15 thing friday – running and baby animals

So you know, I have this race tomorrow… I bought the bib from another woman who couldn’t do the race anymore and because she is smarter than I am, she signed up early.  This meant I got this bad boy for $40!  Super cheap 1/2 marathon!  I really am looking forward to pushing my way through all 13.1 miles.  Then on Sunday I made plans with a newbie runner friend for 4 (recovery) miles.  Also, I want to hit a higher mileage week to prove to myself  I can.

1.  I have the DAY OFF!  Why does it always feel extra special to have a day off?  Of course I have had Sat/Suns off each weekend but this extra one feels especially relaxing.  I saved it up for this week and kind of had a count down.

2.  To make my day off even better there is a Supernatural marathon on today.  It was a total surprise!  Of course all productivity has gone out the window for today.

preach it

3.  Bad thing about having this feeling of utter relaxation?  I have a headache – actually a migraine threatening to punch through.  This isn’t atypical for me, it’s a pattern that established itself back in college.

4.  In none-day off news, there’s that 1/2 marathon I mentioned above!  The phrase “1/2 marathon” scares me a lot more than saying I need to run 13 miles so this is what I am sticking with.  It will be the furthest I’ve run since Jan.  I am nervous.

5.  I got this card yesterday.  I love cards.  I love this card the mostest.

6.  I am amazed at how much money I’ve saved by cutting out almost daily trips to McDonald’s for coffee and breakfast.  It’s shocking.  While I knew it was costing me, I completely ignored the math.  Any of you have daily habit that you’ve given up recently?  Were you as surprised as I was by the savings?

7.  I love this.  A lot

It is absolutely true for me.

8.  Have your feet gotten wider since you started running?  I didn’t notice it until the last year or so but I don’t wear heels much anymore (if at all) and even flats don’t really agree with me like they used to (better than heels though – good thing I have my Toms!).  I am grateful I will never be tempted to wear crazy high heels and proceed to walk around like a newborn calf

why? why? why? I care about my feet too much – and my dignity

9.  This is a good post from Laces and Lattes about how to keep going on a long run.

10.  I think I’m out of 15 thing friday practice… this is harder than I remembered!

11.  I got an e-mail today that said one of my student loans was in deferment – just like I applied for!  Except I didn’t apply for this deferment.  I freaked out.  Did someone hack into my account?   The following dawned me a few minutes ago  a) who would steal my student loans?! b) and why would they be kind enough to put my loan in deferment?!  A nice identity thief?  Anyway, turns out when I signed up for classes, Sallie Mae was notified and they figured I would want this.  Truthfully, I was tempted… for about 5 minutes.  But then I wouldn’t be done paying off my loans until I was 60 or something.  Not worth it.

12.  I won some SWEET swag from the two wonderful women who do the “Longest Day” walk to remember.  I met both of them through our lovely internets and they coordinated our Ragnar Relay team last year.  They each ran/walked somewhere around 40 something miles and raised funds to support Alzheimer’s research.  I feel ridiculously lucky to know them!  Rachel blogs over at Running In Real Life and she is a hoot!  I won a hat, socks, a wicked cute marathon shirt, and some wild running pants!  What a fun box to win!

13.  I also won some Salted Caramel GU from Too Tall Fritz last week!  I’ve been wanting to try it since blog world folk have raved about it.  Can’t wait!

14.  I tried these for the first time during a training run.  They are delish.  I will be using them tomorrow and I’m excited to see how they “perform” in a race.

15.  My obligatory buzzfeed: Does your job want you to be more productive?  Get a baby animal as a mascot!

ideal for the office… or at least a picture

Hope your day flies by like a day off does!  It’s almost the afternoon – how did this happen?!  Happy weekend eve!

I have no idea how many thing friday

I am bit crunched for time and barely came up with the energy to write this last night.  Lately, I feel simply too tired to do anything in the evening.  So I need to buck up and readjust my priorities.  Blogging over a never-ending stream of Supernatural for example.

kinda love these men

Here is the list…

1.  Really, I could make every one of these start with “Friday.  That is all”.

2.  If you missed it, this was my tweet the other day, “I can’t wait for the humidity to end so I can starting whining about how cold it is”.

Truth

3.  Yesterday I used up a ton of my productivity reserves.  Luckily today I have a bunch of meetings and then volunteering for a work event so it will help ease the strain on said reserve.  I have to budget this you know

4.  Pinned this…

5.  Tomorrow morning I am doing the Peacock Strut.  This was the first 10k I ever did.  It was also the longest race I had completed at the time and I signed up without any friends so I was proud for going for it.  I’ve done it every year since.  I also ran my 10k PR here a few years ago with a 52 min and some change.  I need to do a longer run tomorrow so I signed up for the 10k and then 5k option.

***Pretend there is a picture here!  Oh and these race tees are my favorite

I’m not as speedy right now and the 5k starts an hour and 15 after the 10k.  I know I am going to be worried I won’t make the 5k start so I’ll probably start out like wild woman.  My goal is to control my pace… Yes, because I’m so good at this!

