Down. AGAIN.

I ran with Bruce and Mark this morning at 5:15 AM. We ran the usual Wednesday morning route ... from the Y up to Elton Hills Drive, to Broadway and back to the Y. Mark went south on Broadway and I ran down 14th St NE with Bruce. He then went home and I went to Cub Foods to get a drink of water, then down to Mayo H.S. and then decided to go by the Walgreens to see if it was open yet. Just across Broadway on 16th St I was looking north to Walgreens and all of a sudden ... I was falling. It happened so fast, but at the same time, time seemed to be standing still and all these thoughts were swirling through my head. But I just went down. I am a shuffler when I run and especially when my legs are tired (this was at mile 12). I must have hit a little lip on a sidewalk square. I looked back but it sure wasn't obvious. Anyway, my first thought was "oh no, I just ruined my brand new tights" (I didn't, but they did get bloody).

This time, it was my right knee. Last year, my left. I also caught myself on my left hand and my left middle finger is quite sore. My chin also hit the sidewalk (I pretty much went straight ahead, face first ... no rolling involved). So frustrating. Anyway, it doesn't appear to be as severe as last year as my knee didn't balloon up and get all funny colored this time. But the knee is scraped up and sore. (Scroll down FAST if you don't like blood!)

The good news ... the intersection of Salem Road Fox Valley Drive SW is now open again. Hooray. It's been quite the inconvenience. And Walgreens had a sign on the door that they're opening 11/19. Total mileage for the morning was 14.03. The calf is now officially a non-issue. :-)

It being Veteran's Day, I'd like to thank all the men and women who have served in the military to protect the freedom's we all enjoy every day. We take so much for granted.

We're (Kelly, Ben, my sister, and I) going to be seeing West Side Story on Friday evening on Broadway. Hard to believe. The Culinary Institute of America does not have any dinner openings until JANUARY!!! Major bummer, but there's absolutely nothing we can do about it. And it's not like there's no where else to eat in New York. :-) It's also been requested that I bake some cookies Friday while I'm at Kelly's at they're at work. I can TOTALLY handle that! I leave early tomorrow afternoon from Rochester.

Just a reminder that the Saturday run will be at 7:30 at Dunn Bros. on Elton Hills. Wear a shirt from a 2009 race if you ran one (or more!) If not, wear whatever you like! Here's a message from runner Dawn Beck who's now on staff at Dunn Bros:

"November brings Thanksgiving and fall flavors. The seasonal breakfast pastries this month are cranberry orange scones, applesauce oat muffins and maple glazed brioche rolls. Brioche is a slightly sweetened, egg and butter enriched, french bread. These, as well as the scones, are baked fresh every morning and are a nice alternative to the super sweet bigger-than-Texas cinnamon roll. No offense to the cinnamon roll lovers, we still have them and they are baked fresh every morning too! If you're looking for an afternoon pick-me-up there are oatmeal scotchies, choc dipped almond biscotti and espresso choc chip biscotti. If chocolate overload is the goal try the black bottom cupcake, or back by popular demand... peanut butter scotcharoos! New warm dessert additions are caramel pecan bread pudding and gingerbread apple upside down cake. The cake is like a traditional upside down cake using apples, brown sugar and gingerbread. At the end of the day brioche, cinnamon and caramel rolls are cubed and put into the freezer. These eventually become the base for the bread pudding, baked into a rich egg custard and served warm with whipped and a drizzle of caramel. December has me thinking about egg nog and holiday cookies, so stay tuned. Many of you have stopped in to say hello which makes being back in town so much fun! Keep on coming and remember to think sweet!"

Here's a link to a WCCO story about our own Kevin Torgerson running the Marine Corps marathon.

 I read about Dirty Girl Gaiters in Marathon & Beyond last night. They certainly have a wide selection of bright, fun fabrics!!

15% off shoes (even sale prices) at Running Room. There's a coupon and it appears to be on the http://www.runningroom.com/ website (I think).

This afternoon I made some Walnut Bread using a recipe in the November issue of Cooking Light. It's very good, especially with a little Cranberry Butter with Port.

It's got some whole wheat pastry flour in it. The entree was Pasta with Basil, Arugula, and Walnut Pesto, also a Cooking Light recipe. Delicious. It was supposed to be made with linguini but I didn't have any so I used some whole wheat thin spaghetti instead. Very easy to make. Just whirl everything in the food processor and toss with cooked pasta.

Asparagus was on sale at HyVee, so I made Kelly's roasted asparagus recipe with soy sauce and balsamic vinegar. Delish.

Well, I'm going to get to bed and get off my feet. I've not sat much today. But I guess I'll make up for it tomorrow sitting on airplanes all day. :-) But I'm not complaining. I'll blog from NY, but photos will probably have to wait until I get home.

Toodles!!