+just as long as we're together, we can find a way

My weekend was book-ended with grading papers on one end and hall meetings on the other...and in the pages: a long distance run, 2 huge breakfasts, 1 afternoon baking with the lady friends, 1 book read for Sociology, and 1 paper completely finished for Research on College Students class. (Oh and hung out with the lovely Brianna Mae... shout out to her because she reads this still!)

All to get to a half a year in the making, highly anticipated trip. Seeing my sister and brother in law for the first time in 6 months. And the first time in 4 months to see my handsome boyfriend. Oh, I'm ready. New York City.

+there're so many wars we fought, there's so many things we're not

"One of the more remarkable differences between scholars in this large field today and when I was starting out in the late 1970s is how the work today generates more light than it does heat. When we were in the shock of forces of the time, we cursed the vast darkness and generated a great deal of heat." -Michael A. Olivas, on literature in Higher Education"

What a way to frame it. We "shed light" on topics, but rarely are willing to engage in the heat of a debate. Are understanding and tolerance being chosen over taking a stand and fighting for what we believe in?

When I think of these two elements - light and heat - they produce very different sensory imagery. Light allows you to see, but you can still close your eyes and see darkness. You can bury your head away or wear sunglasses to shade the light. You can buy a blackout curtain for your bedroom to keep out the sunlight, and there are lots of buildings and rooms where you can be completely shut out from light. Heat, however, is a different story. Being a gal who was raised in the South, I can vouch for this. Heat is inescapable. You cannot help but feel heat. It is hard to sleep, you don't feel hungry, and it's all you can think about, all encompassing.

The article that this Olivas quote is taken from is an "open letter" to a well-known reasearcher in the field of higher education. It is a scathing critique which is not all the way fair, but it puts heat in conversation. He doesn't simply shed light and allow the reader to infer. Is his method the best? Maybe not, but gosh, it's a conversation starter. And in the midst of a semester chuck full of research methods and findings, what a refresher, and a good life lesson.

*Olivas, Michael A. "If You Build It, They Will Assess It (or, An Open Letter to George Kuh, with Love and Respect) The Review of Higher Education. Fall 2011, Volume 35, No. 1, pp. 1-15.

+each scene is acted and beautifully crafted, with rhythm and reason that's brilliantly true

I feel like a little kid on Christmas morning, I'm just so giddy and excited. These past couple of weeks of training I have been struggling with a painful right knee. It was more than sore, but did not feel injured. I have a hard time wanting to rest when I know that staying consistent with my mileage will keep me on track.

I read all the books, articles, and studies I could get my hands on. I took an ice bath, iced sore joints, ate more carbs and protein, stretched for longer, wrapped my knee, elevated it while I slept, and took the extra rest I needed.

(At this point, I realize in relation to my last post you may find yourself asking, "Why is she researching running so much, doesn't she have papers to write/research for?"... the answer to your astute question is that this is my graduate school version of procrastination...).

So now I will give you a stream of consciousness of the pre-during-post run (and why this gal's so giddy!):

Pre-18 Miler: My knee has been hurting, I wonder if it will be hurting a couple miles in? Have I had enough water in the last 24 hours? Have I eaten enough food? How cold will it be outside? What if it started to rain on the run? What if I hit a wall and can't get all that distance in? Should I listen to music or to the news? What if I don't complete this run, will that mean that I can't do the marathon and then all this talk and training will be in vain? Why are you such an achievement-oriented person, Heather? What if I don't wake up and run before the sun gets too hot? I've never run over 15 miles before, how am I supposed to do those extra 3 miles? Am I crazy? Am I asking for a big injury? How fast will I go? It's all about positive self-talk, the articles say, so I'm going to believe I can do it. Go, Heather, Go, you're a runner, you can do it! Do I believe in psychological tricks? Or knowing I'm supposed to do them... won't that hinder their ability to be useful?

During 18 Miler: Oh, wow my knee doesn't hurt at all - are these really my legs? How did I get to do this run on such a gorgeous day? This trail is the best ever, large sidewalks and not too many crosses through traffic. Seriously, this day is amazing - crisp air, chilly but not too hard on the lungs. I feel like a runner. I wonder what food I should eat after this. These shoes are supportive. Why aren't my knees hurting now, hasn't it been about 10 miles? Oh my gosh a dead raccoon, my heart almost skipped a beat. This energy replacement goo says I should be eating them with water, but all I have is gatorade, I wonder if I am about to get cramps. I'm not hungry or tired, and it's been 2 hours...am I sure that my body knows that it's currently running? I am running at an eerily consistent speed. Oh wow, when I smile really big I get bursts of energy. Don't they say that smiling takes less muscles? Well if I'm trying to be efficient than I better smile. Oh, it's so fun to smile at oncoming cars and runners, bikers, and walkers, I think I'll keep doing it. I feel so good! How can I be feeling this strong? Mile 17, nice to meet ya.

