I am so, so tired and bed is imminent, but I thought it was about time for a quick check in here.

I've got one last short run before the Columbia Gorge Half and I'm still feeling pretty excited about the race. I know that hills aren't my strongest thing and that this course has lots of them, but I'm definitely more prepared than I was before I moved to Seattle and pretty much HAD to start running hills if I wanted to actually get anywhere. Living on the top of the hill can have some disadvantages, but I know they're great training.

Today was a nice, easy 4.5, which I really enjoyed. I especially enjoyed finding, when I finished that my "easy" pace was only 5 seconds slower than my absolute dream half marathon pace for Sunday. So, that was nice. I feel confident that I will be able to do better than I did at the Princess, because I'm better trained, not going in injured, there won't be a sudden heat wave to adjust to, and I'm NOT going to forget to eat anything during the race! Sadly, I will not be running with my best friend, nor will there be a castle. Still, there will be an iPod, probably playing Wittertainment or my new favorite, Marathon Talk, and a Garmin that I'm finding I need to look at less & less. I still like analyzing the data when I'm finished, but I am loving the "no pressure" running of just waiting until it has done the requisite number of beeps to indicate the miles I've finished. I seem to run so much better when I can run by feel, rather than by Garmin. Doesn't mean I'm going to run without it, though! Then I couldn't overanalyze my pacing and splits. :-)

So, goals: my A goal would be to get under 2:15. My B goal is to be under 2:25 (my PB from Princess is 2:28). My C goal is to finish.

And, after that, it's on to a good rest and training for London! I met a woman for whom NYC will be her 7th marathon last night at the Sounders game. Needless to say, we both kind of forgot that there was a game on and spent the entire 90+half time+injury time talking about marathons. Awesome. It was fantastic and super helpful! However, we both realized that Boston, for which she'll be training next, is conveniently timed for making up training support teams, since Boston is the day after London. That would be nice, even though I'm still very much in awe of people who can run fast enough and training hard enough to earn BQs.

Right, falling asleep a bit now & must give in!

And now for some VERY big news....

I'm running the London Marathon!

I'd be completely lying if I didn't admit that I'm pants-wettingly scared about this fact AND so over the moon that I want to shout about it from the rooftops!

I keep reading blogs from previous Londons and getting chills about the whole experience. And then, a split second later, wondering how on earth I'll cope with the training, the wall, getting the nutrition strategy right (am I the only person who wonders about this obsessively?). I realize how well I already know the course and how much better I'm going to know it soon. And I realize how incredibly lucky I am to have the support of friends who are going to be cheering me on the whole way (in tiaras!).

So, I'm just getting started - I've ordered several books from the library and am going to have to sit down and make a plan. (A PLAN!!!!) And, then, of course, comes the hard part - sticking to it. I'm going to plan for four runs a week. That's more than I manage now and will be quite a challenge, given that I work from 7:30-5 and it's dark so early in Seattle. I think more runs that I'd like will be in my gym, once it's finished and opens, on a dreadmill. Ew. But, I'm also looking forward to the cross-training and definitely planning to do a yoga class each week.

I'm definitely not starting to train now. I've still got two weeks and a bit until the Columbia Gorge Half and am technically in the taper for that race. However, I am so, so grateful now that I'm signed up for that race and really got my training in gear over the past couple of months. The news about London came off of a really good training week and an 11 mile long run that was definitely hard, but not utterly exhausting. I can feel the improvement, even from a few weeks ago. My body feels strong and I love that feeling. I am in no way, shape, or form underestimating the challenge that running the marathon will be, but I feel like I've at least given myself a good shot at getting through this in one piece, because I've already built a solid base to train from.

And OMGOMGOMG, I'M RUNNING THE LONDON MARATHON!!!! EEEEEEEEEEE!

I started my new job today. It was lovely - the people are lovely, I have a colleague where I didn't expect to have one, and the views are utterly fantastic. I'm as stoked about it after the first day as I was leading into it, which is a huge win in my book. While I'm a little jealous of the waterfront views that much of the rest of the office enjoys, my cube looks straight out at the Space Needle, so that's still rather nice. I'm still getting used to the idea that I'm a lawyer (well, almost...*crosses fingers and vaguely contemplates making sacrifices to the NY Board of Law Examiners*), but, then again, I NEVER want to be that lawyer anyway, so it very possibly doesn't matter.

