Change Is Hard

…but change is certain.

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Catching you all up

I interviewed last Friday at a small library quite a ways away from home for a part-time librarian position. They are supposed to make a decision this week. As it’s already Thursday night and I haven’t heard from them I have to assume the news is not good. Which might be a good thing, you never know. If it’s meant to be, it will happen. Sometime. I interviewed yesterday at a library closer to home for substitute librarian work. This looks more promising, but budget/managerial work has to be done before anything can be offered me, so it’s not clear that it’s a done deal. And the number of hours, even if it gets approved to add me to the sub list, is not guaranteed. But it would be very good to be back in a library regardless of the number of hours.

Meanwhile, tomorrow I’m going to my local library for a bit, just to get my library fix!


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Memories of a 12.5 mile run

So I’m still training for the Brooksie half marathon which is the first weekend in October. 13.1 miles. Yep. Still training. Ok, so I haven’t really run since the Crim 10 miler a couple of weeks ago. And this weekend we were scheduled to run our longest training run yet. 12.5 miles. Sure, since the Crim went so well (note comments about the Crim in a post dated August 23rd.) 12.5 should be no problem! (That was sarcasm.) So here, in no particular order are memories from my completed training run:

Going 2 miles out and 2 miles back to the car in order to get four miles out of the way merely caused me concern as to how in the world I was going to do another eight.

Putting band-aids on offending toes after the initial 4 miler, hoping to hobble through.

Watching a squirrel with some sort of nut as big as it’s head scamper across the path. He dug a hug hole and covered it up as I went by. Really, I wasn’t even THINKING about stealing it!

Seeing several swans on the other side of a bright blue lake.

Hearing a crow jeer at me as I started out on my 8 mile loop, having pushed my way through the first four miles already, and seriously considering that maybe I can’t do this.

Deciding that it was OK to do a minute of running on the 8 mile loop vs two minutes of running that I had attempted during the initial 4 miles. Whatever gets me around the lake.

Smiling when my one minute of running coincided with a nice downhill…and when my one minute of walking fit superbly into a annoying uphill.

Lots less smiling when my minute of running started at the base of a really big steep hill…and even less smiling that the stupid minute lasted almost all the way to the top!

Grateful to see the sun going under some clouds about mile 8.

Seeing a stump sticking up out of the water, and wondering if I had just seen it move out of the corner of my eye as I ran past. Turning my head I saw it was a great blue heron, with his neck folded up and his head tucked between his shoulder blades, standing in the water right next to the path. When he saw that I had him figured out, he unfolded his neck and moved very haughtily away, doing his best “I was SO not hiding from you!” imitation. Made me laugh.

Wondering if it was raining or was I just dripping sweat on myself about mile 10. It wasn’t raining.

Watching some geese out in the lake near an island. Standing knee deep in the water on one leg, they were sleeping with heads tucked under their wings. I was so very jealous because I so much wanted to be asleep myself there during mile 11.

Actively hating every single person on a bike that rode past me, as it looked like so much more fun than running. Except for the one guy straining to ride up a big hill that I was running down. Him I wasn’t so jealous of.

Smiling at the gentleman, older than me (really!) on roller blades who was zooming down a hill I was chugging up.

Waving at couples strolling along the beautiful lake, saying HI to other joggers as they approached, listening to myself breath and being glad I could.

And the best gift from this 12.5 mile run? Noooo…not finishing it…you were going to say that weren’t you! HA! The best gift was rounding a corner and seeing two sand hill cranes standing next to the path. I slowed down and walked (any excuse to stop running!) and eventually passed them. They weren’t much bothered by me. As I passed them one reached up with one foot and scratched his chin. They were the bike path width away from me. And where was my camera? Not on me, which was totally too bad! They were absolutely beautiful close up. The feathers on their chest glowed iridescently and the little red triangle on their head was beautiful. I’m sure they described me to their friends later as that rather large, loud thing in a sweaty shirt and shorts. So since I don’t have a picture of them from my run, here’s a photo of a pair of them that was taken by my brother at the beginning of August. We saw these on one of our trips down to Ann Arbor. Pretend it’s a closeup shot!


