~
Shocking as this may seem, I just don't have anything to rant about this week.

Yes, there were inconsiderate cyclists and motorists on the STP this year...

Yeah, I don't feel all that well today...

And I'm sure someone's been a butthead to me this week...

But an insincere rant is just no good at all.

To be quite honest, I feel very blessed right now to have:

good friends

a healthy body (despite previous life threatening injuries and feeling a bit yucky right now)

an Icky Boy who loves me (even if it's not the right time to cohabitate)

a furry, purring BadKitty (who really is sweet most of the time)

a good job (even if it does stress me out sometimes)

So here are some past WTF Wednesday rants... Enjoy

Perhaps someone will really piss me off next week?

~L

Mood: non-dramatic









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What a weekend it was...

I don't even know where to start (and this post will be long and rambling)

When I first moved here 11 years ago, I couldn't imagine riding on the road (hadn't had a road bike since college and had been a mountain biker my entire adult life) more or less riding 204 miles from Seattle to Portland with 10,000 of my new closest friends.

But now, I can't imagine not doing it.

Last year I was nervous and terrified-I didn't know if I could do it.

What a difference a year makes; I fussed over logistics but knew I could do it even with less bike time this year (with all the triathlon training I'm not in as good a bike shape but am in better overall shape), had nothing to prove and would be riding with friends. (last year only 2 of the 11 people I trained with actually rode it and they wanted the latest start possible [on the hottest day of the year no less-I passed] so I rode solo)

Of course, no major undertaking is without things going wrong.

For the life of me, I could not find my bike pump that I took off my bike last time she was in the shop. I finally pulled one off of my other bikes.

My bike computer died so I replaced the battery (the battery wasn't the only problem as it turns out-it told me I was riding 4mph slower than I was making me think I was bonking when I wasn't)

and when I got to the start line, I discovered that when I tripped on my stairs leaving my apartment at 4:00 AM (almost took out my ankle and missed the ride all together), the heart rate monitor strap on my Garmin fell out of my bag and was likely lost forever.

I called Leo (my ride partner and other half of our comedy duo) at 4:30 and he was about 3 minutes behind me on I-5; we arrived at the UW in Seattle at about the same time. (not bad for one of us leaving from Bremerton and the other leaving from Tacoma)

I picked up my medical support jersey from our happy volunteers and got to meet Kimbery, MJ, Andy Williams (we've been reading each other's blogs for some time) and Shawn Darraugh (photos to be uploaded to Facebook)

After picking up my jersey, hitting the port-a-potties and loading my luggage on the truck I was putting the final bit of air in my tire and getting ready to go when I heard,

“Hey!!! It's DARWIN (my slug who has his own blog)

Mary was not only excited to meet Darwin in person



but she had banana slugs all over her helmet (and she gave me one; I also saw another slug on the ride that she gave someone else)



After that, Leo and I headed to the start line at 6:00 AM sharp (right in our projected time frame)



Last year, I was a very new (and nervous) road cyclist having only had a road bike for three and a half months before the STP.

This year, I was much more relaxed and less nervous about the other cyclists (many of whom aren't adept at riding in groups safely or courteously) I also slept better the night before and ate more and often.

We enjoyed the cruise along Lake Washington Boulevard with the water and Tahoma (Mt Rainier's real name) as a spectacular backdrop.

We had a blast singing, joking, insulting each other for the amusement of the other riders and playing duets on our horns (Leo loaned me a horn that honked to offset his “squeaker”.

There was an accident near Renton, but there were already medics and a support vehicle on scene and the EMS system had been activated so we kept going to be available for other incidents.

Claire and David when whipping past us on their tandem (they've been animals this year) Leo took off after them (at about 25 miles per hour) I took off after Leo, realized it was stupid to push that hard so early in the ride and backed off.

We did see them at the REI rest stop.



Where there were lots of REI employees volunteering and working hard at the BEST rest stop on the ride.



I even got to meet “Super Girl”



We saw lots of interesting people along the route and had a “lovely” (read hot on new black asphalt) run up the Puyallup hill and then headed on to Spanaway for the lunch stop.

We discovered early on that Leo was the “invisible” ride ref. He would politely ask people to say “on your left” and they'd completely ignore the poor guy. (he got teased about this for two days)

The lines were very long, but we got food quickly and then unlike last year, sat in the shade and cooled off.