6.  I have perfected my cold coffee brewing technique.  After a number of cheese-cloth induced colossal messes, I finally found a really fine mesh strainer.  I don’t even need a cheese cloth anymore.  Look at me!  Environmentally responsible!  Invest in this type of strainer if you are addicted – it’s a bit smaller but it was only $7.  Worth it.

7.  My splinty shin seems to be recovering.  I am icing quite a bit in the evening and foam rolling/stretching well after running.  I need to start taking this more seriously if I want to continue to push myself.

8.  I found this SUPER helpful!  Especially cooking for one or two

I hope you can read this – I couldn’t find the original source

9.  Speaking of Supernatural, I found this buzzfeed ridiculously adorable.  Misha Collins is funny, smart, sweet and I think he should be my friend.  Be sure to watch the clip of him cooking with his son!

10.  Some Gonzaga love

I have a pair of Gonzaga shorts that are quite big on me that I bought during my heavier years in college.  I recently found them and can’t stop wearing them.  A) they are wildly comfortable B) I like how they are big on me since it’s a nice reminder of how far I’ve come C) Love sporting some Gonzaga love

11.  A co-worker and I were talking about the whole concept of being “busy”.  A couple of months ago, I posted a meme about being busy:

I truly believe in this!  I also think it is part of our societal culture to compete for who is busier and being busier equals being more important.  I completely disagree with this sentiment and feel it’s leading to many of our health related issues.  Here is a great article that basically supports aspects of my point of view!

12.  Things I am addicted to as of late:  Diet 7up, coffee (okay not a new thing but I need to stop DREAMING about it!) and saltines.  Not sure what is up with the saltines – maybe from running in the heat I need the salt?  Haha, yeah, I totally made that up to justify this obsession!

13.  This is so true!

14.  For some reason, my anxiety has been on high alert this week.  Okay, for the last month and half or so.  I realize this isn’t anything new but this made me laugh.  Natalie Dee you so get me!

I’m also getting better at recognizing my anxiety.  Although there has been a lot of emotional eating and sitting on the couch this week… so maybe I need to recognize it a bit more.

15.  Here is my current phone wall paper.

Actually, it’s working to keep me motivated for my end game.  And excited for this upcoming adventure.  I do need to remember to prep for the races that are closer i.e. the 1/2 on the 28th of Sept, the 1/2 on the 20th of October.  I don’t want to suck at those either.

Apparently, I had more on my mind than I realized.  Tally ho.  Hope you have a great weekend.  I also hope I don’t fail miserably at this 10k/5k option tomorrow morning.  I’m happy to get a little over 9 miles in (since I probably would have put it off… indefinitely) but knowing they are going to be faster miles is a bit intimidating!

Happy weekend eve!

15 thing friday… the exhausted edition

Whine, whine, whine, I’m so tired.  As a side note, when I was typing this, I accidentally typed, “wine, wine, wine” – nifty, eh?!  Which led me to this brilliant pic I found on pinterest:

oh wine, you have such GOOD ideas!

Let’s continue with our intended purpose:

1.  I’ve mentioned a few times this summer how I want to save money.  During training it’s tough because suddenly I NEED everything.  In reality, I head to the store to get out and about a bit.  A bad habit.  Anyway, I’ve been reading a lot and trying to figure out how I’m going to build my savings (especially because I will be going to PARIS next summer!)

• Eat at least two meals in the cafeteria – part of my compensation includes free food.  WHY!? am I not taking more advantage of this?  No idea…
• Pay off my credit card – I’m almost done and it means keep plugging away at it.  It isn’t festive or very glamorous but I am looking forward to the feeling of accomplishment when this is paid off!
• Keep making my own coffee – ridiculous how much money this is saving me because then I also don’t spend any money on the bagel, or the mcmuffin or whatever it is.
• Set a grocery budget – this is an area where I splurge.  I’m not even sure why but I buy groceries that end up going to waste, sit in my cupboard or that I could have bought the cheaper version of.  This is going to be the hardest one!

2.  This is a GREAT buzzfeed!  Trader Joe’s why won’t you come to Kalamazoo, MI and help me with my above money saving (and stomach) desires!

3.  There is a really neat coffee shop in Kalamazoo.  I am not exactly sure how new it is but it’s called The Black Owl and they brew each cup for you personally.  It’s great!  Not to mention, very personable.  I know, does this go against my above?  Nope, I’ve been here once, it’s just cool.

4.  I gave a presentation on work/life balance this week to a bunch of college students.  It went really well and I love sharing my passion for this topic.  We talked about organizing and how this can look different for everyone.  I have a couple of links with great ideas even if there isn’t an ADD/ADHD diagnosis involved that I swear I will post soon!

I was even able to incorporate a trex!

5.  This cracked me up!

6.  What are your go-to meals when you are tired and/or lazy?  Mine are Blueberry Frosted Mini Wheats, peanut butter toast, frozen chicken patties (for a chicken burger) and naturally some kind of yogurt is mixed in there.  Oh wait – eggs.  This is what I’ve been eating for days.  Well, except for the eggs, I feel too tired to even make these.

