My less-than-21-mile 21 miler...

Bright and early this morning was the annual Houston Fit 21 miler, the final big run/test before the Houston Marathon in January. This is quite an event, with surrounding Fit groups join us and the two water/food stations go all out with decorations and entertainment (thanks volunteers!). And the runner turnout was pretty decent. Nice to see so many people sticking with it this late in the game.

Since I ran San Antonio before Thanksgiving, and as noted in previous posts, have not been diligent with my training lately, my goal this morning was to run 13-18 miles. Despite the humidity and resulting fatigue, I managed to run what I think was between 16-17 miles. I "think" because my watch ran out of battery power at mile 15.22, and I was about 2.5 miles from the finish. Yes, this irritated me greatly, because as everyone knows, I like to know exactly how far I've run and at what average pace. But what did get recorded by my watch showed an average 9:15-9:30 pace, which I am very pleased with. I took it easy at the start, pushed myself when I was up to it, and did alot of walking (for me) today, and since I stopped my watch when I walked, I probably ran/walked close to 18 miles today. But I will never know, will I?? Stupid watch batteries, but I digress...

I can say without a doubt that today was the warmest and most humid "21-miler" I've run. I hate to think what the Marathon will be like if these type of conditions are present that day. It got me thinking about the previous 21-milers I've run. My first one in 2004 was great. We were still running three loops along Buffalo Bayou back then, and the weather was clear and sunny and cold. Great run that day. In 2005, it was about 38 degrees, with a hard rain and some sleet mixed in. Awesome :/ And because it had been raining all week, there was mud everywhere (still on the Bayou route), and we had to modify the route to avoid the huge mud pit under one of the overpasses. A ton of people called it quits early on this run, but I ran the whole 21 and thought it was kind of funny. I mean, we were so cold, and couldn't feel our hands, feet, faces, that things got humorous when we tried to put on chapstick or hold a cup of water. Needless to say, that run is now infamous. I can honestly say I have zero recollection about the 2006 run, but I know I ran it and it must have been uneventful. I think that is also the year we changed to route to run the Rice and Herman park loops. Last year, which was 2007 in case you are having trouble keeping up with my trip down memory lane, the run was moved to Sunday morning because of severe weather on Saturday. Thankfully, that severe weather brought with it a great cold front and made for perfect running weather. Last year's 21 miler was probably my favorite.

Kudos to all of the runners who ran today, many of whom looked a heck of alot stronger than I did. I got to run with Dennis for a while, and he was having a great run, and I saw Kathleen out there too. Joe and Danny were great on bike patrol, and thanks to Joe for relieving me of my annoying fuel belt. You see, for years I wore a belt for my water bottles, which affectionately became known as my "Bat Belt." This year, I made the transition to a hand-held water bottle, which I love, because the fuel belt never quite stays in place around the waist/hips. Well, I left said hand-held water bottle at my parent's house over Thanksgiving and forgot to buy a new one here, so I had to kick it old school, and it sucked. I think the belt started annoying me at about the 300 yard mark, and I was finally able to get rid of it at mile 4-ish. That was a relief. Stupid water belts, but I digress...

Today also marked the first time my nose ran faster than I did...Stupid sinuses, but I digress.

I'm rendered speechless, and yet oddly fascinated...

...but finding this in a man's bathroom cabinet would be a deal-breaker...

The princess's weekend update...

Running update: Though I didn't make it out with my training group to run on Saturday morning, I did eventually get my butt out of bed and run a quick 6 miles. I must say that my training has been seriously lacking recently (by recently I mean the past month) with everything going on with my family. I have great concern that I will not be ready for the Houston Marathon in the way I want to be. A little disappointing, but honestly, right now I don't care. In fact, I've considered not even running it because I'm so far behind in my training, and its too late to switch to the half marathon. But I'll keep trying to get out and run when I can, see what happends. Since I could use the exercise, I consider this a good plan. I'm going to attempt a run from 15-21 miles on Saturday morning. The distance will be determined by how I feel that morning. This run will pretty much be about burning calories, primarily those consumed this past weekend.

Thanks to Greg and Alaina for hosting a fabulous holiday party on Saturday night! Had a lot of fun as usual. It was a much needed stress-reliever.

Went to the Texans game on Sunday and watched us win a close one vs Tennessee. Its always nice to beat the old Oilers. Add a little tailgating action before and after the game, and it was a great afternoon. Also a much needed stress-reliever (noticing a theme here?)

I also watched "The Strangers" on Sunday night. My friend and I questioned the claim that the movie was inspired by true events. If you've seen the movie, you know its creepy and scary and everyone ends up dead in the end. However, I had never heard of this murderous home break-in, and I'm a news junkie, especially gory news that I can talk about at the dinner table. After some research, we discovered that the events that "inspired" this movie were simply random break-ins of houses when people weren't home, several years ago. I will never be a movie script writer, because there is no way my mind would think "I'm going to write a movie based on these random harmless break-ins, but I'm going to make it really scary and have innocent people murdered for fun." Then again, if I had that twisted of a mind, I might be very wealthy.

Mom update: So all of my talk about stress is directly related to the situation with my mom. The good news is she is to be released from the hospital. She's feeling really good and getting around well without the pain meds. She has been through so much, and I'm very proud of her for her courage and strength throughout this ordeal. She's been in the hospital for over two weeks and is very ready to get back to her home after she stays at my place for a couple of days. Still keeping our fingers crossed that the surgery will result in her other issues healing on their own. If not, another surgery will be necessary. Regardless, the fact that she is doing so much better has really taken a load off my mind. Thanks to everyone who kept my mom in your thoughts and/or expressed well-wishes to me!

As a result of the events with my mom and her expected recovery time, I have learned that instead of me and my parents heading to Dallas for Christmas to visit my brother, sister-in-law, and my nephews and niece, they will be heading to my parents house the day after Christmas. I'm very excited about this and grateful, because I don't think my mom would be up for a trip at this point. I cannot wait to see the little ones!! Lots of loving from Auntie Kiki is in store!

Speaking of Christmas: How did it end up being just around the corner?! It wasn't supposed to sneak up this fast. I can honestly say I have done zero Christmas shopping except for my Goddaughter and her brother. Nada, nothing. I hope everyone is happy with gift cards this year. This will truly be a Christmas about family and not gifts, though I love to give gifts. Maybe I can manage to find a little something for everyone. Everyone who has been good that is. I also have not done my Christmas cards and probably won't. I wonder if anyone will even notice?

Speaking of buying stuff: You've got to know that the economy is bad when I haven't even been in an Ann Taylor store, or any store in the Galleria for that matter, in a month. OMG! I might actually have to start wearing the same thing twice! The horror!! I hope no one notices...

Belated birthdays: I want to wish my friends Aimee and Karla a Happy Belated Birthday!! They both had birthdays last week and I was unable to round up a couple of cards in time. Sorry ladies, but my thoughts were with you and my intentions were true!

Sinuses: Seriously, what's the deal? Our lovely Texas weather that goes from snowing to 80 degrees back to 40 degrees and should get back up to 80 by Friday has sent my allergies into full attack. As if we didn't have enough ill people in my family right now. Its almost embarrassing. But, I should have known, because this happens to me every freaking year at this time.

Good news!

My mom's surgery went very well today! It only took 1.5 hours, but she is still in recovery after 4.5 hours. She's in some pain, as to be expected, and very groggy, but she looks really good considering what she's just been through. My dad and I were allowed back there for only 30 minutes, but it was enough time to reassure us that she is doing well. Its been a really long day, and I'm going to head back up to the hospital later this evening when she gets put in a room, but my stress and anxiety levels, which have been ridiculously high the past several days, have come way down. I think I will be able to fully enjoyed my action-packed weekend!

Its snowing in Houston!

Tastes like chicken.

Kentucky Grilled Chicken! Best news I've heard all day, since there are more KFC's near me than Chik Fil A's. This is also the most interesting thing I found in the news, which is pretty sad.

On a bad news note, my neighbors will no longer be awed by the beauty that was my red, green and blue light display on my patio. Something happened when the rain came through yesterday, like, I don't know, maybe some water got into the unsealed outlet openings on the extension cord or something, but something is not working anymore. By "something" I mean I have no idea what. Outlet, timer, extension cord, lights, all kaput. Dang it!

UPDATE! Bob clued me in to the outlet reset button. My Christmas lights are back on! This is going to be the best Christmas ever!!

Update on my mom:

Today was a long day for my family. We are all pretty exhausted. Honestly, I feel like I'm going to lose it at any moment I'm so tired and emotionally drained right now, but I also feel this responsibility to be really strong and remain calm, so that's what I'm trying to focus on. Here's the summary: I went to the hospital late this morning to be there with my mom and dad when the doctor came by to discuss the plans. What he said was a lot to take in at once. My mom's surgery is set for Friday morning. They are going to remove her non-functioning kidney and hope that the other issues in the area heal by themselves once the kidney and related infection are gone. If not, another serious surgery is in my mom's future. Apparently, her condition and the surgery are both pretty rare, she still has an infection that has proven difficult to alleviate, and the area where they will do the surgery was heavily radiated during her cancer treatments over a decade ago, so no one really knows what to expect. That's all the information I'm going to provide in a blog. Email me if you want to know more. I will post an update after the surgery.

