P.S.......I love you

Can someone please hand me the Kleenex???

Kenny and I went to see P.S. I Love You tonight and I already can't wait to see it again.

(And to settle anyone's curiosity: I did NOT drag him to see the movie, nor did I bribe him in any way. I simply said I wanted to see it and he willingly obliged. As a side note to this, read this article about men not actually hating 'chick flicks'. Interesting, no?)

Now, back to the movie. I was actually very adamant about NOT wanting to watch this, mostly because I don't like watching movies I've read the book to (with the exception of The Notebook, DaVinci Code and the soon to be Angels and Demons). I read the book while I was living in England (3 years ago) and I remember practically sobbing through it and not being able to put it down. When I heard they were coming out with a movie I found my copy of the book and started reading it again. Turns out I never got around to finishing the second chapter because I just got busy.

Ah, this movie had all the makings of a great chick flick. I will most likely watch this again in the theater and buy it when it comes out on video.

I'm very, very tired now, so instead of rambling on about this I'm going to sleep.

Happy Winter

It's snowing right now and that makes me happy :) When I was driving to work this morning everything around me reminded me of England for some reason. I think it's mostly because the sky was completely gray and it's cold. It clearly doesn't take much to make me think of England! It doesn't hurt that I'm sipping on my London Fog from Satellite to put me in the mood. Ah, winter!

Dessert Oasis

Hi. I'm Jessica and I have a problem. I'd like to call it a cupcake problem. I love them. I'm not a huge fan of cake in general because it's usually too sweet for my tooth's desire. Cupcakes, on the other hand, are small enough and have the perfect amount of sweetness to make me smile.

There's a place in town that fills my need with yummy flavors every day of the week. It's called Cake Fetish and coming next Monday it'll be within eye sight from where I am currently sitting. I can't exactly express the happiness I'm feeling right now. It means that Cafe Ole and Velvet Elvis will literally be at my beckon call. Ah. Bliss. Downtown bliss.

Woot! Woot!

Wait. Apparently I just spelled "woot" wrong. According to Webster's Dictionary It should be spelled with zeros (00) instead of the letter "O," which is something I'm not ok with. In fact. I refuse to spell "woot" with zeros. Sorry, Webster's Dictionary, but I will be spelling that word wrong.

Wow. What else can i talk about today? So many exciting things! Cupcakes, woots, snow dusting the Sandia mountains and my boyfriend coming home next week. This is a fabulous time!

Woot. Woot!

rant

I'd like to vent about traffic etiquette. If you are driving on the highway and notice a car is getting on from the on ramp, move to the next lane. It's just nice. Nobody wants to ride in the far right lane; the purpose of an 'on ramp' is to get ON the freeway.

Next. If you see someone with a blinker trying to get in your lane, SLOW DOWN AND LET THEM IN. Yes, I'm yelling. It seems that yelling may be the only way to make sure people understand this one. Ok, so I can hear what you're going to say next. "But, I didn't see their blinker on." Fine. Perhaps you were driving so fast and being such a bad driver that you're not noticing other cars around you. Did you happen to notice them when they were literally coming into your lane? No? Oh, I see. You're going to be THAT jerk that doesn't let somebody in. Well, guess what, I'm going into your lane whether you like it or not. HA. I appreciate the way you sped up right as I was going over too, that was really kind of you.

People need to know that during rush hour you're not the only person on the road, and contrary to what you may think, the road does not belong to you.

Mr. Snowman!

Ah, know what just tumbled into town? That would be the Tumbleweed Snowman!!! It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in good ol' Albuquerque! The next thing we need up is the Christmas Tree on Lovelace. That goes up the first week in December, I believe. Oh, if any of you are curious as to the origins of Mr. Tumbleweed Snowman, I suggest you pick up a copy of Albuquerque the Magazine and read all about him.

I've gotta say, I love my job.

I woke up yesterday with a feeling that I was about to come down with something, so I instinctively took some Umcka - this crazy medicine my mom found and downed some Emergen-C. Later that night I got the sore throat and a stuffy nose. I went to bed early and woke up with a very scratchy voice. Yuck. I've so far managed to set up two more interviews for December, conducted one interview with an amazing woman (read about her in March 2008) and I'm about to be on my way to meet with the executive chef of Marcello's Chophouse. *deep breath* Then I'm going home and resting.

Tomorrow's going to be a HUGE day. It's the 'Best of the City Party' at Santa Ana. Basically TONS of the winners in our latest Best of the City issue are going to be there with there sampling the 'best' (insert name of category here). It's bound to be a great time. Problem is, I have to be out at Santa Ana Casino at 8am. I know, crazy. So I'm gonna try to get as much rest as possible today so I can be ready to have fun tomorrow.

DAMN. The Emergen-C and Umcka I just took has given me a crazy bout of energy. My hands are even shaking. Yikes.

Ok...off to go meet another awesome person in the Duke City!

@ the Sunport

I'm inside the airport on the eve of Thanksgiving and I must say, this is the emptiest I've ever seen it. No lie. Not only that, but I think I made it through security faster than I ever have before. Everyone here (workers) have been really...cheerful so far. I'm impressed. Nobody is rushed or hurried, security was even smiling. Maybe more people just need to get to the airport long before their flight takes off.

I did anticipate a chaotic mess so I planned accordingly. I wore slip on shoes and removed my belt and jacket BEFORE I went through security. I also made sure I had my laptop out of its case and had my little quart size plastic bag out as well.

So what type of people are flying this evening? We've got an emo-looking 13 year old who's walking a tiny 'purse' dog (weird). A college girl in front of me who's definitely been backpacking in Europe before (so says the fabric flags flown onto her bag), a college kid who may be flying for the first time on his own because he keeps checking out his boarding pass, a couple in their mid-50s, another college girl who looks a little pissed off because she's here too early and several businessmen (although I don't know who'd be doing 'business' now). There are about 20 others I didn't mention, but they don't really stand out.

The downside to traveling alone, I've decided, is that there's nobody to watch your bags if you need a potty break or need to buy a bottle of water. With that said, I have to give up my perfect seat and hope nobody steals it while I'm standing in line to buy a $5 bottle of water.

...off I go... (T-minus 1 hour 15 minutes till my plane leaves)

Gobble Gobble

Happy early Thanksgiving!

I'm about to embark on a trip during the busiest travel day of the year. Yup, I'm hopping a flight to Atlanta to see my boyfriend for Thanksgiving. I don't think I've ever actually gone anywhere for a holiday before. Two Thanksgivings ago I spent a miserable night alone in my flat in England. I ate a TV turkey meal while I watched Alias and dreamed of pumpkin torte. That was depressing, to say the least. There's something about this holiday in America that makes people (or maybe just me) happy. It signifies a time when you can be with your loved ones, not to mention you get to eat delicious food!

Today I have a flight leaving 'Burque at 7:45pm, so I'm gonna get to the airport around 5:30pm, hopefully that'll give me enough time. I think I've managed to pack everything I'd need as an emergency in my little carry on, just in case my luggage doesn't make it when I do. I have all my little liquid bottles in a tiny zip-lock bag, and I'm purposefully wearing a new pair of shoes so I can just slip them off during security. Hopefully it'll be a breeze. The only thing I'm somewhat concerned with is the weather in Denver. I'm flying from here to Denver and then Denver to Atlanta and it's snowing in the Mile High City right now. Yikes. I do have a three hour layover there though, so hopefully my flight won't be delayed.

SO EXCITED!!!

Gmail, oh Gmail...

Dear Gmail,

Gmail, I love you. I really truly do. You don't let me down by saying I've gone over my file size limit (hotmail), or sign me out every time I leave the site (yahoo). I'm not bombarded by junk emails or ads and your Google Notifier keeps me alerted when I have a new message. You let me 'chat' with other emailers and let me search using even the silliest key word I can remember from an email. Your calendar function keeps my life in line and your threads let me keep track of who's emailed what.

But Gmail, there's one little aspect where you keep letting me down day after day. You see, you're in desperate need of folders. Folders for me to label and put those particular emails tucked away. Folders that I can open and see messages pertaining to that specific subject. You have a handy "label" function, but that's just not good enough for me. You also let me "star" important emails, but again, I need more.

I know this 'folder' idea is very 19th century for you, but some of us still appreciate old school organization techniques. All I ask is that you please consider this.

Thanks,
Jess aka Loyal Gmail User

Hold Your Reindeers

For the next week I'm boycotting Magic 99.5 FM. It seems as though they're confused and think Christmas came a little bit early this year. I turned on the radio this morning and heard "Deck the Halls" *GASP* It's not even Thanksgiving yet! Everyone knows you can't start celebrating Christmas till after you've stuffed yourself with turkey and pumpkin pie. I don't know what they're thinking, but they aren't thinking clearly.

...I just wonder what Delilah will play tonight.

Pumpkin Torte aka The Best Stuff on Earth

Ah. Pumpkin Torte. I can't express my love for this dessert. Eating this means it's finally time for the holidays and time to get nice and cozy. The perfect amount of cinnamon, pumpkin, whipped cream and the crunchy crust is so perfectly proportioned that it kicks a pumpkin pies butt!

I made it on my own for the first time a couple days ago - woohoo!!! I'm gonna make it again for Chris's work on Friday and then for Kenny when I see him for Thanksgiving. I'm going to be a Pumpkin Torte baking fool!

MMmmmmm. If any of you haven't tried this yet, you're missing out. And if you have tried it you're a very special person!

not my cup o' tea

I went to Satellite this morning to get my regular London Fog with English Breakfast and Sugar Free Vanilla. I should've known from the minute I walked in the door that they'd get it wrong. My usual morning crew wasn't there. They actually haven't been there for awhile (sad times) but the people this morning have probably never made a cup of tea in their lives. I said what I wanted and the guy just stared at me. Then he punched it into his computer. I also noticed that he put in SKIM milk. I did not ask for skim milk. I realize that by asking for sugar-free I'm asking to save a few calories, but drink just taste better with whole milk and I'm not willing to skimp on that. I should've said something, but I didn't. Now I regret it. It doesn't taste right. Something's just kinda...off. I'm pretty sure it's vanilla, but I don't know. :( I get so sad when my tea isn't my tea. When I buy it - maybe once a week - it's like a special treat to myself. I'm just sad it's not how it should be.

Ok. Enough whining. Sorry. Maybe next week my people will be back and will get it right.

All clean

I guess I liked about me not having IBS - I do, according to my doctor at least. My colonoscopy came out clean. Clean bill of health. She was checking to see if I had two different diseases and I don't - which is good. So now I have to be like an old lady and take a fiber pill everyday and another pill twice a day. Hopefully it'll make me feel better all the time.

I went into the colonoscopy feeling very, very anxious. I found out that I would, in fact, be awake during the procedure. I was not OK with this. But, after they stuck an IV in me, whatever I wanted was out of the question. I went into the procedure and they kept pumping me with medicine. Enough so that I remember staring at the clock and the TV screen, but not being able to really move or talk. It was weird. Kinda like having WAY too much to drink, but I couldn't just pass out. I wanted to sleep, but I still had that anxious feeling and was forcing myself to stay awake. If my doctor was going to see or find anything I wanted to hear it. They kept wanting me to move to one side or the other and I physically couldn't do it, they had to move me. I felt it cramp a little, but for the most part I was just ridiculously sleepy and lethargic. That's pretty much it. Nothing really came of it except for a prescription and a few days of realizing I could never, ever be anorexic.

In other news, I'm watching Alias DVDs right now and all I want to do is be Sydney Bristow. Seriously. How cool would it be to BE a character? It'd be seriously cool.

Why anorexia isn't for me

I've been taking laxatives for the past couple days. Not because I'm trying to fit into a prom dress, but because in about two hours I'm having a colonoscopy. Yup. 23 years old and I'm having a colonoscopy. I've been having tummy problems (and by 'tummy problems' I mean it's a little lower than there and the doctor kinda ruled out IBS) and maybe this'll shine some light onto the problem. I've already had a lactose test awhile ago that came out negative. I think the step after this colonoscopy would be a food allergy test, which is supposed to be expensive and the results would mean i'd have to eliminate certain foods. I'll go there if I have to.

The process of leading up to this has been a pain in the butt (pun intended). Starting on Sunday I had to cut out ALL fruits, vegetables and anything with seeds in it. Do you know what that means? That basically means, egg, meat, fish, cheese and bread. Granted that's not THAT bad, but you can't dress it up any. Anyway, it's just sucked. All i want is a salad. Mmmm. Ok, so then yesterday I had to only drink liquids. I'm hungry. I would have gone for a piece of crust last night, or piece of popcorn or goldfish, or lettuce. Anything basically.

Eh. Anyway. In just a little bit I'll go to the hospital and they'll do their thing and then I'll get to have food again and go my merry way. In a way I kinda hope they find something just so that I can know what's been bothering me the last couple years.

Well...time for me to go do my thing! Wish me luck :)

Quack Quack

I just read something that has deterred me from ever eating Foie gras or pate again.

"In modern foie gras production, force feeding takes place 12−18 days before slaughter. The duck or goose is typically fed a controlled amount of corn mash through a tube inserted in the animal's esophagus. Due to this force feeding procedure, and the possible health consequences of an enlarged liver, animal rights and welfare organizations and activists regard foie gras production methods as cruel to animals. Foie gras producers maintain that force feeding ducks and geese is not uncomfortable for the animals nor is it hazardous to their health. Scientific evidence regarding the animal welfare aspects of foie gras production is limited[4] and inconclusive.[5] A number of countries and other jurisdictions have laws against force feeding or the sale of foie gras due to how it is produced."

HOW TERRIBLE. I feel awful for eating it. YUCK.

The Day After Halloween

These are my thoughts from the day after Halloween:

1. Fall has finally arrived in the form of wind and very cold conditions.
2. Walking around outside for candy in conditions mentioned above is silly.
3. Waling around door-to-door for candy anyway is a silly idea.
4. I don't really like candy, so this holiday has always been silly to me.
5. Halloween is silly. And scary. Scilly.
6. Carving pumpkins and getting all the guts, goo and seeds out from inside is fun.
7. Pumpkin seeds are delicious. When cooked right. (I forgive you, mom, for the first batch.)
8. I made a fun pumpkin and will put pictures up sometime before next year.
9. My Nanny (great-grandma on my mom's side) died a year ago yesterday.
10. Last night was actually a little bit spooky with how windy it was and with all the leaves blowing around.
11. I don't like spooky.
12. Halloween means it's time for Carmel Apple Ciders from Starbuck.
13. MMMmmmm....

PICTURES!

I've spent the last few days trying to find an outlet for my pictures without giving in and paying money to upgrade accounts. The only think I could come up with was my facebook account because they give a link to my album there.

During the course of my trip I took 250 pictures. All the albums I could only allow 60 pictures, so needless to say, I had to pick and choose. They're also not in order, due to the fact that I used both my camera and my brothers, so I'm sorry for that too!

So, without further ado, here are my pictures:

I'm not in this picture - click to see more!

Sorry...

....for being MIA.

I'm really busy at work. I haven't even had time to look at the pictures I took from my race.

Ah. The Race! I DID IT!!!! SO much to talk about...I promise to give a full update as soon as I can!

Dark and early.

I'm awake long before my alarm is supposed to go off. It's only 4:30 am and I'm still sleepy, but I've slept as much as my body's going to let me...for now. My Grandma will be here in an hour to pick me up and take me to the airport - YAY! Is it strange that I'm excited to go on the plane so I can read Southwest's new in flight magazine?!

I'm hungry right now too, but I know I'll have to wait till I get past security. Not only am I hungry, but I'm sad because I can't stop and get my London Fog from Satellite because I can't take it with me past security. :( Now I'll have to settle for overpriced coffee and a not-so-good burrito. Sad times.

On a happier note: I'M GOING TO SAN FRANCISCO TODAY!!!!!

On a completely unrelated note: I think it's official that I like foam soap more than liquid soap. Yup. I used to be completely anti foam soap because I liked making my liquid soap foam. There was a joy in seeing the little bubbles after rubbing your hands together long enough. Now, compared to the soap that is over foaming in my hands, I feel as though the liquid soap really isn't doing much. And, in true American fashion, I think I'm overworking for the soap.

WOW. It's 4:38 on a Friday morning and I'm talking about soap...

I may write from the airport when I get there after my $5 cup o' Joe and $7 greasy, not spicy, thing they call a burrito.

Adios!

The Time Has Come

Well, folks, this is it! All the months of waking up early and going to sleep before my friends have even decided what bar they're going to has come down to this weekend. I just did my last morning run (I say last because I honestly don't know if I can see myself running this early in the dark during the winter) and now the only thing left to do is pack (AHH I still need to pack, and Grey's Anatomy is on tonight...no time left!!)

I'm waiting to check in online - five minutes to go. I know I've said it before, but I really am so excited about this! I've been reading other peoples tales of their TNT marathon and I think I should prepare myself to be emotional while running. Apparently people have up signs saying things like "Thank you for saving my life," or "You're running for my dad." THings like that. I'm taking kleenix with me just for that reason.

OOOO and I can't wait to see how this 'sea level' running is different from here. My lungs have adapted to being a mile high. No more huffing and puffing during my runs!! If you're reading this and would still like to donate, feel free! Click the link on the right and donate your heart out. :)

Ok. Time to go check in!!!

da Balloons

Have I mentioned my love for the Balloon Fiesta? I think I have, but let me just say it again: I love the balloon fiesta! Where else in the world can you be driving to work and see Puff the Magic Dragon hovering above you? Ok, maybe if you live in Amsterdam and had a little too much fun the night before. Seriously though. It's awesome. I actually took some pictures of Puff while I was driving (it's amazing more people don't get in accidents during the Fiesta), but I don't have the little upload-adapter thing with me. I'll put them up when I get home.

I also love running in the mornings during the fiesta. Today I went four miles and it was pitch black outside except for five balloons illuminated from their burners far away in the distance. I was said they were just the dawn patrol balloons because today is the first day of the Special Shapes Rodeo (hence Puff sailing over the Big-I).

Running this morning was really good for me. It felt great. Well, the first mile or so SUCKED because there's some muscle around my Achilles tendon that's really painful, but after I got past that I felt fantastic. I actually felt strong and somewhat speedy. Despite walking and stopping more at the beginning to stretch I finished earlier than I intended. YEA!!!!

I'm kinda sad this training is almost over. I know me and I know that it'll be nearly impossible to continue running in the mornings once it starts getting colder and darker. I also know it's hard for me to go work out after work. Boo. I'll figure something out.

T-minus 9 days and 22 hours :)

I'm giving up

I think one of my biggest pet peeves is the misuse of the words "Chile" and "Chile." I realize it shouldn't annoy me as much as it does, but for some reason or another it drives me up a wall.

I think I'm making myself more angry the more I keep looking at this Simply Recipes Web Site.

Take this recipe I found after digging around for Mexican Red Chili Sauce. AHHHH. Just spell it with an "E" already!!!

Check out
A Guide to Southern New Mexico Chile for a comprehensive guide to all things chile.

....I promise to not get so irked on the chile situation in the future. Ah, who am I kidding, it'll always annoy me!

I'm too protective

I think I'm too protective and way too opinionated when it comes to New Mexican cuisine (among other things).

This recipe was on my google home page. It annoyed me, therefor I need to share it and pass along my annoyance:
Chile Verde
oh yeah. Read the comments listed below the recipe.
gggrrrrr

It's that time again!

It's Balloon Fiesta time!!!! Yesterday I got to see the balloons without waiting in a car line for an hour, and without paying an entrance fee AND without freezing. Well, there was some freezing.

Our long run yesterday started at Paseo and Coors. We ran towards the mountains, a run that gave us a perfect view of the balloons. Besides the fact that it was ridiculously cold that early in the morning, it was a good run. My running partner and I were able to hold a conversation the entire time (something we couldn’t even fathom at the beginning of the season).

I know I’ve said this before, but I am so excited for San Fran! It’s now less than two weeks till I run and I can’t wait. YEA!!!!

We start tapering this week, so that means the mileage I run goes way down! It’ll be nice to sleep in an extra half hour the next two weeks.

In sad news, a woman died today from a balloon-related cause. So sad. I’m going up in a balloon this Saturday, so hopefully there won’t be any wind and it’ll be perfect ballooning weather.

On the road again...

I got back into my daily routine this morning – sorry for not writing at all last week, I caught a cold and slept in – and running felt good. I think I caught my cold from the last run I did (which I also didn’t talk about – sorry!) up in Red River. It was a hellova run to say the least. Not only was it raining the whole time (beautiful), but I was also running up in the mountains. Uphill both ways. In the rain. With NO shoes on. Kidding about the no shoes, but it was raining and it was ridiculously hilly. My calves and bum felt the burn of the hills the next two days.

After I ran Red River I knew I would be absolutely fine for San Francisco a month later. Not only did I run at a higher altitude than I’ve been training here in town, but I won’t have any of the hills like I did in the mountains. Piece. Of. Cake. (Cupcake preferably!)

I was mad that I missed my long run on Sunday, but I still wasn’t feeling up to the *challenge. Coughing up both of my lungs would have looked really bad while running 12 miles. I still kinda feel guilty about missing it though.

So…my race/run is in 19 days. That means I leave in 17 days and I’m SO excited!!! I’m looking into getting a camera phone so I can take pictures of different parts of my race. My goal is to run my half marathon in 3 hours. Yes, I know that’s still a seriously slow pace, but whatever. I’m doing it. Heh. Actually, if I run the pace I’ve been running I’d come in at 3:25. Now I’m anxious to see how I’ll do. I’m still not doing this for a time though. I’m doing it for the cause.

…One of my dad’s cousins just got diagnosed with Non-hodgkins lymphoma. She starts chemo this week I believe. My dad is actually going in to meet with his oncologist today for his 2 ½ year check up. In an hour and a half (more like 2 or 2 ½ hours because of how late doctors usually are) we’ll find out if his cancer is back. * JUST BREATHE* – note for me.

So. That’s what’s been going on over here. Enough from me for today!

Went running again this morning. Logged 4 miles this time. It felt good, real good. The best part about today’s run (well there were two good things) was that it was foggy the entire time. Not just a little fog-around-the-corner type of fog, but the I-can-barely-see-in-front-of-me kind. It was awesome. Not to mention, the fog was spraying me with mist every once in awhile, which was more than pleasant. It gave me flashbacks to when I lived in England. That was one of the most enjoyable things about living out there. I LOVE the thick fog that was out every morning and night; everything seemed so serene and perfect – ahhhh!

The second fantastic thing about my run was that I changed my route a little bit (see below):

Since I had a long run yesterday along the same route I’ve been going on I decided to change things up a bit. Instead of going north, I ran west – downhill!!!! It was easier on my psyche, but just as hard on my body because I had to control myself from the gravity. Still had the runner’s high afterwards-woohoo!!

This weekend I’m going up to Red River (talk about more serenity!) for our little family tradition. That’s funny, I sad “little” and “family” in the same sentence. My family is nothing but little. We rented only two rooms this year though because not everyone can make it. Last time I went up there it was with almost all my cousins and it was the day after Thanksgiving. It snowed while we were there ☺ I’m just expecting it to be cold this weekend.

I’m planning on running eight miles this Sunday up in the mountains. I’m also planning on huffing and puffing my way through it. Ha. I hope I’m just kidding about the huffing and puffing despite the increase in altitude – CAN’T WAIT TO RUN AT SEA LEVEL!!!!

FIVE

How far is five miles you ask? Well let me tell you. It's from the bottom of my driveway to Paseo Del Norte.


Can you believe that? I can't.

I also can't believe I was up before the sun was. That's just wrong on so many levels. People should not wake up before the sun wakes up. I have to say though, that the sunrise this morning was beyond spectacular. It was so amazing I'm tempted to figure out a way to run with my camera from now on. There were these huge storm clouds sprawling over the Sandias, and once the sun started creeping out it turned the clouds into a work of art. It started as a pale pink, then rose, hot pink, violet, lavender then a bright purple. I thought it was done after that and the clouds would turn gray, but instead they started turning gold, yellow, orange, copper. It was fantastic. Sadly though, I was running in the opposite direction of the view, so I had to keep turning around to see it.

I have a gripe about drivers in the morning, but I don't feel like ruining my morning by complaining about them. Long rant short, drivers need to remember what they learned in elementary school and look BOTH ways when they get to a stop. I haven't been hit yet, but I definitely get close enough to hit the car - only then do they realize some people actually run/walk/bike against the traffic. Silly people.

It's cloudy outside today - I love it. Fall is coming :)

My Heritage

I need better pictures of my parents and possibly a better baby pictures, although how do you get cuter than this:

Whirlwind Week

The reason for my absence in blogging can be described as a "long story short" tale.

My friend Kat flew in a week and a half ago from London. We basically played tourist around the Southwest for a week. It was a ton of fun. We spent a couple long, hot days in Las Vegas (didn't win any money, didn't see any movies stars, did drink a little and did have a lot of fun), traveled to see the Grand Canyon, followed by Petrified Forrest and the Painted Dessert in Arizona and then went to Northern New Mexico to check out everything in the Taos/Santa Fe area.

She also got to witness her first American Football game (complete with cheerleaders) and her first cockroach. We went up the tram and even made it to the NM State Fair. All in all it was a long, fun and somewhat educational 10 days!

I even managed to get my long runs in. What I didn't do was run during the week, and I definitely felt that during my 10-mile run on Sunday. It was hard. REALLY hard. My legs felt like lead and I felt like I weighed 1,000 pounds. I finished it and vowed to get all of my weekday runs in until the race and to keep up with drinking lots of water.

If anyone has any fundraising ideas, I'm all ears. I still need more. My deadline is October 1st.

me

Like: Wine, red grapes, white grapes, green grapes, craisins
Dislike: raisins

some things

I haven't blogged in awhile, just haven't really been in the mood honestly. Tonight feels like a decent time to write though. I had a busy/productive weekend. To spare the boring and lazy parts, I'll skip ahead to Sunday when I helped with the New Mexico Marathon. I was volunteering by being a "motivation station" for the runners. My mom, dad, brother and Emily all woke up WAY before the sun was awake and set up on the very north side of Tramway. Truth be told, I didn't even know Tramway goes the way it does (we were in between Sandia Casino and Country Line Restaurant - WAY OUT THERE!). Anyway, it was really fun to see runners smile because of the signs we had and the "woo hoos" we were giving!

I forgot...On Saturday I bought a new comforter from Kohl's during their fantagreat sale:

I really like it. A LOT. It's ridiculously comfortable and it makes me want to never get out of my bed. Oh! AND the bed frame is new, courtesy of someone from Craigslist who was giving it away for free. Also courtesy of my cousin Francisco for moving it for me!

On Labor Day (Monday) I decided to buy something I've had my eye on for awhile, an Exotic Retreat Bookcase from Target:


:) So, I bought it. Along with this 3-Shelf Bookcase in Espresso:


I spent 2 1/2 hours building this last one, and ended up hurting my lower back a little. BUT, I finished it! Here it is:

I'm really excited about it! The other bookcase is 6-feet tall and will most likely take more time to assemble, that and I don't have room for it in my bedroom, so I'll just wait awhile to put it up.

I also found out I can take a panoramic picture with my camera, so this is what happened when I did that:



Other than my big purchases, I haven't been doing much of anything. Just running. My fundraising has pretty much slowed way down these days. I still would like to get more. If anyone is interested in an Albuquerque the Magazine subscription, let me know - they are giving me $6 (half) of every subscription sold. They make good gifts!!!

Ok...time for sleep. Hope you enjoyed the pictures!

My RUN in with the law

So, this blog doesn't actually have anything to do with running, except for the fact that I'm no longer a good citizen in the eyes of the City of Albuquerque. Awhile ago I received a parking ticket for staying too long in a 30-minute loading zone. I forgot about this $20 ticket until a warrant for my dad's arrest came in the mail on Tuesday. (My car is registered under his name...) Seeing the warrant reminds me of two other tickets I received when Kenny was in town. We went out to lunch and then to see a movie and I completely forgot about my car parked in front of the office.

It was all my fault, I should have just parked in the parking structure, but I remember being very busy and going from interview to interview that day, so I parked in the convenient location instead. That's my excuse anyway.

Ok, so apparently if you don't pay your ticket within 15 days the price triples and you get the nice warrant. Well, with three tickets, all tripled in price, the total amount I owe the lovely City of 'Burque is $180. SO STUPID. I actually went to the parking ticket office and tried to get out of paying it because i was only a day - ONE DAY - late, and they wouldn't even budge. They shooed me away and told me to go to Metropolitan Court.

I go to the court and have to circle around about three times before I realize there's no place to park. I finally find a structure and the rent-a-cop there tells me I have to pay to park there. I tell him I'm not paying anymore money for parking. He says to park down the road on a residential. Lucky for me, all the residential parking places have the "Do Not Park Between 9am-5pm" signs. I finally find a place about 3 blocks down. I rush into the building with about 15 minutes to spare before they close and I'm greeted with X-Ray machines and another rent-a-cop (he may have been a real police though because I saw a nice gun on his hip). The 'cop' looks in my purse and tells me I can't take my cell phone in. I tell him 'fine, I'll leave it up here with you.' He says 'no, you can take it back to your car.' I explain to him that my car is three blocks down and I don't have time. Then he tells me that I can leave it with the hot dog man right down the street. Umm....hmmmm... NO!!!

I got mad and stormed out of the court, getting a little bruise on my hand because of how I slammed the door. I was furious - mostly at myself for not paying the stupid tickets as soon as I got them - but also for how the system is. I'm a good citizen and now I owe the city how much money just because i parked in one spot a little longer than I should have?

My gosh! I think the police and the city need better things to do with their time than walk around putting little yellow envelopes on people's cars...how about they go and
bust more paraplegic pot smokers. Real good use of their time.

Anyway, I took my frustration to Cake Fetish and threw $20 down the drain at Sandia Casino (I was feeling lucky enough to win back my $180!!) and called it a day.

....I didn't go running today, instead I cleaned my room and put up my new bed frame. Tomorrow the running will commence.

TERRIFIC TEN

Ten miles. No sweat (figuratively speaking of course...there was mucho perspiration going on this morning). Seriously though, this is the best I've felt running, especially for a long run. No pain, no huffing and puffing, didn't stop sweating and didn't get the chills, this was running! I saw three rabbits, two lizzards, a man running with only one arm, two hot air balloons, the smell of cereal being made at the Kellog factory (mmm...I really wanted come cereal!!)...I think I'm finally figuring this thing out!! I know it sounds silly, but it really didn't seem that far. I even came in a little under my 15 minute mile pace - woo hoo!!!

I think drinking more water throughout last week really helped, so I need to keep it up. I am pooped right now though. I could stay on this couch and sleep the day away, but I think I'm going to get up and go get some grub...I'm hungry.

:) I'm almost there...only 1 month and 25 days. I can so do this!!

....If you haven't yet (whoever's reading this), tell your friends and family about my blog and TNT website. I only need a little under $1,000!!!

Thanks for reading :)

I love my job

I do. I love my job. It's fantastic. I actually look forward to coming into work everyday. Even on days when I have to wake up early to do something I love it because I know I'm interviewing someone interesting, or doing something exciting. It's great.

Great. Great. Great. Fantasgreat even. Yes, I know that isn't a real word.

I lied yesterday when I said I'm not running less than 3 miles. I only ran two today because i didn't think I'd have time to get to my interview. Turns out I would've had time do get three in... darn. Maybe, just maybe, I'll go to the gym this afternoon. I highly doubt it though.

Time to get working!!!

mental 3

I think I stopped mentioning how far I was going on my weekday runs. I'm sticking to the magic number of 3 these days. I think I'm supposed to be up to 4 miles during the week, but I just can't get myself up that early... maybe tomorrow?

Today was hard. Really had. I don't really know why, all i know is that I was ready to quit about a half mile in. I took way too many walk breaks and wanted to turn around and go back. It was a mental run for sure. I pushed through whatever strange wall was in front of me and completed my three miles only 3 minutes past the ETA I gave my mom (she drives out and picks me up..how nice of her!).

This Sunday is another 10 miler. I'm working on drinking more water. As of 11:32am I've had 32 ounces. My goal is 100 ounces. I'm not getting nearly enough water during the day/week, so I'm going to try really hard to drink more h2o.

In other news, the new issue of the magazine is out. The new pic isn't online, so as soon as it is I'll put a link up to it.

That's all for now.

stinky

Running 8 miles makes you stink. I wonder why God made sweat smell the way it does. Couldn't he have made it smell like flowers, or rain? That way people would actually want to work out all the time? I'm telling you right now - I don't even want to be near me. I'm too lazy to actually get up and go take a shower (once I sit down after a run, i'm here for awhile).

Oh! It turns out I'm a "salty" sweater. Interesting. That means I actually have to eat more salt and drink A LOT more water throughout the week. It's good that I'm finding this all out now. What else? I can now say that I've ran from Tramway and Central to Tramway and Paseo del Norte. yikes.

I am so ready for a nap right now. I'm actually typing this with my head on the floor...mmmm sleep. I can't thought because I have to go shower. Like now. I'm doing the wine tasting fundraiser this afternoon...I really hope people show up. I know it's a little out of the way, but it's WINE!!! I made out really well with my Coaches fundraiser on Wednesday. On Friday I picked up a $250 check from them...SWEET!!!! I'm just barely at $1000 left to go. I hope I can do it.

Ok...it's seriously time for a shower.

guilt

I feel bad. I didn't go running this morning. I was up late last night from the fundraiser at Coaches (thank you to everyone who went - I should find out how much I made on Friday afternoon!!!), and didn't get to bed till about midnight. Combine that with drinking (I wasn't consuming water) and you have me sleeping through my alarm this morning. I really need to get back on track. Tomorrow. I will start tomorrow (can't tonight, going out to dinner for work).

Tomorrow.

Long time no talk. sorry

I decided to take this past weekend off because I had friends in town from college, and my boyfriend came in for several days. I figured one weekend off wouldn't completely kill my training. I did three miles last Thursday and two yesterday, for those of you keeping count.

Tonight is my fundraiser at Coaches, I really hope it goes well. A pretty fair amount of people have said they're going to come by, so I hope they do! I had a few rants I wanted to talk about, but I'm kinda sleepy and just don't have the energy (three enchiladas, beans, papitas, green chile and sopaipillas will make you a little groggy). I actually just made the statement that I wish I could marry green chile. That's how much I love it. Mmmmm.

Anyway. I'll go off on my rant about garage sales some other time. Yes, I said garage sales.

on the run

Ten miles. TEN miles. I ran 10 miles yesterday. Sure, I can feel muscles in my thighs, my arms and my back today, but it’s a good feeling. Sure, I wanted to turn on Paseo and skip out on three miles, but I didn’t. It feels good to accomplish something. I really wish I was faster, but the fact that I’m getting out there and doing this overcomes my longing to not be at the end of the pack. I’m going to have no problem running this in San Francisco. It kinda makes me want to try for the full marathon…kinda…

Yesterday was interesting though. Not only did we start running with 85% humidity - attractive, let me tell you - but around mile 6 or 7 I started getting chills while I was running and I stopped sweating. I looked it up (and from what people told me yesterday) is that I was probably dehydrated. From all the sweat I sweated out the first few miles, i probably should have had more to drink throughout the run. Not only that, but apparently there are sweaters, and then 'salty' sweaters. I may be on the verge of a salty sweater which means I should drink more sports drink type drinks while I run. .....SSOOoooo much to think about while running!

Two months and 15 days till race day. Heh. Race day. That’s a funny concept because I’m not racing I’m just running.

OOOooooo!!!! EXCITING news regarding fundraising: Wine Tasting on Sunday, August 19, from 2pm-6pm at Anasazi Fields Winery. We’re asking for a donation of $10 (more is ALWAYS accepted!) and that includes a wine tasting and appetizers. AND there will also be a raffle for several gift certificates to places around the city: $75 to Scalo’s, $50 to La Provence, $30 to Il Vicino, $25 to Bumble Bee's Baja Grill, a free yoga class, a four pack of sundaes at I Scream Ice Cream, just to name a few. Pretty sweet deal if you ask me. Send me your e-mail if you want me to send you an invitation (you don’t need an invitation to go, but it’s fun to get in your e-mail!

So, I’ve got two fundraisers coming up. Wine Tasting (August 19, from 2pm-6pm) and Coaches Sports Grill (August 15, from 6pm-9pm). Both are a fantastic way to fundraise because not only are you helping me reach my goal, but you’re getting food, wine, goodies and hanging out with people!

lost

No motivation.

A little recap

I forgot to blog the last few days so I'll be brief. On Tuesday I logged in my two miles and felt fantastic afterwards. Better than fantastic even, I was energetic and just generally felt good. The good times lasted until I went to a tequila tasting at the Rancher's Club in the Hilton for lunch. Then the good feelings were replaced with being stuffed with too much ridiculously good food...and a slight buzz. Free tequila and free delicious food? Yes, please!

So that was my Tuesday.

Wednesday I had "off" and I was going to do yoga, but I forgot to bring my stuff with me, so yoga went on without me. Last night Natalie came over and helped me make baked goodies for my bake sale on Saturday. My house smelled like chocolate chip cookies and funfetti cupcakes. I'll admit that I ate some of the dough/batter. It was tasty!!!! I even managed to make them taste good despite the fact that I forgot, half way through, that I needed to adjust for the high altitude here. Natalie, Kenny (via the phone) and my Mom talked me through it though.

That was my Wednesday.

This morning I woke up at six, put on my shoes and hit the road. It turns out that it takes a good mile to a mile and a half before my lower legs aren't tight. After that, it's all good. The humidity is driving me up a wall though! Silly Albuquerque monsoons.

After work today I'm meeting my mom and my cousin Maria Elena to go a women's football clinic at UNM. Yes, I'm going to a LOBO function. Don't worry Aggies, I plan on using the free shirt they give me to clean my very dirty car...I"ll take pictures. At this little function there will be free beer, wine and food. As an Aggie, I know that we don't ever, EVER, turn down free alcohol. Therefor, I will "drink it to the Aggies till I wobble in my shoes..."

....sorry about all the running talk, I'm sure it gets boring for my two loyal readers. I'll try to be more clever in the future!

Back on course

Yesterday I got up with the pain still taking over my lower inner left leg. I went to meet the TNT group with the intention of running only a little bit of the 6 mile half marathon run. My plans changed when me and my new running buddy, Terri, started on our way.

I'm happy to say that we did the run/walk just as the rest of the group did. After about 2 miles, my legs both completely stopped hurting. She is amazing to run with, we sometimes would run over our 4 minute mark and end up running for about 5 minutes. Not only was she motivating, but she is fantastic about diverting attention from the run, and pain, and the heat to other things such as: What are you thankful for? What makes you smile? What do you see? It was great.

Not only did it feel fantastic to run again, but the view from where we ran was gorgeous. I almost wish I could have done the full marathon run just so I could see more of the city. I could see the all the way from the Rio Grande to the Sandias. On Sunday mornings it almost looks like the city is holding its breath is it waits for the sun to peak over the mountains and come through the clouds. Everything seems fresh and alive. I love it.

Speaking of fresh, if you like blueberries make your way to CostCo. They have some of the sweetest, plumpest and best tasting blueberries I've ever had. MMmmm I put them in my cereal today. Delicious!

During the run we started talking about the problem with celebrities these days (among other topics). This one got to me because these young adults (Lindsay and Paris) are role models for girls whether they like it or not. If they don't have any consequences for the stupid things they're doing, how will teenagers know that drunk driving and using drugs is NOT ok??? They won't. They'll see that they can get away with it at least one time with nothing happening to them. I feel very passionate about this and I kinda wish there was a way I could do something about it. There has to be something done about the fact that there are people driving around right now who've been convicted of DUI's at least 20 times (or read it here from the ABQ Journal). Come on!!! That's just ridiculous.

....I think that's the most I can do for that rant for now.

**Keep August 15, between 6-9pm open...there is a tentative fundraiser at Coaches Sports Grill!!!

today's horoscope for ME

The mere fact that I write horoscopes makes me not believe them, but I still like to read them and get entertained with something when it actually pertains to my life. Take this one from this week's Alibi:

Aquarius: Consider writing an entertaining advertisement about yourself in order to attract the resources you'd like to play with. Or think about buying the domain name "showerblessingson[yournamehere].com," then setting up a website where the world can send you business offers, marriage proposals, free gifts and invitations to travel. The point is, Aquarius, that the upcoming weeks will be a perfect time to get very aggressive and highly specific about asking for what you need. rev up the fun-loving parts of your imagination.

How fun! More yoga in an hour...wwweeeeee!!!!

yoga 101

Things to know about yoga:
1. Bring your own mat
2. It's going to hurt
3. It's going to hurt a lot
4. There will be muscles used and stretched that you didn't know about
5. You will sweat without moving a single foot
6. Your legs will shake
7. Old women (they could be your grandma) will also take the class, which will shut your inner whining up for a whole 30 seconds.
8. It's still hurting.
9. It will feel good
10. You will be relaxed
11. The best part of the entire class is the very, very, very end.


I like blueberries.

Mmm Mmmm Puddin'

Kudos to my mom for buying some very tasty Chocolate/Vanilla swirl pudding packs by JELLO. I'm not one to be a fan of sweets, but that little pack hit the spot just now.

Thought I should mention the 1/2 mile I ran today. Woohoo! I walked about 1 3/4 miles this morning and threw in the little jog. It felt weird. It felt like I was trying to hard to not let it hurt when I ran, so instead it was throwing off my stride. I need to work on making it feel natural again. I suppose a half mile is better than nothing. Maybe I'll get up to a mile by the end of this week.

....and sometime this week maybe I'll actually get my butt to a yoga class like I've been talking about. I need, desperately, to stretch more. I also want to start cross training. Lots of things I want to do. I just need to do them!!!!

It's raining outside. I wish I could open a window so I could hear and smell it.

Strong six miles!!!!!

Yesterday I woke up early and drove out to Santa Ana Casino for our 7 am run. I got there feeling a little 'ify' about running, since i haven't ran for two weeks and every time before that my lower legs have felt awful. I wanna show you the route:
*Just for the record, it took me a half hour to figure out how to take this picture from a word document and turn it into a JPG. The geek in me is starting to shine through! Sorry it's still so small though - that's the biggest I could get it!!!*

Ok, so what you're looking at is the route we had for Sunday. I wasn't feeling confident enough to actually run, so I decided to walk. Luckily I found someone to walk with; her name is Terri and for six miles we got to know each other. We pushed each other to go further. Since we are both doing the half marathon we could turn around at the first water stop (the first green star - four miles out) which would make it a a round trip of 8 miles. Since I haven't done anything for the past couple weeks I wasn't sure how my legs would feel doing 8 miles, so we decided to walk an extra two miles (completely up hill - the second star on the map) and catch a ride back with the water stop people.

So, we did it. We walked the six miles, we didn't die and my legs didn't fall off. AND, the most exciting part (well there were four exciting parts) were:
1) We weren't actually THAT far behind everyone. I'd say that just by walking we were only a minute or two behind the runners. Not too shabby.
2)I met an awesome new friend, and I hope we can motivate each other.
3) We got our own form of a Tiffany's necklace when we got to the top of the hill - a delicious brownie!!!
4)I felt better yesterday than I have since before I switched my shoes for the first time!!!

After yesterday I'm feeing confident in continuing with my training. I'm still going to take it easy - no need to jump back into running, I think I'll walk a mile and try running a mile tomorrow, maybe. We'll see.

In other news, my fundraising has kind of hit a wall. Next month I'm having a Ben and Jerry's ice cream fundraiser, so I hope that'll get me a little more towards my goal. I'm also going to have a Lemonade stand at a garage sale in about two weeks. Who doesn't love lemonade on a hot Saturday afternoon?! I'd like to have a bake sale, but I think the fact that I can't actually "bake" may be a problem.

Well...this has been a pretty lengthy blog, so I'll write more tomorrow after I see how my run goes.

Thanks for reading!!!!

Time till the run: 2 months and 28 days...I can make it!!!

The best stuff on earth

I've decided the only way to decide if a Mexican restaurant is good is whether or not you can order "Christmas," finish the entire meal and still crave more chile even though your nose is running and your lips and tongue feel as though they need a dose of SPF to cool them off.

*A word to anyone reading this who is NOT familiar with spicy food: Do not, I reapeat, DO NOT gulp down a glass of water and think that the fiery sensation will go away. Find some milk, sour cream, or any other dairy product to wash it down.*

I had lunch today at La Esquina here in the Galleria where I work...it was ridiculously tasty. The enchiladas (because that's what I get anytime I eat Mexican food) came out flat instead of rolled, but they were delicious. They weren't greasy, as a lot of enchiladas are, and came out perfect.

Which brings me to my next topic: Perfect sopaipillas. With a sopaipilla you should be able to tear off the top with dough left on both sides, making it convenient to pour honey in, or stuff it with leftover fixings from your meal. I like stuffing it and then putting honey on the little top that I tore off. MMMMmmmmm....sopaipilla.

Of course, this all hast to be washed down with a margarita. *Tip: get it 'on the rocks' for more alcohol consumption.*

.....I don't know why I went on this crazy food kick. I think it's because I really want it to be green chile roasting season. We're out of green chile at our house and it makes me sad.

Tonight: Strengthen my sore, poor calf and get my butt to Yoga.

annoying

My legs hurting is starting to get annoying. If it sometimes hurts to walk, how's it going to feel to run? And if I start running, is that just stupid since I still kinda hurt to walk? Not just that, but I can barely pinpoint where it hurts now. It seems to be moving around. Now it's actually hurting where my shins are. So. It's been hurting with my soleus, my achilles, and now my shins? Ugh. One of the coaches with TNT suggested that I go "run" in the pool. Now I just need to get myself to the pool.

I just wanna run again!!!!!!!

The Way I See It

I'm not a huge fan of Starbucks' coffee. Personally, I'm a fan of the company, and their mixed coffee drinks - but they burn their coffee beans, and who wants to pay for burnt coffee? Anyway, my newest favorite drink these days is a shot of espresso, a shot of sugar-free vanilla syrup and the rest of the 8 oz. cup filled with cold milk. It's good and give me the buzz/energy I need.

I needed a pick-me-up so I walked over to Starbucks and used what was left of a graduation gift card. On each of the cups they have little quotes from people. Random people, famous people, and everyday people. This was on my cup:

The Way I See It #263
Run when you can, walk when you have to, crawl if you must; just never give up.
-- Dean Karnazes

Runner and author of Ultramarathon Man

Perfect.

zero miles this week.

Due to my lower legs still hurting, I've calmed down on the running this week. In fact, I cut it out all together. If it hurts just to walk around, then I'm not going to chance it and make it worse by running on them till I get the OK from my trainer and/or a PT. In the mean time I really should've been doing something else physical like swimming, yoga, biking, or something. Shame on me for not doing that this week. I suppose I could start up something today - I really should be cross training anyway.

In other news. I wanted to talk about blinkers. Yup. Blinkers.

I think people in Albuquerque don't really understand what blinkers, or turn signals (indicators in the UK) are meant for. This article knows what I'm talking about. I get so frustrated driving every day and having cars get annoyed with me and throwing one of their fingers out the window because I went over to the next lane without them "knowing." OR, it's also frustrating when someone has their blinker on and you're giving them ample room to come into your lane, but they don't budge.

People can be so hostile when they drive...it's a little ridiculous. I'm speaking about myself here too. There are just certain unspoken laws that people should follow. For example, if you're in the right hand lane and it looks like you may be the first or second car stopped at a light and you're NOT planning on turning right - get into the middle or left lane! It's not fair to those who actually have to turn right, but can't because they're stuck behind a car going straight.

OOOoo! Speaking of the UK (I mentioned it earlier!), my grandma comes home today from her two week stint in Great Britain! I've been ridiculously jealous of her the entire time, of course! BUT, I do believe she's bringing me back a Galaxy chocolate bar!!!! MMmmmm I'm not a huge fan of chocolate - but I LOVE those!!! I'm also kinda hoping she'll bring a scone back. That would be FANTASTIC. Boy do I miss England!

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far to Team in Training - I really appreciate it and I know everyone who is benefiting and how has benefited, thanks you. My mom, dad and I went to an Honored Hero party the other night for Team in Training and we heard from survivors and those going through treatments. At the end of the night a man got up and was holding a baby. The baby looked like he was about 3-6 months old and he was as happy as could be. The dad said that the baby's name was Ryan and that his twin brother couldn't make it to the dinner. Then he said that Ryan was 15 months old and has had Leukemia since he was 9 months old. This baby was TINY, but so happy. It broke my heart....

Babies shouldn't have to go through cancer. Nobody should.

Six on Sunday

***SOUTHWEST AIRLINES RAFFLE*****
Team in Training is raffling off two (2) round-trip airline tickets from Southwest Airlines on July 15, 2007.

Tickets are $5 each, or 5 for $20 - and ALL the money goes straight towards my fundraising goal/Leukemia Lymphoma Society.

I'll have them with me till July 12, so let me know if you want one/some and I can meet you, or run it over to you!

I ran six miles on Sunday. Well. I can't lie. I ran 5.5 miles - my legs started acting up again. I'm now getting help from my trainer, new shoes (again - that I actually think are already making a difference), and some stretches and exercises to work on. I didn't run this morning, a wise move I think. There's absolutely no point in injuring this thing any further than it is.

Tonight I'm going to an Honored Heroes party that TNT is throwing. It's going to be at JC's NYPD (look for an Eats Etc. on it in the August issue of ABQ the Mag!! My mom and dad are both going to - I'm excited for it. I think we're going to meet more people that we're running for aka survivors and those still going through treatments. I'll fill those of you still reading in on what happens tomorrow.

7.6.7

Why isn't 7-6-7 just as popular or "lucky" as 7-7-7?? Hmm..

Anyway, I stopped by to get my daily fix and there was a semi-truck with four (or five) little Smart Cars just chilling inside. If you test drive one of these little guys today through Sunday, you can get a free Satellite $10 gift card. I suggest you do the test drive and give me the gift card. Think about it!

I think it's funny that these are coming over here to the U.S. I thought they were even funnier when I saw them in Europe. Seeing these teeny-tiny little cars with huge guys driving them is hilarious! I can only imagine seeing one zipping around 'Burque in the next couple months. Silly Smart Cars!!!

Bring me a Mini Cooper anyday!

In running news... I did another three miles today. My body felt stronger running it today. Almost gone is the heavy breathing, and once I hit the three mile mark, I feel as though I could go on. What's still lingering around is the pain in my lower legs. Ice and Ibruprofen are helping... I'm super sleepy now. The 'energy' I get from running is only lasting about a half hour after the run. I guess I need to take everything in stride. First comes being able to breathe while doing a long run, then comes the energy.

I'm seriously considering starting Yoga. I've been talking about it for awhile, so now I just need to actually do it.

More later....

More energy with three

I ran from my house to Academy today - three miles - and I definitely wasn't as out of breath and as tired as I have been before. WOO HOO!!! It's an exciting feeling. My calf/shins are still sore when I run, but they're recovering faster and not hurting as much. So far so good.

I had a little extra time this morning, so I went to get my caffeine fix at Satellite Coffee. I'm obsessed with their "London Fog" drink. It's delicious. It's supposed to be made with Earl Grey tea, steamed milk and a shot of vanilla. But I'm not a fan of Earl Grey, so I get it with English Breakfast and sugar-free vanilla (trying to save a few calories). It's delicious. I love it!

Anyway, I was at Satellite this morning and as I was waiting for my drink, a woman was reading Albuquerque the Magazine. There was a huge sense of satisfaction while watching her flip through it.

Gotta go...

Let Freedom Ring

Happy Fourth of July!!! And to all you non-Americans reading, today is our Independence Day - aka "a day off of work"!!!!

I was considering going running this morning, but who am I kidding? I wanted to sleep in! I went yesterday though, felt good. Two miles. I'm still wondering how I'm gonna get up to running 13 miles. Crazy!! Crazy for sure!!

My Aunt Holly told the other day that I've already been running 5ks. How cool is that?! I thought a 5k and 10k were a lot longer. Who knew! It's kinda exciting knowing I've been running a 5k a couple times a week. This Sunday I'll be attempting a 10k. Sweet!!

As for today...Bring on the fireworks!!!!

Burn, Baby, Burn

...there's a lot I'd like to write about, but for now - just for the sake of not leaving my loyal readers hanging - all I have to say is that I'm sunburnt. Really. Really. Bad. I can't even get a sports bra on because it hurts too much. Therefor, my running is on hold until I can make my red back turn a nice shade of brown. Or at least pink.

Sunburns are no fun. More to come later.

Three mile

They say you should finish your run and still feel as though you could run another mile. I only ran 3 miles today, but I still could have gone on. I wasn't completely out of breath, and my legs weren't tired. My lower legs stopped hurting (or I just got used to the feeling) after about a mile and a half.

OOOOooo!!!!! I also got a very spiffy Hydration Belt by Amphipod. I tried several within the past week, and I think this will work the best for me! It even has a little pocket where I can put a key, my iPod and even a gel! AND that means I can return my iPod arm runny thing and get some money back!!! Woo hoo!

Also, the August issue of Albuquerque the Magazine hit the stands yesterday, so run out and get your copy while it's hot! Better yet, ask me for a subscription - I can hook you up to get 11 issues for only $12. That's cheap, folks, real cheap. Not to mention you get to stay up-to-date with all the latest and greatest in the 'Burque!

I'm also thinking about starting yoga. This place is supposed to be pretty good...I just honestly don't know how much more sweating my body can handle. They keep their room set at 105 degrees and the humidity is something ridiculous like that too. But, it's supposed to have all sorts of benefits and be really good for your body. Plus, I need to work on my stretching; it's not near where it should be.

Hokay...I've gotta get this day started. Thanks for reading!

Frozen watery lunch in a box

I'm taking a break from my running log to jot down a few rants about frozen meals.

Yesterday I had a really tasty frozen meal from Lean Cuisine. I felt like one of those commercials where the ladies are sitting in an office talking about their boring lunches and then one lady pipes up about how delicious hers is. There wasn't a circle of girls talking about our food yesterday, but mind was good! I had this tasty Grilled Chicken Primavera. It was good. Like home-cooked, good.

So today I brought another Lean Cuisine. I popped it in the microwave and took it out 4 minutes later only to be greeted with the frozen left over juices. It was not appealing, let alone appetizing. It LOOKed like this. Consider this my warning. I have about 5 more of these lovely meals to try. My mom went on a frozen meal shopping spree a few months ago because she had a coupon for a whole .50 cents off if you buy l0. Woo. Hoo.

....by the way. I couldn't even finish the second meal, I went across the street and bought a delicious sandwich.

Tuesday Trashy Two

In my neck of the woods, Tuesday is trash day, and that is NOT a happy thing to run through in the morning. Besides the lack of roses in the air, the run this morning was pretty nice. I went a little later than usual, but it wasn't as hot as it could've been. I even felt like I could have gone longer when I finished - granted 2 miles is the least I do. My lower legs were still giving me problems, but i just ran through it. As soon as I finished I popped some Ibuprofen and iced...now I feel fine.

On my way to work I thought I had a bunch of energy, and I got excited that maybe running is actually giving me energy. Not true. I'm tired. Sleepy, actually. I need a large dose of caffeine. STAT.

Sunday four miles

I got up this morning with the goal of running 4 miles with the team. I started out and immediately my calves/shins (still don't know what it's called where it hurts) started hurting. I ended up walking a good mile of the 'run'. I'd rather make sure I don't injure myself, than push myself to do the entire thing. This is an endurance run - not a race. They keep telling us that. I'm taking it easy, and I'm icing and stretching.

Before we started the run this morning we had an 'honorary teammate' speak. I think her name is Mindy - but I could be wrong. She told us that when she was 18 she was diagnosed with Leukemia. For 2 1/2 years she went through chemo treatments. She lost her hair, a lot of weight and energy, and was in the hospital for three years. She says the only reason she's alive (besides prayers) is because of the research clinical she went through. She beat Leukemia and now she's out running a marathon and raising money for other people to survive. She was able to finish high school on time, and went to college to become a nurse. Last week she started as an oncology nurse -HOW COOL IS THAT!? She's 25 now and is running with my team.

It's stories like these that keep me going. A HUGE thank you to EVERYONE who has contributed towards my fundraising goal, and for your encouragement! It means so much to me.

Also, check this out:

***SOUTHWEST AIRLINES RAFFLE*****
Team in Training is raffling off two (2) round-trip airline tickets from Southwest Airlines on July 15, 2007.

Tickets are $5 each, or 5 for $20 - and ALL the money goes straight towards my fundraising goal/Leukemia Lymphoma Society.

I'll have them with me till July 12, so let me know if you want one/some and I can meet you, or run it over to you!

eh....

I got new shoes again yesterday. I took the ones I had back to Fleet Feet and they told me the shoes they gave me may have been OVER stabilizing my feet. Great. So, now I have some new shoes, but my legs/calfs/shins (I don't know what it's called where it hurts) were still hurting when I got up. So, instead of running the three miles I was supposed to log today, I stretched and iced. I'm going to ice them at lunch too, and hopefully I can get to at least walk or maybe run the three later tonight - may have to go to the gym though cause it was pretty gross outside yesterday evening.

THANK YOU to everyone who is donating and sending me your encouragement - it means SO MUCH to me knowing that this money is going to help so many other people. THANK YOU!!!!!

Also, if you've been keeping up with these blogs, let me know! It's always nice to know that I'm not just writing to nobody. Believe it or not, keeping a daily log of what's going on gets touch when you don't get any feedback. It's kinda like talking to a blank wall... some people probably wouldn't mind it, but I would get lonely/bored. So...send some comments! How about this - what's your favorite song to work out to? I'm starting to get bored with the music I have. Let me know!!!

a tight two miles

I ran two miles this morning. And by "ran" I mean "walked too much of it." Ever since I bought my new shoes, the part in between my shin and my calf on the inside hurts. Today it hurt a lot. I stretched yesterday twice and this morning before I ran, but once I got a mile in, it hurt too much and I had to walk. I took some Tylenol and iced it and it felt better after that... I'm just gonna ice it again when I get home and stretch it some more. I don't run again until Thursday, so hopefully it'll be better by then.

Five or Seven?? Hmm... SEVEN!

Today was the long run with the team. Half marathoners training were to run 5 miles, and those training for the full marathon were up to 7 miles. I woke up and felt pretty refreshed so I drove out towards the Sunport to meet with the team. I got there, stretched a little and found someone to run with... then started the run.

I got to the turn-around point and instead of turning back, I felt really good so I decided to keep going to the full marathoners turn-around point. Wow. In all actuality, I probably walked about a good mile - there was a hill that was unbelievably long and gradually got steeper. My legs and body (ok, and lungs and feet and arms and EVERYTHING) just wanted to stop, so instead of stopping I walked. I ran to the 3.5 mark where there was water and Gatorade waiting. We had ran to the northeast side of the Journal Pavilion. Amazing.

The run back wasn't as hard (mostly because I could run down the ridiculous hill, but it was still hard. I was really proud of myself for finishing it. My legs and arms feel like Jello, and I would like nothing more than to crawl into bed and sleep the rest of the day.

I may attempt to start training like I was going to run the full marathon. If I decide to change back to a half, I can do it up until the morning of the marathon. Who knows. It's all up in the air.

Three musical miles

Yesterday I woke up bright and really early (6 am) to go for my three mile run. It was SO nice and fresh outside at that time. I finally bought myself the armband for my iPod, so I had company singing in my ear this run. Nothing too exciting besides the fact that I finished the run and for the first time felt as though I could go a little more. And by a little more, I mean I could have made it to the end of my block and then walked back.

In other news................... :)

As of Monday (7/18) I will officially be an Assistant Editor for Albuquerque the Magazine!!! That's right! Six months after graduating college I have a real job in the profession that I wanted to be in. Amazing. It's going to be a tough job, but I couldn't be happier. I get to write for a magazine and get paid for it. It doesn't hurt that everyone I work with is awesome and I like everything I'm writing about. WOOHOO!!!!!

Just wanted to share my good news with everyone!

two miles down

I am not a fast runner. That's what I was telling myself as I was taking what felt like baby steps this morning. I am getting faster, though. What used to be 15 minute miles are now 11 minute miles. Granted, I'm only running two miles here, and three miles there - with the occasional 5 miles thrown in (I may die doing that this Sunday....). It seemed a little easier today. A little. My legs didn't hurt as much, and when they did I think it's just the shoe correcting my stride. The hardest part for me always seems to be that last half mile, and it doesn't help that it's usually uphill.

During the last part this morning I thought about the cancer patients getting pumped with drugs that are literally sucking every ounce of energy out of their life. That pushed me a little bit - knowing that I have the energy to finish. Hopefully I can keep that motivation up for the next several months!

I remember watching a Sex and the City episode when Samantha was going through chemo. It really made me mad because she would 'go get chemo' and then go out that night to some promotional thing. It drove me crazy and really made me lose respect (I realize it's just a TV show) for the creators. You don't have the energy to do anything!! Sorry, I was just thinking about that....

Today I think I'll pick up the iPod runny thingy for sure - I don't want to just listen to the constant rhythm of my breathing, or the pitter-patter of my shoes on the road.

Shout outs: A HUGE thank you to my parents, for putting out the first donation, and to Brandon for the second donation and encouragement. Matt Akers, thank you for the e-mail you sent me...it's a huge motivator!

Two miles to Wyoming

Apparently I live in a convenient area for running because from my house to Wyoming (the street, obviously) is 1 mile. To Academy is 3 miles. Each stop light in between is about .5 of a mile. It's nice. I only ran two miles today, but it seemed to be the hardest run so far. I don't know if it's because I got new shoes and I'm working them in, or because at 9:30 in the morning it was already hot, and i was running up hill on the way back. I don't know. Every time I run I feel different muscles being used, and today they were in my feet and calves - I'm hoping that was from the new shoes straightening out my stride. I have five more miles to go this week and then Sunday's run is either a 5 or 6 mile run...I think.

I need to get my an iPod runny thing. Yup. "iPod runny thing" is the official word for the thing that goes on your arm so you can listen to music while running.

