2 Days? 1 Day? 3 Days?

I don't even know for sure anymore! LOL!  It's Friday night, late, really almost Saturday.  You can figure it out.

Aaaaand our biggest worry at the moment is the weather; it's supposed to be rather nasty.  *sigh*  Torrential rain, flooding, lightning, etc.  Ugh!  Oh well, there is no changing the weather, so we go forward as if everything will happen as planned.  If it changes, then we'll have to live by our praise band's motto--Semper Gumby! 

I can do that. :)  I've walked 13.1 miles already, so I don't feel like I have to prove that to myself.  I know I can do an entire half-marathon (or should I say a full half-marathon? LOL!).  I would really like to finish this one, though, so I'll keep up hope.

This will probably be the last post till after the race.  I'm hoping to get a good night's sleep tonight and to sleep in late tomorrow.  I'll finish up the stuff I need to do to get ready to leave (including cleaning, in case we have a showing), and then we're off!  I don't know what all we'll end up doing in Cincinnati, but I'm sure we'll have fun.

I don't expect much sleep Saturday night, though I'm hoping for as much as possible.  I plan to get up at 4:30am.  UGH!  But it's okay.  I can do it.  I've done it for birds and babies before, so this will not kill me.

(I have to say, though, that walking over a bridge hundreds of feet over the Ohio River might just do me in.  I'm a little freaked about that.)

But I expect that there will be a big party atmosphere, and I'm looking forward to that.  It's really amazing to me how much of this experience is mental.  You'd think the physical part would be the most challenging part, but, truly, it's the mental aspect that is the most challenging.  And it is amazing to me how true the old saying is that it's "mind over matter."  It really is.

Well, with that final thought, I'm off to bed.  Missy is currently digging around on the computer desk in front of me, so I can't see the screen.  I guess she wants her kitty treat and is also looking for something fun to bat around.  (This includes a wad of fuzz from the far recesses of the keyboard drawer.  Ewww.  Oh, and did you know that stuff has an old name?  Slut's wool.  :D  Nice, huh?  A little more interesting than dust bunnies anyway!)

4 Days till the Pig--Or Is It Really Just 3?

I guess it depends on how you count it.  The race is Sunday morning.  Today is Thursday.  4 days or 3?  Eh, whatever.  The real news is that I found my socks. :)  (They were in my van, which is not surprising, considering it's become a total pit.  It's worse than usual since we've had the house on the market.  Any spare flotsam seems to find its way to the van.)

Today, I made lists.  I hope to finish those lists tomorrow.  I also walked 2 miles.  The girls and I walked to my nephew, Justin's, school to look at his art show.  Then Katie and I walked home.  (Sarah hitched a ride home with my parents.)

Anyway, I think I may have Katie convinced to try a half marathon!  And now Craig is talking about running a half, too!

In non-pig news, we're doing well with school.  I have our final weeks planned out, and things look good.  5 weeks left now!

But no news on the house. :(  Ugh.

And that's about it here.

5 Days till the Pig

All kidding aside, I am nervous and excited.  So today I'm going to try not to think about it too much.  I might make a list of last minute things I need to go get and try to do that tomorrow or Friday.  And I still need to find my special socks.  They have disappeared somewhere, and they are awesome.  So I must find them.  (They don't have a seam at the toe, so they don't rub my toes while walking.)

I did print some necessary info about the marathon and put it all neatly in a manila folder that I labeled "Flying Pig Info."  This makes me feel more in control of things, though I really know I'm not.  So I'm just kind of holding my breath between now and this weekend...and praying!

Oh, and I'll work.  If I keep busy, I'll keep my mind off of it.  So I'll probably get some tasks done that would otherwise continue to languish in the "When I Have Time" column. 

