drammatical

Life

2010-12-02T13:00:00.000-08:00

I'll skip why I've been gone for so long and just dive into what's going on.

The twins are now 13 months old and as adorable as ever! They call me by my first name, their version of it anyway. I swore I heard them say it a few weeks back and both my mother and sister confirmed it was indeed my name. Hmpf! Doesn't matter to me since they still know I'm their mama.

We purchased a house!!! I know right. We (I) never thought it'd happen. After two years of looking we found the perfect house that fits us or we fit in it. Currently we're getting it redone. Won't be living there for another 2 weeks at least. I'm hopeful that we'll be able to spend our first Christmas there. Here's to hoping.

I've started jogging again. I'm committed to at least 9 miles a week. Eek! So far so good except I haven't gone out this week. Must make it out tonight with the twinsies in tow. Smart me packed us all up so we'll be set to go after work.

What else? So much going in life at the moment. So much good stuff. I'm truly blessed for the family I have.

soreness

2010-08-22T21:40:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to gain some sort of control over my running I decided that the babies and I were going to start running at the Rose Bowl on Saturday mornings... yesterday was our first day...

I've been out of the working out world for some time now so I had no idea what the eff was going on when we got there. N quickly informed me over the phone to "get the hell of there" so I did. There was no way that I was going to let two hours, yes TWO hours, of getting ready time go to waste. I headed to Sierra Madre instead.

N recommended I do the Grandview loop, I had other plans... didn't think I was up for the entire loop so I was going to come back down on Baldwin. Well I ended up going all the way up Santa Anita and then came down Baldwin. With a stroller carrying two 20+lb 10 month olds and a 40lb husky at the hip.

I'm tired. No, I'm exhausted. NO, I'm sore.

busy

2010-06-01T14:15:00.000-07:00

Wow. It truly has been quite some time.

I’ve been focusing on the twins, my husband, our dog and myself. These seven months have really flown by. Everyone that has kids always warns you about how fast it goes but you never get it until you experience it for yourself.

The babies are the most amazing thing that has ever happened to us. They have taught us so much about ourselves. Every day is a real blessing.

My husband has started his training back up again. He has been a real inspiration to me and is always my motivator. I still cringe when he tells me his WODs even though he reminds me that I once used to do them too. ::shudder::

Miffy has been great with the babies since day one. I love how she has to greet them whenever we get home. A lick for each one. She has also become very close to N now that my primary focus is on the twins. I do miss how close we were but am grateful for that time.

I have been working hard on keeping my family healthy. Also, working full time, nursing full time, mothering full time, wife full time, etc… keep me very very busy. Reading was such a pleasure and now a luxury. I’ve picked up some new books and have started reading again; hopefully I’ll get to finish three books by year-end. Running has also become a priority for me. I’m sore everyday and curse the start, middle and end of my run… the best part is when I’m in the shower. Agh, all I want is to slowly get myself in better shape. Races and xfit really seem daunting at the moment. I am hopeful that I’ll get myself back sooner than later.

my faults

2010-02-11T18:01:00.000-08:00

Alright so I didn’t do any type of training on Saturday… or any other day after that… So, hopefully the forecast is right and I’ll be seeing some stars on Saturday.

I’m also thinking about my options as far as workout times go… Currently I’m considering going for runs at 4:30am… and build from there.

I also started logging food in and strictly zoning at breakfast while semi-zoning all other meals. Snacks are usually zone and I’ve been focusing on protein and veggies. Trying to stay away from processed crap. Baby steps.

This is me owning up to it.

training again, I hope

2010-02-05T22:31:00.001-08:00

Saturday will be the start of Mt. Wilson training. If you would have asked me back when I was pregnant if I would partake I would have said yes right away… three months later this training, and all training for that matter, has been on the top 10 things I think about, DAILY. Even though I do not plan on racing I want to train. For my health, my mind and to have “fun” with folks I haven’t seen in a really really REALLY long time.

Not racing… Well it seems impossible to race. I nurse and will still be doing so by the time race day comes around. Then there’s the fact that we have TWO infants and ONE adult running the race already. I offered N the race this year and next year he promised it in return. So there it is, I’m not racing because I want to see my husband at the finish line with two well fed babies.

Training sucks, it’s hard. Yes, yes it is and that’s why I want to train. I haven’t felt “sucks” in a long time with regard to physical exercise. I need the feeling of wanting to puke again to know I’m doing my body right if that makes any sense. Also, I’m hopeful that this will gradually get me back to Xfit. At this time I only have one day, and that’s iffy at best, that I can actually go to the Academy. I’m not sure one day is even worth the effort, $ & time.

It’s Thursday and as of today I plan on being at the training, crying and all…

overwhelmed

2010-01-19T12:52:00.000-08:00

I just am. My issue(s) is/are that I want to do it all, ALL. No one can do it the exact way that I want it done therefore I don't bother asking anyone to do it, any of it.

We hired a housekeeper and already I want to get rid of her. She's just not fulfilling my expectations. I find myself cleaning again, after she's done it herself. The point was to free up my time not make more work for me...

Food. My god it has been a disaster. I was eating so good and healthy before I had the babies. Now... ugh! Really need to organize myself and start cooking again. I'll even freeze meals if I have to.

Work. Is taking its toll. Luckily I'm not going in to downtown but still have a commute. Then there's the two week long trips I have to take this summer. I'm stressing for N.

Housing. Yes we're still looking but there is absolutly nothing out there that fits. So fuckingfrusturated about this one the most.

Me. I have so many outstanding appointments and giftcards. Need to make some time for me. Also, I miss xfit. At the moment it just can't work, financialy and schedule wise. *sigh*

long time no blog

2009-12-21T12:37:00.000-08:00

Who knew that being a mom was so much work... har har har.

Well we're finally getting into a routine but with the holidays here it's been super busy plus I'm back at work. Also, I'm starting my running again. So far I've been out twice a week for the last two weeks. This is a BIG accomplishment for me. Can't seem to leave my little babies!

For now here's something to enjoy until I get back to blogging for reals. Looking at this pic you would have never guessed that those little chubbies were born at 33 weeks. They're 8 weeks now.

normalcy

2009-11-05T08:29:00.000-08:00

The babies came home on Monday evening. This is day three and we've already settled in. I must thank the awesome nurses in the NICU unit for doing such a great job with my babies and establishing a schedule for us.

N is on vacation next week and it will be so nice to finally have all of us together without having to think of work. Also, I'm planning on attending a baby shower that I'm cohosting on Saturday so N will be alone for a bit... The babies are so good on their schedule that I have no worries. Neil on the other hand...

I've been feeling great, just short on sleep. Everyone says to sleep while they sleep but that's easier said than done. There's just so much to do. Also, I really can't wait till I get the okay to start running again. Yes, I want to run. Because I had an emergency c-sec I have to wait till I see my doctor in a few weeks. It's not about weight but just about the feeling I get when I run... well afterwards when I'm done. Honestly I think that I'm very close to my prepregnancy weight. My belly looks like it did before babies, a little round. ;-p Not like I was a small girl beforehand.

We're just enjoying our little babies and can't believe how much they've already grown and changed in these past two weeks.

Babies are here!

2009-10-27T08:31:00.001-07:00

I'll post official later, no time now.

We're all doing great. Babies need a few weeks in the NICU but they're doing awesome already!

Baby A Girl - 3 lbs 14.5 oz and 17 inches
Baby B Boy - 4 lbs 11 oz and 17 inches

Holiday

2009-07-27T08:39:00.000-07:00

We leave to Ixtapa in 48 hours, oh yeah!

I think we are both just ready to camp out at LAX tonight but we still have some last minute shopping and packing to do, and work [ugh]. There is snorkel gear to buy, Miffy supplies to pack for her weeklong stay with family and then all of our stuff. So much to do so little time.

This vacation is a special one though. It will mark our last as a couple, alone. Our last “easy” vacation as I like to joke. One without car seats, strollers, baby gear, babies, etc. It’s special. Not to say that when the parlay arrives our vacations won’t be special, it’s just a special couple vacation as a unit of two.

We will definitely enjoy every single minute of our time in Mexico and we will also enjoy each other as much as possible.

^@%#(!

2009-07-21T21:35:00.000-07:00

"Bob Vance of Vance Refrigeration."

This pretty much sums up my life at the moment.

13 years

2009-06-30T10:48:00.000-07:00

Today marks our 13th anniversary. Whoa. Sad that I'm stuck in another city and not home with N to celebrate this day as we always do, like the two silly teenagers we were when we first meet. Amazingly we've both grown up so much, and together. Who would have thought that today we'd both have careers, a husky that's nuts but awesome, love, and two avocados on the way...

I love you W.N.D.

Mothers

2009-06-24T16:19:00.000-07:00

So we’re expecting some babies in time for Christmas. I’m sure most, if not all, four of my readers knew that by now… If not surprise!

With this news many ups and downs have been experienced. First and foremost N and I are ecstatic with our upcoming gifts. We really cannot wait, or maybe we can for the remaining five months. I personally have always always always wanted twinsies! I know I’m somewhat wrong in the head, but I did and well I’ve been granted my wish. I think I’m really excited to see what/who they’ll look like, kiss those little cheeks and just experience being a mother.

I have a very close relationship with my mom. It wasn’t always like that. We did not get along much when I was a cranky teenager and I’d been a daddy’s girl growing up. However, once I grew out of that annoying I-know-it-all stage we really connected. Anyway, I believe our relationship is the way it is because of our willingness to have open minds. Of course we don’t always see eye to eye on things but we at least understand and respect each other’s opinions. This is something that I cannot wait to share with my own children.

Something else that I clearly remember from my childhood is my mom always being there. She was a stay at home mama for the majority of my elementary days. After that she worked fulltime. Nonetheless I remember her being there and having that feeling of security that my mother would be there no matter what. Little A also got to experience the same thing and he too is close with our mom. This makes me sad about my little ones. They won’t get to experience that assurance. I’ve made the decision to continue working and have someone else care for them while out there…

So this is where the downs come into play. Many people in learning of my “situation” automatically assume that I’ll become a stay at home mom. When I clear this up for them they seem to give me a judgmental look. Heck some have even come so far as to ask WHO will watch them. Uh, none of your damn business! How will we afford TWO babies? WTF kind of question is that? Am I happy? Is N happy? Again I ask, WTF!? Seriously people what is wrong with you? But the most annoying is the assumption and expectance that I become a stay at home mom.

Why is it that in this century people are still hung up on women having families AND *gasp* careers? Is this still 19XX pre women’s liberation? I never have associated myself with being an ultra feminist but I am now being treated as one. People can’t seem to grasp that I have a *gulp* career and *sigh* no desire to stay at home… This of course is not to say that I don’t respect anyone staying at home to take care of their children. I commend and truly respect those women and men. I just don’t want to do it. Not my cup of tea. Kind of like when my father wanted me to become an LAPD officer and I looked at him like he was from Mars. Yeah, not me. So why then is there still double standards, expectations, judgment and just plan arrogance in 2009 with respect to women and children? Am I crazy to expect open minds? Probably.

sniff

2009-05-20T16:20:00.000-07:00

So I’m here in Sacramento. Ugh. Allergy HELL.

Well last week I managed to run a lot and since I stayed in downtown I walked a bit too. My office is about 1.2 miles from where I stayed at.

This week I’m staying somewhere outside of the city and have a car. I have yet to make it into the gym for some real work but I did walk in to check it out this morning. UGH! It’s the size of a closet and the equipment is so close together I could stand in the middle and touch it all. I’m really going to need to find other accommodations for next week. That or find a xfit affiliate down here.

Today I promise to do 4 rounds of 400 meter runs and 35 squats.

I miss lifting heavy stuff.

thoughts

2009-05-04T13:21:00.000-07:00

House
We finally saw our house this weekend. It’s perfect in every way and the location is prime. It would work for N and me and our families too. It is only a 2-bedroom but we can expand later. I really really really want this house. Too bad it’s too much $$$.

Work
Has been killing me. Can’t make it to any of my morning classes and by the time I get home I’m too exhausted to move. I’ve been averaging about 10 miles a week with my dog though. We’ve been going out every night at about 8ish, it’s so cool to run in the dark. Hopefully this week I’ll get back to regular schedule and make it to at least Tuesday and Thursday’s xfit classes.
Oh, and it looks like I’ll be heading up north. North north. Ugh.

N
I can’t believe how in shape he’s gotten! I mean it’s been less than one year since he got his knee surgery and he only started running in December/January. He has the heart and head and I’m so very lucky to have found him and kept him.

Miffy
Is doing awesome. We can’t believe how comfortable she’s gotten. We’re able to leave her alone, without the kennel and she does great. No chewing on stuff or barking or anything. The only mischief she’s gotten into is getting up on the couch for naps when we’re away.

Thoughts
Even though we’ve found a house we both like (love for me) I know it’s out of our budget and will let it go. I’ll still keep an eye on it and hopefully it will stay on the market for a few more months. If it doesn’t well then it doesn’t and I’m not going to get upset over it. Eventually we’ll find something perfect, location, design, size and price-wise.

I’m really unmotivated about my next assignment. I’ve been dreading having to travel, especially since we got Miffy. I always joked with N if we had kids how he would do it when I’d leave for weeks on end. Well Miffy is no child but she sure does require lots of attention. I’m planning on having some help in the form or younger siblings come over in shifts to help N out.

Something else, I don’t want to leave N. It really sucks being married, to someone you actually enjoy being around, and having to leave for months only to see them for a total of two days out of a seven day week. Sigh. I know this is part of the package I signed up for, I know this is my job/career but I can still complain about it, and will. Hopefully my boss’s assurance of this being a “quick job” will pan out and I’ll only be gone for one month.

somewhere [anywhere] to live

2009-04-15T14:44:00.000-07:00

We’ve been looking for a house for quite some time now. Months and countless Saturday AND Sunday afternoons and sometimes mornings. It sucks. There’s nothing out there. Nada! At least nothing that’s priced right and has oh let’s see a kitchen! Not one that’s been gutted that you really don’t even know in what room you’re standing in. Oh, which brings me to my other issue. What part does no sinks, doors, missing floors scream turnkey!?!?!!!!

Now I know we’re no Bush family but come on we do have stable jobs and make reasonable salaries. Hell we even have a freakin’ downeffinpayment. So why is it so hard to find something? Why? WHY!

I hate house shopping. I hate homeowners. I hate that I don’t have a house yet.

I hate that I’m about to give up.

alive

2009-03-11T11:35:00.001-07:00

me. We've been so freakin' busy it's insane.

- Trying to finish reading Paula. Still have New Moon on loan from the library that will be due soon. Ugh! Can't believe I haven't even read two books this year.

- Looking at houses sucks. Between trying to compromise on location the houses just plain suck. Most are still overpriced and even more need a lot of work, a LOT.

- Haven't been to the parentals in two weeks! Argh they are going to disown me soon.

- Sleep. My naps have been eliminated and that makes me sad. Why can't days be 32 hours long?

- Taxes. Need to send them in. I'm so busy they've been sitting in my bag for a whole week and I can't even make it to the post office. Hell, we're even getting money back.

