Brain purge

I feel much, much better today. I'm not really sure what was wrong with me yesterday, but um, yeah. I was not in good shape. But I feel pretty good.

I also decided to sign up for the Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Half Marathon today. Woot! I really like the logo.

I wasn't really planning to do any Rock 'n' Roll races this year since I was going to cut back on traveling, not to mention the utter debacle of the R 'n' R Las Vegas Marathon. Then last night I was chatting with a friend of mine that lives in SD and she mentioned me coming to visit. T is planning on running it with a few of her friends, so I thought, "I should go!" Plus, this year the race entry includes a free pass to Sea World. If you registered today, you also got a free gift. Of course I had to enter, right? Unfortunately, the whole point of registering was to get together with a friend and I haven't her back from her, so I hope she's going to be in town.

In other news, I have another horse show this weekend. Ugh. I'm not even sure why I do this to myself. Once this show is over, I will be off the hook as far as horse shows are concerned for quite awhile. Then I can begin planning out my running schedule to get myself back on track. Not mention, I have to start building endurance for a full marathon.

I need this sign....  (source)

In other news, my friend Kristy, and I always talk about how people post nasty things passive aggressively on social websites. You can always tell when someone is going through a break up when they start posting things like, "The next girl I date isn't going to be a lying, cheating whore." You can also tell when someone gets their feelings hurt when status updates such as, "I guess now I know who my real friends are" start to flood their timeline. Apparently, someone made a card about this:

Thanks, Facebook/Tumblr/Twitter for giving us the opportunity to passive aggressively express ourselves!

After this weekend, my training program begins. I know, I know. I keep saying that, but now that show season is mostly wrapped up, I can focus on other things besides my naughty little horse and trying to get him shown well.

Until then, my blog will continue to be filled with randomness.

Terrible Tuesday

Today...sucks.

Tomorrow will feel better than today.

Next week will be better than last.

Six months from now won't resemble six months ago.

Oh, the places you'll go.

Just call me Jaime Suess.

Monday Musings

So much going on these days!

I was somehow able to avoid being productive at work today, yet still managed to have a big dollar day in my territory, so that's a win. I also got the best Cobb salad today for lunch. I'm once again trying to avoid grains. I swear, one of these days I will do more research on anxiety/depression and grains. But until then, doesn't this look amazing?

See? I can be healthy!

I entertained myself chatting back and forth via email with T about our upcoming marathon plans.

First up: NYC, baby!

Okay, I'm getting really excited about this. I can't think of a better city to run a full marathon than NYC. (I found a blog entry with great pictures about the NYC marathon today. Do I ever work?) Most importantly, I really need to think about what sort of tattoo I will need to fully commemorate the occasion. There's no way I'm running 26.2 miles and not getting inked. I nearly got a tattoo the last time I was in NYC, but that never came to fruition, so I won't miss out on that one again. I really like the idea of Roman numerals, except will the decimal thing be weird?

My stomach will never look like this...(source)

I also found this little gem while I was abusing the Google Image Search feature. I think this girl must have been an extra in the movie Avatar.

Holy shi*t. (source)

Second: Goofy Challenge 2013

A half marathon Saturday + a full marathon Sunday = 39.3 Miles

Running through all 4 parks? Magic. Or death. Maybe both.

Can. Not. Wait. (source)

Hey, anyone want to rent a suite at WDW and all camp out? Maybe if we split a room 47 ways we'll be able to afford all of this!

Third: Paris or London

I had actually researched the Berlin half marathon sometime last year, but then life happened and I put such ideas away until T brought it up today. My vote is for Paris, but I love London, too, so I would do either. (The London medal is one of the worst, though, and if I'm hitting up the international scene, do I really want a super ugly medal to commemorate the event?)

How cool is this? (source)

Next, we just need to find some money. T thinks prostitution a car wash would help. Anyone have any ideas how we're going to fund raise for all of these events? Especially considering we are going to have to fund raise for a charity just to participate in the NYC marathon? Help!

I went from thinking I was never, ever, ever going to do a full marathon to planning three. One of which immediately follows a half marathon the day before.

I guess I better up my training from meandering around the neighborhood for a couple of miles to something a little more serious.

(source)

And with that, I'm off to bed to think about far away places, aching legs and tattoos. Sleep well!

May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favor

For the last decade, I've spent just about every Saturday and Sunday at the barn hanging out with this guy:

I've rearranged my schedule so that Bam Bam gets ridden before work Tues through Friday and then on Sunday. It feels weird to have Saturdays all to myself for the first time is so long. So how am I spending my Saturday? Nerding out. I'm currently watching my 3rd episode of Cities of the Underworld on the History 2 Channel.

(source)

I'm also catching up on my blog reading and trying to discover new entertaining blogs to add to my reading collection. I've discovered that blogging and being obsessed with The Hunger Games goes hand in hand as it appears most the bloggers I follow either saw the early midnight showing Thursday night, took off of work Friday to see it or are seeing it some time this weekend.

