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By kilax, August 30, 2013 7:37 am

Are you good at keeping track of your things – or do you easily misplace them? Do you ever leave anything behind when you travel?

I like to have a spot for everything at home and try really hard to keep all my crap together when I travel someplace. Having my things spread out all over someone else’s home (or a hotel or whatever) makes me highly anxious, for some reason. 

However! That doesn’t mean I don’t misplace things from time to time. Last night, I couldn’t figure out where my Efit studio keys were. They were not in the bag I normally keep them in.  I realized I didn’t have them when I was at the studio, and I was really anxious to look for them immediately when I got home. For some reason, they were in my work backpack.*

And Kate will not stop mentioning the time she was left behind in Galena, even though that was in December!

I think that because I am such a highly anxious person, I consciously try to keep better track of my sh*t, because I know I will not handle it well if I lose/misplace something. 

*You know, with my varying work at home and work downtown schedule, I am surprised I don’t forget things at home or accidentally leave things at work. I do think that is why the keys ended up in my backpack – I worked downtown then went straight to Efit to teach a couple Mondays in a row, so they must have placed them there. 

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By kilax, August 29, 2013 3:47 pm

Lots of thoughts this week that are materializing in to nada… lucky for you guys, that means you get some short bullet points!

• I had the most bizarro foggy (cloudy?) run in Chicago today! I left my office expecting to see a Chicago skyline like the picture on the left below… instead I saw the view on the right.

• Which summer blockbusters have you seen? Mica and I were talking about this last night and I was trying to remember… I’ve seen Elysium, Man of Steel, Star Trek: Into Darkness, Pacific Rim, World War Z, Iron Man 3, Pain & Gain (that should probably not be on the list). Did I miss any, Steven? Just kidding. You don’t read my blog.
• Ha ha. Speaking of Pain & Gain, I saw it the night before I did my first ever one-on-one personal training session, and in the movie, they were talking about supersets and other personal trainer jargon that cracked me up (and got me pumped up for the session).
• When I saw my snister last week I tried on my bridesmaids dress! Yay! It fits! I like it! It covers up my wacky back tan! AND! It was super affordable (she bought them)! Only downside… I want to wear it NOW and she said no. Ha ha!
• The highlight of my afternoon has been a “Minion” blimp flying around downtown… of course, I can’t get a decent picture of it on my phone!

Other Random Thoughts Thursday Posts: 46, 45, 44, 43, 42, 41, 40, 39, 38, XXXVII, XXXVI, XXXV, XXXIV, XXXIII, XXXII, XXXI, XXX, XXIX, XVIII, XXVII, XXVI, XXV, XXIV, XXIII, XXII, XXI, XX, XIX, XVIII, XVII, XVI, XV, XIV, XIII, XII, XI, X, IX, VIII, VII, VI, V, IV, III, II, I.

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By kilax, August 27, 2013 6:26 am

Share your Demotivational Monday pic on Rachel’s blog linkup! And yes, I realize it’s Tuesday. 

When I was researching race information for my post yesterday, I found these pics from my 5K PR race

[;vg5bin March.

Wow. Thanks for walking across my keyboard, Data. 

Dponiukoi

Twice. 

Don’t bother with those typos, Dad.

Moving on. 

I was really surprised to see myself gasping for air after the finish line. I remember thinking that 5K was strangely painless. I must have tried to finish with a kick or something.

Have you ever found photos of you at a race, a long time after the race? Or are you stalking the photographer website to see the race pics as soon as they are released?

I used to be gung ho about looking for race photos as soon as they were released, but now that Steven sometimes comes to races and takes photos, I don’t bother. I usually like Steven’s photos a lot better than the “official” ones. 

All that being said, I had told Steven not  to come to this race, and was kind of bummed I didn’t have photos since I unexpectedly set a PR. So I was excited to find these yesterday! Now, I need to make a donation to the photographer/charity associated with the race… 

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By kilax, August 26, 2013 11:46 am

I was really surprised by the comments on my post “Virtual races – yay or nay?.”* There were many varying opinions, but the majority was NAY – people are not digging virtual races. I guess I was so surprised because I kept hearing about people doing them in my running club – I thought maybe some of you would be doing them as well. 

A few people mentioned they only wanted to do a virtual race if the money went for a cause. The ad I was talking about in that post does have a cause associated with it – the ALS Association. 

