A Great Week Off Work

It's been quite a week so far!  Our office has been closed since last Thursday and I have managed to work everyday since!  So much for a Christmas vacation!  Just kidding!  Actually, I will be heading to Sarasota, FL on the 1st for a week of fun in the sun and playing some baseball!  It's one of my favorite times of the year (except my birthday of course)!

Let me catch up to speed.  If you remember on Christmas Eve, I finally ran after being sick for 9 days.  Well, I'm on a running streak.  Today was day 5 of running and I still feel really good.  We're housesitting and I've been trying to run on the trail near the house all week, but have yet to do it.  Not only is it cold, but I am a pussy have been busy at work, remember!  Anywho, we have been working out at a different gym the last couple of days...yes I said WE, me AND the GF.  She's getting back into it.  Right now we're working on strengthening her knee back up, but we got get her ready for San Diego or a future race...she WILL run a halfer in 2012!

Speaking of the GF, she made an awesome turkey dinner for Christmas.  It was her first turkey so she was a bit nervous, but it came out amazing...and we've been eating it everyday since! 

Look at that spread!

That morning we exchanged many many many gifts and the GF got me my first ever Garmin Forerunner watch.  Now that I'm trying to pretend to be this serious runner, I felt this was the next big step!  I can't wait to use it in Florida!

PRESENTS! I LOVE PRESENTS!

So, when my bro and his family came over to visit on Christmas day, we all sat around for a few hours just hangin out and opening presents for the kids.  My nephew found a new way to get to the backyard!

Well, I saw the dogs use it, so I just figured...

You never really know what this cute kid is gonna do!  He was running around all afternoon without his pants on and feeding the dogs potato chips!  Would any of this sound strange if I said he was 17 years old?  Just kidding...he's 2, although I'm sure some high school student is blogging about his crazy weekend!

Yesterday afternoon we had to take some heavy boxes to the post office so they could be mailed to Sarasota.  When we arrived, the GF was carrying a big box with another small box on top, and I was carrying a very large box myself.  My job was to get the door with my elbow, prop it open with my foot, and let her pass through.  Well, lucky for us a woman was walking in right in front of us and BLAM!  Door shut in my face!  Luckily there were two doors, so she could redeem herself, since you could tell I was right behind her carrying a humungous box with the GF right behind me carrying two equally heavy boxes.  She opens the door and BLAM!  Door shut in my face again!  BITCH!  I really couldn't believe that just happened.  So, we get in and set our boxes down and I get into line to ask the postal man a quick question.  Well, that lady was over to the side looking a holiday cards, so I stepped to the front of the line and she steps in front of me and says, "I think I was behind that guy."  And I said, "Bitch, up yours, I'm next!" "Oh, I thought you were looking at cards!"  And she stayed in front of me!  I'm not confrontational and there was nobody else in the place, so I just let her go in front of me, but the GF was about ready to give this lady a piece of her mind.  The GF always has my back!

Look how heavy this box is!

Last night we had Christmas with the BFJ!  It was her mother's birthday, so we went over to her house for dinner and games and cocktails (her dad makes really good margarita's)!  Anywho, she gave me some really thoughtful gifts.  One thing she made me was this Race Bibs board so I can hang all my bibs up in one place and display them on the wall!  We're gonna have to get together to make a medals board now...cause I've got lots of those too!  Maybe like a picture of Pinnochio with his nose sticking way out and all the medals can hang from his nose!  Although, then many people might think I'm lying about running all those races!  I'll think of something!

I'll leave you with one last thought, which happens to be the other gift my BFJ gave me!

Enough Said!

~Chix

Happy Christmas Running!

Happy Christmas Eve!  That's right, I get to open up tons of presents tomorrow!  Isn't that wonderful!  We actually have run out of room under the Christmas tree.  It's been the best Christmas we've had in a long time...for me probably ever!  I'm not much of a Christmas person...but the GF has whipped me into shape.  Sometimes I even can be seen singing along to those dreaded Christmas songs!  But I've said it before, and I'll say it again, "I will take presents any time of year!"

So, after 9 days off from being sick, I finally laced up my running shoes and ran 3 miles today!  And I didn't feel horrible, and I didn't have a coughing fit when I was done!  Although it was a major setback and now I only have 3 weeks before Phoenix halfer, I really need to focus and get my runs in.  I have goals remember?  Can't abandon those now.  This week is Ultra important, since I'll be playing baseball all next week...who knows what kind of schedule I'll have in Florida.

If you remember from the beginning of the week, I was in a Blogger Gift Exchange, and the person that I was given was Laura at Undeterrable and not only was it fun to search through her blog posts and see what she was into, but it was great becoming a follower.  She's a really fun girl and we both have an obsession with making lists!  It's as if Jill, the organizer of the gift exchange, knew what she was doing!  Anyway, I hope you enjoy your gifts Laura!  Happy Holidays!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

~Chix

My Bestest Running Bests

Miss Zippy, a fellow blogger, asked her followers to tell her about their bests in 2011.  It's a quick list, so I thought I'd let you all in on some of mine!

Best Race Experience:  Definitely the Vegas RnR.  I know many, many people hate RnR forever because they didn't have a good race experience with this one, but it was by far my favorite RnR so far!  The lights, the crowd, the energy, the new PR...all of it was something I'll never forget.

Best Run:  This would have to be my 10K I ran during Halloween.  It was the one run all year where I knew I felt good the whole race.  It was also the run that made me believe I was still on track for my Vegas race plan.

Best New Piece of Gear:  I got 2 new pairs of shoes that are identical.  One pair in January and then the same pair in October.  I love them both and I can't wait til I'm done being sick, so I can get back up on my treadmill with them!

Best Piece of Running Advice You Received:  Shut up and Run from SUAR herself.  She said not to over think it and that I didn't necessarily need the motivation I'd been looking for, but to just do it.  There's absolutely nothing holding me back except for myself, so just shut up and run!

Most Inspirational Runner:  I'm not an ultra runner, nor am I even a marathon runner, but Fast Cory is one inspirational guy!  There's something about reading his Javelina Jundred Recap that makes me love running even more.  I'm also a huge fan of 50 Half Marathons in 50 States!  She has run more races just this year than my own town puts together in 2 years!  I'm not sure I'll ever run as far or as fast as either one of them, but they definitely keep me going!  If I lack the motivation I was looking for in the question above, I can definitely get it from these two!

