Running Chick

Say hello to Venus.

She found us on our run this morning. We were 2 miles in to a four-miler, running by the Rozsa Center, when she ran by us looking frantic and lost.  No obvious owner in sight.  It took some cajoling, but she stopped for us and I used my long sleeved shirt as a leash. 

She had a collar, with a Hancock address. What was she doing across the canal in Houghton? I sat with her while Josh ran over to the MTU Public Safety building.  Josh returned with an officer after about 10 minutes and he was going to take her over to her owner’s address.  She reminded of my old running partner, Buddy (miss you Bud), so I felt strongly compelled to make sure she was comforted and safe and I asked if I could ride along.  The officer agreed, so Venus and I piled into the back of the police SUV. Josh was in the front. 

Ever been in the back of a police car? It’s all plastic and bulletproof plexiglass.  I’ll let you make assumptions why.  Not the best surface for doggie toenails. Officer is a holy-shit-you’re-going-to-put-us-in-the-ditch driver and Venus and I are sliding around like we’re on a slip-n-slide.  She finally ended up climbing on my lap.  Anyway, over to Venus’s address.  Nobody home.  Were they out looking for her? Why didn’t they have a cell phone?  Off we head to the Copper Country Humane Society, where we drop her off.  I am a big supporter of the CCHS, but I really wanted her to get back to her home and I was sad that we couldn’t make that happen.  I’m planning on calling her owners tomorrow to see if she made it home.  If not, maybe I’ll end up with a running partner.

So, running. This week I ended up with a little over 14 miles, last week I had 19. Next Sunday is the half marathon and I'm feeling pretty good. Aside from the giant blister on my left foot that I keep on aggravating, all systems are go.  Looking forward, if everything goes well and I’m healthy and feeling good, I’m tossing around the idea of doing the Whistlestop HM in Ashland, WI on October 13th.  I’m still trying to figure out how to deal with the two weeks between races, so we’ll see.