Category Archives: Running

Running Fall

I had quite the day on Saturday! I was out for a run, and really enjoying it. The weather was cool but sunny, perfect for outdoor exertion, and I was feeling good—really pushing myself on speed because my legs were feeling refreshed. I was about a mile from home, when I found myself falling…I guess I tripped on the sidewalk somehow, and landed part on the sidewalk and part in the grass. As I was falling I was thinking about how I had to play two Hello Dolly shows that day and I think I was trying to save my hands and wrists from getting hurt.

I sat there for a bit, first deciding if I could get right back up (no) and then deciding how badly I’d hurt myself. I decided nothing was broken or sprained and just some scrapes (pretty bad on the left outside leg), and then I remembered I had my phone, so I was considering getting a ride share back home. Louie was at work all day, so I didn’t have any help available there. I even saw somebody and just sort of smiled and they kept going, and I was also feeling a bit embarrassed and wondering how long I could sit there, and how I was supposed to wipe up the blood (use my shirt?), and that’s when a nice man approached me to ask if I needed help. I would have been a little more apprehensive except he was also with his wife and he was taking great care to seem not frightening, and I ended up first getting some napkins from them to dab off some of the blood, and then getting a ride back home—first I said it was only 2 or 3 blocks away, partly because I wasn’t sure I wanted a ride with a stranger, but also because I wanted to be self-sufficient. It was about a mile away, which isn’t bad in the car of course, but would have been a long walk (I think I would have called an uber or something, and I figured, well that’s a stranger too). Anyway, I got back and tried to figure out how to clean myself up and get bandaged. It didn’t seem super gross at the time, but that night when I got home and needed to change everything out it grossed me out more—I had a lot of “road rash” on the left leg and…well, this is why I’m not a doctor! (for starters).

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As I was sitting there trying to figure out the best way to stand up I did take a picture of my legs. I see here that I was sitting in the grass by the sidewalk…

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I landed a little on my hand. This was a good injury for violin in that it didn’t affect my ability to play at all!

My legs still hurt a bit, but things are starting to scab over. I’m tired of having large bandages on, but that’s how things go. People say you never regret a run, but I kind of wish I’d just relaxed Saturday morning instead!

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In other news, we finished the Hello Dolly run. I also finished an easy cross stitch project—I found the black cloth a bit difficult to work with though. I’ve started on a more challenging, Thanksgiving themed one next. I ended up having about 3 hours to stitch yesterday due to a bunch of students being sick, and it was nice. I barely made a dent in the project though, which means that it will take a long time. That’s fine with me, no rush.

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I ended up finishing the back by folding in the cloth, sewing it together and adding a piece of felt. I’m turning into a weird super crafty person.

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Muriel likes sitting on the printer too I guess. Lately she hangs out quite a lot on top of the router in my living room (it’s warm and maybe she feels the waves, ha) but I liked this printer cat pose. (Yes, that’s a guitar next to the printer. We still have a fair amount of organizing and decluttering to do.)

Well, that’s it for now. I’ve got some errands to run before a fairly light day of teaching (well deserved light day, if you ask me). Tonight we are trying a new restaurant down the street called Taco Circus.

If it’s nearly holy week I might be getting sick

Louie had a cold last week and over the weekend, and I woke up with a bit of a sore throat. I’m hopeful it’s not happening though, and I’m drinking lots of water. I tend to get sick around Easter for unknown reasons (seriously, my timehop app can prove it) but this time I’m determined not to. (It is completely out of my control.)

Well, after that literary start, welcome to today’s post. I thought I’d blogged about the weekend already, but that must have just been instagram. My weekend was pretty busy—this month is full of gigs and makeup lessons, so I had some of that over the weekend. We also had a dinner party at a friend’s house, dinner with Louie’s family, and best of all, a recital by Gil Shaham as part of the Great Artists Series at Washington University. As nice as it is to go to the symphony, it’s really awesome to see solo performances by world class musicians—it’s a different artistic experience entirely. I wish there was a monthly concert by some great string player! I guess you have to live in New York for that sort of thing.

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We also got to enjoy the amazing weather a bit. Louie and I took a hike in Broemmelsiek Park. This was in the book I use, but it turned out that the park had been changed quite a bit since the book was published. We still had a nice time hiking.

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This reminded Louie of Horseshoe Bend in Colorado.

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There are always lots of nice bridges in local parks.

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It was a muddy path, but nice to wander through the prairie and woods.

I also decided to go for a run…it had been quite some time. Last spring I’d hurt my knee a bit, and then I just stopped running. In any case, I thought it might be a good day to get back at it, and as a sign, when I opened Runkeeper there was a new program to follow to get back into running. So I’ve done two of the days, and it’s been a challenge, but fun. I seem to recall there was a period of time I enjoyed running, and maybe that would be a thing I could do again. I’ve been doing Walk At Home videos by Leslie Sansone, and Blogilates Videos with Cassey Ho, and I’m ready to run too.  I’ve made out a schedule, and especially towards summer I have more time.

