On Cold and Chicken Bacon ...

Snap it was cold out yesterday! That wind was not to be trifled with! While we're starting the day today at -23°C, it is to warm up. And provide a 5-10 centimetre opportunity for cross-training! One benefit of the cold for many of the city's residents is that the outdoor rinks will remain open till the end of March, and the canal will be open to skaters late in the season, too!

Last night's practice wasn't complex, but as Duane noted, was "not for pantywaists!"!

♦ 800 free
♦ 3 x (3 x 200 free on 3:30) :45 set rest, repeating 3:15 - 3:17
♦ 6 x 50 choice strong but not fast on 1:15 (I did fly/free repeating :50)

Total: 2900 metres.

For his part The Boarder made a Glorious Discovery yesterday. He is Totally Enamoured with the Merits of Chicken Bacon!!! Well, it does make sense given his great love of chicken. It takes me a long time to go through a package, so I buy it, cut the slices in half, fry and freeze them. It seems yesterday marked the first time (at least in his tenure as an Indoor Cat) that I cooked chicken bacon. Indoor things were de rigeur for me yesterday, too! It is a wonderful snack in many ways. In order to sample it in all its glory, apparently it is best to Cry Loudly and Plaintively each time your person heads to the package to put more into the pan. Raw Salty Greasy Goodness can be Attentively Licked from each finger if you work hard enough at convincing your person you will Probably Die Immediately without some. Once cooked to crispy, it also makes a Fine Substitute for any cat treats one might have otherwise received that day.

Plus c'est la meme chose!

Yes, I know circumflex-free pun is a bit of a stretch, but I've been tagged. Krissy said:

Hey lady...you've been tagged. (Sorry. But also, I hope you do it.) The rules are as follows: Link to the person who tagged you. Post the rules on your blog. Share seven random and/or weird facts about yourself on your blog. Tag seven random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs. Leave a comment on their blogs so that they know they have been tagged.

I told her do a random-ish list, but leave it at that. Anyone who wants to play along without me tagging them is welcome to.

♦ I'm probably as much a dog person as a cat person, but I find very few stray dogs wandering my neighbourhood in need of homes! I'm also allergic to both.
♦ My birthday/Christmas present to me is the bag I've received the most compliments on (including many from complete strangers) in my life. Scroll for picture.
♦ I've not travelled for six consecutive weeks before.
♦ Balance really is not my strongest suit in more ways than one.
♦ I just committed to going to Nationals in Quebec City three days after I get back from Australia, mostly because my coach wants me to go. (It is entirely probable that sanity isn't my strongest suit either!)
♦ Even though I love sparkly things, the jacket I showed you yesterday is the shiniest item of clothing I've ever bought.
♦ For a relatively small person, my voice carries quite well from one end of a 50 metre pool to the other! ;-)

It is ridiculously brisk out this morning -22°C but with windchill -30°C (so it feels like -26°F for my American pals). The Boarder thought the better of jumping out of bed this morning, and stayed there for another hour while the furnace kicked in to the daytime temperature!

Swim Bit ...

The dangers of snow over ice yesterday meant that I made a clever choice: I took the longer two bus route that involves less walking instead of the more direct route that requires a bit of a hoof. Also, my groin has not yet fully recovered from Saturday — apparently one of the side-effects of the miracle suit is I don't feel the idiosyncracies of my body as usual. So I had a relatively easy practice, not pushing, and substituting strokes as required.

♦ 600 free
♦ 200 kick
♦ 6 x 50 fly/back (I did fly/free) on 1:10 (no set rest in this series)
♦ 6 x 50 back/breast (I did breast/free) on 1:20
♦ 6 x 50 breast/free (I did fly/free) on 1:10
♦ 5 x 100 (25 not free, 75 free) on 2:15; I chose fly
♦ 50 easy

In other news, the wallop of this last storm was not as bad as anticipated. Yay!! Still, cross-training definitely required. And I think solved my Oz outerwear issue — with an uncharacteristic shiny thing!! Of course, the sleeves are a bit longer on me (but no alterations required), but this treated suede jacket should really fit the bill.

Neighbourly Notes ...

Emma called me around noon yesterday. She, too, was home sick. So sick she couldn't go to school. We commiserated with each other. But ill or not, it is alway nice to have a chat with Emma! Aside: I started a course of antibiotics yesterday to banish this upper respiratory sinusy nonsense.

