Cav's Place

Ever more ridiculously, the second part of the post about last year’s marathon remains far from complete, though some two weeks ago I at least managed to add something to it. But this week’s run marked the theoretical start of the preparations for this year’s half marathon and next week’s 16 km run will mark the practical start, and the first time I’ll run more than ten kilometers since the marathon, so in what by then will be four and a half months. So I guess I might as well catch up on the runs that I’m yet to write about, even if in a post that’s once again initially incomplete, only going as far as the part about the February 14 run, with the part about the rest of that day being added when I edited it the first time, in the early hours of Monday, while the part about February 19 was added when I edited the post again, in the early hours of Thursday.

In the early hours of February 4 I went to the kitchen several minutes after 1 AM and then also washed one part of the glass baking tray, so I ended up eating dinner between 3:20 AM and 3:45 AM, once again using a red onion in the salad, since I didn’t have green onions. Then, after being woken up first by some noise made by dad in the kitchen before he left and then twice, exactly two hours apart, by the landline ringing, making me wonder whether it was someone from the provider trying to confirm that everything was in order after the work done the previous day, I got up when the alarm rang, at 2 PM, and had the usual stuff, the yogurt being an expired “creamy” one with 5.1% protein and 5% fat, while the sweet thing consisted of a part of a mini panettone, with added honey. And I left at 4:30 PM, wearing the full running gear and that old training shirt that’s in a poor shape, plus that thing on my neck, the gloves, and the jacket on the way, tied around my waist as I ran. The reported temperature was about 4°C, dropping to 2-3°C by the time I finished.
The time was 48:42.45, with sector times of I think 4:17.73, 5:13 (I think 5:12.91), 6:07.22, 4:40 (4:39.46), 5:07.26, 5:58, 4:31, 5:07.48, 5:51.19 and 1:51 (1:50.65), making for lap times of 15:37.86, 15:45 and 15:29. The exact times for the first two sectors are probably correct, but there is a chance that they may be off by a few hundredths, since after sector two I realized that I was only really certain about 4:17.7 as far as the first sector’s time went. But the far more notable problem is that after sector one of lap three I realized that I couldn’t remember the exact time seen at the end of lap two at all, so I can only list the seconds for sector three of lap two, sector one of lap three and laps two and three as a whole. And the thing is that I was surprised that I saw that exact time properly at first glance and didn’t look again, which turned out to be a bad thing because I was also surprised that I stayed under six minutes on sector three of lap two after such a slow sector three of lap one and then spent most of sector one of lap three calculating what I needed in order to stay under 49 minutes, so I only realized after the end of that sector, when I wanted to calculate its time, that I could only remember the seconds. One possibility that crossed my mind is that the hundredths were either 86, just like at the end of lap one, or 84, making the exact time of sector three of lap two 5:58.26, either situation possibly resulting in my mind ignoring what might have seemed to be a duplicate record. But, of course, it’s just as possible that I came up with this idea just because my mind was using those previous times to try to fill in a blank.
Either way, the goal was to stay under 48 minutes and, seeing as I felt myself slowing down during the first sector, I was quite content with its time. But the following two sectors and the first lap as a whole were bad, sector three being so bad that, even though I had seen the time properly right away, I still slowed to a walk for a couple of seconds at the start of lap two, because I couldn’t believe that I had been so slow and wanted to make really sure. And, once I did make sure, it seemed like the realistic target was only to stay under 50 minutes, or perhaps 49:30 at best, sector one of lap two seeming to make that even clearer. But then I managed to push harder and after lap two I was wondering whether I’ll manage to stay under 49 minutes after all, so I kept pushing on lap three, hoping to at least give myself a chance… And being surprised that at the end of the lap I was already safe, the target then becoming to also squeeze under 48:45, which I did. But, of course, that’s still a poor time.
What makes it worse is that there were hardly any notable problems, the biggest loss of time being caused by slowing and then even stopping for a couple of seconds on sector three of lap three, in order to see the time. And then there was that moment when I slowed at the start of lap two and just one somewhat noticeable problem caused by people, on sector one of lap three, when I hesitated because of a little kid. But that was it, and I couldn’t identify any specific physical issues either, just the fact that I couldn’t go faster, at least on the first lap and sector one of lap two, and while things got better after that, it still wouldn’t have been good enough to get under 48 minutes. Yes, the low temperature made things uncomfortable and likely had quite a negative effect on my breathing, but I wouldn’t consider that enough of an excuse.

After getting back, I ate lunch, changed, albeit leaving the t-shirt and shirt on, and left again at 7:55 PM, with the recyclables with the deposit symbol, and I picked up one more before putting them in the machine from Carrefour. Then I bought some expiring products, including a carton of bio (organic) eggs that included a few that had the coloring of duck eggs. There were many such cartons and other people tended to remove those and make cartons just of those that were clearly chicken eggs, even if the same information was printed on all eggs, regardless of color, but I took one carton as it was, after checking to make sure that none of the eggs were cracked, and actually found it interesting. On the other hand, the last self-checkout machine once again accepted cash, but apparently not for long, since I saw people using it when I got there, but by the time I wanted to use it, two employees were there and told me that it wasn’t working anymore, so I still had to go to a regular checkout, also using the voucher received for the recyclables.
I then continued to Kaufland, picking up a few more recyclables with the deposit symbol on the way and asking about a tea at a pharmacy, but being told that they didn’t have it in that location. Then, after putting those recyclables in the machine, putting my things in a cabinet and washing my hands, I entered the store when it was close to 9:15 PM, took the one box of expiring germinated wheat that was left and checked the lettuces, taking the two better ones that were left even if the evening discount wasn’t as high as I’d have liked… But at least they had that discount, while when I went to the bakery area I found what will become the rule, which was that there were no evening discounts, and I confirmed that by scanning one label at that point and another one later. So I also took two of those cheap yogurts, still at the slightly lower price, and the few better onions that I could still find, those also having an evening discount, and eventually went to the self-checkouts after seeing that there were no new or increased discounts even at 9:45 PM. But that expiring germinated wheat wouldn’t scan, and as I kept trying I ended up accidentally scanning the code with the full price, since the discount label didn’t cover it, so the employee who came after I raised my hand canceled that and entered the code manually. And then, after also using the voucher received for the recyclables and scanning the QR code for dad’s store app, which I won’t mention anymore since it pretty much became the norm, I took some time to work up the courage and, after the closing announcement, asked at the information desk whether they had received some of those 10 RON vouchers and the employee looked me up in that notebook, finding that she had misspelled my last name, and handed me the voucher which I had asked for on January 14. And then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet, arranged the purchases and walked out a little after 10:05 PM.
On the way back, I decided to check the Mega Image that closes at 11 PM, picking up another recyclable with the deposit symbol on the way and putting it, the bag and my gloves in a cabinet, but entering with the backpack… And just wasting some time, without finding anything to get, so I then retrieved what I had in the cabinet and came back, deciding against checking the non-stop Mega Image as well but picking up two more recyclables with the deposit symbol on the way.
I got back at 10:45 PM, then cleaned the litter box and went to drop a bag of trash down the chute, ate an apple, put all of the purchases with the exception of dad’s expiring bread in their place, and it was a little past 11:20 PM when I went to shower, being done at 11:55 PM. I spent some time in my room after that, also noticing that my nose was quite irritated, even if it hadn’t seemed to be that bad after the run, but I was back in the kitchen before 1 AM. However, dad had used the grill, so I had it and a number of other things to wash, and I also ate something sweet, struggled to squeeze one of dad’s breads in the freezer and used the worse lettuce leaves, which also resulted in a salad that was too large, so I only ate dinner between 3:45 AM and 4:20 AM, during which time I also realized that my right foot felt rather numb. And I got in bed at 5:40 AM. And I’ll also mention here that the following two nights I finished dinner at 4 AM and got in bed at 5:20 AM, the difference being that the first time I started eating at 3:25 AM and the second time at 3:20 AM.

