Running away to join the circus!

Ok...not really. But I felt like I could have on Sat!

Why is that you ask? Great question!

I took a trapeze class at Cirque du Vol here in Raleigh, NC! It was through a meetup group called "I've always wanted to try that!" so not only did I get to try something new...i got to meet a bunch of cool new peeps.

Count this towards Sprinkles' year of adventure!

So I got there super early because the studio is downtown and parking is always rough. Thankfully I found a great spot right in front! Excellent!

We started by warming up and stretching on yoga mats. I felt very old because I heard every bone in my body snap, crackle, and pop!

Here I am standing around!

 

 

After that...our instructor showed us the different parts of the trapeze and had us practice holding on and getting used to our grip on the bar. She wanted to make sure we "engaged our shoulders!"

 

Harder than it looks!

 

Next, we had to learn how to actually get onto the trapeze! This involves holding on for dear life and kicking your legs up over your head. Needless to say...Gumby I am not. So I needed a boost sometimes. (especially towards the end when I was exhausted!)

 

 

So that's how I got bruises behind my knees!

 

 



Then our instructor would show us a pose on the trapeze and let us try it. I jumped at the chance to give it a try where everyone else kind of stood back. I wasn't there to be timid! I wanted as much time on the trapeze as I could get!

 

Now I'll bore you with some pics! (ignore the fat...I wore pants that were a size too tight! ((they were cheaper than my real size!!)))

 

 

I call this move, "Bruises on my back!"

 

Sitting pretty! I got bored while people were trying a move so I decided to sit and watch!

 

Trapeze photobomb! I'm doing the same move as her!

 

 

My fav move because it felt great on my back! Good stretch pose!

 

 

Same pose as before...just with the leg out....for kicks!

 

 

After the class, a couple of us went and grabbed some drinks. It was a beautiful day and so nice to spend it with some fun, new people learning something awesome!

 



 





Running business

Despite getting over sickness...there has been some running going on! :)

The kiddo ran her first 5k! I'm sad that I had to miss it but I'm so dang proud of her! She said she ran the whole thing and she had a lot of fun. I'm so glad I could get someone to drink the kool-aid!

 

Pretty sure she gets her swag from me!

 

This month we started the C25K program again as a meetup group. I'm excited to say that I'm helping teach this time around! It's a lot of fun and I can't believe people actually listen to what I say and think I'm a real runner. LOL.

 

Mostly I just try to encourage and cheer them on. I want to let them know that the program works...if I could do it...they can do it. Plus I think it helps to know that you're not alone in the misery that can sometimes be running. It's nice to know someone else has gone through it and that other people are going through it with you.

 

Stubborn Warrior: Spring Rush 5k:

 

I ran a 5k last Sat! It was the second race in the Stubborn Warrior Resolution Series. I did alright. No new PR but I ran it in 33:15. I was doing really good with about 9:30 splits for the first two miles but the third mile killed me and it dropped to 11mm. Yikes. If I could have kept up the pace I would have smashed it and broke sub-30! Guess there's always the next one.

 

 

See...look at all that mad swag I haz!

 

The exciting thing about this series is that despite my less than stellar turn out in this race....I'm ranked 3rd in the women overall for the series!!! Woot woot!

 

I know it won't stay that way because I've got to miss one of the 5 runs in the series...but for now it's hella exciting! :D

 

 

I almost can't believe it!





Turning the corner

So I got sick and spent two weeks sick...ending with bronchitis. Lovely! I didn't get to do much running during those weeks so I didn't have much to blog about.

I did find some great pictures of me taken at the Stubborn Warrior: New Years 5k!

This is me turning a corner in slow motion...

There you have it...ME in all my running glory. LOL. Whoever took all these pics of me turning this last corner of the race before the finish line....Thank you!

Dating funnies

Ok...so almost a year to the day that I closed my OKCupid dating profile; I opened it back up.

Here's what I got right off the bat:

Him: Hugs rock :) So you have a somewhat tomboy look from your pics. So are you a hardcore tomboy 80% of the time or do you have a feminine. girlie affectionate side ??

Me: Well...That depends how you define femininity. I am extremely affectionate. I dress up everyday for work. I'm fairly low maintenance when it comes to my hair/makeup but know how to do it up for special occasions. Does that answer your questions? J

Him: Well ok so does that mean you like cuddling massages feet rubs kissing holding hands touchy feely ? Wearing skirts dresses heels shorts flip flops ? Pantyhose thigh highs seamed stockings :)

Me: Yes to just about everything. Except the seams...hard to get straight!

Him: Well would you wear the seamed stockings.in.the bedroom ? And your ok with pantyhose and thigh highs for sure ?
Him: I happen to have a foot and hose fetish so I love.cute well taken care of feet on a woman and love the feel and look of hose on a womans legs and feet so you ok with all that ??

