The Teppan Grill

Yesterday the GF forgot her lunch at home so we headed over to the Japanese Kitchen.  We got there at 12:20, but weren't seated until 12:45.  They make you wait until the whole Teppan Grill table of 8 is full before they decide to take your order.  But it was worth the wait...very yummy teriyaki chicken!

The chef's cook right in front of you and ours provided a pretty good show!

That's the onion volcano...first it shoots fire, then it blows smoke, then it spews lava!  Pretty creative, so I made sure to have my camera ready!

Last night after finishing grading final exams and posting grades the GF made beef tacos and coconut margaritas!

I'm thinking that drinking 2 of those was the reason I had a not so good run this morning.  That, and I hate running in the mornings.  Unfortunately my race next weekend is at 7am, so I'm trying to get my body ready.

Have a great day!  I'm gonna be busy, so that's why I'm posting early!

~Chix

Celebrate the Heat

Last night I spent some time grading final exams!

And then celebrated an end to my first semester of teaching!

I love this job!

When we went to bed last night, it was hot as hell quite warm upstairs.

These record setting high temps aren't so good around bedtime.  The GF just complains about how hot it is and it's time for the A/C and the fan and no covers and no clothes.  And then she thinks it's weird when I still pull the comforter up to my neck.  I get a little cold sometimes regardless of the temp.  But we already knew I was weird!

I'm extremely tired today though.  I didn't wanna get out of bed, I didn't wanna come to work, I don't wanna be working.  Oh well, I'll get to sleep tonight, after I work out, finish grading final exams and posting grades, and watch about 15 tv shows!

How hot or cold do you keep your house?  We're a different kind of breed at my house.  Open windows and turn on fans if it's too hot, pull out the blankets if it's too cold!

~Chix

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Summer School
The Good:  I got offered to teach a second class for the summer semester!!!  I am so excited.
The Bad:  It means I'm gonna miss about 11 Isotopes games this summer.
The Ugly:  My first class starts at 8:30am, and now this second class ends at 9:15pm...long days twice a week.

My Softball Team
The Good:  We have so much fun together, laughing and joking!
The Bad:  We lost our first game already and committed one too many errors.
The Ugly:  My thumb is still sore, so I am now a right handed batter...it'll be a very interesting season!

My 2nd Job
The Good:  My boss will be gone for the next two days on a work trip.
The Bad:  I can't screw around while he's gone because I've got lots of work to do.
The Ugly:  My work consists of this stupid new program we're running and I HATE IT!

Half Marathon Training
The Good:  I still have 10 days until my next half!
The Bad:  I only have 10 days until my next half.
The Ugly:  At least 2 of those days are rest days, and 2 of those days are easy days, and one of those days is a long run, so really I only have 5 more training days until my next half!

My 3 Week Break Between Semesters
The Good:  I don't have to get up at 5:45am twice a week for 3 weeks!!  And I don't have to grade any papers!
The Bad:  I'm sure my body will still wake up early.  And 3 weeks is gonna fly by so fast!
The Ugly:  I need to completely prepare myself for this new class which means reteaching myself accounting!

My Life
The Good:  The GF is wonderful always!  I get to see my niece and nephew this weekend!  I'm at a really happy point in my life right now!
The Bad:  I've been really tired lately, extremely hungry all the time, and I really need to get a tan!
The Ugly:  Just as April is ending and I'm free to have candy again, I am giving up BEER for May and the GF is afraid I'm gonna get cranky.  Only time will tell!

Feeling Good, Bad, or Ugly today?  Why?

~Chix

Tuesday Top Ten

They announced the Nuun Hood to Coast Relay Team this afternoon and my name wasn't on it :(  But it's because I didn't send in an application!  So, totally my fault.  I can't wait to hear how it all goes, and I'm sure I will since I follow the blogs of at least 3 people who got in!  So excited for them, especially Taking It On because she is "too sexy"!

My run was awesome!  I finished 5.8 miles and got to run around a golf course I haven't run around in over 2 years!  The weather was pretty warm, but there were water fountain opportunities at 2 points along my route AND I got to stop and see the GF between her classes!  I'm thinking that the outside runs might help my legs withstand the halfer in 2 weeks.

The Top Ten Things I've Learned My First Semester of Teaching!

10. Only the A students will do the extra credit!

9. When you give students many opportunities to turn in their assignments,

they still won't do it!

8. If a student tells you they "forgot" to turn in their homework,

it means they didn't do it.  SOOOO, you need to offer them the chance

to turn it in by noon, and they'll come up with every excuse in the

book why they can't make it in to drop it off!  Pretty funny!

7.  If a student says you're "legit", it means you know what you're

talking about!

6.  Students will laugh at your jokes, even if they're not funny...luckily I'm a riot!

5. Some students will just never learn how to round numbers properly!

Very frustrating in a Math class!

4. I'm not a big fan of grading papers, but I think the students

appreciate the timely feedback.

3. You can always fix things throughout the semester to meet the needs

of your students, and they will never know that you messed anything up!

2. If your students annoy you, you will always have a new group

to annoy you next semester!

