As luck would have it, last night my car started overheating... so this morning Mike was nice enough to come follow me to the shop to drop my car off and then drive out to the river with me (he was biking, I was running). Apparently both my upper radiator hose and thermostat were out... so $360 and five hours later, I have a fully functional Big Red again.
The run today went really well... I was not feeling like running, yet my first 3 miles were at a 9 minute per mile pace. Go me! I finished the 12 miles in two hours and one minute, which included a brief walk to talk to the car shop and a couple minutes to help a girl who had crashed her bike. Not too shabby! The trail was beautiful - the weather was great and there were a ton of people out there. I felt really tired today as soon as I finished... both Mike and Jess have suggested that I eat something right away after I run. I'm gonna try that next weekend! Pretty scary - two weeks from tomorrow I'll be doing my first half marathon!
The rest of today was a lot less relaxing than I had wanted - the car stuff took a lot of time. Fortunately, I have nothing planned for tomorrow, so I can totally relax!
Marathon Update
Miles This Week: 21
Total Miles: 139
Back in December, I got a letter from my homeowners association saying that I had violated our CC&R's by putting an arbor up in my side yard that was visible over the fence line. I promptly filled out their application, took the necessary pictures, and drew detailed architectural blueprints (have you seen my drawing?). A few days after that, I got a letter back saying my arbor had been approved. A few days after THAT, I got a letter saying I could still be fined since it was originally put in without approval and that I needed to attend the disciplinary hearing.
Fast forward to today. I pull up to the meeting and there are probably 15 other families there who were all in the same boat. The guy next to me put a shed in without approval and the lady on my other side put PLANTS in her front yard. Apparently HOA maintains the front yard, so we can't make any changes without asking. The board members sat in the very front, with three chairs in front of them. When it was your turn, you had to go sit in front of them and plead your case. I was the 4th person to go (thank God... I think it would have killed me to sit there until 9pm!). I sat down and they started asking questions - why I put the arbor in without asking first. Our CC&Rs state that you can't put in any structures visible over the fence line. I said I didn't think an arbor or trellis was considered a structure since it wasn't premanent and didn't have like four walls and a roof. One of the board members on my left asked to see a picture, which I said I didn't have since they had already approved, but I did have a small one that was on the original violation letter. When I showed it to him he said "that's all?!". They sort of chatted a little bit about what it was made out of. Then, the following conversation took place:
Board member to my right: "Well, I put one up in my yard and was never fined."
Lady next to him: "Wasn't that in the back? Like not visible?"
Board member to my right: "No, it was on the side and was visible. Motion to dismiss this case."
Board member to my left: "Second."
Done deal. I rock. Moral of the story: if you go in and the board members have done the same thing that you're being fined for, you'll probably get off!
This weekend was fantastic! I took Friday off and on Thursday night, Mike and I drove down to see Lance Armstrong race in the Tour of California. We stayed in Santa Barbara on Thursday night (I'm no longer allowed to pick hotels... it was nice inside, but when we woke up in the morning we discovered a homeless camp right next door). On Friday morning we headed in to Solvang to watch the race. We had breakfast at Pea Soup Anderson's (delicious french toast!) and then took the shuttle into Solvang. The city was really cute! They had all sorts of fun stuff set up - a whole little vendor expo which was cool to walk through. They make bikes that weigh 11 pounds! Yes, the whole bike! The best part was the Gu booth - Mike and I both got free samples (hooray for vanilla bean!) and stickers (already on Mike's bike). After that, we walked around through the team bus areas - that's where they set up the bikes and eventually the riders come out to warm up. Here's the Jelly Belly bus and the Columbia Highroad bike setup:
Here's Michael Rogers signing autographs (he's a 3 or 4 time world champion):
Here's Mike and I at the finish line:
And, of course, here's the video I took of Lance Armstrong riding by us:
It was really cool to see how all of it works - I have to admit that before Friday, the only name I knew in racing was Lance Armstrong, but Mike was great about telling me who everyone was!
After the race we headed up to Pismo Beach to dip my feet in the ocean... it was so beautiful! We hunted around for some sea shells and then headed home. It was a blast!
Today was probably the worst run in the history of runs. It was pouring when I woke up, so I decided to be brave and to do my 11 mile run at the gym. Biggest mistake of my life. Here's why:
1. The gym was freaking hot. I don't know why they don't air condition it a little more, but I was pretty damn sweaty the whole time.
2. I felt a whole lot like a hamster on a wheel. I tried to watch TV, but about 15 minutes after I got there, the TV went to infomercials. Even my iPod didn't help with the boredom.
3. I had to visualize my normal trail to get myself through the run. The good news is that I did it. The even better news is that I have a new no more than three miles on a treadmill rule.
Marathon Update
Miles This Week: 17
Total Miles: 118
Well, this weekend pretty much sucked. I had some pretty cool plans with Mike for Valentine's Day on Saturday (hooray for wine tasting), but somehow managed to come down with the flu. Fantastic timing, right? Let me rewind to the one cool part of the weekend...
