Tuesday, March 11, 2025

A day in the life of Bandit

Bandit's typical day consists mostly of sleeping, eating, and going outside when the weather is nice. He is almost 12 years old and isn't as energetic as when he was younger, but he still loves to play when the mood strikes, runs around outside, and catches mice.

His most important daily task seems to be alternating amongst several sleeping spots:

Back of the couch

Back of couch

On couch

On loveseat

When it's cold he likes to be covered up

Our bed

Couch

The deck, only when it's warm out

Chair in our bedroom, protecting us when we sleep
(it is positioned between our bed and the door)

He will relax in other places occasionally and sometimes on us:

Dining room

He's about as long as my legs!

Guarding the stairs

He hasn't gotten in a sink for a few
years but used to do it often

Dresser

Caught mid-yawn on the deck railing

It's also funny the places he never sleeps: Albani's bedroom and our secondary living room that primarily Albani uses. I think he's a little concerned about her teenage unpredictability!

If he sees you're working on something, he may try to get in on it.

Homework helper

Teaching prep assistance (he also loves to sit on
the barstool that I'm seated in here)

He particularly likes to watch over things in the bathroom.

Supervising a homecoming hair style

He likes this spot when someone is in the shower

Every morning he wakes up with me, gets on the bathroom counter, and plays with a hair tie as many times as I'll toss it.

Catching the hair tie

He always begs for more treats and is very food-motivated! He learned multiple tricks with food (sit, shake, high-5, come here, and he used to be able to jump through a hula-hoop). He weighs 15-17 lbs depending on the time of year, and though he can get a little chunky he is mostly just husky.

He also loves his drinking fountain

He sits by the cat door when he is ready for it to open in the morning (we don't allow him out in the dark).

Waiting with brother Nugget

He goes in and out during daytime hours, and the length of time is weather dependent. In warm weather he will stay out much of the day, and in the worst of winter he will stay out a few seconds.

Relaxing on a freshly planted garden bed

Enjoying the greenery

Other stuff:

Albani made his likeness out of legos

He loves to be held like a baby

One of his baby pictures

I have tons of videos of him but was too lazy to add them now - I may edit later.

It is safe to say he brings joy to our lives every day! 

Sunday, February 16, 2025

Run with the Wind 25k

The short:

I finally finished the Run with the Wind 25k feeling good - it only took 7 tries! I have always felt too cooked too early in this race, but being more conservative made for a more enjoyable final 5 miles, and I met my most important goal of breaking the Missouri 25k state record for my age (44), with 1:51:57. I ran the whole race with my running buddy Paul, who edged me by 0.06 at the end.

The long:

I tried to decide to run this race 5 days beforehand, but due to an up-in-air trip to Kansas I couldn't officially decide until about 15 hours before. I had a lot of fun racing last weekend so wanted to do it again, plus I enjoyed going to this race with my friend Sally last year and she wanted to run it again. We roped our friend Paul into going too, which was extra great for me because he and I are running very similarly right now.

I've run this race 6 times previously (202420232022, 2015, 2012, and 2010), even though every year I note how hard the course is for me! There aren't many 25k races so the Missouri single age state records are generally attainable; I've now broken a record 6 of the 7 times I've run this race (3 of them have since been improved by Katie), so that keeps me coming back. The race organizers announce which direction the race will run the night before, and this year was Carthage to Sarcoxie, which is the harder direction and means primarily a south and east route. The wind was behind us going east and we had a headwind going south, but it was lighter than in years past and not a factor. This was the warmest RWTW I've done, at around 48*.

Sally, Paul, and I drove over to the race together and registered. We hopped on the bus to the start, which was supposed to depart at 8:00 but left late, then drove the race course backwards instead of taking the faster route to the start on the highway. We took off our warm ups and put on our race shoes on the bus, then jumped off when it arrived at 8:45, ran into the bathroom and to drop our bags, then had enough time for a 1.1 mile warm up and 1 stride. We had a similar issue last year, and while it's not a huge deal I would have liked to get in at least 2 miles of jogging before. 

A blurry photo of the 3 of us early on

Sally, Paul, and I planned to start together. I figured Sally would pick it up and that Paul and I would be together most of the race, which is exactly what happened. Sally dropped the pace around mile 5-6, and Paul and I passed a couple of men together after that but it was all fairly uneventful. It was Paul's first time running this race so it was fun to get his impressions of the course. I started a gel at mile 5 but it took me until mile 11 to get the whole thing down due to some minor GI upset, but otherwise everything went fairly smoothly and it felt more like an uptempo long run than a race since it was mostly just me and Paul.

