At a loss...

I'm at a loss. I feel like I have plenty to say, but I can't put anything together coherently. So, instead, I will just write.

I'm tired of being sick. I'm tired of this nagging cough that I can't seem to shake. I am thankful that I don't have bad allergies (for some reason my horrible allergies actually disappeared when I moved from Dallas to Austin!) - but I am really tired of not being able to breath with ease.

Saturday I was supposed to run 15 miles at a progressive pace, but I woke up at 7:00am and couldn't move. This was obviously concerning - I ended up staying in bed and sleeping until 10:00am. It is rare that I sleep in late. It is even more rare that I skip a workout. It is the most rare that I didn't even feel guilty about skipping the workout. I obviously needed the rest.

Which made sense - 2 weeks ago, my weekly mileages were:
Run - 25 miles
Swim - 2200 meters
Bike - 64 miles
Trips to the Gym - 2

and last week:
Run - 17.5 miles
Swim - 5400 meters
Bike - 42 miles
Trips to the Gym - 2

My "plan" officially started today. I ran 5 miles at the trail with my friend Robert. My calves were tight. My legs felt like lead. I thought about my friend who ran 20 miles yesterday. I got over the pain/tiredness/etc. and kept on with my measly, non-windy 5 miles. Tomorrow is an off day, and I'm looking forward to doing nothing!

Phil & I went to the Blanton Museum on Saturday. I'll be honest - I usually don't join the docent tours because I think "I already know enough to appreciate this art without someone else's commentary," but honestly, that is a pretty snobby way of being. So, we joined up with a docent tour and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I am always so impressed with the Blanton's collection - it is really a gift to have this museum in Austin.

Yesterday was cool. Claire & I (later joined by Maggie, Joey & Lulu) rode 42 miles from our neighborhood to the San Marcos Outlet Mall, where the ARA 20 Miler was taking place. It was a fabulous ride, and I'll say that I was pretty happy not to be running that race. I also thought it was cool that I made it from my front door to the outlet mall on a bike. I went to a dinner party last night and everyone thought I was crazy when I told them what I did yesterday. I admit, I kind of get off on that a bit.

Later in the day, I joined the Mikes at Barton Springs. I swam 3 laps (3/4 mile) and was pleasantly surprised how great the water felt. I gave Mike (Ostrich) some swimming tips while dog paddling around at the end of the pool. Afterwards we laid around and enjoyed the day and the Springs.

Lately, I've been really busy at work. This is good, of course, but is limiting my ability to keep up with emails/blogs/etc. And when I come home, I'd honestly rather just read my book, hang out with the puppies, and go to sleep. But, I hope this update will suffice for now. Like I said, I have much more to write, but I can't seem to correlate my thoughts. Until then...