4 Girls Running

Myrtle Beach - Smelly running town

2009-06-21T19:42:00.002-04:00

Whoa - Myrtle Beach is certainly a smelly town for runners. It was a zillion degrees, 5 zillion percent humidity, and not many running routes. I checked a couple of those "map your favorite run" websites, and it looked like everyone must be geechy tourists and just run up & down Ocean Blvd. OK - I'll go run up & down Ocean Blvd. 4.5 out, 4.5 back.

WOW. I can only surmise that the cool locals keep the real running routes to themselves, and don't post them on the running websites. That was the nastiest, smelliest run I've ever endured. All the dumpsters are lined up along the edge of the street, house after house, condo after condo, and when the temps are in the mid 90's, the stench is just indescribable.

I got smart, and on the way back, I slipped over a block off of the main drag and ran through the tony areas. Past the zillion dollar houses, past the gated communities, and through the shady streets. There were the people walking their dogs. There's the seniors on their golf carts. And NO dumpsters! (A lot less traffic, too)

After slogging out my 9 miles exactly, of course there was some new nose-hair-melting raw sewage smell outside of our condo. A fitting way to end a hot, stinky, the sweatiest I've EVER been in my life run.

Team Lime Green

2009-06-15T21:29:00.002-04:00

Doesn't have a really jazzy sound to it. "Team Lime Green". "Team Carnation Pink" "Team Maize"

BUT

it's a great excuse to hit the NikeTown outlet in Myrtle Beach this weekend and pick up some new running clothes! Any reason to shop is a good reason, right? And when it's outlet pricing, it's like a double word score.

Running 9 miles by yourself in a strange town in the summer isn't particularly appealing, but it is what it is. Looks like the routes in Myrtle Beach appear to just be up & down Ocean Blvd. So 4.5 out, turn around, and 4.5 back it is. Hope there's a Starbucks or something worthwhile within a block of our condo for me to look forward to!

Random Thoughts

2009-06-01T18:54:00.004-04:00

Another month of running, and more new experiences. It wasn't a high mileage month -- going on vacation and strep throat took care of that, but it doesn't really matter. Let's get to the good stuff!

I'm signed up for a training team! I get a group! I gots peeps! Every summer, well, last summer, the girls go off and support other people by coaching the Sportsbackers Pink Nation marathon training team. And leave me. It's so unfair! So with some gentle prodding/tazer gun, I signed up for the Patrick Henry Half Marathon training team put on by RRRC.org. This was on Friday at 2:30 pm when I clicked the "submit" button. They had started the week before, and I had no idea if I was going to be able to hook up with them for their Saturday a.m. run at that point. To make a long (and only interesting to me) story short, I did, and now I have a team!

So far, it's been good. I'm learning how to get around Ashland, and I was only last in the first week, when I didn't take my fuel belt. This means I'm signed up for two halves "in a row" -- Patrick Henry and Rock n Roll are two weekends in a row. I'll think about that tomorrow, for tomorrow is another day!

Slackerdom

2009-05-06T19:28:00.003-04:00

Wow. Where have I been? Oh - yeah - having a LIFE. But I have been running, and that's a good thing.

Let's see -- what have my loyal reader(s) missed?

Dismal Swamp Stomp Race Report

What a FABULOUS race! If there was ever a half marathon race course designed for a PR, this is it. Imagine -- 6.55 miles straight out, do a u-turn around the designated u-turn sign, then 6.55 miles straight back. No curves, no turns, and no HILLS!

Mingling around before the start (no corrals, which was nice), I spotted a pacer with a 2:15 sign. HMMM. Pacer. That's a thought. I glance back, and there's a pacer with a 2:30 sign. Quickly do the mental math - Rock n Roll was a 2:37 - Disney was 2:49 - maybe I could hang with the 2:30 pacer as long as possible and see what happens?? So I pop over and introduce myself. This is Roy the pacer, soon to be my new BFF. Dee realizes that I'm not coming back, and eventually follows me over to my new crew.

Gun goes off, and we're off! Roy's plan - 11:05 pace and walk the water stops. Ummm, that's a little stomach twisting as I've been in my happy relaxed "I'm still recovering from knee surgery after 5 months" pace, but hey, let's just turn off the brain and run.

First two miles are NOT 11:05. They are 11:20 - 11:30. I nervously point this out to Roy more than once. He eventually tells the group that we'll "pick it up" after the first water stop. So, first water stop, I briefly lose Roy, but then he reappears and we pick it up, alright. To a 10:34. At the end of that mile, we're alone. Me and Roy. Roy and me. And there we'll be for a while.

So, now my personal pacer Roy & I start clicking off the miles, chatting and walking the water stops as planned. Yes, the elites came back along the road as we were at 3.76, which was depressing, but hey, I have a personal pacer! They don't. So take THAT, you silly fast people.

Roy knows EVERYONE apparently. He's naming all the elites as they come towards us, and he even knows a large percentage of the non-elites. "Hey Joe -- we'll be picking you up at the end". Ha ha ha. But I have a personal pacer.

As we come up to the 6.55 mile turnaround point ("remember to wave to the camera so there's a great picture of me and my personal pacer"), we pick up another runner. Karma. Yep. Karma. That's her name. No more of me and my personal pacer Roy, it's now a love triangle. There's another woman in our relationship.

