Calm after the storm

I hope everybody is ok after last night's major storms and tornadoes. The kids and the dog spent about an hour in the closet. There were a few times I had them "assume the position" when I heard some streets mentioned on TV that were less than 1 mile from my house. At one point, I went outside and I heard a train. And I started to freak out because everybody says that a tornado coming sounds like a train. But then I heard the train whistle and realized it was a real train. Whew. But the storms were major and there was loss of life and property right here in Memphis. It was scary. I took this picture on my patio looking south. Not sure what it was, but I didn't like the looks of it.



I think even Dave Brown was a bit rattled when they said the National Weather Service had issued a "tornado emergency". I looked that up on Wikipedia (love me some Wiki). Check this out: "A tornado emergency is issued by the National Weather Service when a large, violent tornado is expected to impact a populated area. Since its inception in 1999, the Tornado Emergency text has only been used on ten occasions, and until February 5, 2008, no more than one per day. During the Super Tuesday Tornado Outbreak of 2008, four Tornado Emergencies were issued in Tenneseee." That's pretty major. It was a bit scary, but we all made it ok and I'm thankful for that. I am, however, still missing a patio chair...

Now to the topic at hand. This morning was very pleasant and a lovely morning for a walk. And that's just what I did. Walked. All stinking 3 miles. My calves were so tight when I tried to run that they felt like they would snap in two. Bad enough that I just didn't think "pushing through the pain" was a good idea. So I walked it. I'm trying not to beat myself up about this. I know I have to listen to my body and I certainly don't want to really injure myself and be in major trouble. So, I will look at the positive side and be ok with the fact that there was "continuous movement" (that's what the coaches encourage). I'm sure part of the problem is that I get up and stretch and then go run (or try to) first thing. But it would probably be more helpful if I had more time to really warm up and let my muscles wake up, etc. Because now, 2 hours later, I'm feeling ok and I'm a little ticked about that. Maybe I can get the runs in later at night after homework, bath, bed, etc. Not sure how that would work. In the meantime, more ice, Advil and lots more stretches.

Progress made:
My fundraising total is $1,376! WOO-HOO! Thanks everybody!