Ow ow ow ow ow ow... everything hurts. My quads, my arms, my ribcage, my back -- everything. I really did myself in this past weekend.

Saturday we tried kayaking on the Salt River. We launched at Saguaro Ranch Lake, and it was beautiful there. The morning was cool and clear, the water -- invigorating to say the least. Brr!

We went from easy paddling on glass-like flats to a few fun woop-tee-doo rapids, to plain old drifting along. It seemed as if the river was ours alone, with the exception of ducks, carp, wild horses, and herons, and as signalled by the sounds of gunfire -- hunters!!

Apparently it's duck and quail season, and the hunters were aiming for the mallards that were everywhere. Since we didn't have any orange safety vests, we did lots of whistling and shouting to announce our presence. Luckily, when we got back to the more inaccessible areas of the river, we didn't have to worry so much about getting Cheney'd.

By the afternoon, we were a little worn out, a little sunburned, and ready to head home, where I took a nice nap, and woke up with some sore arms and shoulders. The rest of the day was pretty easygoing, and I even made a good dinner of cod, broccoli and brown rice.

Sunday morning, I was off to Tempe for soccer. The season had started back in September, but I wasn't able to play until now (oops!).

I play with my old team from Flagstaff. Due to their lengthy commute, our team is scheduled to play back to back games alternate Sundays, instead of one game every Sunday. That's right, TWO games (THREE hours) of soccer, in 90+ degree heat.

Yes, I stretched. No, I did not warm up. Yes, I started in midfield. For those who don't know, they sometimes call the midfielders the "lawnmowers" since they cover so much turf. After 5 minutes of non-stop sprints, I started wheezing and subbed out. That was a grand start.

The rest of the game(s) I played defense or striker, which meant that I got some breaks to recover. It actually felt really good to be out there again. On the field is where I burn off all the anxieties and frustrations of life, and re-energize my spirit.

Afterwards, I was shaky, smelly, and exhausted. It felt great. Monday, however, I felt like I was hit by a freight train. Today, it's not much better. Tylenol is my friend. I'm bruised, blistered, and I walk with all the grace of newborn doe. It even hurts to laugh.

At least I have two weeks to recover, before I do it all over again.