We continue to clip along, the three of us now, and I'm still feeling great. I'm relaxed, I'm not even working hard. I could run like this all day (theoretically). We get to the 10 mile marker, and everyone's pacer Roy does one of his sideways jaunts to tease someone he knows, and I just keep going. I'm not slowing down while he talks, I'm rocking on.

Roy calls to me -- "where are you going?" I replied "you're talking - I'm running" and keep going. He realized that, like a baby bird, it was time for me to leave the nest. "If you feel good - keep going!" With that gentle nudge, I spread my wings/feet and flew/ran. (Sorry - should have warned you about the bad analogy)

I crank out a 10:53 for the next mile, then drop back to 11:04 as I'm not feeling particularly great. I'm entertained by the woman who is having to yank down her shorts literally every 5 steps ("give up - let em ride up at this point - but didn't you try running in them at least once before wearing them in a half marathon??"), but am starting to hit my puke threshold. So I start dwelling on that. "What if I have to puke? I shouldn't have taken that last cup of Gatorade/ impersonating as water. I should have brought my own hydration. This sucks. I don't want to puke in the bushes." I actually had to walk for a few steps to bring the stomach back down where it belonged.

Aha! Mile 12 marker. One (point 1) mile left! I can do ANYTHING for 1 mile! So I swallow hard and chug on. I'll beat riding-up-shorts lady. I'll beat the lady in the bright yellow shirt. There's DEE! WOOO! Seeing my cheering squad and hearing her shouting and encouraging me gets me going for that final sprint to the finish line. She's screaming that I'm gonna beat 2:30 - that it's going to be a 2:26. Well, almost. 2:27:03 chip time! OH MY GOSH! That's a PR by 10 minutes! And there wasn't even a bear chasing me!

Roy the (Personal) Pacer, I love you!

So buoyed by that, I enter what I have titled The Summer of Speed. I'm going to kick butt on all my speed work, and really push on my tempo runs. I'm faster than I think I am, and I've realized that I've been in the easy run tempo pace zone, using my knee as a rather flimsy excuse. There's nothing wrong with it (now), and it's time to get going.

Speed. I am speed.

March Running Log

2009-03-29T17:07:00.002-04:00

Woo! Made it through March with regular runs every week. There was only one run skipped - cause I flat out was not going to go out for 10 miles in pouring down, 40 degree rain and get pneumonia. Other than that, I ran all my runs! Best part of it - my knee doesn't hurt and so I will have to find something new to worry about. My toenail will fall off again -- guess that's going to be the focus of my attention now.

Let's compare March to February.

February - 41.96 miles (where did I lose .04 miles? What's up with THAT?) - pace 11:49 average
March - 59.48 miles - pace 11:30 average

Today was HOT and muggy and windy and thus slow. Kinda frustrating to have been making regular progress back to my "old" pace, then to have a slow week like this. Oh well. It is what it is. But on the plus side, got to see some gorgeous houses in some really nice neighborhoods in Richmond, and had great company!

Weathergirl

2009-03-25T20:19:00.002-04:00

Wow. I discovered something really freaky the other day about myself and the weather.

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the weather. I love watching Andrew Frieden on NBC12. I'll TiVo and just keep going back 30 seconds. I tune out for the news, but tune in for the weather.

Upgrading Comcast gives me that all NBC12 weather all the time channel, AND I still have The Weather Channel? It sends shivers down my spine and I'm all tingly.

There's one of those wireless weather stations in the bathroom. I don't have the ones that pick up the forecast wirelessly *yet* - but I have my eye on them.

The ultimate? The IE plugin that keeps the weather forecast at the top of my browser.

But the slightly disconcerting part? I've realized that I only look at the overnight forecast / low temp. I have no clue what the daytime forecast is, what the high might be, or whether I need an umbrella or a parka, short sleeves or fleece.

I, however, can tell you what the weather will be at 6 am, whether there will be rain, sleet, wind, and relative humidity. How many layers? Gloves? Shorts or long pants? Will the rain be starting early? Is a frost in the forecast?

It's obvious, I'm an early morning runner. I get up and run in the (pre) dawn hours (thanks, Congress, for screwing up daylight savings time. It was almost light!) during the week.

Sunglasses are not part of my standard running gear, however reflective gear, headlamps and safety blinkers are. The problem comes with Saturday long runs, where I have the luxury of going laters post-dawn. That's great in the winter when it's nice to have the daylight, but will have to be adjusted again come summer to avoid the heat and humidity, but for now, I'll be content with trying to remember to grab my shades on the way out the door.

Back to the weather. Is this tunnel vision for weather forecasts a unique quirk that makes me just as unique as my DNA says I am? Or is this consistent for runners? I don't see it discussed, but do lunch runners focus on the day forecast and the post-work runners on that? I couldn't tell you what the high will be tomorrow, but I can certainly tell you that it's gonna be in the mid to low 40's with rain close by at dawn.

When do I run?

Disney Princess Half Marathon

2009-03-11T14:04:00.003-04:00

Woo! We princesses definitely rocked it out and had a blast. Somehow Florida survived the 4 girls and we survived Florida as well.

Random race thoughts:

Girl running in belly dancing coin skirt was probably the most annoying runner EVER. SCHING SCHING SCHING. Gotta run faster to get past her.
I ran with Miss America, or at least she claimed to be Miss America. Her shirt said so, she was really pretty, and I asked her if she was THE Miss America and she said “of course”. No sash though (Miss Virginia at the Virginia Beach RNR wore her sash), and I didn’t get her bib number. I can’t find the 2008 or 2009 Miss America’s in the race results, so either she lied or she was under an alias.

