Sunday, November 30, 2014

On and On

This is a July 11 post from my fundraising page that I'm just now getting around to cross-posting on Blogger.

Despite wrestling a mysterious knee injury that even my doctor was unsure about, I'm still running. Sunday last week I laid down 8 miles, and it was mostly horrible, but I finished it. Tomorrow I'm looking forward to an early morning 5k race and then returning home to run an additional 5-10k since I won't have time the rest of the weekend to get in a long run. The knee pain is still there, but with the aid of a brace, it's not surfacing until later and longer mileage each week.

The humidity is kicking my butt and slowing me down from an expected 13 min/mi pace to 16 min/mi, but I'm still getting out there. My first(ish) half marathon is the Disneyland Half Marathon on August 31, and I'm working my way up to 13 miles. I'd much rather sleep in every morning and quit entirely since I hate the heat so much, but I remember who and what I'm running for, and I remember the friends who tell me how inspiring my efforts are.

It's hard and it hurts and I keep at it.

Saturday, November 29, 2014

Training setbacks

This is a June 26 post from my fundraising page that I'm just now getting around to cross-posting on Blogger.

Good news: I'm officially a quarter of the way to my fundraising goal!

Other news: Since a sudden overuse injury in mid-May, I've been struggling frequently with knee pain, and half marathon training has been absolutely brutal. I didn't fall or anything, but after the 9-mile Spartan Super, the next day when I set out at an easy jog, my left knee began screaming at me, a new pain I'd never felt before despite past difficulties with crooked kneecaps.

I've been running since 2010, but this season is kicking my butt, and I'm beginning to wonder if I'll have to walk the Disneyland Half Marathon in August and the Honored Hero Half in October. That wouldn't be the worst thing ever, but it would take a very long time to complete. 

I've been taking off a week or two at a time and icing my knees, but when I start to run again, no matter how slowly, smoothly, and softly, the aching returns just a few miles in. My doctor checked me out but isn't sure what's wrong. It's probably either Runner's Knee or Illiotibial Band Syndrome. The best thing to do for them is to ease up on running, but my training plan requires me to increase mileage in the coming months.

It's a bummer. But whatever happens, I'm still fundraising and still planning to finish those races, however long it takes.

Friday, November 28, 2014

Why do I do?

This is a May 21 post from my fundraising page that I'm just now getting around to cross-posting on Blogger.

 I don't have a heart-breaking or -warming story about why I'm joining the Team in Training program. I just want to do good.

Last spring I registered as a bone marrow donor with Be the Match when I happened to walk by a registration drive in a park, because it is a good thing to do. I organized a charity 5k run in the fall on a whim to support organizations that matter to me and will do so again this year.

I signed up with the Skepchicks for the local Light the Night walk because I knew I could contribute more by soliciting my contacts to help with fundraising than I could give from my own pocket.

Last year I hosted a food drive at my Amtgard park to benefit Minnie's Food Pantry in Plano. This year I organized the clothing drive for Hope's Door and collected 3 full trunk loads of donations plus cash and a Target gift certificate for the charity.

I'm not sure even know anyone who's suffered from the blood cancers that LLS is trying to cure.

My family and friends have been touched by other cancers, and I will run in their honor. My grandmother died in her early 60s of esophageal cancer. A college classmate was diagnosed with a brain tumor at 19 and died at 21. She was a flute player in the marching band and the kindest girl I ever met. I run because they cannot.

When I took up hashing in S. Korea, I met a woman who was battling a rare form of cancer and didn't expect to live to 40. She ran nearly every day, even though the chemo meant she had to stop frequently to puke. She ran anyway. And now she's expecting a baby! Another friend, Mofo, is a cancer survivor and marathoner who has also done fundraising for TNT. These two inspire me to run harder and longer than I could otherwise push myself on my own.

I meet more people every day who've been touched by these illnesses and I'll run for them and their loved ones. Because I can.

Long absence; Blogger blocked

I miss writing here. I've been blocked from this site at the office since May, which is where I do most of my writing, considering I spend the largest chunk of my life there.

I wrote several posts on other platforms over the summer and will share those here over the next few days and weeks. I'm going to try again to write regularly, even if I'm hardly ever at a computer from which I can post. I had a pretty good streak there for a while.

Since this is my 200th post, here are cute pictures of the pets at home.

Calypso, the princess

Popsicle, the odd one

Crowley, alpha nightfury

Paxil, the problem child

Desyrel ("Desi"), scaredy-pup