Pre-Peep Season and Marathon Man

The weather is still undecided about whether it wants to be spring. After hitting close to 70 degrees this afternoon, it cooled down and got windy. I don't care what the weather gods say, I'm moving forward.

I have two packages of Peeps in the woman cave, waiting to be opened. Iris and Isabelle found them and were sniffing the cellophane wrapping today as I worked out there.

Tomorrow we go to the vet for their annual checkup, vaccinations, heartworm test, check on Isabelle's arthritis and Iris's teeth, and then when we get home, I will open the Peeps. Hopefully that will be my redemption for taking them to the vet, which they hate. Isabelle usually trembles and hides behind my legs or under the chair the whole time, and Iris tries to protect her sister even though she's trembling herself.

So tomorrow I will have to come up with some form of Peep entertainment for the girls, to make everything okay again, post vet visit. I'm considering a Peep wreath this year. If I'd thought of it earlier, I could have found some green peeps and used them for today.

Sunday I had another great workout on the track, getting ready for Cornbelt. I need to get some time in on the track curves. I had the track mostly to myself except for the last hour. I did 20 miles in lane 2, running 8 laps and walking one lap, until I was done. I was surprised there weren't more people out there but I was thankful for it. When I first arrived, Crazy Backwards Running Lady was there, but she was about done with her workout, and she left soon after I started. Then a couple showed up, I see them at the track every time I'm there. They must walk there every day. They stay in the outer lanes and are always friendly.

I got going on my workout, starting out at a slow pace, about my 24 hour race pace, but running gradually faster with every 2 mile interval. By the last half I was running solidly and well under 9 minute pace. About 14 miles into my workout another runner showed up on the track. He looked like he was probably in his late 50s to 60 years old, looked like a former hard core runner, skinny body, legs without a trace of fat on them, gray hair and scruffy beard, wearing old, short (circa 1980s) running shorts and a late model Boston Marathon jacket.

Something about this guy told me he was really proud of that jacket. Maybe it was the way he avoided eye contact with me after I walked my 9th lap as he started his warmup, so he probably pegged me for a walker/potential nuisance jogger to get in the way of his sacred Yasso 800s, or who knows. I had my earbuds in place listening to hard core trance music. All I know is, I said hi to him as he jogged by me and he said nothing. Anyway, he had the look.

As he was doing his warmup laps with strides thrown in, I was back to my running, which by then was around 9 minute pace. I cruised past him easily when he slowed down between strides, but he passed me back, as soon as he got back to his warmup pace. I continued at my steady, trance-fueled pace dipping down into the 8:30s and finished my 2 mile interval, and it was getting warm, so I took off my fleece jacket I had been wearing all morning. I still had a good 4 1/2 miles to go. I got back on the track and did my walk lap, and launched into my next 2 mile interval.

I observed Marathon man as he did his intervals, he appeared to actually be doing 800s, and he was moving pretty good for a guy his age. Probably close to 6 minute pace. I kept on my steady pace, and a couple of times as he was recovering and catching his breath, walking backward on the track after finishing his intervals, I noticed him staring at me, as if he was trying to figure out what I was doing. I kept my game face on and pounded out the laps to my music.

I was on my last 2 mile interval and saw him staring at me again, then I realized he was trying to read my shirt. I was wearing my Oklahoma Ultrarunning tshirt from 24 the Hard Way from a couple of years ago underneath my old Across the Years fleece jacket that day. When I finished, I walked a last cooldown lap on the track before going home, he was finally able to read my shirt and that time, he made eye contact and gave me a nod, as if he had finally accepted my presence on the track, as a legitimate athlete doing a legitimate workout.

Who knows, I'm probably completely wrong with all of this but it sure was funny to watch his reaction and see his face when he read my shirt. I imagined him thinking, There really are people out there who can run longer than 26.2 miles. They really exist. I just saw one. And...some of them are middle-aged women with gray hair.

If I had been wearing my Team PearlIzumi workout attire that day, who knows what he might have done. Introduced himself? Said "Hi"? Bowed down and kissed my feet?

Back in the days when Dennis was still running competitively, it always blew me away, the geeky runners who would act like he was some kind of running god, they would approach him so carefully, like talking to him was a once in a lifetime privilege, for which they would gladly pay large sums of money, and if Dennis had said, "Kiss My Feet for I am a running god and you are beneath me" they would have puckered up and bent over.

