I now have the time and mental space to describe the best achievement this year - yes , as written, Rach and I are getting married!
Last weekend was just perfect....It started with a weekend away at Manly, a very special place for us from when we first started seeing each other, and the perfect place to go for a walk to a look out over the ocean...We planned to go all the way to the north head, but as the sun was setting behind us, and a school of dolphins swimming below us...( and began getting nervous I could hide the ring from her much longer), I asked Rach to marry me, with a ring presented just so....and she went still...nothing....and then out came a few omg's!! Is that a yes I asked?? “Yes it’s a yes!!”
The kids are so excited - actually they were with me when I bought the ring, so they did a good job keeping it a secret for so long!!!
Now, this is very relevant to a running blog – Rach and I started running together 3 years ago…the same time we started seeing each other. Over that time, we have cheered each other on, gotten each other out of bed to go train (well, rach gets me out - I am too sleepy!), driven each other around to events, nursed each others aches, pains and frustrations – and along the way went from being colleagues, to an item, then a couple, then a family, and soon husband and wife.
See what running can do!
ohh.....another little story....after umteem blog posts about training, many more sessions actaully training, a failed attempt in Canberra, and oodles of support from friends and fellow runners, I cracked 4 hours in a marathon! I have been trying to be more concise on CoolRunning, and details things more here, but this time, i wrote the marathon story there instead < if your interested >
hmmmm.....whats next...maybe a certain run in the blue mountains next year....sounds easy...a few feet is so much shorter then 42.2km!! right??
Monday, July 30, 2007
Saturday, July 28, 2007
dear diary....ntr
Its the night before the cities marathon, and the word for the night is melancholy.
Mouse left for Chicago today - and whilst we fought back tears at the departure door, they flowed when she left and the doors slid shut....Opportunities to experience what she is doing are few and far between and need to be embraced whole heartedly and I am proud of her ability to grasp this one inspite of some fears....she is missed already ( me and the kids ), but I am excited to hear how the trip over was, and how her adventure began!
So...focus now....i have done 223 km (but who is counting..) in last 8 weeks leading up to tomorrow. I dare not blow that, and the wave of goodvibes i am getting from lots of people, by not getting my act together tonight and in the morning!
Feeling better now I have gotten a little of my feelings out into the almost anonymous ether...I am off to lay my clothes out for tomorrow, have a green tea, shower and get to bed....oh..and eat a little chocolate for Rach( ;-) love you babe... )
Mouse left for Chicago today - and whilst we fought back tears at the departure door, they flowed when she left and the doors slid shut....Opportunities to experience what she is doing are few and far between and need to be embraced whole heartedly and I am proud of her ability to grasp this one inspite of some fears....she is missed already ( me and the kids ), but I am excited to hear how the trip over was, and how her adventure began!
So...focus now....i have done 223 km (but who is counting..) in last 8 weeks leading up to tomorrow. I dare not blow that, and the wave of goodvibes i am getting from lots of people, by not getting my act together tonight and in the morning!
Feeling better now I have gotten a little of my feelings out into the almost anonymous ether...I am off to lay my clothes out for tomorrow, have a green tea, shower and get to bed....oh..and eat a little chocolate for Rach( ;-) love you babe... )
Sunday, July 22, 2007
We are getting married!!
That's right folks, Nite_time_runner and Mouse are engaged!!
We spent the night in Manly last night, at an apartment we first went to when we met. After a walk along the beach and up the hill to the lookout next to North Head, we saw dolphins playing in the sea, it was beautiful! Nite_time_runner then asked me to marry him. I was totally shocked and very quiet (which for me is amazing) but managed to squeak out a resounding YES!
I was ok until I spoke to my parents and they were both a bit teary so that started me off but I could not get the smile off my face and still haven't :-) We then celebrated with champagne and pizza in our room before heading to the pub to watch the soccer and have a couple of beers. The night was perfect - very low key and very "us".
I messaged a few close friends and their support and happiness for us was overwhelming.
It is a bit sad though, I head to Chicago next Saturday for 3 months, but after that I am meting Ian in London and we have a month to travel Europe and see the world. I can't wait for that bit!! It is hard to leave my husband-to-be and my soon to be step kids here though and the 3 months in the US will be tough. But with the blog, our web cams, email and phones I am sure we will manage.
