Happy weekend, all!  Ran 10.5 miles this morning with my RC, went to a discount-race-entry-expo, then volunteered at a trail race in the afternoon.  At the expo, I might have signed up for a 34k on 2/24, a 50k on 4/7, and a HM on 8/26.  But, DISCOUNTS!  And one of them came with a bottle of wine!  I call that being a smart shopper.  My RC is doing a Valentines Day 5k tomorrow.  Hopefully I run enough to counterbalance the cookies and candy I'm planning on consuming.

Lizzie, DHuff, Karen - all this talk of French toast is making me hungry!  My morning oatmeal seems so inadequate.

Lizzie, exciting that the hair appt went well.  I haven't been on FB all day... have you posted pics?  You know that's mandatory!

DHuff, games night is a great idea, as long as no one gets too competitive about it?  

Karen, have a great race on Sunday!

Carol, ugh on the foot issues.  Seems likely that the shoes are at least contributing to the problem, can you return them?

Kat, yes, you can post a pic on FB and make is visible only to you.  That's what I do when I want to post pics on RA.  Or I post the pic on the RWOL Women's page on FB, then also post it here.  I haven't posted much for general consumption on FB in a while, just sort of lost interest.  Or maybe I don't do anything worth posting.    Like, this beer that I'm drinking, which I'll share here but does FB really need to know this?

Kilmisters, frustrating that the game didn't go well.  You may well end up with a black eye from the nose trauma too.  Be proud of that shiner -- sacrificing your face for the team is really above and beyond the call of duty...    Hope tomorrow is better.

Tessa, hope that you made it back to CA okay.  I'm still on the fence about the Crater Lake race this year.  We're doing Santa Rosa HM on 8/26, which is one that my DH likes to do.  And let's be honest, I like it too since there's a beer festival at the finish line.  But earlier in August is still open.  Decisions, decisions.

Damaris, bleh on the bug, whatever it is.  Hopefully a day of good rest and soup is what you need to get over it.

LC, beach next week!! Woohoo!!

Rest day for me!!

The last time I ran 60 miles I was dead that Sunday. Today I feel like going for a run - haha. I won't I won't..but I feel really awesome and not sore or drained at all. I did get a nice 10 hours of sleep This indicates I am going to have a hard time tapering I am ready to race!

Those who are going to FL - you can just come to VA for the day - 70 degrees and 67 dew point. Yeah. Its awful!! I AM NOT READY. I am sorry for all the people who despise Winter..I am sad we only had it for a month

Going to run some errands today. Have to return some shoes at DSW and then we are probably going to swing by Kohls and the grocery. Fun adulting over here!

Laura -  Nice miles yesterday! Beach runs are in your future!

Margaret - Nice 10.5!! LOL at all your race sign ups! GO YOU!!! Man, I am jealous you have so many offered in your area. So, are you running the 5K or volunteering? Of course we are interested in your beer photos And any photos! I love Oatmeal..especially with bananas.

Carol - Awe, sorry about the foot! So you are going to FL too!? Fun!!

Okay. Ruger is trying to cuddle me and his head is now resting on my laptop. Talk with you ladies later! Not ready for work tomorrow..NOT READY. Blah.

Damaris, hoping you feel better today!

Margaret, laughing about smart shopping... That wine will help when you'll have the ''wtf was I thinking signing up to all those races'' stage From personal experience - offsetting beer/candy calories w running... No chance. It just doesn't work that way. Lost fight. Nope. But the mental benefit (''Yeah, I consumed 2 tons of cake and 3 gallons of beer, but, hey! The two 3mi runs! I deserved it'' ). The beer you posted looks fancy... Was it good?

Kat, smiling at your description of dog...  Kinda dumb is not that bad, really. Better than selfish, calculating animal. 4 vomiting dogs does sound more than should be expected from one working day...

Lizzie, it's so warm in VA? Wow. Please don't send that weather here... As for your mom calling HCBF your hb and potential reasons for that... Everything's possible, right?   Golden brown hair? Can we expect a picture at some point? No pressure, of course Beer was the choice yesterday, to deal w frustration. A good one, Belgian beer w touch of cherry. I actually drank beer and watched video's from US 2016 Election night. Sorry for saying that, but had lots of entertainment.

