Jolked 6.68 Miles

 

 

For this training jolk, my sis, husband, and I set out to walk 5 minutes and run 1 minute for 7 miles.  I've been wanting to up our mileage, and this is the farthest we've gone during this round of training.  It was a gorgeous day and we quickly shed our coats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's been a long time since I've done the esplanade/waterfront loop.  So many people were out enjoying this beautiful day.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

The cherry blossoms were so pretty and I have always loved the Steel bridge.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This run started off really great.  The distance was kicking my ass, but I felt good and I was trying to push myself.   Then about 5 blocks from my house, I tripped over something silly.  I did the classic slo-mo tumble where I almost caught myself twice, but I still managed to fall  hard.  My ankle twisted and the pain was pretty darn intense.  Greg had to run home to get the car, because I couldn't walk on it at all.  I'm just so glad that I was close to home and this didn't happen downtown.  I'm also super bummed.  I've been laid up for 3 days now and will probably stay home tomorrow.  I don't know what this means for the half.  I'm trying not to stress about that now.  I'm hoping I'll be able to go on a walk in the next week or so to see how I'm doing.  I'm frustrated because I had worked so hard to get to a place where I was walking well without pain.  Hopefully this will heal well and not set me back too far.

 

 

 

Walked 2.45 Miles

 

 

Snow!  It's been a wacky March with a few days of snow.  It was fun to wake up to snow today.  I'm usually not a big fan of snow.  I'll take rain day in and day out, but snow just reeks havoc on our town.  We don't get much of it, so any kind of accumulation shuts the city down.  Luckily, this snow was only on the grass.  The streets were clear.  It was fun to walk and see the snow and flowers together. 

 

 

 

 

 

I was checking out the flowers in my backyard before my walk and the coolest thing happened as I took this picture.  There is a little hummingbird that sits in a tree by my house everyday.  I've taken a liking to this little guy and always try to spot him when I'm outside.  While I took this picture, he swooped down and hoovered right at eye level.  I could feel his presence, but when I turned my head to look at him he flew away.  It made my whole day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The building by my bus stop is completely gone!  I'm so happy to have my bus stop back open.  

 

 

 

 

 

Snowmen!  These were about 8 inches tall and super cute!

 

 

 

 

 

This was the only other snowman I saw.  This one was about 2 feet high.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jolked 3.99 Miles

 

 

For this jolk, my sis, husband, and I did 4:1 in Ladd's Addition.  Decreasing the walking really made me push harder.  It was a great work out and I only stopped to snap a quick pic to mark this walk.

Walked 3.19 Miles

 

 

For today's walk, I headed to Ladd's Addition.  I just never get sick of walking in this great neighborhood.  My walk started out sunny, then it rained, and then the sun came back out.  The clouds were just insane.  I couldn't stop taking pictures of the sky.

 

 

 

 

I got a chance to check on the MAX construction.  They started digging this big hole and I can't figure out why.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I keep finding windows in the alleys I walk.  I really like taking self portraits in the windows.  I'm just hoping to find one not next to a recycling bin someday.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This cat could not be bothered.  I kept walking closer and closer to him, and he wouldn't even look at me.  He was too intent on keep watch over the street.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

So many puddles to walk around!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Walked 2.70 Miles

 

 

This was a crazy rainy walk.  Being in Portland, I'm not one to shy away from the rain, but this was pretty extreme.  The rain was pouring sideways.  My feet were soaked in the first 10 minutes.  The plan had been to walk up to Reed College and explore their beautiful grounds.  

 

 

 

 

My husband and I only got about a mile into the walk before we decided to turn around and head home.  It was just too miserable out to make this a successful walk.  Still, it was nice to stretch the legs and to take a few pics.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The building next to my bus stop is down!  It's amazing to see how fast the changes are happening.  One thing I've noticed is that I can hear trains so much louder in my house.  It's not annoying; it's interesting to see how my neighborhood is changing.  

 

 

Walked 6.14 Miles - To Bagdad

 

 

It was another stunningly beautiful day in Portland.  I was happy to have the day off from work (I'm working this weekend and won't get to run with my sis) and I treated the morning like it was a Saturday by decided to go on a longer walk.  I need to start upping my mileage, because May is just around the corner.  I'm struggling with allowing myself to go on walks for multiple hours.  I feel guilty, especially since life is so very busy right now.  I don't feel (as) guilty when I read for hours.  Walking, like reading, is an activity I view as selfish.  I'm trying to change the mind set by reminding myself that walking is time well spent.  I get an immediate pay off, because I always feel better afterward.  Also, the exercise will only help me as I age. So I'm going to start adding on those miles and if I'm out for 2, 3 or even 4 hours, that's not a bad thing.  

