Bricking...the endorphins!

I got in the pool yesterday for the first time in about a year and a half. I was expecting to be dying after about 500 yards of swimming, but I was still going strong at a mile. So I guess that was a good thing. Last time I got into the pool after having taken such a long break, I was ready to vomit at about 400 yards. But that was right after the baby was born. Better shape now.

Went home last night and ran 3 miles. So technically speaking, it wasn't a brick workout where you do one immediately after the other, but it was a double, and I haven't done a double in...well, I don't know how long. The run went well. I was satisfactorilly tired at the end. Oh, how I have missed doubles and bricks.

I came off the Flying Pig thinking I'd like to just train mindlessly for the summer, doing whatever I felt like doing whenever I felt like doing it. No structure. No plan. Just go. That thinking lasted less than a week. That's not my style. I like to think it can be my style. But it's not. No plan depresses me. Seriously.

I've moved on to planning for a sprint-distance tri (maybe two?) in August and the Indy half marathon again in October. I've got to drop some weight. Again. And I've got to pick up some speed. A lot. And I'd like to put together a well-rounded training program for the summer that has me up before the crack of dawn running while the baby is still in bed. I really enjoyed that last summer.

The endorphin rush from almost feeling like my old self again yesterday was awesome. And it's something I'll be chasing all summer. Because almost isn't going to cut it.

Teaching reading...New socks...a new adventure...

Annie has been the focus of this blog for the last week, but I've quickly realized that I have a lot on my plate. And I'm not sure if I'm going to have a multi-directional blog here.

ESL Newcomer's Center
I spent part of my trip to Michigan pulling together some materials for the ESL Newcomer's Center. In particular, I found a text by Mary Cappellini called Balancing Reading and Language Learning that is about working with developing readers while they are also developing reading skills. This is a challenge for me. In my MATESL studies, we spent quite some time looking at teaching reading in English, but I don't recall any focus on teaching reading to people who can't already read, and many of my middle schoolers are below grade level in their reading. Some are illiterate. So I'm looking forward to digging into this text. DH had to actually remind me that I am on vacation as I was reading and underlining in the text as soon as I got it home.

I'm now searching for some resources on Learning Centers. I'm excited to spend some time this summer pulling together my new classroom. Did I mention it has three windows? And two doors to the outside world?

Running
10 miler on Saturday. So I'm headed out for an easy six today. I have to admit that there is a certain amount of shame and guilt when I fall off the running wagon. I love running. I love triathlon. I love cycling. I love swimming. But now and again, I can't get myself going to do any of them and then I feel guilty. And now I'm signed up for some races, and I'm feeling unprepared. And even signing up for races doesn't make me feel motivated.

Ironman training took a lot out of me last summer and fall, and it's been really hard for me to get back into a rhythm. Quite frankly, I don't mind going to races underprepared. I just kind of run my own run and get done and quietly head on my way home. But I've signed up for running a half marathon with my best friend in a week. And I'm embarrassed at my lack of preparation in the way that you get embarrassed when someone comes over and your house isn't as clean as you'd like it to be. I've got to deal with the guilt.

The crafty knitty side of me
I'm posting a pic of my latest project--my first pair of socks. It's a pattern from Blackberry Ridge. This is some of their gorgeous hand-dyed yarn, and I bought it on a trip to Wisconsin with my mom several years back, but I'm finally getting around to knitting them. If all goes well, I'll be making socks for everyone in DH's family for Christmas. Last year, we really tried to do as many homemade gifts as possible, and I think we're going to try that again this year. The dog in the picture of this one, incidentally, is our other black lab mutt--Guinness. She's nutty in her own special way. But she's the perfect backdrop for the start of the socks.