A vignette from the weekend, completely out of context:
Me: This is really fun.
BC: I’ve got no complaints.
Me: Good, ’cause if you did I’ve got a ball gag over there that would stop that right quick.
*pause, look at each other*
*both of us dissolve into giggles*
Words just can’t do justice to the mash-up video posted over here at UltraSparky. Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon meet Unk. I love it.
So, got a call today that the other dresser had arrived at the store. They were able to deliver it this evening, but not to assemble it but could come back to assemble it Saturday. Ha. No, thanks, just deliver it and I’ll assemble it. And you know, it was really easy to assemble, especially if you’ve ever put anything together by Ikea. Basic screws with those little turn-tighteners all over, plus putting on the rails for the drawers. The drawers themselves were fully assembled in their respective boxes, meaning only the frame had to be put together. Even with just one person, it was a snap.
Of course it helps that I have a decent electric screwdriver/drill, too.
So now all my clothes are put away. Huzzah. Still need to figure out the exact arrangement of the stuff in there, but that’s not a big deal. I’m just glad to have both pieces in and my clean clothes put away.
Tomorrow I pop up to my YWCA to (I hope) finalize the arrangements to join the Masters’ Swimming program there. Depends on whether I find the acquatics director or not. Might have to pop up there during the day, perhaps at lunch, in order to catch him in.
Get to see the crush on Saturday. I suppose I can give him initials now, since this seems to be here for the nonce. Still crushing. Still all silly. Still loving it. So we’ll call him BC. Really looking forward to more time with him. We just seem to fit well together. Not finishing one another’s sentences, and enough differences to keep things interesting, but enough commonalities (it so helps that he’s also a runner) to get along really well.
Hazy morning in DC. Got up for my bike ride, headed out. Had a ton of people out this morning, most of whom were in the ‘fast’ pace group. I had volunteered to lead the slower pace group, so off we went. The ride itself was going great until we got around to do a last short loop of the park. As we entered the one-way section we discovered quickly that the parks service had just turned on the sprinkler system. It’s a big pipe thing they’ve only recently set up, which pipes water in from the Potomac and sprays it over the cherry trees and grass. I thought they were done with it, as it was partially disassembled this weekend, but they’ve hooked it all back up. So for a couple minutes we dodged streams (where we could) and did a lot of laughing as we rode through the sprinklers. Thankfully, while they were getting the back side set up they hadn’t started pumping yet, so we got to dry off a little on the way back up.
At least that answered the question as to whether or not to do a 2nd short loop at the end.
Got up, no exercise planned for the morning, so I got down to the dry cleaners, picked up shirts, dropped off two pair of pants to get hemmed (finally hemming the Nasty Pig jeans I got at MAL), came back, made coffee, went down to the office to check some folders for the cult co-op, then up to get ready to head to work.
Work was work. No biggie.
Swam after work. Was trying to concentrate on relaxing in the water, paying attention to form, but not speed. That was going well until about half to two-thirds of the way through the swim when some guy did a cannonball into the lane beside me. Thankfully I was resting at the edge, but that was a bit of a shock. Most folks are polite and just slip into the end of the pool. He then proceeded to see if he could single-handedly recreate water conditions on the Chesapeake Bay. During a wind storm. Not the most graceful swimmer I’ve ever seen. I kept wanting to point out that you’re supposed to slip your hand into the water, not slap the top of the pool on your way in, but instead tried to continue concentrating on the zen feeling. It mostly worked, despite slappy in the next lane. Overall a good swim.
Still nicely burnt from this weekend’s biking and running. Both Saturday and Sunday I got started late, so was out in way more sun than I usually am, with the usual results. It’s cute – I have a classic farmer’s tan half-way down the upper arm from the bike ride, then a separate set of lines on the shoulders where I wore a tank-style shirt to run on Sunday. Not too bad, save for carrying the bike bag to work and the gym today. Ouch.
A brief bit of laundry tonight, and getting stuff ready for the ride tomorrow.
The crush is still, well, just awesome. We’re both still all googly-eyed and silly and all of that and it’s quite fun. We just seem to fit well together. I think I’ve seen more movies in the theater in the past couple months now than I’ve seen that way in years.
Tomorrow it’s off to Dupont for the usual hair cut, then up to Adams Morgan to put bikes together with the club. Some folks are running a kids’ triathlon camp this summer for DC Parks and Rec and we got a bunch of bikes donated for it, so we’re getting together to assemble the bikes for the kids. Should be fun.
Evidently I needed extra sleep. I didn’t set an alarm for this morning, figuring I’d get up somewhere near my normal time. I think I did, but went right back to bed until around 8:30. Sinful. But it felt good. As a result I didn’t get out on the bike until around 10, so finished up the planned ride around 12:40ish, not quite 40 miles. The ride itself went well. No close calls with small children this time (went out about a month ago with a friend who ended up running over a small child who turned suddenly into his path with no space to dodge her; thankfully aside from a little cut on him, neither were seriously hurt). Only had to yell at one person (“Watch out!”) on the zoo property as he came at me head on while looking at birds off the trail rather than where he was going, and otherwise folks were behaving as I expected them to.