The way they got all nervous, you would think Dennis was going to ask them for their running credentials before he'd give them the time of day. As if he'd say to his agent, "Tell them I only speak to people with a 10K PR under 32 minutes".

It was just an interesting observation of human behavior in the subculture of running. Dennis is the nicest most unassuming guy you'd ever meet, he'd be more likely to talk to the last place finisher than the guy who finished ahead of him or behind him, and he never even had an agent.

Anyway I just have to laugh at runners because I forget, the ultra world is so different, and then I get around some of the road racing world and it can be a whole different experience. Culture shock.

Well I hope marathon man runs his sub 3 hour marathon at Boston in April because that's about what his Yasso workout would predict. Even if he runs 3:30, it's impressive for an old geezer, I sure couldn't do it or come close.

But I hope he learned something, by sharing the track with me, watching me run 2 mile intervals with my eyes focused ahead of me, between the lines, running a steady pace for 3 hours, systematically clicking off the miles in my relaxed trance-like state.

Maybe when he's hurting in those final miles, he can flash back to that day on the track, and remember that there are some people out there who keep going beyond the finish line, and that 26.2 miles is just the warmup.

But since he didn't even say a word to me, I doubt he even considers it. Probably doesn't even cross his mind, and he probably doesn't even care.

But it kept me entertained. Whatever mental games it takes to get through multiple laps on the track.

Different world.

Officially Fifty...

First race in my new age group today. A 5K in downtown Fort Collins, called Sharin' of the Green, part of the St. Patrick's Day festivities. Parade, beer drinking, and other fun.

I woke up early on purpose so I could run this 5K, just to see how I did, as a 50 year old. Turned out not so bad. I won my new age group, 50-59, and on a cold, windy morning, I managed to run about the same time I've been running for 5K for the past two years. I ran 23:05 and fairly even splits, and the wind was fun, whipping dust, leaves and other junk in our eyes as we ran the streets of Old Town. The wind was generally not too bad, at least I didn't notice it much, but the gusts were a challenge, up to 30 mph, they said.

It was freezing after the race, but I waited around with Joanne and Hunter while they did the awards, had to enjoy the perks of my new age group. I got a twenty dollar gift card to Sports Authority, which will be useful, I'm sure. I still have another 6 or so miles to do today, but I need to warm my frozen body up and put a few more layers on.

Right now the wind is howling and bending the big trees, but I have to get out and finish my run. I always think of Cleveland, I have to do it, because you never know what the conditions will be on race day.

This week was pretty much unproductive work-wise, but it was a decent running week so far. I had a good 20 mile run at Horsetooth where I pushed it on the hills, and averaged a minute and half per mile pace faster than I was running earlier this winter. My legs were sore the past two days from that workout. I plan to start real speedwork in the next few weeks. Wheaties Boy and I are going to start some morning mile repeat sessions once the early morning gets a little lighter.

My niece Jenny was in town this week along with my brother and sister-in-law, and we had fun touring Fort Collins. We celebrated her 17th birthday, and after a day here, they went to Boulder afterwards and it sounds like Jenny's favorite school so far is CU, so maybe we will have another Buffalo in the family after next year. Jenny is a junior in high school, so a lot can happen in a year and a half, but we would love it if she decided to go to school in Boulder.

Hail Mary Under the Stars, and Pancakes

I was craving a night run. It's been a long time since I got out and ran under a clear sky and the temperatures were reasonable enough not to freeze or worry about slipping on black ice. This winter we got more than our share of ice.

I took Iris for a walk earlier today, but Isabelle didn't want to go. It was cold and windy, and I froze my ass off. Today was one of those days where you just can't get it together, nothing falls into place easily, and by mid-afternoon I was frustrated and exhausted. I needed a nap, so I took one, and when I woke up at 5 pm, I realized I still had to get my run in.

I ate a ton of food today and wasn't all that hungry when Dennis came home, so I ate some salad and decided to do my run after dinner. I dressed in my night reflective gear and lights and headed out the door. Today we had blowing snow and sleet, but late in the day the sky cleared and the sun dried everything up, and it was 34 degrees. It felt colder because of the wind. I was bundled in layers and only my hands got cold.

