, and often on the treadmill. My knees aren't used to pounding on pavement every day, so I've kept the runs short, just to keep my legs loose and to act as somewhat of an antidote to the holiday diet, which has included:

• pints of ale (Badger's Champion ale, to be exact)
• pints of shandy
• beef and ale pie
• ploughman's lunch (with a hunk of cheese that would normally take me about 2 weeks to eat!)
• roast lamb dinner with Yorkshire pudding
• biscuits of various kinds
• and my new favorite thing in the world - cream tea (scones with clotted cream - OMG!!)

My best running anecdote from England so far is that I don't think there are many people who run where my cousin Adrian lives in Earley, Reading. I noticed that I hadn't seen any runners around his area. As I was out in the residential area where he lives, a bus almost passed me and then came screeching to a halt. The driver thought I was running for the bus!

It took both of us a second to realize what was going on and then we both half chuckled, embarrassed and awkward about the misunderstanding... and on we went on our respective journeys. Then I realized that indeed, that was definitely not a common area for runners at all!

Needless to say that I will resume proper running and working out schedule when I get home, and in the meantime, I plan to continue enjoying the English cuisine (if that isn't too much of an oxymoron!) Besides, the act of breaking bread with my family, exchanging stories and sharing meals is part of the joy of being here.

The other day day ten of us got together at a pub and we got to meet new additions to the family, including spouses and children who've joined the family since the last time we were here.

I arrived last Tuesday and I said to my cousin, Jean, today that I finally feel like I am starting to unwind - for the first time in about two years, actually. I've done nothing but eat, visit, sleep, do a bit of sight seeing, shop and relax. It's been fabulous.

Tomorrow is a girls' shopping day in the town, so best I get to bed so I can be well rested for it. Don't know how much shopping I'll do, as things are hideously expensive here compared with home, but just being out with my sister and cousin in the shops will be fun. And with that, off to bed I go...

PS: Not been visiting blogs much, but I'll try to catch up soon.

Half Marathon Report

Quick overview

Official chip time: 2:18:06

Splits:
mile - pace (minutes / mile)

1 - 28:43

2 - 10:02
3 - 10:02

4 - 12:34

5 - 9:43

6 - 8:46

7 - 10:02

8 - 10:14

9 - 10:24

10 - 6:32

11 - 7:58

12 - 8:31

13 - 10:11

Finish line pace - 6:32

Pre-race report

The week before the race was up and down, full of doubt and fear, as well as anticipation and giddiness.

A couple of days before the race, I went to Dr. Mike for a chiropractic adjustment. As I was laying on the table we were talking about the race and he said, "I can't even believe we are talking about this... not considering where you were when we started."

Took me back to memories of my first visit with him about 14 months ago... Knee brace, not running, not even walking comfortably, in pain and frustrated, spending many private moments in tears. Seems like a long time ago now.

As I was about to leave the other day he stopped me and said, "If I can offer you one piece of advice..."

Now, I have to say that being someone who's run multiple marathons and qualified for Boston, when Dr. Mike offers running advice, I listen.

He continued, "... just one piece of advice: Enjoy it. Enjoy every stride. Don't worry about the time. Just enjoy. You've worked hard and you deserve that."

Good advice, I thought.

I did my last run before the race with my trainer, Kevin. It was a hot afternoon and we ran pretty hard. Well, let me qualify that. I ran pretty hard... wheezing and gasping while he happily chatted away. Show off!

Needless to say, my race pace will be considerably slower than we did that day, I thought, but in any event, the last training run let me burn off some stress. After we talked race strategy and I got a bit of a pep talk, which helped calm me down.

The next day I found myself back in the same spot I was last year, volunteering at "race central". Dawn had e-mailed a while back to ask if I'd help out again. I agreed and this time, I got to volunteer with her, working with the crew who handed out packages and T-shirts to the course marshalls and other volunteers.

I was thrilled to see my good friend, Alia, when she came in to pick up her volunteer package. She's among the normal humans who just don't get the insanity of running. Even though she thinks I'm strange for wanting to run, she wanted to support me and decided that the best way to do that would be to volunteer for the race. What a great friend, eh?

A few runners came in dejected and said, "Registered. Can't run. Injured. Need any more volunteers?" We signed them up right away and I was able to say, "I feel your pain. I was in your position last year. It stinks being injured, but we sure do appreciate the help... and so will those who are running on Sunday."

It was a fantastic way to spend a Friday evening! Dawn's already got me booked to volunteer again next year.

Race report

As is perfectly normal, I woke up with the jitters, afraid that a million things would go wrong. My room mate, Gord, had appointed himself to be my race support for the day, bless his soul. It's great to have such supportive friends and I owe them a debt of gratitude.

Gord was already up eating breakfast when I got up. He kept me in one piece before we parted at the start line and carried all my stuff while I ran and took care of all driving. Am I lucky, or what?