Now, this isn’t the same, because it’s about in person races, but I have been thinking about Jan’s post “My Latest Rant: What are YOU Running For?” In the post, Jan mentions that she is “really saddened by this sudden surge of for-profit runs.” She doesn’t call any out, but it made me think of mud races, color races, obstacle races… I think some of those are set up with profit in mind. 

So that got me thinking… how many of the races I’ve done this year actually have had a charity component to it? Here is the breakdown:

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By kilax, August 26, 2013 6:04 am

Quite often, I see summer “bucket” lists, but what about the rest of the year? Do you make a to do list for the other seasons? Is there one thing you have to do to make a season feel “complete”?

The beginning of my summer was so focused on studying that I didn’t plan much out*. I did however, know that my summer would not be complete without a trip to the river where the hot sand burned my toes, the breeze on the boat felt marvelous, and the water refreshing. I finally had that this weekend**!

Summer, complete!

Ha ha.

Now, what about the other seasons?

Winter is easy – snowshoeing and (outdoor) ice skating!

Fall, hmm. Usually a scenic run under the beautiful, colorful leaves.

Spring. Ugh. Just survive. Ha ha.

How about you?

*Although we had tons of spontaneous fun, like the hot air balloon ride.
**My other two attempts this summer had freakishly cool weather.

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By kilax, August 25, 2013 9:30 pm

Highlight of the Week: My dad telling me, TWICE, that “Body Glide is the best thing since sliced bread.” *snicker* 

Monday | August 19, 2013: teaching strength class
Strength: dumbbells and cones, Difficulty: easy, Felt: hyper
Tuesday | August 20, 2013: 5.5 m run (w/Emily + Adam)
Loc: Grayslake, Temp: 63°/63°, Time: 55:28, Pace: 10:05 avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: good
Wednesday | August 21, 2013: 7.1 m run incl. 5×5:00 @ 8:40mm (w/Emily and GRCers) + 5.6 m ride + strength class
Loc: Grayslake, Temp: 67°/67°, Time: 1:06:18, Pace: 9:20 avg, Difficulty: medium, Felt: good
Loc: Millennium Trail, Temp: 88°/87°, Time: 23:25, Pace: 14.4 mph avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: bueno
Strength: medicine balls, Difficulty: medium, Felt: schweaty
Thursday | August 22, 2013: rest
Friday | August 23, 2013: 8 m run incl. 5×20 sec strides (w/Emily + Yvonne)
Loc: Nippersink FP & Millennium Trail, Temp: 56°, Time: 1:16:07, Pace: 9:31, Difficulty: easy/medium, Felt: great
Saturday | August 24, 2013: 7.5 m run (w/Bobbi)
Loc: DPRT, Temp: 56°/56°, Time: 1:14:30, Pace: 9:56 avg, Difficulty: easy, Felt: good, minus those bathroom breaks
Sunday | August 25, 2013: 15 m run (first 5.65 run/walk w/Dad, rest w/Dad on bike)
Loc: Guttenberg, Temp: 73°/77°, Time: 2:48:29, Pace: 11:14 avg, Difficulty: easy/medium, Felt: okay

Notes:

• I am one lucky gal to have pals with me on almost all of my workouts this week! Those four early morning runs probably wouldn’t have happened unless I was meeting someone!
• I wish I could have gotten more time in on my road bike this week. I am looking for a clearing in my schedule to take her (him?) out on a long arse ride. Maybe Labor Day. Maybe. 
• Check out my dad’s shirt in the Sunday pic. Aww! That is actually a wicking shirt I saw and had to get for him, as he loves classic cars. Speaking of my dad! He ran over 4 miles today! Two 2-mile stretches and about a quarter of a mile after that. Woo hoo! We are talking about doing another 5K together in October. Psssh, talking about. No. It’s fo sho. 
• I actually did speed work this week! And it wasn’t bad! I also tried to incorporate some speedier miles in to the end of my long run today, but that only lasted for about three miles until I almost melted in the sun. Ha ha. 
• I busted out some new kicks and put on a schweet charm from my friend Chris. Cute!

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By kilax, August 24, 2013 7:47 am

Or, as Gina suggested, maybe a badge/lanyard.

Muah ha ha. I love my friends.

Do you have any certificates/diplomas framed and on proud display in your home/office/where ever?

My diploma is shoved back in the corner of our office, but! It’s up there! Yoda and Darth keep it company. 

So! It’s been almost a month since I took and passed the ACE personal trainer exam! And what have I been up to since then?

