My sweet husband bought me a new phone a few weeks ago. It rocked. So much fun. Unfortunately, we don't get AT&T/Cingular service in our house. This is not unusual because of our elevation. We were already concerned when we considered switching from our old carrier. I found another provider and phone that do work in the house and attempted to return the old phone on Friday.
After thirty minutes of waiting at the Cingular store with my rambunctious children, the saleslady explained that they were a vendor and not a "company store," so they couldn't help me. OK, the customer service folks on the phone did say I had to return at a company store, so I chalked it up to a communications error.
Saturday morning (the day I was to fly out of town on business), I loaded up the phone and the kids and drove to the company store. I explained that the phone was wonderful but their network didn't work in my house, blah, blah, blah. The sales woman asked for the credit card that was used on the transaction. I explained that my husband made the purchase and I don't have his card. "Well," she said, "you will have to bring it back another time." I asked for help from a manager because surely they could use their transaction information to reverse the charge on the card. No. No helping. No manager. No talking to my credit card company on the phone.
After driving back home to see if Doug had left his wallet there (no), we went to the UPS store and shipped it instead because, apparently, the warehouse had the credit card information that the company store didn't. It was $13.64 well spent, including the copies of all of the stuff I sent. I love that UPS store guy. Every time I get the shaft from someone else (Stapes, Cingular, etc), he helps me out with a smile.
Here is a photo of the place we went on my work trip. It was a really cool place and I learned a lot from all of the other lawyers. Of course, I promptly lost my new phone on the way home, and then lost my marbles at the airport. Two very nice Delta employees helped me, but there was no phone to be found. I'm trying to get a new one now.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
Hips Don't Lie
So, we drove to Doug's parents' house for dinner last night while Annika sang in the back seat. "Oh Baby when you talk like that" "you make a woman go mad" . . . blah blah, la, la, la "Oh Baby when you talk like that - you make a woman go mad."
"What is that?" asked Doug. Shakira. I'm sure Shakira is lovely and I'm glad that she is so cool with her body - but I don't want Annika singing about her hips.
Where does my kid hear Shakira? I've been VERY diligent in not playing any music with bad words or sexual content. We learned from our friend's "My Humps" incident. My Gwen Stefani and Prince CDs have been banished and we've been listening to the Veggie Tales and Cow Songs for years now. Dammit. I don't even play my i-pod list or listen to my Audible books when Annika is in the car because of the cursing and scary content. We even sanitized the dinner mix. And Shakira still snuck into the vocabulary.
I guess it is a really good hook. But why not any of the great They Might be Giants tunes? Too erudite is my guess. SIGH.
"What is that?" asked Doug. Shakira. I'm sure Shakira is lovely and I'm glad that she is so cool with her body - but I don't want Annika singing about her hips.
Where does my kid hear Shakira? I've been VERY diligent in not playing any music with bad words or sexual content. We learned from our friend's "My Humps" incident. My Gwen Stefani and Prince CDs have been banished and we've been listening to the Veggie Tales and Cow Songs for years now. Dammit. I don't even play my i-pod list or listen to my Audible books when Annika is in the car because of the cursing and scary content. We even sanitized the dinner mix. And Shakira still snuck into the vocabulary.
I guess it is a really good hook. But why not any of the great They Might be Giants tunes? Too erudite is my guess. SIGH.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Firsts
This week, Doug to Annika to her first movie. We bought our first triathlon clothes. Doug and I ran our first race with both girls (in strollers). Doug had his first Gu (and so did I). And, I did my first brick - thanks only to the sweetness of my husband to take care of the girls for two hours on Father's Day so that I had time to go.
The movie was "Surf's Up" which starred penguins very similar to those in "Happy Feet," only they weren't the same penguins. Annika enjoyed the pageantry of the movies, the snacks and the alone time with Dad. Doug said the movie was OK if you have to go to a kid movie. We also watched "Shrek 2," which was pretty hilarious - very funny movie trivia and popular culture jokes.
The clothes were found at REI. I got some cool shorts and Doug has already exchanged his purchases for alternatives which will hopefully fit better. Both times, Dagny melted down in the store - big fun. It's been a while since I've been down to the REI. It's so cool - there are so many neat things, I could spend the day there. It's almost like the knitting store -all of the aisles feel like they are bursting with products shouting the cool things you could do with them if you only had the time and cash.
Yesterday, Doug and I ran the Possum Trot race in Roswell at the Chattahoochee Nature Center. We both finished in about 54 minutes. Pretty good for a stroller race, especially when you factor in the slow start because we passed the whole world. In case you didn't know, no one wants to start behind a stroller. I think we were the second and third or third and fourth strollers to finish. At the end, this cool guy in a red Honda shirt was cheering on his buddy (Paul - also in a red Honda shirt). But the cheering guy was encouraging everyone, me included. His "go get 'em" attitude really pumped me up and I finished strong just under 55 minutes on the race clock. Doug tested out the Cytomax and orange Gu on this run. He said they were both fine and the couple sips of Cytomax tasted OK to me. The race advertised photos on the internet after 2pm yesterday, but I can't find them.
Today I rode/ran my first run/bike brick. At the river (flat), I did around 10 miles on the bike at 11/12 mph (48 mins) and then 5K run at 7:52 pace. Whew! Doug was right. Biking first really tires you out for the run. My legs were OK, but that was due in part to the Hammer Gel I ate while riding the bike and the potty break that I took during transition. At the end, I tried to turn it up to finish faster than 24 minutes, but my legs just wouldn't cooperate. I could have probably worked harder on the bike but I think it was a good first try. Here is what I learned: (1) I need to work on shifting, (2) gloves and sunglasses are good, (3) I need to open the Gu before I get on the bike, (4) running shorts + bike = not so fun. Next ride I'll test out the cool new shorts.
And, at the race on Saturday we saw a friend of mine from college and law school. It turns out that she and her husband are doing triathlons too and she is doing the same one as Nat and me! Now I have someone to try to beat! Whooo!
The movie was "Surf's Up" which starred penguins very similar to those in "Happy Feet," only they weren't the same penguins. Annika enjoyed the pageantry of the movies, the snacks and the alone time with Dad. Doug said the movie was OK if you have to go to a kid movie. We also watched "Shrek 2," which was pretty hilarious - very funny movie trivia and popular culture jokes.
The clothes were found at REI. I got some cool shorts and Doug has already exchanged his purchases for alternatives which will hopefully fit better. Both times, Dagny melted down in the store - big fun. It's been a while since I've been down to the REI. It's so cool - there are so many neat things, I could spend the day there. It's almost like the knitting store -all of the aisles feel like they are bursting with products shouting the cool things you could do with them if you only had the time and cash.
Yesterday, Doug and I ran the Possum Trot race in Roswell at the Chattahoochee Nature Center. We both finished in about 54 minutes. Pretty good for a stroller race, especially when you factor in the slow start because we passed the whole world. In case you didn't know, no one wants to start behind a stroller. I think we were the second and third or third and fourth strollers to finish. At the end, this cool guy in a red Honda shirt was cheering on his buddy (Paul - also in a red Honda shirt). But the cheering guy was encouraging everyone, me included. His "go get 'em" attitude really pumped me up and I finished strong just under 55 minutes on the race clock. Doug tested out the Cytomax and orange Gu on this run. He said they were both fine and the couple sips of Cytomax tasted OK to me. The race advertised photos on the internet after 2pm yesterday, but I can't find them.
Today I rode/ran my first run/bike brick. At the river (flat), I did around 10 miles on the bike at 11/12 mph (48 mins) and then 5K run at 7:52 pace. Whew! Doug was right. Biking first really tires you out for the run. My legs were OK, but that was due in part to the Hammer Gel I ate while riding the bike and the potty break that I took during transition. At the end, I tried to turn it up to finish faster than 24 minutes, but my legs just wouldn't cooperate. I could have probably worked harder on the bike but I think it was a good first try. Here is what I learned: (1) I need to work on shifting, (2) gloves and sunglasses are good, (3) I need to open the Gu before I get on the bike, (4) running shorts + bike = not so fun. Next ride I'll test out the cool new shorts.
