office decorations

My workspace has always been pretty blah. I have had pictures of my cutest nieces and nephews up since I started, but nothing else to liven things up, unless you count my electric 3-hole punch. That's pretty exciting. A few weeks ago, I went to Philly for our practice update where we went on a scavenger hunt around the city. It was a cross between the Amazing Race and Mission Impossible and it was such a blast. We had to answer various trivia questions as well as perform and film/take photos of different scenarios. My favorite was where we had to recreate a famous movie scene in 30 seconds using only small props and our fingers. After some brainstorming, we came up with the scene at the end of ET where he rides up over the moon on the bike. We were just outside Starbucks so we grabbed straws and stir sticks, out of which I fashioned trees and a bike, and another team member went through the trash to grab a starbucks lid to serve as the moon. It turned out so well and we got a great reaction from the crowd when we got together to watch all of the films. Anyway, I am convinced that it was this video that gave us third place (we didn't do so hot with the trivia), and the prize? Meet my desk's new mascot!

Isn't it the coolest?

My new best friend

This is the best purchase I've made in a long long time. It's a Rubbermaid ice blanket (or at least that's what I call it) and it serves two purposes. I put them in my new pink cooler so that I have cold water and gatorade after my runs and then I use them to soothe my aching muscles (you can't tell but I have one under my calves as well). It's GREAT!

Don't worry, the white spots in your vision are just an indication of severe mental instability

It was signs like the one quoted above, as well as "Practice hill #1, 7 more of these and you'll be ready to go" that made my half marathon experience, dare I say it, rather enjoyable. I woke up before sunrise, not to mention after only mere hours of sleep, to drive off into the unchartered territory of half marathon running. The race organizers suggested that you arrive an hour early, and I now know why. It's so you can wait in long lines for the port o potties.

20 minutes before race time the heavens opened and graced us with a pre-race shower. As you know, I love, love, LOVE running in the rain, but this rainstorm just created an open-air sauna. The race itself was pretty great. About a mile and a half in, I found myself keeping pace with an older gentleman. After a few minutes he struck up a conversation with me and we chatted for the next 5 miles or so. Thanks Langley for the distraction and advice. I don't know if I could have made it without you. Chloe, I have a theory that running long distances isn't so bad if you have someone to run with/distract you. I can't wait to put it to the test when you come in two weeks.

The scenery was quite lovely. Poolesville is mainly farmland, so we passed cornfields, vast and rolling hills, horses, horse manure and even a llama. The course was very hilly, there really wasn't much flat at all, it was either up or down, which my knees don't appreciate right now. I will say that it was good training though. I don't do nearly enough hill training as I probably should. I got through the first 4 miles without any walking breaks and after mile 4 tried not to stop on any hills, which worked for a while. Towards the end I just couldn't get my body to get to the top and had to stop to walk. Talk about losing steam! On my last mile I passed a few runners who probably finished the race a good hour before me, maybe they were going for a full marathon?? One of them wasn't wearing shoes. I should have told him he was missing something. Unfortunately that funny response didn't come to me until minutes after they passed. I hate that!! He was definitely crazy!!! The last mile of the run was the longest mile of my life. The finish line was tucked away at the very end of a very long dirt road which you couldn't even see until you turned the corner. That was tough.

I got my first blisters today on several toes and the ball of my foot (!!!). Anyone know how to treat them? My toes are also very stiff, which I find a little wierd. I'm walking around like an old woman, but that's pretty typical these days. Other than that I feel pretty good.

One of the volunteers had a little sign pinned to her shirt that said "It's my birthday, happy running." I wished her a happy birthday as did the guy behind me. I have to run 12 miles on my birthday next month. I think I'm going to copy her. Another guy had a shirt on that said: "Marathon: All it is is a 10k with a 20 mile warm up." I guess that's one way to look at it.

Ok, I'm almost done. If you look at the mileage counter above my profile picture you'll notice I've passed the 200 mile mark. That just blows my mind!

