Getting older is always better than the alternative!

My love for this diabolically delicious combination knows no bounds, and I'm still amazed I had the self-control not to buy this when I found it in NYC last March. Of course, I knew if I bought it I would eat the whole thing. Right away.

I'm 35 today! Woo hoo!

There's no sarcasm in that, by the way. I'd rather be 35 than . . . well, pretty much any other age. My 20s were great but I have no desire to go back there, and the idea of being a teenager again gives me the heebie-jeebies (shudder). Nope, I'm good with being 35, creaky joints and all. I do wish I had my old memory back, though. Sigh.Wait, what was I saying?

How am I celebrating today? Writing a blog post at work, naturally! :) I have a 4 mile run planned for this afternoon, small group tonight, and somewhere in there I will be eating a Reese's Pumpkin (far and away my favorite of the seasonal Reese's shapes . . . well, the Christmas trees are also yummy, and the Easter eggs were the original, so they have tradition on their side . . .and don't forget the Valentine's hearts - new to the scene but with just the right balance between chocolate and PB . . . yes, people, I know I have a problem).

There are 3 days left in my Birthday Week of Running challenge! The good news: I only have 8 miles left to do and am only $5 away from reaching my fundraising goal for Blood: Water Mission! The not-so-good-news: There's rain forecast for tomorrow, which means I might need to fit those 8 miles into today and Friday, which will be busy for various reasons. Hmmmmm, we'll see.

Thank you ALL for the encouragement, birthday greetings, and words of affirmation. They've really meant a lot to me over the past week. Cheesy or not, I mean it when I tell you that every email, text, or Facebook post helps me focus on doing this.

Happy running!

Water matters. Here's why.

 Yeah, this is only tangentially related to the subject of this post, but it's Wolowitz!

Today is Day 4 of my birthday week of running! I've made it through 20 of my planned 35 miles. My quads and calves, however, were left behind somewhere around mile 13 and I'm not sure I'll ever see them again. Eh, who needs 'em?

As I've been running I've been asking people to please consider donating to a nonprofit called Blood: Water Mission, a group whose stated aim is "Empowering communities to work together against the HIV/AIDS and water crises in Africa." As of this morning, I've raised $190 of my $350 goal, and thank you, thank, THANK YOU to those people who have given! For those who are a little more curious as to what B:WM does, what the "water crisis" is, and why I chose to raise money for this specifically, here's some information.

For those of us in the developed world, it's strange to even think of water - where it comes from, the process of cleaning it, and the effort it takes to get from "there" to "here." But for many, many people in the world, clean, safe, drinkable water is a daily struggle. Some facts:
- 700 million people in the world lack access to clean water. That's about 10% of the world's population and 2 and 1/2 times the population of the US.
- 3.4 million people die every year from water, sanitation, and hygiene-related causes. Almost all of these deaths occur in the developing world . . . which tells us that these deaths are largely preventable.
- Over 800,000 children under the age of 5 die every year from diarrhea-related causes. This works out to more that 2,000 children per day. It's estimated that 88% of diarrhea-related deaths are caused directly by a lack of clean water and sanitation.
- The average person (almost always a woman or child) in Africa walks about 3 miles a day to get to a water source, and carries about 10 pounds of water in each trip. This could add up to 7 hours of work a day . . . for water.
- A 5-minute shower uses more water than a person in the developing world will use in an entire day.
(All the above from various sources including the CDC, UNICEF, WHO, and Water.org)

I'm not here to preach - I promise! But water matters and most of us in the developed world never think of it. So think about water today, be thankful for it, and remember those people around the world who don't have it.

Happy running!

Why in the world am I doing this? Running week FAQ

About a month ago I decided to do something "different" for my birthday celebration. During the week of my 35th birthday, I'm running 35 miles. For some, that's a lot; for others, that's practically nothing; for ME, I thought it would be the perfect length for a challenge that was somewhat daunting, but manageable.

I started on Saturday with a planned 3 miles that turned into 5.5 when everything felt good. Yesterday was a planned 10 miles (my longest planned run) that turned into 11 when I still had a little gas left. Today is Day 3 and OHMYGOODNESSMYLEGSARESOSORE. :) I don't know what I'm going to get done today - maybe an easy, slow, 3 miles as a recovery run? - but I feel good about my progress so far.

A few people have been asking some questions about my week of running (or running in general) and I thought I'd answer a few of them here:

Why are you running? Is someone chasing you?
In a manner of speaking. In order to get motivated to run, I often pretend that behind me is a hoard of political news shows anchors, and in front of me is a chocolate cupcake. This is a surprisingly effective combination.

Are you worried about running so much? What about getting injured?
I'm careful and I listen to my knees. They often say things to me like, "If you stop running now, we promise never to disobey you again." However, I know from experience that my knees are little lying troublemakers.

How fast do you run? 
I'm not entirely sure. Maybe we could ask that toddler that just passed me on his tricycle? I think he has a tracking app on his iPhone.

Can you eat whatever you want because you're running this much? 
Athletes often say that food is fuel. My body, for some inexplicable reason, prefers being fueled with things called "vegetables" and "lean protein" and "healthy fats." I keep trying to convince my body that ice cream and Nutella sandwiches are a reasonable substitute and that my pancreas is a vestigial organ, but my body refuses to pay attention.

So you're using this run to raise money for a charity. Why? 
I am! I'm asking that people (who might be inclined to be birthday-gift-givers anyway) skip anything monetary they would normally do and instead make a donation to Blood: Water Mission, a really awesome nonprofit. I first learned about this nonprofit years ago and am impressed by its commitment to helping with practical needs in sub-Saharan Africa. According to the CDC, over 800,000 children under the age of 5 die every year from diarrhea often caused by a lack of a clean water source. This is a real problem where our money can make a direct difference.

Of course, I'm not doing this purely for altruistic reasons. Using my running to raise money for a good also makes me MUCH less likely to skip a run in order to sit in Starbucks with my Kindle.

You can donate at this link if you'd like, and thank you!

Any other questions out there? I'm happy to make up some more sleep-deprived answers. :)

Happy running!