And, at the race on Saturday we saw a friend of mine from college and law school. It turns out that she and her husband are doing triathlons too and she is doing the same one as Nat and me! Now I have someone to try to beat! Whooo!
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Learn to Fly
After a good ride on Tuesday, I went out for my 13 mile ride today. I was hesitant, because of the ribs and beer we had for dinner last night and because I didn't feel like I had enough energy to do anything until I'd eaten some cereal and breakfast usually causes tummy problems for me.
Regardless, I ate my cereal (with soy milk, today) and went to see if I could do that loop faster than last week. However, as I finished the first big climb, I got to the Mayor's Ride route. "Why not?", I thought. So, I went off-course and did a little part of the mayor's ride through some neighborhoods - all of the turns are marked with a "BR" and an arrow. FUN! It was just enough adventure for me. So, I figured out how to keep my big sprocket (thanks, Nat) active for most of the ride, which helped me keep my bottom on the seat more. I think I was more efficient despite not going faster than Tuesday's ride. Apparently, Sunday is the day to exercise because I saw a zillion people running, biking, walking - a cop clocked me at 12 mph.
Then, after Doug and Dagny took off for their ride, I went up the neighbors' cul-de-sac four (4) times with Annika on her bike. I walked or jogged alongside. That is 1.2 miles, in case you were counting. Wow, we wore her ass out! There is a lot to teach someone about how to ride a bike (even with the training wheels): (1) you can't fall over with training wheels, (2) no feet on the ground, (3) stay to the right , (4) watch where you are going, (5) save your downhill speed for the uphill, (6) stay in control, (7) look both ways, (8) that red sign means stop, (9) must go faster to make Mommy run. I was yelling a lot - hopefully most of it was positive and Annika retains the important stuff. So, we are both testing our wings on the bikes this week.
Then, after Doug and Dagny returned and we had some lunch, we loaded up the bikes and rode up to the pool. Doug towed BOTH GIRLS in the trailer while I carried our gear in a backpack. Doug kicks ass. That one mile to the pool will kick anyone's ass, even without 100 lbs behind you.
Here is the weekly report:
Sun: 5.5 miles running in 50 minutes with my friend Michele
Mon: 1650 yard swim in 35 minutes
Tues: 8 mile bike in 40 minutes (that is 13 mph, folks!)
Wed: 8.05 mile run at 9:30 min/mile pace
Thurs: rest
Fri: 1800 yard swim in 40 mins (400 yd time trial - 8 mins not trying too hard)
Sat: 4.76 mile run at 8:30 min/mile pace (this run was at 2:30pm and it sucked - I hated every minute)
Regardless, I ate my cereal (with soy milk, today) and went to see if I could do that loop faster than last week. However, as I finished the first big climb, I got to the Mayor's Ride route. "Why not?", I thought. So, I went off-course and did a little part of the mayor's ride through some neighborhoods - all of the turns are marked with a "BR" and an arrow. FUN! It was just enough adventure for me. So, I figured out how to keep my big sprocket (thanks, Nat) active for most of the ride, which helped me keep my bottom on the seat more. I think I was more efficient despite not going faster than Tuesday's ride. Apparently, Sunday is the day to exercise because I saw a zillion people running, biking, walking - a cop clocked me at 12 mph.
Then, after Doug and Dagny took off for their ride, I went up the neighbors' cul-de-sac four (4) times with Annika on her bike. I walked or jogged alongside. That is 1.2 miles, in case you were counting. Wow, we wore her ass out! There is a lot to teach someone about how to ride a bike (even with the training wheels): (1) you can't fall over with training wheels, (2) no feet on the ground, (3) stay to the right , (4) watch where you are going, (5) save your downhill speed for the uphill, (6) stay in control, (7) look both ways, (8) that red sign means stop, (9) must go faster to make Mommy run. I was yelling a lot - hopefully most of it was positive and Annika retains the important stuff. So, we are both testing our wings on the bikes this week.
Then, after Doug and Dagny returned and we had some lunch, we loaded up the bikes and rode up to the pool. Doug towed BOTH GIRLS in the trailer while I carried our gear in a backpack. Doug kicks ass. That one mile to the pool will kick anyone's ass, even without 100 lbs behind you.
Here is the weekly report:
Sun: 5.5 miles running in 50 minutes with my friend Michele
Mon: 1650 yard swim in 35 minutes
Tues: 8 mile bike in 40 minutes (that is 13 mph, folks!)
Wed: 8.05 mile run at 9:30 min/mile pace
Thurs: rest
Fri: 1800 yard swim in 40 mins (400 yd time trial - 8 mins not trying too hard)
Sat: 4.76 mile run at 8:30 min/mile pace (this run was at 2:30pm and it sucked - I hated every minute)
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Hello Bike, My Old Friend
So the point of posting the photo of my bike was to do a post about it but I forgot that post because I was all caught up in the "Doug was right" dancing.
I love that bike. It is how I lured Doug. When Doug went back up to school early in the fall of 1992, I was still there since I had just moved into the new apartment with Melanie (she wasn't there yet, but I was moved in with my cats). I had been loving the idea of a bike and I got a job at a gas station to earn the money to pay for it after crashing my beautiful blue Honda and inheriting the Oldsmobile that didn't run most of the time and would soon cease to go in reverse. I didn't get the job I really wanted at the BBQ place, so this was it. They didn't let girls work the overnight shift, but I was frequently the 2-10 or 3-11 shift at the Amoco on the Atlanta Highway.
Anyway, I knew through the grapevine that Doug was in town and that he worked at the printshop at the Tate Center so I went down there to ask his bike advice and flirt. See, I had had my eye on him since the spring. In fact, I was hoping to meet up with him the evening that I crashed that Honda. It was fate, though, because he was dating Tanis (the world's coolest girl - seriously, I had one class with her and she was a people magnet) at the time and wouldn't have noticed me. Anyway, he thought my scar from the wreck was cool and we talked about it a lot that spring during and after the Tanis months.
Back to the point, I sashayed (for me, that means bouncy marching) to the Tate Center and threw myself on his mercy. "Sure," he said, "I'll help you look at bikes, but can I use your shower?" Someone else was assigned the water bill for his house and it hadn't been connected yet, so he couldn't shower at home. I went back to the apartment and fell asleep on the couch because the bug man had come and the place was full of toxic fumes. Doug showed up for his shower. A double-entendre and some hotdogs turned into big romance and who knew that this bike guy was THE ONE?
Anyway, the bike. We test-drove many bikes and I ended up liking the Treks. They did not have a Trek in my size at the store in Athens, so we drove all the way to Duluth (which was far, back then, because Hwy 316 was not yet constructed beyond Winder) where I bought the little red from the hottie from my high school who actually flirted with me (HA! - who would have thought!). Doug insisted that I needed toe cages and made me buy a lock and taught me to ride. I always thought he was so cool when he took off on his bike from campus, so now I could do it! Not. Bike riding is hard. We have had many good times together, me and that bike (and Doug - he was good at teaching me the tricks and secret no-traffic routes). We bought groceries at the Kroger and rode home with them in the backpack, learned to ride up the big hill by the baseball field without stopping, we fell over in the toecages while talking to the neighbors in my cul-de-sac, we rode with Doug in the Gambler. Eventually, however, the need to not stink at school or work pushed my bike aside. She collected dust in our apartments/houses until Doug suggested that Emily could use her at school. So, I got her tuned up and took her to Athens (in my suit, while pregnant) as a surprise. Emily has loved her well and may take her to Denver in the fall, but I'm glad to be riding her again (the bike, not Emily).
