Mental Preparation

If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter, you're aware that my wife Laurie and I are training for our first half marathon, the We Care Twin Cities Half Marathon taking place on Saturday, September 29.

A couple years ago I couldn't have imagined I would be preparing for a half marathon… or that I'd be running regularly. And even more so, I never could have imagined I would be enjoying running again… I haven't felt that way since high school, and even then I'm not sure I could have said I enjoyed it.

We are 57 days away from the half marathon… I'm a couple weeks behind where I should be in training due to my right achilles tendon becoming very swollen a few weeks ago. But luckily, two weeks off from running and gel heel wedges have completely healed my achilles problem :-) I'm feeling pretty good where I'm at right now, but wish I wouldn't have lost those couple of weeks.

Tomorrow I'm scheduled for an eight mile run… I can't remember when I've run eight miles, but probably not since the fall of 1983 sometime between August and October (my senior season in cross country at Monmouth High School… GO ZIPPERS!!!)

I've been in this weird "mental preparation" mood today… I keep thinking about the eight mile run tomorrow. But it's not been a bad, negative, or fearful way… More of a "getting prepared" way.

•What should I eat tonight that won't weigh me down in the morning
•How much sleep should I get
•When should I take my ibuprofen in the morning (usually takes 30-minutes to kick in)
•What time am I running
•Breakfast before? Or post run breakfast?
•Should I take a nutrition bar to make sure I'm replenishing
•How often should I drink from my water bottle to make sure it lasts 8 miles
•What's my desired pace
•Shirt or no shirt
•Are my favorite running shorts clean
•Can't forget a washcloth (my wife got me started on that one)
•Charge my phone to 100%
•Use IcyHot on my thigh right before starting
•Raisins… don't forget to eat raisins before running (my new little "gotta have it" food before I run)
•Map out mileage tonight in case iPhone GPS goes whacky again (it has a habit of adding in some some weird jagged patterns or extra loops)
•Usual running location or different one?
•Lots of stretching before; midway if I need to, also
•Shade running or full sun running? (half marathon will be almost all full sun, but Constitution Trail that Laurie and I run on is well shaded)
•Mile to mile plan … pace & time
•Form… not too upright, don't arch your back, lean forward a little, relax, watch arm swinging

Crazy, huh??? Before I went on long runs in high school I NEVER thought through anything… I just did it.
And quite honestly, I'm excited about it… a little nervous, since I haven't gone that far in almost 30 years, but… excited to know I'm doing it!!!

So, lunch is over… time to get back to work weeding and deadheading. And, I'm pretty sure I'll continue mentally preparing myself for my run tomorrow. :-)


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The Wall

Happiness

What brings you happiness?
I mean REAL happiness?

But remember, don't mistake "happiness" for "joy." Happiness is because of what happens … joy is in spite of what happens.

So … I'll ask again … what brings you happiness? Real happiness?

But, after seeing the difference between happiness and joy, does it really matter what brings happiness? It almost sounds materialistic, selfish, or greedy.

It's kind of like that age old question: "What do you want for Christmas?" i.e. "What can I give you to make you happy?"

You see, happiness depends on something physical, material, or an action. What can you give me, do for me, say to me, buy for me … to make me happy.

So … I'll ask again … what brings you happiness? Real happiness?

Or, after what you've just read, does happiness seem pretty insignificant now … temporary … short-lived … meaningless …

Sure, happiness can "fill the void" of joy … but, it's kind of like using mud to do tuck pointing in a foundation. It's not going to last … it's temporary … it's short-lived … it's insignificant … it's meaningless … it's worthless in the broader scope of time and life.

So … I'll ask again … what brings you happiness? Real happiness?


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Sunflower Smiles

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Catching Up

Seems like forever since I last posted on my blog… I could say I've just been way too busy, but in all honesty I just haven't made the time.

But, it's time I get back into a routine of regularly writing posts.

Below are pictures of the kids from our recent family vacation to Wisconsin…








It was the 48th year my family has gone to Wisconsin for vacation (it would have been the 50th, but we missed a couple years back in the 60's).

It was possibly the most perfect weather we've ever had while in Wisconsin; high 70's everyday and no rain except for our first night. A needed break from our high 90's and 100's in central Illinois.

Fishing was pretty worthless while we were there, but we made the most of it anyway. My son Andrew participated in the weekly fishing derby (for kids on the docks) and caught a record number of fish (bluegill and sunfish) in 20 minutes: 29!!!





Andrew used a "secret weapon" made by my dad… I guess it worked!

This how we spent most of time:


Yes… lots of relaxing. And when we weren't relaxing on the beach, we were relaxing in the cabin. But, we did take time to have some fun, too.


Laurie and I ran the 5K for Orphans in June… we were both very happy with our times and have seen a lot of improvement since we started running over a year ago. We are in the middle of training for the We Care Twin Cities Half Marathon taking place here in Bloomington/Normal on Sept 29… I had a little setback in training due to an achilles tendon that became aggravated at me for trying minimalist running shoes, but after a couple weeks off I'm back at it again.


We're both a little nervous about the half marathon, but excited, too. It's an awesome goal to reach for and we're looking forward to crossing the finish line and celebrating.

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Wascawy Warmf And Wabbits!!!

The Friday before Memorial Day I planted 300+ coral and salmon magellan zinnias at a client's house... These were plants that I had seeded in mid-April and was SO looking forward to be planting for them. My client LOVES coral and salmon and these zinnias are absolutely beautiful in those colors (as well as the yellow, orange, and red).

