Fabulous Run

Why do I hate the treadmill so much? Is it just the monotony? It's just so boring. And why do I always feel like I'm sprinting, no matter what the speed is set on? It was easier in CT when my gym had tv screens in all of the treadmills and I could watch Sports Center or even bravo if I wanted. Four or five days a week for seven weeks I ran on the treadmill, training for the NYC Half. I would jump on the treadmill for anywhere from 45-85 minutes. And it was easy. Boring. But easy. In my apartment complex now, where I've been using their treadmills, they do have TVs mounted in two of the corners. But they only get abc, nbc and cbs. And there is never any sound, just subtitles. I guess I'm spoiled. Some of the people who come in while I"m there are just plain weird too. A woman got on the elliptical next to me last night and she smelled like a mexican restaurant. Then there's this guy. He sets the speed way too fast for himself and he will run for, oh, about...

So I finally started my gallery wall. On Sunday. I think it looks ok. It's definitely a work in progress. I need to get at least three more pieces framed. I also finally had some pictures blown up into engineer prints at Staples. You know, those huge prints in black and white that everybody was talking about on pinterest. They're 36x48. I told you. Huge.   Other than that, it was a very laid back weekend. Nothing on Friday. Some reading and running on Saturday followed by a dash to Chuy's - in the pouring rain - for a takeout along with my new favorite drink, the perfect pear. And Sunday was picture time oh and cooking and baking. Not a bad weekend, I just wish it wasn't over yet!

First of all, Happy Friday! So one of my weekend projects is going to be tackling a gallery wall. I never finished hanging all of my art and I think it's time to get it done. My apartment still looks unfinished. But where to even begin? I have at least six pieces framed and three more that need frames. They are all different sizes. I think at least half of these will be used to create a gallery wall in my bedroom. And then I still need big pieces for the dining room and living room. I'm thinking one of these could be a mirror. So here are a few of the pieces I have to work with.

Here's what three things I'm obsessed with this week... Vicky from one of my daily blog reads, Bikinis and passports , is about to head out on vacation to Dubai and the Maldives. I could not be more jealous. She was invited by the Kuramathi Island Resort to come and stay with them in the Maldives for a week during spring! And so decided to tack Dubai onto the trip. This is not real life. I think I'm finally going to buckle down and join a gym. This weekend I plan on using a three day pass to the LA Fitness that opened up around the corner from me not too long ago. We'll see if I like it. After several weeks of reruns, it's finally time for a new Scandal. What can I say? I love this show!

Since running my last half marathon in Dallas my training/running has been less than spectacular. Add that to the trip home and food tour of Delaware County and well I really need to put my foot down and start working out. Which means I need a new goal. I enjoy running. Kind of. Sort of. I know it's good for me, but I am inherently a very lazy person. So much so that if I don't have a reason to get up off the couch, I won't. Today is Wednesday and I haven't run or gone to the gym since Saturday. Sunday was my day off and then I found excuses not to do anything Monday and Tuesday. It needs to stop! I am getting better about my eating, with the exception of my Chuy's slip on Monday. Seriously. I can not live near Chuy's. It's too dangerous. So now I'm the the hunt for my next run to sign up for. I would like it to be within a few hours of here, but I'm not sure what the local road race calendar looks like. I know, I know, I should know all this...

I just love three day weekends. I mean, who wouldn't. I barely accomplished anything. It was beautiful weather all weekend - low 70s, low humidity. I got a few runs in, did some workouts. Bought healthy food at the grocery store. Thursday night I opened a bottle of red and did nothing. Friday I did get some errands done. In between being glued to the news. When I came back from my second run of the day (yes, you read that right), I could not turn away from the TV. It was during the standoff with the second bomber. (So in my next apartment, I can not live near a Chuy's. OMG I love Mexican.) Saturday I finally got that cupcake I have been denying myself. Yum.   Sunday I finished one book and then started another. Oh, I also got up at 3am (!) to watch the London Marathon. So early. Too early apparently, because I fell asleep roughly 15 mins before the men's race ended! At least I saw the whole women's race. oops.