Me: I have ugly feet so I'm probably not the woman for you. Good luck with that though!

(NOTE: This is where I try to let him down nicely.)

Him: Lol well women are their own worst critic so maybe I would like them lol....so.you scared off by a.foot.fetish ???
Him: Are you very sexual when you like a guy ?? Did you like my pics and page ??

Me: I'm not scared off by anything but I do think this is inappropriate discussion for right off the bat.

Him: No its not lol . You're a grown woman so you should be able to handle adult coversation and be open and honest . After all you are on here to meet a guy that's relationship material and not just bs and games I would hope ..

(NOTE: This is where he pissed me off by brushing off my concerns and trying to guilt me)

Me: I am and I can but I choose to try to get to know someone a little first before I jump right into sex. Sets a bad first impression.

Him: No it doesn't only if you assume and jump the gun and assume a guy just wants to screw you because he can be open to talking about sex lol. I just like knowing what I have in common right off the bat instead of taking forever to find the core.stuff about someone ..

Me: Well, you let me know how that works with other women cuz it doesn't fly with me. Have a good one.

(NOTE: AGAIN where I try to be polite!)

Him: Well dear grow some balls and stop acting like virgin bye too shy and way way uptight for most men no wonder you're single lol..wow

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Ok...so should I be more feminine? Or should I grow some balls?!

I'm not sure what's more laughable about his last statement...the people who know me, know that I'm the last person who anyone would say was "way way uptight." Or the parting shot of "no wonder you're single?"

Good gravy.

The good news is that in the past this would have A) Bothered me. B) I would have talked to this loser for quite some time before dismissing him.

Now I see the giant red flag and what a wiener he really is! So hooray for that!

Krispy Kreme Craziness!

Did you barf?

That's what everyone wants to know when I tell them that this past Sat, I participated in the 10th Annual Krispy Kreme Challenge.

For those of you who don't know, here's what Wikipedia has to say about the Krispy Kreme Challenge:

The Krispy Kreme Challenge is an annual charity event in which participants run a several mile road course leading to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts shop, eat one dozen doughnuts (totaling 2,400 calories and 144 grams of fat), and run back to the finish line in under 1 hour.
 

Several miles means 5 miles. I ran 2.5 miles from the Bell Tower at NC State to the Krispy Kreme in downtown Raleigh. I ate a dozen donuts and then ran 2.5 miles back to the Bell Tower.

This is a huge event that is pretty well known here in Raleigh. People dress up and it's loads of fun. I decided to dress up as Where's Waldo. (no suprise there!)

Here I am before the madness!

 

I made it to the race with about an hour to wander around before it started. I got my picture taken, signed up for the costume contest (I didn't win) and just took in the sight of so many people dressed all crazy.

 

People kept smiling when they saw me. I heard so many people say "There's Waldo! I found her!" LOL. I even had one mom run up to me and ask me to take a picture with her and her kids! I love attention so this was awesome.

 

Finally we all lined up and got ready to get down to business. We were crammed into the street and the first couple of feet past the start line were packed. Then we spread out and it was on! I always forget how hilly Raleigh really is until I'm running it! After pausing to hitch up my tights (it was cold!) I kept running and finally made it to the donuts...

 

 

Donuts 1-2: I could barely get them down - I had trouble swallowing!

Donuts 3-5: All I could think was that this was a horrible idea and I would never finish them all

Donut 6: My gag reflex threatened to make an appearance and I really thought I wouldn't make it

Donuts 7-11: I just chewed and swallowed. I didn't even think anything. Chew. Swallow. Repeat.

Donut 12: Never been so happy to finish a donut!

 

 

So. Many. Donuts!

 

 

My method was to dunk the donut into the water cup and eat it as fast as possible. Then take a tiny sip to wash the last bite down. I didn't even drink a whole cup of water. I was so covered in sugar that I used the rest of the water to sort of clean my hand and face off.

 

I tossed my empty box onto the giant pile of empty boxes and started running back. That was a hard run. It wasn't my stomach that I had trouble with...it was my legs. They just didn't want to run anymore! I had to walk some short stretches but I tried to run as much as possible.

 

I'm sad to say that I didn't make it in an hour. My official time was 1:08:46.

 

I'm thinking that it just took me too long to eat the donuts. My split time after eating the donuts was 43:04 which means I was running right where I wanted to be. It was the dang donuts that slowed me down. Eating a dozen donuts is a huge mental game. Your body just isn't used to all that sugary dough. But I was proud to have finished and even more proud to not have barfed!

 

 

All smiles to be finished!

 

This race was so much fun. I will run again next year and I WILL make it in under an hour! 

