Mills Canyon Run

Here's some pictures of the Mills Canyon section of my neighborhood runs. Enjoy!

There's more that I'll post later. It seems that Blogger only lets me post a few at a time.

Long Runs and my Aching Butt

Yesterday I wanted to go running at Edgewood Park but ending up just running around the neighborhood because I ran out of time. And wouldn't it just figure that I missed out on seeing some kitties. Apparently there were two mountain lions spotted moseying into the park from the west (so from Canada Road side). I bet they were young siblings. I hope that they don't get into any trouble and that people leave them alone.

******

I ran outta time yesterday because I had a chiro appointment to fix my twisted sacroiliac joints. Apparently my butt is too tight. (Okay, yeah, tight ass jokes). Alright, so I'm no supermodel but I guess that I at least have to pay a bit more attention to my glute stretches. Along with the usual cracking and popping I endured some Graston Technique treatments. This involves deep massage with medieval torture device-like metal implements. All my bones are back in their proper alignments now, but now I have bruises all over my talibone. And my glutes were definitely still tight for my long run today. I got that not so terrific tight/tingly feeling in my butt muscles, and I just generally feel too tight back there to really get my legs swinging effectively. Ah well, this too shall pass with proper stretching...which I admit I have not been doing. Idiot.

My run was otherwise good...I crossed Skyline Blvd. at the top and tooled around for a bit in Corte de Madera too. I have to check my maps for that place to get a good additional route mapped out to extend my run. I also went up and down Skyline Trail towards Huddart for a bit. It was quite warm out, but not miserable. What's so nice is that the woods keep the hot sun from beating down on you keeping you cool even during the heat of the day.

What I want to know is what is up with the squirrels out there? There is much unneccessary spazzing when I run past them on the trails. They've got to be used to humans, somewhat. Are people hunting and eating them? I had one panic so badly when I came around a blind turn up near the top that he nearly ran under my feet trying to get away. It's some good comic relief, but I hope I don't fall into a ravine from tripping over one of those hairballs.

One Month to Go

Sans make-up, growing my hair out.

Well it's now about 1 month to go 'till the Skyline to the Sea 50k. Am I on track? I dunno. I think I'll only know when I cross that line a month from now.

The Tuesday Track workout was 1600, 1200, 800, 600, 400 and a 200. Pretty much just what I needed, I think. I got some good leg speed going at the end. I may have been too careful and slow for the 1600 and 1200 though at about an 8min pace for those. I had a lot of gas left after them, so I hit it really hard for the 600 on down.

I took Wednesday off and today I'll do a five miler on the trails, probably Wunderlich. I'm waiting to get in touch with my chiropractor because my sacroiliac joint feels a outta whack. No one is in their office today until 1pm, so I have to wait around.

Tomorrow I'll do a long run. Trails of course!

That contract gig came lookin' for me again. This time no overtime. So I decided to give it a little whirl and make a few extra $$$s for a few weeks at least. So I'll have to push my runs to the very early morning (ugh, yawn!). At least for a little while. I'll start next Tuesday, same day as my oldest starts kindergarten. But I'll start late, after I bring her in and get her settled.

At the very least the extra $$$s will pay for the Halloween costumes that I've already ordered for the kids. Ariel and Snow White. Disney owns our asses.

Monday's Run

I did a little 5k of my own. Not fast, but not slow either. I think I'm speeding up! The weekly track sessions are helping put some spring in my step again.

This run was orchestrated to get the lactic acid out of my muscles and relieve the soreness from my long run on the roads. It worked! I felt much looser and soreness-free after my run and shower.

Today....track workout.

Not All Opportunities Should be Taken....

Well, my interview went really well but what I found out about the job made it a no-go. They expect the person in that job to work from 8am to 8pm at least. I am not kidding! Seriously. They have a crazy deadline to meet and it would all fall on me. So, someone else's lack of planning would become my torture. No thank you. Plus, it wasn't enough money either. And where's my training and mommy time? Ridiculous. If you want a machine, hire a computer...oh wait, you can't hire a machine to do a person's creative work? Hmmmm. Then you need to treat people like people and not machines. Oh, and plan better. I'm sure that you've known for quite a while when you needed the work done by.

