Home from the zoo. Our team ended up painting the animal hospital. Now, this is at the Oakland Zoo. The "animal hospital" is a small set of three tiny rooms, one for x-rays, one for surgery, and one for examinations. Tiny. Low tech. Tiny. Sad. Tiny. But now with a fresh coat of paint.

Yay for good deeds done, Suzi. Did you get to see the animals, as well?

::hobbling into thread making whincy faces::

Oooh. Oww. Erg.

I walked 16 miles this morning with my marathon training group. And, while the spirits are good and the muscle fatigue is abating...my feet? They are like unto mincemeat. Want I should show you them?

Seriously. I'm not even kidding when I say that my blisters have blisters.

Something about passing the 12 mile milestone has suddenly made my previously supportive shoes my mortal enemies. No amount of Bodyglide or multiple sock combination is working.

I've got to figure out a way to get to the primo running store (not Metro accessible, which just seems weird) where I bought them...shake my tiny shoes at them and say, Fix this shit!

At this rate, my feet won't recover enough to make it to next Saturday's long miles, much less the foundation miles during the week.

The upside though is that the weather was fantastic today and I'm $40 from my fundraising goal.

Whoot.

Go Beej!

I'm not even kidding when I say that my blisters have blisters.

Sports tape is your friend. I taped my feet like crazy. Little pieces all over because you want to be able to swell a bit. Also, carry socks to change into fresh ones. New socks every 8-10 miles makes happy feet.

eta: And go you!!

Do you have those socks that are two layers? They help a lot.

Sports tape? ears pricking up

I'll do anything at this point. Thanks for the tip.

Ginger, I tried two socks for the first time this morning...one thin, one thick...that appears to have been a tactical error. I don't yet own double layer socks, but will gladly give that a try too.

A training buddy has the same Asics shoe I'm using and she gets blisters in the same place that I do...On the inside of each heel. (one is the size of a quarter, the other is actually three blisters strung close together.) I wonder if the insole has a seam there or something.

I've also pretty much lost the bottom pad of each little toe.

No blisters on the ball of the foot this week though. Perhaps the double sockage helped there.

And thanks for the encouragement guys. It means a lot when I'm feeling all wounded and such.

Bless Bartleby's heart...I left at 4:30am, so I had to take him out for the necessaries after training today. He walked right by my side and very slowly...off lead. While he is always good, I gt the sense that he knew I was hurt. Sweet noodle.

Awww Bartleby.

We did get to wander the zoo when we were done. They showed us a shortcut from the hospital to the main zoo area that went behind the chimpanzee enclosure. Did you know that chimps spit when they are not happy? Did you know that having people pass closely behind their enclosure does not make chimps happy. Yep, got spit on. Good times.

So tired. Am supposed to be hopping in the shower and going to the A's game....

I've got to figure out a way to get to the primo running store (not Metro accessible, which just seems weird) where I bought them...shake my tiny shoes at them and say, Fix this shit!

beej, if you take the orange/blue to Rosslyn and walk across the key bridge, you're about 100 ft from a really good running store in G'town. That's where I got all my gear when I was training for the Marine Corps. (Marathon, not actual corps, ftr.)

Highly, highly recommend the double layer socks. And it sounds like you might be near the new shoe point anyway.

sj, I'm sorry TCG's mother is such a... delightful personage t /tongue in cheek

vw, go you, with the date having, and all.

lisah, here's to your next furnace paying for itself in amazing fuel efficiency in next to no time.

Beej, I hope you can figure out how best to care for your feet while you pull off this amazing feat.