It wasn't easy, but I talked Leo out of waiting in the scorching sun for the port-a-potty lines and made other arrangements down the route (legal indoor plumbing thank you very much)

There was a bike accident outside of Spanaway, but there were more medics than patients and a support vehicle on scene, so we kept going to be available for other incidents. We also started seeing lots of flat tires.

I started getting sick from the heat around Tenino (it wasn't quite as hot as last year, but was more humid) I thought I was bonking earlier when my bike computer said I was only going 9mph (slight uphill) when I was actually going 14 before I realized that it was borked)

Once I get that hot, I can't eat because I get nauseous. Luckily, I was well hydrated, but I did bonk between Tenino and Centrialia. We pulled over and I downed a package of Cliff Shot Blocks and as much water as I could get down without vomiting (and it was close, let me tell you)

I made it into Centralia where I had a room booked at Rocky and Patsy's house (the house with the mister set up practically on campus). No riding across town to a motel and walking back.

It was like staying with friends. The two other guys that were staying there were guys I had met on the Chehalis Western Trail (what are the odds out of 10,000 people) when I was being regaled with linguistic trivia by another rider.

I pulled up on my bike, put it in the back yard and was offered a beer (a good one too)

I had a nice shower, sat in the front yard and then a wonderful sit down dinner of lasagna, salad from the garden and garlic bread.

After that, we all walked over to the camp at the college (less than half a block) to socialize.

I finally got to meet Michael Snyder from the Cascade Bicycle Club.

Here we are with Leo in our obligatory Hawaiian shirts (how we recognize each other in the beer gardens at these events)



The beer garden had run out of beer (16 kegs), so we wandered over to the West Sound Cycling Club tent for a beer before calling it a night.

Yes, I was a naughty girl, I stayed out past 9:00 PM drinking beer with the cycling club from across the bridge (for which Rocky briefly locked me out of the house as joke)

I was awoken just before 5:00 AM (when the alarm was set to go off) to the sound of a torrential downpour (these were not showers-this was a deluge) which didn't bode well for the rest of the ride. Heat exhaustion the first day-hypothermia the next. Good times!

Leo and I met back at the camp and headed out just after 6:00 AM.

I had breakfast at the house (just coffee and cereal, I'm not a big eater in the morning) but Leo didn't. I hopped a paceline between Centralia and Chehalis, turned around and didn't see Leo anywhere. It was his turn for a bonk.

I pulled out of the line and waited for him..

There was thunder and significant lighting strikes (big ones hitting the ground) which added more than a bit of excitement to the ride. We (along with a few hundred of our closest new bestet friends hauled butt into Chehalis where the smart ones took cover while the cells passed.

This was where we had an awesome breakfast at the park. (much like a hobbit, I enjoyed “2nd breakfast”)

Here are Leo's Squid and my Slug enjoying it. (yes, the Ensure is Leo's)



When we got a break in the storm, we headed out for what is my favorite part of the ride; the rolling countryside between Chehalis and Longview.

There was a huge number of flat tires on day two; it seemed like we were coming up on one every 100 yards or so. Michael even stopped for a guy who had broken his seat post.

This year, I had to stop in Winlock to take a cheesy photo with the egg...



We continued on through the wonderful rolling hills when our bliss was broken for a time by a hailstorm that pummeled us not long after we left Winlock.

I got to sing with a fun paceline while on the rollers. We belted out a fabulous rendition of “Take Me Home Country Roads”

I was excited to find that they were not out of turkey warps at the Lexington stop this year and we had a nice break and lunch.

At this stage in the ride (just shy of 150 miles) there was a lot of Chamois Butt'r being used... Here is the scene from inside of one of the port-a-potties



We were leaving that stop at about noon when the announcement came...

They were only going to do the escorts across the Lewis and Clark Bridge (between Longview WA and Rainier OR) until 1:00 PM.

It was only 8 miles away, but we decided to haul butt to make sure we got across with the escort.

The bridge to most people is the scariest part of the ride and it's worse without the escort trying to ride it with logging trucks whizzing by.

Here we are lined up to get over the bridge. (small groups are escorted by the Gold Wing club)



And here we are crossing the bridge (right before the screaming downhill run with the scary expansion joints)



The mad dash to get across the bridge lead to a bit more crowding on Highway 30 than usual but it was workable. (check out the rain on my helmet)



Just before the St Helen's Rest Stop I could tell that my lactic acid threshold (which I've learned a lot about over the last couple years) was being pushed and that whatever they had at the rest stop (they usually run out of turkey wraps that late in the day) was not going to cut it. Michael was very good about staying with me and offering to take pulls when I started slowing down just before St Helens.

