For Whom the Dogs Bark

76F, 94% humidity, clear and calm.  Beautiful morning for running.  About Saturday afternoon, 6 or 7 hours after my long run, my right foot, top outside, became painful and difficult to walk on.  That continued all the way through last night at bedtime.  I was praying pretty hard for some relief, I really didn't want to take on another injury.  I think it happened from changing my stride due to the blister I got on the same foot.  I was afraid of a stress fracture, though I have never had one so far as I know.  It was still sore this morning, but I strapped on regular shoes and after a hundred yards it was gone for good.  I don't usually mix running and spiritual matters (other than occasionally shaking my fist at the running gods), because running is a sport for all kinds of people, religious, agnostic, indifferent and anti.  But this one was a blessing, I am sure of it, and I am grateful.  My left hip made an appearance at mile 3.5, but I know that one, I just stretched out and slowed down my stride, tried to maintain proper form, and it went away.  Not something to ignore, but controllable.

So I ran about 6.2 miles in 59 minutes, average pace about 9:30, including some high 10s and high 8s, as best I can tell.  The Garmin is still kaput.  I thought I had it nailed as a moisture issue, but it isn't that, something else.  I'll probably need to get a new one.  It is kind of fun to run a few days without it, but long term I need that machine. 

Looking forward to a good running week.

75F, 95% humidity, wind NE 5 mph.  A pretty morning for running, clear but lightning in the clouds on the horizon.  Ran 10.1 in about 1:35, regular shoes, no Garmin, about a 9:30 pace.  My legs felt heavy but otherwise I was able to push through and finish the run.  Left hip acted up at mile 7 but I slowed down then sped back up and it was fine, like re-booting a computer.  Hip is still OK this afternoon.  I have learned that I have to wait until later in the day to assess the effects of a run.  Until then the endorphins are still hanging around, making you feel better than you really are.

Can't re-boot the Garmin though.  I finally gave up and ordered a new one today.  Got it on Amazon.com for a pretty reasonable price, less than half what I paid 18 months ago.  Love the way electronics always go down in price.  I think it should work that way for everything except my hourly rate.

78F, 88% humidity, wind ESE 9 mph with gusting.  Getting ready to rain today, but a nice cloudy morning.  I ran exactly the same route as yesterday, 10.1 miles in regular shoes, 1:32, averaging about 9:07 minutes per mile, so I ran it faster.  My new Garmin will arrive Friday or Monday, as best I can tell.  Left hip issues are still there but I don't think it will bother me for too much longer, it feels like it is healing unless I do something stupid, which is entirely possible.

At about mile 5.5 I passed a familiar yard that has a dog behind a wooden fence, invisible but he always greets me aggressively.  About 30 pounds, guessing from his baritone bark.  Earlier I had tried getting a reaction out of some neighborhood ducks, but they ignored me.  I decided to give it one more try with the dog.  I gave him an animated growl in my best bass voice as I shuffled by, not loud enough for the owner to hear.  Ladies and gentlemen, the results were spectacular.  The holiday weekend is still a couple of days away, but the fireworks coming out of that yard bordered on illegal, even for Texas.  I maintained an innocent, bored look on my face and trotted on down the street.  Looks like I have a new friend.  He'll probably get a piece of my ankle someday, but it was worth it.

76F, 94% humidity, light rain.  Air very fresh with the rain, good running weather despite the temperatures.  This rain might be related to the hurricane that came in further south last night, but not sure.  Ran slow today, getting ready for some longer miles over the weekend.  10.1 miles in 1:55, regular shoes, about 11:25 per mile, no Garmin.  We are hoping to make it to Central Texas for the holiday weekend to visit my daughter and her family.  I am thinking with the humidity a little lower the run might go better, but the temperatures might be higher.  It will be an experiment.

MFM (my favorite mutt) did not make an appearance today.  Kind of disappointing, I was hoping to develop our friendship further.  I think his owner is alarmed and decided to keep him inside when I am running.  I am a very intimidating guy.

76F, 97% humidity, light rain.  Very nice morning out there, although it is raining heavily now.  I don't think there will be many boats on the water this weekend, although I ran by a couple of guys loading up their water toys in the rain.  Still no Garmin (maybe today?), but according to the computer I ran 6.23 miles and according to my cell phone I did it in 54.5 minutes, so about 8:45 pace, flat shoes.  Honestly, I felt like I was running faster than that, and I guess I was if you throw out the first warmup mile.  Any way you slice it though, it was not low 8s.  The good news is I felt great, and it felt like my form is improving, my feet felt springy in the flat shoes, if that makes sense.  Didn't want to push it too hard anyway, hoping for a long run tomorrow out in Temple, where we are visiting my daughter for the holiday weekend.

In preparation for our visit, I have been requested to bring fireworks.  Apparently Temple is not part of the unregulated paradise that the rest of Texas is, only certain types of kiddie poppers are available there.  So I will be running the big stuff, arriving after sunset.  In addition, they want me to bring something called "red rubber mulch", which is unavailable in Temple but supposedly can be purchased at any Home Depot in Houston.  So I am gearing up mentally to walk in and ask for it with a straight face, but I am pretty sure that one is a hoax.

81F, 78% humidity, 87 heat index, wind ESE 12 mph.  This was a goodbye run instead of a hello run, meaning I put Mr. Sun to bed instead of getting him out of bed.  I woke up this morning at my usual time, 5:30, but I was sleeping on an air mattress in Temple, Texas, at my daughter's house.  The rain was coming down in sheets, there were no street lights, I had no Garmin and no map and I had stayed up past midnight, so I promised myself I would run tonight and rolled over and slept until 9:00.  This caused a number of comments since I brag too often about getting up early.

So after driving back to Houston it was time to keep my promise.  It has been raining so much that it wasn't as hot as it could have been, but still hotter than morning runs.  The light was somewhat the same as well, to the extent I blurted out a hearty "good morning" to one friendly but startled couple innocently walking their dog.  Would have been good if it was in another neighborhood, but it was my own.  I'm sure that one will get around.

The first couple of miles were painful with a shin splint that appeared out of nowhere, but no way was I going to post a 2 after missing 20 last Saturday.  So I ran through it and it disappeared.  Ended up doing all 20 in 3:48, which comes out to about a 10:50 pace.  Doesn't sound very fast but it was difficult.  Not quite as bad as I felt after the marathon three weeks ago which I ran about 1:40 per mile faster, but it was in the neighborhood.  The heat is brutal but I have to keep trying or I will lose 6 months.