Stopping at Cinderella’s castle to get my best race picture EVER was well worth it. I am so buying this one. I’m HOT!

The mile markers that were supposed to be so fabulous were actually pretty lame in my opinion. I did look for the hidden Mickeys and found a lot of them.

I know WAY too many songs from Disney cartoons and I feel obligated to sing along, much to the annoyance of the other girls.

It was pretty surprising that Disney would play Black Eyed Peas’ “Pump It” with the naughty words in it on property. I’m all happy about having upbeat music playing along the course to keep your energy up, but the “explicit” version? They also played Britney’s “Circus”, but that doesn’t have any naughty words. I didn’t stick around to see if they played “….Amy”. That would have been interesting, indeed.

The race medal is even better than I expected with genuine faux rhinestones and a big purple heart-shaped one. Very heavy and shiny.

Anyone who told their family “watch for me – I’ll be wearing pink” likely regretted that fashion choice.

Ditto for the girl wearing a velour track suit and the one wearing a velour Pocahontas costume.

Running up Main Street through Tomorrowland to go through Cinderella’s Castle was awesome!

I hit my mysterious “I’m just gonna cry for no apparent reason” wall at 12 miles, so the race pic of me going through Epcot is actually me crying through Epcot. But the music there was happy. And I still don’t know why I cry, but I do.

If you think your steamed shrimp are soft, stop eating them and cut one in half and make sure it’s cooked. If not, you will get food poisoning, even if you just eat a few.
If your steamed shrimp are semi-raw shrimp at Joe’s Crab Shack, they send all the managers out and fire all the cooks immediately. Plus it’s free.

People in Florida really can’t stand the cold. Runners were out there in long sleeves, sweatshirts & gloves. It wasn’t cold, people.

I learned that I knew nothing about Mulan as I haven’t seen that movie. Must catch up!
Fairy godmother glitter lasts for days.

Best costume – hands down – Princess Fiona (the ogre version). Cropped green tee with hairy belly hanging out, tiara & tutu. Worn by a guy who’s shirt said “Lost a beer bet. I’m so very sorry.”

Here we go!

2009-03-05T20:45:00.004-05:00

The nerves and butterflies have set in. We fly out in less than 12 hours for sunny Florida for the Disney Princess Half Marathon. Just the thought of that genuine faux rhinestone encrusted tiara-shaped finisher's medal gets my princessy-bits all tingly! Of course the fact that it's going to be 80 degrees every day while we are there is tempered by the fact that Richmond is also going to have unseasonably warm weather. It's NOT FAIR that the one time I go somewhere warm that it's warm here, too.

So, today's stresses and nerves and wanting to cry came from:

Learning that our race bibs are color coded based on what princess we picked when we registered, BUT THEY DIDN'T TELL US WHAT COLORS THEY ARE! AARGH! I picked Belle. Belle wears a yellow dress. But I was going to run in a pink skort. Pink skort + yellow bib? ICK. If I had known about the color coding, I would have picked Aurora (Sleeping Beauty). She wears pink and I'm all about pink right now. But maybe Belle isn't yellow and Aurora isn't pink? And what were the other princesses? Cinderella (blue)? And Snow White (???? she was a clown in her garish red/yellow/white. I never liked SW)
The race course map only shows one "food" station around mile 9. Are there any Gu's anywhere? What is the "FOOD" being offered at a "FOOD" station?
Where do we park for the expo?
Where IS the expo?
I don't have cute enough clothes for a girls weekend. (NOTE: worked through lunch and left early for a power shop through JCPenney and Shoe Carnival. Clothing problems solved with help from cellphone camera and picture mails to Speedee (Red? or Blue?))
The dishwasher that was supposed to turn on at 10 this morning did NOT turn on and my bottles for my fuel belt are not clean & dry right now.
Can I take empty water bottles for fuel belt through TSA screening? I can't find bottles on the banned list, but it doesn't say I CAN either!
TSA screening. I have not flown commercial with carry ons since 9/11 as I am afraid of screwing up the screening process. So I am the designated "checking a bag with toiletries over 3 oz" for the crew.
Sunscreen can't be found in 3 oz or less size, and I really don't want to be a lobster bake in Florida. See above.
HOW many people are registered for the race? Is it 7,500, 10,000 or 20,000?
What corral am I in?
What corral are the girls in?
Why did I find one mention of the "MEN" being in the last corral? MEN? UMMMM this is a women's only race, people.

SIGH

BUT - I have my girls with me. My girls love me and my girls will make sure that I get where I need to be and keep my head on straight. So time to chillax, make sure I have my stuff together, and be ready on time in the a.m. for my pickup.

Traveling to a "strange" town is tough, and I give the Disney people ZERO points, yes ZERO points for the amount of helpful information on their website. I expected to see detailed course map with info on where the water stops are, what's offered at the water stops, directions to expo, etc. NOTHING. ZIP. NADA.

So, whilst the dishwasher chugs away so I have squeaky clean bottles (that are going in the checked bag cause I am NOT throwing away my Fuel Belt for the TSA people), I sit and worry.

One Week til Princess Time!