If you could sum up your year in a couple of words, what would they be: As a runner I would have to say, "Finally, a Breakthrough!"  In my personal world I would say, "My dreams are starting to come true!"  As a life partner to the wonderful GF, I'd have to say, "Just another great year in our love story!"

Thanks for a great year (obviously more on this later)!

~Chix

Blogger Gift Exchange

One of the bloggers that I stalk follow, Run with Jill, is having her annual Holiday Blogger Exchange.  All that is required is that you tell her you wanna be in the exchange, she gives you a name, and you send them a gift!  Actually, you check out the blogger's site for a while and see if you can figure something out that they'd want for the Holidays and you send it to them, hopefully before the holidays!  It remains a secret until you actually receive the gift, and then you can praise them with thank-you's and how-did-you-know's!

It's no secret that I love getting gifts for any occasion...even no occasion at all.  Why do you think I came up with the 12 Days of Birthmas!  Because it's Christmas, when I receive a gift, I try not to open it up until Christmas Day, so with all the excitement that came with getting my Blogger gift in the mail the other day, I put it under the Christmas Tree to await patiently for the 25th to roll around.  I was even going to wait to blog about it until afterwards, so I could praise XLMIC-Taking it On that it was exactly what I'd wanted and thank you so much and I can't wait to use it!

Well, I just couldn't wait any longer!  I had to rip open the present and dig in right away!  Here's a look at what I got!

OH, WAIT!  Did I mention that the dogs were the ones that were so excited to see my pissed off face excitement about what I got?  Yeah, they were actually the ones that opened my Blogger gift!

How does Nuun taste?

Why squirt when you can unscrew?

One of our dogs, Neko, thinks she can eat whatever she wants around the house.  She's had raw chicken legs and breasts, bags of chips, a full bag of individual kit kats, leftover Olive Garden, and other numerous things that we assumed were out of her reach!  She's like some bionic dog when it comes to getting things off the counter.  Once she's gotten it down, then our other dog, Jersey, helps her devour it.  Neko's the sneaky looking one on the right:


I think she's even hiding something in her left paw!

We're not quite sure why she keeps acting up, because we punish her every time, and she knows that she's been a bad girl, but how do you punish someone that looks like this:


I love you mommy!  I'm just a little baby!

 So, I'd like to thank my dogs for not making me wait another 5 days to see what I got from my Secret Santa Blogger.  I'd also like to thank Marjorie at Taking it On for my wonderful wonderful gift!  I love it and was thankful they didn't chew through the entire bottle, or else I'd be out on some great GU flavors!  I'm also excited to try this Lance Armstrong endorsed waffle!  So, again, thank you so much!  I'd also like to throw in a quick thank you to Jill for organizing such a giving event, my dogs would be eating other things lost without you!

Have a wonderful day!

~Chix

Martha Stewart Night

I didn't think it was fair to go out tonight without allowing you all a view into what's about to happen...It's Ugly Sweater Party night.  After visiting a few stores and not finding anything worthy of representing my ugly sweater, I decided to make it instead.  After about 2 bags of supplies, 25 glue sticks, lots of time and vision, I give you this:


Front - stockings hold miniatures!



Back - Doesn't the top left snowflake look like the Grinch?

It was a lot of fun making this sweater.  The reindeer head on the front sticks out dramatically and the antlers are free to swing around!  The bulbs on the front are just added to hang there.  On the back, the presents under the tree are actual little boxes.  It's quite the sight to be seen.  It's definitely more towards the Cute and kinda Ugly Sweater, but it's got a lot going on! 

I'll let you know how the party goes and hopefully have more pics for you!

~Chix

Random Thoughts

I cut my fingernails today, so now I can't get the popcorn out from between my teeth.

I don't think being sick and getting things done go together very well.

I've bought about $100 worth of alcohol in the past 2 days!

During the holidays, I forget that I'm supposed to buy presents for other people and not just myself.

A guy this afternoon referred to me as, "This dude right here!"

I'm excited to go to the dentist next week because I've been flossing my teeth everyday since my last visit!

I love cheese!  Bleu and Cheddar are my favorites.

If I had enough money, I'd go somewhere warm for every Christmas.

~Chix

Frog in my Throat

The getting's been gotten!  It's official...I'm sick!  Poop!  I thought I could get away with pretending it wasn't there, but my throat is so scratchy I can't even walk to the bathroom without having a coughing fit.  Needless to say...

(Notice how I didn't say anything after "needless to say"...since it's needless to say!  But if you're dying to know, it's needless to say that I am not going to work out until this is completely gone.)

Last time I worked out before my cold was officially gone, I retained this 'cough' that just wouldn't go away.  I'm not gonna let that happen this time!  I'm so stern right now, but I'm sure in 2 days I'll be dying to get on the Mill.  I just feel so bad if I don't train well.  I only have a month before the race and I can't miss my important long runs!

I just realized that I have A LOT OF SHIT TO DO!  Not because it's Christmas, but because I'm a lazy sack of __________(insert favorite word)!  Just looking around my desk it looks like something blew up.  I'm not sure what needs to be filed, what needs to be paid, and what needs to be put into another pile!  I've got personal stuff to get done, like preparing for teaching, and deciding what beer to drink.  I've got family and friends stuff to do, like attending parties and making jokes.  I've got home stuff to do like putting up a shelf and celebrating our new house anniversary.  So, I need to take some time to organize my life...maybe tomorrow at work I can start delving into these stacks of madness surrounding me!

Where do I start?

It's almost goal time!  I've been thinking about the things I want to accomplish next year and I've told you about a few ideas, but it's almost time to actually write them down and publish them to the world my 10 followers!

What are your goals for the new year?

What do you do to cure the feeling of being bogged down?

~Chix

My Accomplishments

Look!  I won a major award!

I know it's a smaller version of the real thing, but the box did say FRA-GEE-LAY!  I'm pretty sure I wanna leave it up year round even though it's meant to be a Christmas type thing.  This also happens to be from my all time favorite Christmas movie!  I plan on watching it at least 4 times during the TBS 24 hour marathon and I may even throw in the DVD!

