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February, 2009:

Much Better

I slept about 10 hours last night, and I feel MUCH better today. I lazed this morning, reading in bed, and then got up, had a big bowl of oatmeal, and worked my ass off!  Who knew gardening could be such a workout? There were squats, there were lunges, there was steering the electric tiller about.

I tilled the big & little beds, cleaned up the front flower garden & herb garden, planted some early spring plant stuff (asparagus, onions, radishes, spinach & early peas) and got super dirty.

My knee was bothering me again when I woke up this morning, and since I really want to make my 12 miler on Sunday, I decided that I would garden the calories off today instead – and that was quite a workout.

However, unfortunately the last few days of crazy schedules have taken their toll on the architect, and he is now sick!

I’m kind of sad that there are only two days of vacation left – there are still so many things on my to-do list that are undone!

BUT – in the next two days, I would like to accomplish:

  • Make laundry detergent
  • Make 2-week menu, grocery shop
  • Make a lot of freezer waffles
  • List extraneous shoes on eBay
  • List extraneous books on Amazon Marketplace
  • Finish rearranging the upstairs room (exciting photos to follow)

Actually – I think that’s all. Nothing that’s hard or even that time-consuming. I did get a lot more stuff done early on that I thought – just lazy days on Wednesday & Thursday made me forget.

And, I really only have to work four days before I get my three-day weekends back again!

Still sleepless

I am incapable of napping. I’m not sure why, but I generally cannot fall asleep during the day unless i’m sick (in fact that’s a good indicator that I am sick – if I’m napping).

So, the architect & I went out for brunch, and he’s sleeping now. I tried – but mostly stared at the ceiling, so I gave up & read Twilight. Which, I know. But I liked it. And may have to borrow the next couple of books now. Of course, I also need to finish both Infinite Jest and The Selfish Gene, both of which I’m enjoying, but were too heavy for an “I’m exhausted beyond belief” read. (Infinite Jest actually is literally too heavey – that sucker has about 1,000 pages.)

I have not exercised yet today, and didn’t end up doing anything yesterday. I’m just feeling heavy & sore & sleepy & lazy. I know I’ll run tomorrow, because it’s supposed to be nice, and that is what I do, but today I have no motiviation.

I think I’m definitely going to have to switch gyms in the next couple of months – or at least before next winter. It’s just ridiculous to drive several miles to the gym when I could walk 2 blocks to the newly refurbished, locally owned gym that lacks nothing but a pool.

Since tomorrow is supposed to be nice, I think I will have to spend some quality outdoor time. I’m going to run, till the garden, and do some general yard clean-up. My crocuses & irises are blooming, my daffodils are up, all my plants are getting leaf buds – I just love spring!

My big exciting exercise news for the week, though, was my Tuesday run. I ran 6 miles in 1:00:54 – which made me pretty happy.

The first mile, I really felt that I was dragging, which is why I was surprised when my Garmin beeped at 10:04. Mile two was even better – 10:01. I knew, though, that I was probably going a bit fast for a six mile run, so during the third mile, I tried to pace myself – and I was running along a bluff and it was WINDY – mile three – 9:29. Mile four – 9:46. At the beginning of miles 5 & 6, I walked for about a minute, as my knee was twinging & I wanted to finish strong. Mile five – 11:00 and mile six – 10:44.

Overall, I’m pretty pleased with my pace, I felt FANTASTIC! It was the best birthday run ever – made even better by the fact that I found the perfect window of non-rain to run in!

Later that night, the architect & I went out for Mexican food. Mexican food on my birthday has become a tradition, and the last couple of years, we’ve gone to the same place (the only place I really like, and it’s not even quite Mexican). So Tuesday, we tried some place new. Although the restaurant itself left something to be desired, and the service wasn’t great (but, to be fair, we were sharing our waitress with a table of about 15), but the food was definitely the best I’ve had since moving to Oregon. I don’t know if my standards have slipped (totally possible), but I know I’ll definitely be back, even if it was a bit far!

Last night was the PDX blogger meet-up – we need a better name, although I’m not sure that all of the suggestions posted on The Ambitious One’s blog would work for me (actually, there’s only one that makes me oddly uncomfortable – odd because I’m not any kind of prude).

I have photos on my camera, but my exhaustion-induced lethargy has made it impossible for me to get up & find my download thingie, so I will just post the photos that Sarah had on her camera.

Clockwise, starting in front: HTC, my head, The Girl who *hearts* Running, Rocket Shoes, Running Stories, The Ambitious One, Delusions of Other People’s Grandeur – on her inaugural happy hour with us crazies – hopefully she’ll be back, & Junk Miles.

I just need to find some motivation now. It might help if there was some caffeine in the house – but we are out of coffee, caffeinated teas AND soda. Oh, the horror!

Ahhhh….vacation

I was saying on Tuesday that my vacation keeps getting downgraded. When I first took the week off, it was with plans to go to Mexico.

After the architect was laid off, we talked about going to LA.

Then the coast.

And then a B&B for a night.

And then, we decided to just stay home.

The architect is currently involved in a possibility that I am not going to talk about, because I firmly believe in the power of the jinx. This possibility has been moving at fits & starts for a couple of months. This week it took off.

