One thing or another

So, I fixed the shoe problem, figured out a pre- and post-running stretch routine that has ameliorated the pain, varied clothing to account for warmth and cold and wind.

Oh, and I have asthma. Which I totally forget about sometimes because really, it only bothers me when I’m sick.

Or when there’s a brush fire down the coast, apparently.

Who knew.

I had been outside with the kids for much of the afternoon, thinking every now and then that I could smell smoke. And not good smoke, like some whacko burning a nice fire on the hearth (anyone who uses a fireplace in this Semi-Arid, Sub-Tropical climate must be whacko, right?), but bad smoke, like some whacko burning yesterday’s trash in their back yard. But the smell came and went and there were no tell-tale black plumes of smoke in the sky as a giveaway.

When I set off running, the air felt cool and sharp and dry, which is ok, but it also burned, deep in my chest, in a totally not nice way. The sensation lessened as I ran, probably as wind currents shifted near sunset. And when I came home I collapsed on my bathroom floor with my pair of puffers to try to sooth my sore lungs.

Turns out from the news last night that they were doing “Controlled Burns” on King Ranch, that sort of got out of control due to high winds and low humidity. I’m thinking you check the weather before you do so-called “Controlled Burns,” but that’s just me. This is really nowhere near us, at least thirty or forty miles away, and blew into our town over the water, hence the lack of obvious smoke. The acrid smell was diluted and spread on the high winds, but not so much that it didn’t cause my lungs to scream in protest.

Two possible outcomes here: carry the inhaler with me (not desireable) or don’t run when the air quality stinks. The latter seems more reasonable to me for many reasons, but could be problematic considering the high rate of brush fires this season (heavy rains last summer were followed by several months of drought), and the fact there is a high concentration of petrochemical and heavy industrial work in the area.

This leads to a third option, keep running, but move somewhere else. :D

P.S. My apologies to CM for attributing her shoe solution to CT. It was very funny and I was simply confused. Clearly y’all need to change your names. ;)

Comments

[CT]

Well, you could always call me by my bowling name, Tulula. ;)

[Drythe]

I've always thought the idea of a "controlled fire" was something of an oxymoron.