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!

 







Racing

So I have decided to try to at least run one race every month next year. So that means by the end of the year, I will have run in 12 races.

I was already signed up for the Krispy Kreme Challenge (5 miles, 12 donuts, 1 hour!) in February and while I can NOT wait for that to happen...I needed something in Jan. Luckily for me, there were a couple of options.

I thought about a hot chocolate/doggie run in Cary, NC. But unfortunately, that city holds a lot of bad feelings for me. And while someday I hope that it won't...I didn't want to kick off my year of running with a bad feeling about where I was running.

So I went ahead and registered for the Stubborn Warrior: New Year 5k. It's part of the Stubborn Warrior running series. They award points to the top finishers and the more races you run in the series (I think there are 5) the more points you have the opportunity to receive.

I'm not the fastest runner out there so I'm thinking I probably won't get any points. But I'll get the t-shirt and have a fun run and that's what counts! :D

In other news:

I worked out with my trainer this past Sat. It was my first session so he took my weight and measurements. He also calculated my body fat. I have all these worksheets to fill out...about what I eat and my goals and such. Then we worked out and DANG are my legs sore!!! Supposedly, he's going to come up with a workout plan for me to be able to utilize even when I'm not working out with him. So that's pretty awesome.

Plus I ran 2 miles after working out with him. I felt like such a hoss. lol.

In knitting news:

I hung out with my stitchy bitches last night and we had a blast cutting out snowflakes and hanging them from the ceiling. Plus eating pizza and knitting. It was lovely to get out of the house and hang out with people this weekend.

What sucked was that my awesome Friggin princess hat had to be frogged! When I carried the yarn around for the tiara...I carried it too tightly and it wouldn't fit my fat head. So I had to frog it. I guess I'll be doing the tiara in duplicate stitch like the pattern calls for instead of trying to be smart about it. LOL.

Race Face

Well...I suppose I am a real runner now. I have been captured with the dreaded "Race Face."

I got an email today that my race photos were posted for my viewing (and buying) pleasure. Let's be honest...I'm not paying 10 bucks for a 4x6 of me looking like a dufus. Hopefully some day I'll get a good race photo of me that I feel like blowing up to poster size...but until that day happens...I've taken these lovely pics with my phone for your laughing pleasure!

Enjoy!

This is the best of the bunch. Yes...I give the thumbs up! when running.

 

 

So focused on the finish line!

 

 

My friend Joe always says I look like Phoebe from "Friends" when I run. This photo proves that.

 

 

Race Face!

 

OK. You can stop laughing now. You're welcome! 

 



Turkey Trottin!

It started on Tuesday night when I went to go pick up my bib. It was a cold, dark, rainy night and it took me an hour to drive not even 20 miles. Once I got there it was really easy to pick up my bib...it took 5 mins. Then I almost got hit by a car as I was crossing the parking lot. Really? How do you miss a person with a huge, bright umbrella?! I gave them a few choice words. My heart was beating a little fast after that.

It has my name on it!!!

After a week and a half of not running very much...I was slightly worried about running an 8k. For those of us not so great at math...that's right about 5 miles. That's the furthest I've ever run.

I woke up the morning of and ate some peanut butter crackers. I needed something in my stomach to keep it settled. I also drank a Gatorade and ate some energy chews. Yum!

RB (RatBastard) drove me to the race. He had made me a sign and was planning on hanging out to watch me run. I was excited to have someone there to cheer me on!

 

Rockin and ready to run!

 

I had a ton of layers on. I had a base pair of tights, running pants, 3 technical tops, wool hat, fingerless gloves, and a neck warmer. Plus I bought new socks that sat higher on my ankles.

 

There were just over 3000 people there! I saw so many people dressed up! I saw a girl dressed as a pie, dozens of turkeys, a pilgrim and Native American running together...lots of fun costumes!