I brought my tunes with me. I still haven't had time to play with my new iPod so it was the old MP3 again. I listened to some Armin Van Buuren trance compilations and the stars were out, the streetlights were on, and I headed down through the Warren Lake neighborhood and down Boardwalk to Lemay, down Hail Mary hill, past Fossil Creek Park, and turned around soon after that. The sky was clear and perfect night running conditions, and I felt great. I powered back up Hail Mary hill, which felt like nothing. Sometimes that hill kicks my butt, but not tonight.

I ran back through Warren Lake and around the park and up Lemay, traffic was light and the streets were quiet. I got 10 miles in and I could feel the salad in my stomach the whole time I ran, but when I got in the house, I was hungry again.

Iris came out of the bedroom to see what I was doing, because she sensed food. She can read my mind even when I'm thinking about food.

I made pancakes, something I haven't eaten in forever. Iris and I sat there in the kitchen and ate pancakes while Isabelle and Dennis slept upstairs. I used butter and maple syrup, decadent.

Now I'm going to bed. Hoping tomorrow will be a more productive day.

Still Kickin': 50th Birthday Running Tour of Fort Collins

You only turn 50 once.

You can't teach an old dog new tricks. Consistent with my past behavior, I decided to have a moving tour for my birthday. No multiple trips around the cemetery this time, and no Walmart shopping. This year it was a tour of Fort Collins. No tour of Fort Collins would be complete without a trip through Old Town, a visit to a brewery, and a few other landmarks along the way.

We congregated to start at Starbucks at 8 am and we had a small group to see us off. My neighbor Stan showed up with his camera and my friend Grace showed up to see us off. Kristin was there for her first 20 mile run, she's training for her first marathon later this year, and Josh showed up for the tour. Ping just got home from Hong Kong and was still jet-lagged but she showed up to run the first mile with us. photo: Stan Wolf

Dale, aka Sasquatch, aka the weather man, was supposed to show but the night before he got dumped on and had car trouble, even the weatherman gets snowed in...but he redeemed himself by providing perfect running conditions all day.

Kristin had been worried about not being able to keep up but I kept reassuring her that it was an easy pace and she'd be fine. She had no problem all day, running up the hills in the last miles and even sprinted at the end past both of us. I keep telling her she has an ultra in her. When she gets done with that marathon I'll be dropping all kinds of ultra hints...

Josh, Kristin and I took off down east Drake and hit the Power Trail going north. The streets and sidewalks were icy in so many places, from the rain and snow the day before. It was clear but cold and throughout the day, even until the end of the run, we were still hitting icy patches in the shade. We had planned to go through Riverbend Ponds but from the looks of the mud next to the bike path, we decided to stick to the path instead of slopping through the mud. It cut about a half mile off of the course, but was a better choice, as the sun was warming the ground fast.

We went west on the Poudre Trail until we hit the first construction detour that took us up Mulberry and into Old Town. About this time we were getting hungry and Josh broke out his compost. He makes this vegan mixture of ingredients that everyone raves about. My issue with it is that it has cinnamon in it, which I don't like. If he made it without the cinnamon I would try it. So I tease him about it being compost. It does look somewhat like compost. I can't tell the difference!

We stopped in Old Town at Silver Grill, which was packed as usual. I chose that spot in case anyone wanted a cinnamon roll, since it is a Fort Collins classic stop. But we got there 20 minutes early and waited around. Hunter and Joanne showed up, Joanne was going to run the next leg with us until the brewery where Hunter would meet us again. We took off from there through Old Town and headed for the cemetery.

On our way up Mountain, Elise met us with her dog, and ran the cemetery and City Park sections with us. I got a text from Felix saying he was on his way up Mountain, he missed us at the Silver Grill. We started our loop around the cemetery and on our way through, we saw Scott running, he caught up to us and joined us on our trip to Odell Brewing.

After the cemetery, we ran through City Park, doing a loop around the lake, and passing the frogs. Then it was time to head for the brewery, and it was beer-thirty.

Josh broke out his compost again for Joanne to try.

At Odell, we hung out and drank a beer. I tried a dry hopped ale called Leprechaun Flute. It was good. I still miss that stuff I had on the beer tour, that was amazing.

Scott took off to finish his run, Joanne and Hunter took off, and Kristin, Josh, Felix and I headed back into Old Town for the final leg through the CSU Oval and to the restaurant. On our way back across Riverside and Mountain, we were stopped waiting for the light to change, and we saw a very elderly man drive his car directly into oncoming traffic in the left turning lane. Fortunately the traffic was stopped but here was this man, stuck in his little car in the middle of a major intersection with semis coming down the road behind him, and all the traffic was stopped. He looked bewildered, and no one was doing anything.

