Tried to Run...

...as opposed to Born to Run.

I tried to run 2 miles today. I made it almost one mile before I had to walk. Then I alternated, more walking than running. It took me about 30 min, but I'm not sure about that because I forgot to check when I finished. At about the 1.5 mile marker I had to walk because my left knee began hurting. This is the story of my life. I try to get back into shape but something painful keeps me from enjoying it.

I want to run the Disney half-marathon next March, for no other reason than because I want to say I did. And what a fun half-marathon that is. This seems like an unattainable goal at this point. I've never run anything more than a 5k, and I've only done 2 of those. The best time for those was 34 min. As I was running this morning, I remembered back to when I was in the best shape of my life, high school, senior year. Even then, I was barely able to run a mile. I am just not a runner. I'm okay with that. I just can't decide if I should give up the goal of the half-marathon. Must dwell on that for awhile.

I made quite the yummy zucchini bread yesterday. Our garden is producing giant zucchini and squash. I don't know whether to pick 'em small or let 'em get big. By default, they're big because I haven't been dedicated at harvesting. We have tomatoes, too, but they aren't green yet. And pumpkins. We're at 4 and counting! I also planted one sad little green bean plant. Now that I know how little one produces, I'll know to plant more next year.

Here's the original recipe for the Zbread:
3 eggs, 1/2 c oil, 1/2 c applesauce, 2 c sugar
2Tbsn vanilla, 2 c shredded zucchini
3 c flour, 1Tbsn cinnamon, 1tsp baking soda, 1tsp baking powder, 1tsp salt

I reduced the sugar by an 1/8 of a cup. Next time, I'll reduce by a full half (doesn't seem like it should take 2 full cups of sugar to make zuc.bread). I also added a chopped apple, smashed almonds, and a mushy banana. I'm also going to add flaxseed or flaxseed flour next time.

I bring this (Zbread) up because it's what I've had to eat so far today, along with 2 cans of DC. (I had 20 oz of h20 before my run.) Not a banner day so far, but I've done much worse.

Bonni-Blu spent the night with G-ma last night, hence my ability to get out and run today. Someday I have to write about Bonni-Blu. But that is for another day.

Is it an obsession?

I don't know if Scarlett was obsessed with her weight, but I remember the contrast ofthe first scene in the movie, with mammy pulling her corset and later, after she had her baby, again, mammy pulling on her corset. When she was getting ready for the picnic, she didn't want to eat; she wanted to eat at the picnic, not before-hand as mammy wanted her to do (because ladies ate like birds at picnics). She didn't care about what she looked like when she was 15. Then, after the baby, she wanted to be as skinny as she was when she was 15.

I don't want to be that skinny. I don't even want to be skinny. I just want to lose the 20 pounds I've gained since I started working at my current job (5 years ago). I don't look bad, mind you, but I'm a breast cancer survivor, and there is new data: For every 11 lbs of wait gain after diagnosis, the chance of it proving fatal goes up 14%.

But there's more to it. I used to be an athlete. I had muscles. Where did they go? I adopted a child 3 years ago. I think the weight gain was due more to that than the job. But I don't have pregnancy to blame it on. I still call it my baby weight, though. I think it's because there is so much less time to work out and fix healthy meals.

Anyway, I want to lose weight. And inches. And gain muscle. Today, I start another weight loss journey. This is an ongoing theme in my life for as long as I can remember. Well, since high school, anyway.

I will hold myself accountable on my blog with frequent updates. The plan?

1. Eat more veggies and less junk (e.g., sugary and processed foods)
2. Move more
3. Drink lots of water (and by default, less diet coke)
4. Try a "new" movement at least once a month: biking, rollerblading, swimming, yoga, etc. Some of these are things I've done before, they're just not in my regular exercise routine. Maybe if I add new things, I'll not think of it so much as 'excercise' and do it more.

I'm also going to try to train for a half-marathon using this 3-day-a-week routine: Mon - run 2 miles, Wed - run 4 miles, Fri - run 6 miles. Every Friay, add a mile (though I think I'll add only a half mile). Since I know I can't do that regimen yet, I'm supposed to work up to that regimen, so I won't start adding to Fri until I can run 6 mi on Fri. Of course, I don't think I can even run 2 mi on Monday, but tomorrow we shall see.

Really? You didn't mean to plagiarize, so that should make it ok?

I have a student. Poor writer. Poor, poor writer. She is likely going to earn her master's degree. I have a problem with someone who writes this poorly 'earning' a college degree. How did she get an undergraduate degree? Anyway, I was reading a draft of one of her papers and found a sentence that was obviously too sophisticated to be her writing. So I googled it and found an exact, word-for-word match.

I sent her a stern email explaining the seriousness of this. I blah-blahed about how plagiarism has nothing to do with intent; it's outcomes based. "If you don't attribute a phrase, sentence, or section of writing to the original author, it's plagiarism." Period. I assured her: "I'm not accusing you of purposely trying to claim this sentence as your own. Perhaps you forgot. Perhaps you didn't think you had to be that careful because it's a draft." Etc.

Now, mind you, this student used direct quotations with QM and citations throughout the paper. Here's an excerpt from her return email: "I didn't mean to plagerize at all. I can't believe it happened I have never been accused of plagerizing." (Her error, by the way, leaving out that period between 'happened' and 'I,' resulting in a run-on sentence; see what I'm dealing with?)

Okaaaaaaay. Did you read my email about intent not having to do with it? Did you read where I said I wasn't accusing you of anything? But as long as you brought up what you didn't mean to do, can you tell me what exactly you were meaning to do when you copied word-for-word that section from a brochure(!)?

if it were easy, everyone would do it

Rhett and I are moving into our 13th year. Marriage is complex. And hard. I just can't figure out how hard it too hard.

Toy Story and the Tea Party

You gotta' love a columnist you can use Toy Story 3 to illustrate a political point. David Harsanyi brought it home. http://reason.org/news/show/1010237.html

Make my day

I'm trying to give up diet coke. I love diet coke. McDonald's is making it hard, though, with their summer promotion of $1 drinks, any size. Yesterday, my almost-daily trip through the drive-thru provided more than my addiction fix. McDonald's has new straws. Wider circumference, groovy purplish color with white stripe. How can a new straw provide me with such a charge?! I don't know why, it just does. Bravo Mikky-D!