Beautiful Hill Run, to Wetsuit or not to Wetsuit

Days to Batavia Triathlon: 43

Time of departure: 9:30am
Return: after brunch
Sunrise: 5:52am
Sunset: 7:46pm
Phase of the moon: Waxing Gibbous, 89% of the Moon is Illuminated

Temperature: 70s
Lake Michigan Temp: 44F-51F Not warm enough for swimming yet.

Route: Down the lakefront to the Montrose Hill, over, over, over... then down to the Diner for brunch.
Approx Distance: Not sure, really. 9:30am-11am
Running buddy: Alan Watts. Then Eric at the hill. Bernie/Bernard laid out in the sun and read a book, can you believe it?
Clothing: Shorts and a T-shirt.
Lake Shore Drive Activity: Noisy.
People activity: There was a 5K walk/run going on on the path. It had something to do with brain tumors. There were lots of people out and about doing lots of outdoor things. OH! and there were cute little kids playing soccer. Darlings!

What did I eat pre-run? Some saltines with almond butter and cherry preserves. Weird? Yes, and not recommended. It's better to stick with the dried fruit.
How did I feel? Tired. Crappy. My legs felt tired from the moment I woke up, and they still do.
What do I like about running? Oh, god, don't ask me. Today was hard. I suppose I like that with the increased body awareness that regular exercise brings, you can better gage what things your body likes and what it doesn't like. Knowledge is power.
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It's a matter of constant contention, between Eric and I, of what time we're going to run on Saturdays, or any other day. I prefer to run first thing. I like to wake up, get my crap together, and head out the door. Am I a morning person? Perhaps. Increasingly so. Though certainly, I wasn't born a morning person (ask anyone in my family). However, over the years I've decided that the morning is the best time of day and if you sleep in, you miss it. But that's not why I like to run in the morning.

I like to run first thing because it gives me less of an opportunity to procrastinate getting out the door. I'm more likely to find reasons to NOT run when I have more time to think about it. But Eric always want to push it back... I'm not sure why other than to sleep more? But I wake up at approximately the same time everyday so it's no gain for me.

And waking up at 7am when you've been out til 2am does not a happy runner make. Especially when you spent many of those late hours in a smoky bar.

But so anyhow, enough griping...

It was indisputably a beautiful day. Blue cloudless sky, warm sun, gentle breeze; the whole paradise thing. There were lots of little kids groups playing soccer, and they were adorable. I am not one of those people who, when they see baby clothes, starts gooing and cooing about how cute they are. (Except maybe for those baby Teva sandals I saw at an REI store once). But generally that's not me. However, apparently a group of pre-school or kindergarten aged girls playing soccer on a field the size of my living room, being coached by their doting dads, is enough to tic my biological clock.

While I was running down the path, I noticed route markers and Gatorade stands. The people tending the Gatorade were very protective of their booty and came forward to warn me off; I think they were afraid I was going to snatch some from under their watchful eyes. The event was a 5K Run/Walk for some kind of brain tumor. At 10am, the race must have started because at 10:03am I saw the first runners heading north. They were followed by a pack of slower runners. I went under the bridge at Lawrence Ave, and when I came out on the other side I saw a mass of people walking and wearing white shirts, packed shoulder to shoulder across the road that runs through the lakefront park. The sea of white shirts flowed off into the distance as far as my eyes could see, a huge mass of people walking for, presumably, something they believed in and thought was important. That's a pretty powerful thing. Images of protest marches came to mind, but somehow this was different, having more of the mood of a vigil than a march.

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After picking up with Eric at the hill, he and I got to talking on the subject of WETSUITS: to get them or not to get them. Since we'll be swimming in the lake together, it makes sense to decide to do the same thing.

Pros to getting wetsuits:
-Increased bouyancy: makes for easier swimming and SAFER open water swimming
-You have a longer swim season in the lake (ie. can tolerate colder temperatures)
-It seems that unless you are an EXTREMELY proficient and experienced triathlon swimmer, it seems to be recommend and expected that you wear. The woman at Running Away Multisport looked at me like I was crazy when I talked about NOT having one (and they don't sell them there, so she wasn't trying to sell me one).
-The Batavia June 10th Triathlon will have water temps in the 60s. That doesn't sound inviting sans wetsuit.

