Far GO!

.

Fargo 1/2 was last Saturday.

I had lots of fear and anxiety about the race.

I've resembled a slug for most of the winter -- swimming a bit here and there; running about once per week; spinning about twice per month.

Not really sure WHY I've been such an unmotivated individual, but that was what it was....

My friends Mary, Nat and Marcia, who were all signed up for the race too, were also less interested in training this time around. (Marcia was the most dedicated of all of us, with Mary close behind....)

But, time moved ever forward, as it is known to do, and POOF, there we were last Friday, in Fargo, North Dakota, picking up race numbers and fearing the worst:

Cold temperatures, wind that would knock you to your knees, cold temps and a weather prediction for rain and snow. In May.

None of us were very excited to run in the rain, wind and cold. We had lots of excuses that we were going to pull out of the bag in the morning to allow ourselves to NOT run.

BUT!

We woke up and the sun was peaking out from the clouds. The winds were minimal at best. Rain? What rain?

It was cloudy, but other than that, a perfect day for a run in North Dakota. The temps were in the high 40s, the pavement dry.

The crowd support fantastic, the bands and music along the course engaging.

We all started together and stuck together for most of the race. We did get a little split up from about mile 7 to 12, but then each of us ran together again.

The last mile, Marcia kicked it in to HIGH gear and took off. She looked very strong and just gave it her all. (Shows you what training does, huh?)

Mary and I crossed the line together and Nat came in just slightly after all of us.

I think we were all really happy to have this one in the bag.

I was most happy that for parts of the race, I felt like a runner again. This was a happy reminder of what I love about participating in races and actually doing the training
So, my alarm is set for 5:15 am so I can get to my Master's swim class at 6:00 am.

My first outdoor tri is 4-weeks away!

Home and getting back in to a routine....

We got back from Europe last week Monday evening.

It took me (us) a couple of days to readjust to the time change and to cope with Chocolate Crossiant withdraw.

I'm getting back in to a "routine" -- but surprisingly, have not yet started to get all wrapped up in to work, goals, deadlines and all the trappings of "9-5".

The serenity won't last much longer, I fear. Work is ramping up and I have a pack of 25 new reps coming in for two days of training in seven days.

I'm just going to try to continue to breathe, relax and be grateful.

Fargo 1/2 marathon is in 12 days. My training has really been non-existant. I've run a little, but certainly not like in year's past. I'll be content with finishing the race standing up.

I did get out for an 8 mile run this morning with my friend Mary K, who is also doing Fargo 1/2. We intended to do 10, but it started pouring when we hit four miles and it was also very cold. We turned around, trotted back to her house, where her love, Tom, had coffee waiting for us.

What is freaking me out a bit is the reality that my first tri is in six weeks! I finally got my bike out of the garage yesterday, but have yet to get on it. I've been swimming, so I'm not so wigged out about that, but I do feel very behind the 8-ball as far as training goes.

So... lots of work ahead of me.

In the meantime: Round One of photos from Europe. Enjoy.

Me sneaking a Starbucks in England...

Keukenhoff gardens (above and below)

Paris street scene:

Amsterdam canal:


MORE Keukenhoff....

Paris (really?)

Fastest post ever...

Only four minutes left on my internet access back in Amsterdam....

My how time flies. (Internet and vacation time).

Lighting recap:

Picking up from our time in Paris:

London was amazing. We were there at total of about 10 hours and packed in about as much as two people can, including a really delicious lunch at The Narrow (a Gordon Ramsey restaurant).

Cologne was very cool. We had rain yesterday, but we still made the most of it. Warren ate about 3 feet of sausage. Really.

We are back in Amsterdam and leaving from here tomorrow....

Back in Mpls tomorrow night and will post LOTS of pics after that.

About 30 seconds left...

Paris

Hubby and I took the train from Amsterdam to Paris last Monday.

The trip takes about 4 hours, traveling through lovely countryside views in Holland, Belgium and France.

Our apartment here in Paris is in the 7th arr., very close to the Eiffel Tower. Literally-- we walk out of our building; turn right; turn right again and we are at the banks of the Seine, looking up at a view of the tower.

The tower is several blocks away, but we see it and can get there very easily. Monday evening, we spent a lot of time at the park near the tower taking pictures and people watching. We had a nice meal at an outdoor cafe and then returned to our apartment to do a little laundry before going to bed.

Today, we went on a very long walk, starting at our apartment, over to the Trocaodero, then to the Arc de Triomphe, down the Champs-Elysees, through the Jardin des Tulieries, to the Louvre, over bridges to Ile de la Cite, Notre Dame, the Memorial des Martyrs de la Deportation, THEN over to the Latin Quarter, where we found some wonderful pedestrian and neighborhood steets to wander.

We did a lot of window shopping and store hopping -- ate pain de chocolate TWICE-- multiple coffees, split a truely delicious hot dog/french bread baguette sandwich and some popcorn.

We avoided the gypsys at Notre Dame, who apparently won't beg to just anyone. You have to speak English in order for them to thrust the tiny note from their hand to your face, which asks you for money.

When we were here two years ago, the gypsies were staked out at the Effiel Tower. This year, we didn't see any at the tower, but plenty at Notre Dame. When we were approached today, and they aksed if we spoke English, we'd say "no", and off they'd go, looking for the next English-speaking person.

We took the RER (subway) back to our neighborhood and ate dinner at one of the cafes. We sat next to people from Spain (on our left), Germans (on our right) and a bunch of Brits close by, who were glued to the soccer game being shown on the T.V.

Photos will have to wait -- but we have some good ones!

Hello from Holland

Hubby and I are in Amsterdam.

Unfortunately, the internet cafe we are visiting right now does not allow uploading of photos, but when I can do it, I'll have lots of really great ones to post.

We planned this trip about a year ago after NWA and Delta merged. I was afraid I'd lose all my frequent flyer miles, so we got free tickets and then just saved up Euros.