So I pulled over at McDonalds (disgusting but a good, cheap quick source of meat, fat and carbs all of which I needed) and got a cheeseburger and fries,which I stuffed in my jersey pockets before heading into the rest stop.

Leo looked at me with revulsion at my disgusting choice of endurance fuel to get the final 25 miles (out of 204) into Portland.

Michael looked at me a bit less harshly...

Soon, they both headed there as well (yes, I laughed my butt off)

Since I was the slow one out of the group, I headed out a bit earlier than they did.

Michael caught up with me well past Scapposse after sprinting a good distance and Leo took a bit longer to catch up.

After that, we took turns taking pulls into Portland (pretty much hauling butt-a 17 mph average that late in a double century ride is hauling butt for me)

That last stretch of Hwy 30 entering Porltand makes me nervous. It's narrow, the traffic is speeding by, and everyone is tired, stressed and ready for the ride to be done. It was especially bad this year because it wasn't just raining, it was pouring and we were soaked to the skin and there was a lot of standing water. Some of the storm drains on the side of the bike lane were only identifiable by the bubbles coming out of the standing water.

People turn into “instant buttheads” passing too close without saying “on your left” (I was tempted to snark, but could not do so while wearing a ride support jersey)

Just before the nasty hill coming into Portland we stopped to help a couple of ladies with a flat tire.

I don't know what was up with me, but I actually passed people on the first half of that nasty hill, I came to my senses and slowed down on the 2nd half. (I'm not a great hill climber)

During the final miles through Portland to the start I was whining, “No ooone toool meeee iiiit might raaaaiiiin in Poooortland.” and “I'm sooooo cooool aand weeeeet I caaaan't feeeeel my buuuuut anymooooore” (not a bad thing actually)

We hit every red light in Portland between the Steel Bridge and the finish line.

My friend Peter (one of my VERY best friends in Jr High School who I recently reconnected with on Facebook) was there at the finish line for me and for a very short visit. We hadn't seen each other since the 70's.



We got in very late (as a support rider Leo, Michael and I had to stop a lot to help people) and barely had enough time to get our bikes on the truck, grab our luggage and get on the bus back to Seattle.

No food, no beer.

I did change into dry clothes (which disgusted Leo that I did it without showering) but he actually got on the bus in his wet disgusting riding clothes.

Someone was kind enough to give us some granola bars as a “thank you” for volunteering and Leo found some cheese crackers in his pocket.

Traffic stunk (which it usually does on Sunday between Portland and Seattle especially on STP and Oregon Country Fair weekend)

We pulled into the UW parking lot some time after 10:00 PM and I was a bit worried when Flash wasn't racked.

I d id not want to drive up to Seattle the next day to get my bike (again, last year the truck my bike was on got a flat tire)

Then I saw the next truck pull up and Flash was one of the first bikes off.

I was happily reunited with my beloved bike and headed home.

Yes, I'll be doing it again next year.

Oh, the rest of the pictures are here...



and here's the route map



~L

Mood: relaxing











~

They're unloading the toilets for the STP tomorrow.

~

Welcome to “things that make me go Squee”.

After “cleaning out the pipes” yesterday by venting for WTF Wednesday, I'm ready to "squee with glee".

In honor of Pop Fiend’s attempt at decreasing drama for at least one day a week on LiveJournal by promoting “Drama Free Thursday” (for those who aren’t aware, my blog is crossposted to LiveJournal, my self hosted WordPress blog, Blogspot, and Facebook), I offer up my own “special” (in a rode the short bus kind of way) contribution, “Things that Make Me go Squee!!!

* Things that make me go squee!” may has become a regular Thursday spectacle production because “Squee” rhymes with “Drama Free”, and I’m trying to do my part.

I think that almost everyone occasionally forgets to celebrate and share good things. I know I do.

So in the spirit of putting “good juju” out there, here are the current things that make me go “SQUEE!!!”

We were able to get out of town and away from the “allegedly” worst days of constant bombardment of illegal fireworks and explosives and go backpacking on the West Side of Tahoma (Mt Rainier’s real name) We didn’t see anyone other than in the parking lot (or on the mountain through binoculars) for three days; it was peaceful and lovely.



the pictures are here

For the first time since late June, I was not jolted out of bed by explosions and illegal fireworks last night. I actually got 7 hours sleep. Perhaps the illegal onslaught has ended for the year?

