New Glasses

Picked new frames all by myself!

After what seemed like hours of trying on new frames, with little help from the employees (who were busy commiserating about their allergy problems) I finally came to a decision. I was able to solicit an opinion from the employees when I walked up to the counter and flat out asked, this pair or this pair? And usually I am the type of shopper who wants to be left alone, the thing is I always end up picking pretty much the same frame so some help would have been good. I'm posting pictures below, so let me know if you think I made the right choice...
































(The new frames I really chose will be ready in about a week.)

All's Well

Sometimes, a bad day turns good.

My day started with me painstakingly scraping snow and ice off of my car, swearing the whole time. While I was scraping I slipped and managed not to fall, but did aggravate an old injury so then I was doubled over in the driveway now swearing about that as well. The day just wasn't looking so good. Surprisingly though, things started to seem better around lunchtime and have stayed pretty good for the remainder of the day. I even made it to the Y around 8:00 tonight for my tri training, run 25 minutes and swim 20 minutes. I walked/jogged on a treadmill facing the window to the pool and thought that I would probably have to fight for a lane in the pool if I wanted to swim. By the time I got off the treadmill, changed into my suit and got to the pool, Princess Hope had the whole pool herself! So they say, all's well that ends well; and on that note, I'm going bed.

Wah!!!

"It's snowing yet again," she whined.

I'm trying not to whine too loud, since we are on the outskirts of this storm and north and west of here are supposed to get hit a lot harder. It started snowing later than they predicted so I had time to get out and walk Jak this morning, another plus.

I had plan to go to the Y today according to the new training plan, but it didn't seem worth driving on potentially bad roads so I here I sit. I've watched most of "Walk the Line" already today and have had my nose in a book for a while. The book is "Loved Walked In" which is a captivating, likable while heartbreaking story about an 11 year old girl who loses her mother to the grips of Bipolar Disorder. The book hasn't labeled it as Bipolar yet, but after working in the mental health field for almost 9 years, all signs and symptoms are pointing to it. Although it has a sad undertone, I see the potential for some good to come out of the book so I will read on.

If you live somewhere that is being hit harder by this storm, you have my sympathies. If you live somewhere that the temperature is 50 or above, please don't tell me, my emotional stability is far too cold and covered with snow to hear it today!

Encouraging My Fellow Triathletes!

You 'kin do it! Rock on!!















The catch phrase for Dunkin Donuts' latest ad campaign is "You 'kin do it" and I've decided what's more inspiring than a cup of coffee so I'm adopting their phrase for tri training purposes.

On the triathlon website with the training plan I've been following, I've just found a plan for the final 13 weeks. If I counted correctly, starting Sunday there are 12 weeks until the tri. This 13 week plan focuses on training times, not training distances which I think is good. From my own training I think it's easy to get too caught up in the distances and feel you are falling short of what you could/should be doing. I've printed out a copy to keep with me and I'll start with week 2 on Sunday.

In the previous triathlons that my fellow triathletes have participated in, my role was the cheerleader. So I just wanted to let you all know that I won't be slacking on those duties this year, I'll just be playing a dual role - cheerleader and triathlete. Love you, girls...ROCK ON!

Another Winter Morning

Love to hear the coffee brewing.

Bless Mr. Coffee or whoever invented coffee machines you can set to brew automatically. Knowing I could pour a cup of coffee when I got downstairs this morning gave me the motivation to face another winter storm clean up before I left for work. I'm so over winter and have been for about two months now. I don't even bother to watch the weather anymore, it's too depressing. With my new wheels I either listen to CD's or satellite radio so don't hear local weather there either. I saw the downfall in this yesterday when the snow started falling down and I was wearing my "anywhere but here" shoes because I didn't know it was supposed to snow.

So the saying goes, hope springs eternal but honestly right now Hope just wants it to be spring!!!

Rough & Ready

Too funny not to share this!


i) Put your Ipod (or any other musical source that can shuffle) on shuffle.

ii) For each question, press the next button to get your answer.

iii) YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS (THIS IS IN ALL CAPS. THAT MEANS I'M SHOUTING IT AT YOU).

Tag 10 friends who might enjoy this, as well as the person you got the note from.

