follow through

just wanted to say that i did what i'd say and actually ran last night. yes, it was painfully slow. surprisingly very little actual pain, though. i knew not to go too hard (not that i ever really do) since i'd barely run the last few weeks. but i did it.

and i lost two pounds.

score for me.

so far today i've been good. we're going to some friends' house tonight for them to work on their bikes while i eat and drink. so probably not the best plan ever. but that's okay. cause today's my rest day before my "long run" tomorrow.

i think i'm gonna win this half.

beating the heat

last week was a mess. at least the last couple days of it were. we had kids moving in and out at work and sadly, not giving me a better love of football players. they're just so loud. and why can't they do anything by themselves? anyway, friday especially was long and stressful. i tried to not complain about it too much because it's probably the 3rd or 4th stressful day since i started this job almost a year ago. whatever the case, i was exhausted and decided i deserved mexican food. i somehow managed to talk alex into this idea and rolled ourselves home. i was stuck working a few hours saturday morning to keep things under control for a few more move ins/outs. i came home excited that i'd at least done something before 11 this weekend.

i was about to ask alex if he wanted to go daydream about fridges when he asked me the same thing. i was pumped. we knew we'd probably be ready for a fridge in the next few months, and just wanted to take a look around and get an idea of what we wanted. i checked the websites of a few stores around town to see where we'd look first and saw that best buy was having a pretty good sale leftover from the 4th. we used some of the prices we saw to compare.

there was one fridge at best buy that seemed like it'd be the closest to what we want, but it was still a little more expensive than what we'd seen online. then we went to lowes and got some more information from the guys there, but were still facing a higher pricepoint overall. everywhere else in town was even higher. we went home to do some more research and ended up deciding on a fridge that we didn't even look at. it was the cheapest we'd seen and on sale almost half off. so i was able to get one that was bigger, more value, and still cheaper than we'd looked at.

we ordered it.

and then alex ordered a new laptop.

we think we grew a money tree in the backyard.

so alex was going to order the laptop anyway for his birthday next month. and this one was better and cheaper than the ones he'd been looking at. and he got a $100 giftcard out of it as well. so that's awesome. and for such a great deal on the fridge, it was really really hard to pass up. plus we got a great financing deal on it, so we can space out payments a little easier. we should still have both paid off in a few months, so we don't feel guilty. actually, this is the first big purchase we've made that we haven't felt instant regret. and we hadn't even seen the fridge.

anyway, yesterday the fridge came in. mom and dad came down to help us get it moved in, which was a huge help. mom spent about 10 minutes making sure every dot of styrofoam in the floor. so they drove down to see us, moved two fridges, cleaned up, sat around waiting forever, and then bought us more mexican food. my parents are pretty amazing.

in the time we sat there waiting for alex to get there with the fridge, dad asked me about running. i said i was debating about running a half in their town in october. dad said that was crazy and probably not to do it. i said i was still thinking about it and hadn't made a decision. dad said he wasn't going. i knew he didn't want to anyway, so that was fine. then he started talking about how good the first half was. then he started talking about how he'd only run a few miles less than that on his birthday in september. and how it wasn't too bad. and maybe we'd do it. by the time we got the fridge in, everytime we'd stop for something he'd talk more about what the plan was. at dinner he'd decided we were going and it was going to be great. yes, dad gets his mind on something and sticks with it for a several days.

so i guess i'm going into training mode. the good thing is that i didn't run for an entire month before my half in march, so that gives me some hope. my goal is to get in a good run saturday, probably just 3-5, but much more than i've done lately. with 106 degree days at 50% humidity, it'd just painful to get out there. so hopefully i can keep things minimal during the week and make my saturdays productive. time will tell.

new fridge and new training plan. and hopefully 10 pounds of weight off me. time will tell. i can't wait go to home and get started.

back into the swing of things

so i've been back from vacation a few days now and am getting settled back into work. vacation overall was pretty boring, but i still prefer it to work. yes, i know that if i was truly a housewife, i'd be bored out of my mind and need an escape. but the idea of just a part time job sounds magical to me. and i really think i have enough interests now i could fill my time pretty well. vacation was just tricky because i was trying to do things i normally wouldn't want to do. but whatever.

we kicked off the vacation with the trip to broken bow, oklahoma. anniversary trip with the in-laws? that's correct. actually i really like my in-laws and appreciate the fact that they want to drive us around and pay for a trip for us. i was pretty excited about getting to do some things i love in a new place away from work.

overall, good trip. i tend to plan things a litlte too much sometimes, so not having a plan makes me a little crazy. alex's parents don't plan. mine don't really either, i guess, but they tend to think about what they want to do and if there's a best way to go about that. alex's parents just do it.

we left early saturday morning and managed to check in a few hours early. we got settled in and had some lunch and then left again to scout out fishing spots and make a golf tee time. being the brilliant person i am, i remembered change out of my jeans and into some shorts before leaving. super smart. why? because they ended up fishing for like 3 hours while i sat there. i wasn't smart enough to bring a book (or camera) just in case, cause i thought it was going to be a quick trip. so sad. and kind of boring. but pretty. AND i got to see a little otter running around and swimming in the river. it made the entire trip worth it. looked just like uzi.

came home to make some dinner (my delicious beans and blueberry peach cobbler. can't beat em.) and watched "nothing but trouble." hung out in the hot tub and tried to save the lightning bugs from their suicide missions into the tub. the guys made their tee time for the next morning, so we knew that we'd need to get up, take them to the golf course, and then spend the next 3 or so hours doing something else. i tried to convince my m-i-l to go trail running with me. she wasn't very excited but agreed to try. lucky for her the trails are super rocky and slippery and not a good idea for novice trail runners. so we walked. then she tricked me into climbing this mountain for a view. the view never happened. but we didn't die or fall. success.

picked the guys up and came back for lunch. the us open was on and alex's dad LOVES to watch golf (and fox news). so i played along for a little bit and then snuck outside to read. i made it a whole chapter into "water for elephants" and fell asleep. i was concerned that my neck would break from the rolling of my head, so i moved inside and passed out in my bed for an hour or so. the good news? there was still like 3 hours of the golf tournament left! so that was awesome. i finished up some knitting and tried to right off a headache. we were going to go down the river again, but i realized that dinner was gonna take a couple hours to cook and it was already 6. my m-i-l and i stayed back while the guys fished. dinner was good (stuffed shells) and i was wiped out from my day of nothing, so i crashed.

