And knitting

This is leftover yarn from a throw blanket I made for a friend. It's fun bulky soft yarn (Bernat Blanket) so I thought it would be nice for some running accessories. Wouldn't you know that I am wearing this headband quite a bit because i lost my favored smartwool headband. Boo! that is the second one of those that i have lost.

Bulky Cable Headband

Provisional cast on with waste yarn 8 stitches.
Stockinette stitch until piece measures about 2.5 inches then K1 M1, K6, M1 K1 so you will have 10 stitches. Continue in stockinette stitch until piece measures 9-10 inches.
K1, slip 4 to cable needle and hold in front, K4 from left hand needle, knit 4 from cable needle, K1
Continue in stockinette stitch until piece measures around 16” and make corresponding decreases (one on each edge) so you have 8 stitches again. Continue in stockinette until piece measures 18-20” but I just hold it up to my head to see how it fits stretched which is how it will be worn as a running headband.
Join using kitchener stitch (knit, purl, purl knit!). Weave in ends.
I made one is for my mother-in-law for when she walks. My mom requested one and chose a smaller one. I made one for myself for winter running. This yarn is great for this. It’s very soft, warming and doesn’t weigh that much. If it gets wet, you don’t notice and it dries quickly.
One skein has made three headbands and one cowl and I could probably make another headband.

A fun knit

This is a hat to wear when out running and I was inspired to knit it when I saw a friend of a friend wearing one when yes, you guessed it, out running. It is bright and cheerful and can be changed to accommodate any color scheme. Each stripe of color for the rainbow palette only takes a portion of each skein so multiple hats are encouraged. I’ve been thinking of fingerless gloves too.

The hat was cast on and knit to achieve the rolled brim in single strand of the worsted weight yarn. After 4 rounds to allow the rolled brim to develop, the yarn was doubled to give a thicker weave and denser fabric. Yarn was double-stranded for the rest of the hat.

Cast on 77. Join round and knit 4 rows in single strand. Join in second strand of same color and knit approximately 2” (7 rows of double stranded knitting for me). With next row, knit in new color (double-stranded). The following row, purl the entire row. Continue knitting 6 more rows (the band of color will be approximately 1”). Continue this pattern with the next 2 colors (4 rows of color total).
Start crown decreases after approximately 6” of length depending on head size. You may have already started the next color band before starting the decreases.
To decrease:
Row 1: Knit 9 sts, K2Tog (repeat to the end of round)
Row 2: Knit one row even

Repeat these two rows, decreasing by one before the K2Tog for each repeat. Knit 8 will be next, etc.
Continue until you have 6 stitches left. Break yarn and draw through remaining stitches. Weave in the many, many ends.

End of the Season

 

I rested and recovered after the marathon in early November. Thanksgiving was wonderful and I used the time off to try and get some training on trails. I'd signed up for a 50k mid-december. It was never a goal race but I'd hoped to finish the race and enjoy the wonderful trails. However, a touch of ankle tendonitis and trail shoe issues meant that I was going into the 50k race woefully undertrained on trails and unsure the ankle would hold up to the rigors of trail running. 

The ankle had felt fine on roads so the issue on trails was a bit of a surprise. I'd run longer on trails in shoes that hadn't worked and probably contributed to the ankle pain. I started some self care for the ankle and also added in some more days off than I planned. After frantically trying out different shoes, I had finally found a pair of trail shoes that would do well enough and prepared just go out there and have some fun.  

We went up to Whidbey for the Deception Pass 25k and 50k. These races are on separate days and we knew people running both days. A friend has a house on whidbey so we had easy and very relaxing accommodations. I'd had a very stressful week at work so really was looking forward to the weekend away. I'd been tapering again for the race and was dismayed to find the ankle really bothered after a couple easy midweek runs. I'd had a massage the monday before the race and I think possibly she went a bit deep on the tender areas. And then saturday i woke with teh beginnings of a cold. That decided it. I had thought I'd have a chance of finishing before the cut off for the 50k IF the ankle held up. Now with a developing cold, I knew I'd just have to plan for a nice and much shorter easy trail run. Maybe I could make it 10 miles but I would be happy with 7 or so which would give me the best views of the course.  

It's a great course for spectating and the weather was wonderful for the 25k. Runners did get rained on but they were brief showers and overall it was very comfortable temps for running. Coach Lesley was racing strong (despite her usual claim that she was just running for fun) and it was really fun getting to different areas to cheer.  

After the race, we headed back to the farm and got a grand tour of the property. I took a lovely nap and spent some quality time knitting and reading. Ah the joys of the occasional unplugging. There was no wifi! The R2D2 hat is ready! 

I prepared all my stuff to get ready to run the next morning. And barely slept because i had such a sore throat and felt so achy. Ok. No way. No running for this sickie.  That is a DNS (did not start) and no doubt in my mind that was the right decision. I felt awful later in the day and was working towards spiking a high fever. We still went out and cheered for the friend running in teh 50k. Turns out he was way undertrained as well and had a planned drop at mile 14.  