1.  I.FREAKING.LOVE.TEACHING!

What do you love about your job?  My real job isn't as cool as teaching!

Did you make the Nuun team?  Nope, did not submit.

Want to run a Relay with me?  I'm loads of fun!

~Chix

What a Beautiful Day - Chris Cagle

Beautiful day today calls for a run outside!  When I got to work this morning it was 46 degrees in the office.  Someone (read: the lady upstairs) left the air on all night because I'm pretty sure she hates us wanted to freeze us out!  So I've been sitting at my desk blowing warm air into my hands all morning.  My fingers don't work so well when they're cold (TWSS)!

Happy Birthday BFJ!!  Today, my great friend J turns 30!  She's getting so old!  Just kidding...she's only like 20 or something...just a lil young pup, but we love her to death.  I hope you have a great day.  Maybe I'll see you tonight!

Speaking of tonight, I have my first rec softball game.  My team plays Tuesday nights, so you may hear me mention softball a bit more now for the rest of the summer.  Lucky for me it's J's birthday, because if she goes to my game tonight, it might also be the one and only game that the GF goes to!!  Now if only I can talk my Bro and Seester into going I'll have my own little cheering section to tell me how bad I'm playing.

I'm off to enjoy the nice weather!  Come back later to read about the Top Ten Things I've Learned My First Semester of Teaching!

~Chix

Albuquerque Half Aftermath

If you've finished reading the Recap from my half this weekend, you're probably not ready to read another novel, so just keep this on the back burner until you're ready!

First off, let me say that I was very thankful at the race on Saturday...I made sure to thank every single volunteer while out on the course.  Since these races are all operated locally, the organizers use middle school and high school kids to work the aid stations, gear check, chip pick-up, handing out medals, and so on.  So, I made sure to thank them for spending their Saturday morning with a bunch of smelly, sweaty, runners!

So, here's the story!
 
Once I crossed the finished line, I went to hunt down water.  I got dizzy a few times and this plugged up ear thing that's happened to me before, but it subsided with just a few seconds of holding myself up using a fence!  I had to walk down the "finishers chute" which is just a fenced in area where parents drop off their kids at the elementary school.  Then I had to walk around the fence and back the way I came (which was past the finish line), down a grassy embankment and to the middle of the grassy knoll, finally finding a table with water bottles on it.  I decided to grab my friend (we'll call her She to protect the innocent) a water bottle and head back to the finish line, since I knew she'd be running in soon.  Fast forward past the 2 more times I felt dizzy and had to grab onto the reliable fence!  Here She comes!

Once she crossed, I handed her the water explaining that it was so far away.  We exited out of the "finishers chute" and I grabbed my gear bag.  She leaned up against the wall as I was checking my official time and see how I placed in my age group.  I walked back over to her and said I was 56th in my age group and she just nodded her head up and down.  I realized she might be having the dizzy's and ear troubles I was, so I just let it slide.  Then she just sort of had this blank stare.  I reached into my bag and grabbed an orange I brought and started peeling it immediately.  I handed her a slice and she ate it right away, so I handed her another slice.  She took a small bite out of it and her hand fell limp, she dropped her sunglasses and her water bottle, and her eyes started rolling into the back of her head.  I grabbed her arm and started poking her chest bone screaming her name.  Some guy heard my and just as he got to her other side, she passed out right into his arms!  We slowly helped her to a sitting position.

In a few seconds she opened her eyes and looked up and gave that "how the hell did I get here" look!  I fed her the rest of the orange and she ate a breakfast bar and drank some energy drink.  I also poured some cool water over her head.  I sat with her for a while and asked if she wanted to try standing up again.  She did of course, so we stood up and she leaned against the wall as if to give herself a moment to focus, and her eyes just went blank again!  I quickly ran to get more water and energy drink while 2 guys made sure she didn't fall over!

When I got back I decided to move her to a small stoop a few feet away, so she could sit down again, but not all the way on the ground.  She finished another breakfast bar and some more water and was looking and talking normal now.  We decided to try it one more time, but to keep moving.  I had offered to go get my car which was half a mile away and drive her to her car, but she said the walk would be nice.  We walked for about 15 minutes and I knew she'd be fine after that.  I got the "I'm home safe" text and was so glad I was there to help her.  Usually after races, she grabs a water and goes straight to her car to go home.  That could've ended very badly.

Anywho, to make a short story longer, this was her first half marathon (hopefully this incident didn't scare her away for good), and she just didn't know how to properly fuel herself.  All that coupled with the heat made her go from bad to worse in a matter of seconds.  So, make sure you know what you're doing when you're going into a big race like this.

As for me, I went home, showered up, and had a pretty busy rest of the day.  I had a 2 hour study session for my class.  The GF hit her 25 pound weight loss goal (YAY!) so we went to dinner to celebrate! 

Started with the salad bar, smothered in everything I like!



Finished with an AMAZING prime rib and just one of those yucky steak fries!

Then we headed to the movies to see The Lucky One with Zac Efron.  It's one of those Nick Sparks tear jerkers, but was really good (if you're into that sort of thing).  Very romantic chick flick for sure!