Around mile 12

Around halfway

Sally was far enough ahead of me and the next woman was far enough behind me that it was hard to be motivated to push too hard, but running with Paul kept me honest. We decided when our watches beeped mile 15 we'd race each other to the finish, and we went back and forth on who had a slight lead as we both picked it up. When we crossed the finish line we were uncertain which of us had edged the other, but our chips gave it to him by 0.06! I wish we had a video of that finish. There was a child running back and forth through the finish that complicated the situation.

I ended up 3rd overall female and 1st female age-graded. I got awards for winning my age group, winning female age-grading, and for setting a Missouri state record. I also won a $25 gift card and a free entry to another race, so I came out well! I imagine I will be back for #8 next year...

Race results are here and my 25k state record will be here 


From mile 4 on it feels mostly uphill because it is


Thursday, February 13, 2025

Cabin Fever Reliever 10k

Sticking with my recent trend, I decided to run the Cabin Fever Reliever about 3 hours before the race. I went back and forth on running it the day before and figured I'd just decide when I woke up on race morning. I'd run that day regardless, so it was just a matter of whether it would be an easy long run or a 10k race turned into a long run. The race is only about 10 minutes from my house on country roads.

Post-race photo op in a high school cafeteria

I had low expectations for my performance, but it's a low-key race so I figured I could run 7:00+ pace and win overall female. My mileage has been 55-70 for months, so I'm not out of shape but I have no long or even medium workouts under my belt (I've been doing short workouts like 400s and 1:00 hill repeats). Plus, Jon was super sick and Albani had just gotten over it, so wasn't sure I'd be full strength. My running buddy Paul was also running the 10k and while we warmed up together I mentioned that I was worried my race pace would start with a 7 instead of a 6. He also wasn't sure where he was at, and we both wanted to run by effort, start conservatively and negative split, and figured we would likely be together since we have been really close in recent workouts.

At the start, I eased out comfortably and was quickly in first female position for the 10k. My friend Casey was running the 20k, which does the 10k course twice, and was a little ahead of me as expected (this was also why I ran the 10k and not the 20k!). Paul and I settled in together and the beginning felt easy. When our watches beeped mile 1, Paul told me it was under 7:00 and I said "no, don't tell me splits!", hah! But that did give me a little boost because it felt very maintainable.

Our effort gradually increased and as usual in the 10k I got to halfway feeling like I couldn't do the same thing again but knowing that I could. I also felt really glad I wasn't running the 20k this year! I have run the 20k twice at this event and it's never the greatest to pass through the finish and go back out to run the same course a second time.
Around mile 4

By mile 4 I felt like Paul was stronger than me but told myself to hang onto him as long as I could. "It's exponentially easier with someone" is what I always tell myself in those situations (or, "It's exponentially harder alone" when I'm being pessimistic). I stayed with him and around 4.5 I told him that I thought he felt better than me but I was going to hang on as long as I could. Less than a minute later he said, "Sara, I don't feel so good"...proof that we often don't judge the way others feel correctly! He told me to go ahead and dropped off rapidly, so I pushed on. I ended up feeling really strong the last mile. I could see Casey and 4 men ahead of me, so tried to pull them in, though I don't know that I actually did.

I ended up finishing 1st female in the 10k and 2nd overall person (3 of the men ahead of me were in the 20k), in 42:03. My mile splits on my Garmin were 6:51, 6:36, 6:35, 6:36, 6:42, 6:36 (6:24 final 0.3). I ran super even after a conservative start, because mile 5 has a lot of incline and I looked at another runner's grade-adjusted pace and it subtracted 6 seconds, meaning my effort was 6:36 on that mile! Overall GAP took off 4 seconds/mile average on the rolling course. Paul was only 7 second behind me; he said he had a brief pity party then got back on pace. Casey won overall in the 20k!

Happiness is reality minus expectations, so since I had zero expectations of running faster than 7:00 I was happy with my paces. I'm in a weird place because I'm far from my PRs but I still enjoy racing and can aim to nail pacing and win small races. It makes it hard for me to have time goals though!

I made the race into a 14 mile day for my long run for the week. I'm jumping in workouts with my friends, running long every Saturday, and consistently putting in mileage, but it's all pretty unstructured. I will likely decide some more races to run a day (or a few hours) before soon!

Race results are here. My first race of 2025!

