I, I, I...me, me, me

I'm going to do a half ironman this summer.

I wish I could announce this with a trumpet fanfare, a parade with confetti, and maybe some hot go-go dancers...but I can't. Because I'm just not that enthused about it.

Because training? Starts on Monday.

As in four days from today.

I have to start my training in four days.

DUDES.

I feel like a petulant child, stomping her feet and having a tantrum.

I. Don't. Want. To.

I'm not ready to focus.

I'm not ready to start training.

I'm not ready to do speed workouts and form drills and LSDs.

I'm still in off-season mode.

I'm still mentally recovering from the marathons.

This will be my first half ironman and my first "real" triathlon. I faked a tri last summer but don't feel like a triathlete (even though I peed in the lake).

Like it or not, I am starting to prepare myself. Physically and mentally.

I'm taking swim lessons.

I know I can fake it on the bike.

I'm not worried about the run.

So do I just go for it? Start my half-assed training on Monday and just hope that the motivation will magically appear after a few weeks?

Maybe I should ponder this on the couch with a bowl of ice cream. Because technically, it's still the off-season...right? And off-season is practically synonymous with ice cream. :)

Pasta - Round Two

Now that I am a self-proclaimed pasta expert, I decided that I should share my talents with the world.

So I invited Ryan over for homemade pasta.

Mark and Jen have the perfect pasta setup. Large kitchen, counter space, and all the tools required to make homemade pasta. Things like...pasta drying racks.

I? Do not have these things.

What's a girl to do when she has nowhere to dry her pasta??



God, I am all kinds of classy.

Don't Try This At Home

I went on a run with "Hottie Tri Friend" Ryan tonight (I have a new rule. I only run with hotties...so Ryan needed a nickname upgrade). The run was fantastic. It was about 30 degrees but I had layered perfectly so I was the perfect temperature. We did six miles - I have no idea what pace we ran because Carmen the Garmin? DIED. Faaak.

But.

It was a great run, so it doesn't matter how fast we went.

We grabbed Chipotle after the run to negate all of the good we'd done, and sitting in the restaurant with sweaty clothes? COLD.

Then we walked back to my place in sweaty clothes. COLD.

So I needed something steamy to warm me up. Some hot cocoa, perhaps.

Hot cocoa? Hot cocoa? Bueller? Bueller?

Nothing. No cocoa in the apartment.

But.

I did find a chocolate protein shake. So I popped it in the microwave and heated it up.

Dude, don't try this. It is just as horrible as you imagine it would be.

Bleh.

Breakin' Stuff

Breaking Rules:

For having a "no running with men" rule...I've been running with men a lot lately. Almost exclusively, actually.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Breaking Hearts:

I ended things with "J" last weekend. I knew he wasn't the one when he said he actually preferred regular Oreos over Double Stuf.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Breaking Records:

I haven't run in SEVEN DAYS. I think this the longest I've taken off from running in 2008. Yikes.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Breaking Nails:

Oh, wait. That's not interesting. The story of my life. :)

Things I Like

Things I Like:

Cookies

Hot Neighbors

Cookies from Hot Neighbors

I got home from work yesterday and there was a pile of cookies outside my door from Hottie Neighbor. His mom sent him a fall care package and he wanted to share the love. I was more than happy to take some cookies off his hands.

What can I say, I'm selfless. :)

Weekend Recap

I got up and went to the gym with Emily at 6am this morning.

Pitch Black.

We finished our workout and left the gym at 7am.

Still Pitch Black.

I don't think I've ever said this before, but I'm looking forward to daylight savings time.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Yesterday was cold and rainy and windy and snowy. Nearly everyone I know made some comment about Ohhhhhh the snoooooow and I can't belieeeeeeve it's snowing in Octooooober...

I? Went out for a six mile run. Granted, the snow had stopped at that point...but it still made me feel hardcore. I had just been feeling "off" on Sunday...I think it's because this was the first weekend since FEBRUARY where I didn't have to do a long run. So I went out for six and immediately felt like myself again.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Or maybe the reason I didn't feel like myself was because my body took a beating the night before...