So, we rode today - 8 miles around my neighborhood. It took me 41 minutes. "Wow," you say - "that is pretty slow." Yes, but it was at an average of 13 mph, which is 2 mph faster than my ride on Saturday so that is PROGRESS, baby.
I love that bike. It is how I lured Doug. When Doug went back up to school early in the fall of 1992, I was still there since I had just moved into the new apartment with Melanie (she wasn't there yet, but I was moved in with my cats). I had been loving the idea of a bike and I got a job at a gas station to earn the money to pay for it after crashing my beautiful blue Honda and inheriting the Oldsmobile that didn't run most of the time and would soon cease to go in reverse. I didn't get the job I really wanted at the BBQ place, so this was it. They didn't let girls work the overnight shift, but I was frequently the 2-10 or 3-11 shift at the Amoco on the Atlanta Highway.
Anyway, I knew through the grapevine that Doug was in town and that he worked at the printshop at the Tate Center so I went down there to ask his bike advice and flirt. See, I had had my eye on him since the spring. In fact, I was hoping to meet up with him the evening that I crashed that Honda. It was fate, though, because he was dating Tanis (the world's coolest girl - seriously, I had one class with her and she was a people magnet) at the time and wouldn't have noticed me. Anyway, he thought my scar from the wreck was cool and we talked about it a lot that spring during and after the Tanis months.
Back to the point, I sashayed (for me, that means bouncy marching) to the Tate Center and threw myself on his mercy. "Sure," he said, "I'll help you look at bikes, but can I use your shower?" Someone else was assigned the water bill for his house and it hadn't been connected yet, so he couldn't shower at home. I went back to the apartment and fell asleep on the couch because the bug man had come and the place was full of toxic fumes. Doug showed up for his shower. A double-entendre and some hotdogs turned into big romance and who knew that this bike guy was THE ONE?
Anyway, the bike. We test-drove many bikes and I ended up liking the Treks. They did not have a Trek in my size at the store in Athens, so we drove all the way to Duluth (which was far, back then, because Hwy 316 was not yet constructed beyond Winder) where I bought the little red from the hottie from my high school who actually flirted with me (HA! - who would have thought!). Doug insisted that I needed toe cages and made me buy a lock and taught me to ride. I always thought he was so cool when he took off on his bike from campus, so now I could do it! Not. Bike riding is hard. We have had many good times together, me and that bike (and Doug - he was good at teaching me the tricks and secret no-traffic routes). We bought groceries at the Kroger and rode home with them in the backpack, learned to ride up the big hill by the baseball field without stopping, we fell over in the toecages while talking to the neighbors in my cul-de-sac, we rode with Doug in the Gambler. Eventually, however, the need to not stink at school or work pushed my bike aside. She collected dust in our apartments/houses until Doug suggested that Emily could use her at school. So, I got her tuned up and took her to Athens (in my suit, while pregnant) as a surprise. Emily has loved her well and may take her to Denver in the fall, but I'm glad to be riding her again (the bike, not Emily).
So, we rode today - 8 miles around my neighborhood. It took me 41 minutes. "Wow," you say - "that is pretty slow." Yes, but it was at an average of 13 mph, which is 2 mph faster than my ride on Saturday so that is PROGRESS, baby.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
The Dance
At my house, we have a dance that must be done when the spouse was right about something (preferably something stupid). Please pause for a moment now and wait while I do the "Doug was right" dance. And, the "Colin was right" dance because he said the same thing.
You can see the photo of my trusty steed, with the new seat and toe-cages. The brakes and gears also work now. The seat had been recovered with some very durable and stylish duct tape.
Anyway, I was excited to get my bike training started yesterday. Doug said that I was a fool to use this bike for my training and/or race. We lowered the seat on his bike, but I'm still too short for it even though it is a much better road machine. So, with the "I am woman, hear me roar" and "I'm not going out like some kind of punk bitch" attitude, I rode this bike 13 miles yesterday - to see if I could do it. I did it, but there was not a lot of fun going on. Run speed and swim ease do not translate into bike power. I suck at biking and the cars are very scary. Top speed: 32.1 mph.
Here is a summary of my week's training:
Sun: 3.58 miles at 9:46 pace
Mon: 6.14 miles at 8:19 pace
Tues: 4.5 miles at 8:49 pace
Wed: rest
Thurs: 5.42 miles at 8.28 pace
Fri: 1 mile swim in approx 40 mins
Sat: 13 mile bike in 1 hr, 12 mins
I have mostly abandoned the triathlon training book in favor of Doug's plan (6 days per week of activity - 2x per sport or sport/combo).
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Putting it Out There
I registered for a triathlon this week. It is a sprint length race, which means 400 yd swim, 13 mile bike, and 5K run. Any women who would like to join me, follow the link to sign up. Nothing against you men - it's just a women's race. I think it would be fine to race with men - this race is just convenient to my house and fits in my schedule.
I swam my first actual laps since 2002 (when I last had a gym membership) yesterday. 1600/1650 yards - it took me about 40 minutes, including cap/google application, adjustment to water temperature and getting into the fence. Next time I'll take a watch so I can get some baseline times. Since this was my first effort, I didn't worry about the time. Wow, I'm sore today. It is hard to tell if the soreness is from the swimming or the climbing (I have permission), though.
When Nat and I went to the seminar about triathlons, this woman was the last (and best) speaker. She is a professional triathlete and was all kinds of fun. If you ever get a chance to hear her talk about her sport, do it. Go to her blog archive and read about the Florida ironman race. Holy cow, this woman rocks!
I swam my first actual laps since 2002 (when I last had a gym membership) yesterday. 1600/1650 yards - it took me about 40 minutes, including cap/google application, adjustment to water temperature and getting into the fence. Next time I'll take a watch so I can get some baseline times. Since this was my first effort, I didn't worry about the time. Wow, I'm sore today. It is hard to tell if the soreness is from the swimming or the climbing (I have permission), though.
When Nat and I went to the seminar about triathlons, this woman was the last (and best) speaker. She is a professional triathlete and was all kinds of fun. If you ever get a chance to hear her talk about her sport, do it. Go to her blog archive and read about the Florida ironman race. Holy cow, this woman rocks!
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Beach Attire
Or, what to do while you hang out with small children all day.
I've been checking out the bathing suits of all of the people who walk by while Dagny and I play in the sand here. I was hoping to develop some kind of theory on what kinds of suits look good on different kinds of bodies. So, no -I can't report any great theories here. The number of different body shapes is too vast.
However, I have identified some easy "don't" rules:
1. Big circles or dots on bathing suits are bad. They don't look good on anyone, even college girls.
2. Writing on your bottom is bad.
3. Suits (even if they are metallic) that are close to your skin color are always unattractive.
4. More of us need to spend more time picking suits that actually "suit" us instead of falling back on whatever is at Target or Lands End.
5. You can tell when the boobs aren't real
Also, I'm becoming an un-fan of the tankini. It seems like the bathing suit equivalent of a baggy sweatshirt or yoga pants and flip flops. Why even bother with a two piece? Doug and I are working on me being less frumpy (a personal "what not to wear") so I'm looking at this a lot. I'm not saying everyone should wear a string bikini (myself included) but there is something to be said for a nice Speedo tank.
I've been checking out the bathing suits of all of the people who walk by while Dagny and I play in the sand here. I was hoping to develop some kind of theory on what kinds of suits look good on different kinds of bodies. So, no -I can't report any great theories here. The number of different body shapes is too vast.
However, I have identified some easy "don't" rules:
1. Big circles or dots on bathing suits are bad. They don't look good on anyone, even college girls.
2. Writing on your bottom is bad.
3. Suits (even if they are metallic) that are close to your skin color are always unattractive.
4. More of us need to spend more time picking suits that actually "suit" us instead of falling back on whatever is at Target or Lands End.