The playlist, but I didn't listen to 8-18:

1. Apologies - James Figurine
2. Get Me Off - Basement Jaxx
3. Irreplaceable - Beyonce
4. Hysteria - Muse
5. Andromeda - Chicane
6. City of Delusion - Muse
7. Just A Lil Bit - 50 Cent
8. Storm - Vanessa-Mae
9. Feel Like Rain - Motion City Soundtrack
10. Show Me The Money - Petey Pablo
11. Boys (The Co-Ed Remix) - Britney Spears feat. Pharrell
12. Tobaco Club Action - Yo Majesty vs. Bonde do R... vs. Alice in Chains
13. Blackout - UNKLE
14. Shout - Tears For Fears vs. Evanescence
15. One Love - Cirque du Soleil
16. Battle Without Honor or Humanity - ???
17. Scared Encore - Eighth Wonder vs. Eminem
18. Rocket in the Sky - Benassi Bros.
19. Pour Some Hot Sugar - Mims vs. Def Leppard
20. I Still Remember - Bloc Party
21. Flying Birds (Arjen Van Thijs Mix) - Los Tres present DJ Macks
22. Light - Benassi Bros.
23. We Didn't Start the Fire - Billy Joel
24. Yahoo!! - Erasure
25. Aggro1 - The Doors vs. The Crystal Method
26. Mysterious Skies - ATB
27. Sell Out - Reel Big Fish
28. Over It - Katharine McPhee
29. Halfway Love - Cedric Gervais & Second Sun
30. Find a New Way - Young Love
31. Sun Goes Down - ATB
32. In The Dark - Maxi Jazz & Christian Burns
33. &%#@** - M83 vs Aphex Twin vs Khia
34. Audio Crash Yourself - Abstrackt Keal Agram vs. Eminem Best finishing song ever!!

Bye Corey :(

I miss you already!

I will do just about anything for Sonic...

Including sitting in this...

for 2 1/2 hours!

Can you sense my excitement??

Tara loves Sonic as much as I do...

...considering the sheer volume of food she ordered.

I was so happy to be eating my hot fudge peanut butter sundae that I didn't even notice there was ice cream dripping down my face.

Thanks Tara for the drive, and for sharing my love of Sonic. Let's do it again soon, but maybe not during rush hour traffic!

I'm running 13.1 miles tomorrow...

and I'm scared!!

Happy Tummy

Today has been a very good day in the food department, and by good, I mean that it has been very VERY bad. You see, Jad came back from New York with this...

It may not look very exciting at first glance, so let me try again. It was filled with six of these:

The one shown here didn't last very long. I don't think the bag had exchanged hands before I had pulled one out and eaten it, and I just now finished a second. These cream puffs are what makes New York so great. They come from Beard Papa's and the cream filling is so delectible, so delightful, that it takes every ounce of willpower I have not to lick the remains from their paper wrapper. If you are ever in New York, you NEED to find this place. You won't be disappointed.

But the cream puffs aren't my only food transgression of the day. It was also Jad's birthday so we got Dunkin' Donuts to celebrate. I ate a half a glazed donut, quickly followed by the other half, and then shared a muffin. That is all I've eaten today and my tummy is smiling.

Running stuff

I use this blog to keep my friends and family updated on the happenings of my life. When I first started, I had lots of stories and entries about lots of different topics, but I'm afraid my blog has become rather centered around the same topic as of late. Running of course. I guess it makes a lot of sense because my whole life has been consumed by this lately. Anyway, I subscribe to a running blog called Ask Jenny, and the most recent question was highly applicable for me and my St. George marathon training runner friends. I'll share it here for you:

I signed up for a half marathon that has a significant (~1,700 ft) elevation drop. It sounds like a real quad burner. Do you have any strength exercises that I could do in a month that would help? -Bradley

Although running downhill is very taxing to the body due to the increased impact forces there are a few key strategies to learn the art of hill running. These strategies will not only reduce the impact forces on your knees, but will also improve your overall speed and efficiency while using less energy. Now, what is better than that?

