I finished the race, and I think I'll let the picture do the talking.

I don't know why this is coming through so hard to read. It won't let me fix it. Sorry!

I did well until about mile eleven, when my left knee started giving my trouble, but thanks to my handy running app (RunKeeper), I pushed on and finished under my personal goal time of 2:45:00, even with one potty break and some knee-resting walking breaks in 11-12.5, which was my only real struggle. Cardio fine. Muscles not so much.

But I made it, and with your help, I made 110% of my goal, which was the whole point.

Thanks, guys! I did take you with me, by the way. :)

And the rest of that jersey, well...yeah.

For Leif, and for my Aunt Clara, who is beyond super cool and who survived Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma many years ago. She just went into assisted living recently, and I was reminded of her stuggles in this life, which have been many - but she persevered. Thus the second tag. Besides, she and I have quoted "when I am an old woman, I shall wear purple" to one another for decades. It seemed only right.

I run tomorrow. Thank you to all my donors, and I'll see you on the other side!

Details:

Who: Me!
What: The Rock'n'Roll Dallas Half Marathon.
Where: Dallas, silly.
When: March 23, 2014.
Why: For Leif, because he was my friend, and because cancer sucks.

Tomorrow  is my fundraising deadline (though this page will run a while longer and still accept donations). I'd really love to make 110% of my orginal goal. If you can help, I'd appreciate it! I'm still running!

...we do it for the stories we can tell.*

I went away to the dog sled races this past week. As usual, I had a great time in the cold working on dogs. I also played spades, drank tea, learned a new game, and collected many new stories in the book of my mind. Since several people I ran into on the trail couldn't quite place my buddy Leif (which I find ironic given his own face blindness), here's another picture, just for them.

Man, I love this shirt. And while I still haven't seen this elusive beast, I have to believe it's out there, haunting the North Maine Woods. Piranhamoose for the win. *grin*

I took a week off training to head up north, but I'm back at it now, and it's still progressive. It's time to start tapering now, since the race is coming sooner rather than later these days. I'm off for a run now, and wish you all nothing but the best. Thank you again for your donations, and I'll let you know how it goes when the time comes!

*Credit to Jimmy Buffett for that lyric, and to Petra, for forever joining it to the Can-Am.

...or running, as the case may be. I'm still hanging in there. It's progressive. Though running is still a challenge for me (what would be the point if it wasn't?), I'm getting there. I'm up to nine miles on my long runs, and plan for ten today. And though I'm certainly not the fastest runner, I am running all that way, which is huge for me. Thank you so much to everyone for your support. It means the world to me, and though I've reached my goal, I still appreciate every additional percentage point we gain together! You all rock!