The race itself was fantastic! I had run most of the course in my training and so I knew more or less what was coming. The race went through the grounds of the Calgary Stampede and yes, it's Stampede time, folks! Even though the grounds were not yet open to the public for the day, lots of people were there and the energy levels were high. I was a bit worried about the smells of corn dogs and mini donuts upsetting my tummy, but most of the fryers weren't up and running for the day, so it was all good.

Then, we went through the zoo. This is the part of the course that I had not done in my training because normally you would need to pay to get into the zoo and I'm not sure it would be good zoo etiquette to go running through the crowds of people visiting the animals. Anyway, this turned out to be my favorite part of the course - the greenery, the animals and the zippy little parts of the trail that zig zag sharply up and down hills. I wasn't too keen on the gravel parking lot bit at the end of that section of the course, but it was OK.

After the zoo the course went back to city streets. There were lots of course marshalls and supporters along the route. I remember thinking a couple of times, "God, this is the best run, EVER!"

I had been hoping for a time of 2:45. Then I saw the pace bunnies for a 2:30 finish and slipped by them. I felt strong and it was the second half of the race, so I just kept going. I doubted I could catch up to the 2:15 pacers, but thought maybe I could get in around 2:20, if I was lucky.

I saw Alia marshalling at around km 16 or so. Gord was standing with her, taking pictures. I gave her a hug, thanked for volunteering as Gord joked, "You're wasting time... Get moving!"

I found myself slowing down a bit around mile 12, but then I thought, "You're not giving up now, girl!"

In the very last kilometre there's a short, but brutal hill before the finish line. Lots of people were walking by then. At that point, I was grateful for my hill training, even if it had messed up my knee a bit. I thought to myself, "I love hills! These legs were meant to run hills." I was happy that I did not stop to walk, though it did slow me down a bit (hence the slow split time near the end).

At the very end I was able to kick it across the finish line and I crossed the finish line doing a 6:32 min/mile pace, which made me happy. My Garmin said 2:18:10 -- better than any of us expected, by a long shot.

Receiving the finisher's medal was definitely a hightlight of the race, too.

Medical report

My knees held up! I think the taper definitely helped. My right knee is a bit sore as I write this, but that's to be expected. Overall, I'm thrilled!

My gut behaved! I avoided both dairy and fruit in the 18 hours before the race and took the Pantoloc the doctor prescribed. I'm very happy to report that I did not puke. I did not even come close to puking. In fact, after the race Gord, Alia and I went for breakfast. All I could think about was "Coffee.... Where's the coffee???"

After the race I was sitting on the grass for a bit and noticed my shoe.

"Oh, shit," I thought. "That's blood.

I went over to the first aid tent and grabbed a couple of band aids for what turned out to be some monster blisters.

I felt them coming on during the race, but didn't realize they were bleeding. I'll spare you the photo of the feet. The sock says it all. But really, what's a running event without some kind of medical issue, right?

Post race

Gord's plan was to meet me at the finish line and take photos. In the event of something unforseen, we had a rendez-vous point in the parking lot at the finish line.

I didn't see him when I came in, so I walked around for a bit. I went and got some recovery food and went to the rendez-vous point. I sat on the grass and stretched out for a bit. I didn't have my cell phone with me, so I borrowed one to call him. But I got the number wrong, so I just decided to wait.

After a while I went back to the finish line. A first-aider was handing out foil blankets to runners who were finished. He offered me one and I took it.

Still no sign of Gord. I heard that the first woman marathoner was about to cross the finish line, so I waited around and saw her finish.

Then the most unexpected part of the race happened for me. I started bawling! I hate crying. I hate crying in public more. But I just couldn't help it. All the emotion welled up from somewhere inside me. I walked back to the meeting point and sat on the grass again, with the silver blanket wrapped around me sobbing and sobbing.

A few people asked if I was OK. "Yes," I sniffed. "Just a little emotional."

Among them were the 2:30 pace bunnies - the ones I'd passed. They stopped and chatted for a few minutes (to make sure I was OK, I think.) They told me that they'd both cried at races, too. They shook my hand and congratulated me on finishing and then they went on their way.

After I composed myself I got up again and walked along the finish line until I found Gord. I had been done for well over an hour by that point. When I saw him he said, "How did I miss you?" I smiled and said, "Cause I came in over an hour ago!"

He was ticked that he missed his finish line photo op, but we got one anyway:

All in all, I am thrilled. The experience was fantastic. The medical issues were minor. I felt totally supported by two amazing friends who were rooting for me from pre-start to post-race. My time was better than anything I'd done in training and much better than I hoped for. And I came away thinking about what the next race would be.

Tapers suck

So, I'm tapering for this half marathon... following instructions to shorten the runs and avoid hill training and speed training. My chiropractor said, "Just get out there and have some fun with your run!"

