Tag Archives: weather

12 Hours Make a Difference

Posted on June 11, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I ran Friday morning (another prior to 4 a.m. start) then gave blood Friday afternoon so gave myself Saturday off. I took Sunday and Monday off for no good reason, although I did take nice walks with my poocher all three of those days. Still, I thought, three days off isn’t so bad. It’s not like, for example, two weeks off (don’t judge). Still, I was determined to run today (Tuesday).

When I remembered to during the day, I reminded myself that I would run after work. My plan was to run on the mini-tramp if it was raining, which I kind of sort of expected to happen. That wouldn’t be so bad, I thought. I could watch a silent movie while I ran. Or maybe Judge Mathis. I could rock the mini-tramp.

As the afternoon progressed, I watched the sun continue to shine. I know it can cloud up in an instant in the Mohawk Valley (“If you don’t like the weather here, wait five minutes”), but it showed no disposition to do so. So I would run outside. That was OK, too. I wanted to run out Main Street and check the name of the street you take to the path over what used to be the hydraulic canal. I haven’t run that path in a while. I could rock that.

I’m sure some readers have guessed, I didn’t rock much of anything when it came right down to it. Oh, I got myself out the door and moving. But it wasn’t very fast. It was warm and humid. The air was heavy and I felt heavier. Get used to it, I told myself. It’s only June. I reflected that this was the difference between jumping out of bed to run and working all day before running. At least I was hydrated, because I keep a bottle of water handy at all times while at work. I tried to feel the benefits of hydration. All I could do was marvel at how dreadful I must feel if I were not hydrated.

I turned down German Street towards Main Street. There is quite a lot of traffic in Herkimer around 4 p.m. There is a 4-way stop at Main Street, but did I trust it? I could see from two blocks away the line of cars going in each direction on German. I could make eye contact with the near driver, he could wave me on, I could start going and the guy going in the opposite direction could nail me. Well, he probably wouldn’t nail me, starting from a dead stop as he would be. But still. Perhaps I would continue down German Street.

But first I would have to cross Prospect, and there were two cars waiting at that stop sign (it is a T, not a 4-way). They would probably let me go, but would I be robbing them of their chance to get onto German? I couldn’t take that responsibility. I turned down Prospect. This wasn’t so bad. I could run down to Meyers Park.

Couldn’t I?

My legs felt worse and worse. They begged me to stop. They pointed out soft patches of grass where a middle-aged lady could probably take a very comfortable nap. I knew I couldn’t really, but the argument was persuasive. I reminded myself that I knew how to persevere. I questioned whether that was really true.

Then I began to wonder why I had not stayed sensibly in my house on the mini-tramp. After all, where is it written that one may only run on a mini-tramp if it is raining? Why couldn’t I run on the mini-tramp any time I wanted to? It’s not that my house is so much cooler than outdoors, but the humidity has not penetrated in yet, as it undoubtedly will soon start to do. Moreover, I have a ceiling fan in my living room. That would have to help. Then the great outdoors provided me with some breezes, and I felt better about everything.

For a little while.

I did manage to persevere, for at least a short run. I was up to 26 minutes at the last increase, but I thought a 20 minute run would be acceptable for today. I will persist in calling it a run. Maybe it looked more like a shuffle or a plod or worse, but at least I did it. And wrote a blog post. That is not bad for a Tired Tuesday.

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Watching for Skunks and Psychos

Posted on June 4, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Is there any better feeling for your legs than the cool-down walk after a run? I suppose there could be, but I’m not familiar with it.

Steven has two early shifts this week, so I thought I’d take advantage of the early rising and get a run in before the heat of the day. It only partially worked out for me.

I should have suspected the temperature would not be cool when it did not seem to cool down yesterday evening. I put the fan in the bedroom window, realized the air coming in was warmer than the air already here, took the fan out and shut the window. Of course I’m used to warm nights. I’m pre-menopausal (oh shut up, it’s a perfectly natural thing that women go through and I’m not going to pretend I’m not middle-aged). I never know if it’s the weather or hormones. My trick is to tell myself it’s hormones, then I wait quietly for the feeling to pass. It took me years to realize the benefits of waiting quietly, but we’ll save the half-baked philosophy for Lame Post Friday.

It was 3:38 when I left the house. I’m still a little nervous about running before dawn. Today being garbage day I was more wary of skunks than psychos. As I turned onto German Street, I thought I smelled one. Yikes. Um, skunk, not psycho. I don’t know what a psycho smells like.