7.  My last day off was the 4th of August.  My next one will be the weekend after Labor Day.  This is a yearly thing with my job and every year I say I will not fold!  I will run throughout!  Yep, this was the week that broke my resolve!  Oh well, I’ll jump back on

this is what my re-attack on running will look like

8.  I saw this cool board that talked about how to stay motivated.  One of the tips included writing down 3 things you want to get accomplished that day.  I found some notecards in my stash of stuff and wrote down my first three yesterday!  Running didn’t make it but the other two were completed!

9.  Someone was kind enough to write something about me!

10.  I’ve been thinking of more ways to become environmentally responsible.  It’s not easy.  I love to commit to super BIG ideas but then it’s harder to stick with them.  A few items I’ve been successful at as of late are not using paper towels for everything.  Get this – I actually use a plate!  Hopefully, the water use doesn’t counteract this effort.  I drink out of a reusable water bottle and coffee cup and am looking into some resuable straws.  Some good old fashioned walking, washing my clothes in cold water, donating more and more and working on not buying what I won’t eat or need.  Oh!  And some meatless options!  Any tips for me?

11.  Harry Potter is fantastic.  I’m positive it helps my productivity.

12.  Great scott – 15 is a lot this week…

13.  Haha, this cracked me up and is from this buzzfeed:

14.  I know I am behind the times but are any of you familiar with “Catfish”?  I’ve seen lots of posts about it on facebook but was being too lazy to look it up.  So I texted one of my trusty buddies and he filled me in and oh man, it’s a doozy!

clearly has nothing to do with it but it made me laugh

Essentially, people who are in online relationships write into the show.  They explain how they have never met the person in real life because the person keeps making excuses.  So Mtv (yes, the genius behind shows that continuously bring our IQ points higher) investigates and finds the other person (insert dark and ominous tones).  I know – it can’t end well.

15.  I’m really trying hard to leave any crabbiness at my door.  After all, everyone I am working with (and on college campuses across the nation) are going through the same thing right now.  So  I’m spreading the love and cheer

But this is what I want to do (yes, with coffee in my hand)… to everyone

peace out friends

15 thing friday – with a bonus!

Back to 15 thing Friday!  Yay!  I’m not so sure it will be informational but I’ve got a lot of ramblings in my mind so we’ll see where this takes us!

1.  Last week I said I was breaking out in hives due to rolling around in the grass – or so I thought.  Well, it hasn’t decreased and in fact has been getting worse.  I would characterize it as out of control at this point.  The other day I turned on a light in my bedroom and noticed there was copious amounts of fuzzy mold on my air conditioning unit.  Super great.  It’s the only thing I can think of that is causing this.  It started when I got back from WA and anything I may have changed hasn’t lined up with the whole timeline.  I’m hoping once maint gets in there and fixes it my immune system will be able to calm down!  OR maybe it’s all psychosomatic and the hives were going away but then I saw the mold and now my MIND is making this happen.

Hmm… I shall ponder this.  Nevertheless, I still need the mold GONE!

2.  Have you seen Ashton Kutcher’s acceptance speech at the Teen Choice Awards?  It’s great.  It’s all over social media so chances are you have seen it but if not, here it is.

3.  I liked this article about getting back on board with a training plan if something causes a derailment.  Especially considering there are times I’ve fallen off of the wagon – it’s nice to know others do too!

4.  The other night I prepared steak!  I find cooking steak a bit intimidating.  Not sure why – perhaps it’s because it seems expensive so I don’t want to screw it up.  Or maybe it’s because I’m concerned I won’t cook it enough and I’ll end up with mad cow disease.

Whatever it is, I faced my fears and seriously, YUM!  I chopped it up, put it in a pan with a bit of butter, salt and pepper and cooked away.  Yay!  So good!

5.  Have you seen the all in one meal  lunch items called “Go Picnic“?  I had one today and it was good.  The total calorie count is around 350ish and there are a number of food items included.  Today I had the black bean one and was pleasantly surprised.

6.  The laundry situation over here is getting dire.  Son of a chicken nugget!  It’s going to take me a few days to get caught up.  I haven’t done laundry is quite some time and I’m getting close to the end of my options.  Any volunteers?

7.  Have you seen or heard of the youtube videos by Parry Gripp?  He creates these very odd songs about strange videos.  There is one called monkey on a segway – very funny and my favorite is hamster on a piano

8.  Last weekend I was on a work retreat in a town about an hour and half away from Kalamazoo.  It was definitely a treat-fest in the food department.  I had a crazy big/good cinnamon roll (that cost $1.85!), a coconut cluster that used to only live in my dreams and a mix of orange and cheesecake fro yo.  Oh!  And a mahi mahi sandwich that is one of the best I’ve ever had.  Seriously, if I lived there staying away from the cinnamon rolls would be a challenge!

9.  My friend had her baby!  It happened a week ago and he was/is a beautiful blonde little guy.  I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a blonde newborn before!  I got to snuggle with him when he was only a day old (I think my ovaries jumped up and down in delight).  He also came into this world as a 10 lb bundle of love!  Congrats L&D!

