So Much to Blog, ...

Got home at 10:12 PM last night from Brothers! Oh my, I haven't laughed that hard in a LONG time. I just love listening to Paul Melby tell stories. : ) MUCH more on that later in this post.

First off ... Emily (and everyone else), there will be treats after the run at the RAC tomorrow! For anyone who comes in the front doors when you're done running. So don't just run 'n leave ... come on in for a cookie!! I'm hoping maybe we can organize breakfast after the run tomorrow. I'll be off the radar next week Tues, Thurs and Sat and will miss all you guys!! My flight gets into MSP at 2:50 on the 9th, so I'm hoping I can make the track workout yet that evening. Hopefully, I'll have a little glow from the Florida sunshine. : ) The forecast for Sarasota calls for upper 60's to 70 next week. Not as warm as other years, but it's about 50 degrees warmer than it is here today. I'll take it. Like so many other things in life, what're ya gonna do??

I'm starting to think about the USATF race series for 2010. The first race is the Human Race 8K on 3/28 (which is also the weekend I should do my last 20-mile run before Boston ... don't know how I'll quite work that out yet). There's a part of me that doesn't want to race the same races as last year as I had a good year and I'm afraid I won't be able to run the same times as I did in 2009. I ran a 34:42 at that race. Kinda like "leave well enough alone", "quit while you're ahead", ..., but I can't go through life saying and thinking things like that. I guess I'll just do the best with what I have in the tank this year.

I saw Ellen Hamernik at Target yesterday. Along with Lisa Pelowski, we're running the Disney Princess Half Marathon on 3/7 down in Orlando. Lisa said that the buses board between 3 and 4 AM, and that's Eastern time. Our body clocks will think it's 2 or 3 AM. Ouch. I'll feel like the walking dead at that time of the night. And that's the time we have to be at the bus, which means we have to get up even earlier! Anyway, Ellen said that she'd just bought pink hair extensions and pink nail polish for the three of us. Pink is definitely the color for the day! I have a pink kind of Hawaiian-print running skirt, which I might bring. Also, I picked this up at Run N Fun ...

yesterday for 50% off.

I think this will be just the ticket along with a little running skirt. And hair extensions. And nail polish. A girl can never wear too much pink. Can she?? I also stopped at Trader Joe's on Lexington and Randolph in St. Paul.

I just love that store. Fun stuff, and very good prices. Cheaper than I can find anywhere in Rochester on every single thing I bought.

When I got home, it was quickly off to Brother's for Byron Team R.E.D., who was "on the road" at Brothers Gar & Grill for the evening.

We got in 5.73 miles. It was nice to have some daylight for the beginning of the run. I counted about 22 runners, though not all were pictured. A very good turnout and what turned out to be a marathon of sorts for the socializing afterwards. I got home at 10:12 PM. And I wasn't the last one to leave.

 It turned into a kind of 20 questions by Marilee and myself for Paul Melby, which was so much fun. I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. I just love hearing him tell stories. So ... here's a bunch of random, little-known facts about Paul Melby:

His middle name is Emmitt

He was born in Red Lake Falls, MN and his H.S. graduating class had 18 graduates

He has a 36" vertical leap

He likes COKE, straight up ("no fruit" :-)

Favorite shoes are asics gel Nimbus

Favorite indulgence food is nuts, any kind, daily

"Chia is the magic"

"Don't eat string cheese if you don't know how long it's been in your gym bag" (that's a story in itself)

Both ketchup and mustard belong on a hot dog

He doesn't like chocolate

Favorite beer is Guinness

Electric razor or straight edge? Electric (never has used a straight edge)

Boxers or briefs (Marilee's question!): Boxer briefs

No tattoos, no piercings

He was the mascot (Buzz, a bee) for a semi-pro basketball team in Fargo (very funny story attached to this one)

He was on the cheer team at NDSU (another funny story)

He has blue eyes

His weight is correct on his driver's license

He likes Colgate TOTAL toothpaste

Favorite race was Med-City Half, 2009 which he ran with his dad

He likes his Injinji toe socks

He wore braces when he was younger

He's an electrical engineer and was the first student to ever receive 100% on his Diffy Q (Differential Equations for us math-major types) final exam in college

He was valedictorian of his H.S. class and used to be very shy

He has never broken a bone

He was a jumper on the high school track team

Paul is actually a very likeable, fun guy. And now you know him just a little bit better. I'm hoping to do more of these "interviews" after group runs so that you can meet some new folks!!

OK. Here's a shortened version of Paul's trampoline story ... bee costume ... mini tramp at the free throw line or 3-point line--can't remember but it's irrelevant ... tunnel vision due to costume ... somersault/flip ... hit the rim ... smack down on the floor on the edge of the mat ... stunned ... VERY SORE. You had to hear Paul tell it. We were ready to split a gut. He survived. He is (apparently!) fine. (Actually, he's pretty lucky he didn't break his neck.)

Welcome to newest Team R.E.D. member Jean Murray.

I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich, mayo on the side. They must have given me 1/4 cup of mayo. Ridiculous.

I gave my fries to Karl-Peter.

Apparently I'd eaten too much popcorn first. : )

And was a little too full of fluids, too. (Actually, this is a bit of a set-up.)

But one of the glasses of beer, the diet Pepsi, and the Dreamsicle are mine. Someone ordered Marilee and I a "girlie" drink and this is what the bartender came up with. (amaretto, orange juice and half & half--I have to say, it was delicious).

And then low and behold, someone ordered a Pina Colada for Wendy and Ann.

Someone must have had a h-u-g-e bar tab last night. The beer was REALLY flowing at the west end of the table.

This morning I ran my 11.2 mile hill route and decided to bring my camera. It was chilly, about 4 degrees, but a beautiful morning. So I headed down Fox Valley Drive and out to Salem Road.

On the side of the road, I found several old LPs that had fallen out of someone's vehicle.

Then I turned off on Mayowood Road.

I was already plenty frosty, and my top and bottom eyelashes were freezing together.

I continued south on Mayowood Road and turned east and crossed the (closed) Mayowood bridge.

And continued east on Mayowood Road. This is my favorite spot on the whole route as far as scenery goes. It's just beautiful when the sun is coming up.

Mayowood Farm.

Then past Bamber Valley School, the ice rinks on the soccer fields ...

and to Lenwood Drive ...

where I run hill repeats.

KC's farm is just on the edge of my route.

Then it's up 18th Ave SW ...

Then it's a right on Westwood Dr SW and another right on Merrihills Dr SW.

A left onto Hillside Drive, and then a right onto Institute Road (where Mayo has what I think is an animal research location) ...

Then it's a right onto Crest Lane (and yet another hill) ...

A left onto Merrihills Drive and a right onto Bamber Valley Road, a left on Mayowood Road and then I retrace my steps back toward home. There is an abandoned farmhouse on/near Mayowood Farm that I think makes a great photo. I'd have liked to have seen it when it was being lived in.

The last mile of this route has one last long hill.

Quite an enjoyable run. If anyone would ever like to join me (at about 6 bells AM), lemme know!! I'd love to have you join me.

Tomorrow AM, the run at the RAC is 10 miles. Up toward Think credit union where there will be a water stop, up to Culver's, frontage road to 41st, north on 31st Ave back to Think and then back to the RAC. See you there. Tom O' and I (and whoever else would like to join us) will be frontloading at 6 AM.

Tomorrow PM, a LUABC potluck at Todd and Laura's house. And another party after that. That ought to keep me out of trouble. : )

Have a wonderful weekend one and all.