Then, while he cooks, I shoot some more.
And sometimes, when he aims, I shoot at the same time.
Quite often, I let him shoot while I make yet another attempt at the unassisted, outdoor handstand.
But really, I shoot to remember. And to appreciate.
I never usually write race reports. But then again, my goal for the usual race is just to finish. This year, I had an actual goal with time involved. And I had posted about it on the internets. Twice.
Since I don’t run that many races anymore, I’ve decided that when I do, I’m going to take them a bit more seriously. Not that much more seriously, because let’s remember it is me, after all…
But enough about my serious running goals, let’s talk about the Bolder Boulder as it happened almost a week ago…
–It was the first race that no carb-loading took place the night before…maybe ever? The hubby made me spaghetti squash and fried eggplant, with plantains and a salad fresh out of garden. I wasn’t missing carbs one bit and didn’t have that heavy feeling the night before the race.
–Race morning: Got up early to stretch, drink coffee and eat a banana w/ almond butter. Felt like a champ.
–Ended up in same wave as a friend and had someone to chat with for the first mile. Before I dropped her. Although, in her defense, she was suffering through a sinus infection. (Hi Robin!)
–After parting ways with Robin, I ran the race by myself. Well, me and my watch. It’s the first time in three years that I haven’t had my husband running the race with me. I think the solo effort helped me to keep an eye on my mile splits and to push myself harder than usual. Not that he slows me down or anything, but without my husband there, I was able to fully focus on my performance. And it showed in my time.
–No water until mile 5. It felt good to keep running through the early water stations and since I rarely train with much water, I was okay not getting any until later in the race.
–After I got home and checked my results online, I realized I pulled off a negative split. Meaning that I ran the second half of the race faster than the first. This has been a goal of mine for a long time and it’s the first time I’ve actually pulled it off.
–Shaved three minutes off last year’s time, which was the very public goal that I made sure to tell everyone about. Also? I was *this close* to coming in under an hour. Like 21 seconds close. Can you guess what my goal is going to be for next year?
–Felt strong the entire time. I was passing people in the last couple of miles and that’s something I really enjoy doing. Because in years past, it wasn’t something I was doing much of.
–I did the whole thing with a busted lip. It’s a long story but suffice it to say, I’ve had prettier years running this race. (You can see a little something on my chin in the first picture and yes, it’s a big gnarly scab.)
–I honestly think that CrossFit had a lot to do with my success in this run. I didn’t do that many training runs before the race but because my core is just generally stronger, I had more power overall, less soreness in my legs and the ability to push myself when necessary. Not to mention the fact that I’ve done way more sprinting with CrossFit than ever before by myself. Sometimes I just need someone yelling at me to insure that I run short distances.
This race just gets better by the year and is the perfect start to my summer racing season. I plan to continue running this one for as long as I live in Boulder.
And because it’s apparent that I stole borrowed the photos above from Brightroom event photography, let me just say thank you to Brightroom event photography for capturing this year’s race.
(Maybe next year I’ll actually buy one? But only if you get pics of me looking good. Deal?)
Awesomesauce, Boulder Love, Goals, Running, Training | 
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When people ask about my honeymoon, words fail me. Thoughts and images must suffice as complete sentences are lacking.
pineapple, papayas, plantains, Placencia and pina coladas
scuba-diving with nurse sharks, moray eels and sea turtles
no work, no laptops, no email, no phone
traveling from island to jungle to mountaintop to peninsula
bug bites, chest acne, coral reef rash & sunburns
biking with a forest fire on the left
trekking on San Pedro with a golf cart and a dead battery
climbing to the top of Mayan ruins
boosting him up to grab a coconut out of a tree
more champagne than necessary
hiking, napping & never knowing how much to tip
renewing vows, setting goals, making plans
drinking Belikin beer and striking up conversations with locals
speaking in accents and making fun of Jimmy Buffett cover bands
outdoor showers, hammocks and the beauty of an island breeze
taking part in San Pedro’s famous chicken drop
swimming through a Mayan cave filled with sacrificial human remains
realizing that drum lines, cole slaw and Bob Marley all hold global appeal
learning, laughing, lounging, loving
soaking up places too schmancy for us
embracing the fact that our honeymoon is only just beginning
thanks to all our friends and family who made this trip possible
(we love you all)
belize honeymoon/one-year anniversary trip 2010
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Happy anniversary my love. It’s been a wonderful year…
but can we go on our honeymoon now?
(Not that we’re that excited about it or anything…)
Many thanks to Shane Rich and his oncemany project for this amazing anniversary shoot. I love what he’s doing and if you’d like to find out more, be sure to check out his site for more info.
(Also look for us in Boulder’s Daily Camera on March 15th to see pictures of Shane taking pictures of us. Totally meta.)