In the early hours of February 14, after dealing with the two breads that I was yet to deal with and rearranging some of the bread in the freezer, I ended up eating dinner between 3:20 AM and 3:55 AM, though at least I had green onions for the salad again, since dad had brought a little at some point. But when I wanted to put that bread in the freezer, before getting in bed, it was proven that I hadn’t rearranged well enough, so it took me a little longer, and then I did a couple of other things as well, ending up getting in bed at 5:30 AM. And when I got up to pee, just before 9:45 AM, I noticed that the hot water was completely off, though I checked the site and no problems were listed. And after dad got up I kept waking up, and after he left I was certain that the alarm was about to ring, yet when I waited a while longer, probably even getting another very brief nap or two, and it still hadn’t, I checked the time and found that it wasn’t even 1 PM yet, so I went to pee one more time, just in case, being relieved to see that the hot water had returned. But after getting back in bed I fell asleep and woke up so many times in that remaining hour that I must have switched between states at most every few minutes, and at times probably after mere seconds.
Still, 2 PM eventually arrived, the alarm rang and I got up, having the usual stuff, with the apple being one of the two truly huge spoiling ones that I had purchased at the start of the week, and which I found was actually only spoiled on the surface, so what was left was probably the size of three or so regular apples, but which ended up being a plain Idared after all, even though they had been labeled, and priced, as Fuji, so I had paid a little more. Either way, the sweet thing once again consisted of a part of that mini panettone, with added honey. And I left at 4:25 PM, wearing just the full running gear and that thing on my neck, since the reported temperature was 11°C, dropping to 9-10°C by the time I finished.
The time was 47:20.45, with sector times of 4:08.95, 4:59 (4:58.50), 5:43.53, 4:30 (4:29.18), 5:02.32, 5:48 (5:47.53), 4:30.44, 5:02 (5:01.65), 5:47 (5:46.97) and 1:51.38, making for lap times of 14:50.98, 15:20 (15:19.03) and 15:19.06. I clearly aimed to get back under 48 minutes and pushed from the start, being really pleased with the first sector’s time and then wondering whether I’ll be able to cover the lap in less than 15 minutes, so I kept pushing and managed that by more of a margin that I thought was possible. However, I was worried that I had drained myself in order to do so and the goal remained to just squeeze under 48 minutes, but if sector one of lap two was a slight reason for concern, the following two sectors and the lap as a whole put me more or less at ease and at the start of lap three I wondered whether I could actually squeeze under 47:30. So I kept pushing, being surprised by how close the times on each sector of lap three were to those of lap two, and then by the fact that the lap times were also basically identical, which also meant that I was already safe at the end of the lap, which I didn’t think possible until that moment. So I managed to cover another lap in less than 15 minutes for the first time since the end of November if you just look at the seconds, though in terms of the exact time I did also just squeeze under 15 minutes on December 19, which was also the last time when I was faster over ten kilometers.
The thing is that I still thought that I should have done a little better, because the conditions were good and there were hardly any problems to speak of. I mean, sure, there was some weaving and going the long way around, because of both people and the damaged lane, but the only notable issue was that I was getting lightheaded on sector three of lap one and sector one of lap two, and possibly a little on sector two of lap two as well. Admittedly, the feeling was concerning at the time, but once it passed everything was just fine.

On the way back, I checked the nearby Mega Image and picked up a recyclable with the deposit symbol when I walked out. Then I did the day’s squats, ate lunch, changed, albeit leaving the running t-shirt on, and beeped dad from the landline to find out where he was, and when he called back and said that he was nearby and about to get back I waited, though I had already stepped out by the time he got here and we met in front of the door, so he gave me the metro card and two empty recyclables with the deposit symbol that he had with him, since I had taken the others as well, and I actually left at 8:25 PM.
I took the metro to Kaufland Basarab, putting those recyclables, including what I had picked up on the way, in the machine, though two of those that I already had and one which I picked up from there weren’t accepted, so I kept those. And on the way to the recycling machine I had seen a cart with the coin in it, which was still there when I was done, so I connected it to others and retrieved the coin before going to wash my hands, dashing to the women’s for soap, and entering the store a few minutes after 9 PM, with the remaining recyclables with the deposit symbol, which at that point included one more, which I had picked up on the way in. And, while there were still no evening discounts in the bakery area, I considered taking a sweet pastry that had a regular discount those days, but the fact that plenty of them were left made me leave that for later and check the fruits and vegetables, where evening discounts increased or appeared a little later, probably at 9:15 PM, so I took some carrots and a handful of those Moldovan grapes, and later I also decided to get one banana, even if those just had the regular discount that they had those days. And I also took several cans of bean spread that were at half price for some reason, though they weren’t expiring and nothing seemed wrong with them, and one more of those cheap yogurts. However, by the time I got back to the bakery area, the employee was throwing everything that was left into bags and she seemed to have started just with those sweet pastries, so I couldn’t get any anymore. Either way, I used the voucher received for the recyclables at the self-checkout, and the closing announcement came seconds after I left the checkout area.
After getting back to the metro station, I arranged the purchases in the backpack and then took the metro to Unirii, picking up some more recyclables with the deposit symbol but finding that the recycling machines from that Carrefour were already off by the time I got there, so I put my things in a cabinet, went to pee and wash my hands, and then found that the nicer kind of the cheap buns actually had the 50% evening discount in that location. The much higher regular price meant that they ended up being less than 25% cheaper than they were at Kaufland at full price, but I took some, along with two sweet pastries that also had the 50% discount… And then I saw that a tea that I was looking for was listed as being discounted, even having the sign that marked it as being part of their campaign of reduced prices compared to a previous period. But I had actually checked recently, finding that the price had actually increased slightly in other locations and on-line, so I scanned one at a price checker, what showed up being that higher price. But they do promise to offer the listed price if it’s lower than what shows up at checkout, so I grabbed two, took a picture of the price label and then called over an employee when that higher price showed up at the self-checkout, and while she initially said that she could only remove them, because those who could check leave at 10 PM, when I said that I had a picture she asked to see it and then told me that if I paid in full I’ll then receive the difference from the information desk. So I did just that, showing the picture at the information desk as well and then receiving that difference, after being asked for my name and being told that the problem was caused by electronic price labels that run out of battery and fail to update, though that employee had no reply when I pointed out that the product was even marked with that discount sign.
What makes the whole thing stranger is that I have been back there since then and, while I didn’t try to buy more, I checked and saw that sign still there, that lower price still listed, but the higher one still showing up when scanning the product, so I wonder how many times they had to refund that difference and what’s actually going on. Either way, to return to that evening, it was already a few minutes past 11 PM by the time I was done with all of that, so I retrieved what I had in the cabinet and took the metro back to Dristor, where I obviously couldn’t switch anymore, so I decided to also check that non-stop Mega Image, putting my things in a cabinet and then just retrieving them, without finding anything to get. But I picked up some more recyclables with the deposit symbol.
I got back a few minutes before midnight, put the purchases in their place, ate the banana and a sweet pastry that I already had… And something crunched in my teeth, all I could pull out being a tiny black piece, so I’m thinking that there was something in the pastry, but I was also worried that a tooth might have chipped, and a few teeth did bother me a little after that. Either way, I also washed what was in the kitchen and it was almost 1:25 AM when I went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and wash, being done just after 2:10 AM… And then I once again made too much salad, that time out of cabbage, and I ate dinner between 3:55 AM and 4:50 AM, getting in bed at 6:05 AM.