2009-02-28T16:20:00.004-05:00

I saw in the paper today that MC Hammer's new reality show "HAMMERTIME" will not feature him wearing baggy pants or doing that crazy dance. Guess I'll have to find something else mindless to TiVo now that the season finale of Housewives of Orange County has aired, and Top Chef is almost over (yes, I'm behind - if it is over don't tell me what happened as I'm catching up on my TiVo quota). Just the thought of that song has planted the ear worm in my brain and I've been stuck all day on it. Princess Time!

One week from yesterday is the flight to sunny Orlando, FL to start the craziness that will be the Inaugural Disney Princess Half Marathon. Yes, it's the first one. *blush* I plan to be a crazy girl and stimulate the national economy at the expo with "Run like a princess" gear. Barack, you can thank me later. Then we are trying to snag discount tickets for a park on Saturday, race and Happily Ever After party on Sunday (of COURSE they had to change the party name) and back home on Monday. I can't wait for this weekend with the girls and having fun.

I still have absolutely no expectations for my time in this race. After all the injury poop, I'm out there to have fun and enjoy the experience. My training runs have all been just under a 12:00 pace (my goal for each mile is to NOT let it be 12:00 or higher), and I'm proud enough to have held that pace for the last 8 weeks as the mileage has increased every week. So if I have a 12:00 pace half, wonderful. If I somehow pull a 11:30 out of my rear end, double wonderful. I just want my tiara medal and a smiling picture at the finish line to send to my orthopedist as promised.

Pictures with more Disney princesses, triple wonderful. I can't wait to run through Cinderella's castle. Giggle! Ooh! Maybe this weekend with the girls will be like a grown-up slumber party! We can braid each other's hair (ok, well not mine), paint our fingernails, and put people's hands in warm water while they sleep.

So the countdown is on - one week from tomorrow is race day, feel free to track me via their website as I run like a Princess! (Which brings up all sorts of awkward questions about how exactly those Princesses run in those heavy dresses? Jasmine is about the only one who has any freedom of movement. And Ariel? Let's not go there - maybe it's the land Ariel and not water Ariel.)

I can't wait!!!! Let's go NOW!

Fabulous Running Spot!

2009-02-22T12:50:00.003-05:00

Wow! I just got back from a week in St Louis for business, and I had the most fabulous runs there. Googling for running in St Louis, I found Forest Park as being one of the places that the running club in St Louis meets for their long runs. 6 mile loop around the outside of the park, I needed 9 miles, so this sounded like a match.

So off I go and make my way to the park. I have no idea where to park as this place is HUGE and the notes on where the running club meets makes no sense to me being a newcomer, but I stumble across a bunch of cars and a bunch of runners starting out or just mingling, so this must be good enough.

I hop out and quickly fall in between two groups of runners, figuring that they must know where they are going. As a safety check, I ask the group behind me where the heck I am, so that if I get lost I can at least find the rental car again. (This park is 1,200 acres, nearly 50% bigger than Central Park in New York City). They are super nice, and suggest that I go with the group in front of us as they are doing 6 miles down to the University and back, but I politely decline.

The park is made for running. There's separate but parallel biking and running trails that are impeccably groomed. Packed gravel or graveled asphalt for the foot traffic, and hard black asphalt for the bikers. The trail is easy to follow, and has enough hills to be challenging without being miserable. You will wind by the ice skating rink, the zoo, the science center, the family pavilion, statues, museums, the golf course, and follow Lindell Avenue, where the homes are absolutely ginormous.

Although it was the middle of winter and the bathrooms were closed, there's public bathrooms (not portapotties) at frequent intervals that are open in the warmer months, complete with water fountains.

I had a fabulous 9 mile run (the loop around the park was 5.75 miles, and I even saw the occasional mile marker painted on the path and it was accurate). My average pace was right where I wanted it to be for 9 miles, and it felt good. I can't wait to go back to St Louis now and run it again. A definite MUST-DO for anyone visiting St Louis.

(BTW - I parked at the Visitor Center/Field House, which isn't well marked on the map of the park, but it's at about 5 o'clock from the History Museum and right by the tennis courts.)

What a weekend!

2009-02-08T10:40:00.006-05:00

After suffering through the cold and snow for the past few weeks, this weekend of sunshine and warm breezes has been a welcome change. I "heard" it was nice last Sunday, but I was sick in bed and wouldn't know.

I hope everyone has had or will get out for a good run this weekend and enjoy the temps. There's something to be said for that smug feeling you get when you've gone out for a run when the temps are in the teens or single digits, but I'll trade all of those smug feelings for the sheer enjoyment of sunshine, light breezes and comfy temps like this. It's a taste of spring, and global warming & polar bears be darned for a minute, this was nirvana.

It just reinforces my old lady retirement dream. When I grow old, I will:

Drive a big Cadillac
Have my hair blown out every week (I can't face the thought of being "set" yet)
Move somewhere WARM - Florida is overdone, but maybe Arizona, Texas, or (if I win the lottery) HAWAII! Yeah, Hawaii. I'd give up the Caddy and the hair appointments to be in Hawaii. Sigh.

I'm looking forward to hitting the road with my Garmin. First stop - St Louis for work (yeah - St Louis in February. Cross your fingers that it will be decent enough to make the run down to the Arch at least once).