Picture of the day: Here are my holiday light plans for next year. Please, don't even try to out-do me...

Meh.

Don't have a whole lot to say today, but thought I'd post an update on a couple of things so my reader(s) wouldn't think I've disappeared from the blogging world forever. I know, that would be devastating to a few; a very, very few. Anyway, its going to be a busy week around here, personally and at work. Let the games begin, I guess.

My mom: Still in the hospital. Still fighting a fever and infection. She is getting some tests done today and meeting with doctors tomorrow. Hopefully we will all finally get some sense of where all of this is going (ie, surgery, no surgery??). All I know is that my mom is frustrated that there aren't any answers yet. Soon, mom, very soon. And she's got to be bored. She hasn't even turned on her TV in the week she's been in the hospital. WHAT?? I'd be the one in the hospital if I went a week without TV. A mental hospital probably.

Running update: As much as I did not want to get out of bed on Saturday morning because it was c-c-cold, I did and ran a pretty decent 10 miles, much to my surprise. I've only run once or twice since the SA marathon, so I wasn't expecting to pick up where I left off, and even questioned my ability to finish, but I ended up with a 9:04 pace. No negative split though. I had no idea we went out as fast as we did and it was a hard pace to maintain for the entire run. But I felt good and am getting back on track. I'll be getting back on my regular training schedule during the week too I hope. I've slacked off lately for several reasons. Refocus, Carolyn, refocus!

It was great to see several running friends whom I haven't seen much of lately because I was training with the Fall marathon group. Now that I'm back with the Houston marathon group, Saturday morning was a little reunion of sorts. Best of all, I saw my long-lost friend, Jamoosh. He and his wife host an awesome Beer vs Beer event at their house each year, at which I have had the honor of serving as a beer wench. Good times.

Party time, excellent: Speaking of good times, my friend Beth threw a very fun holiday party on Saturday night. I know she reads my blog, so thanks! I had a great time, and I loved the fondue ;). And I'm very much looking forward to Greg and Alaina's party this coming Saturday. Super fun times!

Question of the day: Why do some drivers, when they are the first in line at the red light, stop at least one full car length before the white line? For whatever reason, this drives me insane. Makes me want to pull around in front of them just because they left that space. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, I'll draw a diagram for my next post.) And why do people insist on crossing the street when they have the "don't walk" red hand? I'm going to run one over just to make a point. Okay, that was two questions. Sue me.

A shout-out and a couple of updates...

Congratulations to my friends Angela and Jason on the birth of their son last night. Travis James weighed in at a whopping 10 pounds and is 23 inches long. Dang! He's a beautiful baby and I can't wait to meet him!

Update on my mom: She was admitted to MD Anderson on Monday and we are not really sure when she gets to go home. They continue to run tests and see what steps need to be taken. As I said before, its not cancer, but her current illness is a result of the cancer treatments she had many years ago. It breaks my heart to see her not feeling well. Fortunately, its a 5 minute walk from my office to the hospital, so I plan to see her as often as I can. She had a rough day yesterday, which caused me to have a rough day yesterday, but she was doing much better last night. Please keep her in your thoughts.

Running update: I actually got about a 4 mile run in on Monday night. Felt good to get back out there. I didn't set any time records, but didn't want to. I just wanted to get my legs moving again. Hope to run again tonight. If we get storms as predicted, I'll be hitting the elliptical. No, I'm not doing a weekday run in the rain. Saturday morning, yes, otherwise, no.

I'm back!!

I know you all missed me terribly. Your lives can now return to normal now that I'm back to posting. I have alot to say today...

First, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Mine was interesting. As I posted before, my mom has been ill. She is now staying with me in Houston and has some appointments at MD Anderson today and tomorrow. Her surgery should take place soon. Please keep her in your thoughts. So, after I went home for a couple of days to be with my mom in Bryan, I came back to Houston to work a half-day on the Monday before Thanksgiving. As I was packing Monday night for my trip back to Bryan, I received a call from my mom that my dad was in the hospital with heart arrhythmia issues. They kept him there until Wednesday morning and everything seemed fine. Apparently, once they get his heart back into its normal rhythm, he's, well, normal.

So we spent Wednesday afternoon getting ready for our trip to Dallas the next morning to visit my brother, sister in law, nephews and niece. This was the first time I'd meet my niece and I was excited beyond words. Thursday morning, I heard the words I was not expecting: "Carolyn, you are going to Dallas by yourself." My dad's heart was out of rhythm again and he needed to go back to the hospital. My mom and I drove him there, and once he was stable, at my parents' insistence, I drove to Dallas, with my mom's famous stuffing in hand. Thankfully, my dad was released later that day and continues to do well, but Thanksgiving just wasn't the same without them.

Gotta love kids: When I got to Dallas, I just couldn't get enough of my adorable nephews. Being the awesome aunt that I am, I immediately presented them with two toy trucks, which are their favorite toys. What I wasn't expecting was that both would like the same truck, and they started fighting over it. Within 5 minutes of my walking in the door and giving them their toys, my nephew Koen was in timeout.

Koen looking innocent:


Hayden having a fit:


The boys continued to play with the trucks throughout the day, changing their mind often about which was their favorite. Unfortunately, both declared the same truck as their favorite every time. After some more crying and bickering, they started playing nice and really warmed up to me (see, bribery is the best way to gain popularity!). They are definitely the cutest boys I have ever seen.


Meeting my niece: As I was playing with them, I hear "Carolyn" and I turned around to see my niece for the very first time. She melted my heart immediately. What a beautiful baby girl. She is almost two months old now and is already making her presence felt on a regular basis (ie: crying at the top of her lungs, and doing a little squeaking sound that my brother finds adorable). Yes, a princess in the making! My brother and sister in law didn't like my plan to make her a shirt that said "Future Aggie Tri Delta," but I might sneak it on her anyway. After all, she is a legacy!

Later in the day, my heart was melted again when she fell asleep on my chest after a bout of crying. And this girl can cry! Not only is she automatically a princess, but she is also going to be a drama queen, just like her aunt!!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with my brother's in-laws, then we watched the A&M/t.u. game which wasn't the disaster I thought it would be. Yes, we lost as expected, but not as badly as expected. I am so glad the season is over. And I won't even go into what I think about the BCS mess, but I will say this...If t.u. had made it to the Big XII championship over OU, they would have been singing the praises of the BCS system. Because it didn't work out for them, it sucks now. Funny how things work. I'm just glad Tech didn't make it. But I digress...

A couple of fun videos of the twins: I may have accidently encouraged the boys to do some things they probably shouldn't have. What can I say, I'm their aunt, and I think everything they do is hilarious.



Running update: So, with all of this drama post-SA marathon, including huge meetings at work that resulted in a major change in leadership, I have had no time to run. I have had two solid weeks off and I'm ready to get back out there. I hope I haven't lost any of my strength, but I think I'll be alright. I'm going to get a couple of runs in this week (not only to get back up to speed but also to work off all of the Thanksgiving food I stuffed my face with) before rejoining my training group bright and early on Saturday. The Houston Marathon will be here before I know it!

Christmas decorations: After thinking I wouldn't have time to put any up, I buckled down and got everything set up this weekend. I even put some lights out on my patio, though they don't come close to competing with the, in my opinion, gaudy display across the street. (Actually my neighbor's place looks really good. I'm just jealous.) I put up those old-fashioned colored ceramic bulbs because I like those. The ones I bought came with red, green, blue, orange and white colors. I spent a while changing out all of the orange and white (remember, I'm an Aggie and cannot have anything orange and white anywhere) so I have a lovely, yet simple, display of red, green and blue lights. I personally think it looks good, but now that I've sized up the competition, I'll be ready for a bigger light display next year...

"Picture" of the day: This is one of my all-time favorites...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope you, my dear reader(s) have a wonderful holiday! Me, I'm blessed to have a semi-healthy family. Its been a long few days around here... The really good news is that I get to see my nephews tomorrow and FINALLY get to meet my niece. I am excited beyond words. I'll get some pics up next week.

The power of love.

I love my family. It is amazing to me that our core unit and extended in-laws love and cherish one another as much as we do. Too often you read about children who are estranged from their parents, siblings who hate each other, and wives/husbands who can't stand their inlaws, or each other. My family seems to experience none of this.

Over a decade ago, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. As I recall it, at the time we were told to get her stuff in order, as it wasn't looking good. She's still with us thankfully, but has always had some complications from the cancer and the surgery and the radiation treatments. Without going into too much personal detail, the day has finally come where these "complications" just got a bit more complicated. No, her cancer is not back, but some pretty serious surgery is in her immediate future.