Strengthening your legs and body is important. Incorporate whole body strength exercises for your upper, lower and core muscle groups. Exercises that will develop strength in your abs and low back, quads, hips [CORE] and calves are especially important. If strength training is new to your regimen, start gradually with one set of 12-15 repetitions per set. Doing more will risk intense leg soreness which will set your running back. Click here for pictures and an explanation of how to perform these exercises.

Single Leg Lunges are great for runners as they train each leg independently and strengthen the quads, hamstrings and hips. Start with stationary lunges for single sets of 12-15 repetitions and progress to 2-3 sets of 8-12. As you get stronger, hold hand weights, alternate legs, or walk and lunge to progress.

Plank's are an excellent way of strengthening your core. Start with 3 timed sets to fatigue [10-30 seconds] and work your way up in time each set.

Step Up's are a great tool for strengthening your thighs. You can perform these on stairs, benches or even chairs if you are careful.

Practice your downhill running technique. Running downhill is really all about falling gracefully. The hill naturally pulls you down (well, with it's friend gravity) so avoid fighting it. Work WITH the hill by gently leaning your body INTO the hill. Relax and let it pull you down. Open your running stride (cover more ground stride for stride) and focus on planting your foot just behind your hip. Normally your foot lands just beneath your hips however, moving it to just behind your hips will help maintain momentum and reduce the impact forces you feel when your feet land under or in
front of your hips. This takes practice - make sure to try this a little at a time to avoid injury.

Run every hill efficiently. This one skill can save you minutes on the race course and drastically reduce the impact forces on your body. Avoid blowing all your energy on fighting every uphill. Instead, shorten your stride and keep your torso tall on the uphill and focus on maintaining your EFFORT level rather than pace. For example, if you are running a 9:00 minute pace at 75% heart rate on the flat, maintain that 75-80% heart rate on the uphill, which means slowing down. This will allow you to reach the top of the hill with less fatigue and able to take full advantage of the downhill. Most runners make the mistake of trying to conquer the uphill by maintaining PACE rather than EFFORT and in the process get so tired they are too fatigued to push the downhill. And, like the Tortoise and Hare, the wise hill runner will win every time! Not to mention this strategy makes hill running SO MUCH FUN. You won't hate the hills any more. You'll make friends with them for sure!

I followed Jenny's uphill advice during my run yesterday and I must say, it definitely helped. I wouldn't say that the hill was easy, but it was definitely less strenuous. Also on my run yesterday I passed another runner!! I don't know why this makes me so happy but it does. It took me a mile, and I was definitely running faster than what I'm comfortable with, (at one point I was running at a 9:30 mile pace) but I did it. A big shout out to Fall Out Boy for giving me that extra push towards the end.

Perfect!

I have to run 13 miles this weekend and guess what? I found a half marathon to run. I love it when the timing works out! I've always (well, since I ran my first in April) been a fan of the race atmosphere and this will be good practice for me. I'm so excited!!!

12 miles

Why is it that these long (and I do mean LONG) runs are more manageable than my three mile runs. It's not that they're easy by any means, but they're slightly less difficult. This week I did the same monument tour, but started at Roosevelt Island and ran across the 14th street bridge. I couldn't have planned it better, it added exactly 5 miles to the 7 mile monument loop, which meant no running around in circles by my car trying to get that extra half mile or so I didn't account for. Running over the 14th Street bridge meant that I passed the staging area of the Cherry Blossom 10 miler, the race that started this whole mess. I remembered the apprehension I felt that day, the fear that I wouldn't be able to finish. Also the exhiliration and relief I felt as I crossed the finish line, and I realized that I feel those exact same things every weekend when I go out on my long runs. I personally thing it's a good thing not to get too confident with my running. For me the apprehension is necessary, because it means I pace myself so that I don't burn out too quickly.

After my run I walked over the bridge to Roosevelt Island and stretched and read Harry Potter. It was lovely and quite soothing.

The cool marble bench felt so nice after my hot run.

Check out the view!