I looked at him and said, "Fun?"

What I like about training is that it makes me hurt (in a good way), and feel raw and powerful - even if I am not.

Nevertheless, I have been cutting back.

My knee feels much better for it, but I have to tell you, I hate it. I hate every second of getting out there and not pushing... just trying to take it easy.

I feel fat and slow and anxious... well, more so than usual, anyway.

My room mate told me today that I was so wired I was like Beavis on caffeine pills.

I figure that the only appropriate reply is: "This sucks more than anything that has ever sucked before."

(Well, OK, let's be honest, tapers don't suck as much as injury, but I just couldn't resist the Butt-Head line there.)

Half marathon decision

Medical advice on the knee has been sought from 2 professionals.

They agreed.

I listened.

The taper has begun.

Thoughts... and second thoughts

OK, I think I am crazy. And after reading Olga's latest race report, I also think I am a huge wimp.

This half marathon on July 8 - what the hell was I thinking signing up? I mean... This time last year I was not running at all... Started the walk/run program in the fall and did my first 30 minute run on Nov. 27 last year. Since then, I've added hill training, speed training and distance training.

That crazy 10-mile hill run (5 miles down and 5 miles up - on the way home) buggered up my knee again. It hasn't been the same since.

I did not run on Tuesday. And nothing stops me from running... except injury. Well OK, let's be honest, I had a hang-over from too much post-exam celebrating the night before... Thanks to the room mate for helping me polish off half a bottle of tequila.... and to my friends at school who dragged me to the Grad Lounge for champagne. But really, it was mostly the knee...

I confess, I'm scared... and slightly depressed. But mostly scared. I set this goal and now I don't know if I can do it...

What terrifies me more is that I know I WILL do it, even if I SHOULD NOT do it. Am I willing to do this race and have my knee messed up for another year - or longer - because of it? I don't quit. Even when I should. That's a character flaw I have not yet learned to overcome.

What to do? What to do?

A. B. D. is me

It's done. I passed!

The two hour oral exam was this morning. I fretted about it, of course... I fretted about what to wear, what to say, how to say it, how not to seem like an idiot, how not to ramble on... but mostly how not to sound like an idiot.

My supervisor gave me strict instructions:

• I'd be required to give an introduction of myself and I was not to go over 10 minutes. Do not bore the committee!
• Answer the questions. Don't talk around them. Don't ramble on and try and prove how smart you are. Just answer the questions they ask.

As it turned out, they thought I was a bit too concise and sometimes asked me to expand on my answers. Afterwards another committee member said, "You can just keep talking you know." So sometime before my thesis defense I'll have to work on that and find a way to make both the supervisor and this other committee member happy. But there's time for that.

As promised, here are the three questions I had to choose from for my written paper:

1. Historically and currently, what are the major challenges faced by language program administrators who wish to market their educational programs to international audiences?
2. What moral, philosophical and cultural perspectives influence the extent to which commercial business practices ought to be incorporated into public education?
3. What are the strengths and weaknesses of a critical theoretical paradigm when engaging in a new historicist approach to document analysis?

I chose the first question and that formed the basis for the 50-page paper that I turned in. That paper was what the committee then based the oral examination questions on.

The committee consisted of 5 voting members and 1 neutral chair who ran the meeting. And me.

Yes, I was intimidated. No, I did not throw up (yaay!)

I am happy it is over. If I understand this crazy system properly, I am now known as being A.B.D. (all but dissertation) and passing this exam means that I'm now considered qualified to start my thesis research.

I'll do that soon.

But before I get into that, there's a small matter of a half marathon to take care of... then some R&R time with the family in England.

I'm looking forward to that!

For now, it is off to the Grad Students Lounge for some... er... refreshments!

PS: The pills the doctor gave me for running helped somewhat. No nausea during the run. It came about an hour after finishing, which is still not great, but it's enough of a solution to get me through the race - hopefully.

Grumpy gurging gut - be gone!

Now that my knees, hips and legs are strong enough to take the long runs, I have encountered another challenge. I don't blog about it much because it's not exactly a lovely topic of conversation.

And it's taken me a while to figure out that it just ain't normal... Other people run way further and faster than me and it doesn't happen to them. At least, not as regularly as it seems to happen to me.

It's what I have affectionately termed "grumpy gut". The nausea, the tummy that constantly threatens to rebel in a projectile way... and sometimes does.

I finally decided that I've had it with my grumpy gut and I asked my doctor about it. Told her that I could do this short-term while I train for the half-marathon, but that as a life style, it is not fun. Long term I am more likely to find reasons not to do long runs than to grit my teeth through the nausea for the next few decades.

Since I started doing long runs I have been experimenting with what foods to eat before the run, what to take during the run... How not to get dizzy or nauseous. I got the dizziness under control (eat protein before running), but I have been unable to convince my stomach that it is not, in fact, a whirl pool.

