Mode + Reset

Just came as close to have a full on panic attack as I would ever like to be.  Might be a little dramatic, I agree, but all the obsessed dedicated Garmin Forerunner users will sympathize understand exactly what I am talking about.


First of all, my running plan got a little screwed up when Pippa's basketball practice was cancelled because the gym was set up for a funeral dinner tomorrow.  Didn't know that till I got the phone call so my plan to run in town while she was practicing was foiled did I really just say "my plan was foiled" oh goodness, its time for wine.   Went home and had all the intentions of getting a run in before it got to dark. 

Changed my clothes, found my iPod, grabbed my Garmin and turned it on....and nothing happened.  No beep.  No locating satellite.  NOTHING. 

Blank screen. 

O.M.G.

I tried plugging it in at another outlet.  Nothing.  Tired plugging it in to the computer.  Nothing.  Tracked down the box with the directions in the rements of a tropical storm my bedroom.  No help there. 

My heart rate started to increase when I went with the tried and true solution finder.....Google.

Much to my dismay it seems that this is a common problem with the Garmin's.  Occasionally, they get overload and just stop.  At least I knew I wasn't alone and the racking of my brain trying to remember if I had dropped it or spilled something on it was for nothing....I knew I wouldn't let anything like that happen to my Garmin.  My cell phone, yes...but not my watch.

After much searching for 2.5 minutes I found a reoccurring theme.....push "reset" and "mode" at the same time, hold for 10 seconds and try to turn it on again.

So I held my breathe not really, but it adds to the dramatic effect, right....AND I HEARD THE BEEP!  So happy, I could have done a happy dance.  I may have done a happy dance.  Oh hell, I totally did a happy dance!

The Garmin is now charging quietly on the counter.  Totally missed my run time because I am a big, fat baby and scared to run in the dark by myself  but for the sake of my Garmin, I'm OK with that not really but I have the dtreadmill I can still go spend some time with the idea of drinking wine sounds much MUCH more appealing.

Code ORANGE

I'm in crisis.  Not really but in my happy world, not having appropriate listening material during my runs definitely qualifies for crisis standard.

Code Orange (a busted Garmin or blown out shoe would be a Code RED, just so you have perspective here).

I recently started listening to podcasts while running and LOVED IT!!  Another Mother Runner was my first and so far, only choice.  Listening to Dimity and Sarah gab and talk through mommy running issues helped push me down the road and on the dreadmill.  It was like having a conversation with my running buddies but  didn't have to contribute (not to say I didn't contribute to the conversation....I may or may not chime in but you cant hear me so...you cant make fun of me). 

I downloaded ALL the podcasts from Another Mother Radio, was a faithful little stalker follower and subscribed to their iTunes page so when they upload a new episode, it automatically goes into my page and VOILA....Stupid, Simple Podcast downloading.

Then I ran.  And I listened.  And I ran again and listened again.  Then I found myself listening to the same conversations I had listened to the week before.  *GASP*.....I ran through all the podcasts.  Oh well, I will find something new. 

Not. So. Easy.

I download a few of Jillian Michael's and liked them but I didn't find myself joining in the convo like I do with Sarah and Dimity.  I thought I would go for something non-running/fitness related and see if that would switch it up for me.  I stumbled upon "Stuff You Should Know" and thought, some of those topics look interesting.  Clicked on a few, without looking at the titles, synced the iPod and went out the door.

So yesterday on my 5 mile run I learned about the "Curse of King Tuts Tomb" and "What Happens in Your Brain when your Orgasm".  In that order.  There was some reference during the King Tut episode of another podcast regarding aliens and acupuncture....not sure I'm ready for that one just yet.  Hmmmm....not that those topics weren't interesting (who knew there were so many medical studies about what happens in your brain during sex....not I.) and they did keep me thinking about something other then how far I was from the house and how far I still had to go to get back home....but not exactly what I was looking for.  I have a couple more downloaded but I will check the titles before I head out the door. 

So here is my challenge to all of you....SUGGESTIONS PLEASE!!!!!  Before Code ORANGE turns into a Code RED.  It's obvious that I need some help...this isn't shouldn't be difficult but look at what I managed to track down when I ventured out on my own.....King Tut and Orgasms....obviously I cannot be unsupervised. 

Protection

Serious post now...hopefully one that will help all of us, and prevent any more social networking postings like this.

