By Stephie, on Sunday 22nd January, 2012 at 02:06 am
I’ve spent the last couple of posts griping so I thought I’d lighten the mood a bit and show you another gift I made for a lovely friend this Christmas (hope she won’t mind me showing you). I got a bit carried away with the wallet idea and loved making them, so Janie got one too! I thought it could be used for travel or keeping notebooks for her copious knitting projects, but she hasn’t told me what she’s put in it yet
A big tie to keep it all together
The patterned fabric is a Japanese linen that I got at The Makery in Bath in the summer. The striped linen is from my stash, bought locally.
Lots of pockets inside for all her bits and bobs
I love the weight of the linen, it was quite heavy so it didn’t need much in the way of stiffening with interfacing.
The pockets are big enough for notebooks or passports...or both!
And it was all finished off with a little bit of love. And some decorative buttons!
Yes, I got very enthused by the wallets. So enthused I even made myself one, but it’s not for travel. You’ll have to keep guessing because I’ve still got to take photos of it!
By Stephie, on Saturday 21st January, 2012 at 18:11 pm
Breath in, long slow exhale. And again. It’ll be alright on the night I tell myself optimistically. I’m dozing in bed, lying on my tummy, on a beautiful Sunday morning. It’s later than I’d planned, but so cosy and warm that I don’t want the hibernation to end.
22 miles along the north coast were scheduled. What’s that, about 4 hours or so, 5 if I was really, really slow? The last few miles would be painful, which definitely equals slow. A quick calculation meant that I had to start running well before midday, if I was to get back in the light. I picked up my mobile, looked at the time and thought “that’s not going to happen.” I rolled over, “I’ll pack a torch, that’ll be fun and a bit different.”
By the time I started running (not much more than a jog) it was already 2pm. I set off from Trevaunance Cove in St Agnes and headed towards Portreath. There and back, then a loop over and around the Beacon (a bit of a hill) would just about get me the 22 miles. It was so beautiful and I was looking forward to it. And not only would I be testing myself, but also a new running pack I was lucky enough to be given for Christmas (Salomon XA25) .
Time for a break
Its plenty pockets were packed with a spare fleece, about 3/4 of a litre of sports drink (in a bladder), a mini first aid kit, head torch, bicycle light (front and rear), tissues, keys, spare change, mobile, Ibuprofen…and homemade flapjacks! The main compartment is fully waterproof, but I noted with a smile that at least I wouldn’t be testing that out today! It looks quite large to be running with, but once you’re wearing it you hardly know it’s there. It’s very light weight and its streamlined shape means it doesn’t inhibit your arm movements at all. It’s got more compression straps than you can imagine, that you can adjust whilst you’re wearing it, so you can make it fit nice and snug to your body too.
I got out of the car, stretched my arms and got straight back in again. The door slammed shut. Where had this wind suddenly come from? It was a bitterly cold one too. I rummaged around on the back seat and found my gorgeous fleece headband (see previous post), a pair of gloves and a pair of waterproof trousers. Not that I expected to get wet, but I didn’t want to freeze to death either. Finally I was ready to go.
People often ask me what on earth I think about when I’m out for 4 hours or more on my own, as though it would be torture for them. I don’t have this problem. I try to be in the moment and just experience the weather, the views, nature, be in tune with my body and the sound of my breathing. When I do notice that I’m consciously ‘thinking’ it’s usually things like ‘how long before I can have something else to eat’ or ‘how’s the time going?’. Today was a bit different. The wind was so strong I was literally being blown backwards at times and I began thinking about how exhausted I was feeling battling against it. I was also cursing my newish Asics GT2160′s (still haven’t got new trail shoes yet). They’ve been pressing hard on my achilles causing pain in my ankles and fatigue in my calves. They were fine in the shop. They’re fine at track, but any longer distances and they just kill me (on road or otherwise). I don’t know why as they’re so well cushioned, but I do know my ankles look puffy and fantastically blue after wearing them for any length of time. So disappointing. (2nd bad experience with Asics so I won’t be buying them again.)
Already I was not a happy bunny and I just couldn’t tune out to the negative whining going on in my head. After about 7 or so miles I decided I’d have a break for a few minutes and sat down on the grass to eat some flapjacks. I felt better.
Sustenance!
Then I looked up over Portreath to see the sun setting and realised I’d better get a move on. I was getting cold anyway.
Who turned the light off?
As the sun went down I got colder and colder. The closer to St Agnes I got the narrower the path seemed to be. And the closer to a sheer drop into the blackness on my left I got, the more nervous I became . Head torch on and bicycle light in hand I still didn’t feel I could see well enough so decided to head inland. Legs screaming, slowing, fatigue well and truly settling in… Sucking hard on the plastic bladder tube and realising I’d run out of fluids at about mile 16 was the final nail in the coffin. Another mile or so back to the car and that would be it. No more tonight. 5 miles short and only a month to go. I started worrying about how I was ever going to get back on track, and whether it was even possible. Then I began to think that what was even worse was how easily I gave in.
