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When I set out to run my 17 mile this week (which I pushed back for time constraints and also for having to skip some weekday runs) I had a tightness set in again in my left calf around mile 4. I was sooooooo mad!!! This run was out on Coronado, following the path up north that runs around the peninsula. I tried slowing down and stretching, which allowed me to run back to base and finish 9 miles. Then I ended up not running at all for 4 days because things got so busy as I was leaving San Diego. But today I ran an easy 3 mile and didn’t feel that nigglepoo whatsoever so I’m feeling optimistic about doing a long run tomorrow. My goal is to do 13 miles, then continue on if my calf is up to it.

Otherwise, I’m now in Chicago and missing San Diego!! Last night I was at a house party in Wrigleyville and with the Cubs winning something or other, fireworks were going off and everyone was blaring their horns. It definitely reminded me that I am now back here and conversations revolve around the Bears versus the Chargers, Cubs or White Sox versus Padres, getting to the Lake versus the beach. Also, I don’t know how I forgot how bad traffic in Chicago is, but I managed to and that made me love San Diego “rush hour” even more!! Plus, parking is just terrible here compared to San Diego… in suburbs, downtown, and Wrigleyville alike!

I’m flying out again to Virginia Beach on Monday for my emergency rotation at the the Navy hospital in Portsmouth. So, this weekend for me is just trying to fill out reimbursement paperwork, opening a month’s worth of mail, and walking around town while my car is in the shop. Fun fun fun

See, we can have fun in the hospital too! I had to wear that khaki uniform every day. And this is my resident, who graduated from Loyola too! That was a super fun rotation… Go Red Team!!

This is a few of us at an italian restaurant in the Gaslamp district. It was called Acqua 2 or something. It was yummy!  And sitting across from me is my girl Nilsa, who’s Puerto Rican and a kick ass salsa dancer

This was taken while driving over the Coronado bridge at dawn, looking out over to the 32nd street base. The USS Mercy is one of the ships to the back (although you can’t really see it with this lighting!)

i got to go hiking with some friends i visited out in the middle of the california desert for some cross training on saturday.  other than that, i still haven’t run my 17 mile but i hope to tomorrow!  my team was on late call today so i missed out on all available sunshine.  friday is my last day here in san diego… i’m going to miss it!!  but i made the most of my one weekend off with visiting ridgecrest (4 hours away!!) stopping in temecula on the way back, tapas and sangria in the gaslamp district, brazilian food for lunch, plus laying out on the beach and getting a little window shopping in.

on a side note, i must say it is a LOT easier to meet people in san diego than in chicago.  or, it could be my wingwoman Nilsa who’s getting all the attention   but the med student love life curse doesn’t seem to be so bad here!

I love San Diego.

I love being in the Navy.

I love being a sub intern.

So yes, my life is totally awesome right now!!  It’s crazy to think that this might actually be my future.  After 3 years of being around people who I have to explain my career decisions to, I am now surrounded by people who not only understand it, but support it and can give me invaluable advice.  The people I’ve met here are awesome.  The stories I’ve heard are awesome.  How many people in your field have gotten to practice all over the world?  Fly with the Blue Angels? Treat Navy SEALS?  It’s sooo cool!!  Oh, and the SEALS are staying at my base on Coronado and just got done with Hell Week.  Apparently that movie G.I. Jane is the closest to accurate!

Plus I’ve been having fun with the other med students, getting around San Diego and Coronado and going to restaurants, clubs, beaches, chilling out on the patio with a beer, etc.  One downside is that I’m staying in a dorm-style room with just a microwave to cook with.  And having to wear my khaki uniform everyday.  Today I had to park far away from the hospital and had to return salutes all over the place.  It’s kind of an inner groan to see a uniform walk towards you, since you have to squint at their rank from a distance and figure out if you salute first or if they’re supposed to salute you.  Since I’m an officer, and a majority of the Navy is enlisted, most of them salute me.  But when I was walking along and a huge group of Marines was getting out of a van right as I walked past…that was interesting.

As for internship interviews, I’ve had 3 so far and they were awesome.  I had to wear the Navy summer whites, the uniform you’ve probably seen in Top Gun.  They’re still stressful in that you need to have a CV and personal statement ready and you’re looking to impress.  But I think they went well!!!  The only downside is that the selection process in the Navy is undergoing a big change and everything is in transition and although it used to be like the NFL draft, the new system is so complicated I’m just crossing my fingers and praying.