I don't wish them anything bad, it's just that it seems to be the same old story that I endlessly run into. Treat people terribly, work the hell out of them and then spit them out. The interviewer basically admitted to me that they needed to do things fast because they are planning on laying off some of the workers that they are working to death right now. Right after the deadline hits. So again, no thank you.

It's a great learning experience. In the past I'd do too much, bend too much for my work. It really was a confidence problem. And whenever I'd do this things would turn out to be a disaster. I'd be unhappy, and then my work would suffer. Or I'd really lay it all out on the line, do a great job, killing myself in the process and NEVER get repaid. Someone else would get the promotion, or I wouldn't even get thanked for my efforts. As a friend of mine said, "I'm learning to own my seniority and defend my boundaries." She's right. It's hard to me to stick to my guns, but I will. The agency has called me back TWICE now trying to renegotiate something. But it's like a break-up with a boyfriend/girlfriend; sometimes when it's over it's just over. I'm just not interested anymore.

I think I need more time off, at the very least and maybe permanent time off the corp ladder in reality. I'm mulling over some writing projects that I've had in mind that might lead to a book. What better time than now to explore this option? All in all, going back to work for someone else right now just doesn't feel right, and I'm going to follow my intuition for a change.

Long Runs are Good

....sometimes, not always. But this time, this Sunday my run was muy bueno. It was not a traditional long run on wooded trails like I ususally do. This time I ran on the roads and streets. I had mapped out a route that I wanted to do that involves running past Sawyer Camp Trail head. I just wanted to see if I could pull this thing off....and I did! It was about 13 miles long.

I left later in the morning than I had originally wanted to. I wanted to leave pretty early so that I didn't take a big chunk out of our weekend time. But I woke up feeling really tired and I needed some coffee to jump start myself. The street run was orchestrated so that I would take less time out of family time by not driving off somewhere to run. As long as I'm unemployed I can run trails during the week, and then do some local stuff on the weekends close to home. Anyway, the late start made the return trip home hot and annoying for me. But really only the last three miles were miserable. All of the uphill section was in some lovely fog bank, keeping me cool.

One really cool section was the long gradual downhill of Highway 35 from Crystal Springs Golf course to the Sawyer Camp Trail Head. It's a beautiful area of rolling hills right next to the Crystal Springs reservoir. They really need to carve an actual trail next to the road. It was kind of empowering to run all the way to Sawyer Camp. As I ran past the trail I felt a little superior to all the people who drove there...hahah not really. I was just sweatier and hotter because by then the fog had burned off.

I turned left and ran down Crystal Springs Road to El Cerrito Road. The Crystal Springs section seemed longer than I remembered, but I've never run it before, so no wonder. It was a bit narrow in sections, but okay. I did notice a trail on the other side of the creek that is next to the road. It's water district property...but I might sneak in and run on it anyway because the road is too f**ing narrow and that peaceful trail looks so lovely. I'm sick and tired of all that fabulous natural land being off limits and only for the water district use. Phooey. I so wish that there was less concrete and more dirt around here.

I saw a rattlesnake on the side of the road and two deer up on the hill. The rattlesnake was a nice reminder to not forget to keep my eye out for them! I haven't thought much about them lately since I've been off in the the cool redwoods most of the time.

Once I hit El Cerrito I felt like I was almost home, and I almost was. There were only about 3 to 4 miles left on my run at the most and I cruised it on in. I ran out of fluids about 1.5 miles from home, but I was okay. I did stop and walk for a bit but reminded myself that it only made my run longer and if I'd just step it up I'd be home in a few minutes. And really, when I started to run again I felt so much better.

One thing I've noticed after this run is that road running makes you so much more sore! I bounce back after the trails so much faster! Hills are easier on the roads because you can only encounter an incline of so much, while the trails can dish out just about anything.

So today there will be lots of stretching and only a short easy run. Tomorrow will be intervals!

In other news...

