This, That and the Other

What's the story Mornin' Glory?

* So, I'm standing in my kitchen the other day and I can't, for the life of me, get the lid off of a jar of applesauce (hello middle age).  Usually in a situation like this I slip on a rubber glove and that allows me to get a good hold on the lid, however, my rubber gloves have bike grease all over them; a woman's work is never done.  What to do?  I stood there for a few moments thinking about it and then, suddenly, like a bolt of lightening, it struck me; swim cap!  I have a bag of them from various races so I dug one out and don't you know, my plan worked poyfectly!  It now has a new home in my kitchen drawer.

* I ran for an hour on Sunday with no calf pain.  I took a completely flat route.  I think any hills would have done it in again...slow and steady...although the ART guy wants me to throw some hills in my next run....coach?  Oh! He also gave me the name of a collegue that will have a tent at the Brooklyn Biathlon on Sunday (yes, yet another race with a big question mark over it) and told me to go see him after the race.

* Did I mention that on Sunday I have a Biathlon?: 2, 10, 2 (after my 70 mile ride on Saturday, oh yeah).

* Last Saturday I had the strangest thing happen to me on my ride.  There were 65 miles on the schedule with PLENTY of hills.  After our lunch I was leading up a hill and after pulling off I started getting a side stitch, like in running.  So, like in running, I kept riding thinking it would go away.  It didn't.  In fact, it got worse.  I started dropping back in the line until one of the ride leaders asked if I was ok.  I was not.  I had to stop; I couldn't breathe.  My diaphragm was cramping/spasming (?) so badly I was finding it extremely difficult and painful to breathe.  I felt it all the way up into my right shoulder as well.  One of the ride leaders said it looked like I was having an asthma attack and lent me his inhaler, but it didn't help.  I had to let the group go and one of the leaders rode back to the city on the train with me.  Seriously, I have never experienced anything like this before, it was horrible.  There was no way I could ride on and, in fact, I wasn't able to take a full breath for almost an hour.  Aside from being embarrassed, I was bummed to have to stop since my legs felt good.  By the time I got home I had done 50 miles.....sigh.

Of course I Googled 'diaphragm cramping' which revealved a wealth of theories on why this happens.  The closest thing that fit was eating + exercise immediately afterward = bad juju for my diaphragm.  The theory goes (or at least one of them) that during exercise blood that normally goes to the diaphragm is used elsewhere in the muscles currently being used (including my stomach digesting), the lack of blood to the diaphragm causes it to spasm, that spasm is the stitch, ta da!  Just for the record, I ate a mozzarella, tomato sandwich on a baguette and have had this before during the mid ride break.

* Tomorrow....taxes.  'Nuff said.

* Today I found out I need a root canal......on Monday.....AWESOME!!!!! Remember that tooth I broke on a cherry pit back in June?  Well I had it nicely restored, but then it started giving me some trouble: sensitivity to hot, cold and pressure.  The nerve is dying.  Poor little nerve.  The very nerve of that nerve!(humor me, when will I ever get a chance to use that line again in my lifetime?) I was given a 'bite test' today and it nearly sent me through the roof.  However, I got props for having such clean teeth; I love me some flossing.

* I know you are all so jealous of the life I have been leading lately.  I am really taking it easy these days, living it up in the lap of luxury.  My body is in peak form, my job is taking off and I just hired some hot dude to feed me grapes.  Life is good.