10.  Truth

working on this…

11.  Someday, I hope to do this in my yard!

I mean my thumbs are as brown as tree trunks but it’s amazing!

12.  My fabulous friend Kara also started a blog and earlier she wrote this very informative post on monthly meal planning and one big shopping trip.  Her and I were talking about ways to budget and she said she would detail it in a post.  Stop by!  She will also be writing a post on other ways she has learned how to budget.

13.  Running is improving!

14.  Both of these make me quite happy!

15.  Buzzfeed about how to take up running!

Bonus!

Have you seen Miley Cyrus’ latest music video?  While I was in WA my niece showed me because she couldn’t believe how ridiculous it was.  And she was right.  Goodness – I was embarassed, grossed out and just didn’t understand why it was necessary.  The song is called “We Can’t Stop” if you are interested in watching… I linked it in case your curiousity gets the best of you!  (But heed my warning!)

15 thing friday friends

1.  Yesterday I had a kickin’ piece of pie.  My supervisor is often FLABBERGASTED by the number of foods I have not had.  I am not sure how this has happened considering I don’t mind trying new things.  I had my first coconut cream pie yesterday!  Oh my – so delish!  I still haven’t tried blueberry pie, pecan pie and a quite a large number of other tasty goodies.  It’s a fun list to tackle!  (Oh and no picture because I ate it quite quickly)

2.  Alright – so I am excited about this next ditty.  The other day one of the things I pinned was on one of the “national” boards.  OH MY GOODNESS!  I’m famous!  Okay, not really but I did take a picture

That’s my name under there!

3.  Here is what I pinned, in case you couldn’t see it above.  How odd does this look?!  It looks like a bunch of aliens, I tell ya, not octupi!

4.  Finally got some contacts this week!  Yay!  I don’t know how people work out in glasses.  This didn’t work for me at all.

5.  See this thing?

I am working in a different part of the office at work right now to be able to answer more and more questions.  This spring/wire thing is super great for my fidgety self.  I found it randomly at the desk I’m sitting in and I love it – can’t stop playing with it.

6.  Click on this buzzfeed.  I laughed out loud one night this week when I couldn’t sleep.  Oh baby goats – you little rascals!

7.  I went to a really interesting meeting yesterday for work that was all about construction and building a new structure.  Holy cow – engineers really know what they are doing.  No wonder those classes are so tough.  Seriously, their jobs are no jokes.  While I can’t necessarily explain what I learned yesterday, I did start to grasp some interesting concepts.  Yes, this is a bit vague but I don’t remember any technical terms and was just referring to everything as “you know, that pipe for the water and the pipe for the electricity and pipe for the gas”.  I’m totally brill.

8.  Did any of you watch the Extreme Weight Loss episode this week?  I know I mentioned this show last week but THIS week the show was even better!  First of all, she was in a similar field that I am.  It’s very common to put the needs of others before personal needs especially in our field.  The second part was the focus on fitness.  The woman started cutting calories, as in 400 PER DAY!  Chris revamped her training by taking away the weight loss goals and focusing on her actual fitness accomplishments/improvements.  I loved it.

9.  MOJO’s!!  Anyone else familiar with these?  They are from Shakey’s pizza and I was lucky enough to have one in my hometown when growing up.  Mojo’s are freakin’ awesome.  The are potatoes sliced (but not super thin), coated in a spice and then (I think) deep-fried.  When you went to Shakey’s, you ALWAYS got mojo’s and they are beyond tasty.  Sad day – there isn’t one anywhere near me.  Somehow someone reminded me of these yesterday and now I want one!

10.  I saw these and might have clapped… maybe…

and this one too…

trex cat in real life!  why can’t Simon learn to do this?

11.  Yes… I did spend a wee bit of time on pinterest this week… anyway, I saw this idea where you put the amount of money in the jar that corresponds with the week.  Week one of the year, you add $1 and so forth.  So by week 52 you are putting in $52 smackers in the jar.  The total comes to roughly $1.300!  How cool is that?  Money for Disney World in Jan?  Pay off a bill at the end?  Who knows but think it’s a nifty idea.  Here is the blog post and there is a printable in there too.

12.  Earlier this week I joined a new get-fit challenge.  I am already part of a diet bet with a bunch of other women online and I thought maybe another challenge would be helpful.  I was wrong.  I have since dropped out of both the new challenge and the diet bet.  Both were causing some anxiety because I didn’t feel I was doing a good job and letting people down.  It was a good decision for me and ordinarily, I would have sucked it up and kept doing it albeit half-assing it the whole time.  I also would have built more and more anxiety around them both.  I’m really happy I realized this and took some action.  I feel much better!

13.  I really wish this wasn’t so true for me!

14.  I fixed my own tub this week!  The stupid drain gets stopped up a lot.  It’s really annoying.  I kept forgetting to put in a work order to have it fixed and one morning I realized I should try plunging it.  So I did and it worked!  I still need maintenance to come and fix it all the way but it’s draining pretty well!  I’m proud!

