Ummm...huh-ello?!?!?!

Dear Chicago Marathon,

Uh, let me remind you... Chicago Marathon... that just because you changed your name to "Bank of America Chicago Marathon" from LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon, I still do not forget, nor forgive you, for pissing me off last year. You still totally sucked and I kinda hate you. However, I kinda also considered signing up for you again when you showed up in my Inbox this week reminding me that you are almost full. But then if you suck again this year- what is next? "The Marathon Formerly Known as The Chicago Marathon"?

All for now,

Tiff

Off I go... to Denttsreal!

I am off on a 10 day work trip... to....

Denver...

then...Pittsburgh...

...and finally...Montreal!

Random... huh? I am speaking at three different conferences and stretched it all out to one super mother-trip. Arrivederci!

Back from Cabo...tired...need rest

Checking in... and then out...

Hey everyone! Busy travel week- just got home last night from Saaaaaaaaint Louis. Rainy, windy, crappy. At least I wasn't flying American though, right? I am off to Tampa tomorrow for a work conference and then five glorious days of relaxation, deep sea fishing, and fun at President's Club in Cabo San Lucas. Woohoo! I can't wait.

Of course I am glad I did the Bridge Run this year but failed to mention I had gotten 18 stitches in my side after the dermatologist removed a piece of me for further testing. She never mentioned not doing any mid-range races so I did... and the damn stitches were pulling apart. Crap! Now I have a huge scar and some bandage on. BLAH. Always wear your sunblock, kids. The dermatologist ain't a fun place to go. You better believe I am packing in the SPF 30 and 15 for this trip. My doctor ain't playin'!

On a random note, I decided today that I wanted a cupcake. My dilemna was that I was a) too lazy to go buy one and fight the out-of-towner traffic for the Family Circle Cup and b) did not want to use the entire box of mix and can of frosting in my pantry. Normally I might make a complete batch for Craig and friends and coworkers but I am going on the road for 9 days and Craig is at a work conference in Dallas... although he just called me to tell me they were playing football right now in Texas Stadium. I was a little confused but he sounded really stoked. OK, back to the cupcakes. I put about 3/4 a cup of mix in a bowl with an egg and some unsweetened applesauce (good substitute) for oil and had enough for 4 little cupcakes. Yay! They baked up quick and I put aside a bit of frosting (I picked blue dye today) and there you have it! They should sell little packets of mix like this for people that do not want an entire batch. They probably do... but oh well. They would charge you 4x what you would pay to split up a $1.00 box. Kinda like how all those chic Cupcake boutiques around cities today charge $4.00 for ONE cupcake. Holla for my cupcakes! I would email you all one... but the frosting would get on your computers.

And while I was on that thought... what goes better with a cupcake than...(no, not milk)...some iced tea! I tell you- I could drink tea day and night. I love that stuff... only I did not make it at home. I went rummaging through my crap (some stuff unpacked from 3 1/2 years ago when I moved here) to find my iced tea machine. Then I remembered- my loser ex-BF took it!! NOooooooooooo. I improvised- I took a pot of water on the stove and threw a bunch of teabags in... and then dumped into a huge thermos with ice. Thankfully, I bought the 1000 pack of Splenda at Sam's last month so sweetener is not an option. Yaaaaaaaay. Any better ideas how to make tea?

Hope everyone is doing well- I know you are jealous I get to work this weekend :)

Cooper River Bridge 10K Recap

First of all, I am happy to say that I managed to keep the CRBR Streak alive... running my third race on the new bridge which opened back in 2006. Yahoo!

Let's chat for a second about how the race is a logistical nightmare.

1. Over 35,000 people run the race and Charleston ain't that big of a city
2. It is a point to point race
3. In between the points is a huge bridge and the only other way to get from point to point is to take a long 23 mile "workaround" aka highways
4. The bridge closes at 7 AM (one hour before race time) so you better get your butt there beforehand if you want to cross.

