Looking back...

I took some time this morning to reflect on the past year. Running has been one of the only constants through thousands of miles of travel all over the globe, hectic work schedules, and other assorted personal and professional challenges.

Tomorrow marks the official registration kickoff for the Kiawah Half Marathon which will inevitably sell out in about 5 days. I signed up last year in an effort to get into shape and take on that seemingly un-doable task of 13.1 miles.... and ended up hooked. I am running it again this year and have challenged about 20 of my coworkers to join me. I even provided them with the Hal Higdon Novice training plan that I had used. Several have agreed to sign on... others are wavering. I am excited to ignite some motivation in my coworkers and I greedily am looking for more running partners, especially when we are on the road traveling together!

My fall race schedule is really focused around the Chicago Marathon. The summer race schedule in good ole' hot Charleston, SC is fairly nonexistent... hence the fact I have not run a race since April. There are a couple 5Ks coming up within the next two months but I think I will hold off. I am participating in a 208 mile relay race through the Blue Ridge Mountains in early September with a group of coworkers- should be awesome! Post-Chicago brings a possible half marathon in November, a 10 miler the next weekend?, and Kiawah Half in December. I am hoping to also sprinkle in a couple 5Ks and 10Ks and decide then how I feel about committing to a big spring race.

Happy trails, indeed!

Just how long could I procrastinate doing my long run this weekend?

Til Tuesday morning! I knocked out my (very, very late) long run of 13 miles this morning... and then went to work and had to sit at a desk all day.

Yuck!

Only 4 days til my next long run- a scheduled 16 miler with my coworkers also running Chicago. It is AMAZING that this is the FIRST time since we started training that I am able to do my long run with them! Long runs alone SUCK... so I am happy!!!

Don't you just love those fabulous weekends that you wish you could go back and relive again and again and again and again??? Yeah, me too.

I'm an aunt!!!!!

My brother and his wife welcomed their first child to the world this past week, Miss Audrey Claire!!!!

And of course...being #1 Aunt Tiffany means I have spent no less than $700 so far on this kid.

Yaaaaaaaaaaay!!!

Waaahhhhhooooo!!!

Here is the big ol' Wahoo I caught while deep sea fishing in Punta Cana. I fought the damn thing on the line for about 10 minutes before finally reeling him in... I could not feel my arms for 3 days! Does that count as cross training??!?

In Chicago now after dropping off my vacation stash of cigars, doing laundry, and getting 45 minutes of sleep. Big sales meeting today, and then Raleigh tomorrow for the weekend....

WAAHHHHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Off to Punta Cana!

Back next Wednesday night at midnight!

Then off to Chicago on a 5:30 AM flight!

And then Raleigh for the weekend!

Hurray!

(And yes, somehow in the midst of this travel mayhem... I am actually putting in my marathon training miles)

The BIG 2-7... a fabulous birthday!

Fun birthday flowers...

And a birthday happy hour that my coworkers threw for me... YAY!!

Vacation all I ever wanted vacation had to get away...

Yeah- I can't get this out of my mind... because I am on vacation!!!!!! Sweet, beautiful, lovely vacation with a big fat capital V!!!!! So, I kick off vacation sitting here in the Crown Room in the Boston airport getting ready to come hooooome after a trip to San Diego last week, Oklahoma City, and now Boston.

So.... what am I doing for vacation? I don't leave for Dominican Republic til Friday so I have a couple days to kick it at home and celebrate turning the big 2-7 on Wednesday.

NEWSFLASH- send your gifts NOW so they make it in time!!! NEWSFLASH!!!!

On a running note- I had a great run in Boston this morning- 8.25 miles along the Charles River. Beeeautiful scenery, weather, and a great run all around.

I heart VACATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Are you there, God? It's me...Tiffany.

I have to go to the dentist tomorrow morning for an 8:00 AM appointment and it ain't gonna be fun!! As if it is ever fun? As if I loved getting my crown put on the first time sooo much, I wanted to come back and get it replaced and feel the PAIN TRAIN once again.

For you loyal readers, you may remember me cracking off half my crown at the Diamondbacks/Giants game last month in Arizona.... yeah... I have had some temporary temporary crown-type thingamabobbo in my mouth since then and am getting my new temp tomorrow... then 3 more weeks til the permanent one. Why isn't there some sort of warranty on crowns? Even with my great medical insurance, the damn ordeal is gonna run me a couple big bills that could be spent on more important things...like blackjack, a new handbag, or race registration fees!

Are you there, God? It's me...Tiffany. Why must I have to go back to the dentist and spend more money? I am sorry I did not crush my teeth enough as a youngster.

Listen, kids....

Brush your teeth.

Don't take rides from strangers.

And stay away from tanning beds.

Working it (out) in SoCal

Did an easy 3 miles along the waterfront (that is what "The Hal" called for), 10 minutes on the bike, weights, and abs.

Felt good to finally push through my wishy-washy-ness of not wanting to work out and get OUT there!!!

Flying back east tomorrow.... and to Oklahoma City on Thursday!

Happy trails!

San Dieeeeeeego 10 miler

Yeeehaw! I made it to San Diego about noon local time today... cabbed it over to the hotel and found my room not ready. So... what did I do? Well, I grabbed my luggage and changed into running clothes in the hotel restroom and hit the trails! What a faaaaaantastic running city- my 10 miles just flew by (well, kinda... I think you all know what I mean when I say "flew by" aka were not excrutiatingly painful)

I have the most wonderful view from my hotel room. I got upgraded to a suite and have a balcony room with a view of the harbor and Coronado Island. It is picturesque. Fortunately, I brought my camera but unfortunately did not pack the cable to transport my photos.

Off to get prettied up and hit the town with my work colleague in town!

Oh yeah, I am supposed to be here for a work conference that starts tomorrow. I'm working, OK? Just like going to the Padres/Braves game tomorrow night is working!

GOOD LUCK TO CHIEF in his 15K tomorrow- The Boilermaker!!!!!!!!!!

Friday Weigh In Accountability

So, I decided last week I was going to track my progress and make myself more accountable. I did a first weigh-in last Friday and lost 1.5 lbs over the last week! I am going to try to make Friday the weigh-in day but know it may have to be shifted around at times due to travel.

Total weight loss (since 6/30/07)- 1.5 lbs

MUST BE ACCOUNTABLE.

Hot summer nights

A hot and sweaty five miles tonight! I picked up the pace towards the middle of the run and finished with a 10:11 min/mile average pace. This may not sound fast but it's the first time in MONTHS that I have attempted to run faster than just a plain old 11 min/mile pace. I am starting to think I need to work a little speed back into my workout-especially since I am 2 months and 1 week from starring as a bridesmaid in my friend Caroline's wedding and I need to look smokin' hot.

I cannot stop laughing when I look at Wiley's mileage and think about how he is going to run circles around the Kenyans in Chicago and I start to think that I am on the "You Will Be Lucky To Cross the Finish Line" Marathon training plan :) Damn, Wiley- you rock!

I feel like a couple shout-outs tonight. First of all, keep up the spirits Mendy! We are just about three months from Chicago and are getting ready to kick it into gear with the Hal novice training program! I think it is fun we are on the same plan now so we can cheer each other on!

Chief- thanks again for your continued support and telling me to get off my butt and run.

(Ring ring)
Chief: Why are you answering your phone? You are supposed to be running. I just drank two beers at happy hour and am going to the gym.
Tiff: I am looking at old pictures from college. I misssssssssss my ex's dog soooo much. Not my ex. Just his dog.
Chief: Get off your ass and run.

You are gonna kick butt at the Boilermaker on Sunday... or at least get drunk afterwards at the beer truck.

Marcy- SG was out tonight and sends his best to upstate NY!

Time for shower, a popsicle, and nighty night! One more day in town and then Saaaaaaaaaaaaan Diego yall!

Tsk tsk, Tiff!

No, I did not run the race this morning.

Yes, I have a good excuse.

No, I am not telling you.

Racing tomorrow!!!!

There is a 5K cross country race on Johns Island tomorrow and I am debating whether or not to run it...

I have not raced since the end of April so I am anxious to get out there, but I have not really been training for speed like I used to when I ran a lot of 5Ks. Regardless, it will feel good to get out there on the trail!

Plus, it will keep me accountable from being out too late.... despite some of my backlog blogs about staying up til 4 AM the night before 5Ks!

Breakthrough

Woke up this morning. 6 AM. Alarm went off. I heard rain tapping on my roof. The normal Tiff would say "Oh noo... it is raining (insert smile)... guess I am not running today..." and then reset the alarm for an hour and a half later and go back to sleep.

I debated.

I looked outside no less than 14 times.

I finally told myself, "You are training for CHICAGO... get your butt out there!!!"

And I did.

9 miles.

In the rain.

Small victories.

A repost from one of my friend's blogs... she is hilarious!!!

Tennis Anyone?

I have suddenly found myself on the @ss end of yet another breakup. And to avoid what happened the last time (i.e. lying on the couch, listening to Olivia Newton John, watching "Seventh Heaven," and getting fat), I decided to get out of the house, get active, and get into Brittany Spear's pre-baby­ body. And in a moment of tear-free clarity, I realized that tennis is just the way to accomplish these goals.