the next morning we got up early for the guys to fish and the girls to eat pancakes and clean up. alex and i had our stuff packed up, so mostly there wasn't much to do. i got to sit outside and read with a cup of coffee for an hour or so while it wasn't 1000 degrees outside. it was perfect. exactly what i wanted to do. no, i didn't ever get to read by the river, but that's okay. the guys got back and the girls prepared for their spa experience. we were pumped.

turns out they set us up for a couple's massage because they thought we wanted that. no problem. what a treat, though. the bed was made by the owner's husband, a chiropractor. the sound of the music comes from within the bed, which is kind of strange, but cool. so they basically drizzle hot shea butter all over you (including your hair) and massage it into you. then they sprinkle sea salts on you and exfoliate. and then they wrap you on hot towels. it was fantastic. plus we got to eat some amazing cheesecake brownies afterward and drink cucumber water (and i don't even like cucumbers). great experience.

the fun thing is that you can't wash the shea butter out of your hair. so we drove home a little greasy and smelling like fish bait (that's what the guys told us). after about 3 stops on the way home for alex's dad to eat (he seriously had like 4 big meals that day before 5), we made it home. the puppies were thrilled, especially after the storms and tornadoes that came through while we were gone.

the rest of the week was kind of boring and a bit of a blur. tuesday we went to see x-men with our friend matt. my hair was still in a ponytail thanks to the shea butter (took 2 big pre-washes/ regular washes with dawn to get it all out). movie was great. magneto's just awesome. first place at trivia that night (whoo!). wednesday we had father's day lunch with dad at this itty bitty store a billion miles away. it was pretty good for forestburg. i ran that evening at the park while alex hit golf balls at the driving range with buck. came home to host poker night- black eyed pea dip and cranberry oatmeal cookies. buck brought a girl over to watch "the big lebowski" with me. it was her first time to see it, so i tried to keep my mouth shut and let her just enjoy it. i did okay.

i made a quick decision on thursday to cut my hair at a cheap place. boy was it not what i asked for. overall the cut's not too bad, it's just nothing like i asked. i said long bob, angled to the front, long enough for a ponytail, no stacking. i got chin-length bob, straight, too short for a ponytail, stacked. first time i almost cried after a haircut. at least i could get pig tails out of it and ended up being able to sort of finagle a ponytail. could be worse. much worse.

i spent thursday with mom picking out fabric for her bedroom and exploring homegoods. the guy filling in for alex took us out for dinner that night. i swear pasta is so overpriced in restaurants. it's crazy. 14 bucks for linguine in a (really bad, really thick) cream sauce with 7 shrimp. that was it. nuts. lost big time at trivia, but our waitress remembered us after just one trip, so that was awesome.

our 5th anniversary didn't start off too great. my fault. my favorite shirt (nobody puts baby in a corner, you know the one) somehow got bleach stains all over it. i went on this big rant about how all of my clothes are getting ruined, which is true. but that sort of lead to a meltdown. i felt super fat that day anyway (remember the linguine with cream sauce) and was frustrated about my hair still. just a bad morning. we had lunch at cheesecake factory so alex would shut up about it and stop trying to kill me through the 5 billion calories in each item on the menu. the food really is good, but man, it's so bad for you. i ordered the french salad, which was so so good. we came home and watched some tv and movies. took the dogs for a walk and got snow cones. kept things pretty chill.

saturday we remembered that alex's uncle was leaving town and asked if we could borrow his pool. we decided to take the dogs with us to see if they would have fun in the pool. the answer to that is no. poor gandalf can't keep his butt up. from the amount of arm splashing he does, i think he may just not use his back legs at all. he tried, though. and never would jump in to us, but can at least do a little.

uzi was the big shocker. she's not interested at all in going in the water, but once she does, man she's good. she looks just like a little alligator.

sunday we went to our church for the first time in weeks and spent the rest of the day trying to pretend we didn't have to work the next day and figuring out our plans for food and working out. big surprise, we're gonna try one more time to eat right and exercise. so far so good, though. i'm about 4 pounds less than my highest last week. we tend to do okay when we're really focused together. plus being broke keeps us from eating out or doing things other than than working out. so that's helpful.

but yeah, overall, an okay vacation. we could have done something else fun if we had the money, but whatever. it was nice to just hang out and be together. i'm already looking forward to the next bit of time off.

vacation! whoo!

i have 4 hours and 50 minutes before my vacation starts. yes, i'm counting down. yes, i've been counting down for weeks.

we meet up with the in-laws at 8am tomorrow to hit the road. we'll be making our way to broken bow, oklahoma for a weekend of camping (read as staying in a lavish cabin), fishing (read as me reading while other people fish), and hopefully running some trails. and then probably dying from heat exhaustion or bear attack.

i'm pumped to get out of here, though. i'm really looking forward to a weekend of nothing. sitting around reading, running, knitting, and cooking. all of my favorite things and in a pretty place. my main goal is to not kill my father-in-law (he tends to yell out answers when he's not playing trivia games and it makes me crazy).

my other goal is to not cry all weekend when we leave the puppies. i'm pathetic, i know. they're pretty excited that their grampy and grammy texas are coming to see them, so that'll help me out. my half sister's kids live in new hampshire and call my parents grammy and grampy texas (to not confuse them with the rest of their grandparents), so the puppies have decided to just go with the same name to make it easy. and gandalf's just in love with my dad, so he'll lose it when he walks in. it warms my heart.

when we get back we'll be ready for a week of nothing before our anniversary on friday. this will be five years of marriage (and 11 total). it's gone by so so fast and has been a ton of fun. we have had a fantastic marriage and can't wait to see what happens next. this is the part where normally a picture would be posted, but we hated our wedding photos so much we still haven't bought a single one. so here's some of us that are a little more us than our wedding photos would have been....

happy anniversary, dude! i love you!

it's hot.

it's been a good and a tough week all in one. i was pumped that throughout the weekend, i managed to lose a couple pounds and maintain it. just a couple, but those couple took me from being a pound above overweight to a pound into normal. and that's amazing all by itself. also amazing that one of the days last weekend was spent at mom's house, which is always a good way to gain weight. mom's really good at enabling me and tricking me into eating crap. or maybe we just love to cook and bake stuff and then eat loads of it. whatever the case, i call her an enabler and tell her she's being the devil. we have a great relationship.

