"Better have you naked by the end of this song"

So things didn't go as planned this morning with my Saturday run. The plan was to go to Memorial Park and do 7 miles or so.

I got up this morning and walked The Calvinator then got ready to go to Memorial Park. I had put on a pair of shorts that I hadn't worn in awhile and me and my happy @ss were off to the park. And just in case you're wondering, I was wearing my Crocs.

So I get to the park, put on the running shoes, slather on some Body Glide on the thighs, put on the iPod nano and tried to determine if it was shirtless running weather 'cause the humidity was feeling really high. Figuring that I'd prolly have to lose the shirt (which running shirtless has nothing to do with being vain and trying to show off...it's more about scaring people...I mean being hot and uncomfortable) at some point, I decided to just say "f__ it" and if people go blind, well so be it.

I do my ritual pee, take a swig of H2O and off I go. Everything is fine until about the 1 1/2 mile marker. (I won't comment on the people who decided to use ME as their pacer and wouldn't get off my @ss.)

Right around 1 1/2 miles the shorts start to slip. It is then that I remember why I haven't worn these shorts in a long time. When they get wet (from sweat or rain or both), they start to slip down. So here I am running and wondering what kind of a show I'm giving to the people behind me. If you read in the headlines today that there is a crack problem at Memorial Park, you'll know that they're talking about ME!

Now I'm regretting not wearing a shirt 'cause at least the shirt would give me some coverage. I'm trying to figure out what to do 'cause I could only run for about 30 seconds before I'd have to pull the shorts up. I get to the 2 mile marker, grab some water and think, "This ain't so bad. I can do this."

Rather than do 1 more mile, I decide to do 2 more. Big mistake. The slippage only gets worse...and you see it only happens when I run not when I walk. I just wanted this to be over with so I kept running and pulling up the shorts.

I guess at one point I must have pulled them up too high or they were too low 'cause I noticed people running toward were staring at me and they weren't looking at my face; they were looking around the waist line.

Now I'm thinking, "What do I have in The Cal Mobile that will keep the shorts up?'' Nothing. So, now I'm just trying to finish and for some odd reason I think of Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake singing Rock Your Body at Reliant Stadium during the Super Bowl and her wardrobe malfunction.

See how my mind works? You should all be afraid of me!!!!

Anywho, I finished 4 miles, cooled down and went home. The shorts are now in the trash can.

Speaking of running, I haven't been doing weights very much or spinning and I'm feeling really guilty and fat. These guilt trips are from 12 years of Catholic school. ;-)

Life in NoRO (aka 007/Houston)

Lots of stuff going on today and I feel a headache coming on. I don't get headaches very often but when I do they're the kind that bring me to my knees...well, what I mean is that I have to lay on the couch all day. I'm wondering if it is a bit of dehydration? I'm drinking some Accelerade (Citrus Grapefruit) right now and I'm hoping that it helps.

So where to begin?

Weather

Satellite image of Hurricane Dean taken some time this morning.

Last night before I went to bed I was watching Your Education Station and Frank Billingsley said, "Don't get too smug about this." The strike zone cone for Hurricane Dean has narrowed and now Galveston-Houston is at the northern most tip...pretty much out of the zone. However, it will be late Sunday or early Monday before the forecasters get a better feel for what "might" happen.
On an earlier broadcast, Frank spoke with Max Mayfield. Just the sight of him causes me high anxiety! This guy is one of the best hurricane forecasters. Even Max said it is too early to tell.
I really do need to do an inventory of supplies. Even if Dean goes south of us we're probably gonna get real wet for a few days. Look what TS Erin did to Houston.

Running

I did my obligatory 6 mile run this morning. I've decided to do the 1/2 marathon in January so right now I don't feel like doing much more than 6 miles. I do need to start doing some speed work.

Will Run For Martinis clued me in on getting some running music from iTunes. I downloaded a few of the podcasts from Podrunner and listened to one of them this morning. The constant bass beat really did set the cadence (maybe that is what is causing the headache?) and it was a good run but buhgeezes it was hot and humid this morning!

My shoes, socks, shorts and shirt were soaked. I actually had to take off my shirt because I was afraid of getting bloody nipples. (Runners will know what I'm talking about.) It hurts and it's not pretty. When guys start to bleed through their shirts it looks like they've been shot in the chest.

I had put Body Glide on the inner thighs but not on the nipples. Didn't have any Band Aids or Nip Guards to use as protection. And I figured if nobody wanted to see me shirtless, they didn't have to look! :-) I didn't hear anybody screaming and kids didn't cry so I guess I was OK.

Tax Free Weekend

Texas is having a tax free weekend on clothing and backpacks but not school supplies(?). I believe that any item on the approved list that is $100 or less is tax free. Even if you're not going to school you can still get the items tax free.

As a child, my mother trained me to always look for the sales. And I scored big time this morning at Macy's! I got a Kenneth Cole shirt (regular price: $79.00) for $19 and some change and a pair of Kenneth Cole pants (regular price: $70.00) for $19 and some change. (Hurricane evacuation attire it isn't but I will look good on the telly in case they want to interview me as an evacuee.)

However, that is when the headache started. And then I realized that it wasn't even 10:00A yet and the crowds with their kids would soon be arriving so I left The Galleria. Better safe than sorry.

I hadn't been to Fleet Feet Sports in eons and there is one sorta on the way home but not really but it is better than going to Rice Village so I stopped in. OK...20% off ALL apparel and tax free! I only bought a couple of things because the headache was really getting to me.

Anywho...The Calvinator has had his noontime stroll and I think I might need to eat something before I have to lay down on the couch.

I'm outta here!