I announced my new tennis plans to some friends (first item on the list of things to do if you really want something to happen). Once you announce to your friends that you are going to do something, they will question you about it incessantly until you actually do it. See…I'm already thinking ahead of myself!

One very good friend, let's call her SchmAllison, passes me a number and says, "You should call this guy. He gives private lessons."

"Is he a good instructor?" I ask.

"I don't know," she replies.

"Does he play well?" I ask.

"He's smokin' hot and cheap," she says.

I was on it like a hobo on ham.

Soooo, I sent the obligatory intro email. "My name is April...I'm a friend of SchmAllison's…I'd like to play…yadda yadda yadda." Hours later, I receive an email back from him with his number and instructions to call his cell.

Ahh…it's a game already! Intriguing…and the ball's back in my court!

(HA, I made a tennis analogy without even thinking about it! I'm so in tune with tennis now it's scary!)

Making the call was a little more nerve-wracking, as I was sure he was going to be able to tell how bad of a tennis player I was from just hearing my voice. To make sure that didn't happen, I simply told him how bad of a tennis player I really am.

I took lessons my freshman year of college. On the third day of class I knocked myself out cold (with my racket, not my talent). Apparently on the follow-through of a forehand groundstroke you are supposed to make sure your arm stays straight. Instead, my elbow bent, which resulted in my clobbering myself square on the forehead with my racket. Seven minutes later I came to, flat on my back, staring at my classmates and my teacher, Kathy Parker. She handed me a drop/add slip and directed me to the clinic.

Perhaps telling this cat about the above TKO wasn't the best idea, but I felt I had to set some expectations. He didn't seem to be fazed by my confessions. Maybe he likes a challenge.

We settled on $25 an hour for lessons and the more I think about it, the more I love this idea. If this guy will put on white shorts and chase balls around with me for $25 an hour, what else will he do for $25 an hour? Rub my feet and tell me I'm smart and pretty? 'Cause I'd go broke for a little bit of that right now.

Of course, I had a myriad of questions for him, and he had answers for them all (I love a man with all the answers). And when I asked him who I would practice with (cause I'm pretty positive he's gonna want me to practice a lot!), he assured me he could round up some people at my level to play with. At this point in the conversation, I'm wondering where he's going to get a busload of school children and blind people. But hey, I guess I'm just gonna have to have faith.

After about 15 minutes of the question/answer game, I had the nerve to get to the one question that had been burning since I decided to take up the game:

Is there a certain level one has to reach before they are able to wear the cute tennis outfit? 'Cause those are darn cute!

I waited for my answer with bated breath. And it seemed like an eternity until he responded, "I've found the worse you play, the better you want to look."

I love this guy.

I spent the rest of the day happily getting ready for my lesson! Here's how that panned out:

12:30
Headed to Dick's Sporting Goods to pick out the perfect, super-cute tennis ensemble. Dropped $85.

1:00
Inquired to the friendly lady shopping next to me as to what item of clothing I would need to cover my ass.

2:16
Lunch—Salad with chicken, cucumbers, pine nuts, blueberries, flax seed, and balsamic vinaigrette

2:42
Got tennis racket out of laundry room storage

2:45
Magic-markered over swastikas on racket

3:00
Cut my nose on the sharp edges of the tennis ball pop top (don't ask)

3:06
Searched for socks with the fluffy balls on the heel

3:14
Danced around the living room in my hot new outfit to Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend"I know what you are thinking…You want me to go back and explain the 2:45 entry. (SIGH) Ok, I will…

When I was a teenager I lived down the street from some redneck family who had a lousy skinhead for a son. They had a garage sale and were selling a tennis racket cheap, so I bought it. When I got home I realized the son had "decorated" the racket and its case with his Anti-Semitic filth. Part of me wanted to take it back and demand my money back. The other part of me wanted to play street tennis with the neighbor. That part won. Anyway, I figured that I could puff paint or bedazzle over the offensive material and none would be the wiser.

Unfortunately, the racket ended up under my bed and stayed there until I moved here. As I pulled it out of the laundry room today, I noticed its offensive nature and decided that after the ridiculous stories and questions that I peppered my teacher with, it would be insane to show up with a racket covered in swastikas.

Which brings me to the moral of today's story: A magic marker and some CareBear stickers can fix most anything.

Wait… let me clarify here… I would never imply that anything could remedy the horrors of the Holocaust. Maybe a time machine that could shoot someone back in time to provide Hitler's father with a condom. What I meant to say is, all that aside, a magic marker and some CareBear stickers will cover the crap on my tennis racket long enough for me to save a little dough to buy a new racket that is free of offensive materials.

My birthday is August 10th in case any of you want to buy me a swastika-free racket.

My first lesson is Tuesday. I'll let you know how it goes!