Sunday, November 04, 2007

Another Kind of Marathon

I enjoyed six full days off from running entirely. It went by really fast, to tell you the truth.

Yesterday was a beautiful autumn day and I went out for a 4-miler. It was a harder 4-miler than I would have guessed my body felt up to for the first run back. I did 7:20 per mile.

I am stunned and deeply saddened by the news of the death of Ryan Shay. First, I run marathon where a novice dies in the heat. Now, I hear about the Olympic Trials in which a distance champion collapses and dies. I am feeling my mortality right now. My prayers go out to his wife and his family.

Nevertheless, I have been contemplating my next marathon for May. The baby is due May 5th. I am wondering if I will be able to head to either Madison or Green Bay, both driving distance, on the 18th or the 25th after our little bundle of joy arrives. The wife needs to let me know if it's OK. That's a ways off and there is lots to think about and deal with before then.

I'm in the midst of an entirely different kind of marathon. It is called National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo. My aim is to write a 50,000 word draft manuscript in the 30 days of November. This is a 1,667 word per day pace. You can get updates on my progress here.

Writing will keep me busy this month. I will try to balance my running to get back up to 30 miles a week this month. I also will head back to London right after Thanksgiving for work. I feel like I am continuing to push the envelope with my goals while finding a way to balance the rest of my life.

3 comments:

MNFirefly said...

I would wait a little bit to make sure the little one will not come early (which might happen). I am actually leaning towards Madison HM. Sounds good and the view around the lake is breathtaking.

AddictedToEndorphins said...

Hi! Congrats on the little one! Maybe plan the race for June...and that gives him/her time to come.

NaNoWriMo sounds Interesting! Good luck!

Anonymous said...

Hello, lurker here who is now de-lurking. As a mother of two toddlers, I'd wait if I were you. You said her due date is May 5th, and often times babies (espec. 1st babies) are late. Some doctors will let mothers go up to 2 weeks before inducing labor. Plus, those first few weeks of adjusting to a new baby can be taxing on both parents. Being away for even just a day or two could be tough. That's just my two cents!

CONGRATS!