Lazy Days
I think I'm getting sick.  The GF and I woke up early this morning searching for cough drops because we're getting a little itchy and scratchy.  I still went to the gym today and had a really tremendous workout, and I'm hoping to continue working out until the sickness reaches my chest, but for now I'm gonna down meds every 4 hours and hope it doesn't go full throttle on me!  BUT, if it does then I guess I'm due for some nice Rest Days!  I wish I were my cats and could just lay around all day!

Look at those eyes...such a pretty girl, who's always mean and whiny...ask the GF...they're not that fond of each other!

The Crack of the Bat
It's that time of year again, when we start packing our bags to go visit the beautiful Sarasota, Florida to play America's Favorite Pasttime!  I just got off the phone with one of Baseball's greatest right fielders of all time...Mr. Tony Oliva of the Minnesota Twins!  He's a close personal friend of mine and the GF's and I look forward to seeing him every January, among other Greats!  I can't end this post without mentioning my all time favorite Baseball Pro, Jack Billingham of the Big Red Machine!  He pitched for the Cincinnati Reds in the 1975 World Series against the Boston Red Sox and led his team to what was the first of two consecutive titles.  He's the nicest man I've ever met!  He's the type of guy you want to have a beer with while you watch the sunset near the beach somewhere and just talk about "things"!

Christmastime Guzzler
Christmas is among us, which means time off from work and thinking about things.  Which also means more time to drink.  I'm not a wild drinker any more, but I do like to enjoy frosty beverages when I don't have to worry about working the next day or the next week!  I'm stepping out of my comfort zone to try new things this season, so I'm asking for recommendations.  So, please help me out...ask your friends and drop me a quick comment about stuff I should try.  P.S. If you have suggestions on great whiskey too...I'm sort of testing that out too!

~Chix

Where All My Time Goes

About 7 1/2 years ago, I signed up for this thing called MySpace.  Shortly thereafter (within a month or two) a good friend told me to sign up for this thing called Friendster, and shortly after that I signed up for this thing called Facebook.  I was obsessed with MySpace, as were many many others.  I started to realize that I was spending WAY too much time searching out long lost friends and commenting on pages of people I spoke to everyday anyway.  It was seriously cutting into my procrastination at work, so I decided "to hell with all this social network crap"!  If people want to get ahold of me, they can call or text me, or email or snailmail me!  I officially deleted all of my social network accounts.  Most people hadn't even heard of Facebook yet when I deleted it!  I wasn't going to consume myself with silly social media outlets anymore.

I have friends and family who forget about me because they post everything about themselves on Facebook.  They wonder why I didn't know they had a baby, or adopted a dog, or bought a new house, or moved away!  Everyone always wants you to post something or comment somewhere or Like their page, but I don't have that ability because I don't have a Facebook page.  I don't even Tweet and I'm not quite sure what a hashtag is!  My brother is very tech saavy and social media friendly and whenever he talks to me about this stuff my eyes sort of gloss over.  I haven't even seen the movie The Social Network!  I'm actually quite sad about this because I've tried to honor Justin Timberlake's acting abilities and I feel I'm not accomplishing that task by not having seen this movie yet!

Anywho, I'm beginning to think that Running Blogs are becoming my new Facebook.  Everything I care about I can find in all the running blogs that I follow: running, beer, and poop!  I can spew at the mouth everyday for those that are willing to listen, and I can read up on the latest race, interesting new training methods, great after race beers, and the best poop stories ever!  I've found myself not wanting to do anything but read blogs, find new ones to follow, and thinking about what I'm going to write next.  All while trying to build a bigger fan base.  Please tell your friends to follow me...I'm funny...and they won't find this on Facebook!  But it is taking up a lot of my time!  And I love it!

What do you love about blogging?

Would you tell your friends to follow me if I had a Giveaway?

~Chix

Next In Line

Vegas is behind me!  I'll never forget that race, especially because I stuck (sort of) to my plan and I accomplished my goals.  I trained pretty hard, I never stopped running, and I got a PR for the course.  Those were my three main goals.  I've had a week to rest and celebrate my Victory in Vegas (ViV) and now I must shift my focus to Phoenix on January 15th.  That's right...it's only 5 weeks away.  I have to continue my training and getting in my long runs and complain about things and have days I just "don't wanna" and I need new excuses and I will have breakthrough's and I'll start a new job and I'll play baseball and so on and so forth.  As you can see, there's lots on my plate. 

I mentioned this yesterday, but my first ever halfer was in Phoenix in 2005.  I ran with some friends and one friend inparticular ran with me for the first 9 miles until I finally told her "you can run up ahead of me, I'll be fine".  Well, not only did she increase her pace for the last 4 miles, she finished 10 minutes before I did!  My time was 2:15:27.  The next year I ran it by myself and finished in 2:22:20.  The GF swears it's because my coworker pushed me so hard in 2005 that there was no way I could run that same time again in 2006.  I'm claiming that 2005 time regardless of how it happened because I did it and it's the fastest I've ever run a halfer.

Last year I ran Phoenix in 2:35:59!  It had been 6 years since my first half and I was 15 pounds heavier.  At about mile 8 of the race I wanted to just stop.  I passed the GF in the crowd and saw my Seester and I thought "I should just finish now and we can all go eat!"  I didn't stop and at mile 9 I was hurting so so bad.  At mile 10 I finally thought I had found my finishing pace and was really truckin along at a good speed when I looked down at my feet and I was walking!  OOps!  I somehow picked it up and finished the race with a little bit of dignity left!

So for the 2012 race, here are my goals:

• Don't stop running (or at least don't think that I've stopped running)
• Beat last years time - If I run like I did in Vegas then I'm gonna crush my 2011 time, but if I train real hard the next 5 weeks, then I may even come close to my 2006 time!
• Increase my pace per mile - this will help the previous goal.
• Stay positive for the whole race

Sounds a lot like everyone else's goals for any race that they run, but if I don't lay it out in front of me, then who knows what'll happen.  My biggest test will be the first week of January when I'm playing baseball and how I fit my training runs into my busy schedule!  We'll see how it goes...and you'll know as it happens!