 



Truthful Tuesday

Have you ever been surrounded by people and never felt so alone?

I have a great life. My life is full of fun activities, great friends and a family that loves me. I am luckier than most. I do fun things that fill me with happiness and I have people in my life to share those experiences with. I even have the best pup in the world to snuggle with.

That being said...

I'm lonely.

I miss being part of a couple.
I miss having a companion.
I miss inside jokes.
I miss being touched.
I miss the intimacy.
I miss kisses.
I miss the way I fit into the crook of his arm.
I miss skin on skin contact.
I miss innocent touches.
I miss knowing someone so well that you can tell what kind of mood they're in before they even open their mouth.

I miss it all.

I know what everyone will tell me. You have to love yourself Sprinkles. You don't want to be desperate for a man. You need to be fine on your own before you can be a good partner.

I get all of that.

But I feel a deep ache inside me when I hear John Legend sing that he wants to "Love your curves and all your edges. All your perfect imperfections."  I find myself unable to be happy for other couples. It seems like the world is taunting me with love all around for everyone but me.

What people don't tell me is how do I get over this deep ache? When does the hurt stop? When do I stop missing all of these things?

I'm not desperate to have a man. I can take care of myself. I am an independent woman who can handle her own problems and live her own life. I'm ok with myself. I know who I am. I'm more secure in my body and self than I've ever been in my whole life.

But I want to be loved. I want what I see my parents have. I want it so bad it hurts.

I settled in my marriage. I didn't think I was capable of being loved. I thought if someone told me they loved me...I should be grateful because no one else would ever tell me that.

I know better now. I don't ever want to settle again. I will be fine and I will hold out for the right one.

Until that person comes...

I'm lonely.

Random running thoughts

Running gives me a lot of time to think.

I usually tell people that running quiets my mind (much like knitting) but to be honest...I still think a lot while running.

Most often it goes something like this:

-Oh man this feels good. Feel how good my legs feel!
-Think about something that happened that day
-I need to slow down.
-Oh gosh...I can't breathe!
-Just keep running Sprinkles. Don't be a wuss.
-I swear to you I am dying!
-Think about something else - You got this.
-Deep thought.
-I'm dying! Why do I do this?!

And so on and so forth.

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People often say that running is cheaper than therapy. Is that true? Let's look at some numbers.

Therapy costs anywhere from around $40 - $60 a session.

Running so far for me:

New shoes: $120
New running gear: about $50
Ollie the wonder foam roller: $40
Running socks: $10
Tom Tom Runner watch: $167 (although mine was a gift)
Compression socks: $15 (also a gift)
Runner's world mag subscription: $10
Gym membership cuz it's too cold/dark to run outside: $34 a month
Sign up costs for races: Anywhere from $25 - $200

Someone do the math. Is it really cheaper than therapy?

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Exciting news on the "Getting others to drink the running kool-aid" front! My sister "Kiddo" has started the C25K program. She's on her second week and has already signed us up for a fun run! I can't wait to run the Neon Vibe 5K with her in March!

According to her Facebook page: "So, a week into my c25k program and I'm already at the point where I can't wait till my next run."

Hooray! Great job kiddo! I'm hella proud of you. :)


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I got a some great running pressies for Xmas that I still haven't talked about!

First of all...I'd like to introduce Tom Swifty!

Waldo's a shameless photobomber

 

Tom Swifty is the Pink Tom Tom Runner watch that my parents got me for Xmas. I LOVE IT! It tracks my runs via GPS or if I'm at the gym it uses my natural running rhythm to track how far I've run. And it's surprisingly pretty accurate! 

 

I'm able to upload the information easily into my runkeeper account and also into Tom Tom's own sports/running website. From there I can see my splits and all sorts of fun stuff.

 

There are a lot of different training features I can use and different functions that I haven't tried out yet. It will let me pick a distance and then tell me how close I am to the goal.

 

All in all...it's pretty sweet. I love it.

 

I also got these awesome compression socks from the Kiddo.

 

I love the color!

 

I wore them after my last race to see if they helped my legs not be so sore. I like to think they helped. Plus I felt pretty awesome wearing them so that's always a plus! 

Stubborn Warrior: New Years 5K recap

Ok...so January's race is in the bag. I know...Its taken me almost 2 weeks to blog about it. Sorry. I'm a slacker.

This was an interesting race because it was the first race of the new year. It was also my first race completely by myself. I didn't know anyone there...I didn't have anyone to cheer me on...it was all Sprinkles.

Screenshot from my phone as I left the house!

 

 

So I woke up at 5:30am and got ready for the race. As you can see from the pic, it was bitterly cold outside when I left at 6:30am. The race didn't start til 8am but I had to pick up my race packet so I wanted to make sure I had enough time.