So this is how things went down - my mom was in Dallas to help my brother and sister in law with the babies when she became very ill with a kidney infection. Not her first, but this one seemed more serious than before. My dear brother, with the support of his wife and mother-in-law, dropped everything and drove my mom back home from Dallas, stayed the night, and went to the hospital with her the next day to get things squared away for a procedure she has had before and needed to undergo again. She would need that minor surgical procedure today. He needed to get back to his family and work, so I came into town last night and went to the hospital with my mom today. My dad was in Chicago on business, but we assured him that we, as their children, could take care of mom and he should complete his trip as planned. After all, this was somewhat a "routine" procedure. I think it gives my brother and me great pride to be there for our parents, as they have been there for us so many countless times.

Well, today's procedure ended up not being routine. The inevitable has happened and my mom needs additional surgery. We are thinking it will be next week or the week after. She's doing well considering and is back at home. I will stay here again tonight and tomorrow morning, then my dad will get back to town. By the way, my mom is the strongest person mentally and spiritually who I have ever known, and I admire her strength and courage beyond words.

I cannot express how proud I am of my entire family for being strong and cohesive and working together like a true team to make sure one of us is taken care of. My brother continues to amaze and awe me with his maturity and caring nature, which I see so often in him with his kids and wife, and for him to be there like that for my mom brings tears to my eyes, of pride. He is a great man, just as my father is. And how my father and mother love each other is rare, something everyone should aspire to. We are all so fortunate to have each other and be on good terms and drop anything and everything to help each other out, and that has extended to the extended/inlaw family.

My mom is going to be okay and we will all be here to support her just as we always have been. I am so glad to be here to help, because I can't even count anymore how many times my parents have dropped everything to help me with something...a move, a marathon, a neck surgery. I am grateful beyond words.

San Antonio Marathon

If none of this makes sense or I say one thing then say the complete opposite in the next paragraph, cut me some slack, I'm very tired...

Okay, before I start to get into how I really felt about the marathon today, I must preface it all by saying I ran a PR (personal record/best): 3:55:52. Wow. I honestly am elated and excited and extremely pleased. I don't want to belittle what I accomplished today for myself, and for everyone else who ran well/finished.

But...

This marathon sucked was my least favorite and not much fun for me at all. I understand it was the inaugural Rock n Roll San Antonio Marathon, so of course it was going to have its kinks. But please... "flat and fast." Um, no. "Bands at least every mile." Um, no. "Great crowd support all along the course." Um, no. I would like to punch the race director in the face, but since I'm a girl (and a princess), I don't know how to throw a good punch, so he/she is safe from me.

Where do I begin? First, it was ideal weather for a marathon, at least at the start. It warmed up very quickly though, and I saw more people cramping up and stopping than I ever care to see again in a marathon. The hills were probably to blame too. Honestly, I was mentally out of this marathon before the half-way mark. I know, San Antonio is in the "hill country," but don't advertise your marathon as flat and fast when it isn't. Running these things is half mental preparaton, so I was not mentally prepared for the amount of hills and the toll they took. And if it weren't for my training buddies Rick and Tom, and Robert too, I wouldn't have made it... I would have made the turn for the half marathon finish. I never guessed I would hit "the wall" at mile 11, but I did. The middle was the absolute worst part for me. Those guys helped me through the worst mentally. I owe them at least one beer! And thanks to Kathleen, who I think I saw twice along the course, cheering us on. If it was more than that, sorry, I was out of it!

And eventually, around mile 16 or so, I started thinking to myself that I didn't train since May to quit, that I didn't battle through whooping cough and work stress and the disruption of Hurricane Ike to give up, that I was a true marathoner and marathons aren't supposed to be easy or everyone could do them, and I was going to finish and finish strong (think "Chariots of Fire" soundtrack playing as I am typing this). By mile 20, I knew I could PR just by running 10 minute miles. But keeping that in my mind and staying positive and trying to focus on taking it easy the last part of the race was very difficult with each hill. I just wanted to walk, and with each walking stretch, I could see my PR ticking away, then a sub-4 ticking away, and part of me didn't care, and the other part cared alot. All I could think was "this is NOT flat." The entire race that is what was going through my mind. How defeating is that? In fact, the last .2-.3 of the race was straight uphill. Who does that?? The only marathon allowed to finish on a steep incline is Marine Corps, because nothing beats finishing at Iwo Jima. Everyone else should have a downhill finish, or at least a finish where you can see the finish line well in advance, to provide some encouragement. I actually stopped to walk a few steps up this final hill at about mile 26.1, because I had no idea where the finish line was. It was around a curve, yes, but how far away, I didn't know or care; I was done, toast, a goner. A lady who I don't know patted me three times on the back and said "its just around the corner, I promise." She ran on and I followed, and sure enough, there was the finish line. I have never been so happy to be done with something. And those three pats, which I will never forget, from a complete stranger, is what bonds marathoners, because no one else understands.

Maybe it would have been better with crowd support. Kudos (insert sarcasm) to the person who determined the course, because you made 80% of it unreachable by the public. There were stretches of 2-3-4 miles (it seemed) at a time where I never saw a spectator. And the bands...I saw maybe 4 actually playing, and then what, another 2-3 playing recorded music while the band members sat around. It was terrible support and entertainment. Houston blows away SA in support. Not even close.

I don't mean to be negative about today. I feel terrible about complaining, but I do have the disclaimer in my blog description that I'm allowed to vent, regularly I might add. I was just so disappointed in this marathon, and I won't run it again. But I'm not giving up on marathons as I swore during today's that I would, though I have to start wondering if running a sub-4 and maybe someday qualifying for Boston is worth not having any fun at all while running marathons. I really do want to run Boston before I hang up my marathon hat, but today was a real test of strength and faith and courage for me, unexpectedly so, and I just have to wonder if Boston is a realistic goal now. This was not an easy finish time to achieve; don't be fooled for a minute. I'm really quite stunned actually, considering I spent well over half of the marathon thinking about quitting. That shouldn't be what marathon running is about, not for me anyway.

So, I know I'll bounce back fine, and I'll relish my new PR and I'll get back on the running road and focus on Houston in January. It will be my 5th Houston in a row, and I'm really excited about it. Plus, I'll have my friends and my awesome pit crew, Mom and Dad, there, and nothing beats the hometown crowd! I'll determine that morning if it is a potential PR/Boston qualifier day, and if not, I'm taking it easy and having fun. I have my two sub-4s, so the next big goal is Boston, and if I can't accomplish that in the next couple of years, then the rest of my running career will be for fun and helping others during training and races the way so many have helped me.

After all of today's events (including a 2 mile walk back to my hotel and a 3 hour drive home), I can hold my head high and think of myself as a winner, because I didn't quit. Unlike the Aggie football team...

Speaking of, while walking along the riverwalk last night, I stopped to check a TV to see what the Aggie score was. The Florida game was on and a bunch of Longhorns were watching it. When I yelled out in utter dismay when the A&M/Baylor score flashed on the bottom of the screen, they felt so bad for me that they offered to buy me a pitcher of beer. Sadly, I couldn't take them up on that offer because of the marathon. Otherwise, I very well could still be at that bar, drowning in my Aggie football sorrows...

My official marathon results, for the record:
Overall time - 3:55:52 (a PR)
Half Marathon time - 1:55:28 (also a PR)
Average pace: 9:00/mile. (Darn all the walking!)
Finished 1505/7526 total marathon finishers, 369/3511 female finishers and 89/661 in my age group.

Its a pre-marathon miracle!

Knock on wood, but two days of rest, lots of water and vitamin C, and olive leaf extract that was recommended by my massage therapist have cured me! My throat is not sore anymore (really about 95% not sore, which is better than the 0% not sore it was the other day)! Yay! It probably helps that I haven't talked much that last couple of days. So, I'm heading to San Antonio way earlier than any normal human should tomorrow, so I can hit the expo and do some other things before resting up for the marathon on Sunday. Can't wait to see what its like! Apparently, there are no email or text runner alerts for friends and family (*rolling eyes*) so if you want to see how I'm doing live, go to www.rnrsa.com and follow whatever instructions are there for tracking runners. Toodles!

Not again...

At the great risk of sounding like a hypochondriac, which I am not I assure you, I'm under the weather again. My throat is very sore, inside and out. When I touch my windpipe, it feels bruised. Hope its just some soreness that is a result of all the coughing I've been doing. I'm at home today trying to get some work done, trying not to talk (even to myself, which is difficult sometimes, because I find myself most entertaining) and resting. I will be ready for San Antonio, I will be ready for San Antonio, I will be ready for San Antonio... I will keep repeating that in my head until my sore throat goes away. It will work, I know it!