Do you ever feel obligated to do things once you tell people about it? I always tell people my plans so they can hold me accountable!

Has someone ever helped you get a better time in a race that you didn't think you could accomplish on your own?

~Chix

Un-Popular

I was many things in high school.  I was an athlete (soccer, basketball, softball, track).  I was a drama freak.  I was a book nerd who got straight A's.  I was involved in almost every club.  I was voted Homecoming Queen because I was nice to the freshmen and they were the only ones that still brought their Student ID's to school every day (which you needed to vote).  I was voted class clown my Junior and Senior year...although they wouldn't give it to me my Junior year.  I held an office in Student Counsel.  I attended most all sporting events, including swim meets and tennis matches.  I even partied with the teachers.  With all of this on my resume I still wouldn't consider myself "popular".  Maybe I knew a lot of people, and even more people knew me, but I never thought I was popular.  I didn't get picked on or bullied either.  I considered myself middle of the pack.

Nowadays, I'm still the class clown.  I'm still the athlete.  I'm still a book nerd.  And I love it!  What's awkward these days is when I run into people who know me and remember me from school.  I don't have a bad memory, it's just that (as evidenced from above) I was involved in a lot and I crossed paths with thousands of people through my high school years.  I'm sorry if I don't remember you, but unless you were actually on one of my teams, in drama with me, or involved in countless other activities alongside me, then I might not remember you.  The girls at the office make fun of me because of all the people that recognize me when we go out to lunch or shopping or anywhere really!  Last night at volleyball, these 2 people remembered me and they both graduated when I was a freshman!

I guess there's one thing that's better than being popular...and that's being Unforgettable!  So, I'll take it!  I've done many things in my life that weren't popular, but they're unforgettable!  Like the time I took my shirt off on top of a bar to get a free shot, come to find out it was Rumpleminz...yeck! 

Recently, I've gained a greater love of running, which has become very popular.  But my ultimate goal for running is how each race that I complete becomes an unforgettable peice of my history.  I'll never forget the first time I was in a race: It was in October of 2004 and I was the anchor leg of a 5-person relay.  It was so amazing to cross that finish line.  I continued my training and ran my first ever half-marathon in Phoenix in 2005.  I thought I was pretty cool telling people that I'd run a half-marathon...I was in a lot better shape and 7 years younger then, but it was still unforgettable.  And just this past Sunday I finished my 6th half-marathon, adding yet another notch on my belt for accomplishing something that I'll remember for the rest of my life. 

That's why I think running has become so popular, because it gives you the opportunity to go out and do something for yourself that is unforgettable!  It's why we push ourselves so hard during training, why we time ourselves religiously, why we cry when we cross the finish line, why we run in harsh weather for a free medal and a tech shirt, why we ignore our sore bodies just to get one more mile in, why we rearrange our schedules to make sure we get in our long runs, why we bless mother nature with our own offerings, why we think it's okay to run while we're sick or injured, and why we raise our arms in triumph for doing something that makes us proud!

Why do you run?

Where you popular in high school?

~Chix

Vegas Halfer: Full Race Report

As I mentioned yesterday, I finished the Vegas halfer in 2:23:09!  That's 2 minutes and 9 seconds faster than last year!  It was an amazing race and an amazing weekend!  Welcome to "Weekend In Review"!

WARNING:  This is LONG!  Grab a drink and a snack to help you get through!

WEEKEND IN REVIEW
Friday:  We wake up at 5:30 am with a possible leave time at 6am (yeah right).  After we get dressed and do the last minute packing, we head out the door.  We stop at McDonald's so the GF can get some breakfast and we're on the road by 6:50am.  Please note that driving to Vegas was a great idea a month ago AND it saved us lots of money!  Some things to note about the drive:

• We stopped at a gas station and the power was out, so we had to pee by cellphone flashlight.
• We ran into some weather as we approached Flagstaff.

• But the weather made the trees in Flagstaff look beautiful!

• We also passed by Boobie Mountain!

• We thought it'd be a fun game to keep track of all the license plates we saw from different states, both on cars and semi's.  We ended up with about 27 different states and 1 province for the cars, and about 15 states for the semi's!  Pretty fun game!

Arrive in Sin City about 3pm and check in to our hotel, the fabulous Imperial Palace! 

We were exhausted from getting up early and the long drive so we took a nap...well the GF did, but I couldn't quite fall asleep.  I think I was antsy to start gambling!  After showers and dressing, we met up with the BFT and her main Cheese.  We hung out for a while in her really nice Bally's room (I didn't realize Bally's rooms were so nice), and then we all dined in at Ichiban Sushi Restaurant! 

Salmon is my favorite and it was so nice to visit with the girls.  We headed to meet some friends at O'Shea's and the GF and I finally started gambling!  It was a night of losses.  There were horrible rollers at the craps table so we are officially down $200!  Poop!  Luckily I had plenty of free drinks by then!  Bedtime was about midnight!

Saturday: Wake up about 8am because we gotta get ready to make it to the Expo by the time the doors open.  I know there are going to be approximately 40,000 people there, but the expo is one of the highlights of a RnR race!  We stop with about a thousand other people for more McDonalds breakfast and arrive at the Expo about 10:30am.  ENSUE MADNESS!  So many booths, so many people.  Here's what we got out of it:

• I bought a new bra for the race since I had been having issues with my lady nips.  I figured wearing a new bra for the race probably wasn't the smartest thing in the world, but I had nothing to lose!
• The GF and I got these awesome running sleeves that I used for the race too!
• We met Dan and Jackie from the Biggest Loser Season 5!

• We filled up the new and improved "going green" swag bag with lots of goodies!
• Saw this annoying sign as we left the Expo room...bonus if you know why it bugs me so much!

After about 4 hours at the expo, we finally headed out to grab a quick slice of pizza and saw Karina Smirnoff from Dancing with the Stars in the lobby.

We didn't wanna get full on lunch since we planned on having a hefty dinner.  We decided to gamble a little more before we headed upstairs to get ready for dinner.  Another afternoon of losses.  Down another $200.  Things aren't looking good in this area which is a bummer because I love to gamble!

