Happy what-normally-is-the-last-day-of-February day! SteveP- I hope your stuff with your mom went ok yesterday. Anything with the job lead? enke- I thought this running stuff was just a phase you're going through.. How's the little faker doing today? evanflein- Do you really think you'll get any sleep during your trip? Leave the sleeping bag home, it'll make more room for you to bring other fun stuff. Well done on the 'mill, you are ready to run fast in AZ! fussyrunner- hmmm, what's up with that breathing? Sometimes the salt dust on the roads causes problems. How are you today? hopeful4ever- hope you had a good flight and a great trip! Cmom- walking the dogs before/after running is a great way to warmup or cooldown. Nice! Aamos- winter is losing it's grip finally... soundrunner- you chartering your own cargo plane to AZ? fbgrrl- did you at least find any yodeling wild pigs on your run? halllar- once you get the feel down, you'll know what MP is without needing to map it out. It takes practice and getting in tune with everything, but it's worth the effort. wildchild- hope you stay clear of those germs. Good deal getting your shorts run in! PJH- man, you guys had it rough this winter. It'll make the springtime seem even sweeter though! Twocat- good deal with the double! pfriese- good to see your post! Sounded like a beautiful run. Mariposai- boo on being busy at work! I'm glad you fit your run in. WRFB- welcome back to the present time! Nice low heartrate for you run. breger- An even lower heartrate! Were you asleep during your run? CNY- beautiful! If you're gonna run in that cold weather, at least it gave you some nice scenery to look at. Tim- wow! That was one heck of an unplanned run! Very nice! Glad you are feeling better. And you gotta do something about running in to, or off of, stuff like you do! Hope the shoulder is just a minor thing. dg- what are we gonna do with you? SueT- your day was full of stuff by 6am already! Wow, if "Shortie's" is considered an upgrade, it must've been really bad before that. hally- HI! Thanks for popping in! How are things on western Long Island? PeterNC- Nice run and nice pace in the hills! Don't breathe in too much of that sealer today! Twocat- good week of running you're having. You'll do well in your race. Bring a bungee cord... Holly- with the hard work and miles you've been putting in, unless something unforseen happens, you're gonna smoke Boston. Regarding running in the cold, I can't find the specific article I saw, but somewhere I did read that cold weather can lower your performance much like warm weather can. I think it had something to do with lowering your VO2 max. Hang in there you are doing fine! Instead of running at lunchtime yesterday, I went out in the car and took a nap. Those countries that allow siesta time have the right idea! I also slept in the AM, and am feeling a bit better. At some point today between meetings, I'll sneak out for a run in the woods. It's really windy and in the teens, but somehow when you get into the shelter of the woods, none of that matters. I'm lucky, where I work there is no dress code, so on days like today, I'll come to work already dressed to run, so that way I can shoot out at a moments notice. That's one of the big reasons I've been here for 19 years. Keep up the great work gang. Spring is coming. Better health is coming. Patience is the key. WRFB, Tim, SteveP, wildchild-

btb - that sounds so cool, going into work in your running clothes! Yes, my little faker is going to school today. She suddenly got better last night when my son went outside to ride his bike - she went out too, riding around. I'll say though that she did have a bit of a limp at times while outside playing, but nothing to indicate she needed to crawl or be carried everywhere in the house all day yesterday. I did 10 out of a planned 12 on the TM last night. It was yuck from start to finish. The first mile my ipod armband was scratching my arm, like little needles poking me. The rest of the time I felt like I weighed 1000 pounds, half of that being compressed gas. Sorry, TMI, but it certainly made the whole run uncomfortable. Tim - glad to hear you had a great run. Go relay racers!!

btb I am thinking you need your own daily roundup thread! It does make for a very enjoyable read. Have fun with your run later on.

Good to see you running Tim. Better that you're not road kill. Gravity is one of the three things in life that causes me fits.

, be careful out there.

Any one else miss Hill Street Blues???? Holly, the temps we've been having this year have been sproink sucking. It takes as much time to put on and remove layers as it does to get the run in. Unlike our friend, Rochrunner, I love racing anyime of year. I skipped two because of Mom's passing and not feeling like being around crowds. I've raced in sub zero temps before. Had to wear the thermal insulated black ribbed Batman tank top. Last weekend's race, with temps in the low 30's was just what the Dr. ordered. Btb, my brother and I will be addressing Mom's estate for at least 6 months. She had a will written, but would never file it. Her atty called to get the OK to file a few times, but she kept telling him to wait. For my loved ones' sake, I hope I'm not in that degree of denial. This afternoon, I'm meeting with an insurance agent t go over the repairs we made on her home and rental yesterday. One bright spot is that her tenant has adopted her cat and is interested in buying her place. The house payment could easily be less than his rent. The dog and I put in 8.11 miles. The dog was starting to drag around mile 7, then a rodent ran across the road and she picked up her pace(translation : she about yanked me out of my shoes). I've tried to teach her to whiz on electric fences. I thought it would be funny, but she just doesn't get it. When I demonstrated, I didn't care for the results. Stoopid dog. We went past where DD#3 works and we invited her to dinner. She's done with the rich kid who buys her stuff but treats her poorly. The four kids are my step kids. Only DS lives with us. DD#2 & DD#3 have come by to hang out for a bit. DD#1 and DD#2 call to talk with me. There's bio dads who don't know where the kids who live with them are. This is kewl. Thanks for the loose laces reminder BTB We started slow, then picked up the pace.

Cold (17F) and windy today. Like everyone else, I'm tired of winter, tired of so many layers. And after 11 miles starting at 4:30 am, just tired period. That makes 3 days in a row with the alarm going off at 3:30. Tomorrow's a rest day, and I'm looking forward to it.

For those that don't frequent KR here is a link to dtoce's Person Of The Day post http://www.kickrunners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23005

It is a really magnificent day in Denver today! 3 miles early this morning + a 2 mile bikeride -riding Seegirlgo to school (there have been attempted child abductions at our middle school lately) and home - I'll ride another 2 when I ride back to pick her up. Sorry so many are feeling icky. Be well and be safe!

Yeah thanks BTB on the loose lace reminder. Today was a wonderful day. A thin bright skift of snow, about 20* this morn. I went to the spa in town and did half hour XT 5 miles on the schedule, though I felt like 8, but played it safe. A tiny bit of 5k pace towards the end. My legs felt an ice bath would be OK, but none to be had. I just raked up a small pile of snow, sat down and covered the legs. Its still just February, and those poor Canajuns and northerner's have 'bout had enough. I thought of this for them. Oh February Oh February Your tiresome days of gray and gloom Leave me with naught but thoughts of doom Oh February Oh February Oh February Should some flower bud or songbird peep Your chthonic spell will put it swift to sleep Oh February Oh February Oh February A fell timer set your leaping queue 'Stead of you twenty-nine I’d given May thirty-two Oh February Oh February Oh February T’were I a man of fair common sense I’d throttle you well and call it self-defense Oh February Leave us be now Please. JJJ