I was supposed to go have a drink at my Bro's new restaurant, but I was spent from the long day with no nap time.  Once my head hit the pillow I was done.  Quite an eventful day!

Take care of yourselves!

~Chix

Albuquerque Half Recap

Let me begin by telling you that I have two halfers in 16 days...the first one was yesterday, the second one is May 6th.  Both events offer a half, a 10K, and a 5K all timed!

I went to pick up my packet on Friday afternoon.  Because of the "not so small" nature of this race, they split up packet pick-up to 2 different weekends.  I chose Friday, since it was just a day away from the race.  Lucky for me, I walked right in, AND the timing chip was already in my bag.  These races normally have you pick them up at the starting line.  I also found a new tech tee on sale for $18, a steal!

Friday night we went to the baseball game and instead of leaving early for a spaghetti dinner at home, I opted to buy the asian noodles sold at the game.  The cook was so nice he even offered me fresh spinach to top it off!

Yummy yummy!

So, I was able to set out all my gear for the next morning and still get a good amount of sleep.  The race started at 8am, so I didn't have to wake up too early!

Saturday morning, I woke up with no trouble and got all my gear on.  My bib was already attached to my shorts, all I had to do was attach the timing chip to my shoes once I had them on.  My gear check bag was already packed too (although the dogs got into it the night before and ate a whole tube of Neosporin...don't worry they're still alive...somehow).  So I headed out the door.

I heard the parking situation was gonna be horrible, along with a half mile walk to the start line, so I headed over there early, only to find that all the parking was taken and we had to create new lots ourselves!  As I was walking to the gear check, I ran into a friend, so we made the half mile trek together.  We checked gear, used the port-o's and walked to the start line just in time for the horn!  I tried to be close to the front since it's a gun start, but when 641 people are signed up to run the half, it's a little tough getting that close.  As we waited for the horn, I saw a few of my sorority sisters I haven't seen in years...so that was nice!

And we're off!  The race started on a dirt trail that we followed for about a mile around a huge field.  It was very narrow and so you can imagine what 641 people looked like trying to get through there!  At one point I was doing an 11:30 minute mile, so I bunny hopped through the weeds to get around some people and find some breathing room.  I was eventually able to bring the first mile down to around 9:41.

Miles 2 and 3 were on the street and we sort of did a weird out and back and loop around the surrounding neighborhoods.  It was cool to see everyone running the race...such happy faces at mile 2!  At one point near mile 3ish, the front 2 runners of the 10K passed us and it looked like they were jogging!  They were 3 miles away from finishing and I was still 10 miles away...wasn't very nice!

The course was flat and beautiful...very expensive houses (ranch style) and wineries lined the roads, horses ran around in their fields, dogs barked from the fences, crowds gathered on the street corners, trees gave some much needed shade, and the pack was really thinning out.  One guy on a bike who was cheering on someone around me, kept riding up a mile and waiting to cheer us on, then another mile, and so on and so forth for about 11 miles.  I never saw him at the finish line, but if it weren't for this guy, I'm not sure I would have made it out alive.

Mile 8 was when things took a turn...not for the worse...but those later miles were nothing like the first 8!  My right hammy started acting up, my left knee was feeling funny, and it sure was getting hot out!  I felt like I had been fueling well throughout, the course was flat, but I was just dead.  Around mile 9 I had convinced myself to switch to the 10K in 2 weeks instead of running another half!  By mile 10 I was doing some weird jogging-shuffle thing!  At one point in the last 3 miles I looked at my pace and it indicated I only had 1 mile left (but I had 3)...that's how slow I was going!  Luckily I wasn't running for time, but for pride.

So, although I wasn't running for time, I still had a goal time in mind of 2:20, and my official time was 2:20:18.  Looks like I was right on track!  Here's me at the finish looking like I'm in extreme pain and walking like an old man! 

Just walking it in!

Speaking of old men, one passed me (looked like he was walking) around mile 9, stopped to drink water at an aid station and then he passed me again before the finish line...okay, so maybe I didn't finish with pride!

The after-race story is for another post, but just so you know, I did a 4 mile recovery run yesterday to shake out my legs, and I'm back to my crazy thinking ways of running the half in 2 weeks.  2 weeks still to decide, so I'll keep you posted on that!

Have a great week!

~Chix

In The News...

I'd like to send a shout out to New Balance for being Gay Friendly!  They now sell Rainbow shoes and yours truly has a pair of her own!

Behold!  The beautiful Rainbow shoes!



Up close and personal with the gay stripes!

How great are these shoes!  I will not be running in these shoes, but will be wearing them for fashion purposes.  I wore them for the lunch hours, but since I have a race tomorrow I took them off so as not to mess up my feet pre-race.  My lil guys are sensitive to that kind of thing!

And yes, you heard that correctly, tomorrow is the halfer here in town.  I'm as ready as I'm ever gonna be, I'm just trying to stay relaxed and excited all at the same time.  The weather is going to be amazing tomorrow too...a high of 84!!  So at 8am, it'll be high 50's and by my last mile it'll be high 60's!  Looks like my race outfit is perfect. 