- My arms and shoulders are killing me. Arms are due to Crossfit shoulders are due to poor ergonomics here in the office.

There's so much more on my plate so now you know what's been going on. Told you I wasn't lying. And no, I'm not avoiding you...

Pioneer Run

2009-02-23T11:13:00.000-08:00

So we all survived Friday night’s adventure. Wow was that an adventure. It was so fun, challenging, exciting, everything but frightening.

There was snow, lot’s and lot’s of snow that turned out to be my Achilles heel. The cold air, high elevation, snow and steep hills were not a good combo for my lungs/breathing. I felt awful that my lungs suck and that I was holding my team back. Fortunately, I was teamed up with a group of awesome men that not only understood but helped me. They did nothing but encourage me and made sure my asthma was in check. Those guys were truly awesome and I couldn’t have asked for a better team.

We were down by about 1:30ish the next morning. This was not a 7 mile run. We were not expected to finish at 10:30pm as had been initially stated. I called N as soon as we got to Sierra Madre and he was asleep! ASLEEP! Here I was thinking that he’d be worried. Hmpf! He told me that he knew that we wouldn’t be done by 10:30pm, more like 1am. He also added that both Q and E had his number in case I would have fallen off the cliff or something…

Our team didn’t get lost but we didn’t take a turn we were supposed to and ended up backtracking. It was a 2.8 mile lesson. We also decided to take another route out of the mountain. Most of us had run out of water and that was a bit of a concern. We finished at Eaton Canyon and got a ride back to Sierra Madre. Honestly, the only area where I did get concerned was at the ranger station. There were these creepy looking cabins and then the guys were talking about lotions in baskets…

All in all I would so do this again, like next week if possible. This was a great Pioneer run!

Currently I have this lingering cough but other than that I’m feeling great. This is probably due to the rocks I didn’t step on when crossing the streams. No injuries and soreness so I’m ready for another week of life.

sleep

2009-02-20T10:00:00.001-08:00

Since I woke up this morning at 4AM only to find Miffy sleeping on the couch I thought this post was appropriate. BTW, she is NOT allowed on our couch, chairs, bed, laps...

[gulp]

2009-02-19T17:11:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow I’ll be doing a run through some trails in the dark with A, R and 21 other runners. We have no idea where we’ll start all we know is that we have a list of required gear and snow will be involved. End point is Lucky B’s, which can’t come any sooner.

Reasons why I signed up for this adventurous run:

Fear – I’m afraid of Mountain Lions. Also afraid of being out in the wildness at night. Since I’ve committed to myself to overcome my stupid fears I decided that I need to do this.

Fun – Believe it or not this really sounds fun! Not only will I be getting to experience something new I’ll be doing it with people that are dear to me. Plus, that Lucky B’s end point doesn’t sound half bad.

Comfort – I need to get out of my routine and zone. This is a sure way to catapult me in the right direction.

Experience – In my head I contemplate doing the Mt. Disappointment run. I’m NOT saying that I’m doing this, just considering it for the future, like three years from now or something. Since the race could take up to ten hours to complete there’s definitely some running in the dark, on the trails.

I feel that this run will help develop myself mentally. I need some of that. Physically I’m definitely not the strongest but I have an idea of what to do and what’s been holding me back. As far as mental challenges, I need some more.

Please pray to the virgencita that we all make it back in one piece, without any chunks missing.

Survey

2009-02-13T22:27:00.000-08:00

Found here and here.

1. Where/how did you meet?
High school, through a mutual friend. We were friends for a very very long time. Eventually we liked each other and now we're here, married.

2. How long have you known each other?
Oh my gosh, a very long time.

3. How long after you met did you start dating?
1 year then we split up then 1 year later we started dating again.

4. How long did you date before you were engaged?
A decade.

5. How long was your engagement?
2 years, perfect time.

6. How long have you been married?
2+ years.

7. What is your anniversary?
11/11 - We'll be married for five years on 11/11/11.

8. How many people came to your wedding reception?
We invited 185 and they all RSVP'd yes.

9. What kind of cake did you serve?
White w/ strawberries.

10. Where was your wedding?
San Dimas/Glendora - Catholic/Mexiadorean Party

11. What did you serve for the meal?
Pollo.

12. How many people were in your bridal party?

13. Are you still friends with them all?
Sad to say nope.

14. Did your spouse cry during the ceremony?
All I'll say is one of us did...

15. Most special moment of your wedding day?
After wedding ceremony was over and everyone left to the reception. We were alone, finally.

16. Any funny moments?
N staring at the priest while he asked him to state his vows.

17. Any big disasters?
Nothing, shocking being that we're both latinos... Yes, I said that. Plus I'm sure it was all due to our wedding coordinator, Debbie.

18. Where did you go on your honeymoon?
Cancun & Playa Del Carmen

19. How long were you gone?
Two weeks, it was the bestest.

20. If you were to do your wedding over, what would you change?
Nothing, it was perfect.

21. What side of the bed do you sleep on?
Right side.

22. What size is your bed?
Queen and N swears it's too small.

23. Greatest strength as a couple?
We're the same.

24. Greatest challenge as a couple?
We're the SAME.

25. Who literally pays the bills?
Me.

26. What is your song?

27. What did you dance your first dance to?
See #26.

28. Describe your wedding dress.
Mom made it.

29. What kind of flowers did you have at your wedding?

30. Are your wedding bands engraved?
No.

sometimes...

2009-02-03T15:17:00.000-08:00

- I want to stay in bed, all day long.

- I dream of non-fat lattes and white mochas.

- my career makes me depressed.

- people annoy me so much that I want to physically hurt them, but I don’t!

- I want to let my dog up on our couch, to snuggle with.

- I want to take the exit before my current assignment that lead’s directly to a movie theater and bookstore.

- waking up at 5:10 in the morning to be punk’d by a very evil man is excruciatingly painful. Scratch that, ALL the time.

- friends make torturous workouts fun.

- talking to my mom is necessary.

Honesty

2009-01-28T10:57:00.000-08:00

I’ve been in a real shitty mood this last month. Things are just not going as planned and lots of unexpected losses and gains. The only thing that I’ve been focusing on is not losing it. Yes, things will get better but sometimes it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes I wish I could just slap some sense into some and hug others. Hell I wish I could just leave town. But of course I won’t. I’m here, working through all of the mess.

right now

2009-01-13T14:32:00.000-08:00

Things that make me sad
- Empty e-mail box
- Files at work
- Miffy crying in her crate
- Thinking of the boy who dislocated his shoulder this past Friday
- Pain that our children will endure, once we decide to have them
- People who have lost and will lose a great deal

Things that make me happy
- Neil
- Hiking up the big A
- Watching Miffy get comfortable with us
- Wine and chocolates
- Books
- Chatting it up with friends ;-)

Things that stress me out
- Economy
- Education options for future children
- Houses on the market and location
- Dog being a nervous wreck when left alone
- Work and deadlines
- Not sleeping well

Things that are open on my computer screen
- Word
- Twitter
- VPN
- Personal e-mail (empty)
- Work e-mail (full)
- Lots of PDF files

29 objectives

2008-12-31T10:50:00.000-08:00

On the 28th I turned 29. It was sad. Seriously. This will be my last year in my twenties and well it’s sad. I love(d) my twenties. Not afraid of getting older just afraid of what’s expected with it. I’m still trying to get used to the idea that I’ve become an adult. I think it happened a year ago. Getting married does that to you, make you grow up that is.

1. There is tons that I want to get done next year. Special projects and attend events and read, lots more reading. Hopefully my old book club can get its act together again…

2. Something that I really liked this year was meeting with friends at least once a week. I know we all have crazy schedules and I hope we can all keep it up, meeting.

3. I also cut down my spending, a lot. Want to continue that and hopefully I can cut back some more. Sure it was great on the pocketbook but really I don’t want anymore more stuff. There’s far too much stuff as it is and I want to cut my dependence on the accumulation of stuff.

4. I’d like to seriously start a library. Maybe invest in some early editions of my favorite books. Total contrast to what I just said up there I know, but these are books!

5. Also, I need to get my Spanish reading up to high school level. I set out this year wanting to read the entire Harry Potter series in Spanish and just never got around to it.

6. Well I will do it this year.

7. Must also finish reading all the books that haven’t ever been opened currently on our bookcases.

8. Take a vacation, again. After our awesome two weeks in Mexico N and I realized that was probably going to be our last vacation for a long time.

9. We are planning a big purchase this year, biggest one in our lives, so we figured we wouldn’t be able to afford one. Well nope, I think vacations are a necessity and I want to take one, again. Maybe somewhere in Central America. I’m even up to going back to Huatulco since we loved it so much with a trip to Oaxaca City first.

10. Must save my pennies for this one splurge.

11. Professionally I need to get my act together.

12. There are some certifications that I’ve been putting off that need to get done.

13. Also, I will invest more time in my career. Apparently this is what I’m going to be doing from now on, that’s a good thing.

14. Focus on health. No more chocolates, cheese, cracker, wine dinners. Getting far too old for that nonsense.

15. Will make breakfast a priority.

16. More intake of protein, both the animal and vegan kind.

17. Cut back on animal milk, must acclimate to soy.

18. Learn to say no to tias that force food on me, and my dad too.

19. Will look into ways to reduce my asthmatic episodes.

20. Goals that are up for next year include a mini triathlon with Shannon,

21. Mt. Wilson race time decrease with N’s help,

22. Rosarito Ensenada bike ride with my tia Chevy,

23. and complete the San Dimas AR with team Three.

24. Need to make sleep a priority. At least seven hours a day to begin with.

25. When tired, must rest. No more burning myself out to a point that I’m nonfunctional.

26. Be more kind and appreciative of people, everyone.

27. Act the way I want to see people act.

28. Help where help is needed.

29. Love more.

I took this post from here.

dog and xmas

2008-12-30T10:04:00.000-08:00

I feel the need to follow-up on my dog post. Pobrecita, I guess I made her sound like a pain in the a…

She’s a Siberian Husky. The breed that was bred for nothing but running, in the harshest of climates. So yeah, obviously this dog shouldn’t even be in the city. Anyway, we have her and are keeping her. She’s been passed around like cheap xxxx and this is her 5th home that I can track.

Personally, I think no one took the time to read up on her. See what she needs, wants, is all about. All they saw was “OMG she’s soooooo cute!” Once she expressed any type of behavior that was not wanted/liked she was shipped to the next place. Sorry but that’s what I see, totally not trying to bring anyone down. She’s beautiful, intelligent, energetic and ready to please. She’s also afraid of being abandoned, but hell who wouldn’t with so much moving around.

We’ve contacted a few trainers and have visited some message boards, all say to crate her. We tried. It failed. She escapes! Seriously, we’ve tried numerous times and all of them she’s managed to break free from her cage. If this doesn’t tell you how smart she is I don’t know what does. She’s okay to roam free BUT since her anxiety takes over she’s been chewing on the front door since she knows that’s the way out. Also, she’s been jumping on our couch when we’re not home. Honestly I wouldn’t mind if she didn’t scratch at it. N seems to think that she’ll be okay to roam while we’re not around, I’m not so convinced yet.

A trainer came over last Tuesday, she’s already trained so it was mostly for N and myself. We bought her a prong collar and she suffered with the trainer… Well you know what!? Whenever I put that thing on her she behaves like a damn show dog. No pulling no trying to run in front of us, she doesn’t even try to visit with other dogs. She obviously learned about the prong collar and its pain… So what I need now is an equivalent for the kennel. Or a new trainer. Any recommendations? Anyone own a Husky out there? I’d like to talk to someone that has some experience with this breed. And I already know, “enjoy the ride”.

I may be putting my foot in my mouth with this post but she’s a keeper.

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xmas thoughts...

- free gift wrapping is godsend and should be mandatory.

- wine is the gift that keeps on giving.

- books are always welcomed. thanks friends/family!

- i <3 uno. that's how i managed to keep a bunch of tweens, teenagers and one 18 year old entertained on xmas eve.

- chocolate, marshmallows and almonds are haven.

- trying to get wicked tickets sucks.

- having a b-day sucks.

- will never have children in december. my parents must hate me.

- you can find anything and everything three days after xmas!

mush

2008-12-23T11:20:00.000-08:00

So we have decided to keep the dog. [after spending a gazillion dollars on her] OMG is she a handful. She’s great and very well behaved but she also has issues staying alone and well we work! Plus I’ve been skipping xfit just so I can take her out on runs. I wonder if I can even bring her to xfit on days that I do go… you know just tie her up in a corner outside?

So this new addition is a big change into our little world. We are now faced with questions we didn’t have to ask before. Can we go to dinner, alone? Not until her alone issues are resolved. Is Vegas going to happen? Probably not. What are we going to do about our chewed up front door? Aye. Geez Louise. This is worse than a baby…

diciembre

2008-12-18T11:55:00.000-08:00

-need to find a decent watch for A.

-need help with dad’s gift. A Stetson is outta the question.

-have ideas for n’s gift, which always come way too late to pull off.

-thinking too much of pending anniversary of (my) year. And next’s too…

-I want to move. We may have an opportunity to move closer to parentals, even if it’s for a short time.

-need to call brother from another mother and reconnect. This relationship needs some love, from both ends.

-don’t want to celebrate bd, so please don’t bother people. Not being negative nancy but my bd sucks since well it sucks because of its timing. Bad economy and all, so nada! I’m only accepting home made scribbles.

-must practice my spanish skills as they are clearly deteriorating.

-make time for reading. Out of the 24 books I set out to read this year, only 14 have been finshed...

-----------------------------------------------------------------

I’ve been keeping track of all the days I’ve been working out since we got back to it. I did this back when I was training for Mt. Wilson, two months I logged everything I did and ate. What I didn’t do was log how I felt, physically and mentally. These past weeks I’ve been taking mental notes of everything and I think I’m ready to start putting stuff down on paper, again.

What triggered this? Well on Saturday N suggested [forced more like it] I go for a 5K. Ugh. I knew this was coming and well wasn’t looking forward to it. Recently I’ve decided that I’m going to push myself to the max when running, puke and everything, so yeah. Plus this route is tough, 50% upgrade. Did it…. in 29 minutes flat! That was a personal record for me. Plus, I really haven’t put in any mileage since, well since the ½ marathon. This really shocked me. Not that I could run that fast, for me anyway, but that I had improve my speed by not really focusing on running. Immediately I went over to the fridge to check out my workouts, three days of crossfit and one day of bootcamp every week for the past four weeks. Very promising indeed.

So apparently N has earned the right to chant “I told ya so.”

ouch

2008-12-02T12:08:00.000-08:00

In the last three weeks that I’ve been back to xfit I have –
- Blistered my hands (still healing)
- Almost eaten sh!t while box jumping. Luckily my mad skills saved me… It was all luck that my had reached out and stopped me from eating it big.
- Hit my chin with a 45lb bar which hurt like hell for a week.
- Bruised my shins and thighs while dead lifting. If that’s not proof enough that I did em right I don’t know what is.
- Have not had one day without soreness.
- Have felt great physically albeit tired.
- Really enjoyed spending/suffering with friends/family.
- Really, really, I mean really enjoyed my rest days.

Funny moments shared –
- N was really proud of my hand and was showing it off while I was trying to hide it.
- While looking at the Muddy Buddy brochure I was saying how Shannon said it was a really fun race and how we should do it too. N said “that’s what she said about the AR you did right?” Right, five hours later…
- N doing the running man all over our place making fun of me.
- Both of us trying to out due each other in how sore we are.
- Watching/listening to N trying to get new people to come out and join the pain.

While in Huatulco, N came up with the best idea. Since the beach was a walk away from the hotel itself, all stairs, he proposed we run up them four times in the morning. We did. Three mornings. I wanted to die. The staff was really good about it though. After the first morning they made jokes about us getting lost. Then on day three they were pretty impressed. I was impressed I didn't faint!

2008-12-01T10:23:00.000-08:00

What a weekend. Lots of family, friends and food.

Thanksgiving morning was started with a 5K. Even though it was like climbing Mt. Everest it was a great way to start the day. Lots of Red cult members there including the ringleader. It was my first time running since I can remember. Sometime before our vacation.

We hosted a brunch for my in-laws. Afterwards, we headed to the valley of the dirt to spend a lovely Thanksgiving dinner at my sisters’. Of course we ate too much but we did make it out to xfit the next day. Little A was taking us all with his newfound poker skills. Punk.

We DID wake up and make it to the sales. What a waste of time for us. Nothing we needed or wanted. I’m so over doing this to myself. Must remember to read this post next year.

Reflecting on all the changes we’ve made over the years I’m very happy that even though we know we eat (drink) too much during the holidays (and other days) at least we make an effort to work off some of it. I can’t say that for everyone, and I don’t mean that in a negative way either. It’s just something that I’m happy we have incorporated into our lives. After all, we’re the ones that have to live with these bodies and well its kinda hard lugging ourselves around as it is. Every year we seem to be making better choices and decisions, maybe next year we’ll cut out the pies. Maybe… Babysteps.

We also visited N’s granny. It’s always inspirational to see her. She’s an 80+ year old woman that is as strong as can be. She has no health issues and her mind is better than mine. She has such a strong and powerful will it’s unbelievable. She’s what I want to turn into when I grow up.

Yesterday was a day filled with great friends. Sometimes you don’t realize how important friends are and how much they really are part of one’s family. I’m very fortunate to have them in my life and to be able to pretty much say, do, and act anyway I want and they’ll always be there. They always have. It also amazes me how much we have all grown up and keep on growing. Yikes!

Leaving you with one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. Diego Rivera’s murals at the Palacio National. Amazing!

I'm done!

2008-11-25T15:59:00.000-08:00

with my report! Phew, all in record time too. Now I can enjoy the holidays. Hope no more work makes its way round my inbox.

Off to watch Viva La Vida [loca]. Hope its a good show and hope traffic isn't bad on the way back.

Here's to hope in 09.

pain/goals

2008-11-19T11:07:00.000-08:00

Goals. Lots of talk about these lately. Guess I better start too.

Well, after some talking with N I’ve decided (have been tricked) into focusing on strength. My strength sucks, always has. I hate strength training. I hate feeling like I’d rather die than complete another round of some CrossFit WOD. I’m so that person. I don’t mind running, even if I feel like puking, that’s okay. It’s the pain from lifting, my own body even, that’s not.

During this year’s Mt. Wilson training, Ranger-man opened up about some of his experiences during his stint in the military. It was really inspiring and it helped me get through that month I did nothing but CrossFit. Then, I forgot all about it. Well Monday’s session really kicked me hard. I wanted nothing more than to stop after the first round. Of course I wasn’t willing to quit, I don’t quit. But I was willing an injury, small one, to help end the torture. I know this is wrong, I know I shouldn’t think like that, but I’m being honest here. What helped me get through it was my team, Coach Eric and the assistant coach (sorry, forgot his name!). Also, the warrior board helped too. It’s amazing to see how strong people are! Also, reading some definitions about pain and how it means its good was also reassuring.

Sure my legs feel like they’re going to give out on me. Sure I can’t raise my arms above my chest. Definitely screaming inside when having to get up and down. Forget about climbing stairs. But other than that I feel good. This is a reminder that my body needs more torture. So needless to say I’m looking forward to handicap rail assisted bathroom breaks, having to wash my hair in increments of 5 seconds, squealing when getting up, and walking in flats. I may have to get N’s cane out of the closet too.

Goals for next year:

- Get to standard pushups.

- Finish Mt. Wilson in 2 hours.

- Finish sprint adventure race within allotted time with team tres! I can’t believe we’re doing this again.

- Run another ½ at 2:30 w/o bathroom break.

- Maybe, maybe do a mini tri w/ Shannon. I said maybe!

We're back

2008-11-18T10:11:00.000-08:00

from our amazing vacation. el sigh

Will post pictures, experiences, stories later. So much fun was had.

Happy to be back though. I didn't realize how much I really did miss you all.

days of the dead

2008-10-31T11:44:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween! We have a ton of candy and just realized we won’t be here tonight for any trick-or-treaters. Whoops! May have to make a pit stop at MIL to drop all this booty off before it goes on my bootie. Also, forgot to send my cards early this year so they may arrive tomorrow. Hey, that’s the real Halloween eve for us mexis anyway.

Man I’m so excited to finish up all my work and be free for two weeks! Eek! I think we/I have made all the necessary purchase sans N’s necessary alka seltzer box and an extra memory card for camera. Alls left is voting, washing and packing and cleaning our place up. That last one I’m not so excited about. Ugh, our dining table looks like it’s been hit with a hurricane of paper. Shit! Must call airline with passport information. Already confirmed all reservations and transportation to and from airport here in the EU.

So here’s something that I’ve been wanting to remind/say to my family but I think it may be a little dark/negative. Appropriate for American Halloween and Dia De Los Muertos eve + one day. I want to reiterate my wishes in case anything were to happen to me, i.e. funeral plans, no life support, etc. Heck, I’m even sending in a new beneficiary form for all my retirement/investment funds since they claim I never submitted one! Bastards. I also want to call and make sure the funds go to someone else in case something happens to my beneficiary too. What I really need to do is make a will but no one wants to take me serious. My family knows that I do not want to be buried but burned instead, they know I do not want life support, and so on. Everytime I have this conversation with any one of them they cut me off. They claim that I’m too young to be talking like that, that I’m being a downer but am I really? I don’t think so. Shit happens all the damn time and I just want to make sure that everyone is prepared and knows what to do. I read once about tips on preparing for events like this. One was to make sure your spouse knows where all important documents, bank accounts, bills are. The article even suggested making a list of everything. Yeah, I’ve had this convo with N and he gets all uncomfortable and changes the subject. It’s not like I’m a glass half empty type of girl but have seen far too much drama to not be worried. So, I’m kinda worried that all my conversations on these topics have lasted all but two minutes with my loved ones. Hopefully all 100 two minute talks will come to mind in case shit happens.

So have a safe, fun and happy Halloween!

The artwork above came from here.

healthy?

2008-10-28T13:14:00.000-07:00

Well my bronchitis is almost gone. Looks like now I just have to get rid of all the crap that built up in my throat. Gross.

This infection started last week on Monday, after the AR. Didn’t get bad until Tuesday night and had to make an appointment with the Dr. on Thursday cause of my asthma and all. All they told me was what I already knew, I need to get rest and drink liquids and come in if breathing is tough to do. Blah, blah, blah. Plus they gave me some antibiotics that I’m not too happy on taking. The Dr. even admitted that they won’t help at all, only a precaution in case something else, like a virus gets contracted. WTF!? Most of you know, or don’t, that I’m anti-pharmaceuticals. Anyway, I’ve been taking the stupid pills even though they’ve been really hard on my stomach. Maybe those pills will accidentally fall on the floor soon, or in the trash even. What I really think helped me fight this was the rest I finally succumbed to, lack of any cold beverages, all the working out that I’ve been doing, all the good (healthy) food I’ve been eating, stopped all dairy products for the exception of my intake of fresh cheese from Chihuahua, and some funky concoction my mami made for me.

Things I’ve missed that have made my heart sad:

- Coffee, can’t take it cause I love it with milk/creamer. Sad.
- Beer. Was suicidal about this until N pointed out that I’ll be in Mx soon.
- Appetite. Been having to force feed myself which sucks.
- Energy. I get these bursts of energy, which are very deceiving, and then after 30 min I’m beat.
- Not coughing. Ugh.
- Normal sleep. Sure I need naps but then I can’t sleep at night.
- Running and exercising. Yeah, I said it.

Looking forward to:

- All the online purchases I made in an attempt to therapeutically help my sad heart.
- Exercising. N thinks I’ll be able to get back on Thursday!
- Beer on Friday.
- Voting and fleeing the country on Tuesday.
- Packing. N swears he’s going to start now! Bwahahahahahahaha!
- Coffee! Had my first today and it was so good it’s beyond description.
- Getting rid of all the junk stuck in my lungs.
- Stopping those nasty antibiotic pills.
- Nixing tea. I like the stuff but after eight days of the stuff I’m ready to call it quits for the time being.

o.m.g.

2008-10-20T20:37:00.000-07:00

I can't believe we all survived yesterday's Adventure Race. It was quite the adventure... All I'm ready to share is that we finished and it was hard, like I wanted to quit six minutes into the thing. Yeah. R and A helped push me through the last leg as I was ready to throw in the towel. This is why I keep these guys around.

Kudos to Shannon, Lynn and Beth the Three Margaritas! Those women did awesome. Also, thanks to Eric and Vanessa for the tips and emotional support. All of you guys really helped us a LOT.

Now, I'm just ready to ship out on vacation. I can feel the ocean breeze, smell the sunscreen and taste the _______ and _______. Total bliss.

I'm sicker now more than ever. My head is full of tension and I sound like a five-pack a day smoker. Feel like one too.

Debating whether to go to the BC/CF Halloween Extravaganza on Friday. I want to go but I don't want to dress up. Guess I feel silly plus I'm so not up to going out and grabbing something either. I barely have the energy to write this up and bake those chocolate chip muffins I can now smell. mmmmmmmmm. Plus N told me that there's this poster at the Academy stating "Dress up Bitches!" Hmmm, yeah that alone makes me want to rebel and not dress up.

whoa!

2008-10-14T16:21:00.000-07:00

This sucks -

***All Athletes***
We would like to convey to you all how important it is to us that our athletes have a good experience, and that most certainly includes receiving a medal at the end of the race. To our unfortunate amazement, we had so many unregistered and unpaid runners (bandits) that ran in the race this year that our surplus of at least 300 half marathon medals disappeared before legitimate athletes were able to cross the finish line to claim what was rightfully theirs. We are taking this very seriously and are already talking about ways that we can rectify the situation for the race in 2009.
If you finished the race and did not receive the medal please email us your name, address and bib number to lelison@runicr.com

At least we all got our medals. Makes me appreciate my little gold plated thingamajig.

Told ya this thing was somewhat disorganized. Hopefully this won't happen at the Pasadena race.

race results/thoughts

2008-10-14T11:42:00.000-07:00

So the half was this past Sunday. R, A and I all ran it. R did awesome as usual but I’ll let her share her unofficial time *wink wink*.

It’s taken me some days to make this post because I’m full of emotions I care not to share with everyone. Not because I’m trying to exclude people but because not everyone has to be subjected to my issues. So here goes, hopefully it won’t come off as too bitter…

The day started off pretty hectic. I didn’t get anything to eat prerace and I was sorta stressed because A and R were stuck in traffic. N and I stayed down in LB so all I had to do was walk over to the starting line. A finally got there but since this was our first time there we had no idea about the starting time and how that’d affect our official times. Being as rushed and stressed as we were I screwed up his chip and told him to carry it in his water belt. BIG MISTAKE. Due to my stupidity he never got an official time. *tear* But all in all we had fun and stayed together, for the most part.

Up until mile 6 we were talking and having a great time. We were right on pace with 11 minute miles. Then I had to use the restroom. I wasted 15 minutes just waiting in line. This was really infuriating because I just can’t understand why this happens to me. This is about the 4th time I’ve felt this way during a long run. A said that he’d press on and I gave him my blessing. After the bathroom incident I was so pissed that I just ran as hard as I could. Then I found that I was only a few yards from the 6mi mark so my 10K was off. Caught up to A little after mile 9. He was walking and I pushed him to run with me. We made it all the way without stopping except once after mile 10 for some water and powerade. He sprinted the last ¼ mile and I couldn’t catch him. According to my watch his time was 2:50 and mine was 2:53. If it wasn’t for that stupid stop I had to make we would have made it at 2:35/ 2:38.

Things I’ve learned/considered -

1. If it wasn’t for all that powerade I made a point of drinking I’m not sure I would have made it without food. Must eat, no matter what. This may be a contributing factor to my bathroom stop.

2. I’m physically strong to run 13.1 mi without stopping. Need to work on my mental strength during Saturday training runs.

3. Running with a cell phone in hand is not a good idea.

4. Running with a partner helps tremendously with number 2.

5. Having your own water belt is the best.

6. Sucks having to dodge/swerve through people while running.

7. Not sure if I want to do this particular race next year. It was pretty unorganized at the starting line and we couldn’t get anyone to help with our bib and chip issues listed above.

8. Surprisingly I’m not sore at all and was ready to startup yesterday but N and R advised against it. Left knee is feeling off but that’s about it.

9. Got a massage on Friday and I’m guessing that helped.

10. Took Tylenol before the race, that helped too.

11. Best of all, I looked at this race as just another training run.

Looking forward to our AR this coming Sunday.

incoherentness

2008-10-08T16:33:00.000-07:00

Today has been rough on so many levels. None that matter though…

So I ran out of allergy pills on Sunday and never went to get anymore. Last night I was paying the price. Couldn’t stop coughing and had serious insomnia. WTF I never get insomnia. This insomnia has been plaguing me for a while. Ugh. Needless to say I woke up this am feeling the opposite of great on only fourfuckenhours of sleep. Oh, and they weren’t a good solid four hours either. First thing I did before coming into the office, picked up a packet of pharmaceuticals.

It’s taken me all week so far to make some minor adjustments on a report here at work. Pho. This is not good. My brain is tired and can only concentrate on coffee, long walks by the beach and sleep. Hopefully the finished product I just sent out won’t come back with any more ridiculous comments/recommendations.

My vision is getting worse. Damn you solitaire! I can totally see, or not see for that matter that I need a new prescription. ^%^*^$%*))! I don’t want my eyes to get old! All this with A constantly asking why I don’t get lasik. Well, it’s because my vision keeps getting worse. Sorry kid, we’re from the same gene pool and BIO 101 tells me you’re headed in the same direction. Muhahahahaha!

Still contemplating a dress a purchased a couple of weeks ago. Sure I loved it when I got it, now I’m not so sure. I’m so bipolar when it comes to clothes, decisions, life.

The one that’s about to send me over the edge, I can’t get an appointment for a facial! The nerve!

As for the debate. I recorded it on PBS. N played about 5 minutes of it last night and I got all wound up. Me thinks this could have been a contributing factor to my lack of sleep. I won’t go into politics here but I will say that I’m actually looking forward to when the other shoe drops, opps it already did…

Dreading traffic tonight. Looking forward to watching SATC movie for the 4th time. Can’t wait to lay down.

Peace, love and kisses.

BTW, this little guy belongs to me. Sorry you didn't get the memo G, I'll be picking him and ALL of his belongings tonight.

Must focus

2008-10-07T18:01:00.000-07:00

Work is getting a lot harder. Not because of the actual work but because I just can't focus! With only three weeks to go for our trip I can't seem to concentrate on anything. Well anything that needs my attention. Argh!

This is all I've been thinking about...

I can't wait!

tired

2008-10-06T10:59:00.000-07:00

After a weekend of hibernation I was sure this morning’s workout was going to feel great. WRONG. Not only did I perform subpar I feel like I ran the Mt. Wilson trial all over again. My leg muscles are tired, my arms feel weak, my back can’t get out of its hunching over position and all over something hurts. Looks like the 3:1 isn’t happening this week. That’s okay though. I think I’ve been working very hard these last two months and as Coach E and Coach N have repeatedly told me, I must focus on the positive.

The plan is to take tomorrow off, BC Wednesday, try to make a CF session on Thursday and BC Friday. The ½ is on Sunday so Saturday will be a rest day. My goal for the race is 2:40. Originally I wanted 2:30 but I don’t want to beat myself up if I don’t get that number. Plus, after doing 10 miles on Saturday in 2.02 I think that an additional 3 miles is going to take about an extra 40 minutes.

Other thoughts… Even though I’ve been complaining about all of my shortcomings I am very proud of four very important people in my life that have all inspired me.

My husband N. Only after having knee surgery just two months ago he’s back at it. Plus, he’s better than most people I know! Always my biggest supporter and mentor. Never letting me down in any way and always pushing me to do better. He’s what keeps me going. He’s a true athlete.

My brother A. Who knew that dragging him out to a few 5K’s would have turned him on to BC. Every time I talk to him he has something to share from his class. It’s awesome to see how much he’s change in only a few months, both physically and mentally. Damn, he’s doing his first ½ this Sunday, then his first AR next Sunday THEN his first marathon in November. My baby brother kicks ass!

My mom. After all my hassling for her to get back to her walking and not excepting any excuses from her, A and I have managed to get her to her first 5K. This is a huge achievement for her and I’m very proud that she’s committed to it. I know this will be the first of many races to come. My mom’s on her way.

My friend R. Not only has she been a loyal BFF for many years this woman has always inspired me. I still remember when she dragged me to our first yoga class. Then I dragged her to her first CF class… The rest is history. R is on her way to becoming an elite CFer.

I’m still working on a few others but I’m sure I’ll get them to come around eventually…

scratch three

2008-10-02T13:19:00.000-07:00

i realized that i'm guilty of this too since all of my posts are virtually bitch fests. whoops.

glum

2008-10-02T11:09:00.000-07:00

I’m in a shitty mood but not really. I really want to be mad but I just can’t seem to get there. Inside I feel these emotions trying to break free and it’s really annoying that they can’t.

First, my effin thighs are bigger than ever. WTF! My pants barely fit, if you can even say that. The strange thing is that I’ve been losing weight and inches elsewhere except for that area. They just keep on getting bigger. What the hell is going on down there?

Second, my clutch went out yesterday and now I’m out a significant amount of money. Really sad about this because I was finally going to treat myself with something and then this shit happens. My treat will now be a new clutch. Not fucken fun. *&@#%()!!!

Third, work. Gawd this place is so negative. Everyone always complaining about something I just can’t take it anymore. I’d understand if their complaints were valid and out of their control but everything they bitch about is because they made it so! Argh! This is what happens when you have an office full of type Aers.

Forth, my foot. My heel more specifically. The darn thing still hurts! I’ve been icing, rolling and massaging the thing and even though it hurts less each day it STILL hurts. Now I’m confused if I should go for the training run on Saturday or not.

Finally, after two years of pushups from the knees I still can’t do a real pushup. This is very disappointing. I try and try but my weak arms can’t handle all this weight. :’(

Fuck, I think my bad mood has finally broken through.

twitt[i]er stalker

2008-09-29T11:29:00.000-07:00

Richard Gere is DEFINATLY still hot. 5 min ago

Men just get better and better. 5 min ago

Bastards. 3 min ago

Bwahahaha! 1 min ago

dumb[ass]

2008-09-29T10:03:00.000-07:00

It’s Monday what else can I say…

Had a great weekend and wish I had another day… or four. My cold has passed and now I’m just congested, especially in my chest.

So my first week of 3:1 failed. I missed out on Thursday since I felt like crap. Here’s what I did do:

Friday: CrossFit-Jackie(?) 1K row, 50 thrusters w/45lb bar, and 30 pullups (jumping) Time-16:40

Saturday: ran 12.5 miles. Time-2:50 The first 6 miles were okay, I wasn’t feeling so good but it was okay then I hit a wall. My body, breathing and mind were all suffering. Thankfully MK was the support crew and took care of us during the whole route! Thank gawd for MK!!! Really, if it wasn’t for him driving around and looking for us I’m not sure I would have made it. Also, Shannon was a true friend and stuck with me the whole way too. She sacrificed a good time to keep me company. I owe her BIG.

Sunday: REST My feet were doing much better but my left heel was giving me some problems. Every time I’d bend over pain would start there and shoot up my leg. This doesn’t sound good so I rolled my feet on tennis balls all day.

Monday: BC 400m sprints, 9 pushups, 9 jumping squats Time-5 rounds plus we ran up the goat hill 3 times, 5 if if you count the warm-up. My chest was congested and affected my breathing. Plus I was really tired after the sprints that it took me a long time to complete the pushups and squats. Hopefully by week’s end my breathing will get back on track.

Goals for the week:
- to complete two 3:1 schedules.
- must get rid of all this congestion.
- continually make better choices in all my consumption and hydration.
- Get to the bottom of A’s new haircut. Took me a lot of convincing and pleading and begging to get him to cut his locks for our wedding and now he’s just cut it “just because.” Yeah, whatever…

Finally, I swear this will end it, I was reflecting, yes reflecting, on my habits this weekend. I’ve come to the conclusion that I sabotage myself. Whenever I get into really improving my strength and times and diet I back off for some reason. First it happened after the wedding, last year it happened around this time, then again around March, then after Mt. Wilson, now I’m starting to get back on track and I’m starting to see bad habits creep up. In particular with my eating. So, at least I’ve recognized that I do this and will be continuously watching myself. I’m afraid of falling off the wagon again because that damn wagon goes way too fast and its soooo hard to get back on. Ask me, I’ve been doing the jumping on and off for a while.

wtf moments of today

2008-09-25T20:37:00.001-07:00

1. after talking myself out of calling in sick i found a flat on my car. grrrr.

2. freakin' chest has been hurting all day long. tight and hard to breath.

3. stoopid kaiser had no effin appointments and they wanted me to go to urgent care. eff that i'll take my chances with my little inhaler.

4. going up a flight of stairs made me out of breath.

5. couldn't go to bc because of #1 and #2 and possibly #4.

6. just paid $205 for the effin 1 5k and 2 half marathon bibs. that's bs.

7. costco erased my car from their system. good thing i keep all car related receipts in glove compartment.

8. $190.21 at costco!!! wtf! i only got gatorade and soap.

more twitt[i]ering

2008-09-24T20:24:00.000-07:00

"well, i fucken love you" <3 <3 <3 now

sick

2008-09-24T20:13:00.000-07:00

it's official i have a cold and i'm not happy. my nose has been drippy all day and it now hurts from all the wiping. body aches too. i know n is going to say that i've been pushing myself too much but i won't admit to that. i think someone gave me this virus.

oh, since i've been called out on being boring and outta touch for not having a twitter account i'll just add my own homemade twitt[i]er updates here...

twitt[i]er updates
watching satc again. 5 min ago
love ondemand. 4 min ago
wish i would have gotten an iced vanilla latte before i got home.4 min ago
i should really get dinner started. 3 min ago
i'm hungry 3 min ago
and really thirsty 3 min ago
wtf is that noise outside???? 2 min ago
all these cats are going to be the death of me 2 min ago
i am the bubble girl 2 min ago
alright, wish i had some nutella but instead will see what else i can eat 1 min ago
big is such an asshole 1 min ago
but oh so hot!!!! 1 min ago

Fall Cycle

2008-09-23T16:35:00.000-07:00

Been in Atlanta, Vegas, training and now back at some more training. Sheesh seems like I no longer have a desk, which can be good and baaaaad.

Atlanta was hot. It made all of my allergies and asthma flare up and still am suffering from them. Not good. I did manage to eat right although I wasn't necessarily on the Zone but I did always manage to get some protein in at each meal.

Vegas was awesome. No more on that. >:)

Training is going great, learning tons of new stuff and can't wait to actually use these new skills.

Now for my other training. New Fall Bootcamp Cycle.

Week 1
Mon 9/15: Recover from Atlanta/Vegas
Tue 9/16: 5K run Time-30:19
Wed 9/17: Bootcamp 3 Razorback Repeats Time-last person down
Thu 9/18: Rested, legs and feet were both swollen and in pain.
Fri 9/19: CrossFit 5 rounds of 5 pull ups (jumped), 20 sit ups, 5 push ups, 10KB swings (green one) Time-16something last person that did this workout.
Sat 9/20: Woke up with painful feet again and skipped out on the 5K I had planned on doing. Attended a wedding and got some cardio in during the reception.
Sun 9/21: Chantry Flats Loop 5mi. Time-1:20+? Asthma was tough

Week2
Mon 9/22: Bootcamp Squats, bear crawl, crab walk, push ups
Tue 9/23: CrossFit 20 minutes of 10 medball cleans (16lbs) and 10 push ups Rounds:8

So I have 13.2 miles to run in a couple of weeks. I'm both excited and scared but mostly scared. I'm not sure I'm prepared. Plus, I've never gone that far so I know its 75% mental and 25% physical that's coming into play right now. In preparation for this big deal I'm trying out the 3:1 schedule. Today was day 3 of this new plan/torture. Feeling really tired but I don't know if its from all the sneezing and congestion that's been going on to really bad allergies, cold I may be getting from N or just plain stress from work. I'm really, really, I mean really looking forward to my rest day tomorrow. I think I may actually snore tonight.

Also really afraid on how my quads are going to feel too.

responses to comments

2008-09-05T15:05:00.000-07:00

So I thought I’d address some comments I’ve received…

Gee, I don’t even know what camera I want yet all I know is I want one, now. See, that’s how bad of an effin bandwagon’er I’ve become. So disappointed in myself. The funny thing is I don’t even like taking pictures. N does all of our picture taking. Seriously. I hate it. Seems like pictures interrupt the moment for me. I’m all about treasuring the moment. BUT, N takes really amazing pictures. He’s a total natural and I want to exploit that talent. For our walls ya know. Plus we have that Mexico trip coming up and I want some shots of the DF pyramids. I’m working on a collage of all indigenous things. So there you have it. Here’s one I’ve been looking at:

Geefunk, whatever. WHAT-EVER! Dude, seriously. I know you totally have to say stuff like that so we’ll leave it at that. Don’t forget that you’re doing youknowwhat next year. At or against your will. I’ve already signed you up…

trailrunnerconDios, tough? Come now, I’m no toughie. All I’m trying to do is just keep my Saturday mornings full until I find something less taxing. But in all seriousness, I’m in no way a toughie in respect to BC/CF/anythingrelatedtosports. It’s about just getting and staying healthy. If looking good is a side effect of this well that’s something I’m willing to live with. I know all the stuff about diet, consistency, etc. I think everyone knows, but some of us chose to ignore that knowledge and thus don’t do any of it. As far as diet, I’m working on this, have been for the last ten years. I’d probably be even more obese if I didn’t watch what I ate. I’m at my heaviest now and I watch what I eat even more so than any other time in my life. Argh age. What I’ve come to accept is that I have to watch it all the time, not just M-F. Consistency. I’m constantly working on the big C, sometimes I’m on it and sometimes I’m off. It’s hard work I tell ya.

Storytime: You know why I really did the Mt. Wilson? Because of Hope and Eric. I didn’t do it really because I wanted to do it, initially that is. First, Hope challenged us (lady bc’ers) to come out on Saturday mornings to train with the serious trail runners, like you. She assured us we didn’t have to do the race, just another day to get a workout in, plus it was free. So here I go thinking why not. Then the day of actually signing up came and everyone is signing up while I’m in a little corner minding my own business. Out of the corner of my eye I saw E coming at me. Sh!t is all I thought. Then he asked and I said I would think about it then he too challenged me. Admittedly that was one of the best tag team efforts I’ve seen out of those two. Talk about teamwork. So there you have the real reason to why I did the race in the first place. It wasn’t me, it was them. Then I have yet another coach at home constantly challenging me. See, some people are lucky to have coaches at their disposal at The Academy. I’m lucky to have one available all the time. Gosh, so many C words!

Another funny, I won't even be in town for the Pasadena gig...

double 5Ks

2008-09-03T21:56:00.000-07:00

So I did it.

1st 5K - 29.45 :-)
2nd 5K - 33.27 :-(

No PRs for me. My 5K PR is 29.25. What I found was that the 1st was all about the cardio. Second one was just plain pain and fatigue. Ugh. Now I feel like I ran a marathon. :-(

I need new shoes. :-)

Water

2008-09-03T10:49:00.000-07:00

So I did the ten miles on Saturday, four on Monday and now I’m up for two 5K’s today. Daunting.

Also, I’ve managed to successfully stay on the Zone 75 percent of the time since Tuesday. Really can feel the difference even though N was making fun of me last night accusing me of drinking the so called water. Hmpf! Little does he know he’s been Zoning too. Hah!

So the only problem I’ve come across is bread. I love the stuff. Not white bread or table bread. Not that nonsense. I’m talking about chocolate muffins and banana walnut loaves bread. Especially with coffee… Damn you bread. Other than that it’s been good times. Then there’s that little bit of wine I had on Sunday, but, I did manage to offset it with some cheese full of protein.

I’ve also been lurking on The Zone’s boards and must admit are quite helpful. It’s reassuring to know there are others with the same thoughts and feelings when it comes to The Zone and food in general.

Something else I’ve been thinking about seriously is adopting the 3:1 schedule. It’s all about getting back to consistency and dedication. I did do those last things before and saw results, I guess they do work. Just guessing here.

Crap, I think someone’s slipped me some of that water after all. #%$%*)!

lazy

2008-08-27T17:04:00.000-07:00

damn. missed the am bc class yet again. seems that mornings and me don't mix very well this week.

all i want to do is go home and crawl into bed. what i will do is force my ass to bc with aa and suffer, tremendously i'm sure. crap.

well at least i've managed to successfully stay on the zone all day. hopefully this mere fact will help me out tonight.

thanks e for keepin' it real.

Randomness

2008-08-26T15:18:00.000-07:00

-
1. Really upset at my current weight.
2. Want/Need one of those fancy cameras everyone seems to have.
3. Mad at self for jumping on first bandwagon ever, see above item.
4. Scared about running 13.1 miles. Hell, scared about running 10 miles.
5. Trying not to bite my nails, awful habit I know.
6. Work is really so easy but so hard to focus on.

+
1. Made appt. with graduate advisor to finally finish degree.
2. Really psyched about going back to school.
3. Thinking of possible thesis options.
4. Getting a haircut finally.
5. Spending some time with mom this weekend, finally.
6. Got to see A-II last night!
7. Cube-mates are super quiet. Wait.
8. Only two more hours and I’m free from here.

Stuff

2008-08-25T12:10:00.000-07:00

Where to start. N is doing much better. We think he has full range of motion but his knee keeps on locking up. Plus, walking for long periods of time really hurts him. So far we expect that he’ll be out for another two more weeks then back to the old salt mill, or tasting warehouse as I like to call it. If you know N and have still not had a chance to see or talk to him you better do it now. Once he gets back to work it’ll be bye bye N.

Last week we took our obligatory trip to Kern River. It was so refreshing to be out of town, out of the city. All we did was hang out at the river and indulge. What we really liked about this trip was the lack of people! We usually head out on Saturday but this time we left on Monday and it made all the difference. We’ve decided this is the way to go from now on. Another idea we came up with was actually inviting people up with us next year. We received a ton of inquiries as to what we would be doing and where was this place and so on. We got the hint. The plan is to get a house on the river front and then we’ll see from there.

Yesterday was a lazy Sunday indeed. AA wanted to go for a 10miler but I really didn’t have it in me. I needed to sleep in since I really haven’t since, geez I can’t remember when. Instead I spent my morning at SB finishing up my Lance Armstrong book and then headed over to watch Bottle Shock. The movie was good but I could have waited to see it on video. I must admit that I wish they would have added more scenes related to wine as opposed to the romantic triangle they had in there. All in all I give this movie a B- rating. Great cast though, especially liked Snape’s character.

Lance Armstrong book review to follow.

One more thing, finally booked our trip to Mexico!

knees

2008-08-04T11:07:00.000-07:00

Today’s my first day back in the office and N’s first day on his own *gasp*. I already spoke to him this morning so at least I know he won’t be lying on the floor unconscious when I get home.

His surgery went well, or at least that’s what we were told by the MDs. The recovery is another story. At this point he’s still having a very hard time bending his knee and therefore, can’t drive. This I think is what’s really killing him, being stuck.

He started physical therapy last Thursday and we saw tremendous improvement. So, given the PT’s advice to not get “cooped up at home” we went for dinner and drinks Friday night. Saturday morning his knee was slightly pink and somewhat swollen. So went on the weekend, he went out for a few hours on Saturday and some on Sunday. Well, now his knee is swollen. Both the MD and PT told him to walk and place more weight on it but his knee doesn’t seem to be reacting well to any of this. Good thing he has another PT appt. tomorrow.

Something else… I sliced my leg throwing out the trash last week and had to get some stitches, very minor. Anyway, the MD prohibited me from any running for 12 days. I’m on day 10, or 11. It’s been killing me not to run. Hell I even ran today. I hate being restricted! This did give me a sense to what N is feeling right now too. I at least get to run is a few days; he still has a long road ahead. Poor guy, he’s been a real trooper about everything. If it were me, well let’s thank the lord it’s not ‘cause it wouldn’t be good.

Thank you babe for being a very good patient!

pre-op stuff

2008-07-17T10:56:00.000-07:00

We had all our pre-op appointments yesterday and they were kinda freaky. Sounds like they know what’s wrong with N’s knee and they were explaining and showing us what they’re planning on doing. It was very weird actually. We’re hoping they can repair the damage by stitching it up as opposed to cutting it out. We made it clear that we prefer the former but they can’t guarantee anything until they’re inside. Eek!

At the moment N’s only concern is being cooped up for a whole week at home! He’s really freaking about this. He swears he’s going to go mad with cabin fever. Oh, and he’s so not happy about having to check in at 6am for his procedure. :-/ Yeah, I’m not happy either since I’ll be up with him too. At least he gets some happy juices while I’ll be trying to keep content with hospital caffeine, blah.

Please, please wish us luck. Oh, and here’s praying that the little coffee cart I spied on yesterday opens at 6:35am.

pho

2008-07-15T11:43:00.000-07:00

N’s surgery time is coming close. We’re on count down mode actually. I know it’s a relatively simple procedure but I’m still nervous. Of course I’ve been all nonchalant around him but inside I’m not. So here’s to a quick, painless, problem-less procedure and recovery.

itunes

2008-07-08T19:56:00.000-07:00

can't believe i've been on here for about four hours. damn. plus i can't even find the song i originally came for. hmpf! at least i've been getting my fix on youtube. 'cept i never realized how vulgar it really is. hee. still love it.

i need to get this sh!t on my ipod!

drink all night
play all night
lets get it popping
i'm miami triiiiic

better stop this replay, aa is about to knock me over the head :-/

Summary

2008-07-08T09:18:00.000-07:00

I was supposed to run the San Marino 5K on Friday but some peeps couldn't make it so AA and I met at the Rose Bowl instead and did our own 5K. It was fun as we did the outside hills and wasn’t too hot, yet. Afterwards, we ended up in Old Town for some breakfast & my caffeine fix. I got some more books; I swear I’m going to have to be banned from bookstores pretty soon, and more caffeine. We ended up seeing one of the C-clan members which is funny since he lives super far and so do I. Whenever in Pasadena some familiar face always pops up. Ended up at my parents and mom and I went shopping, again. Telling you, I need some sort of restraint.

Once I got home home N and I went for drinks and ended up at a new sushi place in Monrovia. Well new to us at least since they’ve been around for 1.5yrs now. It was tasty and we’d definitely make the trek down there again. Since it was 4th of July everyone and there mother was out there on the street waiting for some sort of firework extravaganza. N and I took a short walk and we ended up spotting some of the workout buffs. See, it was a weekend full of familiar faces. Saw the extravaganza and headed home. The end.

Saturday I met with some more workout buffs now deemed martyroners. This group is training for the Pasadena marathon and are some serious souls. I’m just out there for the extra training and running. You can never get too much running in. Also, I am planning on running a half in October so this is training for me too I guess.

Last week was my first ever 6 miler and was quite surprised I was able to go the whole distance non-stop. My time last week was 1.05 and my time this week was 1.09. There was a killer hill this week so I’m hoping that was part of the extra 4 minutes. The run this week was much more scenic and enjoyable for me. I tend to have serious mind psyche outs so I don’t like to see long straightaway’s while running.

I also attended a shower. We had so much fun and all the gifts almost, almost made me want a bebe too. The cake was sooo good that I had two slices :-P but by the end of the night I was ready to drop. I’m surprised I was able to make it home since everything after that is a blur. It was all the sun that did me in. I can’t wait to see the pics for this bash. But I really really REALLY can’t wait to see baby G! It was so sweet to see how much my friend is loved.

Sunday, vegged out all day.

And now I’m back here, north. Luckily this is my last week and will be able to resume my regular routine. Also, my trip to DC was cancelled!!! Assome!

D'oh Cali

2008-07-03T11:01:00.000-07:00

It’s totally annoying that I can’t make any calls while on the road. WTF! Highly irritated by the stupid hands free law. Its complete bullshit and another way for these effin multibillionaire companies to make more money. Capitalism sucks. I refuse to by a bluetooth or anything for this dumbass law. Oh well, I was always against texting while driving but that’s what I’ll just have to resort to since that won’t get me a ticket. Nice one California.

Assemblyman Chuck DeVore said "banning specific distractions is a slippery slope, and unnecessary, because motorists already can be cited for reckless driving. Drivers' attention can be affected by changing CDs, putting on makeup, or by loud music, pets, crying babies, smoking, eating and other things [like texting!]. Where do you draw the line?"

Exactly Chuck, exactly.

lame

2008-06-26T15:42:00.000-07:00

Back from Vegas and didn’t participate in as much debauchery as I had intended to. Oh well, there’s always next time. Plus someone owes me a trip and they better well make good on it!

I’m also broke :’( Kept to my promise to eat healthy. Unfortunately, I think I made up all the calories somewhere else...

Best part of the trip – Mesa Grill
Everything I had was delicious! I’ll post some picks as soon as I get home. Plus, they have some good damn mojitos to boot too.

Worst part of the trip – Accidents
We saw two really bad accidents on our way and back from Vegas. Both cars were flipped over on the side of the road and had just happened when we passed. Why oh why do people go so fast. I’m really thinking about them all and hoping the best for them.

Now I’m back to regularly scheduled programming. Blah. I’ll be making another rare appearance at bootcamp tomorrow morning. Hopefully I’ll be able to get a run in tonight and then I’m planning on another Sunday with the locos running the marathon. Monday is back to the grind up north. I’m thinking I can probably finish this assignment by the 18th and see if I can get back into my habitual bootcamp schedule. Here’s to some positive “lemme-finish-up-this-shit-assignment-fast” vibes.

heart of darkness

2008-06-17T15:41:00.001-07:00

I’ve been feeling sorta very crappy. Still haven’t been able to recover from the trail race. This really sucks too because I’m really feeling the guilt mounting up.

I went for a run on Friday what N and I have deemed the “mansion run.” This sucker is nothing but 3 miles straight up hill. The first 1.5 is decent but the remaining 1.5 is brutal. So I went on my own. At 10am. Ugh. This was a bad idea and I knew it before I even got my shoes on. The heat killed me. Surprisingly I felt great and was able to run 2 miles nonstop out of the 3, something I have never been able to do. The sun was just too much so I had to stop. Then being the smart person that I am I took a longer route back home. Another stupid idea. All in all the loop was a little over 6 miles and I was not doing so good once I got home. Needles to say I never made it to the trail run on Saturday with some of the workout buffs. I’m sad about this. I’m really hoping my diet change will kick in soon to make me feel a little better. My plan is to do something tomorrow, no matter what.

N’s little sister graduated from college on Saturday! We’re so proud of her. It was crazy hot though and I swore I almost passed out twice sitting out in the sun. I’d do it again though, it was great to see how much she has grown over the years. Love you sister-drammatical-J.

In other related news, my little brother is also graduating, from high school. He'll be attending college this summer. So, in anither four or five years we'll be at another grad. Love you little A.

Congratulations to all the new grads!

yeeeesssss

2008-06-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

I'm going home tonight! Hopefully I can leave early enough to make it to a CrossFit session. I haven't done squat except walk to and from my room, from car to SB and back, and walk the 5 steps from my car to the office I've been working out of. Oh, and I've made it a point not to go anywhere that has a drive-thru. I've had to walk to get my food too. Although most places now offer curbside deliveries... But nope, not for me. I feel surprisingly guilty and really physically ugh. Damn it, who knew this would ever happen to me. ME!?

So excited that I'm going home though! WooHOO! We have a nice weekend ahead and I really can't wait. Working sucks, even more so when you're shut off from your little world.

BTW, workout buffs, what does AR mean??? My guess is that it has something to do with pacing? Please ‘splain.

Mind Boggling

2008-06-10T14:02:00.000-07:00

Don’t really have any down time during the day but I have a bunch of stuff in my head.

First, I can’t believe all the stuff I’ve been eating. I’m really getting scared. My hunger has yet to be satisfied which is not good. This all began after the race. I’m not sure what’s happened since then. Understandably, Saturday and Sunday seemed normal but its Tuesday now and I’m still feeling like a starved child. Plus I feel weak and tired. I’m seriously moving at very slow speeds. I made it a point to really be conscious of my eating yesterday and have made some painful, on my part, but smart choices. All I can say is that being on travel status doesn’t help one bit either. Skipping breakfast yesterday and today hasn’t helped the issues either. Hopefully by keeping tabs on myself this appetite will pass. I really don’t think I can afford more pounds.

Second, my career is really starting to annoy me again. I’m constantly going through this. Anyway, I’m not planning on switching this late in the game but just need to vent. My first year with this company, I was away for about four months on an assignment. Sure it was exciting but I was much younger and not married. Last year I was also away for about half the year. Actually, I was sleeping out of my bed for approximately 23 weeks. Ugh. I’m really lucky to have such an understanding souse but I’m really tired of all this travelling. Plus it really annoys me that all the singletons in the office have been cruising on local assignments. Seems like all the married staff is away which is bullshit. There’s a close cw that was away since September of last year and just got back! AND she’s now getting ready to leave again in August for another painfully long tour, with me. She’s also married. When I took this job I did so knowing that it entailed travelling about 25% of the time not forty-fucken-four!

Which all gets me to my last thought, babies. Seems like we’ve been getting hints about this more and more now that we are approaching our second year of marriage. Plus we are somewhat older but not so much so that this is an issue. Anyway, we have talked about this on many an occasion and we’d really like to start a family within the next two to three years. Which brings me to my job… I have a ton of flexibility here, when I’m not travelling, and this place would be ideal for any parent; however, the traveling is something that cannot really be avoided. So then what? If I pursue another company/ profession I would feel unprofessional and unstable having a family right away, at least within the first three years. I also want the flexibility during the first few years of our future baby’s life. It really is unjust that women have to deal with issues such as these in today’s workforce. So that’s my dilemma. Baby or career?

And today’s WTF moment:
News anchor was doing a piece on the salmonella infected tomatoes and warning people about which ones not to eat and which are okay…

“The tomatoes grown at home are okay to eat folks.”

Are people really this stupid that you have to tell them that the tomatoes in their backyards won’t kill them!? Seriously? Seriously! Seriously.

One down, one more to go

2008-06-09T12:43:00.000-07:00

The race is finally behind us. Phew. We all survived and did pretty well for our respective abilities, except for me. I was disappointed with my performance. Even though I improved from last year I didn’t hit my goal time. I’m really looking forward to next year’s race. I’m really obsessed with achieving my goal. Next year I promise to keep away from all dairy products too.

My time was 2.11, improved 8 minutes from last year.

N did awesome. For not training as hard as Hotbod and myself he really kicked some arse. Plus, with his bad knees and all the downhill really got him. I'm so proud of him for making the effort to come out and run even though it was very painful for him.

So now the next big race on the docket is a half. Hotbod has been harassing me to do one with her. Last year we had agreed that we were going to complete one together but I ended up flaking out on her. This year I’ve promised to fulfill my pledge. According to the training schedule I got off the net we’re supposed to start training already for this thing. Still don’t know what my pace should be either. At this point my goal is completion while keeping a steady jog.

Also, while having some drinks after the race on Saturday someone asked me about adventure racing. I’ve secretly wanted to participate in these ever since I heard ‘round the water cooler that some of the workout buffs do these. My only concern is that I am not as physically fit as the rest of the gang. Someone else told me that I should find a team of my like abilities but I really don’t know how to go about this. Hotbod is really interested also and I’ve already told her that we have to be on the same team since we’ll average out as normal, her with xtra endurance and me with not-so xtra stamina. We’ll see I guess.

disillusioned

2008-06-06T17:43:00.000-07:00

Well I’m still suffering from my toxic yogurt incident. Have been feeling like shit all week long and today is no better. This totally blows with the race being tomorrow. Oh fucken well, I’ll walk the damn thing if I have to.

Also, I’m still not in very good spirits. Better than Monday that’s for sure, but not me, yet. I’ll be leaving Monday morning and I’m really dreading it. We had a meeting with the group I’ll be working with up north and they seem to be okay, for now. It always starts this way. I’m sure come next Friday I’ll be complaining about all the crap they’ve given me. Blah.

Books. I love reading and have been on the Obama book forever. For some reason I haven’t really made time for it but am happy to report I’m only 30 pages away from the end. Even though I’ve toughly enjoyed the book I can’t wait to be done and start something else. My next pick is a bit of a fluff book but that’s what I need right now. Emily Giffin’s Love the One You’re With. I picked this little gem up at Costco since I’ve become obsessed with buying books there. Anyway, I totally loved her previous three books and writing style. Although, I must admit that Baby Proof was somewhat disappointing compared to Something Borrowed and Something Blue. I’m looking forward to devouring this book next week. I’m also secretly looking forward to doing nothing but laying down next week. I think I’ve earned this little break.

blah

2008-06-03T15:51:00.001-07:00

So I totally got food poisoning from the yogurt I ate yesterday. I knew I shouldn’t have eaten it but I was hungry and it was either that or go downstairs and get a bag of chips. For once, I think the chips would have been the healthier choice.

After CrossFit last night I felt really strange, hell even before the class began my tummy felt weird. Anyway, I attributed it to my sour mood and a slight caffeine overdose. Wrong! I knew my nausea was not the normal crazy workout kind but figured I’d be okay. I had a headache, body aches, fever and chills and felt like I was going to die. The good thing was that I never threw up, even though I think that would have made me feel better. Luckily I had a charcoal tablet that helped ease the toxins. Who knows what I would have been like without it.

This all sucks because now my body feels sick. I’m fairly weak and have no energy. I wanted to get a work out in today but am afraid I’m going to have to sit it out. All this with the run looming Saturday. I tell you nothing ever goes my way. Hmph!

So after nothing solid to eat in almost 24 hours I was able to stand eating a few forkfuls of salad and a grande vanilla bean frap. Something else great is that I get to go home in less than an hour.

---

2008-06-02T15:49:00.000-07:00

Tuesday – CrossFit
Don’t remember, something evil though.

Wednesday – CrossFit
Push shoulder presses
Dumbbell swing
Renegade row
Lunge in place
3 sprints

Thursday – CrossFit
150 squats w/ 30lb bar on shoulders
800 m jog
25 squats w/ 30lb bar
25 squats w/ 15lb bar
This workout really made me want to cry, like really shed tears and stuff. This was no easy workout.

Saturday – Chantry Flats
We did Hoegee’s Loop and it took me 1:15. I felt great for the exception of the fall I took towards the end. Oh and also when my ankle slightly twisted, that wasn’t good either. Someone always gets hurt on this trial.

I also went to my parents’ afterwards and took my dog for a light jog. Poor thing is out of shape. She was so excited to get out and jog a bit but by the end she was done. I really miss our runs together. She really keeps me on track. I miss her dearly and can’t wait till we can have her back at our place.

Something else that has been on my mind is this damn Mt. Wilson run. I’m seriously annoyed. I mean not at anyone associated with it but just annoyed in general. I want it to be done and over with already. I’ve been training hard and am both physically and mentally exhausted. At this point I could care less about it, seriously. It may just be me and my shitty mood but I’m done. Sunday can’t come soon enough that’s for sure…

Here are some other issues I have, all in order.
Annoyed with -

1. unreturned calls/ e-mails
2. nutrition
3. myself
4. work
5. (%$^*(%#)

por fin

2008-05-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

Finally! My report is done and I’m free of this assignment!!! Now on to the next…

I’ll be leaving soon, like next week, to start another grueling project. It’s a spinoff of the one I just finished so it’ll be pretty easy but still intense. Ugh.

All reservations have been made and authorizations approved now all I have to do is get my brain back into work mode. The hardest thing about starting a new assignment is getting myself back into the grove. I always tend to, how do you say, relax between jobs since I really have nothing to do. Hopefully come Monday I’ll be okay.

Anyway, I’ve finally located a CrossFit and am waiting to here about $$$ and schedule except they haven’t gotten back to me! Grrrr. I’m really impatient so I expected an e-mail from them already. Seriously, how hard is it to get back to someone? These guys better work out for me since I really don’t see any other options for me while up there. Of course I can always work out on my own as N always likes to remind me but if it were that simple I wouldn’t look the way I do. I need someone on my ass.

Just checked e-mail again and nada. bastardos.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In other news I’m really excited about SATC tomorrow! WooHoo! I’ve been watching reruns all week long in anticipation. This movie better not disappoint but I really don’t think it will. Nothing but rave reviews so far. No spoilers for and from me either. I’ll be watching with my very pregnant buddy so I’ll be having drinks for her too afterwards.

I<3 Miranda!

workout

2008-05-22T16:02:00.000-07:00

I soooo wanna go to that gym, just to check it out.

So here’s this weeks wo’s-
Monday – CrossFit
I honestly don’t remember. Must have been ubber hard for my brain to have blocked it out. I know it was three rounds with 400m runs in between. Lemme see… Nada comes to mind but yes I was there and it was intense.

Tuesday – CrossFit
Boy did I get a surprise. Eric, the head honcho of this thing, was the instructor tonight. Yeah… We did 1shoulder press, 2 push presses and 3 push jerks (I think those are the official names). As many as you could within a 15 minute period. I did 17 total with a 30lb bar. The last two rounds were harsh.

Wednesday – CrossFit
25 squats with a medicine ball and you had to shrug and then catch the ball on the way down. I don’t remember the name of this crazy move. 20 push-ups and 10 pulls ups. Plus a 400m run. Times three!

This is only my second week of CrossFit and I can honestly say that I really love it. I attend the 6:30 class, TEAM 630 I like to call it, and all the people there are totally cool and encouraging. It’s nice to see the same faces. Hopefully I can keep this up in the long run as I’m sure it’ll continue to kick my arse. Which at times needs to be.

I am concerned about my upcoming travels though. Other than my hiatus from life in general I’m afraid of slacking on my workouts. When I was up north last year I managed to stay fit by going to a boxing gym. Of course when I came back I didn’t return to bootcamp right away so I had to start all over again in January. Starting over really sucks. I’ve already lined up a CrossFit gym for my 4-month leave to the east coast but I still have yet to find something up north. I’m really feeling pissed off in general about this assignment so I’m really unmotivated to even look. The assignment up north is relatively short which means I have to get twice the amount of work done in half the time which leaves me very little down time. I think all this is really hitting me, reality bites. Plus last years trip left a very bitter taste in my mouth. *sigh* Just feeling sorry for myself is all.

Anyway, I’m done with workouts this week and plan on resting and stretching and icing today and tomorrow in anticipation for Saturday. Hopefully this rain will clear up the skies and put out any remaining hot spots up in the trail. Also, I’m praying this nice cool breeze keeps on.

dejected

2008-05-21T14:18:00.000-07:00

Feeling pretty down. So its official, I will be assigned to DC for about four months starting in July. This really blows! Not only will I be away weeks on end, I’ll be gone weekends too. I’m just so pissed about this. PLUS I’ll be going up north again before then. Argh!

All this better pay off is all I’m sayin’…

So unmotivated to do anything right now.

I need a hug.

Come as you are

2008-05-19T14:00:00.000-07:00

So I survived Saturday’s practice run, but just barely. It was way too hot! The hardest leg for me was the first half up. That area was where all the fire damage is and not only was it left completely bare it’s really ugly to look at. The scenery reminded me like something out of a sci-fi movie where the earth has been destroyed. Anyway once you make it after first water things start to become normal and greeny.

My buddy, hotbod, and I were trying to just make it to the helipad but ended up at the top. We were both relieved once we got there and shared some water. Unfortunately, we only took two tiny bottles each and didn’t account for the scorching sun so we ran out way too soon. Plus we had both taken a Gel pack before we started which made us even thirstier. Hotbod took off before me and I made my way down at a gradual pace. The time from Orchard camp to the ropes went like a breeze and made me think that this isn’t as hard as I’d made it out to be. Then again, I was preoccupied with other thoughts to distract me along with an Ipod at full blast, and going down hill. Somewhere between first water and razor back I was dying for water and realized I had about one gulp left in one of my bottles. That little bit really was the best water ever. Luckily I remembered there was a water fountain at the bottom so that kept me going.

So I made it down in 2.30. Not a good time but at least I know I’ll make it in before the 3 hour limit. After this run all my goals on trying to beat last year’s time have gone out the window. If the heat is anything like it was this Saturday I’m really going to be conservative, just as I was for this practice. Don’t want anyone having to carry me down on a stretcher. Besides I have the other two ez’s to carry the time for our team.

Last year’s time was 2:19
Hotbod’s was 1:54

Come
As you are
As you were
As I want you to be
As a friend
As a friend
As a known memory
Take your time
Hurry up
The choice is your
Dont be late
Take a rest
As a friend
As a known memory

novice

2008-05-16T10:13:00.000-07:00

I’ve discovered many new blogs belonging to some of my workout friends. Needless to say I feel like a total loser. I mean I already felt that when it came to my fitness and such, but now it’s tenfold. Anyway, I really like reading about their progress and workouts they post so I’m going to start doing that myself. Maybe someone can shed some light on why my ass is still giggly. So on to my workouts of the week.

Monday – too long ago to remember but I attended a CrossFit class that included 400m runs and having to squat with a bar and I don’t remember what else. All I can say was that I wanted to die.

Wednesday – partnered up with someone and while one of us completed 30 wall balls the other had to do this convoluted torturous move. It involved holding two dumbbells (we used 15lbers) and then you drop your arms to the floor and you jump out (like in Yoga for downward dog) and do a renegade pushup. Yes, renegade which basically means you have to lift each arm up to your chest while trying not to move too much and still in the damn plank position! Jump back, go up and clean* (lift to the head) the weight and then lift overhead. Once each of us had a turn we had to run 400m while the other rowed. Yes, we each had to do this for three effin rounds. I wanted to die this day too.

Thursday – same thing as Wednesday with some variations. 35 wall balls instead of 30 and we used a 16lb ball instead of the 12lb one I used on Wed. Also, the order of that crazy pushup/ burpie/ squat thing was different. We did the renegade part first then the push up and we had to clean* the weights while in a squat position. And yeah the run/ row thing again. This day I didn’t want to die but the only thing that was in my mind the entire time was fucken shit.

*I don’t think clean is the right term for this but that’s what I’m calling it.

Tomorrow I’m going to do a practice run of the run we’ll be doing next Saturday. Some 8 miles on a trail. I’m really trying not to think of this and I know I can do it but geez louise the heat is going to get me, all of us.

Another thing that has me psyched out is that I really want to improve my time from last year. I’m really afraid of coming in at a longer time. And if all my own self criticism isn’t enough the thought of being part of a team also has me terrified. This year, the race officials decided to allow people to register as family teams. Apparently I’ve been registered to be part of the ez family team that includes an Airborne Ranger/ Officer that does that crazy Baker to Vegas run every year and insane N. Yeah, this sucks.

Buzz Kill

2008-05-12T10:57:00.000-07:00

Man oh man it’s only 10:30am and I’m exhausted. I knew I should have called in sick today.

So I was rereading all of my posts for this blog and realized what a big downer I truly am, sheesh. Seriously, all of my posts are rants and vents about how bad this or that is. Well I’m not like this IRL so this is where all the garbage gets dumped at. Kinda nice to have this little place to b!tch. Anyway, I’ll try and be a bit more optimistic in future writings, although, I do take pride in my self professed cynicism.

On to good stuff…

Both N and I ran a 5K on Saturday that was sponsored by our little town. It was such a great day as the weather went. Even though neither one of us wanted to get out of bed and were totally late to this thing we actually had pretty good times, as in numbers. I was able to break 30 min and came in at 29.46, unofficially. N came in at 25.09, which he was totally upset about. He said he could have done a lot better and was really hard on himself. I would so be elated with that time but alas it wasn’t. After the race we met up with our team for some drinks at a local Mexican restaurant. Good times, good times. Beer and tequila shots aren’t really recommended after a run but hey we like to live on the edge. We didn’t get home until 4pm and then fell into a drunken slumber. Needless to say I wasn’t feeling so good that night. I had fun so I totally didn’t mind the mind numbing pain.

Yesterday I went over to my parents’ for some lunch and cake. My sis’ little monkeys were all there in full force. Its really crazy to see how much they’ve all grown, hell two are teenagers already! They are such cute little rascals and even though I tend to lose my temper with them more frequently then not I wouldn’t change a thing about them. Well maybe one.

We also went to the Rush concert in Irvine. That concert was rad! The fans were really something else! We were joking about how scary they were. Total rockers. This is the second time I’ve been to this venue and I really appreciate being outside. The cool breeze was so refreshing and invigorating. Too bad there aren’t any concerts I’d like to attend at the Greek anymore.

All in all, it really was a fantastic weekend.

bleh

2008-05-09T10:52:00.000-07:00

i'm not even bothering with proper grammar.

been super busy, super stressed and just super everything else. been out of town for work and may be again on the road again, which sucks. n is getting knee surgery, which scares the living bejesus outta me. laptop was out of commission for two weeks, just got it back monday. gas prices are insane in the membrane, too bad they don't make you feel that, way in a good way of course. this food crisis around the globe has me all sad and depressed. scary how they took out the dc madam and covered it up with a suicide. i feel all frumpy and bleh in general. have finally admitted to myself that i'm addicted to caffeine, no joke. still not ready to admit to everyone else though. let's see, oh yeah - work has now implemented new internet policies which forbid any fun use of such. i may get fired for this post.

have a fan-fucken-tastic weekend! i will...

free willy!

2008-04-16T16:43:00.000-07:00

Our trip to San Diego was so relaxing and fun. Lot's of food, booze and snooze. We hung out at the spa on Friday and Saturday and Sunday headed to Sea World (so depressing). Also, we never realized how upbeat the Gaslamp District is. We totally felt like old people among all the college students and loud music.

We stayed at the Hyatt Manchester thanks to my trusty Hyatt points! Besides the added bonus that it was a free stay we wanted to stay close if not in the Gaslamp Quarter. The hotel is in a perfect location and has really great views. We were facing north west and had a view of the USS Midway and Seaport Village. The rooms were a bit small for the Hyatt but nonetheless nice and comfy. Typical business-traveler oriented rooms. Oh, we also had a view of the pool. This was the best as we were able to spy on all the kids around and in the area and didn't even bother going there. Instead we headed straight to the spa and hung out at their private pool along with induldging in the other amenties provided. Man I wish I was back there right now. Another plus was its close proximity to the Gaslamp Quarter and Ralphs. We walked everywhere except to dinner on Saturday night and Sea World. All in all we would definetly stay there again.

Dinner on Friday was had at Ra Sushi which has the best yellow tail sushi. They made us spicy YT hand rolls that were awesome, fresh YT slices that we dipped into some spicy sauce, and a special YT roll. Dang I wish I was there right now. Total trendy place though. Plus, we didn't realize it was a chain until we were halfway done with our meal. Anyway, I'm secretly happy this is the case as I really loved the spicy YT handrolls (already planning my next trip to the local shop).