I have a phone interview today with a possible contract gig. I'm kind of ambivalent about it. I'm dreading loosing my freedom again. I know this is negative thinking. I'm trying to tell myself to just take things as they come and be relaxed about it. I'll definitely have to have next Monday off to watch my oldest, as she ends preschool on Friday and starts kindergarten on Tuesday so she has Monday off. And then I'll definitely be coming in late on Tuesday to see my girl off to school. I dread dealing with telling any work situations about things I have to do with the kids because they treat me like a criminal about it. Like I did something wrong by having a family or that it's something so wierd and out of the ordinary. It really angers me. Makes me wish I lived in a country that doesn't just give bullshit lip service to "family values" but actually protects them. I do think that it may be a function of where we live here in the Bay Area - I don't find it to be a family-friendly place anymore. It seems that companies here expect you to not have a real life outside of work. I wish I could do this contract gig from home. I hate corporate politics and I DON'T want to be involved with them again. So I'm hoping to just stay contract, for good!

Old Weezer

Gah, I guess I'm going to believe my doctor and finally admit to myself that I have asthma. My otherwise lovely five mile run was halted at times by the weezin' and squeezin' in my lungs. I've given in and renewed my Advair prescription. Tomorrow, with Advair, should be a better run. No more coughing and weezing. I realized that I could not overcome it and it was holding me back in my runs. I don't want that, no no no.

I went to my interview at the agency in Berkeley. It all went fine, I think that they just wanted to make sure that I wasn't a wacko. Now the client just has to decide if they want me or whomever else they are looking at for the gig. Either way I don't care. I've got plenty to do if I don't get it. And if I get it, well, it's just some more money for a while, new stuff for my portfolio and maybe new friends to meet. it's all good.

I haven't decided what I'm going to do tomorrow running-wise. I may go for a big long run....or I may save it for the weekend. I'll see how I feel when I wake up. : )

Random Runs and Other Stuff

My internet is up and down lately, thanks to a possessed router that blips in out in no discernable pattern. It clearly is possessed by a demon computer spirit. And I'm too hardware illiterate to figure it out. If it keeps it up it'll be exorcised by way of the trash bin!

I had a really nice 2:15 run on Monday out at Wunderlich. And then I had a good and steady track workout on Tuesday. Not blistering fast by any account but good and steady 1200m repeats at just under 8 min pace. Next week I hope that some shorter intervals are scheduled, I think I need something fast and short to shock my legs into a higher turnover. I've really turned into a LSD runner and I'm feeling a bit sluggish. This is from a gal who's best quarter ever was 55 seconds. Really, I probably should have been a sprinter. Shoulda, woulda, coulda....who cares? I'm happy where I'm at now but still, I know I have faster leg speed and I wanna get it back.

Today I did a moderate 4.5 miles. I was planning on a 3.5 hour long run tomorrow but I'm going to postpone that because I have an interview with an agency at 1:30pm. This just came up out of the blue. I've spoken with them before, but they didn't get back to me so I thought that that was the end of it. The interview is all the way over in Bezerkley, which is quite a drive, but I'll only have to do it once. The job that they want me for is in Hayward, which is across a bridge for me, but not too bad. It sounds like a fun gig, and all I'd really want right now is a no strings attached contract job which is what this is. They say that it's temp to hire but I don't care about that, I'm thinking of it being just a few weeks gig and then back to freedom again. If it ends up being unbelievably great...well then I'd have to cross that bridge when I get there. I'm still wanting to do the trainer thing, and I really think that's where I'm headed ultimately. I just want to put a few more $$$s in the bank and add something else to my resume. And I always meet new friends at work, so there's that too. It's always good to expand your circle whenver you can. One thing always leads to another!

So tomorrow will probably be 1.5 hours or so. Not sure where I'll do it, maybe I'll go to Edgewood and run, I haven't been there for a while. Or Sawyer Camp. I'll get out in the morning after I drop the kids off and get it done before I head out to Bezerkely.

Full Circle

Although my times were miserably slow, running at the track again felt like coming home! Many of the old timers were there from when I started running with this little group years and years ago. And they are all still fast, fit and committed!

My allergies were awful though. My lungs were so congested that the coughing literally started to make my chest hurt. I declined a two-mile cool down around town because of it. I had a fitful nights sleep because of it too. I woke up at about 3am and never went back to sleep again. I'm feeling a bit better now and will go out for an afternoon 4 miler in a few minutes. I can truthfully blame some of my slow times on my congested lungs!

Before the track session I stopped in at Runner's Feet across the street from the track and bought a few things for old times sake. All of the shoes in the most common sizes were long gone, so I opted for a cute running skirt and a running shoe bag with the store logo and locale on it. This way I can look at it and remember the good old times. At least the group is still here and I'll be a part of it again, even if the store that started it is gone. I know that the only thing that is permanent is change, but I sometimes you just want a few things to stay the same so that you have something to hold on to.