Once the markets and economy started to tank, we thought long and hard about taking the trip, but decided to just forge ahead.

Hubby and I love to rent apartments when we travel, and we found a couple real bargains via http://www.vrbo.com/ for places in Amsterdam and Paris.

Our apartment here is right across the street from Vondelpark. The place is very spacious and has huge windows in the front and back, letting in lots of light and air. We have a little balcony where we sit and watch the world go by.

We left about three days ago. We went to Keukenhoff gardens -- wonderful, green fantastic flowers. After we toured the gardens, we rented bikes and wandered through the little villages and tulip fields. Unbelievable colors, interesting archeticture and landscapes.

We went to the Van Gogh museum -- there is a special exhibit of his work that focuses on evening scenes, including "Stary Night". Wonderful.

Yesterday, we wandered the neighborhoods. We found a great open air market where vendors sold fresh fish, veggies, cheese, clothes, bakery and more. Great bargains; great people watching.

We also ended up at Westerpark -- a little off the beaten path for tourists, which we love.

We've been eating great food; drinking rich coffee and finally, finally FINALLY unwinding.

We leave for Paris tomorrow -- we'll be there for a few days; then to London for one day and then to Cologne, Germany before we fly back.

Fortunately, we've got a great house sitter, so the cats won't be lonely and I don't have to worry about them.

I only have to worry about finding the next interesting place to have coffee...

Hubby's TRI umphant event today

Usually this blog is all about me, me, me.  

And then, after I'm talking about

 me, there are PHOTOS

 about me, me, me.

Today, the entry is about Hubby, who participated in the Lifetime Fitness Indoor tri today.

The event consists of a 10-minute swim, 30-minute bike ride and 20-minute run.  

May not sound like a lot to some of you out there, but it really is a challenge, especially if you a) don't do this much (as in "about once per year") and 

b) you really don't like the water.

Hubby can swim, he just doesn't like it much.  He had some bad experiences when he was a kid that soured him

on the whole "head underwater" thing.

Yet, today, he got in the water and did his thing.  

Then he got on a spin bike and did his thing harder.  (This too was a big deal, since he usually rides a comfy

 recumbent bike.  Today, he was riding an official SPIN bike, where the resistance was set by the race officials.)

Finally, he got on the treadmill for his run.  He had trained for several weeks (on a regular exercise bike and the treadmill), so he was fully ready for this part of the event.  

He finished in grand style and I am very proud of him.

My husband rocks.

Out of hibernation

I must have fallen asleep in a cave.

The last entry I made was on March 13th, which feels like a very long time ago.

The last few weeks have been sort of "blah". Nothing too much to report.

Work is okay (which, I suppose, is news in and of itself these days).

Home life is okay.

Weather is pretty typical for March/April in Minnesota. We've had some snow, some chilly days and a few hints of spring.

Lake of the Isles is almost all open water now. Lake Calhoun is working on melting...

I'm anxious to start open water swimming but know there is a long water-warm up process that needs to occur.

My "training" has been spotty. My right knee is squawking. Not really sure what is going on with it. Achy; a little swollen. I saw a chriopractor and he thinks it is nothing serious. Just annoying.

The biggest news is that Hubby and I will be going on a little vacation next week. We are excited to get away and to recharge.

Hopefully we'll come back to open water, blooming daffodils and a true beginning to Spring.

GOOD LUCK to Steve Stenzel and Slim-down 220, who are both doing the half IM NO event this weekend.

Friday. March. What more can I say.

Although the sun is warm, there is still snow on the ground and we (I) are (am) at our (my) breaking point....


At least it is supposed to be in the 50's by early next week.

BEST $20 bucks I ever spent...

Hubby's birthday was last week.

We had a small celebration on the "official" day by having dinner with Sabrina at Famous Dave's BBQ (one of Hubby's fav restaurants) and then cake at our house.

For his gift, I redeemed the two free nights I had accumulated at any Kimpton Hotel and found cheap airfare to Midway Airport in Chicago. We flew there last Friday and came home yesterday.

We love Chicago -- I used to live there and we both love the vibrancy of the city, the cool stuff you can do at any hour of the day, the great food, fantastic people watching, and, of course, the "El".

Unfortunately, it rained all weekend. And I mean RAINED.

We were lucky in that it didn't rain when we walked from our hotel to the Art Institute, where we waited in line for about 30 minutes to get tickets. (Apparently a rainy day spent inside the Art Institute wasn't just our good idea...). I love this photo because it is so "touristy"....

We spent pretty much the whole day at the museum and had a blast.

We went to a hip, cool trendy restaurant for dinner on Saturday night: Sushi Samba. Dee-licious food, fun atmosphere. The rain also let up enough so we could stroll back from the restaurant to the hotel.

Sunday, the rain gods were not so kind. It poured all day. Buckets and buckets and sheets and sheets of cold, March rain.

We slept in late and then took a cab to Gino's East to indulge in some really great deep dish pizza.

The cab driver was a nice, friendly guy and we chatted about stuff on the way to Gino's. Thanked the guy, paid the fare and went in to the restaurant.

Being the nice (vain) girl that I am, I wanted to go to the restroom to wipe the rain off my head when I discovered that I LEFT MY PURSE IN THE CAB.

AAARRRGGGH. Panic! Fear! AARRRRGGGGH.

My ID, my credit cards, my camera, my make up, my cash, my PURSE! Left in a cab in a city with millions of cabs.

The waiter at the restaurant said "Just call the cab company".

Under normal (not pouring rain) circumstances, this would be a smart idea. But, because it had been raining so hard when we hailed the cab, we just jumped in, rode to the restaurant and jumped out.

"Company?" Ummmmm, errr, ahhhh. No clue.

For once, I had no idea what to do. Usually, I'm pretty good in a pickle. I can figure out "Plan B" probably faster and quicker than most (if I do say so myself...).