Speaking of SA, it is going to be absolutely ideal running weather. Low in the 40s that morning, and sunny. Let's hope that holds up. Alot of people will have great runs if so. And, I'm very much looking forward to the long drive there, because a good friend made me a couple of mix CDs for my trip and bought me the new Metallica CD. Yes, you read that right. I like Metallica. And I have a feeling I'm going to love the mix CDs.

I planned to get at least one run in this week, but with the rain and now my sore throat, looks like I'm going to just rest up and carb load my way through the rest of the week. I already started with some fabulous gnocchi last night at Mia Bella's. I love gnocchi. Small wads of dough in some sauce. Yummy (and apparently full of fat and calories according to my scale this morning). I'm a dough freak...cookie dough, bread dough, cheeseball dough, pie crust dough. I'm weird. I already knew that so no need to point it out.

Good luck to all who are running SA! I will have a full race report Sunday night or Monday.

I long for Aggie football of old...

Remember when A&M was good at football? When we actually had a defense? (Wrecking Crew was a force to be reckoned with for sure). We rocked when I was there in undergrad, and there are some wins within the past decade that I'll never forget...tu several times, Nebraska in 1998 when they were #2, OU in 2002 when they were #1, winning the Big 12 in 1998, and we used to beat Tech regularly... good times. Good times indeed. I would like those good times back please, dear college football gods. Soon. Amen.

Running update: Last taper run before San Antonio next weekend! Yay! A blazing 8 miles at around an 8:43 average pace. Felt good to go into my rest week with a strong run. I will probably get in one easy run this week and one jaunt on the elliptical, then I'm kickin' my legs up until Sunday. I'm really excited to see what SA is like as far as the marathon... course, support, spectators, organization and the all-important weather factor. I'm ready to run a strong race if the weather is good. Right now, looks to be a smidge on the warm side, but obviously the forecast is going to change often over the next week. I'll take what I'm given though. Its going to be a fun time no matter what. I'm really looking forward to running with coaches Rick, Tom and Ruthie; we will definitely push each other to perform our best while having a blast.

Facebook update: As I mentioned in a post a while ago about Facebook, its been fun making connections again that I thought were lost forever, and a handful of those connections are turning into real friendships again. I want to give a special shout-out to a dear friend (you know who you are!). This friend and I went to high school and A&M together and were in the same sorority. In fact, she was one of my very first friends when I moved to Bryan my junior year in HS, and my very first ski trip was with her and her family. We kept in regular touch for many years until a misunderstanding/miscommunication a few years ago following our 15 year HS reunion. We didn't communicate for years. Through Facebook, we were able to get back in touch, resolve what caused our friendship to falter, and are getting to know each other again, picking up where we left off like we never missed a beat. Just one more great example of Facebook working to reunite old friends and giving them second chances at friendships. Its truly a blessing for me.

Political update: Now that the shock and disappointment of election day has passed, I do want to say that above all, we are all Americans. We should appreciate our election process, and from the looks of things, our new President won fair and square, and that's what this great nation is all about. Freedom and democracy. The majority has spoken. We need to unite and get this country back on track fiscally. I'd hate to see us abolish the death penalty or revoke the right to carry weapons, but I'm pro-choice and I'm not so sure about us declaring war on everyone who does something we don't like (exaggeration, I know, but you get the point). I believe the war on terrorism is justified, but we need to clean things up here as well. If we had our crap together in the CIA and FBI, 9/11 probably would not have happened. And, I fully support stem-cell research, something the GOP does not. Oh, shoot, here I go again... I'm done talking politics, but bottom line, I'm kinda middle of the road in my political beliefs. I just don't believe in socialism and the resulting high taxation. Honestly, I don't know enough, or care enough, to debate and argue. Let's just all be friends. Group hug!!

I just threw up a little in my mouth...

My blog is not something I intend to use for political or religious bantering, as I like to avoid the topics and keep things lite-hearted and objective for all of my readers and their various views. Then again, this is MY blog, so I'll say what I want. This will be the one and only thing I say about the events of this "historic" day:

Unbelievable. Are Americans really this stupid? Thank you, political morons (not to be confused with regular, everyday morons...some people can be very smart and nice but politically ignorant...just my opinion), for turning this great nation into a socialist craphole and taxing the hell out of all hard-working citizens. We will be paying (literally) for this mistake for years to come, mark my words. Sadly, everyone will soon see what a liar and fraud our next President is. I won't even say his name. I'm disgusted. (EDIT - I still love and adore my Democrat friends! Just remember, you probably spent the past 8 years bashing Bush, and I still like you... This was just venting from disappointment...no one should take this personally, please!)

Where's my vodka? I wonder if I could get a good deal at Spec's for four years worth...

Trick or Treat!

I hope everyone had a fun Halloween this past weekend. Here's the low-down on mine:

My dear friend Ginny was able to escape Dallas, her husband and two precious boys to spend the weekend with me. It was so great to see her! We've been friends since grad school way back when, and I always enjoy our visits, though they are not often enough. This weekend she introduced me to the glorious bargains of Tuesday Morning and the Dollar Store. I had no idea that you could get awesome stuff so cheaply. I know that sounds snobby, but I just never thought to look in these stores for stuff. They are awesome for gifts, gift wrap, cards, toys, kids clothes, you name it. I think I'm going to be saving a bundle in the future...

Anyway, later on Saturday afternoon, we began to get ready for Coach Ruthie's Annual Halloween Bash. The theme was "movie characters." As I mentioned in a post quite a while ago, I was going to be Elle Woods from Legally Blonde. I was a little disappointed that when I put on my wig, dress and makeup, I didn't look as much like Elle as I thought I would. Darn Reese Witherspoon's perkiness, big smile and huge blue eyes. Ginny went as Alex from Flashdance...welder by day, dancer by night! She looked fabulous! We listened to "Maniac" to get in character, and I practiced my Bend and Snap, which was performed often at the party. More on that later. Ginny and I played it smart and took a cab to Ruthie's. Knowing that Ruthie and her husband Todd throw awesome, and sometimes pretty wild parties, we certainly made the right choice not to be driving (Hi Mom and Dad! That was for you!).

As expected, the party was rockin' awesome. I should have known it was going to be a crazy night when someone kidnapped Bruiser, my dog, and threw him in the pool early in the party. There were some fabulous costumes! I thought I went to alot of effort with mine, but some just left me in awe. There were a ton of people, and of course, the majority were watching the Texas/Texas Tech game, which was just an unbelievable and very exciting game. I had a great time mingling, seeing friends who I haven't seen in a while, performing my Bend and Snap for anyone and everyone, whether they wanted to see it or not... Great food, great guests, and the decorations were insanely awesome!

Ruthie had several "best costume" categories, and through bribing, flirting, begging and probably ballot-box stuffing, I managed to win "Best Female." I was so excited! I love winning things, even if there may or may not have been some cheating involved (hey, cheating even happens with the Presidential elections. ACORN anyone?) I was jumping up and down with joy, and then the next thing I knew, "Sponge Bob" threw me in the pool. Now, I have ended up in the pool at Ruthie's parties before, but usually its when things are winding down and there are a few people left, not in the middle of the festivities. I put alot of work into styling my wig, just to see the darn thing floating next to me like a huge nasty hair ball. I'm sure some people were stunned to see that I was not a true blonde since I was acting like one all evening. Ginny and Joe helped get me cleaned up and presentable, with a freshly blow-dried wig. We ended up leaving not too much later, around midnight I think, but I know that party lasted well into the early morning hours. A huge thanks to Joe for driving me and Ginny back to my house. You are awesome!

Sponge Bob, who is a good friend of mine (most of the time), did call to apologize and I told him I would stop being mad in about 180 days. Until then, he better be looking over his shoulder...

All in all, it was a fabulous party, and I'm already looking forward to next year's, where I will go as a synchronized swimmer or something since I know I'll end up in the pool again. That is apparently now a given for every party at Ruthie's. And to the mystery person who commented to my friend that all I ever bring to any party are my famous olive cheeseballs, that is because they are specifically requested by the host or other party goers, and they are usually one of the first food items to be finished off, so people obviously like them. And they are the only thing I can make that's really good, so, yes, I will continue to bring my olive cheeseballs to every party. I'm a creature of habit...

Here are some pics and a video of my Bend and Snap. Alaina took some awesome pics too. I hope to be able to add those soon.

"Elle Woods" in all her glory:

Ginny as "Alex"...She's a maniac, maniac on the floor...

"Elle" and "Alex" at the party:

"Elle" was scared to death of this thing:

Fabulous hosts Todd and Ruthie!

Bend and Snap video:


Running update: I am now tapering for the San Antonio Marathon on November 16. We ran an easy 11 miles on Saturday morning, including 2 trips to the parking garage. Average pace: 8:57 or so. Not too shabby. And, the early forecasts for race morning look promising. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. If we start in the 40s, I will be one happy runner! Today, I started my morning with 50 minutes on the elliptical and will go for an easy loop or two around Memorial tonight, since its the only place that has lights. I really hate the whole getting-darker-earlier thing. It really limits where I can do my after work runs. Thanks inventor of the daylight savings time fall-back, spring-forward thing. I still don't understand the purpose...