15.  This is a great article!  I saw it on facebook this morning and #4 and # 5 are my favorites.  There is just some solid advice!

15 thing friday – spoiler alert, there are only 12

Happy 4th!  Happy Friday!  Happy day off to me!  Hopefully, I’m not rubbing it in at all but I am pretty excited to have the day off.  I’ve come up with a few things for this lovely Friday…

1.  My treadmill is getting fixed TODAY!  The guy should be here between 1 and 5 pm (yeah, I know – nifty window, eh?) and I can’t wait.  I had to clean a bunch of crap up so he could get in there, which is also a good thing.  Oh and now there will be no excuses.  Hmmm – kinda scary!

2.  Yesterday I completed my first race since the WDW marathon!  I was nervous but lucky enough to have Meagan along for the ride!  Good thing too, or a) I would most likely wold have “slept in” and/or b) walked during the race.  Thankfully I did neither.  I’ll do a recap but it was so nice to push many of my doubts aside!  Thanks Meagan!

3.  Sleep has been difficult to come by as of late.  I thought I wanted this

this makes it so your pillow stays cold the whole night

But turns out some reviewers said it emits some toxic fumes.  Great.  I don’t want my lovely cold pillow with a side of cancer so I am thinking this one is out.

4.  Then there is this.  Seriously – who is buying this?  This “creature” sings when you come near it and jerks its head.  Oh, I am sure this isn’t annoying at all!  Not to mention, it’s sold under the guise of buying someone you care about a friend for them TO TALK TOO!  What the heck?!  It isn’t REAL!

this is “perfect polly” the fake singing parakeet. freaky

5.  Yesterday I headed out to dinner with some friends and I had the best burger!  It had guacamole, pepper jack cheese and pico de gallo – so good!  I ate half the burger and the fries which meant I even stayed on point with my calorie counts.  This wouldn’t have stopped me anyway but hey, it was a nice bonus.

6.  I’ve been reading a bunch of running articles lately (if you couldn’t tell by the number of links).  Makes me feel better prepared.  I found one recently but it said what I’ve read in a bunch of other articles.  It was about endurance and how to build it.  Ultimately, there is no fast way to build endurance, which is a shame really!

7.  I like to think this is completely on point:

8.  I wore my new Pro Compression red, white and blue socks yesterday for the run!  As I’ve mentioned, Pro Compression are my favorite socks and I really enjoyed rockin’ some pride!  One little girl came up and told me she liked my socks – made my day!

not my leg but you get the point!

9.  I saw this on pinterest and it caught my attention.  It’s an article talking about how the price of healthy foods really aren’t that much more expensive than less healthy foods.  It’s interesting.  It was written in 2010 and there are prices that have clearly changed.  However, I still like the message.  A couple of weeks ago, a friend on facebook talked about how expensive it is to eat healthy and how it’s not fair.  Some of this I will concede to – she was talking about how she was buying everything organic, which I do not do.  What I like about this article is it’s simple and really shows how ONE dinner out could equal a few meals.  In one of my sociology classes in undergrad, we were talking about how there are organizations who help teach people living with little money how to still eat healthy.  It comes down to being able to see the bigger picture and how plan meals.  This also isn’t just for families who live under or near the poverty level.  Meal planning is a skill!

10.  I’m crazy for this Amish peanut butter.  At a pool party last week, the hosts/friends heard me say how much I love peanut butter and said I needed to try this.  They were SO right!  Yum!  Not to mention, it has a less calorie count per serving than regular peanut butter.  Now I have to make my way to the Blue Gate Restaurant in Shipshewana, IN.  Lucky for me, this isn’t too far away because shipping online is not cheap.

eat this!

11.  I saw this on facebook this morning on the CLICK page – bravo

12.  Okay, that’s all I got for this week – I was trying to think of something else but it’s no use.  I used up all of my good brains earlier in the week.  Enjoy your Friday!

15 thing friday – catching up

Guess what?  I am only 4 days away from (basically) being finished with my GIANT June work project.  I am thrilled.  It has been extremely time and mind consuming so being able to put some of it to rest will be a relief.  It’s been tough to blog this week because I’ve been mentally exhausted and my brain wasn’t functioning.  Thanks for sticking with me!

yep, just like this

Yesterday was supposed to be 15 thing Friday.  I have no idea if I will hit this number or not so the following will be an adventure for all of us.

1.  As I mentioned, I started using My Fitness Pal and have been recording this week.  I feel a bit wishy-washy about it currently but only because I am impatient and I feel if I have been at this smaller calorie count for a few days I should have already lost 10 pounds.  Or at least 5.  Right?!  The best part is it’s made me more aware of times when I mindlessly eat or think to myself, “oh, it’s only xxx amount of calories, I’m sure I haven’t eaten that much today.”

2.  I did read an article some time ago about how people who are “naturally skinny” stay this way.  One of the items mentioned was, these folks don’t think about food all the time.  During both my unhealthier times – either being overweight or underweight this played a major role.  Recently, it’s been an issue as well so I am working to relax this.