Nope, it's not quite the weekend i wanted running-wise but it was a really fun weekend overall with beautiful scenery. Meanwhile I guess the ankle is better. it's had a lot of rest!

Lurking

You just never know when something Ogre related will show up! I have this insanely bright orange yarn that I was going to use for some kids' orange hats but decided it was just such a hideous orange that it should be something even better like orange ogre arm warmers!  woohoo! i'm making up the pattern (and the sizing) and misjudged how long it would stretch.  Sooo...i'll frog it a bit (ie unravel) and make it longer.  And of course, then i'll need to knit a matching one. 

4 days

I ran 2 miles Tuesday but otherwise have not run nor crosstrained since the race on Saturday. The last time i had more than 3 days off? That was probably after the DNF at Duke City Marathon in October of 2012. I knew I wanted a break after this race and now I'm itching to run. Meanwhile, there is always knitting.

Staying Busy

Along Bus Trail - Lake Tradition Plateau

WARNING: I'm going to whine.  Taper.  I hate it.  After all the hard training, the hardest part comes right before the goal event.  Taper refers to cutting training load so that your body has a chance to heal, recover and rest.  Tapering doesn't just work with running.  it applies to a lot of sports before a big event.

I'm finding tapering particularly challenging before a half marathon.  With marathon training, I am only too ready to take the 2-3 week break.  I'm tired mentally and physically and it's nice to have the couple weeks to attend to rest of my life.  Half marathon training isn't as demanding with no long runs.  The workouts can be challenging but I recover from them quicker.  So what d'ya mean I gotta cut back running?  I'm feeling so good!  Once I cut back running and take more rest days I just get stiff and sore.

The cure for whining is, of course, a nice and easy and short trail run out at Lake Tradition (see photo top).  I still found it challenging to slow down on some of the non-technical/non-hilly sections but just getting out to somewhere besides the normal running route is always good. 

K spent a couple days of his winter break replacing the lights in our kitchen.  They look great! The holes from the old fixtures needed to be patched and painted. It has been 12 years since we remodeled the kitchen from the studs out and I've wanted to repaint the walls and ceiling anyway.  All patching and painting is done!  It's like having a new kitchen as the new lights are so much better.  LED technology has certainly come far. 

Knitting is always a good thing.  I got to meet a new baby last week.  And that was the perfect excuse to knit baby leg warmers.  They are done and I will send them off tomorrow.  The only model I have is Keswick the Cat and these leg warmers are a little big for him but you get the idea.  Cuteness! 

We went off to the Seattle Asian Art Museum today for a small exhibit of "Painting Seattle: Tokita and Nomura" who were well known Japanese-American artists before World War II. It's a very small but a well done exhibit when ends mid-February.  See it if you can.

And driving out of volunteer park we came across the Conservatory.  How did I not know about this little gem in the middle of Seattle?  I had no idea that such a place existed and was quite delighted with the lovely room progression. On one of those freezing February days where you just cannot get warm, go here!

And to prove that taper only increases the thinking about running, as we were driving from Volunteer Park we saw a very nice little lookout park that would make a very nice running route addition with some serious hills. Gotta look at that map!  

Random, but not really.

I did it!  I finished the final exterior painting on the house this year!  Woohoo!  We put up the last bit of siding too on the back of the house and that officially makes this approximately 10 year project done. It started with getting a new roof which meant we needed new fascia and soffit boards. Then the old siding (two layers) came off the house in sections and we put up new sheathing and then painted clear cedar siding. We ended up getting windows replaced (best thing ever!) and built a new back deck and finally had the sagging, broken and rotting porch footing rebuilt.  We payed to have the roof done, windows redone and paid to have the porch rebuilt otherwise all other labor was done by us and K's father.  Phew!  I'm very proud of the work we've done.  it's our house and it shows.  We do good work.

And I do good knitting.  I got my first commissioned knit piece this past week.  A friend at work who is a knitter (beginning and slow) really wants a knit piece for a friend's b-day. She loved an easy knit cowl I did and would like me to knit one for her.  She paid for the yarn and she'll give a bit of spending money for me just as a bonus. I get to knit and get paid!  No the amount of time I'll spend knitting doesn't end up paying me for my time really but since I just enjoy knitting, this is a bonus.  I'm casting on that project today.  And it will be a well knit lovely piece of knitwear which I'll be proud of.

My mom and I had tickets to watch studio rehearsal of the Pacific Northwest Ballet's "Love Stories" the other day. This is always a real treat! We usually see the pieces where they are still working out staging and details and where they are still getting into performance fit (or at least that's how I think of it).  Why do I say that?  Well we are sitting very close to the athletes (dancers) and you can see the effort and fatigue start to play out towards the end of the sections they are rehearsing.  The guys' legs shake and sweat pours off.  The women's legs and arms shake with the effort.  The most amazing part of this process is seeing the absolute control they have over their expression and finishing what they are doing.  Towards the end of pieces, both men and women are breathing like they are at the end of a 5k yet they are holding a precise pose with a smile on their face.