I just saw him drive up to the house (it’s 9:21 AM). He left at about 8:30 AM yesterday morning. He’s been working on this possibility for 24 hours. Apparently he did get a 20 minute nap. The big slacker.

My vacation is now mostly just trying not to be a pest.

BUT, now he’s home, and maybe I can get some sleep (I can’t sleep when he’s not here, because the power of my awakeness keeps him safe when he’s driving – I have many weird beliefs).

Before sleep, though, we might have some breakfast.

(Spring Trends in) PORN!!!

Today we are looking at Spring Trends according to Nordstroms.

They list five.

1. Huaraches

2. Gladiators (blech)

3. Tribal Influence (blech)

4. Bold Straps

5. Studs and Stones (hmmmm….I reserve immediate judgment)

So far, I am not impressed with spring trends at Nordstroms. BUT, I will share examples of each of these shoes – feel free to weigh in with your opinions – and if you could give a rousing defense of Gladiator sandals, that would be interesting. :)

1. Huaraches

These are, I think the cutest ones (but you all know of my weakness for wedges….you can follow the link above to see more shoes, if you so desire).  Also, they are ‘muffin’ sandals. And who doesn’t like muffins?

Enzo Angiolini Muffin Sandal

Enzo Angiolini 'Muffin' Sandal

2. Gladiator

I’ll be honest – I am not a fan of the gladiator style. I think it’s too much, it can turn even the most delicate of ankles into a cankle, and quite frankly, most of them are hideous. BUT, these are the nicest ones, in my opinion. Although that’s not saying much. And I’m not sure how I feel about the speckles – looks like someone’s kid left their crayons & the shoes too close to the heater.

REPORT Signature Madera Sandal

REPORT Signature 'Madera' Sandal

Of course, there are these, if that’s what you’re into. Because who doesn’t need a pair of gladiator booties?

Stuart Weitzman Legroom Gladiator Bootie

Stuart Weitzman 'Legroom' Gladiator Bootie

3. Tribal Influence

I’m not sure why I had an immediate ‘blech’ feeling. Some of these aren’t so bad.

Donald J Pliner Cece Sandal

Donald J Pliner 'Cece' Sandal

Of course, some of them are – these hail from the tribe of bad taste.

Sam Edelman Oceana Sandal

Sam Edelman 'Oceana' Sandal

4. Bold Straps

I like a strappy sandal, as long as it’s not too over-the-top gladiator style. (Although I don’t necessarily hate gladiators. Some of them are quite fetching in their cute leather skirts.) These shoes are kinda awesome, actually.

Stuart Weitzman Bandura Pump

Stuart Weitzman 'Bandura' Pump

5. Studs & Stones

There are many interesting choices here. And by interesting, I mean amusing. Tell me – and I promise not to judge you harshly, would you wear these:

Steve Madden Revenu Pump

Steve Madden 'Revenu' Pump

All is not lost in the world of studs & stones, though.  In fact – these are quite fetching:

Franco Sarto Phuket Sandal

Franco Sarto 'Phuket' Sandal

So my porn peeps, what say you? Am I smoking crack or is spring smoking crack?

Also – if you were had tickets to Oprah, and were going to wear a pair of hot jeans such as these:

What would you do for shoes? I would recommend a pair of equally hot boots with as much heel as one can comfortably stand in for a decent period of time (as long as they aren’t high enough to give a high-water look)….any differing opinions? A fellow reader needs your help! (I hope the jeans are similar to what you were thinking….)

It’s My Birthday! YAY!

I love my birthday. I don’t really mind getting older (I’m 32 today). So far, every year has been better than the last (although honestly, 2008 left something to be desired), and I don’t expect things to go downhill anytime soon.

This morning, we were awoken by the sound of a muffled radio. Which was weird. After some investigation, it turns out that a school bus was parked on our street with the radio BLARING! Like it was half a block away, and it woke us up. And there aren’t any kids on our street that would need a school bus, so it was just kinda weird.

After that, the architect made coffee & I got to open my present. He got me a couple of Garrison Keillor books that I didn’t have. And the best card EVER! I will have to scan it & share later. It was pretty damn fantastic.

Then we hung out for a while, just enjoying each other’s company, and then, he took me out for breakfast to my favorite breakfast place! I had eggs benedict with hashbrowns & eleventy-billion cups of coffee (I’m hoping my heart rate returns to normal levels soon).

Then, he had to leave me to go to work (that fun kind of work that doesn’t actually involve a paycheck, but does involve lots of effort on his part….can’t really share too many details at this point). :(

BUT – he will be back later, I’m guessing.

I was going to run today, but between the weather and the fact that my knee is twingy, I think I’ll just hop on my elliptical instead for an hour or two, and run tomorrow. (My knee was SO SORE when I woke up yesterday, and I almost didn’t go to Bikram.  But I did, with her, and when we finished, I was 98% better. It almost makes me think it would be worth the cost to buy another 10-class package, even though I really can’t afford it. So many dilemmas – so many of them about money.)

I think that I’m going to have a nice day all alone – which is something I haven’t had in about three months. I mean, I love my architect, but since he’s been laid off, he is ALWAYS here. Which is nice. To a point. But it’s also nice to have a day to myself.

Later, I will have a martini, and the the architect will take me out for Mexican food.

All in all, dilemmas aside, life is pretty damn good.