Car shopping

A few months ago, I asked Jeff if he'd make an agreement with me. For my graduation present, I could get a newer, decent car to replace my 2001 Ford Focus. We had never even wanted the focus- Jeff bought it with his old friend and they fixed it up to resell for $4000 with ~100K miles on it. Sure enough, it never sold and when mom and dad got rid of their last taurus, dad took my escort and the focus was my new car. I had to learn how to drive a manual, but the focus drove well, had good A/C, and was 5 years newer than any car I'd had before. But, it had some previous issues already: it only had one key, it was missing a side-view mirror adjuster knob, the passenger door key lock had been damaged and was nonfunctional, there were a few dents in some fenders, and the seller Jeff bought it from failed to bring up that the passenger airbag had been stolen. While the focus sat in the backyard unsold, unused, and uninsured, a tree fell on it during the big windstorm/minor tornado and added a few dents. After I started driving it, something happened in the shifter/transmission and the 5th gear gradually went out. Later, the tumblers in the ignition got screwed up and we had to start leaving the key in the ignition so we wouldn't have to buy a new one.

SO back to a few months ago. The Sunday morning after we had this conversation about getting a newer car, Jeff was getting off the watterson at 5 in the morning onto bardstown rd on his way to paper route. A car t boned him as he went through a green light, and smashed in the back driver door. Jeff called and told me, and I couldn't help but smile a little. He was totally OK, of course. The engine hadn't been hit, but somehow, the battery had died so the focus got towed home. The cop assured Jeff that he could take care of insurance things when the police report was available, but two weeks later we found out that this person didn't have insurance. That is another annoying story for another day.

So the reason Jeff was driving the focus during paper route was because his paper route car, the Colt, had its clutch go out about a month before the focus wreck. We could hardly open the front door, but once the battery was recharged, he resumed its use. We assumed the focus was totaled because the damage extended to the frame. The only dangerous aspect about driving the focus has been that the back tire area got beat up a bit, and all of the shocks are blown or something.

Since the wreck, things have continued downhill with the quality of the car. I think it is related to the heat, but the focus has had this ongoing issue where you have to fidget with the driver door handle to get the door to come open. My best trick had been to smack the handle real hard a couple of times and try again. Well, it hasn't been good enough this summer, and to avoid crawling through my trunk any more times than I already have, I've just started leaving the back passenger door open. It's OK though, because even if someone in the ghetto across the street from where I park wants to try to steal my shitty looking car, full of newspapers and garbage, with its key in the ignition, they would have to know that the clutch ignition button is hidden in the fuse box. This button is supposed to get pushed when you put in the clutch to turn on the car, but it fell off a few weeks ago.

I'll have to take a few pictures before the car-that-tells-a-story is gone.

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So we have leftover tax return money and an infinite amount of loans to borrow. After looking around a bit, and now that I've applied for financial aid, our limit is $8500. I think it is fair to say we'll end up getting something worthwhile.

Our top criteria:
1) cargo space- we want a "truck" car, so we've wanted a station wagon/crossover
2) automatic door locks and windows- I'm so sick of asking passengers to lock their doors
3) under 70,000 miles
4) newer than 2001
5) manual transmission
6) good reputation

Our favorite picks that we've narrowed down our shopping to are the Toyota Matrix and Pontiac Vibe. With the price range we are looking at and after looking thoroughly around the 250 mile radius on craigslist and ebay, we should be able to find what we want- probably a 2004-2006 car with 50,000 miles.




When I stop and think for a minute though, I have on occasion felt frustrated that thats the best I can do with $8500. We have never bought a car for over $3,000, and I can't help but notice that the selection from the $3000-$6500 range stinks. It's exciting though! We are actually going to have a good car!!! We do still like the Neon- but this is going to be a "NEW" car! ahhhhhhhhhhh

2:55:45! The satisfied slow poke

So I didn't make my pretraining goal of 2:43:45 (12:30 min miles), but I am pretty satisfied for the result regardless. Finishing in 2 hours, and about 56 minutes put me at about 13 1/2 minute miles.

Longest straight distance I did before the mini: 4.75 miles in an hour on a treadmill (12 min 37 second mile average)

Longest straight distance I did on the ground: 4 miles in an hour last Wednesday (15 min/miles)

It felt great. I didn't start getting tired until around mile 10. I loved the scenery and the atmosphere. I never even wanted to pull out my iPod. I probably passed more people than passed me. I mostly just tried to walk really fast- kind of like the pace that Dad likes to walk whenever we leave a crowded venue. For the first 9 miles, I had no problem picking up my pace and jogging a few hundred yards every time I saw a mile marker. It probably helped that for the first time, I was wearing all real running equipment (except shoes, but running socks made a HUGE difference! NO blisters today!), and I took an excedrin right before the race based on advice. I was on TV near mile 6, clutching my iPhone in its ziplock bag that I was using to time myself, and waving at the camera. Dad just happened to catch it by surprise, and has it on a VHS at home.