5. You can tell when the boobs aren't real
Also, I'm becoming an un-fan of the tankini. It seems like the bathing suit equivalent of a baggy sweatshirt or yoga pants and flip flops. Why even bother with a two piece? Doug and I are working on me being less frumpy (a personal "what not to wear") so I'm looking at this a lot. I'm not saying everyone should wear a string bikini (myself included) but there is something to be said for a nice Speedo tank.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
New Reading Material and Gearing Up
So, I finished reading the Triathlon Training in 4 Hours a Week book. The 4 hours a week thing is a bit of a lie, if your goal is more than just finishing, but still it was very good. Packed with inspiring stories. Wes recommended it and I can second his recommendation. Doug poo-poohed the idea of a book for sprint training, but I was glad to have some of the mysteries solved for me.
All that remains is to (1) sign up for a race, (2) pick up my bike from the bike store so that I can ride it, and (3) start some swimming. The bike store guy and I decided to tune up the bike, put on some toe clips and a new seat but that it is not worth putting slicks on my bike for a sprint race. It would cost $60 per tire and the whole bike is probably not worth that much at this point. Regardless, it was really fun to ride again (it's been 10 years). I'm going to look at the knobby tires as the biking equivalent of a drag suit. Then, if I do OK at this first race and decide to continue, we can evaluate a new (to me) bike.
The girls are LOVING the beach. Dagny is so tired that she is napping before lunctime and Annika is chilling in front of "The Little Mermaid." We will be back outside for more fun in the sun after lunch.
All that remains is to (1) sign up for a race, (2) pick up my bike from the bike store so that I can ride it, and (3) start some swimming. The bike store guy and I decided to tune up the bike, put on some toe clips and a new seat but that it is not worth putting slicks on my bike for a sprint race. It would cost $60 per tire and the whole bike is probably not worth that much at this point. Regardless, it was really fun to ride again (it's been 10 years). I'm going to look at the knobby tires as the biking equivalent of a drag suit. Then, if I do OK at this first race and decide to continue, we can evaluate a new (to me) bike.
The girls are LOVING the beach. Dagny is so tired that she is napping before lunctime and Annika is chilling in front of "The Little Mermaid." We will be back outside for more fun in the sun after lunch.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Gratuitous Photos
At the left is Annika the day she came down for breakfast with sparkly jewels from her "decorate-your-own-treasure-box" set on her face and in her hair. Someone gave us the set for her birthday and she had a great time decorating. Who knew that the jewels would come off and retain enough stick to be placed on the face and hair. We keep finding them everywhere now.Next is a cool pergola/fire pit that Doug built at one of his houses. He has some cool ideas, doesn't he? Can't you just see a bunch of folks out there grilling with beers or party drinks while their kids run wild in the grass?
Here is Annika in her fairy princess dress, heels, fire department hat (made at school), part of my Daphne outfit and butterfly wings. She came downstairs one afternoon and insisted that we memorialize the beauty. But it had to be from the back so that you could see the wings - because the wings are the best part. I just love how her braids curl up at the ends - just like Pippi Longstocking. Annika's hair is so curly that not even braids can contain its curl-iciousness.
Last, but not least is Dagny with her purse. I bought this for her first birthday and she still loves it (and all purses). She is a girly girl. Thank you to cousin Sophie for the beautiful orange dress.
In other news, we've been busy here! The washing mashine broke last week so I've been shuttling back and for to my parents' house (thank goodness they moved into the neighborhood) to try to keep up. Annika's two pull-up leakage accidents didn't help, either. According to our repairman, our old Maytag was a piece of junk - and it died just like the one owned by the first commenter in the linked blog. We could have fixed it, but for $300-400 and it was likely to break again in a year. So, I have a beautiful new washing machine. This was not what I wanted to spend a load of money on this month, but at least I'm back in laundry action. And, it's cool to watch the clothes spin around in the suds like we used to do at Grammy's house when I was little. A big fat kiss to Best Buy for delivering on Sunday!
Also, I have found a great park for running. It is called the Leita Thompson Memorial Park (top left on the map). The City of Roswell has cut trails into some very hilly and beautiful wild land. This city is worth the taxes for this park alone. There are coyotes, apparently, so I wouldn't run there at dusk or sunrise and you'd be an idiot to do it in the dark, but WOW is it fun! It is like the trails at the creek in our neighborhood when I was a kid (minus the storm sewer outlet pipe, offensive odor and frequently appearing underpants) - green leaves as far as your eye can see. You can put your arms out like an airplane and just fly down the hills. And it is ridiculously hilly. The first time I ran there, I thought I would do a leisurely six miles - I did 6 miles at a 10 minute per mile pace, but my heart rate was in the 170s most of the run. Those hills kicked my ass. I nearly threw up a couple of times, had to stop for water, nearly quit more than three times, and bit it at one point. A kind gentleman, who was walking with those trekking poles, stopped to be sure I was OK (I was), but I had a blast! I left the trail feeling 10 feet tall and sexy like superman. Plus, a war wound! How cool is that?
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Saturday, May 05, 2007
Can't Run at This Pace Very Long
The girls spent the night with my parents last night so Doug and I went on a date. Yes, a real meal with no highchairs, bibs or sippy cups. We had a great meal with some terrific wine. I highly recommend this restaurant. We went to the Buckhead location (next to Nava) but they also have one at Perimeter. Then, we met some friends for drinks. Doug was watching out for me since I was nervous about my race and got me tonic water with lime, my favorite masquerade cocktail. I was also trying to hydrate because I might have the tummy bug that Dagny had last weekend and that poor Annika is still fighting.
Anyway, the hydrating was also because Nat talked me into running a race this morning. That's right - the Big Peach 5K in Brookhaven. It was, as advertised, a beautiful green course through east Brookhaven. I had a great time - met two nice ladies (in line for the potties and for the start) and was home before they gave out any awards. I can't find the race results online, if they will even be posted, but here are my stats:
22:44 gun time
22:25 Garmin time
The McMillan race calculator predicted I would finish at 24:01 so I was aiming for anything under 24. A girl has gotta hope! I seeded myself badly and dodged folks for the first mile - but my first mile split was 6:54.
That's right, 6:54. Holy shit! A new world record. The rest of the race was a slog but I'm very happy with my time (avg 7:12 min/mile). Those hill repeats suck, but are clearly working. And the best part - no knee braces. NAKED KNEES! Yes, one of my high school sweethearts once told me that I had ugly knees, but they are so beautiful with no neoprene.
In other news, our friends Jerry and Wes (and Sarah, who I follow on the internet) ran their first triathalons this morning at Lake Lanier. Jerry and Wes finished within minutes of each other. Sarah hasn't posted yet, but I'm sure she did great too. Way to go triatheletes! And, my friend Kelly is running her first half marathon in Vancouver this weekend - Go Kelly!
Anyway, the hydrating was also because Nat talked me into running a race this morning. That's right - the Big Peach 5K in Brookhaven. It was, as advertised, a beautiful green course through east Brookhaven. I had a great time - met two nice ladies (in line for the potties and for the start) and was home before they gave out any awards. I can't find the race results online, if they will even be posted, but here are my stats:
22:44 gun time
22:25 Garmin time
The McMillan race calculator predicted I would finish at 24:01 so I was aiming for anything under 24. A girl has gotta hope! I seeded myself badly and dodged folks for the first mile - but my first mile split was 6:54.
That's right, 6:54. Holy shit! A new world record. The rest of the race was a slog but I'm very happy with my time (avg 7:12 min/mile). Those hill repeats suck, but are clearly working. And the best part - no knee braces. NAKED KNEES! Yes, one of my high school sweethearts once told me that I had ugly knees, but they are so beautiful with no neoprene.
