Hi everyone!
It's been a while since I have updated on what has been going on with training and life in general. As far as life, my family and I recently had a unique opportunity to have President Gee, current president of Ohio State, come and visit my parents restaurant in Troy, OH. I know that you are probably wondering how in that happens, so to make a long story short, Gee wants to visit all 88 counties in Ohio, and during each visit, he wants to visit w/ current students' families and particularly those who own small businesses. My boss at OSU told me about it, and I submitted our names to be considered. The local paper covered the visit, the link can be found here. Apparently, in the actual paper, I am shown photographed with Gee. My parents did not make it into the paper. (Unfortunately, soon after this picture was taken, Gee's son-in-law passed away in Philadelphia. His son-in-law was recently in a serious car accident.)
As far as the rest of the summer, I have been working at the hospital and slowly working on chapters of my dissertation. In between, I am trying to find time to get training in. Most recently, I ran a 10 mile race. It was very hot and humid that morning, as evidenced by the attached picture. I had a goal to run in 1 hour and 30 minutes (aka 9 min/mile) but with the heat I wasn't sure if I could do it. I finished in 1 hour 29 minutes 50 seconds ;-)
As I struggle to run in the heat, I am reminded of the people that I am running for this year. I know that a little heat and humidity pales in comparison to painful chemo involved with diseases like leukemia and lymphoma. Believe me when I say that it is a HUGE motivation to get through training.
Fundraising has been going slowly, but I am also realistic and know that the economy is not good for many people. So, I am also doing a fundraiser and selling Panera coupons. For $12, you can coupons good for 18 bagels or for a variety of baked items, including loaves of bread, brownies, cookies, and bagels. By purchasing one of these coupons, you can save anywhere between 25-35% off the regular price! If you are interested in purchasing one, send me an e-mail (mnarui@gmail.com) and I will be more than happy it to mail it to you.
Finally, I have heard from many of you that you keep forgetting to donate, and it's not too late! You can go to my website at http://pages.teamintraining.org/coh/nikesf08/mnarui to make a donation. You can also contact me to mail a check.
I've been blessed to be free of any major injuries to this point. In the coming weeks, I'll be running on average about 12-16 miles on the weekend and about 6 during the week. I'm hoping that my good luck continues.
Hope this update finds you all healthy and well.