Margaret had her annual Oktoberfest party...this year's twist was that it was also a costume party.

The usual cast of characters was in attendance. Time for roll call.

Jager bombs? Present.

Jello shots? Present.

"Mary Catherine Gallagher" drinking beer from the boot?


I am all kinds of classy

Present.

Congrats, Lynz...

A high school friend got married...a few months ago. Yes, this is another one of those posts that should have been posted ages ago.

I have a love/hate relationship with weddings.

I love love. I love friends and family. I love celebrations. I love cake. I love dancing.

But I kind of get nervous and twitchy and anxious during the actual wedding.

If I would have married any of my previous boyfriends, it would have been something like a graceful swandive...INTO HELL. Am I afraid of relationships? Not really. Am I afraid of commitment? I don't think so. Am I afraid of spending the rest of my life with one person? Not if I'm with the right person. And that, right there, is the where I start to freak out. The Right Person. An elusive thing.

But enough of my neurotic thoughts on relationships.

Let's talk about this wedding.

Cake? Gooood.


They had individual cakes on each table and they came around and cut the first piece for us. Cute! And delicious. Made me wish I was sitting at a table by myself.

Friends? Gooood.


The bride and I used to work together at a Hallmark store - here we are with all of our former co-workers. Fun!

Cake? Gooood. Wait. Did I already mention that?


I'm not above using the serving spatula to eat the last piece of cake if you take away my fork. I'm not completely selfish...I shared the last piece with Vanessa.

Family? Gooood.


Mama and Me

And I was having a good hair day to boot.

Congrats to Lyndsay and Brendan!

Non-Iron Woman

*I interrupt your regularly scheduled Relay-related post for an update on donating platelets*

I went in to donate platelets this week...and was denied.

Again.

Hematocrit: 37%

One measly percent away from being at an acceptable level.

At least it's on the upswing - last time was 33%.

If I get denied for low iron again, I'm going to start taking a supplement. I know that vegetarian runners are notorious for having low iron, and I'm just worried that it could be affecting my energy levels...or something. Although I don't feel like I have low energy...

Any doctors in the house?? What do you think?

*We now return to your regularly scheduled programming*

DNF

I had my first DNF yesterday.

No, no, no...not a race DNF...a blood donation DNF.

I went to donate platelets yesterday...and I was DENIED.

Turns out, you can't receive money or drugs in exchange for sex after 1977.

Kidding! Well, you can't receive money or drugs in exchange for sex and still be a blood donor...but that's not why I was denied. My hematocrit was too low. Guess it's a good thing I didn't sign up for the IronGirl Duathlon because I am obviously NOT an IronGirl!

The hematocrit cutoff is 38%. The average for women is 41%.

My count was 33%.

Word on the street is that iron levels are usually lower in runners. And because I am vegetarian, I don't get iron from meat...so I'm usually happy when my hematocrit is 38-39% (thanks to spinach).

I guess the low iron would explain why I've been tired lately. It's definitely not because I've been staying up late watching the Olympics. :)

Speaking of the Olympics, I think Megan said it best...

Is it me, or does watching the Olympics make you want to get off your dead ass and do something, like go to the pool? And I soooo would, but I am too busy watching the Olympics.

Amen, sista. No way am I getting farther than 10 feet from my couch when THIS is on:


RAWR!


Hello, lovers

Bend and Snap

Emily and I were at the gym yesterday morning. We were busting out some dead lifts, and I mentioned that they reminded me a little bit of the "Bend and Snap" from Legally Blonde.

C'mon. I know you've seen the movie. It's okay to admit it.

We racked up our weights and we were kind of thinking aloud about how the bend and snap is actually executed. So Emily bended...and snapped.

I have to admit, it was beautiful.

I wasn't the only one that thought this...because a fellow weight lifter came over to us and asked her, "Did you just do the 'Bend and Snap'?"