Dad decided to surprise Mom and fly in for the weekend, which was awesome. He had to fly into Oakland late on Friday, so Kati and I drove to pick him up. Mom had no clue (despite some pretty terrible lies on my part) and was completely surprised. It was awesome! I got back to my house at about 1:30am and went to bed. I had been feeling pretty tired that whole day, but I was figuring it was from my 10 mile run. Saturday morning I woke up with a fever, a rash, and a headache. Definitely not Valentine's Day material. As much as it killed me (and those of you who know me know it killed me) I stayed home in bed. I pretty much slept the whole day, went to bed at 9pm and still slept until 8am on Sunday. Crazy. Kati was awesome and made a delicious Valentine's Day meatloaf and we watched movies together until I passed out. The good news is that the fever is gone now and I'm feeling a lot less tired. I spent all of Sunday at Mom and Dad's house relaxing and most of today reading and napping. I guess my little body needed some rest! Shadow was a trooper... he was more than happy to hang out in bed with me and take lots of naps... I have to admit, it was pretty relaxing!
Marathon Update
Miles This Week: 19
Total Miles: 101!
Today was a big milestone in my marathon training - I officially hit double digits with my ten mile run this morning! It was long and cold (the last four miles were face first into the freezing cold wind), but it felt good to get that many miles under my belt. I'm finally starting to feel like I can do this - I know I can pull off the half marathon for sure. I mean, what's 3.1 more miles? Honestly, I never thought there would come a point in my life where I thought three miles was easy, but here I am!
Seriously, Shadow cracks me up. If he gets super hyped up (for example, doesn't get walked because it's raining) he sometimes burns off energy by running around the house like he's crazy. Occasionally, he gets a little bit out of control and launches himself at the sofa. He's learned that if he twists mid-air, his body actually bounces off the back of the sofa. For those who have never witnessed it (which is pretty much anyone that is not me or Kati) here is some video for your viewing pleasure:
Tonight's "Grammy's In Your Jammies' is taking place live from Mike's house. No jammies this year since we went out to dinner and I'm pretty sure he'd be embarrassed and I'd be cold wandering around town in my pjs. On to the reviews:
Performance Reviews
U2: Missed the first part... too busy getting my computer set up. The last part was pretty good!
Al Green, JT, Keith Urban and Boys II Men: I pretty much love all of them... all of them together singing "Let's Get Together" rocked! Poor Keith Urban had to wait pretty long for his little solo, but the man sure can play guitar!
Coldplay: Love their album. The Chris Martin part rocked, but I don't really get having Jay-Z rap with him. Interesting, but not totally my cup of tea. I loved “Viva La Vida” – it’s my favorite song on the album! I never really get Chris Martin’s costumes though… a little too much crap hanging off him for my taste.
Carrie Underwood: As always, an amazing performer. I want to see her next time she comes to Sac! Adam, are you still calling her “Carrie Underpants” now?
Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus: I can’t stand Miley Cyrus and her 50 year old smoker voice. Poor Taylor Swift.
Jennifer Hudson: One word. Amazing.
Stevie Wonder and the Jonuas Brothers: has Steve’s career gone that far down the tubes?
Katy Perry: I know I shouldn’t love the song, but I do. I love her weird fruit costume too!
Kanye West and Estelle: I really like the song. I didn’t totally dig their weird little space costumes and I think he’s trying a little hard to look like Michael Jackson circa 1980.
Kenny Chesney: Wow. My favorite song he sings.
MIA: Scary costume. Please don’t perform while you’re prego, let alone on your due date.
Sugarland and Adele: I love Jennifer Nettles. I want her voice. I love “Stay”.
Radiohead and the USC Marching Trojans: Couldn’t understand a word the dude was singing, but I loved the song!
Neil Diamond: Who doesn’t love sweet Caroline?
Justin Timberlake and TI: I sorta don’t like the song, yet it totally grows on me. In fact, I end up singing it every time it’s on the radio. Great performance.
Robert Plant and Allison Krauss: Holy crap, what a terrible performance. I can’t believe they actually won after that… I definitely am a little more curious about their album… I can’t believe they would get album of the year without some sort of merit…
Clothing Reviews
Whitney Houston: Wait, she's not dead? Wow, she looks good in that blue dress! That said, I'm pretty sure she's high. We're so far from the "I Will Always Love You" days. Very sad.
I know, it's not Sunday night, but tomorrow night is the Grammy's, so I'll be doing my "Grammy's In Your Jammies" blog, so I thought I'd update on the weekend now.