Tuesday, December 31, 2024

Delightful December

December 2024 in review!

Total mileage for the month: 253.3, giving me 3444 for 2024
  • Dec. 2-8: 50.7
  • Dec. 9-15: 60.1
  • Dec. 16-22: 63.0
  • Dec. 23-29: 59.1
  • Dec. 30-Jan. 5: TBD
Our Delightful December pose
Workouts:
  • Dec. 8: trail run (not a workout, but a different stimulus). I only got to do one this month but will aim for 2 going forward (every other Sunday).
  • Dec. 11: 10 laps of straights and curves on the track
  • Dec. 18: 12 x 1:00 on/1:00 off toward the end of a 10 mile run.
  • Dec. 24: 8 x 400 m w/ 1:00 jogs with my niece Story.
  • I did lots of strides post-run and embedded into runs this month.
  • Favorite workout: the Christmas Eve 8 x 400 m. I wasn't completely sure I could hit Story's workout but ended up pacing her through it very evenly.
Christmas light long run Dec. 21
Long Runs:
  • Dec. 7: 14.1 miles
  • Dec. 14: 15.2 miles, with 12 x 1:00 picks ups at the beginning of most miles.
  • Dec. 21: 14 miles
  • Dec. 28: 14.5 miles
  • Favorite long run:  Dec. 21 because it was followed by running group breakfast

Christmas lights long run on Dec. 15
Running Highlights:
  • Our group did numerous Christmas lights runs.
One of many weekday mornings finding the best lights
Life Highlights:
  • We were able to spend time at both my parents' and my in-laws' houses for Christmas.
Post-track workout

Major family Christmas
Books:
  • The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
  • Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don't Know by Malcolm Gladwell
  • The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold
  • Anita de Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalex
  • By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult
  • James by Percival Everett
  • Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten
  • What Have You Done? by Shari Lapena
  • We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
  • Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age by Rosaria Champagne Butterfield
  • Scythe (Arc of the Scythe #1) by Neal Shusterman
  • Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  • You Shouldn't Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose
Theme for the month:
  • Running group did Delightful December.
This is going to be my last monthly recap, at least for now. I used to get a lot of joy out of writing these but for at least a year now it's started to feel like a chore/just something else to keep up with. I still really enjoy race recaps, so at the least I'll be checking in with those! I don't have any 2025 races planned for certain, but I enjoy being able to jump in races at the last minute when things align.

2024 Reads

What I read in 2024! Bold titles are ones I gave 5 stars. I am pretty stingy with my 5-star reviews, but I gave a ton of 4 stars so I was surprised when Goodreads told me my average rating for the year was 3.6.