Last week I had dinner with Emma, Margaret, and their mom Elizabeth while the man of the house was out of town on business. Tipper was there, too. He sure gave Emma a project. A bit of a mess to clean up, in fact! If you recall she made Onyx a wonderful cat toy for Christmas. She also made one for Tipper. Clearly, Tip found it worthy of FMP (Fairly Maniacal Play) as he managed to break into his — and there was catnip everywhere!

Emma and Margaret showed me some of their Valentines, and Emma gave me two — one for me and one for The Boarder. His is the one pictured.

Thursday when I got home from swim practice I had a message on my machine from Margaret. Those gals across the road sure know how to make my day!

Last week I marked a year without my ole pal George. Although The Boarder and I have developed a special relationship, I continue to miss George and his wonderful companion animal every single day. They brought a great deal to my life, and taught me more than I can say. And Hoodles wasn't responsible for that scratch! In his younger days George was prone to having Strenuous Disagreements with Certain Other Cats!

Meet Report ...

First things first: A very big thank you to all the volunteers who made yesterday's NMSC Meet in Honour of Doug Petty a smashing success. It was also wonderful to have not just local swimmers, but representatives from places like Cornwall, Brockville, Aurora, and Montreal! It's always a treat to see old friends like Muriel & James Carlyle and Bill Westcott. And the great support and spirit of the gang swimming (and cheering) from Technosport should be acknowledged, too.

What I should have done differently: Apparently I should have taken a decongestant! My cold had lulled me into complacency. No hacking, coughing or excessive nose blowing really on Friday or yesterday morning left me feeling like I had it beat!

What really worked for me: The miracle suit strikes again!

Added bonus: Speedo endurance axcel back training suit for $45 taxes included! (As pictured only green!) Image from Speedo USA.

Event #5, 50 LC breast. Last year at this meet I swam :46.9. I felt I had a decent start (for me), a good turnover rate, looked straight ahead and left it all in the pool. Including a lung. Because as soon as I touched the wall the houghing and cacking began. I was so dazed and confused I read the wrong time from the clock! So it was a huge and pleasant surprise once the results were posted to see I went :43.75! And heartening when I wobbled out of the pool to have Bill tell me I "looked great!"

My teammate Kathleen and I were both entered in the 100 breast and the 50 fly. It seemed clear to us that we could either put in our best in one event or the other. Kathleen chose to scratch the 100 breast. I knew I had to swim the distance (whether I did it well or not), because I'll be swimming it in Perth. Finally, as the first heat was on the blocks I committed to putting it all out there for the hundred, and if I were to blow up at least I'd given it what I had. Last year at this meet I went 1:43.20. Again, my plan was to look straight ahead, keep the turnover going, but most importantly to focus on breathing in and out properly. Particularly encouraging was that in the last 15 metres I could hear folks yelling — apparently there was a good race going on! I was extremely pleased with 1:36.71, and I did leave it all in the pool. Along with lung number two. It was extraordinarily clear at this point that the rest of my events were in a bit of jeopardy.

Event #16, 50 fly. I knew what I was getting into before I committed to that hundred breast. As always, I had the weakest start in the heat, but I did manage to get myself on track until the last 5 metres. When I had no arms at all. None. Holy Hannah they hurt! Last year, :39.8. This year, :38.37. And then I tried to hough up a third lung! I'll confess to a little initial disappointment, as before the day began I had really hoped this would be my best event. But all things considered it was a very solid swim. And best to leave on a high note and scratch the 800.

I did manage a blogger meet-up, pouncing on Salty Warren after his (and technically what should have been our) 800 free. Still coughing. Gack! And the NMSC crew put on a lovely smorgasbord for us afterwards.

Yikes!

I had one of those days yesterday. You know those days when everything's a struggle? Nothing's going horribly wrong, yet nothing's really going your way either? One of those.

It took everything I had to drag my sorry derriere and stuffy head out into the very brisk weather to go to practice. Now, often once I get into the water I feel fine. So I was at least a little bit encouraged sitting on the deck halfheartedly stretching, thinking to myself, "I'll probably feel much better shortly." Actually, I was thinking it over and over again, like a mantra. And the first 500 of warm-up didn't feel disgusting. Yay for me!

