I couldn't make this up...

For those of you West of the Eastern Seaboard, we have a serious snow situation. And when I say serious, I mean 10-15 inches of snow depending on location. Yesterday in South Carolina, I had no idea what was taking place north of me. Prior to leaving I checked the web and it looked like VAB would get about 6 inches of snow and I-95 was clear. Thinking that I needed to get back so I could get to work on Monday, I left SC and headed to Hampton Roads. This is the first decision in my life that I am deeply disappointed in myself for making.

The web had been truthful and I-95 was pretty clear. There was snow falling but the roads had no accumulation or other drivers for much of it. I figured I could roll into VAB around 3 and beat sundown. About 50 miles from my destination, I was stuck on Hwy 58 not moving with well over 7 hours in the car. I was 7 miles from interstate and certain once I was there it would be smooth sailing. Sitting still I heard a pop and smoke began to exit from the hood. I had no idea what to do so I just turned my car off in the middle of the road. We weren't moving, so I wasn't going to try to get out of the way. I completely lost it, certain I would be stranded in the cold and already feeling somewhat claustrophobic from the bumper to bumper traffic. What happened next reminded me of my favorite movie as a kid, Adventures in Babysitting.

Before I could really get a bearing on what had happened, a wrecker pulled up in front of me and the guy got out. He wasted no time and told me to call my insurance and he would start hooking me up. I was so confused and uncertain of what would happen that I could not stop crying. The wrecker driver, Adam, got in and then started to try to figure out what to do with me. At first he was angry that I got stuck and yelled at me for crying. And he sweared A LOT. None of that helped the situation and only increased the tears. He informed me that he couldn't take me home because the bridges were closing and many of the exits were doing the same. I had to find a place to go that side of the High Rise Bridge and I could not think of anywhere. I just started calling people that I thought were in the area. In the process, he assured me he wouldn't leave me in the cold and told me I would just ride around with him until I could figure out where to go.

Sitting shotgun in a 30,000 pound wrecker, my mind started to wander. My first thought was Adventures in Babysitting and I knew if I opened his glove box, there would be a gun. And if he wanted to go check on someone's house I was toast! Then I began to think of all the Criminal Minds episodes I watch every night. That did not help my sanity. Sure he was in a legit truck, but how did I know he hadn't hijacked the real driver and he was picking up innocent victims to drive away and kill? I just began to pray that everything would work out and that I would be safe and warm somewhere that night. I managed to warm Adam up to the idea of me hanging out with him for a bit and after he yelled at me and made me cry more, he got soft. By the end of the trip, he was trying to joke around with me and I think he enjoyed the company. After numerous phone calls, I managed to track down a friend from high school that lived 1 exit away from the wrecker service. We arranged a meeting spot and he dropped me off with Haley's husband. When I exited the wrecker, I hugged him. I'm not sure he knew what to do with that since he just stood there, but I was so grateful for him.

I spent last night with the McPhail's and their hospitality is extremely appreciated. This morning Haley's husband drove me to my car to retrieve the contents and then drove me to my house. I'm home now, but sans car. Right now, I'm just praying for an inexpensive fix and life to return to normalcy soon. I've had a number of inconveniences in the last 2 months, so I'm a bit exhausted.

The whole situation has really done a number on me emotionally. First of all, I wish with every fiber of my being I had stayed in SC. I could have spent a few more days with my family and enjoyed it post Christmas stresses. I always get emotional leaving their home and wish I had more time with them. Second, I'm in awe of how awesome God is. Adam insisted that if I hadn't been in the middle of the road, he wouldn't have stopped. And we all know on a normal travel day it takes a while to get a wrecker. Even if my car hadn't broke down, I wouldn't have made it home if everything truly did shut down. And just before the pop, I told my dad I was done. I wanted to just pull over and quit. I drove for 7 hours white knuckled and teary eyed most of the way, and I was exhausted.

I learned 2 things out of this:
1) You are never too cautious. Safety is more important than anything else. And if people want to call you a pansy, just remember the time I got picked up by a wrecker in a snow storm. I'm never driving in snow again.
2) Even when you make poor decisions, the Lord doesn't leave you stranded. He always provides, even if it is a grumpy old man that gets mad at you for breaking down. In the end, that mean old man turns out to be an angel.