In the early hours of February 19, I once again didn’t have green onions and used a red onion in the salad, and I started eating dinner at 3:20 AM, but still managed to finish at 3:40 AM. The alarm was set to ring at 1:30 PM, but after being woken up by noise made by Liza and dad just before 9 AM and going to pee, I couldn’t get back to sleep until after dad left, and when I did fall asleep again I must have woken up after mere moments, since when I checked the time it was only 10:08 AM. So I went to pee once more, just in case, which made it so I didn’t have to go again before the alarm rang, but then I kept waking up, and the first time I was certain that the alarm was about to ring and checked the time, I saw that it was only a little after noon, and after getting back to sleep I woke up again at 12:30 PM and 12:56 PM, at which point I was so certain that far more time must have passed that I even checked the time on the computer, wondering if something wasn’t wrong with my phone. But there wasn’t, so I caught another nap until the alarm finally rang and I got up.
Then I had the usual stuff, but the apple was the other utterly huge spoiling one, which was even less spoiled than the one eaten the previous week, so what was left was at least the size of three regular apples, and it also tasted better, so it might have actually been Fuji, and the yogurt was a bio (organic) one and before putting the cereals in it I also mixed those with seeds and buckwheat with the others. As for the sweet thing, that was the last piece of that mini panettone, with added honey. On the other hand, with the forecast having listed a high of -2°C, I had prepared accordingly and stuck to that plan, putting the training suit over the running t-shirt and tights, another t-shirt and an undershirt, and also wearing the gloves, that thing that I pulled up to cover more than just my neck, at least until it slipped lower as I ran, plus the jacket on the way, tied around my waist as I ran… Which meant that I felt concerningly comfortable as I walked to the park, because the day’s high actually ended up being 2-3°C and the reported temperature when I left, at 4:20 PM, was about 1°C, dropping to what seems to have been just below freezing, maybe -1°C, by the time I finished. Either way, considering the snow and ice, and also the fact that this run marked the theoretical start of my training for this year’s half marathon, I took the better shoes again, hoping that they’ll offer me better traction and reduce the risk of slipping or hurting my ankles.
The time was 52:41.85, with sector times of 4:45, 5:45, 6:23, 4:58, 5:38, 6:19, 4:53, 5:40, 6:22 and 1:58 (1:57.87), making for lap times of 16:53, 16:55 and 16:55. When the target was only to avoid a new slowest time, there was obviously no point in memorizing the exact times, so I didn’t even look at the hundredths. But I was actually quite pleasantly surprised by the first sector’s time, under those conditions… Sector two counterbalanced that to some extent, but the target for the first lap was to stay under 17 minutes and I managed it by a safe margin. And then I was once again quite pleased by sectors two and three of lap two, which were less slow than those of lap one, and by the fact that I stayed under 17 minutes on that lap as well. That made me quite certain that I’ll at least stay under 54 minutes and think that I might even have a chance to squeeze under 53 minutes if there won’t be any notable problems on lap three, and after the end of the lap I aimed to also squeeze under 52:45, which I did. And I’d say that the almost equal lap times show that this was pretty much what the conditions allowed, but it obviously remains an absolutely dreadful time in itself, the tenth slowest ever over this distance, and the ninth slowest through the park, since the slowest was on the track. And, while I only have to go back to June for the last time when I was slower, in fact that being the slowest run through the park, it was the second run on a very hot day and after wandering around after the 16 km run before it, so without even some rest in between, and then I have to go all the way back to January of 2019 for two more runs that were slower, and those were while I was struggling to recover after a bad flu, under treatment and having other problems as well.
The first and only piece of actual winter we got this “winter” obviously meant that the park was quite crowded and plenty of children, and not only children, were sliding down slopes, being pulled on sleighs or otherwise playing in the snow, but under more normal circumstances I’d have said that the only notable problems were a brief stop on sector three of lap one and, maybe, a moment when I hesitated on sector three of lap two. However, the uneven and not that well packed layer of snow that covered most of the path around the lake and the slippery areas made any change of direction a risk and a loss of time, since I had to slow and be careful, so what would have otherwise only been a fair amount of weaving and going the long way around had quite a massive impact. And, of course, most of the time pretty much every step meant slipping a little, lacking traction, sector two being the worst from this point of view, though the puddle of slush that was on sector three, where I guess I should now say the ship’s dock used to be, also caused a significant loss of time on each lap. But, even though running in those conditions was definitely tiring despite having to take it easy, I was spared of any notable physical issues, with the exception of the fact that I was overheating at least starting from sector two of lap two.