 

The run itself wasn't too bad. It was very hilly but I just ran when I could and walked when I had to. I did have to stop in the middle of the race and pull off one of my layers. I took water at the first stop but not at the next two stops.

 

I was so excited as we ran down Ridge Rd and got closer to the finish line. I knew RB would be waiting for me and I couldn't wait to see what his sign said! As I rounded the corner back into the parking lot...I heard a group of people cheering my name! It was my running friends from the Hibernian Harriers run club! Awesome! I pointed at them and cheered and kept on running. Straight ahead was RB! Holding a sign that said "Lady Na-Na, Run like crazy for the turkey and gravy!" I blew him a kiss and booked it to the finish line!

 

Now for the results!

 

In my age group I came in 119th out of 158. Overall I came in 1549 out of 1940. Not too bad! Not the best but not the worst!

 

My gun time was 57:45 and my chip time was 56:05.

 

Splits:

 

Mile 1 = 11:38mm

Mile 2 = 10:12mm

Mile 3 = 9:42mm

Mile 4 = 11:17mm
Mile 5 = 11:23mm

Obviously, I hit my best stride in Mile 3. But overall...I'll take an 11 min mile! After the race I grabbed a banana and a cup of water and made a very nice stranger take our picture. Please excuse how crappy I look...I just ran 5 miles!

 

He's pretty good looking...no?

Weekly Recap

Oh man....what a week!

I have not run a whole lot because this week has been so crazy!

Monday:

I managed to sneak out of work early (I took my boss home) and worked in a run with the Wal-dog. We only went 2.05 miles because it got dark. I do NOT like to run in the dark. I was impressed with Waldo. He kept up like a champ!

After my run (and a quick shower), I went to my C25K graduation! We all met at Crabtree Tavern and enjoyed a great meal together. There was lots of laughing and joking around. We gave our coach/leader/guy a card and gift card to Fleet Feet. I told him he could use it to get some new shorts! (The day we ran in the SLEET, he showed up in shorts!) We've all promised to keep up with each other and go running together again.

Such a good looking group!

 

Tuesday:

 

I had tickets to go see Macklemore and Ryan Lewis at the PNC Arena! I pretty much paid nothing for my ticket because I had won a gift card from the PNC Arena that I used to get it. So imagine my face when I found out that it was $20 to park!!! Crikey!

 

I went to the show by myself and had a blast. I sat next to the nicest family. It was a little uncomfortable sitting next to the mom while the opening acts were rapping about F-this and F-that. I told the mom that they seemed like cool parents to take their kids to a concert like this. (My parents would have NEVER gone to a rap concert with me. Or even let ME go!) She told me that they didn't censor their kids music and that they were both straight A students so they didn't worry too much about it. It's just music. I thought that was a cool way to look at it.

 

The two opening acts were ok. They were Big K.R.I.T. and Talib Kweli. Honestly, I wasn't terribly impressed. Maybe because the sound quality wasn't that great? Talib Kweli rapped over a track of himself for a couple of songs and that really just turned me off. They both had a couple of songs I enjoyed but honestly, I just wanted to hear Macklemore.

 

Plus I was really uncomfortable when I saw a young girl (maybe 8 years old?) walk past me in a homemade Macklemore shirt while one of the opening acts was singing "F-these haters, F-these hoes." *censor is mine and mine alone.

 

Macklemore does curse in his songs. But it's not every other word. I have a problem with people who can't talk or rap or sing without cursing every 3 words. There are lots of words in the English language!

 

After the opening acts, we got to sit there for about 30 mins. Weee! So fun. I know I'm getting old because I texted Bliss and told her I was ready for the main act to start already. It was past my bedtime!

 

Finally at 9pm...the main act! Such a great show. Macklemore had such a stage presence. He would talk to the crowd and really kept the energy going. I just loved it.

 



Why is it in this day and age I still can't get a good concert pic on my cell?

 

Wednesday:

 

RatBastard and I went to therapy. I supposed now that we're back together I should come up with a new nickname for him. I'll think about it.