Back in the car I sipped a hot fruit tea that I’d put in a flask to warm myself up, before driving the long 10 minutes home! It felt like the kindest thing I’d done for myself all day. It’s the little kindnesses (not excuses) I decided that will make it ok. Be kind to yourself and accept that you weren’t prepared well enough for nightfall and a drop in temperature, learn from it and prepare better next time. Acknowledge that this is your first ever marathon, that it’s not going to be perfect and that you’ll learn from it for next time. Too often I struggle to be ‘perfect’ and am really hard on myself if I don’t feel I am. It just feels like a cop out to say ‘nobody’s/nothing’s perfect’. So I’m switching it around: this marathon will provide me with the perfect learning experience. Already I’m learning that the mind/the will are as much a part of running far as having a ‘fit’ body. I may have to walk more than I thought I would, but I know that with a willing mind I can easily cover 28 miles (I’ve actually walked a whole 25 in the past, so I know it’s possible!). So stop worrying, think about some new shoes and how fantastic your new rucksack is – and anticipate how spectacular the Devonshire views well be. Go on, get on with it!
By Stephie, on Tuesday 17th January, 2012 at 11:28 am
On top of Cornwall
Someone at my running club recently said that headbands look stupid. I take her point. Still, it was blowing a gale and at least my ears were warm.
These photos were taken on New Year’s Day on Brown Willy, Cornwall’s highest point out on Bodmin Moor. Contrary to what you might think, it most likely gets its name from the Cornish ‘Bron Wennyly’ meaning Swallows’ Hill, which is a tad more romantic. I certainly got brown though, falling more than once into numerous knee deep bogs. I wasn’t the only one: there were over three hundred of us out on the moor running in the new year (with the odd walker thrown in). I absolutely loved it; it was the best run I’ve ever had.
Snaking over the moor
It was meant to be 7 miles. To be honest, for most people it was 7 miles. But for me, and the three poor souls that decided to follow me, it was more like 9 miles… I got a bit carried away, enjoying myself running downhill too much instead of looking where I was meant to be going. Instead of taking a right, I just carried on straight ahead. And got lost. Good job it wasn’t shrouded in fog like it usually is. Good job we bumped into a group of runners that had actually intended to run 9 miles and knew the way home, or we’d probably still be out there today. Not a compass between us – who’d have thought you’d need one in a featureless landscape where the route was well marked with red ‘flags’?
God did my legs ache when I got back two hours later; my quads felt like they’d been wrung out. I’d run 19 miles only 2 days before, so I blamed the excess aching on that. On reflection though, I probably just wasn’t fit enough. And I’m still not, which is why I’m worrying.
Scrambling through bog
Since then I haven’t run enough at all. Not for someone that’s meant to be running a coastal marathon in a month’s time at any rate. I lost motivation and let myself succumb to mental and physical exhaustion. The positive self-talk I’ve been trying to harness evaporated and the space it left was filled with self-doubt, self-criticism and major anxiety.
I haven’t made an entry in my running diary for two weeks. The week that ended with New Year’s Day I ran over 35 miles in total. This week I should have clocked up 40, but I’ve fallen short and it’s the all important long run that’s suffering. If I put it down in the diary I’ll get even more anxious; at least this way I can pretend it’s ok. Well I could if I didn’t feel so anxious all the time.
28 miles is a long way and I’m a slow runner. The average completion time for previous competitors on the course is 5 hours 20 minutes. I don’t think I’m average, more your ‘back of the packer’ so I could be out there forever, if I don’t get told to get off the course because it’ll be dark soon. The longest run I’ve managed so far was about 4 and a half hours and my legs had all but given up. How am I going to manage another hour, hour and a half on top of that? I haven’t got a clue. And there’s only a month to go and the last two weeks are meant to be a tapering period to give your body time to recover before the big day.
I feel at a loss; what should I do? What training, if any, is there that I can do in the next two weeks to lift my confidence from the floor, where it’s been languishing for a while now?
By Stephie, on Tuesday 3rd January, 2012 at 11:00 am
I said I’d show you some of the things I made for gifts this year, so I thought I’d randomly start with this one: a wallet in a gorgeous Liberty Tana Lawn fabric. It was for Kim’s daddy, we even put some stamps in so that he doesn’t forget to send us a postcard when he’s off on his holidays
Plain and simple outside
All set for travel . . . → Continue reading: I made this!
By Stephie, on Monday 2nd January, 2012 at 10:27 am
My sister is 35 today.
A birthday rose for Victoria
There’s nothing like your little sister reaching a sort of milestone to make you feel really ancient is there?! Even so, I still hope she has a great day
