And we're off

This Friday we begin the race season for 2006.

Matt's first race is the Steelhead Triathlon in Michigan. This is a half-ironman triathlon, so it will be a long day for all of us. Matt's Mom will be joining us for the race, and she will be in for a surprise. There is a whole lot of waiting to do for this type of race when you are there for support. You wait for them to come out of the water, then you wait for them to come back from the bike course, then you wait for them to cross the finish line from the run portion. Even with all of that waiting, it is quite a sight to see the participants cross the finish line and know that they have completed something that few people ever do.

This will be Matt's second half-ironman, so he has some goals for himself. I just want him to cross the finish line. The weather is supposed to break the day before the race and the forecast looks to be sunny with a high of 81. Matt will be racing for at least 4 hours, so the less humid and hot the better. You should be able to see his race results on Sunday and I should have some pictures to post.

As I said before, this is just the beginning. We seem to be embarking on a lot of traveling next month, but we aren't always going very far from home. Matt has a business trip out to Denver the third week in August and he is going to hop over to Las Vegas to see his Dad and Stepmom. Then we go to Cincinnati the day after he gets back. September takes us to Marblehead for the Great Lake Escape triathlon where Matt will have to jump off a ferry boat into Lake Erie and swim to shore, on purpose. While jumping into Lake Erie sounds crazy, the real crazy part is if he does well, he could qualify for the Escape from Alcatraz triathlon. That's right, the prison. But as crazy as it sounds, it makes him happy.

At the end of September we go up to Akron to visit the university where we met and to participate in the Akron Marathon. Supposedly, Matt's brothers and sister-in-law are going to join us for the 5-person relay. Mark, if you are reading this, I hope you, Brenda and Mike are still be planning on being there. I have been training for the final leg of the race and I better not have run 7 miles this past Saturday for nothing. I am not the runner in the family, but Matt figures it will be an easy race for all of us. We'll see.

October keeps us home for the Columbus Marathon and a visit from Matt's Dad and Stepmom. Then in November we go to Philadelphia to eat cheesesteak, kiss the Liberty Bell, and participate in the Philadelphia Marathon and knock Pennsylvania off the list of states in which Matt needs to run 26.2.

Of course, all of this is done without the pup. So we will get the glare and pout every time the suitcase comes out. Of course, he is spoiled enough that we have someone come over to watch him and the house while we are gone. So Goliath still gets plenty of attention while we are gone and I toss and turn each night because I don't have a 15-pound furnace pressed up against me while I sleep.

I once grew a zucchini this big...

Time is flying by and the weather is heating up. In the past week, I ran in a 5K race, Matt had a birthday, I went to a library conference, and the garden has grown. You can see above our new deck shading. It has really come in handy on the hot, hot, hot summer days. We have not been able to sit outside much, but it really shades the kitchen where the walls are mostly glass.

Luckily, we have been receiving a fair amount of rain, which was the case last Saturday when we went downtown for the Dash For Donation. A good friend of mine asked me to run in it since it benefits organ donation. Her son was born with only half of his heart developed and had to have a transplant at only a few weeks old. Now he is a happy and healthy 4-year-old that ran to meet his mother as she crossed the finish line after race-walking a half marathon. I just went in for the 5K. If you are interested, you can see the results. Matt did not participate since he needed to ride his bike that day. He has a hard time being a non-participant. I could tell he was a bit antsy when the half marathon finishers were coming in. But, how often do I run a race while he watches? I was really grateful for the support.

Sunday through Tuesday of this week, I was down in Wilmington, Ohio for a conference/retreat of which I am on the planning board. I did not get to attend many sessions (only one), but I did get to meet several new people in the library world. I did not, however get much sleep in the campus apartments. I forgot how uncomfortable a college bed could be. Needless to say, I was so happy to come home Tuesday night and crash in my own bed.

Wednesday was Matt's birthday and of course, he wanted to keep things low-key. We went out for dinner to one of our Columbus Originals restaurants (The Clarmont) and ate way too much. Matt's boss commented that our choice of restaurant was were all the "old folks" went to eat. Matt did have to laugh at all the Cadillacs and other large cars in the parking lot. We had a great meal, and got seated just before the rush. The diners at the Clarmont do not follow the "elderly as early diners" rule. We were seated by 6:30 and were one of the first dozen there. The place was hoppin' when we left and this was a Wednesday night. Retirement should be a lot of fun.

This morning Goliath and I went for a walk in the neighborhood and then a stroll through the garden. I was looking to harvest a cucumber or two and some tomatoes, but we were in for a shock. There was a huge, and I do mean huge zucchini waiting for us. Too bad I cannot enter it in a county fair, it weighs over 6 pounds. Goliath is about 13 inches from neck to tail and this veg might be a bit longer. I cannot find my tape measure to be sure. I tried to get a picture of Goliath next to it, but every time I would move it close to him, he would jump away. Yes, my dog is a afriad of a zucchini.