i even managed to get in a run on sunday. alex's grandfather had had surgery on thursday and was moved into a rehab facility over the weekend. we were going to watch the first part of the mavs game with him before we went to a friend's house to finish the game (whoo! national champions!). i figured that since the facility's on our side of town i'd just leave a little early and run there to get my run in. plus i was going to wait till the evening so it wouldn't be hot. i looked at the map, it was about 4.3ish miles. easy. no big deal. i took off.

i don't know if anyone has heard yet, but it's really hot in june in texas. even at 6. luckily there's a park about 2 miles into the run, so i was able to get some water. during my water break i missed alex driving by hoping to give me some water. it was really hot. like 103. and humid. and i was running into the sun and into the wind. the great part was that the wind was blowing on me. the bad part was that the wind was blowing on me.

i was miserable. i just wanted to get there. something about that route just seemed unending. i need to remember to run where i have more than two straight paths. i just need it to break up the distance a little more. i crossed the busiest of the streets and started heading up the hill. felt like i was dying. looked at my garmin and told myself i only had a mile left. i just had to run like 12 minutes more (yes, i'm slow, i don't care). 12 minutes. i can do that.

i couldn't. i ended up stopping at 4. it was hot. i was getting the chills. my body wanted to shut down. i had another up hill. i had no desire to run those last .3 miles. so i didn't. i walked it. and it was great. one of the best decisions i'd made. i spent the next hour or so mopping up my sweaty body with the paper towels at the rehab place and trying to not sit on anything for fear of a puddle left behind when i stood back up.

i was smart enough (because alex didn't want me to embarrass him) to bring a shirt along to change into. and what shirt did i bring? my new fave (brought to you by the "nobody puts baby in a corner" people). it's not a super original idea anymore but i love it. it has a map of the u.s. with just texas drawn out and labeled. above texas it just says "the other states." and yes, we really believe we're the only state that matters. anyway, i was pumped to wear my new gray shirt. that's right. i brought a gray t-shirt to cover my sweaty body in 105 degree weather. so stupid. that's why i never buy shirts that aren't black. cause i live in texas and have to deal with 105 degree sweaty weather. thankfully, my paper towel usage worked pretty well and i wasn't completely mortified when i walked into our friend's house for the rest of the mavs game (whoo! national champions!).

plus i got to get taco cabana as a treat for my hard work running. and yes, overall i've done a pretty good job sticking with my reward plan. last night was trivia, so that always ends up being a bit of a free-for-all. and we ran out of food at the house, so today unfortunately started with donuts for breakfast and jimmy john's for lunch. jimmy john's wont' be too bad and i'm hoping that the donuts won't kill me. i just have to make it up tonight with a good run. luckily it rained last night so we had a bit of a cool front. it's only like 85 so far today and shouldn't get past 95ish tonight. piece of cake.

in other news, my boss's last day was yesterday, so now i'm doing her job as well. luckily she didn't teach me a thing and i have to figure it all out and look pretty stupid. the good news is that i only have to deal with it for a couple more days and then i go on vacation. whoo! anniversary trip with the in-laws! oklahoma! i'm actually pretty excited for it. i need a break from this place. for now, i'll just wait for lunch.

hit pound and then hang up?

just felt like i was michael bluth explaining to gob on how to use the phone.

a student just came up who apparently is new to the whole microwave thing. they're tricky, ya know. she wanted 3:30, but it would only go 3. i explained that she just needed to push the "add 30 seconds" buttons. this threw her for a loop.

"but i need it to be 3:30."

"yep, just push the 'add 30 seconds' button."

"so i push 'add 30 seconds' and then the 3?"

"nope, just push the 3, and then 'add 30 seconds.'"

"and that'll cook it for how long?"

"3:30."

"ok, we'll see if this works."

the same student was concerned about living on the second floor because of the number of stairs in our hall versus another hall. she wanted to know how many stairs we had. we were clueless. she counted them. took about 5 minutes (just one floor, not the whole building). she came down panting and was really disappointed that there were so many more stairs here.

she also wanted us to remodel her private bathroom because it "isn't going to work."

weird that she doesn't know how to use a microwave.

sunshine, lollipops and rainbows

after a falling out with gwyneth paltrow (mostly upset that she stole chris martin from me), i've fallen back in love with her in the last few years. the sense of humor that i thought she lacked was merely disguised and our love affair has begun again. i think she's fantastic. she's down to earth and just a delight. and the hair, my goodness the hair.

i bought her new cookbook a few weeks ago, my father's daughter. and while i haven't actually cooked from it yet, am really excited about the recipes. and i love that she loves cooking and loves food like she does despite weighing about 75 pounds.

i also got hooked on her blog, goop.

when i first read the site, it seemed a little pretentious. where to eat when you travel beautiful places. what clothes to wear when you have an unlimited budget. but that's the life she lives and that's what blogs are about. plus she lives some mass-appeal choices for those that don't have houses in two continents. and she's had some really great posts.

the most recent addresses something that's near and dear to my heart. homosexuality. it's one of those hot button issues that sways my vote each time. i just don't understand how anyone can put on a ballot that they support discrimination of any kind. it just blows my mind. but i live in texas, so i shouldn't be that surprised.

anyway, in a nutshell, i feel that no matter if you think it's right or wrong morally, gay marriage is a civil rights issue and that as a country, we should have equal rights for all. and as christians, we should show love to everyone, just as christ did (and the pharisees did not).

i loved the passages she shared from a variety of spiritual guides regarding homosexuality in the bible. and while they obviously are just a few people giving their view, i was thrilled with their points. rather than try to summarize everything, it can be read here.

so way to go, gwynnie. allow me to personally invite you to my future son's gay wedding (and birthday parties and tuesdays). his name is sparkles glitter rainbow. and yes, i named him that to ensure he's gay and not some annoying straight boy. and yes, i while i think that gays are born that way, i'm convinced i can turn someone gay, just not the other way around. see you tuesday, gwyneth.

aha moment

it's been one of those weeks. not necessarily bad, or really great, but just one of those weeks. i kicked it off on monday vowing to get my workouts back on schedule. unfortunately this was proven a little more difficult than planned thanks to some weirdness in my body. i have a strange mix of ugh feelings- headache/dizziness/nausea/abnormally low body temperature. the good news is that i only feel bad if i'm not eating or sleeping. so i try to stay on top of the eat/sleep combo as much as possible. i go to the doctor this afternoon to see how things look. i'm hoping for a pill that takes care of the symptoms and also knocks off about 25 pounds. so here's hoping.

