May 08, 2012

A goose attack

I was kind of dreading my run today, but when I thought about the fact that it was "only" six miles on the schedule, I couldn't complain--or procrastinate. Tapering means I have more time free during the day to do things other than run!

I met Jessica at the State Park after the kids went to school. We started running, and I realized that it wasn't the greatest time to run at the State Park--it rained yesterday, so there were parts of the path that were completely covered with water. We had to run in the grass a few times to avoid going right through the deep puddles.

It's also Mayfly season. Remember those nasty bugs I wrote about last year? They are just starting to hatch, and they're disgusting. They are all over the State Park! The whole time we were running, I was swatting them out of my face. I probably swallowed one or two of them also.

Mayflies on the street

As if that wasn't enough, we were running next to the water at one point and we saw two "families" of geese. Four adults and like 20 little goslings. The goslings were adorable, but as soon as the adult geese spotted us, they shooed the goslings toward the water and then started hissing at us and coming closer like they were going to attack us. Jessica and I were both scared enough to stop running. We just stood there, completely frozen, waiting for them to go away. Finally, we did a 3-2-1-SPRINT! deal, and we started running for our lives. Why are geese so evil?!

Today's run felt hard. I think that was because I ran kind of hard on the dreadmill yesterday. But I was happy to see 528 calories burned!

The marathon is in 12 days... can you believe it?! I'm praying for a cold and overcast day.



My mom went to Eastern Market in Detroit on Saturday, and she bought me a couple of things. One was butterscotch extract--I'm going to have to come up with a way to use that. Maybe in my oatmeal? The other thing she brought me was SkinnyPop Popcorn...


I had seen this before at Whole Foods, but it's expensive! Popcorn isn't very hard to make, so I couldn't justify the cost. It would be a good thing to buy if you're on the road, though, and don't have access to a stove or microwave. I wonder if it comes in single serve bags? I would like that to bring to the movies! Anyway, this popcorn is "special" because it's made with just three ingredients: popcorn, oil, and salt. Last night, I decided to have it with my usual "carb bowl" snack of mixed dry cereal...
Popcorn, PB Cap'n Crunch, Cinnabon cereal, and Cocoa Puffs... yum!
Adding the popcorn in there bulked up the bowl of cereal to HUGE size (about 4 cups total). And I really did like the popcorn.

As I predicted, the water weight I packed on over the weekend is dropping quickly. Today I was 143, which is down 4 pounds from yesterday. I drank a ton of green tea and water yesterday, and counted my calories. Hopefully it will continue to go down until I'm back to Friday morning's weight of 138.



I'm still a little nervous for my colposcopy tomorrow, but I feel much better after reading all of your comments about it yesterday. I don't know why I'm so nervous--I had dealt with a broken jaw and with voluntary skin removal surgery! The cervical biopsy is nothing compared to those things. It's just the anticipation.

After my appointment, I'm going to go to Dick's Sporting Goods to maybe find an outfit for the marathon. Since it's my first (and ONLY) marathon, I want to at least wear a cute outfit ;)

28 comments:

  1. Didn't anybody tell you not to wear anything new at your marathon? Of course, I did the same thing at my first one too :) Just be prepared for the possibility severe chafing if you're not wearing something tried and true!

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    1. I have to agree-during my training for a HM, I wore shorts I wasn't used to for 13.1 miles and had some serious thigh chafing! Not pleasant! Needless to say, I went back to a tried and true outfit for race day. Hopefully you have time to wear the new outfit for a while before race day!

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  2. I'm going to have to apologize... I laughed my head off at the 3-2-1-spring! for your life story. I'm abnormally afraid of birds so I would have had the exact same reaction hehehe.

    12 days to marathon!!!! Wow :) So excited to hear how it goes!

    ~Ang
    www.droppingtheplus.blogspot.com

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  3. I was scared the first time a goose hissed at me too! LOL

    That carb bowl looks yummy :)

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  4. Those bugs!! OH MY GOSH?!?! THAT, would scare me way more than those geese. I wouldn't even leave the house. I'm pathetic I know. Ugh, troopers!

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  5. Eeeew, Ick!! I hate Mayflies! But we don't get them THAT badly here! They're harmless, I know, but they stick -- I HATE that. Bugs shouldn't be sticky. LOL!