A note about my breathing. I have dreadful sinus problems. I usually cannot follow the “in through your nose, out through your mouth” dictum, because my nasal capacities are not usually up to it. My sense of smell is unreliable. Sometimes I smell things that other people do not. Sometimes I can’t smell things that other people can. It is most inconvenient. On today’s run, I tried a nose inhale every so often to check for skunk odor. I didn’t smell anything after the initial whiff, although I later caught a nice floral scent.

It was a very lonely run. Block after block of no cars, no people and no lights on in houses. I passed a young man walking on my street almost as soon as I left my house. Heading home after a hard night out? Or a hot one night stand? These are the speculations that add interest to my runs. I either saw him two more times during my cool-down walk or I saw two similarly dressed young men. If it was the same man, perhaps he was out for a long walk pondering a problem. Maybe it was a ghost. How cool would that be?

The mugginess started getting to me early on. There was barely a breeze to relieve me. I felt a little ill-used, running in the dark and not having some cool air to run in. I cheered myself up by thinking about the bottle of water waiting on my deck for me and the cool shower after my walk.

I kept an eagle eye out for skunks. Psychos did not concern me as much, although naturally I watched for them too. I saw an animal cross the sidewalk way ahead of me. A cat, I assured myself. As I approached a trash can and bag, the rustle of an animal startled me. I hear my feet scrape on the sidewalk as I stopped short. A cat flew out from behind the bag and across the lawn. Definitely a cat. Phew!

It was really not a problem to keep running. I can’t say I reached the “I can rock this” stage, though. I am skeptical of my ability to rock anything prior to four in the morning. Then again, if I keep up these early morning runs, maybe I’ll surprise myself.

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A Good Run to Start the Weekend

Posted on May 31, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Yes, it’s Saturday Running Commentary. I’m not getting to it just after the run, but I don’t despair of thinking of things to say. It is good to be back in the running game. My only regret is that I’ve been running three times this week and I’m still not skinny yet. Once again, our instant gratification society has done me dirt. But that’s half-baked philosophy suitable for Lame Post Friday. Today I’m going to write about my run.

We got up at 5:30, representing a half-hour of sleeping in for me. Let’s hear it for Saturday. I had a cup of coffee then thought it would be a good idea to get out running before I got hungry. After all, if I ate I would have to wait for it to digest. Plenty of time to talk myself out of it.

It was 51 degrees out, according to our thermostat, a good temperature for a run. I laid out a sweatshirt, in case I wanted it for my cool down walk. Off I went. Ah, not too cold at all. My hands might not even get numb.

I turned right onto German Street, since I had most recently gone left. I decided no hills. I need to conserve my energies for some things I’m hoping to do later. Then I saw a dog almost two blocks ahead of me. He was a jumpy boy. Normally it would take me a long time to catch up to a pedestrian that far ahead of me, but you know how dogs like to stop and sniff. I like to stop and pet a dog when I run, but it’s best if you are going in opposite directions. Then you’re out of the dog’s range before you drive him nuts.

So I turned up Main Street, going towards a hill. It’s a challenging hill, but there are two places you can turn off it. I could just go up the first third (the turning off places are not spaced at thirds, but I like to think of them that way). Part of the street is closed to traffic, because the road is kind of collapsed. The last time I was there, a pedestrian could get by. I would try it.

Up the hill. Oof, I am not yet used to hills again. I remembered a drill sergeant’s advice: just look at your feet and shuffle up that hill. There was a mound of dirt blocking the closed part of the road, but a small space seemed clearly left for pedestrians. I went in the space, skirting the collapsed part of the road. I have to say, it didn’t really look like a good place to be. I might not run that way again, which is too bad, because there are not that many hills in Herkimer.

Down the hill I went, on Steuben Street. I saw a lady setting up for today’s Village Wide Garage Sales.

“Here’s a place I can come check out later,” I said.

“Don’t miss it,” she said. I probably will miss it, but from what I’ve seen there are plenty of people out looking for sales.

I managed to make my 24 minutes, which is the time I got to last Sunday. I felt pretty terrific when Tabby and I set off on our cool down walk. I didn’t need the sweatshirt. My layer of sweat felt healthy, as if I had sweated out the bad stuff. Bring on the rest of the weekend!

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I Didn’t Rock This

Posted on May 22, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I am becoming quite fond of Wuss-out Wednesday. Of course, it will never replace Lame Post Friday in my affections, but I read somewhere that love keeps on stretching. I suppose I could segue from there into a contemplation of Love. Then this would become a Maudlin Mid-Week Middle-aged Musing. Love the alliteration, but I am not up for that sort of a post.