I really liked my playlist today. The marathon machine (my ipod) did a good job playing DJ. For the most part, the songs at the beginning were on the slower, mellower side to ease me into my run and the latter songs did a perfect job at keeping me going. Number 18 on my list was actually 18 and 19 because I loved it so much for my push up to the top of the Capitol (they don't call it Capitol Hill for nothin!) I repeated it. I've shared it here in case you're interested in getting a little taste of the kind of music that helps me through my runs.

1. Mr. Brightside - The Killers
2. The Adventure - Angels & Airwaves
3. xr 2 - Mia
4. Faith - George Michael
5. I Want It That Way - Backstreet Boys
6. Breathe Me (Four Tet Remix) - Sia
7. SexyBack - Justin Timberlake
8. Feel Good Inc. - Gorillaz
9. Naxalite - Asian Dub Foundation
10. E-Pro - Beck
11. Jump N' Shout - Basement Jaxx
12. Thnks Fr Th Mmrs - Fall Out Boys
13. Bananza (Belly Dancer) - AKON
14. We Didn't Start The Fire - Billy Joel
15. Simply Being Loved - BT
16. Belsunce Breakdown - Bouga
17. There is No Mathematics to Love or Loss - Anberlin
18. Sweet Jacqueline - Eurythmics vs. Faithless
19. The Warning - Hot Chip
20. Young Cats - Peter, Bjorn and John vs. The Cure
21. Find a New Way - Young Love
22. Big School - Hot Chip vs. Peter Gabriel
23. Living in a Bubble - Eiffel 65
24. Kiss the Sky - Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra
25. One Love - Cirque du Soleil
26. Barrel of a Gun - Guster
27. Suddenly I See - KT Tunstall
28. Galvanize - The Chemical Brothers
29. Dance 4 Life - Tiesto feat. Maxi Jazz
30. Give me Delight - Timbaland feat. Nelly Furtado vs. LSB
31. Yummy - Gwen Stefani
32. Hot n Cold Pussycat Dolls - Basement Jaxx vs. Pussycat Dolls
33. When You Were a Starlight - Team9 vs. The Killers vs. Muse
34. Waitin' for You - Benassi Bros

It's HERE!!

There they are!!!

Betsy's got her wrist band

I've got my wristband, first 1oo baby!!

This is not a good representation of the number of people at the store. We reached capacity so they had to start lining people up outside.

The beginning of the line.

Betsy waiting...not very patiently.

Hagrid

Passing the time

Obviously Betsy's a *little* excited. The countdown has begun.

12:01!!!!

FINALLY!! In my hands at 12:05 am.

HAPPY READING, POTTER FANS!!

HP7 comes out tonight!!!

...and my cousin and I are 87 and 88th in line to get our copy! Don't hate me, but I'm probably going to read the final chapter before I finish the first.

G-town

I hung out with one of my favorite people in the whole wide world tonight, Corey. Corey is seriously the funniest person in the whole wide world, but right now I'm doing more crying than laughing in his presence because he is moving to Iraq. Dead serious, and of his own free will. I'm really sad about it, I'm going to miss him. Anyway, we went down to Georgetown, where we walked around a bit through the rain and read magazines in the map section of Barnes and Noble where I took this picture (I think the only one I have of the two of us together, and it's not even a good one) and cried into my Glamour magazine while he looked at pictures of guns. Afterwards we met up with his roommate Christian and his co-worker for some delicious pizza . Good times! Don't go Corey!!!

Matter: 1 - Mind: 0

Running, just like most things in life, is just a matter of mind over matter. Well today, matter triumphed. It mattered that the beef salad I had for lunch was still heavy in my tummy, it mattered that it was a virtual steam room outside, it mattered that I had a side ache, it mattered that my throat was fire, it mattered that the only carb I had was the Krispy Kreme donut at 11:00 am, it mattered that my ankles were week, it mattered that my thighs were like two concrete bricks, it mattered that I forgot the bodyglide, it mattered that running was the last thing I wanted to be doing. I just couldn't get myself going. I ran two minutes for every 1 minute walked, it wasn't pretty.

