October 2012 – A Random Journey

...what a good wife you would be.' - from Brandy by Looking Glass

With Hurricane Sandy’s wrath only hours or minutes away from my doorstep, I thought, ‘Hmmm, what’s missing from all the frantic tweets, Facebook rants, blog posts, news updates, farewell texts and all else?’ If you’re thinking like I’m thinking, ‘my voice’ is the correct answer.

I still have power and WiFi, so I shan’t stay silent. I will sit on this couch, with a wiener dog trying to wiggle into a position where I’m constantly petting him, and blog out some observations.

No promises. No guarantees. Just words.

We had Hurricane Irene come calling last year in August. But she underwhelmed in her D.C. date and could barely muster a decent goodnight kiss.

Then we had Mr. Derecho Storm gut punch D.C. this past June for looking at his mesoscale convective system the wrong way. It did not end well for the trees, the power, the cars or anyone really. We are still smarting.

These both being preceded by two hefty snowstorms dubbed ‘Snowpocalypse’ and ‘Snowrmageddon’ in back-to-back winters. The city went into hibernation for days.

If Hurricane Sandy is anything like Mr. Derecho, we are in big trouble. If it’s anything like Irene, we are overreacting just a tad. I suspect it will be somewhere in between.

Provided I survive and the power doesn’t go out permanently, I’m sure I can regale those of you that don’t live in the area with tales of remarkable survival. If you’re here and live through it, I’m sure Facebook will be all a twitter with your cleverly insightful status remarks.

Now is the driving rain before the storm. The wind is picking up. The wiener dog is more insistent. It is here that I must leave you.

Stay alive.

My random goal for October is to run 44 miles.

I’ve done two monthly goals this year for total miles (March – 170 miles, and July – 230 miles) that combined running, biking and hiking. See below for a recap of July.

Now it’s time to focus on just one activity.

Why running?

Because I hate running in general, but it does get me in better shape to do other things. Like flag football. Or volleyball. Or hiking. Or biking. Or watching football on the TV with a beer(s) and a heaping pile of nacho(s). Oh wait, I’m already pretty good at that.

Why 44?

a) I like that number. 4 is my favorite number. And two 4’s is better than one.

b) It’s more than I’ve run in any given month thus far. It’s a goal that I have to work for.

I may try running an 8K race sometime this month. Know one in DC?

Update on July, August, September goals

September – I was too busy.

One for August: Vacation

Success, I took a two-week vacation in California. I’m sure details will be forthcoming…

230 for July: Miles (Part Two)

Success! I completed 230.25 total miles in July. It took a bit of effort and perseverance to reach the goal, as I traveled two weekends where I didn’t do much. I was able to make the final push on the last two days, racking up marathon like numbers (26.50 miles) to eek out a victory.

Stats:

Biking – 144.90
Hiking – 56.65
Running – 26.7

Totals – 230.25 miles

Lessons:

I would have preferred a ratio more in favor of hiking and running, but these are much more time intensive. Bike riding was an easier way to rack up miles, especially on the last two days.
When it’s hot (and I mean 104 degree hot), running or hiking is a bad idea. Bad. Idea.
My new favorite drink of all time is Starbucks Tazo Shaken Iced Passion Tea (add trademark somewhere in there). It’s a cold life-saving gulp of goodness after hiking and baking 10 miles in the oppressive heat.
You cannot beat running on the National Mall at night in the glow of some of the greatest monuments in the USA.
There are a lot of good places to hike, run and bike in and near DC (said Mall, Alexandria, along the Potomac River, Yards Park, other local parks, Teddy Roosevelt Island, Georgetown and many more).
Tracking miles is an art and a science. I continue to use RunKeeper for most of it. When my phone battery dies, I use the alignment of the stars and the curvature of the Earth.
I listen to a lot of music this way. In July I especially listened to Kasabian, The Killers, Kaiser Chiefs, The Black Keys and Walk the Moon.

See all the ‘random goals’ from 2012.