It’s been a zoo-like week here. I’ll fill you in:
In Non-Running News
My husband and I spent four nights in Fernie, BC for his International Mine Rescue Competition. It was a completely wonderful trip, and very emotional as this is his last go as captain of his new team (due to his non-shift-work with the new job.) I realized this weekend how special this team is, and how much like family we’ve all become. Kevin has been a Mine Rescuer for nine years, and captain for the past three. There are some wonderful people on the team, like J and A, who are people you could laugh with until four in the morning and never once look at the clock. Or D and T, who are so witty that I never wear mascara around them. Their newborn daughter had heart issues last year, and the positive outlook and faith they displayed astounded me. Amazing people. Anyways, I could go on and on about all of the team members, but you get the idea. We’re close. And it’s not that we won’t continue to be, but it’s that this team as we know it is heading into a new chapter of its life. I celebrate, yes, but I also get misty-eyed about it. It’s been quite a run, so to speak.
We experienced a complete snowstorm in Fernie, which was interesting, to say the least. Imagine being in a crowded bar at 1 a.m. and the lights go out. Every light. In town. It was NUTS. The power in Fernie was off until 9 the next morning! Very eerie, and veeeeery dark hotel. Yes, we are troopers. We partied via flashlight. 
School is going well for the boys. Derek made a friend. He reported it to me this way, running off his schoolbus the other day:
Derek: MOM!!! I MADE A BEST FRIEND!!!!!
Me: Great, son! How’d that go?
Derek: Well, Mom, I got so sick of not having any friends, so I went up to this kid and said, “Wanna be my best friend?”
Me: And?
Derek: Yep. He did. He said yes. And he has glasses.
***
Hallelujah, buddy. I love to think about if adults acted like kids. Imagine me doing that to the lady with the nice shoes in the bank machine line-up today??
In Running News:
It was my last night of my running clinic tonight. It was a wonderful breezy night, and we did our 20 minute run and clapped as each other came in. Our instructor was such a gift. The race is on Sunday. She spoke about having a race plan today, and I need to think about that tomorrow.
The week before last, I had major running knee issues. I’d run, it would be ok, and then once I got home, my inner knee would throb. I’d be laid up for 2 days, with ice and Advil. Finally, I got the new shoes. I love the Running Room. It was such a great shopping experience, seriously. They’re Saucony’s, and I love them, and my knee feels great now. Thank God. Seriously, I don’t know if God has ever gotten so many prayers with “knee” and “race” in the subject line.
I got to run in Fernie. I am really tickled about running in new places. That’s out of character for me, I’m basically a routine-ish kind of gal. Fernie is a lovely city to run in. It’s quiet and sleepy and there’s a very simple trail that runs along the river. It was wierd, when I was running, it felt like the river was singing to me. No, I had not had any beer prior to the run. Just the sounds of everything, it was phenomenal. It was delightful.
On a self-centered note, I am getting more comfortable with the attention that running is getting me. NO, that doesn’t sound right, really. I mean, when I got up in Fernie to run at 5 :30 because I was so nervous about Kevin’s competition, I didn’t really mind that his team saw me head out. A few months ago, I would’ve minded in a big way. I would’ve been too self-conscious. I can speak at a conference for 700 people, but I wouldn’t have wanted someone to know I was trying to run!?!? Sheesh, girl. I’ve come some distance. I didn’t mind a bit that his teammate wanted to talk about my Forerunner. I didn’t mind at all when I overheard his other teammate talking in awe about running, as if I were getting up early to find a cure to cancer before breakfast. It actually felt good. I feel like I’ve put running on, and it feels comfortable. It’s mine now, and I have a long way to go to improving things and growing as a runner, but I can say “I” and “runner” in the same sentence without downplaying it.
In Blogging News:
I thought some about my blog on my run tonight. Sometimes I blog with thoughts of who might read what I’ve written. Of course, with common sense, I’m not blogging about work issues or mentioning names of people who would oppose being mentioned. But I do think about, what if ________ found my blog?? (insert: my parents, my family, my friend, my …..) And that sometimes defines my voice here, and I’ve decided to get over it. If I’m writing what’s in my heart, if I’m going to truly share my journey of weight loss and fitness and falling in love with running, then sometimes I have to allow the writing to be served raw. Maybe I’m just growing into my blog, the way I’ve grown with running. Hmmmm.
