I'm So... Startled

We're two days away from race time people... do you know where your children are? Oh wait, I mean, are you ready for this?! I don't know why, but I get so nervous for these things! I don't know what I'm so nervous about. All day today I've been walking around with butterflies in my stomach. I think I'm just worried that all this training is somehow going to fly out the window and I'm going to suck really bad or get injured the day before the race or something stupid. Why do I do this to myself? Who knows. I just want to do really good. And I want to run the whole way without stopping. Which I still haven't done on the race course, but have done many times during all my runs for the last several weeks. Even up big hills. But not on the big hill on the course. That's my main goal for Saturday... to run the whole thing without stopping.

Anyway, for those of you who are coming to race, here are the details again:

Ogden Family Fitness Day 5K Run:

•If you haven't already registered, it'll cost you $20 on race day and you probably won't get a shirt.

•Race begins at 9:00 a.m.

•Check-in and Day-of registration

8:00-8:50 am

I would recommend giving yourself plenty of time to get there, check-in,  and get warmed up. Here's a map of how to get to the MTC Learning Park. I would recommend taking the 24th St. exit off of I-15 in Ogden  because 12th St. is under construction. Plus, then you only have to make one left turn onto Monroe Blvd. and you're pretty much there. The MTC Learning Park will be on the right as you start to go down the big hill on Monroe.

Good luck everybody!

Re-examining My Life Goals

About six months ago I started a journey. A grueling journey filled with hate, boredom, sleepiness and disdain. I started this task voluntarily, but, I wonder now if I really had a clear vision of what exactly I was getting into. So many people had done this before me. So many people will continue to do this in years to come. Now I wonder, do I want to finish? Do I want to put myself through this kind of torture while gaining no joy whatsoever besides the sporadic muted interest from society's intellectuals? I'm not so sure it's worth the price any more.

When I first started reading War and Peace I was excited. I'd read many reviews on Amazon about how it was the greatest book of all time. My copy of War and Peace has about 1400 pages. I've read between 400-500 of those pages. I can't exactly remember because I haven't picked the thing up for over a month, but I digress. I guess my point is, this book is like a succubus. It drains all my energy just thinking about sitting down to read. There was one chapter out of all those 400+ pages that I enjoyed. Most of the time I have no idea what is going on and as soon as I figure it out, the book jumps to a completely different character and story and I have to start all over again trying to remember what happened to this person in previous chapters.

This morning as I was rushing around getting ready for work, I began to think about this book. And several other books I've recently read. I've flown through a handful of books these last couple months. Because I enjoyed them. For those books I lost several hours of sleep. For those books I turned off the tv. War and Peace has never prompted me to lose sleep, or turn off the tv or even smile for that matter. It brings feelings of dread. And so it sits on my nightstand, waiting for the day I need help falling asleep.

So here's where I'm stuck. I can tell this book is not going to be finished by the end of the year. I don't have enough fire in my belly to plow through this sucker that fast. Even if I did, it's a very rare occasion that I can make it through two whole chapters without falling asleep. It's physically impossible for me to spend an even remotely large amount of time in one sitting reading this book. So do I continue reading this book just to show that I can do it? Do I continue reading it even though I'm constantly bored to tears? Or do I move on with my life and throw this goal by the wayside? Should I spend my time only reading books I love or is it good for me to tackle things like this? I'm a bit torn. What would you do?

The Helper

When I was a kid, spanking wasn't the taboo it is today. It was common practice. Every family had their favorite spanking tool. There's Dad's leather belt, a 'switch' off the old willow tree out back, Mom's wooden spoon or my family's choice... The Helper.

The Helper usually came out when it was time to clean up the pig sties we called bedrooms. When we actually got around to cleaning our rooms, we'd already been told a hundred times to do it and had literally been chased up there to get it done. I don't remember complaining much but my little sister Annie could never do the job without throwing a fit. She'd stomp around and cry about how much she hated it while slowly shuffling things around.

After listening to the commotion for a minute or two, my dad would come up the stairs and say, "Do you want The Helper to help you? I think you need The Helper." Then he'd walk over to the closet and pull out a wire hanger. This immediately prompted Annie to yell "I'm cleaning! I'm cleaning!" and hustle around trying to find a spot for a dirty sock held in one hand while covering her butt with the other. This wouldn't have affected me at all except for the fact that my room was right next to hers. Which meant that The Helper always had to stop and pay a visit to me too. How thoughtful!

The Helper was more of a scare tactic really. It never left bruises or even hurt much, it was just something to get our attention. A quick little tap on the butt and we were working double time.

Now that I think about it, I don't have any wire hangers around here. Maybe I should take those clothes to the dry cleaners so I can get a few. You never know when The Helper will come in handy. Hey! Who was supposed to clean up this mess?! {sound of a whip cracking}

Chafed Thighs and Apple Pies*

Blackie (our black Pontiac) decided her two power windows were no longer needed and thus quit allowing them to roll up or down. I don't see window function as an option, so I took Blackie into the shop today so they could change her mind.

