Done for the Week: Nearing the Home Stretch

As soon as we can manage it, my husband and I plan to see the heralded movie Crazy, Stupid, Love.  Life here lately has been all three.

In the midst of it all, I'm still managing to get some things done--and not others.



Done for the Week:  Aug. 1-7, 2011

1. Completed Week 13 of 15-week triathlon training program; ran twice; swam three times; biked twice
2. Worked out several times with my training partner
3. Attended first rained-out Open Water Swim class
4. Began working on pre-race anxiety, mental training
5. Purchased new hydration system for biking
6. Revised race goals
7. Finished The Purple Culture, by Stephen Boehrer
8. Continued to work my two part-time jobs 
9. Provided technical assistance to nonprofit organization
10. Meditated once
11. Published 1 blog post 
12. Shared Happy Hour dinner with my husband
13. Continued reading Elizabeth George's In Pursuit of the Proper Sinner aloud with my husband
14. Met with new web client, finalized agreement; worked on project
15. Met with current web client; worked on project
16. Worked for recall candidate several times
17. Voted early with my husband, and accompanied son to vote early
18. Helped family member with minor medical crisis
19. Attended grandson's birthday party
20. Made continued progress in cleaning/straightening/decluttering living room & family room 
21. Worked with my husband on major push to clean/straighten/declutter kitchen
22. Shopped for (nearly unaffordable) groceries with my son
23. Did laundry

Last week's most important accomplishment, as the week before, was all the effort I put into getting ready for the triathlon.  And last week's focus goal was to give triathlon the attention and the energy it deserves, and to relish its gifts and take in its lessons.  Triathlon is beginning to take its rightful place at the top of my list of priorities most days, as it will need to for the remaining 13 days before the race.  And I am starting to feel excited, as well as nervous. 

I had hoped to beat last year's time by 8+ minutes, bringing my overall time under 2 hours.  Last week I learned that the bike course had been lengthened by 1.5 miles, which will most likely pretty much trump my new, faster bike.  My times in each event are slightly faster this year, from what I can gauge in training.  But probably not enough faster to get me in under 2 hours. 

 I hope to take 2-1/2 minutes off my swim time, 29 seconds off my first transition, 28 seconds off my second transition, almost 3 minutes off my run time, and to finish the biking course in 54 minutes (improving last year's pace by 1.5 mph).  That's the stretch goal, which would bring my overall time to 2:03.  I would be really happy with 2:05.  (Pretty slow for a sprint triathlon, but way faster than the people my age who are sitting on a couch on a Sunday morning in August!)

Oh, and not to be forgotten, the essential goal of having fun!

This week's focus goal will be to return to the regular practice of meditation as an aid in taming the nerves I am starting to feel.  It should also help keep me more balanced as our recall election, and this phase of the long crazy political journey we are on, conclude in the next two days.  

As to that, I'm keeping my fingers and toes, but not my eyes, crossed.  Time to take our state government back!