How I know I'm getting old...

So I have mentioned a couple of times how much I love Of Monsters and Men.

Not taken with my camera...because my cell camera is crap. (source)

My friend, Sarah, was in town this weekend and we have shared tons of music in the last couple of years. She's introduced me to several bands that I love, such as Mumford and Sons before they were mainstream. Since we have similar taste in music, she asked if I had heard of Of Monsters And Men, which of course I had, and I burned some of their stuff for her. She mentioned that they were going to be at Marquee Theatre last night. I decided I was going...and that Tara was going with me.

The show started at 7. Warning sign #1 that you are getting old: you think that a show starting at 7 will be over around 9, which is plenty of time to go home and be in bed so you can get up for work. And in my case, I actually get up and ride my horse before that.

Marquee Theater is general admission, so except for the stage, the place looks like a small dark warehouse, which is cool, but there's no actually seating. So Tara and I are sitting around on the cement floor drinking cherry Stoli and soda, and noticing that the average age of everyone else is 19. Warning sign number 2 that you are getting old: you no longer understand how "kids dress these days", Or as Tara calls it. "hobo chic".

Sign #3 that you are getting old: you actually expect the show to start at 7 because that's what the ticket says. Silly. Young whipper snappers do not need to be in bed at a reasonable time! They are now on summer break. So, the opening act came on after 8:30, maybe even pushing 9. I was ready to go to sleep.

Sign #4 that you are getting old: you forget how loud amplifiers are. My first thought was that I should have brought ear plugs. Now I did see some young people wearing ear plugs, so there. Maybe I'm not granny aged, yet.

(source)

FINALLY, Of Monsters and Men took the stage. And it was well worth the wait and self torture regarding my age. They. Were. Awesome.

I loved every minute of their performance. I have to say that all of the amps tend to distort the sound and since I do have some back ground in music, it does bug me a little because I really like how the music and singing compliment each other. But that's not a getting old thing. That's a music snob thing.

We had a lot of fun and I'm so glad we went, despite how sleepy I was at worl all day. I didn't end up getting myself a shirt, even though I said I would. Boo.

Can you blame me? Would you wear this? (source)

I'm off to San Diego tomorrow for the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon. Or in my case, the half marathon. I can't wait to get out of town. It's getting really hot here and it's only supposed to be in the high 60s this weekend in San Diego.

(source)

I will even be able to take decent pictures! I had a Target gift card, so I got myself a new toy.

Now I won't have to rely on my crappy cell camera anymore! The battery is charging right now. I'm off to finish my laundry and get in bed. I have a busy weekend ahead of me!

Memorial Monday

Happy Memorial Day and a sincere thank you to the men and women that defend our country. Your service is truly appreciated.

I got up early today and did a 4 mile run before going to the barn, making that a total of 18 miles run over the holiday weekend. Woot!

Feet are tired!

I ran by my high school (class of '94!) and decided to take a picture.

Once I made it back to my neighborhood, I realized that someone had put little flags all along the street, each one a block apart. Pretty cool.

I also spotted this little gem. I've never noticed it before. It's propped up against a palm tree in the front yard of this house. I'm sure the home owners thought I was some sort of weird creeper when I stopped to take a picture.

Afterward, I headed out to the barn for a Memorial Day trail ride. I haven't taken Bam Bam on a trail ride on months, so I decided to give him a break in training and head out into the desert.

Lara and Frango on the left, Bam and me on the right. The horse in front is Jackson...
about 2 minutes before he exploded and got a little wild!

BBR & me, Sarah & Jackson, and Stacie & Eddie

 The horses got themselves worked up so we really had no other choice but to drink beer once we made it back to the barn.

Refreshing!

I caught up on my CD burning project. I made a few CDs. This took all weekend. Doesn't seem like it would take so long!

Yep, I  hand wrote all of that!

A friend of mine posted this on my Facebook page. She knows me so well!

So, yeah, all in all, it was a pretty productive and fun weekend. Cheers!

Super Sunday

Busy day! I started out with the a 3 mile run around the neighborhood. Usually, the weather is so much hotter than it has been this weekend, so I'm taking full advantage of the cooler temps. Because I'm running so slowly right now, running has actually become fun again. I'm even considering go out again tonight just because at this pace, my body doesn't feel trashed all of the time.