2011 Race Calendar

My running partner and I have been trying to decide what 2011 will look like for our running careers. Neither one of us wanted to make any decisions since Richmond. Well, I received the following email from her this week:

"Wishy Washy Running Partner sees four possible spring scenarios - pick one and I will commit.

'We are a hot mess.' - Run Colonial 1/2, Outer Banks Pirate 1/2, Wine Country 1/2 (this is one every other month beginning Feb), ... Marine Corps a given.

'Karen avoiding running in cold for one more month.' -Shamrock 8k, Outer Banks Pirate 1/2, Wine Country 1/2, begin marathon training.

'Same old, same old.' - Shamrock 1/2, add Wine Country 1/2 prior to beginning marathon training.

'Hills, Hills, Hills.' - Colonial 1/2, Shamrock 8k, Wine Country 1/2...[Marine Corps]..."

So, I have spent the week considering my options, performing cost analysis, and deciding what our best plan of action would be. I was drawn to the first plan, but after reviewing the costs for the races and the hotel needs for each I made a proposition. Let's swap OBX with Shamrock. This puts us running 2 local races (no accomodations needed) and 2 travel races. Sure, we have run Shamrock about a MILLION TIMES but it is a good race. AND you get a free hat. I like the hat.

Karen agreed and registration has begun. We are officially "a hot mess."

Tonight I got an email from Coach to determine my goals for 2011. I must admit, this last year of training has shown me that I truly can improve and accomplish goals I never thought possible.

To keep myself accountable, here are the announced goals for 2011:

Colonial Half (Feb): Finish and enjoy the scenery. Running has been minimal for the Holiday season, so I'm not going to kill myself in 2 months of training.
Shamrock Half (March): Finish in 2:05. This will be 6 minutes faster than Richmond averaging 46 seconds faster each mile.
Wine Country Half (June): Finish in 2:00
Marine Corps Marathon (October): Less walk breaks than Shamrock 2010 and finish under 4:50. That shaves 9 minutes off my other marathon time. However, I have been told that runners typically shave about 20 minutes off marathon time for the second attempt.
5k Goal: Finish in 27 minutes. That only shaves 37 seconds from my current PR.
8K Goal: Finish under 47 minutes. That shaves about 1:20 from my current PR.
Other: I would like to make 9:40 the new "slow".

Stay tuned in 2011 to see how I perform with an increased "big" race schedule (4 instead of my typical 2 in a year) and high mileage weeks. As crazy as this sounds, I'm pretty pumped about it!

A Hoarder's Home

I have spent the last 2 days with my floor guys. Day one they removed all the paper backing from the vinyl that was pulled up earlier. This was in preparation for the new floors. Today, their 2nd day working, the kitchen tile was put down and the vinyl in the laundry room completed. Since the tile has to set, my oven and fridge have joined all of my other furniture in the dining area. And since the bathroom vanity cabinet has to be replaced, the new one is hanging out in the laundry room. Tomorrow, they will replace the bath cabinet and I assume lay the tile in the master bath.

I say all of this to say, I live in what looks like a hoarder's home. I cannot even watch that show from the stress and frustration of the living conditions. Yet, I am there right now. It is absolutely killing me. My dining room table blocks the door to my guest room so I have to enter through the guest bath. I'm trying to get some sewing projects completed in the midst of this chaos, so I have to enter the guest room through the bathroom and shimmy my way to the sewing machine, which is a straight shot from the bedroom door that is blocked. Ugh! All of my "stuff" is stacked in the guest room, not to mention my Christmas presents that I have already purchased. Everything that was in my bathroom cabinet is now hanging out in my bedroom. Nothing is in its proper place.

I cannot stress enough how anxious I am to get this place back in order! Looks like I can move back into my kitchen and laundry room tomorrow afternoon. Carpet dude is scheduled for Tuesday and any outstanding work on the other floors should finish that day as well. Fingers crossed this place is back to normal by Tuesday. I want to decorate for Christmas, but I'm starting to lose the motivation. What timing!