Hi girls! So yeah, the triathlon was so great! It was the hardest "workout" I've ever done!The swim was in the brownest grossest water.... usually the water there is a murky green, not that much better, but with all the swimmers, maybe that's why it was brown. When I got maybe 1/5 done (which felt like it took forever!), I thought it was already the point to go back in, but I had 3 more buoy markers to get to! It was _hard_. And the water was choppier than expected, so I kept ending up zigging and zagging instead of going straight! It was so annoying, I guess I need to get better at sighting when I'm in the water. I would think I was going straight, would check, and realize I had gone diagonal off course! My time was I'm sure slowed a bit by all that extra swimming.The biking was probably hardest part. EVERYONE was passing me on the course! I wasn't keeping pace with anyone near me. And it looked like everyone who passed me had those skinny road bikes; meanwhile I felt like the Wicked Witch from the Wizard of Oz going all straight-backed on my ... mountain bike? I'm not sure exactly what it is. It's not a cruiser though. I literally had that evil sounding "dah-rhan dah-rhan dah-rhan dahn" music going through my head from the movie after a little while.It wasn't supposed to be that hilly, and I had only practiced biking on my own, on pretty tame hills. But it was hilly-er than I expected... I got over the first hill, but I (sad face) had to get off the bike and walk it over the next 3 hills.... I couldn't believe it, AFTERWARDS, DH, my bro, and the friend who did it with me tell me that I was supposed to shift to a lower gear to go up the hills!! Eek, I had it on a high gear the whole time! Duh, I didn't realize I didn't know how to bike right. All I figured out when biking was when I shifted to the higher (more resistance) gear on flat land, I would go much faster. So in my faulty thinking, I thought I would need that to get through the uphills faster. Oh well, live and learn.For a lot of the end of my bike ride, I didn't see _any_ other bikers on the road.... I really thought I must be the last biker left on the road. Then I thought about how that would probably mean I would be the last to finish overall... but I was actually okay with that after thinking it! But after a little while, I came across 2 kids and an adult on the course - the kids were both 12 (they marked our age on the back of our calves with a Sharpie!) - and I was like "I have to beat these 12 year olds!" So yeah, at least I passed them and their mom. Ah, the small victories. I didn't even know kids that young would be in the race!Then the running went pretty okay.. I did a lot more walking than I wanted to, but I found out my pace was faster than it ever was when I trained!So in the tradition of the F-getting P.E. student, of course I would be one of the last finishing.... it was okay though, I was just so happy and proud of myself for finishing!My time: 2 hours 22 minutes and 22 seconds. 49th out of 53 in my age group... but all the women after me on the list didn't have a final time, so I think they didn't finish the race, in which case I was last of all the women in my age group who finished.914th out of 947 overall. Yay!! I rejoice in my ... what's the word that's like the opposite of excellence or mediocrity? (I'd have to be in the middle to be mediocre!)So yeah, yesterday was my furlough day, amazingly I was not sore, (though the few hours right afterwards my whole body hurt!) - I usually don't go near a computer on my days off. I treated myself to a facial at Burke-Williams, it was great!THANKS so much for all your vibes!! When I was minutes away from completing, all of the sudden I really realized that I would finish, and I sort of got teary-eyed because I was so grateful to God for helping me complete a great thing in the midst of a difficult year. Thanks again for your vibes, and for caring. I love being able to share with you!