What I wouldn't give to be one of those runners who use exercize to escape. I try to escape from exercize. It's days like today I curse my decision to run this marathon. How do you train your brain to ignore the signals of laziness that your body sends out?? I can't seem to do it. Any tips would be much appreciated.

Well enough whining. I'll end this post with a nice, happy thought. I completed my 6 mile run yesterday right at dusk, and as I walked along the trail back to my car I saw the most magical thing, lightning bugs everywhere I turned. It look like the sky had spilled over. It was a lovely way to finish up a tough run.

7/19 playlist:
1. Silikon - Modeselektor & Sasha Perera
2. Konichiwa Bitches - Robyn
3. No Ordinary Morning - Chicane
4. Simply Being Loved - BT
5. Boys - Ryan Adams
6. Sho... - Tears for Fears vs. Evanescence
7. Welcome to the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance
8. ??? - Mouloud & The Sonic Destruction vs. Prodigy
9. This is Why I'm Hot - Mims
10. I Want It That Way - Backstreet Boys

3 mile interval run - 7/16

I've decided that Tuesdays are my interval training days. I changed the execution of the intervals this time, running (8:30 pace) and walking (14:30 pace) a minute each as opposed to the run 2 walk 1 from last week. I like this way much much better, mainly because sprinting for 1 minute is definitely more manageable than 2. Hopefully this training will help improve my running. In other running improvement efforts, I met up with my friend Kristi yesterday to work on an eating plan. I've decided to write down everything I eat, as well as to buy (and actually eat) more fruits and vegetables. Because I'm now being held accountable for what I eat (I will be sending my list to Kristi at the end of each week) I definitely find myself thinking twice about what I consume, which is a good thing. Although when I got home last night I ate a mint brownie, a small bag of Sunchips, a handful of Trader Joes chocolate peanut butter malt balls and a solo cup filled with mango italian ice/vanilla ice cream. I guess I just needed one more night of excessiveness! We'll see how this new plan goes!!

I went to put on a ring the other day that I ordered to fit on my ring finger but it's now too big and can only be worn on my middle finger. Before now, I thought that losing weight in your fingers was a myth. We'll now I know it's absolutely possible! Goodbye sausage fingers!!!

1. Choke - Hybrid
2. Take a Bow - Muse
3. Vindicated - Dashboard Confessional
4. Castles in the Sky - Ian Van Dahl
5. Red Alert - Basement Jaxx
6. Thank U - Alanis Morissette
7. Kill Yourself - Timbaland feat. Sebastian & Attitude
8. Hands Up - Black Eyed Peas
9. Welcome to the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance

sponsorships

I know most of you could care less about NASCAR and maybe I'm the only person who will find this even remotely funny, but I was listening to one of the morning radio shows and they were discussing the news that Budweiser will not sponsor Dale Earnhart Jr. next season. Apparently Budweiser is in negotiations to possibly sponsor Kasey Kahne's 9 car. At this news, the woman on the radio show exclaims, I can't imagine Kasey Kahne being sponsored by Budweiser...look at him...he should be sponsored by milk!

In other NASCAR news, I drove alongside the truck pictured here, with the American flag on one side and the NASCAR flag on the other. They also had a full size barbeque in the truck bed, SO typical of NASCAR. They were cracking me up!

Coolest run ever - 7/14

I decided to take a running tour of DC today. It was so freaking awesome. Check out all of the things that I saw/ran past:

- Korean War Memorial
-Lincoln Memorial
-Vietnam Memorial
-WWII Memorial
-White House
-Washington Monument
-The Mall
-All of the Smithsonians on the mall
-US Capitol and the Senate/House office buildings
-Supreme Court
-Library of Congress
-Tidal Basin
-Jefferson Monument

I completed my 7 miles at the back entrance of the FDR Memorial, my very favorite, and stretched next to the waterfall in his third term. Seriously, it doesn't get much better than that. Get excited Chloe, you get to do this next month!!

