Cincinnati Day 5 - May 9

Running: Was first thing because of the weather. Afterwards, Mom and I jazzercised in the basement via zoom.  Part of Mom's day is me dancing with her.  It was fun.  The instructor has an internal monologue that just comes on the outside and it was hilarious.

Brunch: I made crepes which are always a request of Mom's.  We tried something new with the berries and all agreed it was better this way.  Frozen berries, heated up and somewhat cooked down.  No sugar or thickener, just cooked down a bit.  It makes them super sweet.

Afternoon: Yo, it rained all day so I napped and read the news and watched sports with Dad.  Mom broke google sheets while she was trying to do minutes for an organization she serves.  So she was out of commission.

Supper: Homemade Tom Ka Gai.  This was more of a "trust me, you'll like this" meal.  They did like it. 

Afterwards: So, Dad thought there was to be a Factime call.  Turns out that text was on a thread last used April 11 and that's when the call was.  Dad obviously forgot that'd happened.  So when everyone asks how Dad's doing with his things, about like that.  But I did help him start the Facetime call that he thought was coming, so there was an impromptu siblings call that was utter chaos.  Then we had a much more chill call with my Pooky Bear and the Qat Lady. 

Cincinnati Day 4 - May 8

Run: I'm surprised to tell you I woke up and ran, and I went 4 miles.  It was a fun run actually.  I focused on running the downs and walking the ups, and this route had plenty of both.  Bonus, it was open and legal for me to be there the whole time as well!

Afternoon: I hung out with an old friend from high school and her family including twin preschoolers and a 2nd grader.  I learned about Minecraft and other video games.  I hope Grandma likes her Nintendo so she can play animal crossing.  We walked around Sharon Woods.  I've already told Mom and Dad this is where they're having their 50th wedding anniversary party next year.  I've also told them I'm already getting pressure not to screw this one up from Dungeon Master of all places.

Evening: We hung out on a neighbor's patio and had supper.  Everyone else there is in my parents generation.  But we're all technically adults too, so that can be weird.

Cincinnati Day 3 - May 7

Morning: Today was Jungle Jim's day.  And if you don't know Jungle Jim's, I can't quite describe it.  If you've seen the YouTube videos it's both more and less of what you think it is. This time I went with an agenda which I highly recommend. Friday night supper was to be Mushroom soup and Sunday night was Tom Ka Gai so I got loads and loads of fresh ingredients. 

When we got home I put in the ingredients for chicken broth in the crock pot and made the veggie salad. Everything else went in the fridge.

Lunch: Is it possible this is the first time I had goetta this trip?   That doesn't seem right.

Nap: Afternoon naps have definitely been a thing this trip.

Run: I decided to head the other way on Wasson Way (towards Kroger vs Ault Park).  This part of the trail is not yet paved.  Today I learned this part of the trail is actually closed. I told mom she'd played a nice trick on me, like the time she sent me down Grandin Rd and told me it was flat. 

Supper: Mushroom soup is awesome.  As always.

Cincinnati Day 2 - May 6

Chaos Morning: Well, obviously I slept in pretty hard on this day. Mom and I took a walk in Ault Park in the morning.  Spring flowers including irises and columbine are out.  Hastas always look good.

Later: Mom and Dad have been dealing with a smell issue in Mom's office. A nice man named TJ who works for their property management people came over and diagnosed the smell as a dead animal, not water incursion or mold (that's it's own post).  Once reasoning was explained, I understood and agreed.

Run: While TJ was exploring my parents attic, I spent some time briefly exploring the newer parts of the Wasson Way trail that are near Mom and Dad's house.  The part that connects to the park hasn't been paved yet.  More on that later. 

Afternoon: Mom needed to work so I took a hard nap. 

Supper: I'd requested Bangkok Bistro.  One of my favorites. Though this time, I was trying to dissect the ingredients in the dish I like. 

Cincinnati Day 1 - May 5

 Run: I woke up and ran to the sun coming up in Mpls.

Travel: Captain Smiley took me to the airport.  Where no one has heard of social distancing.  I had the golden arches for breakfast and a fairly easy flight to Cincy.  It was not 100% full but almost. 

Skyline: Obviously I made a beeline for Skyline when we got home.  We had drive through and took it home to game plan for the week.