I picked up my STP packet yesterday. After Leo gave me a hard time about having the number 64 (volunteers & long time riders get the lowest numbers) I discovered that my number was not 10008, but 8. (the “s” is for support because I’m a medical rider.)



While I was up there, I also got to have lunch at Taco Del Mar with my friend Michael who I haven’t seen for a while.

My apartment did not burn down last night, and I discovered that I could get an unhappy freaked out cat and my laptop out quickly in case of emergency.

I am riding the STP (Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic) this weekend. I will be a medical volunteer. It will be a challenge and I’ll get to spend time with friends. (I also won’t be terrified this year because I know I can do it; I did it last year)

I got to spend some time with my friend Sarah from New Mexico while she was in town for a visit.



Relationship issues are calming down and we’re “staring over without pressure or expectations.” I believe that some good things came out of our situation.

There is an interesting article in today’s Seattle Post Intelligencer linking migraines to a decreased risk of breast cancer in women. Yeah, it’s just one study and “science” is constantly changing and evolving, but wouldn’t it be nice if the pain I occasionally go through is a sign that I might not have to deal with something worse down the road? Hey, one can hope.

And here are little smilies for all the squees left unsqueed





And of course, the greatest squee of all…

I am blessed to have really GREAT friends in my life

And you can see a lot of them here… (if I don’t have a picture of you here, send me one)

Insert “squee” of your choice here

I wish everyone a happy and drama free Thursday, as well as lots of things to go “Squee” over.



SKA-WEEEEEEEEE

Now, I've got to get back to work, break’s over.

~L

Mood: Gotta Squee








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We had a bit of drama around here tonight.

A little after 6:45 PM, I smelled something burning.

I couldn't place it as coming out of any windows so I went and opened my door.

The hallway was filled with acrid smoke (not the smell of burning food, but burning synthetic materials)

I dialed 911 while rushing to the bathroom to get the cat carrier; shoved the very freaked out cat unceremoniously into said carrier, stuffed my laptop in my backpack and headed out in my pajamas and raincoat.

The dispatcher called me back to tell me that the fire engines were on scene.

That's when I let them know (again) that I was on NORTH Tacoma Avenue NOT South Tacoma Avenue and that they had dispatched the engines to the WRONG address despite the fact that I had told them specifically NORTH Tacoma Ave. (I could hear the sirens going the wrong way)

About this time the woman downstairs in the front apartment (who didn't answer the door when I knocked on it; she never does) came sashaying out dressed for a night on the town and said, “Oh, that was me, it didn't turn out well.” got into her car and drove away past the responding fire engines.

Sadly, that was my “normal” neighbor.

The smoke detector never went off (she obviously disabled the one in her apartment) because the slum lords (who are currently vacationing in Italy for the next several weeks) built a closest over the hardwired one in the hall after the fire marshall's inspection for their insurance was done. I installed one that I paid for myself in the hall, but it malfunctioned.

I am in an upstairs apartment in a wooden house that was built in 1889. Without early warning; my apartment is a death trap.

I was already working on a migraine (that time of the month) and the heavy smoke (had to run exhaust fans) and adrenaline really did me in.

I am not amused and my cat hates me.

~L

Mood: Tired









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~


OK, I realize that I’ve been ranting about the same thing going on for three weeks now, but I’m still losing sleep over it and getting continually tired, pissed off and frustrated by it.

I fired off a letter to the editor about it yesterday (after being jolted awake by explosions at 2:00 AM) which was printed this morning. (apparently 4:00 AM is the new 2:00 AM because that’s when the big booms started this morning.

I’m not thrilled with the headline, but it’s not in my control.

click here for my letter to the editor; you can even comment on it

Now I can sit back and wait for the comments:

The the ultra conservative trolls will say that I’m a “liberal whiner that doesn’t appreciate the “freedom” to celebrate with fireworks.

The ultra liberal trolls will comment that I’m a “heartless right-winger who doesn’t appreciate the plight of the first nations people.”

There are plenty of cheetos to go around!

And with that, my break is over and I need to get back to work.

~L

Mood: WTF?









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We decided to get out of Tacoma for the 4th of July weekend (the week long illegal explosive fest, courtesy of our local reservations gets old) and “get back to nature”.