Cons to getting wetsuits:
-They're expensive (this triathlon thing IS more expensive than just plain old running... Of course it is, you've got gear for 3 events!)
-It's one more piece of gear for one more hobby that I'll have acquired that I'll have to find room for.

To rent or to buy:
-Well, I need to figure out the exact cost of renting one, and for how long a rental period is, but it looks like we're both leaning towards just buying them. That way we can use them all the time until the lake gets warm enough to go without.

In the Early Morning Rain

Before talking about running, let's talk about breakfast. Last night I had the marvelous idea that I'd make pancakes if I didn't have to rush off to work. I left the New Farm Vegetarian Cookbook opened to the (vegan, of course) pancake recipe. FYI, vegan pancakes are vastly improved by adding blueberries to them.

A closeup of tasty blue berry pancakes...mmm. You see, I bought these blueberries at the Green City farmer's market last summer. I bought a big ole 10 pound box of them. Yes, I do like blueberries. I like good blueberries. These are great ones. And I froze them so I could enjoy them throughout the winter. Well, it's spring now and I realize I've been rationing them a bit too cautiously. Time to eat them all up!!! So, anyhow, they were delicious.

Okay, time for running talk...

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Days to Batavia Triathlon: 45 Days

Time of departure: 7:00am
Return: 8:30am

Sunrise: 5:54 am
Phase of the moon: Waxing Gibbous, 73% of the Moon is Illuminated
Temperature: 42F
Dew Point: 44F
Chance of Rain/Thunderstorm: 80-100%
Lake Temp: 48-52-ish

Route: The usual lakefront route
Approx Distance: 5.5-6-ish miles
Running buddy: Matt (yea, Matt!)
Clothing: blue pants with stripes, neon green sweat wicker, purple windbreaker, army camo bandanna. yea, right, I know. What a sight, right?

The Drive Activity: Noisy. It was interfering with our conversation.
Dog beach Activity: I didn't pay attention.
People tally: I didn't pay much attention. There were a surprising number of dogs though. Cute athletic ones. And there were bikers. Bikers are hot, I've decided. Especially when it's raining.

What did I eat pre-run? Some dried apricots and some water.
How did I feel? Pretty good. Capable. My quads and Achilles tendons make their presence known, but they aren't a problem. They feel a little sore and tired, but also strong. At probably a 4 mile point, my proximal left Tibialis Anterior attachment on the tibia was twinging and the same spot but on the medial side of my right leg (so not the tibialis anterior), were twinging but not enough to cause a problem.
What do I like about running? It's as good a way as any to remember you're alive.
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I woke up early, before my alarms, in the hour of five. It was raining. Or could it be hailing? No, it couldn't be hailing. But the rain was hitting the window pane with more vigor than made me happy. Were we going to run in this? No, that would be silly. I turned over and fell back asleep.

Alarm number one went off. 6:30am. Ug. The benefits of jet lag have passed me by, I think, the ease of early rising, that is. Second alarm. 6:40am. Ug. It's still raining. Are we running in this? Should I text Matt...

What am I thinking?! Of course we're running in this. Of course he'll be there at (7:00am + x), get moving, Mary!! And so began the morning scurry. What is the temperature? Is this a warm rain or a cold rain? Where are my pants? Oh, where are my pants. Socks? Sports bra? Still in the laundry basket. Windbreaker? Long sleeve sweat wicker? What the hell is up with my hair? I need a bandanna, where's a bandanna. Oh, here, on the floor. That'll work. Brush my teeth. Wash my face. Eat something. What?! Oh, apricots, yea, that'll work. Drink some water! Where are my keys. Oh, where are my keys. Ah, a spare set on the hook! What else, what else... Shoes! Where are my shoes. In the closet? No, of course not. Under the table.

Ah.....

Out the door, and it's 7:00am.

Yes! I made it on time.

Loving that Discipline

Time of departure: 7:05am (See, Matt, it's not personal. I'm even late leaving to meet Alan).
Done: I stopped running at 8:05 at Broadway Ave.
Temperature: It was 52F when I got back.
Lake Michigan Temp: In the 40s.