In other news, the GF and I bought a whole bunch of colorful flowers that she is planting in my boss's backyard.  We had a good time picking out the best of the bunch.  Knowing that they'll be dead within a few months, we didn't buy many expensive types, nor did we shop at an expensive flower shop.  But they are very pretty for the time being!

In other other news, last night we met a guy who is sort of a stuntman cameraguy for the movies.  He's in town for a week and a half to film the movie The Host, which is based off a book written by the Twilight series author Stephanie Meyer.  He basically rides in helicopters to shoot aerial scenes and scenes involving other helicopters.  He showed us some pictures of some of the vehicles they're using in the movie...pretty friggin cool!  It was interesting getting a chance to ask him questions about what he does!  Cool job!

In today's news, the Red Sox are celebrating 100 years of baseball today.  100 years ago today, they played their very first game and today they brought back all of their alumni!  We watched as player after player came onto the field and was applauded by the sold out home crowd.  All the greats were there, from Luis Tiant and Bill Lee (our 2 faves), to Carl Yastremski, Pesky, Doehr, Fisk, Rice, Pedro Martinez, and the 2 most recent retirees, Varitek and Wakefield.  It was exciting to see all these guys on one field celebrating this exciting team and sport!  Can't wait for the Dodgers to have this same kind of celebration!

In future news, next weekend I get to watch my niece and nephew (assuming my Bro and Seester still want me to)!  But I'm planning on getting the cutest pictures of them ever, so stay tuned for those! 

Well, I'm off to begin my weekend!  I'll recap the race as soon as get the chance.

How's the weather in your neck of the woods?  It's currently 73, sunny, and no wind!

Running any races this weekend?  First time I'll be running a half in Albuquerque!

Who's your favorite baseball team?  AL - Red Sox, NL - Dodgers

~Chix

Wednesday Why's

Why do I feel like it's okay to skip workouts before a half marathon?  Because it's taper week!

Why can't I get motivated to do anything at work lately?  Because I'd rather be teaching!

Why am I stressed out about teaching?  Because students who are failing don't seem to care that they're failing.  Still wondering why they come to class everyday!

Why do I not wanna grade any papers until it's like the night before I have class again?  Because I'd rather be watching tv!

Why do I keep farting?  Because the GF keeps making yummy egg salad sandwiches!

Why do I have all this dog hair on my clothes?  Because my cute pups give me hugs every morning while I'm getting ready for work!

Why do I feel like a dumbass today?  Because we've been planning this trip, and I messed up all the dates (could quite possibly ruin our whole trip)!

Why am I just a little sad today?  Because the GF can't come to my race on Saturday.

Why am I only a little sad about it?  Because she's about ready to hit a major milestone in her weight loss journey...25 pounds lost!  Hitting that number is worth her missing my race.  I'm even considering missing my race!

Why is this my last 'why'?  Because I'm going to the baseball game!  Woohoo!

What's your 'Why'?

~Chix

Setting My Goals

Today I ran 5 miles on the treadmill while I looked out the window at the blue cloudless sky and the trees NOT swaying because there's absolutely no wind (maybe a slight breeze) and was slightly disappointed that I forgot my watch at home and wasn't running outside.  Not that I need my watch to run outside, wait, who am I kidding, I'm totally one of those types of people who has to know what pace I'm running, what mile I'm at, how far I went, and how long it took me!  Therefore, no watch = no run outside!  One day I'll run free and naked, but it'll be in the far off future!  I'm really not sure how I survived without a Garmin for so long.

On to more important things, my race is this Saturday morning.  I'm feeling pretty prepared, even though none of my long runs were over 10 miles, that's normally where I stop anyway.  Although I can pretend this is a training run for my half in 2 weeks, then I can say I ran over 10 miles!!  Clever!  Anywho, my race goals:

• No walking, unless there's a jam at a water stop.
• Sub 2:00, just kidding!  Fun to say, but just kidding.  Hopefully around 2:20ish.
• Stay positive and relaxed through entire race.  Negative thoughts will only bring me down.
• Don't shoot out the gates too fast.  Yeah right, so at least find your proper pace after the first couple miles.
• Maintain that pace for the remainder of the race and hopefully have a little Umph at the end.

These all seem maintainable.  The weather is gonna be in the low to mid 70's which is perfect for me!  I can wear my usual racing outfit leather pants and a feather boa yellow shorts and a tech tee.  And because this is a smaller scale race, I get to see the GF all over the course!

Have a great day!

~Chix

Remember the Titans

I'm pretty sure our house has relocated on the block today.  It's so windy here today, I'm pretty sure our house has lifted up, spun around, and landed some place new.  We wouldn't know it though because the sand and dirt are blowing around so bad, we can't see past our back wall.  It's quite possible the rest of the city blew away too cause we can't see that either!  Normally it's a very nice veiw into the city...normally!  Today's not normal.  Even the weather gods have warned the midwest that life-threatening storms are on their way.  Get to safety people, this storm is NOT messing around.

