Tropical Storm Isaac = Rainy Running

Tropical Storm Isaac first started stirring up storm-hype around here early last week, but it wasn't until Saturday that we actually started to see the beginnings of the actual storm.

 

Saturday morning, I got out for a morning 3 miler and was lucky to time the run before too much rain began.  I barely even got drizzled on, and it was good I got it done in the morning, since I spent Saturday night smashing down my own bedroom door (see below).

 

Sunday, however, the storm was nearing.  For serious.  For those unfamiliar with tropical storms, the rain comes in bands, especially as a storm moves in (and, later, moves out), so there are breaks in the rain -- sometimes 5 minutes, sometimes an hour -- then the downpour resumes. 

 

So, Sunday morning, Norah and Jerry went to run some storm-prep errands (grocery store, Home Depot to get a new bedroom door knob -- again, see below), and I decided to load Caleb up in the BOB and take our chances in what I hoped would be a long-lasting lull.  We made it about 1.2 miles before the deluge began.  Caleb was sleeping by then, and I had the weather shield on hand, so I covered he and the stroller up, and he stayed dry and cozy.

 

I, on the other hand, got drenched.

 

Today, then, was the storm's actual "landfall" (for clarification, Isaac didn't pass directly through here, nor was it the intensity that had originally been predicted), and both the kids and I were home for the day since school for all of us had been cancelled.  Jerry went to work, though.

 

Normally, I wouldn't say that a day stuck inside with two kids could be called a day "off," but we had a good day, and the kids were really good and mainly entertained themselves and each other.  Besides, I have this handy-dandy baby-cage for this dude:

 

And this girl spent a large part of her day working on her art:

See?  Masterpiece:

In the late morning, I did gather the troops for an outing: We had library books to return and Red Box movies to return, so I figured we'd get out and get a few things done.  It was a bit of a hassle getting in and out of the car between sideways sheets of rain, but it was good for us to get out and about some.

This afternoon, the rain cleared up, and even though it remained overcast, the storm had basically passed, so we were all happy to get outside for a bit and survey the landscape.

The water in the canal behind our place was about 3 feet higher than normal, and the sand traps on the golf course were basically beaches:

For some perspective, this is what those sand traps normally look like, and the water line in the above picture is about where Norah is standing below:

And, yeah, Norah does run around outside in princess dresses.  Wouldn't you if you had a kick-ass Rapunzel dress?

So, after dinner, I got in my running clothes and headed outside for a run.  I didn't get rained on, but my 3 miles were more like an obstacle course than anything else: Skirting around and jumping over puddles that were the width and depth of small lakes, and hurdling over fallen branches and other debris.  On the whole, I feel pretty lucky for how I was able to navigate my running through this storm for the past few days.

By tomorrow, we should have clear weather and we all resume our normal routine.  For me, hopefully that also means resuming some higher mileage.  The past week or so has been a bit of a slump in mileage, but I think I've gotten the rest I needed and I'm ready to start re-pursuing those higher digits.