Dead tired...

I couldn't train today, I was exhausted. Three straight days of late night partying did me in. I knew I needed a "detox" day to get me back on track.

Work was a little tough today, I wasn't my sharp self. Alice was no better, in fact all day her blood sugar has been low.

She's normally perfect when it comes to keeping her blood sugar stable. This Summer she's had more trouble with her blood sugar than I can remember. She thinks its from the heat and humidity and the late nights don't help.

The worst is that if she has low blood sugar and goes for a Coke or something sugary, everything is gone thanks to Reid and friends. Poor Alice. Even this morning, she woke up low and I had to get her some orange juice and there was "barely" a glassful left. I told Alice she needs to start hiding the "good stuff" in the broom closet or something.

Today was an expensive day once again. First thing in the morning we dropped Alice's old car off at the Auto Repair shop. The air conditioning wasn't working, it was shimmying and needed an oil change. We tried out a new garage that was highly recommended to us. I usually take it to the dealer, but I wanted to find a lower cost alternative.

The challenge is to find a auto repair shop that is "good, honest and has fair pricing". I always feel like I'm getting ripped off when it comes to anything auto. Then Jamie says, "why didn't you take it to my Canadian Tire store, I know a guy that will give you a deal". Doh!!!

I had them look at the air conditioning, it hasn't worked for two years. Alice and Alyssa would complain about it and when I spoke to Honda they wanted $300 just to look at it and said it could be up to another $800 to fix. Instead of paying that, I thought it would be best for them to drive without air conditioning. If it was my car, I'm sure I would have had it fixed right away.

It reminded me of the time we got our first dishwasher. Alice used to wash the dishes by hand and kept asking for a dishwasher. I didn't want to spend the money. One day, she asks me to start doing the dishes. It only took a week until we got a new dishwasher. Alice disagrees, she says it was only a day or two of me doing dishes until we got a dishwasher.

I actually felt bad about not getting the air conditioning fixed. It had been so long that I forgot altogether that her car didn't have air conditioning. This summer has had more 40 C day's than I can count. No wonder Alice's blood sugar has been all over the map. She's essentially driving a "sauna" on wheels.

The Auto repair shop found that the air conditioning was an easy fix. Doh!!! It was a couple of valves that came loose and needed replacing. Cost $10 each, then they had to fill it up with whatever they fill it up with to be cold which was $200. The worst was they had to replace all four brakes and rotors. By the ended of the day, he said it would be $1000 total. Damn, that's a lot of money.

We registered Alice's new car and the government taxes were $1250. Then I finalized the car insurance. I was able to get it down from $3700 to $1800. Still high, but much better. I also got another quote from a different insurance company for all our cars and house insurance and the initial quote was $1000 cheaper.

I called my existing broker and told her I may be moving my business for the $1000 savings. She seemed "pissed" that I was encouraged by others in her office, while she was on holidays, to look at competitive pricing. She has 15 other companies she could have got quotes from and is now doing it. I don't want to leave, but $1000 buys a lot of Powerbars and Gels.

Buy the end of the day, we spent $4000 on cars. Not a cheap day. The upside is Alice's car is a hit. She loves it and so does the entire family. Reid's pumped because he knows he'll be driving it one day.

We even got "Mr Car's" sign of approval when Jamie took it for a test drive today. I've never met anyone with the fine attention to detail as Jamie. He's been into cars since he was a kid, he knows a lot about them and looked at the car so closely I thought he was a CSI agent. It's amazing what he looks at and noticed.

It was a struggle to stay awake today. After dinner, Alice's blood sugar was still low, so I figured that was a perfect excuse to get ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery. When we got home, I crashed on the couch. I was in a coma sleep, I couldn't even open my eyes if I wanted to, all I could feel was my heart beating hard and fast. So much so, it was freaking me out a little.

By the time I woke up, I no longer had daylight and couldn't ride. It looks like the next few days is going to be busy playing "training catch up". I sure wish I had a "moderation button". You can't outrun the effects of partying. What goes up, must come down. A positive is that I've been eating fairly healthy and look like I'm losing some weight. It's either that or dehydration.

I got a chuckle today from a YouTube comment I received on Reid's Triathlon Video. It was from a kid who did the race and was captured on the video beside Reid. He noticed himself on the video and posted a comment. It was one of encouragement and hoping he sees Reid at another triathlon in September.

I loved it. It's what the spirit of triathlon is all about and it's great to see it exists the same with the kids as the adults. That immediate and supportive camaraderie for each other is one of the big reasons I love the sport of triathlon.

One last item. I've been sponsoring the IM Talk Podcast with Triathlon Toons. The guys said some very nice things about me qualifying for Kona. I taped it and made a YouTube video and posted it below.

No Training - Coma day