I am sure NTR will write more soon but I just had to share the good news :-)
We spent the night in Manly last night, at an apartment we first went to when we met. After a walk along the beach and up the hill to the lookout next to North Head, we saw dolphins playing in the sea, it was beautiful! Nite_time_runner then asked me to marry him. I was totally shocked and very quiet (which for me is amazing) but managed to squeak out a resounding YES!
I was ok until I spoke to my parents and they were both a bit teary so that started me off but I could not get the smile off my face and still haven't :-) We then celebrated with champagne and pizza in our room before heading to the pub to watch the soccer and have a couple of beers. The night was perfect - very low key and very "us".
I messaged a few close friends and their support and happiness for us was overwhelming.
It is a bit sad though, I head to Chicago next Saturday for 3 months, but after that I am meting Ian in London and we have a month to travel Europe and see the world. I can't wait for that bit!! It is hard to leave my husband-to-be and my soon to be step kids here though and the 3 months in the US will be tough. But with the blog, our web cams, email and phones I am sure we will manage.
I am sure NTR will write more soon but I just had to share the good news :-)
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
no running for me today...(ntr)
it was the coldest day for years today!! Ice covered my neighbourhood...this is from our park across the road! I don't do ice and cold very well! I am not an eskimo after all!
Sunday, July 15, 2007
two weeks to go (ntr)
It’s exactly two weeks till the Cities marathon - my next target run. I hope it is warmer then today - went below zero over night, with the car not under the carport covered in ice!! If it is like this, I will def wear gloves and a long sleeve shirt over my running singlet until i thaw out. I could even place a hot skim latte with two sugars at the drink station instead of Gatorade to warm me up!! ;-) I have been getting great support and encouragement from Mouse, the kids, blog and CR friends, which has been great! THANKS! 
I feel obliged now to give it my all!!
i am over my cold, which is great! I have not done all the running in the program i was trying to stick to, but i did do two cool runs!
1) woodford to glenbrook trail run - a tough first 12km, then nice slightly downhill last 12km.. Given I walked HEAPS of the uphill in the first 12km, i finished with a good average pace, so the last 13km must have been good for getting used to faster running. It was freezing to start with, but finished up really beautiful. Rach and I were just finishing off a small picnic at the end ( my favourite picnic food: bbq chicken from woolies, and a coffee! ) when it started to rain. So we left at good time. It was a good run, and a good day.
2) 6 * 800metre intervals at Blacktown Olympic Park. Although not quite allowed, I did some good laps there on Friday. A lady there told me i needed a permit to use the track, and then only between 4-8pm.She was kind enough to let me continue and for my girls to play around the grand stand for another 30-40 mins though. **** That said, I am sure a better system must exist for the use of facilities paid for by tax payers. I can see the need to maintain the standard of the track ( ie rules to follow on the track ), give special consideration to carnivals, sports clinics etc ( ie time the track is open and closed to public ).
However, charging $80 for a 6 month permit seems a little wrong, given it was tax payer funded in 1999, and you get nothing for the money - no insurance, no supervision ( T&C tell you how to direct your own ambulance! ). I think a nominal fee ( $5 ) to cover administration of issuing an id card and to ensure you agree to and understand the rules of the facility would be fairer to the public. I can’t see the public beating a path to their door to run laps, but for runners who want to use the track, the option is a good one. Just like the Blacktown library - free for everyone, worth a lot more then a synthetic track and well managed via taxes and rates. .
I have done a shorter recovery run too, and I think I’ve taken basil for a run too, but not much else. I need to focus now on keeping it up though, i tend to over indulge in the tapering process!!
I've also done some work on the SMC website - just small stuff updating static pages and adding some links to forms. Nice to help, and good to get a feel for web stuff again. I was never really into it, but have made some pages for uni, and one when I selling software once. Not very fancy. I need to learn how to use MySQL and PHP to improve the race results process. My idea is to have it uploaded easily (read that as not just me able to do it) and runners can filter on various things like name, bib, gender, age group, race type etc etc. I have no idea how to do it, but it should be a fun learning curve!
I have been getting into the idea of "the world wide half" thru the Phidipdations podcast I listen too occasionally. Basically, on or about October 13-14, people from around the world acknowledge each other and run a half marathon - anywhere you like. I like the idea of knowing that on that weekend, runners anywhere and everywhere are doing something outdoors, challenging and sharing the spirit. SMC have a race on that weekend, so I will be doing that course for my part. If other are interested, you can check it out here, and maybe we can do SMC together?
After being a bit run down and a big week at work, Mouse is off riding today with a friend - first time on the road, so i am sure she is a little nervous - and cold! I am looking forward to her ride report!!
