This weekend I played rough. And I have the scrapes and cuts and bruises to prove it. My mom did too.I crashed her running group so I could get in a 9-mile run. I also didn’t have a vehicle so it worked out that I could carpool with her to the run and the gym afterwards. Around Mile 2, there was a nasty buckle in the sidewalk and she went down hard. Granted it was not even 6 am so it was quite dark. She’s a trooper though and she got up and kept going. I went on ahead since she decided to drop down to a 7-mile run, but still. You guys, my mom is a beast!

 My run was pretty crappy after that, but I definitely do not blame her. I totally agree with her for listening to her body. I dropped pace and tried to enjoy it, but it was so freaking hot, even that early in the morning. Combined with the humidity, the traffic, the uneven – and sometimes missing – sidewalks, I was just not feeling it. I gave myself a break and walked more than I should have between miles 5 and 7. I figured it was good to practice walking since I’ll probably have to walk a bit of the race NEXT MONTH. I ran the last 2 miles, trying to match my beginning pace. It was work, but I managed to be close to it for Mile 8 and on pace for Mile 9.

 Afterwards, we went to the gym. I got in a swim workout while my mom recovered in the hot tub, tried to simulate the mass that is OWS/race swimming (think splashing and jumping around in front of me), and then she switched over to the aqua-aerobics class where she encouraged everyone else to splash (and hit) me. After my swim, it was time for E’s swim lessons. He did much better this week than last, but it’s pretty much the same thing week over week. Hopefully he’ll get comfortable with it all. At least we’ll have a foundation built, and hopefully some better pool comfort, by the time we go to Mexico. 
  
Sunday is where the weekend went downhill. I started my bike ride around my neighborhood, out on to the streets. I rode over to the park. After the first 12 miles, we connected with a joining park. I had to cross a busy street (Highway 6) so I was rushing to cross before the light changed. I was booking across the intersection, but the path head is built to discourage such speed. Now I know why. I took what I thought was a paved path around the small gated access, but no. I found myself in 2-inch thick loose gravel. On top of that, there was about a 5-inch rough asphalt ledge to get on to the path. Within seconds, I was on my side, bike on top of me, covered in gravel, dirt, and blood. Some runners asked if I was ok. It took a few minutes, but I got up and back on my bike. I think Adam was a bit worried based on the amount of dirt/blood and the fact I told him I was trying really hard to fight back tears.

 After another 5 miles, I gave in to the pain. I didn’t want to go any further. I tried calling for a ride, but only got voicemails. Finally I called my girlfriend who was about 2 miles away, and she let me come over so I could clean up and relax until I could get a ride home. Needless to say, I looked like a hot mess.
  


 I showered and ran some errands – after a good nap, naturally. Then it was time for my next adventure – a soccer game. My new name was Kristin and I did ok. I took a nasty fall during one of my first few touches and ended up cutting my OTHER knee. Basically, I look like my twelve year old self when my nickname was Bruiser Chick. Only this time, I was giving the bruises to myself.
  
One last (sappy) note before I leave for now. My friend’s 30th birthday would have been this Wednesday. My 30th birthday is exactly 30 days later. Unfortunately, she passed away on my 14th birthday. I see all these “30 before 30 lists” and I thought to myself… If I start with an act of kindness on her birthday, that will give me 30 acts by my birthday. I compiled my list and I’m excited to follow through on it. Day 1 will begin Wednesday and I already have the perfect act picked out. I’m hoping to post everything to Twitter/Instagram so if you want to see what I’m up to, feel free to follow me on there if you don’t already.

I hope everybody has a great week!


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