A big highlight of the day, after I'd pounded up a few of the hills in downtown Seattle (dear god, I don't understand how a city can survive with the hills this city has between 1st and 5th Sts.) was stopping by the gigantic central library to get a library card and a healthy stack of books. Being an idiot, I'd only packed two books (aside from a couple of reference/textbooks) to get me through until the pod arrives next week. And, obviously, I've finished them. STUPID. So, now I am restocked and must remember to go and place a few things on hold. Apparently everyone else wants to read Hunger Games, Mao's Last Dancer, and Born to Run, too. Lame. Still, it was glorious and even better is knowing that going to the library doesn't even require a detour from my commute.

Plus, I saw Mt. Rainier!

Finally, a bit on the running. Last week, in between a trip to the Social Security office and the DMV, I visited the mothership and signed up for an REI card, just like a good little Seattleite. I also bought two pairs of shoes - another pair of New Balance Minimus (the original version - for some reason the update didn't feel quite as good, so I decided not to mess with success) and a pair of Saucony Hattoris. Now, I'd been looking at the Hattoris for quite some time, ever since I saw them reviewed on The Running Moron's blog. I'd even go into the running stores in DC and pick them up and think about how comfy they looked. So, last week, I FINALLY tried them on. And they feel amazing. So they went home with me. And then went for an 8 mile run on Sunday*. And, despite having killed my forefoot the day before in the pair of Minimuses that are now officially retired, the Hattoris were lovely and comfortable. And blue. They really do feel like you're running in slippers.

As for the run, I enjoyed checking out the Arboretum and the shore of Lake Washington. I got lost a fair amount, but my phone helped me. I had to walk some of the hills, but I was really, really proud of getting to 8 miles, even after giving myself permission to poop out after 7. I've got a ways to go before the half marathon, but I think I'll survive, at least.

*Yes, I do realize you should probably break shoes in first, before taking them on very long runs. But they just felt so perfect out of the box (and didn't cause any problems)! I'm SURE it helps that I've been running in shoes with a 4mm drop for months, so going to zero drop didn't really feel any different. It actually felt better because my foot felt better cushioned in the Hattori.

A few first ramblings about Seattle

Well, I've moved across the country and have started settling into my new life. This life involves a LOT of Ikea furniture. It also apparently involves me playing with my stamps a lot. So far, I've made a massive spreadsheet of all of my Yugoslavia and put them in chronological order - which is a really good idea, when the plan is to eventually accumulate enough to do a fairly decent rate study. I was shocked by how many of them I've managed to accumulate in a relatively short amount of time, given that they seem to trickle in a few at a time. Of course, this also encouraged me (as if I haven't spent enough this week already) to decide to start targeting some of the online auction sites a bit more aggressively.

So, if you're a stamp dealer who happens to have any Yugoslav covers mailed between 1988 and 1999ish, please give me a buzz!

I've also sat down and spent a bit of time thinking about how to revise a paper that I'm working on about the Thatcher Ferry Bridge stamp error litigation. What I mostly decided is that I want to go through the DOJ files at the National Archives as soon as I can - it's annoying that I LIVED in DC and never made it (granted, I was a bit busy this summer) out there and now need to plan a special trip across the country.

But, so far, Seattle is nice. I LOVE the weather, which is just as much like London as everyone always told me it would be: overcast, cool, sometimes a bit drizzly (I've been assured that soon, it will ALWAYS be drizzly), and so humid that you're sweating after five minutes. I love the house's location - living within a three-minute walk of a Trader Joe's AND a crunchy, granola co-op is just about the most wonderful thing that could have happened to me after so many years of it being hard to get groceries. I've managed to see a bit of the city while running errands; so far, my favorite thing was the crumpet and tea shop at Pike's Place Market. And, yes, I did stop to watch them throw the fish around. I can't wait to see more of the Market & try a lot of the food options. Plus, new housemate has been super awesome about taking me out places and making suggestions.

