Reading race reports

I was reading this race report (really like this blog- talks about running and beer- two GREAT topics!) and her talk about having to pee and not going made ME have to pee. I just thought that was funny. And figured I'd share a blog I like to read.

Will Run For Beer

Harpoon Brewery

I don't have many pictures of Harpoon Brewery because I wasn't thinking about taking any. But I wanted to make a separate post because we really liked this brewery and would recommend it again. We were here on a Thursday and they only offer tours on weekends, so we didn't go on an actual tour. But during the week they offer tastings for an hour twice a day. We went to the first tasting, and they had about 20 beers on tap. A number of the beers were beer that you can't get anywhere else. Maybe Dave can comment here and help me remember what they were. The one I distinctly remember is the Ginger Wheat, which was made once and will not be made again. The Ginger Wheat was part of the Harpoon 100 Barrel Series, Session 42.

Should have asked Dave to display that tasting glass!

Also, with this tasting, they pretty much just kept giving you samples for the entire hour. They rang a bell when 5 minutes were left for "last call" and with the higher gravity beer (like Leviathan series beers) they didn't fill the glass the entire way but you could get more than one sample.

We ended up buying some Leviathan beers to take home. (Thanks, Beth and Heather, for driving them back to Pittsburgh since we were flying!)

Sam Adams Brewery

I finally downloaded some of the pictures from our phones.

When we went to Boston, Dave and I visited Sam Adams Brewery. They give a good tour of the facility (most of their beer is brewed in Ohio and PA though so it's pretty small there) and afterwards had beer tasting. They fill up pitchers, pass them out, and you finish up the pitchers. They gave us three samples: Boston Lager, Summer Ale (love Summer Ale), and one of their IPAs. I think it was Whitewater IPA...  We've sampled a lot of their beer already during a single flight batch night at Hough's. Some pretty good beer! My favorite that I've had so far is their Imperial White.

Utopias is a very good beer that tastes more like a liquor. It comes out in limited release and bottles cost over $150. It's not carbonated, definitely ageable, and the description I linked to is going to do a better job than I will.

They gave us hops, told us to crush them in our hands and then smell our hands. (But said do not eat these!)

In the tasting room. We bought the three beers (bottles) sitting on the bar. You can only get them in Boston, I think. And that's Summer Ale in my hand. We got to keep those taster glasses, too!

Pirates

Last night we saw the Pirates beat the Twins, 9-1. It was really hot out!

Running Photo Shoot

Photo Courtesy of: Paul Meyer

Photo Courtesy of: Paul Meyer

Photo Courtesy of: Paul Meyer

Photo Courtesy of: Paul Meyer

Photo Courtesy of: Paul Meyer

Frustrations

Although this is a public posting on the internet that anyone could read if they found it, sometimes it's really hard to refrain from talking about things that upset me. (And that I probably shouldn't be talking about in a public forum.) For the first time ever, yesterday, someone outright told me that I don't work very hard.

I was brought up with a very good work ethic. I remember when I worked at Lowe's over the summer between my freshman and sophomore years in college, at times they would call me up literally at the last minute because someone called off and ask me to come in. My dad would always say you take any opportunity to show them that you will do the work, to the point that one time we were supposed to go to an amusement park and I went to work at the last minute instead of going to the park.

As a result, I have always done the best job I could do, even if the job I have to do is crappy. My sister Megan is also the same way from what I've seen and heard.

With the mandatory overtime this past year (for months with no end in sight it was 72 hour work weeks), I know that I have insisted on keeping some of my out of work activities and that I'm pretty busy outside of work. Some of that helps you be able to deal with the excessive working hours. With that said, though, I did take a hiatus from one of our bands which actually ended up with the band taking a hiatus. And I put in a LOT of hours for the job. The worst part is that the person who accused me of not working hard has no idea what I've been doing for the past year. And I'm pretty livid about it.

But I'm in a better situation, so I'm going to allow myself to vent a little bit, and move on. Where I'm at right now isn't the ideal position for me, but I'm going to make the best of it and do a good job. And NOT because of the person I'm venting about. I'm doing it for myself because I feel that's what my job is and I'm going to do the best I can. I always have. I always will.

Vermont/NH

We met up with some of my family after visiting some of Dave's family.  First we met a cousin who just graduated from MIT (congrats there!). I had met him a long time ago at his aunt's wedding, but barely remember him. Well, if I am honest, I figured he was there but I was pretty young and don't remember much about the wedding in general. I also met his wife and kids for the first time. A lot of that part of the family is in the area but I didn't realize it so next time we'll have to see if we can meet up with the rest of them!

Then we headed to Vermont to visit my aunt and uncle, grandma, and cousins. I did see my aunt and grandma at Thanksgiving but haven't seen the rest of them in years.

Vermont is just beautiful and we had amazing weather while we were there. I'd like to go back someday and hike or something, there are some really pretty mountains around there.

Walking Nellie, one of the covered bridges in the area.

We also went on a tour at Ben & Jerry's.

...and had some fun outside.

This is on Lake Champlain. I've been on the NY side but not the VT side.

It was really windy

Aw, Diane and Steve!

with my Grandma

Magic Hat Brewery

I don't have pictures of Sam Adams and Harpoon, the other two breweries we visited in Boston. If I do find some (maybe on one of our cell phones) I'll post them later.