So I was standing there at the end of the pool, minding my own business, trying to figure out the instruction: 6 x 50 free quarter build, when completely out of the blue Duane says to me, "Wendy, swim over here today." Then he pointed. At lane six. You know that promise I made Dr. Susan about training, but not training hard? Must have slipped my mind. Because I've never swum in lane six. They have a Very Bad Habit of swimming on faster intervals than lane five. Yeah, I'll say!

♦ 500 free
♦ 6 x 50 free quarter build
♦ three times:
3 x 100 free hard on 1:35, :30 set rest
2 x 100 free harder on 1:30, :30 set rest
1 x 100 free hardest on 2:30
♦ 2 x 100 free all out on 2:30
♦ 50 easy

I made it through the workout. Yay for me! Almost wondrous considering that as an adult I've swum 75's on 1:30. But that's it. No hundreds on 1:35. No hundreds on 1:30. At least none I can remember. Remember, my 200 free GUBT* is 3:00. So woo hoo! But make no mistake, the set rest was absolutely essential!

Now, all I have to do is hope that my arms bounce back for tomorrow ...

*Grown-up Best Time

The Call of the Cardboard ...

Let the LOL captions begin!!
P.S. Click to enlarge.

Swim Bit

There seems to be a new definition of trace snowfall in these parts. Yesterday's "trace" snowfall was 6 cm. I prefer trace snowfall that is easily dealt with by broom! It finished up in the morning, and then we had some real trace snowfall going on at rush hour, but it came down like a blizzard! Because, after all, Tuesday is practice night! I looked like the abominable snow person by the time I had finished the trudge to the transitway!

It's a clear day today, and hopefully it will hold through till the lunar eclipse is done. For the locals, it'll be starting at 8:43.

I had a nice visit with Dr. Susan yesterday. In which, besides giving me a shot in the butt, she looked into my nose, throat, ears, and listened to me breathe. She agreed my cold and I could keep training, but not hard. Although if the cold starts to win the battle, I'm supposed to call her. And I really had every intention of swimming easy last night.

♦ 600 free — so far so good!
♦ 200 side kick drill — yeah, well, I sensibly did nice easy one arm fly

Now, here's where, for reasons unknown, things deviated from the plan:

♦ 5 x 100 (75 free, 25 not free) on 2:00, :30 set rest — I thought I'd try fly, and the first 100 was 1:30. Ooops!!! Where'd that come from?? After 3 (repeating 1:35 the next 2), I just couldn't catch my breath, so breaststroke it was.
♦ 4 x 100 (50 free, 50 not free) on 2:00, :30 set rest — yup, breaststroke, but swimming 1:40's. What's up with that??
♦ 3 x 100 (25 free, 75 not free) on 2:00, :30 set rest — had to be breaststroke, but still swimming in the 1:40 range??
♦ 2 x 100 not free on 2:00 — breaststroke — by this point, I simply couldn't believe the pace clock!

The final set was 6 x 50, each 25 different, neither free. I did 3 (easy fly up, easy breast back) and my left calf decided that was enough! Which was fine, as I had good bunch for skills and drills for the following half hour.

The Boarder was waiting in the window when I arrived home ... there was some nice tenderloin in the crockpot, and he sure knew it!

In Hot Water!

Oh, that Danielle! She has great powers of prescience!!! Witness her comment on yesterday's post. Not to say that my Family Day swim was disasterous — it wasn't — but it had certain moments of unease.

Luckily my cold and I had no plans to swim hard or fast. Or we might have become really frustrated. Or really cranky. Or both! So here, for your reading pleasure, are a few of the things that could have easily pushed me over the edge:

♦ In Hot Water. Yeesh. Suddenly the pool has become a therapeutic pool! Ugh!

♦ Backstroke Guy. Now, folks, there are people that swim backstroke considerably faster than I swim freestyle. They belong in the fast lane. Swimming backstroke. And while they're there, I might easily belong a few lanes over! Guy I'm lapping on a regular basis while he's swimming freestyle; not so much! On his back with no shoulder flexibility, no body roll, arms literally entering at 10 & 2 (and hips so low he's swimming like a bathtub) — Backstroke Guy = Lane Hog. With 6 folks in the lane! And three in the medium lane. You don't Invoke Testosterone and stay in the fast lane to hold people up. There's no shame in changing lanes! Really, it makes not an iota of difference to me that you're an Ironman. Note to self: Not all Ironpeeps are as fabulous as tri-bloggers!