Bye.
Off to Belize…
My birthday weekend retreat is over…as is my six-week Paleo challenge. Thanks to a thoughtful friend, I didn’t need no stinkin’ cake in order to celebrate my birthday Paleo-style. Just some pomegrante seeds and a candle.
Over the last three days, my birthday celebration has been rejuvenating. Amazing how spending time with friends old and new, doing more jumping lunges than I can count, skiing long powdery tree runs, baking Paleo-friendly muffins, hanging with the big dogs and ending it all with a soak in the hot springs can really make a girl feel refreshed.
I spent a lot of my birthday weekend alone and there was one thought, in particular, that made me smile. I’m happier, stronger, healthier, more in love and more confident than I was ten years ago.
Take that 34.
I’m married to a foodie. There are many restaurant moments that come right out of my kitchen.
Also? I live in a town recently profiled in the WSJ and called “the best small city for great meals”.
So when I say it’s hard to pick the best restaurant experience of the year, I really mean it. I’m extremely fortunate to live in a place with such amazing food because I know what it’s like to live in a place where those choices don’t exist. (Hello, Wyoming…I’m looking at you…)
However, when thinking about my best restaurant meal of 2009, my thoughts leave the Boulder scene and head west. Not to the foodie capital of San Francisco, but to a certain dinner I had in Sin City. Yes, Las Vegas.
Seriously.
It’s hard for me to believe as well. My family went on many a summer vacation to Vegas and all-you-can-eat buffets were seared into my memory. It was always more about quantity than quality. Cheap food just seemed to go hand in hand with Vegas.
But, something happened on my last trip there.
Maybe it’s the fact that it was my first time with a celebrity chef?
Photo credit: Reality TV Magazine
Or that I was slap-happy after a long weekend working the booth at Blog World?
Photo credit: Grace
Maybe it was my dinner companion? (Hello, Grace, I’m looking at you…) Or the fact that we had been reassured, on our way to dinner, by a young man going the opposite direction on the escalator, that “we looked good”?
Photo credit: Grace
Whatever the reason, the meal that I had at Todd English’s Olives restaurant was to die for.
Okay, perhaps this had a little something to do with it?
Photo credit: Grace
I did not know until that meal that free range chicken really does taste better. And don’t even get me started on the hand-rolled butternut squash tortelli. Did I mention the olives? Because there were lots of olives.
There was only one thing better than dinner. No, not the banana tiramisu, although it was phenomenal. The conversation, laughs and bonding that went on between Grace and I. Big hands and small hands “literally”, as Grace would say, came together that night. Between the tasty food and the delicious subjects of discourse, this was definitely my best restaurant moment of 2009.
See?
Gen X and Gen Y can get along.
As long as good food is involved.
Oh hai list of goals that I wanted to accomplish for this year. Long time, no see.
Enter snowy day and the perfect time to sit down and revisit said list. After blowing dust off the blog post, I spent some time thinking about what I’ve accomplished. 1
With the hopes of keeping myself accountable, here’s how I’ve been progressing:
#2. run another marathon.
This was one of those goals that got slightly amended. I did not have time to train for a marathon, but I did have time to run a different half-marathon in a new state. So that’s what I did instead. (Perhaps before I’m 40 I’ll get another notch in my marathon belt.)
#3. elope.
Done. And done well.
#4. work on improving my green thumb by growing beans and helping with the community garden.
With the help of my ever-loving and most patient husband, our garden was bountiful and prosperous.
#5. pay down credit card debt.
Two cards down, a few more to go.
#6. write more letters.
Do thank-you notes count? 2
#10. play another season of Ultimate Frisbee.
It wasn’t a championship season like last year, but we had a lot of spirit. 3
#11. do more push-ups.
The ladies of the Lijit office do (almost) daily push-ups together. Nothing beats a little muscle pump in the afternoon.
#14. roller derby!
Saw my first bout last month and although I’m still undecided on whether or not I should try out, I’m a big fan.
#16. get scuba certified.
Thanks to Weaver’s Dive Center, I’m all set. Belize, here I come!
#24. throw a kickass wedding party.
#29. put money in my savings account every month.
So far, so good. 4
The results are a little rough, dear readers. I’m almost two-thirds of the way through the year and I an only done with one-third of my list.
However, to make myself feel better, I will rationalize that a full third of the list are all goals that are in progress, which means that they will be crossed off at some point:
#1. more yoga.
#8. incorporate strength training into my workout routine.
#9. reach out to my old friends.
#13. give more bodywork
#17. blog more. 5
#20. get rid of unnecessary stuff.
#21. say yes more.
#22. reach outside of my comfort zone.
#23. swim.
#27. be sure my loved ones know how I feel about them.
