This week...

Swam Tuesday, made it to the meeting on time. The swim was crowded and crazy. My left shoulder hurt - pretty strongly. It takes me about 10 or so minutes to warm up, so I was ready to go about 30 minutes into the activities - which may actually mean it takes about 20 or 30 minutes to warm up in the mornings - I'm not a morning person....

My shoulder hurt all day - when I got home, I put some ice on it, and also remembered to take a painkiller - I'm not really good at thinking about painkillers to actually take care of pain - I only really think about it when my back gets really bad, so it always surprises me when I remember to take one for other pain.... it worked about 3 or so hours later.....

Evening was a run or off, and I took the path of least resistance again - however, I actually wanted to run when I got home from work. I resisted the urge, since I didn't have enough time to do that and arrive in time to the "rules of cycling in groups" clinic - which was at the same store where my car was towed (have I mentioned that yet?) - -- guess I'll have to tell that story..... The clinic was great....and my car wasn't towed this time (when I parked, I walked around the car looking for secret towing signs of the vultures.....).

Wednesday, I got up and did the strength workout. No problem, did hurt the shoulder, but not excessively. After work, it was dark, but I ran anyway..... think I'm sort of getting into this....
uggh. I walked home from work, but remembered to slow it down to keep it easy on the knees and hips, so I could save all the pain for the run....

Got home, quickly changed and got outside (before I could come to my senses).... I decided to run around the Capitol - they were still in session around 6pm - GOOD - they need to pass a budget for next year - it is hell on agencies when there is no budget.....(by the way, you can tell they are in session by the light on at the top of the capitol - The lantern is lit when one or both houses of Congress meet in night session. Although there is not a legal requirement for the night lighting or a record of when the lighting began, it is believed that the practice started in about 1864, when members lived in boardinghouses and hotels near the Capitol - find more information at the Fodor's web site... I can't find where I learned the more relevant information for the light, but when I do, I'll post it.....)

Anyway, it may sound glamorous to be running around such sights as the Supreme Court and the Capitol, but, when you are huffing and puffing and staring at the ground watching out for the errant brick or tree root sticking up out of the ground - not to mention the suicidal squirrels - it's not quite so fascinating....

I ran around the Capitol....actually ran (though, if anyone's been following, my running is more of a fast up and down slow walk - I could actually walk faster than what I'm calling running at this point... makes a jog look like a fast sprint.....) around the capitol.... (once, my goal for tonight....)
I got a whole 25 minutes in when I noticed the pain in the right side of my neck increasing significantly (a long-term issue) and a pain in the top if my left foot (not to mention the pain in my knees, which I don't count), so I stopped and walked. Checked the watch and it was 25 minutes in..... pretty good, I would say.... I was paranoid about the pain in my foot since I've had a stress fracture there and can't stand the pain in my neck (no pun), so figured since all I wanted to do was 25 min, I could walk the rest of the way.

It was difficult to walk. You know, when you've been driving 70mph on a freeway for awhile, and you exit on a quite country road with a 35mph speed limit, it seems like you could walk faster.... though I was running at about 4mph and walking at about 3mph, it wasn't quite such an extreme difference, I wanted to run again - what was that about??? After 5 minutes, I ran the last 4 minutes back home.... think I'm starting to get pulled ever further into this cult.....

I'm becoming such a joiner.....