I did it, I bit the bullet and bought the new ForeRunner 610. It's currently on it's way from Kansas and will be here on Friday! Thanks to my mother-in-law for some Birthday money and many thanks to a friend whose husband works for Garmin and was able to score me a discount on the 610 (which is out of stock in lots of places) it all seemed very meant to be.
I'll be sure to tell you all about it once I get it and figure out how to use it.
I guess this means I better find something to train for. I have been considering the Healdsburg 1/2 on October 29th or the Walnut Creek 1/2 on December 10th. Both have hills, so I'm just going to have to get over that fear of hills thing. On the plus side for Healdsburg, it's the wine country and you get to wine taste with your souvenir glass post race, but I'm thinking that wine followed by 13.1 miles may not not actually seem all that exciting. The other down side is that last year they said it was 90 degrees! Heat and hills are my biggest concern with this race. The super bonus of Walnut Creek is that it is so close to home, no hotel needed which makes it all the more affordable and I can train on parts of the course. The other bonus is the date, running in December assures me no heat on race day and there shouldn't be too many miserable training days in the heat. Yes, I know, it will be cold and possibly raining, but remember I melt in the heat and I would rather run in the rain than in anything over 80 degrees. The other super scary part about Walnut Creek is running up Ygnacio Valley Road past Lime Ridge. I've driven this many times, in fact I will Sunday night for a concert. I can't imagine running up this, scary big, in fact calling it a "hill" is not serving it justice. The bright side is that the return trip will be mostly downhill with one small ascent as we cone back into the downtown area. Yes, I know, downhill can be just as hard on your legs, but these legs actually do quite well with downhill.
So that's what I'm pondering. My husband said "you really want to torture yourself again?" Well, yes, I guess I do... I think. So, I have time to weigh out my options and decide what I want to do. Decisions, decisions.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011
See Jane Run with a glass of Champagne
I didn't have too many expectations for today's event knowing that the Expo had been a little bit of a mess. I was prepared for full rain, which resulted in a lot of pre-packing last night.
Since I had my shirt already, I figured I might as well wear it. Since it was supposedly going to rain, I also had my long sleeved hooded jacket and a clean sweatshirt in the car if I needed to change for the drive home. We had planned to arrive early as they were going to shut parking lots and streets down at 7:30am for the 1/2 Marathon start at 8:00am. So we arrived at 7am and had plenty of time to hang out prior to the start of the race.
Crystal and I were pleased that we had picked up all of our stuff yesterday including timing chip. Alice had to pick up her stuff this morning, but were arrived early enough that there really was not a line. Later on the line for the chip was enormous. While they did packet pick up all week long at their various store locations, yesterday at the Expo was the only day that you could actually pick-up your chip. It seemed like they could have used more volunteers for that line. It seemed like we would stood around forever, but the weather was surprisingly pleasant. There was no wind and not a drop of rain, and it was actually kind of warm. We all decided that jackets and sleeves were not a necessity. So we decided to gear check. I was a little bummed because I hadn't brought my i-phone holder, I was planning on keeping it in my jacket pocket since I was sure it was going to rain. I'm okay running without music but I did want to GPS the course, but in the end not overheating won out against the GPS.
I was excited about this race because it was at Crown Memorial Beach, which is where I scheduled the American Lung Association's 5k for the fall. Even though I am no longer working there and not in charge of the event, it was nice to see how another organization had the course set up, etc. When we lined up Mary Sue and I picked a spot not upfront but not int he back either. I was excited because it looked like we were starting on time, but than quickly realized we were doing wave starts. Which sucks when you are ready to go but knowing the course and how narrow the path would be for the return trip and knowing how many walkers there would be, I knew it was a good decision. I'm not sure which wave we were but I think maybe the 4th, we started somewhere around 10-12 minutes after the first wave.
Along the course it was evident what a good idea the wave start was, I passed a lot of people, I mean a lot of people. Which is always nice for the ego. While I had to do some speeding up and slowing down to pass walkers who were clearly in earlier waves than I had been, for the most part is wasn't too bad ( I won't mention the ladies who were walking 5 abreast). Other than than the passing I managed a pretty nice pace that felt comfortable and was pleased to be in short sleeves and still amazed that there was no wind. We all know that I love running or walking this path, and today was no exception. Since I didn't have GPS to determine where I was mile wise, I used my calorie counter and my knowledge of the area to figure out when I needed to step it up. I was getting tired but I heard someone say we had .30 to go, so I picked up a little and tried to focus on nice long strides. When I saw the mile 13 sign, I stepped it up more, I passed a few more people and as I was rounding the corner to a shoot, I got passed! Damn, I hadn't her coming up on me and honestly I didn't have any steam to push it more and try to catch her. I finished strong and am pleased with the nice run I had.