From: Sammy

‎Jamie,  Heather, Tara ..... maybe we really need to seriously think about carrying that gun while we run!

Scary right?!?!?!

I know that most of you run in fairly populated areas, but for us chickies who lives in no-mans-land aka the Sandhills, we run solo 90 95 98% of the time.  We live in areas where we don't lock our doors (seriously, I JUST installed locks in my house a month ago), we tend to leave the keys in our cars, parked in the parking lot, street and driveway and often times, running.  We run down the road, headphones blaring out the sound of the little voices in our heads calling us names for not staying in bed traffic.  I personally have been running and had a neighbor in a ranch pickup (which are not typically quiet vehicles) pull up right behind me and end up honking the horn because between the wind and my music, I couldn't hear anything. 

It would be scary simple for anyone to pull up behind me, grab me and voila.  I don't run on a main road but Jamie and Heather both have the highway so I worry about them more then myself.  Even if I did drive the 17 miles to Jamie's house yesterday and not see a single car on the way....it only takes one sociopath to ruin a perfectly good run.

How ironic that the linked article was posted the same morning that Heather, Jamie, Sammy and I were all talking about running with small firearms.  All 4 of us shoot, 2 of them run the highway.  Sammy and I are both off the highway but still run alone.  While it was a serious topic, there was some joking involved regarding fanny packs and will we get matching guns for the 1/2 marathon (to match our skirts, of course).  Only a few hours later, Sammy posted the link to the article and said "Maybe we should seriously consider carrying guns?"

Maybe we should.  I know Jamie already is, and I think that's great.  I have several one that I could run with, but it is bigger and the holster is bulky.  I would need to take the CCW (Carrying Concealed Weapon) class but really, that's not a bad idea regardless of if I carry when I run or not.

So, the question I have.....how do you protect yourself?  DO you protect yourself?  Is your protection a 120lb German Shepherd (which would be my first choice, but I have a 40lb cow dog instead)?  Do you carry a taser or semi-automatic 9mm with 20 rounds in the magazine?  I'm for both, hubby is convinced I would get pissed at the dog after he trips me and tase him but the gun is option 1. 

Do you carry identification when you run?  I don't.....I should, but my out and back for 5 miles takes me 2.5 miles to the corner of my mother in laws house and back to my driveway.  If I get hit by a car, its probably someone who knows me or at least knows who I belong to and they could get help and ID.  If nothing else, soon I will be a member of the EMT team, surely someone will know know if THEY have to respond to an accident involving me.  I'm willing to bet everyone on the team knows me now.....our town has a population of 150 people.  Everyone knows everyone else. 

Do you run with your cell phone?  Again, not me.  Damn am I a headline on CNN waiting to happen or what??? I don't time myself with my phone or use it for music.  So I don't take it with me.  There isn't a signal for a good part of the run, so I always figured why bother with it.  Now, I have it set up for 911/SOS so maybe I should take it with me, just in case the sociopath shows up behind me when my podcast is to loud and my dog has run down to play with his friends at my mother in laws house??

In all seriousness, safety should always be my top priority.  I stretch before I run so I don't pull a muscle.  I trade out my shoes before I wear them down and they don't give the support I need.  Why don't I worry about other aspects of my safety?  I'm not going to say I'm going to run with a gun every time I leave the house but I am saying I may have to invest in a small one with a few rounds for when I run on the highway and getting into training and longer distances, its gonna come to that.  I'm not going to go all heavily armed look at me crossed eyed and your a dead man and I will still stop to give someone directions, should they ask.  I wont live in fear.  But I will live in reality and protect myself if necessary. 

Its a fine line, I realize that.....but one I am taking a look at.  In the meantime, please pray for Sherry and all her friends and family as they face a very scary, trying time in their lives. 

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday Shawn and I did what happily married couples should do...spent some quality time together.  HOWEVER, we don't do this like normal people.  We don't go to the movies (its 45 miles to the closest theatre that shows 2 movies at a time), and we don't go out to supper without kiddos (again, 45 miles to the closest place with more then 10 items on the menu).  We have to find stuff to do together, minus children, right around where we live.  Since we live in the middle of nowhere and are highly outnumbered by 4-legged critters, the "what to do" answer is obvious.