A few weekends back I did find a temporary solution. I more or less passed out on the bathroom floor for about half an hour after my long run. I didn't blog about it because I wasn't exactly proud of it... I remember thinking, "You've got to turn on your side. If you lose it and puke on your back, you'll die."

I woke up some time later. On my side... and luckily, not having been sick. From there, I made it to the couch for another half hour before getting up. Not good. But it was better than retching.

I love running. (I know, you non-runners just don't get it...) I'm slow and my knees knock together, but I don't care. I do it anyway. But the tummy troubles leave me trepidatious.

I just couldn't figure it out... These are somewhat long distances (10-15 miles), but not marathons, not ultra distances. And I don't go fast. I average about a 12-minute mile. If I try to go faster, the gut rebels even more, so I purposely do not try to speed up.

My doctor asked me a variety of questions. We figured out that yes, I stay hydrated. No, it is not an overdose of sodium, since I take water rather than Gatorade. And it is not a complete lack of sugar, since I do energy gels (with water) every hour, on the hour.

I'm strict about making sure I'm hydrated and fuelled. I don't want anything to make the situation even worse.

Being an Ironman athlete herself, she understands the delicate balancing act of nutrition and hydration. Her suspicion is that my stomach chemistry is off slightly... too much acidity. And it gets more unbalanced as the long runs get longer and more demanding. She said, "Yeah, you get going, and your stomach gets churning. The faster and further you go, the more it churns and then hurts... and you just feel awful."

I said, "Yes! You GET it!"

I walked out with a prescription for pills that should regulate the chemistry of my stomach. I am to take one the night before each long run... and if that doesn't solve it completely, I can take another one the day of the long run itself.

I'm not one much for pills, but at this point I simply do not care.

Part of me has been dreading these long runs... It's a bit of a paradox, really... loving an activity that literally makes you sick.

My next long run is on scheduled for Saturday. It should be 2.5 hours. For the first time in a long time, I am truly excited about it. Keep your fingers crossed for me that these little pills help.

Various countdowns

I have not been blogging much lately because life seems rather ordinary lately. That can be a good thing... and I've been enjoying it. I have needed the break.

There are, however, a number of things in the works.

In less than a week
I will have my PhD oral candidacy exam. It's a two-hour exam, conducted by 5 professors and one neutral chair. After that I find out if I passed. The big paper I wrote and the oral exam are a package deal... pass or fail both at once. And the examining committee's decision must be unanimous.

After that, I'll share the exam questions and tell you what the oral was like. Until then, I am doing more preparatory reading. The reading never ends, I tell you!

In less than a month
I'll do the half marathon. It's on July 8. I am totally stoked about it! So far, training with Kevin is going well. I look forward to each day of running with exuberance and bubbly anticipation.

Today I did interval training. God, I love intervals! I finish wanting more... and in a way that only runners would appreciate, feel a bit let down when it's over. I want to keep going, but I don't. I follow the plan.

I went a bit over the top last weekend with my long run and planned a route with some seriously tough hills on it. That was my idea though, not the trainer's. When I told Kevin about it, I got a gentle reply about not overtraining... Oh yeah, and Dr. Mike, the chiropractor, expressed both respect and concern in a similar manner. He said something to the effect that I was a "serious runner" but, "Maybe it's not a good idea to do that again."

Anyway, it was just shy of 12 miles, with half of it being up hill. I was happy that I did it. I like the gritty runs!

I went for my annual physical last week. My doctor was asking me how training was going. She got all excited when I told her about the half. She's an Ironman athlete herself and she likes to talk about training. She said, "Well, once you're done the half you can start training for a full marathon!"

I replied tentatively, "Well, um... you know... one step at a time."

She smiled and nudged further, "If you can do a half, you can do a marathon. No problem!"

I seem to be getting nudged from various directions about moving up to a full... and I haven't even done this half yet. And the only road race I have done since I was 15 years old was the Forzani's 5 km race in May. I think I need some more road race experience before I even think about doing a full marathon... Let's see how the half goes in July.

Oh, I do have a question for fellow runners out there. Has anyone found a lip balm that's good for running? Specifically, I'd like one that I can open with one hand, rather than having to fiddle with two hands. My lips get really dry on my long runs and the one I'm using just doesn't seem to work that well... and I'm always afraid of losing the little cap too. Anyway, advice is welcome!

Also in less than a month
I'll be in England visiting my family there. I have been looking forward to this for a long time! My sister and I will be travelling together. I haven't seen her in a while either, so it will be good to catch up all around.

I leave two days after the half marathon. I'm not sure that my legs will appreciate being stuffed into an airline seat for nine or so hours after that kind of run, but I'm sure I'll survive. There are times when having short legs is good... and travelling is one of those times!

So, there you have it... Many things are "in progress". I'll keep you posted.