3.  I’m running a race next week!  It’s a 4th of July race called the Firecracker 5 miler.  I haven’t run a race since my ill-fated WDW marathon and I have a bit of race anxiety.  It’s a good thing I am doing it with Meagan or  chances are I would “accidentally”  over sleep!

4.  Did anyone watch Extreme Weight loss this week?  It was a good episode and I was very impressed the guy learned to ride a bike even when it had been something he had NEVER done.  I also thought it was good they showed how when you don’t get ENOUGH nutrition your  body really suffers.  I’ve always wondered if people on these shows start to go overboard and I’m glad they didn’t simply cover this up.

5.  Did anyone ever watch the show “Eco-Challenge” by Mark Burnett?  It was an extreme adventure race show before there was anything like it on tv.  It was INCREDIBLE and a lot more real than anything that is on right now.  I’m trying to find it on Netflix or Amazon.  If anyone knows where I can find these (and not on VHS as wikipedia suggested) I would really appreciate it.  So inspiring!

I used to think I could train enough to do something like this… I was wrong!

6.  The other day I was struggling during my run.  I started saying the mantra “Forget about pace, focus on form”.  It fit the beat of my footsteps and helped me to keep going when I wanted to walk.  It was nasty humid/hot so this helped take my mind off of it as well.  Turns out this worked again last night.  Gets my head in the game!

7.  I saw someone wearing velvet leggings yesterday.  I would never wear these.  At least not as pants without some kind of dress or tunic.

these “pants” just didn’t look right… especially on a 80* something degree day. I know, I’m being very judgy

8.  I was SO close to convincing myself that sweats were work-appropriate yesterday.  That should be an indication of my week.  Get it together Aim!

9.  Where are you at with the whole making your laundry detergent trend?  I am intrigued.  I do know they say it’s under $3 per load but you do have to buy all of the stuff in the beginning.  I haven’t decided yet.  There are a ton of recipes out there and I chose this one at random.  OR I will buy everything to make and then never do it.  That sounds more like me.

9.5.  Also this site, MyMerryMessyLife.com has some awesome tips and recipes for going green!

10.  Read this.  Vinegar is essentially a miracle worker.  It can do anything and everything.  I use it quite a bit but I will continue to broaden my own horizons.  It came from this buzzfeed (oh how I love buzzfeed!)

11.  I can’t stop looking at the “animals” page on pinterest.  Actually, I look at it right before I  go to bed since I am so prone to nightmares.  It has helped.

who could have nightmares with all this cuteness

12.  I really enjoy torturing my cat’s mind.  I like to feed the squirrels and chipmunks right outside of my apt door and Simon just sits and the door and concentrates – he wants it open so badly.  It cracks me up!

13.  Sometimes this is so stinkin’ true!

14.  Have you heard of the Zombie app that helps you get motivated to run?  I read about it in the comments on Kara’s blog, It’s a Dog Lick Baby World.  I read up on the description and first of all it’s $3.99.  Second, it’s a sort of game where you listen to the zombies trying to catch you through your headphones as they are trying to kill you.  Hmm… too much immersion for me but maybe it would be fun for others?

15.  (Hey!  I made it!)  how delicious does this look?

I found this through pinterest and this woman’s site.  It comes rawfoodnation.org, however, I couldn’t get a link to work or a page to load.  Maybe someone else can help me out with info on this site?

Restin’ up this Saturday!

15 thing friday – I am so happy to see you!

Oh my goodness Friday, what took you so long?!

1.  I took a week break from eating eggs but now this is back in full force.  Right now it’s an over-medium egg sandwich.  Yum.

2.  Yesterday I was so excited to see that Downton Abbey is on Amazon Prime!  But then I noticed the first season was the American version and seasons two and three are the UK version.  Does anyone know if the American version is hidden in there somewhere?

3.  The dream maker machine in my head is on overdrive currently.  My favorite dream was one from the other night where I dreamt I won an apt make-over from someone on HGtv or something.  They gave me a grand staircase that led up to a LAUNDRY ROOM!  There was a laundry chute as well.  I can remember many of the details of this place and seriously, I would never have left it!

this is how I feel about not winning an apt make over… and doing my laundry in a community laundry room – bleh

4.  I’ve decided to put some interesting outings on my to-do list for summer.  Each year, I feel August hits and that I didn’t really do much to enjoy the “down time” of summer.  July is really the only down time anymore and the project I am heading up right now has seriously sucked the life out of me.  The good part about it I’ve been getting up at the same time everyday so that is helpful.

5.  Did anyone see the coverage earlier this week of people digging around for Jimmy Hoffa’s body?  One of the rumored places he is buried is somewhere here in MI (you can tell how much attention I paid to this story) but I’ve heard it before.  I watched a History channel episode about it.  Frankly, I don’t believe they will ever find his body.  Basically this excursion was like Geraldo Raviera’s ill-fated live opening of Capone’s vault.  Holy cow, wasn’t THAT anti-climactic!