We went called coyotes together.  Yep....we went an hunted coyotes.  As Jamie so eloquently put in her recap of their calling contest she entered with her husband yesterday, coyotes are a gigantic pain in the ass for all ranchers.  Nothing cute and cuddly about them.  They may start out that way, but I promise, get a  few calves in your yard and they will be everywhere.  They are scavengers and really don't care of the baby is just born, or even DONE being born, in which case, you lose the baby and the momma.

Yep....its time to shoot.

For the people who are thinking "how can you shoot one...they don't get close enough to bother humans...they are scared" blah blah blah.  Please see this picture:

December 13, 2009 - My house.  Yep, they never go near a house....let alone ON their house.

I have had my own issues with a coyote this year, which thankfully had been taken care of a month ago.  While to some people thought the idea of a coyote pacing me as I ran past the pivot was cute, or him sitting on top of the hay bale supervising was adorable, there comes a point when they have to go.  They are predators, end of story. They eat calves.  We also have a mange issue (which is a skin disease that they have which results in loss of hair) which then means they they freeze, starve and THEN, they really get dangerous.  So yep, Wylie yes, I named him had to go. 

Anyway, I love to shoot stuff so hunting is a new passion of mine.  Going out to call coyotes seemed like a great idea.  Then the following conversation happened a few weeks ago:

Shawn: I'm going to take you out next week sometime and TELL you how its gonna happen when we hunt. 

Me: What do you mean? Hmmm....did he really just say TELL, as in, he might be channeling his inner cave man.......

Shawn: You have do to things right, coyotes are not stupid they can smell you, hear you and see you from far away.  This is going to be alot of work.

Me: What do you mean?  I call, they come, I shoot, they die.  That's how its gonna work, right?

Shawn: No.

Apparently, his main concern was in my inability to be quiet.  Like really quiet.  As in keep-your-mouth-closed-don't-even-breath-if-you-can-help-it quiet.  Hmmm....that part could be a bit challenging because I am really good at talking.  BUT however good at talking I am, I am crazy stubborn and once my wonderful father-in-law also started giving me grief about not being able to be quiet, I knew....it was GAME ON.  I was going to find a way to keep quiet even if it killed me.....I may end up thrashing around on the ground trying to bite my tongue off but I would be quiet while that happened.  No way would I would my husband AND his dad be right....not gonna happen! 

So we went...and yes, I was quiet.  Quiet.  Quiet enough that we were able to call in 3 coyotes and get them within 50 yards of us and they never heard me.  To the stupid smart coyote who got away, it was because he saw us Shawn moving.  I was in high gear frozen statue mode (remember that game....I was a champion frozen statue player, who knew it would serve me so well in my adult years).

Calling was fun.  It is a bit frustrating when they are not following my plan of "I call, they come, I shoot, they die" but when they DO play by the rules, its awesome.  Even just sitting on the side of the hill, with the wind blowing in your face, looking and waiting for a coyote to pop up over a hill or out of a ditch is a rush.  Definitely a new favorite hobby of mine!  I'm sure Shawn will be is thrilled.  We have the SAME HOBBIES.  We can spend quality time together all the time.  Just what great marriages are made of.....total commitment too together-ness.

Wonder if Jamie wants to ditch the boys and go call coyotes??  We will only go places that have service wont get lost....you have an iPhone!!!

Moments in Time

My favorite Christmas gift this year is a picture frame with 2 4x6 photos in it.  Both of my dad and I.  One is from when I was 3 or 4 year olds, and he is holding my hand while teaching me to ice skate on the lake at my grandparents house.  The other, is from this past November, and its him and I sitting together with deer he shot this year at our house.  It was his first buck.  Ever.  After 48 years of hunting in Michigan, he came out to my house and within 45 minutes, he had checked that one off his bucket list. 

Being a part of the moments in time with your kids is one thing.  Being a part of those moments in time with your parents is different.  As parents, we spend so much time our entire lives around making our kids dreams come true.  About helping them achieve all they want and sometimes, more, but we dont often get to sit back and watch our parents achieve the same type of goals.  Getting to reverse the roles and help make my dads dream come true was very exciting and special.

This year, I was lucky blessed enough to sit in that situation with my dad.

Thanks for letting me be a part of that moment with you daddy.  I will never forget it.