1) If Someone says, "Is This Okay"? You say?
Slowdown Sister (Lady Antebellum)

2) What would best describe your personality?
Something to Talk About (SheDaisy)

3) What Do You Like In A Guy/Girl?
That Song In My Head (Julianne Hough)

4) How Do You Feel Today?
Jeans On (Keith Urban)

5) What Is Your Life's Purpose
Wrapped Up In You ( Garth Brooks)

6) What is Your Motto?
Like Red on a Rose (Alan Jackson)

7) What Do Your Friends Think Of You?
Tearin' It Up And Burnin' It Down (Garth Brooks)

8) What Do You Think About Very Often?
Seven Bridges Road (The Eagles)

9) What is 2+2?
I Ain't No Quitter (Shania Twain)

10) What Do You Think Of Your Best Friends?
Don't Know Why (Norah Jones)

11) What Do You Think of The Person You Like?
Lookin' For a Good Time (Lady Antebellum)

12) What Is Your Life Story?
Just Might Make Me Believe (Sugarland)

13) What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?
The River (Garth Brooks)

14) What Do You Think When You See the Person You Like?
Long Trip Alone (Dierks Bentley)

15) What Do Your Parents Think Of You?
What a Wonderful World (Louis Armstrong)

16) What Will You Dance To At Your Wedding?
Hicktown (Jason Aldean)

17) What Will You Play (although I think I would go with "What will THEY play") at your funeral?
You're So Vain (Carly Simon) Wow-that hurts a little!

18) What Is Your Hobby/ Interest?
Chrome (Trace Adkins)

19) What Is Your Biggest Secret?
Calling All Angels (Jane Siberry)

20) What Do You Think Of Your Friends?
I Take My Chances (Mary Chapin Carpenter)

21) What Is the Worst Thing That Could Happen?
Love You (Jack Ingram)

22) How Will You Die?
Passenger's Seat (SheDaisy) Um, Yikes!?! That's a little scary...

23) What Is The One Thing You Regret?
Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy (Big & Rich) Interesting regret!

24) What Makes You Laugh?
Hard to Handle (Zac & Angela Hacker)

25) What Makes You Cry?
Love's Lookin' Good On You (Lady Antebellum)

26) Will You Ever Get Married?
Come On, Come On (Mary Chapin Carpenter)

27) What Scares You The Most?
Passionate Kisses (Mary Chapin Carpenter) Really???

28) Does Anyone Like You?
Guitar Town (Steve Earle) Huh?

29) If You Could Go Back In Time, What Would You Change?
Mercury Blues (Alan Jackson)

30) What Hurts Right Now?
Roll With Me (Montgomery Gentry)

31) What Will You Post This As?
Rough & Ready (Trace Adkins)

Valentine's Day

Think I should be in Florida.

Even at 32 I think I can still say that the majority of my Valentine's Day have been spent in Florida. And those are definitely my fondest Valentine's Day memories. We would have a big family dinner complete with place cards that I would create. Everyone would get some small gift to treasure and my dad would buy fresh strawberries at the flea market in Daytona and we would have strawberry shortcake for dessert. What a treat for us northerners in February!

I made a batch of Joe Froggers this week and sent them off to my brother. I guess it was my small way of sending Florida to him on Valentine's Day.

President's Day Weekend

Looking forward to a long weekend.

Although I don't have any big plans for the weekend it's nice knowing I won't have to get up at a particular time for the next three mornings. I've been feeling a bit rundown for the past few days and I thought maybe I was fighting off whatever is going around. However, now I'm wondering if I hit the gym a little too hard over the weekend and at the beginning of the week and my body just needed time to recover. Either way I took it easy the past two nights, skipped the Y and just went home and curled up with a book for most of the evening. I do feel more energetic today and that's a good thing.

So does everyone have Monday off for President's Day or is this just a state holiday for us?

You Asked For It

By popular demand, the after picture...


















I purposely got the message board in my office in the shot to inspire my fellow triathlon participants. It's a little hard to read because of the flash but hey, it's a self portrait, you can't expect perfection!

Good Enough

Haircut is okay. Weather is warm.

There was no trauma associated with my haircut last night. It's not exactly to my liking but it is by no means a bad cut. I think she was a little conservative given that it was the first time she cut my hair and honestly I'll take that over being too confident and getting scalped. It's good enough that I made an appointment to go back in month.

The temperature here today is supposed to be above 50 degrees and that's good enough for me to open my sun roof when I go out to get lunch. Actually it was above 30 degrees the other night and I drove home with my sun roof open (and the heat on!) just because I needed the fresh air. I know winter isn't over, Punxsutawny Phil said so, but I'll willingly take a reprieve if only for a day.

P.S. I blew it on the before and after pictures. I didn't remember till I was there waiting to get my hair cut. Sorry!

Wish Me Luck

Going to a new hairstylist tomorrow.

The woman who has been cutting my hair for a few years moved to salon 45 minutes away so I've been forced to find someone new. There's a woman right in town who does hair cuts at her house. Convenient. I've been with my cousin Bea twice while she got her hair done for the prom by this woman and I liked her. I guess I'm not really worried about how things will turn out but anyone who has ever had a bad haircut (which I think is pretty much everyone) knows you have to have a healthy amount of reservations going to someone new.

Alina, even though it will be midnight your time I expect you to be on standby just in case!

Heat Wave

I'm enjoying the warmer temps today!!!