I went out in the middle of the intersection and talked to him through his window, and asked him if he knew how to get himself out of the situation, to see if he understood what was going on. He seemed to be confused about the turning lane, but he told me he was afraid to back out with the trucks coming. I felt like he was coherent enough, and fortunately everyone waited for him to back his car out, and turn around to go down Lincoln.

I don't know what was going on, hopefully he was just confused about the traffic lanes, but I'm not sure...scary.

Felix left us at Library Park and the three of us diehards continued through campus and back to the restaurant, where we arrived an hour and a half early. We completed the loop back to Starbucks and I ran home, logging 20.5 miles for the day. That gave us time to go home and shower to get back to the restaurant for the party at 3.

photo: Shannon Price

It was a fun group at the party, Dennis, running club friends, friends I used to work with at the hospital, our neighbors, and Mr. & Mrs. Wheaties Boy.

Wheaties Boy and I discussed the time change and how we won't need headlamps anymore in the evening, and that means it's time to get serious about speed. Music to my ears.

My neighbor across the street shares a birthday with me, so we are going to continue the party on Monday.

It was such an honor to have everyone there, I can't think of any better way to spend a birthday than with these friends. That is best gift of all.

I had tons of energy and felt great despite having 96.5 miles already logged for the week. I remembered to change the clocks before I went to bed. I woke up early anyway.

Dennis gave me an iPod Nano as a gift. Something I've been wanting to do for a while before my old MP3 player disintegrates completely from thousands of miles of sweat and sunshine.

All I have to do today is a quick 3.5 miles and I'll have 100 for the week. Double my age in miles. Just three weeks until I get to test these 50 year old legs at an ultra for the first time!

And I have to start working on the 51st birthday theme run...

Seventy-six in Four

I've put in 76 miles over the past 4 days. 17, 23, 6 and 30. This weekend I will get another 24 or so and call it a double the age in miles week. My birthday run is Saturday. The weather has been so weird. The forecasts have been completely off and changing drastically from day to day. From hour to hour. I hope it's a halfway decent day, looks like it should be but who knows.

I was dragging ass by the end of today's run. It took forever, almost 6 hours to do 30 miles. My legs were tired, and I had to remind myself that fatigue is the first hurdle and then later on it gets easier. I haven't done this kind of mileage in over a year so it's a wake up call for my legs. I stopped at home at mid-run for a sandwich, but on the run I ate almonds and salted caramel gu. I have never been much of a fan of gels but this stuff is decadent. And with the nuts, it's like dessert.

It was cold this morning. The forecast called for 67 degrees and sunny. But I was in thick tights, gloves, a hat, two long sleeved shirts and my vest. I think it might have been 50 at the warmest part of the day.

The snow is finally gone. Not that we couldn't get more for the next two months, but I'm planning to clean out the front flower garden this weekend. Plus it's almost peep season, and I'll be coming up with some creative peep ideas soon. And we need to get dirt for the garden boxes that Dennis built last fall. This year I will have energy to grow things again and deal with the work of a garden. Unless of course my business gets super busy right away...

When I got home my Pearl Izumi road H3s arrived. They got the Buffalo Seal of Approval. I was so happy, because I have beaten the crap out of the pair I've been wearing. The colors are better this time, instead of the pink. I'm not a fan of pink.

I haven't done much for hills this week, I might end up skipping them this week and hit it next week. The weather should be better and maybe the trails will dry out more by then.

Last night I gave a talk to the Aspen Club, to a good sized group of people at the hospital where I used to work. The Aspen Club is a community health-related club for people over 50. I told them on Monday I will be eligible for Aspen Club membership. It went well, and I think they enjoyed it. I know I did. It was strange to go back in the hospital building though.

I haven't been back there since I left my job in November, and it was such a strange experience- the feeling of walking through the dingy hallways and stairwells, the smells, the cafeteria smell, and the smell of the carpet. The place where I spoke is a big room off the main cafeteria dining area.

It felt sad in the hospital. I didn't feel sad, I am overjoyed that I left. But the atmosphere felt sad, the place felt neglected. Emotionally neglected. People looked tired, dull, worn. Just like the stairwells and walls. Not dirty, but just worn out. Same old artwork on the walls. Dreary.