Since when I got there I spotted a plastic bottle that I assumed had the deposit symbol in the garbage bin that’s next to what for me is the start location, after the run I turned around and went back there, but somebody else had unsurprisingly taken it by then. But, since I was there, I then decided to train a little on the stairs, using the straight ones that are near that spot and running up them three times, and obviously also running down twice. And then I wandered a little on other paths before leaving the park and getting back, picking up a recyclable with the deposit symbol on the way. And after getting back I ate a bag of peanuts, getting some 950 calories just from that, changed, albeit leaving on everything but the training suit’s pants, and left again at 7:50 PM, with the recyclables with the deposit symbol.
Since I once again had dad’s metro card, I took the metro to Obor, picking up another recyclable with the deposit symbol on the way and then putting all of them in the machine from Carrefour, from where I bought some expiring bread for my parents, a little garlic, and some bread and sweet pastries for myself that had the evening discount, also using the voucher received for the recyclables. And then I continued to Kaufland, putting my things in a cabinet, going to pee, which was rather tricky because of all the layers of clothing, and wash my hands, which also meant dashing to the women’s for soap, since there was none left in the men’s, and entering the store just after 9:35 PM. And at least I found two expiring products to get, along with some of those cheap yogurts, the closing announcement coming as I was using the self-checkout, which didn’t accept one of the expiring products as being correct, so I called over an employee and she just logged on to override the error without checking anything. And then I retrieved my things and decided to also check that Mega Image that closes at midnight, once again putting everything in a cabinet when I got there but just wasting some time before retrieving my things, also grabbing a recyclable with the deposit symbol which had been left there, and then taking the metro back, just missing one and then waiting for over ten minutes for the next one, and grabbing one more recyclable with the deposit symbol after getting off at this station.
It was several minutes after 11 PM when I got back, and then I spread out the bread and put the few other purchases in their place, ate one of the sweet pastries, washed what was in the kitchen, and did the day’s squats. It was 1 AM when I went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and shower, the water not being good enough for more than that, so I was done just after 1:35 AM, but then I also dealt with one of my breads and put it and those bought for my parents in the freezer, making them fit taking a while, washed a couple more things in the kitchen, and finally ate a combined lunch and dinner between 4 AM and 5:10 AM, though the last several minutes were spent carefully gathering what had been left stuck on the plate. I got in bed at 6:30 AM.

Of course, “The People” from across the pond had already provided even more ample evidence of it, pretty much ensuring that, as the recent developments and statements, which I’m not going to comment on in what’s just a rushed post, make even more abundantly clear, there’s no hope left for any of us. But a week ago it was once again the turn of the Swiss voters to prove that “The People” can always be trusted to make the wrong choice, overwhelmingly rejecting a constitutional amendment requiring the Swiss economy to respect planetary boundaries, the opponents stating that environmental concerns shouldn’t significantly impact the standard of living and that the ten-year deadline included in the initiative was unrealistic… Even though ten years from now would be at least eleven years too late.
But, of course, this is just one news piece that’s easy to point to, the rule being proven with nearly every opportunity, all over the world and throughout history, including just these days and here or elsewhere in Europe, or at various other points by just those Swiss voters, including on other environmental initiatives. So I’ll just go back to those two quotes yet again: “The People tended to be small-minded and conservative and not very clever and were even distrustful of cleverness. And so the children of the revolution were faced with the age-old problem: it wasn’t that you had the wrong kind of government, which was obvious, but that you had the wrong kind of people.” and “That does seem to be the rule, doesn’t it? Analyze the problem, choose whichever strategy makes least sense and then do it.”
The question is how can the right thing ever get done if “The People” keep making the wrong choices and those who, by whatever means, end up in positions of authority are those who want them, which pretty much by definition means that they’re unsuited for them because they’ll generally use that authority for their own gain. The only way seems to be to hand power to those who don’t actually want it, but who would use it to force humankind in the right direction… But will there ever be even a snowflake’s chance in Hell of that happening? And, if it somehow would, would the people who would want to steer humanity in that right direction actually use that power to do so, by whatever means necessary, obviously going against the will of both the rich and powerful and “The People”? Because that’s another important side of the problem, those who would want the right things to get done refusing to employ the methods necessary for that to happen while the others have no such qualms.

While this post otherwise covers the remaining days from January when I ran, I’ll start by mentioning that, in the early hours of Wednesday, after noticing that no views had been recorded the previous day, I finally got around to removing the Google Analytics code, since I hadn’t been checking that at all in a long time anyway, sticking to Matomo even if it doesn’t offer what I was used to and I don’t see how I could ever put together any more of those statistics posts just based on what it shows. But it’s not like those posts have any relevance.
On the other hand, Wednesday evening dad mentioned that he met that neighbor who had been interested in trading his apartment for ours and was told that the contract for retrofitting the building had been signed and in no more than two months the scaffolding will be put up, which is obviously a terrifying prospect and means that I won’t be sleeping for months and months to come, plus that there will be people walking around in front of my window and eventually they’ll likely replace the window as well, with who knows what other consequences, and it remains to be seen what will happen to the blinds, being on the outside… Plus that all of this will start while I’ll be preparing for this year’s half marathon. And no, dad didn’t say anything about what that neighbor did about that apartment in the end.
Either way, another thing I want to mention is that on February 3 we ended up with a second Internet subscription, in fact from the same provider, my computer being left on the old one on its own while dad started using this new one, so the connections are now separated and I can stay on-line without feeling that anxious. It still feels wrong, not being in the sort of network that I’ve been in until just over five years ago, but it’s a major improvement. And it was forced by the provider, who called my mother, on whose name the landline is, to tell her that they’re switching to fiber optics for landlines and unless she agrees to switch and also include an Internet subscription along with the landline, for a slightly higher monthly fee, she’ll have to cancel it completely. So she agreed, and the guy came and put in that new line.

To finally get to the runs, the first one that I’ll write about here was on January 16, and it came after being out on both of the previous two days, albeit not late on the previous evening, plus that I still didn’t have green onions for the salad made in that day’s early hours, so I once again used a red onion. And then, after getting up to pee a little after 8:45 AM, I kept waking up, and a little after 10:10 AM I was also woken up by a call, later learning that it was a pharmacy that I had ordered some teas for dad from, though I didn’t answer at the time. And there were also an increasing number of little noises, both from the neighbors and from dad, after he got up… And at 12:40 PM he pulled his bread out of the freezer and woke me up again, so I went to “thank” him for it… And he just asked why did I get up instead of staying in bed. Either way, I had actually fallen asleep again by the time the alarm rang, at 1 PM, then got up, feeling quite sleepy, and had the usual stuff, though I once again delayed opening another bag of whole grains and used regular oats instead, albeit quite a lot of them. And the sweet thing yet again consisted of a slice of cozonac, with added honey. And I left at 3:45 PM, wearing the full running gear, with some things in the pocket of my tights, the thinner old training shirt, despite the shape it’s in, plus that thing on my neck and the gloves, and the jacket on the way, tied around my waist as I ran. The reported temperature was 6°C and it was sunny and not windy, yet it felt surprisingly chilly on the way to the park. Either way, that temperature should have dropped a little by the time I finished, but I couldn’t check at that point and the fact that it was 2°C at 6 PM isn’t relevant, since that was after sunset.
The time was 48:48.20, with sector times of 4:17.79, 5:13.16, 6:03 (6:02.96), 4:35 (4:34.50), 5:39 (5:38.69), 5:52.44, 4:30 (4:29.50), 5:02.16, 5:44.00 and 1:53.00, making for lap times of 15:33.91, 16:06 (16:05.63) and 15:16 (15:15.66). Since I seemed to have finally recovered after that fall that caused problems during the year’s first two runs, at least for the most part, I was clearly aiming to get back under 48 minutes, but the first sector’s time seemed a little worse than it should have been, the second sector was much worse, and when I went over six minutes on sector three of lap one and over 15:30 on the lap as a whole, I knew that I was once again looking at just staying under 49 minutes… And even that became unlikely after I ended up losing over 30 seconds because of a shoelace on sector two of lap two. But I did my best after that moment, pushing more and really going for it on lap three, not thinking that I had any realistic chance but just wanting to know that I gave everything, and in the end I did make it, in fact already being safe at the end of the lap. But, of course, that remains a bad time, and even without that problem, and also without the few seconds lost on sector three of lap one, I wouldn’t have managed to get under 48 minutes.
That loss of time on sector three of lap one was because I almost slammed into another runner who was coming from the opposite direction and jumped aside when a dog jumped at his legs before the owner could pull on the leash, and at that point he was just a couple of steps in front of me and I obviously also turned sharply in the same direction in order to avoid getting near that dog, what saved us from really slamming into each other being that both of us had the same reflex, to thrust our arms forward and grab on, so we grabbed each other’s arms and stopped like that for a moment. But, of course, the big loss of time was when the right shoelace once again became undone, on sector two of lap two. At least it didn’t end up knotted, but I still lost over 30 seconds because of it. Otherwise, there were the usual problems caused by the lane and the small loss of time likely caused by pulling off the glove and then putting it back on after pressing the button on the stopwatch. As for physical issues, while that muscle, if that’s what it was, no longer hurt, I probably still held back to some extent, not wanting to risk a return of the problem by pushing it too much, too soon, and over the course of the first lap a spot on my right calf that seemed to be on the bone was hurting, and then a muscle on my left leg gave some warnings, possibly because I had been trying to spare the right one. Those problems faded after a while, but on lap two I felt like I wasn’t getting enough oxygen, though that issue also seemed to go away on lap three, when I actually pushed harder. On the other hand, while at one point I thought that I might be overheating, I didn’t, so it really felt colder than that reported temperature.