6.  A co-worker is using “My Fitness Pal” – have any of you ever used it?  I have dabbled in it but sometimes find the recording of everything I am eating tedious.  But I also know this is how results happen.  What about you?  Do you count?  Wing it?

7.  I’ve barely been on pinterest this week.  I know – scary.  Heck, I haven’t even been able to keep up on my blog reading!  The only reason I’ve been able to post is because I wrote half of my posts last weekend.  Why do we have to have jobs?!

8.  (yes, I did just click over to pinterst!)  My friend Katie pinned this article from Runners World about finding your perfect pace.  Katie and I are doing a 1/2 together in the fall – it will be her first one, YAY! so this is probably a good thing to know.  I am LOUSY at keeping a pace, then again, I’ve never really sought any advice on how to get there.

9.  The other day I set my alarm for an early time to try to get a run in before work.  I was typing and this is what happened

I just kept it because it was funny!  Who doesn’t want rum at 6 am?!  And this is the Meagan I am referring to!

10.  I’ve been catching some Friend’s marathons and do any of you remember the episode, “Drink the Fat”?  It’s great.  Watch it!  The best part is all of these really are funny – I kind of forgot about that!

11.  Did you know that cuddling helps depression, relieves anxiety and boosts the immune system?  Pretty nifty, eh?

12.  I pinned this because I’ve been craving blueberry muffins and this was the first recipe they talked about .  I have no idea if these recipes are tasty or not so if you try them, let me know!

13.  I ordered my Pro Compression Red, White and Blue socks the other day!  I can’t wait!

14.  My family can attest to this – Sorry friends and family!  I think I am allergic to the phone!  (hmmm, this makes it sound like I DON’T want to friends or family – not true but I just love texting!)

15.  And this just cracked me up!

I hope this is real!

Yay!  The weekend is here!

15 thing friday – I’m chillin’ at home and it’s fabulous

1.  I have today off!  I HAVE today off!  I have TODAY off!  I have today OFF!!  Can you tell I’m excited?

2.  I solidified my hotel reservation today for Dopey.  I am thrilled and want to vomit all at the same time.

3.  I cannot stop laughing at this.  I keep repeating, “I’m a HOOMAN” and it makes me laugh over and over.

4.  Guess what?!  The parts to fix my treadmill FINALLY arrived!  Now I just have to wait for the technician to come out and fix it.  Awesome.

5.  Today is one of my dear friend’s birthday!  Happy Birthday Em!

6.  A bunch of my friends have been helping me with my “collecting” issue.  It cracks me up but I do really appreciate it.  For instance, someone asked me today, “hey do you want this water bottle?  Wait, no you don’t”.  Or even better, sometimes I give stuff to others and let them do it with it what they will but they just can’t tell me.  Some of this is totally habitual – wanting to save or reuse.  But ultimately, I don’t end up using the things I’ve saved and it collects.  The other part is my wacky brain!

7.  This week I have woken up every morning at 4 am (okay, this morning it was 4:30).  It’s very strange.  Then I am awake for about a half hour or 45 mins.  I seem to be getting really solid sleep before this so I am wondering if my body is so not used to getting a full night sleep that once I hit the 5 hour mark, it’s ready to rise.  Only, I struggle to make it through the day on only 5 hours a sleep.  I feel like a zombie.  Who knows.

8.  I finished up the first season of Downton Abbey this past weekend!  I loved it!  I need to get the second season soon.  I know, I am very late with jumping on this bandwagon but hey, I got there!

tru dat maggie smith

9.  I think it’s really funny this game “Candy Crush” is such a crazed thing.  I refuse to start playing it.  I’m not quite sure I would really fall for all of the hype considering I’m not a big video game person nor do I play games on my phone.  Nevertheless, I’m not taking any chances

10.  Do any of you remember “Members Only” jackets?  They were quite the rage  back when I was a youngster.  I decided to google them last week and the weird thing was, they are still around.  Since I used to have one, I was kind of thinking I could rock one once again.  Then I saw the price tag – $100!  Whaaa?  I don’t remember them being this price before.  Lame.

maybe my total love for the Goonies made me want the jacket. “mouth” was all about style!

11.  I really love my doctors.  I know this is a weird one for 15 thing Friday but I strongly suggest, if you don’t currently have a doctor that you can laugh, cry or be completely honest with then find a new one.  Both my neuro and internist are really wonderful women who listen to all of my “well, webMD said”, talk to me about my med levels and when I’ve changed them myself and are really patient as I ask my endless questions.  Being your own advocate is so important but so are doctors who are willing to listen.

12.  I had a pear cider the other night and all I have to say is yum.  It was called Pear Pacific and I strongly recommend it if you aren’t a huge beer drinker.