Route: The usual, but straight to the lake on Ardmore, to the lake, down the path, over all the bridges (for some minor hills. In Chicago, you gotta take what you can get) over the Montrose hill, back north.
Approx Distance: 5.5-ish
Running buddy: Alan Watts. Matt's knees are bothering him.
Clothing: Army shorts and sweat wicking t-shirt
The Drive Activity: I didn't really notice it. Alan Watts was whispering his sweet-philosophical-nothings in my ears.
Dog beach Activity: I don't recall.
People tally: There quite a few people out. I didn't recognize anyone.

What did I eat pre-run? Some water and some dried cherries.
How did I feel? Kind of slow and heavy. I could feel that my legs were tired from the biking I've been doing.
What do I like about running? It's a catalyst for meditation, for discipline of the mind.

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I'm going to blame it on running through the winter. (Also, of course, the accountability of a running buddy and a running blog). But habitually getting out the door, without debate, when the temperature and conditions make it an unreasonable thing to do, to go for a run; this strengthened my mind. Doing something when you don't really want to do it, but without having to argue with yourself to get moving, that is powerful.

Matt again was unavailable due to knee pain. But I decided last night I was going to go running as usual. I woke up early as I'm still having a bit of a jet lag thing going on. And when the hour rolled around to 6:45am, I got ready for my run. I habitually scurried around, finding socks in the laundry basket, my mp3 player tucked under something, and my car key on the hook. I had to move my car before street cleaning when I was done with my run. There was no question of, do I feel like going for a run? Do I really want to run? How about I sleeping in and running later? This voice was non-existent as far as I could tell, it had fallen silent after months of being ignored. And besides, my body wanted the feeling of turning over the earth, breathing in the air off the lakefront, and the enjoyment of those post-run endorphins in my blood.

It is probably best that I have a set time that I go out the door. Because with this time constraint, the thoughts in my head are all about getting out the door on time. Like rushing around before you go to work, you don't stop to think, do I want to go to work? No. You just go. There isn't room for those nagging thoughts that slow you down and keep you from getting what you really want.

For years I had had elaborate routines to get out the door, with marginal success. The night before I'd set out all my running clothes, hoping to make it easier for me. But I could always talk myself into one more push of the snooze, one more moment with my pillow. Just one more. And so running never became the habit I always thought I would enjoy it to be.

It was a beautiful morning for a run. It is too bad Matt was not able to make it. The sky was clear and sunny. The air was cool. If I had checked the weather, I probably wouldn't have worn shorts, but I didn't regret it. It was invigorating. When I was at my stretch point, I observed all the dew drops on the leaves of grass, the budding leaves on the trees. The crabapple trees are budding little pink buds. They are one of my favorite trees, at least in this country and season.

I timed myself. Even this demonstrates the discipline I've developed over the last months. I decided I would time myself before I left the house. But when I started running, I felt heavy and slow, my legs tired from the 900% increase in cycling over the last 3 days. A perfect opportunity for me to decide to time myself a different day when I was running faster. But the decision had already been made. It broke down like this:

7:05am Left house/started running
7:18am arrived at stretch point
7:23am left stretch point, resumed running

at the 0.0 mile marker I started timing myself. At the 1.0 mile marker, it was 9 min 40 sec. Not too bad, really, considering I felt I was going super slow.

down the path, over the hill, around, over the hill (I paused one minute on top to take in the scene. It's beautiful up there), back up north...

at the 1.0 mile marker, I started timing myself again. At the 0.0 mile marker, it was 9 min 41 sec. Same pace. Still felt slow, still was slow, but I'm okay with that.

Stopped at 8:05am at Ardmore & Broadway. Which means, total time spent running was 54 minutes. At a pace of 9 min and 40 sec per mile...... d= (1 mile/9.6min)(54 min) = 5.625 miles

I felt like I really kept the same pace throughout (which I don't always do) but I think this is a pretty good measure. Also, this perfectly corresponds with what I had figured by using the gmap pedometer.

Resuming my Routine

Time of departure: 3:45pm. Which would be 10:45pm in Italy. And it's now 8pm here so jet lag is catching up with me.
Temperature: I didn't check. But I'm guessing it was in the 60s.

