This and That

What we call the beginning is often the end.
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
The end is where we start from.
- T. S. Eliot

It's been awhile since I have posted anything. We are in the thick of old man winter here in Morgantown, West Virginia and with it comes some tough running through the snow and ice (I'll write more about this topic next time). School is going great guns and I have been blessed with a stellar Linear Models class; our future is safe in their hands ;-)

I saw Sarah McLachlan a couple of weeks ago in Morgantown. Wonderful concert and display of musicianship. She pulled out all her classics but the one song that really spoke to me that evening was a beautiful acoustic rendition of "Good Enough". The closest thing I could find to it on the Internet was this old video. Take a listen if you have a minute. It's just gorgeous:

I finally got to cut my racing teeth 01/09 at the Fairmont Run to Read Half-Marathon. To say I was happy is a complete understatement. My final race time was a 1:33 which was a PR for me by over 3 minutes. While my knee was a bit angry, it bounced back nicely the next day. Really the only explanation I have for this is all the cross training, due to "Coach Beth", and the intelligent small-scale running I have done. Throw in a good dose of pent-up excitement and anger, and you have the perfect synergistic cocktail! Sooooo ... the next hurdle is to hold my breath, take another baby step, and throw the hammer down on an actual marathon. And that is exactly what I am determined to do come 02/19 at Myrtle Beach.

It's been 7 months since the surgery and I would say my knee is 90-95%. I have only one more month of PT, in the form of plyiometrics and agility drills, and then I am officially done with that. There'll also be another visit to the Cleveland Clinic in March. The only lingering aftereffects of the knee reconstruction are occasionally the articulation in my knee is not as smooth as in my other knee. This could be due to some roughness in my cartilage and I have therefore started taking the mildly controversial Osteo Bi-Flex. Also, where the screws were inserted into the tibia to attach the ACL graft gets numb and irritated. A day of rest and some Ibuprofen alleviates this.