Aggie football: OMG! We won another game. I have now said twice that we would not win anymore games, and we have both times. This time I really mean it...we will not win another game.

Random College Football Question: Can anyone explain to me why the Big Ten conference has eleven teams? Seriously, I didn't even know there was a Big Ten conference because I thought that is what converted to the Big Twelve, but I saw the conference rankings in the paper yesterday, which is how I discovered there is a Big Ten conference with eleven teams. WTH?

Blast from the Past...

A quick "shout out" to my friend Craig. Great to see you and catch up with you today! I'll get those pics from high school posted soon! ;)

Aggie football: I admit that I was wrong in one of my earlier posts when I predicted we would not win another game all season. I did not realize that the Iowa State game would be the battle of the two worst teams in the Big 12. Yay! We won. We are only the second worst! Woo hoo! NOW we will not win another game for the rest of the season...

Running update: Fabulous 21 miler on Saturday. Beautiful running weather, almost perfect health, and great running partners. I was actually able to keep up with the big boys the entire time. 9:12 average pace, huge negative split (which is good), and ended the run with several sub-9 minute miles. I'm pumped about San Antonio, which is just around the corner.

The Great Facebook Experiment

No Clif Notes version of the following. If you want, or care, to know what I think, then yes, you must read the entire post. Take advantage of this rare opportunity to see the deeper side of the 26.2 Princess.

For whatever reason, the Facebook phenomenon has exploded for my age group. I suppose its because we are nearing our 20 year high school reunions, or are within a couple of years of it. Or maybe we are going through some mid-life crisis and are trying to reconnect with anything that reminds us of our youth. Anyway, it is a wonderful, bizarre and fascinating experience and feeling to "reconnect" with people who I have not seen or talked to for years, in some cases, well over 20 years. Friends from both high schools I attended, people I knew from A&M, both undergrad and grad school, sorority sisters, fraternity friends, you name it, we are all reconnecting. (Begin the "reconnecting/reconnect" drinking game now, because I use those words alot in this post. I obviously need a thesaurus..)

I certainly hope that we are all wiser and more mature than we were back in high school and college. Wasn't everything that happened then the end-all-be-all? Remember when 30 was old, the end of youth, and scary as hell? I honestly don't recall ever giving my future beyond my senior year in high school or college an ounce of thought. I was so concerned about the immediate present. I didn't have the understanding and wisdom that comes with growing up and maturing, but no one did really, even though every single one of us thought we knew it all back then.

I remember myself as being scared and insecure and so unsure and un-confident (is that a word??) about things, that it overwhelmed me. I so longed to be accepted and part of a group(s) that I think I too often didn't let people see or get to know who I really was, or am. So I wonder, what do the people I'm reconnecting with now on Facebook remember about me? What type of person was I? Was I a good friend, trustworthy, fun, encouraging, supportive? Was I shallow, gossipy, clingy, weird, mean, whatever? I know I was shy, which so many people find hard to believe, but its true... I am to this day a shy person until I get comfortable with someone, whether that takes one minute or one year, and unfortunately many mistake my shyness for snobbishness or something. I've been told that many times. It breaks my heart. And, do any of these people wonder what I or others remember about them? If I'm really honest with myself, there are some people I am "Facebook friends" with that I would love to tell off because of something they said or did or how they treated me a zillion years ago (I'm sure someone out there feels the same way about me. I know, that's very hard to believe, seeing that I am such a sweet princess and all ;) But I digress...

What breaks my heart even more is that I'm even thinking about this again after so many years. As I've gotten older, I have become so much more sure about myself, who I am, who I want to be, what I'm capable of, and what kind of friend/daughter/sister/aunt/etc I am. The past is the past right? Why relive it? But here it is, staring us in the face in the form of Facebook and reunions. Don't get me wrong, I have been having a blast catching up with old friends, and staying in better touch with current ones, but at the same time, its one big popularity contest all over again. Why didn't that person accept my friend request? Why didn't that person reply to the email I sent or the blurb I posted on the wall? God almighty, I am way too old to give a crap about this stuff again!

But do I really care, or has society engrained in me/us that we must care about what everyone thinks about us, and that no matter how old we are, our worth is somehow measured by how many people we know or have around us at any given time? At this age, isn't it more about the quality of friendships rather than the quantity? It is for me, no doubt. I can count on one hand the people who I can pick up the phone and talk to about anything and everything, people who would be there for me no matter what, and vice versa. Ok, maybe two hands if I'm lucky, but its still a small circle of people who I can call my dearest and closest friends, and I think that's great. Its about acceptance for who you are, connection, quality, chemistry, and above all, trust. I think it gets harder as we get older to really find and develop those types of friendships. Adult relationships take time to root and become meaningful.

But what about those rare cases when a connection or re-connection is immediate, and you just know that that long-lost friendship can redevelop to a level that is reserved for your closest of friends? How lucky and neat is that? For example, I've just very recently gotten back in touch with a friend of mine from high school thanks to Facebook, and we talked for a while last night. It was like no time had passed since we went to prom back in 1988, or since I last saw him at church (yes, I have been known to enter a church now and then!) when I was in grad school over 10 years ago. Conversation was easy and fun, and there was a sense of trust and respect, even after all of these years. I immediately remembered why I enjoyed his company all those years ago, and I have no doubt that we will stay in touch now.

That, my friends, is what I believe the great Facebook experiment is all about... not having 200 friends, 180 of whom really don't care about your day-to-day life's happenings, and maybe 15 of whom still don't honestly remember who the heck you are but you are friends of friends so you must be friends too. No, Facebook is about finding those one or two, or more, special friends with whom you lost touch for some reason but have always wondered about, and instantly have that connection again. Its weeding through the hundreds of old acquaintances to find a true reconnection or two, re-establishing a friendship that is meaningful.

OK, I'm done. Seriously, did I just write all this crap? Where did that come from? I should be a philosopher or psychologist or something. Or maybe I should just shutup. Hope you enjoyed this, because my next post will be back to regular nonsense and ramblings, and bitching about something, I'm sure. Speaking of which, any of my readers All My Children fans? Am I the only one who thinks this whole tornado storyline is awful and so terribly written its embarrassing? (See, I'm back already!!)

On the running road again...

Health update: YIPPIE!!! I have an official clean bill of health and can resume all normal activities, including running and marathon training, if you call that "normal." Some call it crazy and insane. What do they know?! I still have a lingering cough that my doctor believes is some residual inflammation mixed with allergy symptoms. Apparently, the cesspool of a city I call home, and love dearly, is quite polluted and a haven for allergy-inducers. Who knew?? So, I've been advised to do my running in the mornings when it is less polluted, which may be difficult since I'm usually at work no later than 7:30 am, earlier if possible (especially when the All My Children episode that I watch every morning at 6am is boring). I also don't feel safe running by myself in the dark. Duh. Anyway, I'll figure it out. It'll help alot having this cold front coming through tonight as I type (thunder, lightning everywhere!!), and it will soon be getting lighter earlier in the mornings.

The best news is that I am cleared to see my nephews and niece. Boy, are they going to get a TON of loving from Auntie Kiki!

*Thank you* to my family and friends, blog readers and Facebook peeps for your well-wishes during my bout with this mess. Best quote during this time came from Denis, the founder of Houston Fit, who, when he found out what I was suffering from, said "What? Are you six years old?!" Sometimes I wish I were...

Just chill out: Yeah, right. One thing that my doctor did advise me to do was reduce my stress. Oh good grief, here we go again. I get told to reduce my stress all of the time. I am Type A, have a very demanding job and just lost eleventy-billion dollars in my 401k, but I have a much less stressful life than many people I know. I guess its all relative. Just how exactly am I supposed to reduce stress?? Large amounts of alcohol, all day long, or perhaps a huge lottery win? How about a drug-induced coma for a few months? And yes, before you point it out, I am aware of the well-known universal #1 stress-reliever...

HAHAHAHAHA! This morning, a medical student walked into my office and wanted to know if she could post an ad on the bulliten board down the hall. I said I had no idea, that I was not in charge of the bulliten boards, and she said "but, this is the Office of the Director of Board Relations" as is noted on my door. I had to keep from chuckling as I let her know that "board relations" means governance and I have nothing to do with what gets posted on the bulliten boards around the workplace. It was cute, good for a much needed smile today. However, I wonder how many other people around here think I'm in charge of bulliten boards. If that were the case, maybe I wouldn't be so "stressed out." Then again, I don't think I'd be paid very well as the director of bulliten board relations.

I am alive, I think...