Route: The usual lakefront route.
Approx Distance: 5-ish miles
Running buddy: Alan Watts. :) Matt had to work or something. And he's dumping me for his bicycle buddy tomorrow morning.
Clothing: T-shirt and athletic pants.

The Drive Activity: I didn't notice.
Dog beach Activity: Quite a bit of activity.
People tally: Lots of people out and about. I didn't count them. I seem to have lost interest in counting. Runners, walkers, cyclists, rollerbladers, people sitting by the lake, people with dogs, people on the montrose hill with kites, people playing soccer.

What did I eat pre-run? Nothing intentionally, but I had eaten.
How did I feel? Good. Better than expected, really, considering how long it has been. Maybe all the walking on Roman cobblestones and hills and stairs did something. My knees felt a little squeaky after 3 or 4 miles. Too much pasta and gelato in Rome. Yes, you read that right. I learned to like pasta. The trick? Eat it with wine. Pasta is good with wine. Anne and I figured it out when we were in Florence. But anyhow, I have to watch my food intact for awhile.
What do I like about running? I like the routine of it. Sort of like an old reliable friend.
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I love traveling. Make no mistake, I do. But I love coming home. I love loving to come home. Sri Lanka was the rare exception (and I'm still not sure what to make of that) when I really didn't want to come home, when I actually considered, what would happen if I just didn't get on the plane. But whatever would have happened didn't happen. 30 hours later I was back here with happy memories, a confused heart, and an interesting story.

But Rome wasn't like that, thankfully. Italy was a good trip in that I spent some awesome time with my sister and her boyfriend, learned some interesting facts, saw some amazing art and architecture, gained some insight into myself (life, history, culture, religion, spirituality, family, priorities, etc), found a TV show that makes me laugh and that I can knit to (The Office), and... Yea. It was good. Nothing emotionally upheaving and it was grounding even.

So now I'm home and my calender is open and it feels wonderful, in that sense of standing on a mountain in Colorado and breathing in that crisp sparse air they've got out there. I feel a sense of freedom with my relative absence of commitments. In my book I have scheduled 3 concerts and 2 plays in the next month or so but that's it. No classes scheduled (yet, anyhow), no trips to plan, no obsessions to feed -- oh it feels wonderful. I'm looking forward to unpacking my toiletry bag and putting it up for an indefinite period of time. Until Anne and Jamie and I and our siblings go camping, perhaps? But hanging out with them is the opposite of stressful. And since I know how Anne likes to camp, planning that will not be stressful. Oh, the many joys of sisterhood.

I feel like I've gained some real insight into life, into my life, in the past year and I just want to revel in it. I want to chew on it like a wine connoisseur to experience all the flavors and subtleties. If I do too much now I'll miss out on digesting everything I've experienced, and it'll all be for naught. Like when lifting weights, it's on the rest day your muscles rebuild; I need a period of introversion, a period of cultivating the creative part of me, a time of practicing expression.

What I do have on the books is my first triathlon in June. This is good. This is exciting. This is not stressful and it gives me some direction. Which means that despite Matt's unavailability, I went running. And I ran a complete route and the whole time even. I feel pretty good about myself.

What do I want to say about the run itself?

It was sunny. The sky was cloudless and a deep blue that contrasted beautifully with the yellow brick of my building, I noticed upon my return home, and on the lakefront complimented the green of the grass. Jet lag has arrived so this'll be it for tonight. Except I did notice that many of the tiny leaves on the trees in the courtyard of my building appear brown and burned. Was it the cold spell that occurred while I was gone? How is that going to affect the life of the deciduous trees? I hope they make it through okay.

Observe Nature

I've decided I want to start posting pictures here, but I don't have any of Chicago I want to post yet. My friend forwarded this cartoon to me today though so, there it is.

Time of departure: 9:14pm
Return: 11:something…we got to talking
Phase of the moon: Full moon, 100% illuminated

Temperature: 59F
Wind Chill: 52F
Dew Point: 40F
Lake Temp: 46-49F (Man! See what happens when you’re not paying attention! Eric, we‘ll be swimming outdoors in no time).