#28. dance more.
#30. acknowledge gratitude daily.
So, what about that pesky last third of the list? For one reason or another, these goals are the ones that will probably need some adjusting 6 in order to accomplish.
These represent the worst kind of to-do’s–easy to type but much too broad and vague to actually do:
#31. practice compassion.
#32. forgive and forget.
And then some goals are difficult to achieve because of the money involved:
#19. buy more vintage clothing.
#26. get the tattoo on my ankle redone.
Not to mention, there are the things left that I keep meaning to do…
#7. perform stand-up at least once a month.
#12. explore new parts of Colorado.
#15. experiment with video
#18. learn basics of Photoshop.
#25. volunteer my time with a cause close to my heart.
#33. learn how to juggle.
but that take up more time or energy than I had realized when first creating this list. But I’m figuring it out as I go…and my progress reflects that fact.
It’s just a shame that rocking the footnote plugin wasn’t on the list. 7
Awesomesauce, Blogging, Goals, Life Lessons, Love & Rainbows, Running | Comments
This is Day 18 of a 21-Day Salute ™. Obviously, this was not a consecutive 21-Day salute and obviously I have some issues when it comes to time management. Sorry cute innocent blog series–real life got busy there for a bit.
I’m in Boulder because of the beer. Not just because I love drinking it, but because my ex got a job brewing beer here. We moved from Houston so he could brew and that was six years ago. My life has changed in many ways since then but my love of Boulder beer has not.
In all honesty, one of the many things that has kept me from posting here was a little event called Ignite Boulder. Along with my good friend Elaine*, I was able to present about beer in Colorado to over seven hundred people at the Boulder Theater. For five minutes, we educated and entertained the crowd. It was awesome. I had so much fun preparing for the presentation (and I don’t mean the pints that were consumed for inspiration), I thought it only best to share.
(You’ll have to imagine the audio for now. But we were funny, have no doubt.)
If you haven’t checked out an Ignite event in your area, I strongly suggest it. It’s a night of creativity, humor and education. And if you haven’t checked out any of the beer that Colorado produces, then you should definitely get on that.
Photo courtesy of Stepan Mazurov
Whether you’re enjoying a pint of Avery, Mt. Sun or Boulder beer, it should taste even better since you’re supporting the local economy, drinking a beverage brewed with passion and keeping my ex off the streets. I’ll drink to all those things.
*Elaine was the genius behind the idea for our preso and you can read her take on local beer here. Also? Elaine was the impetus behind getting me out of my posting funk. She dropped the words “baited breath” in a blog comment…fully knowing that I would be worried and waiting for her to exhale. Are you happy now Elaine?
21-Day Salute, Awesomesauce, Blogging, Boulder Love | Comments
This is Day 17 of a 21-Day Salute ™, an attempt to share a little bit of what I love about living in Boulder. After slacking off for a couple few err, four days, I’m back and ready to finish this biatch. While I’m at it, you should know that this post is about a product that was *mostly* made in a town not far from Boulder. I’m not perfect but hey, at least I’m honest.
I wanted to throw a party.
And I also wanted to work with BirdDog Press, aka Allison Bozeman, aka super sweet self-described “momecopreneur” with an amazing portfolio of design work and an even better Southern accent.
So I decided to outsource my wedding party invitations to Lyons, Colorado.
I first met Allison at the Chicks who Click after-party in January and it was somewhere after the third Rio margarita that we first talked business. I don’t know that either one of us remembers much about that conversation but a seed was planted.
On our second and more sober meeting, Alli brought samples of her work carried in these…
and she listened as I told her that I didn’t have a lot of time or money. I was having a laid-back wedding party and wasn’t looking for an invitation that was going to be too fancy for the event.
With some creativity, Alli made it happen, reusing scraps she had left over from other projects. I trusted in her completely and was not disappointed. The invitations turned out beautifully, handmade and printed by Alli on 100% recycled paper.
It’s easy to appreciate the source of all this inspiration when you check out Allison’s studio. She let me hang out and watch her work one afternoon. The space is almost as energetic as she is…
and the letterpress was a sight to behold. It was amazing to see Alli get that huge machine going. And the lovely paper magic she makes with that letterpress? Breath-taking. The finished product is a little bit vintage, with extra attention to detail, typography and lots of character. To drool over Allison’s creations, check out her blog. To make them yours, check out her Etsy store.
Allison’s work is wonderful but, more than that, she’s a fun lady to have collaborating on your side. I’m already scheming on what to have her make for me next, although I know she’s busy.*
*Word on the street is that she’s making business cards for a special Boulder someone…
[photo credit: theHandmaiden and Andrew Hyde.]
21-Day Salute, Awesomesauce, Blogging, Boulder Love | Comments
