verbingnouns

The Nexus of the Universe

I had the most bizarre thing happen today. First, I got an e-mail from an old friend I used to work with in college who I haven't heard from in forever. That was kind of great. But then, when I checked my e-mail after work this afternoon, I had an e-mail from another old college friend who was forwarding me an e-mail address from an old high school friend (who I've seen maybe once since high school) who had found my college friend's My Space page, saw something about New St Andrews, and thought she might know me...and what do you know? She's the one friend from high school who I've always wondered what happened to, and now we can catch up! Isn't that cool? I think it is.

The Moment You've All Been Waiting For:

I know: after my unintentional hiatus, you've been waiting on pins and needles for me to post something else (ha!). Though I am (very thankfully) not as busy as I was during Christmastime, I still can't quite seem to put the breaks on.
Other than a minor toe injury, I'm fully recovered from the marathon and planning a run later this week. I've also managed to get back in the gym and start torturing myself with other non-running things. I'm very excited about this, despite the fact that I can barely move due to the soreness. Oh well, you know what they say: when you're going through hell, just keep going...or something like that.
The Big Trip is rapidly approaching. I haven't freaked out about it yet, but I'm sure I will sooner or later. Just trying to think of the things I take care of day in and day out, both at home and at work, is harder than you might think. I've started a list, so whenever I think of something, I just add it to the list of things to do before I leave and things to have someone else oversee while I'm gone.
Work has been absolutely insane this month. Each Friday I think: next week will be better. It's not though. It's still crazy. Better busy than slow, though.
Other than that, things are good - nothing much to report - hence the lack of blogging.

For All the Things You Do: This Mile's For You

I did it. I've done it. I'm done with it.

I decided on Thursday night that I was going to dedicate each mile to a different person who has been important in my life. It was fun to have a different person to think of each step of the way. So, many of you (family and friends) got a mile from me. I hope you liked it.

Miles 1 and 2: Feeling good. Excited. We're running a marathon. How fun is that?!?

Miles 3 through 8: running with a 78 year old man who was running his 297th marathon (going for 300, of course). He was telling us jokes, telling us about his family, keeping us entertained.

Miles 9 through 12: still feeling pretty good. Encouraged by the fact that we're almost half-way there.

13.1: Halfway point. Turning around. Robbie and Aaron were there to cheer us on. Right knee starting to hurt. Angela's knee hurting, too. It's all downhill from here (in more ways than one).

About mile 15, I say: "I think you have to be a little touched in the head to be a marathoner. You see all these people? They're all crazy - including us."

Miles 16 through 20: in pain, but hey, we're in the homestretch (comparatively).

Miles 20 through 22: thinking, "the faster we move, the faster we get done." Wondering which I wanted more: a shower or a nap. Trying to convince myself that 8 miles is nothing.

Miles 22 through 25: thinking, "if anyone I know drives by right now, I would probably get in the car with them. Just quit right now and be done with it."

Mile 26: If I had it in me, I would all-out sprint right now, but my body won't let me.

Mile 26.1 through 26.2: I finally got my second wind. If only that had happened an hour ago.

The rest of the day: sick and miserable. Thinking about how I may never be able to walk again, much less run. Sunburned, dehydrated, tired, emotionally volatile. Came home. Still sick and miserable. Seriously considered going to the ER. Did I mention I'm never running again? Finally got to sleep.

I feel much better today than I expected to. Other than the sore knee and general tiredness, I'm feeling pretty good. I'm even almost ready to retract the "never running again" statement. I will (most likely) never run a marathon again, but maybe I'll do a half-marathon some time...or a 5K. Yes, a 5K sounds perfect.

This has definitely been an interesting experience. Maybe I'll have some more intelligible thoughts to share about it in a week or two.

Girls Talking About Shoes

FYI: Sadly, one of my favorite shoe departments in Monroe is changing hands. I hate that because their department has basically been a Nine West/Bandolino outlet and they've always had great deals on pretty decent shoes. Anyway, Nine West has sold them to a different company (I don't know who yet) but most of their shoes are 50-70% off right now. It's starting to get picked over, but if you might find something if you have the time to run by. I thought you might want to know.

