Whose idea was this anyway?

I've had my legs massaged, my patches prescribed, my eyebrows waxed, pajamas purchased, a zappy tens machine purchased, and a few running clothes washed and thrown in a bag. Hmmm, I don't see the bit where "I trained like a demon, got up at stupid o'clock to run for hours...every weekend for months and months." Nope that bit really is missing. And so now on Saturday I get to make a complete eejit out of myself by lining up for a six hour track race. Shite. As Talking Heads so eloquently put it...."how did I get here?".

But, "here" I most certainly am, so time to suck it up and see what the fuss is all about. I have been especially kind to my Achilles this week (read: I have been a lazy cow and done no training) and have self massaged, got a real (very painful) massage, I've got my nitrous oxide patches, a tens machine and my orthotics all lined up. I've been doing plenty of calf work at the gym, lots of leg weights, so my legs are nice and strong. So really, the legs are sorted.

It's really the big muscle on top of my shoulders I need to focus on now. And remember that I am a LION (little Irish obstinate nutbag). With an emphasis on OBSTINATE. Which is really another way of saying stubborn, strong willed, or determined. Isn't it? So, running around a 1km track for six hours, and walking when it all gets a bit hard is just mind over matter. And I have been lucky enough to be blessed with a few special people in my life who practice this whole determination thing really well. So I will just take a leaf out of their book and carry on, and remember to keep smiling. With the knowledge in my mind that at the end of it I will really deserve a nice cold beer and some carbs. Sorted.

So - it is Friday night and the PLAN was to come home and run this evening, except I got waylaid and ended up at the Opera Bar with my high heels on and pretending I don't have a care in the world.....

But I do.  This farking race.  WHY why why do I agree to enter completely ridiculous things on absolutely no training or forethought?  Because I am a dickhead, that's why.

Anyway, I had a big week.  My Auction was on Monday.  What a night.  I got cornered by Government Hating Lunatics and the Auctioneer had to physically push them off me.  It was a point in my career where I really wanted the customer to be anywhere BUT at the centre of 'everything we do".  Note to self - never ever reveal your sources! Or who you work for.    However the Auction itself was incredibly exciting and a fantastic experience to see the products I had chosen raise over a million dollars, and the charity products raise $26,000 each for both charities.  The night was a bit of a blur, it all happened so quickly,  but I had wonderful support from our joint venture partners, who didn't have to be there, weren't making a cent out of it, but just came along to support me.  That felt nice.  I am so lucky in my job.

So, given I didn't run tonight, the plan is to run tomorrow, after a damn good lie in.  Then I will do all the things that have been bugging me and are on my to do list, like apply for my job, get a skip, pick new paint, decorate the spare bedroom, fix the door in the laundry, stop the toilet from leaking, etc etc.
So, if there is any male who is reading this who would like to apply for the job of unpaid assistant, in charge of lawns, fucked up doors and leaky toilets, please apply within.

Risotto Risoni

I have discovered the PERFECT carb loading thing for those days when you are not doing low GI, low carb, wearing sackcloth and denying yourself anything that is nice.

Risoni masquerading as rice - risotto style.

See, I have this new telly.  I kinda had to buy one because the room looked stupid without one and I lost custody of the other one along with the dog and the red pepper grinder.

Big massive room, big long TV cabinet, tiny wee scrawny telly - looked daft.  And I told myself I didn't need a telly, because I'd never watched it.  Which is true.  But now that I come home to no dog and silence, telly for company is nice.  As is a beer in front of it after work.  So I found myself watching Nigella lick her spoons seductively and cook this marvellous looking dish, which was basically three ingredients (four if you count water) and looked alright.

Well, I added some soup stock I had made from boiling a Portuguese Chicken and can I say, despite starch overload, it was totally yum.  Delicious.  Delicado.  However, having spent the morning on Six Foot Track, I could have eaten a small dog (lookout Buffy, if I ever get custody of you again)....but seriously, fry up some pancetta, throw in some frozen peas, some risoni and some water, and watch it turn into risotto.  To finish up add some grated parmesan.  I made a vegetable soup and I have to say, I was rather over zealous with the parsley.  It tasted yum but looked like shite.  So I put it in the blender and it looked like posh soup.  So I put some of that in the risotto.  It was totally yum.  I have eaten like someone who ran thirty km today when in reality I ran 16.  Actually I ran 8 and walked 8.  So I don't even deserve a protein shake, never mind a starch laden pasta masquerading as a risotto....

However, running.  Hmmmm.  This week has not been brilliant.  Saturday 15km.  Good.  Sunday 14km - ankles protesting wildly, run was shite.  Monday, ran in heavy rain, utterly fabularse, about 10km, but I blew up my iPod from the rain, and I tell you, that new farking iTunes has got to be THE most farking frustrating thing I have ever come across.  All I want is a playlist.  It shouldn't be this hard.
Ah then Tuesday, big fat nuthin, Wednesday - wee treadmill run and one legged leg weights session that rendered me almost unconscious, Thursday early run with Simon but on account of the legs session I was banjaxed, Friday arms session with PT and run on tready, Saturday BIG FAT NUTHING AGAIN, Sunday half run half walk, pretty disappointing week really.  Two weeks til this farking race.  Who's idea was this anyway?  Maybe I should just taper and pretend I have trained?  Mind over matter and all that?

Anyway it is a day off work and an adventure in a tent and then I can say goodbye to all this tomfoolery if I wish and go back to my normal life and stop stressing about not having run enough, as if I dont have enough things to stress about at the moment......

Dramarama - Anything, Anything (Official Music Video)