I went out to the barn, where Bam Bam the wonder pony was a awesome today! I switched horses with one of the other women in the barn. Her horse, Jackson, is so fun to ride and Bam Bam showed her how to do a big extended trot (even though he is little).

I spent several hours last night burning music that I've promised for several people. Have I mentioned how much I love Of Monsters and Men? Why, yes, I believe I have. My friend, Sarah, informed me that they are playing here on Wednesday. Anyone want to go?



                                              Love them!                                  (source)

This is my current favorite song. Sadly, this song strikes a little close to home, but then everyone has felt this way at some point in time. I'm loving it anyway. I'm sappy like that.

Maybe I'm a crook for stealing your heart away
And maybe I'm a crook for not caring for it
And maybe I'm a bad, bad, bad, bad person
Well, baby, I know

And these fingertips, they'll never run through your skin
Those bright blue eyes can only meet mine across a room
Filled with people that are less important than you

Because you love, love, love when you know I can't love

You love, love, love when you know I can't love
You love, love, love when you know I can't love you.¦

So I think it's best we both forget before we dwell on it
The way you held me so tight all through the night
It was near morning

Because you love, love, love when you know I can't love
You love, love, love when you know I can't love
You love, love, love when you know I can't love you.

Gah. Depressing? Yes.

But, I'm seriously in love with this band. I love their sound and their lyrics. I need to figure out a way to see them on Wednesday! I may kidnap Tara and force her to see them with me!

Edit: I just bought tickets! Woot! Yes, I will be getting a shirt!

Weird Relationships and Running

Happy Saturday!

There's a National Geographic Channel marathon of the show Taboo running today. Now I've never seen the show before, but I couldn't stop watching. Any time you think you've chosen poorly regarding your choices of mate in relationship, just remind yourself that at least you are not dating an inmate.

Yep. That's right. An inmate. Like from PRISON.

Getting married by proxy via the prison radio station. Romantic, right? (source)

This woman married a man serving at least another decade in prison. She met him when he was on the run from the law. They lived together for a year before he turned himself in because he knew that it was the only way they could eventually have a life together. Um, huh?

She then decided to marry him, but since he's in a maximum security prison, she got married by proxy (which is only legal in a handful of American states) over the prison radio. Romantic!

That's not nearly as weird as a man who married a woman serving a life sentence for her part in the brutal murder of a teen aged boy. The man, recently divorced, found her via the prison pen pal system and told her that he would most likely marry the next woman that came along. So they got married. 'Cause that makes sense, right?

He put up a mannequin in his living room as tribute to her - wedding dress and all - and pretends she is the real deal.

                  This just seems a little too Criminal Minds to me. Even the house is creepy!
(source)

Now, I don't believe in regretting past relationships because, regardless of how they ended, each one brought some sort of joy into my life at the time. I've mourned the loss of a few and maybe questioned my own naivete in thinking I could make them work out, but at least my relationship compass isn't lacking to the point where I'm trolling a prison pen pal system to find my soul mate.

My view on our long run this morning by the canal.

This morning, Tara and I joined the San Diego Team for a long run. The weather is unseasonably nice today in Phoenix, AZ. Most of the group just did a 5 mile run since they are tapering for the race next weekend, but we did 7.5.

Susan, our coach, ran with us for the first couple of miles, and by "run" I mean she strolled along while Tara and I shuffled at our incredibly slow HR pace. Susan reassured us that we're on the right track by slowing ourselves down. We got to chat a little bit about heart rate and I told her that I regularly run at a heart rate of 170, even all the way up to 180 and she definitely agreed I should slow it down. I'm crossing my fingers that I will eventually get faster by going slower first, but it's hard!

We shuffled along, slogging through 2 hours at that slow pace, but we were able to have a conversation throughout the whole work out, so it has been nice to have someone to chat with to distract me from how long we were out there.

As the few runners passed us on their way back, Susan turned around and ran back with them to let them back into the store (we met at Sole Sports this morning rather than way out at Pecos Park) and Tara and I continued on our way.

A park along the canal.

Running over the 101 freeway.

All in all, it was a good run. We had beautiful weather and it feels good to be regularly training again. I'm finding that even though we're jogging very slowly, I'm not dreading going out and running because I don't feel completely trashed afterward.

So far, my 3 day weekend is starting off nicely. Please be careful out there this holiday weekend and do not indulge too much. Or do, but don't drink and drive!