 

Therapy went well. We both really liked our therapist and RB really took it seriously and opened up a lot. I'm looking forward to our next session. We even have homework!

 

Thursday:

 

Stitch 'n bitch night with my knitters! Where my stitches at? I'm working on a pair of fingerless mitts that are currently the bane of my existence. I have frogged them once completely and now am ripping out two rows. On DPNs. Boo!

 

Friday:

 

Hasn't happened yet but I have a Girl Scout meeting tonight! We're going to work on our detective badge and probably talk about our pending trip to Savannah next year! Fun!

 

HOPEFULLY I can get some running in on Sat. I feel like I haven't run in forever but I think that since I ran so much last week...I'll be ok this week. But back to the grind next week! I'm running 8k on Thursday next week!

 

Running update

I have been running!

Last week was a crazy week with running.

Monday - Hibernian Harriers Run Club
Tuesday - C25K meetup group - W8, D1
Wednesday - Ladies night at Fleet Feet
Thursday - should have been W8, D2 but I needed a rest day
Saturday - C25K meetup group - W8, D3!

On Wed, I went to Ladies night at Fleet Feet. It was very fun. I got there and there were about 14 of us ready to run. We took some pictures and then we were off!

Good looking group!

 



It was a straight shot down Six Forks Rd and then back. The way down was easy...I was running at a good pace and felt great. I loved watching the people in the cars just staring at us as we ran past. The way back was much harder...it was all up hill! I don't remember there being any downhill!!!

Back at the store they had some delicious cocktails for us to try as well as some snacks. The stuffed mushrooms were particularly delicious as I shoveled about 12 of them into my mouth. I had to apologize to a lady for eating while she was talking to me but I was STARVING after running 3.49 miles!

After I ate, I decided to go get a chair massage. I was 2nd in line so I talked to a guy about being cryogenically frozen. Apparently, its the new thing to do in sports medicine. You take off your clothes (you wear panties and gloves) and then step into this machine with your head outside of it. The blast you with cold for about 3 mins. It makes your blood go to your core and is supposed to rejuvenate muscles and all that good stuff. I can make an appt for to try it for just $20 so I might do that. It sounds interesting!

The chair massage was excellent. I wish I could get one of those after every run! After that, it was all over. I took my picture with my running friends and we were outie!

 

My running girls!

 

 

On Sat...we ran our last meetup group! It was kind of bittersweet. It was awesome because everyone was able to run the full 35 mins and most of us went the full 3.1 miles (5k!). We actually ran a little further...3.35. Not too shabby! I also found out that I look like a total doofus when I run!

 

 



Goofy girl!

 

This week will be rough trying to fit my running in. I need/want to run at least 3 times this week...but I have a full schedule.

 

Mon - Meetup group graduation! Hooray for a nice dinner with running friends!

Tues - Macklemore concert! I can not wait!

Wed - Therapy session with RatBastard - should be interesting

Thurs - Stitch n' bitch

Fri - Girl Scout meeting

Sat - will definitely be able to run

Sun - The new Hunger Games movie! Catching Fire here we come! 

Ode to Ollie

Oh Ollie, my Ollie,
You make me feel so good.
Oh Ollie, my Ollie,
Roll with you, I always should.

Your grid knows
Just how to please,
Your touch sends me into ecstasy.

With you I make sweet, sweet love
I promise you'll never have to wear a glove.

You know just how
To make me moan,
My neighbors
I'm sure adore,
Oh my God,
I always scream...
I'm just your running whore.

-Sprinkles

Thanks for always working out the kinks.

Adulthood

I have NO toilet paper in my house.

I swear...who let ME be an adult? Shouldn't there be some sort of test or rulebook to follow? Nope...they just throw you out to the real world and you're forced to fend for yourself. Such craziness.

I obviously can not be held responsible for my own lack of TP in which to wipe my behind!