• I still teach a Monday night strength class at 6:30 pm and (EXCITING!) am starting a Friday 5:00 am strength class in September. 
• I continue to study so everything I learned stays in my head. I have also earned .6 of the 2.0 required Continuing Education Credits (CECs) to renew my certification in July of 2015. 
• I am offering a Saturday strength class on September 14th – let me know if you are in the area, and interested – and hope to do one Saturday class a month. 
• I might begin more one on one training. 

And that’s it! I continue to find it very fulfilling and rewarding, and am excited I have this (teaching) in my life!

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By kilax, August 23, 2013 12:24 pm

Maggie‘s post yesterday stirred up some thoughts about blog privacy that have been whirling around in my head. Maggie mentioned that she has cut back on posting, and has been feeling more like keeping some things to herself than sharing with total strangers or people who only know her from her blog. 

Lately, I have been thinking about how I forget who reads my blog. In my mind, I am writing to the commenters – because that is who I interact with. But a lot of people read and don’t comment. Family, other bloggers, people I work out with, complete strangers… what impression does my blog leave of my real life persona, to them? And do I care?

It seems… somewhat naive to post in this way. To write without a large portion of your audience in mind. 

But, that is my style. I am very open. I write when I am inspired. I put it out there with little editing. I sometimes ask people to proof read my posts, but lately, I act, then think.

I hope I don’t offend too many. Hee hee. 

So, as you can see, I typically start to think about the privacy thing, then tell myself, “Well, you feel good with what you write. And you still have secrets that you keep to yourself, so it’s not like it’s all out there.” And there are a lot of things that happen that I don’t record here – this isn’t a diary. 

It’s funny though, because I am protective/private of certain information, around certain people, in real life. It’s those relationships where there is no point in sharing – the person will only use the information against you, or (even worse?) not acknowledge it at all.*

Anyway. I am pretty open online, and plan to remain so, even though I don’t know who is reading this. And I appreciate Maggie’s point of view on it, and the conversations we have had about the topic as well.***

Do you ever stop and think about who is reading your blog, before you hit publish? Do you think a lot of people read and don’t comment?

Ha. I always miss delurker day – when you ask people who usually don’t comment, to say hi!

I feel like this post could begin to discuss social media and privacy and what you share (names, pictures, locations, etc.), but, ugh. Me lazy. 

Darn, since no photo, here is the cake I made for Maggie yesterday, for her birthday. Gee. Maybe the birthday girl should have been in the photo?!

*This makes me sound really negative and paranoid. I’m not (?). I am just talking about forced relationships (that we all have!), mostly, where you are polite and give each other details of your life, and I have just learned with certain people, giving more information opens up the doors for unwanted judgement. It’s kind of a personality thing in the other person.**
**It could never be me, right? Ha ha.
***Hmm, I must have written about this before, because we talked about this over the winter. 

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By kilax, August 23, 2013 6:23 am

Is there any place you go where time seems to stand still? What is it about that place that makes it that way?

That’s Guttenberg, Iowa, for me. 

I think because I go there with the sole purpose of hanging out with people and lounging around, the days seem extra long. It feels like the days go on and on, and I have all the time in the world.

There is no set schedule, no “I need to be at xyz at 00:00 hour.” The biggest stressor (which isn’t one at all) is trying to get a run in… and it’s super enjoyable because my dad hangs out with me while I run. And I am not trying to be anywhere by a certain time, after. 

There is not much going on in town. Most of the meals are home cooked. We aren’t running around to stores/shops. It’s just so easy to relax. And until recently, cell service was super spotty there! Now it’s more “on the grid,” but I still try to use my phone less there.

For someone like me, who is always filling their schedule, it’s such a relaxing, weird feeling to have all. that. time. 

I love it!

On a side note, like my photo edit? Ha ha. 

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By kilax, August 22, 2013 12:20 pm

That’s my kitchen M.O.

How I frost a cake:

Heh heh heh. 

How Steven frosts a cake:

Hmm, that’s a lot easier to clean up. 

And this is why Steven should be in charge of all culinary adventures!

I dislike cooking and baking so much,* that my method in the kitchen is to get in and out as efficiently as possible.** Get all the ingredients out at once, loosely measure everything, throw it together, cook/bake/saute/whatever, clean up and get the hell out of there. 

Hence, “act now, think later.” I was in such a rush to frost this cake that I didn’t think about the fact that it may look nicer and be easier to clean up, if I put it on a cooling rack while I pour on the frosting/glaze.

What’s your kitchen M.O.? 

*but I like eating, obviously
**TWSS