I finished!

In our Church we have the Bible, the Book of Mormon, The Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price, along with our Articles of Faith and Joseph Smith's History compiled into what we call the standard works. The topical guide is like the index of indexes, going alphabetically through each topic in the above books of scriptures, each topic having all the references listed. I clicked on each verse listed under each reference, unless I already knew it. I paid extra special attention to Isaiah and the Gospels in the New Testament. The topical guide is long! Without the verses, which would lengthen it 100 times, it has more pages than the New Testament.

It took me almost three years to go through the entire topical guide, if I am remembering the starting date right. There were days, especially at the beginning and the end, when I spent hours and hours, a lot of those actually. There were a few days I missed entirely, and many when I only read one or two references from only one of the topics. I kept going, excited always for the next word or to get to the next letter by a certain date, or just basking in something so Good after a long day. The thing I learned, more than anything, is I that belong to the Church of Jesus Christ. All the work that was done to compile the topical guide, all the years, all the focus, is about and on Christ. The topic, "Jesus Christ" makes up 18 and a half pages of references. Of course if you look up each and every one, that is more like 1800 pages...but that's not all. Virtually every other topic I read also points to Christ. We worship Him.
 The next biggest thing I learned is how little I know. The more I learn the more I realize I want and need to learn, both in my head and in my heart; it's about the connection. It is as He said, "line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little, there a little." I hope to continue to study, every day, for as long as I am.

Halloween viewing for your pleasure

Making an informed choice

We should talk to each other more. Most of us are disappointed in Congress (if one believes the poll numbers), yet most of us will not vote, and some of us will vote ignorantly. It isn't just about the President...some would argue Congress is at least as powerful. I would argue the media is more powerful in the real terms of the effect on our daily lives; I think they even affect elections.

I just filled out my ballot and it took a couple of hours of studying for me to be reasonably sure I was voting responsibly. I have a master's degree but found it hard to understand some of the resolutions/bills I was voting on; at least one seems to have been written with the intent to deceive. Except for the talking heads and a few who are considered "out there", we don't get much. Who is saying what? And even more importantly, who voted on what and how and why? Who knows? Who cares? We should care...we should make an effort, even if it takes some homework.

My poor hippies

I was having a political conversation with my ideological college son. He wants to save the world and has zero evil ideas, but thinks everyone else does...it's more complex than that, but the point of mentioning it here is that he thought I wouldn't get along with "hippies".  I of course disagreed...I love hippies, they are laid back. So there.

However, it is 2:28 am and there is that low lying stress, the kind that is just there and isn't going away, no matter how I will it so. The thing that made me sit up in bed was the fact there have been a LOT of hippie issues lately. My Mom has broken both her hips in the last year, most recently about a week ago. My youngest sister suffered a stress fracture in her sacrum last winter.

And those are just the easily identifiable issues, the ones that warranted an immediate x-ray from those hippie sorts of doctors.

Then there are the runner hippy issues. Also in the last year I have a brother with a pulled groin, one with an ITB issue that manifested in his hip, another brother with a different sort of pulled groin plus what sounds like hip point tendonits plus maybe high ITB inflammation...literally every one of us who has tried to run has had hippie sorts of issues. Yet another brother, (did I mention I have many brothers?), has an ITB issue so severe it is just not worth the pain of trying to run through it at all. His first complaint though was a "shift" he felt in his lower back and hip during a benign, aka non-intense run.

What is up? I've been to physical therapy for the maximum allowable time my insurance will pay and I must say my hips are fine as long as I haven't ran earlier that day (they don't hurt while I am running). But if I go anywhere close to intense I hobble around like someone who needs a total hip replacement the rest of the day. It is like my entire pelvis has collapsed. I veer sharply to the left when I first try to walk...It even hurts when I wake up in the morning, even before I have moved.

These are all thoughts I intend to share with the orthopedic surgeon who diagnosed my Achilles tendinitis (thanks but I already knew that and was already doing the therapy). Why am I suddenly wide awake about this? Because a runner Facebook friend read me the riot act all day yesterday, messaging me back and forth, telling me I may have to stop running, swimming, elliptical (anything that might remotely resemble aerobic exercise), for a YEAR. Or die. He speaks from experience, not about the dying, but about the end of career-ing his iliopsoas injury caused.

Okay, end of rant. I'll go look for a picture of a hip, or at least a hippie sort of person.

Meals on Aquajog wheels

That was remarkably easy, and embarrassingly no big deal. Why have I been so scared for so long? I looked okay in my swimming suit, mostly because it is a VERY modest tankini, more like a running outfit really, AND...I went in. the. deep. end. I know, I had a flotation device on but hey, there were warnings written all over it about how it is NOT a flotation device and should not be used by nonswimmers, etc. I am a nonswimmer; however, as I was jogging along, I realized I could stop jogging and not sink, at least not too much. As long as I remain conscious, I really can't drown in that thing. And the other people around me didn't stare or seem overly aware at how out of place I was...in fact, I didn't even feel out of place. It is so weird to be done with a workout and NOTHING hurts, just tired muscles. I felt like that last... before children, way before children. I will definitely be doing it again.

I even took a shower at the gym (hey they even had curtains), then headed straight for my Meals on Wheels "job", also a first today. I got my fix, I got to see sorta kinda patients, (I used to be a nurse and loved the patient care), and sorta kinda help them. Okay, I just handed them a meal someone else had made, but they smiled. And five of them pretended they just happened to be passing by the door just then. They were excited to see me/food! I don't get that kind of a response when I cook at home.