Last night was the first Isotopes game and it was so nice for them to be back!  I love the atmosphere, I love the game, and I especially love when they win!  Unfortunately, this year they decided it'd be a good idea to have a donut place set up right behind the section we sit in!  Not a good idea.  We could smell them throughout the entire game, and everyone around us kept buying them, so we just decided that they pobably tasted like heaven crap!  Problem solved...until we show up tonight!  Maybe the wind will blow them all away...if the stadium is still there of course!

I ran 10 miles today...it seems to be my limit when training for my half marathons.  Now I pretend to taper all week before my race on Saturday!  I did all 10 miles on the Mill while I watched Remember the Titans.  I obviously wasn't going to battle the high winds and cold.  I stopped after mile 9, but the movie was all about "go out there and be perfect and do your best and stuff" so I finished out that last mile in Titans style!  Very motivating that Denzel!

Yesterday was a big day in the Barton household!  I signed up for the Run for the Zoo half marathon, which means I will be running a half next weekend and then running another one just two weeks later.  It's crazy talk, but I'm really enjoying running lately!  But in MORE IMPORTANT news: The GF is not only running the Run for the Zoo 5K (possibly the 10K), she's all signed up for the San Diego Half Marathon!  We discussed it and decided that since she's gonna be there with me anyway, and can be up to around 8 miles by then, she might as well do the race.  She's not gonna focus on anything past the 8 miles, and she'll have a huge jumping off point for our end of year races!  I'm really excited for her!

How's the weather in your neck of the woods?

How was your run today?

~Chix

Friday Free-For-All

Week in Workouts
This week has been a great training week.  I did 6 miles on Monday that felt awesome.  I did 3 miles on Tuesday when I didn't even think I was gonna get to workout.  I did 5 miles of speedwork on Wednesday that totally kicked my butt.  And yesterday I ran 5 miles with increasing speed (or negative splits) over each mile (and felt amazing the whole time).  Not sure what today is going to bring, but there's a long run on tap for tomorrow and I'm feeling pretty good about it!

Soreness
I've been having some interesting left calf pain and a random right upper hammy issues lately.  I seem to only be sore when I'm done working out, a bit tight throughout the rest of the day, but then good to go for my next run.  I'm trying to stretch them out a bit ('any' stretching is more than my normal 'no' stretching) and the GF has used the dough roller and a tennis ball to break up some tension.  Other than that randomness, I'm feeling great.  Which is good news being just a week out from my next halfer!

Race
Speaking of my next halfer, I will be running in the Albuquerque Half Marathon here in town.

I'm not necessarily going for a PR in this race, but it IS my first half in my hometown.  So, I'm pretty excited about it.  I have a couple friends that will be running this race too, so it'll be nice to see some friendly faces while I'm out there.  the weather is supposed to be really nice next weekend too!  I told my mom about this race and she mentioned possibly going to watch me.  She's never seen me run a race before, so that'd be nice to see her.  Of course the GF will be out to support me as well, although I always feel bad for dragging her along.  Luckily, this course is set up along bike lanes, so cars can still access the roads, so it'll be easier to see me at many different points throughout the race!

Boston
Talk of the Town is the Boston Marathon, which is this Monday!  I'm really excited about it because a lot of bloggers I follow will be running, so Good Luck to everyone!  I wish I could be in Boston cheering you on, but that's for another day (in August, hopefully)!  Personal facts about the Boston Marathon:
1. I will never qualify for the Boston Marathon
    a. I will never run a marathon
    b. Even if I ever did run a marathon, it'd never be fast enough to qualify anyway.
2. I will never run a marathon
3. If they one day decided to add a Boston Half-Marathon Race
    a. I'd never be fast enough to qualify

Teaching
My Seester is a sneaky one, I tell ya!  Let's discuss!  Monday morning, a fellow instructor sent an email requesting a sub for her Thursday night classes.  I didn't respond because I was unsure of my schedule at the time.  After perusing my calendar and seeing I had no obligations, I decided I would email her back on Wednesday and tell her I would sub if she hadn't found anyone yet!  Well, lo and behold, on Tuesday night, my Seester shoots over a text and had she called I'm sure it would have been her nicest, sisterly voice, saying, "So-and-so is a mother of someone at your niece's school...she also teaches accounting with you and is looking for a sub Thursday night...would you be interested?"  My first thought is, "That sneaky little...!"  But luckily for her I was already going to offer up my services the next morning anyway.

And...I'm so glad I did!  Last night I subbed for 2 classes, one of which I'm not even teaching.  Both classes were very nice to me and even made me think that I actually knew what I was talking about!  We had some laughs and some learning.  I'm really glad that I had that opportunity, especially because I got to teach some new information.  I taught at a different campus and I noticed that the kids in her class seem a lot more eager to learn this information than my class does.  Different environments though.  Whatever it is, I'm glad I did it!  Which means my Seester is off the hook!

