artist & athlete | a glimpse into real life, Heidi style | Artistic musings, business advice, and athletic endeavors, written through the lens of a highly educated mama who loves spreading joy.

April 22, 2012 · 7:15 pm

Oshkosh 1/2 marathon 2012 race recap and cute dogs :)

It was a beautiful, slightly chilly day for a race. Brian and I woke up at 5 am, got dressed and ate breakfast (yogurt, bananas, chia, agave), then headed off to Oshkosh. We got there around 6, and I stopped at the race HQ to pick up my bib. I was so happy to see Nancy, Thomas, Kim, and Kim’s awesome grandma there. Thomas ran the 5K this morning and took 1st in his age group and 3rd overall! Way to go, Thomas! 🙂

Brian and I continued our race tradition in Oshkosh and walked over to a little coffee shop, where we got coffee, kept warm, and hung out.

Brian is the best spectator and race support system. 🙂

At 6:50, we left the coffee shop and walked the block to the starting line.

I started the race with a track jacket and thin gloves, since it was chilly. It was about 40 degrees. The first few miles were good- I went out at about a 9:00 pace. I took a few Gu Chomps at mile 3, but got a little sick to my stomach; I tried to ignore that feeling. I ran with the 2:00 pace group for a while, but I knew that I couldn’t keep that up, so I let myself stay back when they pulled ahead around mile 4. I played a lot of mind games with myself in miles 4-6. I kept looking at the people in front of me and wondered who might be competing with me in Athena. I intentionally slowed my pace to about 9:15 and thought if I hung in there at that pace, I could make my goal of 2:02. Brian was waiting for me at mile 6 and took my jacket and coat, encouraged me, and blew me a kiss.

I continued along for three miles until I saw him again. During that time, I tried to eat a few more Gu Chomps, but thought I might just yak them up, so I decided to forgo solid-ish fuels for the rest of the race and stick with Gatorade on the course.
Miles 9-12 are kind of rough in this race. We run through a business area and there aren’t many spectators. The best part of that section was when a 65-ish year old woman cheered me on and said, “What is this? A fashion show? You look great!” It was the cutest thing ever. I was wearing a new purple running skirt, so I was pretty cute, haha.
I started thinking about TK and Rachael around mile 10. A few tears escaped my eyes, but with all the salt from sweating, the crying hurt. 😦
The last few miles, my ~~baby cows~~ calves were cramping. I was afraid that would happen- but I pressed on. As a result, I had to take more walk breaks than I wanted to. 😦
I still knew that a PR was in my future, so I was able to will myself in through the finish line chute…

…with a final time of 2:03:30. That’s two minutes faster than my previous 1/2 PR, so yay for that. Second race for Rachael in the books. 🙂

On to the not-as-fun part.
So, I mentioned in this post that I signed up to run this race as an Athena. I thought I’d have a chance of getting a good placement in this division. Even with running a new PR, I placed 9th out of 17. I would be lying to you if I said I wasn’t disappointed in myself. I’d be lying if I said that a part of me didn’t feel really defeated. If I can’t even compete realistically against the other big girls, then why bother competing at all? I’m still sort of struggling with that concept. It might have been a mistake to mentally give myself permission to compete for real- I might have been setting myself up for failure.
I may just go back to trying to compete against myself for a while.
Anyway, I stopped at the stretching tent for a little help with recovery. They had a chiropractor there who was VERY helpful for my sore calves and hips.

And of course, I had to have a cup of Drop Dead Blonde. Thanks, Point Beer, for being an sponsor! It was like a little taste of home 🙂

Brian drove me back to New London and I immediately hopped in the shower. I was one salty, sweaty, cold runner girl. After my shower, we went outside to play with our pups. Brace yourself for some shameless pictures of my cute pups. 🙂

Abbie got a “war wound” on her nose from a branch in the woods.

That didn’t stop her from helping with shucking the corn!

Poor cute thing. She also entirely covered herself in mud. I rested my legs a bit, I was feeling pretty tired after that run.

We had a great lunch of turkey burgers, roasted veggies, and sweet corn (thanks, Jean!), then packed up and headed home.

That’s all for now. Sorry to be a downer, but the bottom line is that I’m proud of my PR, and I hope there are more to come. I’m still as strong as ever!

