Gearing up

Today was the last day of school. The kids were dismissed at 11:30 and we started partying at 12:30. There was lots of good food and alcohol and games and a Christmas bonus. Overall not a bad afternoon. Tomorrow it all begins. I have 3 weeks and I am not going to waste them this time. Every vacation I do one of two things. I either spend the first week taking it easy and get nothing done. This lack of initiative generally drags over into the second week and that pretty much blows the vacation. The other thing I do is jump right in on the first day, completely burn myself out and end up not doing anything the second week. So I'm going to try and strike a balance between these two extremes. I will be running, lifting weights, working on my thesis, working on my rooms and getting some rest in too. Naps...it's all about the naps.

The running starts tomorrow. I am doing a 10k on New Years Day and I need to be ready for it. Last week I decided to go to Kailua on Saturday mornings and run a 6 mile route that I know. The problem with that is the New Years 10k is very hilly while the Kailua route is pretty darn flat. Then tonight on the way home it hit me... I have a access to a hilly route right by my house. A run through the neighborhood and into the botanical gardens. There are some serious hills in the botanical gardens. Ones just like the 10k. So I mapped it out and from my house to the end of the botanical garden and back is 8 miles. I like that. So tomorrow morning, around 6, I'm heading out for an 8 mile run. Sweet. The only problem is my lingering cold. I have had a head cold that I just can not shake. When I ran on Thursday I had a little bit of trouble breathing. It wasn't bad but enough to be annoying and make me wonder if I should find a Mesothelioma lawyer. I am allowing myself 2 hours to accomplish this mission the first time. After that I will go and strength train. I also have to try and buy a dress for Winterball on Sunday. Then it's home to grade finals. I need to keep balance in my days in order not to get burned out. Here's to a great break.