It always feels like life piles up various malfunctions, one after another, in a series of annoyances — just for the sheer thrill of it! Just to point its metaphorical finger at you and cackle malevolently. Just when you thought smooth sailing lay ahead, you find yourself caught amidst another plumbing mishap and a frustrating running injury!

Oh, I know I’m being overly dramatic, but if you have been reading my online writing for any length of time, you already know I have A History of Bad Plumbing. Last week it struck yet again. The same leaky drain in my water heater closet backed up again, soaking the carpet in my living room, hall, bedroom, and bedroom closet.  Right now I wait to be sure it is completely dried out before I attempt to clean the carpet and put things back into the closet.  I find it hard to express my frustration in words, so I created this amazing digital image using my photographic camera device:

I hope it conveys my sentiments appropriately.  That’s the beschissene closet in the background.  The beauty of being a renter is that someone else is responsible for these repairs.  And the curse of being a renter, appropriately, is that someone else is responsible for these repairs.

In sporting news, I finally decided to go to the doctor for a nagging, dull pain I had been feeling in my right hip for a few weeks or maybe a month. It wasn’t too painful, only bothering me at the end of a long run here and there, but it began bothering me at rest, too.  I had felt like my hip flexors on that side were too tight or were strained or something, but perusing the archives of Dr. Google led to a full-on paranoid freak out that I had given myself a hip stress fracture and was experiencing osteonecrosis of the femur.  Don’t google that. Or do, whatever.

Luckily the doctor was not worried about a stress fracture, her being a sane person with actual medical training and all.  So it’s a strain and inflammation, as I had originally suspected.  It could be a lot worse. I am on anti-inflammatories for a couple of days, I am resting for the week (no running or cycling, but light swimming is allowed if it doesn’t hurt — freestyle and backstroke only), and I am doing all manner of hip strengthening exercises and stretches in the meanwhile. The bonus, I hope, will be that I will have a tight, perky ass as a result of all my trouble.

At this very moment I have just returned from my first pool workout since the triathlon in June (I know! It’s no wonder swimming is my worst of the three disciplines when I neglect it so) and I have a bag of frozen corn on my hip.

This is a vast improvement over yesterday, which I spent watching TV on my laptop and feeling sorry for myself.  I did manage to catch up on Mad Men and the Vampire Diaries as well as to watch the first two episodes of the old series Roswell, which I missed back in the day but which is right up my supernatural-teen-drama alley so I am enjoying it thoroughly so far.

[How sad is it that the above was my Photo of the Day yesterday? I suppose Project365 has to capture the mundane and the lame (literally and otherwise) as well as the exciting and the original.]

I miss running, though. I missed my 12 mile run on Friday and I am not sure but I will probably miss the half marathon in two weeks.  Barring a massive recovery this week, I don’t think I’ll be ready for it.  I also missed my now regular long Sunday bike ride with the boys.  I’m not sure if they went without me or not and I don’t want to know because I will be childishly jealous, I can feel it.  Without my natural mental health regulation (i.e. exercise), I am not exactly a joy to be around.  Here’s hoping the pool workouts, rest, and strengthening will have me back on the roads soon!

I do have better news to report, including a fun weekend jaunt to Atlanta and some general updates, so I’ll be back with a happier post soon!