Always looking to try new things!

Game 5

Game 5...hhhmmm. That would be a good book title. Or band name. We'll talk about books in a minute.

Anyway...

I got to go to game 5 of the NHL playoffs tonight! I would never have spent the ridiculous amount of money to go to that game since I'm a broke pony mommy, but my brother-in-law has been really sick, so I went with my sister as her date.

So. Much. Fun.

Everyone wore white for the "white out" except me, who doesn't own anything white because it's the most unflattering color. Luckily, my sister has been a mom in training since she was 10, so she remembered to bring an extra sweater for me because it was freezing in there! And it was white!

That's a whole lotta people wearing white.

Kristy texted me during the game and wrote, "do you even like hockey?"

What's not to love about hockey?! Everyone just hits the puck as hard as possible toward the opposing goal and then beats the shit out of each other. It's awesome! And the crowd was incredible.

The game was tied 3 to 3 after the third period, with no goals in the last. After nearly an entire 20 minutes of overtime, I was convinced we'd get a second round, but the Kings scored with 2 minutes left. It was a disappointing loss for them, but I had fun! I'm definitely not what you would call a sports fan, but I've always enjoyed hockey.

So, yeah, I just got home at 11, so no running for me tonight. Boo. At least my legs will be well rested for tomorrow.

RunDisney posted a picture of the Disneyland Half Marathon pin. Now I'm not a crazy pin collector, but I always order the Disney race pins. Damn you, Disney, and your money sucking ways! It's cute! I hope they use this graphic on the shirts. They have yet to announce the course and I'm guessing it will be a little different than last year because of the opening of Carsland at California Adventure. I really like the Tinkerbell Half course. There was more time spent on Disney property which is always a bonus.

Speaking of the Tinkerbell Half, I'm really hoping I can find a way to do it again in 2013 since it's only a week after the WDW Marathon weekend. Siiiiggh. I wish I didn't love their races so much. They certainly aren't cheap!

                                                 Oh, dear Lord...                                  (source)

I can't believe all of this hype over Fifty Shades of Grey. I haven't read it, but unless you've been living under a rock, you've heard about it. It's a book that originated as fan fiction for the Twilight series and then was tweaked and published as an "original" work of fiction.

Now, I haven't read it myself, but I've read excerpts of it and the writing is horrible. I can not believe how much money this book is making.

*confession time!*

Once a decade or so, I become obsessed with a TV show's main "couple". Usually, this couple isn't an actual couple, but rather two characters that, for whatever reason, can not act on their love for one another.

                                      My first obsession..                                 .(source)

Usually my obsession leads to reading fan fiction. I know, I know. It sounds weird, but honestly, there's some really good writing to be found out there. I promise!

                My most recent obsession...        (source)

I've actually read a fair amount of fan fiction in my life time (don't hold that against me) when I've been obsessed with TV shows and even, dare I admit it, written a little bit myself (don't laugh, and no, my stuff is not very good...), but I'm shocked that this has taken off on the best seller list. Especially considering that there are actually a few authors I've read capable of writing much better than this stuff. Much, much better. How on earth did this crap end up being so successful? I do not get it.

I haven't read any fan fiction in months simply because I only want to read it when I love a couple on a TV show and nothing is really grabbing my attention these days, so maybe I'm just out of the loop and more fiction will go mainstream.

After awhile, my interest fades, so it will probably be another decade before I fall in love with another couple, but really, people. There's way better stuff to be read out there than Fifty Shades of Grey.

I suppose that's enough rambling for one night. See you tomorrow!

Manic Monday

I had one of those mornings where I woke up at 4 something and somehow managed to worry and stress while trying to make myself go back to sleep for another hour. No such luck. Have I mentioned I some serious anxiety issues?

(source)

I don't really know why some days I feel that way. I get so overwhelmed by the sum total of all of the little things worrying me that I want to just stay in bed. But alas, I have a mouth to feed (besides my own) and I wouldn't be a very good mother if I didn't go to work!

He does have a really big mouth, after all.

Anyway, after my round of morning anxiety, I got my ass in gear and started my day. My day turned out to be pretty darn good, so as usual, all of my worrying was for nothing. I tackled all of the things I had to get done and now I don't feel so overwhelmed.

