Celebrating Life

Wednesday morning on my way to work, Mom called to let me know that my 90 year-old grandad had passed away early that morning.  He fought a hard battle with lung disease and just over a week ago had been put on hospice.  We thought we had a little more time with him but are grateful that he died peacefully and without having to suffer much pain.  This weekend Jody and I will head to College Station for his service, which is sure to be a celebration of a very active, bright, honorable and loving man.  Here is a picture of him (left) in 1942, serving in the US Army's invasion of Sicily.

At 88, Grandad was still walking regularly for exercise, despite multiple doctors telling him he could "tone it down."  I like to think I got some of my athletic determination from him.  He also claimed to have the best legs of any person - man or woman - over 60, which unfortunately was not a trait he passed along to anyone.  He had one of the most cheerful, optimistic dispositions of anyone I know, and I hope that above all I can take from him the knowledge that to a large extent, happiness is a state of mind that depends more than anything on your outlook and how you choose to see the world.  We'll miss you, Papa Peck, but you leave a treasure trove of great memories and examples of true character.

Brain = Mush

If you asked me to sum up my world view right now, it would be this:

And this:

And this:

Spending all this time swimming laps, running circles around the track, and riding my bike has turned my brain into complete and total mush.

Exhibit A - Jody and I were supposed to do a duathlon this weekend in Seguin.  We picked up our packets Saturday, went to bed early, woke-up and had breakfast and loaded the car.  Only then did we realize that we'd forgotten to set our clocks forward, despite being reminded at least a dozen times yesterday from various radio DJs, friends, and even the race coordinators at packet pickup.  We missed the duathlon and, more importantly, missed the opportunity to cheer on Chris & Michelle in their relay team victory.  1st on the podium - CONGRATS to TEAM SMITH!!

Ex. B - Jody's sister-in-law's mother passed away two weeks ago.  I have had a card sitting on my dresser waiting to be mailed to her since the day after I got that news.  I finally wrote the card yesterday, addressed it, and dropped it in the mail.  Last night I realized that I hadn't put the card IN the envelope before mailing it.  So now she's going to receive an empty envelope with the return address from moi.  If I had one ounce of focus, I would have noticed the flimsy envelope or the card right next to it.

Ex. C - Since I didn't compete in the duathlon, I decided to go ahead and do the 12-mile run on my training schedule for yesterday.  The run was fantastic, but when I went back to my car I opened the trunk to pull out a towel to dry off with and locked my keys in the trunk.  Fortunately, the walk home was only a couple miles, and it was probably good to loosen up my legs after the run, but come on, Jennie, get it together.

All this to say, I'm starting to look forward to my life beyond this training and hope that my brain isn't too worse for the wear.  My friend Laura asked me yesterday if I planned to "tone it down" after the race was over.  Hell, yes, I do!  I have a huge stack of books I'm looking forward to reading, and I can only hope that I'll rediscover my brain while doing so.  In the meantime, please forgive me if I am a total basketcase or flake of a friend. 

Wildflower Sighting

I saw my first wildflowers of spring today on my bike ride down to San Marcos:

They were just a couple Indian Paintbrushes in front of someone's home, but I'm hoping that there will be plenty more to come soon.  These long Saturday rides are frankly getting boring, and I'm in need of some visual entertainment to keep me from going nuts.  Bring on the bluebonnets!

Loving the Local Races

The training rides and runs have been getting a little old, so I decided last week to throw in some organized events for my long training over the weekend - a charity bike ride in Bastrop called Pedal Thru the Pines and a race in San Marcos called Moe's Better Half Marathon.  I had done both of these before and loved them.  Their local, small, grassroots-type events that get the community out in support of a good cause.  The multitude of events like this in Austin is one of the great things about this city...

...except when there is wind.  Saturday morning Jody and I woke up to the sound of branches scraping across our aluminum roof.  It wouldn't have been so disconcerting except for the fact that we were planning to ride 65 miles in it. We put on as much clothing as possible, threw our gear, our bikes, and our friend Chris in the car, and headed east.  It was a brutal day.  Chris was riding right behind me and said that my bike was literally at a 105 degree angle from the ground, being pushed over by constant wind.  But we plodded along, finished hard, and celebrated with some post-ride beverages on the grounds of Bastrop H.S.  This was by far the best part of the day:    

Nosh, MaryLynn, Jody, Jennie & Chris

w/ cooler of Spaten in the center

Fortunately, the wind died down by Sunday morning, but the temperatures stayed cool.  The greatest running buddy ever (who happens to also be married to aformentioned Chris) and I drove down to San Marcos for a crisp 13.1.  Based on the Garmin it was 13.2, but despite that and it being a hilly course, we both managed to PR by many minutes.  Here we are afterwards with the race's namesake, Moe:

I can't begin to explain how grateful I am for a friend like Michelle.  She's been so supportive of my IM goals, held me accountable, made me a stronger runner, and, most importantly, is a wonderful friend and listener as we pound out the miles each week.  If it weren't for her, I know I wouldn't be running as much as I have been! 

Body work for a hard-working body

Three months down. Three months to go.

 

I'm generally feeling good and confident, but a few tight muscles have had me whining lately. I'm living on my bike right now, in aero position most of the time, and my neck, shoulders and back are not liking their new home. I therefore decided to treat myself to a massage this week. My good friend Laura has been a massage therapist for a long time, but I'd never had a massage from her before. I was admittedly a bit nervous about using a friend for massage work. I like silence during a massage, but I also really like talking to Laura. How will this work? What if I don't like it - can I tell her that?  I had no need to worry.  My massage yesterday was exactly what I needed - hard pressure on the crunchy spots (of which there are many) in my back and hips but still a calm and relaxing experience that has me feeling great today!  If you need a good massage therapist in Austin, get Laura's contact info from me. She's so talented, so professional, and she's a beautiful, creative and compassionate friend to boot!

 

I'm hoping that my post-massage zen will get me through this weekend. The Pedal Thru the Pines charity bike ride is tomorrow in Bastrop - 65 miles of rolling hills with some of my favorite people, including JoD.  Sunday I'm running a half-marathon in San Marcos and just learned that my friend Michelle will be able to join me for it.  Hurrah!  I thought I was going down there alone and am so grateful to have the company.  Let's just hope for sunshine.

Soliciting tweets for my handlebars

While spinning the other day, I noticed my friend's bike had writing taped all over her handlebars.  They were short inspirational quotes that she uses to lift her spirits on long rides.  What a great idea!  I've already taped two things to my handle bars:  (1) "Got salt?"; and (2) "Heels down!"  The former is to remind me to take my electrolyte tablets, and the latter is to stop me from riding with pointed toes.   

Now I'm looking for deeper inspiration on the bike.  Here are a few quotes that have struck me thus far in my search:

"Someday you will not be able to do this.  Today is not that day."  - Dane Rauschenberg

"It always seems impossible until it's done."  - Nelson Mandela

"Strength does not come from physical capacity.  It comes from an indomitable will." - Mahatma Gandhi

"If you can dream it, you can do it."  - Walt Disney