Tales of the Unexpected

So the middle of January is upon us New Years resolutions are fast becoming a distant memory. I haven't made any for some years because I know how bad I am at sticking to them.

I think I have managed to run a whole 20 miles so far this year. I really would have liked to have done more. The will is there, but my body is broke!! After the triple wammy before Christmas I thought I had put Winter illness behind me. Not so..... a wee sniffle and an itchy throat started last week and as much as I have tried to ignore it, it has floored me today..... not only that but the shingles has re-appeared. D'oh, who have I upset?
I don't think it helped my that I almost got blown off my feet by the 100 mile an hour winds which battered Beachy Head at the weekend. The Subversive Runner thought I'd appreciate the beauty of this natural wonder, and he was right. Stunning. The setting just makes you want to run, my companion however is crocked at the moment and we were prevented from donning our shoes.
You would think that leaving a damp dreich Glasgow airport heading of the big city of the south would bring some respite from the cold. Well, you'd be wrong!! Reduced visibility at Gatwick delayed the inbound flight by half an hour. Freezing fog and a ground temp of -7 kept us in a holding pattern for 20 mins above Gatwick and wait till you hear this............ defrosting planes on the ground, scrapping the windscreens kept us on the tarmac for 40 mins. WTF a wee bit of frost and London grinds to a halt!!

So before my cold kicked my a^$e I managed to make it to our new training session. Ian Pitt has started a new 13 week programme for complete beginners and returners. 24 people turned up for the first week and we were all really excited by the response. Week 2 and a slight drop off was expected. Well, nobody told the residents of Strathaven; 41 runners and 8 helpers hit the streets of our quiet little toon. Has Strathaven become the running capital of the UK? Well done Ian.

When I started writing this blog earlier on today I was gonna update about my Dad having had a bit of a rough time in the past couple of weeks (ending up in hospital again with another infection) and how if his bloods were ok today he might be allowed to have his next cycle of chemo on Monday.
But as I was typing away, Mum came in and told me the Oncologist had advised them she was stopping the chemo!!!! Now this news came as a bit of a shock, as he should have 5 more cycles to go. It turns out that although his kidneys are recovering after the chemo, they recover less and less each time :-( So, weighing up the risk of a recurrence of the sarcoma against the potential for kidney failure the decision was made. I still don't know what I feel about this news yet. Happy he doesn't need to endure the torture of having toxic chemicals pumped into him for 48 hours and the subsequent fallout. Scared of the unknown....... Cancer is a lottery. None of us know if or when we will develop it. And treatment is also a lottery, some people respond very well with few side affects others can be very sick. We just gotta take what we are given and deal with it. He will be monitored every 2 months and can pretty much get on with living his life, albeit without a right shoulder and limited range of movement. He is positive and glad to be getting back to "normal". Watch this space.

And finally,
Strathaven Striders annual Charity Dance- date FINALLY set.
Troon Tortoise 10k th May. 1 bus booked- looks like we need 2 !!
1st Striders xcountry club run arranged.
And if my ailments improve I'm gonna have my first run on the WHW this weekend. Calley training needs a kick start lol.

Catch ya, Mrs Mac xox