I have to say the run itself was much more well run than the Expo was. The post race area was really nice, lots of food and lots of vendors giving out some great SWAG! My only criticism would be that I hate races that don't have water at the finish line. MetroMint was giving out water but I had to ask someone where the water was and than make my way over to their tent. Their tent was the closest to the finish line, but we had to cut through the food line to get there. Would have been so much nicer if the MetroMint folks had just been at the finish line handing out water, especially since they had another booth in the vendor area.Other than that, it went very well and as someone who has managed events like this, they did a great job on sponsors and booths with give-a-ways. There was so much and it was all quality stuff and in addition the layout was really great. They had them set up in a huge semi-circle so that you could make your way down and no one booth seemed really crowded or too hard to get to.
Overall it was a great day and I would do this event again. This was the most expensive 5k I've done, but I got a nice technical tee, a finisher's medal and a champagne glass filled with chocolate and champagne! I'll give them time to work on their expo as they proved themselves with the event itself.
On a side note, a shout out to John Muir! I typically wear my John Muir Health hat if I think it's going to rain. While staged at the start line I had two women ask me if I was employee, I explained that I had volunteered and my sister-in-law was an ER Nurse on the Concord campus. They booth work at the Walnut Creek Campus, so it was cool to meet them and I got big thanks and they said how much they love the volunteers.
Unofficial time 34:15
Crystal and I were pleased that we had picked up all of our stuff yesterday including timing chip. Alice had to pick up her stuff this morning, but were arrived early enough that there really was not a line. Later on the line for the chip was enormous. While they did packet pick up all week long at their various store locations, yesterday at the Expo was the only day that you could actually pick-up your chip. It seemed like they could have used more volunteers for that line. It seemed like we would stood around forever, but the weather was surprisingly pleasant. There was no wind and not a drop of rain, and it was actually kind of warm. We all decided that jackets and sleeves were not a necessity. So we decided to gear check. I was a little bummed because I hadn't brought my i-phone holder, I was planning on keeping it in my jacket pocket since I was sure it was going to rain. I'm okay running without music but I did want to GPS the course, but in the end not overheating won out against the GPS.
I was excited about this race because it was at Crown Memorial Beach, which is where I scheduled the American Lung Association's 5k for the fall. Even though I am no longer working there and not in charge of the event, it was nice to see how another organization had the course set up, etc. When we lined up Mary Sue and I picked a spot not upfront but not int he back either. I was excited because it looked like we were starting on time, but than quickly realized we were doing wave starts. Which sucks when you are ready to go but knowing the course and how narrow the path would be for the return trip and knowing how many walkers there would be, I knew it was a good decision. I'm not sure which wave we were but I think maybe the 4th, we started somewhere around 10-12 minutes after the first wave.
Along the course it was evident what a good idea the wave start was, I passed a lot of people, I mean a lot of people. Which is always nice for the ego. While I had to do some speeding up and slowing down to pass walkers who were clearly in earlier waves than I had been, for the most part is wasn't too bad ( I won't mention the ladies who were walking 5 abreast). Other than than the passing I managed a pretty nice pace that felt comfortable and was pleased to be in short sleeves and still amazed that there was no wind. We all know that I love running or walking this path, and today was no exception. Since I didn't have GPS to determine where I was mile wise, I used my calorie counter and my knowledge of the area to figure out when I needed to step it up. I was getting tired but I heard someone say we had .30 to go, so I picked up a little and tried to focus on nice long strides. When I saw the mile 13 sign, I stepped it up more, I passed a few more people and as I was rounding the corner to a shoot, I got passed! Damn, I hadn't her coming up on me and honestly I didn't have any steam to push it more and try to catch her. I finished strong and am pleased with the nice run I had.
I have to say the run itself was much more well run than the Expo was. The post race area was really nice, lots of food and lots of vendors giving out some great SWAG! My only criticism would be that I hate races that don't have water at the finish line. MetroMint was giving out water but I had to ask someone where the water was and than make my way over to their tent. Their tent was the closest to the finish line, but we had to cut through the food line to get there. Would have been so much nicer if the MetroMint folks had just been at the finish line handing out water, especially since they had another booth in the vendor area.Other than that, it went very well and as someone who has managed events like this, they did a great job on sponsors and booths with give-a-ways. There was so much and it was all quality stuff and in addition the layout was really great. They had them set up in a huge semi-circle so that you could make your way down and no one booth seemed really crowded or too hard to get to.
Overall it was a great day and I would do this event again. This was the most expensive 5k I've done, but I got a nice technical tee, a finisher's medal and a champagne glass filled with chocolate and champagne! I'll give them time to work on their expo as they proved themselves with the event itself.
On a side note, a shout out to John Muir! I typically wear my John Muir Health hat if I think it's going to rain. While staged at the start line I had two women ask me if I was employee, I explained that I had volunteered and my sister-in-law was an ER Nurse on the Concord campus. They booth work at the Walnut Creek Campus, so it was cool to meet them and I got big thanks and they said how much they love the volunteers.