We headed to dinner at Olive Garden so I could carb load on spaghetti noodles and butter!  I also had my final beer of the evening and vowed not to drink again until after the race.  We drove around town a bit so the GF could scope out where she would park during the race so she'd be able to see me running by!  We got a little freaked out when we noticed the Sahara was closed and it was sooo dark...CREEPY!  Once we finally got back to the hotel, I wanted to gamble just a bit more before going to bed.  FINALLY a winning table!  We were having so much fun cheering and chanting for the rollers!

"Fifty-Five! Fifty-Five!"

I think we walked away winning about $200!  This was the table where I met my new running buddy Andrea.  She clearly had a long evening because her voice was almost gone, but we had a blast at that craps table!  Bedtime was near midnight again!

Sunday: I think we woke up around 9 or 9:30 because the GF wanted to go shopping!  After getting ready we drove over to the Fashion Show Mall so she could return some shirts to Forever 21.  I sat around and waited for her for a while and peed about 3 or 4 times...small bladder!

I wanted Subway for lunch around 12:30pm so I could digest the food well before the race.  We sat and ate 6 inches while watching the end of the Bronco game at O'Shea's.  The Broncos pulled off another Win against the Vikings and this was when I knew it was gonna be a good day!  We walked back over to our casino and decided to play some craps before it was time to go get ready for the race.  Lo and behold - we find Andrea at the craps table!  Another good time and another winning round!  We won another $200!  Another sign that it's gonna be a great day!  Andrea mentioned that her and her friend were gonna ride the Monorail over to the race, so the GF and I offered to give them a lift!  We all headed to our rooms to get ready!  I put on my lucky yellow shorts, the GF chose the orange shirt and I wore my new arm sleeves.

We met Andrea and her friend Julie downstairs at 4pm to head over to the Mandalay Bay!  It took us half an hour to get close enough for the GF to drop us off, and once we got out of the car it was cold!  Nearing 40 degrees!  We made our way to the parking lot and started searching for the gear check.  One guy said "next to the stage", once we got to the stage, we stopped for a moment to enjoy Cheap Trick!

Then we headed more lefter to get around some more booths so that we could go more righter to enter the building.  Once we got about 10 feet from the doors we all piled into some sardine cans and slowly made our way through the doors only to find out that we still had about a quarter of a mile to go to get to the actual ballroom that was "gear check"!  It was kind of funny because it was 5pm (half hour til start time) and 30,000 people were all trying to drop off their bags at the same time in the same place.  You can only image the scene!  I even heard one lady ask her friend, "Do you think they'll hold the start?"  Ahahahahaha!  Yeah right...Nancy over there is still checking her bags, so don't start the race until she gets back out here!  Why do you think we have timing chips...so you can start any darn time you want!  It only took us 10 minutes to drop off our stuff and make our way to the Port-O-Potties!

Well, I'm sure you are all well aware of my peeing issues while I run, so I had to make sure I peed now, just in case I needed to pee once more before the race started.  I actually felt pretty good by this time.  I was going into an earlier corral with my new friends and I didn't have that sick nervous feeling I normally have before races.  I think it's because it was a night time race.  You could feel the energy of the 30,000 plus people all piled into the corrals.  I was a bit worried about the wind chill and was scared it might be too cold while I was running, especially after the turnaround since I'd be running into the wind.  And then it started!

RACE: Everyone took off pretty fast and I got so excited!  Here I was among 44,000 people running these races on the Vegas strip at night!  I tried to find my pace right away since I'm always quick out of the gate.  Because of the massive size of this race, I had to do a lot of maneuvering to find my own spot.  Because the full marathon joined up with the half on the strip there were these tiny orange cones trying to keep the halfers to the right so the marathoners could run by on the left...ENSUE MASS CHAOS!  None of the halfers would listen as people tried to tell them to scootch over, so all the marathoners just ended up yelling at everyone!  It became pretty funny after a while, but I'm sure it ruined a lot of marathoners' times (and hopes of qualifying for Boston)!

Anyway, I missed the first mile sign so I didn't look at my watch til mile 2...it said something like 20:06, so I knew I'd done a couple 10 minute miles...good stuff!  I passed the GF near 2.2 and she cheered like a crazy person and got a good pic of me! 

Two thumbs up means I'm good to go!  I crossed the 5K mark in 32:49 and realized I was WAY off my mark.  I'd run that last 1.1 in almost 13 minutes.  I was just hoping the distance was off!  Anyway, I kept trucking along and felt amazing.  My shoulders were relaxed, my feet didn't hurt, and my knees were feeling great!  Once I got to the 10K mark and saw 1:05:17 I knew I was at my correct pace.  I wasn't pushing it at all and I still felt I had another 10K in me!  Still nothing hurt.  Right around mile 8, THIS guy passed me

He was in great spirits, didn't seem to be cold, and was drinking a 24 oz Coors Light!  It definitely kept my mind elsewhere for the next mile!  I lost him when he stopped at a table that was passing out free beer!  At mile 9 I saw the GF again, and gave her 2 thumbs up.  I felt great.  My new bra was holding the nips in place, so I was pain free.  I wasn't cold even though I had sweat a ton and so I didn't see the need to stop and change, nor to stop and pee!  About half a mile up I passed the beautiful BFT Cheese and she did some sort of jig for me!  Seeing the GF and Cheese helped tremendously because mile 9 is always my "wall".  By mile 10 (1:47:09) my knees started aching and something was wrong with my right foot.  I knew I was slowing down, but also knew I still had a chance to beat my 2010 time.  Shortly after this realization my stomach tumbled and I thought I was gonna crap my pants right on Las Vegas Boulevard!  I looked for bathrooms, but there were none.  I ran like I already had a load in my underoos, and finally it subsided.  I looked at the clock at mile 11 and saw that I had 25 minutes to finish the last 2.1 miles.  I'm not sure how fast I was going at the time, but I sped up pretty drastically and did a 10 minute 12th mile!  Once I knew I had 15 minutes to finish the last mile, I slowed down to a comfortable finishing pace and cruised on in.  Finishing time 2:23:12 is what my watch said, so I knew I did it!

Once I crossed the finish, I bobbed and weaved through the mass of bodies to grab some water, grab my medal, grab some Cytomax, and find the exit.  I ended up shimmying through the gate to get to the Port-O's and I only had a drizzle come out and thankfully no poopy pants!  I met the GF and the other girls at the family meeting point and we headed to gear check.  Like a sensible person, I packed a hoody and sweatpants in my bag to stay warm after the race.  We took a small jaunt back to the GF's car and arrived back at the hotel around 10pm.  I showered right away and got ready to go celebrate!  Dinner was a must and I spoiled myself with one of these:

Enter your own joke here_______________________________!!!!!  I just knew this was gonna be a good day because we won money gambling, the Broncos won, AND I got my PR!  We headed out to do one last round of gambling on this lucky day!  Well, we lost...and fast!  We met up with Andrea and Julie again at the craps table and lost $200 very quickly.  The GF headed to bed, but I saw a lucky roulette table so I decided to sit down and enjoy myself before bed.  Good thing I did, because not only did my number hit 4 times, but so did about 30 other black numbers and so I won my $200 right back!  Bedtime was 3am!

MONDAY: We woke up at 9am, even though we wanted to get up at 8.  We wanted to get back on the road ASAP so we would get home at a decent time. We left at 10:30.  The way home was about staying on the road.  We knew that there had been tons of snow dropped all over I-40, so we just wanted to be safe.  We ran into a blizzard along the way.

But it cleared up after about 15-20 minutes of riding on that semi's ass!  Then it was really nice until about 35 miles before town when we were driving on almost completely iced over roads.  Pretty scary, but the GF is an amazing driver!  She got us home safely!

OVERALL: I had an amazing weekend!  I love Vegas and I loved this race last year.  Regardless of all the things others complained about, I loved Vegas this year too.  I want to run it again and I'd hope other people would want to run it too.  I'll discuss more on this subject later this week, but know that I didn't stress over things out of my control and I had the time of my life!

Thanks for reading...if you're still awake!  Please note: the $200 mentioned above has nothing to do with the actual amounts won or lost during the trip!  Just know that we didn't lose all our money, nor did we win it all back!

~Chix

A Quick Few

The moment you've all been waiting for...*drumroll*...I finished the Vegas halfer in 2:23:09!  That's 2 minutes and 9 seconds faster than last year!  I DID IT!  And it was amazing!  I haven't quite compiled my race report yet, but since I hadn't blogged since Thursday, I wanted you all to know how I did.  Here's just a quick few bullet points to keep you satisfied until my full race report:

• Amidst all the complaints from others about their race experiences, my experience was AMAZING and I had the best time ever...did I mention I PR'ed?
• I was scared the weather was gonna be too cold and too windy, but it ended up being perfect running weather.  It was cold afterwards, but I was covered in sweat and it started raining, but I had a hoody and sweatpants waiting for me at Gear Check!
• The energy of running with 30,000 other halfers was great.  It really kept me pumped up the entire race and motivated and energized.
• I possibly had too many GU energy gels during the race that I almost crapped my pants at mile 12!
• Some dude ran in a thong holding a beer!  Quite the site from behind...you'll see (pics to follow)!
• The GF is the most amazing person to have at a race with you...more on that later too!
• I didn't come back a winner, but I didn't come back a loser.  Vegas tried to take all my money the first 2 days, but it soon turned around and I won most all of it back!

I'd like to thank EVERYONE for all their nice comments and well wishes.  It really helped get me across that finish line!  So Thanks!

~Chix

Out With The Bad, In With The Good



Gambling anyone?

 Here's the plan:

• Leave early in the morning tomorrow, hopefully don't get trapped by the snow in Flagstaff, arrive in Vegas and check in, shower and nap, GAMBLE, dinner and drinks with BFT, GAMBLE!
• Sat: Possibly go watch Santa Run, hit the race expo, GAMBLE, dinner and drinks, GAMBLE!
• Sun: Sleep in, GAMBLE, lunch and nap, GAMBLE, race, dinner and drinks, GAMBLE!
• Mon: Pack, possibly GAMBLE, drive home and hope for no snow in Flagstaff, think about GAMBLING!

For just the second time over the last 5 weeks, I've actually felt like I can do this halfer and finish it feeling strong.  You may remember the first time I felt this good.  Well, today on the treadmill as I was running, I just felt IT!  You know that feeling?  IT felt so good.  I'm not sure where it came from or what it meant, but IT was amazing!  It's like something took over my body and I could picture myself running the streets of Vegas and seeing the lights and seeing the GF on the side of the road and running past groups and groups of people and then crossing the finish line beating last years time by 6 minutes!  Now, I'm not sure how much of this is true, but it felt fantastic!  Now, there's this thing about visualizing your run in a positive way and training your mind to keep out the negative thoughts, and this is what is happening!  My mind is taking over and I'm gonna kick some serious ass in this race.  Please note: My ass kicking is different from others' ass kicking!  I'm not worried about anybody else in this race, just me and my pace.  MY Race!

I think my body knew that this might just be my last run before the race.  I did a solid 3 miles and every bit of me felt great!  I even gave myself the "great" smile on the Daily Mile!  There was a girl on my machine when I got there, I was tired and wanted to sleep, I had so much stuff on my mind from work, I'm concerned about the weather, and I didn't even apply my vaseline and bandaids to the nipplage (new word) area.  A good run just wasn't in the cards today, but lo and behold...it was amazing!  I think my body knew that I needed to drown out those issues and just focus on my run.  I think know I'm ready for my race in 3 days!

The only thing I need to figure out is what to wear for the race!

Does your mind ever take over like this?

What do you tell yourself to help stay positive?

~Chix

Some Running Inspiration

Because it's just easier that way.  What's that, you ask?  Making excuses!  It's easier to make up an excuse than it is to do whatever it is you don't wanna do.  Today, on my way to the gym, I almost took a different exit and just drove home instead of to the gym.  Why?  Because I wanted to see the GF, because I didn't wanna work out, because I was tired, because because because!  When I parked at the gym, I almost didn't get out of the car.  Why?  Because I didn't wanna work out, because I was hungry, because I was tired, because because because.  See how easy it is!

I don't want this to become a habit though.  I need to just Shut Up and Run, but I go through this about once a week, so I figured on that day it's okay to just make something up.  I'll just log it in as a Rest Day!  I'm sure even the professionals have "rest" days!

