13.1

Several years ago, I decided that I wanted to run a half marathon. Not a full marathon (because I'm not crazy), just a half (maybe half crazy). I could never decide when to run it, though, because a spring race would mean training during the frigid Boston winter but a summer or fall race would mean training while on vacation. So, for years, I thought "one day I'll do this," but I never made it happen.

Until now!

November 2016 was the first annual Cambridge half marathon, and when I heard about it, it sounded perfect: local (so I wouldn't have to travel far on race day), scenic (along the Charles River, where I run normally), and in late fall (meaning I wouldn't have to train during the winter and I could be forgiven for skipping a few runs while on vacation). Plus, I'd be turning 30 in 2017, and that seemed like a good milestone for running 13 miles. So one evening in late August, in a moment of unrestrained optimism, I registered for the race on November 19, 2017, and downloaded a training plan.

From Day 1, I was already nervous. Most of the training plans called for 16 or 18 weeks of running, and while I wasn't starting from total couch-potato, I wasn't exactly in peak shape. In fact, registering for the race (or, more specifically, spending the money to register for the race) was the only way I felt like I would be disciplined enough to run regularly. But if you do the math, late August to mid-November gave me closer to 12 weeks to train. I hadn't even started, and I was already behind.

As I started training, though, I found that I really loved it. The first day I ran more than eight miles - a new personal best - was exciting. And then, after my first long run - 11 miles - I was thrilled to realize that my legs felt less jellyish than I'd feared, I didn't have massive blisters, and I was actually confident that I could run 13 miles. Before that run, I'd still doubted that I'd be able to pull it off.

The downside of training was the time commitment. I was running almost daily: most days, I'd run between four and six miles, which took about an hour, but at least once a week I would do a longer run of eight to 11 miles, and that would take a solid two hours. Given how early the sun sets in Boston in the fall, I was running during my lunch break at work during the week. And once you factor in time for changing clothes, stretching, and cooling down, a one-hour run turns into an almost two-hour lunch break.

To maximize efficiency during that time, I listened to French language podcasts as I ran. You can get through a lot of episodes when you're running 6+ hours per week. (On my long runs, I listened to Wait Wait Don't Tell Me instead, wanting to be transported to a bright, funny world where I wouldn't notice my aching feet. This had the amusing effect of occasionally causing me to burst into laughter while surrounded by other, more stoic runners.)

When race day finally came, I was feeling surprisingly confident. I hadn't set a time goal for myself, hoping instead just to run the whole thing without stopping. The weather was much warmer than it had been, which normally would have made racing tough, but it was also off-and-on drizzly, which meant that the heat wouldn't bother me so much. (It would, however, make my feet pruney and peel-y.) The race course was really fun, taking us through MIT and Harvard and along the Charles River. There were a few spots where puddles slowed down the pack, including one deep puddle underneath a pedestrian bridge, but since I wasn't concerned about time I just kept running in place while waiting for my turn to slosh around the edges. I felt pretty good until about mile eight, at which point I realized I still had five miles to go and began to feel a little tired. Once I hit mile 10, though, I got a second wind of excitement--I was nearing the end! I could do this! I was doing this! And then, at about mile 12.5, I saw Colin waiting up ahead, cheering me on and ready with the camera. I picked up my pace and my energy as I ran past, super excited to be so close to the finish line.

I couldn't help but smile as I crossed the finish line because this had been a goal of mine for so long. My legs felt like jello, my feet were wet, and my pace was a little slower than hoped, but I ran the whole thing and had the finisher's medal and the calluses to prove it. And while I was grateful to have free time back in my life, I had also discovered the joys of long runs. I loved getting to know the city better through those runs, and I loved feeling like a "real" runner. At the same time, the race confirmed my desire never to run anything longer than a half marathon (ugh, can you imagine?!). So who knows--maybe I'll run another half one day, or maybe I'll just keep running on my own, knowing that I'm perfectly capable of knocking out 10 miles at a time. In any case: goal achieved. 13.1 miles in the bag.


Net time: 2:13:02
Pace: 10:09

Me, at mile 12.8ish. Double thumbs up!

After crossing the finish line. I'm officially a half-marathoner!

The rest of July and August

Although our anniversary trip was our big adventure in July, we still managed to squeeze in a bunch of other travel. Somehow, we always start the summer thinking we'll have all these lazy days on the river, maybe hiking, maybe just playing lawn games with friends, and by the time it's over, we realize that we spent almost every weekend not in Boston. Part of me loves fall because it means more time at home--although this fall is not looking promising, between a wedding in Michigan, family visits, and a work trip to Chile. (First trip to South America, yay!) It's a good thing that everything we do is fun, or I'd be really tired! (Just kidding. I am tired.)