Unofficial time 34:15
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| Alice, Crystal and Mere |
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| Mary Sue and Mere representing SmoFit |
Saturday, June 4, 2011
See Jane Run Expo
I don't normally do early packet pick-up but given that tomorrow is going to be a wet, cold and windy mess, getting my packet today seemed like a smart idea. We were told the Race Expo would be across the street from the Oakland See Jane Run Store. I had to look up the store's address since they didn't bother to include that in the e-mail. As I head into Oakland it just starts poring, so much for trying to stay ahead of the rain. As I get onto College Avenue I see the store on the right and look to my left and all I see are other stores, no outdoor expo clearly. Maybe, they moved it into the store because it's raining? Maybe it's behind the store? I pay my $2 to park in downtown Oakland and run across the street into the store. Clearly a hooded running jacket was not enough, I'm drenched. The only signs in the store say that all participants receive a 10% discount on purchases. No one is friendly or helpful and it's obvious there is no packet pick-up in the store. I hear someone else ask who receives the answer "It's at the elementary school" with this look like she's an idiot and we should know that. I don't even bother to ask where the elementary school is because I don't need a similar encounter with the rude employee. Instead, I opt to follow the 6 other women in front of me hoping they know where the elementary school is. The elementary school is across the street and down the block, something that would have bee nice to know ahead of time, especially since it's pouring rain, I mean buckets and buckets of rain.
I am relieved to see that the Expo is inside, although as we arrive, it's clear they are not set-up and ready to go at 11am. So we stand in line for about 10 minutes before they let us check in. Thankfully I'm pretty close to the front and it appears that there are two people checking people in for their bibs and timing chips. I'm thinking that one is for 5k and one for 1/2 Marathon, but there are no signs and no one has made an announcement. The two people handing out the items and a third woman who is reading bib numbers off of a laptop look annoyed and irritated and are pretty much anything but friendly. When they realize someone is in the wrong line they then decided to make a not very loud announcement in regards to the lines. I than here the woman on the laptop say ask "couldn't we have emailed them their bib numbers ahead of time so we wouldn't have to look up every single one?" Awesome, more unfriendly folks, to be fair I believe these three with Finish Line Productions and not See Jane Run, but still. Luckily I heard someone else say that goody bags and shirts were in another room since no one volunteered that information to me. At this point I had to fight my way back through the line to get to this small room where I was asked for my bib to tear off a section to show I had received my goody bag, at which point I stood and waited for someone to give me a bag and finally the woman prompted this young man to give me a bag... I see we have trained the volunteers well. I grabbed a shirt and got out as fast as I could. Since I was here, I did want to see Expo but the way the room was set up and the location of the line it was nearly impossible to get through to the vendor booths. It was also clear that not all of the vendors/sponsors had showed up. I managed to get to the MetroMint Table and thankfully they were friendly. I just wanted a coupon since I love their water, they chatted and asked if I knew where to get the water and I told them that I used to get it at Whole Foods but was excited that my Safeway started carrying it. They mentioned that Safeway sells it cheaper than everywhere else. I need to get past the Arbonne table, they are selling all kinds of stuff and I sampled one of their drinks while in line (smart vendor) but didn't care for it. I was trying to peer down to the end of the room to see if it was worthwhile to even try to get past the bottleneck of the bib line. I spotted the FRS table and decided that was worth it, so I had to say excuse me several times to get past the line and made it over there. And to my surprise found they very sweet Jessica who used to work for PopChips. I met Jessica at a Brazen Race where I was volunteered and she was so kind to come out to my MADD Walk last year and give out PopChips. So now she is with FRS, another brand that has been super good to me in my event planning arena. Since no one could even make it down to that end of the room, Jessica gave me a 4 pack of one of their new flavors. It's kind of cool to have these contacts and to see folks on the race circuit. She said FRS is a great place to work, so I'm glad it's working out for her. I briefly look around and nothing seems of interest so I start to head out. On the way out I look through the See Jane Run merchandise, there is a nice hooded zip that I decide I need. Thankfully the woman who rings it up is very nice. Sadly they don't have any bags for merchandise. She has sent someone to get bags and says I can wait for a bag. My goody bag is pretty full and I don't think I can get the sweatshirt in there and it's still pouring outside. I wait for about 5 minutes, but it's so cramped in there and really is no god place to wait that I just say screw it and leave.
I have heard that past See Jane Run Race's have been not organized all that great, but I was hoping that by now they would have things figured out. I do believe this was their first year doing an Expo, so perhaps they will learn something from today. They could of set up bibs and timing chips at the end of the room so that the line could have filed all the way down with vendors on either side, that way vendors could have chatted and promoted their products while you were in line. Hoping that tomorrow's run is more organized but at least I already have my bib and timing chip so all I have to deal with is rain, wind and cold.
