triathlon/fitness push update

Quick update: tonight I did the 1/2 mile in 28 minutes and entirely in freestyle! We joined the gym 6 weeks ago and I couldn't even go more than 25 yards without getting out of breath when I swam freestyle - now I am in the groove!! How about that??

Sadly, I am just not losing any weight. This is very frustrating.

I am probably not going to get the road bike. Ahhh well.....like I said, wishful thinking.

wishful thinking

There isn't much I regret in life, but one of the things I regret most was getting rid of my LeMond road bike. It pains me to think that I sold it for a couple hundred bucks after I spent an entire summer working for it, rode hundreds of miles on it, and it flew like the wind.....it was a thing of beauty. But, I was insistent on getting a commuter bike and got rid of it to pay part of the commuter bike off. Granted, the commuter bike is pretty nice - and I do like it - but it pales in comparison to my old LeMond. Now, with this triathlon on the brain, I keep thinking about how difficult it will be to ride it on my commuter bike. It is pretty heavy, doesn't gear well or ride fast......I used to ride for miles and miles on country roads on flat Missouri and Illinois farmland. I can't even fathom that now. So, all eyes on a new LeMond. Yup, there is is.....what a beauty. It is the low end one, like the one I used to have, but now they make them for women, which would likely be a better fit. Now, we surely can't afford it......though, what if I sold my commuter bike, put the money away and saved up? Hmmmm something to think about. I wonder if a local store would do a layaway option like when I bought my last one? I know I would ride the roads a heck of a lot more if I had a good road bike. My commuter bike just isn't good for that......and it would be good training for the triathlon and I would love to do long weekend rides again like I used to......hmmmm *sigh*

triathlon/fitness push update

Today, Graham and I went to the swim shop and I got a lycra swim cap and some really awesome goggles. What a world of difference it makes! I did the 1/2 mile tonight in a personal record time, of 25 minutes. Having a cap and not having my hair flying in my face makes SUCH a big difference in my breathing. It also reduces the energy needed to fling said hair out of face. So, I just have to peek out a wee bit for that breath. I am also working on getting into a good breathing pace. So, this has helped a lot.

I am now up for 50% freestyle. I do 25 yards of freestyle and 25 yards of breaststroke......and maintained that rhythm for the entire 1/2 mile. So, I am improving. :)

After my 1/2 mile swim, I did a "free swim" which just meant I chose the style of stroke.....and did that for 20 minutes. It felt wooooonderful.

date set

I finally have a date for my MA defense in History. April 18th. I will have to drive down on the 17th immediately after class, sleep, get up, go to the defense, and then drive back home. I have a wedding to go to in chicago on the 19th. So, my hopes for some time in STL have been dashed. I am really discouraged that I am doing the defense so late. I have three big papers due the same week I am doing the defense. The professors were pretty grumpy about picking another date. So, this is it. I had asked in January to do it in early March, around the time of spring break, or sooner......but the chair on my committee totally dragged his feet.

I ordered my graduation announcements and my cap and gown - so, I need to just do it, get it over with and trust that everything will be okay.

I am going to try and have some of these big papers done early......but, I am a master procrastinator....so, we'll see. I am already tense about it all.

*sigh*

knitting goodies

Who knew knitting needles could be a work of art?! Well, when I was in Alexandria, VA at the coolest yarn store in the world, I discovered Lantern Moon needles. They are beautifully hand crafted needles, from Vietnam. I was so smitten with the beauty of them, I decided to look them up on the web and found out that this is a wonderful company.....here's a little something:

We work directly with our producers to provide income, education and self-reliance to Vietnamese women and their families.

In 2004, we established an educational trust fund to benefit the children of these families. The natural materials that inspire our designs are combined with traditional handcrafting skills that have passed down from generation to generation. Our knitting needles are crafted in a family owned and managed business that provides training and opportunities.

With your purchases you help provide a market for these wonderful products and contribute to the economic and social well being of the areas where they are produced.