That is as much as I wrote at work. Then I guess you could say I wussed out. In my defense, it hurt to write (never mind about that; long story, not very interesting). Then I came home and did NOT wuss out. I went running. That’s right! I’m going to attempt a Running Commentary.

I had thought it would be raining by this afternoon. Instead, I walked out of my place of employment to a breezy, pleasant day. I could rock this! My co-worker pointed out that it was feeling a little muggy, but I didn’t worry. I got home and changed into running clothes.

And proceeded to run very, very slowly. And painfully. What was wrong with my legs? I last ran on Monday, a mere two days ago. Oh dear. Earlier today I saw an older man running along at a pace that looked barely more than a walk. I imagine that is pretty much what I looked like. Persevere, I told myself. Persevere.

The mugginess my co-worker had noticed increased as I ran. Get used to it, I told myself. It will only get worse as the season progresses. It really was not too bad, since the temperature was moderate. My only worry was that it would rain, which it certainly felt as if it might. I decided to run close to home, in case of a deluge. I would persevere through a little rain. Any thunder and lightning and I was out of there.

It soon became clear that I was not going to reach the “I can rock this” stage. But it was not a bad run for all that. I sniffed some lilacs I had run by on Monday. Monday two people were in that yard, so I felt self-conscious. They weren’t there today. Further on I saw some white tulips. Beautiful.

I was glad that I ran, although I felt so dreadfully tired I was certain I could never manage a blog post. Oh, look, I just wrote a blog post. Fooled myself.

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Lame: Ain’t it Grand?

Posted on May 10, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

It does not matter how many ridiculous posts I may have in a week, I still love my Lame Post Friday, home of random observations and half-baked philosophy.

I took my schnoodle Tabby for a walk this afternoon, hoping to come up with some of the former. Mostly I observed tulips in people’s yards. I love tulips. I think I like the orange and yellow ones best. They are blooming late this year, as are most things. Perhaps I should go into some half-baked philosophy here about being something of a late bloomer myself. Then again, most people probably do not want to hear about my bloomers (sorry, couldn’t resist).

I also observed a young couple on the sidewalk a block or two ahead of me, holding hands. Young love, ain’t it grand? My main observation was of their clothing. It seems to me that gender divisions in clothes are becoming more pronounced. The boys’ are getting baggier while the girls’ are getting tighter. Well, I have not exactly done a study.

The warm weather does seem to have people in a better mood (just to put in some more half-baked philosophy). Warm weather, warm hearts? Well, Tabby and I enjoyed it. For the first time since fall, I walked without any kind of jacket.

Wow, this is a really boring post (my next stunning observation). However, my gentle readers will suffer no longer. I’m over 200 words. Happy Friday, everybody.

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I Should Have Run in my Head

Posted on May 7, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Holy Crap, it’s only Tuesday.

That isn’t what I had been going to lead with, but it popped into my head and I thought it was so catchy I wanted to use it. This is, in fact, running commentary. I came home from work and ran. Now I’m going to write about it.

It was perfect running temperature, not too warm not too cold. Spandex shorts and a loose t-shirt, my favorite running outfit. I put on a headband but did not feel I really needed it to cover my ears. Still, the wind could pick up. I was on my way.

And right away it wasn’t much fun. I wasn’t too worried. I probably just needed to warm up. I ran toward German Street and debated right or left. Right the sun would be in my eyes. Left often has more traffic. Right I could go to Caroline, then down Caroline, up Margaret, down Henry. Very straightforward. That suited me.

The sun wasn’t too bad; it was high enough in the sky to not be right in my eyes. I sure do love May and June. As I ran, I contemplated the names of the streets. I may write a book and name the main characters Caroline, Margaret and Henry. I had previously thought of using town names for a book. Vernon and Hamilton have always been favorites of mine. As I ran, I thought I would amuse myself by thinking of what other towns to use.

Of course I couldn’t think of any. Silly me. I kept running and waited for it to get easier. When I was at work, I had thought about the evening’s run, psyching myself up so I wouldn’t talk myself out of it. I thought about how in my head I am loping along like a gazelle while in reality I am shuffling along like a middle-aged fat lady. I realized that was not happening today. In my head, I was shuffling along like a middle-aged fat lady. I thought, oh no! If I look that bad in my head, how ridiculous I must look to other people! I comforted myself with the thought that people are notoriously unobservant. They have problems of their own to think about. I ran on.