Post 18 Miler: Must stretch every muscle in the body. What should I eat? Shouldn't my legs be super sore right now? Maybe I'll cook Bacon. Did I just do that (checks GPS tracking)? I guess so. I need to do a load of laundry. Stretching feels good. Or maybe I should make lunch, or go out to eat? Need water. A shower sounds good. About my knee, how did it heal already? I have emails to catch up on. Maybe if I read the book for Sociology this afternoon I can be done with it before Monday, that would be nice. Oh, I forgot to do invoices on Friday, maybe I should start those tonight, no, I should hang out with friends instead. About that food I was going to make, yeah I don't need a shower yet. Water tastes so good! Today was a nice day, I hope the marathon is this pretty. Why can't the marathon be on Thanksgiving day so I could eat yummy T-Day food then? An omelette it is!

And there you have it... a glimpse into my mind. I have no idea if this is the normal runner mentality, but I can tell you that it's my thoughts. As you can hopefully pick up from the pre and during portions? Running serves as a brilliant distraction from what my brain starts thinking about in the post run (oh, work).

+on the way to a life that made sense to what this is

I decided to make very good use of the misnomer that is fall break (if all was fair in love and war, they would put a disclaimer on the academic calendar that says Fall Break* ... *This is not really a break but more of a day or two to realize how much work you have yet to accomplish before the winter holidays and to freak out slightly and then create a strategic plan to get it all done.) What is "good use" you ask? Well, for this lady who is in grad school (and who is staring down the very bright light that is coming from the end of a tunnel) it means resume updating, grading, reading, writing, researching, emailing, planning, meeting, and all those other -ings that sound studious and important. And when my students have asked me how I spent my break, I do say (and mean) that I was in the library or a coffee-shop-made-into-my-work-place the entirety of break.

I would be lying if I said I was not proud of my disciplined nature, but I would also be lying if I said I had the best time ever. However, the little things are always what have made everything worth it. So, thanks to the ever-attached-to-my-hip iPhone, here are some details that I have been chewing on to keep my chuggin'

Best Advice, c/o Kelly Stack.

Catching up with friends. c/o Wheatfields Bakery.

Steak on the grill, red wine, salad with all the fixin's. c/o Chris, The Iowan

Bottled up and Bakeable state of Minnesota souvenirs. c/o Kelsey, The Minnesotan

+but time makes you bolder, children get older, i'm getting older too

I can go on and on about how much I adore my graduate school cohort, but today only served to reaffirm that sentiment. Our fabulous community service chair of HESA, Annie, planned for us to do the Head for the Cure 5K this morning in Lawrence, KS. The race proceeds benefit research on brain cancer. Signing up was right up my alley, and this morning was nothing but fun! I raced at a good pace (24:11) and came in as 8th woman to finish and 3rd for my age group of 20-24. Even more exciting (in my opinion) is that my dear friend Chris also came in 3rd for males 20-24. AND even more exciting than all of that is that Greta finished strong, Maggie finished strong (I believe cutting off 3 or 4 minutes off her PR), and just in general, everyone did well and were optimistic and fun. We celebrated at Wheatfields Bakery post-race. No better way to spend the early morning :)

World famous KU Higher Ed Grad cohort at the start of the race.

Chris and I's medals and certificates.

Proud of our medals and our race times! Also, check out my lovely Brooks' Green Silence shoes - they are laced asymmetrically and this is the first time I have tried to run fast in them, and they succeeded :)

+one more for the stars and eyes of the walls

I call this blog post, "Things I do now that I'm training for a marathon, but things that if I knew they were a part of running I may have not signed up... but oh well!" Long title, but that is exactly what it is. What follows are several snapshots into my life-of-running as of late. I am at Week 12 of marathon training. I have now tackled the half-marathon distance (13.1 miles) 3 times in training!! What a crazy feeling. Last week was my very first 15 mile run and when I finished that mileage, you better believe I got my hands on every plate of food possible. But beyond the amazing volumes of food I have inhaled these past couple of months, here are a few nuances of my running days.

This is an ice bath. It is exactly as the name suggests. A bath of... ice. My legs have decided lately that 2 1/2 + hours of running is too much stress, so they cramp up and get sore. So, I used all the tips and trips of
http://www.runaddicts.net/tips-tricks/ice-bath-therapy-speed-up-recovery-and-enhance-performance

This is my scared pre-bath face. With a hoodie and hot tea.

Post-bath. Very. very. cold. I may also be thinking - how is this a part of my life now?

These are "fuel" for my long distance runs. They are like energy gummy bears, and surprisingly pleasant on the run.

This is the relative amount of water I drink per day to stay hydrated. On the plus side, drinking water also helps to stave old cold-symptoms and help keep your immune system in check, so I haven't gotten sick yet with the season change!

I find myself snapping photos of runs all the time and shamelessly blogging/tweeting/facebooking them. Yes, I am probably oversharing, but wouldn't you? Plus, never underestimate the encouragement that can be found in social networking sites.

I have seen more sunrises and sunsets than I knew was possible. I feel somewhat "one-with-nature" and note all the changes of temperature and sunset/sunrise changes. Comforting in a way. Except when the alarm clock goes off at 4:30am.