Tag Archives: running

I Lame Myself

Posted on May 8, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I think I have whined a couple of times about my mysterious leg pains.  I keep putting off calling the VA to make another appointment in hopes that it mysteriously resolves itself as pains sometimes do.  In the meantime, it has been causing some problems, because I rely on my nearly daily walks and runs to supplement my anti-depressant medications.  I gradually become more open in talking about my depression in hopes of doing my little part to remove the stigma still attached to mental health.  Was that virtue signalling?  Oh dear. All I really set out to do was make a Running Commentary blog post.  Quick, throw in a picture to distract from my word salad.

Decidedly not where I ran today.

I did run up this hill recently.  Incidentally, it is more intimidating when you are on it than it looks in this picture.  Getting back to today.  My legs and back usually feel pretty good when I first get up, so I thought I would try at least a short run.  I am registered for the Boilermaker 15K, and I would really hate to miss it.  Additionally, I am putting on weight.  And I LIKE to run!  With everything in my favor, I got my gear on and set out.

And it felt pretty good.  I did not attempt any hills and I set a rather slow pace.  I considered trying for two miles, figuring in my head how many weeks I have till the big race and how fast I ought to try to improve.  Doing math in my head is a good way to pass the time while I run.  A drill sergeant told me many years ago that running was just a matter of distracting yourself from how much it sucks to run.

I had looped around and was heading towards my house when my left calf started to ache just a little.  I was about 20 minutes into the run.  I had been going to make a turn and run another block or two, but then I thought, don’t be stupid. Twenty minutes is fine after more than a week off.  I went home.  I think it was a good thing I did, because when I stopped running and stood still, my leg started hurting like a sonofabitch!  I couldn’t do my cool-down walk!  I couldn’t do my stretches!  I made it into the house, sat down on the couch, and put my feet up.  And made this blog post.

That brings us up to date.  I see I have babbled on for over 400 words, and I just remembered something:  This is Lame Post Friday.  I find that strangely appropriate.

 

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Running Into May Flowers?

Posted on May 2, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well here I am with another early-ish morning post for a day late Lame Post Friday.  I am lame these days.  I don’t know if I have whined about the trouble I’ve been having with my legs lately, but, well, I’ve been having some aches and pains.  Whatever will happen to my Boilermaker hopes and dreams?  More importantly, I count on my walks and runs to supplement my anti-depressant medications, which my doctor heartily approves.  I suppose these things will work out one way or another, and I think I had better throw in a picture to lighten up the post.

Is that an azalea?

I saw this in my Media Library from May 2022 and thought it was my own rhododendron but I see now it is a plant from a neighbor’s yard.  I can’t see pictures in my Media Library as clearly, because now they show an IMG code or whatever it is (regular readers know I am far from tech savvy).  Anyways, this is a good picture for the beginning of May.  We had a few April showers and I for one am looking forward to May flowers.  I must plant a few.

Alas, an increasingly distant memory.

One thing I have let slide is my container garden, which used to grace my back deck.  Since 2020 I have been determined to reinstate it, and I have met with very little success.  Will this be the year of the pots?  Or will I once again, go to pot?  A little uncertainty adds interest to my May.

In the meantime, I am over 250 words.  Sufficient for a late Lame Post Friday post I say.  I hope you all have a marvelous weekend.

 

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Monstrous Memories on a Late Wuss-Out Wednesday Post

Posted on April 30, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well I wussed out on Wednesday and failed to make a blog post.  In my defense… my defense is too long and boring to share. Instead I will make a late  Mid-Week Monsters post and try for a Non-Sequitur or other Thursday post later in the day.  It is not super early for me, but it is prior to 7 a.m. which is considered early by many.

Extra points for crazy eyes.

How about me and a monster, qualifying this as a Wayback Wednesday post as well.  This was from October 2020, when we were all trying to recover from the COVID lock-down.  I was pursuing a challenge of exercising for 34 minutes 34 days in a row to call attention to 34 million Americans who suffer from diabetes.  Part of the challenge was to post a selfie every day and talk about the challenge.  Naturally I included friends.

It’s Mookie Wilson!

I was so taken by that selfie, I make bold to share another one.  I talked about Mookie Wilson the bat in a recent blog post.  If I can find it I will make a ping back to it.

I don’t want Bonaparte to feel left out!

And one more, just to make it three pictures.  I have been having a little trouble running and walking this past week, but I will not share my woes with you yet (key word being yet; I cannot always refrain from whining).  In the meantime, I have achieved over 200 words, my first, and perhaps only accomplishment of the day.  Once again, I thank you for tuning in.

 

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Not Even the Ambition to Swoon

Posted on April 12, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I am having kind of a Wrist to Forehead Sunday, when I swoon, dramatically posed with the back on one wrist to my forehead — why do I not yet have a chaise lounge to faint upon?  This is not an unreasonable goal.  Actually, it is, considering I cannot even get my house cleaned and organized.

