Self-Competition; Silent Victories

OK. I've been silent too long about it. I kind of wanted to secretly enjoy my "WIN" in the 5K race I ran on Sunday Super Bowl morning. (What a game! Eli Manning was phenomenal; Tom Brady is still one of the best quarterbacks - ever. And the 1972 Miami Dolphins still rock perfect!)

I have now met my first mini-goals, set last October:
1. I am not injured (race nor training).

2. I finished my first 5K race (in 5 years!)

3. I RAN the entire race: for me, no walking allowed.

4. I finished under an 11:00 pace. OK. The "official results" show me at 11:06. But, sheesh .... it took Gianni and I an entire minute to wind our way through the starting line crowd of walkers! So, that's a 33:25 race. A pace of 10:47, by my records.

5. I managed to sprint across the Finish Line - and TWO SECONDS faster than Gianni. I can't believe it. I am SO proud of my husband. But sometimes I really hate men. He's in great shape. Runs (if he thinks about it or feels like it) maybe twice a week -- and then, just around the block (1.4 miles), including a warm-up walk of about 1/4 mile. ..... So, Gianni does NO training for the race. He has not run a 5K distance in 5 years. And he ran BETTER than I did! It's not fair. He even stopped and walked a little in the second half. But he was STILL ahead of me. Until the Finish Line. Tee Hee.

6. Wow. I actually "placed" 7th in my sex/age group. Of course, there were only 25 old ladies like me IN my age group. But anyway. And I don't think the winner's pace is unrealistic for me to meet -- a 9:13 pace is doable. With more training. Speed work. And no injuries.

Next race: Sunday, 2/24. The COPS (Concerns of Police Survivors) Race, right here in lovely Plantation. Running through Central Park and finishing on the track. With a lot of good looking cops and good runners. (Yeah. Like I needed more competition right now.)

Dolphins and Sunday Football

Sunday afternoons.
September through January.
Watching football on the couch.
Gianni, me, and Pooper.
We really have a good life.

This photo is quite typical. I took it this afternoon, New England Patriots winning AFC Championship against the San Diego Chargers. I sat here watching the game -- while blogging, surfing the Internet, shopping on-line, entering my REEF fish count surveys, and answering email. Gianni and Pooper napped. (Notice the "always handy" remote control.)

Napping makes a lot of sense when you consider how poorly the Miami Dolphins did this year. Our season was unspeakable. I watched three *former* Dolphins (Chris Chambers, Junior Seau, and my favorite man Wes Welker) help New England win today. And now our famous 1972 undefeated Dolphins are on the verge of losing that distinction. I, for one, remain a loyal Dolphins fan (not like the rest of Miami) -- just like I still love Cleveland Indians baseball -- and I really hope next year the 'Fins see improvement under Bill Parcells and company. And that Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor are still around to play for us; Ricky Williams - I have a love/hate relationship with him, but maybe we should give him another chance.

Of course, the really incredible thing is the MINUS ONE degree weather that the Giants and Packers are now playing football in (with bare arms!). Third coldest game in NFL history. Now those are real manly, men football players (not to mention the fans!)

So I guess Gianni and I really have a great life here, even if it's only 66 degrees in South Florida. I have wood stacked beside the fireplace and I can start my annual fire tomorrow on the holiday. Gianni just poured me a glass of red wine from the case our dear dive friend, Andrew, (check out this Photo #3 and the other fabulous shots of us diving in Curacao this summer) sent us for Christmas.

We're barbecuing sweet Italian sausage and portobello mushrooms on the grill. Because I don't have to work tomorrow, I can play on the computer some more and run during the late afternoon before it gets dark. Doesn't get much better.

Bah Humbug

Really trying to get in the Christmas mood here. Gianni helped me hang Mom's Christmas wreath on the front of the Villa today. It's really pretty, even if this photo isn't the best.

As I get older, Christmas just seems to lose some of it's meaning. It has for several years now. Maybe because we don't have kids. And I never know what to buy for people. I always think I have these great ideas for gifts, but I'm never sure people like them. Wish lists on Amazon are really the best.

Of course, Christmas 2007 in South Florida also means 80 degree weather, still running the air conditioning, and the Miami Dolphins suffering another loss this afternoon. Bah Humbug.