Synchronized Running

We couldn't do this again if we tried.

Chia Challenge: Day 40 - Judgement Day

Parsley:
Basil:

Medusa a.k.a. cilantro:

Chives? We'll never know.

4:03:38 PR

It was a tougher race than I expected, but I managed to squeak out a PR (personal record) today. We had some trouble finding the bag check before the race so by the time we got into the corral we only had a minute or two before the race started - a little stressful. The first few miles are always hard for me; it takes me 2-3 miles before I can get any kind of breathing pattern down. Unfortunately today I felt like I struggled with my breathing the entire time. Fortunately Steve ran with me the whole race which kept me from walking. (We had the exact same splits to the second at each timing mat.)

For a little while we were on track to finish at exactly 4 hours. By the time we got to mile 18, I knew that I'd be lucky to beat my time from the National Marathon. The last 6 miles weren't pretty, but I did beat my National time by 62 seconds. Not great, but I'll take it.

I'll also be taking several handfuls of my chocolate Chex Mix and chocolate covered pretzels. Gotta reward myself somehow ya know?!

Fini!

1026081404.jpg
Originally uploaded by cherrydg

All done.

Tattoo Time

Remember those temporary tattoos that Al sent us back in September?

Steve's Wine and Dine lady:

Die Before Fast Food:
And for me....

Eat or Die:

Vino:

And last but not least, Bacon!

Now I'm ready for this race.

Superstitious?

Maybe I am. I bought a hat yesterday at the MCM Expo that I was thinking about wearing for tomorrow's race. Navy blue running cap that has the MCM logo on the front and 2008 on the back. The more I thought about wearing it, the more I thought that I might jinx myself and not finish the race. What if I trip and break an ankle at mile 26? What if I get locked in a port-o-potty? I've decided the anxiety and worrying isn't worth it, so I will wait until after I finish the race to wear the hat. Until then here's what I will be wearing on my foot tour of Arlington and DC:

It's supposed to be cold in the morning so I'll also have to pick a shirt or two that I can toss once I warm up. (The Marines donate whatever clothing is left on the course.)

Chia Challenge: Day 35

Are we almost there yet?

Cilantro:
Basil:

Parsley:

Weekend Recap

Saturday - Last longer distance run before the marathon next weekend. After that I spent most of the day painting our dining area olive white. It's subtle but better than the white that we had.

On our way to Chipotle that night we noticed one of the streets near our house was closed off and there were about 3 cop cars there with their lights on. Then we noticed a cop (we're assuming) in camo, helmet, and a rifle in hand. Uhhh... what is going on? On the way home, camo man was still out patrolling the street. In addition we happened to pass the Loudoun County Bomb Squad truck turning toward the closed off street. No idea what was going on.

Sunday - Second coat of paint. After that we went to Randy's swim meet but ended up missing it because it ended earlier than he expected. Strolled around the furniture store before heading to Helen's to watch football. I couldn't stand the thought of being inside on such a nice day so I spent a few hours raking leaves in her backyard. Rewarded myself with a few Coronas and wings before dinner.

Chia Challenge: Day 30

Petite parsley:

Buff basil:

Wild 'n' crazy cilantro:

Carbo-loading

Care package from Austin full of goodies for after the marathon.

Color Me Stupid

I'm really starting to think I've got some form of retardation or color-blindness going on. A few weeks ago I painted our fireplace. Since then, I've been trying to find a paint color for the rest of the room. As I type this, I have 5 different colors of paint splattered around various walls of our living/dining area. This does not include the 3 shades of yellow I had up there previously which I have then since ruled out. I thought I was going to paint the room the yellow (a.k.a. cowslip, whatever that is) that is shown in the picture. Unfortunately, when I did some of the trim the room started to look like a mix between the Redskins' locker room and McDonald's; neither of which I wanted to spend my time in.

Speaking of Cinder Blocks...