Miles this year: 210.3

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April 19, 2012 · 6:09 pm

Yoga, fitness photos, and more dancing :)

Yoga is awesome.
I’ve been doing yoga for almost a decade now. For a few months, I’ll be really into it and practicing regularly, then for a few months, I let it slip by the wayside. This year, I’ve made it my goal to include more yoga in my weekly routine, because it forces me to focus on my own body, my own capabilities, and I strongly feel that yoga helps me avoid running injuries. One of the most amazing things about yoga is the self-awareness that it brings to my normal fitness routine. For a while now, I’ve been focusing on a progression that leads to Pincha Mayurasana. While Brian and I were at an after-hours gym shoot on Tuesday, we played around in the mind and body studio and came up with this incredible shot.

I am so proud of being able to bring myself into that pose and I’m amazed at what I can do. Looking at that photo brings me a super cool feeling of being equally proud of myself for being the subject, and of my husband, for being the awesome photog that he is.
Here’s a few photos of the beautiful woman who teaches yoga at my gym, Karen. 🙂

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to volunteer up at the health care center in Wausau. They are having their “prom” on Friday, and we wanted to help the staff make it a memorable event. Dale and I, along with a few of our students, taught a few mini-lessons on foxtrot, waltz, and swing to the staff. We also did demos for the residents: waltz, foxtrot, a swing style medley, cha cha, and Viennese waltz. The icing on the cake was being able to dance with the residents. We pushed a few of them around in their wheelchairs, and held their hands and moved to the best. I got to dance with a 91-year old man! His smile was so big, it warmed my heart.

I started out my morning over at Adventure 212. Sometimes I feel like I live there!!
I’ve been doing a bunch of fitness and food photos for them lately, and I have a great time. Here’s a few shots from my recent work over there.

This is Michelle and Sarah- I just had to grab a quick photo of them before they left for their ride. How cute are they?!

After finishing up today’s shoot, I ran a couple miles and did 20 minutes on the elliptical in preparation for my calf massage. I’ve been having a rough time with my calves this week- they’ve been very sensitive, tight, and they have the tendency to cramp up when under any pressure. Tom at 212 is my sports massage guy, and he knows his stuff. I prepared myself for a little relaxation and a lot of pain.

He helped me out with those calves, and gave me some suggestions as far as heat and stretching to prepare for Sunday’s race.
After I showered, I noticed that I couldn’t get the ends of my hair apart. Those split ends just locked on to each other and became one curly, nasty mess. I looked in my calendar and realized that I haven’t gotten a haircut since October. Ridiculous, I know. I called my stylist to see how long it would be until I could get an appointment… And she had a cancellation, so I drove right over there after my massage for a haircut. I have incredible luck!
I was so overdue for a haircut that the bottom couple inches of my hair were dried and splitting, and my bangs almost reached my chin.

Luckily, Tammy over at Trendsetters Act II made quick work of my mop and I ended up with a shorter (and curly-er, if that’s possible!) hair style. I love it!

A quick stop at the co-op on the way home to pick up some basics- spinach, soup, and coconut- and I was on my way home. It was great to catch up with my favorite co-op brothers, Noah and Luke.

Brian wins the husband-of-the-day award by cooking a delicious dinner of spaghetti with chicken. He even made homemade sauce! Bless his heart.

Miles this year: 197.2

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April 16, 2012 · 8:59 pm

What? An easy 18-miler? I didn’t know they made those.

I had a wonderful long run today, despite all odds. I’m still on cloud nine.
I woke up this morning very tired and thirsty. I think my body was still recovering from Viennese Ball this weekend. I took my thyroid pill, chugged some water, and went back to sleep. When I finally woke up around 10 (so much sleep!), I made breakfast.

Plain Greek yogurt, 1/2 banana, kiwi, walnuts, chia seeds, and agave. Oh, and a big cup of coffee, of course! I ate breakfast and listened to the wind howling outside my window. The weather was beastly here today.

When I checked, it was 41 degrees with 30 mph winds gusting up to 40 mph and 80% humidity. All weekend, I kept wondering how I was going to pull off a run with bronchitis. My solution was to take it really easy, nice and slow… and just get the miles in. As soon as I heard that wind, I knew that there was no way for me to take it easy out there. ::sigh::
I took my run inside. Yay, treadmill! On days like today, the pros outweigh the cons. Unless I up the incline on the treadmill, the belt helps propel myself forward, so treadmill running is technically a little easier. Then again, it has a major boredom factor. It was also warm and humid in the gym, so I ended up sweating a ton.