After the run, I wanted to go to two pharmacies, but I tried to use a slightly different route, ended up going off it, and when I was about to get back on it I spotted 3 RON on the sidewalk, which I took after looking around for a little while and not seeing anyone who seemed to be searching for something. I did think that at some point I should probably spend half of that amount on some deeply discounted products that I’ll then give away, but the fact that I didn’t think to do so on the first opportunities and then Kaufland stopped making evening discounts for bakery products puts that in doubt. But that’s a matter for another time, so, to return to that day, after I saw the queue at the first pharmacy, I gave up on the idea of going there as well and just went to Tei, where the queue for those who were buying actual medicines was frighteningly long, but you could walk right in if you wanted other products, so I grabbed the teas for dad and the toothpaste for myself, then quickly checked that Mega Image as well, putting the purchases in a cabinet and then retrieving them. And then I once again put them in a cabinet when I also checked Penny on the way back, buying what I wanted and then retrieving what I had in the cabinet.
I got back for the first time a little after 6:15 PM, put the purchases in their place, did the day’s squats, ate lunch, changed, albeit leaving the t-shirt and shirt on, and left again at 8:10 PM, with dad’s metro card and once again taking that wheeled bag, since the main goal was to check a couple of other Kaufland locations for those large bags of laundry detergent that had such a great discount those days… And I just missed the first metro, the doors closing just as I had gotten to the bottom of the stairs, but at least the next one came only a few minutes later and I took it to Obor, grabbing a recyclable with the deposit symbol on the way to that Kaufland and putting it and another one that I found there into the recycling machine. But that was the only benefit of going there, since none of that detergent was left, so after using the room for disabled people to wash my hands, since the men’s was getting cleaned, entering the store with that bag and walking out when the entrance gate opened for someone else, I got back to the metro station and went to Kaufland Basarab… Which was another waste of time, since I didn’t find that detergent there either, so I peed and washed my hands, once again entered the store with that bag and then just asked to be allowed to leave, the employee from the information desk just opening the gate but the guard asking to see what I had in the bag and whether I only had the gloves in my pockets, also patting that area after I took the gloves out.
Since at that point I thought that I might just have a chance to also reach Kaufland Vitan right before closing time and that jogging to Grozavesti and taking the metro from there might be marginally faster, I did that, but when that metro came I realized that it was too late. I might have just had a chance to get there if I’d have just returned to Basarab instead, but it’d have been awfully tight and at least that way I could get off at Unirii and go to that non-stop Carrefour, where I once again entered with that bag, after trying to put it in a cabinet but seeing that it wouldn’t fit, so I let the guard know that I had it and said that I’ll let him check it if I’ll walk out without purchases. But that wasn’t the case, since I found a few things to get, so at least the evening wasn’t a complete waste of time. The self-checkout machine asked me to make sure that I scanned everything, displaying a clip of me moving the empty bag from one side to the other and highlighting it, so I raised my hand and looked at the employee from that area, but she just told me to hit OK and I could continue once I did. Then I put the purchases in that wheeled bag and got back to the metro station, but I got there a little after one metro had left and the next one waited for a minute or so before leaving the station, which led to missing the last one leaving from Dristor by that time, so I couldn’t switch and walked back from there.
I got back a little after 11:20 PM, put the few purchases in their place, washed the easier things that were left to wash after dad had cooked again, ate a banana and something sweet, and it was 1 AM when I went to shower, being done a few minutes before 1:30 AM and then also eating some nicer bagels while washing and cleaning some more in the kitchen and working on dinner. And I took out a piece of the walnut bread which I had nevertheless bought some time before despite having dropped it on the store’s floor, and which I had washed and microwaved for several minutes before placing in the freezer, washed it a little more and then baked it in the regular oven for a while before slicing and microwaving it normally. And using the regular oven definitely made it even better, though what it did to the crust made it a bit trickier to slice. Either way, I ate dinner between 3:30 AM and 4 AM, and got in bed at 5:20 AM, still feeling some pain on the left side of my neck, which pain had appeared while I was out, maybe while I jogged from Kaufland Basarab to Grozavesti, so it was probably caused by carrying that wheeled bag, and at least it went away the next day.