♦ Open Turn Guy. Nothing wrong with open turns. Except ... maybe ... if you don't know how to do them! If you stop swimming before you touch the wall, paddle about a bit and finally orient your body the opposite direction, then push off from the wrong side of the lane, you are a disaster waiting to happen. Also, not recommended to hang out in the shallow end arms spread across the gutter as if the cross-hatch were your personal crucifix! It's where people turn!!! In my addled little brain, I have this idea floating around that if you're in the fast lane you ought to know how to turn. Or at least stay out of the way!

♦ Swim Toys Guy. You want to swim with flippers? Okay. You want to swim with paddles? Alright. You want to swim with a pull buoy? Fine. But why in the name of (insert deity here) would you want to swim with all of them at the same time?? (Pattern of swim: 50 paddles + fins, RI?, 50 paddles + fins + pull buoy. Repeat.)

The busier the pool is, the more important lane etiquette becomes. Know what's expected at your pool. And share the lane!!! But then what do I know?

Monday Miscellany ...

Melt, snow, melt!!!! Shrink, Mount Crumpet, shrink!!! It is unusually warm for the season today, but temperatures will get back to below freezing by tomorrow.

The Boarder reports that although I am still doing a lot of nose blowing, I can still find my way around the kitchen. In fact, I have to, because I am voraciously hungry these past few days. Last night I grilled a filet of trout, much to the delight of the cat who won't touch prepared cat food with fish in it! Last week he surprised me by profoundly enjoying mashed potatoes. I was showing him the plate before I put it in the dishwasher so he would know he really wasn't interested. He's just full of surprises! He also notes he had many compliments on his good health and glossy coat from a neighbour this weekend. She knew him as a street cat, and was favorably impressed with the feline he has become.

I took my cold for a gentle swim yesterday. I couldn't swim hard anyway, the water was too hot! I hope to do the same late this morning, as the pool schedule is changed for Family Day. After all, there is that meet on Saturday!

Stormy Weather ...

This nice bright sunny morning belies the forecast ahead: snow changing to freezing rain changing to rain. That set me to thinking that the driveway may be problematic for the next few days, and I had been wanting to bring you some images of the current state of the back forty (immediately behind my deck). I was going to ask Emma to have her picture taken in front of it for scale, and may still. But not right now. So here, for your viewing pleasure is the peak of my back yard snow pile from behind. The deck rail is 3½' high. The peak is taller than I am from this vantage point.

Then there are then four steps down from the deck, and the drive slopes towards the back of the lot. Below you'll see the slope of Mount Crumpet! I'm not-so-secretly hoping the impending rain will shrink it some. Or, I can think about opening a tobaggan run!

Snow Fatigue?

Hey, there's a pretty red banner on my weather icon again!!! So far this season we've had 291 centimetres of snow (that's 114.6 inches, over 9½ feet!). Enough that the media is now discussing "snow fatigue". Certainly I know a fellow blogger or two who've had enough winter! I have developed a holdover cross-training strategy: the path from the back door gets left for the day following the initial batch of shovelling!

My mid-winter malady is progressing well — now I seem to have a head cold. And I'll be very happy if it stays there and doesn't sink! So I didn't swim yesterday, and won't today. See how valuable those cross-training opportunities are? They keep me active! And they are allow The Boarder to keep his supervisory skills sharp. It's not like he can correct any Errant Behaviours while he is at a window post and I am on the other side of the glass, but perhaps it's possible I don't make any serious mistakes while shovelling anyway. I did receive a Brief Correction the other day when my feet went the wrong way — apparently I was to have been Creating Opportunities for Play, when in fact, I was absorbed in Stupid People Stuff. For a guy who didn't know how to play when he got here, he has made enormous strides!

This is going to be a two film week as a matinée of Persepolis is on the books for this afternoon, followed by a rousing romp through the grocery store!

Swim Bit!

Well, The Boarder was anxiously awaiting my return from practice last night. The chicken in the crockpot was clearly ready! And this business of emptying your swim bag before attending to the chicken that is clearly ready?? For the birds!!!!