Then, and this is a SECRET and if ANYONE tells my kids I will seriously KILL you - we're going on a Disney cruise in late April. We aren't telling the kids at all -- we'll send them off to school that morning, do a stealth packing job, go pick them up from school, drive to the airport and hop on a plane to Orlando. W can read and T is smart, so they'll obviously figure out we're going to Orlando, but we'll go check in to a hotel. They'll just think we're spending the weekend in this cool hotel with the cool pool. Then we'll get up in the am, and somehow end up at the cruise dock in front of the Disney Wonder and "gosh - let's go get on board!".

So, even though it's lame, I'm such a geek that I want my SportTracks software to show me running in the middle of the ocean this year, so Garmin is going with me and will make some laps around the Wonder's running track. And if you aren't using SportTracks and have a Garmin, what are you waiting for? It's the most fabulous thing I've ever found on the Internet.

I will repeat the warning. If ANYONE tells my kids, they will die. Both you and the kids. And we don't want that, do we? Hmmmm?

Eeeks...my tupperware cupboard has been compromised!

2009-02-03T21:18:00.003-05:00

Eeeks...my tupperware cupboard has been compromised! What happened? Did evil munchkins come in over night and tear apart the haven in which my precious tupperware lives???
Maybe once I leave for work there are little, mean, deprived goblins that come in and destroy the paradise that I call "TupperHaven"!
Square containers with round lids...
Liquid containers on the wrong shelf...
Full meal containers living with the side dish containers...
Don't get me wrong - I am all about diversity but NOT in my "TupperHaven".
Everything in its place and every place has a thing.
I can bare to even look at it, it's like a bone yard of plastic just half-hazardy throw about without a care in the world. How can I sleep knowing around container is frockling with a rectangle lid!!!
I recall a peaceful time when I opened this cabinet and all the pieces were in the proper place. Square with square, lids neatly aligned with matching corners, right angles on point and no unmatching orphaned pieces hanging out lazily like they "belonged" even though it was obvious they didn't.
Did they think I wouldn't notice? Ha!
Who knows the cause of this mayhem?...but sleep tonight will be tough.
Now you all know what I will be doing Wednesday night...restoring order in the Kingdom...man, anal-retentiveness is exhausting to say the least.

Why I will never move any further north......

2009-02-03T19:08:00.006-05:00

The photo here is from the elevator shaft of an abandoned warehouse in Detroit. And yes, that’s an actual dead man encased in 2-3 feet of ice with his fee and is that a hand sticking out. It was discovered when “urban explorers” were playing ice hockey in the basement. This shook me to my foundation (no pun intended) when I came across it.

[The man who found the body] is an urban explorer who gets thrills rummaging
through and photographing the ruins of Detroit. It turns out that this explorer last week was playing hockey with a group of other explorers on the frozen waters that had collected in the basement of the building. None of the men called the police, the explorer said. They, in fact, continued their hockey game.

Well, it’s not like stopping the hockey game is gonna bring him back to life now, is it? What’s the rush? Just make sure you don't trip over his legs so rudely sticking out of the ice. Don't want to get hurt, you know.

A colony of homeless men live in the warehouse. Wednesday morning a few fires were burning inside oil drums. Scott Ruben, 38, huddled under filthy blankets not 20 paces from the elevator shaft.

“Yeah, I seen him,” Ruben said. The snow outside howled. The heat from the can warped the landscape of rotting buildings and razor wire. Did he know who the dead person was? “I don’t recognize him from his shoes.”

[Ruben's] shack mate, Kenneth Williams, 47, returned at that point with an armload of wood. “Yeah, he’s been down there since last month at least.” He was asked if he called the police. “No, I thought it was a dummy myself,” he said unconvincingly. Besides, Williams said, there were more pressing issues like keeping warm and finding something to eat.“You got a couple bucks?” he asked.

After snapping photos and carefully interviewing all the vagrants and demanding to know why they didn’t call the police right away, the reporter finally gets the authorities involved, but it takes multiple 911 calls and something along the lines of 48 hours for the authorities to finally show up with a jackhammer to remove the poor man's (??) body. (Note that the urban explorers never called the authorities - a friend of a friend called a reporter at the newspaper. So the reporter goes and gets this story complete with pictures BEFORE ever calling the police)

Where's the national news media? Where's CNN or Fox News with Greta Van whatever going on the scene? This is much more newsworthy than the lady who didn't return the d**n library book and got in trouble.

Maybe the prophets are right - maybe this IS the end time?

He says I don't do the laundry ALL THE WAY...hmmm!

2009-02-02T19:05:00.003-05:00

Okay, typically when B and I have a disagreement, I always win...not because he is sweet and concedes but because, well, women are smarter and I am usually right (or I don't argue to begin with). So besides the money argument which we cured with "allowance checkbooks"...the one standing one that never ends is - he says "you don't do the laundry all the way!"
If you know me, you already know I have a routine for everything. For laundry it's Sort, Wash, Dry or Hang Dry, Fold, put mine AWAY and place his, kindly sorted by type/category, in a basket on his dresser.
Saturday when he came home and asked what I did that day, one of the answers was, I finished the laundry. After going up stairs to change, he yells,"You didn't do the laundry all the way..."
WHAT?
Here we go again...he proclaims that if I did it "all the way" his clothes would be put away for him!
WHAT? Are you high? Seriously! Is it way to stressful to open a drawer and place a stack of tshirts in, throw some socks in a drawer, lay your jeans on the shelf!
Geez...I will never win this one...maybe next week I will sew one leg of all his boxers shut to prove my point! My Mom showed my sister and I this trick when my Dad complained and after he fell over while stepping into his underwear, he never said another word about laundry!