"Muscle cream blamed for death of teen runner"

I'm sure I am violating copyright laws by copying this article in its entireity , but hopefully I will not get sent to jail! I read this in Canada's national newspaper (online version), the Globe and Mail today).


Muscle cream blamed for death of teen runner
Associated Press
June 9, 2007 at 9:34 PM EDT

NEW YORK — A medical examiner blamed a 17-year-old track star's death on the use of too much anti-inflammatory muscle cream, the kind used to soothe aching legs after exercise.
Arielle Newman, a cross-country runner at Notre Dame Academy on Staten Island, died after her body absorbed high levels of methyl salicylate, an anti-inflammatory found in sports creams such as Bengay and Icy Hot, the New York City medical examiner said Friday.

The medical examiner's spokeswoman, Ellen Borakove, said the teen used “topical medication to excess.” She said it was the first time that her office had reported a death from using a sports cream.

In addition to spreading the muscle cream on her legs between track meets, Ms. Newman was using adhesive pads containing the anti-inflammatory, plus an unspecified third product containing the chemical, Ms. Borakove said. The products were used and the chemical absorbed over time, she said.

Ms. Newman, who garnered numerous track awards, died April 3. She had gone to a party the night before, then returned home and spent hours talking with her mother.

Methyl salicylate poisoning is unusual, and deaths from high levels of the chemical are rare. "Chronic use is more dangerous than one-time use,” Edward Arsura, chairman of medicine at Richmond University Medical Centre, told the Staten Island Advance on Friday. “Exercise and heat can accentuate absorption.”

Dr. Ronald Grelsamer, of Mount Sinai Medical Centre, said Ms. Newman had a very abnormal amount of methyl salicylate in her body.

“She either lathered herself with it, or used way too much, or she used a normal amount and an abnormal percentage was absorbed into her body,” he said.

Her mother, Alice Newman, said she still couldn't believe her daughter's death was caused by a sports cream.

“I am scrupulous about my children's health,” she told the Advance. “I did not think an over-the-counter product could be unsafe.”

Johnson & Johnson, the makers of Bengay, expressed sympathy for the family and reminded consumers about “the importance of reading the label on this and all over-the-counter medicines to ensure safe and proper use,” in a statement released Saturday.

The label on Ultra Strength Bengay says the product should be applied no more than three or four times daily and consumers should stop and see a doctor if the condition worsens or symptoms persist for more than a week, spokeswoman Meghan Marschall said.

2nd anniversary - forgot to celebrate

For those of you who have been following this blog for a while, you'll remember that last year at the end of May, I was ecstatic because I'd made it through an entire year of going to the gym on a regular basis.

I really wanted to celebrate by going for a run, but I was in absolutely no shape to do so. I'd been told by the physiotherapist that I likely would not run again. That prompted me to stop seeing him and to start seeing a chiropractor, Dr. Mike, who is also a distance runner. At the first consultation he said, "I think we can get you running again, but I can't make any promises. It will take time. At least six months. And I don't know what kind of distance you'll be able to do... I'd guess maybe 5 or 10 km, but I don't know about more. We'll have to see."

So, since my knee was still crapped out, so I celebrated my "one year fitness anniversary" by going wall climbing.

I remember a blog comment (from Michelle, I think) that said something to the effect of "I hope you have so many of these anniversaries that you lose track of them."

I just realized that the 2nd anniversary came and went, quietly and without notice.

Oh well. Not a bad thing, I guess.

I guess I kind of did celebrate this year by signing up for the half marathon. But it wasn't a conscious celebration. My head was too into my exams.

I've gone wall climbing once since then. But really... why would I want to do that... or take any more swimming lessons, or try to learn to ice skate, or embarrass myself on a bicycle, or anything else I did in that first year when I was in physio, desperate to find an activity I liked and could do without pain ripping through my knee, when now I can run?

I've spent so much time getting strong enough to do this that I don't give a rat's ass that I have thunder thighs that can hardly squeeze into a pair of jeans respectably. I've earned every inch of 'em, lemme tell ya. And if that's what it takes to keep these knock knees in line, bring on the squats, baby!

They're what allow me to run, so who cares?

And run I do (albeit slowly). 15 miles I did on Saturday. That's 24.3 km for us metric types.

That physiotherapist was an idiot. :-)

Time to catch up!

Well, folks, it's been a while, but I'm back now. I was in Saskatoon for a conference.

Here's me by the bridge close to campus.

I drove out from Calgary with my friend, Christine, who's a grad student in Linguistics and was also giving a paper. It was a total girls' road trip and we had a blast. It was a long drive (about 8 hours each way, once you factor in a few breaks along the way), and it was nice to have the company.

I presented a paper that's related to my thesis studies, met a few people and, best of all, got to catch up with a few classmates.