Even though I am now congested, I toddled off to practice because my g-i issues seem to have been mitigated. And it was a remarkably good practice, considering:

♦ 600 free
♦ 200 kick ¼ build (I did whip kick on my belly with no flutterboard)
♦ 5 x 200 free on 3:45 (3:15-3:20)
♦ 7 x 100 50 free/50 not free (I did 25 fly, 25 breast) on 2:30, repeating 1:37 – 1:40
♦ swim easy, I did 100 one arm fly

My arms, likely partially due to my cross-training with a shovel, but also to do with the freestyle first bit, were not that keen on exiting the water in the fly bits, but I got 'em done. There is more cross-training on the books today as the snow that began overnight is still falling (and blowing!).

Happy Valentine's Day!

Original paste paper, heat embossed hand carved rubber stamp, scanned.

Last night, the three movieteers headed out to see The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. Highly recommended. The subject matter is wonderfully handled, the performances powerful. It is a beautiful but not an easy film — it is a testament to the power we have within us to rise above terrifying circumstances and make a greater contribution to humanity than we could have imagined.

Mid-week Miscellany ...

Feeling fluey, I bailed on practice last night ... at the last minute. I had my coat and boots on. I could have made it there. But it wouldn't have been any fun. And I was in bed before practice ended, so it was clearly the right choice. This morning my throat is scratchy, but my g-i situation is calmer. So there's progress!

Some of you may have heard that we had another snow event. Yesterday we had hit the bronze medal spot — the third snowiest winter on record. It seems unlikely that we won't be at number two, and soon! She says, after another hour of cross-training! And still the means of egress out the back door is pristine.

The Boarder, in his wisdom, had a nice lie in this morning, letting me get out of bed and turn up the heat. He joined me in good time to supervise the shovelling from his front window vantage point! Also in time to have breakfast and some play first, to warm me up.

In other news today, an adorable little pterosaur fossil has been discovered in China. Other than that, folks, I've got nothin'!

Update: it is now, indeed the second snowiest winter on record!

Bobs and Bits ...

-23°C this morning, -32° with windchill (almost -26°F), but ... it will warm up enough today to snow. Ideally not for evening rush hour, but I'm wary.

Among the other tri-bloggers who really got it done on the weekend: Bigun, GeekGirl, Sweet Baboo, Fe-lady, & Jenny. Good goin' gang!

In other notes the auto/air adaptor came just as I was arriving home from the pool yesterday afternoon. It has a manual. And five, count 'em five cords! Not for the easily confused. However, later today I'll set it up to run on household current and make sure it powers the laptop. That's a good project for a brisk not in a big hurry to leave the house kind of day!

Baby, it's cold outside!

Well, our mild snowy weather has given way to a day of bright, sunny, brisk weather. Once again, I shovelled for an hour as cross-training yesterday! It was -18°C (0°F) when I got up, but the windchill makes it feel like -30°C (-22°F). Back to leggings under jeans. But the sunshine is nice. The Boarder has been soaking up the sun to full advantage in the basking spot. Me, not so much!

Hearty congratulations to TriBoomer for completing the RaceAthlete B-Fit B-Day Challenge, and to the 17thman for getting the Tour de Palm Springs done this weekend. Way to beat the February blues, fellows!

And for those of you looking for a new couch, how's this for a car seat?

Bits & Bobs ...

Friday was also an errand filled day. My ticket to ride is now in hand, as is my ticket to snorkel with whale sharks on the Ningaloo Reef! I bought envelopes so I could get some Valentine's cards in the post, and I picked up three inexpensive tees at Old Navy, along with a black cropped ¾ sleeve cotton sweater, and the shirt dress pictured here. I'll probably pick up a few more colorful t-shirts, as I expect I'll be living in skirts and jeans for six weeks. I am truly dithering about outerwear and footwear though! In hindsight there is a similar short sleeved dress in red without the lower pockets that I ought to have picked up as well. Although usually I am a buy quality over quantity type, it's nice to have easy washable choices — and there's dress code on the train!!!

Yesterday morning our club had a mini-camp, so I spent a couple of hours on the deck coaching. At noon hour I popped over to Plant for a shortish swim on my own, and a dunk in the hot tub, as my back end hasn't been too happy with me lately. For a special treat, my folks' next door neighbour and I had a lovely dinner at Il Primo. I made our reservation online — gotta love the information superhighway! Linda chose the daily pasta special, while I had the farfalle in lemon-almond-basil pesto with red peppers and grilled tiger shrimp. Mmmmm!