I feel obliged now to give it my all!!i am over my cold, which is great! I have not done all the running in the program i was trying to stick to, but i did do two cool runs!
1) woodford to glenbrook trail run - a tough first 12km, then nice slightly downhill last 12km.. Given I walked HEAPS of the uphill in the first 12km, i finished with a good average pace, so the last 13km must have been good for getting used to faster running. It was freezing to start with, but finished up really beautiful. Rach and I were just finishing off a small picnic at the end ( my favourite picnic food: bbq chicken from woolies, and a coffee! ) when it started to rain. So we left at good time. It was a good run, and a good day.
2) 6 * 800metre intervals at Blacktown Olympic Park. Although not quite allowed, I did some good laps there on Friday. A lady there told me i needed a permit to use the track, and then only between 4-8pm.She was kind enough to let me continue and for my girls to play around the grand stand for another 30-40 mins though. ****
However, charging $80 for a 6 month permit seems a little wrong, given it was tax payer funded in 1999, and you get nothing for the money - no insurance, no supervision ( T&C tell you how to direct your own ambulance! ). I think a nominal fee ( $5 ) to cover administration of issuing an id card and to ensure you agree to and understand the rules of the facility would be fairer to the public. I can’t see the public beating a path to their door to run laps, but for runners who want to use the track, the option is a good one. Just like the Blacktown library - free for everyone, worth a lot more then a synthetic track and well managed via taxes and rates. .
I have done a shorter recovery run too, and I think I’ve taken basil for a run too, but not much else. I need to focus now on keeping it up though, i tend to over indulge in the tapering process!!
I've also done some work on the SMC website - just small stuff updating static pages and adding some links to forms. Nice to help, and good to get a feel for web stuff again. I was never really into it, but have made some pages for uni, and one when I selling software once. Not very fancy. I need to learn how to use MySQL and PHP to improve the race results process. My idea is to have it uploaded easily (read that as not just me able to do it) and runners can filter on various things like name, bib, gender, age group, race type etc etc. I have no idea how to do it, but it should be a fun learning curve!
I have been getting into the idea of "the world wide half" thru the Phidipdations podcast I listen too occasionally. Basically, on or about October 13-14, people from around the world acknowledge each other and run a half marathon - anywhere you like. I like the idea of knowing that on that weekend, runners anywhere and everywhere are doing something outdoors, challenging and sharing the spirit. SMC have a race on that weekend, so I will be doing that course for my part. If other are interested, you can check it out here, and maybe we can do SMC together?
After being a bit run down and a big week at work, Mouse is off riding today with a friend - first time on the road, so i am sure she is a little nervous - and cold! I am looking forward to her ride report!!
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
sniff sniff....(NTR)
all this running business makes me sick i have realised! I've got a cold this week, and i think its from some early morning adventures! On Sunday, i did a 37km run - yeah thats right, nearly marathon! I did it in 3:29 which i am really chuffed with. The best part of it, was that i felt great and like i could have gone on to run another 5 km in 30 mins. I really hope i have the same good fortune on July 29 at Cities.
I have been stiff and sore in the legs since the run, but last night had a good jog with Mouse, and the legs feel much better. Again, it was great to just run without a pace or program to achieve last night - and Basil the Beagle came to!
We are going to our first Striders 10km run this weekend - i am interested to see the disposition and attitude of the people there, as this is the first we have been to. Only other 10km runs we have done are SMC or fun runs.
I just watched Craig Mottram win the 5km race in Ostrava ( dont ask me where that is!! ) - he did it in 13:05. That is amazing! He was the only non-african i could see in the race, and makes his pace look so easy and natural!!
I am off now to sniff, sneeze and wallow in my own self pity...i am entitle to that for a day surely!!
I have been stiff and sore in the legs since the run, but last night had a good jog with Mouse, and the legs feel much better. Again, it was great to just run without a pace or program to achieve last night - and Basil the Beagle came to!
We are going to our first Striders 10km run this weekend - i am interested to see the disposition and attitude of the people there, as this is the first we have been to. Only other 10km runs we have done are SMC or fun runs.
I just watched Craig Mottram win the 5km race in Ostrava ( dont ask me where that is!! ) - he did it in 13:05. That is amazing! He was the only non-african i could see in the race, and makes his pace look so easy and natural!!
I am off now to sniff, sneeze and wallow in my own self pity...i am entitle to that for a day surely!!
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