I've been running several times now. The local running store is only a 10-minute walk away and has running groups twice a week. I went on Thursday, which is the night that involves a post-run trip to the bar. That was lovely. I also ended up being the only person other than the organizer who showed up for another, Saturday, run around one of the lakes. Both runs were great, but I'm definitely slow compared to these other runners. I'm not ashamed of that and I know running with them will make me stronger, but I do kind of wonder where the other Penguins are? Do they not join running groups? Do they run with other groups? Or, are there fewer "recreational" runners in Seattle?

The other thing that will make me stronger (if they don't kill me first) are the hills. Dear god, the hills. THERE ARE SO MANY OF THEM. AND THEY ARE SO STEEP. I WILL NEVER MOAN ABOUT DC'S CAPITOL HILL EVER AGAIN. I had to walk a good number of them on this morning's run, but I was pleased to make it 8 miles without falling over. It puts me more or less on track for the half marathon in October, by which point I will hopefully know what my spring racing season looks like - some runners from here are doing the Hollywood Half, which sounds pretty amazing, but we'll see...

The idea of a streak went down in flames when I realized that it really was not the best idea for me to keep pushing every day to run, even when I was still recovering from injury.

I've run several times since my last blog post, but yesterday was particularly memorable/stupid.

I had a form that needed to be turned in at school, a mile away, by 5:00. At 4:50, I left my house and, after waiting for Mr. Garmin to find some satellites, booked it in 80 degree weather, when I haven't been properly hydrating or feeding myself for several days (What? It's finals?). And then I felt like I was going to pass out when I stopped running. So, obviously, I walked for a bit, then started running again.

I was running along the sidewalk beside the Capitol reflecting "pond," when one of the sidewalk joins decided to leap up and trip me and I bit it hard - as did my iPhone, which now has a nice little scuff on one corner, but is otherwise happy. My knees and palms, not so much. I've got some huge sore spots just below my knees, but at least the bruising seems to have been avoided by the rapid application of frozen peas. God bless my special "only for injuries" bag of peas. And, of course, I still wanted to pass out from the heat, dehydration, and running too fast. But, I made it all of 2.25 miles before I ran into a friend and decided it was time for me to be done running.

All of this bodes very well for my 5K this weekend, but I will, of course, be drinking lots of water between now and then. And going for a few more runs.

If anyone is actually reading this, I'd really appreciate any donations you might be willing to make to Cancer Research's Race for Life this year. My page is at: http://www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/joyceadams1308. It's my fourth year, out of the last five, running, and I'm still grateful that this is the event that first introduced me to running and let me channel my sorrow at losing my mom and dad into something that keeps me happy, balanced, AND helping other people. Thanks.

Day 4, 6.5 Miles

Another late night, minimum-length run. But, another mile for my streak, so I'll take it.

I decided to try running in my regular trainers, instead of my barefoots. Sure enough, the tendon in my groin that has been SUCH a problem didn't feel as good as it does in the Minimuses. That's totally fine - I'm happy to keep working on upping my milage in the Minimuses, because the regular shoes felt SO SLOW and I went back to feeling like a plodding elephant. Still, I'm a little sad because I think my other shoes are really nice looking (yes, that's vain). And, because it doesn't bode well for me, at some point, deciding that I cannot live my entire life in barefoot running shoes. I haven't worn anything else, except for when I'm wearing my work flats, for a good two weeks now. And Duchie helped me buy some really, really cute heels for graduation! I think I may still need to try some PT, or at least do another few weeks of strengthening exercises.

In happy news, I got to talk to my favorite Australian today and that was lovely!

Day 3, 5.5 total miles

As I could have predicted, tonight's run was a bit crap. It's cold, it's raining and it's late. So I only did a mile. Meh. It's supposed to be beautiful tomorrow. I might take my regular trainers out for a "long" run to see how they and my injured bits will do. 4 miles? It's kind of pathetic, but I'd rather be safe than sorry (and can always go longer on the day).

Hmmm, am I going to have to run first thing on Sunday, in order to be ready for an Easter cupcake feast?