Guess I'll have to "borrow" a roll from work to get me through til I can make it to the grocery store. Jeez.

In running news...

I had an awesome run last night with the Hibernian Harriers Run Club! They had a rep from New Balance there, letting folks try some new shoes for the run. At first I thought, "Why would I want to try a new pair of shoes when I have my most awesome Adidas Supernova Sequence 6s?" But then he said the magic words....Free Pint Glass.

So I tried the new shoes. I have no idea which ones they were.

Bad Blogger.

 

I always like New Balance shoes. I mean...they have an "N" on them. Sprinkles starts with an N! Obviously those shoes are made for me!

 

With this group, I always start out way too fast (9 mm!!!) and end up much slower and towards the very back of the pack. I'm ok with this. Last night, these two girls caught up with me and were excited to see that I had a map as it was their first time and they were slightly lost. I let them know that they were totally cool to run with me, but I was slow and they would probably end up passing me up.

 

Turns out, they were right about my speed! What's even crazier? We were about halfway done running, when one of them asked me who else I run with. I'm explaining my meetup group to her when she goes, "Sprinkles?" OMG! It ended up that I was running with two of the girls from my first meetup group...the girls I ran the Electric run with! So cool!

 

So we ran the rest of the way together and I actually did really well! I felt good and fast and strong. I managed to mostly run up the crazy hills! We made it back to the Hibernian and I returned the New Balance shoes. They were alright to run in but my socks bunched up a bit which made my left toes go numb. I had that same problem in my old Adidas shoes but not in my awesome new shoes. I also collected my free pint glass! Yeah-ah! All in all...a great night!

  

 

If it's free...it's for me!



I can't believe it...

I use RunKeeper to track my runs. I've been tracking my weekly runs religiously since August. I started running in June but wasn't so diligent in keeping track.

I decided to do the math and see how many total miles I've run in just a bit over 3 months.

118.5 miles!!!

I can NOT even believe it!! How on earth did I run that many miles? Not to mention the fact that a lot of those miles were hard won on my own.

This is so freaking true!

Where's Sprinkles: Halloween Edition!

Sprinkles has been spotted!

Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year. When else is it social acceptable for an adult to dress up in costume and eat tons of candy?!

You already saw a preview of my awesome costume (that I've worn the last 4 years in a row!) so it should be no surprise to you what it is!

So let's play...Where's Sprinkles?!

 

Sprinkles is hard at work!

 

 



Sprinkles stretches after a run!

 

Sprinkles also went to Panera for her stitch n bitch but forgot to record the moment for blog-sterity. So just pretend you can picture me knitting! Use your imagination! It looked pretty awesome. I got tons of weird looks and lots of smiles. Love it! 

City of Oaks Marathon recap

I'm going to post vomit today. I've had so much going on this past week/weekend that I want to capture on blog paper...that it's going to take a couple of posts!

First of all...the most recent: The City of Oaks Marathon and Half!

I volunteered for this awesome event last night and OMG it was so much fun.

I was scheduled to be a course monitor for which I got the awesome swag you saw in an earlier post. I showed up to my intersection on Hillsborough St in downtown Raleigh at 6am and it was COLD! I sat in my car as long as I could.

I met my partner, CostaRica and we sat in our chairs side-by-side waiting for some action. Ms. CostaRica was so nice. We chatted about how we got into running and she told me that her and her husband were expecting their first child! I eventually had to go get my sleeping bag out of the trunk (hooray for never cleaning it out!) and bundled up in my chair and snoozed a little.

Finally we started to see people running in our direction! Little people! It was the kids mile run! They were so cute running...some with parents...some by themselves. I saw some of them afterwards with their big medal and they were so proud of themselves!

We sat around a bit more and finally the fast runners started trickling past. I stood in the middle of the street and directed traffic. I clapped and cheered for all of the runners. It was so much fun yelling their bib numbers and giving them encouragement. I had so many runners thank me for being there to which I just told them that they were the real inspiration. I saw people who looked fresh as a daisy...and people who looked like they couldn't take another step. I tried my best to encourage them all.

