Last run of the year

Husband and I tend to consider simple things as dates. We might be eating a meal at home without the kids, or sitting on the couch watching a DVD, and one of us will turn to the other and say, "does this count as a date?" It can even be something as simple as going for a run together.

As their schedules are more flexible over the holidays, our husbands joined C.B. and me on our regularly scheduled Thursday morning run today. We ran for an hour, chatting as we went along. Does that count as a double date?

Gotta run...

After the fall

With the holiday hustle and bustle, the only window of opportunity for a short run in the last few days was Tuesday morning at 7. I rarely run in the dark, but on the shortest day of the year, the sun if far from being up at that hour. On a positive note, that allowed me to enjoy the lovely view of the illuminated streets of Lausanne and Evian across the lake, with the Alps outlined in night sky as a backdrop. On a negative note, the sidewalks were icy at 7. I took a spill, but considered myself lucky not to have torn my clothes or scraped my skin. Besides some stiffness I'm none the worse. I'm thankful to have strong bones and to know how to fall.

Gotta run...

Christmas Midnight Run 2010

Saturday night's Christmas Midnight Run was held at 11 p.m. Now that's just wrong, even though it's hard to stay up till midnight (much less run 7.5K at that hour) if you're not a night owl. Husband kindly offered to go pick up my race bib after dinner so that I could take a nap. Other than the "early" hour, it turned out a lot like last year. Festive, fun, and freezing. The same three of us senior women stood on the podium for the second year in a row, just in a different order (I was a bit slower this time, and last year's number 2 was a bit faster). I was especially happy to be on the podium with C.B. again, this time no longer as strangers but as friends!

Gotta run...

Good company

With C.B. traveling, M.B. up to her ears in school projects, and Husband swamped with work, I've been mostly doing solo runs lately. In my many years of solitary running, I never really minded going it alone, nor had much trouble being motivated to get out there by myself. But it didn't take long to get used to having regular running buddies, and to miss them when our schedules conflict. Soon things will be back to normal (the new normal); in the mean time, I have my trusty iPod shuffle and an extensive Christmas playlist.

Gotta run...

V.I.P. treatment

A few weeks ago I received a letter from the Christmas Midnight Run organizers telling me that because of my excellent ranking last year I was invited to participate for free this year. There's an offer I can't refuse. What a nice early Christmas present!

Gotta run...

Neither rain nor snow...

Lately, with the cold, snow and ice, when I say I'm going for a run, I get questions like: "Aren't you afraid of falling?" or "Outside?!?" Conditions were bad enough for the organizers of l'Escalade, Switzerland's biggest race of the year, to meet with Geneva city officials yesterday evening to determine whether or not to cancel today's event. They decided to go for it. I wish I could be out there with the other 25 thousand runners. I shouldn't say it, but I can't resist: "Break a leg you guys!"

Gotta run...