In the early hours of January 24, I once again used a red onion in the salad, since I still didn’t have green onions, and started eating dinner at 3:15 AM, but at least I still managed to finish at 3:40 AM. On the other hand, at some point during the morning I was dreaming that I was trying to hold my breath or breathe very shallowly because I was trying to trick someone into thinking that I was dead, but I couldn’t do so because I kept needing more air, and when I eventually woke up I felt out of breath and my heart was beating very irregularly. It was quite a relief when the problem seemed to fix itself almost as soon as I took a few deep breaths, but I was wondering what that was about, and whether it had anything to do with my nose once again feeling rather irritated. Either way, after getting back to sleep, I got up when the alarm rang, at 1 PM, and had the usual stuff, finally opening another bag of whole grains as well, while the sweet thing consisted of another slice of cozonac, with added honey. I left a little before 3:25 PM, wearing the full running gear. The reported temperature was 14-15°C, dropping by 1-2°C by the time I finished.
The time was 49:46.04, with sector times of 4:19.82, 5:13 (5:12.22), 6:26.82, 4:41 (4:40.24), 5:14.32, 5:58.21, 5:11 (5:10.76), 5:01.46, 5:51.04 and 1:52 (1:51.15), making for lap times of 15:58.86, 15:53 (15:52.77) and 16:03.26. Considering how crowded it was and how I felt, I didn’t really think that I could get back under 48 minutes, and after two sectors I was thinking that just staying under 49 minutes was a realistic target… But then I lost some 25 seconds because of a shoelace on sector three of lap one and after the end of the lap I thought that even staying under 50 minutes wasn’t completely certain, and it became increasingly questionable over the course of the next two sectors, though sector three of lap two was something of a relief… Only for the same shoelace to cause me to lose even more time on sector one of lap three, though I didn’t check to know just how much, and I also had multiple notable problems caused by people on that sector, making it seem that I was going to even go over 50 minutes after all. But I still had a chance if I could somehow obtain some normal times from then on, gaining as much compared to six minutes on sector three as I’ll lose compared to five minutes on sector two, so I just gave everything and, despite more problems caused by people and also picking up a coin, I was safe at the end of the lap. But the time remains awful, that shoelace only caused me to lose a little over a minute, and the notable problems caused by people likely put the total around a minute and a half, so I don’t think that I could have managed to get back under 48 minutes even without any of these problems.
As I already mentioned, one major problem was that it was crowded, so I kept having to weave, go the long way around and squeeze through, and there were also moments when I slowed a little or took to the grass. There were a few brief silly dances as well, though those were from enough of a distance to avoid needing to stop. But I did briefly stop, because of roadblocks, once on sector two of lap two and twice on sector one of lap three, one of those moments being on the long straight, and there might have been one more such moment on sector two of lap three, though I’m not quite certain and I might have only slowed a fair bit in that spot. But it was also on sector two of lap three when I had to stop for a couple of seconds when I was pushing as hard as possible and a guy on a scooter came from one of the other paths and turned towards me, so we saw each other just before a potential impact and he didn’t try to avoid me at all, but we managed to stop just in time. And I also slowed significantly while squeezing through roadblocks on sector two of lap one and sector one of lap two, as well as in another spot of the long straight of sector one of lap three. But, of course, the biggest losses were caused by the left shoelace getting untied on sector three of lap one and sector one of lap three, which was obviously the most problematic sector, and at that point I made two attempts to retie that shoelace despite the fact that I saw that it had knotted and left it like that, just tying it over the knot, so it won’t trip me. And I also tightened the right shoelace after taking care of the left one. On the other hand, it was on sector three of lap three when I briefly stopped to grab that coin.
But all of that still doesn’t add up to enough to excuse being almost two minutes slower than I should have been, so there were physical issues as well, the most notable being that I felt that I wasn’t getting enough oxygen, which definitely made me think about that moment from the morning again, and there was also the fact that my stomach and abdomen hadn’t recovered after being stretched by the large mamaliga, with plenty of things in it, eaten two nights before, those problems being felt right from the beginning and having quite an impact, even if they gradually faded as time passed. My right knee also gave some warnings towards the end, mainly on sector three of lap three, but that’s barely worth mentioning by comparison.

After briefly checking the nearby Mega Image on the way back, entering with the recyclable with the deposit symbol which I had picked up by then and picking up one more after walking out, I ate what was still somewhat usable out of a mostly spoiled banana and a lunch that consisted mainly of some slices of homemade “pizza” brought by dad, probably made by my cousin from that side and which was worse than some focaccias bought from hypermarkets, and in which I also found a hair. I also added what was left of some shiitake mushrooms that I had fried and boiled a few days earlier, but those didn’t make that much of a difference. Either way, I also did the day’s squats, changed, albeit leaving the running t-shirt on, and left again a little before 8 PM, with a box of regular recyclables that I left next to the bag from the garbage room, since it wouldn’t fit in it, and some old paint that I threw down the chute, plus the recyclables with the deposit symbol, and I picked up some more on the way to Carrefour.
After putting those recyclables in the machine from there, splitting into two vouchers, I just bought a little garlic, needing to enter the code manually after the warning displayed by the scales, that the printer was badly worn and there might be problems when trying to scan the bar code, was proven true, and then I also cashed in those vouchers, though an employee came as I was paying for the garlic, took the two coins which had been left on the machine, and asked whether another voucher received for recyclables, which had a large value on it, was mine, and when I said that it wasn’t she checked to make sure that it had already been used and then took it away, saying that they can’t leave large amounts there, before letting me cash in my vouchers as well.
After putting the garlic in one of the jacket’s pockets, I continued to Kaufland, washing my hands and entering the store a couple of minutes after 9 PM, but only a few discounted products were left in the bakery area and a nicer bun that I could use instead of bread was the only one that I cared for, so after scanning another label and confirming that the product in question only had the regular discount that it had those days, I eventually took that bun, even if most of the cereals which should have been on it seemed to have been scraped off. And then I grabbed a few expiring products, even if most were imported, along with some biscuits and one more thing.
After arranging the purchases, I continued to that Mega Image, putting my things in a cabinet and noticing some wrong discount labels in the bakery area, so I notified the employee who was there about two of them and she took those products away, but when I noticed another issue and notified the other employee who was having a look at the time, she told me that those labels were actually correct, even if that couldn’t be the case, seeing as they stated that some buns weighed more than the much larger ones of the same kind that were right next to them. Either way, after initially grabbing the one bread that was left and which had the 50% evening discount, I eventually put it back and took the two sliced breads that were discounted by 90% that I spotted, thinking that, while I was actually taking them for dad, I could make some use of their ends for myself, even if they were small. And then I found some nicer roes discounted by 90% left among the refrigerated expiring products and took them, even if they had likely been returned there, since they were in plain sight and the only product with that 90% discount that was left there. And those roes also gave the cashier a fair amount of trouble, since the actual bar codes hadn’t been covered by the discount label and they kept scanning instead of it, so she had to remove them multiple times, but at least she eventually managed to scan the discounted price, and then I retrieved my things and made my way back, picking up some more recyclables with the deposit symbol, including a can with a flattened bottom half.
It was almost 10:55 PM when I got back, and then I cleaned the litter box and went to drop a bag of trash down the chute, struggled for some time to straighten that can to some extent, put the purchases in their place, washed what was in the kitchen, and ate the last, large, slice of cake brought by dad some time before, possibly after having left it there a little too long, judging by the foul gas I started having and the way the left side of my tongue started feeling shortly after that. Either way, it was almost 1:20 AM when I went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and take a bath, 2:30 AM when I was done, and 3:55 AM when I started eating dinner, finishing at 4:30 AM, after spending the last several minutes getting what was stuck on the plate. And I got in bed at 6 AM, at which point I felt that the bone spur from my spine had caught something again, and my right leg once again felt rather numb after that, the feeling persisting after I got up, as did the irritation in my nose.

