Ha! Yeah, except I'd be afraid of going down the whole kilt/painted toe nails road, as so many bf runners sadly do. Maybe I'll try Dama's barefoot sandal idea, that might go nicely with my toe rings. Opps, toe rings? I guess I'm already heading in that direction. God help me.
I think this actually works against me in academia. I'm like a geek trapped in a jock's body, not professoresque at all. I often wonder if I'm reminding people of the guys who used to pick on them in school, when in fact I was always short for my age until I was 15 or 16, so, although I was never really picked on, I can totally relate. The worst is the Gender Studies crowd. They always seem a bit suspicious of me until I go out of my way to disarm myself by being overly polite and deferential.
I've only gone into a few stores barefoot while I was at the local mall and that was only because my flip flops were bothering me and I had to take them off. I got lectured that there is dangerous stuff on the floor and I was going to get hurt by a store clerk (he did not make me put on shoes but was very rude and lost my business), and then my wife also lectured me because she was with me and I apparently embarrassed her with my barefootedness out in public.
I don't think so, but I appreciate the suggestion. I don't push the stretches much, but I do hold it for a while. I don't put the foot up over my head, but more like chest-level, then I bend the foot towards me and hold it (don't tell the Soc Doc!). I used to be able to do the splits (while training karate), so I'm pretty flexible for a big oaf. I keep thinking about trying to get back to that, but I never seem to allow enough time after my weights routine for the stretching and runner specific exercises like donkey kicks, clams, etc. My sense is that I didn't stretch out / warm up enough before the run, and that may be an age factor I need to be more conscious of. I'm pretty haphazard as to whether I stretch a bit before a run. I think I have to be more religious about it.
Well, when I asked the doc if my extra effort on my dead lifts and squats last Monday (11 days ago) might have triggered it, he said no, that would only affect the back of the knee and the hammies. So I take it he didn't think the hammies have anything to do with it. When the knee book you recommended arrives later today, I'll try to pinpoint which ligament or bursa is the problem, but it's more in the front to the side of the knee joint. If it's something that connects to the lower leg then it might be related to my problem with tight lower leg muscles. I'm gaining appreciation for how everything is connected, so I will not rule out the possibility that stretching the hammies may have contributed to this. However, after last Tuesday's 7-mile run, I didn't massage or stretch as much as I usually do before Thursday's fateful run, so it kind of seems like the opposite problem--not enough stretching or massaging. I dunno. I'm icing again for the second time now. Funny, after icing the pain is almost completely gone and I feel like I could go out for a run. Should've started this last week. Anyway, I'll try to put off running until the knee's been pain-free for at least a few days without any icing or cream, when I wake up and don't feel a thing. Now I'm wondering if I should even row later today.
Hey Sheetless Wonder, one more question (for now): do you think a knee brace would be any help? It seems like the joint does better when it's extended, so maybe a brace would help keep me from bending it while mending it. But I wonder if, once I'm running again (hopefully next week sometime), it would interfere with my form. It's close to pain-free now, but still stiff. I've been icing it every two hours or so, and have applying that cream. Also, do you think Biofreeze would be useful? I don't mind throwing a little more money at the problem if it gets me running again, but I don't know much about this kind of stuff, having luckily been pretty much injury-free up until this point.
I was in a meeting once with a bunch of moms, when one mom was asking how to keep her son from teasing her daughter. I energetically responded: "Certainly, teach him to be nice, but don't just nix the teasing! Her husband will probably do it for the rest of her life and it's good practice for her to not be offended by everything! "
Still, after 30 years, I can't always tell when my husband is treating me companionably by giving me a hard time. Never a dull moment. 
My wife and I jokingly give each other sh!t all the time. It's part of Mozambican culture, but I like it too. Then when you really do give each other a hard time, you've built up some calluses so the effect isn't so harsh. It will be interesting to see how we deal with sibling rivalry though. Hasn't been an issue yet, but now that our son is more active and just about verbal, I'm sure it's just a matter of time . . .I was in a meeting once with a bunch of moms, when one mom was asking how to keep her son from teasing her daughter. I energetically responded: "Certainly, teach him to be nice, but don't just nix the teasing! Her husband will probably do it for the rest of her life and it's good practice for her to not be offended by everything! "