Plant Nursery: In what I hope is the first of many trips, Mom and I hit up the plant nursery of her choice.  It's supposed to rain on Mother's Day so we were preemptively shopping.  Mom's garden this year will be pink and white.  Her plants of choice include begonias, geraniums, and columbine. 

Supper: We had a bonus shopping trip to Kroger because we needed mushrooms for Dad to make supper.  Kroger has changed a lot.  They remodeled the whole store.  The footprint for the alcohol section is massively bigger (and it was not small before).  Dad cooked chicken piccata. We couldn't find exactly the right mushrooms, but it was good for what it was.

COVID Diaries - I am so far behind

I kind of hit the point where I had to stop journaling.  Now, I'm catching up.

June 2 (Tuesday) - I ran for a very very long distance (for me).  I worked from my car in the morning, and then from Mom and Dad's basement in the afternoon.  I can't remember what we had for supper, but I'm fairly sure I made it.

June 3 (Wednesday) -  I ran a more normal distance for me. And then I mostly worked.  Dad and I also went to Spectrum to get better internet. I was pleasantly surprised but their customer service.  Even when they were all "your lines are so old we need to reactivate them"  Okay.

June 4 (Thursday) - This was an even shorter run.  I think it was slightly hotter than the surface of the sun with 10,000% humidity, so I did my best.  And then I worked.  In the evening, the Spectrum cable guy practically moved in with us.  He wasn't bad, but he was sooooo sloooow.  Mom and Dad and I finally ate at like 8:30pm after he finished reactivating (and reinstalling) the lines.  Bonus though was that Mom and I had a lovely time sitting outside and visiting with the neighbors.

June 5 (Friday) - I worked again. In the basement.  It's hilarious. I look like I'm in a cave. Also, the 10,000% humidity remains, and is no joke. For reasons passing all human understanding, Mom wanted to take a walk in the hottest part of the day.  I love you.   So, we did the thing.

June 6 (Saturday) - Hang on, because the humidity should be soooo much better tomorrow.  In the evening, I headed down to see some of my most favorite people in the world (and in Kentucky).  These were mostly socially distant outside visits, but did include one small inside visit as well.  My first in months (not counting Captain Smiley who is my quarantine partner).   PS - when I got home, Mom started having a panic attack. (No judgements, just noting it.)

June 7 (Sunday) - I got up at the crack of dawn for another long run.  After I got home, Mom panic attack continued in spectacular proportions.  (Again, no judgement, but not ignoring it either.)  I spent the morning traipsing around Long Branch Farm and checking out Blue Herons.  Mom was convinced I was going to contaminate everyone and everything I touched, which is why she was so upset.  I had bonus Chinese food for lunch (whist I was pretending I wasn't riding in cars with other people, closer than 6 feet), and then played with my cousins super adorable toddler.  I had a birthday supper with Mom and Dad (where we pretended there were no panic attacks earlier in the day, talk about healthy), and then packed up.

June 8 (Monday) - Early, short run, Cincinnati time.  And then, all of the driving.  Lots of audio book listening. I'm almost done with Pandemic which is an oddly prescient book for the times.  When I got home, I said several prayers to the a/c gods because it was like 100* in Minneapolis (sadly, not an exaggeration). I watered my plants, cleaned my living areas, and unpacked my suitcase.  Then I tried to cut my hair.  This continues to be an exploit that will take multiple attempts I think.  ,

Cincinnati - October 2019

Thursday:
Run: I got up at the crack of dawn and ran around my neighborhood.  In the rain.
Travel: Originally I'd planned to take the bus to the train.  But it was raining and I wasn't down for all that so I took a Lyft and had a lovely chat with my driver, Dawn. Then, at the airport I ran into a friend I know from here who also grew up in Cincinnati.  We've never had that happen before.
Food: Obviously first thing in Cincinnati we hit up Skyline.
Family: We saw Grandma today and worked a crossword puzzle with her.  She seemed okay.
Activities: Blink Cincinnati night 1.  I went with Mom, Dad, and several others including my "downstairs mom and dad".   I didn't have a great time.  There were way too many people, and it was open to traffic.  So it was a mess of people and honking cars.  I felt like every time I stopped to look at something I was in the way.  It was super uncomfortable.

