i'm back!

i'm blaming my hiatus on running burn out, writers block and spring fever. but i'm going to make a concerted effort to finish up my marathon blogging over the course of this week.

what's up with me? well, the last 2+ weeks i've been in boot camp. not the army boot camp, workout boot camp. and let me tell you - it is hard.

first off its at 6am. yeah. exactly! secondly, it's three days a week. this isn't doing wonders for my social life and i am perpetually tired, but work out wise - it is torturous fun! we do some running but its definitely just a part of the work out. there are lots of sit ups, push ups and these terrible things called a burpee. we sprint up and down stairs and hills, perform crazy amount of lunges, and generally get our asses kicked. we even got "punished" army-style last week when two slackers weren't working as hard as the rest of us. darren, the instructor, paced in front of us as we held push-up position for a good two minutes, lecturing us on what happens when there people not putting the effort in. darren, you need lecture no more!

my excellent partner and crime and i help each other along the way with sarcastic remarks under our breaths and check ins when one or the other is looking particularly beaten down. we are in week 3, and i will probably blog some of the more...interesting (read horrible) work outs.

other than that, i've been busy at work and running around the city with the swede. the two of us are pretty social creatures and it seems the calendar will be pretty booked all summer.

oh, and a plug for that man of mine. while you're waiting for me to get my lagging posts up do check out my boy's new blog http://buck64aday.blogspot.com. you know those stimulus checks we've all been getting? well, if you divide that $600 by 365 (as in days in the year) you get, you guessed it, a buck64 a day. he's going to stimulate the economy a day at a time, blogging about all his purchases along the way. even with his meager budget, he manages to get me some gifties. he's even gotten on the news. i would think it was a brilliant idea even if i wasn't smitten so give the man some traffic and if you like it, spread the word.

new running related posts soon. promise.

photos in lieu of words

hi everyone!

i'm working on my updates but i started getting sick the day i left paris and came down with the full blown flu by the time i got off the plane so i'm finally feeling "writable" today and will work on getting you the play-by-play soon!

other than the sickies, there wasn't too much in the way of soreness other than my right shin which continues to ache a bit.

more soon, promise. in the mean time...here are a few photos to keep you busy :)

made it!!

that's my watch time, not the official time, but i'm pretty sure we're looking at another PR (personal record)! allez allez!


update! PR confirmed!

the k is on the left, the time is on the right.




today's mileage: 26.2
season mileage to date 267.1

PS! the $20,000 in 7 days deadline is tonight! Donate now!

day 1: bonjour from paris!

hello mon chers, from lovely paris! it's almost 9pm on friday and it is still not quite dark. i always forget until i am across the ocean that it stays lighter longer here - believe me i am not complaining.

we arrived yesterday a little after 10 without incident and took a bus to our hotel, which is right in the thick of things - a few minutes walk to the arc de triomphe off the champs-elysées. we happily discovered our room was ready and we showered and decompressed for a bit.

we are supposed to stay off our feet and not drink wine or eat rich cheese until after the marathon, three things that are quite difficult to do while in paris. we decided to go to expo while we were tired and pick up our numbers so as not to waste the following free day.

it was a good idea. we too the metro over, and since the expo had just opened we decided to grab a snack, caffeine and some water before braving the crowds. we found a cute little cafe where we had tea and cafe au lait, and then ducked into a little patisserie for some pan au chocolat. (ps, the food words are just about the only french i know, along with "Bonjour!" "Bonne nuit" "S'il vous palait" "Excuse moi!" "Pardon Moi!" "Au Revoiur" and "Parlez-vous anglais?")

the expo was not too crazy when we got there. there was a brief scare when the man behind the counter couldn't find sk8's number, but all was well. i couldn't find my hat, so i had to buy yet another one at expo.

from there we headed back to our hotel for a well-timed nap to manage the time difference. around nine or so, we headed back out to forage for food somewhere a little off the beaten path and found a descent brasserie where we dined on steak au poivre and pomme frites. mmm and a glass of cote du rhone. (yes! i cheated! i admit it! but it was just one!)

the meal pushed us over the edge of tired and we headed back to our hotel and passed out.

PS - you guys are *rocking* as far as my little fundraising push goes! not quite at $20k yet (we have until sunday!) but...since monday we've raised over $2,000 and that is saying something! thank you so much for all your support!

and now, for the weather

i'm taking this moment to interrupt my slow-going packing endeavor to bring you the paris forecast for the four days leading up to the marathon.

as you can see below, we're looking at partly cloudy skies with only a 20% chance of rain. highs in the 50's and lows in the 30's could make for some fine running weather.



i'd say things are looking up for those marathon runners, wouldn't you?

over to you bob.