Saturday night we had dinner reservations at Mr. A's. We had been walking everywhere during our trip thus far but Mr. A's required heels so we opted for a cab. Our reservations were at 8 and we left the hotel at 7:58. I have told you that N is late to everything right? We arrived and were sat right away. We had an awesome view. The food was good, not great. I rated it an 8 N rated it a 7-7.5. The view is what you're really paying for. I had a raspberry martini that was actually shaken with real raspberries. Was one of the best martininis I've had. N had his usual, beer. We started with Lobster Bisque for N, which he said was the best he's ever had, and fresh baked oysters. The brisk was a bit to lobster-like for me (I don't like lobster - the shame!). The oysters were phenomenal! They melted in my mouth they were baked so good. For our main course N ordered the Kobe Flat Iron Steak and I got the Ahi. Both meals were good but not what we expected for this swanky self-proclaimed place.

After dinner we wanted to hang out at a lounge, somewhere we could hear ourselves talk. The night before, someone had recommended the hard rock hotel. Um yeah, we got there and the line was about a mile long. No way we were going to stand and wait. We walked around and since the cab driver that dropped us off told us there was a bar lounge up at the Hyatt we decided to just go there. Besides, we were staying there. The bar up there was surprisingly nice and the view was spectacular. Drinks were typical, I had White Russians and N kept up with beer. I was totally indulging in my drinking as I've cut back and hell I don't drink cocktails here at home so I figured why not.

This weekend was just what we needed. We both had a ton of fun and some well deserved rest. As I was writing this out I was reflecting on our conversations. Funny how our topics have dramatically changed over the past year...

is it November yet?

2008-04-02T12:07:00.000-07:00

I wish it were. Two weeks ago I was ranting and raving about how refreshed and happy I was to be back at work. Yeah, that lasted all two days. Can't wait for our trip to Oaxaca come Fall.

We'll be flying into Oaxaca City and staying for about four nights then off to Huatulco for five nights. Can't wait for the sun and surf and FOOD!

In the meantime we're planning a little getaway to SanD. Both N and I desperately need this, except I must admit that he needs it more than I. Poor guy has been working like a dog. Pobre. Hopefully we'll be able to sort out some dates and leave ASAP. Our trip will include a mandatory visit to Shamu and maybe a stop at the zoo. N wants us to also do this. Can't forget about all the dining and drinking too. Need to find the illustrious tequila bar I once saw featured on a best of San Diego show. At least I can refer to this Best of List for now.

Menudo at Trader Joes

2008-03-26T15:26:00.000-07:00

Made burgers yesterday…

So last night when N got home he asked what type of meat the burgers were made from. Uhhhh, what? Beef of course! He said they were sortta dry… Phew!

I usually buy 87-90% ground sirloin beef and make them myself but while at TJ’s this weekend I decided to use their 95% beef patties already shaped and stacked for me. Turns out N no likey these. After I reassured N that he was indeed eating moo and not some sort of rat burger he looked relieved. Pobre, I bet he was wondering all day what the hell I was feeding him. Told him not eat the remaining patties as I’d just eat them for lunch the next two days.

So I just got a call from him. He ate the last patty! Told me that being on the Zone M-H wouldn’t kill him so he bit the bullet and ate the last rat burger. Poor guy. Now I just hope he doesn’t lose a ton of weight cause that man can drop three pounds just by saying he will. Grrrr I hate his super strength metabolism.

Lesson of the day – N no like pre-prepared burgers. Especially not super-extra-lean ones.

“rat burgers are the shit!! drunk or not, they send you to another place. they are the east coast equivilant to menudo for a hang over. rat burgers and yohoo!” – jersey, Aug 14, 2007

*************************************************************************************
Today being my 2.2 day I feel good. Had my bootcamp (BC) session at an ungodly hour and made it to the train on time and ate breakfast at work. Have had B, L and a snack and so far I’ve been a strict Zoner. Although there was this incident in the morning where all of a sudden I needed a mini-zucchini muffin from Starbucks and almost had one if it wasn’t for their insane line. For once in my life I was pleased to see a line a mile out.

Week 2

2008-03-25T12:27:00.000-07:00

I've been arguing with myself for the past few weeks about getting serious about my eating habits. Its not like I eat a bunch of crap but for the workouts I get in there really should be results. So, once again I'm back on the Zone. Hopefully I can try and really stick it through. The plan really isn't hard but just knowing its a diet of sorts really puts me off mentally. Anyway, after a hiatus from watching what I eat I'm back to really thinking about all my choices. Ugh.

That's the thing that has always bothered me about food changes, all the thinking involved. You know, all the preparing and stuff. After the wedding I was pretty burned out from this. Pre-wedding I went on a pretty intense diet and got great results but damn was that hard. So of course post-wedding I went crazy and indulged in all I could get my little hands on. Then I had this crazy idea put into my head about participating in some trail race. huh? So, I went on the Zone last April and once again got some great results for the race in May. With only a month and half- assing it I was quite impressed with this little diet's powers. So here we go again, except this time around I'm taking it a tad more serious and have two months till my race.

Please light a candle to the virgencita for my oh so powerful love of cookies, chocolate, ice cream, wine, bread and pizza. I'll miss you all *tear*. Sniff.

*************************************************************************************
So yeah, this is actually my second week on the Zone. I must say that I'm pretty proud of myself and even though I wasn't insanely on the Zone at all times I did manage to be on it about 65% of the time. Anyway, since I had weighed and started last week on Tuesday I deem today the commencement of week 2. I lost a total of 1.5 lbs but I'm always weary of these types of results. I need to see an actual pattern for at least four weeks before I can actually accept any weight loss.

Things that I've started to do have been journaling all my meals. Anything come in it all goes in my little trusty book. Even though I only managed to track two days last week I've incorporated some goals for this week:

Goals for Week 2
- Record food for at least 5 days this week (need to be realistic)
- Continue with four day WO, maybe add a Sunday run if legs are up for it
- Omega 3 & B complex everyday this week
- 3 servings of poison everyday
- I can't believe this one, no alcohol except on Sat & Sun
- Min. 5 liters of water a day
- No breads/ grains/ rice after 1PM (except for Fridays)

Ack! It's 4 min to 1, gotta run and eat my bread.

Hello?

2008-03-13T13:32:00.000-07:00

No time no see. Geez, I really did fall off the wagon here. I was actually contemplating on just closing shop. Not really a quitter but it seems that maintaining a blog is much harder than I had originally anticipated.

So what have I been up to? Nothing much, just watching a bunch or movies and reading, and of course eating. There was this trial I was on for THREE months! Can you believe! No one did. But yeah, its true the thing lasted three months. They were tough emotional months for me as it was a murder trial. I won’t divulge any details only that we did reach a verdict on two out of the three charges. I must admit that this experience has affected me a bit. More on that in a day or two…

Since then, only two weeks ago, I’ve come back to work and tried to continue with my regular routine. Same ole stuff like surfing the net (gawd I missed you), composing e-mails, working, cooking and trying to get back into shape. Seems this last task is never ending. Actually, they’re all never ending. Anyway, I watched a ton of movies during my hiatus but only really remember a few. Guess they weren’t all good. The few that I feel compelled to list are:

1. Michael Clayton – this movie really surprised me! Loved it!
2. There Will Be Blood – you just can’t get any better than Danny Day Lewis. I freakin’ <3 him. One of thee best movies of the year for me.
3. No Country For Old Men – great story but it was a tad slow for me. I think this is a total guy movie like Atonement is a total girl movie ya know.
4. Atonement – there’s very few actors I love and Miss Knightley is one of them. True to her acting skills she didn’t disappoint.
5. Trade – this movie had me on edge all the way through!
6. Sweeney Todd – made me rethink of my “hate musical and will never watch them” policy I enacted after Chicago. Was quite entertaining, but then again I <3 Depp.
7. Death at a Funeral – if you haven’t yet seen this film, DO!

So all in all you didn’t miss much in my absence.

Casa Bonita

2007-12-09T22:38:00.000-08:00

It's 10:30 PM on Sunday night and N has gone to work and I'm supposed to be working. Eh! Can't concentrate though. And what is it that I do when I'm trying to avoid work? Yes, correct, surf the web. I can finish up writing those Christmas cards or order the prints we need for our gifts but that just does not seem interesting enough. Plus I may be away from the wonderful work of www since tomorrow I'll be going to court for possible jury selection. Another eh! This would be something I'd really be psyched about if I didn't have a million things on my plate right now. Guess that's the ways of the world though, nothing comes at a convenient time.

What I am psyched about is this blog I stumbled onto. Haven't read it all but a six month trip, six months off, a six month sabbatical! This sounds like my cup of tea, definitely. So, if you had six months off your lives where would you go? For us its pretty easy, all over America. Might sound boring to some but not to us. We both are very interested in visiting all of South and Central America. We want to learn more about our culture, our people, our history. Other than Africa, most of the Americas remain untouched by industrious powers. To go and walk among amazonians, to see machu picchu, marvel at the highly adapted creatures found nowhere else but Galapagos, I can go on and on.

The funny thing is that the Americas are so unappreciated. The land is so full of life and culture and love. Both N and I have talked about our future, once we get to the stage in our lives when our not-yet born children are outta the house and we're up for retirement. We both agree that we plan on moving on from this place and onto Latin America. Why not? We speak the language, know and respect the culture and to boot we too are Latin American. For now though we must work hard in order to make this dream a reality. So alas I better get my behind back to report writing.

Bumblings, Mumblings, Rumblings

2007-12-03T14:16:00.000-08:00

I feel so restless. It is so beautiful outside that all I can think of is anything but work. These windows behind me are only fueling my desires to leave already. Hell I may even make a trip to the SB across the street just to get out. Plus now that I'm bored I want to eat. Something with chocolate.

Alright, in order to distract my brain I'll just continue to rant. Since the New Year is looming and I'm sure everyone will be making resolutions I think I'll share my goals for the month. See I don't make resolutions. As a matter of fact a friend pointed out that NY resolutions are an urban legend, I must agree. Anyway, because I have to talk myself into almost everything I do I started, many moons ago, to make little lists of goals. Sometimes I make lists for each day, a week, or even a month. For December I've already drafted a list which of course is subject to revisions (many I'm sure). Here it is:

1. Jog/ workout at least 5 days out of the week - so far I got 2 days in.
2. Must finish reading eat, pray love
3. Must start and finish The Memory Keeper's Daughter
4. Allowed only 5 trips to SB this month
5. Make dinner at least four nights out of the week
6. Get xmas tree before the 9th
7. Mail out xmas cards by the 5th
8. Refrain from getting annoyed at idiot people, learn to relax
9. Seek volunteering opportunity at church
10. Kiss N every night before I go to bed

Yes, its sad that my poor N had to remind me of the fact that I don't kiss him every night before I go to bed. Sometimes I just lay down and that's it, I'm a goner. We also want to get a xmas tree sooner than later so we can enjoy it longer. As for not getting annoyed, that's going to be a tough one. I'm already starting to get a tad annoyed... And books, man do I have a lot that I haven't read just sitting there on our bookshelves. Yes, no more buying until I read em all. What's on your list*?

*Just pretend you have one please.

Something

2007-12-03T09:47:00.000-08:00

I had such a great weekend! Was filled with food, booze, jogging, family and movies. I may still be high off the festivities.

On Friday I worked from home and did some cleaning and cooking. Felt so good finishing all my chores before the weekend. Our poor little apartment hadn't had a proper cleaning since before we left on our trip to Mexico. Speaking of which...

On Saturday I did all our laundry and went for a jog. That jog was one of the most difficult things on earth. I hadn't gone out since before Thanksgiving so I knew that jog was going to be painful, very, and it was. I'm so proud of myself though because I was able to talk myself into doing it and making it at a pretty good pace. Was still very tough though. Later that evening my sis came over with her little monkeys. We had pizza and watched License to Wed. Both my sister and I thought it was quite comical but the kids were looking at us like some uncool losers. Looks as though we've been dumped off the cool train.

Yesterday all we did was watch NFL and drink. Good times I tell ya. Out of all the years I've been watching football I must admit that I only really pay attention when (a) I'm at the game or (b) I have a (monetary) vested interest in it. Since we don't have any NFL teams in our city it was (b) that had me glued to the tube. N won a ton of cash which made him very happy and made me very happy!

Also, I did manage to trick myself into another run yesterday. Boy was that even more painful than Saturday. I was so tired by 6ish that I had to literally take a disco nap. I blamed N's cold claiming that my body was probably trying to fight the cold N has but I really think that those two runs just did me in. What a fattass I've become. The shame. I'm going to give myself some rest today since its Monday and all but come Tuesday I'll have to lock myself out of the apartment to continue with my jogging.

Pistachio-Stuffed Mushrooms

2007-11-29T14:25:00.000-08:00

As promised:

20 medium mushrooms
3 tbsp. minced onion
½ cup butter or margarine, divided
1/3 cup of dry bread crumbs (I use both plain and Italian herb)
¼ cup shelled, roasted/ salted pistachios, finely chopped
2 tbsp. chopped parsley (either fresh or dry works)
¼ tsp. marjoram, crushed
¼ tsp. salt

Remove stems from mushroom caps; finely chop stems. Sauté stems and onion in ¼ cup butter until tender. Add breadcrumbs, pistachios, parsley, marjoram and salt. Mix well. Spoon Stuffing into mushrooms caps. Place on baking sheet; drizzle with remaining melted butter (I never have any remaining butter so I just add more butter). Bake 350° F., 5 minutes or until hot.

N loves these and so do I! If you make any please let me know how they came out. Also, I sprinkle parmesan cheese over them just before I put them in the oven.

pennylane

2007-11-28T14:27:00.000-08:00

I'm so happy and relieved yesterday is over with. Was a rough one but in the end it all worked out. Thanks Felicity for the great insight!

I've been trying to fight being SAD and have been pretty successful. The only thing I'm not to proud of is that I've slacked on my running. Must make a better effort to start this up again.

In an effort to lift my spirits up last night I baked some pumpkin walnut loaf. Wasn't able to try it till this morning and man was it good! Really, not to toot my own horn but I've always loved to bake. It's like my hobby! So after I had the bun in the oven we sat down to watch Maxed Out [gulp]. Talk about a scare. I recommend that everyone watch this film. Hell I'm even going over to my parents tonight just to make sure my baby brother watches this. To sum the movie up its a documentary-type film about debt and finance. All the fees attached, gimmicks people fall for, and the true value of all that we pay for. Both N and I make pretty good money, we don't drive luxury cars, our debt isn't out of control but after this film we feel like we've just realized we've been bent over for the last ten years. In other words we're cutting up our credit cards.

Seems like we both have had certain ideas on life and they're all being validated by all these documentaries we're watching. I mean we're not taking what they say word for word but the idea, the concept is right on. It's so scary, terrifying even that so many of us go on without a clue to whats going on around us.

Living is easy with eyes closed
Misunderstanding all you see
Its getting hard to be someone, but it all works out
It doesn't matter much to me

Yes, I have taken the the red pill...

... opened up the doors

2007-11-27T16:22:00.000-08:00

This song pretty much sums up my day today...

Help, I need somebody,
Help, not just anybody,
Help, you know I need someone, help.