I find that I dislike riding the capitol crescent trail once you cross into Maryland. I’m sure the DC side would be just as bad were it as densely populated, but there’s a definite uptick in strollers, idiots wearing head phones and other obstacles. Heart rate goes up in such situations (stress much?), but so be it.
Debating a planned swim, I think I might be better off doing that tomorrow evening. The rest of the evening is set aside for le crush and a cheesy movie & dinner. Until then, it’s time to make coffee. And gather fruit.
I feel like I was just cock-blocked.
The meeting was scheduled for Friday, so delivery of the dressers was set for this afternoon. Guys got done assembling and I asked where the 2nd unit was. No clue. Called the store. The salewoman, from home on her day off, called to fall all over herself apologizing, is trying to find out why the manufacturer only shipped one unit, and has comped the 2nd delivery charge. In the meantime I’ve filled the one dresser that’s here and assembled, and put the other clothes on top of it (no more floor storage!).
Calming breaths, and concentration on arranging what’s here. Calming breaths. Calming breaths…
My stomach decided to misbehave (damned lunch burrito) so I cancelled the swim and came home instead. Once here I decided I’d had enough of the crap on my desk and dining room table, so that’s all mostly cleaned up now. Caught up on mail (but not on magazines – oy), shredded what needed to be shredded, prepped other stuff to file, and mostly made the place fall into order again, which definitely helped bring the mood up from the stomach and lack of swimming.
I need to do the same in the bedroom, but I’m holding off until tomorrow or Friday because one of those two days my new dressers are arriving. I couldn’t say for certain because I have a meeting one of the two days with my deputy general counsel and his schedule’s somewhat in the air, so one day or the other I have the meeting, meaning the other day I get my furniture. It’s worth it because the meeting will be another step closer to killing off a major pain-in-my-ass project, but I really, really want to get my clothes off the floor. Their presence there has been driving me nuts, ever since I got rid of the other chest of drawers. Not that I regret getting it down to my parents and niece, but the floor stuff has got to go. Then I can do a goodwill donation run and get rid of unused clothes and be much better off.
And perhaps even think about finally having people over in numbers larger than one.
Despite what I’ve done it still doesn’t feel completely together yet, though. I guess my expectations are still high. Doesn’t help when I go to friends’ places and they just look like someone actually thought out a plan and coordinated what they were doing. I’m starting to get there, but it’s a slow process on my budget, and it’s an area where I’m feeling the more hummingbird side of my patience (as opposed to the buddha-in-the-wilderness side). It’s frustrating, the waiting and slowly choosing stuff. I want it all done and together NOW, but it doesn’t happen that way. At least some order is coming out of the chaos, and that’s a good thing.
Earlier today I finally posted one of the three race reports that I need to do. Still have this past weekend’s 10k and the 1/2 marathon from April yet to write up.
Work’s gotten a tad better. I spent a good bit of time cleaning off my desk, recycling or filing things. Part of that was finally having passed a draft to management of a long-term project, so while I waited for feedback I took some time to make some more work space available. Did get the needed feedback later in the afternoon so I now have more direction on which way to go, which is a very good thing, and I feel a lot better about the project. I suspect I’d have been better off chatting with da boss for a bit on this thing rather than operating in quite the vacuum I was working in, but so be it. A lesson for next time. In the meantime, I’m good to go and feeling better.
The crush continues apace. We spent most of pride weekend together, a lovely bit of time with friends and hanging out and wandering around seeing tons of folks whom I never see because either I or they never go out (or never go out to the same places). A tad too much alcohol was consumed Saturday, but these things happen. At least a couple people met the crush and I got approvals back from those who did.
Back to serious training this week. Cycled this morning, will run and swim tomorrow. 88 more days until the half-ironman, aka “Ironman 70.3” race as they’re calling them these days (if you total up the swim, bike and run miles it comes to 70.3 miles: 1.2, 56, and 13.1; a full Ironman is twice that). I can do it, and I’m pretty sure I’ll actually enjoy it, too, but it’ll certainly be a challenge. Looking forward to it.
Left work early this evening to bike home ahead of a line of thunderstorms that rolled through downtown around 5:35 or so. Just managed to get in before the rain started, so glad I left when I did. Wasn’t very long, but was very intense, and was right at closing time for me. Did up a batch of steamed dumplings for dinner. I’m trying out various pre-made ones and so far this manufacturer is winning hands down. Interesting taste, spiced just right, cooked easily, stayed together, but didn’t stick to one another. The first batch was okay, the second (boiled) batch turned into one giant mass-of-dumpling-dough-and-filling.