I know people say you have to make time, but sometimes the time just isn’t there, or sometimes I just need to get some sleep more. I do occasionally work from early in the morning until late at night, and if there’s more than one or two days of that, I really start to value my sleep. Don’t we all? I know I’m hardly the busiest person in the world, but some days it does seem like it! Other days are like today, where I have the morning off to get caught up on work, practice, and work out AND I’m done teaching by 7:15, in time for an “early” dinner and an evening to relax a bit.

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The students have their annual Music Club Festival this weekend. I’ve got 9 performing, and we’ve been working hard to get ready. I’m hopeful that they will be successful! I also have two doing Solo and Ensemble this weekend, but that’s through their schools so at least I don’t have to do anything more. Sometimes it seems like more trouble than it’s worth to do these events, but I do think the kids learn a lot and it’s a good goal to work towards. I don’t do group lessons and only a few of the students have orchestra at their schools (not many in the city have that opportunity), so it’s hard to keep them motivated.

Between that, various church services, two concerts Friday (noon and evening), teaching, and a band gig at the Schlafly Tap Room Saturday night, I’m definitely hoping I’m not getting sick, as this is a busy two weeks with excellent health. But I’ll manage either way: I always do! The weather is gorgeous, spring is definitely here, and there is less than a month left until college classes are done! (To me, that means summer is here Smile )

CDM Mind and Body 5k Giveaway

Are you a local reader (St Louis area) and want a chance to win a free entry to a 5k? What’s better than running for free? Running a race for free! Read to the bottom to see how to win a free entry (it’s really easy to do!)

Event: CDM Presents Mind and Body 5k Run/Walk and Wellness Expo

When: Saturday, May 28, check-in begins at 7 am, race at 8 am

Where: Cardinal Ritter College Prep High School, 701 North Spring Avenue, St Louis MO 63108

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I think the story of how this event came to be is a good one: 

The event founder, Cynthia Ringo,  is a pastor and a health advocate.  She founded this event four years ago after a life course change and she found herself as a caregiver for her husband who had a stroke and developed vascular dementia as a result of this stroke. She was urged by the doctors and her support circle to make sure that she took care of her health while fulfilling her caregiver responsibilities.  So, along with about 15 other women at the church (Christ Deliverance Ministry), she began a quest on being the healthiest that she can be while inspiring others.  As a result, this group of women lost over 600 pounds collectively, in about 18 months.  This group’s age range spanned from 21 to 65 and included two breast cancer survivors.  The first year the event was held just to support this group and other people in the community who decided to take their health in their own hands.  It has since grown into a city wide event with support from the St. Louis community and businesses alike.

So! If you would like to run this event, I am giving away one free registration for the 5K. The giveaway runs through Friday, May 13 at 5 pm. Simply leave a comment letting me know you are entering, and make sure to include your valid email address. I will choose a winner randomly and notify you shortly afterwards.  Good luck!

P.S. I won’t be able to run this year because of a short trip, so I won’t see you there, but I hope you enter to run and have a great time Smile

And…Sick again

How is it that I have another cold? This year is ridiculous. I’m so over it already. You’d think I didn’t get enough sleep or eat well, but I honestly think I treat myself well and get plenty of sleep, exercise, vitamins and nutrients. I also wash my hands a lot…I’m blaming my students Smile

So instead of being out to dinner at House of India with Louie and his family, I decided it would be best if I stayed home and rested (and stayed near kleenex.)

Last night we had a low key evening—dinner at Bahn Mi So 1 with Louie. We split the bean curd spring rolls (the best!) and I had a tofu curry dish which was delicious. We split the mung bean pudding for dessert, and I would highly recommend you do the same. It might sound weird, but I promise, if you like rice pudding you’ll like it! After dinner we watched a few episodes of The Americans and dreamed about being spies.

I had to get up really early today to head downtown. April and I had signed up to volunteer for the Girls on the Run 5k. We were course marshals, which meant we were in charge of watching a small intersection and not letting anyone through. We only had about 3 people drive up to it—one guy wanted to know how to get to the highway and we tried to help him. Two other women needed to get to a bank for work, and we couldn’t help them. (I did suggest parking and walking, but they insisted they had to park in the garage.)

I’d brought some cowbells for us to cheer on the girls, and I was glad we did! One thing that I was surprised by was how many of the runners wanted a high five. While I will do a high five or a fist bump with friends, it’s not my favorite thing to do with strangers. I kept finding myself get stuck doing a few in a row–I mean, the kids are sweet so you can’t flat out refuse…but you can try to pretend you are too busy ringing your cowbell?! But I’m glad we volunteered. It was good to see the other side of a race and get to help the runners have a good time.

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And the Volunteer shirts were PURPLE. Though they look blue to me in this photo…

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Manning our station.

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Girls on the Run! It’s a good program and we saw kids of all ages (boys too) running, walking, and pushing themselves to do their best. I hope everybody had a good time!