Last Monday there was a banquet, which I attended with my supervisor, Tim, along with his other two PhD students, Steamer and Amy. Here's a picture of us all at the banquet.

I came home on Tuesday and spent the rest of the week catching up. I returned to work after my month-long academic leave, too. I had to wrap my head around things I had completely forgotten about for those four weeks and it felt like pulling teeth! I like my job, but it was challenging to remember all those little things after that long!

I've started on a training program for the half-marathon in July. So far, so good. Kevin, the new trainer has me doing intervals for my speed work. I've decided that I love intervals, though I think they can lull you into a false sense of accomplishment. He has me going faster than I've ever gone before... but only for short bursts of 5 minutes at a time. Of course, there's no possible way to sustain that pace on anything longer than a sprint to a bus stop, but it does make you feel like a superhero for that very limited time.

And speaking of training, today I was a co-pilot with my room mate, Gord, on a trip to a nearby town called Cochrane. He wanted to mark a course for a long bike ride, using my Garmin ETrex hand held device that my brother gave me for Christmas. So, he drove and I monitored the Garmin.

Sorry... I should elaborate on that last line... He pulled his Alfa Romeo GTV6 out of storage for a spring run. And that's what we drove to Cochrane.

Here's a snap of me by the car:

Before we went to Cochrane, we took a spin by my friend, Ken's, since he was dying to see the car. Here are the boys at Ken's house:

Then we said good-bye to Ken and hit the road. While we were in Cochrane, we took part in a local ritual... going for ice cream. It's just what you do in Cochrane, because they have good ice cream there.

I had watermelon lime swirl and black cherry:

And Gord had Columbian coffee and blueberry:

We figured out that his cycling route is about 68 km. He was a bit disappointed, as he's logged longer distances on his bike computer. But this route, if he does it, includes a couple of killer hills that I wouldn't wish on anyone.

Mind you, if you lived in Cochrane, you'd almost need to train on that hill to work off all the ice cream you'd be eating! Oy vey.

In any case, it's been busy... and fun!

"It's in God's hands now"

That's what my room mate, Gord, said to me this morning when I told him that I was done with my candidacy paper... Done as in, it's edited, in envelopes ready to be delivered to the committee members and also, done fretting.

I am a "fretter extraordinaire", type A, pathological perfectionist, relentlessly driven by (usually self-imposed) goals. I'm trying to curb this somewhat, as it takes its toll on a human soul after a while, but nevertheless, the essence is there.

When I told him I was done fretting he said something to the effect of, "Won't do you much good now, anyway". Then we both chuckled.

Since I didn't know what candidacy exams were all about before I was smack in the middle of the PhD program, let me explain by saying it's like a big-huge take home exam. You get questions that only you can answer, based on all your research and studies, so getting help is out of the question.

You go away and write. For 28 days. Solid.

For those of you who were jabbing me because I finished the first draft early, I remind you that my draft was 13 pages longer than the 40 page limit. That means, I had to spend a good deal of time cutting out about 25% of the paper. Yeah, like that's easy.

Then I had to read and re-read, since it was littered with typos and silly mistakes. I suspect there are still a few, though I should be most grateful if my committee graciously does not notice them.

The final version of the take home exam is then delivered to 5 professors. 4 of them I have met before, 1 of them I have not.

They have a few weeks to read it. Then, you have a 2-hour oral exam.

Passing or failing is a package deal. All 5 professors must unanimously agree that you pass both the paper and the oral exams, or ... well... you fail.

If you pass, then you then go from being a "PhD student" to a "PhD candidate" (hence the term "candidacy exam"). All that means is that they've decided you're good enough to go do a thesis.

That then consumes your life for the next few years.

Anyway, my paper was delivered into the campus mailboxes of the committee members today.

And I'm off to have my first meeting with my new trainer, Kevin, in a few moments. The fellow I was working with before, Chris, took a higher level position elsewhere. It's nice to see him move ahead in his career and I have to say that I came a long way training with him over these past couple of years.

I figured it would be good to break Kevin in gently. I've challenged him to train me for a half-marathon.

It's July 8. I've already registered.

Stress junkie.

A week of minor weirdness

So, this past week has been a bit unusual. Here are some highlights:

1. I got the draft of my exam paper done. Yaay! It is due next Thursday, so I'll spend a few days editing, proofing and formatting. Oh yeah... and cutting it down. It's 13 pages over the limit. Not good. Having a start-to-finish draft has decreased my anxiety levels considerably.

The massage I had today also helped to decrease my anxiety levels. As well, it un-glued my shoulders from my earlobes. They'd become somewhat fused together these past few weeks with all the studying and typing. Now you can see my neck again. Double yaay!

2. After the 5 km run last weekend, I was really missing my long run. So, I went and ran my little heart out on Tuesday. The result? 13.1 miles (21.11 kms) It took me 2.5 hours. In some ways, it felt great. In others, not so much... but I'll spare you the details. The best part? Happy knees!