One of the neighbors down the street had all four tires stolen off their Escalade the other night. Imagine waking up to your car being on cinder blocks. Here's the snippet from Loudoun County's website:

Grand Larceny: A resident reported seeing a suspicious vehicle with its tires and rims removed. The owner was located and it was determined the items were stolen during the overnight.
Value: $6150.00 C2008017610

Chia Challenge: Day 25

Cilantro:

Basil:

Parsley:

Bon Voyage, Happy 40th, and Sushi

Our weekends are either feast or famine and this time it was a big, fat feast of things to do.

Saturday – Taper time! This means our Saturday morning long runs are getting shorter since the marathon is only two weeks away. This weekend we were down to 14 miles; I think we’ll be doing 10 next week. Spent most of the day running your typical suburban errands: bank, Home Depot, etc… That night we headed to Gordon Bierche in Rockville to wish Kim and Steve bon voyage before they move to Japan . Plans for us to visit them and run the Tokyo marathon are in the making.

After a few beers and apps, it was back to Reston for Heidi’s 40th birthday shindig. (She’s one of Steve’s tri friends who will also be doing her first Ironman next July.)

Sunday – DeGuzman family day in MD. My sister and her hubster Joe took us to the Cross Street Market in B’more for some yummy sushi and beers. On the way back to their place, we took a quick detour to El Grande – a huge international grocery store – to find the avocado ice cream my sister was raving about. No luck; they had mango and red bean, but no avocado. We spent the rest of the afternoon sewing pillow covers while the boys watched football. Mom, Dad, and Rob stopped by and brought the avocado ice cream we were searching for. Too bad I was too stuffed to try any.

Runs with Scissors

Splurged on these $36 scissors since I had a 50% off coupon from JoAnn's. Cuts fabric like a hot knife through butter.

HOA Rant

Months ago a piece of window trim on our house fell off after a storm. Today we got a certified letter from our HOA informing us about the board hearing to "determine the appropriate action to remedy the above-reference violation." Ummm.... we fixed it. Months ago. I present to you Exhibit A:

Notice that there is no window trim missing. The only thing missing is the Mini Cooper convertible that's on my wish list. (No offense Jeepy. I still love you and am not planning to replace you.)

Last year they sent us a nastygram for not having all our caps on our fence. Hello f#$%tards. That's our neighbor's fence you're referring to.

In the meantime, there are a number of exposed cables throughout the neighborhood. See Exhibit B below.

HOA blames Comcast and claims they can't do anything about it. Well then I blame Mother Nature for any future damages to my house. Don't get me wrong. I know the HOA serves a purpose. They prevent people from painting their houses purple and having cars on cinder blocks in their front yard. Of course that doesn't explain why it took them a year to get my neighbor to remove the two rusty bikes, one of which didn't even have a seat, from his front porch.

Wii Tourney Upset

This week was the first round of the Wii bowling tournament at work. All teams get to play in the first round regardless of how poorly we did. Remarkably our team which is ranked 2nd to last won!!!! We beat the Ash Kickers who are ranked 3rd! Yeehaw! Guess the Wii-roids are helpin' my mii.

Wonky Schedule

My schedule the last week and a half has been thrown off because I'm having to be at work earlier than normal. I'm observing/helping with training at the client site and the class starts at 7am which means I have to be there around 6:45am. Now I don't mind getting up at 4:30 to go to the gym, but it's a hold different story when I'm asked to use my brain before the rest of my body wakes up. Good thing there's only 2 more days of this nonsense.

Chia Challenge: Day 20

F%$#ing chives. I'm not taking pictures of it any more unless it actually sprouts something. Anything.

Basil:

Wild-haired cilantro:

And making a guest appearance... PARSLEY!

Chia Challenge: Day 15

Basil: check! Although one little guy couldn't take the pressure.


Parsley: pathetic

Cilantro: suicidal

Chives: held captive by Chia sponge

Verdict: keep my day job