Whooping Cough: Yes, dear reader(s), I have officially been diagnosed with whooping cough. I am apparently the only adult anyone knows who has been inflicted with this disease. I guess that immunization shot that I got as a toddler has finally worn off. Supposedly, whooping cough is on the rise in adults. That's not well known outside of the medical community though, so when I tell people what I have, they look at me like I just told them I have leprosy or something, and then they back away slowly. At least I don't have people invading my circle of personal space anymore.

Kidding aside, it does suck. Whenever I'm not experiencing deep dry coughs, I'm either taking the crap-load of meds I've been prescribed or I'm high from those meds. Whoever invented cough syrup with hydrocodone should be sainted, because that part does not suck. I'm on another round of steroids for probably the next month or so, and I'm trying out a new inhaler. From what I've read, this could last weeks or months. Good lord above. I better not gain any weight from these steroids, or start growing facial hair and getting a deep voice. And, while many illnesses cause one to lose their appetite, and lose some weight, this one doesn't. Darn the luck.

However, whooping cough will not stop me from running San Antonio next month. No way. I honestly feel just fine everywhere else except my chest and my throat which is sore from coughing. In other words, it sounds a whole lot worse than it feels. It frustrating as hell though. Someone did point out to me that at least its not called hookem cough. Ha ha. Get it??

Good news is that I'm well beyond the contagious stage. Bad news is that I've still been advised to not visit my new neice or nephews, who just turned 2 on Wednesday, October 15th. HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY HAYDEN AND KOEN!!!! I'm greatly disappointed to miss their party tomorrow, but I hope they know that their Auntie Kiki loves them very, very much and that I'll make it up to them.

And speaking of my neice and nephews, here are a couple of adorable pics:


And speaking of adorable, my Goddaughter Emily had her first middle school dance, and here is a picture of her and her friends. She is the one on the left. I am in awe of what a wonderful and beautiful young lady she has become! I remember so vividly holding her in my arms when she was like 4 days old. They really do grow up so fast.


Running update: Well, not much of that has been going on. I did not run with my training group last weekend, but I got in a 45 minute run on Monday, and a 50 minute run on Tuesday. They were a struggle for reasons mentioned above. I have never huffed and puffed so hard after a short easy run. Just such a hard time catching my breath and taking deep breaths. The 'roids should help with this. We'll see. I've also thrown in a few workouts on the elliptical, just to try to stay in some sort of shape. Like I said, this is not an illness that takes away your appetite.

Aggie football: I'm just patiently waiting for the end of the season. Unfortunately, its going to be a torturous road there. Its almost laughable now. I don't even want to think about what Tech might do to us tomorrow. So scared. I want my mommy!

Property tax appeal: So, on Wednesday, I had my formal hearing for my property tax protest. If you are ever looking for a great spot to people watch, the HCAD office is the place for you! I enjoyed my 2 hours in the waiting room, just watching people, and watching them try to nonchalantly get away from me when I started coughing. When I was finally called for my hearing, I was taken to a room where the 3-person review board and an appraiser were waiting. All were older gentlemen. Score! I thought I would easily charm my way through this! Well, not so much. They were pretty tough, but I did manage to get my property valued at a little less than what I paid for it in March, and overall knocked off about $27k from HCAD's first value, which I promptly protested, then turned down their second offer, hence ending up in the hearing. All in all, I'm glad I protested, but the amount of time, work and research I put into determining what I thought my property was worth was pretty unnecessary. Those guys already have their minds made up before you even get into the room.

More pics of Sorennah...

Just received these from my brother and sister in law:



Sorennah Caroline was born on Saturday, October 4, 2008 at 3:05pm. She weighed 7lb 8oz and was 18.5”.

I won't get to meet Sorennah for several weeks. My doctor has instructed me to stay away from her and my nephews as I may be contagious with whatever has invaded my lungs. I wish I could say I feel a ton better, but I don't really. I thought my cough was getting better, but not so much. Still waiting on blood work results. Bronchitis or whooping cough seem to be the key suspects. I'm very sad that I can't see my niece. It breaks my heart.

No picture of the day or anything humorous. Sorry. Just not feeling funny...

Welcome to the world, Sorennah Caroline!

My beautiful niece, Sorennah Caroline was born on Saturday, October 4. Mom, dad, and twin brothers are all doing fine, though the boys were apparently surprised that their new sister actually makes noise and is real. I am honored beyond words, and rendered speechless, that my brother and sister in law gave Sorennah the middle name Caroline in honor of me, just a slight deviation of Carolyn. They let me be the first to know her name, and I still get choked up thinking about it, and I think I always will. They have no idea how special this is to me. I am heading to Dallas this weekend to see the happy family, meet Sorennah, and play with my nephews...their worlds have just changed dramatically. By the way, they can apparently say my auntie name "Kiki." I can't wait to hear this, it will melt my heart, as most everything they do does. Here is the first pic I have received of my precious niece:


Other news: My bout with allergies turned into a nasty struggle with a lung infection. Whooping cough was thrown around, but I don't think that's what I have. Regardless, I was put on bed rest Wednesday afternoon and have basically been horizontal since then. And, my cough was so severe and "dry" it was making my vocal cords raw, so I was told not to talk for this time as well. My meds include yummy juiced up cough medicine, steriods, two weeks worth of antibiotics, and an inhaler. Everything seems to be working because I am feeling a lot better and plan to get back to work tomorrow. I'm pretty sure that if I was infectious, that period is gone now. I hope so, since I am visiting my new niece on Saturday. I might have to do the Michael Jackson face mask just to be on the safe side. That will make for some great pictures...

Running update: Yes, call me crazy, idiotic, dumb, stupid, but I couldn't take 48+ hours of bed rest and no talking any longer and I got up Saturday morning to attempt my run. I told myself I'd run just a little while until my lungs hurt or I started having trouble breathing. Unbelievably, neither happened, and I finished my 18 mile run strong and feeling good. I started off a bit slow to be on the safe side, but finished with several miles sub-9 minutes. I think my overall pace was around 9:08 average. Not too shabby for lungs full of crud. I'm happy.

More pics of Sorennah soon!

Black Monday, 2008 version...

Dear Stock Market,

Thank you for making my craptastic day even crappier. You suck.

Sincerely,
Carolyn

Now that I'm dirt poor, I probably can't even afford to get allergy tested, which I so desperately need to do because I'm suffering terribly. I can't breathe without nose spray, which opens things up too much and makes my throat dry and sore. I spent most of my day shoving Vicks up my nose to moisturize things. I sat at work in a daze most of the time, at first because I didn't feel well, then because of the Great Stock Market Crash of 2008. I don't think I'll even look at my 401k statements for the next year or so. My poor dad, just retired and now everything is going to heck. I'm sure somehow this is ex-Coach Francione's fault...

Speaking of Aggie football, I hope all fans out there cherished the win on Saturday because it will be our last of the season.

Running update: We ran 13 miles on Saturday. I had a great run up until about mile 8-9. Thank you intestinal tract. And I was kickin' it old school with my Garmin Forerunner 201 because I left my 205 at the office. There is a reason Garmin upgraded to the 205... the satellite they used for the 201 is defective. It clocked one of my miles at 5 minutes... You can file that under never. So, I really have no idea exactly how far I ran or my average pace, but it was probably somewhere around 9 minutes until my "issues" started.

Saturday fun after the run: Had a baby shower for my friend Angela on Saturday afternoon. It was alot of fun, and I can actually participate in some of the baby discussions now since I'm an Aunt and am slightly more knowledgeable than I was a couple of years ago. Even so, it is hard to really relate to my friends' pregnancy and parenting tales since I haven't actually experienced it myself. I guess I'll always be the comic relief and the single, childless friend they can hang out with when they need a break. That's okay with me. I enjoy being an "aunt" to all of the kiddos! After the shower and a nap, Angela, her husband Jason, Aimee and Stacy hung out at my house Saturday evening for some pizza and gossip. It was great to catch up with everyone. However, it must have been stressful for my cat Millie, because she was running up and down the stairs all night and meowing for attention, which she apparently wasn't getting enough of because she not only decided to throw up big time on my carpet upstairs, but she also pooped outside of my bedroom door. She has never, ever done that before. I was too tired to be upset and chalked it up to her old age. A trip to the vet is in order soon though. Poor thing, just can't handle not being the center of attention at all times...

Baby watch: My sister in law is due soon, and everyone is very anxious to meet the new little one. Boy or girl? Nobody knows, but you know I'll blog about it ASAP.

Speaking of babies, congrats to Sul Ross and his wife on the arrival of their new daughter! She's precious!

Pictures of the day: My poor little nephew Koen...He got bit by a mosquito! Apparently this was taken after swelling went down, so no telling how bad it was.

Hayden also got a couple of bites, on the ear and knuckle, though it didn't appear he experienced the swelling Koen did.

And, my brother and sister in law tried to introduce the boys to toddler beds. This was only some of the result. My brother put the cribs back together the next night...

