Running Into Joy

Happy Monday, internet friends!  I recently wrote about my mixed feelings regarding the postponement of the 2020 Flying Pig Half Marathon. As much as that particular goal has begun to loom menacingly in the ever-distant future, I do miss races.  That race day crowd spirit and enthusiasm is what made me fall in love with running, and even as the sport has become something larger for me, I always try to get back to that energy at least a few times a year. Usually, I run a couple of 5Ks, which is a nice, fun, manageable distance for me personally. The last race I participated in was the 2019 Turkey Trot here in Pittsburgh, and it was a lovely redemption race after a really difficult time at the Great Race 10K.  My Turkey Trot 5K getup I'm always my most motivated, my most excited to lace up my shoes, when I'm training for a race. I love the way it feels to come home from a run, particularly one of those rare blue moon runs that feels amazing  during  as well, but...

Hello from day ??? of the pandemic. I hope this post finds you in the best possible state you can be in at this time. I know for many of us, our states or counties or areas are beginning to open up to one extent or another, and there's a lot of uncertainty as we try to figure out what level of re-integration into the outside world is safe. Personally, I'm in a more densely populated county, so we are just starting this week with the "yellow phase" of reopening, in which I will finally be able to go back to the eye doctor to get my (incorrect) prescription adjusted. Contacts, here I come! Since our stay-at-home order began, I have left the house approximately... three times? Once for groceries and a couple of times to curbside pickup coffee grounds from my favorite local shop, Coffee Tree Roasters, because my pandemic panic has largely manifested in a fear that everything I've come to love about this city will inevitably vanish under the coming economic collapse. J...

Hello, my friends. Many of you know that in 2019, I had to defer my entry in the Flying Pig Half Marathon as I worked through some mystery symptoms and found my way to a diagnosis for my chronic illness. When I made that choice, a vague fear of not making it to the starting line in 2020 lingered. Would I get injured again? Would my symptoms worsen to the point that training became impossible?  Never in any of my anxiety's wildest predictions for my 2020 race did I imagine a pandemic would see the race deferred not just for me, but for all of us. The running community is full of posts asking how to keep up the motivation, how to move forward, when your race has been cancelled or pushed back. It's beginning to look like the rest of 2020 might be a Year without Races.  I have mourned the lost opportunities with my running friends, but my relationship to this twice-deferred starting line is a bit different.  In truth, I was relieved to get that email.  ...

Hello, friends. Are you tired yet of hearing "what a strange time" or "in these uncertain times"? It still feels odd to write anything without this nod to the shared experience we are all moving through. Though we are all affected to varying degrees, we are many of us (dare I say all of us?) affected. I, for one, have drafted and tweaked and then not posted about a hundred blog posts. On the productive days, when I'm not just sort of... blah. I'm lucky in that I've been able to work from home for nearly two months (!!) now. Like many of the posts I'm seeing online, I have leaned into baking as a sense of comfort and, I think, control. I've always loved baking, though admittedly it's a hobby that has fallen off somewhat since I began working full time. Rarely do I have the luxurious amount of time set aside to spend a day periodically kneading bread, or taking far longer than I expect to ice sugar cookies (I'm looking at you, D20...