dude...whut?

It seems that some very cool stuff has come up lately.

I'll start with the best part: RaceAthlete says I'm one of the Top 10 Bloggers of 2007! I am ever so grateful to my dedicated reader for nominating me to such a high honor, thank you so much! This is a big deal to me, because this is only my 2nd year of blogging. Plus, have you read those other 9 bloggers? Those people can write!

Here is my plug for me: if you have vicariously enjoyed my ramblings and tantrums, please click on over to RaceAthlete and vote for me. You can vote for 3, but you can't vote for me 3 times, so pick your other two favourites - may I suggest my Outlaw Compadres. As Moi says, "it won't hurt a bit."

Do you know, first place gets a Rudy Project sponsorship - how much would I heart that?!

Ahem.

Moving on to the not-so-best part. It seems that de-training, while it's a good thing for my heart, is really hard on my immunity.

When I'm training hard, my body seems to generate lots of super immune powers, and my immunity is generally great. It has to be great, because my kids come home with a cold every other day. When I'm training, the cold viruses just bounce off me and my invisible immunity forcefield, for I am SuperImmune!!!

When I'm de-training, however, my body says "well, we don't need the immunity superpowers, so we can just mothball those for now. And make fat."

So my body is currently using its powers for evil. It makes for a not very pretty picture. Me sick this time means green phlegm, laryngitis, horrible smoker's cough, bad temper, fuzzy thinking, the works.

Plus, with the recent cold weather, I've discovered that while I can make heat I'm perfectly lousy at keeping it - and I am wearing all my warmest clothes. And my children (the little heatbags).

Plus, it's the time of the month when I have an all-consuming and completely irrational need for simple carbs. All of them.

It seems that this is how my stellar 2nd season as a triathlete ends: with me sitting in front of the PC, typing happy thoughts and wearing pink fuzzy jammies and mukluks, eating my weight in pringles. Not a pretty picture, my friends. Not good.

On the plus side, I know the de-training will end soon and I'll be back on the road again. In the cold, horrible, wind and whatever else there is out there Brrr. And it'll be great!

...after about two weeks or so.

...and during those two weeks of re-training I'll suffer mightily. It will suck with a great sucking sound.

Even though it will suck, I'll still be happier out there - in the wind and cold and whatever - than I will be INDOORS WATCHING TV! FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE, WHAT IS UP WITH THE BAD TV???

Ahem.

Moving on from moving on...

It seems that all this free time leaves me with one of my favourite off-season training courses, Pilates. This means that while I may wheeze when I start running again, my core will be hard as a rock (under all the fat). Pilates is some seriously challenging stuff. All Pilates instructors are dancers - they're all graceful, muscular, lean animals with amazing bodies - it's like a rule. And Ballet is all superhardcore flexy people with long graceful lean bodies. When I took the girls to see the Nutcracker Suite on Sunday I saw ballet through new eyes. As it happens, my favourite pilates instructor was the sugarplum fairy, and she told me to come by and say hello after the performance. Did I drag my two five year olds wearing their most fussy clothes backstage? Of course I did. And I kept quiet about where we were going until we came to her face to face.

Can you imagine 5 year old girls meeting the sugarplum fairy in person? Little girls at the ballet - the world very nearly imploded from the joy.

In other training news, I'm thinking about next season's races. There will be a marathon. There will be some half-irons...and I'm not giving much else away! When I have most of a complete picture I'll write it all down.

I've talked my mother into her first 5K, under the pretense of keeping her company. I suppose this means I'll have to go run a bit to make sure I can keep up with her at the Jingle Bell Run. Anyone locally who is looking for something to do on Saturday, please come find me - it's a big deal fundraiser for the Arthritis Foundation. Hey Geekgirl, Clydeologist - there's a use for those Santa Costumes you just got! And you thought they were only good for one run!

My family is happy to report that de-training has afforded me some time to cook. So I'm in the throes of making chicken and dumplings a la crockpot (my favourite kitchen implement). My house smells like 90% yummy stuff and 10% cat yark - a vast improvement over the rest of the year.

So, in sum, vote for me, come to my house after the Jingle Bell run, I'll feed you leftovers, I won't cough on you, and I'll let you sit in the chair that the cat didn't vomit on. I'm sure I have one of those...