A Lot Has Happened This Past Week

"Talkin' to myself and feelin' old; Sometimes I'd like to quit; Nothing ever seems to fit; Hangin' around, Nothing to do but frown; Rainy Days and Mondays always get me down." The Carpenters

So I'm sitting at our computer, 7:15 in the morning, using the "hunt and peck" style of typing, (meaning typing with both middle fingers) and I check the weather forecast...

(WTNH) - Forecast Updated Saturday AM
From Meteorologist Matt Scott
Another day full of showers and storms, as a front passes through. Stand by for blustery winds picking up later in the day.
All the best, Meteorologist Matt Scott
SATURDAY: Showers and thunderstorms. Windy with gusts to 40 mph possible. Highs : Low 60s.

"All the best?!" What the heck kind of a greeting is that, Matt? You're telling me that today's forecast means I'll have to cut back on my planned 10 mile run, plus get soaking wet, plus run alone because my daughter Stephanie surely won't be as foolish as me and run in a torrential downpour. The only consolidation I get is "All the best?" At least when I checked Channel 3's website for the forecast, which basically says the same thing as Channel 8's website, Chief Meteorologist Bruce DePrest says to "Have a great weekend!" That's a little more encouraging. At least I can wear shorts and a short sleeved shirt today, which is great since I live in Connecticut and it's November 15th. So later on when I run, I'll do my 3 mile course, which starts and ends at my house, and if it's not raining too hard, and I'm not too wet, I'll add on miles by running half mile loops around the block.
A lot has happened this past week. Sunday was the Rams vs. Jets game. As promised, I consumed "mass quantities" (I think I'm stealing that from Coneheads) of beer and food. Coors Light (total of 10 I believe), pulled pork, kielbasa, sauerkraut, hot wings, cheeseburgers (in paradise), potato chips...I think that was everything. My theory is that when I drink, especially if I'm starting at 9:30 in the morning, I need to establish a food base to help absorb the alcohol. The game was a blowout. Jets won 47-3, which made everyone happy except my Brother-in-Law Tad. But I couldn't harass him too much, since he was my Designated Driver.
After a day off from running on Monday, (I wonder why?!) I took advantage of having Tuesday off and headed to the Linear Trail. I finally ran 10 miles, actually 10 1/2, since I had a brain fart and lost track of the spray painted numbers as I ran. I was satisfied with my time of 1:37.11: (9:15/M), which included me stopping for a bathroom break and a drink from the water fountain. Great thing about the trail is it has 2 water fountains I run by, plus plenty of opportunities to use the outdoor bathroom (woods). I know, "TMI." Wednesday was a tough day, and as a result I didn't have it in me to run. I had to bring our 16 year old cat Shadow to the vet to be put to sleep. She's been sick, and had kidney failure, so we had no choice since she was suffering. It was a horrible experience, and I hope to never have to do it again. I have to admit that I cried like a baby before, during, and afterwards. It's still bothering me, but I'm trying to ease my guilt by getting a "macho" cat for myself. No luck so far...so Thursday I slacked and didn't run (Post "Grim Reaper Syndrome?"); yesterday I did everything I could to avoid running, but eventually went for a 3 mile road run, which took me 25:04 (8:21/M). I was proud of myself for heading home after work, and driving past "Humphrey's" instead of to "Humphrey's." Which brings me up to today, which I talked about earlier.
UPDATE: Well, I went to the linear trail, figuring I could run 2 miles out, and 2 miles back, for a total of 4 miles. Yeah right...it was POURING rain, but I decided that it was ok, because it would be another learning experience, meaning that sometimes I have to suck it up and run in the rain. Hey, it rained even harder on Thanksgiving day in 2006 when my daughter and I ran the Manchester Road Race, and it was 40 degrees, so I knew I could do it today. So, I set out on my run, shoes sloshing in the rain, trying to dodge the huge puddles on the paved path. (I was smart enough to wear an old pair of running shoes). As I'm running, I started yelling like a fool: "Bring it On," "Wetter is Better," and whatever other stupid phrases came into my mind...all in an attempt to keep from realizing that I very well could drown, especially since I really don't swim very well. There was that much water. I turned the corner, passed the .3 mile marker, all as the intensity of the rain continued to increase. It was literally coming down in buckets. That was when I decided that 2 miles would be sufficient, provided my now rain covered, fogged glasses didn't impede my sight so much that I either a) ran into a tree; or b) ran into the creek along the trail. Then it happened: thunder, followed by lightning. Thunder and lightning on November 15th in Connecticut?! I thought I was hallucinating, but a repeat episode made me realize that I needed to turn around and run as fast as I could back to my car before I became a human lightning rod. Well, since I'm typing this, you know I made it. Overall, I ran about 9/10 of a mile, in a little over 8 minutes. Who cares? I'm alive and not treading water at the Linear Trail. By the way, as I sit here at 1 p.m., there's not a drop of rain coming down. "All the best." Rick