Run! Run! Run Dena Run!

Really, after running 13.1 miles, this is a fabulous sign to see on the bathroom mirror. Aha couldn't make it to Anaheim yesterday with me because, let's face it, MS Sucks. Yep, yesterday, MS won the battle of Jay vs It. For two years, he's been with me at the Disneyland Half Marathon. We go down the day before and spend the afternoon together going to the Health and Fitness Expo where we pick up my race number and swag. We have dinner with friends who moved from San Antonio a few years ago (the 'she' of the couple is one of the sole reasons I survived my business trips to San Antonio - which lasted almost a year!); and he sends me off at 4:30 AM the morning of the run.

I'll see him somewhere along the route (last year at Angel Stadium) and he is always waiting at the finish line for me. I've run 7 half marathons (including this one) and he's been at the end of 5 of them. The two he missed, were due to MS. Which leads me to restate that MS Sucks. So when I saw this sign waiting for me in our bathroom; it was all worth it.

More than one person has asked me why I run.

It's an interesting question. My friend who used to live in San Antonio is a brand new runner and she was telling me how boring it was to run on the treadmill.

She is right. Any runner who has had to run more than 3 miles on a treadmill will tell you that it doesn't matter if you're listening to the best book you've ever read, watching the best television show or movie or even talking with your best friend; the treadmill is an instrument of torture. I told her that she needs to reserve the treadmill for bad weather days and run outside. Hopefully she'll take my advice because she's supposed to run the D-land Half next year. and I want to run it with her.

But why do I run?

To begin with - I'll call it what it is. When I lost a lot of weight 3 years ago (46 pounds) I did it by changing my relationship with food (info for another post) but also with running. Running allows me to eat more of the things one shouldn't eat if I didn't exercise. I don't plan to EVER put that weight back on and running will help make sure that never happens.

Secondly, sanity. There is something about those endorphins that help me stay off the roofs of buildings. It won't remove all the blues, but a great many of them.

Thirdly, my mind is really clear when I run. I do some of my best thinking when I run. I wrote the toast my brother and I gave at our parent's 45th anniversary party while running; I wrote the thank you remarks I gave at my 40th b'day party while running and I have worked through many a training class while running.

Fourth, let's face it; if you were to write an essay about my athletic ability you'd be done inside of 50 words. I have ZERO athletic skill and I'm not real comfy with that. Team sports tend to be a disaster for me in that, I'm the one who tends to not be able to: make the basket, hit the ball, make a good serve, swing a club or most importantly, win the game. Thus, running, an individual sport, seems to be the best way for me to go. Don't get me wrong, I have to be careful not to fall each and every time I go out, but at least, I'm the only one who must deal with that event; not a team. Oddly enough, I do participate in one team running sport; the Ragnar Relay and my team seems to love me and love my skill. So as long as they'll have me, I'll run with them.

Finally, truth be told, I like it. It used to be that you couldn't get me to run; anywhere, from anything, nothing. At all. Ever. Both my parents were runners (3 marathons between them) and they used to try to drag me and my brother out to run. We fought it tooth and nail. Now, wait for it, we are both runners. But I do seem to like it. A good running day generally guarantees a good rest of the day. A bad running day, well you can do the math. What do I love best? When it's over. The feeling of, "well, that's done" is fantastic. And that feeling is quadrupled after a half or full marathon. When I was walking back to my el crappo hotel after the race and I was talking with my Mom, she said, "good, that's behind you" and she is right. That almost feels better than finishing. Almost.

Finishing...let's talk about the goal of these races for a moment. Finishing is the numbers 1, 2, and 3 goals for me when I run these races. What my time is for the race comes in 7th or 8th after finishing, finishing, finishing, not bleeding, not injured and upright. Only then do I care about my time (which incidentally was 2:27:38 for today's race). And then, I don't really care that much.

The D-land HM is terrific. Only in a Disney race will you see multiple Princesses (or these women's versions of the Princesses based on still needing to wear running clothes), at least 3 Tinkerbells and a Goofy. Lots of people running in Mouse Ears and various Disney headwear. Yeah for them. I don't run in costume - EVER. Not for me. I'm a purest, running skirt (have dumped my running shorts in favor of them; check them out here), tank top, running bra, socks, shoes and hat. Not injuring myself is paramount and wearing the right clothes is the first step in that direction.