Long story short... it was my slowest time ever. I had not trained. I had not prepared. Part of me wished I had actually ran beforehand... but I did it! My time was 1 hour, 23 minutes. A pace of 13:30 for walking probably 70% of it. The good part is- I guess I have a fast walk?

So, the aftermath. I am really not sure but my left foot (the plantar fascia nightmare) hurts like hell. I am trying icing and rolling it over a frozen bottle of water. I would feel great otherwise!

Congrats to the other finishers! I wish I could have met up with you, David and Mendy :( Next time...next time... and we can all start in the sub-40 corral! I am glad you enjoyed some of the yummy food here in Charleston- Vickery's and Andolini's are awesome!

I am off to spend time with my family and will be out of pocket for a few days.

What's next? Who knows? Stay tuned...

Twas the night before the Bridge Run...

Life has been nuts lately. Most of my energy, thoughts, and prayers have been with my grandfather. He went into the hospital last week to get a cancerous tumor removed, end up having a stroke after lots of internal bleeding, and has been in Intensive Care since then. It has been really hard on my family.

So, here I sit at 11:35 PM the night before my third Bridge Run. I haven't trained. I haven't run much since October. I am just going out to have fun and run/walk this 10K thing with friends. I am hoping to get the same motivation that I got several years ago on the bridge that spawned a tailspin of half marathons, marathon training, and other assorted fun.

Twas the night before the Cooper River Bridge Run...

Now where did I put those running shoes...??!?!

It’s Official.

I signed up for the Cooper River Bridge Run 10K today- which leaves me one week (or actually 8 days) til the race next Saturday! I had to keep my streak alive so this will be my third year running…or run/walking in my case. Can you blame me for wanting to check the weather report before signing up for a race? Chicago… Chicago…Chicago… Well we appear to be A-OK with lows in the 50’s, highs in the 70s.

On a slightly bad note- I’ve only run once in the last 5 months… but I’m doing it! Nothing like a good kick in the butt to get back on track. And…a certain person does not know that I signed him up too… misery loves company, right?

Now I must find an outfit! And wipe the dust off those running shoes...

Bon Voyage!

Off to the Western Caribbean until next Saturday!

Way to go, runners!!

A BIG CONGRATS to all of you who just finished marathons and half marathons!!! I love reading your race reports and seeing how much fun you are having out there!! :) Way to go!!

YAY!!

I am just getting back to wimpy 2 and 3 mile run/walks which are not as fun as 20 mile training runs, but will do for now.

Traveling a lot- Chicago, Seattle, now Philadelpia... and OFF TO THE WESTERN CARIBBEAN on Friday!

Yes, kids. It is almost CRUISE TIME!

Does Goldilocks live in Chicago?

I was/am in Chicago for work this week... again. Only this time, it was too cold. Because of snow, wind, the position of the moon and stars- my flight got cancelled. Typical! Luckily, I get to spend some more quality time in the Sheraton downtown. Have no fear....there is plenty of fun stuff to keep me occupied- bowling across the street, shopping, karaoke in the bar downstairs.

However, it is either too hot or too cold in Chicago. This Goldilocks is wondering if it is ever just right?

I sure hope I get home tomorrow morning!! Supposed to be 60's this weekend back in Chucktown- holla!!!

Oh yeah- and something crazy happened on the flight up to Chicago earlier this week... our airplane got struck by lightning. CRAZY!! First time it has happened to me in over 600,000 miles of air travel. In case you are wondering what it is like, it sounds like a really loud cracking boom and then you see light all around the plane and coming through cockpit door. We had a first time flier on the plane- she seemed totally freaked out.

I thought it was kinda cool.

I am weird though.

On another happy note, I am going on the President's Club sales trip to Cabo in April for my company!! Vacation rocks. I will even have some remnants left of the tan I will get in three weeks from my cruise when I hit Cabo. WOOOHOOOO!!