So we decided to head up to Tahoma (Rainier's real name) for some backpacking and quiet (and maybe a view of the fireworks from above)

We got a late start on Friday which as it turns out, was not such a good idea. The line to get into the Longmire entrance to the park was insane, a couple of miles long at least. (this is why I normally avoid national parks like the plague on a holiday weekend)

So there we sat, it a hot car in the blazing sun (it was pushing 90 degrees) with no air conditioning. I was on the sunny side of the car and was starting to get sick from it.

On an interesting note, while we sat there not moving, I noticed a totem pole that I'd never seen driving past over the years. It's very neglected with moss growing over the eagle's head. Someone should really give it some love.



Once we got into the park it wasn't difficult to get up to Longmire (we got very lucky parking) to get our Wilderness permit.

We headed up the West Side Road as far as we could drive and parked in the shade. The only time we saw other people was in this parking area.

As I mentioned previously, it was pushing 90 degrees, and a 3:30 PM start walking up hill on a hot dirt road when I was already on the verge of heat sickness from sitting in the car in the sun made for a difficult first day.

We walked up the closed, partially washed out road for a little over a mile before finding a flagged area that took us out into the middle of the riverbed (why they call a raging glacial fed river like Tahoma Creek a creek I just don't get) and followed flagging over boulders and under logs to the junction with the Tahoma Trail.

This trail is no longer maintained, as is evidenced by several bridges in various states of disrepair, so it pays to be careful and watch one's step.



There were several steep pitches up and down that ran along the river bed which made the trip challenging in the heat.



At the junction of the Tahoma Trail and the Wonderland Trail, we wandered out to check out the suspension bridge above Tahoma “creek” which although not on our route, was well worth checking out (this is no wussy bridge, it's one of those “one person at a time” bridges that sway wildly) and then headed back up the trail towards Emerald Ridge.





Once we climbed up off of the Tahoma Trail we were treated to shade, water and beautiful display of trillium & other flowers and waterfalls.





Our first night's camp was in the Glacier Island area

By the time we got there, I was quite literally staggering from heat sickness, but felt better once the sun went down (which is thankfully early on the East side of a ridge) We had climbed 4,262 feet up and 1,830 feet down, so it was a good working on a hot day.



The next morning, we were up bright and early (mostly because it was scorching hot) and headed out and around to the West side of Emerald Ridge. Some of the trail in the 5,000 foot zone was still covered in snow, but it was melting fast.





At this point, it was time to leave the trail and get at least ¼ mile away to be legally in the wilderness camping area.



We climbed up to a wonderful area up on the ridge which was bursting with wildflowers (in the areas that weren't still covered in snow).

*of course, when the wildflowers return to the mountain, so do the bugs; they weren't out in full force (at least not those nasty little black flies that consider bug repellent as relish) but we were getting bit; don't forget your bug spray.











We minimized our impact by pitching our tent in the snow rather than tromping on vegetation (added bonus, not only was it easy to make comfortable “butt divots” but we could melt snow for water instead of hiking down for it.



Of course, we had a lovely view from the “front door”.



Since I'd been sick the day before (and sadly, triathlon training really doesn't work the same muscles as backpacking) and it was still brutally hot, we spent a good portion of the day napping in the shade of a tree on the ridge line and watching climber on the glacier approach.



We weren't high enough to see far enough into the sound to watch the fireworks, but the Tahoma Glacier was plenty spectacular.



The rest of the pictures are available in a slide show here:



click here for individual photos

This is our basic route, I left our camp sites off...



Thankfully, it was much cooler when we hiked out on Sunday, but we were still plenty hot by the time we got back to the car (which thankfully was parked in the shade)

I'm tired, sunburned and covered in bug bites, but it was a wonderful get-a-way.

~L

Mood: tired








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So far today:

My toilet (where the handle meets the guts) broke this morning at a time when I really needed to be able to flush it. (of course, I was running late to work)

Worked for 6 hours, left a lot undone.

Was distracted by relationship issues.

Squeed anyway.

Agreed to backpacking trip (no pressure moving back in not on the table)

walked over to Gear and Apparel to pick up backpack to field test.

Came home early form work to wait for Tacoma Click! cable installer.

Cable installer did not arrive between noon and 4:00 PM as promised.

Called to check on said cable guy, person at office confirmed my correct address.