So, I'll keep on running. I'll keep on not dressing up and I'll keep on doing these races until I can't anymore.

Don't forget to stretch,

Dena.

MS is a drag - part 1

So, I told you that there would be multiple posts about how much MS sucks. Here's the first.

But first, a trip in the way back machine (du-da-da-du, du-da-da-du - Mike Myers in Wayne's World).

Almost nine years ago, Aha started to have problems with his back. First it was just sore, everyone gets that. Then it was tougher to move. So he went to the family chiropractor (RIP Dr. Cynthia Izen :( ) who worked with him for a while. It was good, better and bad then better then bad, then worse then good, then better, then bad - his arms hurt, then they didn't, then they did with his back hurting then it was just his back, then it was his legs, then it was arms and legs - well you get the picture. A year later and many doctors diagnosis (which were all wrong, by the way - everything from carpel tunnel to foot issues, to everything on the earth!)

So now we're in 2001 - and Dr. I suggests that Aha go see Dr. Freundlich (seriously, that's his name - so fabulous, right?) because he "will not let you out of his office until he diagnosis' you." So, then night before his first appointment with Heir Freundlich (actually, a great guy and not first generation, but that name...right?) and we're pretty exhausted (ohhh if we only knew how exhausted we were GOING to be) and Aha's entire left side goes numb.

Wow, that can't be good at all. Not at all.

Turns out, hey, lookee that! It's not good at all!!!

Aha goes in for x-rays etc and a couple of weeks (days? hours? weeks? can't remember) later Aha calls me at my office (wow, this was the first of 10 afternoon phone calls that I would have rather never ever had in my life - the first one coming later that week - more on that later) to tell me that he has, "...the beginnings of MS".

Um, the what?

Beginnings of MS? What the hell does that mean?

Can we head it off at the pass? Can we turn it into the "ending"? What?

And...now with clearer (sort of) heads, no one has the beginnings, they either do or do not have MS.

So, the next four years are filled with good days (few), bad days (many) and a roller coaster of emotions such as: fear (loads of that), sadness (loads of that too), annoyance, rage (a lot of that), missing (there continues to be tons of that) and a lot of nothing.

You might wonder what happened in those four years. Suffice it to say, at the end of them Aha went on permanent disability and I became the sole wage earner in the house. Swell, fabulous, wonderful and all around yeah.

So, yeah for you...you are finally through the first installment of MS is a drag. Not impressed? Not happy? Wondering where the laughs are? HA! MS is a laugh riot ("...a laugh riot" History of the World Part I) and the chuckles keep on coming.

But know this, when Aha has his good days (or hours) which are few and far between, he is the best, most fabulous husband in the whole world.

Those are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others,

D.

Addendum to post - to be clear - I have glazed over Aha and his MS for brevity (I know, you're thinking - that was abbreviated? Trust me) But to be very clear - Aha's up and down time is completely random. He's more down than up, but takes advantage when his up time presents itself. Also, MS is sooooooo fabulous in that he looks great - all of the time. He could be in grave pain (a lot) and look like he feels fine. In no way do I want to make it sound light or better than it is. MS does suck and he is a trooper to deal with it every day.

MS is a drag - but not so much today!

This is the first of what will be many blogs about MS and what a complete drag it is. Now, I don't have MS, which is very good. However, Aha does have MS which is very bad. I won't get into what his MS is like today, because there will be plenty of posts in which to discuss that.

However, today was the MS Walk 2010 in Pasadena, CA. The logo to the left is the logo for our team. We raised a boatload of money &7,700 - we're shooting for $10K so we can have our own tent in the check in area next year.

It was great - we had 25+ of our friends and family out to walk with us. We had kids, we had dogs..it was great.

The think I'm most amazed about is that we were able to find everyone and get together for a photo. We're pretty lucky to have the group of friends that we have. They are really supportive.

MS, as a rule, generally blows. But today, for a couple of hours, we were just friends and family of Aha, walking in support of the disease that changed his, and subsequently mine, forever.

So when you have dinner tonight, raise a glass to Aha. He deserves it. He's the best husband on the planet and he gets up every day and kisses me.

MS or no MS.

Smoke 'em if ya got 'em,

D.