Seven on Saturday {The Sweaty Edition}

I reached a milestone this morning, folks. Actually two.

First, I got up out of bed when my alarm went off at 4:30.

Let's just take a moment and reflect on THAT.

Second, I met up with my running group and ran...wait for it...SEVEN MILES!!

For me, especially lately (okay, um...since January), this is my longest distance. It's like I've finally broken through this wall of hovering around 4 or 5 miles and am ready to start building up the mileage again. And I'm excited about it.

Several things were in my favor this morning: it was slightly overcast, we started before the birds were up at 5:30, there was a suggestion of a breeze occasionally, I had some new tunes on my iPod, my legs and core felt a little stronger from all the P90X (WooHoo), and I really liked my new Nike tank from TJ Maxx ($12.00--regularly $34.00, can I get an amen?).

That's not to say it was easy breezy Cover Girl. It was terribly humid and the sweat poured profusely (I even took advantage of random sprinklers), but all in all it was a good, solid run.

So...now I need to hunker down and decide which events to do this fall and early spring. I want to do at least one full marathon and then a few half marathons here and there just for fun, but I can't decide which ones. This year we are cutting back on big travel, so I need to find races that we can drive to if possible. For the marathon I've learned I need the mental distraction of big crowds and sights to distract me from what my body is doing, so this means bigger races where lots of folks are doing the full with me. I'm tentatively thinking about the Dallas White Rock Marathon in December and possibly the Rock and Roll San Antonio Half in November and the Texas Marathon (half) on New Year's Day. I don't know. I can't decide. I DO know I need to commit to something and register so I'll have $$ on the line to keep me running.

Any suggestions?

How to Handle Lousy Customer Service

Sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands. Or your own guitar. Enjoy!

You can read the story behind the video HERE.

Thanks Annie for tweeting about this. I had never heard of Sons of Maxwell or Dave Carroll, now I'm hooked on their fun, folksy music.

Rambling My Way Out of BFD {Bloggy Funk Denial}

I hate to think I'm in a bloggy funk. I don't think I am. Even though I haven't posted in almost a week and today I stared at the blinking cursor for several minutes before I started typing, surely that doesn't mean I'm in a bloggy funk, right?

I don't even know what the point of this post will be, but no, I'm not in a bloggy funk. No sir. UH-uh.

Right now our summer is drifting merrily along, one day blending into the next. A little bit of this and that, nothing really standing out. Swimming. Playing. Reading*. Movie watching**. Exercising***. Getting ready for VBS next week.

You know, the usual summer stuff, just not necessarily blog worthy stuff. But, hey, no bloggy funk happening here. Nope.

Obviously I have a case of bloggy funk denial. Is there a Px for that?

***************
Since nothing else is really happening I thought I'd talk more about my asterisks from above. (Isn't that a funny little word? Asterisk.)

*Reading: I've a had stronger case of bibliophilia lately and have been gleefully working my way through my current stack of books. Now that Annelise can swim on her own it's like a whole new world has opened up for me. She can swim and I can lounge around reading. It's a huge win-win.
Here are a few I've recently enjoyed: Prep by Curtis Settinfield, Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian (WWII Holocaust drama), Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis (what a HOOT) and Candle in the Darkness by Lynn Austin (this is book one in a three book series, yet they seem to stand alone. I'm enjoying the second one, Fire by Night now.) I also read A Passage to India by E.M. Forster, but I'm not sure what I think of it. I mean, it was good, but I'm not sure I really got his overall message.

**Movie Watching: I recently went on a bit of an India kick and watched A Passage to India and Gandhi (I remember watching this in a high school history class, yet recalled virtually nothing. Typical. I LOVED it as an adult.) Scott and I watched a PPV movie, Defiance with Daniel Craig. We both really liked it. It was about three brothers that organized a camp in the Russian forests for Jewish refugees during WWII. Some rough parts, but overall very, very good. Annelise and I watched Kit Kitteridge: An American Girl. I thought it was quite good, Annelise liked it too. I also finally broke down and watched Twilight. Yes, I did. I tried to suspend disbelief and think like a teenager. It was okay. I'm not sure Robert Pattinson is the Edward I had in mind. I kept staring at his hair. He didn't exude the charisma and simmering strength I imagined Edward would have. Then there were the effects. A little cheesy. And Bella still annoyed me. I did like the music, if that counts. So, it was an EH with a shoulder shrug.