The last couple miles were rough, I was getting anxious for the end since it was all downtown and I kept feeling like I should be closer than I was. I pushed as hard as I could down the last 3-4 blocks, just before I turned onto Preston and then the last so many hundred yards to the way-too-far-away-at-that-point finish line. The idea of walking anymore once I crossed it seemed very awful, but gosh does the pain really set in once you just stop after constantly moving for 3 hours.

I went in just hoping to finish with an official time (3 hours, 15 minutes). Then when I got there, there was no 15:00 minute mile pacer, just a 13:45 minute pacer so I ended up setting that as my goal. I followed him for a couple miles, but he was doing more like 15 minute miles for the first two miles so I got impatient and went ahead and made up the time to have 13:45 min/miles. While making up that time during miles 2-6, I got ahead by like 3 minutes and ended up keeping that until my little sprint at the end.

After the invite from a friend at school, I'm doing a 5K in 2 weekends. I'd like to finish that in like 30 minutes, which I think I could do. Maybe faster, if it works out like the Mini goal did. Another 10K sometime this summer, I can't remember when my friend said it was.

Now I'm wondering what the official time limit for a triathlon is. Just curious.

Doing a mini-marathon

I got an email in November(?) from a 2nd year student recruiting other students to participate in a initiative he started last year which he calls "Medals for Mettle." It involves med students vowing to do a mini-marathon or marathon, and finding a sick pediatric patient a month before the race to dedicate (and give) our medals to at the end of the race. Last year, the organizer had the patient meet him a quarter mile before the end of the race and they finished together. Then he handed down the medal to the kid. Apparently, the kid wore it for weeks.

Sounds extra noble right? Totally. Something that a strong, well-fit, and good hearted person would do. Something inspiring.



So I evaluate myself:

1) I am and always been an awful runner. When I was little I hated tag because I was not fast enough and didn't have the endurance to EVER catch someone once I was it.
2) I really don't seem to be athletic. I'm competitive, I love sports, but I suck at them. Then again, maybe I just never tried hard enough.
3) I am a mom and pretty much consider myself to have no extra time to train for something like a mini.
4) Doing a mini is very impractical at this time of my life and considering my athletic abilities, probably impossible.

So I really want to do it.

My coach and the leader of M4M, Riley, hosted a few training sessions and put out a schedule for beginners like me. He taught me some good techniques that I've been working hard to incorporate into my work outs as I try to build muscle and cardio endurance.

I've been kind of following it. It involves a 5 day/week schedule including sprint excercises, cross training and a long run on Saturdays. I've been trying to work that many days a week, but most of it has not been real running. I'm doing a lot of work on the Wii Fit. Riley said that I needed to focus on leg balance to keep a smooth form so I spend a lot of time on yoga. My wii fit based plan mostly involves the balance activities in yoga, strength training my torso and legs with strength exercises and cardio with aerobic excercises. The aerobic excercises that I use are the "running" ones, which are of course running in place. My calves were super sore the first week but it feels like I have to work harder this week. I've unlocked a "free run" excercise which estimates your "distance." I know its incredibly inaccurate based on how much I can handle running for real, so my goal is to do double the distance on Wii to hopefully make up for it.

Probably what is tying me down to stick with it the most right now is I went with Mom to babys r us and got a good jogger to work with, each of us splitting $200. If I feel even more tied to it in the next month, I think I'll throw another $100 for shoes. I've used the stroller 3 times now, twice on the scenic loop in Cherokee. It is probably heavier than I realize yet (not sure what I can do running alone), and it complicates going up and down hills, obviously. It's also not so good for practicing form, but just like Wii, I just hope it is something to get some work in.

I want to run/jog the whole thing. No walking. 10-12 min miles would be totally fine with me (what even is normal?).

The weather isn't helping so far either. I'm not interested in getting out in the snow. It's funny because I usually like snow and don't care about the traffic issues but it annoys me now that I want to try to run. I also don't want to take baby out in the stroller if its under 40 either, so its a real obstacle. Even if it is warm, we have to get the trip in before 6, which squeezes up my time at school to study (what time am I posting this.......?).

I need to open up my options at the gym. Many of the other students involved (there is probably like 40) work out before school at 8 which sounds nuts to me but if so many other people wake up at 6 why can't I? I'm really trying to make a stricter schedule for myself. And then on Saturdays/Sundays I need to remember to try to do some outdoor running on my own.

mini-marathon early registration ends Sunday the 31st. I'm not going to do it today, but I'm pretty sure I'll make that extra step this weekend.

So am I nuts? Probably just kidding myself...