Busted! By a DUDE! (Waaaaiiittt...Guys watch Legally Blonde??)

But.

I have to give props to Legally Blonde. The 'Bend and Snap' totally works!! It's a man magnet, baby.

Sweet Baby Jesus

I was driving home from work and Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take The Wheel" started playing on the radio. I'm not sure how a country song managed to sneak into my musical diet of mainstream pop songs but that's neither here nor there. I reached down to change the station and I made eye contact with my Plastic Dashboard Jesus...


Salvation on a spring

...Yes, I have a Plastic Dashboard Jesus...when I remembered that I told Jumper that I'd bust out a rosary for him and his clavicle on my drive home from work.

So I prayed.

I was in the middle of the second decade, when I looked down and realized that I was speeding. I looked up and realized that there was a cop on the side of the road.

Crap.


He pulled out and started to follow me.

Crap.

He turned on his lights.

Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap.

I pulled over and waited. And started saying more Hail Marys. This time they were for ME.

He started walking towards my car. Daaaammmnnnn. He was a CUTE cop. Not relevant to the story...but worth noting.

"License and insurance"...blah blah blah..."Do you know how fast you were going"....blah blah blah. I handed over my info, honestly said that I didn't know what the speed limit was or how fast I was going, and he headed back to his car to run my license and do whatever stuff cops do when they go back to their cars.

He came back. I noticed he was only holding my license.

"Try to keep it at 30 MPH on France Ave, Miss. Have a nice day."

NO TICKET. No written warning.

I finished the rest of the rosary for Jumper on the way home, and added a few extra thank you prayers to the Big JC.

THANK YOU JESUS!!! No, seriously. Thank you.

4 Days, 17 Hours, 14 Minutes

Not that anyone's counting.

But HOLY CRAP. I'm going to run a marathon in 4 days, 17 hours, 14 minutes.

Operation Freak The F' Out has officially commenced.

-----------------------------

The cold still lingers. I am still feeling phlegm-tastic and cough a bit here and there, but it has been filed under the "manageable" category. I am confident that I'll be 100% by Saturday.

I'm still doping up on vitamin C, zinc, fruits, veggies, protein (if you are what you eat, I am slowly morphing into tofu), water, and sleep. I'm treating my body right. It's the only one I've got. And I'm going to put it through the ringer on Saturday so I'm trying to be nice now so it will forgive me this weekend.

-----------------------------

I was going to meet Jumper after Saturday's race, but he took a nasty spill and broke a few bones. Go give him a virtual hug.

Sick, Sick, Sick

I Am Still Sick.

And it's making me a little nervous.

It started over a week ago Friday with a little tickle in my throat.

By the end of Saturday, after my 22-miler, my voice was gone.

I started coughing on Sunday.

Monday was awful. I went into the office but left early because my coughing was driving my co-workers (and myself) crazy.

I worked from home on Tuesday because the cough was still atrocious. Saw a doc in the morning - she said it was just a cold and would last about five days. I attempted a hill workout in the evening. FAIL.

My voice was still shot on Wednesday and I was still coughing, but I was starting to feel better...and guilty that I was out of the office so much. So I went into the office. I got lots of comments from co-workers that I sounded like crap.

Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday. Each day I would say, "Tomorrow I will talk normally." A co-worker suggested I pick up a second job as a phone sex operator.

It's Tuesday. I'm not talking normally. I'm still coughing. I'm still feeling tired.

Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot.

I've been taking Vitamin C. Drinking tea. Getting plenty of sleep. Eating fruits and veggies. Drinking lots of water. Praying to the Baby Jesus.

When will this end??

I was in Kansas City last weekend and got a 6-miler in on Saturday. I had 13 on the schedule but it was hot and humid - I stepped outside and spontaneously combusted. So I only ran 6. I was going to run 13 last night, but felt so worn down from work that I thought going to bed early might be a better idea.

My dilemma. Do I shoot for 13 tonight...or just resume my regular taper-ish workouts this week...and...(gasp!) Skip The Long Run? Does my body need more rest? Or does it need a kick in the pants?