We'll have the store there for a few more weeks. There are some rumors that another running store will move in there. That would be nice.

My cute skirt.....and a completely unrelated lazy cat Simba picture.

Serendipitous Run

I went on a late afternoon run as kind of one of those errand runs. I was going to stop by the local running shop to see the owner and say hi and unfortunately bye for now. She's closing shop after many years at this location. I'd buy everything from her (and I used to) but I get stuff from my hubby who works in the runnin' biz. I feel a little bad about that, but it's just personal circumstances.

The Store - Runner's Feet

As I was running to the store I ran into (almost literally) one of my old running pals. It looks like he's coaching the local high school kids, which is awesome. I then ran into the store's owner a few blocks away from the store as she was waiting to cross the street.

We walked to the store together as Frank the Coach went to the high school across the street to continue his coaching duties. We caught up on our lives, talked about our kids and how we manage to juggle everything. She now lives out in Turlock where she has another store and she loves it there. The commute has become too crazy for her to do the several times a week she's been doing it (about 4 hours one way!).

And with the closing of Runners' Feet there will be no more local running stores in the area AT ALL. The closest, non-chain stores are in Menlo Park or in SF. Running stores can be such the backbone of a running community, a wonderful gathering spot, the place to meet old and new friends. There's one less piece of community here in my hometown of Burlingame, no more touchstone for us runners. The feeling of community has long been eroding here though, really since the late 80's when mall-style stores started moving into the downtown area and housing prices started to skyrocket. I really can't say that things have improved with the gentrification, it's more like a whole new group of people moved in that I don't have anything in common with, so I feel like someone took my hometown in the middle of the night and replaced it with something else.

But with my visit at the store I found out that there still is a group that meets at the track on Tuesday evenings and at least one of my old friends will be there tomorrow night. So Hubby gets to pick up the kids tomorrow and I'll get to do some reconnecting and maybe some planning of great group trail runs!

So after my short little visit at the store I continued on my run. I'd planned a short run in lieu of a very long run tomorrow but I ended up doing an hour because I felt so good! I felt a little more at home, more at home than I've felt in my neighborhood in a while.

Tomorrow I think I'll do a trail run in the morning at Edgewood and then the track workout in the evening. I will go easy on the track workout since I haven't done a really speedy speed workout in forever and I'll have worked out in the morning already. But there is method to my madness - First - I'm working up to an ultra so I'm in need of miles, miles, miles. Secondly - I've found that running cures my allergies and Zyrtec is just not cuttin' it anymore. So I'll run in the morning for some relief and then more in the evening for more relief. Strange but true. It's a great excuse to bug out for a run. :)

It's ON!

Okay, so here I go again. I've signed up for the Skyline to the Sea 50k. I could just NOT stay away. Actually it makes me feel all giddy and happy inside and I KNOW I'll make it. And this is why -

• The hubby is super suportive of it....well he always is!
• I have a great new UD water backpack so there will be no dehydration issues! ( I command it!)
• I am not going to expect fantastic things of this race... no blistering fast times. To finish in the alloted time will be a WIN
• I've learned from my missteps and "failures" and will apply them to this race
• I also know the course and I have run it before with friends, not as a race but just as a fun run Birthday celebration. So I've been there and done that.

So, here we go again! I'm back on the track ...and trail. I've had some really good 2.5+ hour runs that make me feel very confident. And some new Superfeet orthotics seem to have solved my tendon issues in my feet. Let me know if you're running this one too and maybe we can meet up!

A Worthy Cause

Check out this organization. I donated to them today.

Nepalese Youth

A wonderful organization that's changing the world one child at a time. We who are so fortunate can spare a little to make the world a better place.

1-1/2 Hours of Contemplation







I did 1-1/2 hours at Wunderlich. Just did a loop to the Crossroads and back down again. Kind of lazy of me, I wish I had gone to the top, but I was having odd tummy rumbles that indicated I needed a bathroom break so I headed back down Alambique trail to the porta potty. No more Alambique to the trail head for me. It's an annoying, steep root-rutted decent that doesn't make for fast times or smooth running. I don't really need the obstacle course training, I need to get some smoother trail speed in there. From now on I'm taking the Oak trail to Salamander Flat on the way down. Way more interesting.