I am learning I could never stay at home full time...

2009-02-02T13:04:00.002-05:00

DISCLAIMER: Before reading this, know none of this is meant as rude, complaining, shallow or whatever...these are thoughts in my head which is why this is a blog.

I am off work today, needed to take a day before the "hell breaks lose at work" for the next month. Paperwork needed to be done, taxes needed to be prepared, etc.
So I got up at 4:13am as usual and went off to Seal Team 5:45am workout, got home at 7am, said hi to Bob while eating my bagel, then laid down for a one hour snooze fest.
Got up at 8:30am, waited for the BBQ drop off from D.A. and then off to Ukrop's.
We have a dinner guest tonight so in my usual manner, I made the entire baked spaghetti dinner, including homemade croutons and set the table.
It's 10am and off to start the "paperwork" - ugh!
It wasn't looking too bad as my organization made it fly...receipts, statements, interest earnings...file, file, file. Envelope for CPA all ready, this month's receipts reconciled and all the work I thought I needed a day for is done...and it's 12:30pm. I guess I will eat lunch. Done. I am bored out of my gourd!!!
Maybe it's because we don't have kids and because I am so anal-retentive and keep my house and laundry caught up but what am I suppose to do with the rest of the day? It's not that I don't feel productive, because I do. I like being organized, making lists, keeping order and having everything in its place but should I do less on a regular basis so I will have more to do during down time? Funny thing is, I never feel overloaded. Friends tease me when I say my house is messy, because they say it's not, but it is to me. I joke about my pantry (Sleeping With The Enemy has nothing on me) and the fact that I label all the items in the pantry and fridge each week for dinner. I guess I just wonder what I am doing wrong.
Oh well, just thoughts in my head I figured as long as I had time I would blog about it. Ugh, now it's only 1:11pm...

Am I officially cool now?

2009-01-31T17:12:00.005-05:00

I have joined all the cool people. NO - I have not joined Facebook. I have not had plastic surgery. I don't have an iPhone, and I haven't been spotted on TMZ.com.

I have a Roomba. It's roaming around seemingly randomly right now. It's FABULOUS!

Somehow my vague flu symptoms have improved and I'm upright out of bed just to watch and report on it. It doesn't fit under our sofa (we'll have to jack them up so the Roomba can have great fulfillment), and when it transitions from hardwood to carpet it leaves a little hair bunny, but using the Dyson for 30 seconds to run along the edge of the carpet is sooo much easier than having to vacuum everything with the Dyson.

And this is waaay more entertaining!

Based on the sudden magical improvement in health I have received from the Roomba, I have 7 miles in the morning! Yay me! Yay Roomba!

PS - Already had sad Roomba sounds. It went into one of the kids bedrooms and tried to suck up something that it shouldn't. This thing needs some sort of RFID chip - I'm walking down the hall calling to it. "Roomba? Rooombaaaaa? Where are you???" I found it huddled beside the door like it was trying to get back to me. This thing is so anthropomorphic and it doesn't even LOOK human!

Thoughts on Indoor Soccer

2009-01-30T09:04:00.004-05:00

This is WAAAY more fun for the littlest kids since there is no out of bounds. Play it off the wall, play it off the parents. Only whistle blowing is "no hands", or if they get so completely glommed up in the corner that they are in danger of crushing each other like a mosh pit.

Of course there are the kids that have no clue what's going on and are checking out the mats on the walls or staring up at the overhead lights as the ball rolls right by them.

Then comes the grade schoolers. MUCH more competitive and many of them actually have shin guards and know how to play soccer. They even do headers, and when the ball hits them they don't start crying.

What I've noticed most is that there's a direct inverse correlation between the size of your legs and your soccer skills. The kids with the scrawniest matchstick legs are the ones that are the best soccer players. If you have sturdy legs, you are not good at soccer.

Of course the blue team is 50% girls, and they are consistently beating the pants off the red team, even when the red team is down a couple of players and the adult coaches are subbing themselves in. I'm talking scores like 6 to 1 in an hour game. Go girls!

To swim or not to swim...is there a question?

2009-01-18T20:13:00.006-05:00

Ugh...that pretty much sums it up - UGH! (note exclamation point). A little history here...as a child - chronic ear infections, tubes in the ears dilemma, etc which = Dee not putting her head under water all of her years growing up. So, what does that mean you ask? Dee never learned to swim. Let me be clear...I can tread water, float and do what I call the breast stroke - ha - it ain't pretty. But none of that qualifies as swimming. Let me jump forward for a minute - Sept 2009 I will be competing in a Half IronMan...bike 56 miles - ok, it's work but ok, run 13.1 miles - got it...but before both of those, swim 1.2 MILES, in a river, in a Half IronMan competition! Again, UGH. I have done sprint series triathlon's where you swim 350 - 750 meters in pools, or lakes...I HATE open, flowing water, and I have a real difficulty putting my face in the water. Hmmmmm, dilemma understood yet? So tomorrow I am off work and will begin investigating gyms with pools and swim programs. Picture me - a 40 year old grandmother - joining a group of 6 year olds with my water wings and fins...LOL. Well, one positive note - Pam found a fab-u-lous website (she is the SME of all)that you can buy Speedo race suits for $25 instead of $80 if you agree to go into the "grab bag" and let the site pick your suit. I love mine, snug and pretty, nothing is slipping or falling out of that suit! Anyway back to the discussion...so I will be posting on here and alerting parents and small children as to where my lessons in flailing and splashing will occur. I am excited, in a nervous sort of way, apprehensive, and well, honestly, a bit scared...
Stay tuned...
Peace out...
Future Olympic hopeful...NOT!
-SpeeDee

Sir Edmund Hillary Has Nothing on Me!