13.  Peanut butter toast is still on my totally love list.

14.  I tried these two bars and was really impressed.  The Quaker Banana Nut Bread bar is filling and actually does taste like banana bread.  Plus it does have 6 grams of protein, which I am all for.  The Trader Joe bar has fewer calories than other breakfast bars, is bigger and taste like a Fig Newton.  Oh and I love the name of it

15.  Hey Washingtonians – I am really sorry to out us all but what is wrong with us?  Yep, many wear the whole dreaded socks with sandals.  It cracks me up actually and so does this product

the caption was, “simplify for Washingtonians”… yes, I have no idea why we wear socks with sandals

15 thing friday – anyone else need a nap?

*UGH!  Curses!  I was so close to having this bad boy up on Friday – half was written on Thursday even…  Oh well – happy Saturday!

YIPPEEE!  Today has been very busy but at least it makes the day go by quicker.  I have a couple of plans this weekend but ultimately, I plan on finalizing my training plan and catching up on sleep.  Oh and relaxing!  Right now, all of this seems heavenly!  Yes, I realize this makes me seem old but honestly, downtime makes it possible for me to be pleasant, even when I am all stabby on the inside!

1.  The other night I had an incredibly realistic dream about eating a Boston Cream donut.  Not kidding – I could practically taste it!  Naturally, said deliciousness has been on my mind since however, I haven’t given into temptation.  Of course when I went to the store yesterday this greeted me.

A whole cake?!  You are a rude “B,” destiny

2.  I was really excited when I saw some catnip bubbles.  I imagined blowing them and Simon jumping all around, you know, a real Christmas card moment.

okay, so I knew this wouldn’t happen exactly (simon’s sunglasses were across the room) but something other than cowering away would have been nice

3.  These are an incredibly addictive substance.  Proceed with caution:

4.  Old Navy running tanks are FAB-ulous!  They are cheap, fit nicely and hold up well.  I really like the “bubble” cut.  It’s flattering and I don’t have to fuss with it while I run (oh yes, I am a fuss-er if uncomfortable).  There were also some way-on-sale work out tees so I picked up two of those.  I haven’t tried them yet but they look promising.

5.  The grocery store is killing me this week.  I discovered beef suet.  This is a specific fat that is collected from a cow and it is located around their kidneys.  This is used in more English cooking and candles used to be made from it as well.  Here’s the thing – I really appreciate our ancestors for not allowing any part of an animal to go to waste.  BUT I was so not ready to see hardened animal fat next to my burger meat.  My friend (who eats paleo) also uses it in cooking instead of vegetable oil and she raves about it.

6.  My super fantastic niece had her birthday this week!  Her and I chatted the other day and we talked about men – she gives me great advice, made me laugh and made me even more excited to spend time with her at home.  She is so wonderful – I think all of the extended family competes for her love!  My nephew too.

my niece and nephew from a couple of years ago!  clearly I am winning in the love dept!

7. I’m working on my travel/hotel arrangements for the Dopey Challenge weekend!  Doing this makes it feel more real, not to mention closer than ever.  I told someone on Monday that it was 30 weeks away and wasn’t that insane?!  They looked at me and said, “well, there are only 52 weeks in a year soooo…”.  Oh right.  BUT STILL!

8.  My piriformis has been engulfed in flames.  Yes, slightly exaggerated but WOW.  I’ve foam rolled, Tiger Tail-ed, stretched and rested.  I should probably ice it but then icing my ass sounds so weird.  The pain has subsided a smidge so hopefully if I do all of the above regularly, it will help.  I did find this rockin’ site with lots of good information on the piriformis so check it out.

9.  Iced coffee.

That’s all I really should say but I’ll hook you up with a few recipes as well!  I am making a batch of it this weekend.  Lately, when I hit up McDonald’s for coffee I’ve been getting iced caramel coffee.  It has fewer calories, is a bigger serving and actually feels like I get a bigger jolt of caffeine.  I went to our friendly internets and found three recipes:  Yum 1  Yum 2 and Yum 3.  Enjoy!

10.  Sunday night I searched the web over for a Dopey training plan.  Here is the one I am currently looking at, however, I think I want to add more back-to-back long runs.  If you can’t tell, I am slightly obsessed with this running schedule.  Part of it is nerves and the other part is I want to feel as prepared as possible.  I talked to my good friend Meagan and she helped me tweak it a bit.  As soon as I get smart enough, I’ll tag it here.  Oh by the way – there were VERY few training plans on line.  I am guessing because I am starting a few weeks earlier than others but still I was surprised.

11.  Mushrooms.  I eat them.  A lot.

12.  Here is a nifty post on becoming a minimalist.  It’s a great starting point for me – maybe for you too!

13.  I really like this idea!  It’s listed as a present for Father’s Day but I think so much could be done with it.  Got a favorite map of a race course?  Or a favorite running or biking path?  So much potential!  Also, I have a map that has a shiny residue so I think I will simply cut out words for it

14.  Here is a chocolate-peanut butter cookie we should all try this weekend.  They don’t have any white sugar (disclaimer, there is brown sugar so this is kind of a stretch), white flour or butter so my friends out there who want something a bit different, try these!  Or are you in a cupcake mood?  What about a creamsicle cupcake that only had 3 ingredients?  Yay!  I am not sure which one I want to make first!

15.  See?  It could always be worse