Game was better today. Better decisions - that's always huge; gives confidence. Still adjusting to new soles I got after thorough orthopedic check-up. Feet feel a lot better but some muscles are not happy. So, speed is not at 100%. Nose is a bit swollen, tho, but no black eye. During the warm-up I realized it's a bit tough to breathe, but team doc did a good job by solving that w some interesting looking tape. No idea how she did it but it worked. It is so superbeautiful outside I actually want to go for a short run, but, of course, after two games in two days that would be a massive overkill. Tomorrow

Karen, totally agree w what you wrote on FB - we're running for fun and if you know such weather will kill all of it, why bother. And extra sleep on Sunday is always a good idea

World is coming to an end..... I ordered trail running shoes... Yep. That just happened. Unbelievable Context: I have a trail 11k in April and if all goes well there (meaning if I don't happen to utterly hate it), trail 18k in May. Running the latter w road shoes, yeah, no. Not risking it, given the ankle situation. Random note: I love the way the particular trail series name the race distances. 1k - dormouse, 5k - squirrel, 10-12k - hare, 18-22k - buck, 25+k - lynx. So, saying ''I will run the hare for the first time'' or ''Cannot decide between buck and lynx next week'' is completely usual.

Fun 5k-ish Valentine's run with my RC this morning.  I ran to the start from home, and then back again, so total mileage was 4.75.  There were "activity stations" along the way, including "throw the candy heart into the paper cup," answer a valentine's trivia question, write a short poem, bring it with you to the next station and recite it while doing jumping jacks and looking into the eyes of the person volunteering, and decorate a cookie and carry it with you to the finish line.  Clearly I excel at such activities since I finished 2nd place female.    Chores on tap for the rest of today.  Also going to stop by a local art show where a friend is showing some pieces.

Kilmisters, the Headlands Brewing Co. was a sponsor of the trail race where I volunteered yesterday afternoon so I brought back a couple cans of the double IPA and the regular IPA.  Didn't love the double IPA that I had last night, but as a general rule I prefer regular IPAs.  Will try that next.  So you bought some trail shoes?  Lisa will be so proud.  I am too!  But those trail shoe names are pretty optimistic.  How about the "sloth" or the  "desert tortoise" or the "skunk"?  

Lizzie, since the weather stays pretty mild here year-round, there are always races going on, no matter what time of year it is.  Worst-case weather scenario would be rainstorms.  And occasionally races are cancelled or re-routed if the storms are really bad, but not usually.   Look at you feeling all fresh and peppy going into your taper!  You are so ready for that race!

Karen, I wouldn't want to go anywhere on a bike with "feels like 32" temps, much less a race.  So, good call!  The only reason I didn't bankrupt myself at the discount expo was that some of my favorite trail racing cos. weren't there.

LC, packing for vacation is such a happy chore.  Did you get out for a run?  (Of course you did!)

Okay, off to be productive.  BBL!

Margaret, Valentine's trivia? Oh dear God. What could that be about? Your pic on FB actually reminded me of the upcoming Valentine's day, which I had totally forgotten, so thanks for that! Have to make some preparations.... Fast

The questions were multiple choice, fortunately, so everyone eventually could get the right answer.  Mine was "which of the following is NOT a chocolate company," so something about which I have some expertise.    You're welcome for the reminder.  You've been a bit busy...

Margaret, the Valentine 5ishK sounds interesting but definitely not for someone seriously competitive. Discount race expo? Oh my that could be very dangerous.

But wine...

I am missing Buzz Marathon this year because of scheduling issues, dammit, and that's a good one if you like wine. It's in San Miguel (off 101 between Paso Robles and Salinas) and it's a fund raiser for the local school so the organizers ask all the wineries for donations. Most of them are happy to oblige with a bottle or two. At the race, all these bottles are out on tables in the gym near the finish line, vaguely sorted by variety (all the cabernet sauvignons together, for instance). Winner gets to pick any bottle. Second place picks any bottle left. Third gets to pick, and so forth, so most/all runners will wind up with at least one bottle, and the better your place, the wider your choices.

Arrived home safely and did 6.5 this morning. Not a big week but at least I did something. Then church and now home and supposed to be doing homework though I may need to go to Costco.