Determined not to go more than 3 consecutive days without a run (Saturday’s 1.5-mile doesn’t really count), I slinked into the gym this evening to put a few more miles on my new Asics 2130’s. Actually I wore pair A, a Christmas gift from John, while pair B, a Christmas gift from-to me, remained in the closet for tomorrow’s effort.
The gym this time of the year is quite crowded. People are on their 3rd week of that popular “get in shape” New Year’s resolution and are still pretty dedicated so I had a short wait for an open treadmill. When one became available, I turned on my iPod, cranked up the treadmill speed and suffered through a couple of painful miles. Somewhere around mile 2, a women climbed on the treadmill next to me, put on her iPod, picked up her phone and started a loud conversation about car issues….so loud that I could hear the conversation over Pink’s “Get the Party Started” blasting in my ear. Irritation was my first reaction, then I got mad. When I get mad, I run harder and the run gets easier.
So I guess I should thank her. I completed 4 miles at a moderately fast pace and felt great after the run. Not bad for a girl still suffering from the effects of the weekend backpack, suffering so much that after the run I had to cling to the bannister to get down 10 steps to the first floor of the gym.
On another note, with the inclement weather, the bird feeders in my yard stayed pretty busy. At one point I counted 14 cardinals stationed around the green feeder, waiting to swoop in for a sunflower seed snack. Sometime late in the afternoon, I looked up from my computer and saw no birds. Then I spied a magnifiacent hawk perched in the ash tree near my window, looking for a snack of his own. He stayed around for a few minutes but it took about 30 for the smaller birds to return to feeding. Below are a few pictures from today:
