Wacky Wednesday

Every day is random for me, but Wednesday in particular:

• I'm thinking my bangs need to be cut. I'd cut them myself but I always screw them up. Then when I do go to a professional, I get the accusing: "You cut your bangs, didn't you? You used scissors you use to cut paper, didn't you?" Why, yes. Yes, I did. Please just fix them. Thanks.

• I'm a lip balm and lip gloss fiend. Love the stuff. So, when I read all the hype, I had to try the Maybelline's Baby Lips. I even had to grab the last remaining tube at Target. And, my opinion: it's not that great. My lips felt drier than normal, and I had to reapply frequently.

• I love everything celebrity. I devour celebrity gossip magazines, I watch celeb-reality shows, and I watch celebrity news shows (even butt-kissy ones like "Entertainment Tonight"). But one thing I won't watch: the Academy Awards. Why? That show is 3.5 hours of boring. I'm fine with a written recap and a look at the fashion.
  
  

Random running stuff

I have random running thoughts running through my brain, which is a fairly normal occurrence.

• I have a half marathon on Sunday. I'm not that excited about it. I'm not sure why. 
• I am excited about the medal and shirt, though. That's really the reason I signed up for this race. Darn you, sweet medal and equally sweet shirt.

• I am also excited about my 5K on March 18. I feel like I'm getting faster (slowly). I'm not confident enough to push it on longer distances yet, but I want to see how fast I can run this bad boy.
• I ran a 10K on Saturday. I didn't do my usual long run on Sunday (mainly because I wanted to sleep in, but also because I wanted to rest my legs a bit after the race). I thought I'd do a long run on Monday night, but due to laundry and other pesky household chores, I didn't. Now, I'm going to try to fit in one last long run (about 9 miles) on Tuesday night before a half marathon on Sunday. Hopefully, that still allows enough time for recovery and tapering. 
• I joined dailymile. Run with me there. You can find my info in the right column of this blog.
• Also, I joined Twitter. Yes, I did this at turtle speed. Follow me there. You can find my info in the right column of this blog.

Suncoast Classic 10K, St. Petersburg, Florida, Feb. 25, 2012: race review

I had to do this race. It was my first-ever race of any distance (I did the 5K), and I have fond memories. It's kind of cool to look back and see my progression from that February day in 2011. But enough of that sappy stuff. 

This year, I graduated to the 10K: my first ever. I had a time in my head, but no real goal besides having fun.

This is a smaller local race benefiting the Ronald McDonald House. It made me remember that I like smaller local races. Everything is so much easier with fewer people (about 1,000 people total for the race): packet pickup, parking, spectating, post-race goodies pickup. Everything. I need to remember this.

I arrived at 7:40 a.m. (I was dropped off near the start line) for the 8 a.m. start. This allowed time for a restroom stop, a short walk to the start line, and an on-time start on a cool morning. The 5K started at 8:15 a.m. and followed the same course (well, half of it anyway). 

The first mile wasn't great. I didn't really feel into the race. Maybe a little sluggish. But, by mile 2, I was feeling better and getting in a groove. It was also about mile 2 that the leaders of the 5K started passing me. Yes, those people that started 15 minutes after I did. More proof that I run at turtle speed.

After the reality check of my speed, I kept inching along. I felt pretty good until I got to the point that the 5Kers made the turn for the finish line. I was a little bitter that they were done, and I still had half of a race left. 

That made for a bad attitude for the remaining portion of the race. I don't know why. It wasn't a bad race by any means. I was actually having fun and enjoying the course along Tampa Bay. I just wanted to be done.

Miles 3-5 felt painfully long. I wondered if the course was off, and I was actually running a half marathon. I kept checking my watch, and it assured me that I was at mile 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.6, 3.9, 4.1, 4.3, 4.5, 4.9 and 5. And yes, I did check it that many times. 

By mile 5, I was ready to push it, in true turtle fashion. So, I took off, and I actually had a mile that started with a 10! That is progress for this slow girl! 

My time for my first-ever 10K: 1:10:37. Remember I mentioned that I had a time in my head? It was 1:10. Pretty much nailed that.

After the race, I grabbed the post-race snacks: orange slices, banana, mini donuts, rice and beans, cheese and a mini packet of chocolate chip cookies. Note: I did not want or eat all of this. I have a bad habit of taking things just because they are free. I ate the orange slice and a mini chocolate donut. Pretty darn delicious.

I took a bite of the rice and beans, and then I tried to pawn them off on my boyfriend. He took a bite and tried to pawn them off on the dog. She smelled them and looked away. She finally ate a few bites, but she wasn't happy about it. As you can probably guess, they weren't good. At all. 

Aside from the rice and beans, I really loved everything about this race: the nostalgia, ease of everything, the beautiful course along Tampa Bay and the post-race goodies and giveaways. Especially the mini banana.

I thought this was the cutest thing ever. The discovery of this fruit has now changed my goal in life: I must have a mini banana tree.

I rocked for a few days

Well, I've gotten a little cocky. After my mind-blowing half marathon (see? I told you I got cocky), I thought: "I've got this running thing down. I'm awesome." So, I had no big worries about a little 10K on Saturday. "Only 6.2 miles? Sheesh! This will be easy." (Again, you can probably pick up on the cockiness). 

Then, along came this week's runs. And, they were not awesome and not easy (and they weren't anywhere close to 13.1 miles or even 6.2 miles). And, my cockiness came to a screeching halt. I snapped back to reality (oh! There goes gravity) and realized that just because I had one decent race doesn’t mean that running is a piece of cake (although it makes me hungry for one). Now I’m back to doubting myself, and I’m a little worried about a 10K. 

I’ve never run a 10K race. I went right from 5Ks to half marathons and skipped everything in between. So, with my doubts and dashed cockiness, I’m kind of glad this is my first 10K. No pressure. No time to beat because I have no previous time. That leads me to my goal for this race: have fun. I think I can handle that.

Wacky Wednesday: the next random 11

As a continuation from last week, I'm now answering the 11 random questions that Maggie asked me.

1.  What’s your favorite TV show? "Two and Half Men" – reruns only, though. I love Charlie Sheen.

 

2.  If you could have lunch with an actor/actress of any era, who would it be and why? I'm going to consider Elvis an actor (he did appear in 31 movies) and choose him. I'm fascinated with Elvis. I'll read any book written about him, so I'd love to hear things directly from him. And maybe he could give me some fashion tips.

3.  If you could tightrope walk across anywhere in the world, where would it be and why? I love-love-love Hawaii, so that's my choice. The varying, beautiful landscape would be awesome to see from above.

 

 

 4.  What do you do for a living? I'm a proofreader at an accounting firm. It's better than it sounds. Really.

5.  Do you crave sweet or salty foods? Um, both. Unfortunately.

6.  Can you remember your last dream?  What was it? I can't remember my last dream. I don't remember many .. except the one that included LL Cool J. That one, I remember!

 

7.  How big is your bed? It is queen-sized. I'd love to have a king-sized bed, though.

8.  What was the last thing you ate? A pickle. I love pickles. Definitely one of my favorite foods.

 

 

 9.  Who was your last phone call or text from? I just talked to my boyfriend.

 

10.  If you could have any super power, what would it be? I think I'd like to fly, mainly for the convenience factor (and to save money on gas and airfare).

 

11.  What are three things you can't live without? Lip balm, cell phone and rubber bands for my hair.

Missing the music

When I first started running, I loved going out late at night with my iPod. I’d run my three miles to Michael Jackson, Notorious BIG, Puff Daddy, MC Hammer, countless other rappers, boy bands and other poppy goodness. It was sweet. I saved my iPod solely for running, and I looked forward to it every other night.

One of those "countless other rappers," LL Cool J

Then, I started realizing that I was dancing while running (yes, it’s possible), doing the hand motions to “2 Legit 2 Quit,” and rapping or singing along to each song. All of that extra motion took its toll on my attempts at running. So, I quit the music. And, I got better at running.

Now, after months and months of running (and getting better) with no tunes (so I could listen to my coach and chat with running group members), I want to hear the music again. Not on training group days, but maybe just one day a week when I run on my own … or a day when I should be running on my own.

The progressive run has been a bit elusive. It’s on my training schedule; I’m just not good about following my schedule on that particular day. So, maybe the incentive of some old favorites, as well as some new additions (hello, Bruno Mars), can sway my legs to get in that progressive run. 

I can't wait to run to that ditty. I heart Bruno in a serious way.

I'm a winner ... not of a race

I like to win. Unfortunately, I won’t be winning any races anytime soon (or ever). But, I did win something pretty sweet.

This came in the mail this week (along with all the bills, coupons and junk mail, but those are not nearly as fun), thanks to Corey and Christy. 

I like the darker color of the metal, the bling on the pendant, and the contrasting gold. Plus, it came packaged with a compliment. I think everything should come packaged like this. It made me happy.