Interesting tidbits in the world of celebrity

If you are looking to get knocked up, Nicole Kidman swears that an Austrailian Outback waterfall was the reason she did. Hmmm, sex ed must be different over there in the land down under. Apparently, she went swimming in this water during the making of a film, and seven people working on the film who swam in the same water got pregnant during this time. And here I thought the union of an egg and sperm resulted in pregnancy. I'm so naive.

So, Clay Aiken finally came out of the closet. OMG, he's gay??!! Shocking. Thanks for confirming what the entire world knew like 5 years ago...

Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Love Hewitt both claim to be a size 2. Hmmm, I'm a size 2 on a (very) good day and am definitely not carrying that load of junk in my trunk. Something is amiss here...

I have no idea who this singer is, but gosh darnit, she has the same latex dress I bought for my company Christmas party!

What in the name of all that is holy happened to Val Kilmer??

I concede, Tina Fey looks and sounds much more like Sarah Palin than I do...

David Blaine, "magician," is apparently cheating in his latest stupid, idiodic "stunt". I thought he was going to hang upside down for 60 straight hours, risking blindness and death. Apparently not. Coward. Heck, even I could hang upside down for 60 hours if I took a break every now and then.

Not celebrity related, but hands down the most disgusting mess in an apartment I've ever seen. And, no this is not my house, I swear. How people live like this is just beyond my imagination. Barf.

Running update: 50 minute run followed by 50 minutes on the elliptical on Monday. Rest day yesterday and long, long Board meeting followed by a dinner with Stacy, Aimee and Aimee's son Senator tonight. Fun times! Gonna try to get in a short run/elliptical workout on Thursday, then rest up for 13 miles or so on Saturday morning. Patiently awaiting the cool front!

Picture of the day: See apartment pictures link above...

Beware of the wildlife post-Ike!

Running update: Since Houston Fit runs were cancelled on Saturday, I decided at the last minute to run my 11 miles on Thursday evening. I had an excellent run (8:55 average pace) despite the obstacles of remaining Ike debris. However, two events made this run particularly entertaining:

First, I ate it. For the first time in my running life, I tripped and went flying. Thankfully it was on the sandy trail along Buffalo Bayou. Unfortunately it was on part of the trail right by Memorial Drive, so I'm sure some drivers had quite the chuckle. A badly skinned knee was my only visible injury. Rights of passage, I suppose.

Second, as I was running along Kirby drive, trying to avoid the debris, I almost stepped on what I first thought was a mouse. I stopped and realized it was a baby squirrel. The cutest thing ever! And it had a sibling by the side of the grass. I felt so sorry for these guys. They apparently fell out of the tree during the storm, but were alive, almost a week later. How could that be? Of course I wasn't going to touch them, but my mind was racing about how I could save them. Their mom must have died, I thought. As I stood there looking at them, one let out a little cry. Suddenly, I heard a louder cry and a rustling in the tree above me. I looked up and mamma squirrel was running full speed down a branch right toward me. She was alive! The babies would be saved! Then I realized she was probably going to attack me, so I ran off a little. But my curiousity got the better of me when the mom didn't come down to the ground to get her babies, so I went back to them. The mom then chased after me again, jumping from limb to limb until I out-ran her. Man, those cute little things are mean! Good thing it didn't jump on me, especially since the traffic on Kirby was terribly backed up and tons of people would have witnessed me getting attacked by a squirrel. No doubt that would have ended up on YouTube. My dad found humor in it though, providing me a great laugh during my visit this weekend:

Saturday morning I ran 9 miles (9:01 average pace) prior to the A&M game. I figured I still had some stress to run off. It ends up I was right...

A&M Football: WHY GOD WHY?? WHY DO WE SUCK SO BAD???

The sweet sound of generators in the morning.

Houston is a mess. That's the simplist way to describe it. A big mess of trees everywhere, and I mean everywhere. Long lines at the few open gas stations, lines to even get into a grocery store, more people in Walgreens/CVS stores than I've ever seen at any given time. Restaurants and business are still closed for the most part, and we are under a city-wide curfew. I haven't had a curfew since high school! Its almost like a war zone. And now, the fatigue has set in and the tempers are starting to flare. So many people are still without electricity after almost a week. Galveston and Bolivar Island are pretty much destroyed. Kemah Boardwalk will need to be completely rebuilt. Its hard to believe this storm was at most a very weak Category 3. I am still counting my blessings that I had very little damage and still have electricity. However, my cable and internet went out at home on Sunday and are still out, which is becoming annoying, but I've got to keep in in perspective. Evening update - Cable and internet are back! Woo-hoo!

A quick shout out to Russ, friend, fellow runner and neighbor, who called to let me know my place was okay after the hurricane, not knowing that I was actually there, "hunkered down." And if I hear "hunkered down" one more time, I'll scream. I hope it makes the list of banned words soon, though apparently there was a hurricane drinking game that involved this phrase.

Running update: I've managed two 60 minute runs in the past couple of days, though with all the dodging of fallen trees and limbs, they felt like trail runs. In addition, I logged 60 minutes on the elliptical on Monday and 55 minutes this morning. If I keep this up, I will eventually burn off the thousands of calories I consumed in junk food and drinks during and after the hurricane.

That's all for now. I'm too tired to find a funny pic to post today. Plus, not so much out there is funny. I did, however, think it was funny that as I was driving to work this morning, at the corner of Montrose and Gray there was a young driver stopped at the light who was hunched over with his eyes closed. I first though he passed out from a night of post-hurricane partying, but he had a dog in the car. Then I thought he fell asleep, because I've been so tired sometimes that I've nodded off a little at stop lights. But this was a non-working stop light to be treated as a stop sign and he was the first car at the light. Not much time to nod off. Therefore, I think he may have been dead! A cop pulled behind him, but I had to get to work so I couldn't stay and gawk. Weird, and definitely not funny if true. I will now always wonder what happened to that guy...

Hurricane Ike Play-by-Play

Prologue: After 25 years, the Houston Hurricane Force Field is going to fail us. I'm not quite sure what we are in for, since the last hurricane I went through was Alicia in 1983, when I was like 2 years old. Okay, not really two, but close. Okay not really close, more like 12 years old, but I digress. I remember four things from Alicia: 1. "hunkering down" in my dad's study, 2. watching one of our trees fall over from the winds then get pushed straight back up from the other side of the storm (no lie), 3. watching a roach cling to the trunk of a tree during the winds (yes, very random, but I hate roaches so I tend to remember all encounters with them), and 4. I think my brother slept through the worst part of the storm. Anyway, I hope I'm ready for this one. I'm sure it will be memorable in some way. HOWEVER, I'm still thinking this thing could pull a Rita and not hit us. You never know...

So, according to the news people, anyone staying on Galveston Island faces "certain death." Wow, that is a very strong statement. Based on what I've seen on the news from reporters reporting from the island, alot of people are going to die, because they are just jacking around down there. That must be one short straw that those lucky reporters pull to get to cover hurricanes in the most dangerous areas.

I'll be updating this blog throughout the hurricane as long as I have electricity...

Friday, 7:00 am: Got an hour run in this morning. Lots of runners out today, including Sul Ross and Robyn, who got in 12 miles this morning. It was a smidge breezy. Not too much traffic. The Shell station on Memorial drive apparently thinks the "x" of masking tape they put on their windows is going to help in some way. Yeah, good luck with that.

Friday, 8:30 am: I decided to go to Kroger for the fun of it. To my dismay, everyone was calm. There was no fighting over the last bag of potato chips, no long lines at the registers, just bizarre civility. I got some milk and cereal, and dirty martini mix. Heck, if I'm going to be riding the storm out, I'm going to do it with a martini in hand! Speaking of potato chips, the only items that Kroger appeared to be in danger of running out of were chips and cookies. Apparently, all food items are fat-free and calorie-free during hurricanes! Woo-hoo!

Friday, 9:20 am: In anticipation of losing electricity, I am making some popcorn and cooking some mini-pizzas (see above statement about everything being calorie- and fat-free). I have sterno and plenty of canned food and snack items. I'm also doing laundry and cleaning. At some point, I'm going to need to bring in stuff off of my patio.

Friday, 11:25 am: I have now completed the two most important tasks on my pre-hurricane to-do list: color my hair and shave my legs. Should Ike be the end of the road for me, at least I won't have grays or stubble. Its getting very cloudy outside and winds are picking up just a bit, maybe enough to blow an empty plastic water bottle down the road. I'm not sure if its the endless news reports or the radar of the storm or an eerie sixth sense, but I think its going to get windier as the day progresses...