I am relieved to see that the Expo is inside, although as we arrive, it's clear they are not set-up and ready to go at 11am. So we stand in line for about 10 minutes before they let us check in. Thankfully I'm pretty close to the front and it appears that there are two people checking people in for their bibs and timing chips. I'm thinking that one is for 5k and one for 1/2 Marathon, but there are no signs and no one has made an announcement. The two people handing out the items and a third woman who is reading bib numbers off of a laptop look annoyed and irritated and are pretty much anything but friendly. When they realize someone is in the wrong line they then decided to make a not very loud announcement in regards to the lines. I than here the woman on the laptop say ask "couldn't we have emailed them their bib numbers ahead of time so we wouldn't have to look up every single one?" Awesome, more unfriendly folks, to be fair I believe these three with Finish Line Productions and not See Jane Run, but still. Luckily I heard someone else say that goody bags and shirts were in another room since no one volunteered that information to me. At this point I had to fight my way back through the line to get to this small room where I was asked for my bib to tear off a section to show I had received my goody bag, at which point I stood and waited for someone to give me a bag and finally the woman prompted this young man to give me a bag... I see we have trained the volunteers well. I grabbed a shirt and got out as fast as I could. Since I was here, I did want to see Expo but the way the room was set up and the location of the line it was nearly impossible to get through to the vendor booths. It was also clear that not all of the vendors/sponsors had showed up. I managed to get to the MetroMint Table and thankfully they were friendly. I just wanted a coupon since I love their water, they chatted and asked if I knew where to get the water and I told them that I used to get it at Whole Foods but was excited that my Safeway started carrying it. They mentioned that Safeway sells it cheaper than everywhere else. I need to get past the Arbonne table, they are selling all kinds of stuff and I sampled one of their drinks while in line (smart vendor) but didn't care for it. I was trying to peer down to the end of the room to see if it was worthwhile to even try to get past the bottleneck of the bib line. I spotted the FRS table and decided that was worth it, so I had to say excuse me several times to get past the line and made it over there. And to my surprise found they very sweet Jessica who used to work for PopChips. I met Jessica at a Brazen Race where I was volunteered and she was so kind to come out to my MADD Walk last year and give out PopChips. So now she is with FRS, another brand that has been super good to me in my event planning arena. Since no one could even make it down to that end of the room, Jessica gave me a 4 pack of one of their new flavors. It's kind of cool to have these contacts and to see folks on the race circuit. She said FRS is a great place to work, so I'm glad it's working out for her. I briefly look around and nothing seems of interest so I start to head out. On the way out I look through the See Jane Run merchandise, there is a nice hooded zip that I decide I need. Thankfully the woman who rings it up is very nice. Sadly they don't have any bags for merchandise. She has sent someone to get bags and says I can wait for a bag. My goody bag is pretty full and I don't think I can get the sweatshirt in there and it's still pouring outside. I wait for about 5 minutes, but it's so cramped in there and really is no god place to wait that I just say screw it and leave.
I have heard that past See Jane Run Race's have been not organized all that great, but I was hoping that by now they would have things figured out. I do believe this was their first year doing an Expo, so perhaps they will learn something from today. They could of set up bibs and timing chips at the end of the room so that the line could have filed all the way down with vendors on either side, that way vendors could have chatted and promoted their products while you were in line. Hoping that tomorrow's run is more organized but at least I already have my bib and timing chip so all I have to deal with is rain, wind and cold.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
National Running Day
I was only planning on a 1 mile run today with the 5k this weekend. I woke up and just was not feeling very motivated and thought, maybe I'll just ride the bike at the gym. Then I saw it was National Running Day and figured it would be a bummer to not run on National Running Day. I did a nice easy ride on the stationary bike for 40 minutes and convinced myself that no matter how I felt I could certainly survive 10 minutes of running. So, that I did, 1 mile with no music but I did manage to find a nice smooth treadmill (yes there really is a difference between that and a noisy one or one that shakes every time your foot lands causing a sensation of vertigo) and it actually turned out to be a rather pleasant 10 minutes after all.
I'm excited for this weekend's race, it's probably going to be cold, windy and wet. I am familiar with how cold and windy it gets along the Alameda Shoreline, so I'll be ready and we all know I prefer that to hot anyway. I'm also excited because two of my friends from high school are also running, it always makes an event more pleasurable when you do it with friends.... and champagne and chocolate.
I'm excited for this weekend's race, it's probably going to be cold, windy and wet. I am familiar with how cold and windy it gets along the Alameda Shoreline, so I'll be ready and we all know I prefer that to hot anyway. I'm also excited because two of my friends from high school are also running, it always makes an event more pleasurable when you do it with friends.... and champagne and chocolate.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Rainy days make me thankful for a gym
It was nice to know that I got 2 miles in on the treadmill and 25 minutes on the bike today. On the drive home I noticed this poor fellow running in the rain and thought to myself, sure glad I'm not training for anything because that would be me! It's amazing how quickly you lose your HTFU attitude when you aren't planning on doing any races longer than a 5k.