I wasted much time contemplating my previous employment experience on the way up to The Meadows on Bear Creek Trail. I thought of all the coulda, shoulda, wouldas...which is really dumb because I pretty much knew from minute one that the whole job was trainwreck waiting to happen. So why ponder? I realized sometime after Redwood Flat that I was just hiking; trudging uphill muttering to myself. And making ridiculously slow time. What a waste of energy - not the excercise but the mental energy of mulling over this past failure. When I got to the meadow I was greated by a beautiful scene, the coastal fog spilling over the hills and into the valley below. That's why I'm here. And this is now. Enough of what was then. It's a new day.

















Today will be an easy 3 miler in town. And maybe a moderate run tomorrow morning before I go on a fieldtrip at the kids' preschool. Then I'll go to the top of the ridge on Thursday. For sure. Into the fog and beyond!

Monday is the New Saturday

It's Monday after a long weekend for the kids with their daycare closed on Friday. I miss them...but I have to remind myself that this gives me time to run, fix up the house and study. In a few minutes I'll be out of the door and headed for a trail run somewhere...most likely my lovely Wunderlich.

Saturday I did a great 5 mile loop with massive climbing here in my neighborhood. I took my secret trails to the top of our ridgeline and ran along Skyline Blvd. for a ways before dropping back down again. I went early in the morning, and it was beautiful - warm and sunny. Right now we have lots of fog and overcast, it's supposed to be this way for the rest of the week...yuck!

Sunday I kept things flat and easier but i ran harder. I'll have to measure the loop I ran, I'm not sure how long it was.

I've found a cool new running website here. It's a great way to map your run!

Kiddie Day

The kiddos' daycare is closed today for a teacher inservice day. Very unlikely cause, I'm sure that no one is at the school and they are all just taking a day off. So it's park and play time...all day today. I'll get relieved for my run in the afternoon when Daddy gets back from his Friday work duties that include driving to all of the stores that he manages - it's tough, but he does get home a little earlier.

Then after my run I'll go volunteer as I do every Friday for the cat shelter that I volunteer at - The Homeless Cat Network.

I should really start training early in the morning again. The problem with being jobless is that the workouts slide to the middle of the day, because you have time to do that. But then it becomes a problem when you have other things to do too. I'll see if I can kick myself out of bed early tomorrow to get my run in. It should be an interesting experiment. I give myself a 30% chance of actually following through on it.

Cleaning Out the Mind-House

So many of our problems are really all in our heads. My over-arching problem in my head that is spilling out everywhere else is my father. Maybe you can understand if you have overbearing parents, but my dad drives me crazy. He's one of those people who ALWAYS has to be right, must give his opinion at all times (believing he is always right). And again he is trying to control me.

Last night he calls me up and asks me how many credits I have outstanding at Cal State in my MS degree in Kinesiology and if I can add that to a med degree....He's trying to force me to go back to school to be a doctor. He is completely OBSESSED with school. He thinks that degrees are the answers to EVERYTHING in life. For example, he is completely convinced that if you have a law degree you can do ANYTHING in life; like doors will automatically open for you and that everyone will just lay down for you and you can do no wrong. He drives me nuts because there is no talking to him at all - he just bullies himself forward.

I know he's lost friends over this behavior. He drives my mom crazy. He had been good about things for a long time but now that I've left my job he's all obsessed again. Does anyone have any advice? Any magic bullet that will shut him up? I'm trying to keep my distance and the plan is that the next time he bugs me about it I'll kindly ask him to please, just, stop. That my career and my work choices are no longer up for discussion.

We live close by to my parents, which I think is part of the problem. I keep nudging my husband to look for a new job SOMEWHERE ELSE. The years that I spent away from here on my own were heavenly. Having some distance from them was great, and I'd really like that again. I feel bad about wanting to be away from them because of the kids - I know that they love seeing them, but the overbearing attitude and being all up in my business is getting out of hand.