In other news, our friends Jerry and Wes (and Sarah, who I follow on the internet) ran their first triathalons this morning at Lake Lanier. Jerry and Wes finished within minutes of each other. Sarah hasn't posted yet, but I'm sure she did great too. Way to go triatheletes! And, my friend Kelly is running her first half marathon in Vancouver this weekend - Go Kelly!
Sunday, April 29, 2007
We Are the Champions
That's right. The beer fridge is defrosted and clean. You may now feel safe consuming beer at my house unmolested by exploding coke cans, beers that overflow upon opening or sticky coke goo. I defrosted it on the deck with our bird friends - we thought they were swallows, but an internet search was inconclusive. I had to disinfect the whole fridge because those darn birds poop a LOT.
Dagny is feeling better this afternoon and proved (yet again) that she is more stubborn than I am. She would not drink any liquids from a sippy cup after 10am this morning. Why? Who knows. I think it was because her head hurt from being dehydrated. After an ill-fated attempt at siphoning by mouth, I finally put milk (I know it isn't a clear liquid but she refused all forms of liquid except milk) in a medicine cup and she drank that. We progressed to the Dora big-girl cup with about a millimeter of liquid at the time. Maybe she was just trying to tell me that she is too big for sippy cups. And, no barf for over 24 hours. Whew!
Annika and I ran 4 miles today in the flats during Dagny's nap. Annika was going to do more bike-riding after we finished, but the neighbor kids showed up so I was chopped liver after that. No matter, it gave me time to do the fridge.
Oh, and, did you know that some red food dye is made from bugs? Cochineal is made from little bugs that are hard to raise and live on cacti. I found this out because the Vegan Lunchbox (March 26 post) mentioned not being able to use red rice sheets because apparently, vegans can't eat cochineal. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, I now know what that stuff is. I refrained from commenting that most grains contain some kind of bug larva which will hatch under favorable conditions (like your pantry). Better for the nice vegan lady not to know.
Dagny is feeling better this afternoon and proved (yet again) that she is more stubborn than I am. She would not drink any liquids from a sippy cup after 10am this morning. Why? Who knows. I think it was because her head hurt from being dehydrated. After an ill-fated attempt at siphoning by mouth, I finally put milk (I know it isn't a clear liquid but she refused all forms of liquid except milk) in a medicine cup and she drank that. We progressed to the Dora big-girl cup with about a millimeter of liquid at the time. Maybe she was just trying to tell me that she is too big for sippy cups. And, no barf for over 24 hours. Whew!
Annika and I ran 4 miles today in the flats during Dagny's nap. Annika was going to do more bike-riding after we finished, but the neighbor kids showed up so I was chopped liver after that. No matter, it gave me time to do the fridge.
Oh, and, did you know that some red food dye is made from bugs? Cochineal is made from little bugs that are hard to raise and live on cacti. I found this out because the Vegan Lunchbox (March 26 post) mentioned not being able to use red rice sheets because apparently, vegans can't eat cochineal. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, I now know what that stuff is. I refrained from commenting that most grains contain some kind of bug larva which will hatch under favorable conditions (like your pantry). Better for the nice vegan lady not to know.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Let's Make the Most of this Beautiful Day
I had big plans of taking the photos off of our camera this weekend and defrosting the beer fridge. Yes, it is a frost-fridge because it was the cheapest one they had at Sears when Doug and I were first married. Now I'm thinking we should have paid the extra $30 and gotten a frost-free but at the time a beer fridge was quite the extravagance. Anyway, when there is too much frost, the freezer gets too warm (stuff melts or never freezes) and the fridge gets too cold (exploded Coke and beer). Whatever, I have no time for defrosting anyway. It will have to wait for another day.
Annika and I had a great time this afternoon during Dagny's nap. I ran the flats (back and forth in front of our house) while pushing Annika in the jogging stroller. Annika sipped her water and gave me commentary on the scenery and the neighbors. 35 lbs of kid is a LOT to push, but we had a nice time and I did 3 miles in 9 min/mile pace. I had planned for 4 miles, but Annika wanted to run with me, so we walked and then raced between mailboxes and storm drains. Then Annika rode her bike while I helped keep cars from running over her. We talked to some neighbors and enjoyed the lovely, breezy day and admired the big puffy clouds.
The original plan had been for my Mom to come over in the morning so that I could do my long run. Unfortunately, Dagny's poop issue from last evening turned into a throw-up issue during the night so I didn't want to subject Nana to that. We've been in barf recovery mode ever since (laundry, baths, attempts to hydrate). I'm very sorry to any Publix shoppers who we infected today. I thought Dagny was fine (no fever, no more barf since the wee hours) and Annika was getting stir crazy so we went to get Saltines and Pedialyte. Unfortunately, a bag boy came and took our cart while I was loading the kids before I had time to explain about the anti-bacterial wipes that I had just purchased so that I could disinfect the cart before returning it. Then, Dagny threw up again during her nap and is running a temperature. SIGH.
But, it was a beautiful day. We had a good time playing outside and eating breakfast for dinner (Fogle family secret tummy food is Cream of Wheat). Doug and friends are having a blast in Vegas - it is 96 degrees there!
Annika and I had a great time this afternoon during Dagny's nap. I ran the flats (back and forth in front of our house) while pushing Annika in the jogging stroller. Annika sipped her water and gave me commentary on the scenery and the neighbors. 35 lbs of kid is a LOT to push, but we had a nice time and I did 3 miles in 9 min/mile pace. I had planned for 4 miles, but Annika wanted to run with me, so we walked and then raced between mailboxes and storm drains. Then Annika rode her bike while I helped keep cars from running over her. We talked to some neighbors and enjoyed the lovely, breezy day and admired the big puffy clouds.
The original plan had been for my Mom to come over in the morning so that I could do my long run. Unfortunately, Dagny's poop issue from last evening turned into a throw-up issue during the night so I didn't want to subject Nana to that. We've been in barf recovery mode ever since (laundry, baths, attempts to hydrate). I'm very sorry to any Publix shoppers who we infected today. I thought Dagny was fine (no fever, no more barf since the wee hours) and Annika was getting stir crazy so we went to get Saltines and Pedialyte. Unfortunately, a bag boy came and took our cart while I was loading the kids before I had time to explain about the anti-bacterial wipes that I had just purchased so that I could disinfect the cart before returning it. Then, Dagny threw up again during her nap and is running a temperature. SIGH.
But, it was a beautiful day. We had a good time playing outside and eating breakfast for dinner (Fogle family secret tummy food is Cream of Wheat). Doug and friends are having a blast in Vegas - it is 96 degrees there!
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Limiting Factors
Or, Hill Repeats - Day One
In the quest to be better/stronger/faster, I've decided to add hill repeats to my running repertoire. I had been doing the run-fast-up-the-hills, walk-fast-down-the-hills routine around my loop, but felt like I wasn't pushing myself hard enough.
So, this morning, I started by jogging around my 3 mile loop until I got to the Big Hill. Then, I sprinted up the hill, circled the manhole cover at my turn-off and walked back down to the bottom (not slow - 12:30 min/mile pace). I had planned to repeat this hill four times and then complete the loop because I estimated that the hill was 1/2 of a mile and thought that it would add a mile to my 3 mile loop.
Yes, math whiz, I'm not. It made sense to my not-quite-awake mind early this morning, though. Regardless, it turns out that either the hill is not that long or that I didn't start at the actual bottom and so I finished almost right at 4 miles as planned (including walking down the hill 3x). I had to stop after 3 repeats because my heart was trying to escape through my chest at the top of repeat number 3. The legs were rubbery but held out OK.
Until I encountered the knee troubles, I thought that cardio was my limiting factor in the pursuit of fitness. Then, it was my knees. I would have thought that the leg muscles would be the limiter on hill repeats. Glover talks about how your legs should be burning when you finish your hill repeats. But for me, it's the cardio again. Who knew?