Oh, and Onyx got news on Friday that Emma got 28 out of 30 on her dictée, so no special treats for him this week. Although I really don't think he's too hard done by. Good work Emma!

Secret Riches!

Yesterday four of us went to see Secret Riches: Ancient Peru Unearthed at the Museum of Civilization. The Sican were an aboriginal civilization that flourished for over 500 years, from about 750 AD until the collapse of their society in the fourteenth century. Their skills in metallurgy and metalwork were well developed — they had extensive man-made irrigation systems to support their agriculture, and the riches of the sea were used extensively in trade. The show is predominantly gold work as highlighted in a Discovery channel documentary on the excavation of the particular burial chamber in which these treasures were all found, but there are also examples of work in bronze, pottery, and some beads (samples of shell, amethyst, lapis and turquoise beads are in the exhibit). The society did not have a written language, so full knowledge of their social structure and beliefs is lacking, as is an understanding of their fall — although evidence suggests a religious power structure. It was an interesting look into a culture none of us knew much about, perhaps made moreso by contrast with recent exhibits from ancient China and Pompeii in which we saw pieces from other societies in similar historical periods.



Photos: Museum of Civilization

Swim Bit ...

One of the fabulous things about coaching skills and drills after practice is the excitement of the swimmers when they meet a new challenge. It's contagious! Which, by contrast, makes this story particularly sad for me. Yesterday there was an added bonus for both The Boarder and myself — one of the swimmers gave me a lift home!

In the pool last night, 2,400 metres as follows:

♦ 400 free
♦ 300 drills
♦ 200 free
♦ 7 x (50 choice strong on 1:15, 50 choice hard on 1:30); I did fly up free back, repeating :45 to :50
♦ 6 x 100 free on 1:45
♦ 200 easy swim

One of the other assistant coaches was on deck briefly, so between repeats I said hi. "Must not be a hard practice," he quipped, "you're still able to talk!"

Happy New Year!

Well, I'm pleased to report that Toronto got most of our snow yesterday! However, as of Monday we'd had 223.2 centimetres (88 inches) this winter.

Yesterday a fair-sized group assembled at May's Garden to celebrate Chinese New Year. We had a wonderful visit, and a wonderful meal! So thanks very much to the Murchie-Wasiliewskies for a fine evening. I think it's clear that Madeleine, pictured behind her fine friend Eleanor, sported the most beautiful and appropriate outfit for the celebration, but Eleanor was elegantly put together too. I think these two may break some hearts in the near future!

Swim Bit ...

Well, here's another plug for high heels. High for me, however, doesn't rate on the stiletto scale, so I'm thinking Kegels and dolphin kick for life.

According to plan, the tone of swim practices is changing. This mesocycle finds us moving away from longer controlled swims and emphasis on distance per stroke to a higher concentration of non-freestyle swimming, and a difference in our approach. Base is well past; we are now looking to increase speed, working towards peak performances either at Nationals or at Worlds.

♦ 600 free
♦ 300 choice drills (I did a mix of catch-up, zipper, fingertips in the water, and one arm fly)
♦ 14 x 75 — 50 choice hard, 25 free harder on 1:45 — my choice was 25 fly, 25 breast, repeating 1:15
♦ 10 x 25 free on :40 — keeping long strong stroke, but increasing turnover

Due to where I am in my personal cycle, I had to scoot to the loo before coaching the half hour of skills and drills, but the rest of the gang did 3 x 100 free on 1:50, hard. My total for the evening was 2,200 metres.

Oh, and just take a gander at our long range forecast ... five days of snow icons! Over the next 24 hours, 5 to 10 centimetres is predicted. Where on earth will we put it all??

Pancakes!!

Thanks to an email exchange yesterday sorting plans for Chinese New Year, I bought some good Canadian maple syrup when Lise and I ventured out to the Stupid Store (alternately referred to as the Superstore) yesterday. So I can have a proper Shrove Tuesday meal. A good thing, as going out today may be problematic. It snowed last night. Not a lot, but it snowed. And now we're having a "light freezing drizzle". Perfect!! Hopefully it will warm up enough to take the treachery factor out by practice time!

Monday, Monday ...

The Boarder is napping. It is best if I bake when he naps. Not when he expects me to go to bed. It frustrates him. Then he gets cranky. In fact, my bad behaviour earned me a swat! And not only did I make muffins, I made cookies. But I was forgiven when I finally did climb the stairs ... So when he curled up for his afternoon sleep, I made Rice Krispie squares. On account of I had an intense craving for them this weekend. Let's now just hope I don't just sit down and eat them all!

