winding down

OK, I did it, I registered! I have mixed feelings about it, of course, but oh well. This is the last tri for 2008. Then comes "winter" which as I see it in Houston will mean that I won't always be wearing my sleeveless jersey. There are a lot of running races in the winter here as in Indiana so I will definitely partake in those, as well as keeping up with the bike stuff so I can race my bike next year!
I have my eye on a Turkey Trot (5 miles) on Thanksgiving day. Which gets me thinking... what else will I be doing on Thanksgiving day? No family here. I suppose I will invite myself to someone else's house for turkey. We'll worry about that later.

what to do...

Should I register for Ironstar or not? Should I punish myself for 6+ hours or not? I can't decide! I told myself I would decide by today... based on how today's bike ride went. Well, I rode 62 miles in 2:58 with the Pearland Race Team for an average of almost 21mph. However, this is DRAFTING pretty much the entire time except for the last 12 miles where I said F-them and rode on my own cuz I was exhausted and the Cardiovascular system wasn't having it anymore. I don't know... I looked at my training logs from July 2006, right before my last 1/2 Ironman, and it looks like I am training harder right now than I did then, but I am also about 8 pounds heavier than I was then. And no, it is not all muscle. Trust me! So that will increase the pain factor on race day. I will decide by the end of the day. I'm leaning toward doing it.... however it will cost 175 bucks. Hmmm.

Rheumatology Rules

But only for a month. I work 3 hours a day, 4 days a week. Not too shabby, really. But it just doesn't have the same satisfaction as surgery does. You don't fix people, you just keep them from getting worse as fast as they would otherwise. While many of the patients I have seen this month have been ecstatic with their RA treatments, I find myself frustrated with the inability to fix them. Oh well. I'll just enjoy the sleep, exercise, and sunshine I've been getting while it lasts, and quit complaining. On that note, I am contemplating doing a half-Ironman on November 9. That is just a few weeks away and I am still "deciding." That's funny to me because in the past a half-Ironman would require months of planning and training and stressing and doubting... but since Ironman, it's just another race. :)