And, Doug bought us new Garmins on e-Bay last week so I know that my heartrate reached 183 on my hill repeats today. I think 185 is supposed to be my max but this place says it is 187. Doug is the master of e-Bay. It will be interesting to see how/if the knowledge of my heartrate will help my training. As my Dad would say, "hide and watch!"
In other news, the girls and I went to dinner with my Dad tonight because Doug is in Las Vegas. We had a great time with Dad, but miss Doug already.
In the quest to be better/stronger/faster, I've decided to add hill repeats to my running repertoire. I had been doing the run-fast-up-the-hills, walk-fast-down-the-hills routine around my loop, but felt like I wasn't pushing myself hard enough.
So, this morning, I started by jogging around my 3 mile loop until I got to the Big Hill. Then, I sprinted up the hill, circled the manhole cover at my turn-off and walked back down to the bottom (not slow - 12:30 min/mile pace). I had planned to repeat this hill four times and then complete the loop because I estimated that the hill was 1/2 of a mile and thought that it would add a mile to my 3 mile loop.
Yes, math whiz, I'm not. It made sense to my not-quite-awake mind early this morning, though. Regardless, it turns out that either the hill is not that long or that I didn't start at the actual bottom and so I finished almost right at 4 miles as planned (including walking down the hill 3x). I had to stop after 3 repeats because my heart was trying to escape through my chest at the top of repeat number 3. The legs were rubbery but held out OK.
Until I encountered the knee troubles, I thought that cardio was my limiting factor in the pursuit of fitness. Then, it was my knees. I would have thought that the leg muscles would be the limiter on hill repeats. Glover talks about how your legs should be burning when you finish your hill repeats. But for me, it's the cardio again. Who knew?
And, Doug bought us new Garmins on e-Bay last week so I know that my heartrate reached 183 on my hill repeats today. I think 185 is supposed to be my max but this place says it is 187. Doug is the master of e-Bay. It will be interesting to see how/if the knowledge of my heartrate will help my training. As my Dad would say, "hide and watch!"
In other news, the girls and I went to dinner with my Dad tonight because Doug is in Las Vegas. We had a great time with Dad, but miss Doug already.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Two Easter Perils
Easter egg dye tablets look like candy, SweeTarts, in particular. We found this out the hard way last week while Doug was dyeing the Easter eggs for Annika to decorate. Annika saw the tablets on the counter and popped the yellow one into her mouth. We had no idea until she said, "this candy tastes bad!" A quick look at the ingredients revealed sugar and food coloring, so we didn't have to call poison control. We washed Annika's mouth out with water and wiped most of the coloring off of her tongue, but the good part was the quote of the day: "Mom, I'm not dyeing!" Get it? Dyeing, dying? It's funny now, but not so much then.
Easter is all about candy. My children ate the following on Easter day:
Breakfast: Twinkies and Froot Loops
Snack: Candy from Easter baskets at home
Brunch: Whatever they wanted from the buffet, including chicken fingers, blueberry muffins, bacon and Lindt eggs.
Lunch?: More Easter candy, plus some Cheerios as a nod to health.
Dinner: Grilled cheese sandwiches, pears, bread in the shape of a bunny, Cadbury Mini Eggs (not the creme ones) and brownies.
They appear fine and have not suffered the sugar overload I thought would have occurred. You will want to know, however, that Twinkies do not last forever if you remove them from the packaging. Sponge cake does not like to air-it-out. Oh, and, I'd forgotten but I LOVE Twinkies. They are actually not that bad for you - we read the nutrition information. Sponge cake is not as bad for you as regular cake. If you want vegan twinkies, though, look here.
Easter is all about candy. My children ate the following on Easter day:
Breakfast: Twinkies and Froot Loops
Snack: Candy from Easter baskets at home
Brunch: Whatever they wanted from the buffet, including chicken fingers, blueberry muffins, bacon and Lindt eggs.
Lunch?: More Easter candy, plus some Cheerios as a nod to health.
Dinner: Grilled cheese sandwiches, pears, bread in the shape of a bunny, Cadbury Mini Eggs (not the creme ones) and brownies.
They appear fine and have not suffered the sugar overload I thought would have occurred. You will want to know, however, that Twinkies do not last forever if you remove them from the packaging. Sponge cake does not like to air-it-out. Oh, and, I'd forgotten but I LOVE Twinkies. They are actually not that bad for you - we read the nutrition information. Sponge cake is not as bad for you as regular cake. If you want vegan twinkies, though, look here.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Not Quite One, Not Really the Other
The part-time working is going fairly well. I feel like I have enough time with and for my kids and Doug (thanks in large part to Doug's willingness to come home early to relieve the sitter and do the bulk of the cooking) but also enough time to get my work done at the office or at home. The folks who have had their calls interrupted by my kids may not feel quite the same way, but at least I'm still working on their stuff in the midst of the chaos.
At Annika's school, there is a definite bias towards the moms who don't work outside the home. No one has made any overt comments to me, there is a chilliness towards those of us who aren't there every day and who can't drop everything at a moment's notice to help chaperone a field trip. Interestingly, more and more of the moms seem to be easing back into the workforce in some way . . . but that is another story. And don't get me started on the "party" businesses. Ragsland, schmagsland. I'm not buying it.
Anyway, at work I'm still not "part of the gang" yet. I keep reminding myself that this will come with time and that I should make a move by inviting some of them to eat lunch. It's depressing sometimes to face the microwaved lunch alone - even if it is spectacular leftovers from Doug's dinner.
So today, the girls and I dropped some travel books off at the office for one of my co-workers. She is interested in going to Prague and I forgot the books yesterday so I thought it would be nice if I brought them today (instead of waiting for my workday tomorrow) so that she would have an additional day for planning. That, and we were going to buy some play sandals at the shoe outlet near the office. I know that it's not terribly professional to bring the kids to the office - but I was just dropping the books off. As I handed them over to one co-worker, another came out into the hall and made a joke about lording my "non-working day over them." SIGH. Such a loaded comment for me. The person who made it has no idea - I don't think it was meant to be off-putting at all.
"Hm," I said, "you think so?" "How about if you watch the kids for an hour while I go buy myself some shoes?" Ha, Ha, Ha. We had a big laugh about that. Clearly there were no takers so the mobile disasters and I left the office and motored to the shoe outlet. After Dagny removed all of the crocs and flip-flops from the extensive color-coded display, I got some cute sandals for me (pink is not my color, though) and new crocs for Dagny. She and Doug lost one of her old ones while shopping on Sunday and I haven't been able to find it at any of their destinations. A pox on the person who found that lone shoe and chose not to turn it in to the store.
One guy who was giving me job advice before I took my job mentioned that his wife had similar issues with the part-time gig. It's not necessarily the best of both worlds, I don't think.
At Annika's school, there is a definite bias towards the moms who don't work outside the home. No one has made any overt comments to me, there is a chilliness towards those of us who aren't there every day and who can't drop everything at a moment's notice to help chaperone a field trip. Interestingly, more and more of the moms seem to be easing back into the workforce in some way . . . but that is another story. And don't get me started on the "party" businesses. Ragsland, schmagsland. I'm not buying it.
Anyway, at work I'm still not "part of the gang" yet. I keep reminding myself that this will come with time and that I should make a move by inviting some of them to eat lunch. It's depressing sometimes to face the microwaved lunch alone - even if it is spectacular leftovers from Doug's dinner.
So today, the girls and I dropped some travel books off at the office for one of my co-workers. She is interested in going to Prague and I forgot the books yesterday so I thought it would be nice if I brought them today (instead of waiting for my workday tomorrow) so that she would have an additional day for planning. That, and we were going to buy some play sandals at the shoe outlet near the office. I know that it's not terribly professional to bring the kids to the office - but I was just dropping the books off. As I handed them over to one co-worker, another came out into the hall and made a joke about lording my "non-working day over them." SIGH. Such a loaded comment for me. The person who made it has no idea - I don't think it was meant to be off-putting at all.
"Hm," I said, "you think so?" "How about if you watch the kids for an hour while I go buy myself some shoes?" Ha, Ha, Ha. We had a big laugh about that. Clearly there were no takers so the mobile disasters and I left the office and motored to the shoe outlet. After Dagny removed all of the crocs and flip-flops from the extensive color-coded display, I got some cute sandals for me (pink is not my color, though) and new crocs for Dagny. She and Doug lost one of her old ones while shopping on Sunday and I haven't been able to find it at any of their destinations. A pox on the person who found that lone shoe and chose not to turn it in to the store.
One guy who was giving me job advice before I took my job mentioned that his wife had similar issues with the part-time gig. It's not necessarily the best of both worlds, I don't think.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Hodgepodge
Here is a link to a photo of Jennifer, Joe and me (R to L) on ING race morning. I'll have you know that Jennifer looked just that good after the race too. The rest of my photos (with many of Joe, too) are here.
After the urgent care clinic visit on Sunday (post-race and pre-shower, mind you) to cure the Scourge, two checkups (regular and allergy) on Tuesday, Annika had a full-blown allergy attack on Tuesday afternoon. Her face swelled up and turned red and she itched all over. I had to call the doc to see how much Benadryl was too much because enough had stopped working. At the checkups we learned that Annika's height, weight, hearing and vision are normal. She has finally broken into double-digit BMI, which is nice. I forgot about picture day that day and it will be interesting to see what a lovely photo combination the allergies and a dumbass mother make. Wouldn't you know that she gets allergic AFTER the two doctor visits.
At Annika's school Easter party, they did the Easter egg hunt and subsequent egg redistribution (just like Annie described) but the cool thing was the cake. One of the party volunteers ordered it and it was HUGE. The cake woman made the most delicious white cake with frosting and two layers. She decorated three large round tombs with brown frosting, brown dots and crosses made from pretzels. Upon further inspection, I discovered that she had also made a recessed tomb for Jesus, with a chocolate chip bar cookie "stone" covering half of it and the tomb was EMPTY. How cool is that? You would never get that stuff at public school! I tried to find instructions for making this cake online so that you could link to a photo, but no luck. There is, however, an Easter cake contest and I suspect some variation of this will win. If so, I'll post.
Doug found something cool for me on Audible this week. Audible is the site where he downloads books to listen to on his long commute. I listen too, since we share the i-tunes account but I don't have as much kid-free time in the car and our books tend to be murder mysteries or have lots of bad words. Anyway, the cool thing is called podrunner and it is a bunch of mixes for running that are centered around a certain beat-per-minute. I listened to one with Doug the other day that began and ended with the USMC cadence - "got to keep on rolling." Today's mix did not have that at the beginning and I didn't get to the end, but it was pretty good. 176 BPM is a bit fast for a recovery run, though. I did my 5K in 26:25. Unrelated to the music, I rolled my ankle on a pinecone (not looking where I was going when exiting the bathroom area) - it's swollen but clearly not broken. I think this podrunner thing would be good for outdoor tempo runs, if you are the kind of person who has to get in step with the beat. Which I am. And what is more fun than a cadence, anyway?
After the urgent care clinic visit on Sunday (post-race and pre-shower, mind you) to cure the Scourge, two checkups (regular and allergy) on Tuesday, Annika had a full-blown allergy attack on Tuesday afternoon. Her face swelled up and turned red and she itched all over. I had to call the doc to see how much Benadryl was too much because enough had stopped working. At the checkups we learned that Annika's height, weight, hearing and vision are normal. She has finally broken into double-digit BMI, which is nice. I forgot about picture day that day and it will be interesting to see what a lovely photo combination the allergies and a dumbass mother make. Wouldn't you know that she gets allergic AFTER the two doctor visits.
At Annika's school Easter party, they did the Easter egg hunt and subsequent egg redistribution (just like Annie described) but the cool thing was the cake. One of the party volunteers ordered it and it was HUGE. The cake woman made the most delicious white cake with frosting and two layers. She decorated three large round tombs with brown frosting, brown dots and crosses made from pretzels. Upon further inspection, I discovered that she had also made a recessed tomb for Jesus, with a chocolate chip bar cookie "stone" covering half of it and the tomb was EMPTY. How cool is that? You would never get that stuff at public school! I tried to find instructions for making this cake online so that you could link to a photo, but no luck. There is, however, an Easter cake contest and I suspect some variation of this will win. If so, I'll post.
Doug found something cool for me on Audible this week. Audible is the site where he downloads books to listen to on his long commute. I listen too, since we share the i-tunes account but I don't have as much kid-free time in the car and our books tend to be murder mysteries or have lots of bad words. Anyway, the cool thing is called podrunner and it is a bunch of mixes for running that are centered around a certain beat-per-minute. I listened to one with Doug the other day that began and ended with the USMC cadence - "got to keep on rolling." Today's mix did not have that at the beginning and I didn't get to the end, but it was pretty good. 176 BPM is a bit fast for a recovery run, though. I did my 5K in 26:25. Unrelated to the music, I rolled my ankle on a pinecone (not looking where I was going when exiting the bathroom area) - it's swollen but clearly not broken. I think this podrunner thing would be good for outdoor tempo runs, if you are the kind of person who has to get in step with the beat. Which I am. And what is more fun than a cadence, anyway?
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Play it Again, ING
I am SO signing up to run the ING half again next year. The course was beautiful and the crowds were awesome. I expect that the start and water difficulties will be ironed out before the next one - maybe they can consult the track club for some advice.
Here are my stats:
Official time: 2:00:18
Chip time: 1:54:06
Garmin: 1:54:24
pace: 8:42
The PR time was due to our friend, Joe, who ran with me and kept the pace. He kicks ass.
Here are my friends and their times - all halves, except SuperNat:
Chris: 2:15:37 (first race EVER)
Susan: 2:28:52 (my boss)
Virginia: 2:03:46 (first half - my training partner)
Joe: 1:54:06
Jason: 2:01:39
Jennifer: 2:13:12 (first half)
Nat: 3:44:15 (heatstroke and a BQ)
Wes: 2:07:45
Here is my report:
My alarm was set for 4:00am, I thought. Apparently, it was not because I woke up at 4:14 with no alarm and my watch reading the wrong time. I'd cooked my oatmeal and set out my gear the night before and Doug made the coffee while I was in the shower, so I wasn't too far behind. Joe overslept too, so he was a little late picking me up and we were late picking up my friend Jennifer. We flew down the highway, so we got on MARTA at the Medical Center Station where it would be less crowded. MARTA was a breeze, we got to Underground at 6/6:15. We applied the vasaline, changed shoes and put on my knee-braces and checked our bags. Awesome job on the bag-check, UPS.
We finally found the huge wall of porto-potties and blanched at the lines. No matter, we waited and headed for the start. There were no signs, we just followed the masses. Because of the huge crowd, we knew not to try to go in at the back. Instead we walked outside the barricades until the 5:00 marathon pace group. At that point, we started to worry that we wouldn't get into the road. We went just behind the 4:30 pace group sign, and jumped (with help from those around us) the barricades. We helped several others do the same thing. I never heard a gun or a starting whistle. The crowd just started moving and we went with. We accidentally started Garmin at the finish line mats instead of the start, but quickly switched off - hence the 20-odd second discrepancy in the times. While waiting to start, I asked Joe his pace - "I don't know, what are we doing?" So, we ran together, even though Joe is MUCH faster and a better runner.