First is to create an insert for the first aid kit my mom put together for the adults in the church.  (After one of my friends had a heart attack and people were scrambling to find aspirin, everybody decided that we needed to keep a better first aid kit, one geared more toward adults.)  Next is to make copies of the church video tour that I did as part of our pastor search process.  The associate pastor search committee wants to send copies to their candidates.   Add school work with the girls, housework, and everything else, and I should keep pretty busy!

But I really do need to find my socks!

6 Days till the Pig--In Honor of Aergia

As I was walking yesterday, I was giving the story of the original marathon some thought.

From Wikipedia (and we all know it's always accurate!): 

The traditional story relates that Pheidippides (530 BC–490 BC), an Athenian herald, was sent to Sparta to request help when the Persians landed at Marathon, Greece.

He ran 240 km (150 miles) in two days. He then ran the 40 km (25 miles) from the battlefield near the town of Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victory over Persia in the Battle of Marathon (490 BC) with the word "Νενικήκαμεν" (Nenikékamen, 'We have won') and collapsed and died on the spot because of exhaustion.

...Robert Browning gave a version of the traditional story in his 1879 poem Pheidippides.

    So, when Persia was dust, all cried, "To Acropolis!

    Run, Pheidippides, one race more! the meed is thy due!

    Athens is saved, thank Pan, go shout!" He flung down his shield

    Ran like fire once more: and the space 'twixt the fennel-field

    And Athens was stubble again, a field which a fire runs through,

    Till in he broke: "Rejoice, we conquer!" Like wine through clay,

    Joy in his blood bursting his heart, - the bliss!

("Fennel-field" is a reference to the Greek word for fennel, marathon, the origin of the name of the battlefield.)

Hmmm...very interesting if it's true.  I think there are a few things we can learn from this.

First, running is bad for you.  In fact, running a lot results in death.  This is good to note!

Secondly, being the messenger usually results in death somehow, even if it's good news.  Also good to note.

Thirdly, marathon is Greek for fennel, which has no relevance to anything, but I just think that's a cool thing to know.

Fourthly, Wikipedia doesn't mention it, but I have it on good authority that there was another, lesser-known Greek person involved in this story, named Aergia.  She was a friend of Pheidippides, and they were both pretty darn excited about the victory over the Persians.  

So they decided to travel together to tell the good news.  Only Aergia wasn't quite as motivated as Pheidippides.  In fact, after about 3 miles, she began to get annoyed with him.  He wouldn't stop when she needed to use the restroom.  He kept yelling at her to pick up the pace. 

After about 6.55 miles, Aergia had decided she'd had enough.  They were close to a village, and she told Pheidippides, "Keep going if you want to.  I want some ouzo."  (Only she said that all in Greek, obviously.)  

Of course Pheidippides kept running, self-important prig that he was.  Aergia, however, stopped to enjoy a quick drink and a meal (and a well-deserved potty break).  Then she turned around and headed back to the encampment.


Today, the legend of Aergia motivates and inspires half-marathoners everywhere!  And, so, when I walk on Sunday, it will be with the legend of Aergia in my mind, motivating me when I want to keep going on to 14 miles, slowing me down when I feel the urge to speed up, convincing me that one more potty break is definitely justified, and warming the cockles of my heart when I think about the steak I plan on eating afterwards.  Remember, Aergia went on to live a long and full life.  Pheidippides died.  As in, heart-exploded-drop-dead died.

7 Days till the Pig

It's my last big training day before the half-marathon.  Unfortunately, the weather is rainy and cold, so I'll be walking inside on the treadmill.  Fortunately, I only need to do 6 miles.  Unfortunately, I've convinced myself that if I'm walking inside on the treadmill I either need to walk longer than 6 miles or faster than normal.  Being inherently lazy and allergic to sweat, I'll probably just walk longer.

I'm starting to freak about some of the details of this whole event, and, so, I'm trying to not think about it too much while also making detailed plans when I do think about it.  (Really, the small details are important.  For example, the right underwear choice is important.  I mean, I don't want to be crass, but who wants to be picking wedgies for 13.1 miles?  I definitely do not.)