Busy, busy week

Now that Matt is back from Florida, things seem to be busy all of the time. Last Saturday we went to the movies and out to lunch and I was able to capture this gem of Matt in the theater lobby. I told him that I was going to use it for our Christmas card. I think he needed the break of no work at home or at the office since he was just so tired from the trip. It is good to see him smile again.

We have had quite a bit of rain with our hot humid weather and garden is going crazy. I have harvested my first crop of zucchini and I have had no problem figuring out what to do with it. One of my favorite dishes in a no-fry eggplant parmesan and I have found that I can substitute summer squash and it taste just as good. So here is the resulting dish. This will last us a few days and I picked up some more sauce at the market for when the next crop comes in.

Matt enjoyed it for lunch one day with a salad using lettuce and cucumbers from the back yard. So even though my eggplant never managed to grow, we still are able to create a meal from our fledgling garden. That to me is success.

The big highlight of the week was the installation of shade covers on the deck. We now have lovely bright yellow canvas stretched across the top level and it has made all the difference. The house is cooler upstairs because not so much sunlight is flooding the kitchen and I found that I had to get a blanket out on Sunday afternoon when I was reading a book. So between the new air conditioner and the canvas shade, we are finally getting the house to a comfortable temperature for us. I have even found myself sitting outside around noon enjoying a book and the view. Something that I would have never, ever done before. It has been quite toasty this weekend, but I can at least last for 20-30 minutes at a time.

The Best Laid Plans...

Our holiday weekend was interesting in a very non-traditional way. I spent most of the day Saturday either steam cleaning the carpets or napping trying to fight off what felt like sinus or flu problems. Sunday was more of the same until Matt returned from Florida in the evening. I heard from a few of his fellow travelers that he was a "treat" to be around. Evidentially, he made a declaration that he was not going to shower for the entire trip and that shocked a few of them. Now, I know that he was just joking and trying to get a reaction since he pulls this kind of stuff all the time with me, but these folks seemed to take him seriously at first. Oh well, he took regular showers each day and even got a rain bath one night. By the time he got home and Goliath jumped all over him, I could tell he was wiped out. Good thing he had Monday off. I, on the other hand did not.

Monday started just like any other work day with me going in early to get my run and weight training taken care of before I head up to my office. On this day, getting into the building was a challenge since a fire broke out around 6:30 in the morning. A group of us stood outside for an hour before we decided to have a late breakfast. My work day which normally begins at 7:00 did not start until close to 10:00. Even then, things were crazy since the smell of smoke was still lingering in the atrium and hallways. We lasted until 1:00 and then took off for the rest of the day with some headaches and sinus problems. Today, the smell is all but gone, unless you go down the stairs close to the source of the fire. Unfortunately, people that have their desks located in that area have to work in one of our other buildings for a few weeks until the damage is repaired.

Matt and I went swimming Monday afternoon, and I never realized how hard it can be when you actually do it the right way. I always swim laps by using the backstroke so I don't have to constantly move my head in and out of the water, but today I thought I would try a front crawl. After two laps I was huffing and puffing and had to ask for a technique lesson from my resident expert. Matt walked me through the 5 stages to get to a full crawl and I got through the first 3 without too many problems. I will need to get some goggles and wear a swim cap if I want to try the 4th stage again. What a mess and my eyes were burning.

Tuesday morning we had planned to go on a long bike ride at one of the local trails, but the rain was constant so we stay in and cleaned furniture and the bathrooms. We then decided to go to a movie and have some lunch. Lunch ran longer than we thought and we decided to not rush the food and skip the movie. During lunch, I was witness to one of the most disturbing sporting events I had ever seen: Nathan's Famous July Fourth International Hot Dog Eating Contest on ESPN. I do not eat hot dogs EVER and to see people cramming them into their mouths for 12 minutes was unreal. I think the winner ate almost 54 hot dogs. That's right, 54 hot dogs in 12 minutes. Next time to have a cookout and grab a dog, see how long it takes you to consume it at a normal pace. And believe it or not, these people are pros. There is an entire organization called the International Federation of Competitive Eating. There are international rankings and various disciplines for competition including ice cream, pies, pizza, ribs, and even corned beef and cabbage. The fact that no one threw up during the contest amazed me. Of course they would be disqualified. Watching it was like looking at an accident. You know you should just move on, but you are compelled to witness the spectacle.

Anyway, we returned home for some more lazy time since the rain was not going away and continued to witness disturbing and bizarre America by watching the Dirty Jobs marathon on the Discovery Channel. This is one of our favorites. If you have never seen it, check it out. The host participates in 1-3 real jobs per episode, and it just amazes me what people do for a living. We got to see him catch, tag, and release sharks for marine studies; artificially inseminate a horse and a pig; but by far the worst to watch was putting on a tar roof. The work looked miserable and something that I am glad that I do not have to do, but I am glad someone knows how. I would not last an hour at some of these. Wow, what a lot of work. I will never complain about shelving serials again.