Marathon or bust, baby!

My bags are packed and I'm leaving on the red eye tonight for the east coast! Destination: Portland, ME and then on to Burlington, VT for the Vermont City Marathon. A few high school friends (most of the Moab 1/2 Marathon crew) and I are flying out together and meeting the rest of the gang in Maine for a fun weekend of running, hanging out and laughing. Two of the girls are foregoing the marathon (smart idea) to cheer us on and take photos instead. I haven't been to either state before so it should be fun! Ben & Jerry's...here we come. And other than my crippled granny body, I'm pretty optimistic about the whole thing.

Oh, and I'm getting sick of my hair, as I always do when I let it grow out. Having stick straight hair doesn't leave you many options, although I know I shouldn't be complaining because people tell me they would die for it. I, on the other hand, would rather have a mass of curls on my head, but the grass is always greener on the other side. In addition, I've been itching to dye it (I'm a hair dye virgin) just to spice it up a bit, but I'm a little too safe and reliable for that. Usually, I just ask for a short trim and if I'm feeling really creative, maybe a few layers. We'll see what happens next time I roll on into the salon. Who knows, maybe I'll just work up the courage to get a little crazy and let her have at it?

Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone!

Straightforward...sort of

I'm a pretty straightforward person. I don't like fake conversations or fake people. They bore me.

But when it comes to my heart, I couldn't be any less straightforward. Even when someone has declared their interest, I manage to be unable to admit I too care about them. It's as if not admitting it allows me some sort of power, when in actuality the guy probably thinks I'm not interested and therefore aborts ship. And you know, I don't blame him one bit.

Here's a little peek into my internal conversation before I even meet a guy:
A is Miss Positivity
B is Miss Party Pooper

A. "He's cute, seems interesting and I wouldn't mind dating someone like him."

B. "Fabulous, now how do I avoid him?"

A. "Um, helloooo...he's perfect."

B. "Yep, for someone else. Besides, I'm not what he's looking for."

The way Miss Party Pooper always wins the struggle is that she rationalizes everything into "Escape is always safest, right?" Yeah, unless escape means what you're left with is nothing.

I'm tired of escaping, ready to put it all out there, but not sure how to do it. I guess it's all about baby steps. One toe at a time (if that's even possible). In addition to a few chic novels, I'm currently reading "How to Stop Running from Love."

Yeah, I know. You're thinking "seriously, one of those lame self help books?" Yep, I'm that kinda girl. If you don't like something, you've got to figure out how to change it. Pretty empowering, don't you think?

I wanted to be you.

Sitting in the student union, eating my lunch, watching you and several other students study, read, highlight, discuss and look pretty focused on your work, I wanted to be you again-the student. Carefree, sundresses, smiles, frisbees, flip flops, Starbucks, barefoot, laughter, books, studying, student.

I was trying to think if I ever looked so focused and enthralled in my studies EVER, much less on a Friday afternoon where temps dance in the 90s outside. I can't imagine I did. But then again, I was a j-school (journalism) major, which meant a lot of reading, writing and editing, but studying...not so much. When it really came to studying, say for Econ or Accounting, my face was probably in a scrunched, confused, frustrated mess.

I remember sunny Fridays (or perhaps any nice Spring day) spent on blankets in the back yard of our house with all the roommates the year I lived in an old sorority house with about 30 other girls. We'd set up camp around lunch time and then traipse off to class if we needed to, but would promptly return to the lawn for more girl talk and sun bathing with our books and notes open, pens in hand, rereading the same sentence over and over again. We knew we weren't getting anything accomplished, but it didn't really matter. Ah, the carefree days when the real world seemed light years away.

I'm looking forward to a weekend of freedom and sun. With no big plans, I've been scheming up ideas. I heart schedules and planning. I don't love that I'm kind of anal and I truly appreciate people who force me to be a bit more laid back. But, if I don't have set plans with friends and family, I try to fill my days up to the brim.

Plus, with a bum bod, I'm trying to keep my mind off wanting to spend every extra spare hour doing workouts. I think I'll swim tonight, make these yummy gingerbread pancakes tomorrow morning, go to the Sat market, have a picnic with some girlfriends while listening to music in the park and probably enjoy some good reading time.

Business casual...barf

You know how a good outfit can just make your day? Ok, and maybe the fact that the forecast says it's going to be 87? Well, I'm having one of those days.