The last few days I've been searching out running bloggers who are ultra marathoners, like people who have run 50 milers, 100 milers, or more.  I am trying to read they're race reports on these really long races so I'll have something to think about while I'm doing my half on Sunday.  I want to be able to bring these stories into my head when my race gets hard, and think to myself that I'm running a measly 13.1 miles and these folks have run races that lasted 24 hours or more!  It's amazing to know that someone can get that prepared for something.  I have so much respect for people who run longer distances than me.  I've sworn up and down that I'm a halfer for life, but to those of you who go further than me, I'm tipping my hat to you!  You're the ones that'll help me cross that finish line...you're an inspiration!

The weather is taking a turn for the worse!  A cold front is working its way into New Mexico.  I figured it was going to happen sooner or later this winter, but I was hoping it would hold off for at least one more week.  The reason this is no good is because the cold front is coming from California somewhere, which means it's passing through Las Vegas and Arizona.  I'm worried about this because we are driving to Vegas and I'm running IN Vegas.  This means that we'll definitely encounter snow on Friday in Flagstaff, then it'll be nail biting cold in Vegas.  Some people enjoy running in colder weather, but I don't like it...never have.  So, I'm doing a not so silent prayer right now and hoping that the running gods will hear me and make it a pleasant evening on Sunday!

Do you prefer warmer or cooler running weather? By warmer, I mean high 70's and higher.  Cooler, I mean below 60!

If you've ever run an ultra, what made you decide to do it?

~Chix

The Wagon of Running

There will not be a Top Ten Tuesday today because I'm not interested in making any lists right now.  What's more important is:

5 Days Til the Vegas Half!

I'm one of those people that likes to run small runs up until the day of the race, just to remind my legs what they're going to be doing the next day...13.1 excruciating miles!  I'm trying to continue to get myself very comfortable with about 8 miles, so I can use my energy to push through the last 5 miles.  This probably isn't the plan that most other people go with, but it's my plan, especially because I've lagged a bit in my training.  I want this race to go on without a hitch, but be more of a stepping stone for my race in January, and for those to come.  All in all, I don't wanna fall off the "wagon of running".  I don't want to have to start all over with mile repeats because I can't string together 3 miles.  I want a 10K to feel so effortless and I want half marathons to be fun and relaxing, not always fighting for that last 5 miles.  My two Vegas goals are:

-Run the whole thing...do not walk unless stopping to pee or drink water.
-Beat my time from last year.  This is not a huge deal, but I know I'm in better shape than when I ran last year.

A couple of fun things to see and do while in Vegas:

-Great Santa Run - They are trying to get the world record for the most people dressed as Santa running a 5K Race.  (I wanted to run in this, but would rather gamble the entry fee)
-Stiletto Dash - 500 runners doing a 50-yard sprint through a Las Vegas casino in high heels.  (I can barely walk in high heels, so I'm not even going to attempt to run in them, especially because there will probably be men running and they will look better in them than me!)
-Race Expo - Only the number 1 reason to run in races, because you can stop by an endless number of booths and really stock up on the free goodies!
-Craps Tables - All day, any day, anywhere, anytime!

I'd like to take a moment to say how thankful I am for my GF!  This is the time for being thankful and grateful for what others do for you as well as extending your own hand to help others.  I'm not really a high-maintenance individual, but I really appreciate the way the GF takes care of me.  She does things without me asking, or even thinking to ask.  She looks after me, because I'm sort of oblivious.  She remembers everything we do, because she knows I'm gonna forget.  And little does she know, but she's my motivation to keep going everyday.  She may not think so, but she pushes me to be a better person (and that includes running).  Thank you so much!

~Chix

Modest with my Long Run

Long Weekend, Not Long Run

I've officially missed the bill on my last long run pre-race.  I was supposed to do about 10ish miles on Saturday or Sunday and I laid around instead.  Not acceptable behavior, but no one to really yell at me either.  I felt good running 5 miles on Turkey Day, but when Friday rolled around and the elements had hit Amarillo, there was no way I was running in the rain, nor in the 60mph winds on Saturday.  And although Sunday was very nice weather, it was spent packing and driving home.  I'm not trying to use this as an excuse, but sometimes your stars just don't align.  Which is why I felt it at the gym today.  I still wanna get in good miles this week just to stay in the moment, but I won't be running any more than 6 miles until race day.  I'm just gonna have to dig REAL DEEP on Sunday and run with every inch of my being.

Special Post

This is a special Post, not because of my fabulous words, but because it is Post number 200!  I'm sure that seems like nothing to all you crazy bloggers out there, but it's a milestone for me.  It should be more since I've had this blog for 2 years, but I'll take what I can get.  I've written a lot of words in that time and I'm glad I have the followers that I do.  This guy just wrote his 1,000 blog the other day and hope to one day make fun of you all for sticking around that long, cause lord knows I've got lots of nothing to say for 800 more posts!  Nothing like writing about your posts in a post!

Still Modest

Some of you might remember this post...about the first time I ever showered at the gym.  I am pretty much the most modest person in the women's locker room.  I'm not a big fan of full frontals, nor the bend over while applying lotion position, nor the wrap towel around bottom half and let top half air dry, and not even the talk to me while using towel to dry hair while fully naked.  All of which I encounter weekly.  Besides all that, I still shower at the gym regularly when I workout over the lunch hour.  I try to avert my eyes and not seem interested in carrying on a conversation.  I like the feeling of being clean, so I'll take the good with the bad, but you better believe I'm not showing anyone my goods!  I'm very modest indeed!

Do you feel intimidated by naked people in the locker room? Yes, I do!

Eating leftover Turkey and stuff instead of working out for 3 days is okay, right?  Haha, think again!