There’s my sweet setup. I got the spot next to the staircase, so I could use the half wall to store my extra water bottles and my candy dish. It was filled with all the goodies- Jolly Ranchers, Swedish Fish, Starburst jelly beans, and strawberry Gu Chomps. I had my phone, so I kept tracking my Sole Sister and “coach,” Nancy. She was braving the heat in Boston today. Congratulations, Nancy!
I also had my iPad, and Netflix allows me to watch pretty much whatever I want while I’m treadmilling it. Today’s choice was a few episodes of Drop Dead Diva.
My friend, Kim, joined me about 9 miles in for an impromptu Sole Sister run. It was so nice to sweat like crazy next to a kindred spirit. 🙂 Thanks, Kimmy!

Paulie stopped by for a bit, too.

He’s looking lean! He’s got a big competition coming up, and he is more than prepared. 🙂 He distracted me ~~and I loved it~~ for a mile and a half while we talked about photo stuff for his upcoming wedding to his beautiful and sweet fiancé, Nikki.

That’s a shot from my engagement shoot with them last fall. 🙂 Too cute!
After he left, I was in the home stretch and started to go a little stir crazy.

Surprisingly, my lungs felt awesome until the very end. Around mile 17, I started coughing a bit. I just tried to hang in there until the end, and I even felt good enough to turn up the speed a bit!
I finished with final splits of 10:10, which is perfect for a long run at my pace goals.

Today’s run was the first time I actually wore my CEP sleeves while running. I had been wearing them for recovery, until I realized that my feet were swelling, and that’s not good. I’m planning to invest in a good pair of compression socks to wear for recovery. I got a little crampy kind of twinge in my right calf around mile 11, but I imagined those sleeves massaging it away, and it didn’t bother me after that. The power of positive visualization!
This run seemed to fly by, and I felt awesome when I was finished. I love runs like this!!
I got home, made a recovery shake, took an ice bath, then cleaned up the house before Brian got home. Thank goodness for the dishwasher and washing machine. I’ve got it easy. 🙂
Brian and I planned a delicious dinner but we needed a few groceries, so we hit two birds with one stone and took a short 2 mile shake out run to the store and back.

Hey, if it’s within running distance, why not?

We enjoyed our dinner of edamame, steamed dumplings, and spicy chicken stir fry with brown rice. I’m loving our time spent running and cooking together. 🙂

Yum! Off to watch DWTS and Smash. 🙂

Miles this year: 195.2

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April 15, 2012 · 7:40 pm

Viennese Ball weekend

Hello, friends! I had a super fun weekend dancing at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire’s Viennese Ball.

I’ll start from the beginning. I left on Friday to head over to EC with Dale.

I wore a necklace that Brian and I put together before I left so I wouldn’t miss him too much. It’s a locket from my mom’s charm bracelet, with our pictures in it <;3

I did my makeup in the car. I have to make an embarrassing confession: I watch the stupid show Toddlers and Tiaras. It’s a reality show that follows pageant moms and their little kids. My favorite ~~most disturbing~~ part of the show is at the end, when they show before-and-after photos of the kids. The ‘before’ shots are usually of the kids with frizzy hair and food on their face- and the ‘after’ is of them in a pageant dress with their hair and makeup done. Anyway, my in-the-car photos feel like they could be on Toddlers and Tiaras. 🙂

We met up with Dale’s friend, Jackie, and we went to dinner and the dance.

I wore a red dress and did an updo on Friday night.

We danced until late, ate midnight breakfast, and danced some more. I slept soundly, then got up on Saturday for a short run.

With each day that goes by, my bronchitis feels a little better. After a quick shower and getting ready, Dale and I went to the old downtown area in EC. He showed me his previous dance studio and we went to a really neat cafe for lunch- Acoustic Cafe. I had a delicious pita sandwich and coffee, of course!

Dale and I did some minor shopping in the afternoon- TJ Maxx (a new running shirt), Target (a poker set for B and a Kermit the Frog shirt for moi), and Best Buy (light scribe DVDs). Nothing too crazy 🙂 I did find a pretty awesome game, though…

I thought about buying it, then realized that Brian and I probably know all the answers, so if we tried to play against each other, it would be a boring game. 🙂 Does anyone own this game? Is it awesome?
After shopping, I started getting ready for Saturday’s dance. I wore my hair down and curly, and a blue halter-style dress.

We went to dinner at a place called Porter’s. Dale ordered the salmon, though they were out. He was crabby about that! 😦 Our poor server probably had the bad luck of delivering the bad news to their customers… but seriously- what nice restaurant runs out of salmon? I was luckier- I ordered a delicious teriyaki steak salad and a glass of merlot, and both the salad and the wine were aplenty!