Friday
Run: I had a back and forth in the cul de sac by Mom and Dad's.
Food: Mom and I had lunch at a Food Truck.  For supper we got pizza from the place by Mom and Dad with the roasted olives.  Need I say more?
Family: We had supper with some of my favorite people in Kentucky.  Mom and I also saw Grandma for a minute.  She was laying down talking to the baby, so we talked about lullabies. And then we sang Puff the Magic Dragon and Grandma went down for her nap with the baby.
Activities: There were multiple screw ups today.  All of which I own.  First activity was hitting up the Zoo with an old friend and her boys.  And I screwed up when we were supposed to meet so Mom and I were late.  Then for supper, we went to the wrong house.  I felt so bad.  Mom and I tried to french braid each other's hair too.  That was unsuccessful but at least nobody waited or got hungry because of me.

Saturday
Run: There's going to be a lot of back and forths in the cul de sac on this post.
Food: We had lunch with a family friend who'd just moved and supper in Dayton with family I wish I got to see more than I do.
Family: I went to Zumba with my cousin's wife.  It was a fun class, a lot different from my normal routine.  Then we saw a family friend who'd moved and it was good to see her doing so well, and then we saw family in Dayton and I got to hang out with a preschooler which made my day.
Activities: Well, the fun really started when my new neighbor (who does not know me that well) called to see if I was okay because she could hear alarms from my place.  I don't know how much I've said about the smoke detectors after I moved, but that noise now gives me panic attacks.  So, Captain Smiley came over and uninstalled one that appeared to be malfunctioning, and got them all to be quiet. And I just continued on with the panic attacks for a while.  It was not awesome.

Sunday
Run: Dad has started a run/walk 1 mile program on the days he doesn't golf or tennis. So I asked if he would do his mile in the cul de sac while I did mine.  At the end of this run, my streak had gone on for seven complete years.
Food: I celebrated seven years running with seven slices of goetta. We had Taste of Belgium for supper and I gave Josslyn her first Brussels Sprouts.
Family: We saw Grandma for a while but she wasn't feeling so well.  I got a bonus day with my cousin/wife/baby.  I always have a nice time hanging out with all of them.  I'm happy I'm getting to know my wife's cousin too.
Activities: We did Blink day 2 and this was my favorite night of Blink.  It was way less crowded than the first night.  I like the park and OTR better because more of the streets are closed.  It feels more like a block party and it's fun to just hang out.

Monday
Run: One mile in the cul de sac to start year 8.
Food: I had all of the goetta. Not even going to lie.
Family: Mom, Dad, and I hung out and then Mom took me to the airport.
Travel: It was a pretty smooth flight home.
Activities: Olive picked me up at the airport, taught me about ladders (no joke) and helped me replace all of the smoke detectors (not including the one I replaced in July) and then test them all including the one I replaced in July.  I only had one phone call with her after she left. I'm calling that a win.

Hanging with the Family: Flying Pig Edition

Wednesday
Run: Woke up at the crack of dawn and ran before heading out.
Morning: Flying to Cincinnati
Afternoon: We had Indian Food for lunch, and then I hung out with Dad.
Evening: Supermom, Superdad and Superbaby came over to play.  I am FunAunt, which means Superbaby gets to eat on the floor when she comes to play.  Sometimes she gets to eat off of the floor too, but that's more because I'm a failure at being an adult.
Family: In addition, we did try to see Grandma.  She was asleep when Dad and I got there and I kept telling him not to wake her up. Turns out, she wasn't getting up anyways so we were fine.

Thursday
Run: 3 miles in the morning.  It was soooo humid.
Morning: I got coffee, tried to see Grandma, but she was asleep.  Instead I hung out at the Krohn and looked at the pretty butterflies, but not really, because there was a school group there.  But I did get some pictures of the fog.
Afternoon: Olive and I drove some more of the Marshmallow course.  And found some more hills. Wowsers! Then we had a do-over with the butterflies and had much better luck since the school group was gone.
Evening: We had a better visit with Grandma.  Mom, Dad and I sat with her while she ate.  Olive sat down in the court yard, fell asleep, and got mistaken for a resident.  Dad immediately pointed out that she's 100 years old so it's okay.
Family: Sort of good visit with Grandma.  She seemed much less distressed than past visits, but more confused.  Mom asked a story about Grandma raising Dad but Grandma told us a story from her own childhood instead. We'll take it.

