Thursday, July 30, 2009

600 miles!






I ran 3 miles tonight, hitting the 600 mile mark! It was a difficult run because I had a migraine all day and couldn't seem to shake it. I felt better after the run. I went out for dinner with Kathy, Brent and some of Kathy's friends for Chicken Burritos at the Spadina Freehouse. The last picture above is of our neighbors' dogs. They are absolutely wonderful, cute and friendly. 

What have I been reading lately? I admit I am not reading as much as I do in the winter. I finished Geraldine Brooks', People of the Book a week ago. This is a wonderful novel about Hanna Heath, an australian rare book expert who is asked to restore a fifteenth century Hebrew manuscript. The story moves back and forth between Hanna's investigation of the tiny artifacts found in the book and the dramatic stories behind the presence of those artifacts (insect wing, wine stain, salt crystal and white hair). It is an interesting story spanning several centuries and historical locations, including Sarajevo in the mid-1990s. I found the book intriguing and enjoyed particularly the stories of the artifacts. I am now reading another book by Canadian author Andrew Pyper, The Lost Girls. 

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Closing in on 600 miles
















I ran another 6 miles tonight (597 miles). I took a different path that took me into Innovation Place, past the Canadian Light Source, back around to the statue field and across the University bridge. I met a very nice man who was out roller blading. He even offered to lend me an extra pair of roller blades that he had in his truck so I could give it a try. I have never been on roller blades and can't imagine that I wouldn't end up killing myself. 

The river was beautiful tonight as usual. The hot air balloons were floating over the river, the view of the passengers must have been spectacular. My run tonight was a bit of a struggle for the first half because the muscles in my right leg felt tight. I felt a bit better as my legs started to loosen up but I wasn't able to run the extra three miles to reach my 600 mile mark. I guess I'll have to put in the final three miles tomorrow morning. 

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

591 miles!













I ran 6 miles tonight. It was cooler than the past few nights and rained a small amount. Pictures above are some beautiful river flowers and the equally beautiful crops on our drive to MacDowall this past weekend. I also caught one of our backyard robins in the bird bath as he tried to cool off. The final picture is of Skender and his cousin Katherine at the family reunion this weekend.

Monday, July 27, 2009

I love summer life!




















I had a great run tonight adding 5 miles to my thousand mile goal (585 miles). It was a beautiful evening and I met more nice people, including my neighbor's father (picture above). I am beginning my training for the Regina half marathon which involves dropping 5 to 10 pounds, adding more core exercises to complement my running and longer runs of 10-12 miles every 5 or six days offset with shorter runs involving interval training. I would like to improve my time by at least 25 seconds so that I run the half in under 2 hours!  
Pictures above include a dance class at river landing which reminded me of the outdoor latin dance classes and dances held at the port in Old Montreal. If you are in Montreal during the summer make your way down to the port in the evening. It is very festive with people showing off their dance techniques and skill. It was great to see that outdoor dance classes are catching on here also. I hope word gets out and people take advantage of the beautiful setting at River Landing to step, swing, glide and for the adventurous types, dip in rhythm with a favorite partner!