3. I was coaxed into buying hair removal cream for my cyclist friend because he's training again and needs to have his legs hair-free, but didn't want the embarrassment of buying the cream himself. (That's for Robb, who's asking for advice on whether to shave his legs for his upcoming marathon or not. Go visit and give him your 2 cents worth.)

4. I went to the dentist this week and had some laser dentistry in prep for an upcoming crown replacement. Again, I'll spare you the details. Well... most of them. Let's just say that I love laser dentistry - quick, no needles (which I don't have anyway) and very precise. The smell of burning gums isn't so yummy, but hey, it can't all be perfect, right?

5. Came out of the dentist to find a big, orangey puddle under my car. It didn't look like a spilled slurpee. Called the mechanic. The fella who answered said they were booked solid until late next week. "Well, you're the only ones I trust with my car. What do you recommend?" The answer, call back in 15 minutes when the owner would be back. That's the amount of time it took me to drive the car over there and see them in person.

When I got there, the owner was back and before he could even get the hood up, another mechanic came tearing out of the bay to say, "Whoa! There's stuff pouring out of it!"

The owner promptly told me my water pump was shot, that the car wasn't going anywhere and he'd have it done for me within a day. Bless his heart. He was even better than his word and called me a few hours later to say it was done. Lifetimes of good kharma to him!

Apparently the orangey stuff was coolant, which can leak when the water pump dies. Just goes to show that you learn something new every day.

So there you are... a week peppered with odd little adventures, just to keep life interesting.

And I've been convinced that I can't die having lived a full and complete life if I have not seen Blue Oyster Cult in concert. Since they are in town tomorrow and my friend has tickets, apparently, I'm going.

The odd little adventures continue...

PS: Race photo added to previous post.

#6483

6483. That was my number today in the Forzani's Mother's Day Run and Walk. I entered into the 5K run. I thought that would be a sensible way to start.

I'd heard it was a pretty big run, but I was surprised when they announced that there were 13,000 runners and walkers! I ran into Karen with her daughter at the start line. We were separated before the race even began and though I looked for them at the end, I didn't find them again. Before the race Karen said to me, "Oh, you need a purple heart!" And she reached down, undid a shoelace and took a clear purple bead off her shoelace and gave it to me. I then put it on my shoelace.

"For having the courage to start," she said. I gave her a hug and thanked her for the inspiration.

I also happened upon, and said hello to Dawn during the run, whom I met last year when I volunteered at the Calgary marathon.

Well, I think I can chalk this up to a good learning experience for a first run. All I've ever heard about races says, "Don't start too fast. Everyone gets all excited, starts out too fast and then loses steam."

I also wasn't sure where to place myself in the pack. Even though I train with a Garmin and I know my pace pretty well, my usual runs are quite a bit longer. I thought maybe I could do this one a bit faster, but I wasn't sure. So I put myself in with the folks at the 8 min / km marker.

There were hoards and hoards of people. Karen was right when she said that the first couple of km are spent weaving in and out of people. I tried to hold back, not go too fast, but even so, it was hard to actually run. There were just too many people walking and jogging slowly. I eventually stuck to the sides of the road and tried to keep a fairly even pace.

At the halfway mark I knew I could speed up. I felt like I hadn't even really begun to warm up! (It was just a few degrees above freezing here today and the day started off with rain, so you can imagine the cool, damp conditions.)

So, I thought, "Screw it! It's only 5 KM. I'm just going to go for it and see what I can do from here."

There was still lots of weaving in and out of people, but I didn't try to hold back any more. I just kept going. My paced picked up considerably in the second half of the run.

I don't know what my official chip time was, but my Garmin told me that I did it in 31:08. That's an average pace of 9:58 min mile or 6:11 min km. I guess I didn't need to be so far back in the crowd, but since I've never done a 5 km road race before, I didn't know.

I finished a little disappointed because I felt like I had not given it my all. It seemed like it was over before I even got warmed up. At the same time, there were so many people, it was hard to negotiate the foot traffic and I'm unaccustomed to moving through such a big crowd. On the other hand, I am happy because it is the first time that I've recorded averaging a sub-10 minute mile. Ever.

I'm not sure I could sustain that over a long-distance run, but it is a nice way to start off my racing endeavours.

At the finish line my friends, Loreto and Gord, were there with cameras (pictures to be posted in a few days) and some warm clothes, which I was very thankful for. We went for breakfast and talked mostly about training the entire time, which was a nice break from the academic head space I have been in these past few weeks, with my exams at hand.

And speaking of distractions from exams... I think I'm going to poke around on line and see what the next running event will be. I mean... after all, with a time like 31:08, it's just begging me to do another one and get it under half an hour. Don't you think?

Monday update - According to the newspaper, my official chip time was 31:03. I guess I was slow pressing the buttons on my Garmin. ;-) Full race results are available here.

