Number 7, wow. And Half Marathon #1 was just a little over a year ago.

I knew this would be a nice race even though I was injured and on tired legs, because it was my birthday and was just for fun, but I had no idea how wonderful it would end up.

Luv picked me up and surprised me with not only a birthday button but birthday headband complete with bouncy antennae and a birthday mardi gras like necklace. We headed over to the expo, which was outside and quite small. I found my bib number and walked to the booth and provided my number. As soon as they gave me my bib, Luv gave them HIS number! The plan was for Luv and I to head over there together and for him to go golfing while I ran the race. Instead, he had secretly signed up for the race.

My first words, after the shock escaped me, was "Thank you for spending the day with me". And yes, that is all I ever wanted on my birthday. No gifts or party or anything, except to spend quality time with Luv. He gave up a day of golfing for me.

It was a little comical to because the last time he ran 11+ miles with me it was in the pouring rain and they were forecasting rain during the race. It didn't rain till after we were done which made for a lovely run.

We had a impromptu birthday dinner, after obtaining the bib numbers, at a restaurant I'd never been to. The name was "sauced" and there was a pig on their sign. I love pork and when entering to check out the menu you could tell it was a bbq place. We quickly found a table at the bar area and both honed in on our favorite bbq items.

I will certainly be going back there. I'm salivating thinking about their food. The server was even noticed all my birthday bling and brought me a free dessert for my birthday. It looked like a funnel cake puff ball with maybe chocolate inside and a cup of homemade ice cream. I took a bite of the puff ball and was exceptionally surprised to realize I had eaten my very first deep fried oreo.

The race was better than expected. Luv and his fresh legs were a number of strides ahead most of the time so conversation was near impossible, but I am grateful for when he'd turn around. I'd smile so big at him because I was over-whelmed that he was here to share this experience with me. From the day we met, I've always been excited to spend time with him.

The (dry) race report is on my running blog, just let me know if you want the link and I'll DM you - if that's possible on wordpress??

The race ended and we wandered around the after party, which included free unlimited wine. I chose the champaign - fitting for the occasion (birthday) and my favorite, a blueberry cake donut.

After leaving the race it began to rain but that didn't stop me from visiting a gluten free bakery I'd never been too and picking up some gluten free (but not dairy free) cupcakes for my birthday. I realized today when I decided to blog about the bakery, that I should have asked more questions of the person who was manning the store. If/when I go back, I certainly will get more details.

I tried an ice bath for the first time. I read that it only has to be between 54-60 degrees. So I made the water cool, sat in it and then added ice cubes. My guess is that this method made it more bearable. It actually felt really good on my overly tired legs and was much less sore today than I was expecting to be.

Birthday dinner #2 was at my favorite burger place that has gf buns and now serves dairy free cheese! Sweet! Then it was early to bed.

I was quite happy that this race was on a Saturday. It let me recover some more today before heading back to work tomorrow.

I'd say I'm all raced out for awhile. My next race is in May, a ten miler, in Novato where there is another gluten free baker that I really enjoy.

I really don't want to be social. I think I'm still tired from yesterday's half marathon, either that or early PMS. Please don't be early PMS, the worst thing is running a race with a period.

I have zero motivation for this job and I used up all my motivation yesterday to keep myself going after starting the race way too fast. Today was supposed to be a restricted day but decided to not limit myself while I'm in pain and in this state.

It's like I have a wound up ball in my body and the spring is about to break. It's anger and I must keep it tied down until it passes.

I guess I'm angry that my run was not enjoyable and little was gained. Maybe writing it down will let the anger go or maybe finding a metaphorical way to release it.

Just because I know you are dying to know if I'm still dying or not.

Progression:
Day 1 – Sinus pressure but could still breath fine, drainage in throat
Day 2 – Congestion moved to nose, blowing nose every 10 minutes, slight fever
Day 3 – Fatigue, congestion
Day 4 – Congestion, if I blow really hard, I can breath and be normal for 10-15 minutes
Day 5 – Headache, lump in throat, sinus pressure, the start of a sore throat
Day 6 - Exhausted, blowing nose every hour, was able to get a run in but passed out after, cursing the last cold I had which only lasted 6 days.
Day 7 - Went to work, coughing fits that require leaving the office or honey with tea or cough drops, blowing nose every hour, still sound very nasally
Day 8 - Went to work, blowing nose every 3 hours! Still sound nasally and have congestion, nose is raw and it hurts to put lotion on it.

A number of trees have died because of all the tissues I have gone through so far. Averaging 4 tissues for every episode of snot extraction.

My cats are enjoying me lounging in the living room while I recover from this Spring cold. Last night and all of today, I've been getting caught up on episodes of Dr. Who and Master Chef.

Progression:
Day 1 - Sinus pressure but could still breath fine, drainage in throat
Day 2 - Congestion moved to nose, blowing nose every 10 minutes, slight fever
Day 3 - Fatigue, congestion
Day 4 - Congestion, if I blow really hard, I can breath and be normal for 10-15 minutes
Day 5 - Headache, lump in throat, sinus pressure, the start of a sore throat

Instead of walking around San Diego, we opted for putting my swollen feet up and enjoying the sun. By that time my sister was coming down with her cold so resting was good for both of us.

We eventually had to change locations so we took a pedicab! My first time on one.

Today's short 2.5 mile run was sponsored by a cold I most-likely picked up from my sister. The cold gave me the excuse to stay home from work, which allowed me to rest but also take an afternoon run.

After walking out the door without checking the temp I exclaimed "holy crap it's hot out here" then looked around to see if anyone heard me and thus could mistaken me for a crazy homeless person. I promptly returned indoors to change to a tank top and don my new headband.

The run was a twist on some well traveled routes. I wanted to end up at the market a mile away to purchase veggies since I skipped last week's produce box. After the brief jog down my street I found the perfect combination of streets to end up at exactly 2.5 miles (30 mins) and at the market.

A side stitch slowed me down at mile 2 and based on a recent runners world article, I concluded I'm lacking in hydration. Must remedy that tomorrow.

Another run in the log books and the training continues!

How did your run go today?

I started unsubscribing from emails that I don't read over a week ago and they are still coming in. Amazing. I wasted so much time reviewing and deleting these emails. I became subscribed to them because I purchased something from the site or I thought they would be valuable to be on their list.

I feel like my inbox is less heavy now. I'm also enjoying the extra time I have.

I just found the option on the iPhone app to be able to log into each of my 4 wordpress accounts including xanga. Gunna give this xanga thing another shot and devote my other blog to running and advice to runners.

[edit] my template or xangas wordpress template sucks for viewing on iPhone. Anyone else notice this?