Run Report -

On a happier note...I ran for about 40 minutes up at Wunderlich yesterday. I'm about to go back and run some more as soon as I'm done with this post. I ran out of time and had to turn back on the trail so I'm getting up there earlier today. It was kinda creepy out there yesterday...no one else was there when I was out there in the middle of the afternoon. And parts of the trail have gotten brushy and overgrown. All I could think about were mountain lions. So I ran with my knife unsheathed like a crazy woman. Today I'll be more sane.

The Need to Keep Positive

I was looking at listings for job openings for personal trainer on the web. They all look so exciting and so much fun. I'm both excited and scared. Scared because everything I see requires at least a year of experience. How am I going to get the experience...if I can't get hired w/o experience?


I realize I'm jumping the gun here and that opportunities will present themselves when I'm ready for them. I think about when I was starting out as a writer and it was so hard to find work if you didn't have experience...but as soon as I was "in" I was totally in and could easily find work. And I would reach out and help others that wanted in. There has to be employers out there who are the same...those that want to reach out and pull new, great trainers into the profession.


I know that thinking positively is the key and that I have to keep my attention on the main goal. Everyone is new at what they do at some time in their lives!


Saturday I ran on my secret trails and into Mills Canyon. It was marvelously quiet; I surprised many gray squirrels and even a cottontail resting in the middle of the trail. I found another trail head in and out of the park...not a very useful one for me, but one that may come in handy when I find the elusive lower entrance/exit that will help me avoid the creek scramble.

Sunday I did a 40 minute run around Hillsborough and then some tough ab work. Today (Monday) I'm feelin' a bit tired but I'm going to get out there anyway this afternoon. I'll have to take off Friday or do something mellow that day because daycare/preschool will be closed so I'll have the munchkins.

Hot to Trot!

I dwaddled around the house for half of the morning yesterday before getting out for a run at Huddart Park. When I got there at mid-morning it was 100 degrees in the parking lot and there were only two other cars that I could see. I love being insane.

The run was actually really nice! The heat didn't bother me, I just took it way easy. My muscles felt so nice and loose it was like gliding over the trails. I was sure to be super well hydrated with my UD backpack filled with icy sports drink. I went straight up Crystal Springs Trail for 35 minutes and then back down in 26 to make it an 1:01 run in the heat. This was good heat training, since I haven't put much time in in the heat this year yet.

I saw the cutest thing on the trails that I haven't seen (or noticed) before. All of the grey squirrels were laying, sprawled on their tummies with their legs splayed out on the trails in the shade. No doubt soaking up some coolness from the dirt before the sun would shift and shine on it. They were all quite perturbed when I'd come barreling down the trail and disturb them. Some would wait until the absolute last second to move and I'd have to start taking countermeasures to avoid them sending me zigzagging like a crazy person down the trail. How dare I ruin their fun!

Today I'll hit the weights and the books. A super hot day is a good one to study for my CPT in the shade. I'm a little worried about myself now, because it's become clear to me that I can't ever go back to the 9 to 5 again. So I better get going on getting my cert!

Backcountry Fun!

We had a great 4th of July weekend up in Hillbilly Heaven. We drove up to the high country and went swimming/picnicking/lounging at gorgeous Silver Lake (near Kirkwood). Did some running, but there was a lot of smoke in the area so I didn't do as much as I'd hoped to do. My achillies is still buggin' me a little bit, so I'm being gentle and trying to cross-train more.

I'm already missing the woods/mountains and feel a little sad today. Maya has been saying over and over again that she misses the cabin. I'm raising a little mountain girl! (yay!)

The smoke is creeping in around here again too. I'll have to get my runs in in the early mornings on the next few days since it's supposed to be super hot here with bad air quality. I'll go out and do a weights workout in the gym in my garage today to avoid the bad air. I can already feel the smoke in my throat and sinuses.

I'll be studying this afternoon for my CPT and doing a little HGTV style home redecorating. I'm ripping down old wallpaper and will be repainting. I can't wait to see how much better it's going to look! Right now it's not so great looking with the underlayers of crappy wallpaper and ugly bare wall underneath but it will be so worth it. Good bye boring beige wallpaper!

Sniffles?

Sheesh! I can't possibly have a cold, can I? I've been trying to fool myself into believing that the girls had allergies too...but methinks what we all have is a cold. In July. GREAT!

So it's rest and fluids for me today to try and get rid of this thing ASAP. And I'll use my time to study too.