A few run related things. I walked quite a bit, but I tried to limit my walking to a minute or less. Due to the fact that I was walking in the city as opposed to my usual trail run, I also had to stop at several traffic lights. I was HAULING though, because even with all of my walking, and also forgetting to pause my workout while I stopped at a crosswalk for a minute, I averaged an 11:25 min/mile pace for the workout. I'm shocked. There has GOT to be something wrong with my Nike+ chip. Also, I tried the black cherry shot bloks, they're a keeper!

The playlist:
1. Aggro 1 - The Doors vs. The Crystal Method
2. One and Only - Timbaland feat. Fall Out Boy
3. Here (In Your Arms) - Hellogoodbye I think I like the remix better for running
4. Big Love Adagio - Bond I love these remixes of classical pieces. They've got a good beat to follow but the music is soothing and does a good job of clearing my head
5. Sister Rosetta (Capture the Spirit) - Noisettes This one definitely puts a little bounce in my step
6. Love at First Sight - Kylie Minogue I walked to a good portion of this one and it kept me at a good walking pace
7. City of Delusion - Muse
8. The District Sleeps Alone Tonight - The Postal Service How very appropriate!!
9. Ocean Avenue - Yellowcard Good running beat
10. Elements of Life - Maxi Jazz This one is my running theme song. I don't know what it is about it, but it really gets me excited about running
11. Yummy - Gwen Stefani
12. Blackbird - Benassi Bros.
13. Did You Get My Message - Jason Mraz
14. Living in a Bubble - Eiffel 65
15. Rocket in the Sky - Benassi Bros
16. Supermassive Rainbow - Muse vs. Klaxons
17. Look At My Celebrity - Villeneuve feat. M83 vs. Twista
18. Life Begin Again - Afro Celt Sound System (Cooldown)

Reality rears its ugly head

Today I had a breakdown in the cereal/bread section of Trader Joes. After I got my sobbing under control I resumed my shopping with tears streaming down my cheeks. I am the queen of denial, I prefer to exist in a dream world filled with unicorns, fairies and leprechauns. But I'll admit, it's not the most healthy way to operate, and inevitably I remember that those unicorns? They're not real. Eventually I will be ok, I'll accept this new reality. In the meantime however, I expect lots of moments like the one described above.

Here you go!

My very favorite this week!

For you Annalisa

Neil and Lauren

The Office

The funniest thing happened at work today but I'm afraid those of you who don't watch the office won't get it. One of the partners brought a client down to meet with my boss. My co-worker Jad was at my desk at the time and we overheard their introductions. Imagine my surprise when I found out the clients name was that of Phyllis' now husband on The Office (For some reason I don't feel like dropping his name, in case he's the type to google himself, or if my company decides to google me and sees me dropping names of people we work with. Yes, I'm paranoid). When they went into my boss' office, I looked at Jad and said "(* insert Phyllis' husbands name here*...Vance Refrigeration." We had a good laugh about it. Fast forward an hour. My boss hands me his card to put in his contacts. Guess what division he works in...oh that would be the refrigeration division. What are the odds?!

Fartlek - not a dirty word

In an effort to re-energize my runs and get through the running slump I find myself in, I tried something new for my run today. It is something I did during my training for the Cherry Blossom and this time at the recommendation of my dad and my running hero, Annalisa, called Fartlek's. Fartlek is Swedish for "Speed Play" and it is used in training to increase your endurance and speed and strengthen your heart, and it is done by running intervals. I had a scheduled 3 mile run, so I ran the first mile and then alternated 1 minute of walking at a 16:oo pace and 2 minutes of running at a 9:30 pace, which for some people is a normal jogging pace but for me is a nice sprint. I did this 4 times, which was just over a mile, and then finished off my run with a mile at a slightly slower than normal pace. It was hard, really hard, but I feel really good about pushing myself past my limits. I am going to make this a part of my routine, hopefully adding more intervals per run as I go along.

Oh, also, because I ran on the treadmill at the gym, I was able to weigh myself. Bad idea. I've gained 5 pounds in the last few weeks. My friend Abbie tried to convince me that it's probably just muscle, but unfortunately I don't think it's the reality. I've been eating crap, but that's about to change!!