On the way back from our anniversary trip to Baxter State Park, we stopped at Colin's parents' house for a few days to shower and do laundry celebrate his dad's 60th. This photo is from a boat cruise through the Portland Harbor, where I saw a seal and a dolphin (I had no idea they lived so far north!).

A couple weeks later, we headed to the opposite end of the country to hang out Gwen and Will (and, okay, the rest of the family, too) in south Georgia. When not playing with the babies, we caught a bunch of fish. Here's Colin with the smallest one we got. 

And here I am with the largest. Delicious!

And then a week later, we were in St. Louis. First stop: Colin's favorite, Fitz's root beer.

We also spent one morning walking around the Missouri Botanical Garden. Other destinations not pictured: the zoo, Ted Drewes for ice cream, Newsies at the Muny, and Pappy's Smokehouse for the best BBQ in the world. 

When we finally returned to Boston from all our travels, I donated 11 inches of hair to Pantene Beautiful Lengths. Seven years ago, I set a goal of donating three times. This was number 3 (goal accomplished!), for a cumulative 2.5 feet of hair.

Towards the end of August, we took a short trip out to Western Massachusetts to see John Williams conduct the Boston Pops at Tanglewood's annual Film Night. They played all the classics - Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Schindler's List - and many others. The weather and our picnic were perfect.

And with that, I'm basically caught up! The only thing not pictured is our recent trip to Turks and Caicos, which was slammed by Hurricane Irma only days after we left. It's hard to imagine the destruction on those idyllic islands, but we're just so grateful that we, and the rest of the ecologists working there, are safe and sound. 

And just like that, there goes spring. And summer.

Well, I knew I was behind in blogging, but I didn't realize it had been almost six months! 😳 All of the standard excuses apply--work is too busy; despite our best efforts to relax, Colin and I continue to fill up every free minute with some adventure or other; and I'm not interested in turning on my computer at home after spending all day on the computer at work. At this point there's no way to catch up other than to just fling up a bunch of photos and assume that they're each worth 1,000 words. So here's what I've been up to lately this spring and summer, according to my phone.

April:

In April, Colin went to three islands in the Bahamas for field work. I did not accompany him, sadly. But I did not hesitate to point out, gleefully, that it was in fact hotter in Cambridge than the Caribbean! (He still had better beaches.)

Every year on Patriot's Day (Marathon Monday), I watch for Paul Revere to ride by my office window, hurrying to warn that the redcoats are coming.

This year, possibly my last in Boston, I also went to watch the Boston Marathon. I took the T to Kenmore, which is about mile 25 on the route. I cheered loudly as I walked alongside the course for the last mile so I could watch the runners cross the finish line. Run, random stranger, run!

While Colin was still in the Bahamas, I joined two of my best friends and their husbands in Orlando for a long weekend. Christina and Brian had taken over a family timeshare for a week, and Beth, Will, and I decided we should take advantage of the opportunity to figure out what all the hype is about Disney World.

Although Disney was fun, we all agreed that one day of theme park was enough. The next day we headed to Cocoa Beach instead. We swam, sunbathed, and ate our weight in seafood. It was the best.

Colin came home for only three days between his Bahamas trip and his annual fieldwork trip to Greece. Somehow, I managed to win IEc's Red Sox tickets for a game against the Yankees one of those nights, so we spent the night eating ballpark hot dogs and watching baseball. The Red Sox lost, but it was fun anyway.

May:

Perhaps inspired by watching the marathon, or perhaps out of intimidation of turning 30, I began thinking that this might be the year to check off my goal of running a half marathon. That meant lots of lunchtime runs from the office to Fresh Pond.

Although the boathouse opens in April, it's never quite warm enough to start sailing then. I prefer to wait until they remove the wetsuit requirement for windsurfers and other small boats. But it's always a happy day when I finally get back on the water!

 June:

One of my big adventures this year was joining a few of my coworkers in Boston's only Lady Stepper group, the Hoohahs. The Hoohahs dance in the Pride parade (and one or two other events throughout the year) in the New Orleans second-line style. The Pride theme this year was "Stronger Together" so we went with a Rose the Riveter-themed dance. Think lots of strong arms and marching! The parade was so much fun. The crowds were exuberant, and the cheering was incessant. They loved it every time we did synchronized strong arms. Colin joined a few of the other significant others in walking alongside and carrying water for us. It was a hot day and a 2-mile parade, so his job was critical! The group of women was a lot of fun as well. Unfortunately I will be out of town for the next parade in October and in Paris for Pride next year, so this was probably my only time dancing with them, but I loved it.