After dinner, we headed over to day two of V-ball. We met up with our dance friends Thomas and Pat. I was happy to see other people that I know! This event is a very cool fundraiser for scholarships. In the main ballroom, they alternate between their orchestra playing mostly Viennese waltzes, and their jazz ensemble playing big band tunes. They also had a second room with a German band playing mostly polkas, with a few foxtrots thrown in the mix. I do love accordion! They had a room filled with German pastries, a little jazz club downstairs featuring student combos…

…a room with a cappella singers (like a pop chamber group), a faculty voice quartet, and solo piano works played by their piano studio. When we walked in the main entrance, we were greeted by a harp ensemble!

I love dances because I get to wear sparkly dresses and fun jewelry. 😀

All in all, I had a wonderful time. Thanks, Dale, for suggesting this event!

We came back this morning. Kermit + coffee + tired Heidi =

There were lots of Amish folks out today. I always worry about them on the highway. Those buggies move slowly, and some drivers are idiots who drive too fast and don’t move over.
As soon as I got home, I took a nap. Thanks to my sweet Brian for capturing my most beautiful side. 🙂

Post nap, we gave our puppies a bath. They both did so well!

Tacos for Brian, taco salad for me. I love jalapeños!

Now I’m finishing off the night by snuggling on the couch (thanks again, Mom!) with my handsome electrician.

Haha. But really. What a stud!

Miles this year: 175.2

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April 13, 2012 · 11:45 am

Brian starts running!

I’m so cool with my inhaler. I feel like Leonard from Big Bang Theory. I hate the idea of breathing in anything, and I’m pretty new to inhalers, but I had to pay $40 after insurance, so you can bet your bottom dollar that I’m using it as directed! 🙂

I have to sing my praises for my awesome husband for a minute. He has decided to start running this year. He was inspired by all of our friends running races for “Running for Rachael,” so he decided to sign up for a 5K in Lacrosse, with our friends Jaime and Karl. (Is anyone else running this race?)
The farthest Brian had run until this week was 1.5 miles with me, 11 days after my thyroid removal last year. Bless his heart- he was worried about me and wanted to come on my first short run. 🙂
This week, we started Brian’s official training. He got new running shoes and clothes and we made a plan. I decided to start him out with the full 3.1 miles, but we’d walk and run it, so he wouldn’t be running the whole time. He’s in pretty good shape, so I knew he could handle it.
Our first run was on Tuesday- and I let him decide when we could take walk breaks and when we’d resume running. I actually had to persuade him to walk more than run, because I didn’t want him to be sore and get injured! Our first 3.1 mile training run was completed in 37:06. I am so proud!

I celebrated our run with green soup. It’s one of my Heidi-inventions- I just put in a bunch of things that I like, and topped it with things I thought might help me kick this bronchitis. Lots of spinach, asparagus, peas, onions, and garlic, with chicken broth, and a bunch of dried herbs. I puréed it, added a little skim milk and olive oil, and Voila! It’s delicious, in case you’re wondering. 🙂

Yesterday evening we met our friend, Ashley, in Westfield to start divvying up the Running for Rachael t-shirts. We had 63 orders! Point Embroidery did the screen printing for us, and they gave us a great deal… Helping us raise a few hundred MORE dollars for the Melanoma Research Foundation through the sales of the shirts. We started separating the orders in the back of Ashley’s Vibe. 🙂

When we got home, there was a giant bunny eating my day lilies. I was trying to take a close up photo of the cute, chubby guy, but he took off. Here’s the result…

We went out for our second run shortly after the bunny sighting. I’ve been really thankful for these short, slow runs with Brian, because it’s forcing me to ease back in to training as I’m healing from this bronchitis. Anyway, we ran more and walked less, and finished in an astounding 34:16! I think I may have a natural runner on my hands. He is more than golden for the race May 5th, and I am truly exploding with pride.

We grilled out for dinner- I had a giant salad with two Boca burgers on it, and Brian made himself some delicious looking (and smelling!) burgers.