i'm happy to say that i managed to get some workouts in on monday and tuesday. and i'm especially happy to say that i got myself to do them after a nap and after dinner both nights. normally i would have just brushed them off as being too late. i ovalized on monday around 9:30 or so. and then i got in a quick 3 miles tuesday around 8ish. i felt so much more accomplished than normal. yesterday i was hoping to get in a few miles after dinner with some friends (a delicious veggie sandwich from five guys of all places), but alex's grandfather broke his hip yesterday, so we spent the evening at the hospital. i'm really glad we came when we did because we managed to be there for all the doctor visits to give his medical history and get the low down on his surgery. i haven't had to be the person in charge before, so it was a good learning experience for me. but things seem to be going okay there, and the staff is incredible. it really takes some amazing people to do that job and i am so thankful for them.

needless to say i didn't get a workout in. i did managed to stay pretty much within my calories for the day (maybe 50 or so over is all). so that was awesome. i'm just dreading getting on the scale at the doctor's today. it won't matter once they fork over those magic pills.

i've been reading through a book oprah gave away on favorite things last christmas- a course in weight loss: 21 spiritual lessons for surrendering your weight forever by marianne williamson. as the name suggests it integrates spirituality with weight loss and allows you to free yourself from the things that have kept you from losing weight. i had trouble getting into it because i was usually reading before bed and had trouble really thinking about what i was reading. plus it called for some exercises that i didn't feel like taking the time for or doing.

but the last few chapters have had some good things in it. some things that have never crossed my mind and should have a long time ago. one of the best things was to again do as the title suggests and actually surrender your weight to god. it was a new thought to me. we talk all the time about giving your life to god and letting him control things. and while we say that in reference in many aspects of our lives- jobs, family, struggles, health- we never actually talk about the weight aspect of our health. we trust god to do so many things, but not our weight. if we believe he can cure cancer, how is it too much to think he can't control our weight? it was a revolutionary thought to me. and a freeing one. i could turn it over to god and allow him to guide me and take care of it. the thought made my trail run last week really amazing. i spent the last half of it just letting things go and trusting that god would take care of me- even the little things like just getting through that run. i'm not saying i have it together by any means, but keeping that in my head gives me so much comfort during the day and takes a lot of the pressure off of me that i'm taking on.

another new revelation came to me today as i was reading the another mother runner blog. the blogger they featured today said that one thing she can't run without is a body wash that she used as a treat when she'd run over 10 miles. simple idea. earth shattering to me. i grew up with food as a reward. good grades- banana split. class president- mexican dinner. great volleyball game- pizza. tuesday- more mexican food. fun girls day- more mexican food. while i hope to raise my own children with rewards not involving food (still figuring that out, luckily i have some time), i don't know how to get away from it. i love food and use it to justify good and bad days. and i use it after a great run to celebrate my strength. but it never occurred to me to treat myself for a real accomplishment. maybe i can eat something great this week, but only after a 7 mile run or 15 miles that week. maybe i can have real dessert today, but only after 50 push ups. maybe my rewards can still be there as long as they relate to accomplishing something that i've set as a true goal. a reward for the work, not a justification.

again, none of this should be new to me, but somehow it was an aha moment, in keeping with oprah's favorite things.

so tonight's another busy night. doctor's appointment after work, hospital run after that, floorset after that. and maybe i can fit in a run. but if not, that's okay. but i can't justify full blown taco cabana just because i worked floorset (though if i still have the calories left in the day, it can be a modified option). whatever the case, i'm working on reward not justification and letting god take over. i'm hoping for those magic pills too, just to make it easier on him.

national running day

so yesterday was national running day. i was reminded of this every few minutes from runner's world, the another mother runner blog, all the sporting good stores, and endless facebook posts from kara goucher, ryan hall, etc. i would kill myself if i ignored all the hype.

unfortunately for me, june 1st in texas is miserable. and it's not even as bad as it'll get in the next 3 months. but walking out to my car after work was a very unpleasant surprise. i'm pretty sure my leather seats in my car melted through my jeans to burn my skin. but i'd already agreed to go trail running while alex and his cousin mountain biked. stupid decision.

i got home and changed into my gear. i realized that a hydration pack would probably come in handy since there aren't any water faucets on this run. i made a super quick trip by sports authority and made a decision from the 2 choices they had. i pulled and pulled and pulled on the straps to get the belt as tight as possible so it wouldn't bounce around as much. i felt good. i was dreading the run but excited about my belt (amazing how new gear can make you want to do something you didn't want to do).

we got to the park and i started off to the trail head. i ran about 10 feet before my water bottle bounced out. i couldn't do 7 more miles like that, so i turned back to the car and threw the belt in the back. instead i decided to just carry the water bottle cause i'd definitely need it. turns out it wasn't too bad to carry and was as essential to the run as i thought it'd be.

my original goal for the run was to get as far as i did last time (which wasn't very far) without having to walk. the heat killed me last time and it was about 20 degrees warmer this time. i took off. slowly. but i was doing okay. i knew how to watch for bikers and still see the roots. i got to my last quitting spot and still felt okay. i'd made it through the first batch of woods without falling. i got through the field that had flowers and weeds up to my waist with a trench wide enough for one foot without crying. i felt pretty good about things so far. i passed alex about 3 miles or so in, they'd already gone 4. so i'd made better time than the last run, but i was concerned about the last 4 miles. they told me they'd wait and i promised to go as fast as i could.

the rest of the trail seemed a little easier. i'm not sure how much was just easier terrain and how much was me just getting used to running there. but overall i felt good. i'd already passed my goal of beating my last distance. and then i made it to meet alex. at 4 miles i kept reminding myself it was just a 5k left. by the time i hit 5 miles, i knew i would just have to press on. 5.5 meant a quick run down to the end of my "trail" at home. the last mile seemed to keep going and going. and then i looked up and saw alex peeking his head over the field. he was a little concerned that i'd twisted an ankle in the middle of nowhere, but he only had to go about 20 feet to see me trucking along. and they'd only finished about 15 minutes before me, so that was awesome. i waited 45 for them on monday, so 15's nothing.

so yeah, i did it. and didn't die. i think i had a good time, too. it's a weird thing for me. i wasn't real tired at the end, though my feet were getting a little sore just from being on them so long. i had a sense of dread going into a field in the same way i did going into the woods. but i liked that i was doing it. and i liked that i didn't fall (or even really trip). i hated that at points i was basically walking up the hills and around the roots. but at this point i just feel like that's something that will improve with practice and is just part of the gig. and i loved that i woke up without a bit of soreness. yes, i only went at like a 15 minute pace, but it's only my 2nd time trying it. could be worse.

