Christina over at Climbing Those Hills tagged me a couple weeks ago and I'm just getting around to it. A combination of busyness, vacation (and now being out of vacation days) and post race blues made me not feel much like blogging. Something about training for something for four months then having it be over is a little depressing. Anyone else feel that way after a big race? I do have a half marathon coming up the third weekend in October, but I have yet to get excited about it.
2. I hate to admit it, but I started listening to country music. I never saw this one coming, but was getting bored with NPR, our local rock stations and the cd's in my car (Pearl Jam, Killers, and Tom Petty) and gave our local country station a listen. Now I listen to that more than anything else. Give it a listen here, you just might like it too :-).
3. My favorite sport is NFL football and my favorite team is the Pittsburgh Steelers. I've been a fan since I was a little kid. My parents and relatives always gave me Steelers jerseys, helmets, bobble heads, etc. to seal my fate :-). Football season is here, yay!
My mid 70's vintage bobble head Steeler on my garage TV I watch while grilling. I got that bobble head when I was about 10. I usually pull it out during Steelers games and move it around trying to add some luck to the game. Kind of like voodoo, it doesn't really work, but I keep trying :-).
4. I shaved my legs this week. I've thought about trying it a few times over the last two years on long 40+ mile rides and seeing all the dirt and junk that gets embedded in my leg hair. So why not give it a try? Well, it was a BIG job! I think it took about an hour and a half spread over three showers. I'll spare you a picture (you're welcome :-)) but suffice it to say, after 30+ years covered in hair, they sure look and feel weird. Not sure how long I'll keep them this way. Initial thoughts are I like it for riding. Much less dirt, grime and matted hair. The first run wasn't quite so nice. I almost never have chaffing issues and did on this run. Maybe leg hair is a natural lubricant. Now I also have red bumps on my upper inner thighs. Glad I'm not a woman and expected to shave all the time. It sucks.
5. The more I train the more I love being outside, specially when I'm in half iron shape. Getting on the bike and just riding is so peaceful. It would be nice to find a local place to swim in a lake instead of hitting the pool. Running even seems a little easier now that it's not a billion degrees out.
6. I think me and the kids are going to learn how to scuba dive next year. Seems like a fun adventure and something a little different. My daughter and I are considering jumping out of a plane too. I've never had the desire to go skydiving until just this month. I have no idea why.
7. I'm contemplating doing a full IM next year. Not sure I can pull it off logistically, but my pro/con list is here. When I look at my training plan here, I'm not sure I can get all the training in either, at least without becoming a morning person. I haven't given up becoming a morning person, but I haven't made much progress either. I keep telling myself, this will be the week, but I keep coming up with excuses not to do it. I really need to bump up my running volume for my half mary and the only real way to do that and keep swimming and biking is to run in the morning, or do lots of bricks:-).