Back to normal (?)

After a big race there is always a time lag before I really feel normal again.  This has to do with some physical elements, like recovering from the race itself and letting the inflammation subside; some psychological elements, like the short-lived thrill and then the longer lived "what's next?"; and some outside elements like travel last weekend (Disney World), and working and living out of town most weekdays of the last month.  Part of the out-of-town situation has been me eating poorly (meaning well, depending on your point of view!), so salt overload and large meals have been adding to the slow return of normalcy.  We had a great time at Disney World, but it is no way a "normal" place!

After a great weekend at home, though, I finally think I am feeling like myself -- I got to spend a good amount of time with Jess and the kids.  We spent most of Sunday afternoon digging  a garden plot - a 12x12 foot area with many, many tree roots.  Long after the girls lost interest in helping me dig, which they did with enthusiasm for quite a while, I was  preparing for an epic battle with large root systems from two different trees.  My tools were primitive: a shovel, a handsaw, and a hedge trimmer.  I won the battle, I think, and I imagine the tree will be just fine as I barely scratched the surface.  A colleague today asked me: "why didn't you just rent a rototiller for the day" and I am afraid I didn't have a good answer.  Oh well.  We put off the planting for a few more weeks, and I am looking forward to the incredibly long growing season that our new location affords.  I am especially excited about the blueberry bush.

Next race:  the "Trail of Payne" - a local trail 10K through Payne's Prairie.  This will be coming up in a mere two weeks...

I have a lot of ideas about training that I am excited to try out; most involve regular speed/tempo work and building a more stable and permanent running base than I have had in the past.  First and foremost I am going to give this knee a break, and set a deadline to see a sports medicine doc and maybe get an MRI if it is really not a lot better.  I have to admit that I'm not too worried by the whole thing.  All the other injuries have healed on their own, and it will be a cold day in hell before I let a surgeon touch my knee for an inflammatory problem.