I’ll also mention here that the following night I started eating dinner at 3:05 AM and, while I would have otherwise still finished at 3:40 AM, I then ended up spending ten minutes gathering all that was stuck on the plate, so I actually finished at 3:50 AM. And, after backing up the documents folder on an USB stick but forgetting to also use /DST, getting scared when I saw that it was replacing pretty much every file, stopping it, then taking a few minutes to figure out what had happened and then finally doing it properly, I got in bed at 5:30 AM… By which point I was also feeling something in my chest.

Before getting to January’s last run, I’ll also mention that on January 27 I finally installed the month’s Windows updates, setting the new computer’s uptime record to 36 days, 26 minutes and 41 or 42 seconds, including the time between taking the screenshot and the system actually rebooting. And then I also installed the software for the UPS, sticking to the old one, even if it’s been discontinued, and being relieved to find that it no longer lost connection.

As for that last run, it was on January 28, and in that day’s early hours I put the beets in the oven and the few carrots that I had left on the stove and then shaved, thinking that I was going to have time, especially after having already sliced the bread during the evening… But I ended up eating dinner between 3:15 AM and 3:50 AM, the salad also containing the core and the sprouted parts of a large onion which had sprouted, since I still didn’t have green onions. And, after waking up multiple times, including once because of an SMS about an order, and having some trouble getting back to sleep on that occasion and the last one, which must have been a little after 12:30 PM, since I checked the time after a while and saw 12:41 PM, I think that I had just fallen asleep again when the alarm rang, at 1 PM, and I got up. Then I had the usual stuff, with the sweet thing consisting of the last slice of the cozonac brought by dad from his sister, with added honey, and left at 3:20 PM, wearing the full running gear. The reported temperature was 17-18°C, holding steady.
The time was 47:23.45, with sector times of 4:18.91, 5:06 (5:05.54), 5:52.31, 4:29.03, 4:58.06, 5:45 (5:44.60), 4:25 (4:24.90), 5:01.28, 5:45 (5:44.85) and 1:44 (1:43.97), making for lap times of 15:16.76, 15:12 (15:11.69) and 15:11.03. I had decided to continue to 16 km if I won’t get back under 48 minutes on ten kilometers, but wasn’t sure if I didn’t want to run 16 km anyway, so I really didn’t know how much I wanted to push on the first sector and that time was better than I expected, while after two sectors the target was to at least cover the first lap in less than the 15:20 that’s the target lap time for 48 minutes, which I did. And then, even if my chances of actually staying under 48 minutes looked poor, when I really had to make up my mind, after sector one of lap two, I decided to at least try, so I pushed harder and obtained good times, thinking after the end of the lap that I could make it after all. And when, after sector two of lap three, I felt quite safe, at least unless I was going to have notable problems, I decided to add another minor challenge and continue to 16 km if I’ll somehow fail to stay under six minutes on sector three of lap three. There was also the fact that it seemed very likely that I was going to cover 16 km in less than 1:18 if I was going to try it that day, the question being about 1:17, and it’d have been nice to obtain such a time after not running more than ten kilometers since the marathon, but after going over 48 minutes five times in a row, I was more interested in at least another normal time over ten kilometers. And when, at the end of lap three, it seemed that I might just squeeze under 47:30 as well, that became my target and I kept pushing, managing that while also obtaining a very good time on the final sector.
I again felt like I wasn’t getting enough oxygen early on and had to work on my breathing over the course of the first lap, things improving after that, though over the first half or so of lap two I was starting to feel drained, as if I was slipping out of runner’s high, before that feeling also passed and things seemed to settle. Otherwise, a slight pressing need also made its presence occasionally known over the course of lap two and once again on sector three of lap three, but it was never a real problem. And the weather was just about perfect and there were no other issues, except a pretty normal amount of weaving and going the long way around, the reasons being split between the lane and other people. My nose was quite irritated after the run, but that had been the case even before it.

On the way back, I grabbed a recyclable with the deposit symbol and the label from another one that was too crushed… And when I picked that one up I found that the bottom was cracked and the juice that was left in it spilled on my shoe. Either way, after getting back I ate lunch, in the form of some slices of pizza which had been brought by dad, did the day’s squats, changed, albeit leaving the running t-shirt on, and after cleaning the litter box, going to drop a bag of trash down the chute and coming back to wash my hands, I left again at 7:20 PM, with the recyclables with the deposit symbol, including a plastic bottle on which I had placed that label, even if it was from something entirely different and even slightly larger. And I picked up some more on the way to Carrefour, putting them in a cabinet that didn’t lock after deciding against using the recycling machine from there and then retrieving them after just having a quick look in the store. And then I decided that I had time to also go to Auchan after all, picking up some more recyclables with the deposit symbol on the way and putting all of them in the machine from there… Or more exactly in two machines, since after getting a voucher for dad’s recyclables and putting in the first one of mine, the first machine stopped, and the other one that I moved to while the first one was being serviced soon stopped as well, though at least it was restarted quickly and I could continue with the remaining recyclables, ending up with four vouchers. However, that bottle on which I had placed that label wasn’t accepted, and when I tried to place that label on another plastic bottle which I picked up from one of the bins that were there, that didn’t work either, so I dropped that other bottle back in the bin and entered the store with my remaining one.
I was mainly going to Auchan for chamomile tea and maybe a pack of those wheat things, but after picking those up I also grabbed a bottle of liquid soap and an expiring protein bar, and this last thing ended up taking quite a while, because the discount label was covering the ingredients and I looked for the product on the shelf but couldn’t find it. I had also spotted some biscuits among the expiring products that had their ingredients covered in the same manner and I couldn’t find those in the regular place on the shelf either, but while I could eventually spot “hydrogenated fat” among the ingredients of the biscuits and therefore discarded them, the only way to read those of that protein bar was to very carefully peel off the discount label, which is made so it’ll tear into strips, I guess so it won’t be peeled off one product and placed on another. But I eventually managed it, and then I initially went to the one self-checkout that allows cashing in vouchers received for recyclables, but by the time I got there I realized that I was going to be able to use all of them while paying for the purchases, and that self-checkout was in use, so I meant to use the one next to it… Only to realize just as I was about to start scanning that it only accepted cards, so I had to wait for that one after all, by which point I had decided to just buy two of the teas and leave the third one there… And then, while I remembered to use the small amount left on the store card, I forgot to use those vouchers, so it was a good thing that I was at that machine, because I had to cash them in anyway, after paying for the purchases.
I then rushed to Kaufland, deciding to try that recyclable there as well before entering the store but only losing a little time, since a single recycling machine was working and it was in use, so I gave up, put my things in a cabinet, washed my hands, and entered the store when it was almost 9:20 PM. The listed bakery discounts were of 50% at that point, but I scanned the labels for the nicer buns and the sweet pastry that I was interested in and found that they were actually discounted by 75%, so I took two of the buns and the last one of those sweet pastries… But I forgot that I meant to spend half of those 3 RON found after the run from two weeks before on deeply discounted products and then give them away, and as I already mentioned it seems that I won’t be getting other opportunities to do so, at least for the moment. Either way, there were few evening discounts for vegetables and they weren’t that great, so I eventually spent way more than I’d have wanted on a lettuce with root and two pretty small kohlrabies, also grabbing a bunch of kohlrabi leaves from that crate, then wasted time until 9:45 PM, hoping for some new or increased discounts but seeing none… And those kohlrabies were apparently too small for the machine to accept them as the correct products on their own, but after I added the bag with the leaves on the scales it allowed me to continue, and I once again scanned the QR code for dad’s store app.
After retrieving my things and arranging everything, I walked out just before the closing announcement and saw a cart with the coin in it, but I didn’t take it right away, wondering if it didn’t belong to the person who had parked next to it and who was just finishing unloading another cart. So I first went back to the recycling machines and, after that bottle on which I had placed that label still wasn’t accepted like that, I put it on another one that I grabbed from one of the bins and that one was accepted… But I didn’t gain anything, because the man who finished using one of the machines just before I did that also spotted that cart, walked to it before I got back there and retrieved the coin. But at least I picked up a few more recyclables with the deposit symbol on the way back.
I got back a couple of minutes after 10:30 PM, then I separated the kohlrabi stems, to just keep the leaves, put most of the purchases in their place, ate an apple and a sweet pastry that I already had, washed what was in the kitchen, and it was past 12:20 AM when I went to shower, the water not being good enough for more than that, so I was done only some 25 minutes later… But then I spent some time in my room, so it was just about 1:15 AM when I went back to the kitchen, and then I also put the remaining purchases in their place, dealt with one more of my breads which I had purchased two days earlier but then just put them all in the fridge, since dad was going to get up very early and I didn’t want to make noise while struggling to make them fit in the freezer, also used the smaller kohlrabi leaves and some of the lettuce in the salad, and put the roes which had expired a month earlier but which I had kept in the freezer since then into jars, which took a while, because the oil separated pretty much completely when they thawed and I tried to sieve it before pretty much giving up on that idea. So I ended up eating dinner between 3:20 AM and 3:50 AM, though I had licked plenty of those roes before that point.