First of all, I'm happy to say that I've regained my will to run, thanks to a little prodding from Jess and one great article in Runner's Magazine. The article was about this fireman that was an Ironman, marathoner, etc and was hit by a bus... he should have been killed, but somehow, he survived. He fought back through crazy surgeries and ended up running the New York Marathon with some of his buddies (in the disabled category because one of his legs was shorter than the other and the other one was basically made up of metal rods). I figured, if he can do it with a beat up body, well, me and my not so beat up body could do it. Which leads me to my nine mile run on Friday morning. That would officially be the farthest I've ever run in my life. Pretty much every long run from here on out is going to be the farthest I've gone, which is pretty cool. Jess met me out at the trail and ran a mile with me, then jumped in her car and met me at different spots on the trail. Talk about a great friend... poor girl is pregnant and has awful morning sickness, but was still willing to risk it on the trail with me! It was the best long run I've done so far... I don't know if it was the change of scenery, that I had someone out there with me or my new water pack, but it felt great. Before I knew it the run was over. Now if only I could do that three times, I'd be done with my marathon!
Today was fix up the house day. I had a leaky toilet, which was a little bit daunting, since I know nothing about plumbing. Over the weekend I was told it was probably the "wax ring". Keep in mind, I know NOTHING about plumbing. But I figured, how hard could it be? So I headed over to my friendly Lowe's where I bought the ring, some caulk and a caulking gun. I then headed over to Home Depot to pick up some ground cover for under my roses and a hibiscus tree to replace the weeping cheery that decided it didn't want to live. I did all that planting, met Mike for lunch and then headed home to face the dreaded toilet. I turned off the water and flushed a lot. Now came the scary part, actually unhooking, picking up and moving the toilet. It probably would have been helpful for me to read up on toilet anatomy so that I knew what I was getting into, but sometimes I guess it's all about flying by the seat of your pants. Once we moved it, I stared at, well, a hole in the ground. For all it's fanciness, that's really all that this is about. A big fat hole with some pretty porcelin on top. Without contemplating what's been down said hole, I started prying off the wax ring (which was a little smellier than I expected) and replaced it with the new ring. Kati and I then put the toilet back, screwed it down and flushed. Water everywhere. We took it off, dried the floor and I molded some of the old wax with the new wax to make a bigger ring (and a better seal). This time, when I flushed, no water! Woo hoo! I then caulked around the base (which was a little messier than I had planned, but it was my first time...) and attempted to take a nap...
... which leads me to confess that I'm as addicted to the "Twilight" books as everyone else on the planet. I laid down in bed and 150 pages later it was 4:30 and definitely past prime nap time. I recommend the books - and I'm only ~200 pages into the first one. I can't wait to find some more time to read (maybe tomorrow afternoon?)!
Tonight the girls and I are headed out to see "He's Just Not That Into You". I've heard it's supposed to be really funny... I can't wait!
Marathon Update
Miles This Week: 18
Total Miles: 83
I hit the wall today. Sure, it's only five weeks into my training, but by God, I've fun 65 miles for what? The funny thing is that today's run felt good... it was easy, not too cold, nothing hurt. That said, as I was doing today's 3 mile run, I had a great little conversation with myself:
Me: "Why am I doing this?"
Me: "Well, you will look good at the houseboat this year."
Me: "What if I just stopped after the half marathon? I mean, seriously, what kind of crazy person runs a whole marathon?"
Me: "I did tell a lot of people. I think I'd look pretty stupid if I didn't do the whole thing now."
Did I mention that apparently running this much also makes you talk to yourself? I mentioned it to my friend Jess who is the queen of marathons. She immediately told me that "I'm stuck to you like gum on the bottom of your running shoes". She'll be trailing me on my nine miles this week... I suppose I have my own personal cheerleader/motivator/ass kicker now. Yippee. Mike says this happens a bunch while you're training and that you come out of it... I certainly hope so!
This weekend was a marathon weekend (no pun intended)! Friday night, Mike and I went to the Tesla concert. I didn't really know who they were, but it was an awesome show... I really like their music. In fact, I might get their new CD... there were some great songs that they played at the show and I liked them a lot! Here's Mike and I chillin' at the show:
That crazy look in my eyes is because I ran eight miles earlier in the day thinking I'd have lots of recovery time sitting at the show. As it turns out, we had general admission tickets, so we were standing the whole time. Now, some of the best shows I've seen have been standing, but definitely not after eight miles!
On Saturday we went to the Make-A-Wish Food & Wine Festival. Me, Mike, Kati, Brigitte, Dan, Jeremy, Steve, J and Jen all ended up going. Kati had the fantastic idea of renting a limo so that no one had to drive. Our limo driver dropped us off at the wrong place, but we got a cool picture in front of an old car:
The event itself was great - you paid $85 to get in and they had 60 wineries and 60 local restaurants offering you all the food and drink you could possibly consume. I think it's safe to say that we all drank our $85 dollars worth! Here's me a few drinks (and some delicious truffles) in:
This afternoon we had a Super Bowl party at my house. It was a blast! I've been craving all things summer, so I barbequed chicken, corn on the cob and we made pasta salad. It hit the spot! I thought the commericals were so-so. This year really didn't seem to have a ton of great ones. The group seemed to like a couple - here are the ones that made us laugh. Apparently we like when people get smacked:
As well as cartoons:
And finally, ones about hating work:
Marathon Update
Miles This Week: 17
Total Miles: 65