Grandma's Marathon is TEN DAYS AWAY.

What Should I Do??

Have I mentioned...

Have I mentioned How Freaking Hardcore I am lately? I have been going to they gym at 6am four times a week for the past three weeks for an hour of strength training. I? Am not a morning person (but I think I'm starting to become one). On the days that I'm not up before 6, I feel groggy and bleh and out of it...which leads me to believe that (gasp!) I should get up at 6 every day.

Have I mentioned that I am a huge coffee fan?? I wasn't a coffee drinker until I started working out at 6am (coincidence??). Now? It has a death grip on my soul.

Have I mentioned that I think I'm going to do a triathlon this July? A few friends are on board for the Lifetime Triathlon at Lake Nokomis on July 12...so I thought I might as well throw my hat into the ring. I got clipless pedals and bike shoes this weekend. A friend and I got coordinating swimsuits and swim caps(see below). It's all about the gear.



I'm Lloyd (orange), she's Harry (blue)

Have I mentioned that my mom is really, really cute? She sent me flowers on the 1-year anniversary of my knee surgery with a note that said "Happy Birthday to your ACL".



Have I mentioned that (knock on wood) my IT band has been feeling a lot better lately? I've been doing hip strengthening exercises daily and foam rolling the crap out of it...and it's starting to pay off. It's still a little stiff in the morning, and for the first few minutes of a run, but the pain goes away relatively quickly. Praise the Baby Jesus.

Have I mentioned that I'm going to attempt to run my first 20-miler tomorrow? For real this time. Not like last week. :)

Spy Games

Last Saturday, I went to dinner with a friend from High School. Actually...she and I were friends since elementary school. Catholic School buddies!!

Anyway. We went to a restaurant in Uptown and were seated at a booth. There was another row of booths adjacent to us - divided by a tall-ish divider in the middle. When sitting in the booth, we couldn't see over the wall.

Why is this relevant?

Because as we were sitting there chatting, a napkin flew over the dividing wall. I looked around, confused. Who was throwing things at us??

It all became clear when I unfolded the napkin...



A hostage situation! Should we call 911? Alert the authorities? No. I did what I do best - I replied with a smart-ass comment.



A few minutes later another note landed on my lap.



Umm...Wha?? Okay. Whatever. My reply:



We heard them laughing at our response. Yeah, we're funny gals. And soon enough we had another airmail delivery.



Ahhhhhhhh. It's all coming together. He is flirting with us. Can you blame him?? We're smokin' hot. If someone is willing to fake Tourette's, I'm willing to bet that they have a good sense of humor. I'll give my phone number to a funny dude.



And then we heard shuffling. They were getting up to leave the restaurant. But not before one last note.



Phone numbers have been pixelated to protect the innocent.

As they walked out of the restaurant, our note-writing cohort shouted something out. I could only make out a few words...including "EGGROLL!" and "TEABAG!".

That? Is comedy gold.

My oversharing: Let me share it with you

I was just thinking to myself..."Man, I wish I could blog about something other than running, but nothing exciting is happening in my life." And then a bolt of lightning burst from the sky and hit me in the face.

Only kidding.

I was hit on by a guy at work.

And crap, now that I type it out, it doesn't sound that exciting. Feel free to skip this post. Hell, even I'm already tired of reading about this event. But that's not going to stop me from writing about it, apparently.

Anyway.

So normally, yay! Getting hit on is fun! It boosts the self esteem! Makes you feel pretty!

But getting hit on at work? That's a whole 'nother story. From the top:

I like the people I work with. They're fun. We joke around. We go to happy hours. We have inside jokes. We play pranks. We know what's going on in each others lives.

So it was no surprise when one of the guys started talking to me about running. I'm kind of like a yappy four-year-old that loves to shout about her new Barbie...but I like to shout about my long runs. Hey, did I mention I ran 18 miles last weekend?

But I digress.