 

 

 

 

 

I decided to walk to Hawthorne and then up to 39th.  This is part of the route for the Rock and Roll half in May.  To be quite frank, I'm very nervous about the hill up Hawthorne.  It climbs forever.  I'm going to start incorporating this into my walks to get used to that climb.  I had to cross Powell at the pedestrian signal at 13th.  I hate this signal.  It takes forever to change (I watched a guy walk three blocks and I was still waiting for the light to change) and it's hard to wait that long.  I used to avoid it by walking on the overpass on 17th.  Now, due to the construction this route has been closed for a couple of weeks.  I hope it's reopened soon.

 

 

 

 

I'm still deeply engrossed in listening to Atlas Shrugged on my walks.   I seem to find references to the book everywhere.  Slug is Francisco D' Anconia's nickname for Dagny Taggart.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was walking in Kanye land.  I saw so many stickers, but I was amazed to find this yellow Kanye tape.  It's great to see a different form of this street art.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When I saw this, the first thing that popped into my head is that this person wouldn't be bored if they picked up a book.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't actually walk on Hawthorne.  It's way too busy for my liking.  I walked on Madison which is a block North.  I was so happy to walk past this Buddhist center.  I remember walking through here many years ago when it was being remodeled.  It's such a beautiful space.  I want to come back when the lighting is different to see if I can get better pictures of the stone dogs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This has always been one of my favorite houses.  The last time I saw it, it was painted white.

 

 

 

 

This was a treat!  I walk past these horse hoops (back in the day, folks would tie their horse up to these) all the time, but I've never seen one off the ground.  I was definitely walking in a fancier part of town.

 

 

 

 

The fanciness continued with these names imprinted into the walkway stairs.  I've never noticed this before.  They were all along Madison.  So interesting!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ok, I'm pretty sure this is Falcor from Neverending Story.  There were two benches here and both were amazing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I figured this was a good spot to turn around.   

 

 

 

 

My dear friend's birthday is today.  I remember going to her house on one of her birthdays for a Harold and Maude party.  I think we were 19.  I feel so old seeing that a 35mm screening is special thing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Clinton is another local institution.  I remember seeing Rocky Horror Picture show here as a teenager.  Driving to SE (from Multnomah village) was always a long, scary trek at that age.  Now that thought just makes me laugh.

 

 

 

 

Walked 2.68 Miles

 

 

Today was so incredibly beautiful!  I had told myself that I was much too busy and stressed out to walk, but then I realized that walking would be the very thing to help me relax and allow me to let go of my worries for an hour or so.  And really with the sun shining (the week prior was pretty miserably wet) and the cool temperature were all the boost I needed to head out.   

 

 

 

 

This tree lives about 2 blocks from my house, but it sits on a street I never have a need to walk on.  I can't believe how curved it is.  It's also very tall and seems to be quite healthy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had to check on the MAX construction.  They are currently knocking down this building that is right in front of my morning bus stop.  The first day it was closed and I had to walk to the next stop down, I gave myself plenty of time to walk to the further stop.  It turns out the next stop isn't that far away and I spent an extra ten minutes standing in the freezing cold.  I won't make that mistake again.  

 

 

 

 

Due to the construction, I believe, the fence keeping the train a bay was gone.  I liked getting so close to the train.  As I was taking this picture, the train started, very slowly, to move.  It startled me and I quickly got back on the sidewalk.

 

 

 

 

 The moss on this sidewalk was easily an inch high in places.  It was so squishy to walk on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was a pretty leisurely walk.  I really took the time to stop and smell the flowers - the Daphne is just amazing right now!  This walk was just what I needed to clear my head and just enjoy my surroundings.  I stopped and watched a hummingbird in this tree for a few minutes.  Can you see him?  I can't, but he's there and he was very vocal.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was sad to see a house that I've walked by several times before boarded up and surrounded with fire tape.   Hopefully the fire wasn't too bad.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do other cities have these sidewalk metal guards?  They are so great to see.  We have a ton in our neighborhood.

 

 

 

 

My first My Little Pony!  She replaced another horse that I had seen there months ago.

 

 

 

 

I got a new walking jacket!  Everyone who knows me knows that I'm pretty darn frugal.  My last walking jacket had a broken zipper which made putting it on and off tricky.  I had been looking for a replacement at Goodwill for ages, but couldn't find anything.  Fortunately for me, visiting family from Florida needed to buy a coat and gloves which are hard for them to find in Florida.  We took them to the Columbia outlet store and I walked out with a new coat.  It made my walk so much more enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

Jolked 5.17 Miles along the Spring Water Corridor

 

On today's 5:1 training run with my sis, we headed down to Oaks Bottoms and then to the Sellwood bridge along the Spring water corridor  and returned home the same way.   It was a cloudy day, but we stayed dry which is all I could hope for after all the rain we had been receiving.  I really love walking along the Spring Water corridor.  It's peaceful and beautiful.  It's also great to see so many other pedestrians and bicyclists on the path.

 

 

I walked 25.6 miles in February.  This is much lower than my January totals, but I'm still very happy to have walked this much in a month.  My March goal is to top January's 41 mile record.