Then I went to my youngest son's student led parent-teacher conference. He is so well behaved and has such good grades it's boring. I think he was sent here to set a good example for me; it is not my fault he is perfect, really it isn't.

By the way, it's hard for me to write to myself every night, even though it's a good thing to do, so thank you for the comments!

I have finally found a marathon and yes, it's on a Saturday, thank you.

I barely made it through ten walk/jog miles on the treadmill today. I'm hoping that means I have trained really hard up to now and need a break week...

TOMORROW I go aqua jogging. Scary! I'm afraid of water, but mostly swimming suits. I've bought many, yes many adorable and lovely and fat hiding swimming suits. I've tried on a few, swam in one, once, a very, very, very, long time ago. My PT will be there; hopefully I won't shock her too much by my irrational fears.

Oh yeah, the marathon. It's in Surprise!....Arizona. Yes, a tiny city called Surprise, AZ. Desert Classic Marathon. It seems that it's so small there is not even a course map. However, the timing and location couldn't be better, at least not for a January marathon.

And for those of you worrying. My Mom is out of surgery and back to room #3; her surgery and anesthesia went well, or so I'm told. (I'm always suspicious when the one doing the surgery is the one reporting...shouldn't I wait to see what my Mom thought???)

Newsy post

1) Went to Time Out for Women in Phoenix, AZ
2) Was inspired by Amanda Dickson http://www.ksl.com/?nid=173&sid=74133

3) Hung out with the MBAs
4) Flew home and got stranded in a trashed Vegas airport. Apparently it rained, with lightning. So they shut the airport down and told us on the tarmac, "we have lost contact with operations. We don't know how long we will be here." Funzies
5) Got home around 0130, went to bed, woke up from youngest poking his head in, "bye, Mom, I'm going to school now". Guilt trip was followed by...
5 a) Guilt trip #2) looked at my iPhone and there was an email from my Josh in Brazil. I had forgotten to write to him for the first time on his mission. I almost had a perfect record; he only has three weeks left.
6) Phone ringing. It was my Dad. My Mom broke her hip again! She escaped outside, fell down and did the same break as last year, femoral neck impaction fracture, only on the other side. Scary. And hard for my sister-in-law, who is taking care of her.
7) Jumped out of bed and pounded out 4.3 fast ones on the treadmill. Surprised at how tired I am; it took a lot to sustain the 7.6 mph pace for even a few minutes.
8) Went to physical therapy, where I was promoted to aqua jogging class. It starts Wednesday. I mentioned I was afraid of both water and swimming suits.
9) Made the best pot of chili ever created. Lots of chili powder, cumin, green chiles, black pepper, onions, and two pounds of meat. Oh. And red pinto beans.
10) Found out from the Boston Athletic Association that registration for the Boston marathon had opened....and closed, all in the space of 8 hours. I think they should make it harder to qualify. At least for us women. I got to run it twice; I am grateful.
11) Skipped P90X. I am tired.
12) Went to the store and bought various and sundry items for various and sundry things.
13) Etc. Mom things. Laundry, talking to sons away from home, playing taxi driver to sons at home, grocery shopping, phone duty for my Mom's condition updates, adding numerous appointments to my calendar this week.

TEN without stopping

And I can sweat like no other. I keep wondering if the treadmill is waterproof.
There is yet another brother headed to Richmond, should I walk or coach?

This blog is still here?!?!

I declare it my running/thinking blog.
I'm sitting here with ice on; still have hip/groin issues even 12+ weeks after surgery. Ran 6 today, 8.5 yesterday. Yes, I'm also in PT, yes I'm doing my exercises, and a tentative yes, I think I'm getting my fitness back, although so slowly!
Over the weekend I went to pace my brother at the Hartford ING marathon. He has been posting some great stats and I thought he would easily qualify for Boston. Miles way up, speed way up, able to run in the Houston heat and the Utah altitude, basically he rocks.
The plan was for me to meet him at mile 20, however, there were no taxis available and I had no idea how to get there. I asked lots of questions to lots of nice New Englanders and got lots of different answers, starting with, "you are in the wrong city, the marathon is in East Hartford". Good thing I had my Garmin on so I could track all the miles. I headed out, finally seeing some of the first runners coming in and the route was easy to follow after that. I headed for mile 20, but still unsure of my speed, decided to turn around at mile 22 and jog very, very slowly. By mile 24 when he still hadn't caught up to me, I headed back to 22 again, over and over. I started to get really worried, finally got in touch with his wife ("no, I still haven't seen him"), and then headed back in earnest. I didn't go far when I saw him, or the visage of him. He looked horrible and scared me to death. He had done amazingly until 20, then rapidly slowed down, then threw up. A lot. Even an hour later I was furtively looking at the medical tent, trying to talk him into an IV.
So....my next stop is the Richmond marathon on November 13, with another brother, my son, and the above brother too. My parents are there and yet another brother (yes, I have 8, thank you very much) and my sister-in-law are there, so it will be a happy family thing.
But the question is, could I do it too? I don't think so. As of today my longest run nonstop is 7 miles, although I have gone 16 and ran off and on 14 of those. It wouldn't be a PR, that's for sure.