Too Much Gras in my Mardi

Our good friends K and M Manceaux invited us to a Mardi Gras party on, yes, Tuesday. I repeatedly told Rolph that we were staying for one hour or so. That was it; the "or so." Remember, my husband is Latin...partying is part of his DNA.

But, before I go blaming him, I guess I was in the mood to throw down because after the house was empty and we were still there with full drinks, it was way past an hour "or so."

I decided not to get up at 4(ish) and gave myself a "sleep in." My body is used to getting up at 4 (ish) and so I do, without the alarm. But, I try, since when I wake up at 4 (ish) I have a raging red wine headache. And, it's Ash Wednesday, so I cannot eat much today to absorb the wine from last night.

I get A ready for school and L too. I take L to school and head to church while on a conference call (too much already). I head to church with A and then, luckily, I have my gear in the car. Best thing for a over consumption, you got it, a run. It will hurt, but at the end, I will be happier.

I head to the trail and it's a beautiful day. I change and take off. My legs are sore from the gym, the 18 miles and the 11 miles. I mean, they are sore. Ok, perhaps it's dehydration that's keeping them tight.

I plug away at it, because I have to put in at least 5 miles to hit my goal this week of a 45 mile week. I pound at it; I hear myself breathing and stepping. I try to extend and relax and not look at my watch. This time of day is so different from the morning when it's dark and empty. There are dogs, walkers, strollers, joggers, lunch time folks...it's kind of fun to see the trail in this light...literally.

I survive and clear the toxins. On Thursday, LB gets called to the a "suspicious package" so I have to improvise. I call him back and he tells me my tempo has to be at 7:15 or better. Well, I seriously do not feel up to this alone. This is a fault of mine I know. I head to Gazelles where Dan tells me to go to Zilker for 1000's. Ok, it's way too early for so much driving around Austin.

Anyway, I head there and do 2 x 2000 to warm up and the Gazelle's arrive, stealthfully. I hang with them for drills and hit the first lap. Dan reminds me that I should be doing 2K's because I am doing Boston. I'm already behind, but I do it. I hit the line when the Boston group is taking off for the next one, but I go with them anyway without rest.

Now, Gilbert says to me, oh I forgot you might be here. Then he tries to hand me gloves because he doesn't like my mittens, but I just can't stop for them, so I head out.

I end up with 3 x 1000 on top of the 2K. The last 1000 at 3:55. My legs hurt. They've hurt since Tuesday; I'm tired. I actually have trouble sleeping. You would think with all this training, I would be out like a light, but I'm not. If I could sleep in the middle of the day for a bit, that would help. But, I can't...I'm a mom, I drive, I work.

Today, for the first time, I wondered...I am so tired and cranky, is it worth it? Could I even sleep if I had the time?