Cable guy showed up at the wrong (Icky Boy's) address, late.

Cat barfs on carpet (in no less than 3 rooms, that's how she rolls.

Did not get something I was hoping for in the mail today.

Didn't get any of the things done I needed to today.

Said to heck with it and went and met my friend Sarah from New Mexico, her daughter and their friend Jay for some dinner and wine.

Sometimes, ya just gotta roll with it and go sit in the trolley car & sip wine with friends.





Hopefully, I'll be able to get the kitchen picked up/packed away enough to get at my backpacking gear and get ready for the trip.

By this time tomorrow night, I'll be perched on or near a glacier watching all of the fireworks down below in the Puget Sound Region

I'll deal with the rest when we get back, and I'll be taking it in small bits...

And if the little asshat blowing up illegal fireworks would give it a rest, I could go to bed and maybe get some sleep.

~L

Mood: Apathetic









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It looks like I might not be doing the triathlon on Saturday.

The Icky Boy and I may go on our backpacking trip after all.

It might be nice to get away, decompress and figure out where we go from here (my moving back in will not be on the table)

Although, the area he suggested is still under snow and I'm not certain that I want to camp in slush.

We'll see

~L

Mood: Tired

~
*** note - I don’t much feel like squeeing today, but that’s exactly when we need to squee. No matter what else is going on in our lives there is something good to celebrate and darn if I don’t feel better after paying attention and celebrating those things, no matter how small.

Welcome to “things that make me go Squee”.

After “cleaning out the pipes” yesterday by venting for WTF Wednesday, I'm ready to "squee with glee".

In honor of Pop Fiend’s attempt at decreasing drama for at least one day a week on LiveJournal by promoting “Drama Free Thursday” (for those who aren’t aware, my blog is crossposted to LiveJournal, my self hosted WordPress blog, Blogspot, and Facebook), I offer up my own “special” (in a rode the short bus kind of way) contribution, “Things that Make Me go Squee!!!

* Things that make me go squee!” may has become a regular Thursday spectacle production because “Squee” rhymes with “Drama Free”, and I’m trying to do my part.

I think that almost everyone occasionally forgets to celebrate and share good things. I know I do.

So in the spirit of putting “good juju” out there, here are the current things that make me go “SQUEE!!!”

Last weekend was filled with fun and friends for the Seattle Rock and Roll Marathon/Half Marathon. I even got to see my friends Kay (from Florida) and Daria (from New York) We had a fun dinner at Buca Di Beppos (the most fun place to carbo load in Seattle before a race).



I got to spend some quality time with my friend Julie (and of course Mr Katz).



I got to visit (albeit a short one) with my “brother” Joseph and his wife/my good friend/sister Linda after the race. Here we are at Bahama Breeze at SouthCenter. (that be Tukwilla)



Here are Joseph and I acting like brother and sister



I got to go to the Engle’s annual Environmental picnic last week. I reconnected with lots of old friends and organizations that I haven’t seen/talked to since I left the field.



I am getting settled back into my little apartment. This whole thing has been sad and somewhat traumatic, but at least I didn’t give up my place to live (it may suck at times but it’s mine).

I think there is going to be some dialog and some sort of relationship salvaged with my loved one.

I’m only working 6 hours today (that IS only when you’re used to working 10) because I have to go home early to meet with the cable installer. Then I’m going to do some more work reclaiming my space to make it feel like home again (it was trashed before I half moved out, you should have seen some of the gross things I got out of my fridge; my favorite… “penicillin enchiladas”)

I’m going to go down to Elma and do one of the little triathlons on the 4th of July, then pick which party/fireworks display to go to.

And here are little smilies for all the squees left unsqueed





And of course, the greatest squee of all…

I am blessed to have really GREAT friends in my life

And you can see a lot of them here… (if I don’t have a picture of you here, send me one)

Insert “squee” of your choice here

I wish everyone a happy and drama free Thursday, as well as lots of things to go “Squee” over.



SKA-WEEEEEEEEE

Now, I've got to get back to work, break’s over so that I’m not behind before my long weekend.