Jennifer had her own pace and so we parted at the start. The first 2-3 miles were bobbing and weaving as dawn broke over the city. The expo article about the views in those mile was not kidding. It was gorgeous. My knees felt OK but my toes got sore from sliding to the front of my shoes when tiptoeing between the other runners. We went through Inman Park and Little Five Points at or below my goal pace (9:09). I watched for running skirts (yes, I have skirt envy)pointed them out to Joe - he's not in the market for a skirt, but maybe for a skirt-wearing runner. We went through Little Five Points, which I haven't seen since Doug and I took my sister to see Dogstar 15 years ago. Then, we went down the Freedom Parkway - I remembered to eat my Sportsbeans during this stretch and on the way back we saw Jennifer and waved. She looked happy and chipper andwas running fast. Others have complained about this section, but it was still shady when we were there and was pretty pleasant. Then we ran up through Virginia-Highlands and I started to get a little tired. I was waiting for the post-beans euphoria. Some guy was handing out bottles of cool water from a grey trashcan and we got one. Thank you guy - we shared that water for the next two miles. It hit the spot. We went around through Piedmont park and I started to fade a bit. I was still with Joe, though, and we were doing about 8:20s at this point.
Then, the hills. On the back of the map that they gave us at the expo, it showed 3 big inclines. I kept thinking that we had finished the last hill, but no - there were more. I think that map was lying. Joe stared leaving me at this point. I caught back up and gave him a punch after the last out-n-back into the cheering zone. Then, going back up the hill to Peachtree, I stared to flag. My gut grumbled ominously. I looked in vain for a potty. No dice. This is a bad situation for a girl with pelvic floor issues. I stuck my earbuds in (had been only wearing one and switching ears so I could talk to Joe) and soldiered on. I kept Joe in sight and told myself to keep moving. Several times, I wanted to walk. The devil on my left shoulder kept saying "you can walk just a few steps, it will be no problem to catch back up," while the angel on the right said "no, sister, you better catch back up NOW." At the mile 1 sign, which apparently means one mile to go, Joe said "we're at 1:53" - I was a little loopy by this point and running with my eyes closed. I thought he meant that it was 1:53, which meant no way for the two hour goal. No matter, we pressed on. Those last two miles were in the 9:15 range and were not at all fun. The crowd started counting down as we approached the mats - I made the first mat before 2 hours, but that was the start mat. Oops - so I finished at 2:00:15. We got bananas and water and made the requisite pitstop - sorry to the guy who walked into my portopotty because I forgot to lock it. I felt like ass - not at all like Superwoman. After some curbside relaxing and ice shrink-wrapped to my IT band knee, I felt better. We limped to the UPS trucks to find Jennifer. There she was, at the appointed location - chipper and bouncing with glee. She finished in great time and at the same time as the marathon finisher.
It was a great race. I still have some muscle soreness today, but the knees are fine. I'm definitely there next year with more hydration and hill work under my belt. Thanks Joe, for keeping the pace. 65 Roses.
Here are my stats:
Official time: 2:00:18
Chip time: 1:54:06
Garmin: 1:54:24
pace: 8:42
The PR time was due to our friend, Joe, who ran with me and kept the pace. He kicks ass.
Here are my friends and their times - all halves, except SuperNat:
Chris: 2:15:37 (first race EVER)
Susan: 2:28:52 (my boss)
Virginia: 2:03:46 (first half - my training partner)
Joe: 1:54:06
Jason: 2:01:39
Jennifer: 2:13:12 (first half)
Nat: 3:44:15 (heatstroke and a BQ)
Wes: 2:07:45
Here is my report:
My alarm was set for 4:00am, I thought. Apparently, it was not because I woke up at 4:14 with no alarm and my watch reading the wrong time. I'd cooked my oatmeal and set out my gear the night before and Doug made the coffee while I was in the shower, so I wasn't too far behind. Joe overslept too, so he was a little late picking me up and we were late picking up my friend Jennifer. We flew down the highway, so we got on MARTA at the Medical Center Station where it would be less crowded. MARTA was a breeze, we got to Underground at 6/6:15. We applied the vasaline, changed shoes and put on my knee-braces and checked our bags. Awesome job on the bag-check, UPS.
We finally found the huge wall of porto-potties and blanched at the lines. No matter, we waited and headed for the start. There were no signs, we just followed the masses. Because of the huge crowd, we knew not to try to go in at the back. Instead we walked outside the barricades until the 5:00 marathon pace group. At that point, we started to worry that we wouldn't get into the road. We went just behind the 4:30 pace group sign, and jumped (with help from those around us) the barricades. We helped several others do the same thing. I never heard a gun or a starting whistle. The crowd just started moving and we went with. We accidentally started Garmin at the finish line mats instead of the start, but quickly switched off - hence the 20-odd second discrepancy in the times. While waiting to start, I asked Joe his pace - "I don't know, what are we doing?" So, we ran together, even though Joe is MUCH faster and a better runner.
Jennifer had her own pace and so we parted at the start. The first 2-3 miles were bobbing and weaving as dawn broke over the city. The expo article about the views in those mile was not kidding. It was gorgeous. My knees felt OK but my toes got sore from sliding to the front of my shoes when tiptoeing between the other runners. We went through Inman Park and Little Five Points at or below my goal pace (9:09). I watched for running skirts (yes, I have skirt envy)pointed them out to Joe - he's not in the market for a skirt, but maybe for a skirt-wearing runner. We went through Little Five Points, which I haven't seen since Doug and I took my sister to see Dogstar 15 years ago. Then, we went down the Freedom Parkway - I remembered to eat my Sportsbeans during this stretch and on the way back we saw Jennifer and waved. She looked happy and chipper andwas running fast. Others have complained about this section, but it was still shady when we were there and was pretty pleasant. Then we ran up through Virginia-Highlands and I started to get a little tired. I was waiting for the post-beans euphoria. Some guy was handing out bottles of cool water from a grey trashcan and we got one. Thank you guy - we shared that water for the next two miles. It hit the spot. We went around through Piedmont park and I started to fade a bit. I was still with Joe, though, and we were doing about 8:20s at this point.
Then, the hills. On the back of the map that they gave us at the expo, it showed 3 big inclines. I kept thinking that we had finished the last hill, but no - there were more. I think that map was lying. Joe stared leaving me at this point. I caught back up and gave him a punch after the last out-n-back into the cheering zone. Then, going back up the hill to Peachtree, I stared to flag. My gut grumbled ominously. I looked in vain for a potty. No dice. This is a bad situation for a girl with pelvic floor issues. I stuck my earbuds in (had been only wearing one and switching ears so I could talk to Joe) and soldiered on. I kept Joe in sight and told myself to keep moving. Several times, I wanted to walk. The devil on my left shoulder kept saying "you can walk just a few steps, it will be no problem to catch back up," while the angel on the right said "no, sister, you better catch back up NOW." At the mile 1 sign, which apparently means one mile to go, Joe said "we're at 1:53" - I was a little loopy by this point and running with my eyes closed. I thought he meant that it was 1:53, which meant no way for the two hour goal. No matter, we pressed on. Those last two miles were in the 9:15 range and were not at all fun. The crowd started counting down as we approached the mats - I made the first mat before 2 hours, but that was the start mat. Oops - so I finished at 2:00:15. We got bananas and water and made the requisite pitstop - sorry to the guy who walked into my portopotty because I forgot to lock it. I felt like ass - not at all like Superwoman. After some curbside relaxing and ice shrink-wrapped to my IT band knee, I felt better. We limped to the UPS trucks to find Jennifer. There she was, at the appointed location - chipper and bouncing with glee. She finished in great time and at the same time as the marathon finisher.
It was a great race. I still have some muscle soreness today, but the knees are fine. I'm definitely there next year with more hydration and hill work under my belt. Thanks Joe, for keeping the pace. 65 Roses.
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