My mom was having some computer troubles (darn Bluetooth mouse!) so she stopped over for a visit with our resident computer expert. Brian fixed in the problem in less than 10 minutes. I think brains are sexy. 😀 After he fixed the computer, we went on an impromptu trip to K-Mart. I always forget what cute shoes they have there! We had a wonderful time catching up and bonding through a late-night shopping trip. I love you, Mom!
I’m off to start getting my stuff ready for Viennese Ball this weekend. I love any excuse to wear a beautiful dress. 🙂

Miles this year: 172.2

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April 10, 2012 · 2:24 pm

I’m sick :(

Sorry about the lapse in posts. I’ve been one sick cookie. 😦
Let me rewind to last Friday. Brian was able to pick up the parts for my car at our local Napa. Even with Brian doing the labor, replacing both shock assemblies cost an arm and a leg!

This next picture is my broken shock, the one that was about to break, and one of the new ones. Kind of interesting, huh?

While Brian worked on my car, I napped. This cold was dragging me down!
Brian was subbing in with River Cities Jazz on Friday night, and a bunch of our friends came out to play and dance.

After they were done playing (you sounded GREAT, honey!), we all went bowling. Jaime and Karl would have been proud.
Team Lane 21:

Team Lane 22:

I broke 100 the first game, and didn’t break 100 on the second game. Oh, well! We had fun.
On Saturday, we celebrated Easter with my mother-in-law and family. Brian helped the boys with the jello jiggler cut-outs.

We had a great time with the family, eating lots of great food and enjoying the company. After we got home, we had some friends over for Cranium night. We played two different versions: Cranium WOW and Cranium Party Playoff. We had a lot of fun with those games. The Cranium people are geniuses! I also baked cupcakes for Easter Sunday with my family.

I woke up on Easter feeling absolutely awful, running a fever, and rocking a nasty cough. 😦 My mom convinced us to come up to Wausau and I’m so glad I did! Grammy gave me some Alka-Seltzer (which I haven’t had in years!!) and I felt a little better. I decorated my cupcakes at Mom’s house. Aren’t they pretty?

Aiden and Bailey were the only little ones this year, and we had a lot of fun watching them on the egg hunt. Look at Bailey’s cute scrunched nose! 🙂

Grammy and Grampie still have this little bar that we always used as a swing when I was a kid. It still works! I kept thinking that one of the links would rust out on me.

Note the Easter dress with the warm hoodie. It was cold on Easter! My Grampie posed for a picture with me. 🙂

Aiden liked my cupcakes!

Mom convinced me to go to the doctor first thing on Monday for this cold and cough. Who can disobey their mother? I called and made an appointment for Monday afternoon.

I love my doctor, Dr. Nancy Swisher. She checked me out and I ended up with an inhaler and an antibiotic. She also ordered an iron test, after I mentioned some fatigue that isn’t related to my thyroid.

Brian and I had an awesome Monday night, complete with homemade pizzas, watching Donald Driver rock on Dancing With The Stars, and our favorite new Broadway-themed show, SMASH.

Whole wheat crust, spinach, homemade sauce, mushrooms, grilled chicken, tomatoes, and a little mozzarella. Yum!!

As soon as I heal up from this bronchitis, I’ll be back out running. I can’t wait! I’m going a little stir-crazy.

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April 6, 2012 · 11:42 am

Keith Jarrett

Keith Jarrett was incredible.

That’s me, and the piano. I was so excited!
I first fell in love with Keith Jarrett back in 2003. I’d stumbled upon his recording from his 1975 Köln Concert, and I was mesmerized by his phrasing and melodic and harmonic ideas. Something about the way he plays is so honest and genuine. When I saw that he was playing in Chicago, I knew I had to go. I didn’t know that he’s had some health problems, so I’m very thankful for the opportunity to hear him while he can still play. He had to ice his hand during intermission, and he took an unplanned break during the second half to ice, as well. This is my view from the top:

I apologize for the blown-out picture- but I didn’t bring a camera other than my phone. I was carrying a small clutch! 🙂
Keith doesn’t have a reputation for being the most friendly on stage, but he was really conversational during the night. He humored us by taking requests, even playing part of “Moonlight Sonata” and laughing about requests for his “Colon” concert. He ran over to the mic and said, “Did I hear that right? Did I play a colon concert?!” The music was fantastic; we clapped so long that we brought him out for two encore performances.
If I could have told my sweet 17-year-old self that I would one day be in Chicago and make my way to Keith Jarrett’s concert by my independent self, I wouldn’t have believed it.

Do I look musically fulfilled? I felt like I was floating on air after that concert. Downtown Chicago is pretty awesome at night 🙂

Special thanks to Rex for dropping me off and picking me up after the concert. 🙂
As soon as we got back to Maureen’s house, I crashed. I was a tired cookie! I had to wake up early on Thursday to make it to Almond in time to judge the middle school’s district Solo/Ensemble contest. Good morning, sunshine!

