I covered quite a few miles this year. Let’s start with some stats:

I covered about 1,255 miles through running (and walking) this year.

I ran across 12 bridges: 

  • Golden Gate in San Francisco, CA
  • Arthur Ravenel Jr. in Charleston, SC
  • Verrazano Bridge from Staten Island to Brooklyn, NY
  • Williamsburg Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan, NY
  • Manhattan Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan, NY
  • Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan, NY
  • Madison Ave Bridge from The Bronx to Manhattan, NY
  • Queensboro Bridge from Queens to Manhattan, NY
  • Willis Ave Bridge from Manhattan to the Bronx, NY
  • Pulaski Bridge from Brooklyn to Queens, NY
  • Calhoun Street Bridge from Trenton, NJ to Morrisville, PA
  • Trenton Makes Bridge (Lower Trenton bridge) from Morrisville, PA to Trenton, NJ

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Hi!

Last night I met up with a whole bunch of friends from High School at this old German bar near where I live. We had fun catching up on what’s been going on lately and talking about the past too. Then we went to the diner and ate french fries and such. I didn’t get home until after 1am. It was so much fun! Sometimes I wish I could re-do High School. I was so insecure then.

This morning I got up and took it easy on the couch just burying my head and recovering from my late night.

not ready yet!

not ready yet!

Of course my laptop and my credit card were in arms reach, so I signed up for some more races for 2014. I’ll be doing the Fred Lebow Manhattan Half on January 26th, the Love Run in Philadelphia on March 30th and the Trenton Half (again) on November 8th.

I <3 Half Marathons!

I <3 Half Marathons

By 11:30 I was ready to go for a run. Again, no particular distance to cover. It was warm again. In the mid 50s. I ended up with just under 7 1/2 miles total. (watch got screwy and I had to restart around .37 miles in.

saturdayrun

I did the usual neighborhood jaunt and entered into the park for about 1/4 mile for a nice change of scenery (and for a photo op).

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Oh, and I’m starting to change my mind about the new HB Tuneband phone holder strap. I wore it today and found it much easier to remove the phone to take pictures and then put it back in. =)

Since the dog didn’t get much of my attention yesterday I made up for it with a nice long walk.

saturdaywalk

We really exhausted ourselves up and down hills through trails, open fields and on the beach.

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I tried really hard to get a good photo of us using the timer camera app on my phone.  I’d say after 3 tries it was a great big #fail…

failedattempts

We got home a little while ago and now it’s already dark:( But the days are officially getting longer…The doodle is worn out after that long walk.

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And after 10+ miles on my feet I’m worn out too. Time to kick back and relax for a bit. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Question: Have you made any plans for 2014 yet? Vacation booked? Signed up for a race? Getting together with an old friend (or group of friends)?

I’ll let you in on a little secret….12/26 is my favorite day! I’m always happy to be done with the holidays. I find it’s just a whole lot of pressure…finding the right gifts and determining who’s house I’ll be going to for the eve and the day. I’m a little like a nomad. =)

I ended up spending both the eve and the day at my brother and sister-in-laws. I didn’t take pictures but I ate more food in 48 hours than I did all year:

• eggplant rollatini, penne with vodka sauce, chicken cutlets, potato croquettes, rice balls,
• baked clams, shrimp scampi, tilapia, scallops
• brownies, cookies, rice pudding, pound cake, cheesecake

Quite healthy no? 🙂

This morning, I continued the “health kick” with some french toast casserole that my sister-in-law made.

french toast casserole

french toast casserole

I ran another 4 miles and then walked 2 1/2 with the dog.

run-walk

I really love these 4-6 mile runs. I know in a few weeks they will be my “short” runs, but right now they are just enough to feel good physically and mentally but give me enough time to get other stuff done on my days off.

While I bought most of my own gifts this year (the trampoline, jewelry and sunglasses to name a few), my friend bought me one really cool gift that I had my eye on. It’s the HB Tuneband, a phone holder that straps to your hand.

jazz hands

jazz phone hands

I am not a big fan of arm bands because they feel more like a tourniquet. So usually I use a phone pouch (I have this one from amphipod) attached to my spibelt to hold it. Mostly I use my phone for races where I need to be able to meet friends before or after and need to text or call them. This is a nice alternative to the phone pouch/belt combo! There’s only one fly in the ointment….I was hoping to be able to have easy access to the phone for taking pictures while running. #fail! It does have a clear touch screen so i can send a quick text if I had to while running. But the camera lens on the back of the phone is covered and the strap is a bit too cumbersome to undo and free the phone while running (unless of course I want to trip and fall flat on my face =).

photo 4-1

you can access the screen ok but can’t take pictures….the lens is covered 🙁

For races where I’m planning on focusing on time and not picture taking i’ll definitely use it. Of course having a new phone contraption to add to my arsenal left me with the itch to clean out my electronics/running gear catch-all drawer. I think I had one too many iPhone cases…

photo 5-1

I think my sunglasses and earbuds multiplied too. I found some phone chargers from the 2 flip phones I had years back (Can you say MotoRazr? LOL!)

So back in October I turned 40 and my parents offered to have the inside of my house painted as a gift. I’ve lived here 13 1/2 years and most of the rooms are still “builder’s white”. I’m not very good at committing so choosing colors has taken me months. But I’ve finally made progress…

photo 1I find it ironic that the main living space color I chose is called “meditation”. Hmm, maybe I’ll be calmer finally! Today I have to work, but I’m going to start adding my marathon training runs to my calendar. I officially will begin training in 10 days! WOO HOO!

I hope you all had a lovely (and somewhat stress free) holiday. And I hope you’re not working today like me.

SO, Tell me what gifts you got? Anyone else in a food coma? Anyone gearing up to train for a race or other event soon?

Yesterday my best friend turned 5!

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made him wear his “party animal” birthday hat and then rewarded him with cupcake doggie cookies and a doggie sausage and while not pictured I shared my scrambled eggs with him too! #luckydog

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It rained all day AND I had to work so there were only indoor treats..but today he and I went for a nice long walk. Before that though, I decided to go for a run. I am sort of bored with my neighborhood routes and was feeling a little pre-christmas funk so I went to the beach.

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I ran a total of 4 miles: 2 at a normalish pace on the gravel trails, 1 at a slow pace but hard effort on the soft sand on the beach and the last mile I pushed myself for one mile at an all out pace of 8:35. I would love to run a 5k and hit 27 minutes. That’s one of my goals for 2014. (currently i’m at 28:30 or 29 minutes for 5k).

It was chilly but sunny and really just what I needed to find my happy…

photo 2 photo 3

photo 1

So that’s that! I better go get ready….I’m headed out soon for my holiday festivities.
Happy Holidays to you and thanks so much for coming by to read my lil’ blog!

Question: What are you looking forward to tonight? Cookies? Egg Nog? Family? Presents? My sister-in-law told me she made rice balls with prosciutto….yep! that’s what I’m looking forward to =)