  1. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand
  2. Everyone Here is Lying by Shari Lapina
  3. Remember Us by Jacqueline Woodson
  4. The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  5. Fast Girl: A Life Spent Running from Madness by Suzy Favor Hamilton
  6. The Elephant's Girl by Celesta Rimington
  7. Catching the Sky by Colten Moore
  8. Running on Veggie: Plant-Powered Recipes for Fueling and Feeling Your Best by Lottie Bildirici
  9. Today We Die A Little: The Inimitable Emil Zatopek, the Greatest Olympic Runner of All Time by Richard Askwith
  10. The Housemaid (The Housemaid #1) by Freida McFadden
  11. The Book Club Hotel by Sarah Morgan
  12. The Women Could Fly by Meg Giddings
  13. The Quiet Tenant by Clemence Michallon
  14. The Six: The Untold Story of America's First Women Astronauts by Loren Grush
  15. The Other Mothers by Katherine Faulkner
  16. Just Another Missing Person by Gillian McAllister
  17. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
  18. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
  19. Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
  20. The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See
  21. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
  22. Chasing Perfect: Peace and Purpose in the Exhausting Pursuit of Something Better by Alisha Illian.
  23. The Warsaw Orphan by Kelly Rimmer
  24. Gray Mountain by John Grisham
  25. The Hawthorne Legacy (The Inheritance Games #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  26. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
  27. The River We Remember by William Kent Kruger
  28. Notes on a Silencing: A Memoir by Lacy Crawford
  29. Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld
  30. The Housemaid's Secret (The Housemaid #2) by Freida McFadden
  31. First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston
  32. In a Single Moment by Imogen Clark
  33. A Sign of her Own by Sarah Marsh
  34. This is Our Story by Ashley Elston
  35. A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
  36. The Mystery Guest (Molly the Maid #2) by Nita Prose
  37. Inferior: How Science Got Women Wrong- and the New Research That's Rewriting the Story by Angela Saini
  38. The English Understand Wool by Helen DeWitt
  39. The Final Gambit (The Inheritance Games #3) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  40. Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll
  41. The Day Tripper by James Goodhand
  42. The Woman in Me by Britney Spears
  43. The Last Flight by Julie Clark
  44. There There by Tommy Orange
  45. Symphony of Secrets by Brendan Slocumb
  46. The Little Liar by Mitch Albom
  47. Looking for Alaska by John Green
  48. The Women by Kristin Hannah
  49. The Rules of Disappearing by Ashley Elston
  50. The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins
  51. Kill for Me, Kill for You by Steve Cavanagh
  52. Olivetti by Allie Millington
  53. The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza
  54. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
  55. The Brothers Hawthore (The Inheritance Games #4) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  56. Happiness Falls by Angie Kim
  57. Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles
  58. Girl Last Seen by Nina Laurin
  59. Before I Go (Skyland #1) by Kennedy Ryan
  60. Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra
  61. Wintergirls but Laurie Halse Anderson
  62. Paper Towns by John Green
  63. The Teacher by Freida McFadden
  64. No One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall
  65. Why I Stand by Jonathan Isaac
  66. The Spectacular by Fiona Davis
  67. Never Lie by Freida McFadden
  68. Counting the Cost by Jill Duggar
  69. Such Charming Liars by Karen M. McManus
  70. The Postcard by Anne Berest
  71. She's Not Sorry by Mary Cubica
  72. The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters
  73. The Housemaid is Watching (The Housemaid #3) by Freida McFadden
  74. Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen
  75. A Long Walk to Water: Based on a True Story by Linda Sue Park
  76. Becoming Free Indeed: My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear by Jinger Duggar Vuolo
  77. Bad Graces by Kyrie McCauley
  78. Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry
  79. Flying at Night by Rebecca Brown
  80. Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate
  81. Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance
  82. The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos by Kelly Irvin
  83. What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall
  84. Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver
  85. The Inmate by Freida McFadden
  86. Home is Where the Bodies Are by Jeneva Rose
  87. True Biz by Sara Novic
  88. Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle
  89. Solito by Javier Zamora
  90. The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  91. The Senator's Wife by Liv Constantine
  92. The Only One Left by Rily Sager
  93. Breaking the Dark by Lisa Jewell
  94. Sandwich by Catherin Newman
  95. The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  96. Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
  97. Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty
  98. Angels of the Resistance by Noelle Salazar
  99. The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  100. Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
  101. Like a Mother by Mina Hardy
  102. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
  103. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
  104. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
  105. Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don't Know by Malcolm Gladwell
  106. The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold
  107. Anita de Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalex
  108. By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult
  109. James by Percival Everett
  110. Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten
  111. What Have You Done? by Shari Lapena
  112. We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
  113. Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age by Rosaria Champagne Butterfield
  114. Scythe (Arc of the Scythe #1) by Neal Shusterman
  115. Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  116. You Shouldn't Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose

Sunday, December 1, 2024

No Clue November

November 2024 in review

Total mileage for the month:  270.8
  • Oct. 28-Nov. 3: 45.4
  • Nov. 4-10: 56.0
  • Nov. 11-17: 61.4
  • Nov. 18-24: 63.2
  • Nov. 25-Dec. 1: 70.2
No Clue November
Races:
  • Race Across Kansas Half Marathon in 1:35:31 for 1st overall female in this point-to-point race into an 18 mph headwind. I can't even say this is the worst wind I've run into for this race; one year it was 30 mph!
Workouts:
  • Nov. 12: 8 x 2:00 on/1:00 off with a friend. I didn't take splits so have no idea what we ran, but I just stayed right beside her.
  • Nov. 19: 4 x 0.5 mile progressive with 2:00 jogs a friend in 3:34, 3:21, 3:09, 3:00. 
  • Nov. 26: 2 x 0.5, 1 mile threshold, 2 x 0.5 in 3:05, 3:06, 6:34, 3:02, 2:58.
  • Favorite workout: Nov. 26! 
Karen's birthday
Long Runs:
  • Nov. 1: 12 miles
  • Nov. 9: 12.4 miles
  • Nov. 16: 16.6 miles
  • Nov. 23: 15 miles
  • Nov. 30: 15.5 miles with the Race Across Kansas Half.
  • Favorite long run: Nov. 16 felt pretty effortless, but Nov. 23 and Nov. 30 were also good days.
Running Highlights:
  • I did a trail run on Nov. 24. I'm going to try to incorporate some trail running for a new stimulus that works my muscles differently. It's just harder logistically since I have to drive 25-30 minutes to the nearest trails.
Life Highlights:
  • We did an overnight trip to St Louis and explored the Forest Park area.
  • My parents visited for a weekend and we celebrated my dad's birthday.
  • Thanksgiving didn't go quite according to plan, but we are thankful year round.
St Louis Science Center