Dogs
Yesterday, my boss called me in a panic and said that Daisy, our office dog, had buried his hat and wallet somewhere in the backyard and he couldn't find it before he had to leave for an out of town meeting.  So, it became my job to find them.  Of course I was all dressed up yesterday, so it was pretty interesting digging around in his backyard in my slacks and button up shirt!  Using a shovel, I dug up hole after hole in his backyard.  I found a full box of kleenex, a different hat with stuff in it, another hat that was completely disintigrated, a few socks, some underwear, but nowhere did I find his wallet.  I had searched everywhere.  But this crazy, sneaky, dog is so clever.  She hid the stuff next to some tree, under a pile of dirt, that she re-covered somehow with dry leaves that looked like they had naturally fallen into their resting position!  Nobody would've ever checked there because it didn't even look like there could be dirt underneath.  Anywho, I found his wallet and now we know our dog my be working with the government.

Know any smart dogs?  My pups are pretty amazing too!

Running Boston?  Well, good luck.

What's on tap for your weekend? Long run and Baseball games!

~Chix

Slogging and Softball

New Ideas

Yesterday at lunch, the newly nicknamed HFJ (just kidding J!) gave me the best idea.  Let me set it up for you first before I tell you what it is.  So, yesterday I blogged in the morning, so the GF and BFJ had not seen it by the time we all went to lunch (more on that later).  So, during lunch, I decided to read it to them.  As I was reading it, I noticed that they get to hear the actual inflection and tone in my voice which represents exactly what I was feeling when I wrote it!  BFJ mentioned that she definitely doesn't read my blog posts like I do and suggested I try Slogging!

Slogging is a new term concocted by yours truly and BFJ.  It's not like Vlogging where I would record a video blog.  This is a Speaking Blog wherein I will read you my blog posts, so you can actually hear how I'm feeling at the time.  So, it'll be like I'm actually telling you a story instead of writing it down and you reading it.  Wow, that seemed really hard to explain and it's such a simple concept!  So, I'm gonna look into it and get back to you on that.

Lunch

Yesterday we had lunch at Dublin's.  It's a new restaurant in downtown Albuquerque and my bro is one of the managers down there.  I keep wanting to call him the owner for some reason, but I'm sure he doesn't want all that responsibility!  Anywho, they've got the best french onion soup, so even though we ate there on Saturday night, I wanted to go back to get more soup!  So far, everything we've ordered has been tremendous!

Softball

So, besides having to sit 'almost' next to the most annoying and irritating girl in the whole world yesterday, while she did nothing but talk about herself the whole time, I still enjoyed a great softball game.  The New Mexico State Aggies where playing the University of New Mexico Lobos and by the 3rd inning the Aggies had run away with the game, so we were pretty excited.  Although I am a Lobo through and through, I have a special place in my heart for the Aggies softball team, mainly because their coach is my BFT!

And isn't it funny how someone who blogs about herself everyday is annoyed by someone who talks about herself non-stop?  In my defense, I'm not forcing you wonderful followers to read my words, but I literally felt like she was holding me hostage yesterday with her conceited-ness!  Not that I don't like to talk about myself in other settings, but I hope I'm not force feeding people with my great words!

My 'almost' non-existent workout

I didn't think I was gonna get in a run yesterday.  I slept in, I went to lunch, and after work I went to a softball game.  I was gonna throw in the towel and just get food on the way home instead of working out when I got home.  Luckily there was some crazy ish going on at Taco Bell!  While the GF spent an hour at Taco Bell, I was able to scurry home and get in a quick 3 mile run AND shower before she even got home!  So, I felt good that a non-run turned into 3 miles AND I got to eat cold Taco Bell afterwards...AWESOME!

I hope you all have a great Hump Day!

~Chix

Wink, Wink, Nudge, Nudge

Eureka!  6 miles yesterday after work...BAM!  I felt great the whole time and probably could've done more, but I had 6 in my mind and finished strong.  My shirt was literally dripping because it was soaked with sweat (since mile 3).  I tried not to think about how great I was feeling during the run because I didn't want to jinx myself and end up having to stop for some stupid reason.  My right foot tried to act up, but the small pains went away quickly.  Today I feel good too...slight pain in my left calf.  I'm hoping to get in a quick mile or two when I get home later tonight, but we'll see if that pans out.  I was supposed to get up early before work and run, but when my alarm went off, my bed just felt SOOOO comfy, so I decided to be late for work instead!

So, yesterday after my class I was talking with the head of my department about random stuff.  We do this 'catch up' talk on Mondays and we discuss lots of different things from what happened over the weekend, to ideas for class, to life stuff.  Here's how a part of the convo went yesterday:

Her: So how are you enjoying things so far? (in regards to teaching)
Me:  I love it!  Seriously, I absolutely love it!
Her: Well that's good to hear.  There should be a full time position being posted in the late fall.

Eureka times two!  Are you serious?  This was like the biggest *wink, wink, nudge, nudge, smile, smile, hint, hint* that I've gotten in a long time.  She's already told me that she wants to switch up my classes in the Fall so I can be "more well-rounded".  I've just been getting these awesome vibes from her that she wants to make my dreams come true!!  I'm gonna leave it at that, since all these developments will not take place til the end of this year and through the Spring of next year, but I had to let you all know!