This time, I was stumped and fearful. I could certainly cancel the credit cards, but how do you get on an airplane with NO ID? How do you replace pictures on a camera?

After a few minutes of fretting and using the "F" word (a lot), who walks in the restaurant, but our friendly, cheerful, honest, WONDERFUL cab driver, who says "You forgot your bag in the cab".

I ran over to him and hugged him, which I think surprised the heck out of him. I was very, very grateful.

We went to the cab, I got my bag and give him a $20.00 for finding it and returning it. To the left, you see the bag, on the table, at the restaurant, with ME!

Hubby and I were able to enjoy dee-lish-e-ous pizza and the rest of his birthday weekend.

After lunch, we hopped on the "El" back to Midway and the birthday adventure was over...

A HA! It all makes sense now...

For a few weeks, I've been trying to figure out why I've been so loooooowwww energy. Why my runs have been sooooooo hard. Why sleeping more hours every day than a cat sounded soooooo appealing.

I've been sick!

This may sound gross (at least it sounds gross to me), but I have shingles. It is an aftereffect of chicken pox, which can lie dormant in your nerves.

(Sidenote: The chicken pox thing was also a surprise, as the only childhood disease I thought I had was the mumps (were the mumps??? Is "Mumps" as a disease singular or plural?))

Apparently, once you have chicken pox, the virus stays lurking in your nerves. Some people go the rest of their life with no sign of the virus.

Others, like me, get shingles. The virus decides to pop its little head out of sleep and runs wild through your nervous system.

Symptoms are rash (my rash is on my neck) and swollen lymph glands, bumps, etc. which tend to congregate on one side of the body (my left side of my head is where it is showing up: my head, ear and neck are all swollen and very, very tender).

Bummer -- BUT may explain why expending energy was a big issue. Why I've been so achy for the last few weeks.

Stress is a factor that can help wake up the virus, and heaven knows I've been a bit stressed lately, so that must have been the trigger.

The doc gave me a Rx to help fight this thing faster and I've been asked to "take it easy". (What does that mean again?)

Training? I'll do what I can, when I can.

Fargo 1/2 is really only a placemark race for me this year. I won't start tri training in earnest until the end of April, so I have some time.

I'm kind of mad this happened, though, because I really don't get sick much.

Perfect timing!

(Similar to the "perfect timing" of the delivery of the Girl Scout cookies I ordered in January coinciding with my re dedication to Weight Watchers.....")

Starve a cold, give a cookie to a shingle...

Sooooooo sick of winter.....

Tomorrow is the last day of February.

Thank heavens, is all I can say.

I'm really sick of winter.

Sick of snow, ice, cold, freezing, white, mittens, boots, scarves and Chapstick.

Looking forward to heat, humidity, sunshine, grass, open water swims, tee shirts, birds and barbeques.

TAG: I'm It...

Nat tagged me to answer some questions.  

It is not 25 random things, just 5 short, simple questions.

So here it goes:

1.  If you could travel to any time/ place in history, when/where would you go?

Probably the 40's -- around and after WWII, here in the U.S.  Women were gaining more "independence", the U.S. was pretty exciting.  I would either like to have lived in a big city like Chicago or New York OR, I would have liked to have lived in Milwaukee and have been friends with my parents.  It would have been very interesting to know them when they were young adults. 

2.  What is your biggest dream for 2009?

Honestly, my biggest dream is that this economic nightmare would stop.  It would be great if the economy would get back on track so people could get back to work and 401k/investment balances would be restored to pre-recession levels.   I'd love to see infrastructure spending and Green Technology lead the way.

Personally, my biggest dream is my same dream as always:  that all my friends and loved ones (including me) are happy, healthy and live to see another year.  (OH!  and many be one golf score for me this year under 100!)

3.  Which do you like best:  Swim, Bike or Run?

Varies from year to year.   A couple years ago, it was running.   Now, I'm really in to swimming.  Probably because I've spent more time in the pool.  Running feels "hard" right now; biking has been limited to spin classes.  

I reserve the right to re-answer this question in July after my first 1/2 iron event for the summer...

4.  What is your "go to" song on your iPod when you need a boost?

"Ballad of John and Yoko".  No kidding.

5.  What is your favorite season?

Duh.  Any one with no snow on the ground and temperatures above 70.

Wanna play?  Add a comment that says "Interview Me", and then just post your answers on your blog.

Another video (because I figured out how to upload it...). Earlier in the event. My arms are in much better position and I have pretty good hip rotation.

Checking in

A little experiement here, with a video of me swimming at Tri U Mah. Must have been later in the event, because my arms are not recovering very well.

Sigh.

Spent most of last week in Tempe, where it was "cold".

Cold, of course, is relative. For me, temps in the low 60s felt fantastic. For Tempe-ians, it felt frosty.

I cracked up the morning I drove to the office and passed many people walking to what ever destination wearing hoodies, jackets, scarves, gloves and Uggs.

Heck, we Minnesotans would be breaking out the wet suits for our first open water swims....

Anyway: my goal was to work and to work out like a maniac.

I only worked like a maniac. We had number of very big meetings slated for Thursday that I was helping to orchestrate.

Late, late nights; early, early mornings and not much else in-between.

Fortunately, I found a Whole Foods about 2 miles from my hotel, which was also next door to Starbucks, so I had healthy food and good coffee all week.

I came back to truely cold Minnesota (temps only touching the low 20s) and to my loving hubby on Friday.

We spent a great Valentine's Day together, complete with a yummy seafood dinner (seared tuna and white bean salad, seared scallops and spicy squash).

Today, I SHOULD have gotten up early this morning to run with my friends, but I just couldn't drag my carcass out of bed. After I finally got up, Hubby and I took Sabrina shopping to help stimulate the economy -- er, I mean help her update her wardrobe.

Hubby and I did make it to the health club tonight, though. He biked and I swam. Felt good to move again.