Attended my second cult co-op meeting of the week tonight. While I led the last meeting (which is less formal than most), this one I wish I had led. Oh. Em. Gee. Talk about toxic. The older committee members seem to have some sort of complex about years of perceived abuse that’s supposedly been heaped on them and they’re just a mess. I think we could have gotten all of the work done in an hour, maybe a little more, rather than the 1.5+ hour rambling session that passed for a meeting. What a cluster fuck. I may have to shoot the board member who talked me into getting on this thing.
Oh, and last but not least the little man purse extra small messenger bag I ordered to tool around town with finally arrived today (not those colors, though – I did a custom one in burgundy/steel/burgundy with a moss liner and a silver logo). Mmm, pretty… I wanted something to carry a few small things with if I bike somewhere in town that wasn’t my huge messenger bag (both to have the smaller bag and not to layer my entire back in a nice, unbreathing sweat bag). I think it’ll do the trick nicely.
Never before have I had so high a race number (#4!!), and probably never will again.
First, a bit of back story. I was down to do the Sunday race because my eldest niece, who turned 10 this year, was going to do her first kids’ triathlon on Saturday. The weather for the kids’ tri was absolutely gorgeous, sunny and perfect, and she had a blast. She was seeded toward the end because of her swim time, which was fine, but seemed a bit high for 100 meters (5:30) when I checked her bib info at packet pickup.
Well, there was a reason it was a little high. Evidently when I registered her for her race (her birthday present) and myself for the adults’ race, our two swim times got switched. So instead of 3:30 to swim her 100 meters, she got my 5:30 for my 300 meters, and vice-versa. Which meant when I showed up for packet pickup, I was something of a star to the volunteers because I was getting a single digit number, meaning I was supposedly faster than fast. Only, I’m not. Thankfully the race director was kind enough to tell me where I should seed myself for the swim start, and the story made for a fun one while standing in line for the swim.
Race day itself broke nice and wet. Just like the Mooseman race I did this same weekend last year. I’m sensing a trend for these races when I stay with my parents, who had brought up my niece in their RV. So we trundled out to the Y, early enough to get good parking, and I set up transition in the rain.
The swim itself was, well, dark. We had been standing outside in the semi-sun, had maybe 30 seconds at the door and into the edge of the pool before launching into the swim, and that wasn’t enough time for my eyes to adjust before I was into a churning pool full of hyped up triathletes. Heart rate was, as usual, far too high on the swim. Trying to relax there has to be my biggest weakness, even in a pool snake swim. I passed two folks, and two others passed me, so I think I seeded myself just about right. Didn’t stop except to let folks pass, and got out as soon as I could. Once out I had a good chat while running over to transition with another woman who made it out just before I did.
T1 went well, and I popped out on the bike pretty well. The woman I’d left the swim with set a pretty good pace on the bike, so, while staying out of her draft zone (USAT folks were very much in evidence on their motorcycles) I followed behind. The course was moderately hilly, but not bad. I think I shifted more in those 12 miles than I’ve done in the last month (ah, good old flat Hains Point). The rain was off and on, and I got my heart rate down a smidge from the swim, but I probably hammered it a bit much. It was a sprint, though, and I was still feeling fine. The most memorable moment had to be biking under some high-powered wires at one point because the things were literally sizzling and crackling in the rain. I was glad we were zipping along at a good clip.
There was one spot where the volunteer didn’t have a flag to motion us to turn, and I almost missed that last turn, but otherwise the intersections were well staffed with police and volunteers, all of whom I made sure to thank as I rolled through.
Somewhere around three quarters of the way through my pace setter slowed down some and I passed her. Kept up the good pace all the way to transition, and popped into that well. As usual I unclipped and shook out my legs while gliding to the dismount, and then it was into T2. It was a little slow, because I had to get stuff out of the bag I had my shoes and race belt in, but it was worth it to have dry shoes, at least for a few minutes.
About half way down the transition area I realized I’d left my biking gloves on. Not the first time I’ve done that, and I’m capable of running with ’em on, but it’s a tad annoying. As I approached the turn to head out, though, I spotted Mom and Dad at the end, so peeled off the gloves as Dad snapped photos and tossed them toward Mom and asked her to hold them for me.
The run course might have been relatively flat for the Richmond area, but it was not flat. Long, shallow inclines, both up and down both ways, dominated the run. I maintained a pretty good turnover on my legs, and ran the full 5k. The water stop was just perfect, and the volunteers were great. As I approached the turn into the finish I caught up to another age-grouper, who, as I went to pass him, suddenly picked up the pace and zipped on ahead. No biggie. Ran into the finish in an hour and twenty minutes, about ten minutes ahead of what I expected to do it in. The run and swim were right on pace, so the bike pace I followed must’ve shaved off most of the time, plus some savings in transition. Even with the rain it wasn’t too bad, and I’m getting used to racing this way.
Overall, the race itself was a lot of fun and I’d do it again. It was a fast sprint with just enough hills on the bike and run to present a challenge but not to kill yourself on.