On Thursday I went swimming in the morning. Again tried to get up at 5:30 AM. Got to the pool by 6:00 AM. I swam a full lap again. I did swim for a total of about twenty minutes. Again it is really exhausting. I feel like I am getting the hang of it more each time. It was nice swimming twice this week. If I can get over there an evening this week, I am going to try to do twice a week again.
Then Friday was my long run. I mapped out a route that would take me past four parks so I could get water or use the bathroom if I needed to. I intentionally planned streets where I knew there would be hills. The alarm went off at 4:50 AM. Like usual I did get out the door until 5:25 AM. As I started running down Hrubetz, I saw a couple runners and walkers. Then I saw this strange looking guy who gave me the creeps. You could tell he was not going anywhere...not headed to the bus stop, not walking to the grocery store, not really having any destination. He was wearing jeans and a flannel shirt and black shoes. When I went past him he would run for a little bit and then walk. You could tell he wasn't really exercising. I turned down Lone Oak and hugged the sidewalk. I kept a look out for him and was even going to duck into some shrubs. I lost sight of him. I turned down Boone. When I got to Commercial I saw the billboard at Commercial and Kuebler. It flashes everything from ads to events in Salem to missing children to people who are wanted by the Salem Police. It flashed a picture that looked like the guy I just saw and he was wanted by the police. I was not sure if I was freaking out and maybe my mind was running away with me. I happened to have my cell phone with me and I called the non-emergency number. The dispatcher said they could not really use my tip unless I was seeing the guy as I spoke to her or it had been a few minutes. By the time I saw the guy about 10-15 minutes had passed and she said it was too late. Honestly those pictures are blurry and only show the face. It could have easily been someone else. After talking to my neighbor today, she said they have lived in our neighborhood for fifty years and have never been broken to. She said there is very, very little crime and most of it is domestic. But what if it was him? I've questioned if it's safe to run outside alone. I don't run in the dark unless I'm with someone. I take the cell phone on long runs (maybe I should on shorter runs too). I always run in busier areas or safe neighborhoods. I see tons of other runners that are mostly women running alone. I think you always have to be on guard. This is one the reasons that I think should someday take karate with Rob. Right now our schedule and finances will not allow it.
Anyway the hills were brutal. It was sometimes a constant uphill/downhill. I think the uphills are more mentally challenging for me. I can do them well. I actually only stopped to walk for around three minutes going uphill on Madrona. That hill is a killer. I almost thought about running to Liberty and calling it good. By the time I got to the Madrona hill I had only run 5 1/2 miles. It's amazing how your body adjusts and you do gain a second wind. Honestly by the time I hit eight miles, I felt strong and could have gone longer. The 5 1/2 - 7 1/2 mile stretch was brutal and I really struggled. It was completely different from last week's run. Last week I was mostly on flat terrain with two little hills at Bush Park. I was pleased I only walked about three minutes total. It made me scared to do my long run next week. I really, really hope the hills get easier. I guess they can't get harder.
I loved running on Battlecreek when it turns to Pringle. It doesn't feel like you're in the city and the rolling hills were perfect. You can even see the mountains. It was my favorite part of the run. Once I hit Madrona, I felt crummy. I'm going to play around with the route a little bit for next week.
On Thursday night I also went running with Hailey again. So fun! We both love it! She ran and walked a half mile again. We are going to try do it three times a week. I am going to see if we can run on Willamette University's track.
The last few days I have had some encouraging words from friends and family about Team Winter. I feel like my spirits were lifted. It is a matter of trust. Worrying accomplishes nothing. So happy to be a part of Team Winter.
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