So, knitters.....check out these beautiful needles, next time you are in the market for some. You can also purchase them through yarnmarket.com They are a bit pricey. You can get some nice Clover brand bamboo needles at a fraction of the cost. But, believe me, they are worth the price. They are like the Ferrari's of knitting needles! I want to recommend yarn market as well. I am working on a cashmerino patchwork baby blanket for a friend of mine. I was running out of yarn and placed an order with them on Wednesday evening, the yarn arrived this afternoon. I have never received a yarn order so quickly! I made sure to drop them a line to thank them for their prompt shipment. They have a lot of nice things, too.

greetings from virginia!

After a long delay at Midway, Thursday evening, I made it to VA safe and sound. I have had an absolutely delightful time here. The kitties are so sweet. Ben and Jen are just so delightful to spend time with.

Day One (Friday): Jen and I spent a good chunk of the day working on the kitchen. We drank coffee, ate candies and had a lovely afternoon chit chatting and working through the boxes and cleaning through the drawers and cabinets. After Ben arrived home from work, we headed out for dinner at an Italian restaurant. After dinner, we hit up what could very well be the largest Whole Foods I have ever been to. As much as most Whole Foods Markets stress me out, I surprisingly enjoyed our visit to this one. They had a nice in house bakery and we each picked out a slice of cake. We also stopped at a Starbucks, where Jen so sweetly got me a Sbux gift card as a thank you gift for the work I did with her. We came home, chowed on some cake and hit the sack pretty early.

Day Two (Saturday): After spending some time laying Jen's bed, doing some dream analysis and talking, we started working pretty early and put in a hard day of work. We continued to work on the kitchen and managed to get it almost spit spot, in good shape, by the end of the day. I was pretty achy by the time we called it a day. But we had accomplished so much! Jen prepared the most delicious homemade mac and cheese I have ever had. We then ran a couple errands. Upon returning home, we relaxed in front of the TV, indulging in a fun fantasy movie called Stardust.

Day Three (Sunday): Today we took a break from work and Jen and I spent the afternoon in Old Town Alexandria looking at shops and hanging out while Ben went to deal with new car stuff at the Mazda dealer. We hit up this fabulous yarn store. They even had cookies and snacks laid out for customers! We took a stroll through the shopping district, stopped into some neat shops, and had some coffee, snacks, etc. Old Town Alexandria is gorgeous with the cobblestone/brick sidewalks and all the old 19th century (and some 17th century) brick buildings. The sun was out and it was a relatively warm day compared to the weather I have been used to. I was able to go out in my sandals and a sweater, which was so nice.

Upon returning home, Ben and I ran out for Chipotle, while Jen worked on some homework. We enjoyed a delish meal and I have spent the evening on the sofa, knitting and watching Turner Classic Movies. I also taught Jen to knit!! She picked up on it really quickly!! She is in bed now and we are planning on working some more tomorrow and then I will be heading to the airport around 5pm. I am going to stay up a little longer and knit an enjoy the on demand movies on their cable!

I am certainly homesick for Graham, Emily and animals - but I have thoroughly enjoyed being here and will miss the company, the kitties and the nice accommodations. Jen and Ben will be in Chicago in just a few weeks. I can't wait. Having them around is reason enough to move here. In addition, I sure do like it a heck of a lot more than Chicago. I love the hills, trees, historic buildings, etc.....then again, I like most places more than Chicago.

triathlon/fitness push update

I know this isn't interesting to anyone else but me - but, I am doing this more for myself to keep track of my progress.....

So, since I decided to do the women's triathlon this summer, I thought I should see where I am at. My first attempt at swimming the 1/2 mile, I clocked in at 35 minutes. I spoke to a friend of mine who used to be a competitive swimmer and she gave me some tips and coaching about my freestyle. In the 35 minute attempt, I could never go more than 50 yards freestyle, before going back to breaststroke. I would just get so out of breath. It's not that I was swimming hard, I always aim for endurance, not speed.

So, tonight, I took my friend's advice and I was able to do 100 yard stretches of freestyle with a lot fewer laps of breaststroke in between my freestyle. Time? 29 minutes. So, I was able to shave off 6 minutes. Woah! Obviously, I won't be making big leaps like that all the time - but it was encouraging. I did 8 miles on the bike the other night, and was aiming for 12 but was distracted with teenage issues......

I have yet to do much with the run/walk (3 miles) but I wanted to work on my swimming for a little while first, before I move on to that. Since I won't have the gym again until next Tuesday, I am bringing some sneakers to DC/VA to at least do some walking. I am sure all that cleaning and box lifting will give me a good workout, too!!

off to d.c. tomorrow.....

Who would have thought New York would have the next big political sex scandal? While Spitzer was right to resign, it is pretty pathetic that we still have a man (and his cronies) in the White House who have blatantly violated a number of laws, continue to engage in an illegal war, are involved in abundant fraud and corruption, and just keep on keepin on......now, if we found George Bush in the office with his hands down a woman's pants? (or man's pants) Well, he'd be back in Crawford, Texas with a one way ticket faster than you could say cigar.......It's pretty scary that we still remain such a puritanical state when it comes to sex, but yet "we" can "all" get behind a "good war." Yeeehaw.

But I digress......I am getting all packed up and ready to head to DC/VA tomorrow. I am excited about my trip and over the moon about seeing Jen and her kitties! I will be homesick, like I always am when I am away from Graham, Em and the animals - but the time will fly. We may hit up a few sites in DC......though since Jen gets tired so quickly, I am thinking we won't venture out too much, and that's fine! :)

I have been trying to wrap up a few knitting projects. I finally finished the scarf and am getting the tassels on now. Winter is almost over.....sheesh.....okay, Jenny can wear it NEXT winter! I will be giving it to her tomorrow in class.

I am off to the gym this evening and then doing an Adlerian assessment on Graham. That will be fun! :) I am sure he loves to be my guinea pig. Oh yeah, I am picking up more work at IVP, possibly two days a week, which will be great! I don't know how I am going to pay for my summer classes. I did apply for a partial scholarship, though I have no idea how to pay for the rest. I do not want to take a PLUS loan. So, I hope to be able to tuck some of this IVP money away from tuition.

quite a scare.......

Emily has over to spend the night and watch movies this evening. Around midnight, I agree to walk with them to the 7-11 and get them some snacks. First I took Kerry out for about 15 minutes and then the girls and I walked to 7-11.

On our way back up the street, I stop suddenly and am a little alarmed that there are two men standing at my front door. I look a little closer to make sure they are in fact at MY door, and not another apartment. Yup, they were at my door. I stop the girls and we stand there for a moment. I can hear Kerry barking like mad, which leads me to think that they had actually knocked on the door. Usually he will just give a little growl if he hears voices passing by.

Keep in mind Graham is not home.

So, we watch the men walk away from our door and around the corner. We rush up to the apartment (where the door is not locked) and get inside quickly. Emily says, "mom didn't you leave the TV on when we left?" I am pretty sure I did. And at that point, it was turned off. The girls were terrified, I was terrified thinking someone is in the house. I dialed 911 on my cell phone and had my finger on the "send" button as I looked behind every door, in the shower and in every closet. Luckily we live in a really small apartment. I locked everything up, shut all the windows and pulled the blinds. I am still pretty freaked, and keeping the phone close.

I think the worst thing was how scared the girls were. They are laughing in the other room now, which is balm for my soul right now.

I am thanking the high heavens that we were not at home. I wonder what would have happened if these people had ill intentions and knocked on our door and I answered it?? Man. As some of you know, I have had some reasons to be a little extra cautious regarding the safety of myself and my family as of late. I am a wee bit paranoid......so, this was really scary.

Graham is on his way home.

who woulda thought?