I found that I spent more time focusing on my running today, therefore I didn't really pay much attention to the music. I guess I was in the zone. Ok, while rewinding to the beginning of my playlist (I just shuffle all songs) to write them here, I accidentally went too far and shuffled the songs again, so no playlist today. Sorry!!

Myrtle Beach - the lost photos

My best impression of a crab. I know, I know...TOTALLY weak!

Attack of the killer crab...and Tyler in a crab coma


A more than slightly scary me. This is a great example of why I should always wear lipgloss or some other reflective substance on my lips.

Holly getting a ride back to the condo

10 miles - 7-8-07

I ran 10 miles on Sunday...TEN MILES! That's a lot and it was rough!! I can't say it often enough, I'm really struggling right now. Although I can think of a million reasons why, the one that factored most into this particular run was diet (or lack thereof). I recognize that I need to be fueling my body, especially before my long runs. It doesn't matter if I've got my mental game on, I need the energy that carbohydrates provide to physically get me to the end. My 6" Subway sandwich and apples the night before and the clif bar I ate right beforehand weren't quite enough to keep me feeling good the whole 10 miles. More extensive planning of meals and training of the tastebuds are necessary to fix this problem.

I tried a few new things this run, with varied success:
1) I loaded my fuel belt with half water and half strawberry gatorade. Water good, Strawberry Gatorade way too sweet for a run.
2) Pina Colada Shot Blocs. Totally disgusto. I ate three at mile 5 and thought I was going to throw up. I only got them down with lots and lots of water. The texture was ok, maybe I just need a new flavor.
3) Running hat. I look HORRIBLE in hats, especially considering I have no hair but I found that it cut out some of the glaring sunshine and it kept me surprisingly cool. It's become a necessity.
4) This:
I've been resisting the running skirt ever since I was introduced to it on Chloe's blog. The idea of wearing a skirt while exercising just seemed so silly. While at the outlets in North Carolina, I stopped at the Adidas store and stumbled upon one. On a whim, I tried it on and was so surprised how cute it was. I loved the way it felt and it provided a little more coverage for my thunder thighs. I thought the 32 dollar price tag was a little high, but I will sacrifice my checkbook for cuteness. My only complaint with the skirt is that I bought the wrong size. I don't know if it stretched out a little during my run, but it felt a little loose on my hips, and combined with my 3 pound fuel belt, it felt like it was falling down. Luckily it wasn't! Oh well, better too big than too small (at least for the ego)!! Nothing a safety pin won't fix.

I don't have many comments for my playlist. I tried to run 4, walk 1, but I'm afraid the walking was a little more frequent. I found it kind of funny and more than a little frustrating that on two occasions, when struggling and promising myself that I'd stop after the current song, the songs went on forever, like 6 1/2 and 7 1/2 minutes...that's slightly more than a half a mile each time. AARRGGHH!! Oh well, it was good to push myself.

1. Allegretto - Bond
2. Love it When You Call - The Feeling
3. Silikon - Modeselektor
4. Big Love Adagio - Bond
5. Did You Get My Message - Jason Mraz
6. Standing Outside a Boken Phonebooth... - ???
7. Technologic -Daft Punk
8. Blackbird - Benassi Bros.
9. Suddenly I See - KT Tunstall
10. Give it To Me - Timbaland feat. JT and Nelly Furtado
11. Time - Timbaland feat. She Wants Revenge
12. Dance 4 Life - Tiesto feat. Maxi Jazz (7:30)
13. Invincible - Muse
14. Shout mash-up - Tears for Fears vs. Evanescence
15. One Love - Cirque du Soleil
16. Strict Machine - Goldfrapp
17. Here In Your Arms (Tommie Sunshine Robots Up Radio Mix)- Hellogoodbye
18. Club Foot - Kasabian
19. Excuses - Alanis Morissette
20. This Is Why I'm Hot - Mims
21 Lacrymosa - Evanescence
22. Life Begins Again - Afro Celt Sound System (6:30)
23. Smiles - Atomic Babies
24. Romeo - Basement Jaxx
25. Barrel Of A Gun - Guster

