Author: devonpass

Packing tonight.

Flying to Chicago first thing in the morning.

Nervousness is trickling in.

But I’ve done this twice before (uno, dos). I’ve got this.

See you in Chicago! (Some of you through the interwebs, but many of you for realsies!)

I’m sorry for being such an absentee blogger lately!

Last week I was in San Francisco for a work conference, and my right shin, ankle, and foot started feeling wonky. I skipped one five-mile run to rest and became very friendly with the hotel ice machine in the evenings. I was super-busy with the conference and my blogging would have just been really complain-y anyway, so I kept all my taper freak-out thoughts to myself.

When I got back to Seattle and to running, things felt… just OK. And then I had a flawless, confidence-boosting final long run on Sunday, and now I feel GREAT!

OK, maybe it was flawed in that I ran wayyy too fast — a prime example of what NOT to do during the marathon — but I couldn’t help it. I was so excited that I finally met a Seattle blogger I love: Emily of Daily Garnish!

Photo from Emily’s Instagram.

Emily and I have been friends online for about two years, and I can’t believe it took us this long to cross paths. I literally ran right into her, her husband Casey, and their son Cullen at Green Lake within the first mile of my run! Emily is just as adorable in real life as she is on her blog, and she’s about to have baby #2 any day now. So exciting!

That afternoon, I met even more Internet friends IRL for brunch.

From left: me, Rebecca, Sarah, and Kristin. Kristin and I are actually college buddies, and Rebecca and Sarah are Oiselle teammates!

We’re all running Chicago, so we had a blast swapping training stories, talking taper madness, and laying out our race strategies (mine is: have fun and don’t screw it up). I’m so excited to see these ladies in Chicago, whether it’s before, after, or even during the race!

And speaking of Chicago, here’s my rough plan of activities:

FRIDAY
– Arrive in Chicago mid-afternoon
– Hit up the race expo ASAP before all the good shirts get snapped up

SATURDAY
– 8 a.m. shakeout run with Bart Yasso

This is free and open to all! Get the details and RSVP here.

– Attend Liz’s meetup at noon
– Eat appropriately, hydrate, and get plenty of sleep!

SUNDAY
– Run run run
– Try not to end up in the medical tent
– If I can walk, possibly attend the Granato Racing + Oiselle after-party

Details are here. Email hello@oiselle.com for an invite!

– Whatever else I can manage to do! It really depends on how the race goes and how wrecked I am afterward

MONDAY & TUESDAY
– See the sights and eat all the food in Chicago!

I only have six training miles left to run, including four tonight. Can’t believe it!

It’s gonna be FUN!

Tonight’s stupid-fast run is brought to you by blind rage:

I should have done an easy run to recover from my 22-miler, but I had so much adrenaline pumping through me due to anger and frustration that this run felt effortless.

Seriously. I was a gazelle. I was a mermaid. I did not feel my legs. I just ran.

Without getting into details, there is someone on our block who is breaking the law and causing major safety concerns. We (and many of our neighbors) have the police on speed dial and have called in many, many reports over the past several months.

Today, while walking home from the bus stop, I saw something that caused me to call the police again, and I became extremely frustrated by what I perceive as lack of urgency/downright apathy on their part. Nothing is being done, and I feel like it will take someone actually getting hurt in order to elicit any helpful response from the police.

SO FRUSTRATING.

It felt good to fly tonight. I’m pretty sure I need to get a massage after every long run (ha! I wish), because I had zero soreness after the 22 miles + 90-minute massage extravaganza on Sunday — just some creakiness in my knees when walking up and down stairs.

I will take it easy during tomorrow’s run. Tonight, I just needed to crush some miles because I needed to feel like I was at least in control of something.

I didn’t drink a drop of alcohol at the wedding yesterday, was in bed by 11, got a solid nine hours of sleep, and then destroyed this run.

My legs, lungs, and stomach felt amazing. No issues whatsover! The only slight downer was that it absolutely poured for the last 11 miles, so I was compleeeeetely soaked! It made me feel like a badass, though. And if I get pneumonia, then I’ll just be a badass with pneumonia.

I could have run 4.2 more miles. This makes me very excited for the Chicago Marathon in three short weeks!!!

Now, it’s taper time! And what better way to kick off a taper than with a 90-minute deep-tissue massage?? Oh yes, it’s happening in a few hours. I’ve strategically saved a birthday gift card from Aaron’s mom and stepdad for this exact moment!

Why yes, I am in the brown heels, and they are the Banana Republic Roia t-strap sandal in dark amber. Here’s the front view:

I bought the last pair in the store on sale at the same time I bought the dress (a few months ago), so I don’t think they’re available anymore. BUT, if you do find them somewhere, I really recommend them — they’re quite comfortable for 4" heels with a ½" platform!

I met up with my new running buddy, Karen, this morning for another 8-miler that flew by as she told me all about her ENGAGEMENT!!!

Look. At. This. RING!

Remember how I mentioned that on our last run together, Karen was doing 17 miles before work on a Friday? That’s because she was heading off on a backpacking trip with her boyfriend, Matt, for the weekend. And guess where he proposed?

At the top of a mountain, of course!!!

(I got Karen’s permission to steal/post these beautiful pics!)

What a lovely, romantic proposal! We had such fun chatting about it and wedding plans on our run. Karen wanted to “pick my brain” about wedding planning, but I was like… ummm… we’re just kind of winging it over here. I’m probably the last person to ask!

Food. Booze. White dress. Am I missing anything?

I barely remember the actual run because I was so caught up in our conversation, but I’m happy to see we held a fairly consistent pace while chatting!

And now I’m riding on a combo of runner’s high and vicarious engagement happiness. I am so thrilled for my new friend.

Congratulations, Karen and Matt!!! ❤