I love traveling, but there’s always something special about seeing the “Wisconsin Welcomes You” sign.

I drove up through MKE and then took country roads to Almond.

A far cry from the streets in Chicago, that’s for sure!
When I was about 45 minutes outside of Almond, I started to hear a pretty loud clunking sound coming from my rear driver’s side wheel well. At first, I thought it was the case of wine I bought at Trader Joe’s rattling around in the trunk, but that wasn’t it. I started to get nervous and prayed that I’d make it home. First- a stop to hear the kids play some music.
Amanda and I worked together to do the judging. It was a great time! I love helping and encouraging young students in their musical journey.

On the way home, the clunking got worse and worse. I started wondering if I should be driving highway speeds (as it turns out, the answer was no. I’m pretty lucky!). I made it home and was so happy to see Brian and the pups. I whipped up a quick chicken stir fry with brown rice for dinner, then Brian dropped me off at my TU board meeting on the way to his union meeting. I was mentioning to the board that my car broke, and that I’d need a ride home, when our future president offered to give me a ride. As it turns out, he’s the manager at Auto Select in town, and he offered to take a look at my car. I have the best friends, I swear! 🙂 He diagnosed the problem, and called me this morning with a quote for repairs. When he called, my cold was in full swing, so I sounded more like Heidi-turned-Cookie-Monster. Oh, well. He reassured me that they had green tea at the shop, and wi-fi.
Best. Auto. Shop. Ever.
As it turns out, strut assemblies are important and EXPENSIVE. sigh.
For you car people out there- here’s the damage.

I learned that it’s not supposed to look like that. Well, goodbye, $500.
Despite my cold and the unexpected expense, I’m going to make this Good Friday a good one. 🙂
P.S. happy opening day, Brew Crew!

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April 4, 2012 · 6:15 pm

Chicago- we meet again.

Hey, guys and gals. I’ve had an adventurous couple days. I left Brian at home with the pups to go to Chicago and hear both my friend, Raffi, and Keith Jarrett play. 🙂
Don’t worry, I baked Brian a batch of super thick brownies before I left. At least I know he won’t starve!

I was already feeling homesick before I left, so I brought company for the trip- Brownie, the first teddy bear that Brian ever got me.

Brownie is a build-a-bear who has seen better days. He’s well-loved, especially when Brian is working nights and I sleep alone. Don’t judge!
We headed south to Madtown then over and through MKE. Love Miller Park! Don’t worry, Mom, I was stopped in traffic when I took these photos. 🙂

I talked to my mom during the counties where I’m still allowed to talk and drive. I brought my “office phone” for the drive. I got some strange looks from passing cars!

Upon my arrival, I was greeted by my AWESOME cousins, Michael and Rex.

After catching up and eating a dinner (I love comfort foods like risotto!), my aunt Maureen and I headed downtown to catch Raffi’s Chicago debut at the Chicago Symphony Center. He played Rhapsody in Blue, and rocked it. I am proud to know him! He earned himself a standing ovation with his outstanding musicianship. 😀

What a beautiful facility! I’m looking forward to heading back over there tonight to hear Keith Jarrett. 🙂
I woke up kind of late and took my thyroid pill, caught up on the news, and ate some breakfast. My cold has sort of progressed to residing in my lungs, which kind of stinks. My cough sounds awful- it almost sounds like I’m suffocating. Other than that… the Chicago Sun-Times and toast with Nutella? Awesome way to start my day. I intended on knocking out 10 miles, but the cold made running a little tricky. I ended up only getting in 7, but considering how miserable I was with my cold, I’m pretty happy with that.
Interesting things that I love about running in Chicago:
1) the flowers are blooming! Tulips and lilacs and a bunch of late spring flowers. It’s a little bizarre, but it makes the air smell lovely!

2) Unfamiliar but awesome street signs. Just when I was kind of wimping out due to my cold, I found a street sign with the last name of a friend of mine who is an incredibly fast runner. Think ‘elite start’ kind of fast.

I saw that sign and thought, oh jeez, stop being a wimp. That sign was a little reminder of Brad- and I’m sure he wouldn’t wimp out on a seven mile run. It gave me a little extra oomph. 🙂
3) Fabulous people. I saw an elderly woman wearing totally blinged out sunglasses walking a tiny dog and smiling, and I saw a bunch of people at a bus stop who all smiled at me as I ran by. One guy even gave me a thumbs up!
4) Alleys. Talk about needing to keep on top of your game- if you blow past one of these, you might get run over. Sure, most people seem to honk as they’re approaching intersections in an alley, but I’d rather be safe than a Heidi-pancake!