Friday
Run: 1+ miles, back and forth on a flat stretch of ground near Mom and Dad's place.
Morning: I headed over to see Grandma, plus an Aunt and Uncle were there as well.
Afternoon: Olive, Mom, and I did packet pick up until I was too tired and basically brain dead.  The worst part of this packet pick up is the parking.  Both the Vine Street Garage, and the one on Race across the street from the Convention Center were full.
Evening: We ate at home (I want meat!) and then headed over to watch You're A Good Man Charlie Brown.
Family: Bonus today was hanging out with Marge, who is not a blood relative but is definitely family!

Saturday
Run: 2 mile shake out run while Olive was racing. It did get some of the nerves out.
Morning: Olive did the 10K this morning.  Mom and I attempted to cheer her on in the beginning and successfully cheered her on in the end.
Afternoon: Took a nap.  My coach will be so happy. I got nervous so I started looking at all my old posts from training, and reflected on all the hard work I did to get here.  One surprise was finding and falling in love with Coon Rapids Dam and Rush Creek Trail this winter. Another surprise was how many of my long runs I've really forgotten until I see the pictures again.
Evening: I requested a particular restaurant (I want meat!) for supper and it was excellent.  As a bonus, I shared a couple gems with Olive from my Streak Runner Group on Facebook.  One was the "what was the worst injury/sickness you ran through?" post, and the other was the "I want to take a 48 hour train ride and I know someone on here knows the exact length of the sleeper car"  (Spoiler: it's 85' exterior length on the Empire Builder routes).
Family: I lay particularly low today. I didn't even see Grandma.

Sunday
Run: 26.2 miles of run/walk programs.  Full marathon is done.  At the end I said I'd never do another marathon.  We'll see how that goes.
Morning: Running the marathon. Mom and Olive were 'team car' and they saw me at the start, mile 3, 5, 9, 11, 19, 21 and the finish.  Dad and Marge were 'team Walk' and they saw me at miles 12 and 17.
Afternoon: Recovery meal at Skyline.
Evening: Party at our house.  Some of my favorite people from Kentucky came up, as well as part of the Dayton crowd.  We had pizza, played games, and visited.  It was just what I wanted.
Family: Yes, saw the Alexandria crowd, Cynthiana family, and aunt/uncle from Dayton.  (Dayton cousin was sadly unable to attend.)

Monday
Run: More like a hobble for 1.25 miles.  Olive cheered me on.
Morning: Saw Deb for the beginning of Eat all of the Things day. We had breakfast at Bellevue Bistro.
Afternoon: Olive and I had lunch at Arlins and dessert and Grater's.  Then we saw the William Howard Taft House, and took a quick stroll in Burnet Woods.
Evening: We went to The Branch, which is a new restaurant where a childhood friend works.  I liked the food.  Dad thought it was fussy.
Family: I sat with Grandma while she had her lunch and it was the best visit I'd had with her in some time.

Tuesday
Run: Slightly less of a hobble for 1.25 miles.  No cheering support.
Morning: Dad and I took Olive to the airport.  We tried to visit Grandma but it did not go well.
Afternoon: We took Mom flower shopping.  Y'all, she was in her bliss.
Evening: We had supper basically with Superbaby.  In one week, I can tell how much better she is walking.
Family: Superbaby was the highlight of the day.

Wednesday
Run: My slowest paced post marathon run, but still done.
Morning: I cooked breakfast and packed.
Afternoon: I was slightly green as the airplane landed in Minneapolis.  They changed our approach a couple of times, which involved a lot of turns in the air.  Olive took me home.
Evening: I sorted out my work schedule and lay on the couch. I am not totally unpacked.
Family: I made a date to meet a new baby, probably tomorrow morning. I am so excited. Also, apparently we are expecting snow.  How do I unsubscribe from this weather?

Long Run Sunday: Don't Worry, there aren't any hills

Plan: Run easy, 8 miles or so.
Actual Mileage:  7.87 miles.  I thought it was such a healthy thing that I didn't try to run in circles to get the last 0.13 miles in, either.
Route: This is the "I think it's pretty flat" route that Mom suggested long ago.  True story: it's not flat.  At all.  I head up Erie to Madison Road, then turn on Grandin Road, to Edwards road, back to Erie Ave and then home.