It's supposed to be almost 50 degrees here today and I've got to tell you I'm resisting the urge to put on a t-shirt and shorts and go soak up some sun. I was pretty much done with winter after the ice storm and multiple day power outage so this is a welcome reprieve if only for a day.

Yesterday I hit the Y and did 3.5 miles on the treadmill alternating between walking and jogging...and I lived to tell about it! I'm trying to decide if I should virtual bike or swim today. I haven't been in the pool since before Christmas so I really need to get back to that. As mentioned before the triathlon (typed triathlong...Freudian slip?) distances are more than anticipated. What I was expecting was swim 400 yards, bike 9 miles, run 2 miles. What came out with the registration info is swim 1/2 mile, bike 16 miles, run 3.1 miles. The new distances are more in line with what they call a sprint triathlon. Distances are subject to change and Tamara mentioned she thought they've had issues at Disney World finding the room to set up a course at sprint distances. So we'll see. I'm now focused on the longer distances and will work toward those.

In the meantime, I'm going to dig out some summer clothes...or maybe I'll just skip the winter jacket today...

Why Be Normal?

Noticed yesterday I still run funny.

At the local YMCA there are two equipment rooms, one upstairs and one downstairs. I almost always use the upstairs room but all the treadmills were occupied yesterday so I was forced into the catacombs of the Y to the downstairs room. There was one treadmill available which I greedily hopped onto as fast as I could. As I started getting up to speed I realized I was facing myself in a mirror which hasn't happened in the upstairs room. With nothing else to look at I started watching my gait and I realized that I still run funny.

About 5-7 years ago a trip to the doctor complaining about knee pain resulted in trips to physical therapy. At physical therapy after a fairly lengthy evaluation process, I was asked to walk back and forth across a room while multiple therapists marveled at my strange gait. It was then after some brainstorming amongst them that they decided to measure the length of my legs. Yup, my right leg is almost an inch longer than my left leg. Thankfully the solution was simple, a lift insert that I put in the left heel of whatever shoes I'm wearing. The effects were almost immediately noticeable and the knee pain pretty much resolved itself.

When I was a kid my brother used to tell me I ran like a duck. And although it was upsetting at the time, to some extent he was probably right. To compensate for the discrepancy in leg length instead of bending at the knee normally when I walked, I would kick my left leg out and around. Very subtle but noticeable if you were looking. Anyway, I noticed yesterday when I first started running that I was still doing this a bit but the more I ran the more "normal" it got. And as long as there's no discomfort associated with it I don't mind if my gait is a little off; it goes along with the rest of me. And besides, why be normal?

SheROX!!

She swims, she rides, she runs.










Registration for the triathlon opened yesterday and after some discussion about increased distances, I (we) have decided to go forth and register. I only have time for quick entry now but I'm sure I'll be writing more in the days and weeks to come. In the meantime...

Tamara and Alina - ROCK ON!!!

Another Variation

For lack of something to write...


You can only give one word answers.

Where is your cell phone?....................purse
your hair?.......................................short
Your father?....................................stubborn
Your favorite thing?...........................happiness
Your dream last night?........................forgotten
Your favorite drink?...........................milk
Your dream/goal?.............................triathlon
The room you are in?.........................den
Your fear?......................................jobless
Where do you want to be in 6 years?......alive
Muffins?.........................................yum!
One of your wish list items?..................camera
Where you grew up?...........................Westfield
The last thing you did?.........................Facebook
What are you wearing?........................comfies
Your TV?..........................................on
Your pets?........................................lovable
Your computer?..................................old
Your life?..........................................good
Your mood?.......................................midland
Missing someone?................................maybe
Your car?..........................................Felicity
Favorite store?...................................Kohl's
Your summer?.....................................warm
Your favorite color?..............................green
When is the last time you laughed?............today
Last time you cried?..............................Saturday
Three people who email me?....................Alina, Erica, M-er
Three of my favorite foods?....................pizza, pasta, potatoes
Three places I would rather be right now?....sunny, warm, beach
Three people I think will respond?..............does, not, matter

With Age Comes...

I've noticed with age comes indifference.

It has recently been brought to my attention that someone associated with the auxiliary has been side stepping me because this person thinks that I am mad about something that happened months ago. The reason I know this person thinks I am mad is because he keeps telling other people but has said nothing to me. The problem is I just don't care enough to make the effort to resolve the situation. Then why am I writing about it? Well, because it bothers me not to care.

As mentioned in the previous post, I have spent a lot of time worrying about the terrible unknown "what ifs". On more than one occasion my mom tried to tell me that as I got older I just wouldn't be as concerned about so many things. I found this theory hard to accept because I care about people and things and situations. And to me, to not care or care less would be sacrificing who I am. But now I sit here with a few more years of perspective on life and I realize it's not so much not caring as it is seeing the big picture and figuring what's really important to care about. So I guess that means it's not really not caring; with age comes purposeful caring.