2009-01-17T21:08:00.002-05:00

HA! 6.5 degrees according to my Garmin. I had that cool frosted eyelashes thing going on. I dashed into the house looking for a child to witness my frozen lashes.

That was FUN!

Paula Deen's Nutrition - DIFFICULT

2009-01-12T16:23:00.001-05:00

I cannot fathom WANTING to eat this. I’m with her until she gets to the buns. And what "Lady" would eat this?

The Lady's Brunch Burger

Mix ground beef, chopped parsley and grated onion together in a large mixing bowl. Season liberally, with House Seasoning. Form 3 hamburger patties of 1/2 pound each.

Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Add the burgers and cook until desired temperature, 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium-rare. Fry bacon in a hot pan until crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels. Set aside.

While burgers are cooking, heat a non-stick pan, over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons butter. Crack 3 eggs into the pan. Cook until the yolks are just set and still slightly runny and remove.

Place burger patties on English muffins or buns, and if desired, on glazed donuts, as the buns. Top each burger with 2 pieces of bacon and a fried egg.

Prep Time - 10 minutes
Cook Time - 15 minutes
Yield - 3 servings
Difficulty - Easy

HEART ATTACK SEVERITY: CRITICAL, 100% MORBIDITY

Paula, you know I love you, but I’m worried about your health. I watched you melt and pour an entire stick of butter on the top of your easy potpie (I’ve made the same one for years without the butter and it’s just FINE). But do you not realize or not CARE that each KK has 200 calories and 12 grams of fat. So using two gives us 24 grams of fat just for the “buns”, then add in the hamburger patty, bacon & fried egg (you are frying the eggs in only 2 tablespoons butter. I’m proud of you for cutting back on this one). I don’t think I can count that high for fat grams, honey! Unless you are a homicidal serial killer in disguise, you’ve got to stop killing your loyal viewers.

Actually, I have to reclassify myself. I can’t say I’m a loyal viewer as defined by wanting to cook what you cook. Rather I am like a bystander at a car crash or fire. I’m just here to watch the destruction and thank God it’s not me.

I gave up peanut butter! Yep!

2009-01-10T15:03:00.002-05:00

So on December 3rd, 2008 I did it! I gave up peanut butter. Oh my old and dear friend, how many nights we have bonded over chips or crackers or sometimes even just a spoon. It's been over a month now since we said goodbye and oh how I miss you. The way you just sat there patiently and quietly, just waiting for our next late night rendezvous. Sigh! But alas, I realized it was time to let you go....doesn't it go something like "if you love something, set it free..." Well, Mr. PB you have been replaced. I have a new love in my life, and he is a winner. Let's just call him KK (no, NOT Krispy Kreme Pam) for now. We meet each night before I go off to slumber and he keeps me satisfied. Who is this new stranger you ask...well, let me wait to reveal after I am sure he's ahnging around and not just a ship passing in the night.
Peace!
SpeeDee

I am NOT bendy...but I go to relax!

2009-01-10T14:38:00.003-05:00

So off to Bikram Hot Yoga I went this morning...I love going to hot yoga, on the way driving there I always get so excited. What a stress relief this will be, how relaxed I will feel after, I will be one with the universe. HA! It starts out that I HAVE to be there at exactly 9:30am because once the doors open I HAVE to have my mat in my prime location for class before someone else steals it. Then it's off to the locker room where we change - which when in there, when the door opens, ANYONE walking by gets a clear shot in...nice. Mmmm, finally time to grab my water, go lay down and begin adjusting to the 110 - 115 degree dry heat-no talking-don't look at anyone else room. So I lay there in the 25 x 40 foot room. Room for 5 rows of people to hum and breathe and relax together. Then, today, here he comes...Mr. 6 ft 5 and he pops his mat down right in front of me - what is he doing? He will obstruct my view and I won't be able to look in the mirror at my feable attempts to master my postures for the next 90 minutes. I squirm, slide my mat over a few inches and lay back down as he steps out for water. AHA, he's back...what's this...now I am laying on my back in "dead body pose" with my head to the front of the room, like you should. Well, when Mr. does the same, since the rows are only 5 and a half feet, guess who gets his size 14's in the face - ugh - he needs a pedicure. Ooooh, a newbie comes in, yay, I won't be the least bendy today maybe! I lay back down, feet again! Today it was hot, I mean even my ears were sweating. Postures go on, and at one point my necklace charm was in my nostril as I was bent in the posture they call "you should look like a Japanese ham sandwich from the side". WHAT the eff? Anyone ever heard of a Japanese ham sandwich? Although that does make me hungry. Remove runner girl charm from nostril and carry on. The first series is all standing postures which by the end it feels like my arms have been ripped from my body and beat me upside the head. Wasn't I here to relax? Ahhhh, back into the flow...party time, this is when we are allowed to take a drink of water. I picked Smart Water today but still feel adequate. I got though the first floor series with only one time of it really hurting my boobs - men don't get it. The sweat was so heavy and rolling into my eyes but all I could think about was movie theater popcorn? Why can't I get into a Zen? I try to look straight ahead in the mirror, so tempted to see if everyone looks like they are thinking of strange things like me. Floor series - great more of Mr. Bigfoot. Ugh. Who sweats this much? Gosh how I wish Pam had answered my ping to swim. Wait, I am swimming, in my own created pool. I am here to relax, I am here to relax. Postures are complete - I lay down on the floor for my final dead body posture. Hey, I am relaxed! Is it because I reached Zen mode or because I am exhausted? Don't know, don't care, but I do know I sweat enough to go eat lunch.