I called the shop this afternoon to tell them I'd be bringing Blackie in and asked when they closed. They were only open until 6:00pm so I knew I'd have to hurry home from work so I could pick her up and drop her off on time.

Now the other part of my plan, since Seth still works nights, was to drop the car off and run home. If I took a slight detour it would be just over 3 miles. Perfect. I drove the route on my way home to check it out and started to get a little nervous. It was pretty much all uphill. And it was 90 degrees outside. But, I could do it, right?

So I got home from work, changed into my running clothes and drove down to drop off Blackie. I had my ipod and stopwatch with me like usual, but today I thought maybe I should carry a bottle of water with me too. I walked about a quarter mile to warm-up and then started running.

Holy crap it was hard. I started out running on a steep part of the hill and it didn't get much better after that. I ran about a half mile before ditching my water bottle because it was throwing off my rhythm. Don't worry, I threw it in the proper receptacle.

After another half mile I came to a fork in the road. This was the point where I could either take the shorter, easier way, or take the harder way which would end up equaling the 3.1 miles I needed. It must have been the heat that made me delirious enough to choose the longer hard way.

I ran for another half mile up the hill until I couldn't run anymore. I ended up walking 3/4 of a mile. After this point the running was all slightly downhill, but it was hot and my legs were tired. I ran half a mile with the sun in my eyes before I stopped again. The heat and sweat was starting to get to me and now I was dealing with some chafing between my thighs. Yes, I'm going there. My legs were now Jello and my thighs stung with every step. I could either run the rest of the way to get it over with faster thus speeding up the friction on my thighs, or try and walk bow-legged for the last stretch. I settled on a combination of the two.

By the time I made it through the front door, my thighs were rubbed red and stinging, my legs were about to collapse underneath me and sweat was pouring into my eyes. And I managed to add six minutes to my time. Wahoo!

I've actually had a lot of successes in my training this last week or two and it took today's experience to make me remember something very important. Don't bite off more than you can chew. Anytime you do something clearly out of your fitness range you are going to end up frustrated. It's good to push yourself in order to improve, but you've got to set reasonable goals.

I'm going to run again once more this week. I'm going to try running the race course. I almost did it a week or two ago without stopping but didn't quite make it. This week I'm going to.

You better watch out race course. I'm coming for you.

*I had to mention apple pies so you'd read this post. And it made the title sound more cheery.

I'm in Love With Lee

Not Tommy Lee

Not Spike Lee

Not Sandra Lee

Not Robert E. Lee

Or even Bruce Lee

I'm in love with regular old, Lee. There I said it. To tell you the truth I've always kind of looked down on Lee. Thought Lee wasn't good enough for me... that Lee was dare I say... uncool.

But as of yesterday I have changed my ways. Lee is suddenly hip. I will let the world see me with Lee and I'll be proud and confident. In fact I'm going to show Lee off to all my friends.

Ok ok I'm talking about Lee jeans. Surprised? Yeah me too. I went shopping last night for some new clothes over at the local Kohls. My favorite pair of Gap jeans finally got a hole worn through the inner thigh and I needed something to replace them, pronto.

I sauntered around the Kohls for a half hour or so picking up anything and everything that looked like it might be suitable for entry into my wardrobe. I ended up carrying an armload of about 2 tons of clothes into the dressing room, including close to 10 pairs of jeans.

Finding clothes that look flattering is a very daunting task. Especially when you're pretending you're on What Not to Wear and trying to decide if the outfit you have on would ever appear on one of the sample mannequins and if it follows "the rules."

I tried on pair after pair of jeans. The stack slowly dwindled while I wondered if it was actually possible to try on 500 pairs of jeans and have none of them fit correctly. I wasn't getting down on myself for any extra cushioning I might have, in fact I was becoming frustrated with the selection of jeans available. I know what I want. Finding it is another story. They're either too high waisted or very low rise. They taper too much or they're too light of a wash. Or I find the perfect pair, but they're out of my size. It's one thing after another.

I got down to the last two pairs of jeans. These were more of a trouser style jean. I was looking for something a bit more casual, but these would be a bit nicer looking and besides, I had one or two pairs of regular jeans I could wear if I needed to. The thing was... the last two pairs of jeans I had to try on were Lee brand. I've never liked the look of Lee jeans much and the casual Lee jeans I'd already tried on were very high waisted and looked ridiculous. But I figured, what the heck. Might as well try them on while I'm here.

Holy crap... these jeans were AMAZING! Both pairs sat just below my belly button... high enough to lock in my pooch, but not so high as to make me look 20 years older. They were both a cotton/spandex blend so they stretched just a bit and the waistbands were thick, great for slimming the tummy region. One pair also had an added feature that I've never seen before. The waistband looked normal on the outside, but had a 2" wide elastic band sewed onto the inside to allow for an even better fit. It keeps the back of the waistband from gaping, which is a problem I encounter frequently due to my ample (yet quite spectacular) rear quarters.