Yesterday was the deadline for submitting your application to be on one of 3 teams that Nuun is putting together for the Hood to Coast race in August.  I did not submit.  Sad, I know.  But I did not submit.  It's not that I'm not one of the most creative people in the world.  It's not that I don't love to run.  It's not that I didn't want to be a part of this amazing opportunity.  It's not that I was intimidated by all those awesome running bloggers out there who might be better than me.  And it's not that I was gonna be disappointed if I applied and didn't get picked.  It's pretty much because I missed the bill.  I didn't take it seriously enough, and I missed the deadline.  I really don't know what my schedule will be like in August, but I'm sure I could've made an exception to participate in something of this magnitude.

Let's look on the bright side of no submission:
1. I don't have to run more than my limit of 13.1 miles in a day.
2. I don't have to sit in a van with a boat load of other stinky women.
3. I don't have to meet 30 other really interesting female running bloggers.
4. I don't have to partake in one of the greatest running events around.
5. I don't have to worry about the memories I'll make or the fun I'll have.
6. I don't have to blog about the great experience and how everyone should do this.

Sounds like I saved myself from all that nonsense...Phew! :-(

~Chix

A Case of the Mondays

Well, I clearly ran out of time today.  Not sure what I got done, but ran out of time.  So, this is gonna be a quick spew of info.  How about Monday Madness!

-Saturday I had a not so good run and I sure do hope things smooth out over the next 2 weeks because I've got a halfer and then another 2 weeks after that...Let's Go Legs!

-Easter was a very relaxing day at our house.  I worked on classwork all day and I had 2 huge Rootbeer and Jim Beam's to celebrate the holiday!  Yummy!

-Today has been crazy busy at work, but I'm not sure a single thing actually got accomplished!  But I do have a nice stack of papers that will be waiting for me in the morning.

-Somebody from the film crew of Breaking Bad came by our office this afternoon saying that they will be filming in the area on Friday.  I just might have to accidentally get into a scene somehow!

-It's raining here today and my brand new windshield wipers are...still in my backseat in the bag!  Hopefully I'll make it home safe!

-I'm running after work today, so let's all cross our fingers that I've fueled enough and had plenty of water!  I'm thinking chicken enchiladas at lunch just might have done the trick!  But I can't garauntee the Jim Beam will cooperate!

-The GF and I are starting a sit-ups challenge.  Bikini abs, here I come!

Have a great rest of your day!

~Chix

No Candy, My Workouts, and Baseball

Life has been crazy the past couple of days, hence the no writing.  I know, I know, I don't call, I don't write, I don't care...but I do, which is why I'm gonna recap my last two days for you right now!

I gave up candy in my last post!  I removed all the candy from my office desk and gave it to a coworker (she was excited).  We'll see how the rest of the month goes.  SUAR posted about substituting candy for Shot Blocks or GU's yesterday, so that wasn't a big help in the NO CANDY department!  Easter is Sunday, so I'm gonna have a very large Root Beer and Jim Beam!  I've even bought the root beer already in anticipation of that yummy yummy drink.

I was so busy on Wednesday that I had to work through lunch, so I didn't get my workout in until after work.  I headed to the gym to do a speed workout on the Mill!  I proceeded to do an inverted pyramid.

I ran a pretty fast 1600, then bumped it .2 for a 1200, then another .2 for an 800, then one last .2 for a 400.  Then I went back the other way...800, 1200, and finished with one last 1600.  I could feel my legs getting tired on the last lap of my second 1200, but I pushed through and ended with a total of 6 miles!  Kicked my butt, but I felt awesome afterwards...I even turned down Doritos Tacos for dinner, because I didn't wanna ruin my awesome workout!

Wednesday morning my students had their 3rd exam, and so far they've all passed...hmmmph, I must be a pretty good teacher after all!  But, I don't wanna speak too soon as I have not graded them all!

Thursday was just as equally busy at the office, but I was able to go running at lunch.  I was hoping to have a nice long run because I knew Friday I had to take it easy since I moved my long runs to Saturdays until the race.  My legs felt great, not sore from the speed the day before.  But at mile 2 I got this sick side cramp.  I stretched, I dangled the arms, I regulated my breathing, I even tried to push the cramp back into my stomach.  A full mile of this and it still wouldn't let up...it even hurt for every footfall on the treadmill.  I had to stop a bit defeated because my legs felt great and I really wanted to run more.  So, I used the row machine for a while and got outta there!  I'm thinking I need to work on my fueling before my lunchtime runs.

I still didn't even come close to finishing everything I needed to do at work, which is why I'm writing you in the morning, so I can get it done before I delve into these piles o' crap!  I have a small run scheduled for today and hopefully I can pump out around 10 miles tomorrow...well, that's my goal anyway.

Yesterday was opening day for Baseball!!!  Unless you're a Cards or Miami fan, then it was 2 days ago, but the Isotopes and Dodgers started yesterday!