5) City architecture. Building up, instead of out. I love tall houses with little gates, and there are a TON of them in the neighborhoods here. 🙂

6) Big churches. Older cities with big populations= older, bigger churches. St. Ben’s is where I go to church when I’m down here, and it’s where my cousins all went/go to school.

7) Public transportation. People are always going somewhere, and it helps me stay motivated to keep moving. You know how proud I am when I take the L anywhere and don’t get lost. 😀

8) Having to wait to cross the street. On days like today, my lungs were SO happy to have those short breaks at stop lights. Plus, in all seriousness, most of the time, you absolutely must wait to cross, or you’ll get hit by a car.

9) Cool murals, and to a lesser extent, graffiti. I like artwork. I don’t like defacing property, but sometimes the graffiti demonstrates serious talent.

I finished my run, made it home safely, and had a good time.

I love that place because the sign looks all sparkly in the sun (and it reminded me of Brian, since he pointed it out to me the last time we were here).

Sure, I never made it to the lake… This is as close as I got:

I couldn’t figure out how to cross Lakeshore Drive! 😦
That’s all for now. Time to go help with dinner, then head to the concert 🙂

Miles this year: 166

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Tagged as city, family, running

April 2, 2012 · 8:17 pm

Swing Fling

First of all, thanks to all who chimed in with thoughts about weight-based divisions. I learned a lot, and gain inspiration from all of you!
I’ve been battling Cold: Round Two. The featured attractions on this go-around are a dry cough, headache, and body aches. No running for me for the past three days 😦
I was a busy girl on Saturday, though! I discovered a dress sale that was sponsored by SPASH’s dance team. I found a beautiful blue dress to wear at the balls that I’ll be attending this month. 🙂
Saturday night was UWSP’s Swing Fling- an event sponsored by Delta Omicron that raises money for jazz scholarships. I had a great night dancing with both my hubby and Dale, and our friends Christy, Devon, Jackie, and Adam came out, too!
Brian and I brought cameras to capture the evening, of course.

That’s Professor Mathew Buchman, director of the Jazz Ensemble. He sat in on piano for a tune, and also danced with me! (well, we pretended to, anyway…)

On Sunday night, Dale and I had our last lesson for the season with CWN. It was a great time, and I’m so proud of how far our students have come. I am continually thankful for the opportunity to learn to be an instructor. 🙂 I forgot to take photos of our students this week, but I definitely remembered to take photos of the cakes that we got for them. 🙂 Great Job, CWN dancers! Thank you for smiling, laughing, and dancing with us!

And, as promised, here’s a little clip of Dale and I doing what we do best 😀
I’ll be honest and say that I got a little teary-eyed when I watched this. This was the first time that I’ve seen myself ballroom dance on video, and I was amazed at how far I’ve come. I’ve had some good teachers! 🙂
http://www.zenfolio.com/zf/core/embedvideo.aspx?p=3c26aab4.11

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Tagged as cake, dancing, music

March 30, 2012 · 11:56 am

Running: the fun stuff, then the serious stuff.

I have a LOT weighing on my mind today. The last couple days have been pretty darn great. The temperatures cooled a bit to be more seasonal, and I had a few great running days in a row.
Awesome things to note: the co-op has my favorite mint tea on sale! I left a little bit for other people, but bought a bunch myself.

Luke was working, and we had a few laughs over the Great Quinoa Shortage of 2012, a.k.a. they’re still out.

Yesterday morning, I had a coffee date with my friend Jen, from high school. She is still as adorable as ever, and she’s in the midst of planning a beautiful wedding to her longtime love, Josh. She’s in town to do some clinical work or something over at Marshfield clinic, so I grabbed her for coffee while she was in my neck of the woods. It turns out that yesterday was her birthday! Happy Birthday, Jen! 🙂
After that lovely coffee date, I did something semi-stupid. I decided to start eating chia seeds, so I put a whole tablespoon in my yogurt. A tablespoon is a normal serving, but probably not the best to start with on your first day, right before a run. Danny stopped over so we could log a few miles together. He’s from Nashville, so it was extra awesome to catch up with him.