Speaking of moving again, I found out I placed 3rd in my age group at Tri U Mah. Third out of eight, so not such a big deal, but big enough for me.

Goals for the week: Keep my committments to friends for swimming and running; keep off the sugar. Keep moving forward.

Tri U Mah Rocks

Tri U Mah indoor tri was yesterday.

I participated in the event with my good friends Nat, Marcia, Marty, Heather and her husband, and Dave.

It was the 5th year of the event and the 5th year I've participated. The organizers wanted to make a "big deal" out of their anniversary so they profiled the five of us that have done the event every year.

They made a nice poster highlighting us and our comments, which was a nice thing. We were asked to submit a photo, so I sent in one from 2007, which I was fit and trim. Turns out I wasn't the ONLY one that did that. Most of us wanted to highlight the buff I was very pleased with my swim: .984 miles in 30 minutes. That is very, very good for me. Master's class must be helping.

My bike had a couple of bumps: I got on the bike about 30 seconds after start time; hit my stop button at 9:01 on the clock and had to wait for a volunteer to restart my cycle. Ended up with a paltry 6.63 miles -- pretty lousy.

My run was not very spectacular: 2.70 miles in 30 minutes. I decided not to kill myself, but then realized, as I was taking it easy, that I was running 14.30 miles. That was a little TOO easy, so I bumped up the pace a bit.

It is evident that I am out of peak training shape, but that is the whole point of Tri U Mah: a stark reminder to get my rear in gear.

Everyone else did a great job with the event. After we were done, we all went for a very late lunch and to catch up.

All in all a great and fun day.

So 2009 is off to a fine start! One tri down, eight tris to go!

Lulled in to believing spring is on its way

The last couple of days here have been WONDERFUL.

Above zero. Above FREEZING! Snow is melting! Ground has been revealed!

Of course, I know and understand that it is only February -- early February at that.

But still: Hope SPRINGs eternal, or something like that.

---

The other way I know that spring is coming is because Tri U Mah is tomorrow. First tri of 2009.

---
I also started training for Fargo 1/2 last Thursday. My running buddies and I are working with a new training group this time around -- Running Room.

There were about 32 runners at the kickoff last Thursday. We broke down in to several pace groups, the last one being 12+ minute miles.

This is a far, far cry from my last training group, where having them recognize a pace group of 10 minutes/mile was a really big deal.

My friend Cheryl and I started with the 10:30 group -- sounds slow, but I was very happy in that group considering I've been lallygagging since Thanksgiving.

It was great to be back out and running with a purpose.

Put a little spring in my step...

Ahh, Fresh Air, Sunshine and 40 degrees!

We finally, finally, FINALLY had our January thaw on the 31st of January.

Yippie - eye- 0h - kai - yeah!

It has been a miserable winter for us. Long, cold, dark, snowy....bleech.

Yesterday's temperature and sunshine got people out of their houses and doldrums. The lakes were packed with runners and walkers; the ice-boarders were out in droves. Snow melted and a weird, stringy brown substance was revealed.

The City of the Lakes Loppet Luminary event was last night. It's held on Lake of the Isles. (Yes, literally ON the frozen lake). People cross-country ski or snowshoe or just walk the course, which is lined by ice luminaries.

Local ski shops and outdoor groups have tents set up and volunteers pass out hot cider, there a fire for folks to warm up by, and it is always a lot of fun to just get out.

With the warmer weather, there were a lot more participants out on the ice. Hubby and I met our friends Mary, Tom and Mary's daughter Layla. We all walked part of the course and then had coffee.

Today wasn't bad either, with temperatures in the mid-30s and more sunshine. I got out for a long walk and it was so wonderful to feel the sun on my face and to not have to wear a hat.

Training for spring marathons/half marathons and the like start this week. My band of happy running friends and I will start our training for Fargo 1/2 on Thursday. It is going to be a very rude snap back to reality to go from casual running to an actual "plan" again.

But, my jeans are very, very tight so... who knows. Maybe it will be a good thing to run more than once a week...

I'm leaving you with two last photos for the day.

I'm one of "those" people that feed the critters who happen to visit our yard. I feed the birds, the bunnies and the squirrels.

There are some who hate squirrels. "Flying rats" I believe they call them.

I happen to think they are very cute and the ones in our yard are really, really cute(and really, really fat).

My favorite of the bunch is the one that has a little kink in his tail and "lists" to the right, as if he had a stroke.

He was in the yard today and here are some pics of him devouring the core of an apple I had just finished:

Callie Does Triathlon

It may be a little hard to see, but that is Callie peaking out from my TYR backpack. She is looking for her goggles...

Tri U Mah -- a fantastic indoor triathlon held at the University of Minnesota -- is only two weeks away.

I'm doing the event this year with Marcia, Nat and Gary. I'm very excited to get back in to "the season".

The event always represents the "unofficial" official start of training season for me. Unofficial because it is held in FEBRUARY in MINNESOTA, so it is kind of tough to be very "in" to training when the winds are whipping, the snow is mounting and the days are still dismally dark.

But, it is official because the event signals "hope" that winter will end sooner rather than later and then the real fun begins.

The event's format is pretty cool: swim for 30 minutes; bike for 30 minutes; run for 30 minutes. T1 and T2 are both 10 ten minutes long. Volunteers measure the completed distance in each discipline and who ever covers the most ground during the event wins. (It is never me...)

Tri U Mah was the first triathlon I ever did and, apparently, that first time was five years ago. It's the 5th anniversary of the event and there are about six people (including me) that have participated every year. The six of us are being "highlighted" in some way or another during the event, which is nice. The people putting together asked for a photo to use, so I sent one from Lifetime Fitness a couple summers ago. I looked relatively fit, which is certainly not the case right now.

I've put on my usual share of winter weight, which is never a surprise and always a drag (literally and figuratively).

