Jumped in, leaping

So yesterday I finally signed up for this Sunday’s Hooter’s Half Marathon. I did so with some trepidation.  As I described previously I have had some issue with my left calf/knee although today was the first morning I woke up without feeling that cramping sensation which is a positive.

I also have not trained as much for the race as I did last year.  Last year I did a number of 10 mile training runs and even the full 13.1 distance once before doing the race.  This year I have run 10 miles a couple times and several 7 milers.  I am going to have to rely on my lighter body weight, higher overall fitness level and some mental toughness to pull me through the event.  I still have a less than two hour goal in my mind, I wish I had someone like Matt or Patrick doing the race so they could help keep me on point.

Last night we heated up the last of the spaghetti we had left over from the weekend.  There was a little left over so I decided to give the dogs their first taste of pasta.  I am not sure how we never gave them spaghetti before.  Anyway Nicki definitely approved, gobbling down a couple forkfuls in no time at all and was looking for more. Sadie was funny when she ate hers.  She sort of sucked it down like a little kid would do.

Today is leap day.  I don’t have anything witty or unique to say about this day that happens only once every four years.  Personally I plan to utilize the extra day to make one more attempt at the February Bar-barian challenge.

I checked in with both my brother Patrick and my dad yesterday  on their respective journeys home.  Pat said he got back to his place around 1Am (had to work the same day).  Dad’s drive north had an unexpected detour when all of the idiot lights on his brand new Subaru started flashing unexplainably. A trip to the dealer revealed the problem to be a defective gas cap which seemed odd to me.

I have heard of gas caps that aren’t on all the way throwing a check engine light but I have never heard of it causing a Christmas Tree of lights on the dash.  After he got a new cap he was on his way.

Dad also spent about an hour on the side of the road arguing on a conference call with reps from the insurance and drug company over some prescription snafu.  Dad evidently introduced obscenities into the stream of discussion which is never a good thing.  With as mad as I have gotten on the phone with various inept businesses I have never started swearing at them, it is outside the lines of reasonable behavior in that situation to me. It also will do very little to make your ultimate goal be realized and in fact may instead have the exact opposite effect.