I went to the gym straight from the office and worked on keeping my heart rate under 150. It was a challenge! And also a little boring. One of the bonuses of doing treadmill work is doing intervals which breaks up the tedium of running in one place. So it seemed as if I was on the treadmill for an enternity. It's only my second run focusing on my heart rate and I already want to be faster!

(source)

I'm somewhat impatient. That's why I have to write things down, otherwise I think I should be making progress immediately. It's tough to be running this slow and not feel like you're regressing rather than progressing, but about halfway through my workout I realized that my current "slow" pace used to be a goal pace when I trained for my first half marathon and couldn't run to the mailbox without stopping. 

I ran for 3 continuous miles only stopping twice for a few seconds to drink water. And I only did that because the other day, I nearly chipped my tooth trying to take a drink while running.

I ended my night having Mediterranean food with my aunt for dinner. It was so delicious and the restaurant is right across the street from my house. I need to go there more often.

And two stores to the left is a Starbucks...

I tried taking pictures of my steak kabob salad, but my phone just isn't doing the trick. I used to carry my little Canon Powershot Elph with me everywhere before I got a decent phone, but that was also before I started blogging and my phone pictures just look crappy. I have no plans to invest in a mighty and awesome camera, but I think I might upgrade to the next generation of Canon Elph.

(source)

It's not the top of the line, even for the Canon Powershot Elph, but the one I have is only 7MP and did a pretty good job. Plus, I already have a two expensive hobbies, I do not need to add photography to the growing list! I'm sure this will do the trick. Maybe I will get around to purchasing this little guy this weekend.

I'm off to bed, there's a cute pony waiting to see me in the morning. Good night!

Weekend Recap

My weekend was filled to the brim!

After work on Friday, I raced over to the salon for an early hair appointment. I'm back to being a brunette! Well, close to be a brunette. My hair doesn't seem to ever get as dark as I want it and it fades fast, but at least the gray is covered! I really need to start using a real camera.

I have not yet mastered taking pics of myself.

Saturday morning started very early with my alarm going off at 3:50 AM for a group run on the other side of the world. Our NYC Team Chances training doesn't officially start until June 20th, but the team running the Rock 'n' Roll San Diego is just getting in their last long run, so we were invited to join up with them.

I left at 4:20 and made it to Pecos Park right on time. While I was waiting for Tara to arrive, I locked my keys and cell phone in the car. I was about to have a melt down and skip the run because I was freaking out over the situation.

This is where Tara and I compliment each other. I get us to races on time and make sure we register for events before they sell out and she's good at being chill when my neuroses begin to get the better of me. So we ended up heading out anyway, which was good because everything was fine in the end and there was no reason to totally freak out. It's not like it's the first time I've locked my keys in the car, but we were at a park on the edge of town and I was a little worried about AAA being able to find us. Tara thought we should call when we were on our last mile and it turned out to be the least amount of time I've ever had to wait for AAA.

Tara gets a prize for being a smarty pants.  (source)

Anyway, by this time we were way behind the rest of the pack - which is where we would be anyway due to our less than impressive speed - so we set off on our own.

I've been killing myself trying to get faster and then fatiguing after only 3 or 4 miles. Well, Tara did some research (and this was confirmed by our new coach!) and it turns out that you have to go slower to get faster.

I haven't done enough research to know the ins and outs of the theory, but we went with Tara's heart rate and kept ourselves under a HR of 150. Wow, was that slow! We were slogging along at 15 mi/min pace and it was ridiculously slow, even for us. It took an hour and a half just to go 6 miles, but at the end, I felt great. It didn't even feel like I had been out running. My legs weren't tired or achy. Susan, our coach, said we'd startt ot see a difference in about 4 to 6 weeks. I can't wait to see how we progress!

Of course, I went last night to get a HR monitor to go with my Garmin.

I'm excited to take this out for a spin! I need to do some more research first and see where my HR should be.

Last night we took my cousin out for her birthday to Saddle Ranch in Old Town Scottsdale.

(source)

I usually hate going down to Old Town because, honestly, the people are ridiculous and pretentious. It's stereotypical Scottsdale. But I had fun last night and the food was awesome.

My cousin ordered a HUGE Hurricane...

And we may or may not have had a gigantic bowl of cotton candy.

This stuff is like crack.

My Sunday has been like most Sundays. I rode my horse and then went for breakfast with the barn girls, a tradition going on for years now. I spent the rest of the day working at the barn (Sundays at the barn suck. A lot.) and then came home with the intention of moving the rest of my stuff from my mom's house back to my house (my house was being remodeled), but now I'm feeling like I might be getting sick, which is going to be a crappy thing when I have a race in 2 weeks.