The Dodgers beat the Padres 5 to 3!!  It was good seeing a couple of our guys starting for the big leagues (Dee Gordon, AJ Ellis), so I was really proud of them.  The Isotopes began the season in Omaha.  They were ahead 3-0 until the 7th inning and that's when they lost all control, and ended up losing 7-4.  Poop!  The manager got ejected in the 8th inning.  He's a really good guy, so something must have really ticked him off.  I'm not sure what I should say to him...cause I really wanna tell him "Congratulations, being ejected on opening day is pretty Bad Ass!"  Not sure if that'll go over very well!!  Their home opener is next Friday, so I'm hoping this next week passes by pretty fast...I'm ready for baseball!!

Who's your favorite Baseball team?  I love the Isotopes and the Dodgers, but I'm also a Red Sox fan (who also lost yesterday).

Let's all pray that today is a Good Friday!

~Chix

Winter and Pictures

Today was a Winter Wonderland here in Albuquerque! 


This was my visibility on my drive to work this morning!
Somewhere in there you can see the back of a truck and
maybe a light pole!  Otherwise, snow...just snow!

It rained all through the night and when I woke up this morning a nice layer of snow had fallen around the town.  The streets, luckily, were too wet for the snow to build up, but it fell until around noon.  Now the sun is out, the skies are blue, and the rest of the week should be in the low 70's!



This afternoon at the park...the last remnants of the snow storm!

 I headed to the gym during the lunch hour and had a really great 4 mile run.  I really wish I would have done at least one more mile, but I was with a co-worker and I wasn't sure if she was done working out yet or what and I didn't want her to wait for me again...so I'm just excited about my 4 miles!  I really need some high mileage these next two weeks, so I gotta maybe drive separate from now on!

I'd like to take a moment to say that it's very very sad that ultra-marathoner Micah True's body was found in the Gila Wilderness here in New Mexico.  I've heard through blogs lately that he was admired and loved and very inspirational.  It's tough to hear another sad story about somebody out doing what they love best, and then being found dead.  Nobody enjoys that kind of information.  BUT I'm here to tell you that New Mexico is still a very beautiful place to visit, run, enjoy, whatever you'd like.  And I pray that this kind of news doesn't hold you back from visiting our lovely state!

In less depressing news, I've got some more great pics for you today!

My two favorite things in life: The GF and Bud Light!
If she had some cheese in her other hand, I'd be in heaven!

Ramsey is on the back porch enjoying the great weather this weekend!

Jersey kept jumping into the window to see what all the ruckus was!
She was peeping out between the blinds!


 Easter is on Sunday, so I'll get to start drinking soda again!  I've been thinking of giving up something for the month of April.  I should get on that since it's the 3rd already!  Candy...I'm giving up candy!  Just decided...literally as I wrote that last sentence.  Not the GF kind, but actually candy.  And just so you know, Otter Pops and Doublemint Gum are not candy!  Here we go!

What's your favorite kind of candy?  I love skittles, sour candies, jolly ranchers, mike & ikes, sugar babies, and a host of other stuff!

~Chix

Everything I Wanted, Nothing I Needed

Yesterday was a mostly productive day, but unfortunately I only got done everything I wanted to get done, and nothing I needed to get done!  Now, don't get me wrong...cleaning out litter boxes and doing laundry needed to get done, but it wasn't as important as other stuff that REALLY NEEDED to get done!  Here's my day:
1. Organize dishes to be done (the GF actually did them)
2. Pick up dog poop
3. Clean out litter boxes
4. Put away clean clothes
5. Do more laundry (ended up being 5 loads)
6. Clean fish tank
7. Quick run around the neighborhood
8. Drink beer
9. Watch tv
10. Watch more tv

Numbers 1 through 6 were done by 1pm!  Here's what I NEEDED to do yesterday:
1. Go in to the office and work for about 4 to 5 hours
2. Grade papers
3. Work through class review
4. Make up test for class on Wednesday
5. Begin the new chapter

Most everything had to do with class this morning.  Class started at 8am, so I didn't have much time to finish stuff up this morning!  Should've done it yesterday.  But the biggest thing of all was number 1...I really REALLY R-E-A-L-L-Y needed to go to work yesterday because I'm so far behind and I'm not sure I can finish everything up today!  Oops!  It's just that getting in my car, driving to the office, and working for 4 hours didn't sound like a good time yesterday!  I'll pay for it today, for sure!

As for my run yesterday, it sucked!  I thought I was going at a pretty good pace for the first mile and when the Garmin beeped 1 mile, I looked down and it showed an 11-something pace...WHAT THE?  I guess the whole 2nd half of the mile was uphill, but I've usually done well on that route!  The whole 2nd mile was uphill too...another 11+ mile, the 3rd was all downhill, so I cut off a ton of time there, but it was a very slow 3 miles!  Luckily I didn't have to go any further!  It really makes my 7 miles on Saturday look like the best run ever!

Hopefully today's run will go much better...it'll be on the mill after work, so we'll see!

Did you have a productive weekend?

Did it involve anything you needed to get done?

~Chix