My plan was to run 5 miles today as my last long run before my 5 mile race on Sunday. I had worked from 4pm until 7am and made it home by about 7:45am. Although on a lot of days I feel like I would rather just crawl into bed and not run today I was looking forward to the run.

It was a beautiful sunny day and there was a coat of frost on everything and as the bright sun burned off the frost it created a slight mist. I decided to wear my light jacket and shorts since it was about 32 degrees. Although I would normally listen to one of the many podcasts I subscribe to I decided to listen to music today since I would be listening to music during the race.

Immediately I felt great and was able to run and enjoy just being out in the neighborhood. As I approached my 2.5 mile mark where I normally flip and head back to make 5 miles I decided I wanted to keep going so I proceeded further through the center of town and back around the way I came. Around my last mile my feet started to become sore and as I finished my run I wondered how far I had gone. I walked home and cooled down, grabbed my recovery drink and logged into LogYourRun.Com to map my run. I was very excited to see I had Today I Ran 8.13 miles in 1:39:12 @ 12:12 min/miles pace, weather was fair, temperature around 32 degrees. This was a big accomplishment for me and was the farthest I had ever run. From there I limped into the shower and then bed as my body reminded me how far I had run with stiffness.

One of the other things I have been thinking about a lot recently is the H1N1 virus and its vaccine. It seems like everyone is scrambling to get the vaccine and I just don’t feel the need. Ok so I'll say the normal don't listen to me; follow the advice of your doctor. Ok disclaimer done. Now I am not one of the fanatics that does not think anyone should be vaccinated, I think and utilize all the other vaccines for me and my family and think that it would be insane or neglectful not to, sorry Jenny McCarthey.

As far as flu shots go I have never gotten one but simply believe that the regular flu shot are for people at high risk with depressed immune system. Personally I think the best defense is to get the real flu once and awhile.

However the new H1N1 vaccine I feel has the potential to be dangerous. They rushed to put together a vaccine and get it to the panicked masses. The FDA that usually takes time to review a drug and conduct tests for safety and side effects of a new drug in this case waived the studies and allowed the vaccine to be released. In addition to the unknown causes there is the known Guillain-Barre syndrome that was associated with previous flu vaccines. On the other side there are people I know that contracted the H1N1 and were sick for a short period of time and recovered fine with overt the counter meds, fluids, and rest. Finally the levels of fatalities associated with H1N1 are far less still that the regular flu and I never worry about that if I get it I get it. I looked all these things and then weighed these risks against getting the H1N1 and decided that I would rather take my chances with getting H1N1 than the dangers of the vaccine. But like all decisions that are this important and involves the health of your children I always find myself wondering is this the right decision?

Tonight we had to go to Sebastian’s parent teacher conference. For the most part he did well the only issues is that he is a goofball and is always talking and fooling around in class. I wonder where he gets that from, Probably his mother.

Ok well this is enough for now. I decided for now I will post on my running days since the primary reason for this blog is my progress running. However I will talk about whatever is on my mind when I am writing the post so I hope not to bore or offend anyone.

Enjoy the night and remember, Everything Always Looks Better after a Run!