The best part of all was these jeans were only like $30 each. Winner winner chicken dinner.

Here's the jeans I got:

Lee Jessica Trouser (Black Retro Wash)

Lee Natural Fit Reese Straight Leg (Indigo Rinse)

(These have a tab-front closure which I love)

So, if you're in the market for some jeans too, give these puppies a try. They come in lots of sizes and have inseams of 30", 32", and 34" so you should be able to find some that fit you. If not, try some other crazy brand you blew off long ago. You never know.

My List of Things That Must Go, Round 3

There's a couple things that have been bugging me lately so I'm going to voice my disapproval here in hopes that the word will get out. If you're doing any of these things, STOP IT!

1. Riding a bike with no hands: This has become an epidemic lately. I swear all the bicyclists I've seen lately are riding with no hands on the handlebars. Not only is this dangerous (I can just picture one of these people suddenly losing control and swerving out into traffic), but it just looks ridiculous. I know they think they look all hot and talented riding along with their arms folded across their chest, all relaxed and carefree, but come on. If you don't want handlebars you might as well just ride a unicycle.

2. Eyeball twitching: Lately my right eye has been twitching a lot. I mean on and off for an entire day. This has happened like once a week for the last month. It's driving me crazy. Am I deficient in vitamins? Is this my body's way of telling me I'm going to go blind? A sign I'm working too hard? I don't know why this is happening but I want it to stop!

3. Overzealous Sprinklers: I don't care about the planet or wasted water. Go ahead and water the gutter for all I care (not really... I love Earth). Why is it that no matter where I park, my car inevitably gets a shower? I hate this. When I finally get around to washing my car, I think I do a pretty good job. I vacuum it out, wipe down the dash, use the scrubber brush on the outside and even go so far as to dry the thing off and shine the tires. So you can imagine my fury when I come out to get in my car the next morning and find my poor baby covered in water spots. And you all know that these water spots don't simply wash off. I think they're made of concrete and glue because you can scrub until your knuckles are down to the bone and the water spots will remain. It doesn't matter where I park. I can park under any awning or out in the open. The lawn sprinklers will get my car on one side, and the sprinklers from the school on the other side of the fence shoot approximately ten miles so I'm not safe on that side either. I've started backing into my normal spot so only the backside of my car gets plastered. But still.

4. Slow Walkers: I encounter this one a lot at work. I realize I have a somewhat faster pace than a lot of people, but I'm working... not taking a midnight stroll in the moonlight. If you want to walk slow and mosey along, fine. Go ahead. Knock yourself out. But MOVE OVER! Why must you amble down the middle of the hall? Or worse yet, you have a buddy with you and your conversation is so incredibly engaging that you have to periodically STOP WALKING to engage in your stupid chit chat! Don't worry about me, it's not like I have anything better to do than listen to your worthless drivel and shuffle along at your heals. Of course I could ask to pass you but then I'd be an impatient jerk wouldn't I?

Today's Special Aug. 9-15th

I'm a little torn as to how I should do these posts. On one hand, I'd like to plan out my meals for the week and post them early. On the other hand, I rarely do these posts until the middle of the week because I'm not usually that dedicated at planning. Plus, I'd like to provide feedback on some of the new recipes I make so you know whether they're good or not. I don't know that there's any of you who run out and get all the stuff for every recipe I post, right when I post it, but still, I hate posting recipes that may not live up to my standards. No sense in both of us wasting money on sub-par food. So I guess what I'm saying is, I may slightly alter my recipe posting schedule. I know this is going to completely turn your lives upside-down.


On to this weeks' menu:


Sunday: Spinach & Four Cheese Stuffed Shells with French Bread -This recipe is actually originally for manicotti, but those pasta tubes are really hard to fill without tearing them. So I use the giant shells and use my cookie scoop to fill them. Much faster and easier. I this go-to recipe for spaghetti sauce.


Monday: Cereal. As in cold cereal.


Tuesday: Salmon Chowder with Peas This was a new recipe and although I was initially a little scared to eat it, it was really good! And it uses canned salmon which is pretty cheap. I doubled the recipe. See my comments under my username 'Pismo' on the Recipezaar link... I had to change the recipe slightly.


Wednesday: Spinach Stuffed Chicken with asparagus and Rice-a-roni. This was also a new recipe and I liked it a lot. I made it with frozen spinach because that's all I had. I also didn't use mushrooms because I didn't have any, though I'm sure it would've been even better had I used them.

Thursday: Taco Bake (aka Mexican Mac & Cheese) This was a new recipe and it turned out really good! Not exactly healthy, but tasty.


Friday: Leftovers