Phone Calls

So first I would like to talk about the fact that a few hours after I posted that last blog, my mother called me and the first thing that came out of her mouth was "Suck it up!" Man do I know her!

The next story I have is a funny one, but unfortunately it is at someone else's expense. I don't normally like to do that, but this situation was too perfect to pass up. Luckily, I have no idea who this person was since she never gave me her name, so I couldn't reveal her identity if i wanted to (which I don't). Here goes:

The other day I was working at my bike shop, minding my business, getting stuff done when the phone rings, which I answer. The following conversation:

Me: Thank you for calling (name of bike shop), this is Jo. How can I help you?
Lady on Phone: Hi. Do you carry any Kryptonite Locks?
Me: Oh, I'm not sure if we have that brand, let me go check!
(I know we don't but I run back to the lock section anyway)
Me: Are you looking for a U lock?
Lady on Phone: I am looking for a lock made of Kryptonite.
(At this I pause. She sounds so sincere and sure of herself, that I actually have to question my first instinct. Wait, does Kryptonite exist? Am I crazy for thinking it's not real? Should I tell her that I don't think there is such a thing? I don't want to tell her it's a fictional element and be wrong!)
Me: (suppressing surprised/confused/amused noises) Well Ma'am, we carry OnGuard locks and they're made of stainless steal
Lady on Phone: Oh I've heard of that brand, it's not good enough. I want one made of Kryptonite. Thanks.

And she hangs up. I hang up. I sit there for a second. Then I bust out laughing realizing how ridiculous that entire conversation was. Later as I retell this story to my co-workers and then even later to my friends, they have several suggestions for what I could have said when she asked for a lock made of Kryptonite, including:

"Oh, has Superman been stealing bikes in your neighborhood too?"

or

"I'm sorry, we don't carry any, but you should give Lex Luther a call. I think they stock them."

or

"Oh, production on the planet Krypton has been extremely backed up recently, we won't have any in stock for several weeks."

or even

"I think that Kryptonite brand locks are made of stainless steel, ma'am."

Every time I remember the conversation I laugh so hard I get tears in my eyes. That poor woman. I am so sorry that I am laughing at your expense. I hope that you were just having an off day or hadn't had enough coffee. Or that maybe you were playing a trick on me, in which case you should take up acting because you were extremely convincing....oh man...


ANYWAY! This is supposed to be a training blog, isn't it. Training, right. This week has gone pretty well. I have pain in my hip sometimes after work outs and every once and a while when I am walking around, but so far (knock on wood) nothing that has stopped me from completing a run. If this level of pain is as bad as it gets and I am not doing myself further harm (which the docs say I am not) than I can totally take this. I am just worried that the other shoe will drop.

I've done well in my two-a-days and some of my workouts this week felt really darn good. My running is still slow, but I am keeping my pace down on purpose, with striders or intervals to get a little speed work in without hurting myself. I am even substitute aquajogging for one of my easy runs each week. Yay for the dorky pool belt!

Had an endurance swim and a long run today, back to back. Long bike ride tomorrow with one of my co-workers from the bike shop. I'm excited because he knows more routes than I do, and I feel more comfortable knowing i have someone with me if I have a problem and we need to get back. If I ride 40+ miles by myself, I don't know what I would do if I had a mechanical issue or more flats than I had tubes for... Do have my RoadID though, always!!

Lessons

Ok, so the other day when I was out on a group ride with a mechanic from my shop (who is a serious character, I'll have to tell his incredible story sometime...) and he explained something to me about claiming your personal space on a ride. He said that if you hug the side of the road, the rider next to you will hug you, but if you give yourself the space you want from the edge, the person next to you will give you more space, instinctively. As I tried what he told me, it was immediately apparent that he was right.

Fast forward to today, as I am tootling along on my bike at rush hour in the park near my apartment. As usual, I try to give cars room to get by, so I hug the lines at the side of the road. More than once, though, cars buzz by me WAY WAY closer than is polite or safe or comfortable. Suddenly, my friend's words come floating back to me (possible screaming at me along the side of one of these nasty, speedy cars). I decide that it's time to stop being nice and trying to give cars room. Screw them. They need to give me room. So I start to take up more space in the road. I give myself the space I want. And guess what! Every car that passes me after that, gives me enough room! It was crazy! Now of course it's entirely possible that I had already been passed by all the a**holes out for the evening, but it's also possible that I have discovered the secret to getting more respect from angry, rush hour motorists.

Anyway, that is what I learned today at my second workout session. At my first session, I learned I that I am currently fit enough to swim 1800 meters without stopping. Not really a surprise, but still good to know. :)

chilly ride and RUNNING TUNES! (free downloads!)

It was relatively chilly this morning when I went out to cycle. I don't have a very extensive selection of cycling gear, so I can only keep so warm. I felt great and had a nice ride (without a clip-induced fall, I might add) but my toes were totally numb by the end. It's all good though, because the warm weather will be here soon and I won't have to worry about spending money on cold weather gear until next winter... :)

Anyway, I thought we would discuss music today. I know I've talked about audiobooks in the past, but I am also a believer in great tunes for running (NOT cycling, very dangerous). I am always trying to find new stuff to add to my running/lifting mixes, and I am sure other people struggle to find the good stuff as much as I do. The other day I came across some pretty sweet ways to find new music to run to, and I wanted to share.

First thing's first, Nike Women on facebook has a new download every week for free, so that is worth checking out. Still, the stuff they put up is often too techno/electronica for me. A couple of things happened recently which brought me to a whole boatload of new songs. First of all I found a website that gives you a free trial and $10 of free music. You have to sign up, but as long as you cancel your membership within 14 days (or right after you use up your free credits) you won't get charged. It's awesome.
Go to:
www.emusic.com/runnertunes

The prices are cheaper here than iTunes so you get more musical bang for your free buck! Now to find the tunes you wanna buy! So you know when you're running with the beat of a song and it's awesome and then your next tune comes on and it's a totally different tempo and your running feels awkward? Maybe you have heard of the acronym BPM (Beats Per Minute). It is a way to define the tempo of a song, and a way to sync up your running with your music. To find out what BPMs work best for you, go to:
jogtunes.com

They have a tool to pick out your best BPM and can show you a list of tunes that have the BPMs you're looking for. Once you know what tempo you want, the website:
runhundred.com

is a blog-type place listing new music all the time, as well as other tips for finding running music. This site lets you listen to samples of the music before you hop over to your new emusic account to download!

So the websites you need, again:
www.emusic.com/runnertunes
www.jogtunes.com
www.runhundred.com

NOW, if you're an iPhone user (guilty) there is a pretty cool (but sadly not free) app you can buy (under $5) that searches through your music on your phone (or itouch) and sorts it into groups according to BPM. This way if you're out running and dial into a BPM you like and want to stay there, you can use the app to find other songs with the same tempo! Name of the app is Cadence. Find it in the iTunes app store.

Ok so now that I have given you allll that, here is a list of songs I downloaded recently (with their BPMs) to add to my running mix.

The Catalyst - Linkin Park [135]
Sweet Disposition - The Temper Trap [127]
Wish We Were Older - Metro Station [140]
S&M - Rihanna [125]
Damage is Done - L.P. [130]
Rolling in the Deep - Adele [100]


Have fun out there!