When I was younger, so much younger than today,
I never needed anybody's help in any way.
But now these days are gone, I'm not so self assured,
Now I find I've changed my mind and opened up the doors.

Help me if you can, I'm feeling down
And I do appreciate you being round.
Help me, get my feet back on the ground,
Won't you please, please help me?

And now my life has changed in oh so many ways,
My independence seems to vanish in the haze.
But every now and then I feel so insecure,
I know that I just need you like I've never done before.

Help me if you can, I'm feeling down
And I do appreciate you being round.
Help me, get my feet back on the ground,
Won't you please, please help me.

When I was younger, so much younger than today,
I never needed anybody's help in any way.
But now these days are gone, I'm not so self assured,
Now I find I've changed my mind and opened up the doors.

Help me if you can, I'm feeling down
And I do appreciate you being round.
Help me, get my feet back on the ground,
Won't you please, please help me, help me, help me, oh.

Get back to where you once belonged...

2007-11-26T10:13:00.000-08:00

... for some california grass.

I'm back, from Mexico, Thanksgiving, Out-of-town assignment, and so on. Luckily I won't be going anywhere for work anytime soon. At least not till January/ February until I'm assigned a new job. But enough about that. Now to some fun stuff.

#1. Mexico. Was. Fucking. AWESOME. So much so we were literally depressed coming back. The people, my people, the food, the environment, the water, the booze, the gra… it was all so great. Beyond great.

We went to Ixtapa/ Zihuatanejo. This place is so beautiful. Still so very virgin, which made it so breathtaking. Both N and I have always talked about moving to Mexico, away from this Matrix world. A place full of peace and love and all that. No, we’re not tree huggers, at least not yet. Anyway, it was so refreshing to see people in there domain. Living freely, without a worry. I mean yes people work hard, they work their asses off but in the end it pays off. Here we work our asses off and for what? A Porche? A BMW? To live in the 90210? Seriously, I can’t live like this anymore. The commercial American way that is. So yes, this trip was not only relaxing but also an eye opener. More like a validation to our already thoughts on life. I can seriously go on and on but I’ll stop right here. Just make it to this place if you can, and please go with an open mind. Please treat people with respect. Treat the land with respect. Unfortunately we did see some American tourists already bringing the ways of the gringo down there.

#2. Thanksgiving. This was really our first Thanksgiving here in the States as a married couple. We hosted N’s mom and sister for brunch at our little casita and then headed off to my sister’s in the boondocks for dinner. Except we were so full from brunch we didn’t eat. Whoops. Fun was had all day though. Lots of drinking of course and catching up with my sis. I love her to death and I hate that we don’t spend more time together.

As for the food, I actually took it upon myself to become Suzy Homemaker for a day. I did all the prepping/ cooking on Wednesday and on Thursday it was nothing but reheating. I made two quiches (thanks G!), stuffed mushrooms, gravy, brownies, and a fruit salad. I wanted to also make a pumpkin pie but I was really done by the end of the night. I took pictures too! But those will be uploaded later, I swear. As for my recipes:

*My modifications are in italics
Quiche alla Geefunk
10 oz Chopped Spinach [TJ’s frozen]
1 pkg Cubed Pancetta [TJ's] (I used sweet Italian and spicy sasauge from local Italian market)
1/2 an Onion (used brown onion)
1/2 cup diced Mushrooms (maybe next time I’ll add a bit more)
8oz Sour Cream
1/2 pkg TJ's 4 Cheese Italian Shredded Cheese (used 4-cheese from Italian mrkt)
4 Large Eggs (used 5)
3/4 cup half & half
1 1/2 tsp Dry Parsley (used fresh Italian Parsley)
2 - 9inch unbaked pie crusts (used TJ’s frozen pie crusts)
Salt & Pepper

Preheat Oven to 375°

Cook cubed pancetta (sausage) and set aside on paper towel to drain. Cook
spinach according to pkg instructions and allow to cool. Sauté diced onion until transparent. Add diced mushroom and sauté for 2-3min. Mix in cooked pancetta (sausage) and remove from heat. In a bowl mix the sour cream with the drained spinach [use your hands to squeeze out liquid] and season with salt and pepper. In another bowl whisk the eggs, half & half, dry parsley, and salt & pepper. Split mixtures into the 2 pie crusts in this order - spread the sour cream/spinach mixture evenly for the 1st layer, add the onion/mushroom/pancetta (sausage) mixture for the 2nd layer, add a cheese layer, and top with the egg mixture to coat the top. Remember to spread everything evenly on both pie crusts.
[Side note: I felt the need for more of the egg mixture. I think next time I'll use another egg] (Thanks for the rec G!, it worked better with the xtra egg)

Place the 2 quiches on a baking pan and pop in the oven. Cook for 40 mins - until top is golden. Allow to cool for 5-10min. (I only put them in for 30 min since my oven is like Satan’s lair)

Brownies
13 ounces of butter
11 ounces of chocolate chips (usually come in 12 ounce packages – this allows for a little chef snack!)
2 1/2 ounces of dark chocolate
1/4 cup of corn syrup
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups cocoa powder
6 ounces nuts (walnuts, pecans, etc.), chopped

Preheat the oven to 300F. Spray or grease a baking sheet and line with parchment paper. You may also use a silpat.

Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan, remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate chips, chocolate and corn syrup until fully melted and mixture is well combined. Set aside to cool.

Whip the sugar, eggs and vanilla on medium speed until light and fluffy. When the chocolate mixture has cooled to just about room temperature, add it to the sugar and egg mixture until incorporated. Continue mixing and sift in the flour and cocoa powder until combined.

Spread mixture evenly on prepared sheet. Spread the chopped nuts over the top, pressing down with your hands. Bake for about 1 hour until the top is springy to the touch. (all ovens are different, I only have mine in for 40 minutes) To cut, let cool, turn upside down onto a cutting board, remove the parchment paper, reinvert and cut into desired pieces.

Stuffed Mushrooms
... will post later

Ring, ring...

2007-11-03T10:36:00.000-07:00

Every morning I wake you up with my alarm clock. You even have to endure several snoozes. All you do is look at me without a single word. For that I'm so great full for. You have patience, for me. You encourage me. You teach me, about life in general and about me, in general. We can talk again. About anything and everything. I love having our nightly discussions on life, sports, the Discovery channel. I've learned so much this year and I have you to thank. You are my Guru. You are my Sherpa. You are my heart. I love you ND.

Stand Still

2007-11-02T21:28:00.000-07:00

Today last year was my last day at work for what was to become a whole 4 weeks off. That was the bestest vacation my adult life has ever had. Today, however, is not my last day at work. Spent it thinking about regulations and report writing. Not to fun. I did also spend it looking for a nice vacation spot to go to next week. Looking like its going to be in sunny Mehico (again)! That's cool with me because I know wherever we do end up going we'll be there together, and that's all what it's really about folks.

I love spending time with you babe. You always have me gasping for air... You can always make me smile, even when I'm being pissy and acting like I'm 5 years old. I was looking at our wedding pictures and I'm practically hysterical in all of them! Makes me all giddy with excitement remembering all the excitement and happiness of that day. What I remember clear as day was how at ease I was. When we were together everything was quiet. You do that to me. You make all the world go quiet whenever we're together. You bring me peace. You give me love. You make me laugh. Te amo mucho mi amor. Sin ti no soy.

Anniversary Month

2007-11-01T10:01:00.000-07:00

Today marks the beginning of my wedding anniversary month. Last year this time I was so excited/ nervous/ stressed to have been getting married in 11 days. In just 11 days! This is a happy month for me so no more pity party. No more feeling sorry for myself. And no more bitching about serious stuff either, no more bitching period. Gravity stay the hell away from me. (John Mayer)

Every day leading up to my anniversary I will write about my love for my husband. No more complaining about what he's done, or hasn't done for that matter. No more bullshit from me either. I've started a personal journal for all my shit. Whenever I have the urge to get all negative or sad or angry or just plain bitchy I'll turn to this book and divulge it all.

I love my husband so much I really can't bear to think of my life without him. Sometimes I hear people talk about their significant others and wonder if they'd never met them what life would be like. For me this concept is unfathomable. My heart starts racing in a really bad way just thinking about this. He is the only person that actually gets me. He understands me. He can read me. At all times he knows my moods, thoughts, and feelings. This man is really my soul mate. We connect in way that is indescribable. He's my protector, lover and therapist all at once. Because of him I am. He has impacted my life in so many ways, too many to begin to describe. He is kind, generous, loving, smart, strong on all levels, and has the best heart I have ever known.

I love you sweetie so much and I'm sorry for all the times that I've negatively altered your mood. You always try to make me happy and for that I am happy.

Nightmare on Elm Street

2007-10-31T15:19:00.001-07:00

I'm so the Grinch who stole Halloween. Damn I've been in a shitty mood all day, all week, all year dag nabbit! I'm so ready for 2008. Please Lord let thy year-th end-th, pronto-th.

We have a bunch of treats at home for the little ghosts and goblins but I'm afraid the only one who'll be enjoying the goodie bags I so feverishly slaved over will be me. Hopefully one or two little guys will stop by to lift my spirits. Har-har.

I sure could use a cupcake right about now... with a chaser of wine.

insane in the membrane

2007-10-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

I think I'm going crazy...

On overload mode at the moment. Back in the office for the week, off on vacation for two, then back to the same bullshit commute up north. In the meantime I can't concentrate on jack shit. There's a report that needs to get written, some interviews that must be conducted, reservations need to me made, bills must get paid, food bought, pedicure overdue, and so on. Plus, I have this looming vacation with nothing planned! Argh! On top of all that there's some family issues that have been occupying my thoughts.

Plan of action:
- try to at least schedule an interview today (work related)
- go home and run (stress reliever)
- watch movie about Daniel Pearl (fun)
- forget about the rest of my list

$hit

2007-10-23T14:43:00.000-07:00

I really need money, lots of money. I've been trying to figue out schemes ways to make tons of cash pronto. So far I have these ideas:
- open a bar- because lets face it there are never enough bars.
- open a wine bar- see above
- write a book... still trying to see how that works out.
- go into import business, like furniture from Mehico.

and my newest idea...
... have my husband go on Survivor. YES, i'm serious. He'd totally win. Like really, that guy is Mr. Competitive. Plus he's fully fit and he has this incredible gift with people. He messes with them and can get inside their heads. All skills needed to win on that show. Damn, he'd so win. I've already pitched the idea to him and he actually liked it. Heehee, he said that next year would work best as far as schedules go...

>:-D

Conan the BARBARIAN

2007-10-22T12:30:00.000-07:00

First off, I seriously can’t fucking believe Californians actually voted this asshole into office… But really gubernator, can you be any more of an idiot! I hate you! There are hundreds of people as I’m going off trying to fend off the fires from their homes while this asshole along with Dumass Baca pose for publicity shots in no other than Mal-i-fucking-boohoo. Geez, it’s so sad that we actually have to be subjected to his stupidity in such a trying time. As for those people who are actually being affected by the fires, my heart goes out to you. Last night I heard this poor man pleading for help from firefighters as his home was about to get engulfed by flames. He said his home was all he had, and I truly believe that in this economy. Pobre, I hope your home is still intact and you and your family are safe Mr. Homeowner.

Randomness

2007-10-18T10:03:00.000-07:00

I have a shitload of work staring at me but I've decided to ignore it. So heres a list of random facts about me.

1. I love the color green. Mint chip icecream, trees, forests, green goes with my olive skin, money, green m&m's, one of my wedding colors, the SB logo, green tea, spinich fettuccini.

2. I've always wanted to be an archeologist/ historian because of Indiana Jones. My favorite movies as a kid.

3. My family's pet name for me literaly means "fatty" in english.

4. Sometimes I'm so tired I don't brush me teeth at night. Gross I know but hey.

5. News annoys the shit out of me. Like CNN, NBC, ABC all that bullshit. Fucken stupid controled news.

6. I'm scared shit-less about being a mother. Like really really really scared. So scared I had a dream I had a baby and the thing called me "mommy" and I woke up with heart racing cold sweat.

7. I wish I lived in Mexico.

8. If I ever become rich I'm blowing this country and moving to Mexico.

Book Club Read #1

2007-10-18T10:00:00.000-07:00

Kite Runner

Boy was this book sad. It was very well written and the imagery was so on. I won't even try to review this book with my mediocrity. I do however, recommend this book. Warning, you should be at a good peaceful time in you life as the book is somewhat haunting.

Our next book is Eat Pray and Love. Sounds like a very spiritual book in a not so spiritual sense. I'm sure once I'm done with it I too will want to travel to Italy, India and Indonesia.

As for travels. I've been invited/ accepted to join a group going to New Zealand for some charity work but I'm really torn. Unfortunately the cost is not something I can do right now in my life, which is really causing me to reevaluate my priorities. As I was reading at SB I was thinking of how I can come up with a large sum of money to fund this trip. Any comments or suggestions would be much appreciated.

Life is too short.

brain dead

2007-10-18T09:52:00.000-07:00

I think I may be dying. Like really dying. My poor body is braking down on me. Too much work/ stress is wearing me thin these days. The worst part of it all is that I can't even take some time off! Argh! I hate my job. Most people say that but I really really really hate my job. I'm so that guy on Office Space.

The good thing is that I'll be vacationing it up in a few more weeks. I'm so excited and can't wait. But I also want more than one week. I want, need an entire month.

Fuck you work.

Breakfast of Champions

2007-10-02T11:19:00.000-07:00

- 1 liter of water
- red apple
- six Keebler Rainbow Deluxe cookies

Good thing too since there’s a dog show at the hotel I’m staying at this week. Sahweeeet!

On my commute in this morning, while I was people watching I noticed how unhappy people were. Yes, I know traffic was a fucking bitch that deserves to die but come on. I need some entertainment so entertain me. And while I'm at it, can the moron with the "USC Alumni" license plate holder learn how to drive! You would think a grad from a reputable *cough* school would at least know something as basic as braking. Guess not...

In other news, I got pretty hammered this weekend and inadvertently "joined/co founded" a book club. How fucking uncool is that. I'm so embarrassed I may come back later and delete this passage. Dudes, I feel like I should might as well start watching Oprah and die. At least the book is a picker upper, Kite Runner. Now I have to read the first ten chapters by Sunday. This sounds too much like school.

I love rainbow cookies!

Illiterate

2007-09-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

In an effort to culture up a bit I've decided to read some of the top 100 books as voted by the public. Stole this list from Snickollet's blog.

The books I've read are in bold.

1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee) [half assed read in HS, go Eagles!]
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery) [I was a huge Anne fan in late grade school. I've always wanted to visit PEI because of these books.]
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)[the movie was great]
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees(Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)[fucking hilarious!]
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. The Bible [snooze]
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. Angela's Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She's Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver) [I loved this book. Kingsolver nailed the Africa experience.]
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender's Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller's Wife (Audrew Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolsoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davies)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones' Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. Tigana (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte's Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
84. Wizard's First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down (Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje) [Although I have heard of the author.]
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum) [I tried to read this. I failed. Love the movie, though. Or is it just that I love Matt Damon?]
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield) [Well, I started it. Never finished.]
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

11%!?!Damn I'm stupid. But I do love me some HP.