***Exercising: Getting a little more running in (WooHoo) while trying not to dissolve completely in a puddle of sweat. Working on Phase 2 of P90X. Two new workouts, Chest/Shoulders/Triceps and Back & Biceps are added in this phase. What can I say? I'm a little bit stronger, have a little bit more endurance. I still modify most of the push ups and all of the pull ups. Oh...and I totally collapsed on my first one arm push up. Guess what though? Ab Ripper X is much more do-able (WooHoo) and almost enjoyable. Almost. So...um, yeah, there is progress slowly happening.

Are you in bloggy funk denial too? What are you reading this summer? Have you seen any of those movies?

Swallowing a Bit Of Running Pride

Taking into account that I have not been the faithful runner in reality as much as I think I have been and the fact that it's like 500 degrees outside, I decided to adjust my running intervals.

You know, in order to survive.

One of the beauties of running is that there is a place for everyone, for every ability. It is not exclusionary. Really, it's not. There are runners that hardly ever take walk breaks, there are runners that take a walk break every mile or so and there are runners that take scheduled walk breaks based on an interval that suits them. Another beauty of running is that you are free to do whatever gets you through the next mile and the next and gets you across the finish line. No one looks at you funny or thinks any less of you for taking a walk break. It's all good.

I typically follow an interval of 5 minutes running followed by 1 minute of walking using either my Garmin or my Timex watch. In cooler weather I am sometimes able to run for longer intervals. One of my goals is to one day run without using intervals. Someday. Maybe. Until then, using intervals works for me. I train that way and I follow the same system for a race. The idea is that taking regular walk breaks helps you conserve energy for long runs, keeping fuel in your tank to let you finish strong. Check out Jeff Galloway's site for more information about training with intervals, he is the man behind the RUN-WALK-RUN method. If you are just starting your running addiction, try a short run interval at first, say 1 or 2 minutes of running followed by 1 or 2 minutes of walking, then gradually increasing your run:walk ratio as you get stronger. It's all good.

Today I swallowed my running pride and changed my intervals to 3:1 and finished 4 miles. It's all good.

Wordless Wednesday: Baby Fever

Rekindling an Old Flame

Nah, not that kind of old flame.

In my ongoing quest to fight dry, reptilian skin brought on by too much summer sun and chlorine, I recently rediscovered my old moisturizing flame.

I used to use this faithfully because it manages to provide just the right amount of moisture with a little bit of sheen. For some reason that now escapes me I cast this tried and true aside as I moved on to other new and glitzy products. I guess I'm fickle.

Since it is an oil, and looking like the Pennzoil Man is a fashion faux pas, remember that a little bit goes a long way. I like to use it right after my shower (just a few drops here and there) before toweling off. It's great on dry-in-between-pedi feet too.

Thanks for taking me back, old flame.* You're a keeper.

Are you a fan of my old flame too? What do you use to fight dry summer skin without looking like a grease monkey?

*Now Alabama is playing in the soundtrack of my mind. On repeat.

Take Your Child to Work Day (or how to have a blow off day at work)

For the last two weeks Annelise had been counting down the days until Take Your Child to Work Day for NASA/JSC employees. Every day she'd ask for confirmation that her tally was right at least once or twice, or twenty times. I think Scott learned, for his future reference, not to tell her about exciting events too much in advance.

This year children ranging from Kindergarten through High School were invited to spend the day at their parent's job. The morning started early at Space Center Houston with an introduction/welcome session and an IMAX movie. There were lots of space related exhibits, shuttle mock-ups (don't tell, but Annelise crashed the shuttle during landing) and an indoor play area that was quite popular. Annelise was excited to see some of the space related memorabilia, like this EVA space suit, but she was MOST excited about something else.

This summer Space Center Houston is featuring exhibits on George Lucas and Star Wars. Of course she was beside herself with joy. See?

The rest of the day consisted of normal work stuff (meetings and such) for Scott while A. tagged along, a hot dog lunch in the cafeteria, coloring and playing with two other visiting kids close to her age and playing a NASA computer game installed especially for the day. It's all in a day's work.

All this hard work requires an occasional jolt of caffeine.

Er...make that water, she is after all only five.

She came home with a bag full of NASA stuff (posters, pictures, stickers, etc.), her own name badge, and some Pez dispensers she pilfered from Scott's desk. She was most excited to bring home a Millennium Falcon toy Scott had hidden at work and a Tie Fighter his coworker gave her. NASA is cool, but nothing can top Star Wars.

May the force be with you.