Although I have been better at working out again, I certainly have not been training in earnest. I've had some great days with my food (meaning no candy or sugar) followed by days of nothing but candy and sugar.

So, changing in to my swim suit today to get ready for my mini rehearsal for Tri U Mah meant avoiding the mirror at all costs. Same with positioning myself on a bike and a treadmill -- I found the ones with the least mirror exposure. I can feel my bulky bulkiness, I don't really need to see it... (Denial, denial, denial...)

I only did 20 minutes each of swimming, biking and running today. I covered 990 yards swimming (or .5625 miles); 5.62 miles on the bike and 1.70 running.

I should have covered more ground running, but a friend of mine, Phyllis, was at the club today. I haven't seen her in a very long time, so she and I chatted for about 8 minutes while I walked very quickly on the treadmill.

Sometimes chatting is more important than focusing on the distance...

You know it's cold in Minnesota when....

Although the temperature is no longer in the deep, DEEP freeze, it is still cold and snowy here.

Hey, it is January 19th. What do I expect?


Thought I'd share a photo of our beloved cat Lefty.

He is the "baby" cat in the family and an absolute hoot.

When he hears our furnace kick in, he runs to the bathroom and puts his front paws on the heat register so he can have the blowing air warm his tummy.



Proud parents that we are, Hubby and I think he is a door a bull....

Out of the Igloo

The temperature here is FINALLY above zero.

I woke up to a balmy 10 degrees. Woo hoo!

After 86 hours below zero -- including two mornings of wake-up air temps of 21 BELOW, ten-ABOVE felt like summmer.

Well, maybe not summer, but certainly much better.

I woke up in time to run with my friends Mary, Marcia, Gary and Sarah. We only ran about 5 miles, but it was really nice to be outside and to breathe some fresh air.

Although I'm not in hard-core training, I did swim twice this week; did an hour of cardio Tuesday and ran today.

I also successfully did not eat candy for three days. Progress, not perfection.

This afternoon, Hubby and I went to see Annie, the golden retriever that made the news last December.

She had been shot twice (by some jerkassholeidiot that has yet to be caught) and was left to die in a freezing snowbank somewhere in rural Minnesota.

A good Samaritan found her and brought her to the Twin Cities where Rescue a Golden of Minnesota (RAGOM)and the University of Minnesota Small Animal Clinic took her under their wings and saved her.

I've been following her story on the RAGOM website. Really a horrible story with a wonderful ending.

Today, RAGOM arranged a "thank you" party for people that have been supporting Annie through contributions or love or interest at a suburban car dealer.

Hubby and I went to say hello and to give her a hug. The place was packed with lots of well-wishers and other RAGOM dogs.

Annie was great. Friendly, cute, warm, oh-so-lovable. Very tolerant of everyone petting her and giving her praise and cookies.

The other dogs were also really sweet, wonderful dogs.

I was so happy that we got to go to say "hello" and to give a little bit of of a contribution to RAGOM.

I took a couple photos using my camera phone and now I have my whole evening ahead of me to figure out how to get them off of my phone and on the here....

Scales: fish-kind and "uh oh" kind

Today was a big day for me.

I got on the scale.

Uh oh!

While the number was not a big surprise, it is a bigger number than I want.

I certainly lived it up between my birthday and January 1st -- so now the Piper must be paid...with less calories in and more calories burned.

All in all, the number wasn't as scary as I thought and I should be able to get back to a more reasonable training weight within six to eight weeks, if I do this nice and steady.

I also went to a 3-hour swim clinic (hence, the loose association to "fish" referenced above).

Dave Cameron taught the clinic. I've worked with Dave a lot over the last few years and he has helped me become a more efficient swimmer. (Then again, when we first started working together, he was working with a guppy-student that was probably a "1" on the scale (yet another fish refrence)of 1 - 10 for efficiency).

I finally got to sign up for an advanced class -- YIPPEE. He had a clinic for beginners before the advanced clinic started. There were maybe 20 people in it. It was fun for me to watch them and to actually see some of the "newbie" things they did that I no longer do.

For example, I no longer swim like a barge (flat in the water). I swim more like a sailboat (up on my sides), which helps me cut through the water better.

Our workshop only had four swimmers; I was the only girl.

We did a warm up working on focal points: 3 sets of 200 free counting swim stroke; 100 skate; 100 build. First set focused on head position; second on extension; third on hip rotations.

Then we played 9 rounds of "golf", where you add your strokes and your time while working on drills.

I did okay on the first two rounds, but slowed down considerably in the other 7...Fortnately, the boys weren't too much further ahead of me, so I didn't feel too wimpy.

Then we did a 50 (25 strong/ 25 sprint). Dave filmed us during the golf game and the sprint and we all watched the videos for pointers, etc.

We did some more drill work (kicking; extensions, etc.). It was all wonderful.

I learned a lot and have some great things to work on.

Dave is supposed to email us our tapes, so I'm hoping to post one here.

I'm getting excited for tri season!

Resolutions Update and Social Media

This is what I wrote down for my beginning list of 2009 resolutions:

• Exercise 6 times per week, including a Masters Swim on Tuesday/Thursday.
• Go Vegetarian 2 times per week (Tuesday and Thursday would be easiest)
• Minimum Athena weight by the time Lifetime Fitness Triathlon rolls around (July 11th)
• Breath deeply
• Save money.

Let's see where I am in relationship to these lofty goals as of January EIGHTH, 2009:

Exercise: Four days: ran a 10K; another 2.3 miles another day; lifted weights once; swam once; walked briskly and rode a stationary bike once. So I did six things, not six days....AND the Masters swim happens at 5:30 in the A. wtf M which should count for extra credit.

• Rational: not yet in "training" Reality: It is freezing cold here and I've been woozy (really).

Vegetarian: So far, so good.

• Rational: it is pretty easy. Reality: It's only been ONE Tuesday and One Thursday. Also, chocolate does not contain any meat by-products (I hope).