Shopping Madness and Smiles

Dark Gray Thursday went just as I expected...5 and a half hours at Walmart (3 and a half for me)!  We were planning on getting a nice tv from Best Buy, but when the GF drove by there were a million 200 people there.  So she went and stood in line for a different tv at Walmart and was the 9th person in line!  But she had to stay there until midnight, which meant that I had to fight the crowds for the other stuff we wanted.  I can see now why there were only 200 people at Best Buy, because the rest of the city was at Walmart!  It was a madhouse.  A bunch of stuff went on sale at 10pm, so they had each item on a pallet and saran wrapped and people stood around the item waiting until it was time to rip the wrap to shreds and pile as many of each item into your cart as possible.  After I found the items I wanted, I would take them and put them in the GF's cart.  Well, it turns out all the people the GF was in line with also wanted stuff from around the store, but couldn't leave their spot in line.  So I, for 3 hours, walked circles around the store trying to find good deals for everyone in line!  I'm hoping the good karma will come back to me!  After a 5 and a half hour wait, the GF got the tv she waited for, the crockpot we wanted, and the waffle maker we wanted!  Other than the waiting time, it really wasn't that horrible for the GF....cause I was the one battling the crowds!

We had quite the Thanksgiving Day spread...all my favorites.  But what counteracted the food was my  5 mile run when we woke up.  I didn't think I would complain about the hills in Amarillo, but they were there and I didn't like them.  The GF and her sister rode bikes along side me as I ran, so it wasn't so lonely in the Land of Nothing to Look at!  Not sure if a run is in the cards for me today...not only have I had 3 doughnuts and leftover turkey, but it's rainy and windy and not my cup of tea...maybe I'll begin the Taper today (9 days and counting).

Vegas is almost upon us and although the main purpose of the trip is for my race, my mind is focused on gambling.  I love to gamble and I'm pretty sure it'll take up the majority of my trip.  Luckily, the lovely GF also loves to gamble!  Here's what I think the percentage breakdown will look like:

Approximately 86 hours of trip Friday - Monday
19% Driving
24% Sleeping (inflated by extra pre-race hours)
5% Eating
3% Race Expo
7% Race (inflated by time to get to start line)
35% Gambling (inflated by time I will be gambling while sleeping, eating, and racing!)

As you can see, it's gonna be a fun fun trip!  Maybe we'll come back with money in our pockets and smiles on our faces!

~Chix

Long Weekends Rock!

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope everyone enjoys their holiday weekend, and has somewhere to eat yummy green bean casserole (and whatever else you like)!  We are headed to the inlaws in TX, so pray for good weather and good moods.  Here are a few things I'm thankful for:

-I'm thankful for beginning my new career in January.
-I'm thankful for my family and friends.
-I'm thankful for Neko and Jersey, Riley and Ramsey, and Mr. Bubbles.
-I'm thankful for my legs staying healthy and remembering to follow the leader.
-I'm thankful for today being a halfday...for me!

A Runner's World

Well, we're at 11 days and counting til Vegas!  That's right, the countdown has begun!  I'm feeling really positive about this race as of now.  I've trained better than I did last year.  I'm thinking the first 6 miles are gonna be great, but who knows about the rest.  I had a good 6-mile workout yesterday and some good speedwork this morning, but who knows what this weekend has in store for me!  Here's a few things I'm focusing on in the next 11 days:

-I'm focusing on one leg after another.
-I'm focusing on one more long run.
-I'm focusing on the taper.
-I'm focusing on relaxing my shoulders more.
-I'm focusing on fixing my nipple issues.

All In A Day's Work

I have a halfday today, and I'm off next Friday and the following Monday.  I love those days and I look forward to those days.  I also have begun the process of getting ready for my class to start in January.  I am working on the syllabus and the class schedule, so I may be asking for advice on simple little things that would only require a quick comment or text...don't be shy, everyone has an opinion!  Why is it that on the days when I need to get so much done, I do other stuff instead?  That's why I feel so busy, but I had to tell all my followers how thankful I am for them and how I'll try to blog you over the long weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!

~Chix

Top Ten Tuesday

Over the last couple of months, since I've been back to the blogosphere, I've been reading quite a few running blogs and have learned some new stuff in my last 2 months journey!  I've also gotten quite motivated by reading these blogs and it's helped me almost stick to my training plan.  Here is a list of the Top Ten Things I've Learned From Other Running Blogs:

10 - It's okay to pee or poop in the wilderness!  Sometimes when you gotta go...you gotta go!  Mother Nature allows all her earth's creatures access to her outdoor bathroom, so don't be shy.  Pull up a bush and drop a load.

9 - Shut up and run!  I was having a bit of a motivation problem, so I sent another blogger a quick message asking her for tips and although she wrote a nice sized email back, her main message was to "shut up and run"...really it was like "don't think, just do", but you get the idea!

8 - Most everyone is faster than me!  everybody lists their PR's for races on their site, as do I, but everyone else's is way faster than me.  I've already accepted that I'm not fast, but I wish there were other bloggers who were my pace...which is slow!

7 - Nobody likes to run on the treadmill!  I love Millie, but most bloggers would rather throw on layer after layer of clothing and brave the elements.  Not me...bring on the heat or the mill!

6 - People run at all times of the day!  I run over my lunch break.  It's hard for me to wake up in the morning and I'm pretty drained after work, so I go at lunch.  But reading blogs all day, people are doing 11 mile runs on Wednesdays and 14 milers on a Thursday...crazy runners!

5 - People will do anything to get free stuff!  I'm not sponsored, nor do companies send me stuff to try-out and blog about it, nor do I have the funds to purchase stuff to give away, but loads of bloggers give away fun stuff!  I have yet to win anything because some are based off point systems and I lose points for not having FB or being a Tweeter.  Oh well!

4 - Every city in the world has a Turkey Trot except for Amarillo...where I'll be!  People have been spouting off all the turkey runs they'll be doing over the holiday weekend, but Amarillo isn't holding any sort of event so I'll be running by my lonesome around the block before I cram mass amounts of food down my throat!

3 - If you register for a big race, you'll probably run into bloggers there!  They're everywhere!  Honestly, everywhere!  I'll probably run into some in Vegas or Phoenix.  It's like a whole new family full of people who understand why running is exciting!

2 - It's okay to talk about stuff other than running!  I do this quite a bit because I have so much going on in my head, but some of these bloggers are pretty effing hilarious.  Just hearing about their lives sometimes can be very interesting and somewhat motivating.

1 - Everyone drinks beer before and after a race!  This is my favorite recovery drink, but I'm pretty sure it's catching on!  It goes down pretty good post race too!  Replaces all the beer that evaporated during the run!

Have I taught you anything over the years of blogging?

~Chix