Running With The Dogs

I haven't really been inspired to blog much lately. Sometimes I just get sick of myself and my thoughts and I don't feel like listening to the incessant yacking going on in my mind. I've actually been leading a very boring existence the last few weeks. Work, train, dogs, sleep and that's about it. I think I'm becoming a little anti-social. My dogs and the mutts I take care of are kind of spoiling me. No verbal sparring, no complex thought process's and less bullshit. Growl and bark...so simple.

With only 4 weeks to go till my first Marathon of 2014, I'm beginning to get nerved up about it. Having missed a solid month of buildup training I'm having to cram in the runs and biking. The last two days were a complete washout. I took Friday off to rest and catch up on some work I had gotten behind on. Today I just didn't have any ambition to even get out of bed. Tomorrow I'm planning on kicking my ass a bit and getting in a long tempo run.
I just finished the book "Hanson's Marathon Method" and I'm becoming a little overwhelmed with different Marathon training methods. It's time to just to settle into a training program that's consistent. Right now I seem to be all over the place. I'm using a lot of my training time on the bike rather than beating up my legs with running.
I have settled on my running shoe of choice. The Brooks Pure Connect. Due to the fact I have an injury from a long time ago. I actually tore my Achilles tendon and had two operations which left a lot of scarring. I had to modify the shoes by cutting away part of the heel to accommodate the scar.
They feel great now. LIGHT! minimal and fast!

The Oakland Marathon will probably be a tough one for me and I'm not completely confident about getting a qualifying time for Boston. There's a bit of altitude to deal with. I'm hopeful and will try as hard as I can to nail my 3:55 time. My fastest Marathon time is 4:04. I should be able to do it if I'm feeling good that day and I stay injury free for the next month.

Valentines Day was the anniversary of my oldest rescue dogs adoption. Since then I've adopted two more dogs and I'm quite sure I could easily turn into one of those crazy dog hoarders like you see on the A&E Channel. I have a thing for black dogs. I love that color and black dogs carry a stigma. Crazy cultural superstitions and black dogs don't look as beautiful on the internet adoptions sites as do other color dogs. Black dogs and cats are the least adopted, and have the highest rate of euthanasia.

It's become a passion over the past few years of photographing my dogs. I think I'm getting pretty good at getting the light right.
I love my dogs and I don't know how I got through most of my life with out them. They are my true friends.

When I'm out killing myself on my bike or running a million miles. I can push through the pain just knowing when I finish I can crawl into bed with my doggies find my peace and comfort.