After watching them rehearse, I feel like a wimp! I took this thought into the 5k last week and it helped.  It doesn't matter that I'm feeling the fatigue, my lungs are on fire and my legs feel like lead.  Keep at it! Move and take pride in being able to run at all. This is what I've worked for and gotten up at 5 am to run in the dark and rain.  Push through and enjoy it.  And I did and I do.

And tomorrow a good friend is racing her first marathon in New York.  I've seen her at the beginning of her running career when she was able to have a huge breakthrough race.  She's trained and pushed through for this event.  She's had the lows and the highs and she is ready and is proud about how far she's come.  I'm really proud to have played a small role in this and I'm so excited for her. 

The New Year...

ah-choo!  snork. cough, cough.

Yeah well.  A virus with my name on it rather changed how I would've preferred to spend my New Year's Weekend but there are worse things. 

I found out one of my local yarn shops, Acorn Street Yarn Shop,  has an awesome sale on New Year's Day.  I got some excellent deals for yarn for my next projects and have made some good progress on my Diane Cardigan for opera/ballet-going.  And once again, I am realizing how much I like to knit. It is so soothing.

K finished a cat tree for our boys and they love it!  They are growing and keeping us in stitches with their play and lovableness.  They are going to be great cats as they are now great kittens.  Active and playful but perfectly happy being held and snuggled.  Anyone who comes to the house is interesting and they like to say hi.  Since I like having photos in my blog, i've included some random recent cat photos for your viewing pleasure. 

Training was all shot to hell last week with the developing virus, not to mention the wet and dark outside.  I'm calling it another cutback week which is probably a good thing and it'll set me up to start some good training with rested legs and a heart raring to go.

My goals for 2010 in running?

I never got that marathon run last year so May 2nd is the date to aim for.  My marathon of choice right now is either Eugene, OR or Lincoln, NB.  Lincoln?  No, i've never been to nebraska but there a lot of people I know from runango marathon running forum who will be running in either the full or the half here and I'd love to meet them.   I've run Eugene and it's a really good race, but i don't see the need to repeat it.  With cheap airfare, Lincoln might be very doable money wise and not much more than Eugene.  It's certainly a less expensive race and has some great recommendations.

Right now that's the big goal.  I may or may not run the half at Nookachamps in a couple weeks.  I'd hoped to race this seriously but the cold rather interrupted an important week in training for that.  I might still go run hard (depending on how I feel) just for a baseline.  I know a lot of people running in various events there so it would be fun and it's such a nice event. 

Reach the Beach Relay is on for 2010!  I had so much fun at this race last year that I have to do it one more year.  And we hope to visit friends in the WA DC area for the days following the race.  That reminds me.  We need to request a White House Tour basically NOW!

I'd like to PR in a half marathon.  I am signed up for the second Annual Seattle Rock N Roll Half in June.  Maybe that'll be the one.  My PR is 1:43:40 set in 6/2007 and seems ridiculously fast so we shall see about that goal.  I want to do more of the Cougar Mountain Trail Series plus just get out to the trails whenever possible.  After 22 races last year, I do plan to be more selective in racing.  Racing is valuable mentally so I will try and incorporate that better into my training.

Mental training has to be part of my training this year as well.  I'm realizing more and more how much that plays into that race day.  I've got some helpful books and will be more mindful while training of those negative nellies talking in my ear.

I'm not particularly setting mileage goals for the year.  consistent training with well considered breaks will get me to the starting line well prepared to race.  I do want to maintain biking fitness as I think it's valuable cross training for me (both cardio and leg strength) and I will work hard to get in two sessions of core/weight training per week.  I always get in one but sometime struggle with that second one.  I know I feel stronger overall when I'm consistent with weight training and even notice the benefits in my job which can be physical at times. 

And I am setting my own training schedule after being coached for many years.  It's both freeing, exhilarating, worrying and challenging all at the same time.  I've got a lot of support in so many ways that i know I can do this part and do it well.  It's just a matter of trusting myself and paying attention to my body.  And I'll thank all of you right now who will be helping me towards my goals this year.

Welcome to the new decade!  Where are we going to go?! 

Ready for a Christmas break.

York flying after his favorite toy, Da Bird.

Since we've been back from England the first of November, it has been so very busy at work and at home. After the stress and sorrow of losing Dex, York and Keswick have just made themselves a part of our home.

They are hilarious and are just showing more and more personality. I laugh at some of their antics every day. K's computer has this cursor thing which is every so interesting to watch.

York is very good at keeping himself entertained with toys. Keswick is more of a lap lover but will never say no to a rousing session of Da Bird.





With the change of weather and the more time inside, I do like to knit. I made this Koolhaas Hat last winter in blue and gave it away. I made another one in blue (started on plane to england) and decided I needed to resize it as it was a bit small for me. Before I could do that, a friend walking by at work loved it so much and it fit her so well, she bought it! So I had to make another. An orange Koolhaas Hat in front of an original Koolhaas.






'Tis the season. We decided to do cookies for gifts for neighbors and people at work so that's what this weekend was spent doing (when not running). Mmm. Looks pretty good!

It's going to be pretty busy the next couple of weeks at work as coworkers take vacation but that's just fine. I'm in a fine mood for the season.

Bring on Christmas!