Hmm, I should have called this week ‘Reuniting with Far-away Friends Week’ or something. 🙂 Danny was kind enough to slow his normal 5 min/mile to my 9:30 min/mile… With a few walk breaks. I’m not going to lie, I thought I might lose those chia seeds a few times. Luckily, I’d rather die than embarrass myself by puking during a regular run (especially in front of people!), so I held it together. 7 miles of catching up with Danny: check.

One of the things that Danny and I talked about is something that has just been on my mind constantly lately. Thanks to Danny for letting me air my grievances during our run 🙂
It has to do with speed, especially when it comes to slower runners. I’ll preface this by saying that while I am continually getting faster, I know that I am by no means a fast runner. A couple years ago, I ran DePere’s Noodleini 15K in the Athena division. Athena (for women) and Clydesdale (for men) are weight-based divisions- opposed to age-group divisions. The reasoning behind offering these categories as competitive options seems to make sense; it is more comparable for a 170-pound woman to race against another 170-pound woman, compared to a 170-pound woman racing against a 110-pound woman, even if they are the same age. Until that Noodleini race, I’d never placed in my age group. In fact, I was so far down the list, compared to other 20-29 year olds, that I often didn’t even look at my actual placement. I was simply interested in my official time, improving my race times, and competing with myself. Once I crossed the finish line, I finished second in the Athena division. I got this TROPHY!

It was the first time that I’d gotten a trophy for an athletic event (I can put it next to all my hordes of MathCounts, music, and dance awards…). That race lit a new competitive fire in my heart- and I’d never felt that as a runner. I saw my name with a single digit placement next to it. It felt like some sort of small miracle.

A few quick Google searches later, I realized that the majority of serious runners sort of consider those weight-based divisions to be a joke. I read a lot of opinions saying that all runners should race against each other, regardless of weight- and if the heavier runners think it’s unfair, then we should just lose some weight. While I still have body fat to lose, I am a pretty muscular girl, and I like it that way! I love being able to load my kayak on my car by myself, and help hold drywall during remodeling, and hold my own in a push-up contest. The runners in the weight-based divisions are often tall, broad-shouldered, muscular athletes. Take a peek at the times on that race’s division winners- those racers are fast! The Clydesdale men continually impress me with their speed. Racing in Athena and Clydesdale are by no means a piece of cake.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not overly offended by the opinions of other runners. Everyone is entitled to one! I just wonder if continuing to race in Athena categories is a mistake. I do realize that if I’m upset that my times are slow, and if I’m convinced that it’s because I’m lugging around a 160 pound body- I’m the only one who can change that. The only thing I know for sure right now is that I registered to run the Oshkosh 1/2 in Athena, and I’ve never felt so motivated to train for speed. I want to add another trophy to my rack of medals. 🙂

Enough serious stuff. Back to yesterday…
After a quick shower and some photo sorting, I made a delicious lunch. I was going to have a chicken salad, but then I decided to skip the leafy greens and just put everything I like in a bowl. Sounds reasonable, right? Chicken, onions, tomatoes, spicy mustard, Sriracha sauce, red grapes, walnuts, snap peas, a little tiny bit of mayo, and a bunch of spices. That disappeared faster than the fraud on my checking account last week.
(PS Chase is GREAT at catching that stuff!)

I forgot to take a photo of Dale and I rehearsing last night. I’ll post a video soon, then you can catch a glimpse of this ‘dancing’ that I do. I’ll have proof soon. 😀

I was all set to head home from dancing and go straight to bed when Brian text me to let me know that after a somewhat hilarious afternoon at the driving range, Kenny and Brian were drowning their sorrows at Rustys, and I was invited. I can’t pass that up. I mean, come on, look at their bloody marys…

I got mine with the garlic, but passed on the beef stick. With the beef, that beverage is more like a meal replacement than a night cap. 🙂 Thanks, boys, for the good times last night.

This morning, I finished editing some photos, and I’m getting ready to run some errands before a lunch date with my photo mentor.
As you can see, I’m hard at work.

There are so many of my favorite things happening in that photo. Breakfast, Monica’s vlog “Ask a Monican,” a pedicure (I went with blue this week!), and my marimba. Thus, the view from my couch on this dreary Friday morning.

If you’ve got something to say about weight- v. age- based divisions, please chime in! I’d love to hear some feedback. Thanks, y’all! 😀 Have a great weekend!

Miles this year: 159

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Tagged as Athena, bloody mary, co-op, friends, racing, running, tea

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Swing Fling

Running: the fun stuff, then the serious stuff.

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