no, i probably won't be entering a trail race anytime soon. or ever (i can't even wrap my head around what a nightmare it'd be to run with a crowd of people through that terrain). but the ocassional trail run could be nice. plus i got to celebrate national running day feeling strong and like a real runner. perfect day to welcome in june.

workin for the weekend

i don't want to be at work. i want to be home, in my bed, just like i was all weekend. it was awesome. i really think it'd be better if i just stayed at home all day, every day. i could get so much more done. i could make some really cute things (like the 2 really cute aprons i made this weekend). i could do some cooking and baking. i could get some great runs in. i could sleep. i could read and read and read. i could snuggle with the puppies. it'd be awesome.

but no, i'm at work now. and i'm not having any fun. i even have music and am about to start "catching fire," the second book in "the hunger games" series. and i'm still not having fun. i wish it was still the weekend. luckily i only have to wait 4 more days instead of 5 this week.

i am proud of myself for at least doing something this weekend rather than laying around doing nothing like i normally do. i kicked off the holiday weekend with a trip to gainesville for their summer sounds series. the square shuts down for the night for a concert with beer and food. weird for gainesville, which was dry until just a few years ago. anyway, the show was great and i got to collect my "holler time" shirt that was my reward for some hats i made the boys over the winter. i love my shirt. it's the perfect weight and softness. love it.

saturday began with a 5 mile run in which i nearly died. i kept looking around to see who would help me if i passed out. when i seriously thought about quitting, i was already to 4.1 and at that point there was no justification in quitting. so i pushed through. it's just so hot and humid around here. it's gonna be a really long 4 months before the misery ends.

i got home and cleaned up and headed back to gainesville with kaitlin and tony (from the great zoo run). we enjoyed some fried pies and ran by paige's shop. then hit the casino for some more fun times. unfortunately i wasn't a big winner like i was on mother's day and lost my 7 bucks. fortunately i wasn't as big of a loser as tony, who lost about 50.

sunday was another busy day. we went to a different church to see alex's cousin for senior sunday. then i stuck around with the in-laws for the banquet thing afterward. i was surprised that i enjoyed hearing about people's kids that i've never met. after a quick trip to barnes and noble (they bought me "water for elephants." i've heard nothing but great things) and the yogurt place, i came home and whipped up a really precious apron. i'm pretty thrilled with it. then we went for a walk with the puppies and that was delightful. and then still managed to watch "flight of the navigator." alex has been wanting me to watch it for years. if pee wee herman wasn't in it, it'd be one of the most worthless movies ever. thank god for pee wee herman.

monday i made some delicious pancakes. blueberry coconut pancakes with bananas instead of eggs. a little tangy, but good. i knocked out another apron that's also really precious. that makes 3 in a row that haven't been a complete disaster. i took a nap for an hour or so and woke up for a run at johnson branch. i haven't been there since before the half. it went pretty well considering how lame my runs have been lately. i stopped after 5- partly from the heat and exhaustion, and partly from the wildlife coming out. i did get to run really close to a deer, which was pretty cool. then a rabbit charged me and nearly gave me a heart attack. it came about a foot from my foot. terrifying. sadly i had to wait another 45 minutes before the guys were done mountain biking. at least i got some good alone time.

so overall, pretty good weekend. busy, but at least productive. and now i'm just waiting for next weekend to do nothing again. at least i have some good books to look foward to in the meantime.

winning

yesterday was a day of victory and defeat.

work went by pretty quickly thanks to a book delivery from our friend buck (of trivia fame). he'd been yelling at me to read "the hunger games," so he brought it by to encourage me a little more. i'm having a tough time deciding how much to read it. i've heard by the time i get to the middle of the book, i'll run right through it. while this is fantastic, i'm terrified that i'll get hit with things to do and not be able to give it the attention it needs (or at least that i want).

i got home and put on my running gear. this was exciting in itself, seeing how it was almost 90 degrees outside and my stomach kind of hurt. i waited around till alex got home so i could see him before he took my car for a bit. turned out he decided to wait to go till today. i figured i might as well take off and get the run in so i could make some dinner. it was tough. the run itself felt okay, my body wasn't sore or too tight and my breathing was fine. it was just hot. but with a really strong headwind for most of the run.

when i finished i felt like i'd just been hit with a ton of bricks. everything just started hurting the second my run turned into a walk. i got home and hit the floor. then a weird headache came over me and my stomach hurt turned into sharp pains. i was pretty sure it was just not being used to the heat, and probably drinking a little less than i normally do. whatever the case, i decided it was time to take it easy.

after i got out of the shower, alex volunteered to make baked spaghetti (his now specialty since i can coach him through it from the couch) so i could rest. in the mean time i got to do some embroidery on a pocket for the apron i did the other day. by the time dinner was ready i was feeling normal again.

we were excited to watch "the biggest loser" finale, fast forwarding through most of it. but then we remembered that there were tornadoes the night it came on. which meant weather for the last hour of the show. which meant we missed the entire end of it and still don't know the winners. i do know that irene was voted the third finalist, so i guess my ten votes paid off.

after a couple episodes of "united states of tara," i finished up the apron while alex watched the mavs game. i can't watch good games. i need to be in another room. i get too anxious and nervous and i can't sit still. once again we were losing when we turned it on. and once again we came from behind for the win. i felt really bad for the thunder. granted, we should have destroyed them. but it's so heartbreaking to more or less lose twice each game when the other team comes back from a 10-15 point deficit. whatever the case, the mavs are in the finals, so everyone's really excited around here.

despite the fact that my run wasn't the best, i was excited that i managed to get in a run, eat a good meal (no, i didn't fix it myself, but it's my recipe and i gave instructions), get some sewing in, and watch some great shows. overall my day was a win.

rambling

i think my sewing skills are improving. monday afternoon i came home and cut out some fabric, thinking i'd just get it started and slowly work it out. after a quick trip to gainesville and a surprise dinner with alex's parents, i came home and got started on an apron while alex watched tv. i'm happy to say i only had to rip about an inch of stitching out this time (vs. about 4 or 5 feet last weekend). it came together quickly, which was even more incredible since i sort of made it up and put different pieces together. i felt like a champ. now i just have to put a few decorative details on it and i'll be good to go.

