Bethany just woke me up by calling me while I was sleeping. Christy’s been starting to do that lately, too. Mom always has, and for some reason the fact that she does never tripped me out, it just was. Thing is, y’see, is that I sleep with the ringer off. I have voice mail, too, so the phone makes no click, no sound whatsoever when it rings or takes a message. There’s a small light that blinks, but I sleep with earplugs and an eye mask, so that ain’t it. And other people never wake me by calling. I can have four messages on my machine, but the last timestamp will show that Mom was the last one to call me, silently, at the exact minute my eyes opened. Can’t explain it. Won’t try. Just is.
I’m using my WIRELESS on my COUCH with Digit draped across like a heavy, slightly stinky blanket. And oh, he just drooled on my stomach. Ew. (This is how I knew Adah was meant to come home with me from the shelter: I had gone there to get a kitten to keep Digit company. She was all grown up, and I thought I would just pet her for a minute and then walk on. She drooled all over my lap, and I was sunk. We’re a happy drooly family. The worst, however, is when she sneezes because she’s so drooly. Spit sprays in a fine, fast mist. Deesgusting, at any time, but especially so when you’re sleeping. Thank god for that eye mask.)
I went swimming yesterday. Can we please continue to call it swimming? I HATE the phrase aqua-jogging, and I hate the action even more. Hate. I hate relatively few things in this life (war, unkindness, famine, chicken liver, and ants), but aqua-jogging is right up there on that list. I think this is my biggest sacrifice to running. The pain I can tolerate. The impending lost toenails aren’t really bothering me. The sweat and time, eh. Bring it. But this STUPID treading water thing? You can have it. I’ve never done an activity that I hated so much, so actively. My shin splints are still pretty bad, so I made myself a solemn vow that I would not run this week, even though I really need the maintenance training. And I vowed that I would make up that training, in some other related way.
The only other thing that would come close to substituting for running is the elliptical machine, and I tried that at work the other night before shift. It didn’t hurt to use the machine, but when I got off the shin splints had flared so badly I had to hobble up the stairs to the Communications Center. Someone later told me, when I was complaining about how the elliptical machine was supposed to be low-impact, that “oh, YOU shouldn’t use that! It simulates running!” Well, duh. Thanks for that.
So I’m left with treading water. Really fast. Wearing a foam belt. Listening to the Italian foreign exchange students try to pick up the mothers teaching their tots to swim in the shallow end (actually, that’s pretty amusing. I don’t mind that).
And actually, if I’m to avoid the gaggle of kids who arrive for free swim at about four o’clock, I should wiggle into my suit right now and get to treading. Bleah. And then? I’ll knit, while blog-surfing from my COUCH! Have I mentioned how much I love wireless? Hoo yeah.
Just for fun, here’s a kid that can swim near me anytime: Winter with dad Jason up in the hills above their house on Monday.
Even the elliptical hurts? Hunh. Go figure. I would have thought it was the impact that aggravated the splints, not the motion. I’m sorry you’re in pain, sweetie. Wouldn’t it be cool if each of your readers could take just a small bit of it–say a hangnail’s worth? We would barely feel it but there are enough of us to leave you pain free for running. There must be someone we can talk to to arrange it, no?
How can I not love a list that goes from the sublime to the ridiculous, from war to ants, in six words?
I LOVE my eye mask… I have one of those Bucky eye shades. I worship my eye mask. It is red and I look ridiculous when I am using it but I don’t care.
I even got my mom hooked on the eye shades!
I don’t know how I lived before my mask or wireless! 🙂 hehe
you’re really making me want wireless. then I have to remind myself that the phone cord I use to dial up on the laptop is long enough to take anywhere in my apartment and probably out to the fire escape if I wanted to. alomst as good.
I admire your stick-to-it-ness, Rach…all it would have taken for me was just the *hint* of shin splints and I would have thrown in the towel! Now to tolerate something you really don’t care for on top of it!
All I can say is
~you are my *S*H*E*R*O*
OK.. my question.. Do people think you are strange hanging out with a life belt on treading water??? Not that I should care what people think of course.. (then why do I??) I spend tons of hours a week at the local rec cente hanging out with the kids. I think me in a flotation device treading water would be a great use of my time.. good exercise. Do you actually MOVE when you are doing this??
Poor shins. Tiger balm? Your mom and your sisters and you are one amazing bunch of females. We bow to you from Austin!
Oooh… sorry to hear about the shin splints. That sucks. :o( Wish I had something you could do instead of your dreaded aqua jogging. But I’m not sporty at all so I can only send good thoughts your way for a speedy shin splint recovery.
Have you tried the current track? Does your pool have one? I’m not big on swimming (the chlorine does a real number on my skin) but that current track is a great work out. You’ve inspired me to work out more – and I’m sore…happily sore. um, cute kid…even more cute dad. Lucky you to have such scenery.
Love wireless too. It makes me happy. 🙂 I was gonna suggest the elliptical. You must have some really freakin’ bad shin splints. Hang in there. Instead of icing your shins with regular ice…perhaps you could freeze some kitty drool and ice ’em. 🙂
I would willingly take on a fraction of your pain if it would help. It sounds like you’re getting frustrated about the amount of time it’s taking for your body to comply with what you want it to do, so just remember that it’s only August. You’re doing so incredibly well. Inspiringly well.
Uh, they have a gym at the call center? Get out! I’m jealous of the wireless–though not the drool.
Noteworthy thought: Shall we give thought to another Knitter meetup sometime this fall/winter (though clearly I’ve not made any of the projects planned from last time…)?
You are too funny girl.
I was emailing with a gal that says she knits while on the treadmill. All I can see is me tripping over yarn, flailing needles, etc…but it’s an idea….
The elliptical and I don’t like each other. I do it anyway…and I’m embarrassed to say I can take almost 8 minutes of it now before I bail onto the treadmill. If I thought knitting would help me endure it, I’d do it! 🙂 You go girl! I’m so proud of you for training so hard! It’s hard to stay motivated sometimes, but you’ve really done great!
Hang in there, Rachael, you can do it! I just got wireless, too, but I seem to be having some configuration “issues.” Harrumph. I want to turn on the laptop and just have it WORK.