With so many changes and so much going on in our lives right now, I am content to just exercise and a do a 5k here or there. Maybe once schools tarts in the late summer I'll consider taking on something larger but for now I'm happy to try and take it easy and get the most out of my days and life.
Last Friday was my daughter's Walk-a-Thon that raises money for our parents club to help support smaller class sizes, PE, teacher's aides, etc. While it wasn't a perfect course I do believe each lap was .25 miles possibly more. Her goal was to complete 12 laps. When she got lap 4 she was saying she was tired already. Kids are awesome at sprinting at super speed and than getting tired and walking and repeating several more times. I really wanted her to reach the goal she had set for herself. So I started doing laps with her, after all some sprinting would do me good. Once Sydney hit the 12th lap I asked how she was feeling and what she wanted to do, and she wanted to keep going! Ultimately she ran/walked 21 laps! She would have kept going but it was only a 2 hour event. While I was the only parent who actually ran laps with my daughter, I am proud of her accomplishment and I know that being by her side I was able to help her meet and exceed her goal.
With so many changes and so much going on in our lives right now, I am content to just exercise and a do a 5k here or there. Maybe once schools tarts in the late summer I'll consider taking on something larger but for now I'm happy to try and take it easy and get the most out of my days and life.
Last Friday was my daughter's Walk-a-Thon that raises money for our parents club to help support smaller class sizes, PE, teacher's aides, etc. While it wasn't a perfect course I do believe each lap was .25 miles possibly more. Her goal was to complete 12 laps. When she got lap 4 she was saying she was tired already. Kids are awesome at sprinting at super speed and than getting tired and walking and repeating several more times. I really wanted her to reach the goal she had set for herself. So I started doing laps with her, after all some sprinting would do me good. Once Sydney hit the 12th lap I asked how she was feeling and what she wanted to do, and she wanted to keep going! Ultimately she ran/walked 21 laps! She would have kept going but it was only a 2 hour event. While I was the only parent who actually ran laps with my daughter, I am proud of her accomplishment and I know that being by her side I was able to help her meet and exceed her goal.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Changes, changes and more changes
First, an update on my tree's. They are still in my yard in all of their beauty. Thank you to an amazing lawyer who warned PG&E that if they cut the tree's down he would be going after them for damages, PG&E has decided to back off and see if we can resolve the issue nicely. We filed a formal complaint with the PUC and while that is pending a hearing PG&E is hoping we can resolve this without having to go through the hearing process with the PUC. Hmm, probably because if we win, this will severely hamper the "we can do whatever we want" attitude they have and crimp their style (money) of having to go back to trimming instead of removal. I'm currently waiting for their rude Arborist to call and schedule a time to measure the actual line distance from the ground in front of our property, good times.
In other news, most everyone knows that I quit my job. I thought my last non-profit experience was bad but nothing like this. I kept quite about much of the day to day drama, the inappropriate and unprofessional behavior of many of my co-workers and the different directions I was being given by various people. It's one thing to work with other people who really only give 50% to their work, I can work in my own little bubble and ignore their lack of pride in their work, but there are some things that I just can't ignore. The final straw was finding out that ZERO of the money we raise in development would go to any of our programs, ZERO. I can't in good faith go out and raise money when the money I raise is not going to any of our programs, not a dime. So I bid farewell to the chaos and am feeling pretty good about it all.
Over the past 5 months our family has been on a roller-coaster that we just couldn't get off of. Being the one responsible for getting the kids ready for school, dropping them off, picking them up and getting dinner ready every night took a toll on everyone really quickly. Getting home at 6:15pm-6:30pm when your kids go to bed at 7:00 and 8:00pm leaves no quality family time let alone time for homework and practicing reading. The kids were starting to pick up on our stress and we all just hunkered down and tried to survive each day. I neglected lots of things over this time including friends and just my general well being. So we are all now on the road to health and happiness. It took 5 months for all of this stress to build up so I know it will take a while to get back to the person I was, but already I feel a sense of relief. I'm not a person who lets go of things easily but I can honestly say for the first time after leaving a job that I have really let it go, I don't care, I can't.
We celebrated my daughter's Third Birthday and spent a great weekend with family and friends. Despite everyone but me (knock on wood) having the stomach flu this week has gone amazingly well. I have gotten a little glimpse of what the summer will be like with both girls at home full time. I have enjoyed several days of sitting in our backyard and really enjoying it, which amazingly I never seem to find time to do.