last night was trivia. we were awesome as usual. more tornadoes came through, somehow missing denton. the sirens were going off in town, but we were stuck at the bar. several tornadoes touched down around the area before moving north and east. i'm grateful for getting skipped but sad for the destruction others faced.

i just finished kristin armstrong's book "mile markers," based on her blog. a lot of the chapters were repeats of the blog entries, but a nice reminder of how running and life come together and help each improve. now to begin "the hunger games." i'm not even started and i'm already excited about the cast of the movie.

today i'm hoping to get back on track with my nutrition and running and embroidery. we'll see how that actually happens. until then, reading time at work.

avocado-tequila whole grain spaghetti

over the weekend i made some delicious pasta. i wanted to use some of the very few things that my garden has produced so far. i also wanted to try something out without alex so he wouldn't complain. so i made this pasta dish, a very slightly modified version of the recipe on foodgeeks.com. it's got a ton of my go-to ingredients and is delicious without being heavy. it's also ready in about 10 or 15 minutes. it's great warm, lukewarm, or chilled.

avocado-tequila whole grain spaghetti

serves 4-6

1 lb. whole grain spaghetti

1 tbs. olive oil

1/2 an onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced (you can use less, but i like a little extra kick)

4 tbs. tequila

4 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

2 tbs. dry basil

1/2 c. cilantro, minced

1 avocado, peeled and chopped

salt and pepper to taste

cook the spaghetti and set aside.

heat the olive oil in a pan and saute the onion and bell pepper about 5 minutes. add garlic, jalapeno, tequila, tomatoes, basil and cilantro; cook about 5 minutes, until tomatoes are softened. stir in avocado and pasta. season with salt and pepper.

atx

i had a fantastic weekend, though it began with a few hiccups.

i arrived home with the best domestic intentions for my weekend without alex. i made some delicious dinner out of my garden. that's right. i used stuff from my garden. yes, it was barely anything, but i've never cooked with something i grew myself. it was awesome. recipe to come.

then i headed to the fabric shop to pick up some embroidery thread and some yarn i've been needing to start a couple hats that probably should have been done months ago (though they aren't needed until october, so i'm okay). i decided that since i was out i might as well get some ice cream. i was being domestic and deserved a treat. there's just something about banana shakes from sonic that just get to me.

i came home and began my apron. i was excited. i was motivated. i was less excited and way less motivated when my back started hurting from cutting out the fabric. and even less excited and motivated when i kept having to rip out seams when i screwed up. and i was just plain angry when i burned my finger on the light bulb on my machine. so i quit. until mom could fix everything the next day.

i woke up saturday ready for a new day. i thought a run would be a great way to get started before the rain hit and it got miserable. i took the puppies since they were going to be stuck at home most of the weekend anyway. it was miserable. part of the problem was uzi running on the wrong side and getting tangled in gandalf's leash. part of the problem was gandalf stopping every 10 feet to smell or pee or do whatever he does. part of the problem was the 87% humidity outside. not an exaggeration. 87%. i cut the run short because it looked like uzi was limping. she was faking, turns out. but i got home feeling like i just got out of a shower. took a real shower and headed to mom's house.

mom helped me get the apron together. i spent a few more hours working on the embroidery for it and finally finished, vowing to never sew again. then i got over that. and then i came home and made banana cinnamon cookies. i made them with whole wheat flour, so they were a little weird, but delicious with coffee.

i left town the next morning with mom and paige to head to austin for the renegade craft fair. it was a really fun time.

after a frustrating start to the morning (turns out denton starbucks aren't open at 6:30 on sunday morning), we arrived in austin ready for some guero's. delicious as always. and as usual, i ate way too many chips. we walked around south congress for awhile, then made our way to the craft fair.

it was delightful. it's hard to beat a place with a free photobooth (with props) and filled with creative people. it makes you want to do fun stuff. and spend a whole lot of money. unfortunately i had no money and was given a spending limit. i still made the most of it. i got 2 new t-shirts- one from the same people that made my "nobody puts baby in a corner shirt," and a wayne's world inspired foxy lady shirt. it's awesome. i'm hoping that it's as awesome on as it is on the hanger. yellow light-weight t's aren't always great at hiding frumpiness. i also bought about 5000 (or 5) new prints for my walls. and i got some really cool bill murray stickers, some embroidery kits and an iron on ball of yarn. i could have spent another 500 bucks without batting an eye. someday i'll be rich and it'll be awesome.

i ran into my friend joy (of sad accordion fame), who i was secretly hoping to see, given the setting. she's preggers and is gonna be even cuter when she gets a bump. i'm absolutely in love with she and her husband, nathaniel (also of sad accordion fame). they're gonna be the funnest, cutest parents ever. and their kids will be way cooler than i could ever hope to be.

we hit up curra's (more and more chips) on the way out of town, then braved storms to get back home. sadly, the storms were much worse for a lot of the country. poor joplin, missouri really got hit hard and a lot of the town was destroyed. so sad.

the rain is continuing today and looks like for a lot of the week. i'm going to try to get in some exercise one way or another and get it together. i'm looking at swimsuits today in hopes that that'll keep me honest. and thankfully, i only gained a pound in austin (a miracle in itself). so here we go, a new week begins today. why am i still looking at cookie recipes?

tacos for all

last night i met up with an old coworker (and now friend) to catch up on what's been going on over the last few months in each other's lives and the life of the company (read: gossip). we both are disgusted with our we look and feel but still make sure we meet over chips and salsa and eat till we're even more disgusted.

so last night we decided to go to a new place where we couldn't eat quite as many chips. normally we go to gloria's and enjoy basket upon basket of delicious chips with their sent-from-heaven black bean dip. i can really inhale come black bean dip. last night we tried out yucatan's taco stand. it was delicious. we shared ONE basket of chips and salsa/guac/queso, a feat in itself. and we each had some tacos- tempura fish for her, veggie for me. delicious. absolutely delicious. the meal wasn't really overpriced, but a little more than i'd expect to pay for the food. however, i think if the food was even a dollar less, i'd order way more. so i'm somehow happy to pay more to eat less. i know.

anyway, it was a great night to catch up. we shared the gossip and filled each other in on the latest news personally. mostly i just talked about how bad of an influence my friends are (at least one in particular) and how much i've been eating and not running. the usual in my life.

we finished up dinner and enjoyed some frozen yogurt while we continued to yap to each other. plus it gave us a chance to watch part of the mav's playoff game (sad day, dallas). i'm happy to say i've seen like 4-5 games this year, probably a record for me. i've been quite the sports fan this year. 4-5 basketball games on tv and one rangers game live. it's amazing.