Minimum Athena: I have't gotten on a scale in months. I'm petrified.

• Rational: I'm petrified. Reality: July is a long time away and I need to just face the number.

Breath deeply. Every day. No rational or reality comment needed.

Save Money: I think spending less counts too, yes?

---

I've become sort of a Social Media junkie, getting in to Facebook and Linkedin...A couple of my bloggie friends are into this too (Steve and Tri to be Funny).

Anyone else?

Reality

Happy New Year to all!

Hubby and I spent an incredibly quiet night at home bringing in 2009.

We were hoping to be able to rent a movie from our Cable provider, but the service was down yesterday. So we flipped between football, "Saving Private Ryan", a show focused on former people that were on episodes of "Made" and "True Life", and "bringin' in the New Year in NYC" shows on CNN, NBC and ABC.

Yawn.

It was really nice to be cuddly on the couch -- don' t get me wrong. It was just a little sleepy, which is really want I wanted to do at about 9:00 pm.

I was convinced to stay awake until 12:04 am, when I went to bed and Hubby, who had indulged in a little 12-year old scotch, found "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" on a t.v. channel and stayed awake to watch it until 3:30 am.

I ran the Polar 10K with my running pals Marcia, Gary and Mary this morning.

The race was a rude reminder that the holidays are over and it is time to get back to Reality.

I ran a great 5k on Thanksgiving day and have really been very slug like ever since. Barely laced up my shoes once; put in minimal miles (except for walking to the fridge); ate sugar as if it was going out of style.

I could really tell during the race. I was slow, sluggish, winded. A long, long cry from where I was in August after Pigman 1/2 iron...

BUT, the course was pretty, I had a great time with my friends and I got through it.

I also bumped in to a friend of mind from grade school /high school that I've recently re-met on Facebook...Tom I.

I joined Facebook (FB) late last fall and have been having some fun finding old friends, like Tom. I didn't know he was running the race today, so it was fun to recognize his picture from FB and to see him in-person. We ran the first mile together and caught up (in-between my wheezing).

---
So 2009 is here -- full of CHANGE (1/20/09!) and opportunities and a successful reintroduction to Training and eating healthier..

I wish health for every one.

I wish for a year were things settle down and we all get back to "normal".

I wish peace for all.

I wish rockin' PRs for all my running/tri friends.

I wish that we all have fun starring in our very own Reality shows...

This One's for Nat

I got an email from my friend Nat today: "Checked out your blog. Nothing new..."

Well, first, this is really an instance of the pot calling the kettle "Chalphalon". She hasn't blogged since December 21st, so....harumph!

Seriously though, not much new.

Christmas was nice and quiet. We spent Christmas eve with my sister and brother-in-law. We ate wonderful food, played pool, ate more food and watch a little James Bond. (This was a gift for the boys). They all drank. I had coffee and cookies. Yum.

Christmas day was spent with Hubby's family. There was a whole lot less drama than there was on Thanksgiving, which was terrific.

Like most families, I find some of my relatives-by-marriage a bit difficult to deal with.

I'm sure (fact is I know, based on the way I get treated by some of them) that they think I'm not really a picnic either.

So it goes.

Hubby and I did not do a lot about presents this year. He got me personalized golf balls and I got him mittens from North Face.

We really have all that we need: a house that doesn't have a mortgage payment that is continually resetting; jobs (at least for today); health (the most important thing); cats (almost as important as health) and each other (the BEST!).

Thank heavens.

Oh: I'm also blessed with a number of wonderful friends, like Nat, who put up with me and love me for reasons unknown.

(Hey: it's YOUR turn to post....)

Where U At?

• Create your own travel map or travel blog


• Travel Info at TripAdvisor

An answer for Oprah:

"How did I let this happen again?" -- Oprah Winfrey, wondering how her weight got back up to 200 pounds...

Hmmmmmmm.......Ummmmmm........wait a minute......ahhhhhh........ummmmmmmmm

Oh Yeah. How?

E-Z.

The same way all of us mere mortals gain weight: we eat more calories than we burn up.

I count myself as of of the mortals, Oprah. I'm right there with you, with a little more jiggle in my wiggle these days.

I blame it on cold Minnesota weather combined with minimal daylight hours and the fact that I'm not in training doing "2-a-days". (Heck, I'm not doing many "one-a-days"...)

I must also lay some blame on my absolute inability to put a fork down these days.

The only thing that is saving me is the Recession. Really.

In fatter (pardon the pun) economic years of the past, vendors and customers would send boxes and boxes of delicious treats to people working at my company.

I, in turn, would spend hours and hours circling the floor, finding and sampling all the treats.

The Recession has taken its toll on the "limit of $25.00" gift basket this year though, resulting in minimal treats on the floor. (I know, because my circling floor flight plan continues...).

So, I've put on a few lbs, but probably less than I would have had times been better this year.

I did some exercise in this week. I ran outside once. I swam once. I lifted weights twice and did a treadmill workout once.

Not really sure the activity counterbalanced the chocolate covered peanuts that passed my lips this week but, hey, the activity is a start.

The good news is that I realized that my first swimming event is coming up fast. I'm doing a swim clinic on January 11th, with my first tri following on February 8th.

Only a few more days until the holiday food fest is over and I can concentrate on getting my activity up and my weight down. Again.

A blog in two parts:

Part I: Inspiration

I watched NBC's coverage of the Ford IronMan Championship (aka IronMan Hawaii) this afternoon. It was very inspiring.

I miss triathlons. I miss swimming in the lake. I miss riding my bike. I miss running outside without mittens (and jackets and hats and gaitors and long underwear and, and, and...).

Yes, I know I can swim in the pool (and I have -- a little); and I know I can go to a Spin class (I haven't in months); and I know I can run outside (which I do, with mittens, jackets, hats, gaitors, long underwear, and, and, and...)