Sadly, I missed the AZ blogger meet up. I just had too much on my plate this weekend. I definitely plan to go to the next one when I have more time to juggle my schedule. Not to mention feeling a little under the weather.

I'm planning on going out for a run tonight when it cools down some, but only if I'm feeling okay. Hope everyone had a nice weekend!

Oh! I almost forgot!

A very big CONGRATULATIONS to MELANIE for running her first ever half marathon today! Great job!

There's no I in Team!

Wow, what a night! We had a meeting for the NYC Marathon team for Team Chances. I had no idea what to expect or what kind of people would be part of the group, but I was certainly not disappointed. And I got my official team tech shirt. Woot!

There are 30 people on the team, so I didn't get to talk to everyone, but the group at my table was awesome. Everyone was not only friendly and nice, but also seemed like a lot of fun, which is important. I also met a follow blogger, Ari, who invited be to be part of an AZ blogger group, which is pretty cool!

I'm so excited about all of this. I truly think this entire experience will be life changing. Not only running my first full marathon - and the NYC marathon is considered to be the best marathon in the world - but also the process of training with a team and being part of a group that helps others better their lives. My first run with the group is Saturday morning and I'm actually looking forward to it!

Completely off topiic, but did anyone else watch the season finale of Criminal Minds last night? Holy...

That had to be the absolute best season finale I have ever seen.

(source)

I'm really bummed that Paget Brewster won't be on the show anymore. I loved her character. I numbed the pain by having this for dinner:

Yes, I will have another...

To top it all off, Bam Bam The Wonder Pony was an absolute angel this morning when I rode him. He's come so far. I'm a proud mommy.

Besides being a show horse, he's pretty good at entertaining himself.

So yeah, life is pretty wonderful these days.


Cougar Town

I finally made it back to to the gym tonight after not feeling great for days. I still wasn't 100%, but I'm chalking that up to allergies. I had a sinus headache. Also, my left knee was really sore and my right shin hurt. Weird. I don't usually have leg problems. I need to Google some exercises/treatments to combat this before it gets worse.

It's that time of year in Phoenix, Arizona, when running outside becomes an absolute bitch. It's only the beginning of May and it's already toasty out there...

It's May, folks. It's all downhill from here...

Anyhoo, I really had to force myself today. I was ready to quit after 30 minutes, but I pushed myself to 38. I walked a bunch, but at least I did it, right? It's better than going home and lounging around, watching TV. And thus begins week 5 of marathon training.

Holy $%^&. Marathon training. I'm scared just typing that!

I did go home and paint my toenails afterward. I used to always go get pedicures - my one regular girly splurge - until I was maimed last winter at the nail salon.

You almost can't tell it's wounded!

It was right before the Princess Half Marathon and since I was going to Florida where it was warmer (Phoenix has surprisingly chilly winters) I decided to get a pedicure because if the temperature is even remotely reasonable, then I'm wearing flip flops. Anyway, the nail tech gouged my toe along the side of the nail and the bottom half of my toenail has been messed up since last year. She actually drew blood! At the time, I was worried that it would get infected and it would hurt when I ran. It was fine for the race, but when I got my next pedicure, half of my toenail was DEAD. AAHHH. I'm a flip flop girl. I can't be expected to live in one of the hottest parts of the country and wear closed toes shoes! So, I just keep covering it up with nail polish.

 I also had a horse stomp on my toe about 10 years ago and the curve of my nail is now different from my other big toe. Yes, I know. First world problems.

The point of all of this meaningless information is that I'm getting pretty good at giving myself my own pedicures. I don't plan to stay away from the salon forever, but right now only the top half of my nail is actually attached to my toe. And finally, finally!, my toenail seems to be growing out. I'm sure this in not blog-worthy information, but I'm a boring person. And I needed an excuse to once again play with my cool phone apps.

On another note, I'm heading into cougar country.

(source)

I got asked out by a 23 year old. Now, I know I said I was looking to find a boyfriend, but this is laughable. I'm 35. It's cute, but let's get real. Sometimes, I really think I could create a sitcom of my life. I always attract boys and old men. It's a curse.

Happy Monday, everyone. I'm going to bed.