The Tall Ships came to Boston this summer, and tours were free and open to the public. Colin and I went one evening after work and were suitably impressed. The ships were indeed very tall, with everything sparkling clean and shipshape.

Shipshape indeed. Those are some nicely coiled lines!

More sailing and hanging out on the docks. It's my favorite place to pass the days in summer.

And more running. I'm not always great about sticking to an exercise schedule, but two things have been helping: (1) my decision to commit to running the Cambridge Half Marathon in November (although I hadn't yet decided in June, it was in the back of my mind, and the idea of running 13.1 miles is terrifying!), and (2) the fact that I haven't been able to find any other time to listen to French podcasts to improve my language skills. I can't listen and focus on work at the same time, and when I come home I'd rather be hanging out with Colin (in English, because if we had to speak French to each other, we'd just sit and stare silently, with the occasional "Bonjour, je t'aime"). But with our move to Paris coming up in January, I really need to get better at understanding French. I've discovered that pairing running and French podcasts makes me more likely to do both.

One of our favorite Cambridge events, the City Dance Party, where they shut down several blocks of Mass Ave in front of City Hall and have a DJ and party lights for outdoor dancing, is always the last Friday of June. This year it was a little rainy, but Colin and I decided we didn't care and went anyway. Turns out, we weren't the only crazy ones! Thousands of people still showed up to dance in the rain! The rain stopped soon enough and we had a great night, but the fact that so many people showed up in the rain made me love this city even more. Another reason I love this city: the rainbow Pride crosswalks in front of City Hall. Stronger together, indeed.

And that pretty much does it for April-June. Other things not pictured: a professional a cappella concert, a trip home to St. Louis to introduce Gwen and Will to the Midwest, hearing Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer talk at the Cambridge library, hearing Dr. Colin Donihue talk about lizards at the Fenway Victory Gardens, and at least one trip to visit Colin's family in Maine. Lots of work stuff, too--I wrapped up three years of work I've done for New York State in May, which was sad, and started several new projects, none of which are as interesting but they keep me busy nonetheless. I also said goodbye to several work friends, who have moved on to new adventures. The times, they are a-changin'.

Next up, July-September! 

Touring New England

Fall in New England is beautiful, and before it's over, Colin and I will have managed to visit every single state in the region. (Plus Pennsylvania--we couldn't miss a chance to hang out with our favorite niece and nephew over Columbus Day weekend!)

Our New England travels, though, started with our camping trip in New Hampshire, which I mentioned in my last blog post. It was so peaceful and relaxing in the White Mountains, and we had a wonderful couple days of kayaking, hiking, and sleeping under the stars. Plus we saw two moose!

Our travels took us next to Rhode Island. I went to Newport in early October for a work meeting on offshore wind. (The nation's first offshore wind farm just began operating off of Block Island!) Colin went a few weeks later for his own work trip, to meet with a retired lizard researcher. Colin also went to Connecticut for a few days for work.

At the end of October, we then took a whirlwind trip across New York State. Colin has several friends living in Ithaca - which we realized while addressing wedding invitations - and two are about to move to California. That inspired us to finally plan a trip to see them all. And while we were in western New York, well, I really wanted to see Niagara Falls, which meant that we drove seven hours across Massachusetts and New York, all the way to the border with Canada.

It was worth it:

Niagara Falls: hard to see because of the spray, but very impressive!

Rainbow at Niagara Falls

Ithaca was, as they say, gorges. We had perfect weather while we were there, so we hiked through a state park on Saturday to see more waterfalls and the last vestiges of the fall foliage.

One of many waterfalls we saw in Ithaca.

Another waterfall.

A beautiful lake and waterfall on Cornell's campus.

We also, of course, spent time enjoying fall in Massachusetts, from kayaking and walking through the Boston Public Garden to spending a weekend on Cape Cod for Colin's aunt's wedding.
 

The Boston Public Garden

This past weekend we headed north again, this time to Vermont. A new state for me! The trip actually started as an "errand," since the Burlington airport had interview slots available for TSA's Global Entry program, and we would have had to wait five months to do the interviews in Boston. We figured the 3.5-hour drive was worth the five-month wait time. So, early yesterday morning, we headed north and made it to Lake Champlain in time for lunch. After passing our interviews with flying colors, we spent the rest of the day exploring downtown Burlington.