Since I finally managed to write about the last runs of 2024, it’s time for another one of these posts, obviously just for my own use, likely including as a way to stay at least somewhat motivated. Just as before, I didn’t copy the times for the shorter distances, so those are still in the first two such posts. And I still consider the Dream Trek Summer Edition as something different and not relevant for these purposes, so I’m still not including it here, even if I took part in it last year as well. On the other hand, with the new additions compared to the previous such post again being underlined and the usual notes being in the same format, between square brackets, with the first value representing the distance and the second the lap on which that particular time was achieved, only a few additional comments were needed. And the times still include only the seconds, ignoring the fact that I now usually have exact ones as well, especially for the 10 km runs, and those may change some things. And I still won’t link to the page where I list all the times and also have charts, since it’s still in the temporary location and still lacks many of the dates, the situation being pretty much the same as it’s been for the past few years… Which is also why I discarded the idea of actually adding the dates here, though I have been considering it for a while.

10 km (through the park)
1. 45:59
2. 46:09
3. 46:18
4-5. 46:22 (twice)
6. 46:24
7. 46:28
8. 46:31
9. 46:32
10. 46:35

16 km (through the park)
1. 1:14:53
2. 1:15:10
3. 1:15:37
4. 1:15:40
5. 1:16:09
6. 1:16:16
7. 1:16:17
8-9. 1:16:47 (twice)
10. 1:16:48

Half Marathon (21.1 km)
I. Bucharest Half Marathon real time
1. 1:43:13
2. 1:45:36
3. 1:45:42
4. 1:49:26
5. 1:50:54
6. 1:51:54
7. 1:54:56
8. 2:02:38
II. Through the park
1. 1:42:20
2. 1:42:52
3. 1:42:54
4. 1:43:15
5. 1:43:23
6. 1:43:49
7. 1:44:04
8. 1:44:29
9. 1:44:51
10-11. 1:45:50 (twice)

35.2 km (through the park)
1. 3:18:07
2. 3:23:09
3. 3:25:45
4. 3:26:38
5. 3:42:43
6. 3:44:40

Marathon (42.2 km) – Bucharest Marathon real time
1. 3:57:49
2. 4:02:14
3. 4:11:28
4. 4:14:40
5. 4:19:40

Lap around the park lake (3.2 km) [10-1 unless otherwise specified]
1. 14:21
2. 14:31
3. 14:38
4. 14:40 [10-3]
5-6. 14:41 (twice [10-3])
7-8. 14:43 (twice)
9-10. 14:44 [16-1] (twice)

Lap sector one [10-1]
1. 3:56
2. 4:00
3-4. 4:03 (twice)
5. 4:05
6-7. 4:06 (twice)
8-11. 4:07 (and a second, third and fourth time)

Lap sector two
Note: All times from one and two years ago are still here, despite the new additions.
1. 4:32 [10-1]
2. 4:42 [10-2] (Slightly uncertain that I remembered it correctly.)
3. 4:49 [16-2]
4-14. 4:50 [10-1] (and a second [10-2], third [16-2], fourth [10-1], fifth [10-1], sixth [10-3], seventh [10-3], eighth [10-2], ninth [10-2], tenth [10-3] and eleventh [10-3] time)

Lap sector three [10-3 unless otherwise specified]
Note: All times from one and two years ago are still here, despite the new additions.
1. 5:24 [10-1]
2. 5:25 [10-1]
3-4. 5:32 (twice)
5. 5:33 [16-5]
6. 5:34
7-12. 5:35 (and a second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth [10-1] time)

Final sector on a 10 km run
Note: All times from up to five years ago are still here, despite the new additions since then.
1. 1:40
2-3. 1:41 (twice)
4-9. 1:42 (and a second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth time)
10-21. 1:43 (and a second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh and thelfth time)

Final section of a Half Marathon (21.1 km) run (through the park)
1. 9:40
2. 9:42
3. 9:45
4. 9:52
5-6. 9:54 (twice)
7. 10:00
8-9. 10:03 (twice)
10. 10:04

Even if I was glad to have apparently been proven wrong when she was allowed to compete again, I guess I can say that my initial assessment that Halep’s ban will mark the end of the career was, in the end, correct, just that it took her 11 months of struggle, plagued by injuries that only allowed her to play six official matches and win a single one, to admit it and announce her retirement. And I do believe her when she said that she hadn’t made up her mind at the start of what ended up being her final match, only doing so when what happened on court made it clear that her body simply couldn’t handle playing tennis at a high level anymore.
But the question that remains is who should, and most preferably who actually will, pay for what was done to her, especially considering the recent cases of other important players testing positive for banned substances, claiming that it was a result of contamination, and receiving little more than a slap on the wrist, possibly without the matter even being made public at first. Not that actual payment, in terms of money, would make up for ending such a great career and the toll all of this took on her health, both physical and mental, and possibly her personal life as well, but some culprits should, at the very least, be clearly identified, and measures should be implemented to greatly reduce the risk of others needing to go through something like this. And by “measures” I’m referring to specific decisions and regulations, not decisionmakers choosing to more or less turn a blind eye, as it happened in those cases that I mentioned…