Thats what Friends are for

Everyone who knows me knows that I am fairly allergic in the metaphoric sense of the word to a few key things in life:

1) pink

2)  cheerleaders

Cheerleaders in pink really push me to consume excessive amounts of alcohol over the edge.

BUUUUT...since I started my journey into running, I find myself looking for bolder, BRIGHTER colors when it comes to shoes.  Why...I don't know....maybe because I want them to look as sassy as I feel after a run.  And lets face it...there isn't any sassy looking about me sweating, out of breath, and gimping from an aching muscles somewhere between my collarbone and ankles.  Yet my shoes will ALWAYS look good after a run. 

I've decided to back off a little from the "full" shoe but didn't want to go completely natural...I still want some extra stability. Plus, $175 for a Natural shoe....ummm, no, especially if I have to replace them at least once before the half.  $85 for a semi-natural sounds much better..and yes, that is exactly how I presented it to hubby.

After much debating, I am going to give the Asics Blur33 a whirl. 

1 - I love Asics!  They are my standard, go-to, beat the tar out of shoe.  I know they hold up to what I want to put them through so why not stick with at least the brand I know. 
2 - The minimalist runners were complaining that they were not a true minimalist shoe....YAHOO...exactly what I am looking for.  A transitional shoe...not as much as a full shoe, lighter, but still with the heel support and stability I want to keep for my aging aching back.
3 - BRIGHT COLORS...just so I don't get "advice" about picking a shoe based on color...I didn't.  I like the aspects of the shoe...the colors are an added bonus.

Unfortunately for me, I couldn't make a decision on the color I wanted.....yellow/orange/white or *GASP* bright, freakin' PINK.

Yes, PINK. P.I.N.K.  Go head and sit down mom, I'll wait while you catch your breath.....


For 3 days, I debated....do I want to go with a more subtle, bright color of yellow/orange combo OR go seriously crazy and get pink/black?  I did what any decision-challenged female does when she can't make up her mind....I emailed a friend and had her pick.  I told myself that if she replied back and said PINK that was it....it was a sign from the running/fashion Gods (aka Jamie) that wearing pink shoes is stepping out of my box and the way of 2012. 

PINK IT IS! 

Give me 3-5 business days and I will give you an update or exactly how RIDICULOUSLY PINK they are in person....and how much I love them.  Hating them is not an option.

Weekend Recap

'This weekend was a blur.....in a good way (I think). 

Friday was nothing special....oh wait, I ran 3.5 in 30:11 (an 8:37 average)...self-proclaimed ROCKSTAR status.  Hey...gotta give yourself props after a great run, right ;-)

Saturday included an all day EMT class in Og.  Not exactly the way I wanted to spend New Years Eve but since I completed enough assessments to check off MOST of my requirement list AND passed the 2 really big State Assessment tests I had to take, I'll call it a success.

Saturday night was great.  I love our little bar in town most of the time, I love our waitress all of the time who loves us enough to make our standard chick drink of choice the way it should be make and increase our blood alcohol levels in a single shot (Washington Apples.....MUST HAVE).

Please read Heather's recap of NYE....I'm not sure exactly when I held her down and force fed her the shot, but it must have been before she and Kris climbed on Jamie's truck and recreated a music video from the early 90's.  If I really was a terrible friend who would force feed someone a drink, I would also post the photo of recreation of the video....however, I am a nice person so the photo is safe on facebook for now.  And Kris looks a little scary silly in that photo and I'm kinda afraid of her ;-)  Just remember, Kramer, don't make me post that picture!! 

Good times, great drinks, good music (when they played), GREAT FRIENDS (Old and New "HI NEW FRIEND KAYCEE!!")

Pretty sure this is post shot....she doesn't really hate me.

The last half of the night is about a blurry as this photo.

Great times with Great friends!!

All was going well until my baby-sitters mom, who was at the bar also, came and told me her son (who was also hanging out at my house so he wasn't home alone) called and said my baby-sitter got sick.  So there ended our night, but I'm really OK with that.....if I had kept going, I probably wouldn't have been able to do Yoga AND run a little yesterday.  I felt great, except for sounding like a chipmunk.

Today, we are headed to the airport (much to my bowl game loving husbands dismay) to pick up Stinkerbell after her Christmas in Michigan with her dad and his family.  Tomorrow, after school, we are doing OUR family Christmas.  Maybe I should go wrap the presents.......