~L

Mood: Gotta Squee







~

~
* It's taken me a while to get to this race report because I had to make a heartbreaking decision on Monday and am having a hard time with it. I am having to force myself to write this. (those who read my blog know why I'm so sad)

** I had a great race and thought the event was well organized, I did however have a very bad experience trying to volunteer which is also chronicled here. (warning, I say some things that aren't nice because 5 days later my blood still boils thinking about it)

I drove up to my friend Julie's house up on Queen Anne Hill and rode the bus down to Qwest Field to go to the expo and pick up my packet (traffic and parking down there suck pond water). Julie had driven in to work across the lake in Bellevue and caught a bus downtown to meet me.

This is where I met “The Medical Director” of the event.

In his case, the “MD” on his badge should have stood for “Major Dick” or “Master Douchebag” (sorry if that's crass, just be grateful that there wasn't an “F” in his title).

The leader of the bike medics had posted a plea to the Cascade Bicycle Club's message board needing volunteers to ride medical support on their bikes. I figured that I could run the half, then hop on my bike (just needed a spot of chainlink fence near the medical tent to lock it to in the morning) ride the course in reverse out to the turn around on I-90 and then ride the full marathon course. It would be a brick workout and would keep me from getting stiff after the run.

The nice lady who I emailed said she'd check on how to work that.

It seemed simple to me, I'm local, I can get anywhere on the course I need to be on my bike.

The bike support folks at the Seattle Marathon ride back and forth on a specific section with their ham radios.

Seems simple right?

Wrong!

I walked up to the Medical booth at the Expo to check in and was greeting by a nice young doctor who was the start line doctor. He gave me my information with a smile and appreciation for volunteering.

I joked that I was psycho for running a half marathon and then getting on my bike, but I was a sucker for an event that needed medical bike help.

That's when the “MD” went off on me.

He was a short, paunchy, balding rude little man from New York (no offense to my lovely friends from New York, but this guy was a stereotype in the worst way)

So there I sat, thinking I was doing a good thing getting my ass chewed by “Archie Bunker” about how it was a stupid idea and wouldn't work and I couldn't do it unless I could start with the runner waves because there was no way to get on course.

What a load of crap. Perhaps this nasty man should have sought out the advice of races who use bike support and locals before making that ignorant proclamation. Bike riders trying to stay upright going slow enough to stay with a wave is ineffective and pretty ridiculous.

Nice way to treat a highly qualified volunteer with local knowledge asshat!

That type of behavior may fly where he's from but not among people that actually have manners.

I restrained myself , did my best to smile, and simply said “All-righty then” and started to walk off.

The very nice Start Line Medical Director appeared somewhat mortified by this jackasses behavior and said, “Do you have medical qualifications?” to which I replied, “13 years as a paramedic, ACLS, BTLS, flight training and incident command.”

He said, “Wow, that's great; would you be interested in working in the medical tent at the finish line, you'd be wasted on the bike away.” (the bike folks were there mostly to call to activate the EMS system)

He was so nice and so sincere that I said “Yes” despite my desire to tell the rude, arrogant, egotistical MD sitting next to him to piss off.

* more on that bad idea later

Packet pickup went smoothly, we checked out the expo and then headed to dinner at Buca Di Beppos.

We met Daria & her husband, Syliva & her partner Franci (a 78 year old Ironman) Robert, Alice, Laura and Kay for a fun filled dinner (and a trip to visit the men's room to see the art work)



We all went home early in hopes of getting a good night's sleep before boarding a shuttle at an ungawdly hour to get to the start line. Julie and I wanted to get there extra early because there were problems with the shuttles at the inaugural Rock and Roll Arizona race in 2004.

yeah, that sleep thing... It didn't happen. We stayed up a bit late chatting and giggling, then Mr Katz (her feline companion) woke us up in the wee hours of the morning, not once, but twice hacking up what must have been the biggest hairball ever. (oh the joy of long haired kitties)

There were no problems with the shuttles at this race, the process ran like a well oiled machine.

We were at the start line way too early and were very cold (I hate messing with bag check and go minimalist) so we got some discarded shrink wrap from a pallet of water and wrapped up in it to stay warm.



The starting line was very well organized. The corrals started a couple of minutes apart so when yours went there was room to run. It still took almost 40 minutes to get to the start (I was in corral 22 where I never found Kay or Daria) but once it was our turn to go we were actually able to run.



I didn't find Laura in the corral either but she caught me on the course and greeted me with a friendly tug on my pony tail.

The first part of the course ran along the Green River. I think they missed a great promotional opportunity to let participants know that this is the very river where the infamous serial killer Gary Ridgeway (aka the Green River Killer) dumped his bodies.