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It's a wonderful life

The fruits of a summer of work are coming in now. This afternoon I made myself a tomato sandwich. I had never heard of such a thing until someone told me a couple years ago about a Southern tradition; tomatoes, mayonnaise and white bread. It only works if you use a fresh picked, ripe tomato and luckily I have a few of those around. Me, being a Northerner, I used wheat bread and Miracle Whip. I hope the traditionalists reading this won’t be outraged.

I was especially decadent by slicing my tomato thick (I don’t own one of those Jinsang knives that slices a ripe tomato paper thin) and using the whole tomato in the sandwich. I didn’t want to share with anyone!

This is the kind of sandwich you eat over the kitchen sink. For two reasons. One you just know it’s going to run down your chin and off your elbows, and two, it’s too good to wait to find a plate and sit down at a table.

If tomato sandwiches really are Southern tradition then here’s another reason to celebrate the South!


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Always thinking…

Yesterday I went to an interview at a city public library in a community about 40 miles away. The drive down, not at rush hour, took 45 minutes. The interview was at 3, and I started my trek home at 3:45. I say trek because the freeway is under construction with one lane closed, and when I approached it I noted it was stopped above me on the overpass. So I passed the freeway by and headed home cross country. I ended up very near my old employer at 5:00 p.m., it took me a total of 2 hours to get home. As I was stopping and going down Dixie Highway, as I had for 13 years prior to my leaving my employment, I noted that I was once again driving home at rush hour wearing a suit and thinking about what to make for dinner. Somehow it didn’t feel all that good, but it did make me laugh!

So if I receive an offer from this library I will have to think long and hard about the commute. It’s been wonderful to be free of that, and it will be difficult to start again. But as my friend Reilly the Cowspot dog mentioned, it would be library experience, and it would surely help to have some more experience on my resume when something closer to home opens up. Good advice Reilly!


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Rain, a new deck and a crazy sheltie

Since I’ve been back from Alabama it’s been raining, courtesy of tropical storm Gustuv which I dodged while in Alabama, but which apparently followed me home. I can’t complain, we need the rain. But still. Katie is getting antsy, no playing in the park because I’m too wimpy to run around in the rain with her. Not that she loves the rain either. So she’s been hanging around the house getting more and more wound up. Though if I get the camera out she will pose, being the princess that she is.

And, to keep her occupied we have hired two guys to construct a deck on the back of our house. This provides hours of entertainment for Katie, who barks at them pretty much nonstop for the first hour of each morning. Eventually she can be convinced that these are the same two guys that were here all day yesterday, but initially every day she has to warn us of the two interlopers IN OUR BACKYARD RIGHT NOW! It’s so hard being a Sheltie, always on alert. When she grows up she wants to be a Labrador, or maybe a Retriever, something more mellow. But she’s young…tomorrow she might want to be a Scottie! We, however, think she should be happy with what she is. Teenagers…

This morning she and I went out to explore the deck which is almost finished.

It’s a really big deck, and she is not sure what to make of it. But she has figured out it gives her a good view of the bird feeder, and that’s a good thing in her mind. They say it will be finished on Monday, too much rain to work on it today. So we’ll have a three day weekend without workers in the back. Good rest for her and for me.

I have an interview later this afternoon for library work. I think I’m prepared. I’ll let you know!


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Not working on Labor Day

I flew back yesterday from a week at the family cottage on a big lake in Alabama.

During the week I got to ride in a new boat, climb a mountain, swim a bunch, visit a friend, sleep in, and eat really well. I’m pretty sure I did more…but I’m too tired to remember!

Thanks to everyone that helped make this a great vacation week, particularly those who helped with the boat, the wave runner, and the use of the truck! OH! And the WONDERFUL meals! You know who you are! Thanks!


