Knit and Run

Well, it's been quite a while since I last posted. Life sort of got away from me, starting with the Steamtown Marathon. Despite the buckets of rain we got on Friday and Saturday (about five gallons leaked through the sunroom roof), the weather on Sunday (the 9th) was perfect marathoning weather--mid-50s, overcast, with the occasional slight drizzle. Tom ran really well (although he would strongly disagree with me), knocking four minutes off his best marathon time and setting another personal record. I met him at all the viewpoints to cheer him on and even ran with him a little bit at the 17-mile point (he was feeling a bit tired at that point). At mile 20, he was hurting pretty bad, but kept plugging along. At mile 26.2, he was definitely ready to be done and fortunately he was. We walked back to the hotel and he had a snack and a nap, then we walked the streets of Scranton in search of a beer. We found this really nice Irish pub called The Banshee. The band "Old Friends" was playing and the Guinness was good. We had dinner at Carmen's. The food was excellent and the portions gigantic, making an expensive dinner a relatively good value. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised at what Scranton had to offer. The people are very friendly and the city has beautiful architecture. And the steam train that runs right past the Radisson is very cool.

Here's a picture of my favorite marathoner close to mile 7:



Job Update
Well, my "sabbatical" is about to end. I received, and accepted, an offer from CGI-AMS and I start work on Monday. Yikes! I don't think I'm ready to get back into the work maelstrom. My challenge will be to stay detached and calm and not get sucked into any potential drama on the project I'll be working on. CGI-AMS is a very big corporation and I haven't worked for one of those for five years. This means that I need a new wardrobe, given that I've been accustomed to wearing jeans to work. Plus I've continued to lose weight and the only business clothes I have that fit are my suits. I spent all of Tuesday at Talbot's revamping my fall wardrobe. Let me tell you, I am amazed. I tried on a pair of low rise boot cut slacks and was stunned, literally stunned. I shed another five or ten pounds and grew about five inches! I shunned boot cut and low rise as too trendy and too young, but now I'm sold. I may never go back to high waisted, pleated front slacks. I do not look like a frump in these clothes. If you ignore my face, lack of boobage, and the fact that I'm 5'2", you might take me for a model. Okay, that's a major stretch. But I do look pretty good. I haven't said that in a very long time.

Another Year Goes By
Tossed into the marathon and job mix was a birthday. I celebrated my 47th year last Friday (the 14th, in case anyone is wondering). I received beautiful cards from my parents and mother-in-law. My running partner Lorrie and I went for a 6-mile birthday run, followed by a light "brunch" at South Street Under. I worked on some Christmas knitting. My friend Beth gave me a gift card from Capitol Yarns and Leigh and Tom and I went out for drinks. On Saturday, Tom and I had a very good dinner at Tuscarora Mill, aka Tuskie's. All in all, a very good birthday!

Knitting Progress
The Christmas knitting is progressing. One sock is completed, the School Colors Hat only needs the topper to be finished, and I've purchased the yarn for the Rasta Colors Hat. I think I'm going to purchase this bag as my main purse, primarily so I can get in a little knitting time at lunch at work. Any thoughts on that?

Extreme Knitting
No pictures today, but I've got three entries that I'll post tomorrow. They are good!