SPT - Stolen Moments

where do you go at the end of the day, when the house is quiet and you have a few stolen moments? is there a special place in your home that becomes your retreat for reading, surfing, blogging, scrapbooking? or is this the place where you enjoy steaming hot coffee in the morning before the day gets away from you?what makes this a comforting spot for you? is it filled with photos? mementos? an overstuffed chair? do you shut the door against the world, or do you throw open your shutters and take in the view? is there music playing? a DVD running? a candle burning?in the insanity of summer, where do you spend your stolen moments?

For some reason I don't really utilize the public spaces in my house. When I come home, I walk straight up to my room and stay there until I leave again. The only exception to that is when I'm "cooking" and even then, I prepare my food and take it up to my room. By definition, at least the one above, I guess this would qualify as my retreat, but in reality I don't think it quite counts. My room is where I live, but it's not an escape. I would love to say that pounding the pavement is my retreat, but I'll be honest, running is a chore right now. Because I am struggling so much in that department these days, my mind does not wander beyond willing my legs to keep moving. When I need to think, or cry, or just get away, I get in my car and drive. It's expensive therapy, if you factor in car payments, gas and insurance, but nothing soothes me more than being alone with my thoughts, soaking in my beautiful surroundings.

The beach

The vacation started Friday night/Saturday morning...not sure exactly where 3am figures in, but that's when Holly and Tyler made it to my house. Because I was able to get a little sleep before they showed up, I was the designated driver for the next 4 hours. It was pretty surreal driving from the pitch black through dawn, the sunrise and and into daylight. For those of you who have driven down I-95 through North Carolina, you are probably familiar with the signs advertising South of the Border. The signs start pretty much as you leave Virginia with their tacky sombrero and cheesy phrases, none of which I can remember right now. South of the Border is beyond definition. It's part rest stop, part amusement park, part souvenir shop and 100% tacky. We decided to stop, because everyone needs to experience this sensory overload once in their life. I didn't get many pictures, but here are Tyler and Holly with the oversized sombrero/mexican statue:

The only thing I could think of was that it looked like something out of PeeWee's Big Adventure. Our next and final stop was Myrtle Beach. While waited until we could pick up the keys to the condo we grabbed some breakfast where I saw a dead ringer to my office crush Jim. It really could have been his younger brother, the resemblance was uncanny! I think it would be easier to show you my trip than to try to describe it, so here's a photo tour (with descriptions) of my vacation. Enjoy!!

Holly goofing around. There was a lot of laughter throughout the week.

Late night walks on the beach.

Lots of beach time. This was pre-worst ever sunburn on my chest.

Me bragging about my (assisted) hole in one while playing mini-golf. Worst ever sunburn on my chest evident in this photo.

The players, Katie, Tyler, me and Holly (Todd is behind the camera).

Me in my festive-wear. I had no shortage of red this year thanks to the sunburn on my chest and feet.

I think the picture says it all!

A Myrtle Beach sunset.

There she is...Miss America...aka Lisa.

Man I look good in a bikini!!

Me waiting, rather impatiently, for the fireworks to start.

This particular picture reminded me of palm trees and the South Carolina moon and palm tree stickers I saw all over the place.

We went to Barefoot Landing to watch the fireworks over some body of water. I thought it was even more cool to watch the fireworks in the reflection than to watch them in the sky.

As I mentioned in my SPT post, you could see fireworks up and down the beach from the balcony. I was lucky enough to get this freaking awesome picture (if I do say so myself) with the assistance of the railing and a 30 second exposure. I don't know if you can click on the picture to expand, but if so, you should check it out. It's great!

The moon was gorgeous all week long. I don't know why the picture turned out purple, but I sure like it.

Well there you have it. It was such a fun and relaxing vacation. Thanks to Holly's fam for allowing me to crash the party. Do I really have to go back to work tomorrow?!

You can see more pictures here (beware of the sunburn/busty pictures...they're not pretty)