This has been a public service announcement from your friendly Monroe window shopper.

Unpredictable

As race day gets closer, all those variables that I’ve worried about for months are coming into play. You would think after 5 months of regular running, I would have all the kinks worked out. But, alas: it’s always something. You never know what the weather is going to be like or how it’s going to affect you. The prediction for this weekend (so far) is a high of 75, low of 61, with a 30% chance of rain. That’s a little warm for my preference, but doable. There are other things to think about that can really make a difference in the run, too, like what I eat all week, the night before, and especially the morning of the race. Who knows how well I’ll sleep the night before? What if the clothes I bring aren’t good for that day’s weather? So many unpredictables…

A few weeks ago, before we did our 18-mile long run, I had the bright idea of going to yoga. Now, I used to go to yoga quite regularly, but due to all the running, I had not been in a while. So I kind of over-did it and was sore afterwards. That, in connection with the 18 miler kind of pushed me over the edge, and I started having some trouble with my calves, and as I’ve tried to compensate for the calf problem, I’ve re-aggravated an existing knee problem. Plus I have a cough/cold. I’m pretty much a disaster. I really don’t know what to do about it other than let it rest the remainder of the week and give it all I’ve got on Saturday and hope for the best. I may need a calendar instead of a time clock, but I keep reminding myself that my goal from the start was just to complete the marathon, not to try to impress anyone with my time. It will be a Personal Record no matter how fast or slow.

I’ve said before that I’m glad I’ve done all this running. It really has been a good learning experience. I’ve learned about discipline, patience, focus, determination, camaraderie, and endurance. That being said: I’m so ready to get this over with. I really am going to try my best. I want to finish strong and be able to be proud of the accomplishment. Maybe someday (a very long time from now), I’ll do the marathon thing again, but for now, I’m looking forward to crossing the finish line and letting my running shoes go on sabbatical. I’m looking forward to getting back into yoga and spin and power pump (and swimming in a few more months). I’m looking forward to just going for a walk or a leisurely jog and not thinking too much about my form or my breathing or my time. I’m looking forward to not planning my week around when I’m going to run. In 26.2 more miles, I’ll have freedom again.

I Say, Hey! What's Goin' On?

Well, December has come and gone and I suspect January will be over before I can turn around. The past few weeks/months have been quite busy for me and at this point, I'm pretty much booked through...well, for a while.
I spent several weekends going back and forth from Texas to Monroe, then I did end up making a quick trip to Chattanooga to ring in the new year with Oriel and Company. I spend the first week of every January being exhausted, and 2007 was no exception. It was well worth it and even though I say I'm sick of parties, just give me a week or two and I'll be ready to go again.
This coming weekend is the big marathon. I can't say I'm actually looking forward to it, but I'm sure it will be an interesting experience, if I live to tell about it. Between illness, injuries, traveling, and crazy weather, our training has not been all that it should have been. We might need a calender rather than a clock to mark our finish, but Finish, I will. And when I say "finish" I mean: I have no desire to run again for quite some time. Anything but running.
Speaking of interesting experiences that I hope I live to tell about: the trip to Thailand is seeming more realistic as the weeks pass. I'm getting more excited and more nervous about it every day. As with many big events in life, I'm dreading all the things that have to be done in preparation, I'm curious about what it will actually be like, and I wish the time would just get here, so I can plan the next part of my life.
I started the year off thinking, "This is going to be the best year ever." After one week, I've already decreased my expectations, but I do intend to make the most of it.

A Few More Pictures

I kind of slacked off towards the end of the month, but I have a few more pictures for the December Photo Project. These are just colleges of several photo albums, but as usual, if you click on the photos, it will take you to the albums (if you're interested in such things.)