However... I should have known things weren't going to go well with them when I started to install the first group. The soil had become rock hard in the area that I was going to plant. I didn't have time to go get a tiller and work the soil, so I just started planting.

By the end of the 300+ zinnias I had a large bleeding blister on my right palm, another on my left thumb, and a third on my right index finger. It was 90 degrees, I was thirsty, I was tired, my knees hurt... They were done, I watered them in... I decided I should set the irrigation to come on every day for the next several since it was suppose to be in the 90's over Memorial Day and into the next week. I felt proud I got it done and thought ahead of the heat with extra watering.

Fast forward to Tuesday morning... I got out of my truck and walked over to the zinnias... burnt to a crisp. And the ground around the zinnias was bone dry. I walked over to the perennial beds... bone dry and new perennial plantings were drooping, others browning. I quickly walked to a series of four identical beds filled with annuals... also dry (but miraculously still looking ok).

I ran down to the irrigation controls... It was set correctly. I tried to turn it on manually... nothing happened. Then a little red light caught my eye... Beside it read "Rain Sensor." WHAT??? RAIN??? It hadn't rained a drop, but the crazy sensor had decided it had. This meant that the sensor did an override and told the irrigation system NOT to turn on.

I shut off the sensor and manually turned on the irrigation system... I drenched all of the beds, hoping I could save the dying the plants... especially the zinnias I worked so hard on just a few days before.

Well... most of the zinnias could not be saved, but I did see positive results within a couple of days of about 1/4th of the zinnias.

And then...



The rabbits hit.

I knew rabbits liked zinnias, but... really???

So, most of the remaining zinnias became snacks for the rabbits in the neighborhood.

What to do... What to do...

So, on Tuesday of this week I spent a few hours removing 300+ mostly dead and/or decapitated zinnias and installed 180 penta 'butterfly lavender shades' ... Not exactly what I was planning... and definitely not the color I was wanting to display along the road of this home. I was able to save about 15 of the zinnias and transplant them into the  perennial beds.

Also... before I planted the pentas, I worked the soil very well :-) Amazing how easily they were to plant compared to the zinnias :-)

All is well... Thank God for "Plan B."

Father And Son Time

Had an awesome three hours fishing with my son Andrew on Sunday...

We didn't catch a darn thing... but, that really didn't matter to me at all.

Pure White Peony

I love this peony in our front yard perennial bed... it is pure white and smells like Ivory Soap :-)

New Running Shoes

For the past few months my wife and I have been reading a lot about what is referred to as "minimalist" running shoes. We become interested when we started seeing information about Five Finger Shoes, but I had my concerns about them (for me) and began looking at other minimalist shoe options.

Then I recently ran across a magazine ad for the new Merrell Road Glove, and became immediately interested.

On Saturday I stopped at Often Running in Uptown Normal to look for knee bands for Laurie. While there I went ahead and asked about the Merrell shoes, talked in depth with the salesman, glanced at and talked about other possibilities (Saucony, Brooks, New Balance, Nike), tried the Road Gloves on, and walked out with my new running shoes...

I wore them for the rest of the afternoon/evening on Saturday and to church this morning/afternoon to start breaking them in. Then this afternoon I headed out on a run (with my lovely wife riding her bike... she had her run early this morning). I wasn't sure how far I was going to run... I was anxious but also excited about trying the new shoes because they are quite different than what I've used before.

In preparation for this move to a minimalist shoe I've worked really hard with my running form... less heel... shortening my stride and landing mid-foot and not on my heel. This isn't an easy thing to learn, especially at 46 and being a very bad "heel lander" when I'm running (and walking).

So my run... was excellent!!! I was amazed with how well I felt. I ended up running 4.39 miles in 40:52, which averages out to a 9:30 pace. I'll probably run in my Nike Free shoes next, then back to the new Merrell shoes... I don't want to rush my change to the new shoes and risk injury.

So a final few words about the new Merrell Road Gloves... Check them out!!! I'm hooked!!!

Stella's New Toy

Our cockatiel Stella found my necklace tonight while sitting on my shoulder... She was very intrigued by it as you can tell by the video below. The barking and growling is not from her, however... That was our jealous dog trying to get me to come play with him and put Stella back in her cage. :-)

Iris Show (continued)

As promised, a couple more irises have bloomed over the past two days...

Iris 'dazzling gold'

Iris 'harvest of memories'

Iris 'harvest of memories' has become my absolute favorite for it's scent... such a sweet sweet smell.

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Iris Show

If you REALLY know me, you know how much I LOVE irises... so, needless to say I'm in heaven seeing all of my irises, my client's irises, and any other irises I see blooming right now.

Here are my current irises that are blooming:

Iris 'pallida'

Iris 'wench'

Iris 'copatonic'

Iris 'immortality'

Iris 'blue staccato'

Iris 'blue suede shoes'

I'm looking forward to three more irises blooming within the next couple of days; my siberian and ensata irises will then follow.

My peonies are close to blooming, but there will probably be a few more days of waiting.

My tree peony had three beautiful blooms on it this year... It's still quite small at only three years of age, but I should see a lot of growth to it this year.

I start planting annuals in about 10 days... Because of our warmer spring it feels like I'm late planting annuals, and I'm sure it feels that way to my gardening clients, too. I'm very ready to start seeing that splash of annual color in beds and containers!!!

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