Fall in Love with the Weather

I am recently injured, again.  As it seems to be in the past years, my injuries that sideline me always occur right in the transition to wonderful Fall weather.  It kills me when I walk outside in the morning to take the dogs out and I feel the cool, Fall temps and breezes, the low humidity, and the general wonderfulness that fall weather brings.  Fall weather, true Fall weather is my absolute favorite.

I was able to get some walk/run time in this morning with the temps in the 50's, a nice morning sun covering me with just enough warmth to keep the full-blown chills off, but not so much to make me sweat or overheat.  A slight breeze blew, rustling the turning leaves on the trees and blowing the few that had fallen already across the yards and down the street.  How could one not be out in this weather?  I caught myself grinning, no, full scale smiling, as I walked and jogged in my neighborhood.  Something just felt absolutely perfect about my time outside.

This kind of weather, true Fall weather, does not appear for very long here in Alabama.  Typically we are afforded a couple weeks, maybe three in some years.  It is way too short for this boy since it is my favorite season.  The transition from heat and high humidity to a time of low humidity, cool breezes, and mid-range temps gives this old man some extra pep in my step.  It will be all too soon before the weather moves into the lower temps where extra clothes, hats, gloves are required and the rainy season and dreary weather of Winter move in.

While Spring brings cool temps as well, it is the transition heading toward Summer, so the humidity in Spring is rising as opposed to Fall's lowering humidity.  Given this, while I enjoy Spring, I know the overwhelming oppressiveness of Summer is coming so I cannot enjoy it as much.  Also, don't get me started on the Spring pollen season here in Alabama either!

Random Fact: Cappuccinos taste better in the Fall so it has that going for it as well

So, you may understand a little more my frustration with being injured during this brief window of the year.  I only have a limited time to get my fix of Fall weather and I am being limited once again.  Given this, I will not get my fill this Fall and will have to suffer through the other three seasons until I once again feel the humidity dropping, feel the temps dropping, and see the leaves dropping in a cooling breeze.

What's your favorite season and why?  Do you enjoy the transition seasons of Spring and Fall better or the full-blown Summer or Winter weather?  Whichever you enjoy the most, make sure to soak it in when you get the chance.

This Road Looks Familiar. Too Familiar.

Three weeks ago it happened.  Again.  Hamstring cracked.  This time was pretty bad.  I was trying to just get back to the end of the run as slowly as I could without doing major damage.  About a quarter mile from the end and I felt it from the top of my hip down to below my knee; like a rubber band that suddenly stretched to its limit through the middle of my leg.  Knew then I was back to square 0 on my next road to recovery.

The problem was that this isn't a new road to recovery; it is one that I am quite familiar with, too much so,  and have grown bored with as far as scenery.  I don't want to travel this road again, but I must.

When I say I must, I am being literal here.  You see, I have no choice.  There are those out there, like some in my family, that always correct me when I say I have to go for a run.  They try to correct me by saying I don't *have* to go run, that I choose to go run.  That is just not the case.  I truly have to go run.  And to do that again, I must travel this same road, no matter how I hate it, how I hate the potholes in it, how I hate the overgrown grass on the side of the road.  My mind and my body do not allow anything else.  Running is part of me and dwells deep in my soul, attaching itself to every fiber of my life.  Others may think that after the past couple years of traveling and re-traveling this road that I could just give up running and take up other activities.  That is not possible.  I can't.

And so I find myself back at mile 1 of this road.  I am hitting it hard with PT and with their help, I will figure out the weaknesses in my body that contribute to stressing my hamstrings.  I am hitting it hard with  activities that I can do without causing undo stress on my hamstring while I strengthen it and the rest of my body.  I am looking into hiring a coach that can help guide my training once I get back to the point of a regular running routine again.

So after three weeks, I was given the go ahead by my therapist to try some walk/run this weekend.  Nothing too ambitious. Just jogging very slowly for 1 minute, separated by 5 minutes of walking.  This morning I hit the road to do this.  While I would like to say that everything was great, that isn't so.  I had some low grade pain from my hammie, but nothing sharp and nothing escalating.  We will see how it feels later today and into tomorrow.  While it was not perfect, it was another step down this road.

One day, I am planning on dragging out the "Road Closed" sign and placing it and some concrete barriers in front of this road so that I never have to travel this way again  Until that day, I will toil down this path making the best of it that I can.  I have some great people helping me along the way and I am finding additional great people that are helping smooth the road even more.

My prayer for all of you reading this is that you do not find yourself on this same road, or if you do, that you pass along it quickly, never to return.  Trust me, when this road becomes familiar, it is no fun.  I am not revisiting its path because I want to.  But given the hand I was dealt 3 weeks ago, I must.  There is no option for me.  And so I plod along, slow step by slow step, focusing not on the all-too familiar scenery this time, but on the small dot at the end of this road, my ultimate goal of strong and pain-free running.

I have no choice.

I Can't Believe She Let Me Make It To 25 Years

Been a little while since my last post.  At last report, E- and I had just become empty nesters as both M- and R- had gone to college.  The next big thing in our lives just happened less than a week ago.  E- and I hit the 25th wedding anniversary level of our own real-life video game.  In reaching 25 years, I figured I would impart my wisdom to all of you on what it takes to get to that milestone.

Before I get to that list, I just want it to sink in a little more, mainly to me as I am still not sure I fully comprehend, that starting now I have been married to E- longer than I have not been married to her.  More than half of my life has been blessed because she said yes.

Now back to my wisdom in the form of a list of what it takes to get to your 25th wedding anniversary:

Number 1: Find someone who puts up with you and your antics and lets you stick around for 25 years.

Number 2:  There is no number 2.  Number 1 is it.  My wisdom ends there as number 1 is the sole reason I can think of for why I am still married to E- after 25 years.  It is nothing I have done other than love her.  It is all related to her ignoring me when I am being stupid, or better yet telling me I am being stupid and that I should stop.   It is all related to her loving me no matter what happens or what I do.  At least, I think she still loves me.  Hopefully she still does.  Otherwise, I don't know why she still puts herself through it.

Don't get me wrong.  I am sure there are plenty of days when E- does not like me at all, but I think she still loves me even in those times.  It is the only explanation for 25 years.  I do know and can easily state that I love her.  She is my life.  She is my joy.  She makes each and every day better.

Aside:  It is no coincidence that as I was typing the last paragraph, blink-182's Home is Such a Lonely Place came on. The lyrics "Home is such a lonely place without you.  Home is such a lonely place." describe how I feel when E- is away and not at home.   There is no "home" without her.  It is a house.  Each spot there is just a room.  It is a place to sleep and exist.  With her there though, it becomes a home.  A place that is safe.  A place that surrounds you in warmth and love.  A place that I never care to leave.

Done with the aside (but not blink-182).  Back to my list of one.  My advice to my kids and to others out there is find that someone that you know will put up with you.  I am sure E- has her own list, but this list of one is all I could rationalize as being worthy, from my point of view, of passing along.

If E- is willing, maybe I will be able to post 5, 10, or even 25 years from now with some additional items for my list.  Even if I get to those milestones, I am thinking my list will still just be this one item though.

Here's to 25 more

I love you, E-.  More than I probably convey to you or that you know.

PS:  After some deep thought, I have a Number 2 for my list of infinite wisdom.  Number 2:  Make sure that person in Number 1 is E-.

Sorry guys, I am the only one that can achieve Number 2.