Run away from the crazy lady!

I wasn't far from the finish line so lots of runners asked me how far they had left. I was happy to be the one to tell them only .1 of a mile! I told them to run towards the donuts and beer! I told them that they looked awesome and that they should finish strong because they've got this! I told some runners that their feet were on fire they were running so fast! And others that they were killing it!

I saw a dad who had finished and was wearing his medal. I congratulated him on finishing and he told me that his daughters had surprised him at the finish line and that he didn't know they were coming. I could see how much this meant to him by the tears of joy in his eyes. That made me tear up just a bit.

Finally...6 hours after the roads had opened back up and I was getting ready to leave...I saw that there were still runners out on the course, now running on the sidewalk. I stopped on the other side of the street and cheered as loud as I could for those last runners who had been running for 6+ hours! They were amazing...talk about giving it everything you've got!

 

Some runners started to pass as I was taking pictures...so this is me in action!

Where's Sprinkles?!

So, I've had two bad running days. I wish I had some great insight for you but really...I'm just looking forward to seeing the Hurricanes tonight and for Halloween tomorrow.

Here's a preview of what I'll be wearing all day long tomorrow...through work...running...and knitting group.

I wore this on Monday night to run club. It was hella fun running through the streets in costume!

So fast, my feet are on fire!

 

Where's Wanda is my go-to costume. I've worn it now for something like 3-4 years straight. A friend of mine, MommaB asked me if I couldn't just DIY myself some sort of crafty costume. I told her that like me....this costume was cheap and easy.

 

Waldo is flabbergasted that I would try to be him!

 

 



Trust me...he's truly flabbergasted.

Crazy week!

It's been a crazy weekend and is shaping up to be a crazy week!

I took my GS troop camping this past weekend. It was a lot of fun but also very exhausting. I'm extremely lucky in that I got to go with one of our mom's who is amazing to work with. We get along really well and work well together to keep the girls safe and happy. The girls make me laugh all the time with their antics.

The best part about camping was that it reinforced the fact that I really am a runner! I left the girls in very capable hands and snuck in a run! I did 3.25 miles. It was super hilly and slightly chilly!

Happy Camper after a good run!

 

On tap for this week...

 

Monday: Run with the Hibernian Harriers Run Club. We'll be running in costume so that should be hella fun!

 

Tuesday: Run with my meetup group. Then spend some time with a friend of mine.

 

Wednesday: Tickets to the Hurricanes STH party! I'll get to visit the locker room and meet some of the players. I can't wait!!! Pictures will be posted!

 

Thursday: Halloween! I'll be dressing up for work and then running with my meetup group. Knitting group to follow! All in costume of course!

 

Then this next weekend is the City of Oaks Marathon! I'm hoping to make it out to the expo and am really looking forward to volunteering and seeing what goes into a marathon and half.

 

In other news: I heard from Ratbastard. I sent him a card last week and wanted to know if he received it. So I texted him. We chatted for a bit via text last night. It was nice to catch up with him and hear what he's been up to. My feelings are so mixed regarding that whole situation. I just don't even know. Who knows what will come of it...if anything?!

 

 

The GS bandito says surrender all your S'mores!



Struggle

Winter will be a struggle for me.

I realized that last night when I ran with my meetup group. It was cold and I was under dressed.

 

The only bonehead with bare arms!

 

Did I mention it was cold?

 

I have trouble figuring out exactly what to wear when it's cold because I know I'll warm up eventually as I run, and I hate having to take off shirts and try to tie them around my waist or something.

 

I have no doubt that this will cause me pain this winter as I hate the cold almost as much as I hate the dreadmill.

 

Here's hoping for a mild winter!!!

Getting my swag on!

If you know me in real life....you know that I love free swag. I use coupons, I like freebies, and I live for a good deal.