The sign that should be in front of my house and definitely in front of my brain!

I could not find an appropriate illustration during a quick check of my Media Library so make due with this.  I ran by this sign on this morning’s run, then I went through Meyer’s Park.  It was only a two-mile run, so shorter than the last run, but I still feel I am getting into shape for the Boilermaker 15K in Utica, NY in July.  I suppose I should feel pleased with myself that I went for a run, was it two days in a row?  I am getting so forgetful in my old age.

I do love purple.

I throw in a picture of a few crocuses to cheer myself up.  Things got colder this weekend than they were earlier in the week, but I don’t really mind that.  The temperatures haven’t killed off the flowers.

I don’t suppose it was the temperatures that have killed off my ambition, either, but I need to get some of it back.  Maybe I could manage a Mohawk Valley Adventure this afternoon.  I hope you are all enjoying your  Sunday, with or without a chaise lounge.

 

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Too Lame for a Running Commentary

Posted on April 11, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had meant to make a Running Commentary Post today, but these are best made soon after the run.  It was some hours ago that I ran (by a very generous definition of the word) up the hill to Herkimer College (affectionately known as HCCC or H-trip-C).  It is a pretty good hill.  I would like to say I ran it triumphantly, but feelings of triumph were to follow.  At the time I felt pretty damn miserable.  But here I am runningly commenting when I decided to do a Lame Post Friday post after all.

Non-sequitur illustration.

I took this picture yesterday, I think.  I was delighted to see buds on the tree, and it looked so pretty against the blue sky.  I have not been running enough, but I manage to get in at least a short to medium walk almost every day.

Pretty!

I paused on my cool-down walk to take a picture of these crocuses.  Some people may roll their eyes and say, “We KNOW what a crocus looks like!”  I explain to them, “Shut up.”  (That is a line from S.J. Perelman, ” ‘Shut up,’ the policeman explained.”)

I zoomed in a little closer.

I confess I stepped a few feet onto these people’s front yard.  Nobody came out and yelled at me nor fired a shotgun.  You never know around here.

One white crocus to make me happy.

I was across the street from my house at the end of my cool down when I saw a couple patches of white.  A crocus?  Don’t get your hopes up, I told myself;  it is probably garbage.  Well, one of the white spots was, but the other was a crocus.  Yay!

So this is my blog post today.  Not quite a Running Commentary, and a little bit of spring.  I hope you are all having a lovely Friday.

 

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Not Too Lame to Walk

Posted on April 4, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well, I made it to Lame Post Friday and, yes, I am feeling lame.  I’m still waste-not-want-notting with a few pictures I took on a recent walk.  I’m sure I mentioned that I try to walk almost every day.  I actually went for a run this morning, and it was pretty great.  I was thinking of doing a Running Commentary post, but the day kind of got away from me.  Let us see what I can come up with before heading to Valley Wine and Liquor for a wine tasting and perhaps to Herkimer Elks Lodge for Fish Fry (preview of coming attractions).

Look how many purple flowers!

I still have not found out what these little purple flowers are called, but I love them.  When I find out, I will get some seeds and scatter them all over my yard.  I love looking around for growth as I walk.  As I type this, I am a little sorry I do not intend to walk to the liquid store (as a four-year-old niece once called it).  However, I plan to purchase some wine, and those bottle get heavy!

I love fire fighters!

This is a new sign in front of the fire station.  I do not always walk by  the station, so I am not sure how long it has been there.

Can you read it?

This is the dedication plaque on the rear of the sign.  I did not pause to read it at the time; I just took the picture.

And just like that, I am over 250 words.  Score!  On to the rest of my Friday!  As always, I thank you for tuning in.

 

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Actually, I am a Slacker and Scatter-Brained

Posted on March 29, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

It’s not a Slacker Saturday, and it is not a Scattered Saturday, unless you count that I am very scatter brained as usual.  But it is a Saturday and I must make a blog post before I completely lose track of the day.

I went for a run earlier, thinking to make a Saturday Running Commentary.  It was not an eventful run or even a very long run. I was recruiting my energies, you see, because the Elk of the Year Dinner is tonight at Herkimer Elks Lodge.  I did not attend last year’s dinner, but this year’s honoree is one of my particular Elk friends.  Additionally, it is an early night: cocktails at three, dinner at four.  I am kind of an early bird in my old age.

I will probably enjoy at least one glass of wine.

I looked through my Media Library for a picture of the Elks Lodge, feeling I could ill afford the time, and finally settled on this one taken at the lodge.  The bracelet was by One Of A Kind Designs Handcrafted Jewelry by Debora Bruce, just to give a local artist a shout-out.

In addition to figuring out my outfit (as if anybody will notice what I wear) and trying in vain to do something with my hair (I will settle for that coveted “looks like I did it on purpose” look), I must go pick up my car which was getting an oil change and inspection.  It is a mere ten minute walk to do so, but I have not yet heard from the mechanic so do not yet know if my poor little car has even passed inspection.  Also, I have to mail my Saturday post cards.  I think the mail actually leaves the post office at three, not two as I had previously thought, so I have time.