We went to three breweries on our trip: Sam Adams, Harpoon (Boston location) and Magic Hat. Circus Boy, a hefeweizen, is one of my favorite beers. Magic Hat gives you 4 samples of any of the beer they have on tap. Each sample is 2 oz. They had a few that were only available there. Too bad growlers don't travel on a plane well!

They didn't have tours the day we were there but still allowed a self guided tour where you could see the bottle line. That's the first time I've seen a bottle line running and it was mesmerizing to watch. I stared at it just watching for at least 5 minutes.

I also bought too many shirts. This is my favorite brewery visit so far- love the beers and just loved the gift shop as well (and the self guided tour we were able to do).

The tower at the entrance.  I bought a shirt with this on it.

Do I need to add to the sign here? (The machine that applies the stickers)

The machine that fills the bottles with beer

Dave, Aunt Diane, and Steve

I hope my aunt doesn't mind I posted this one. There are two others, each with one of us sticking our tongues out. Didn't get a serious picture together.  Haha!

Dave in front of the bottle filler

Steve realized we could walk up the tower

So Dave and I followed! And the whole tower rocked up there!

Darci's graduation

Congrats, Darci! We're so glad we could be a part of your day and see you guys a little bit for a few days. We had a lot of fun and wish you lived closer. Good luck in college!

In line to walk up

Walking up to receive her diploma

Diploma in hand!

Look at those shoes!

She's at the end of the row (opposite end)

I'm not crazy about how I look in the picture but it's the only one with Dave, Darci, and me.

She decorated her hat. I thought it looked very classy.

Rockport, MA

This past weekend we took a really long weekend to go to our sister Darci's high school graduation and roam around the New England area visiting relatives.

Darci, Dave, Heather, Beth, Milo, and I headed to Rockport, which is just a beautiful little area with shops by the sea. This is the 2nd time I've been there. We went Friday night because Darci's graduation was rained out (postponed to Saturday morning). It apparently poured near her high school but the weather was just beautiful for us.

The group standing at the end of the dock

Um, Motif #1 (I think???)

Milo, Darci, and I climbed the rocks to the end

At the end of the rocks

Walking back over the rocks.  Looks like I'm surfing or something

The beach nearby.  Apparently the seaweed was disgusting.  Looks pretty here!

Milo on the beach. Maybe trying to wipe the gross seaweed off.

Taking advantage of the self timer on the camera!

Running Photo Shoot

More picture from our photo shoot with Paul Meyer. Dave and I also had "Splash the Dress" (a version of "Trash the Dress") pictures taken with Paul and 3 other couples. I'll have to post those at some point and I can add the link from here to there. During that photo shoot we got some pictures at this same spot, which is just beautiful. I say that a lot about Paul's photos. I love the grass growing out of the sand here and Colleen and I also got some good running shots in the same area. I'm in the first 3 pictures and Colleen is in the last.

Photo Credit: Paul Meyer

Photo Credit: Paul Meyer

Photo Credit: Paul Meyer

Photo Credit: Paul Meyer

May exercise totals

I'm going to start counting general exercise, not just run miles. This month there is some walking with the "run" miles because the sports doctor said to alternate running and walking to build up. Even with that, I basically took the month off running after the half marathon.

In the month of May, these are my totals:

Run: 23.28
Bike: 50.5

Total Run mileage
January: 60.122
February: 61.634
March: 77.715
April: 38.022
May: 23.28
2012 total: 260.8

Total Bike mileage
January: 20.2
February: 52.7
March: 57.9
April: 22.3
May: 50.6
2012 total: 203.7

Photo Courtesy of: Paul Meyer

Running Injury Update

I've been busy so I haven't been posting as much lately... 

I had another follow up with the sports doctor yesterday. I pretty much took a month off after the half marathon and I'm finally feeling back to normal. Most of the time I feel fine although I get a twinge now and then in my calf.

I did walk North Park (5 miles) with Colleen last week and felt perfectly fine afterwards, which the doctor said is a good sign. I am good to go, to start running and ramping up the miles again, slowly.  He suggested avoiding running two days in a row.

We also talked just in general. He said when I first went in my leg was a "mess." In order to build muscle, you actually break down muscle and when it builds back it's bigger. Apparently, my muscle was breaking down but not growing back quickly enough and I had a lot of scar tissue from that. His therapy brings that scar tissue to the surface and allows it to be taken care of. I'm not really sure what that means (being taken care of), but he said he can tell a difference and my muscles are all in good shape now.

So the takeaways from this?

1. Stretching is a big deal. I already knew that, but he says to stretch even on off days. It varies from  person to person but even if you aren't exercising, stretching is a good idea.

2. Ice is a good thing. Ice stops the muscle from swelling and allows it to start healing. If you don't use ice when you're sore, it takes longer before your muscle starts to heal and can make recovery time longer.

3. I have tendonitis, and it could affect me the rest of my life. If it flares up I'll need to stretch more often and I'm going to need to learn to just listen to my body and stretch as I need to.

I have another follow-up in 3 weeks, although we have a busy schedule so I probably won't get consistent running in between now and then. I don't think I'm even going to be able to run a 5k in the near future! The ones I've been eyeing up near term won't fit in my schedule.