My dad's 84th birthday

Bandit celebrated

Bandit snuggles
Books:
  • Solito by Javier Zamora
  • The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  • The Senator's Wife by Liv Constantine
  • The Only One Left by Rily Sager
  • Breaking the Dark by Lisa Jewell
  • Sandwich by Catherin Newman
  • The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  • Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr
  • Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty
  • Angels of the Resistance by Noelle Salazar
  • The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  • Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
  • Like a Mother by Mina Hardy
  • The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
  • The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
Theme for the month:
  • Running group did #nocluenovember

Saturday, November 30, 2024

Race Across Kansas Half Marathon

I used to run the Race Across Kansas Half often when I lived in Southeast Kansas in the 2000s. The last year they held the race was in 2013, and I ran that one on our drive home from Thanksgiving. I saw that the race was making a comeback in 2024 a couple of weeks before the event, and my immediate thought was that I had to run it. Then I reality checked myself because I hadn't been doing workouts or any targeted training. I pretty much ruled it out, but then the day before the race I mapped the distance from my house and from there it was a slippery slope and the inevitable happened!

The race starts on the Kansas-Missouri state line near Galena, Kansas and finishes on the Kansas-Oklahoma state line near Baxter Springs, Kansas. Old Route 66 through this corner of Kansas is conveniently enough 13.1 miles. It's a fun concept and I have a lot of great memories from the 4 times I previously ran the race (2003, 2007, 2008, 2013), although they all blur together!

I figured I'd run it around 7:30 pace for a quicker long run, and also figured that would be good enough to win overall female. I'm pretty sure I've won it before with times in the 1:40s, but like I said my memories of this race all run together! I guess that starts happening after 73 half marathons... 

Race morning temperatures were ideal at around 40* at the start, but on my warm up I quickly learned that the wind was brutal. It was SSW, meaning that we had somewhat of a headwind for the first half of the race going west, then an intense headwind for the second half of the race going south. I was glad I had no time goals! The wind was 14 mph at the start and 20+ mph by the finish.

Albani took this as I waved at her & Jon driving by

I ended up running most of the race with Henri, who is 70 and one of the top runners in the US for his age. He breaks Missouri state records for his age in every distance he runs! He is really inspiring and I sure hope I am still running at his age. The effort we were at felt perfect for me; steady hard but not "I'm going to be near death at the end of this" hard. The race was small so it was also clear that if I didn't run with him I'd be running alone. One man took out ahead of us faster than I wanted to start.

This was Henri's idea when I pointed out Jon ahead

I hoped to increase the effort as I went and maybe end up with a progression run. When we turned south and the wind was worse, I figured it was likely I'd slow down instead, but since my main goal was overall female I wasn't too concerned since everyone had to deal with the nasty headwind. I ended up running super even splits; I'm still quite good at dialing in an effort and staying there, though I definitely worked harder for it during the second half! 

I'm far from my fastest but I'm still excellent at pacing

Henri and I were together until about mile 11, then I ended up pulling away towards the end. I gained a lot on the overall male and ended up wishing I'd have worked a little harder to try to win overall, but it's just a lot harder to want to hurt when it's a man in front of me vs. a woman! I ran 1:35:35 (7:17 pace) for first female.

Last bit

The race organizers said they want to grow this race next year and have a good sized one for the 100th anniversary of Route 66 in 2026. I imagine I'll go back if it works in my schedule and I'm healthy. Running in SE Kansas is very nostalgic for me, and the older I get the more I enjoy low-key races like this!

This was also probably my last race in my rabbit ELITE uniform (I'm not planning to run any in December but I also wasn't planning to run this one, so...). The team used to run from July-June, but in June 2024 they told us they were extending that team through December 2024. I wasn't planning to reapply for 2025 anyway since I'm not running elite performances at this point, but a couple of weeks ago they announced they aren't doing an elite road team in 2025. I was on the team for 3.5 years and am thankful I had the opportunity!

Race route