Okay, so this morning I agreed to do something I am not quite sure is possible. I agreed to participate in a women's triathlon this summer. Okay, it's not Ironman or anything, I know for a fact I would NEVER be able to do that. I initially laughed at the idea, thinking, "no way!" But after looking at the course, it seems quite doable. It is a 1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike and 3 mile jog. It is being held near Kenosha, WI this July. I can easily swim a 1/2 mile, even if I can't do it quickly. I used to bike twice that distance when I was riding a lot.....running? Now there's the big challenge. I am a terrible runner with my crooked ankles and bad knee. However, with all the time I have spent at the gym, I think I could give it a go. My friend Nicky, who told me about it, and has been encouraging me, says you can even walk the running part.

While people do race for prizes, etc....a lot of people do it just to do it. I loved hearing her story about how her family got into it. She does it with her mom, aunts and friends. We are trying to get a group together.

I am excited and can't wait to hit the gym again with this in mind. I will do my best to update my progress as the event approaches. I have a lot of weight to lose and a big goal in sight...... here's to hoping.

on a mission

Oh my goodness! What is that mess you ask?? Well, my sweet friend Jen, just moved from Providence to Virginia (DC Metro Area). This is what her house looks like. *gasp* Jen has had a rough year. This time last year she was getting ready for seemingly endless cancer biopsies, cutting out huge parts of her hipbone, etc.....it took months for doctors to figure out what was wrong with her. She went through really painful surgeries, tests, etc......luckily, she didn't have cancer, but still had some really severe health risks and issues. She still has a lot of trouble walking and she certainly is struggling to unpack from her big move and her husband is working long hours. Oh yeah, in the process of the move, her husband totaled their car in a snowstorm. She has not had a good go of things lately. :(

So, today, after I saw this photo of Barny struggling to unpack, I said....."let me at it!!" I love a challenge. I love to clean! And I really regret not being able to go to Providence last year when her health was in such disarray and she was scared and really struggling. So, next Thursday I am flying to DC and will be helping Jen to unpack her house and get it clean!!

I will be staying until Monday or Tuesday - and am being paid in cake. Yup, you heard it.....cake.

Of course, Jen and I will be indulging ourselves in some down time. She said to me, "even if you just came out, sat on my sofa, ate cookies and watched Roman Holiday with me a hundred times, I would want you here." So, cookies, sofa and Audrey Hepburn will be included - but I told her.....no way, we are going to CLEAN! So, I am expecting a few days of back breaking labor *wink wink and Jen whacking me with her cane saying, "put the cat litter THERE!! NOW!!" *nudge nudge

Call me crazy.....but I can't wait!!

happy birthday emily!

It's hard to believe that fourteen years ago I was in labor with Emily. Fourteen years! Not only does it amaze me how fast she has grown and that she is now into her second year of teenagedom, but it amazes me how far we have both come. I had Emily when I was 19 years old. She has been with me for a better part of the formative years of my life.

To celebrate her birthday today, we will be taking her out for dinner. She will be bringing one of her friends. She got her hair done a couple weeks ago at a salon, with a fancy funky dye job and swanky hairdo. That was the big present. But, she has a few smaller things to open up. We got her a few shirts, some eyeliner pencils and a hair dryer. This Saturday, she will have a big party at our apartment with all her friends.

The picture here is of Emily when we were in Belize in 2003. We went over spring break that year, and it was (to this day) the only big trip we have ever taken. She is standing on the top of Xunantunich - Mayan ruins on the Guatemalan border. That was such a lovely time.

I am on spring break, though I am REALLY bummed that I will not be going to St Louis. *grumble* I could go, if I could rent a car and drive down, but we just can't afford it. I thought about taking the bus, but the schedule doesn't work well, and I need to be back on Saturday for Em's party - so, if I took the bus, I would have to return on Friday. I hope to get in some good gym time this week, tackle some research for a paper and I guess that's about it. After a nice warm-ish day yesterday, it is cold and rainy today. So, it's pretty blah. I have been enjoying the pool, and go up there almost every day. It has been such a treat. I love the freedom of the water.

Not much else to tell.....Happy Birthday Emily!!! xoxoxoxo