Lake Champlain in Burlington, VT

All that's left to round out our New England travels is Maine, and we'll be headed there for Thanksgiving in just over a week. It's hard to believe how quickly the season has passed!

Begin Again

Hello!... is anybody out there?

Blogging dropped off my priority list after a crazy, busy, exhausting spring and summer. Colin and I are now very happily two-and-a-half-months-married, but in many ways we still feel like we're recovering from the wedding. The change in seasons feels a bit like a fresh start... so here I am again. Giving blogging a try again.

Part of the problem, I guess, is that I'm not really sure what to write about on this blog. My life is a lot less exciting than it was when I started this eight years ago, when I was headed to Botswana. Most of my thoughts - musings on my job, my goals, my friends and family - are too private for a public blog. But I'm hesitant to give up on blogging entirely, if only because I like having my memories documented somewhere, so--here we go again.

While I wait for inspiration to strike, I'll start with a massive photo dump. Here's what I've been up to since April, according to my iPhone:

I ran the Boston Athletic Association 5k in April. It was cold but fun, particularly because the course had us run across the Boston Marathon finish line.

A work trip took me to NYC, and I convinced Colin to come with me. We bought tickets to see School of Rock, Andrew Lloyd Webber's new musical, on Broadway and, of course, wandered through Times Square.

Colin graduated! He's Dr. Donihue now. And, yes, that's a lizard on a rock wall on his cap, just like the lizards he studies in Greece. 

We spent a lot of time walking around Cambridge to enjoy spring. This is Mount Auburn Cemetery, which was the first rural (i.e., park-like) cemetery in the U.S.

I also convinced Colin to run a 5k with me in mid-June. We ran a local race through Harvard Square. This is us pre-race. We looked a lot worse after the race because it was unseasonably hot.

We also spent time at the river sailing, kayaking, and paddleboarding. Gorgeous as always.

For the first time, Colin was here for the Cambridge Dance Party. It was everything he'd imagined and everything I've grown to love. In this photo, 10,000 of our neighbors are doing the YMCA.

Also for the first time, Colin was here when I won IEc's baseball ticket raffle! We watched the Red Sox demolish the Angels, 10-5. 

We also went down to the Esplanade to watch the Boston Pops dress rehearsal for the 4th of July, which is held on the 3rd of July. It was almost as packed as the concert on the 4th. Next year, maybe we'll just watch on TV?

Colin and his dad made this Giant Jenga set for our wedding. Even though it was rainy (in the middle of an extreme drought in Massachusetts?!) and unbelievably cold (60 degrees in July?!) on our wedding day, Giant Jenga still made an appearance, and it has since become our new favorite party game. 

We spent our honeymoon on Amelia Island, FL. Our B&B was wonderful and had this giant porch right on the beach.

In late August, we went camping in New Hampshire, north of the White Mountains. The campsite was quiet and nestled onto a scenic river bank. It was a perfect weekend, full of kayaking, stargazing, and s'mores.   

After leaving our campsite, we drove into the White Mountains and hiked. As John Muir once wrote, "the mountains are calling, and I must go." We went.

We made fresh pasta with the pasta maker we received as a wedding present. It might have taken us a while to figure out how much dough to use at once... (Hint: this is too much!)

We spent a gorgeous day in September with friends from SNRE at Spectacle Island. The wind was perfect for kite-flying. 

And that's it. I mean, I might have missed a thing or two, but those 15 photos pretty much cover April-September. Now let's see what October has in store...

"Spring"

After our grand California adventure, Colin and I came back home to this:

April snow in Boston! It happens every year, and every year it's just as disappointing. Particularly when the flowers had already started blooming.

Snow-covered buds in front of one of the beautiful houses in my neighborhood.

Luckily the snow didn't stick around long, and spring came back in full force. Here's the Boston Public Garden, less than two weeks later:

View from a swan boat.

And the Esplanade the following week:

The daffodils are taking over!

And the river! It was so nice out that Emily and I went out for our first kayak of the season. It's finally, officially boating season again!

I haven't been sailing yet (still too cold to risk an accidental capsize!), but I'm excited to be back on the water. And I'm excited for flowers and green trees and sunshine and grass and bare feet and lemonade and picnics and all the things that just say summer. I love summer.