Are you looking for a way to help? Have you heard about One Fund Boston ? In the first 24 hours they raised over $7 million and now they're over $10 million. There were also some Tshirts made by adidas, one of the official spnonsors of the Boston Marathon, but those are currently sold out. As I sit in my living room, after my second run of the day, the police are gathered outside where they think the second suspect is hiding. I should get in the shower, think about dinner, just move, but I am glued to my couch. I hope they get him. Dead or alive. Doesn't matter to me.

Here's what three things I'm obsessed with this week... Breaking sports news video . MLB , NFL , NBA , NHL highlights and more . The national anthem at the Boston Bruins game was AMAZING. It was the first major sporting event in Boston since the bombings and the entire arena joined in.   There are so many things going on this week that are just beyond belief. It started on Monday in Boston. I can't even think about it without getting choked up and because of what I do I've had to talk about it a lot. Then last night in West, Texas there was first a fire and then a huge explosion at a fertilizer plant. Many were killed and many more were injured. Prayers for everybody this week. On a lighter note, I ordered a few prints from art.com yesterday (they were offering 25% off) and I think I'm going to create a gallery wall in my bedroom. The picture above is title 'Anything is possible.' I think it will be a great addition to my wall.

So I've finally started running again. And it's not going that well. I've never been good at pacing myself and so I start out relatively fast - for where I should be right now - and tire out rather quickly. It feels a little but like when I first started running in Houston. And since I feel like this isn't my fault, I have quite a few excuses which I might be able to blame this lack of ability on. Training partners - I've never really run with training partners before, that is until January when I started running with a few girls from work. Now, truth be told, once in a while I would think they were holding me back since I new that I could run faster. But now I think they did me good and I miss running with them. But one is hurt and the other is training for a tri and I don't have anyone to run with right now.  Humidity - When I first got to Texas, the humidity defeated me. I could barely run one lap at Memorial Park without needing to take a walk break. And...

The work week is winding down and it's almost the weekend! I've got a whole lot of nothing planned, what about you?

Here's what three things I'm obsessed with this week... It's raining in Houston right now and since I didn't feel like putting on my rain boots, I was stuck with either sneakers or Toms as my best option. I'm thinking I might need these Hunter 'Romilly' Waterproof Flats . The Boston Marathon is on Monday and since the broadcast rights are owned by Universal Sports that means that almost no one will be able to watch it. The network is only on Dish and DirecTV along with four other minor cable providers. And if you want to watch it online, you have to sign in through/with one of those cable providers. So I will be on the lookout for a pirated feed. I know I just came back from vacation, but sometimes that can be even more tiring than work. So this weekend I am looking forward to doing hardly anything. I will finally finish unpacking, maybe do a little spring cleaning and then hopefully sit out by the pool and read my books.

It's been a few weeks now since I ran Dallas. Since then I've done a lot of yoga and only minimal running. And then, while I was home, I rested completely. So imagine my surprise when I went for a loop around Memorial Park last night and my right hamstring started getting tight again. It's a problem that started for me right before the Austin Half. And I can't seem to shake it. I tried getting a massage and that didn't work. Lots of stretching. Hot and ice baths. The stick. Time off. But none of it seems to be working. I could try to push through it. Hope it will just go away. But it's been about two months now and that's not happening. It doesn't bother me all the time. It's fine when I go slow. Mostly. But I don't want to go slow. It's time to go fast.

It was nice to get some time off of work last week, I think it was my first real break since moving to Houston. So from Good Friday until the Sunday after Easter I spent time with the fam in the burbs of Philly. We had a Girls Night In, then came Easter, a trip to the zoo with the cutest nephew ever, a drive up to Ct, our Birthday, some shopping, a night out, family photos and a baseball game. It was a lot to squeeze in. But it was also a lot of fun!    

O M G...how cute is my nephew? M is just going to have to deal with me showing a couple of his pics. Until she calls up in a rage and makes me take them down, We'll see how long that takes. She is, understandably, a very private person. But that's a story for another time. While I was home on my NINE DAY vacation, we decided that we had to get some family photos taken. G Pop is 93 now and, well, we needed to do it now. I'll do a whole vacay recap for tomorrow, but right now just take a look at my fam.Sometimes we can be pretty damn good looking.