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    1. From the sounds of it I am so happy we don't have them in Oregon! I feel bad for you guys who do.

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  6. Geese are mean! And they will attack with little ones around. Seams of mayflies are gross but I would take them over Mosquitos any day. (Hubby an I camped for our honeymoon an at one park we had horrid Mosquitos, at the next park mayflies.... They didn't seem so bad in comparison).
    Good luck 12 days!!

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    1. I am actually allergic to mosquitos so would take mayflies over them as well!

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  7. Geese are nasty and so are swans! The only thing I ever had to deal with was running the obstacle course the geese have left in the form of poop on the track!

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  8. Geese really are mean! It is a good thing you are a runner!

    I've been drinking a lot of green tea lately. It really seems to help with water retention. My mom always said it was good for you. She was right again. Don't tell her that.

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  9. So excited for you that the marathon is only 12 days away! I can't wait to read all about it. Woohoo!
    Good luck and the Dr tomorrow. :)

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  10. That is funny about the goose because we had a run in with a few today too. Today my husband and I were having a picnic at the park and a goose came right up to our picnic table and just stared at me. I was so terrified because I know how evil they can be but it just saw I wasn't going to give it my sandwich and went on it's merry way lol.

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  11. Geese are horrible creatures! They behave similarly on the lake front path here in Chicago.

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  12. Oh my gosh, those bugs are crazy! I've never seen anything like that!

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  13. I was attached by a goose once when I was little. Although to be fair to the goose I was trying to get it's egg out of it's nest. :)

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  14. I love Skinny Pop!!! It does come in single serve bags, I work at a grocery store and we have them... I usually eat one everyday for my mid morning snack:)

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  15. Sweetie, you look cute in anything you wear!

    I can't believe you stopped running when you thought the geese were going to start chasing you. THAT is when you RUN like HELL! LOLOL!!

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  16. LoveAnAnimalMay 08, 2012

    Funny story about the geese! Geese are excellent parents at protecting their young. They are like guard dogs of the water with their babies. Just keep running...they won't come after ya' . : )

    I would go nutso with the mayflies! You may have to run with a fine netting over your face.

    Maybe could add the butterscotch extract to smoothies: Vanilla shake/protein mix, banana and butterscotch extract.

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  17. Ewwww, I hate those stinkin' bugs! Ha ha, I laughed so hard about your altercation with the geese! Sorry! I have never heard of a pleasant story when it comes to man vs. goose! I'll be thinking about you tomorrow, hoping all goes well and the discomfort is super minimal. : ) Good luck!

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  18. I can't get over the picture of all those mayflies on the street. GROSS! Just to run over them...Ewww (Squish......squish!) Looking forward to hearing how your Marathon goes. How exciting!

    ❀ Paige
    Finding Joy in the Journey

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  19. I will pray everything goes well at your appointment. Have fun shopping for your marathon outfit!!! Can't wait to cheer you on in 12 days!

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  20. oooo that snack looks yummmmie!

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  21. You say "and only"... but we'll see! (by the way, I have been reading you since your open diary days. I have blogged on there since like 2004)

    I am from Toledo originally, and we have always gotten the Mayflies really bad there as well. I remember being in certain parts of town and every step you take you are greeting with "crunch" I shudder thinking about it.

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  22. I've been telling people about you and your amazing journey to running a marathon this weekend. Saw TONS of people running while waiting to pick up a daughter yesterday. Thought of you. So excited for this weekend! Hope you found a great outfit to wear! Best wishes on your procedure. I haven't had to have it so look forward to hearing how it went.

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  23. MMm popcorn! That's really nice of your Mum to get it for you :)

    I lol-ed at the geese, I have a thing about swans being evil - they move far too gracefully on water, they've definitely got something going on! & as for the mayflies, that's funny cos we've just been learning about them in zoology at uni!

    Let us know what outfit you get, & all the best for the colposcopy.

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  24. Oh the joy of running outdoors! lol I can't believe all those May Flys! We call them Mosquito Hawks around here but I have never seen so many! We have a cricket season like that though. Hope your colposcopy is trouble free! I hear they aren't too awful!

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  25. Hope everything goes ok at the doctor! And oh my lord I hate those flies!! They will fly in a swarm and I don't see it until the last second and aaaah. All up in my grill. Literally! haha.

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