In other news, yesterday was my last day at Flying Star. They have a tradition there for anyone's last day...they whip cream you. I'm not talking about a little squirt of whipped cream. No. I'm talking about a showering of the sweet stuff from head to toe. I was taking out the trash and the next thing I knew I was literally covered in whip cream. Jen and Nichole both got me with the canisters, and the two chiefs smashed whip cream pies in my face. My shoes, jeans, shirt, hair, glasses, face, everything was completely covered. I ended up changing into a chef's coat to get out of my gross t-shirt. I'll miss the people there, but I'm moving on to bigger and better things! The girls are supposed to send me more pictures, so I'll post them as I get them.

Oh! Also, the other day I was at Albertson's with my mom and I saw this girl steal a bottle of alcohol! I've never actually seen anyone steal something before, so my eyes didn't really believe it. I told a worker, but the girl was already out the door. Oh well.

Day three/four - three miles

Yesterday there was an awesome thunderstorm in the afternoon. I laced up my running shoes and hit the pavement for a run after the rain. It turns out that from my house to Academy is exactly 3 miles. It seems like more. It felt like more. The wind during the run was the hardest thing to overcome; it never even considered letting up. I felt fine after the run except for my feet. My feet were ridiculously sore.

This morning I woke up and went to the Dinosaur by Riverpoint and ran another three miles. I can't get over how nice everybody on the team is. Emilie, my mentor, ran with me today. We're supposed to run at a conversational pace - HAHAHAHAHAHA - so she did most of the talking while I added filler comments. I really appreciated a faster runner taking the time to run with me, it was nice.

After the run my feet hurt again. They really hurt. I have three blisters on my feet; two on each pinky toe and one beneath my big toe...it sucks. So, about an hour ago I went out and bought me some running shoes from Fleet Feet. These should be good for me, so I'm excited to run in them.

It's time for a nap.

Day Two - Two miles

I realize I'm a little late with my second day of running, but let me try to explain. I ran with TNT on Sunday, May 20, and then that Thursday I flew to Florida. Yeah, I should have ran sometime that week, or while I was in Florida, but I didn't. Ok, so I got back to Albuquerque and landed with a cold - just my luck. I had planned on going running with TNT on the 3rd, but my little cough had turned into me hacking up a lung...or two. I was even sent home from Flying Star one night because they didn't want me coughing on people. Long story short (sorry, too late for that!), today was the first day I felt up for it and the first day we didn't have 50 mph winds.

I just ran 2 miles at the gym on the treadmill - I didn't think I liked them, but I didn't mind it all that much. I realize it's only two miles and I should have done more, but I didn't want to overdo it. As of right now I'm planning on running again tomorrow and will hopefully hit 3 miles - that's what I'm going to push for. I need to figure out some routes around my house so I can go running outside in the morning.

Pretty soon, once I get a decent running schedule down, I'm going to start doing Yoga with a girl from work. I think it'll be good for me.

Time for bed. More running to come.

Day one - three miles

Oh. Man. Yesterday I woke up early; 6:45 on a Sunday, early. I laced up my running shoes - ok, so they're really just old Pay Less tennis shoes that I'm planning on running in till I can buy an actual decent pair of shoes - and started driving towards Riverpoint Sports and Wellness on the West Side. It was my first day for training with TNT. I signed up last week and this was the first training event I could go to (since I missed the first last Sunday). We all met in the parking lot and talked before we started our run. There must have been about 30 people there of all different ages.

And then we ran. We ran 3 miles yesterday, and today I'm paying for it. My body is definitely not used to running and I'm out of shape. My legs are aching like they've never ached before. It's a good ache. The kind of ache that I know will go away and I'll end up feeling strength instead of pain.

My homework for this week is to run 2 miles three times this week...the problem is that I'm still working at Flying Star and I'm leaving for Florida on Thursday. I'll have to find some time to fit it in.

I have to say that the best part of yesterday was driving by the New Mexico Cancer Center. It made me realize that I'm actually doing this for a reason. It made me remember how scared I was the first time I went to see Papa getting chemo. I remember literally shaking before I walked in the doors because I didn't know what to expect, but then feeling calm after I saw him there and talked to the nurses. I'm doing this for the people still sitting in those Lazy-boys with drugs being pumped into them. Drugs that are making their hair leave their body along with their energy. I'm doing this for them.

College was neat.

I took a trip down memory lane a few nights ago. Actually, I guess I took a trip down the internet archives, because I was reading all the blogs I wrote. So much has changed in as little as two years. The floods of memories came back to me, I forgot about a lot of things - it's true that you only remember the good out of situations until the bad are reminded to you. Two years ago my dad had cancer. Reading that again was hard, I felt the same ache in my heart now, as I did back then. He's been in remission for a little over a year - thank God for modern medicine.

When I was in high school I thought I would be best friends with those people forever (Heh, well, I guess that is true in some cases!). But then I moved three hours south and went to NMSU. Living in RGH was the best decision I ever could have made. From there I met so many more friends. Thank you all for being a part of my life.

A lot of my friends are moving away after they graduate this Saturday. It's starting to hit me that we are growing up and moving on with our lives. No more late nights just sitting on the floor of our dorm room (or cheap apartment/house). No more last minute parties on a Monday night. No more BBQs during the perfect New Mexican nights. No more laughing about stupid stuff, or coming up with inside jokes that will last us the rest of our lives. Peppermint Patties for the girls, themed parties and Taco Bell runs five minutes before they close on the weekends will be a thing of the past. People are moving - the times are a changin'.

I guess we'll always have the memories - the good memories.

Why I do what I do:

They say that eyes are the windows to the soul. Does that hold true if, say, you're blind? Today I had the privilege of interviewing someone who lost his sight years ago. The first thing I noticed when I walked into his 15th floor apartment was the astonishing view of New Mexico's west mesa from the heart of Albuquerque's downtown. The second thing I noticed was that this man would never see the complex colors that make a New Mexico sunset. "If I had known I wouldn't be able to see when I bought this place I could have saved a lot of money," is what he told me when I mentioned the view!

In my line of work, it's my job to make people talk. I've learned a few ways to egg people on:
1) Smile. Make them feel as though you are enjoying what they're saying.
2) Make eye contact. Make eye contact while jotting down verbatim the words coming out of their mouth while at the same time remembering in what context they are saying it.
3) Use facial expressions to let them know what you are thinking.
4) Make use of filler words at the right moments: "oh yeah?," "really?," "wow," and so on...

Today I could only use words to let him know that I was still there and paying attention. I could have sat there, bored and just let my recorder do all the work, but instead I saw him as someone who wasn't blind, but as another person with a story to tell.

The thing that made him so unique was that I genuinely had a smile on my face the entire time. Even though he couldn't even make out the lines of my face, his eyes were on me the entire time, engaging me in his life. I smiled and spoke to him with my eyes...hoping that in some way he would catch onto my energy and attentiveness. I walked out of my interview with my cheeks hurting and I loved it!

Check out Albuquerque the Magazine's July or August issue to read my article.

April Fools!

I've been meaning to blog for awhile now. I'm so busy these days that I rarely get to talk to people about the random things I think about throughout the day. For example, I got a phone call from NMSU telling me that I have a check to pick up from the St. Louis trip I went on last year. It was for driving everyone to and from El Paso. The check is in the mail and on its way to me...SWEET!

I've also come across the most amazing thing to happen to the internet since AIM and Google. It's called Stumble and it only works if you use Firefox as a browser. I have Kenny to blame for the fact that I can, and will, and have, spent meaningless hours 'stumbling' onto different sites.

I came across this one and it really got to me: It's about a girl's quest to become a size zero. I read it all and it really made me appreciate the fact that I like food! It also made me sick that people can do that to their body just to get some social satisfaction when in the end they're only hurting and sometimes killing themselves. Nobody is perfect! I like how the girl said that the guys didn't like her the skinny she got...that's gotta show something....

Another site I check regularly is My Strange New Mexico. The author of it, Mike Smith, writes it as a column for the Daily Lobo. Read this blog entry. I love it! I also keep up with Duke City Fix to keep up with everything going on in Albucrazy.

What else has been going on, you ask? Well, my mom just celebrated her birthday and I don't know if it was because she felt like being a kid again or....or...what, but she wanted to celebrate by going to Itz. Not gonna lie, it was a lot of fun. Chris and I got to play some arcade games and I walked away with over 250 tickets (all of which I gave to a little girl). It's like Peter Piper (Pistol Petes) only about 10 times cooler. So cool, they even have a roller coaster, bumper cars and I crazy flying thing that kids can go on. Very neat.

*Sidenote* I am now in love with jalapenos. MMMmmmmm. I love them on my salad, I like them in my burritos, give them to me ontop of nachos. Yummy. I have Laura to blame. I can blame her for my love of jalapenos and country music - two things i used to detest and now can't seem to get enough of.

Know what else I detest? The stupid cell phone law. While I haven't been pulled over (yet) I do think that if they're going to make talking, and sending or receiving texts, a law, then they need to also out law eating food in your car and listening to CDs and/or iPod. All of the above are VERY dangerous while driving. .....lame.....

I know I have more to ramble/rant about, but my break here at Flying Star is almost over.

Till I have more time to write....adios!