And it continued to suck. I persevered as best I could and managed 22 minutes. Less than my previous times, but still over 20 minutes. With a walk around the block for a cool down, I got in over a half hour of exercise. My weight loss goals may be within reach.

Incidentally, toward the end of my run, I suddenly thought, Kirkland! You know, a town that could be used as a name? I actually met a Kirkland once. Then the next time I saw him, I could only remember that his name was the name of a town near Utica. He wasn’t best pleased when I called him Washington Mills.

Ooh, and I just now remembered Clinton.

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Begin Again AGAIN

Posted on April 27, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

So we were all excited that Saturday Running Commentary was back, and then, well, it wasn’t any more. This morning, I had no plan to run. I had a vague thought that perhaps at some point today, I’d give it a try. So there I was, about an hour before Steven had to be at work, thinking, what would I do? I really needed a shower. Shower now, run later, shower again? Stay stinky, run later, shower then? Oh, hell, like Nike says, just do it.

I got my gear on, I got out the door. I was doing it!

I figured I had enough time to run for 20 or 23 minutes and do my cool down walk with Tabby before Steven had to leave. Of course it was not really a problem if he left while I was gone, but he is a creature of habit. He might lock me out of the house without thinking about it. Then too, I do like to kiss him good-bye. I’m that sort of a wife.

The first thing I realized was that I was running faster than my usual pace. Naturally I was; I was in a hurry to finish the run before Steven left. The problem with that is I run for a certain length of time, not a certain distance. Twenty minutes is twenty minutes, whatever pace I run. Silly me. Well, the pace felt good. I kept it up as long as I felt like it and slowed down when I had to.

The second thing I noticed was that I was cold. My thermostat said the outdoor temperature was 45. That is normally shorts and t-shirt running weather for me, adding a sweatshirt for the cool down walk. But I am out of shape (actually, I maintain that round and puffy is a shape, so I guess technically I am NOT out of shape, but you know what I mean). So I felt a little cold. My hands felt really cold. At least my ears were OK, because I had found a headband which covered them.

The world was grey and gloomy. It had rained in the night but had luckily stopped. I don’t mind gloom. It suits me. I dodged around some of the puddles but was unable to avoid all the mud. No matter. I could take off my sneakers at the door.

As I ran, it occurred to me that it was not a problem. I can get back into running ANYTIME, I told myself. This is EASY! Really, it felt better and better. I even stopped feeling so cold. I suppose my hands might have been numb, but I didn’t need to use them. They’d be fine.

The question was how far to run. I had done 23 minutes when I ran two weeks ago. I thought 20 would be OK, since I was beginning again (yes, my two-weeks-ago run was supposed to be beginning again; sometimes these things don’t work out). Then I thought, I have been running for 23 minutes for a while now, with all these new beginnings. Perhaps I should break the 23 minute barrier.

Then again, I had the whole rest of my Saturday to get through, with a not inconsiderable list of chores I wanted to get done. I probably shouldn’t rack myself up. I mean, the idea isn’t to run as far as one can possibly run, is it? Oh, I suppose for some people it is. I finally compromised on 24 minutes.

As I finished the run, my inner critic said, this is no way to build up time. But my optimism, buoyed up by the thought that I HAD RUN, said, perhaps not, but it is a very good way to begin again. I ignored the inner critic’s math as she began to tally up the number of times I have tried to begin again.

As Tabby and I walked my cool down, I felt terrific. I love running! I have a definite plan to run tomorrow, and at least twice in the coming week. Thus I publish my intentions, in hopes it will encourage me to follow through.

Now about that list of chores…

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Not Wrist, Walk

Posted on April 20, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I feel it would be wrong to have Wrist to Forehead Sunday on Easter. And in any case it is unnecessary. My wrists are in their accustomed place, just beyond the edge of my keyboard, as I type. I shall offer instead a Pedestrian Post, utilizing a very nice walk I took with my schnoodle Tabby this morning.

I had to take my husband Steven to work at nine, in order to pick him up at one and go to Rome to my parents’ house for dinner. I have a list of things to accomplish in the meantime (I was taking my chances in doing this as such lists often send my wrist right to my forehead — “I’ll NEVER get these things done!”). I did the worst thing first, a sensible action I rarely take. I did the dishes. Then I did what promised to be one of the most pleasant: taking my dog for a walk.