Anyway, I'm also praying--praying those sort of frantic, half-prayers I pray whenever worries crowd into my mind.  What if I get sick?  Okay, Lord, please don't let me get sick.  What if I freak out because there are going to be 20,000 people there?  Okay, Lord, please let me be calm and not freak out about the crowds.  What if my toenail starts hurting terribly and falls off?  Okay, Lord, You'll get me through that somehow.

I could go on.  To list all of my worries would take forever, and it might cause someone to call in professional help for me!

And anyway I'm trying to focus on the things I'm excited about, because I do think, in the end, it will be fun.

All right, if you haven't figured it out already, I'm procrastinating from starting my 6+ miles.  Gotta go!

A Monty Python Moment

It's getting close to the marathon date now--only 2 weeks away.  Back in January, when I started training, it seemed so far away.  It's funny how we can have such warped perspectives of time--distant, close, all confused into one jumble.  I thought of that yesterday while walking the final 2 miles home from the church.

I like to walk Atchison Road; it has nice sidewalks on both sides.  It's a straight shot, and there's not a ton of traffic.  Pretty homes line either side, and I cross over a few bridges, getting to look down into shady creeks.  This time of year is especially pretty, with crabapples in full bloom, their subtle, sweet fragrance blowing on the wind.  The redbuds are blooming, too.  Yesterday, with the bright blue sky and the small, puffy white clouds, things were so beautiful as to almost make your heart burst.

But those last 2 miles were killing me.  Whether it's because I haven't been training like I should, I'm getting old, or I didn't stretch, my heel and ankle were in a lot of pain.  So I'm walking up Atchison, and I can see the stoplight at Spring Valley far in the distance.  "Oh good," I think.

And I go back to looking at the trees, the sky, the ground, the dead robin by the side of the sidewalk.  My music is on, and it's something good, like Major Tom (the techno dance version).  More good music follows.  Probably 5 or 10 minutes go by before I look all the way up the road again.

What the...?  The stoplights don't seem any closer.  Seriously?  I've been walking for quite a while now; they should look closer.  Ugh.

Nose back to the grindstone.  Another few songs go by, another 5 minutes or so.  I look up.  They are NOT any closer.  Grumble, grumble, mutter, mutter...

But then I start to laugh, because it reminds me of this scene from Holy Grail (starting at about 0:41, going to 1:16):

And, you know, life is like that.  You're working toward a goal; it seems so distant and doesn't seem to get any closer, and then BAM!  There it is, like it or not.  

(I love that the other guard--the one who looks like Conan O'Brien--just kind of goes, "Heeeeey..."  That IS me!)

So, yeah, I looked up during my walk, and there were the stoplights--finally!  Almost home!

Frittering Away My Day

I knew eventually it would come to this.  I've been really on task for several months now--very focused, very organized, very everything I'm supposed to be.  And today, well, today, I have no energy, and I don't have a desire to do a darn thing.  If I could lie in bed all day, I would.  Or play on the internet all day.  Or continue snoozing in the sunshine patch on the floor in the schoolroom.  I know a "down" day doesn't seem unreasonable, given everything I've been doing lately, but it's pretty darn inconvenient.

Maybe the windows would clean themselves, and the house would somehow get dusted.  The cats could learn to clean their own litter boxes, as well as sweep up all of the litter and cat food they fling everywhere.  Floors would miraculously be swept and mopped, and the bathrooms would indeed be "sparkling," as the description of our house says on the MLS site.

Sigh.

I found out today that I've been admitted to Wright State and Liberty University.  That's good news, I suppose.  But now that I've come to it, I'll have to actually do it.  That's an even harder step to take.

Oh well, I'm just whining, and I'm tired.  And, anyway, like it or not, I've managed to fritter away most of the day, so I should stop complaining.  Now I'll go clean those windows and dust the house. Then I'll go make dinner at my mom's, come back home, clean something else, and stay up too late, as usual.