Same signs everywhere. The one that always cracked me up was on the landing area near the staff elevators, there's a laminated sign posted that says, "This is an area of refuge". I always wondered about that sign when I worked there. What did that mean? If you felt stressed out, were you supposed to congregate by the elevators to get some relief?

Same old propaganda on the bulletin boards, too. Nothing seems to have changed. I saw a few people I recognized but it was a quiet time of day, evening in the hallways, and there weren't a lot of staff around. I said hi to the linen guy when I saw him in the cafeteria. He didn't know I left. I also saw some former patients at my talk and in the cafeteria.

I miss the patients a lot. But I feel like there are all kinds of opportunities now to interact with them through my new business. And I had a strange experience the other night. I had been out running that day in my neighborhood, and one of my former patients lives nearby. I started thinking about her, wondering how she's doing. I thought about her several times recently, since I go through the neighborhood on many of my runs.

That night we went out to a restaurant and there she was, eating with her husband. I went over and said hi. She had a hat on and had recently been through chemo and surgery again, and she actually needed help, so I gave her my business card.

I have a pile of email to answer and tons of details to work through for my business but I feel relieved to be ready to move forward. And next week my brother and sister-in-law and my multitalented brainiac niece Jenny will be visiting, on her 17th birthday, to check out CSU and CU. Will she be a Ram or a Buffalo? Or something else?

It would be nice to have her close by. So far her favorite school has been Oregon State, but then she would be a Beaver. We're partial to Buffaloes here, even though this is Ram country. Either way, it would be great to have Jenny around. I hope she'll find something irresistible here. Iris can give her best smile and Isabelle can sing and dance for Jenny. We'll have her Buffalo cousins turn on the charm!

Kicking Winter's Butt

Winter, you didn't know who you were messing with. You think you can dump snow and ice and make it 3 degrees on the morning I planned a 40 mile run.

Well I have news for you, bucko. I'm not taking your crap any longer. I wasn't born yesterday. I don't have to put up with this.

If it's stronger than you are, you have to be smarter than it. And I showed it who's boss!

I decided to take my rest week a week early and move the 40 mile run to this week, which should give me somewhere around 100 miles for the week, doubling my age in miles, sounds like like a good birthday plan to me!

I'm counting today as the start of our beautiful mud season. Bulbs are coming up, along with oregano...

There is only one remaining pile of snow in the yard, which should be gone by tomorrow morning. And there are signs of spring everywhere, birds making noise, squirrels darting out from every tree trunk, and it's time to switch gears.

Tomorrow I am going to take advantage of the forecasted beautiful day and get that long run in, I'm packing everything into a little backpack with money to buy food along the way, and running all day long.

The yard is a swamp, complete with snakes.

I took Iris for a few miles this morning and then went back out for a total of 17 miles. I slipped a fast 5K in there and 7:30s didn't take too much effort.

I got on the scale yesterday and I'm down to 120 pounds. I have lost a total of 12 pounds, and I'm only 3 to 5 pounds away from my goal weight. I'm pretty sure that I don't need to go below 115. Then I'd be too skinny. At this point, I don't feel like I need to make too much effort other than maintaining what I'm doing, because bumping up the miles and intensity will most likely take care of those last few pounds. And if it's really hard to lose, which I suspect it might be, no big deal. I feel so much better already and I'm running so much better.

I asked Dennis to tell me if I start to look too skinny. He thinks I'm still good, but he can tell I've lost quite a bit. I do not want to have ribs and bones sticking out everywhere, or looking like a board when I turn sideways. I don't like to look like that and I think it's unhealthy. People who haven't seen me in a while notice it right away, in my face.

It's muddy paw season too. Next time we get the floors redone, I need to remember to find a muddy pawprint tile pattern.

Iris has been going crazy since the snow melted because now all the goose poop is exposed. I look forward to the rain washing it away and the geese taking off again. Isabelle loves spring, she finds the muddiest spot in the yard to lie down in, and soaks it up in her belly hairs, then comes in and shakes it all over the walls. It's a never ending battle with the mop and wiping the walls from now until it warms up enough to turn on the hose and hose them down outside.

What can you do? It's our dog house.

March: In Like A Buffalo

It's snowing. Again. Polar vortex, you and I need to have a serious discussion. I'm in a ranting sort of mood.

I am postponing my 40 miler until tomorrow, which will give me a chance to finish working on my presentation for next Wednesday. Plus the fact that I woke up to 16 degrees and a slick layer of ice on everything. Again. Tomorrow promises to be somewhat better, a little warmer and no snow, so I'm waiting.

