How do you spell 'rest?'

The half-marathon training schedule has me doing some kind of run – easy, speed/tempo or long – on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The remaining three days are rest or cross-training days. I've been using the rowing machine for 30 minutes on Tuesdays and Fridays, along with some light weight-training. So I spell 'rest' R-O-W. Usually.

I have the best of intentions for cross-training on Sunday, but it hasn't happened yet. Including yesterday. Yesterday 'rest' was spelled S-I-T O-N M-Y A-S-S A-N-D K-N-I-T A-L-L D-A-Y.

The sum total of my physical activity consisted of shoveling and spreading salt on a path from the house to the garage and then walking on it so I could go watch television and knit.

Oh, and the path? Covered. With snow. Thankyouverymuch, Mother Nature.

Here's the view from the porch, looking down the driveway, early yesterday afternoon. When I looked at the photo from the display on the back of the camera I thought there was some kind of debris on the lens. Turns out it's a bird [circled in the photo] flying backwards in the fierce wind.

I'm not sure how the training gurus have figured out that the fifth week should be full of easy runs, but that's what it is. Four days of four-mile runs, with the usual three rest days. Since it's supposed to be warmer this week [except today], I might run and rest [walk] outside. Although the last time I set out for a walk I ended up running after all.

Grumpy has listed some of her more memorable non-scale victories [NSVs] – always good to contemplate when the going gets boring. Yesterday I was in the lower level of the garage and heard the phone ring in the upper level. I ran up the stairs and answered the phone, as if I'd been walking from one room to the other. No panting, no shortness of breath, no lumbering cow comparisons. Our voice mail picks up after four rings; I picked up in the middle of the third.

My other favorite is my rings. I wear a ring that belonged to my grandmother on my right hand, and it's been slip-sliding away for quite some time now. When Mr. Shrinking Knitter and I bought my wedding ring, it fit very snugly. But a month later, when I took it to a jeweler for resizing, she said it should fit somewhat snugly, and if I was losing weight I should probably leave it as it was. So I did, and now it's slip-sliding away, as well. It's not as loose as Grandma's ring, but I do love having to twist it around so the stones are on top of my finger where they're supposed to be.

And yours? What's your favorite NSV?

Sixty-eight days until race day.