Because I'm so cheap...I like to volunteer my time rather than give my money. (mostly because I have more time than money)

So when I heard they needed volunteers for the City of Oaks Marathon in my home city, I was all about it. Hang out with runners....experience the race without having to run it or pay for it...and get free swag? Sign me up!

I had my volunteer training session last night. Plus I picked up my swag!

I get a a tech hat too!

 

This picture in no way demonstrates just how bright YELLOW this shirt is! I love it!

 

I'll be going to the race expo and hanging out with runners. Then on race day you'll find me at about 26.1 miles (or 12.8 if you're running the half marathon)...near the finish line!

 

I'll be the one yelling "You're almost done! Great job! Don't quit now!" 

 

Stuck in my head

Bright Lights, Big City

She dreams of love.

 

Bright Lights, Big City

She lives to run.

                                                                                  -Thirty Seconds to Mars

 

This song has been on repeat in my head...over and over again. It's called Bright Lights and it's by a band called Thirty Seconds to Mars. I've changed the words a little bit...the second "She" is sung as "He," but it fits better for me if I just sing "She."

 

The words are just so fitting.

 

I do dream of love. I dream of that perfect someone who will hold me when I'm down, who will laugh with me and not at me. That intimate friend and lover all rolled into one. The guy with the smile that lights up my heart who will think I'm beautiful and realize that I'm an unpolished diamond.



While I'm busy dreaming of that....I live to run.

Running has filled the void.

It has gone from something I did to prove someone wrong, to something I live to do.

It has become my drug.

If I'm not running...I'm thinking about running. Or I'm texting Bliss about running. Or I'm reading about running. Or I'm looking at new running products or races.

I feel like running has helped me in so many ways already. It's helped me get over heartache and loss. It's made my clothing fit better. It's introduced me to some great new people. It's helped me find new friends.

Can running help me find love?

Bright lights, Big city dreams.

What day is it?

It's WIP Wednesday!

Well...It would seem that running has stolen my knitting mojo. I'm still knitting...mostly on Thursdays at my stitch-n-bitch. But I don't have any great, new projects burning a hole in my head. I haven't been researching anything fun to knit. I haven't picked out a pattern or any new yarn.

I'm frozen in knitting time right now.

I am making a hat for my ex-husband. I have cast on twice for it. I am tired of it already.

So for today...here are some pics of projects that will probably never be finished...that sit around my house just begging to be frogged or worked on.

This scarf is for me and I still can't bring myself to finish it.

 

I called this my Layoff Hoodie. I started it when I got laid off last year. I never finished it. I messed up the cables and found out I was purling backwards. I need to frog this sweater but just haven't.

These socks make me both happy and sad. They are a great color, great yarn, great pattern. I just can't bring myself to figure out where I left off and finish a whole 'nother one!

 

I used to use knitting as a way to quiet my mind and keep my hands busy. I love to multi-task so it was a great way to get something done while I did something else. And while I still love to knit, I'm not sure I need it as badly as I needed it before. But hopefully my mojo will come back because I still want to make myself a sweater. And if I ever manage to frog that Layoff Hoodie - I've got the yarn for one! 

Dammit Sprinkles!

I think Bliss has a new catchphrase: "Dammit Sprinkles!" It makes me laugh every time I see it on my phone.

What usually happens is that I brag about how many miles I ran (because I am proud of myself and everyone else in my life is tired of hearing about my running)...then Bliss feels like she has to keep up with me...so she bangs out an even longer run...which makes me feel like I should run further!

The latest time she said it was after I told her I ran 5 miles on Sat. She then proceeded to run 5.47!

That is why she is amazing.


It is interesting to me how much running has an effect on my moods. I ran Sat (5 miles!) and felt good all day Sunday. I took an rest day on Sunday due to getting my First Aid/CPR re-certification and running errands/cleaning house.