Friday, 11:45 am: Crap! Just heard on the news that the bayous in the city are not draining like they should be, and we haven't even seen a drop of rain yet. Not good news. I'm a few blocks from Buffalo Bayou. Glad I got flood insurance. And apparently, the illegals people who work construction who may or may not be here legally and who may or may not speak English didn't get the memo that a hurricane is on the way. They are still working on a construction project a couple of blocks from me. I hear nail guns. Or maybe the looting has begun already and those are real guns I hear. I've got mine loaded and ready for use. Just ask my parents what a good shot I am. In case they play dumb, I totally beat them on the shooting portion of the CHL test. Oh yeah, I beat them on the written exam too.

Friday, 1:30 pm: Bye-bye Galveston. You are toast. I'm starting to get a little anxious here inside the loop. The news people are making this thing sound very, very, very scary. Now I'm worried about tornadoes (3rd floor), broken windows (2nd floor) and flooding (1st floor), in addition to looters. Maybe the safest place for me will be on the stairs. I have a headache, which apparently is a sign of pressure change. My cat Millie seems oblivious, as she has been out on the patio all day. I thought animals were supposed to have some sort of sense about coming danger. Maybe I should call one of the news stations and let them know that everything is going to be okay because my cat is not freaking out. Hey, one of the stations once had a "weather dog" so why not take cues from my cat? I'm going to try to take a nap since there will be no sleeping for me tonight. Before I go, one of the reporters on TV just reported that the wind is stronger now than it was two hours ago. Really?? This is what my soap operas have been shelved for? *sigh* And why is it always the rednecks who decide not to evacuate from mandatory evacuation zones? Since they stay, they end up on the news, worldwide, and end up representing the entire city and state. Fabulous. No wonder Houston wasn't named the city with the prettiest people.

Friday, 2:05 pm: I see the sun! Its peeking out! The storm is over, the storm is over! Wait, what? Oh, apparently we still have 12 more hours to go before the eye hits land. I'm bored.

Friday, 5:40 pm: I'm back from my little nap. Seems not much has changed. The winds are a little more gusty, but still no rain. The same poor reporters are still out by the beach, getting blown around. I could never do that job. I mean, it would totally mess up my hair! Its hilarious that the reporters "hide" behind the vans to shield themselves from the wind while the cameramen have to stand out in the wind to film, and the picture gets all crooked. I've decided that cameramen have one of the most thankless jobs around. And the same redneck idiots are out there too, doing stupid crap to get on TV. I'm hungry so its time for some pizza! I wonder what's on TV tonight. I hope its more wall-to-wall coverage of the storm! Actually, I plan to catch today's episode of All My Children on SoapNet. That's the best channel ever! Might be the last time I see the show for a while. I can now hear the wind gusts through my attic. Sounds like low thunder. I have not experienced a storm of any magnitude really since I bought my home, so I am anticipating that every little sound is going to freak me out. Perhaps valium and beer would make nice side dishes for my pizza.

Friday, 6:00 pm: Okay, its getting windier. And this is just the start of tropical storm force winds. Great. A quick shout out to Jen Shen who sent me this joke in response to my keen observations about rednecks: You know what Texas tornados and Tennessee divorces have in common? Someone's gonna lose a trailer. Pizza is ready, and The Young and the Restless is on. Yes! Its going to be a great couple of hours of soaps!

Friday, 6:50 pm: Winds are picking up. How surprising. What I wasn't expecting was for the utility poles outside my townhome to already be swaying a bit. Those suckers are falling down at some point tonight, guaranteed. Which direction they fall remains to be seen. I really hope they don't fall into my house. That would suck.

Friday, 7:25 pm: ABC 13 just interviewed a bunch of drunk people hanging out on one of the suspension bridges over 59. I'm laughing big time. The giggles have overcome me, most likely my way of releasing some stress. I just talked with my parents, and my poor mom finds nothing funny about what is going on. I think in about 4 hours I'll agree with her. Speaking of laughing uncontrollably, this is the funniest hurricane-related thing I've seen all day. Too bad I didn't see it live.

Friday, 8:20 pm: Power outages are being reported inland, just outside the loop. I'm surprised, as we are still just experiencing tropical storm winds. I don't have a wind gauge, but its really picking up out there. I see paper flyers and other random stuff blowing around like crazy in the street. I hear the wind in my attic and through the fireplace. I've moved all of my important things, like my purses and select pairs of shoes, to the downstairs bedroom, where I will camp out once the power goes out. I'm not sure there is room in the closet for me if a tornado hits, but my purses, shoes and some clothes will be safe!

Friday, 8:40 pm: Big time lightning is starting. Here it comes...

Friday, 9:10 pm: The streetlights just went out and my lights are starting to dim and flicker. Crud. My silly cat still wants to go out on the patio. Apparently, her sense of danger is gone. I agree with my SIL Kristi...its probably senility since she is 16 years old. Poor kitty, no more outside enjoyment for a while.

Friday, 10:00 pm: Carolyn's Dad (stenographer)- Currently talking to Carolyn on the phone. She's okay, still has electricity, but lost cable and internet. Conditions: continuing wind increases and is starting to rain. One way or another, she will provide updates when possible.

Saturday, 6:00 am: Carolyn's Dad - Have Carolyn on the phone and she is fine. So far, she still has electricity and phone service. Has had a few minor leaks around doors and windows, but nothing serious. She is still experencing high winds and very heavy rain.

Saturday, Play-by-Play Conclusion: Wow. That was a crazy ride last night. First, I hope that my fellow Houstonian readers and runners are okay and fared well. Second, thanks to my dad for posting for me when my cable and internet went out, and thanks to my mom for the endless prayers she sent my way. It was very comforting talking with them at various points through the storm.

Don't hate me, but I never lost electricity. I have absolutely no idea how that happened, and I am apparently one of like 20 people in the entire city who has power. And obviously my cable and internet are working again.

The wind and rain were absolutely fierce. Horizontal, whipping rain and sounds I never knew wind could make. I had some minor leaks around doors and windows, and discovered a small leak in my roof that appears to be wind-caused because I am not missing any shingles. I went up in the attic and put a pot under the drip. Too bad that it didn't occur to me during my first trip up there to put on long sleeves and gloves before I went digging around in the insulation.

It was a long night and even after a brief nap this afternoon, I'm still exhausted. I went for a walk to Memorial and Allen Parkway at Waugh. Completely under water. There are broken windows everywhere and the streets are full of various sizes of tree limbs. Downtown is a disaster, and for those who love Brennan's, sorry, but it was completely destroyed by fire overnight. I have already held a moment of silence for their delicious pralines.

And if you are wondering, my cat Millie is just fine, and yes, she is out on the patio...

Hold strong, Houston Force Field!!

Running update: A fabulous 15 miles on Saturday, 9:02 pace. Shocking to me, as I have never run that distance at that average pace, and I felt good and strong through the entire run, and could hold a conversation even at the end without huffing and puffing. Several miles under 9 minutes. The wonderful weather helped tremendously. Everyone seems to have a strong run. I hope it was encouraging to some who have been struggling lately with the heat and humidity. 60 minutes on the elliptical before work this morning. I hope to get a couple of good runs in this week, seeing that we may be getting a hurricane this weekend.

Aggie football: YES! A win! Very exciting to know we won't lose all of our games this season! Maybe now ESPN will move us out of the bottom 10 teams.

A few shout outs: I watched the game at BW3 in the Village with several of my running friends - Ruthie and Todd, Sul Ross, Robyn, Alaina and Greg, Ali, Byron - and we had a blast. Thanks to Ruthie and Todd for hosting an impromptu get together at their house after the game so we could watch the pay per view UFC fights and relax in the hot tub. Very fun night. Still piecing it together, but it I do remember it was fun.

On Sunday, I enjoyed some coffee and a family visit with a long-lost friend of mine, Cindy, who I haven't seen in over 20 years but re-connected with on Facebook. Great to see you Cindy! Funning thing is, Cindy is married to the brother of someone I worked with in Amsterdam several years ago. Small world.

Also, congrats to my friends Stacy and Shubh, who found out they are expecting a boy! Yay! I'm so thrilled for them. Babies, babies everywhere! (Note to self: don't drink the water.)

Thanks to my awesome sister in law, Kristi, for confirming she not only reads my blog, but enjoys it too! (If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you can read the PMS-inspired comment I left in the comment section on one of my early blog posts.)

You be the judge...

My co-workers Donna, Julie and Martha (Whaddup?) insisted that I look like Sarah Palin when I wear my hair up and have on my glasses, as I did today. What say you, faithful reader(s)?



Running update: Thanks to my PMS hissy fit last night, I had beer instead of going for a run. But, I got up and did 90 minutes on the elliptical before work, so I feel better.

Facebook: I finally joined Facebook. What I thought was a site just for teenagers turns out to be a fantastic way to catch up with new and old friends, and/or e-stalk old boyfriends. Its been fun touching base with people again after so many years (in some cases, over 20 years! I know you are thinking that is impossible, that I don't look a day over 20 so how could I have been in HS 20 years ago), and its fun to see so many of my running buddies there too.