I fall into the category of person-lucky-enough-to pick-a-non-IMAX-twilight-showing-at-6:10-at-the-last-minute-and-still-get-tickets. You know, the time just after work but before the 7:00 showings start.

Does he look like Harry Potter or is it just me? (source)

So, what are my thoughts? I really liked it. The book was definitely better. I was honestly expecting the movie to be narrated since the book is in the first person. They did a good job using dialogue to explain things that are outright explained by Katniss in the story. I think that the movie would have flowed a lot better using text narrated by Katniss.

(source)

There are parts of the movie that come across as really cheesy because A.) the lack of time to fully develop the characters and B.) the lack of narration by Katniss. Example: The relationship between Peeta and Katniss. It's a little bit lame in the movie.

(source)

Over all, I really liked it. I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much if I hadn't read the book and could fill in the missing details. The actors did a great job and I'm excited for the rest of the trilogy.

You're probably thinking to yourself, "um, isn't this a running blog? Why don't you get off your ass and go run somewhere?" Hhhmm, you make a good point. I will have to seriously consider doing that...just as soon as I take a wee nap.

Whew!

I’ve been a bad blogger! I’ve also been a bad exerciser and bad dieter. My scale yelled at me this morning.

ummm, yeah...

I’ve been stressing out of my mind over a horse show I had last weekend and my diet, exercise, life went all amok. So I need to get back on track. Not to mention, the whole scary, looming NYC marathon. Eek.

Exciting and very scary. (source)

I need to dust the cobwebs off of my lap top and get back to blogging and thinking about running.

While I’ve been neglecting the blogosphere, my Goofy countdown is now under 300 days. That sounds like a long time, but I’m such a champion slacker that it will be here before I know it and I’ll be completely under trained. Can’t have that!

I'm also really excited about participating in the Goofy Challenge during the marathon's 20th anniversary. They posted a picture of the original Mickey medal on the runDisney facebook page. I can. not. wait. to see what they design for 2013. Hopefully, it will be better than the 15th anniversary Donald.

Original Mickey Medal 1994 (source)

It would be really cool if they did some sort of variation of this design for the anniversary medal. I actually really like it, although I think the original is pretty small. I like the round old school medal design.

Why can't I just live at a Disney park all of the time? *siiiiigh*

Now back to my originally scheduled programming...diet and exercise regimen to resume soon.

(source)

So Goofy, huh?

RT @disneywords: Every day, another new 

adventure. Every mile, another new zip 
code. –Goofy

I thought that this was an appropriate tweet quoting Goofy considering I've committed to doing GOOFY CHALLENGE 2013. Ahhh! Scary! Having focused more on the idea of doing the NYC Marathon, I forgot how scary doing Goofy is...you're totally right, Fruitfly - I'm excited, but now getting a little freaked out! I guess it's just sinking in today how hard training for this is going to be.

Disney races are my favorite and I'm really excited to finally see the entire marathon course. I had the first leg of the marathon relay this year and I liked that course better than the half marathon course. (I'm really glad T is so easy to convince to do races because Disney announced that they will not be offering the marathon relay this year. So the adorable Chip and Dale Relay medal is a one of a kind medal!)

I ran a half marathon last Saturday, so I'm using that as an excuse for not running this week, but I need to get back on the wagon tomorrow now that I've had a week off. Plus, my ass is NOT getting any smaller. Here's T and me nerding out after the Tinker Bell Half at Disneyland.

Ready to tackle  Goofy 2013

2013 seems like a good year to do Goofy since it will be the 20th anniversary of the marathon. I'm hoping the medal will be awesome. For some reason, I never like their anniversary medals. The 5th anniversary DL Half kinda sucked, but since it was my very first half marathon, I was just excited to get a medal. I didn't like the giant 5 for a 13 mile race. The Donald 15th anniversary is creepy.

In other news: I'm hooked on The Hunger Games. I'm halfway through the first book and it's really good.

(source)

Why can't I be creative enough to come up with these kinds of stories? I wouldn't mind being a creative genius...and I could certainly use the money. I can't wait for the movie.

Lenny Krevitz to play Cinna (source)

I didn't realize Elizabeth Banks was playing this weirdo... (source)

Can't wait. Now I'm off to do some reading. G'night all!

Blogger Note: I just ran spellcheck and I misspelled anniversary 3 different times...and I actually know how to spell it. D'oh.

 

Thinking Out Loud

There are lots of things on my mind today.

1. At what point do you give up on something? I've put blood, sweat and tears into training my horse and sometimes it seems as if his behavioral problems can just not be fixed.
I'm not 100% sure if some of these problems can't be traced back to some sort of physical ailment causing him to act out. All I know is that we can't pinpoint an ailment/injury and I can't be sure that it's not as simple as his knowing he can best me.
What I do know is that this is wearing on me.

2. RT @Notebook: How would you feel if you were the reason someone cried every night?
I saw this on Twitter today and all I could think was - I don't ever want to be the person that causes someone to cry every night.
I see a lot of hurtful things posted on public forums and I wonder why people think it's okay to be mean. When did it become okay to post things designed to hurt another person? It's even worse when people do it to those they used to care about.