i have the place to myself this weekend while alex camps with some of his friends from high school. hopefully this means a weekend of being good and actually doing something. we'll see. then i get to spend all day sunday with mom and paige in austin. it'll be fun. and more food. but at least it'll be austin food and i'll walk around all day. i just want to end the weekend where i began it, or maybe a pound or two less. we'll see.

ketchup

it's been awhile since i posted anything, partly because i felt like there wasn't anything going on. in reality, there has been a lot going on, but nothing overwhelmingly exciting. or at least when there was, i didn't have time to write about it. quick recap of the last few weeks:

with easter arriving (and lent ending), i've eaten nothing but junk and have gained about 5 or 6 pounds. i've barely run and have become a lazy blob. i've become a little more social, meeting up with people i rarely get to see, so i tend to eat everywhere i go. somehow birthday parties, friends from out of state, mother's day, and tuesdays have become the death of me. plus i kept filling in weird hours at both jobs, and therefore grabbed food at random times. more of this nonsense will continue for another week or so, so i'm hoping to get it together soon. i have to. i can't begin my summer 10 full pounds heavier than last summer. it's just not okay. i know it's completely possible, but i need to get it into gear. so with the exception of dinner out tonight, fried pies on saturday, and a quick trip to austin on sunday, i think i can get things. maybe i can work in a good run friday and saturday despite a rainy weekend.

went to "prom redemption" at my sister's store. there were about a dozen of us that showed up on saturday night to relive (and hopefully redeem) our high school proms. we pulled into town and found out that the high school was actually having their prom that night as well. sadly, our fake prom was decorated much much better than theirs. no one can live up to a davidson decorated prom. it just doesn't happen. we ruled that school. as we turned the corner to my sister's place, i saw my parents seated in lawn chairs, margaritas in hand, across the street. they provided the crowd for everyone's entrances, complete with photos and clapping (dad made sure to clap anytime anyone entered or exited the building... or stood near the windows). we had a really good time. the music was incredible, which was the main reason i hated my proms so much. i know a lot of what i like isn't danceable, but they really could have played some better stuff. there's enough good hip hop out there to make a great dance, they just chose to not play any of it. so we danced and danced and danced. we crowned a king and queen. we had fun. a few of my favorite people from high school were going to show up, but didn't, which threw me for a little loop. as i got more and more tired, i got more and more annoyed that they didn't show, and felt fatter and fatter (just telling the truth) so then i just shut down. i'm super stubborn and when i finally quit, i'm done. so basically prom redemption ended the same way my real prom did. luckily i had a really good time throughout the night and considered it a success (i'm doing a really good job pretended that the end didn't happen).

in other news, alex and i went to see wilco a couple weeks ago. i've been in love with jeff tweedy since 2002 when i moved to austin and watched "i am trying to break your heart" with tommy at the dobie theater (r.i.p.). i've been obsessed ever since. the great thing about this show was that it was in denton. i didn't even have to drive all over dfw trying to find some venue. so we left for the show, got there in less than 10 minutes, and were ready to go. i got a beautiful new poster for somewhere in my house and a basic, but cute, t-shirt. we watched it at a small auditorium on campus, which provided a cozy atmosphere for my loves. we sat closer to the back, but i'm not going to start to complain about it. the only downfall to the night is that now that they have about 500 albums, it's hard to fit all of my favorites into one show like they used to. i heard my loves and got to hold alex's hand during "i'm the man that loves you," which we used as our wedding recessional. overall, great night, complete with tweedy stand up. my sister, her boyfriend, and a few friends were scattered across the room, so it was fun to see a few faces throughout the night as well.

the only other exciting thing in my life? my garden. yes, my tomatoes are dying a slow death, and my peppers look really pitiful. but i planted more tomatoes (please work, please work, please work). and my little jalapenos were picked last night, waiting to be consumed in the next few days. AND i have a new baby squash. this was the last thing i expected, since my squash plant is about 8 inches tall, while my zucchini is about 2 feet tall. but that little squash is really trying. so far he's about 2 inches long, but he's trying, and that's all that matters. if i can just get my tomatoes to take, i'll feel like a success.

so that's about it. more or less, i just feel fat and need to get everything together. i have a lot of projects i want to do, but just haven't. and there are a lot of miles i need to run, but just haven't. maybe i'll find the motivation to get going. until then, tacos tonight. i still can't wait.

zoo run!

so saturday was our zoo run. it was awesome, despite leaving town at 5:30 (which meant waking up at 4:30 and getting to the school to pick everyone else up by 5:30). i let everyone sleep on the way there. and they barely complained that i parked next to the entrance of the zoo rather than near the start line. so we had to walk half a mile to get our packets, then half a mile back to the car, where we waited for an hour or so for the race. then we walked half a mile back to the start, waited in line for port-a-potties, and then finally got to run.

i learned in that race that when i do have kids i will not be taking them with me in a jog stroller for a race. i will also not bring my 3-7 year old kids with me to actually run the race because it makes somewhat young individual runners feel really bad about themselves when they can't beat them at the end. fast little devils. i was also reminded again that walkers, while certainly encouraged to participate, need to be at the back of the pack, to one side, and not 5 people across. it wears me out.

it was a little tricky for the first mile what with all the walkers and strollers. plus the kids we were with (i can say that, they're like 10 years younger than us) took off and are a lot faster than us. i tried to at least keep them in my sights so it would be easy to find them at the end. as we rounded a corner and came up a hill, we managed to get around the mess and close the gap with two of the girls. then i just decided that i needed to catch them. i did. i nearly died. i'm not very good at running 9 minute miles, but apparently i can. at one point we ran down a pretty steep hill. i don't like running downhill. my body isn't used to it. not to mention i started running a 7:20 pace, which i haven't done since high school. despite my speed, i still couldn't catch those little kids in the last stretch. it was pretty depressing. also depressing that i only ran a 31:12. that's a great time for me, but considering i ran so fast the last two miles, i should have done better than that.

whatever the case, we said goodbye to a couple of the girls and stayed with the couple that rode with us to take a tour of the zoo. still fantastic. not to mention the dinosaurs.

they recently added a new herpetarium that's amazing. and i don't really care about the reptiles and amphibians usually. it's a really nice building, though. huge improvement from what they used to have.