On that note, lots of race changes. I was not able to run in my favorite race this weekend due to Sydney being sick but Scott and Kylie ran and had a great time. Scott took all the bibs so he could get all of our t-shirts and oops my timing chip attached to my bib was in the jogging stroller, needless to say I came in 2nd in my AG for a race I didn't run. Before all of this happened we made the decision to not run in the COPS Memorial Run this upcoming weekend because of a party that would include the entire family. Now bummed realizing I won't get to run 2 races, I decided to register for the See Jane Run 5k in Alameda. Originally I thought we would go to Sonoma that weekend and run, but some more changes in plans and I decided that finishing a run with champagne and chocolate sounds right up my alley.
On to bigger and better things.
In other news, most everyone knows that I quit my job. I thought my last non-profit experience was bad but nothing like this. I kept quite about much of the day to day drama, the inappropriate and unprofessional behavior of many of my co-workers and the different directions I was being given by various people. It's one thing to work with other people who really only give 50% to their work, I can work in my own little bubble and ignore their lack of pride in their work, but there are some things that I just can't ignore. The final straw was finding out that ZERO of the money we raise in development would go to any of our programs, ZERO. I can't in good faith go out and raise money when the money I raise is not going to any of our programs, not a dime. So I bid farewell to the chaos and am feeling pretty good about it all.
Over the past 5 months our family has been on a roller-coaster that we just couldn't get off of. Being the one responsible for getting the kids ready for school, dropping them off, picking them up and getting dinner ready every night took a toll on everyone really quickly. Getting home at 6:15pm-6:30pm when your kids go to bed at 7:00 and 8:00pm leaves no quality family time let alone time for homework and practicing reading. The kids were starting to pick up on our stress and we all just hunkered down and tried to survive each day. I neglected lots of things over this time including friends and just my general well being. So we are all now on the road to health and happiness. It took 5 months for all of this stress to build up so I know it will take a while to get back to the person I was, but already I feel a sense of relief. I'm not a person who lets go of things easily but I can honestly say for the first time after leaving a job that I have really let it go, I don't care, I can't.
We celebrated my daughter's Third Birthday and spent a great weekend with family and friends. Despite everyone but me (knock on wood) having the stomach flu this week has gone amazingly well. I have gotten a little glimpse of what the summer will be like with both girls at home full time. I have enjoyed several days of sitting in our backyard and really enjoying it, which amazingly I never seem to find time to do.
On that note, lots of race changes. I was not able to run in my favorite race this weekend due to Sydney being sick but Scott and Kylie ran and had a great time. Scott took all the bibs so he could get all of our t-shirts and oops my timing chip attached to my bib was in the jogging stroller, needless to say I came in 2nd in my AG for a race I didn't run. Before all of this happened we made the decision to not run in the COPS Memorial Run this upcoming weekend because of a party that would include the entire family. Now bummed realizing I won't get to run 2 races, I decided to register for the See Jane Run 5k in Alameda. Originally I thought we would go to Sonoma that weekend and run, but some more changes in plans and I decided that finishing a run with champagne and chocolate sounds right up my alley.
On to bigger and better things.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
My love for my utility company
Let's face it, even if I managed to find some way to go off the grid and not be dependent on PG&E for power, I'd still have to deal with this.
This is a 230kv transmission line that comes through my neighborhood. Due to this PG&E has an easement on the front of our property that allows them access to those lines and tree trimming because the lines come down our street. Over the years PG&E has trimmed the tops of the tree's. Two years ago they wanted to remove them and we politely declined. I happened to be home one day when Davey Tree showed up to remove the tree's and I said "um, no. We told PG&E we would not allow removal." The Davey employee asked if he could trim them and I gave him permission to do that. I was horrified after the fact, that had I not been home they would have just removed the tree's.
To give you a little history on our tree's:
I'm not even certain how long these tree's have been here. But I do know that years ago someone crashed into the front yard that the birch tree basically saved the rest of the yard as it prevented the vehicle from coming up in further into the yard. Today, I have two young children who love to play in the front yard and these tree's serve as a natural barrier to the flat part of our yard where my children play. We live on a heavily traveled street where people tend to not obey the speed limit so as parents and pet owners a little scary to us to think of not having that barrier to protect all that is important to us.
This year, an ACRT employee who was evaluating the trees and clearance approached me one day (again I was lucky to be home) to talk about removal of the tree's. I told him the same thing, we're happy to trim them but we don't want them removed. Okay fine, guy takes my name makes some notes and leaves. The following month we receive a letter from PG&E stating they are removing two of the tree's, call us if you have questions or concerns. We make several calls and talk to a couple of very rude and unsympathetic people who just tell us they are coming out but they will give us three weeks to do whatever research we want. When we ask to see official measurements because their website says they only need 12-20 feet of clearance based on the species of tree they inform us they are now requiring 40 feet. What, why they change where is the documentation? Whatever we ask for we are met with resistance and basically told we're taking them out, too bad so sad. We ask about being compensated to re-vegetate the area, nope, not getting that either.