Ups and downs

The "Up" part

I was going to give this post the title of "More than a perfect 10", since I'm thrilled that today I ran more than 10 miles for the first time since I started on this training journey.

10.22 miles, to be exact.

Or, for my fellow Canucks: 16.45 km.

It took me two hours, but that's OK with me. Thanks to my handy dandy Garmin, I noted that my average running pace was 5.7 mph. Usually I run 5.0 to 5.1 mph on longer runs, so I'm not sure where the burst of energy came from today (but probably from the fact that I had set a mental goal of running 10 miles, and when I set goals - watch out!)

At the end, my right hip flexor was quite cranky, but I stretched and had a nice hot shower when I got home and it's happy again. Happy knees, too.

Still have a yucky gut, but I do appreciate all the comments from the last post. I will continue to experiment. I suspect some of it may have to do with stress from this candidacy exam paper I'm writing.

I am working like a demon on it -- reading, taking notes and writing about 6 hours a day -- and, bizarre though this may sound, I'm enjoying it.... Kind of in the way that when I say I enjoyed today's 10-mile run, other runners get it. The rest of the world thinks you're a freak of nature. It's kinda like that. The experience has elements of being gruelling, insane, and masochistic... But some people like that sort of thing. :-)

The "Down" part

I got word yesterday that a good friend had a stroke. She's just a couple of years older than me. She has some health concerns, but this is a first.

Before my run today I went by the hospital to see her. She was, for the first time since she'd been admitted, sitting up. She was finishing off lunch when I went in, which I took as a good sign. She was in really good spirits and had already begun to recover a bit from the paralysis on her left side. The fact that she was her usual feisty self and talking up a storm were good signs, I figure.

It sucks when your friends are hit with crappiness and you wish you could make it all go away for them, but you can't. So I just tried to make her laugh instead.

Well, with that, I must return to my books... Mmmm..... books.

Runner's tummy

OK, so I don't know if that's the technical term for it or not, but it's when almost everything upsets your tummy on a long run. I used to have a gut of iron, but these long training runs are killing me! If I don't eat fairly soon before running, I feel faint.

But I've figured out over these past few months that my system simply will not tolerate most things within about 3 hours of running... no meat (and definitely, most definitely) not fish; nothing fatty or with any kind of sauce or dressing; no onions or garlic; no bread; no juices (and especially not vegetable juice or V8), absolutely-under-no-circumstances can I go near a banana.

Today I had some cooked veggies and table water crackers with some cheese (just becuase if I don't have some kind of protein, I'll just about pass out). Then I waited for over an hour to run.

I try not to drink too much water on the runs and I don't use Gatorade, either. That's OK for shorter runs, but it brings on the gut ache sooner on the long runs.

But still... after about 45 minutes, it came... that slow nausea that just swirls around in your gut. You know you're not going to hurl, but it's just not fun. And it slows the run down!

I am enjoying the long runs (15 km today! First time! For U.S. friends that's 9.3 miles.) But they are, literally, nauseating. I took a gel after about an hour so I wouldn't bonk, and then near the end, it got better.

By the end of the run, of course, I'm ravenous. I feel like screaming at people, "Get the hell out of my way so I can eat, or I'll rip your face off!"

But of course, I don't. I just smile nicely and cooly reach for whatever snack I hope my princess gut will handle.

I figure that I can't be the only person who's ever experienced this. Anyone got any advice?

My running books all say to eat bananas. My tummy would tell their authors they're full of baloney.

Ew.

Baloney.

Let's not even go there.

Not even on a good day.

And now for something completely different.

Was it...

- a way of celebrating spring?

- a temporary loss of sanity due to exams?

- a desire for a little fun?

Answer: All of the above.

The result?

Super-uber blonde!

Today is a good day to die

For those of you who may be shocked by that title, or just may not recognize the reference, it is from Star Trek. It's what Klingons say before they go into battle. For Klingons, dying in battle is honourable.

That pretty much sums up how I feel about this Candidacy Exam, which starts today. The questions will be e-mailed to me and then off on my little Vision Quest I go.

Yes, my stomach is in knots, but the way I figure it, nothing could be worse than Stats, so I'm already starting out well!

Michelle asked about posting the questions. I would love to share the questions, and I will, but only after the oral exam is done. There's this understanding that the exam is done independently, no one helps you, etc., etc. All very ritualistic, really.

If I were to post the questions, then it might *look* as if I were asking for help. (Not that any of you would give it to me anyway, of course!) But on account of my profs knowing my blog address, I'm going to refrain for now.

After I submit the paper (in 28 days) and after I have the oral exam that is based on the paper (somewhere mid to late June), then I'll tell all like a Hollywood tabloid. Promise!

And with that, I should stop procrastinating and go check my e-mail to see if the questions have arrived in my Inbox.