It is as fine as an Easter morning ought to be: bright and sunny. Not awfully warm yet, but it’s early. At least I didn’t feel I needed my toque and insulated sweatshirt. Regular sweatshirt and crazy old lady hat. Prescription sunglasses and a couple of poop bags. I was ready.

Tabby was very happy to go. And stop. Of course dogs like to stop and sniff a lot, that is what they do. Today she seemed to find even more interesting spots than usual. I tried to indulge her as much as possible, although I do try to keep her from sticking her face into other dogs’ poo (WHY do these dog owners not pick it up like the rest of us do?).

We went by our favorite Historic Four Corners and down Main Street. We met a lady walking a very cute little white dog. The dog was quite interested in meeting Tabby. The lady and I petted each others’ dogs and chatted a little. It’s nice to meet another dog owner.

Heading up another street, we walked by a young man on a cell phone. He was too intent on his conversation to notice us. Tabby gave him an interested look but let him by. I saw a young lady further down the street on a cell phone, alternately talking into it and hollering at her kids not to come outside. I thought it would be funny if she was talking to the young man.

It was funny. I heard her say, “NOW do you know where you’re going?” and head back into the house. Then he headed towards that house. What did we do without cell phones? Got better directions and read house numbers, I suppose.

When we were almost home I saw a lady and little girl walking towards us. Tabby definitely wanted to meet them, because she walked right by our house towards them.

“My dog loves to meet people,” I told them.

The lady said her little girl was sometimes afraid of dogs, but I assured her Tabby was a good dog. They both petted her. The little girl seemed pretty OK with it. Really, Tabby is a most unthreatening pooch.

We enjoyed our Easter walk. Now I must see about crossing a few more things off that list before it’s time to pick up Steve (I guess I can at least cross off “Make blog post.”)

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Maybe the Sun will Thaw Out my Brain

Posted on April 20, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

In my defense, it’s a a holiday weekend. How productive am I expected to be? The sad thing is, I have a whole list of potential blog topics involving recent Mohawk Valley adventures. I even know where the list is.

And yet. And yet.

I took two walks with my schnoodle Tabby today. The first was less than a thrill for me, because of the chilly breeze. I felt so ill-used that this is the latter half of April and I still had on my toque and insulated sweatshirt and only wished I had also worn a scarf.

Before the second walk, I had been to Hannaford, to pick up a few last minute supper things (I MAY manage a cooking post for Wrist to Forehead Sunday). It had been cold walking from my vehicle to the store. And I wasn’t wearing my toque (I should have been; I’m having a bad hair day).

The reason we even went on the second walk was that I couldn’t come up with a damn other useful thing to do. I had done dishes, worked on my novel, put away laundry (NEVER MIND how long ago I actually did said laundry), and still felt as if all I had been doing had been to sit around thinking of silly statuses to post on Facebook (I came up with one).

Tabby was, of course, into it, so I put on my insulated sweatshirt and toque and we set out.

To find that the sun was AT LAST having an effect! I took off the insulated sweatshirt and tied it around my waist. This was awesome! I could have even worn my crazy old lady hat, but I did not repine. I enjoyed the warmth. I felt blessed and happy.

But still not the least bit inclined to write a real blog post. Still, I like to post every day. So I hope this silliness will do.

And I will TRY not to have a Wrist to Forehead Sunday on Easter.

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Wrist to Relaxing

Posted on April 14, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

So, I had a very busy day yesterday, I was up later than I EVER stay any more, it’s Wrist to Forehead Sunday, what sort of a post do you think I’m going to do today?

A short one.

It is gloriously warm in the Mohawk Valley today. Tabby has been for two walks, one with just me, one with me and Steven. We sat out on our deck. We are relaxing.

Moreover, I have a whole weekend of Mohawk Valley adventures to write about. I am set for DAYS. So why I am I not writing about them right now? See the first paragraph. And the second. And the third. RELAXING!

Perhaps this is a poor excuse from a blog writer who indulges in Middle-aged Musings Monday, Tired on Tuesday, Wuss-out Wednesday, Non-Sequitur Thursday and Lame Post Friday (in my defense, not usually all in the same week). Oh yeah, and countless posts about Why I Can’t Write a Post Today. Will I ever stop doing that?

I must admit, probably not. For today, I will content myself with a Preview of Coming Attractions: restaurant visits, Mohawk Valley Center for the Arts, an indoor garage sale, Mohawk Antiques Market, a truly awesome musical performance, good food, and plans for more Mohawk Valley activities.

And for me, the rest of a relaxing Sunday to enjoy. I hope you are enjoying yours as much.

Thank you for playing.

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