This is turning into really a flustered post, and the more I type, the more flustered I become.  I shall sign off and look for a decent pair of pantyhose.  As always, I thank you for tuning in.

Once again, I do not have my ducks in a row!

I add a silly picture, just to cheer myself up.  It worked!

 

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I Didn’t Waste My Walks

Posted on March 25, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I had a kind of a Terrible Tuesday, which is not one of my features, but now I am all set for a Waste Not Want Not Wednesday post.  For anybody who didn’t know, this is when I share previously unused pictures from my cell phone.

Spring IS coming!

I saw these snowdrops on my cool-down walk after my run on (going to the calendar to check) Yikes! Friday!  How have I not been running since Friday?  Why the hell am I thinking?  Obviously I am not thinking (that is pretty much always the answer to “What were you thinking?”).  But I digress.

The picture did not turn out as well as I had hoped.

I paused to take a picture of a birds nest in a tree on Mohawk Street in Herkimer, NY (where I live) during a longish walk I took on Saturday.  So I have been getting some exercise if not running.  Incidentally, I took two longish walks in the pouring rain on Sunday (it was not raining when I left the house), which quite wore me out.  Apparently I am less resilient in my old age than I was in my younger days.  Alas!

Apparently not the road less traveled.

I add this picture purely for the sake of having three illustrations.  It is a battered street in Ilion, which I photographed as a possible accompaniment to my article for Sentinel Media about the Ilion Village Board of Trustees Meeting on Monday.  This and several other roads will soon have work done on them, as was discussed in the meeting.

One might say that the road picture is symbolic of my life:  not a smooth path, but it just might take me somewhere.  Also, a bare road will be an encouragement for me to get back to running.  I believe I mentioned that I am registered for the Boilermaker 15K in Utica in July.

 

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It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like a Lame Post

Posted on March 14, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

Yesterday afternoon winter returned to the Mohawk Valley.  I enjoyed bare roads and sidewalks in the morning, when I went for a run and turned in bottles and cans (that have been rattling around in my trunk for some weeks now, but never mind that).  I was beguiled into wearing a pair of the little canvas sneakers that I love.  My feet start to sweat after a while in running shoes.

Not good winter shoes.

In case you are wondering why I am not wearing full length pants or leggings, it is because I had a disagreement with gravity and the sidewalk while I ran, because I was trying to make a silly joke with a pedestrian.  These were more comfortable for my skinned knee.  When I went to leave the house to go to Herkimer Elks Lodge for Fish Fry, it was raining.  I went back into the house for a raincoat but was too lazy to change my shoes.  It started to snow before I got to the end of the block.

Of course it did not look like this right away.

At the Lodge, many were lamenting the snow, and I made myself very unpopular by singing, “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas,” and observing that the snow on the trees was pretty.  “Pretty depressing,” one fellow said.

At least the fish fry was good, I carried my leftovers home carefully.  The roads were not slippery, so I counted my blessings.

In case anybody wants to follow in my footsteps.

Once I got home, I took the pictures I have just shared, starting with this one of Frankentree, who is more tree than Franken these days.

No porch sitting last night!

So here is my late Lame Post Friday post.  I almost lamed myself during my run but was not too lame to walk to and from fish fry.  Local readers take note:  Fish Fry continues at the Herkimer Elks Lodge Fridays through Easter.  Come on down!

 

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Pre-Breakfast Post

Posted on March 12, 2026 by mohawkvalleygirl

I wussed out on Wednesday, not making my post till Thursday morning.  I’m thinking nobody is surprised, least of all me.  Now I am typing in haste (ten-finger typing, which is my usual thing these days), because I am meeting my Elks friends at Ann Street Deli in Little Falls, NY for breakfast.  I am hungry!  And I could use some coffee or tea.

Great for breakfast and lunch!

I easily found this picture in my Media Library.  I took it the last time we had breakfast there.  Note the crappy lump of snow in front.  The snow that is left looks crappy and dirty, and I for one am hoping no more falls to whiten it up.  However, Mother Nature rarely takes any of our hopes under advisement.

Yesterday was supposed to be the last warm day for a while, so I took advantage of the bare roads and sidewalks for a run.  I actually managed to stay on the sidewalks for most of the time, which is what I prefer to do.  You can’t count on cars slowing down.  Later on, when I took a walk, it was raining.  I had to walk down State Street, or Route 5 as it is more commonly known.  The sidewalks were muddy, and cars zoomed through the puddles, splashing wherever it landed.  Humph.  Just my little complaint of the day.  Don’t mind me.

My plans for today are to clean my house and perhaps do a Throwback Thursday blog post.  I need to write the conclusion for my murder mystery, which begins rehearsals Sunday (preview of coming attractions).  But I feel pleased I have done a blog post today of over 250 words.  250 entertaining words?  My dear readers are the judge of that.

 

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