Working out is just different in the winter. Sometimes the biggest part of the workout is getting to the workout.

I know there are plenty of people that are dedicated to the outdoors when it is cold, dark and snowy. My natural inclination is to nap, have covers on and eat calorie-laden foods.

In any event, watching Hawaii today reminded me of how much I really do like tri season and how I'm looking forward to getting back in to it.

My only "complaint" is that for the 90 minutes, the show focuses on the Pros and a handful of age groupers. It would be really wonderful to follow some of the back-of-the-packers -- kind of like the filmmakers did for "Spirit of the Marathon"....

Part II: Detraining
Greg, my tri coach from last summer, defines "detraining" as the period of time, where one is fully recovering from their training and race season by pulling waaaaaaaayyyyy back on volume and intensity.

I have been taking FULL advantage of this. For someone like me, this is not necessarily a good thing.

I've had a hard couple of runs this week. One on Monday, where I went out at night during a snow storm. Didn't feel very strong or fast, even with the little grippy things I wear on my shoes to help me stop from slipping.

I ran this afternoon and again, it felt tough. I haven't been wearing my heartrate monitor (because I'm detraining, don't you know...) and I felt sluggish and slow.


I was very glad to be out there though. The weather was nice today (in the 30's and overcast). We are supposed to get a big storm tomorrow and then it will be FREEZING, FREEZING, FREEZING.

Good thing I'm really in my best detrained shape!

I live for the future....

The future 2009 racing season, that is.

I never really know if I should say racing season or if I should say event season.

I don't really race per se. I'm happy to participate and to have a "decent" time (translate: not last).

Racing sounds cooler though, and these days, it is all about the cool.

As in COOL temperatures.

Like freezing.

Literally.

With snow and ice and all those wintery things I really don't care for.

Welcome to December in Minnesota.

We got about 2 inches of snow last night, which meant when I woke up to go run 8 miles with my friends, I ended up looking out the window, then getting back in to bed and going back to sleepy-land for a few more hours.

Two inches really isn't much snow; I've run in worse conditions. I just couldn't really do it this morning.

Rational: "I'm not really in training right now, so why not nestle in for a little snoozy-pooh?"

Needed: A reminder that winter will end -- days will grow longer (only 16 days till THAT happens!) -- and my 2009 season will be here before I know it!

I've got my race calendar pretty much figured out and I've registered for most the events that I want to do.

Vacation Sports is offering half-priced entrance fees to people that register in December for their 2009 events.

That represents big-deal savings!

I signed up for two of their tris (New Bri ($32.50) and St. Paul Olympic ($42.50); There is a third I want to sign up for, but there is a problem with the event link.

I will probably sign up for Urban Wildland 1/2 marathon again in 2009 and some friends and I may try our luck by entering in to the New York City Marathon lottery.

I enjoyed running NYC marathon in 2007 and would love to run it again with my awesome running partners.

I also reserved a room at the Wisconsin Memorial Union for Sunday, September 13th -- the day of IronMan Wisconsin. The plan is to volunteer at the 2009 event and then, the next day, register for the 2010 race...

Just thinking of an IronMan in 2010 should get me through winter 2009....

Drama!

This is the kind of Saturday during a holiday weekend that I both love and fear:

I ran this morning with some of my favorite running buddies. It was a wonderful run of just under 7 miles.

Came home, ate breakfast (Optimal cereal with soymilk, followed by a hunk of leftover birthday cake).

Paid the bills, drank more coffee, ate more cake.

Now, Hubby is running some errands and I'm settled in in my workspace located on the 2nd floor of the house drinking yet more coffee.

I'm wearing the my vision of the Housewife's Horror Outfit: Sweatpants (nice and stretchy to accommodate even MORE cake), sweat shirt, slippers and no makeup.

Blogging, catching up on blogs and, (ready for it????): watching "THE WAY WE WERE"!

Ohhhh, the drama!

Speaking of drama: nothing like family drama over a turkey, I always say...

• Ran the Turkey Trot 5k on Thanksgiving morning (no drama there, just a nice day to be out with 4,000 others trying to offset a few holiday calories...)
• hosted breakfast for 11 people (lots of drama)
• then hosted dinner for another four (even more drama)

All in all, Hubby and I did our best to stay out of the fray (by staying in the kitchen) AND it was a pretty fun day.

We're just glad to have the weekend to recuperate.

Hope you and yours all had a great holiday too.

Cake Rocks

My birthday was a lot of fun.

Hubby and I were both in San Francisco for various meetings last week. He flew out last Sunday and I went out last Tuesday.

My birthday was Wednesday and I had "officially" taken the day off from work. I spent the day in a most perfect way: slept in; had coffee; took a nap; took a walk; had a little lunch; took another nap; took another walk; did some sit ups; went for a run on one of my most favorite traveling running routes and then had a wonderful dinner with Hubby.

We went to dinner at Maykadeh, a Persian restaurant that became a favorite of mine a long time ago. Service was great; food was wonderful and we had just a lovely time.

Hubby bought me a beautiful bracelet -- I was very surprised at his thoughtfulness and generosity

We came home on Friday night and I was surprised again.

Hubby had 50 -- count them, FIFTY -- red roses delivered to the house on Friday night.

I have never, ever, EVER had such a wonderful flower delivery. I felt like one of "those girls" that get the giant heart balloons and huge boxes of candy on Valentine's day.

We had some friends over on Saturday night for a little party. Hubby and I made three different kinds of chili (meat (with ground turkey), veggie and white chicken)and we had lots and lots of CAKE.

It was a really fun party. Being able to celebrate with friends and family was the easiest way to make sure that I survived turning the big 5-oh.

Photos of friends and family above....

"Unfortunately" we are "stuck" with the leftovers. (Lots of chili, cake and other yummy delicious things). And it is Thanksgiving week. AND we are hosting dinner for Hubby's family on Thursday.

Good thing I have a gym membership....