Truth be told, I loathe trying to get dressed for work every day. Business casual is my enemy. What I want to be wearing is the entire JCrew catalog, but my budget doesn't allow for that. Plus, being an athlete and being injured to boot, all I want to wear are my Nikes, black running pants and a sweatshirt. But today, after several outfit changes, I was shockingly pleased (and comfortable) with my outfit. That's all...nothing special.

Never mind that my back still hurts from the deep tissue massage I had yesterday morning. I'm trying to sit up straight at my desk and ice a lot. One of the not so fabulous things about being injured is that the body tries to compensate and protect the injury and in my case, keep most of my weight on one leg and tighten every single muscle in my back. All of this matters not when what you're wearing makes you happy enough to write a post about it.

tune me up

So, I have a pretty random taste in music (some might say crappy). I love everything from Colbie Caillat to John Legend to Guster to Tim McGraw. Pretty much anything that makes me smile, makes me want to sing like I have a good voice or makes me want to get up and shake my booty. I don't think I really know what music is truly my fav, so most days I just put itunes on shuffle.

But lately, every other song seems to come up Christmas and I can't stand it! I guess that's the price you pay for loving the holiday and uploading Charlie Brown and Mariah Carey's xmas albums. So, I've been forced to choose which album/artist/song I want to listen to at a particular moment in time. I'm so indecisive that usually shuffle is my best bet, but to avoid Christmas in May, I've turned off the shuffle option. Perhaps this is why people create playlists, no?

Sidenote: Every morning on my way to work around 8:30 AM I see this guy in his thirties maybe with shoulder-length greasy brown hair, a frown, a trudge in his step and red eyes on his way to the nearby 7-11 to pick up his case of Busch Light. I know it's Busch Light b/c if I'm a little later I see him walking back after his purchase has been made with the booze in hand. Two things go through my mind: how sad is it that he's alcoholic and the first thing he needs instead of a bowl of Wheaties or a venti latte is his morning Busch Light? And second, I haven't had a Busch Light since freshman year of college at the frat parties. Glad those days are long gone.

Oh, and if you have any suggestions for new music/artists you love...I'm on the prowl for some new melodious geniuses since I clearly suck at finding them. Hope everyone has a fabulous Tuesday! This girl is just happy to be done with Monday.

Oregon matters

It's one of the few times politicians probably care about what's going on out here in Oregon, but guess what? The democratic candidates are back! Hillary is here today and tomorrow and Barack is scheduled for a campus visit tomorrow night on our Memorial Quad. Pretty freakin' sweet if you ask me. And of course I won't be able to make it the second time around either. I'll be at my gramps' 76th Cinco de Mayo-themed birthday party. How cute is that?!

I'm still feeling torn. Most young people are all about "Obama for change" and I totally get that and I'm all for it and for electing the first African American president into office. But then I feel like Hillary has really earned it and has fought the fight, knows what it's like to be in the presidential hot seat (Thanks Bill) and is ready to put her words to work as the first woman president. Is Obama just talking the talk? I don't know! Is Hillary getting emotional because she thinks it will sway us women voters? No clue. Of course I don't think holding on to my precious ballot for another few weeks and trying to study up will really help me decide. At some point, I'll just have to dive head first and choose a candidate.

Whatever happens, it's a presidential race of firsts and either democratic candidate will be fine by me. I know everyone doesn't agree, but I believe that both are pretty dang smart and are ready to prove that being first is a great path to a bright future full of change.

Whoops...

Just this month (and we're only seven days in) I've spent over $200 on running gear. Yeah, I know. Crap. Oh well, the money's made to be spent, right?! And thanks to Bushy-poo, I don't feel quite as bad b/c that economic stimulus check just hit my bank account. And to be clear, this is the only thing I can thank Bush for during his fabulous presidency (insert dripping sarcasm).

The thing is, I REALLY needed new running shoes and I was started thinking my foot probs could have something to do with the fact that all three pairs of my running shoes are several months old. And I REALLY needed those polarized sunglasses I just bought since the sun is coming and trying to run in my huge $15 fashion sunglasses wasn't really cutting it during those 2-3 hr runs.

There's something about spending money on something that's healthy for me that allows me to put aside all guilt for spending any amount on good gear that will keep me comfortable and happy. And hey, I figure it's better than a drug addiction so I'm doing good. ;)