chillin’

don’t hate!

yep, that’s me chillin’ out. don’t ask me where i got those very cool slippers cuz i ain’t tellin’. since my last, less than chipper post, i’ve been trying to just appreciate the time off that i have but it isn’t easy. i’m not used to taking it easy, taking time off, or resting and honestly, relaxing doesn’t make me happy, training does. i make no apologies for that, it’s how i’m wired and i accept that…the good, the bad, and the ugly black clouds that go along with it. i was talking to a good friend of mine recently about having signed up for the 2011 ironman florida (oh yeah, i forgot to tell you all about that-so now you know!) and what my ultimate goal is for that race (more on the little gem later, much later) and her response to me was, “so basically, you’ll possibly be training for the next 2 years? my response, “oh yeah, i didn’t even think about that.” looks like 2 more solid years of blogging material folks!
i want to personally send big hugs out to all of you who left such kind, positive comments on my last post, to all who sent me emails, and those that called me. i know a lot of you have been there, done that and it’s always good to know, we are not alone. i knew that there would be some feelings of blah after the race but didn’t ever think it would be as long and profound as it was…a solid 4 weeks of blah. it also took a solid 4 weeks for me to feel completely recovered physically. i really thought i had it all figured out, how to avoid the ironman blues, so as soon as the race was over, i decided i would do a marathon. it made sense to me, i was already trained, the race was in 5 weeks, perfect! but, that was not to be. a week or 2 after the race, all the little aches and pains started to creep up and the doubts started to set in. i had to wave the white flag and say no to the marathon. was i a little disappointed? hell yeah but i know how important it is to stay healthy, uninjured, and i realize there will be plenty of other marathons to do in the future…and a lot more ironman races.
okay, time for some randomness…

• i hope everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving with family and friends. mine was interesting in that, for the first time ever, thanksgiving was at my house. for those who know me, who just read that, that was not a mistake and you may now pick your mouths up off of the floor. for those of you who don’t know me, I DO NOT COOK…ANYTHING. it isn’t that i can’t cook, i just chose to spend my time doing things that i enjoy more. life without a microwave would be a living hell for me. anyway, special thanks to PUBLIX supermarket for coming through big time with their awesome thanksgiving feast in a box. i would highly recommend this to anyone who is low on time and motivation to cook for a holiday feast. for $45.00, i got a pretty big turkey, fully cooked, mashed potatoes, stuffing that was to die for, potato bread rolls, apple/raspberry cobbler and pumpkin pie. the only thing i had to do was heat it all up in the oven. this is the tricky part. i had to make a little flow chart for each item’s heating time since there would be 3 items in the oven at the same time. all in all, everything turned out lovely and it was delicious. we had way too much leftover though and unfortunately, this was the smallest amount we could order. now that i know what a success this was, i will have to invite a few more mouths next time.
• i think that since there are blogger awards for beautiful blogs, versatile blogs, creative blogs, amazing blogs, etc…don’t you think there should be an award for deadbeat bloggers? i know, deadbeat and award don’t go together but you get the picture. i’d certainly be honored to receive that award or whatever you want to call it and perhaps it will spur me on to blog on a more regular basis. i love blogging, i certainly have the time, i just think my creativity is on vacation but i can feel it coming back, albeit slowly. dang-it, i have to be ready to celebrate this blogs 1 year anniversary soon (december 23rd!).
• i got an early christmas present last week. actually, mandy got an early christmas present. first picture is mandy before and the second picture is mandy after. for those new to reading my blog, mandy (named after the character on cartoon network) is my tri bike.

yes, new wheels! who cares if they don’t make me faster, they look cool! afterall, it is better to look good than to feel good, right? just kidding.

• i had a really nice 15 mile run with my favorite running buddy Amy on saturday. here is a picture of us after as we chug down our ice cold powerade zero’s. thanks Amy for remembering how much i love zero’s and for remembering my favorite flavor. you rock!
• lastly, i’m looking forward to some much needed time off from work these next 4 weeks. i feel like i haven’t been able to catch my breath with the high volume of work lately. it’s making me pissy!

my next post will be about next years goals and races. can you believe we will be in 2011 in 1 month?? thanks for reading.
much love and peace out!