This was an all-around weird week! The earth must have been slightly off it's orbit around the sun, or the moon was doing something weird. I felt off, in every way.

Every afternoon this week I needed a 2 or 3 hour nap. That's after sleeping at least 8 hours. I haven't even been running much, I averaged roughly 6 miles each day this week, saving it up for my long run. I ran the same route all week, too, and finally the lake is almost free of ice except for in this one corner.

Each day this week, it smelled like spring. The birds were singing in the morning. The snow was melting. Some little green tulip leaves were popping up out of the ground in the back yard.

Wednesday I gave into an ice cream craving after 2 months without the nasty stuff. It probably has been my favorite food forever, at least up there among the top 3 with sushi and green chile. But this time I noticed I felt horrible the day after eating it. Thursday I woke up hungry, had no energy all day. It was the sugar and I think I am done with sugar. I've had so much more energy since I quit eating crap at the beginning of January.

I could not understand why I was craving carbs so badly. Last week I did bump up my mileage, but I ate plenty. So then I got my answer, sorry for the TMI but this is how it is. After not having a menstrual period for 5 months, I thought I was done. I had my physical with the doctor last week and told her that, and we were talking about how I'm probably done. You are considered to be officially in menopause when you have not had a period for one year. So I was really hoping another 7 months would go by undisturbed.

Well as of this week, I got to start over with that year. Sucks! I am so ready for this to be done. I really hope this is the last one. At least it wasn't triggered by a race, like it has been for the past few years. But it would explain my general state of irritability, impatience, and carbohydrate cravings, not to mention the state of my face which broke out randomly about a week ago. I became the RPB again. Dammit.

Then Friday I took my Cancer Exercise Trainer exam. I passed, so now I have that certification and I am finally done with the studying part and can move forward in my business.

Consistent with the earth being off it's orbit, I had a briefly gut-wrenching experience. I went out to Greeley to take the test at Aims Community College, and I sat through the exam, which was much easier than I expected. I got done in an hour and 15 minutes and they allow you 3 hours.

I've taken a lot of these computer exams lately so I sort of know the drill, you finish the exam and submit it, and a little window pops up on the screen that asks, "Are you sure?" and you click yes. And then another little window pops up again and asks, "Are you sure?" and you wish there was a "yes, dammit" button, but you click yes.

And then you wait as it thinks for a while, and then it displays the results on the screen. I passed. It showed my score and how I did on the different sections of the exam. Sometimes they'll have a little survey at the end that they want you to complete. So I sat there and waited while the computer did it's mind crunching thing, and it took a long time. L-O-N-G time. Suddenly this little box came up on the screen that said, "Critical error. Contact test administrator".

Eeek!

So I went out of the room to find the people at the front desk, and they couldn't find my score report. I was thinking, oh shit, they lost it, what if I'll have to do this all over again! But the guy called the test company, and after waiting on the phone for a good ten minutes, he finally got connected to someone. Who then put him on hold and transferred him to another geek, with another forever wait.

Finally they walked him through whatever he needed to do and they recovered my data and I got my score report and I was done. Whew!

It's been this hurdle sitting there ahead of me, so one more thing checked off the list. Now I can concentrate on the good stuff, the marketing, contacting physicians, and the last bits of paperwork and legal stuff before I can really move forward. There's a lot to do, but I want to do it right, and I'm not going to rush through it.

I've been trying not to multitask. It feels great to focus on one thing at a time. I will eventually get back to some multitasking, but it feels good to not put pressure on myself to remember everything. I make my list and get through it, but I'm not running around crazy, trying to stay on top of six things at once. Or twenty-five at once, like when I was working as a nurse-bot.

Speaking of nursing, something really cool has happened, or is about to happen. Finally, nurses portrayed as the human beings and professionals that we are. I hope the American public sees it and starts to wake up. Not just waking up to what nurses do and endure, but also to the reality of health care and that along with all the pressures of the job, professionals in health care are not treated very well by their employers in the current profit-focused model of sick care delivery.

This nursing movie trailer. Please see the movie when it comes out. It looks to be released around Nurses Week, early May, amid the usual consternation and heartburn that the weeklong "event" causes nurses. At least this year, something in our favor.

So now that I've bitched out all my frustration of the week, I am going to move on and do something productive today. One thing.

Off to the woman cave...