DUH Mom!

2009-01-03T12:54:00.003-05:00

In the locker room at the Y after preschool swim lessons. All of us moms are in there getting our preschoolers showered, dried and dressed. Little boy finishes getting dressed and promptly goes over to the sink to wash his hands. Mom: "Come ON! You don't need to wash your hands - you just took a shower!"

"Mom, I peed in the shower."

Boys. Gotta love 'em. And they don't change as they grow up, either.

Hair of the Dog 5K

2009-01-01T17:52:00.005-05:00

Woot! For those who have been following my progress, or lack thereof, the good news yesterday (12/31) was that I'm released to run! Be sensible, don't catch up all my missed training in the first week, and listen to my knee. I can definitely live by those rules -- maybe it was wearing the "gotta run" t-shirt that sealed the deal.

So off we went to the New Years Eve party at the Cavalier in Virginia Beach. Let's just say that I drank a few more martinis than last year, and the results of that would be about what you'd expect. We made some new friends and had a BLAST! (Happy Anniversary, Dee & Bob!)

It was pretty tough getting up this morning for the Hair of the Dog 5K. I was registered in the Walkers division and planned to be absolutely gorgeous in my seafoam green Joan-Collins-Dynasty gown. It was 29 degrees, wind blowing 10 - 20 miles per hour, and just a miserable day to race, in addition to the aforementioned "few more martinis" syndrome. But we hardy souls headed out -- Dee, Bob, Dennis, Beverly, Dean, Judy, Rob & Mary Beth with lots of layers and lots of grumbling. It was a great race for everyone, and I'm so stoked about my high placing in the Walker division that I'm going to pretend that I wasn't in the Walker division and act like I am just that good.

Check it out!!!!

Your overall finish place was 17, your age group finish place was 7 and your gender finish place was 10. Your time of 46:21.05 gave you a 14:57 pace per mile.

If you ignore that last little teeny sentence, it sounds like I was in contention for a prize! And all this while wearing the most gorgemous dress of all!

Watch out, Richmond! I'm back!

Where's Norman Rockwell when you need him?

2008-12-29T14:37:00.002-05:00

Why? Why why WHY do we continually harbor fantasies of the Norman Rockwell Christmas? You know, the one where children wait in breathless anticipation of Santa and have their best manners on display? Well, not at MY house.

The 12 Festive Memories of Christmas 2008 for me are:

1. Kids running through the house anxiously awaiting the arrival of their cousins, only to refuse to open the door for them when they arrived.

2. Kids + cousins running through the house like wild monkeys that knocked over the etched glass commemorative photo thing that was presented upon the purchase of Dad’s dream Harley in 2006 and shattered it (ooh – shattered like my dreams! Foreshadowing!)

3. Kids + cousins descending like Lord of the Flies upon Grandpa’s awesome goody-bags-of-random-free-imprinted-tchotckes and being underwhelmed with foam can koozies and chip clips and throwing them aside.

4. The dog eating meatballs from the kids table. He knows how to tiptoe!

5. Kids getting Nerf guns from the cousins. Joy… I predicted this, and thus I intentionally purchased a Lego set for the cousins so that my brother & sis-in-law can think of me every time they step on a Lego. Love you too, guys!

6. Kids + cousins playing with Nerf guns upstairs and being so wild that they knocked over 2 tower computers AND a UPS.

7. Nerf shotgun broke in less than 12 hours. Gee darn. (Yes, Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus!)

8. Wii confiscation in LESS than 24 hours for smartmouthing Mom & Dad. A new world record!

9. Grownups sitting in kid chairs and having a chair collapse under them. (Everyone is fine)

10. The foam rockets are already on the house roof.

11. Getting duplicate Nintendo cartridges but not keeping the receipt. (Hot Wheels for the DS, anyone?)

12. Getting facial waxing in preparation for New Year’s Eve festivities and breaking out in zillions of insanely painful whiteheads. Next time I’ll stay hairy and pimple/pain free, thank you!

But you know what, I got a SNUGGIE (the blanket with SLEEVES) and I’m happy as a clam. Yes, we did get the BOGO offer, and I was able to discover that the Slanket is a competing product offered for about $50. For my birthday – I’m hoping for the ShamWOW!

I’m really glad that no one gave me the Clap for Christmas. This is just WRONG on so many levels, people - festive venereal or plague diseases as fuzzy stuffed creatures just sends the wrong message. When you care enough to send the very deadliest.

And you know what hurts the most? The Giant Microbe people are probably in their mansion with swimming pool and THEIR kids appreciated Christmas. (Apparently Santa brought the WRONG Nerf guns so my oldest is disappointed in Christmas once again. And we saw that stinking Transformer Helmet at the We B Overpriced Fragile Toys THIS year that we could not locate last year. We almost bought it and gave him the "hmm - Santa must have been working from last year's list by mistake" story. Maybe it would have worked!

Sigh.