As for my marathon training, I’ve done the long runs of a 15 last week and an 11 this past Tuesday, which was actually harder than the 15!  During the week I really only have 1 or 2 days to do an additional day.  Plus I’m keeping my social life a bit more active than my running life at the moment   I’m heading up to Ridgeland this weekend and will probably do some hiking, and I’m scheduled for a 17 miler on Sunday.  Though I was nervous about the 15 and did fine, I’m still a little nervous about the 17!  Not sure why, I guess I’m just not as familiar with all the routes and am constantly worried about getting water along the way, which is what makes the Mission Bay trail a great place to run.  And I’m hoping I’m getting the mileage right, I’m just running the mileage x10 minutes and assume that’s the full distance.  I probably should get a GPS thing…I should look into that.

This is a photo I stole that shows the bay, the bridge is going over to Coronado Island where I’m staying (to the right) and San Diego is to the left, with all those ships being privately owned.  But I thought it was pretty

So I flew into San Diego last Monday just in time to spend a couple hours on Mission beach/Pacific beach amidst the bikini-clad tan body crowd of college students and get a little bit of time in the waves before starting my rotation at the Navy Medical Center Balboa.  I’m doing a medicine rotation, basically acting as a sub-intern and taking care of active duty Navy people and their families.  It’s sooo nice to finally be working in this hospital!!  I’ve been wanting to work here as I’d heard great things and want to do my internship here but hadn’t actually seen the place.  The days can get long but my team is super cool and the nurses are friendly.  Everyone here is so polite and helpful!!  The only weird thing is I have to wear my uniform and do the saluting thing when I’m outside.  Thankfully you don’t have to do that indoors.

I’ve had the chance to do a couple things in San Diego like visit Coronado island and go out with other medical students for dinner and such.  Last night I went to the Gaslamp district for sushi (excellent!) although parking was a nightmare (much like Chicago).  Then we went over to a jazz bar in Pacific Beach called Turquoise which was really cool.  We walked along the beach at night and ran into some bums so that was fun!

But I’m here to work and hopefully make a good impression.  My running has kept up pretty well, I’m running on the boardwalk alongside the beach, which is incredible.  Last night I watched the instant the sun dipped below the horizon over the ocean while on mile 5 and the people lined up to watch the sunset applauded all in that moment.  I’m on call today so can’t do my cross training, which I think will consist mainly of jumping in the waves or surfing if I get the chance.  Tomorrow is my long 15-miler which I plan to run around Mission Bay after watching the Bears game.  If I survive I’ll let you know!

And by the way, I LOVE SAN DIEGO.

here’s a photo from my half last weekend!

I ran the Lake Country Half Marathon this morning, it was really fun!!  It was up in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, which is about 2 hours north of Chicago.  The course was really nice and it was a gorgeous day.  There were about 600 runners for the half, I’m not sure how many were there for the 5K.  It was at the YMCA at Pabst Farms and we ran around the country lanes, up and down hills, along cornfields, and crossed under I-94 once or twice.  They had a good volunteer and spectator turnout, so that was cool.

Starting the race, my quads were already tired.  As if I had a long run yesterday or already logged 5 miles!  But hey, what can I do.  I figure it has to do with not being used to running in the morning (even though I had an energy bar 2 hours prior….)  My legs didn’t start to feel like they got into the swing of things until around mile 4.  I know I’ve groaned a bit in these blogs about the lack of hills in Chicago, but the hills on the course today were actually fun!  It used to be that I liked hills and today I remembered why.

I had chalked myself up to not being a good hill runner anymore, but after mile 6 I found myself increasing my pace uphill.  Downhill was a problem when I had patellar tendonitis a few years ago, but today I was able to use the momentum.  Still, I haven’t been training on hills so I had to get used to them again, but overall I was happy the course had a few challenges!

I came in 399 overall, 165 in my division.  My time was 2:06:18, a 9:39 mile pace.  I’m okay with that.. I had hoped to be closer to a 9 minute pace, but my legs felt like jelly most of the race.  Maybe I need to eat more protein??  Why were my legs sore??  I was able to pick up my pace after mile 12 to finish strong, but not up to my usual sprint at the end of a run.  I’m not sure when pics will be ready, but I’ll post one when they’re up.

At least I felt pretty good for the rest of today.  A bit tired, but I also got only 4 hours of sleep last night.  Today was spent in preparation for flying to San Diego tomorrow (WAHOOOO!) and I’m still in the midst of packing.  Hopefully the airline is forgiving about the weight of my luggage!!  Hey, I’ll be gone for an entire month!  Plus I’m packing a bunch of medical texts (that’s probably 40lb right there…) and my computer plus clothes, plus my Navy uniforms (2 khaki, dress blues, and my whites, plus shoes and covers)  OK, I know you’re not interested in the contents of my luggage.  Next time I write will be from Pacific Beach, California