Taking Some Time Off (aka Oh Crap I Have Too Much To Do)

This is not happy smiley sun

This is the sun that is currently baking Eastern Iowa.  It is not the friendly sun with sunglasses, a smiley face, and a wink.  No, it is the molten orb of life-sucking power that, combined with dew points in the 70's, pretty much stops all but necessary movement outside for the next week or so.  

My poor drought-resistant flowers are pooping out.  After all, it's not a drought, but the unrelenting sun that is making them cry out "Ma ma Ma ma". There's plenty of moisture in the air, which you find out pretty quickly when you step outside and feel like you're being smothered by a  warm, heavy, wet blanket.  

My basil, however, is going great guns.  I don't know how much steam (he he get it--steam!) they will have to last through the week, but I will be using lots of basil this week in my cooking.   

I have been tasked with a large project at work which will require weeks of work.  This means I have no life for pretty much the next 4 weeks.  Between this project, and the early mornings it will require, and my start up to training for the half-marathon, and  issues with heat  (very early morning runs) --quite frankly, my plate is FULL.  I am exhausted, and I can't keep my eyes open.  

So I am taking a break from this blog for a few weeks, until I have the time, energy, and brain waves to put out a scintillating recap of my life.  I will keep posting on The Talking Leaf Book Club for our book discussions, and I will try and put up a few book reviews on Bookalicious Babe as I continue my journey to 100 books.  One thing I will not give up is my reading time!  It's just a bit shorter, since I fall asleep after a few pages and have books hit me in the face.  So far no bloody lips to report!

I will try and comment and read everyone's blogs, too.  I do so enjoy reading what everyone else is up to!  But sometimes, the energizer bunny runs out of power, and that's me right now.  As a matter of fact, I am due a nap before I go to work tonight.  Right now it's a cool 85 degrees at 11 AM with a heat index of 90, and it's only going up every hour.  

So a quick update on my running:  I am doing it.  Nothing brilliant, nothing to report, just that I am going out early in the morning, and trying to get in at least 3 miles before I stop.  I ran some hills early Saturday morning, and plan on getting out before 6 AM tomorrow and Wed mornings to run more miles.  I don't want to run in the heat, but if I stop even for a week, I feel like I will backslide and have to start over again.  I know when to stop, and take a break so I will be fine.  It just requires more naps for me :)  This also means more laundry, as my stinky running clothes and bras cannot sit for days.  Seriously--you know that you've sweated too much when your running clothes are still damp after a couple days in the hamper.  Ick.  If I had a smokin' body, I would just run in shorts and a running bra--but let's face it-this would not only squelch my very small reserve of self-esteem, but it would also be a punishment to all those who see me slowly jogging by them on the path.  I will cover up for the sake of humanity.  They just have to put up with my stink instead.

So I'll see ya around, folks!  Stay cool, read something fun, and I'll be back soon.