And an early Happy Mother’s Day to my mom (or late, or just on time!) I’m not sure if this cold means that the hike tomorrow will fall through…it goes to show that you can’t plan everything and that some things are just out of your control. Or it goes to show that the universe is conspiring to keep me from doing day long hiking trips when I plan them, since a similar thing happened in April. Like I said, I’m over this. I guess I’m not eating enough oranges or something.

I guess I’m feeling a little bit down. Sigh. This too shall pass.

Race 4 Domestic Violence Prevention

I wanted to put up a quick post to let you know about a 5K race that April and I are running in June for a good cause! It’s the Race 4 Domestic Violence Prevention on June 4th at Carondelet Park.  The race benefits Safe Connections, one of the St. Louis region’s oldest and largest organizations working to prevent and end domestic and sexual violence while helping survivors reclaim their lives. Their services in prevention education, crisis intervention and counseling make a big difference in the health of the community. So even though we had already decided to do a mud run the day after, when we saw this race we couldn’t resist! In fact, we first tried to volunteer to help and were told there are too many volunteers, so run it is. I hope you will consider it too and maybe I’ll see you there! It’s “only” a 5k so you don’t have to make that much of a time or distance commitment, and kids and dogs are welcome too. (Not cats, though, I guess? Hmmm…)

If you are a runner, watch this space: I’m going to have one or two giveaways for race entrees coming up in the next week or so. Crazy, right? People seem to think my blog has a readership of people who run…(but the giveaway isn’t for the Race 4 Domestic Violence Prevention, so please go ahead and sign up if  you are interested—you can get a T-shirt OR a hat!)

I did go for a short run today. I live near the top of a large hill (some might call it “the Hill” so whenever I run anywhere, it means the first part of my run is mostly downhill and the second part is mostly uphill. I find that my comfortable pace right now is still REALLY slow, so I’ll start running and then think, I need to push off more and move more, and then I do that for a bit, and then I forget and I just end up being all slow again. Would it be appropriate to blame this on my age? In any case, the weather lately has been FANTASTIC for running, so I’ve been trying to do three runs a week. This week I was successful! And that’s not to say that I’m sedentary the rest of the time, because there is dog walking and hiking too. I haven’t been lifting weights or anything, and have been debating if I want to get back into that (I should, but I just haven’t wanted to hit the gym at all and prefer to work out in the fresh air) or quit the gym and learn to do pushups or something.

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Kitty pushups?!

This weekend: Volunteering for the Girls on the Run 5K, some makeup lessons, and (weather permitting) a long hike on Sunday—Buford Mountain is the plan. What about you?

Go St Louis Mississippi River 7K

Quick recap! I’ve done the Go Half several times in the past, but this year I just hadn’t been getting in the long runs so I changed to the 7k, which was a new race.

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I woke up and felt horrible (coughing, bloody nose) and it was cold outside but I’m tough and all so I headed downtown anyway. I parked in the same lot I always park in for these races, which ended up being further away from the end that I would have preferred. The 7K started near Market and 14th just like the other races, but then the course goes across the Eads Bridge to Illinois, through East St Louis, back over the MLK Bridge, and then ends with a WONDERFUL downhill to Laclede’s Landing, after which you can hop on the Metrolink back to the Civic Center stop, included with your race bib. What I wasn’t sure of is if I’d get in trouble going to the next stop (closer to my car) since the materials implied that it would both be okay and not be okay, so I got off and walked quite a ways. Anyway. The race?

Did I mention it was cold? And rain was predicted. I met up with my friend April who was running the marathon relay with some friends of hers.

(We took a great picture, but it’s upside down. I’m totally sick of this—if the iPhone can take pictures any direction why can’t I move them to be right-side up on my blog? I swear, it’s things like this that drive me totally bonkers!).

The race started in waves—the marathon, marathon relay, half marathon, and 7k runners were all together. I thought this was more fun since I’m slow and ended up near people the whole time which I’m sure I wouldn’t have been as much otherwise! The race was FUN. The new course (well, new last year, I think) was great, at least the first 7K of it, and I felt pretty good throughout (other than the whole, having a cold thing).

The finish was the best—you saw it coming back across the bridge! And then you ran downhill all the way. The only hard part was that the last part of the course was a brick (cobblestone?) road and I felt I needed to do some easy stepping. And I got a medal anyway, and only had to run, well, approximately 1:04:38 for me, which is really slow, but whatever. (Seriously, I need to just run faster, but it’s hard when you can’t breathe through your nose, so I’m going to accept it this time. And I’m faster than anybody NOT running, unless they are a speed walker or something…Winking smile

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Car selfie, post race. Woo hoo! And then I went home and took loads of cough medicine and did very little the rest of the day. I’m not entirely sure that running in the cold and wet was the best idea, but I’m not sure it wasn’t! I would do this race again though—it was a fun and unique course, and well run.