50 great things about turning 50!

I'm in San Francisco for a few days.

Technically, it is for business, but my birthday is tomorrow.

One could argue (fairly successfully) that I came out here a day early so I could prolong turning 50 by a couple of hours (Central time versus Pacific Time, doncha know...)

Fifty.

Holy cow!

FIFTY.

In an effort to embrace this new decade/era/age group, I've come up with a list of the top 50 great things about turning 50...

(Note: I really wasn't that clever in coming with a list of 50 things. I tried, but geeze: 50 is a very big number!

I've done my best to try to come up with a list of 5 things -- one thing for each decade. Also much easier to read...)

1) I'm still alive. Really. After wasting much of my youth deep in the depths of drug and alcohol abuse, I'm happy to report that I'm sober (13 years) and free of all the horrible things that go along with that life. I could have very easily been killed at any point during those years, but here I still am. Hurrah.

2) I'm still alive -- part deux. Really. Besides drugs and alcohol abuse, I was bulimic for many, many, many years.

Growing up a chubby chubbette -- no -- actually what I meant to say was -- growing up the fat kid in school -- I fell in to a pattern of eating issues that plagued me from 7th grade until about 1999.

It wasn't until I started training for my very first 10k that I took a long, hard look at my destructive eating patterns and quite abusing my body (aka "eating my feelings") for the very last time.

Here I am, oh so many years later, a strong, fit marathoner/triathlete with few whacko food issues.

3) I have a great network of family and friends: Hubby, my sisters and my brother, my family of running /triathlon friends, my fantastic non-running friends (who listen endlessly about my running and triathlon adventures), my virtual friends, my cats and, yes, even the squirrels in our yard, all provide me with lots of love, support and hours of non-stop entertainment. I love you all. (Hey Squirrels: you'll have more pumpkin when I get back home on Friday...)

4) I'm employed. This is a crazy time -- absolutely. I'm very, very grateful to be working for a company that -- so far -- has avoided much of the downturns and downsizing plaguing our industry today. Although my job can drive me crazy sometimes, I'm very grateful to be employed, have health benefits and some where to go on a daily basis.

5) I've got another 1/2 century to look forward to. Despite the inevitable sagging, wrinkles and other totally unappealing loss of elasticity and "looks", my plan is to be here for the long haul. I'm excited about the next 50 years and all the adventures and experiences coming my way.

Oh yeah: and there will be lots of CAKE for me this weekend back in Minneapolis.

Yippee!

Cold, Dark and Lazy

Those three words pretty much sum it all up for me these days.

It is really cold here -- much colder than normal. I'm really not enjoying it -- but I have to admit that, because the cold has hit sooner than expected, I'm not as "prepared" as I should be.

Sure, I packed away my tee shirts and my cotton, comfortable summer outfits and am wearing my turtlenecks and layers. But I haven't yet switched from panty hose or knee highs to tights and long underwear. (Who ever invented CuddleDuds is a genius!). So, I'm pretty much freezing all the time.

I finally got out my Uggs and my mittens, but some how in the depths of my delusional thinking, I haven't quite come to terms that will not be 70-degrees again before the holidays.

Sigh...

It gets dark at about 5:00 pm. Just in time for me watch about 45 minutes of the news before I want to fall into a deeeeeeep sleeeeeep.

This drive to hibernate makes working out a little tough.... Sort of hard to do any pace work or hill work from a prone position under the covers...

What can I say...

--

I can happily report that Hubby and I spent some quality time last weekend at IKEA. We finally bought a number of bookshelves and storage cubicles to help get our house in order.

We have been trying to declutter the house and our lives. It feels pretty good to let go of some of the stuff we've been holding on to -- donating some stuff; recycling a lot of stuff; just letting go.

I've also registered for a couple other events: The Thanksgiving Day 5K -- a HUGE event held in downtown Minneapolis and the Lake Minnetonka Triathlon,scheduled for June 20th. The tri is close to home -- looks like a fun course -- and will be another race to help prepare for Chisago 1/2 Iron.

Yes, Nat and I will be doing another 1/2 Iron next summer. Our friend Gary will be joining us in the fun...

Lots to look forward to --

Wow

Watched the election returns until the wee hours last night.

Very happy that Obama was elected; curious about other Minnesota outcomes (e.g. Michelle Bachman still in the House? What's up with that?!?).

Happy that our clean water/outdoors/arts referrendum passed.

Baby Ruths almost gone (finally).

All in all, a good day.

Today is the day:

V O T E

My neighbor Beth and I met at 6:00 am to go to our polling place. We were first in line.

By 6:30 am, the line was out the school's door, down the block and around the corner. Hurrah!

Take the time to vote today. It matters.

My American Prayer

November 3rd + 70 degrees + Mpls = HUH?

The weather forcast for today includes sunshine and temperatures reaching the low 70's.

It is November 3rd.

It is MINNESOTA.

I am taking the day off.

Blogging now, will get outside in a little bit.

Friday's forcast? 39 degrees and snow.

Gotta love it!


P.S. I did face my fears and got on the scale this morning. Not as bad as I suspected, which was also a surprise.

Nice to get two of them on a Monday morning.

ENJOY!

Happy Halloween

Scary:

Lots of candy ready for those cute little goblins that will be visiting the neighborhood tonight. Note the curious absence of Almond Joys and Baby Ruths...hmmmmm


Scarier:

Working from home today, I took a bike ride at lunch time. It was the first time in a very, very long time, that I actually got on my bike.

Beautiful ride; beautiful day. Only "huffed and puffed" a little bit; not enough to blow a house down...

Scariest!

The Scale. My nemesis. My arch enemy. My "Newwww-man...".

Tomorrow (after all the Almond Joys and Baby Ruths are gone...) I will face the music and get back to reality.

My birthday is coming up and I want to be able to face my first morning of "50" with grace, dignity and slightly looser pants.