one of my favorite sections was the australian outback. there's just something about kangaroos that get me. i think it's because they remind me so much of gandalf and uzi. especially gandalf.

this one acted like gandalf would act if he was a little more like a person. it just kept scratching it's arms and staring at me. it was precious.

this one was definitely more uzi. note the legs in the air in the sunshine. pure uzi.

the penguin exhibit wasn't quite as great as it was when it was a temporary exhibit. i'm thrilled that they are here permanently, but i wish there were more.

the good news is that this one loved me. it kept walking next to me and staring. i just knew it wasn't to come home with me.

the dinosaurs were scattered throughout the zoo. also a little disappointing, seeing how i wanted to feel like i was in jurassic park. still pretty fun hearing them roar at me and watching them move a little. the children were terrified.

kaitlin and i were especially excited about the brachiosaurus, as we share in its veggiesaurus ways.

life found a way.

the white tiger was on the prowl when we got over to it. it was pacing back and forth in front of the window so quickly i wasn't able to get a decent picture. the orange tiger, however, was so sleepy, it gave me a chance to get a little bit better of a picture for joy's daughter zoe. zoe has a tiger shirt that she likes to wear EVERY day, so we thought that maybe seeing a real tiger would make her pretty happy. plus zoe became a big sister last wednesday to noah, a beautiful baby boy, so i'm sure any attention is welcome.

the last time we came to the zoo, the male and female lions were separated and were roaring to each other. it was pretty cool. it was also really cool this time to see them together in the sunshine. it's not as easy to see here, but the male's head is upside down and his mouth is open. just made me laugh.

we got to the world of primates around feeding time. this lovely lady (we're pretty sure she's preggers) left us and came back with some fruit and carrots. and then stared at us for awhile.

this pair was precious. after a rejection, one ran to a rock with his hand over his face in shame. he gave himself a pep talk and tried again. another rejection. more hand-over-face shame. finally he went back, put both hands around her face to profess his love. she accepted. then they were best friends again.

the last stop was the cheetahs. also pretty funny. also reminded us of danders and uzi. when they got up from their nap, there was quite a bit of ear licking followed by some wiggling in hopes of getting more ear licking. then more sunshine and sleeping. classic uzi.

after an hour or so of errand running in fort worth, we headed back home to knock out some yard work and take the puppies on a much deserved walk. then i crashed. at 8:30. yes, it was still light outside.

my boots

yesterday i got wear my new boots. they're old gringos. they're fancy.

i still haven't quite gotten used to the fact that i'm wearing them. not in the breaking-them-in sort of way, cause they're fine, but i've never been a boots person. i'm a converse person. boots sort of throw me off. plus they're brown (medium brown, so black doesn't look stupid), and i mostly have black. plus cardigans look sort of stupid with them. not always. it's just really throwing me off.

then there's the whole jeans situation. i have skinny jeans for them. which aren't too bad, but i'm awfully hippy, and the boots don't help fight that. i also can't tell how i feel about the height of the boots. i feel like if they went up another inch on my leg they would look a little better. and then if i went with jeans OVER the boots, that's a whole other story. the boots stick out a lot at the top and also add to the width of my leg.

so i guess i love my boots, but don't know what to do with them. i think that should i ever find a cute summer dress i'll just go with that (never going to happen). they look really good just sitting on my floor, though.

my handsome little devil

i love gandalf. he is filled with personality, both shining from within and forced upon him through our imaginations.

we adopted him at petsmart about 4 1/2 years ago. the german woman that worked for the adoption agency warned us that he was "very vambunctious." we didn't see it. he was just sitting in his cage, staring at us. waiting to pee. he was about 2, 2 1/2, and we couldn't fathom why he hadn't been able to stay in a home. we talked about it for about 5 minutes and decided he was ours. with his beard and bushy eye brows, gandalf just seemed the appropriate name.

he was perfect during the drive home. he curled up in the floor in the backseat and fell asleep. he crawled around a little, but had a great temperament. we walked in the front door and let him run around some. he pooped in the dining room. he was home.

while he does have the occasional bouts of mischief, yelling, and escaping, he's turned out to be such a delight, and rarely vambunctious. some people would argue that his lack of vambunctiousness is caused from the loss of his manhood 3 days before we got him. i would argue that it's because no one could ever love him like we do.

he is the perfect blend of independence and deep devotion. he is so happy to see us when we walk in the door, even if we only walked to the car and back. when he wakes up in the morning he does breathing checks to make sure we're alive until we speak. when we say good morning the wiggles begin and he gives me earlicks. he's just precious.

if we could get him to keep his mouth shut at 2 o'clock in the morning when he hears something, and if we could keep him from bolting the second the door opens, and if we could somehow persuade him to stop journaling (i finally threw the book away after the 5th time i pulled it out of the pool), he would do no wrong.

also love how his personality changes based on his hair length. he's so cute when he's shaggy. his long eyebrows emphasize every movement and give him so much character for everything he does. and then the second he leaves from getting his haircut, he becomes regal and sophisticated again. it's amazing. he just carries himself differently and doesn't allow himself to stoop to a lower level.

he's such a handsome little devil.

my babies are multiplying

i went out to water the garden last night and check up on my baby bell pepper. to my delight it was still doing well, getting bigger every day. last year when i had a bell pepper plant in my topsy turvy it only produced one pepper. not bad, but disappointing. i was a little antsy about how much fruit would produce this time around. so i did a little investigating and am pretty sure that i have a few more buds about to sprout on both green bell pepper plants. the red bell is a little late to bloom. i'm still holding out hope. i was also pleased to see not one but THREE jalapenos. they're already almost an inch long. if i could just see some improvement in my tomatoes and squash i'd feel a little more accomplished. i'm three jalapenos closer to some salsa, though, so that's exciting.

trivia night last night with the math department. all i know is that it's a really good thing i was there. last week my only real contribution was knowing that biscotti meant "twice baked." thanks, giada. this week, however, i pulled out all sorts of amazing knowledge about little ricky schroeder, vidal sassoon (which they didn't even use), simon fuller, and the release order of several sequels. don't even try to argue with me about when speed 2: cruise control was released (thanks chad and brian for forcing me to see that with you at student council camp. that knowledge really helped me out last night).

tonight is card night at our house. not tomorrow like i asked it to be. so now i'll be working while everyone else has fun and then sitting by myself tomorrow when i was hoping to have fun. there'd better be some dip left when i get home, that's all i know. i just realized how delicious that same dip will be in a few weeks when it's made with my baby jalapenos.