specs.

I've been searching for new frames and would love to pull off something unusual like the ones on the gal above. Recently, Aylin and I popped into Eyes on Fremont - where they "travel the world looking for frames from small, independent eyewear designers."

I'll keep you posted...

30-FUN.

I know birthdays aren't for everyone, but I think they're splendid. Its the perfect opportunity to have a great day. Get a morning coffee. Show up a few minutes late - let's be honest, that's every day. People are generally really nice to you. Its possible a few cards will arrive in the mail and inevitable I'll receive some hilarious and thoughtful texts and phone messages. Basically, its a day where I tend to feel a lot of love. And a spanking machine if I'm lucky. This year, I was lucky.

This year, Tyson through me a birthday party complete with a keg of Pale Ale from Elysian brewery on Capitol Hill. Twenty or so of our friends crammed into my teeny condo and we spent the evening over-consuming my favorite snacks, chatting and playing Jenga.









And as any good birthday should include, they sang Happy Birthday and forced me to crawl underneath everyone's legs as they handed down my bday spankings.


Lindsay and her new home dehydration system is sending homemade fruit roll-ups into the world and I have to say, Thank Goodness. As a birthday gift I received the jar below. By Tuesday they were all gone. More, please.


Thank you to my family and friends for all of the well wishes. I felt very loved!

Born to Run.

Recently I read a NYtimes article about running barefoot. I've seen these barefoot runners and I've always thought they were a little nuts. Apparently, modern running shoes "warp our natural stride, encourage bad form and lead to injuries".

I'd like to think I'll still be running well into my golden years. Maybe running barefoot is the key?

See article and video here:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/05/the-roving-runner-goes-barefoot/#more-1536

punkin.

Advanced Style.

One is never too old to be stylish<<<<<<




Check out the blog I found these one:
http://advancedstyle.blogspot.com/

race day : 3:58:55.

I had no idea whether or not I'd be able to sleep the night before the marathon. Turns out, I actually didn't do too bad - slept well from about 10pm to 1pm. Then up until 3:30 or so. Then back to sleep until about 5:30am. From there it was a mad dash to pack everything up, eat breakfast, grab coffee, hit the restroom and BOOM! I heard the gun go off. I looked over at Bess and thought, I guess here we go.

The first eleven miles the half marathon and the full marathon courses were the same and therefore, Bess and I were able to run together. I was surprised at both our pace and the ease and pain-free running for about the first 14 miles. We were running about a 3:52 and I could not have been happier.

Then around mile 15 I started to hit some mental walls. Its the middle. Its not the adrenaline fun from the beginning or the Sigh knowing that you're almost done. Ugh, just thinking about it makes me tired. I knew Tyson would be joining me soon which was about the only thing I could focus on. Its strange the things you focus on in order to pass the time. Little milestones. Tyson joined and mentioned an upcoming hill he saw on the map at mile 17. The hill sucked. Steep. Totally killed me for a little bit and my pace slowed to a 3:56. Finally around mile 20 I started to feel good again. Tyson ran in front of me which was a great way to stay motivated and stay with him. I jammed to some tunes on my iPod and tried to focus on the fact that I had less than an hour left.

I felt really strong until mile 24. One would think that by the time there is only two miles left, adrenaline and happy feelings would take over. They did not. Those last two miles I would venture to say, were terrible. My pace slowed. My mental focus gone. It was everything in me to keep going. And I had nothing left. When I saw the finish line I also saw Haley cheering on the sidelines. I couldn't look at her, because I knew if I did I would begin to cry.

Coming down the final stretch. Look at Haley!:



I also saw the clock, ticking away at 3:59 and on and on. My goal was to finish in under four hours. I began to sprint and when my foot crossed the finish line the clock read 4:00:08. Disbelief. After all the training and work, I'd missed my goal by only a few seconds. But alas, I had not factored in the chip time! We headed off to the Boundary Bay Brewery for some beers and calories to wait for the posted results.


Final race result: 3:58:55. I'm done. I made my goal. I'm ecstatic.

Mental prep.

Friday I skipped out of work a bit early and we headed to Lake Union for an evening paddle. The weather was perfect. Haley was hilarious. Wink, wink girls.

It was a great way to get outside and do something, and I didn't need to use my legs!