From Christmas 2006

From December photos

Old Year/New Year Meme

1. What did you do in 2006 that you’d never done before?
*Tell people about things that I would have formerly considered my own personal business
*Train for a marathon
*Move (Oh, wait. I've done that a million times)
*(More than one) Double Blind Date (It's like going blind nil in Spades, only you have to dress cuter.)

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I actually kept most of them and yes, I'll make more. That's the good thing about making many resolutions instead of just one: if you keep most of them, you can feel pretty good about it.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? I have a feeling I should answer "yes" to this, but it's so hard to keep up with who was born when. My friends are a very fertile bunch.

4. Did anyone close to you die? Thankfully, no.

5. What countries did you visit? Depends on what you mean by "country".

6. What would you like to have in 2007 that you lacked in 2006? More faith, more joy, more love.

7. What dates from 2006 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Nothing comes to mind immediately. It was a good year, but not necessarily a monumental year.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? I'm going to have to go with Boot Camp

9. What was your biggest failure? I don't want to talk about it.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Not really

11. What was the best thing you bought? My iTrip

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? ???

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Brittney Spears

14. Where did most of your money go? rent

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Going to Thailand

16. What song will always remind you of 2006? Crazy (Gnarls Barkley)

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer? believe it or not: I'm (somewhat) happier, (unnoticeably) thinner and (infinitesimally) richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? prayed

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? felt sorry for myself

20. How did you spend Christmas? with all of with my dear family

21. Did you fall in love in 2006? negatory

22. How many one-night stands? As If.

23. What was your favorite TV program? The Office

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Nope

25. What was the best book you read? Really tough call. I'm going to go with Gilead.

26. What was your greatest musical discovery? Sylvie Lewis

27. What did you want and get? lots of opportunities to travel and party

28. What did you want and not get? to go to Seattle

29. What was your favorite film of this year? I can't really think of any films that blew me away. Granted: I don't get out much.

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I was in Arizona. I turned 27.

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? "Falling in love" comes to mind, but I hear mixed reviews.

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2006? Business Casual with a hint of trendiness

33. What kept you sane? who said I was sane?

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I kind of had a thing for Adrien Brody for a minute

35. What political issue stirred you the most? Well, the war in Iraq, of course.

36. Who did you miss? Jill

37. Who was the best new person you met? It's too soon to tell (I need time to judge these things)

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2006. It's not where you are, it's who you're with.

39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"Hips Don't Lie"
Either that or :
"Everything it seems I like's a little bit stronger
A little bit thicker, a little bit harmful for me."

Books Read in 2006

(I'm just moving this from my sidebar and wanted to save it in my archives)

Devil in the White City by Erik Larsen
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation By Lynne Truss
Yoga for People Who Can't be Bothered to Do It by Geoff Dyer
The Vicar of Nibbleswicke by Roald Dahl
The Inimitable Jeeves by PG Wodehouse
Getting Serious About Getting Married: Rethinking the Gift of Singleness by Debbie Maken
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
The Supper of the Lamb by Robert Ferrar Capon
Isaac's Storm by Erik Larsen
Gilead: A Novel by Marilynne Robinson
Coronation of Glory By Deborah Meroff
Reading Lolita in Tehran By Azar Nafisi
Daisy Miller by Henry James
Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper Case Closed By Patricia Cornwell

2007.

I made it home from my delightful new year's eve festivities. I'm alive but not entirely alert.

Not only that, I also made it (all the way) through 2006 AND I still have a smile on my face, as I should since I've been partying pretty much non-stop for approximately two months. I might even tell you about it sometime.

And now, it's 2007. Can you believe it? As much as I love to make lists, I haven't thought through all my goals for the coming year, despite the fact that I spent more than 16 hours in the car this weekend. I pretty much know the major things I need to work on, so I'll start on them and add the other (petty) things to the list later.

Two Thousand Seven
This is going to be good
Let's get this party started

(I wish that was a haiku)

Okay, okay. I give. I'll shut up and go try to get some sleep.