Life Without Running

When I go see the kids I always get a boost. Physically things don’t get better and usually not worse but emotionally the change is pretty dramatic. With the kids getting older and everyone so busy it’s different than it used to be but it’s still great being with people who are so important to me. 😊 A lot of time is spent at various rinks when I visit especially with both Chase and Haley playing. I was in the lobby at the kid’s home rink and saw a brochure that looked like it had a runner on it. When I took a closer look it was another example of how small this world is. The runner on a Marine recruiting brochure was one of my former athletes from Sierra, Pedro Rodriguez. It was taken while he was doing a marathon while stationed overseas. He’s still competing and recently retired as a Major.  Pictures taken before, during and after their games. Looking forward to following their seasons from afar this year.  One thing I do every time I visit is eat at El Maguey, often more ...

It took Charlie absolutely no time at all to establish his rules on his domain when we got to Stacie’s. It’s funny how it’s months between visits but he acts as though we were just there. I guess after the drive he figured he needed to rest up for Chase’s Homecoming weekend. 😊  Saturday morning I got up and decided to do a race because I felt decent. There was a race right in Wildwood that was a fundraiser for the World Kickboxing Championship that some of the locals had qualified for. When I got there it was as small as I expected because the website was pretty short on information. I struggled some with the hills but knowing ahead of time where they all were helped psychologically. The course was on the bike paths where I have trained many miles her in Grover/Wildwood. I finished DFL as I expected but got a trophy for traveling the farthest to get to the race. 😂. After the race I went home and showered and then treated myself to a “St. Louis Classic”. IMOs Pizza. And yep I ate...

Like all of my road trips the past few years this one started with a blood draw on Wednesday followed by my $180,000+ treatment on Thursday. Normally I then leave on Friday but I had to wait until Sunday because Charlie had a grooming appointment on Saturday. It actually worked out well because I was really tired those extra days which is unusual after treatment.  The drive started out pretty ugly because of smoke from the Cedar Creek fire. It seems like that one has been burning forever.  Once we got above the smoke though it turned into a beautiful day to drive. The trip out was a typical one for Charlie and I. No real stops except gas and rest areas. So much easier than traveling when it’s hot.  The leaves were starting to change and that added to the enjoyment of the drive. I took this picture in Wyoming near the end of the Snowy Range. A sign there said winds of over 70 miles per hour were not uncommon through the area. That’s when I made the decision that I will pro...