Route: The usual. I’ve grown so accustomed to going OVER the bridges (as opposed to UNDER the bridges as the trail leads) that I have had to re-wire my brain to going under them. But I think due to the habitation of the area under one such bridge Matt agreed to go OVER it.
Approx Distance: 5.5 miles
Running buddy: Matt
Clothing: Blue shoes, blue pants with two strips, neon green wicker, black wind breaker I bought for Sri Lanka. (I know, I know, blue pants, black jacket…but it was dark).

The Drive Activity: A little noisy. Cars are such a nuisance. What strikes me is that they never stop coming. Matt and I were standing on the corner near my house talking for awhile, and they just kept coming. The light would change, some would drive away, but then more would show up! Where do all these people come from?
Dog beach Activity: What? Dog beach? I didn’t look.

People of note:

1. There was one fire spinner, one drummer, one person with a shaker, and a bunch of people standing around near Foster Beach, it being a full moon and everything. This was the first fire spinning gathering of the season.

2. Two people kicking around a soccer ball on the beautifully maintained and illuminated field at Montrose

3. Three people unsuccessfully attempting to roll down the Montrose hill in blankets. The problem: 1) It was muddy, 2) one kicked another in the head, and also probably 3) it really just isn’t that steep.

What did I eat pre-run? I’d been eating all day.

How did I feel? Good. Heavy. Has there been an increase in gravity?

What do I like about running? Really, for as out of it as I was, I feel like it’s coming back. Just in time to head off to Rome and for me to (but hopefully not) loose it again. If only I had a buddy in Rome…

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I left my house.

Sitting here, writing now, there are all sorts of things I know I didn’t properly observe. Could this be because now that it’s warmer outside there is such an abundance of sounds and smells that my sensors are overwhelmed with information? I’m out of practice for taking in all these bits of data, digesting them, remember what is significant to paint a picture, and tossing it back out onto the screen.

So, I left my house. It was reasonably dark out, but I soon noticed that the moon was full. There were a few clouds that occasionally crossed its path, but mostly these high clouds highlighted how far up the moon was in the sky, how big and tall the sky is. The air was cool but not cold. 50s Are the hardest to dress for, I’ve decided. But long pants, long shirt, and a jacket that I’ll take off and put on again and again off seems to be the way to go. Perhaps a thicker shirt than this neon sweat-wicker and a vest would have been good; but then, you can’t tie a vest around your waist if you want to so perhaps I’ll stay with the on-again-off-again wind breaker getup.

When the moon is full and the clouds clear a bit you can see that the sky is still blue. Is the case everywhere? Or just in a city where there is so much light pollution that the moon crosses a threshold and black sky turns blue.

Being out tonight made me want to take my camera and tripod out on a night-time bike ride to photograph this city. And the nature in it. If I do take photos of Chicago with a creative intention, perhaps it will be to bring light to the nature that is here. We Chicagoans like to forget, we’re too busy, or we just don’t know what to look for, but even here we are not separate from it.

When we were stretching, I tried to make a point of observing everything. It was challenging. Observing. Because it’s all so different than before when everything was white? Because my mind is partially elsewhere. Where is my mind? Preparing for Rome? Reorganizing my life? Thinking about moving to the country, raising bees and an organic apple orchard or growing medicinal herbs? Focus. Focus. Be present. Be mindful.

The trees are beginning to bud. Some branches have buds, some don’t; though from a distance mostly the trees look barren. The lake and the sky above it were a dark gray blue murky color, the difference in their tones ever so slightly different that I wasn’t quite sure I was imagining a horizon line or if I could actually distinguish one.

Sunlight reflected off the moon almost seemed to create shadows. But the darkness that permeated was highlighted by the cones of light pouring from the streetlamps, orderly arranged along the running and bicycle paths.

After running down the Montrose Hill I took in a big inhalation. Dirt. Soil. Earth. What wonder is this? The smell of earth in the springtime. It makes me think of worms. How many worms are in this soil? How alive is this earth? In this city.

What is going on with this bee shortage situation? How far will we push it before we remember we’re all connected? Until we remember that the cutting of the umbilical cord is only an illusion.