A Great Day for a Race

Posted on September 24, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….the conditions were perfect

Back in August I signed up for the Railpath Community Run. Initially I thought I would do the walk but every year for the last three years I end up running the course. I guess the term running is debatable in my case but once I start I don’t stop to walk. I’m not very fast, in fact I know people who can walk faster than I run.

On Thursday, my daughter and I made our way to the Henderson Brewery where the running packages could be picked up. This is the first year that the micro brewery, situated on the rail path hosted the event. We stayed and sampled some of the beer after picking up our numbers and t-shirts.

My husband has been coaching a group of boys, ages nine to thirteen, for the last four weeks to prepare them for this year’s cross country run at their school. We’ve known most of the boys for 10 years and we consider them family. Despite my husband’s current medical condition, going out two to three times a week to work with the boys has been a very uplifting experience for him. In his younger days my husband was considered a world class marathon runner.

This past week K has been flat on his back with debilitating pain in his knees and ankles. At the hospital they thought he was suffering from an onset of severe rheumatoid arthritis and they sent him home with a prescription for morphine and a phone number for a rheumatologist. To make a long story short, he was able to get dressed today and make his way to the race to watch his team run.

There were 13 of us from the ‘family’ running and I was the only one who had signed up for the walk, which was after the run. Instead of making everyone wait for me to finish the Community Walk I decided to do the run section instead. I learned a new term today that applies to me. I’m a ‘snurtle’ which means I run slower than a turtle. My only goal today was not to be the last one on the course.

Well I reached my goal. There were four women slower than me and I ran a personal best. The run is 45 minutes long and I was about 200 metres shy of the 5k mark. I figured I would have hit the mark in about 47 minutes. In past races I’ve never run better than a 50 minute 5k.

The boys all ran 8K, some faster than others but in the end three of them took first, second and third place in the under 18 category. Pretty impressive. My daughter, A, ran 8K as well and my daughter-in-law, J, ran 7K. We were all happy with our results and after the race we hung around and had a drink at the brewery. We also stayed for the draw prizes and three of the boys walked away with a gift and I won a prize. Not a bad way to end an event.

Next year I’m going to aim to get to that 5K mark before the 45 minutes are up. It will probably mean losing some more weight and running more often but I’m confident that I can do it. Who would have thought at my age I would become a runner.

Cheers!

Share Your World 2015 – Week 39

Posted on September 30, 2015 by Mama Cormier

…..thanks Cee for more great questions

Which way does the toilet paper roll go? Over or under?

I used to think that it didn’t matter but recently I converted to the over method. I found that when I had the roll go under the roll would sometimes unroll itself. Does that make sense?

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?

If I were a crayon I would be red. It’s my favourite colour.

You are comfortable doing nothing? For long stretches of time?

There are stretches of time where I sit for a long time but I’m usually writing or reading on my computer or I’m watching TV. I can’t say that I’m comfortable doing nothing for long stretches of time. I become antsy and need to get out of the house.

Rather: Would you accept $5,000 to shave your head or die it bright lime green and continue your normal activities while not explaining the reason for your haircut or color?

I don’t think I would shave my head but I would colour it bright lime green. It would take a long time for my hair to grow back but I could recolour it soon after I dyed it.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful for successfully participating in the Railpath Run on Saturday with my daughter, A and her partner, J. It’s a timed race where you run for 45 minutes and a device on your number clocks the time you run or walk at 1k intervals. I had planned on only walking this year because I hadn’t run since last year but I started to run right at the beginning and I didn’t stop for the entire run. I managed to ‘run’ 4.5 K in 45 minutes. I’m not fast but I have a steady and consistent pace. I’m also grateful that I didn’t hurt too much in the next few days. My leg muscles were a little sore but it didn’t stop me from my daily walking regime. For the last few weeks I’ve been averaging over 11 000 steps a day and I’ve reached my walking goal 11 days in a row.