3. Who knew Chipotle salads could be as delicious as their rice bowls? In trying to limit my grain intake, I had a salad instead of a rice bowl. Yummm.
And just to end on a positive note, I won these at work today:

I <3 NY!

I did it. I finally entered the lottery to run the 2012 ING New York City Marathon in November. The chances of getting in via lottery are slim, so T and I will most likely be running for a charity.

I'm a little scared but I know I need to have at least 1 full marathon on the books before I attempt to do the Goofy Challenge in January 2013.

Even though there are tons of full marathon options that would not require a ridiculous amount of fund raising, this is New York City! My favorite city on earth. If I'm gonna run a full, might as well go big, right?

Phoenix Half Marathon

I can't remember the last time I didn't want to do a race as much as I didn't feel like doing this one on Saturday morning.

First of all, I had to be in the car by 4:30am on Saturday morning and I was still awake after midnight, so that's not the best way to start a 13.1 mile race. Also, I this is only the second local race I have done. For me, part of the fun of racing is the travel.

Luckily, this race was great. I did well and it was extremely well organized.



I definitely don't look as cold as I am in this picture.

I left my house at 4:30 so that I could make it to T's house by 5:00. We had to be at the race parking lot by 6:00 because that was the time the last bus left to go to the start. T's mom was joining us for her first half marathon. (of course, she kicked our asses, beating us to the finish by at least 20 minutes!)

We made it to the bus pick up with plenty of time to spare. It was pretty cold out in the desert, so there were several camp fires set up for us to huddle around.

We hung around the fires until the very last minute because we were so cold. Finally, we had to make our way to the start line. That's when we saw an irresistible photo opp...

This makes me laugh every time I see it...

The problem with small races is that it brings out the real runners. I was at the back of the pack almost from the very beginning. I'm pretty good at keeping myself slow at the start and then keeping a steady pace even at mile 10, so I knew I wouldn't end up last over the finish line, but it was tough not to run too fast at the beginning to keep up with the other runners.

The first 3-4 miles were down hill, which was great. The elevation chart on the website is a little misleading because it appears as if the race is all down hill, but as T pointed out, there's a chunk of the race that is actually a gradual incline. It turned out the mile 6 all the way through mile 10 is uphill.

Finally, at mile 10, the course changes direction and is mainly down hill except for an overpass we had to climb around mile 12.

My traditional mile 10 pic

I spotted T up ahead of me around mile 11 and was never able to catch all the up to her, but I did end up following her over the finish line about 10 seconds later.

I didn't PR, but I did get the fastest time I've had since January 2011. I'm a little mad at myself that I didn't train more, because this could have been a great chance to PR. I had a really good time and I would totally recommend this race. Look at this swag:

Nike tech shirt, arm warmers and a water bottle. Nice!

Awesome race. Great organization. I will definitely do it again.

Mini Rant

RT @lnsaneFacts: Heavy drinkers have a longer life expectancy than non-drinkers

Well, that's good to know in case I need to take up a new hobby.

Today has been totally craptastic so I'm taking a mini break from life to whine...waaaah. Booo. Hissss.

That felt good.

Also, I think I should get a prize for my insanely healthy lunch despite my desire to snarf myself to happiness.

More later...

Lucky 13

I'm too sleepy to do a full race recap from The Phoenix Half Marathon but half marathon #13 went well! I didn't PR, but I got the fastest time I've gotten since Jan. 2011!! Woot!

Is it the ultimate laziness that I am blogging from my cell phone instead of getting off of my ass and turning on my lap top?

I thought so.

Insomnia

I always have the worst cases of insomnia the night before a race. I have to be in my car by 4:30 tomorrow morning. So why am I still awake?

Google Image Searching for insomnia brought up this ridiculously cute guy...

After work, I ran up to the barn for Friday night Happy Hour which often leads to images like this:

Yes, I'm arguing with a dog and wearing a tiara.
Is that weird?

I behaved myself, however, and only drank water. I left early with the intention of being home and in bed by 9:00pm, but as usual, I get distracted easily and it is now nearly 11:00. I'm forcing myself to bed. Good night, sleep tight!

Fail!

Original Pre Half Marathon Plan for last night:

1. Slow jog for 2-3 miles as a taper run
2. Drink lots of water to hydrate for Saturday's race

Reality:

1. Forgot to leave board check for Bam Bam's board, so I trekked up to the barn to leave a check.
2. Fellow barn mate opened a bottle of wine.
3. Jogged .000002 miles to my car to get cell phone
4. Drank entire bottle of wine with barn mates.
5. Decided we needed sushi at 8:00pm
6. Had more wine and snarfed a whole lot of sushi
7. Stopped on my way home to get gas and bought a package of praline pecans.

I wish I had not discovered these praline pecans. I always see them, but now that I know just how delicious they are, I may become addicted. Anyway, I feel kinda gross and head achy this morning from too much wine. I'm hoping that if I suck down water all day, I will feel better for the race tomorrow...

Hey, I can also finish entire marathons of NCIS.
'Cause I'm an athlete.