Today I feel like pond scum. I can't put my finger on exactly what's wrong, but my mood is low. I'm kind of cranky and drawn into myself. I'm not my normal cheerful, happy self.

I know what part of the problem is. I sent a card to someone this past weekend regarding a very important event in their life. I expected to hear something back from them, at least a text or email saying "hey" or "thanks." Nothing. *crickets*

So now my head is in a tailspin wondering if they received the card or if they're just ignoring me. *sigh*

I'll get over it. I'm running with the Hibernian Harriers Run Club tonight. So that will be fun! And the sun is out today! Hooray! I was beginning to think it was on furlough.

Perspective

Sometimes running...like life...is all about perspective.

Before I go any further...I should say that I love to run. I also love to knit. I am not the best at either of these things but I do them because they're fun for me. I do them for me and the feelings I get when I do them.

That being said...it's funny sometimes. When I run with my meetup group on Tues/Thurs/Sat...I'm one of the fastest people there. I'm always at the front of the pack. Last night I did sprints with the guy who runs the group and I was blazing fast. (for a whole min)

I use Runkeeper to track my runs so I know that I don't run at a super fast pace but I know that I run about an 11 mm.

So when I got an email about a new running club starting up that promised free pasta and salad where all paces were welcome...I jumped at the chance to meet some new runners.

I never thought I'd be DFL. (Dead F-ing Last)

Yes...I know. DFL is better than DNF or even better than DNS.

But there's nothing like running your fastest pace ever (10mm!!!) and still being at the very back of the pack.

The good news? I finished the 3 mile run! I got a free shirt! And free food!

And we all know my life motto is FFTB! (Free Food Tastes Better!)

Who doesn't like a free shirt?!

 

 

Edited to add: I'm fully aware that this picture includes a lovely bit of nippliage. Apparently, taking selfies makes me excited! (This angle really makes my boobs look great though!) 

Running store reivew

This weekend I had the opportunity to visit a new running store just down the road from me!

Fleet Feet opened a new location here in Raleigh, NC! They had a bunch of grand opening activities. Unfortunately, I didn't get to participate in the store-to-store run (they ran 8 miles!) but I did get to try a delicious smoothie, pull 2 ducks to win prizes, vote for the best decorated pumpkin, and learn some new techniques on my foam roller.

I arrived around 10:45am and visited the tent outside of the store first. I talked to some lovely ladies about the inaugural Rock n Roll Raleigh Marathon and Half. Sadly, I won't be able to run that one. I'll be out of town with my GS troop in Savanna, GA!

Then I got to pick two ducks out of a kiddie pool. The ducks had numbers written on them that corresponded with prizes. I picked an 8 and a 9. I got a pair of Brooks branded shoelaces and a flashing Fleet Feet light that I can wear in the dark when I'm running!

 

Who doesn't love free swag?!



I also got a little pin from Brooks that says "Pick up the pace"

From there I went into the store and was very impressed with the layout. Men's clothing to the left, Women's to the right and shoes straight in front in the back. I walked around a bit and made my way over to the shoes. They had my beloved Adidas Supernova Sequence 6's and they had the $5 cheaper than what I had paid for them! Dang!

I talked to a super nice saleswoman about options for socks. I am forever having a problem with my no-show socks slipping. It drives me crazy. She showed me some great looking options.

They were doing some demonstrations with the Trigger Point Performance The Grid Revolutionary Foam Roller.

I happen to have gotten this a couple of weeks ago and thought I could use some better ways to use it. She showed me the best exercises to do with it. It felt amazing. I didn't realize that the little grid parts could be used in different ways to get different results. I now love Ollie (yes, I named my foam roller) even more!

From there I was done so I went over to Panera and got a free bagel. It was delicious. I realized while there that my free blinky light didn't work, so I went back over to Fleet Feet and they hooked me up with one that worked.

I can't say more about how nice and friendly everyone I spoke to who worked there was. They were so helpful and their prices were very reasonable. I will definitely shop there for my running needs!