I’m also grateful for spending time with friends from high school. Every time we meet someone new joins us. There were only five of us this time when we met for lunch but it was CM’s first visit and we had a lot of catching up to do. It was a lot of fun.

This week I’m looking forward to celebrating my husband’s birthday. We’re all going to my daughter’s house in Hamilton. Her baby is due any day now and she wanted to host the party at her place so that she would be close to her hospital in case the baby decided to make an appearance during the festivities. Most of all I’m looking forward to the birth of our first grandchild. I may be saying this again next week if she decides to be fashionably late.

Cheers!

ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and Railpath Run

Posted on August 25, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….started running again yesterday

I decide that I needed a goal to keep running more regularly. I was surprised that after not running for so long that I was able to run 2K without stopping. My daughter, A, has recently started running and told me about a fun run coming up in September. It’s not about a set distance in this run but it’s based on time and how far you can run in 45 minutes. Sounds perfect for me.

The money raised for this event goes to STOP which is a community organization that feeds the homeless and families in need of food in the community. I think that all the money comes from the registration fee so I won’t be asking for any donations. The date for the run is Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014. This should give me plenty of time to work up to 45 minutes of running but because it’s a fun run/walk there will be a lot of walkers so if I need to stop and walk for a bit it’s no big deal. I’m really looking forward to this day. If you’re in the Toronto area and want to participate check out the Railpath Run website here.

The other thing that I did today, after getting home from the dentist, was complete the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Again my oldest daughter, A, nominated me and because it’s for a good cause I decided to follow through. Here’s my video.

If you haven’t participated in this challenge and would like to I will be happy to nominate any of my followers. Just say that Carol Cormier nominated you. The important thing, however, is to donate to ALS. I just googled ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and I was able to donate right on line. The one thing I didn’t know was that every country has an ALS chapter and I ended up donating to the American site. No matter, it all goes to a good cause.

If you do participate I’d love to see your video.

Cheers!

Rhapsody in Blue

Posted on December 28, 2012 by Mama Cormier

Story #4 in Daily Post Writing Challenge: Just Do It

My fingers hovered over the keyboard of the computer as if wanting to play along with the Gershwin tune on the radio. The music on the classical station spontaneously made my fingers move to the rhythms of the Steinway grand piano but it didn’t help me find the words for my next story. I was hoping that they would magically appear on my laptop as I hummed to the music. I tried closing my eyes but I felt myself dozing off so I quickly refocused on the blank screen in front of me.

I randomly typed a few words looking for inspiration in the formation of the letters. Nothing. I continued to bob and sway to the music. Such a classic piece. Oh how I love Rhapsody in Blue! The music ends abruptly. Now what?

I go to Youtube and type in Rhapsody in Blue and I find the original performance. So different from what I just heard. Much faster and a tinnier sound. Now I really can’t focus on my writing. I’m totally enthralled with this music. It’s times like this when I wish I could play the piano. The irony is that I have a baby grand sitting in my livingroom and I never learned to play it.

When my son was 10 years old we discovered he had a natural musical gift and he started learning how to play the piano on an old upright that I had purchased from my choir when they were ready to buy a new one. On a whim one weekend, a year or so after our son started playing, we bought a baby grand we saw at the Home Show. Who does that? Well, we do apparently.

We never regretted our purchase. Two of our three children learned how to play it. The parents, however never did. I tried a couple of times to teach myself and I started to get the hang of it but I didn’t persevere and soon gave up practising. We’ve contemplated selling it, especially now that all our children are adults and have left the nest. The piano is in bad need of tuning but it is a beautiful piece of furniture.

I was almost ready to give in to the idea of selling it when my husband decided that he wants to learn how to play it. I can’t argue with that. If anyone can do it, he can. I’m just not sure when he wants to get started. When he does, I know it won’t be Rhapsody in Blue but Chopsticks might be a good start.

I leave you with this recording, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, as I continue to ponder on what I’m going to write.