The Guy said he would never be able to run a marathon...he was too old and his body couldn't handle it and excuse, excuse, excuse. He's in his late 30s. He's in good shape. So I called his bluff. I told him it was a mental game. If he wanted to run a marathon, he just had to tell himself that he could. And put in the miles, of course.

And over the next two weeks, he would stop by...talk about how he ran two or three miles, and I would encourage him to keep up the good work.

And he stopped by more. And more. And more. I think he stopped by six times on Tuesday. Dude. Don't you have work to do?? But it didn't faze me. When I get excited about running, I want to talk about it too. So I was understanding. Until yesterday.

I was filling up my water bottle at the cooler, and he flagged me down. To tell me that he thought he was "starting to like me a little too much."

Waaaaaait just one second. He what? Whaaaa? Why? How? GAH.

I raised my eyebrow, looked him straight in the eye, and said "Then you'd better stop". I'm not one to BS. I cut to the chase. I don't like to lead people on. My feelings for this fella are strictly platonic. No attraction. None.

What would I do if I laid it out there..and was promply shot down? I would cut my losses and drop the issue.

But not this guy. He Kept Asking Me About It. DUDE. I JUST told you that you'd better stop liking me. Do you need me to say it again?? (Apparently so) I dashed back to my cube and he was hot on my heels, asking why he shouldn't like me. I heard my phone ringing and made a mad dash to answer it. And He Stood There While I Talked. I kept waving him away, saying we'd talk later, but he didn't budge. DUDE. GET THE HINT.

The call finally ended, he got in his last two cents, and finally left. And I haven't seen him since.

My problems with this situation:

1) Does this mean we're not friends anymore?? I am officially being avoided. Okay, okay...I don't know what I'd say if he stopped by anyway. Maybe the avoiding thing is a good idea.

2) But who brings this crap up AT WORK? In The Office?? This place is a gossip mill (Yet I have no problem posting the nitty gritty on my blog. Hypocrite, table for one).

3) Why couldn't you bring this up after I've had a few beers? I don't like dealing with this akwardness sober.

Annnnd that's all. I'm sure things will be fine in the end...I just have to suck it up and deal with a few days of akwardness.

</End weak attempt at not blogging about running. Note to self: Only Blog About Running>

Waking Up Is Hard To Do

First of all, let me say - I Love Daylight Savings Time.

But I hate mornings.

But I love coming home from work and having a solid two hours of daylight.

My body is not quite adjusted yet, but I think I'm in the home stretch. I'll give it the ol' 1-2 punch tonight...by going to bed early. Before midnight. I'll be waking up before my alarm again in no time.

Another reason I'm feeling a bit off kilter? I met with the family for our annual Des Moines weekend. I consumed more sugar than you could shake a stick at. Dessert after every meal. A constant stream of snacks. And the Easter Bunny came early...leaving me an assortment treats (Including my favorite - Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs. LOVE). Have you ever looked at the fat and sugar content of a Peanut Butter egg? It's so insanely high that upon consumption, my blood type was immediately converted to Type PB negative.

But the best part of the weekend? I got to hang with the cutest baby in the entire world.

There's something so wrong...

...Yet so right about this quiz: How Many Five-year-olds Could You Take In A Fight?

19

Work = Hell?

Most days at work I am reminded of a Far Side comic...

Two guys are getting coffee in hell. One looks at the other and says, "Oh, man! They thought of everything...even the coffee is cold!"

The coffee at my office is rumored to be hot...but the water in the women's bathroom is not. Most days it is lukewarm, but today? Ice Cold. My company: They thought of everything.

Good Mornings

Remember when I tore my ACL and all I could do was talk about my ACL? Inside, it drove me CRAZY. It was all I wanted to talk about but I was sick of hearing about it. I wanted to talk about something else but I COULDN'T. It was a catch-22 of sorts.

Well, the feeling is baaaaack. This time, the topic of choice is being a vegetarian. I am so completely enamored with the subject. Everything I read, sleep, breathe and eat (literally) is vegetarian. It affects every aspect of my life. I. Can't. Stop. Thinking. About. It.