Over the past couple of weeks we have ordered a copy of the full easement which is a typed document from the late 20's. I contact CPUC and after talking to or being transferred to four different people I find someone who can help. They send an inquiry to PG&E asking for the justification in the plant removal. While they wait for their response the nice guy at CPUC sends me link with information on standards for this level of transmission. The CPUC requirement is 2.97 feet of clearance (Really???? Why does PG&E want 40 feet), NERC (Northern American Electric Reliability Council) is 2.97 feet. Is it just me or is PG&E being totally unreasonable in asking for 40 feet of clearance with a 50 foot tall line. I better tell my neighbors to watch out for their shrubs!
After a call with our attorney last nigh he advised to tell PG&E if their intent is to remove our tree's they are trespassing and we will call the police. If they would like to discuss trimming the tree's we will allow them on your property to conduct that work. This morning my husband finds them down the street and has a conversation with the Forester (who is apparently an arborist and doesn't feel bad that he;s just ordering tree's to be clear cut) and explains exactly what our attorney said to say, what they are doing is unreasonable and excessive and we've also spoke to CPUC. The guys says "okay, I'll pass that along to my team" and shakes his hand.
An hour and a half later they pull up to my house and my neighbors house with two crews. No safety measure are taking place, this is clearly the din-dong ditch of tree removal. I run out of the house and look at the Forester and say you're just here to trim right? The tree's are coming down he tells me. Thank goodness I had the phone in my hand, as the chainsaw starts up I call 911 and then my husband. I yell at the Davey Tree employee to get off my property that he is trespassing, he pauses and looks at the Forester but does not turn off the chainsaw. I yell again. I look up at my neighbors house as I hear a chainsaw up there and see my neighbor and I tell him I have already called the police. I call dispatch again and ask that the officer hurry up. For a moment the Davey employee shuts down the chainsaw and I feel a little relief. I look up at my neighbors yard just in time to see his tree hit the ground. His tree is much larger than ours, no precautions were taken, no ropes used they simply took it down in a matter of minutes. What I found out later was that my neighbor ordered them off his property requested to see a copy of the easement, while the ACRT employee pretended to go to his truck to get a copy of the easement (which he didn't have) mu neighbor went into his house to get the phone and also call the police and they took his tree out while his back was turned. The tree landed in the middle of the street blocking lanes, there were no personal to stop or direct traffic while this happened and cars were honking and yelling at the crews. While I was watching this unfold The Davey employee in my yard started up the saw and made another attempt. I looked at him and yelled again that he was trespassing, I wanted him to understand that he was the only person on my property that the PG&E folks were smartly standing across the street and when the cops show up he would be the one trespassing. He backed off.
Orinda police showed up and I got a moment to actually breathe.
This is my neighbor's tree as they try to hustle to get it out of the street since they completely did it in an unsafe fashion. Today's ordeal went on for three hours. Three hours of tears, yelling, the entire on duty Orinda Police force (that would be three officers and a sergeant), attorney's and more tears.
In the final moments Orinda Police told me I had to let them take the tree's down. Even though I was the only individual with the actual easement that while archaic my attorney has deciphered to read that they are only allowed 10 feet of clearance, no one cared. Even though PG&E touts their rights based on this easement, no one cared what it actually said. When I mentioned sitting in the tree, I was informed they would restrain me and it would go from a civil issue to a criminal one. At this point I'm sobbing on the phone with my attorney, the cops tell me to just take photos so I can sue them alter (gee thanks). We've exhausted every option and I'm going to have to explain to my girls why Mommy couldn't save the tree's, the chainsaw stops. My attorney has managed to get a hold of PG&E's attorney and she's giving us a week to figure it out. The Forester comes up and decides to show his compassionate side and says he'll help us identify a proper tree to replant and that this just isn't the species they want under the lines. He then offers to help reimburse for the cost of new tree's. I tell him why this wasn't a discussion we could have had two weeks ago to avoid this entire situation. It's all a load of crap I know, the attorney told him to play nice, I get it.
The bottom line is they'll be back next Thursday to take my tree's unless my attorney and PG&E's attorney can agree on what his really reasonable. I feel so violated and so bullied I just can't even get my head around my emotions right now. My husband warned me that the once the adrenaline wore off, I wouldn't feel quite right, I didn't understand what he meant at the time, but now I do. I have the shakes and I just can't quite pull myself out of it.
At the least, we hopefully through a wrench in their system and their bullying, While next week I may be two tree's less at least I know I fought the good fight and stood up for what I felt was right.
To give you a little history on our tree's:
This year, an ACRT employee who was evaluating the trees and clearance approached me one day (again I was lucky to be home) to talk about removal of the tree's. I told him the same thing, we're happy to trim them but we don't want them removed. Okay fine, guy takes my name makes some notes and leaves. The following month we receive a letter from PG&E stating they are removing two of the tree's, call us if you have questions or concerns. We make several calls and talk to a couple of very rude and unsympathetic people who just tell us they are coming out but they will give us three weeks to do whatever research we want. When we ask to see official measurements because their website says they only need 12-20 feet of clearance based on the species of tree they inform us they are now requiring 40 feet. What, why they change where is the documentation? Whatever we ask for we are met with resistance and basically told we're taking them out, too bad so sad. We ask about being compensated to re-vegetate the area, nope, not getting that either.