For the fashionistas — today I am breaking in the jeans I hemmed last week, also from my guerilla "Now or Never" shopping expedition with Elizabeth. Marked down from $238 to $94, I spent a Christmas gift card on these and my [Blank] jeans, netting me two pairs of jeans for $94! Sadly my legs are a lot shorter than those shown!

Sunday Snippets ...

So, you know that snowstorm I was going on about? 31 centimetres. That's 12.2 inches, Bigun! According to the newspaper, yet another record! I haven't pushed any snow off the back deck yet ... and sadly it doesn't look like we'll have a heat wave to do it for me.

Here's some of the stuff that came in our registration packages yesterday — along with our very own heat sheets, and for me, the most valuable of all, a microfibre cloth suitable for cleaning my glasses! Because I really don't think I can have enough of those! Note the free antihistamines & tylenol — it's like they knew I was coming!

Norris's car is being uncooperative this weekend, so no shopping today. Possibly a good thing, as Laundry Mountain has been growing apace, and the frozen muffin supply has dwindled to a bare minimum.

For those of you gearing up for the Super Bowl — enjoy!!!

Rideau Speedeaus Meet Report ...

First of all, a big thank you to the volunteers and officials who made this meet possible! And there was swag, too!

Secondly, a huge thank you to Margaret, who gave me a knee length Speedo Fastskin (similar to the one pictured, but an older model) that she no longer wears. I can't tell you what a difference it made. After warm-up I spoke to Duane and we decided as the muscles in my hind end were still spastic, it was better to scratch the 100 IM and the 100 breast, and swim the 50's.

After warm-up I changed into the Fastskin, and instantly my back & buttock felt better. It was like what wearing Spanx does for me!

So my first event was the 50 fly. Dove in and my right goggle filled with water. Turned more deeply than usual, so my surfacing was off. I swam a :38.0, which was 1.2 seconds faster than I've swum it as a grown-up! And given the turn, I know it can be faster.

Next, 50 free. A little nervous about the goggle issue, so I tightened them up hard. And for once I had a decent turn. And I was surprised when the timers said :35.5, as that's 1 second faster than I swam it 3 weeks ago.

Finally, 50 breast. This was the one that concerned me. I only managed 75 metres of breast in the warm-up before my body started complaining, so as far as I was concerned, sprinting was a bit of a crap shoot. I swam :44.5, which is a couple of seconds quicker than I swam the relay last month.

So: three events, three GUBT's (grown-up best times).

On Being Overconfident ...

The bright red weather warning is still on. Somewhere between 20 & 40 centimetres of snow is forecast for today, precipitation ending "some time" tomorrow morning. Now this may be somehow appropriate for the opening weekend of Winterlude. (Image credit: NCC) That funny looking mascot is, believe it or not, an "ice hog".

Remind me not to be too confident about commutes — I had a good backwards jolt last night before I was seated, and by the time I got to practice I knew it was going to be a problem. So for me it ended up being a modified workout.

♦ 300 free strong
♦ 200 free strong +
♦ 100 free strong ++ (I didn't do this one)
♦ 10 x 50 "flack" (fly-back, but I did fly-free easy) on 1:15
♦ 10 x 50 "bree" (breast-free, I did two, it wasn't working for me, so back to fly-free) on 1:15

I hopped out then, but the following assigned set was ten more 50's hard, choice, with a little more rest. On the up side, fly felt just fine. What this might mean for tomorrow's meet is a big question mark. I'll play the 100 IM and 100 breast b ear — they might get scratched, or swum easy. Tune in tomorrow ...

Later tomorrow, though, because on the up side, due to some kind of scheduling conflict at the pool, warm-up has been moved to 10:00 from 8:30! I feel a lie-in coming on!

Oh, and the noise-cancelling headphones arrived awfully promptly! I ordered them Tuesday afternoon to be shipped ground post (for the princely sum of $1.99) and they arrived in less than 48 hours! Kudos to BestBuy and Canada Post. I'm thinking that the issue that tied up parcel delivery over the festive season has now been corrected.

I'll decide a little later based mostly on weather conditions whether to venture out on a swim & hot tub junket early this afternoon.