So today's post? You guessed it. It's about Me! Being a vegetarian!

My latest discovery on why I love being meat-free: Every day I wake up before my alarm goes off.

Let's back this story up. I am not a morning person. I have never been a morning person. I am the type of person that hits snooze for a solid half hour before groggily rolling out of bed.

So you can imagine my surprise when last week, I started waking up early. The first day that it happened, I opened my eyes and realized that my alarm wasn't going off. Naturally, I panicked and thought that I'd overslept. I rolled over and looked at the clock to assess the damage...and was shocked and amazed to learn that my alarm wasn't scheduled to buzz for another 10 minutes. Score!! So I spent a few minutes chillin' in bed and relaxing. A lovely way to start the morning.

So yes, I am feeling fantastic with my new dietary choices. I haven't had any trouble finding things to eat. I'm getting plenty of protein. I am excited to try new recipes. And waking up early? It's like I'm getting a karmic high-five every morning. LOVE.

Things that made me smile

I got three Valentines today - all were chocolate.

One was a tube of Hershey's kisses. The packaging was so cute - it said "Sporty girl". Because I was non-sporty for approximately 24 years, it makes me smile to think that someone thinks of me and thinks "sporty".

- - - - - -

A few days ago, I told my mom that I was going to give Vegetarianism a try. Her response? "I'm not surprised". Which made me feel good. Like I wasn't crazy for doing this. Like she supported me. I haven't told many "real life" people because I fear the "Why the Heck would you want to do that??" question and I don't want to come across as preachy when giving an explanation. I'm doing this for me, my body, my cosmic karma, my beliefs. It doesn't need to be something that I share with the world.

- - - - - -

I ran at the gym tonight. Six miles. On the treadmill. Kinda made me feel hardcore. I am reluctant to admit that it was Miley Cyrus's "See You Again" that really got me going. I'm not sure what it is about that song but it just makes me want to shake what my momma gave me.

- - - - - -

I had a PBJ for dinner and it was DELICOUS. Note to self: PBJs are DELICOUS.

- - - - - -

(edited to add: Spoke with the parents today and they were all "Don't believe everything you read"..."All meat isn't bad"..."Not all slaughterhouses are cruel"... UGH. Note to Parents: Please don't try and talk me out of this. I'm not trying to talk you into eating vegetarian...so please don't try and talk me into eating meat!!)

It's baaaaack

The rubber band is back.

Lent officially started on Wednesday, so I am going to give up swearing again this year. Although I don't feel like quite the sailor I was last year, I think it will still be challenging.

The rules:
I will wear a rubber band around my wrist and every time I swear I SNAP it.

Exceptions:
1) A swear word is defined as something I shouldn't say around a 4th grader. Crap? Okay. Hell? Toeing the line. The f-bomb? Unacceptable.
2) I am allowed to drop the f-bomb after 2am
3) I am allowed to say $hit, B!tch and a$$ after 9pm

Heroes Like Me...

I donated blood again yesterday. It was a great experience, but I ended up disappointed. My last donation took 4 minutes, 45 seconds. Yesterday's donation? A 5:03. What went wrong? I thought I was going to PR for sure. I drank a lot of water. I held a warm squeezy device. Did the mental game get to me??

Kidding aside, it really was a great donation. I usually start to get a little paranoid in the last 30 seconds of the donation - thinking that i feel dizzy or that my arm feels funny. But yesterday I felt great the entire time. Maybe I'm just getting used to it.

And as always, the cookies were delightful. The chips were crisp and delicious. I had an extra treat yesterday - hot chocolate. Which really hit the spot on a -5 degree day.

And the best part? I'm helping save lives. Yeah, I pretty much rock.

Just another reason why my week sucks

I was going to have a Turkey BLT wrap for lunch. I walked into the kitchenette at work, opened the baggie containing the turkey bacon, and attempted to put the bacon on the plate to be microwaved.

I use the word "attempted" because as soon as the bacon hit the plate, a viscous demon flew by and bounced the bacon off of the plate and onto the floor.