Weather: 29* when I started.  Not much warmer when I finished.  Wind was minimal.  It was super humid. 
Wardrobe: Compression socks, Brooks running pants, short sleeve shirt, sweat shirt, buff on my head, and Merrel shoes.
Execution: I didn't set heart rate alarms, but I did well keeping things under control.  I was thinking it was going to be rough when my heart rate got to 130 in the warm up, but it turned out fine.  I walked up one of the hills on Edwards and a small bit on Erie just before Paxton to keep my heart rate under control
Nutrition: I ran fasted.  I had goetta when I got back though!
From today, I learned: It's okay to walk up the hills sometimes.  It's fun as hell to run down them.
Bonus: We've driven by this house from the side a couple times. But for this run, I totally went down the sidestreet and took pictures.

Long Run: Cincinnati Hills Style

Plan: Do this route, I can turn around early if I want, and try to keep the heart rate in check.

Route: I was staying with Mom and Dad so I did this route again.  It's part of the Flying Pig course, so I'm visualizing myself doing that next year.

Weather: Started in the high 60s and crazy humid.  It warmed a bit but not ridiculous.

Wardrobe: I wore my old Minimus shoes that I keep at Mom and Dad's with my Illuminite shirt and shorts.  I just wasn't down with the reflective vest today.  I had on a visor too.  Obviously no sunglasses since i left at 5:40am.

Execution: I was pretty happy with the way this went. Heart rate got a bit wild later in the run.  I expected that.  The end of the run has a couple hairy hills and I walked a bit.  Also, this was a big jump in mileage for me, so I knew I'd be tired.
Nutrition: I ate nothing before hand.  I carried no water.  I carried a Lara Bar but didn't eat it.  I was crazy thirsty when I got home and had all of the fizzy water.

Bonus: Did I tell you about seeing sunrise along the river?

Avondale 5K

Start time: 8:30am, perfect for me.
Weather: Around 50*, no wind, sunny
Wardrobe: Happy pants, tank, compression socks, now retired NB Minimus Trail shoes
Transportation: Dad carpooled us all to the start, parked at Avondale Town Center

Route:

• Runs through South Avondale and a short stretch of North Avondale (where I grew up).  Full course can be seen here.
• The hills on this course are for reals.  Especially that beast at the end.  That's where I kissed my 'sub 30' dream goodbye. 
• This course is partially open to traffic.  It's closed where the runners are but open for cars to cross the course in some places.  
• There were a lot of police on the course to direct traffic and they were very supportive of the runners.

Plan/Goals: Race the thing! (Back up plan was 'run with your heart and don't get discouraged on the hills')

Execution: I put it down on this course. I was pleased with the whole thing.  This is easily a PR for me and the most fun I've had on a 5K course.
Nutrition: I'd planned to have half an avocado about two hours before the race.  Instead, when I woke up I was still full from the bad decisions I'd made the night before so I raced on an empty stomach.  It was the right decision.
Results:  31:23 or a 10:07 mile pace.  See, picked it up and put it down!

SWAG: For such a small race, there are some very big sponsors (Cincinnati Zoo, Children's Hospital, University of Cincinnati) and the goodies are on point.  I got a cotton t-shirt, which was an awesome surprise.  Re-usable shopping bag.  Hippo rug (which is freaking adorable and waiting for me every time I go home now), little flash light, beer can huggie, and some coupons.  The post-race party had some additional stuff from a sponsor so I wound up with another shirt from there.
Remember for next time:

• I mean, is there a way to forget about that hill? 
• This race is seriously welcoming to walkers and family.  
• I was the only 'non-local' there.  It's okay because I consider this my hometown race. 
• I had planned to listen to music but wound up taking out both ear buds early on because the course is partially open to traffic and I wanted to be able to hear the volunteers and police.
• Apparently I can run a solid 5K on an empty stomach.

Bonus: This race was very well organized.  It did a great job of highlighting the neighborhood.

Second bonus: 5K for my 5 year streak running anniversary! Mom, Dad, and two other people came out to help me celebrate.