One of the great things about the Rock and Roll series races is the energy and the music, bands, cheerleaders and more bands.

The energy was amazing throughout the entire race.

We ran down the Boeing access road and then made our way over to Seward Park and Lake Washington. I had a bit of deja vu as I ran the same course as I rode at the LiveStrong Challenge the weekend before.

I ran into Tory along the Boulevard...



We had a Bald Eagle (who ruined a lot of people's time because they had to stop and look/take pictures) watching us from his or her fishing perch along side the lake. (at least this one didn't drop a salmon in the road, getting hit by/tripping over eagle dropped salmon is a hazard here)



At about mile 9 the concrete started getting to me. Most of the roads up there are concrete and it starts to beat the body. Especially someone like me with a lot of scar tissue from the fractured spine and pelvis and who hasn't been getting the running time in.

We had a short but steep pull up to I-90 where the full marathoners did a short out and back across the bridge and the half marathoners continued on through the tunnel.

It's interesting that I've spent more time on the I-90 express lanes in that tunnel running or riding my bike than driving.



OMG, that tunnel is long, hot and has no air.

The worst part of the tunnel is that someone thought it was a good idea to put an amplified band IN the tunnel

The roar was so deafening that I first thought the Blue Angels were practicing for SeaFair, but it was a band, amplified in a closed area. It actually hurt my ears.

Please do NOT put a band in there next year.

We finally escaped the tunnel and headed into Seattle.



By this time, the lack of sleep, lack of long run training and concrete was taking it's toll and I was hurting.

We had to run past the stadiums up into town and then make another climb, this one up to the lower level of the viaduct. We were grateful for the short bit of shade.

I crossed the finish line with an unimpressive time of 2:58:10.

I grabbed some water and a bit of food, stretched out and reported for my volunteer shift at the finish line tent where I was told my medical skills would be put to good use.

They didn't have my information, tossed me a blank medical credential and a double XL shirt and then pretty much ignored me.

I tried to ask what the procedures were and what I should do, but no one could tell me.

One nice doctor finally suggest I go out towards the finish line to “sweep” (ie bring sick/injured runners in) that's where they put the people without medical training.

So there I was after running a half marathon, stiff, hurting, having been treated like crap by the medical director the day before and now ignored by the people I was volunteering for.

It was grossly overstaffed and the finish line announcer even joked that the huge cadre of medical people looked really really bored.


It was hot, my legs were sore and I was not amused.

I lasted about an hour and half at it until I realized it was stupid and harmful for me to be standing there like that after my race and just gave up and left.

After having such good experiences and being appreciated at other events for my willingness to help and my highly specialized skill set and experience, I was pretty unhappy.

I will not volunteer for these people ever again.

But it was a great, well organized race, I had a blast, spent (not enough) time with friends.

And of course, got a shiny thing.






~L

Mood: Tired









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I just don’t have a rant in me today.

This close to the 4th of July, last week’s rant still holds true.

http://wildcelticrose.net/blog/?p=3584

I’m not sure if I’ll be up to squeeing tomorrow or not…

Jussayin’…

~L

Mood: WTF?







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The one month trail co-habitation is over.

I won't go into details but I am back in my little apartment with BadKitty where we plan to stay until I can find something better that doesn't involve co-habitation.

He is a good person, he was kind, trustworthy, compromised well most of the time and did try to the best of his ability to make this work.

In the end, I'm not comfortable moving into someone else's home and life. I would never feel like an equal partner.

I have nothing bad to say about him. He is a good man; I love him and will miss him.

Even if we had tried to get a place together that was neither of ours to begin with (that was not an option for many reasons), there would still be issues.

We are at different stages in our lives. He is semi-retired looking to retire (this is where the age difference was an issue) and I am working my butt off trying desperately to start over after the catastrophic marriage and divorce.

We have different wants and needs in life, and more than a few of them were not compatible.

I decided it was best to leave rather than to force things and potentially end up with one or both of us feeling angry or frustrated.

You never know unless you try...

At least I won't regret not stepping out of my comfort zone and not trying, and I'll never wonder what could have been.

I'm going to be putting my own life and head back together for a while...

I may or may not post normally over the next few weeks. My apartment is trashed and it and my head needs a major overhaul.

I may or may not be communicative.

I will of course accept offers of food, adult beverages and the company of good friends (these things only happen when you're dead broke darn it!)

~L

Mood: Tired







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