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Endless summer ends

Remember when you were a kid, and the summer stretched ahead of you endlessly? How it seemed like the long lazy days would go on indefinitely? That’s how I felt this summer, with no school and no work. Graduating in April did give me quite a long summer. And the month of May seemed to go on forever; lovely spring days, warm sunshine, flowers blooming, lazy mornings weeding, hauling mulch, hauling more mulch…wait a minute…time seems to have dimmed the pain of hauling yards and yards of mulch…but I digress. Then June happened and suddenly it was July and then before I knew it August is almost gone and it’s going to be September and I wasn’t paying enough attention and that endless summer is just about to end! What happened?

I am feeling melancholy, and I’m not sure if it’s the end of summer (even though technically the lazy days could go on and on as I still have no job…) or the fact I’m not headed back to school next month, or possibly the fact that tomorrow I board a plane for Alabama to spend a week at my parents’ house and there are no parents there. Could be a combination of all of that. So I’ll be gone a week, no postings while I’m at a cabin with no internet connection, no phone, no pressure, no sheltie, nothing but napping and reading, maybe a bit of swimming and water-skiing. Who could be depressed with that?

But the truth is I’m missing my parents as I contemplate spending time in their space, I’m missing school as I watch the back-to-school advertisements, and I’m beginning to miss summer as I watch the leaves start to turn and feel the cooling air. I’m even missing library work and find myself hanging out at my neighborhood library just to be there. Gonna have to go find some chocolate or something.

Have a great week everyone, see you in September.


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Taking it easy

Yesterday I ran a miserable, hot, humid, slow 10 mile race. Today, after a second night of not much sleep (pre-race jitters on Friday night, sheltie, thunderstorms and painful knees and toes Saturday night) I am pretty much wiped out. So today Katie and I are going to take a nap. Maybe we’ll go to the park and practice her homework. Maybe we’ll just sleep. Too early to tell at this point!


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Another hot and humid Crim race completed. Just.

I’ve been “running” (and I put running in quotes for a good reason) the Crim 10 mile race in Flint for about 20 years. Each August, the last Saturday before the Labor Day weekend I and 10,000 of my closest friends crowd into Flint Michigan to enjoy their festival of races. Besides the 10 miler there is an 8K (about 5 miles) and a 5K (about 3.1 miles), a fun 1 miler for the kids and a family 5K walk. Mostly I’ve done the 10 miles, though I think once I did the 8K. There isn’t as much satisfaction in completing 5 miles, but that’s what I should have done this morning instead of struggle through 10 hot humid hilly miles.

I have been training with a group of people for an October 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles) and the Crim was just another training run. Right. The group has been running for 2 minutes and walking a minute, but that seemed too slow for the race, so I ran the way I used to run, to the mile marker, walk through the water table area, and run to the next mile marker. I did that for a whopping 2 miles, not much, but still more than I’ve run in a really long time. Did I mention it was HOT? During miles 3-5 I ran 3 minutes and walked a minute…sort of. You see in mile 5 are the BRADLEY HILLS! The dreaded Bradley Hills are a series of 3 hills, one after the other. And when you get done with them there are more rolling hills (though not as steep) the rest of the course. By mile 5 I had a new strategy. Run the downhills. Crawl up the uphills. By mile 7 the strategy became; run the downhills if there is shade, and by mile 8 it was pretty much just walk and hope I survive to the finish.

I’m not even sure what my time was, it doesn’t matter. As we turned onto the final road and could see the finish line 4 blocks (downhill) I began to run again. But two blocks into that final push I wanted to stop. What the heck. Just walk. It doesn’t matter. A young lady running next to me said “Don’t stop now, you’re almost there!” and I smiled at her as I was slowing to a stop. She said “NO REALLY! DON’T STOP!” and I kept on running, ran with her the rest of the way in. She said “Congratulations!” and I said “THANK YOU!” and that was the end of my race. I ended it with a run because a complete stranger didn’t give up on me and wouldn’t let me give up on me either. That’s the way it is on the Crim course. It’s a great race, even if it is always hot and humid!

The thing I learned from this is that I am going to have to get more serious about these final training weeks before the half marathon in October. Because if I had had to run 3.1 more miles today I don’t think I would have finished. But today I got my finisher’s medal!