Seriously?

What kind of BLT doesn't have bacon?

GAH.

Silence is Golden

My life has been crazy lately. I have a ridiculous day at work, only to come home and have a ridiculous amount of things to do. It is driving me crazy.

One thing that was bothering me was that my apartment was a mess. Trashed. Complete Disaster Area. But I could never find the time to do a Big Fat Cleaning session. You know who came and saved the day, right? Mom. Mom and Dad came up to visit for my birthday (and to see the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - LOVE). They arrived on Saturday and Mom and I busted our humps to get my apartment back to a sparkling condition. It's amazing how coming home to a clean apartment makes me feel just a little bit more in control.

Work is still pretty chaotic, but I'm surviving. I've started doing yoga over lunch on Monday and Wednesday. I will admit that it does add a little bit of stress to my day because class is an hour so I have to take an extra long lunch, but in the end it is worth it. I'm hoping that I stick with this - I forgot how great I feel after yoga. And my body? It is slowly starting to remember how to be bendy. My legs are especially tight, but I can already tell that they're loosening up a bit.

And I'm ready to start my Pre-Marathon-Training-Training and I want to run outside and I can't (aka won't) because DUDE. It has been obscenely cold lately (I got back from the bars on Friday night to discover that it was 12 DEGREES BELOW ZERO while we were standing around, hailing a cab. GAH) and I'm no Steve. I don't run outside when the windchill is -24. I'm ready for this crap Minnesota weather to move along.

And I am officially tired of hearing myself whine (hence the lack of posts lately)...so it's time for the happy-action-fun-time section of this post.

My life rocks because:

My parents are fantastic. They drive up for a relaxing visit...and I put them to work. And they still love me!!

I saw Avenue Q and Joseph this month. I heart musicals.

I got a pedicure and now my feet are beeeeautiful.

The hot neighbor called last week. I like talking to hot people (That's why I like talking to YOU. You're hot!).

I signed up for Grandma's marathon.

I went dancing with the girls this weekend. I love shaking my groove thang.

I booked a February trip to Boston to visit my "sisters" and the Annual March Colorado Ski Trip plans are in the works. Yay for vacations!!

I hit the shoe jackpot a few weeks ago - I got three pairs for under $30 total(including a pair of pointy purple patent pumps (say that three times fast!)). Scandalous!

The Devil Bowed His Head...

...because he knew that he'd been beat, and laid that golden fiddle on the ground at Johnny's Allison's feet...

I just beat the medium level on Guitar Hero. I had to skip my workout at the gym to accomplish this feat...but I think in the end it's worth it.

And I did yoga over lunch so I don't feel like a total slacker. Okay, so I feel like a total slacker. Whatever. But who has ever heard of a Yoga Hero?!?

Two Left Feet

When I was home for the holidays, I stopped into one of the stores uptown and found an amazing deal on ski socks. We have a sock mill in my hometown and some of the "seconds" were being sold for dirt cheap. So I stocked up. I like to ski and I don't like to do laundry.

It wasn't until I got home that I realized why they were so cheap...



Yup. The socks are made especially for each foot, so they are marked with a "L" or "R" so you know which foot it belongs on.

Note to self: don't wear these socks when I go out dancing.

The Birthday Trifecta

I have a new theory. It takes three things to make a wonderful (albeit cliche) birthday...

Balloons from a wonderful friend



...Flowers from a hot guy



...and of course there has to be cake (not pictured - but let me assure you, it was beautiful...and delicious).

I am pleased to announce that I managed to secure the trifecta this year. And the icing on the cake (no pun intended) to complete the rarely achieved quad-fecta? Two-for-one drinks at the appropriately named Liquor Lyle's.

So yes, my birthday was fantastic. I got flowers from a hot guy on Sunday night (Squee!). My coworkers brought in a cake to work (chocolate with chocolate frosting. Heaven.). And Karen brought balloons to the bar, which was really, really cute.

I feel very loved.