 

The race was held out at the Dorthea Dix campus which was really nice. I got there good and early and drove around a bit trying to figure out where to park. Finally I found a small parking lot near the start of the race.

 

That is when I figured out that it was a small race and that I didn't need to get there super early next time.

 

 

Best bib number ever!

 

There was a total of about 130 runners. We started about 10 mins after 8am and we were off!

 

The first mile was bitterly cold. My legs hurt so bad from the cold. Every step I took felt like daggers to my thighs! Finally around mile 2 I warmed up enough to enjoy the run. The sun was warming up and the scenery was beautiful. I was running pretty much by myself with one or two people passing me or me passing them. It was awesome.

 

I was so proud of myself for running the whole thing. I was even more proud when I saw my time! I got a PR! (not that I've run many 5ks...but still!)

 

I ran the 5k in 32:46 which averages about a 10:30mm. Not too shabby!

 

I placed 49th overall and 19th out of the women.

 

Stubborn Warrior is a local series of which there are 5 runs total. This was the first. Each run, they give the top 50 guys and the top 50 women points. 1st place gets 50 points, second place gets 49 points and onward. So coming in 19th of the women...I got 32 points! Not bad!

 

I plan on running all 5 races so hopefully I will better my times and get a lot of points!

 

The best part is that the race is run on the same course each time so I'll really get to see some improvement hopefully!

 

 

 

Donuts never taste as sweet as they do for a post-race treat!





BRRRRR!

Well...it's official. I am SOOO glad that I got a gym membership! Thanks Bliss!

It has been so cold here lately. How cold you ask?

Yesterday it was 9 degrees.

That was not a typo. It was really 9 degrees. With the windchill it felt like it was in the negative degrees! NEGATIVE!!!!

I don't know how people live in states that actually get snow and deal with temperatures like this all winter long!

I very much enjoy running inside where it's warm.

Until it warms up - I have a beard

First Adventure of 2014!

So I have this theory...how you close out and start the new year is sort of how your year will shape up. 2013? Don't ask...let's just say it wasn't the greatest start. :)

So I closed 2013 with my knitting friends. We hung out at my friend M's house with her husband, her fake sister, and another one of my knitting buddies. We had good food and lots of fun just watching random YouTube videos and knitting. It was awesome.

Yesterday, I managed to get myself out of bed and drive out to Durham to Eno River State Park. I met up with the Raleigh Trail Runners and went for my first ever trail run. 30 mins out...30 mins back.

It was hard! I'm not sure Trail Running is for me. There's lots of logs and branches to jump over...rocks to twist your ankle on, and leaves to slip and slide on! It is kinda fun because it's a challenge. You have to step carefully.

At one point...I was leading a small group (it was single track so only enough room on the trail for one person at a time and I ended up in front somehow) and I got us off the trail! Whoops! We had to double back and I was thankfully in the back of the pack after that!

All of the other runners were much faster than me but since I am learning to appreciate my own pace...that was ok by me! I did end up walking with a really nice girl for a bit so that was awesome. Total - I ran about 3 miles.

We all got back and then it was time for the real adventure! We headed to the quarry to do a polar plunge! We hiked another 3/4 of a mile and when we got there...there were other people jumping in too! I've been told that some of them were naked but can't confirm this as I didn't see it. (Thankfully!)

We went to a slightly higher point and started right in on jumping in! I was the 3rd person to jump in...

Am I holding my nose as I jump?

 

SO COLD!!! The shock of the cold literally takes your breath away. As I was underwater waiting to surface I had the brief thought that I might die underwater. But then my muscles unfroze and I surfaced. I managed not to curse (as there was a news guy present) but I think I might have yelled "CRAP it is COLD!"

 

 

Get me out of here!!

 

I managed to swim to the bank and climb my way out of the water. There were a bunch of roots that you had to use as a ladder to get out. My muscles did NOT want to cooperate and so I ended up almost falling back into the water!

 

 

I am not staring at her butt. I am trying my best to get out of the cold-ass water!

 

The funny thing is that it was actually warm when you got out of the water. I managed to change without anyone seeing any naked bits (as did everyone else) and we were on our merry way back to our cars.

 

A group of us decided to celebrate our plunge with some food so we went and had an early dinner. While at the restaurant...we saw ourselves on the news! NBC 17 had sent a guy out to tape us and we made both the 6pm and the 7pm newscasts! You can't really see me in it except the side of my face for a brief second and my legs/shoes in one shot. LOL.

 

All in all...it was a great start to the new year. Meeting new people, chilling with friends, good food and great adventure. Plus some knitting and running to boot!

 

Here's to 2014 - may it continue to rock my world!