Over the past couple of weeks we have ordered a copy of the full easement which is a typed document from the late 20's. I contact CPUC and after talking to or being transferred to four different people I find someone who can help. They send an inquiry to PG&E asking for the justification in the plant removal. While they wait for their response the nice guy at CPUC sends me link with information on standards for this level of transmission. The CPUC requirement is 2.97 feet of clearance (Really???? Why does PG&E want 40 feet), NERC (Northern American Electric Reliability Council) is 2.97 feet. Is it just me or is PG&E being totally unreasonable in asking for 40 feet of clearance with a 50 foot tall line. I better tell my neighbors to watch out for their shrubs!
After a call with our attorney last nigh he advised to tell PG&E if their intent is to remove our tree's they are trespassing and we will call the police. If they would like to discuss trimming the tree's we will allow them on your property to conduct that work. This morning my husband finds them down the street and has a conversation with the Forester (who is apparently an arborist and doesn't feel bad that he;s just ordering tree's to be clear cut) and explains exactly what our attorney said to say, what they are doing is unreasonable and excessive and we've also spoke to CPUC. The guys says "okay, I'll pass that along to my team" and shakes his hand.
An hour and a half later they pull up to my house and my neighbors house with two crews. No safety measure are taking place, this is clearly the din-dong ditch of tree removal. I run out of the house and look at the Forester and say you're just here to trim right? The tree's are coming down he tells me. Thank goodness I had the phone in my hand, as the chainsaw starts up I call 911 and then my husband. I yell at the Davey Tree employee to get off my property that he is trespassing, he pauses and looks at the Forester but does not turn off the chainsaw. I yell again. I look up at my neighbors house as I hear a chainsaw up there and see my neighbor and I tell him I have already called the police. I call dispatch again and ask that the officer hurry up. For a moment the Davey employee shuts down the chainsaw and I feel a little relief. I look up at my neighbors yard just in time to see his tree hit the ground. His tree is much larger than ours, no precautions were taken, no ropes used they simply took it down in a matter of minutes. What I found out later was that my neighbor ordered them off his property requested to see a copy of the easement, while the ACRT employee pretended to go to his truck to get a copy of the easement (which he didn't have) mu neighbor went into his house to get the phone and also call the police and they took his tree out while his back was turned. The tree landed in the middle of the street blocking lanes, there were no personal to stop or direct traffic while this happened and cars were honking and yelling at the crews. While I was watching this unfold The Davey employee in my yard started up the saw and made another attempt. I looked at him and yelled again that he was trespassing, I wanted him to understand that he was the only person on my property that the PG&E folks were smartly standing across the street and when the cops show up he would be the one trespassing. He backed off.
Orinda police showed up and I got a moment to actually breathe.
This is my neighbor's tree as they try to hustle to get it out of the street since they completely did it in an unsafe fashion. Today's ordeal went on for three hours. Three hours of tears, yelling, the entire on duty Orinda Police force (that would be three officers and a sergeant), attorney's and more tears.
In the final moments Orinda Police told me I had to let them take the tree's down. Even though I was the only individual with the actual easement that while archaic my attorney has deciphered to read that they are only allowed 10 feet of clearance, no one cared. Even though PG&E touts their rights based on this easement, no one cared what it actually said. When I mentioned sitting in the tree, I was informed they would restrain me and it would go from a civil issue to a criminal one. At this point I'm sobbing on the phone with my attorney, the cops tell me to just take photos so I can sue them alter (gee thanks). We've exhausted every option and I'm going to have to explain to my girls why Mommy couldn't save the tree's, the chainsaw stops. My attorney has managed to get a hold of PG&E's attorney and she's giving us a week to figure it out. The Forester comes up and decides to show his compassionate side and says he'll help us identify a proper tree to replant and that this just isn't the species they want under the lines. He then offers to help reimburse for the cost of new tree's. I tell him why this wasn't a discussion we could have had two weeks ago to avoid this entire situation. It's all a load of crap I know, the attorney told him to play nice, I get it.
The bottom line is they'll be back next Thursday to take my tree's unless my attorney and PG&E's attorney can agree on what his really reasonable. I feel so violated and so bullied I just can't even get my head around my emotions right now. My husband warned me that the once the adrenaline wore off, I wouldn't feel quite right, I didn't understand what he meant at the time, but now I do. I have the shakes and I just can't quite pull myself out of it.
At the least, we hopefully through a wrench in their system and their bullying, While next week I may be two tree's less at least I know I fought the good fight and stood up for what I felt was right.
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