wiskers on kittens

these are a few of my favorite things.

a new GHOUL-lish floral arrange for the month of October (and yes, I have always wanted to use the word Ghoul in a sentence on my blog).

Good friends to spend my time with.

                                   And the person that makes it all fit together. 





I have had a rather gloomy feeling day, and these are things that make me feel oh so much better. 
All of this and watching The Devil Wears Prada for the 500th time.

What makes your day? What are a few of your favorite things, people or places?

Side note: I saw this great blog post about non-pant outfits for spring 2012...think that will work in the work place?

Pace

I have one of the best training partners ever. He always there to lend encouragement, help me through a tough run or meet me at the finish with some water. 

Last night my training partner and I went to the gym for an indoor run around the track. It was past 8 pm and pretty dark outside, too dark for me to run outside any ways!

We started out at a nice comfortable pace, we could carry a short conversation without being too out of breath. I am taking the next few weeks to just maintain my fitness before I start heavy training again and I explained to my training partner that I didn’t need to go very fast or very far. As the minutes carried on I decided that we could go a little faster, so I picked up the pace, assuming that my training partner would naturally follow. After speeding ahead, my training partner slow down in front of me, giving me the old “let’s keep our current pace” trick. I forged on, picking up the pace gradually and trying to get in front of him. I even had to push him out of the way so I could run the pace I wanted. We kept up this battle for the rest of the run. After we finished, my training partner was quick to renounce my speedy last 5 minutes. At first I didn’t see how upset my training partner was, I thought he was just tired from a long day. It wasn’t until we left the gym that he told me what was going on.  After bugging him to run with me and then picking up the pace that he couldn’t run at, I had hurt his pride.

Both my training partner and I ran in college. He has always had such heart for running. He was always dedicated to running, pushing himself to be better each year. He had great success, and he was fast. In the last 6 months, his life has changed a lot. A majority of his time is spent buried in books, flashcards and class work for medical school. He doesn’t have as much time to dedicate to training at a high level, and some times just not enough energy. His time has passed where he wanted to compete at a high level. He has moved into adulthood where some things have to slow down, and where others pick up.  His pace of life has changed.

I on the other hand have almost an infinite amount of time to spend running and training. In fact, perhaps in the last 6 months I have gained time. When my husband is studying I want to make sure that I give him space so he can do what he needs. Being inside all day at work and sitting for a majority of that time makes me want to spend more time outside, perhaps I see running as a break, not a chore. My pace in life has changed.

Whatever the case is, time, attitude or dedication, running has different meanings to my training partner. And by assuming I knew what my running partner wanted out of a run I hurt his pride and took away some of the joy for him. I feel bad about the whole thing. I was selfishly running for only myself, not taking time to enjoy spending time with someone I love while doing something we both can enjoy. 

I learned my lesson, and will make sure to ask before I set the pace.

Birdcage

It's getting pretty cold out there. If you are in the northern part of the United States, the last few days have either been cold, rainy or windy. real fall like temperatures too. Today here in Erie its only 49 degrees! brrr. I am afraid the heat will have to be turned on for a while. 

Updates today come from the dinner party my husband and I had last week. I am not even sure it gets to be called a dinner party since it was only 4 people but it included wine so it counts! We had over two of my husband's lab partners from medical school. They are both about our age so it was nice to meet people closer to the same age as us. They came around 7 pm and stayed until way past 10 o'clock, so I guess they enjoyed our company! We talked a lot about their school and what is going on with their classes. It was so interesting to find out what they liked and didn't like about school. Although I don't go to school with them its nice to feel involved with my husband's school. I took a quick photo of the table to share!

Its been a lot of routine things going on this week for me. After taking a week off running I have started back up again in hopes to start marathon training this week. I am going to give my self over 24 weeks to prepare. I think I am going to go the Toledo Glass City Marathon. Its not until April of next year but getting a good solid base for training will be key. I really want to qualify for the Boston Marathon. My dream of running in that legendary race is what will keep my going as the days get colder and shorter. There will be a lot of miles and tons of time spent, but it will all be worth it.

A few weeks ago my husband found a new game to play in our house. He discovered that we had some pesky birds on our patio that liked to relieve themselves on our table, chairs and patio floor. He decided that he could catch one and then...you know, i have no idea what he was going to do with it but i let him try to catch it. These kind of stories are my favorite because he gets really great ideas, tries them out enthusiastically and usually they end up less than successful. The birds were no exception. He tried for two days trying to attract the birds, "bread doesn't work!", create a make-shift cage and then rig up a system. At one point during the conquest we took out the screen in the upstairs bedroom so he could attach one of the cages by a rope in hopes of dropping it over a bird (that tactic did not work). I took a photo of this event as well. I really got a good laugh out of it. He is wonderfully creative, a little adventurous and kind of silly but he always entertains me! He never caught a bird, but he did enjoy trying to. 


I suppose this awful gloomy day beckons me to read so off I go.


Until next time,


EAA

Take Care

Talk about a lame weekend. I spent most of my lovely weekend held up on the couch with the worst cold. Fever, shivers, runny nose and body aches. It was a well spent two days lounging around as I feel better today but I hate losing a weekend to a sickness. I was able to catch up on sleep and my television episodes, so I will count that as progress. 

It was another beautiful weekend in Pennsylvania. The temperature felt cool but you could be outside without a coat or sweatshirt. My husband and I took a scenic bike ride around the state park near us. It was beautiful to see the leaves starting to change. It really makes it that much more beautiful to see reds and oranges on the trees. We felt pretty darn sick after that ride, but it was nice to be outside. We got some apple cider and donuts on the way home from one of the local markets. Another great thing about fall, all that warm apple cider. I am all about fall!

Although Mondays seem to drag on and on sometimes (case of the Mondays anyone?), today I am looking forward to our first ever dinner party in Pennsylvania! My husband has a few lab partners from his medical school that want to meet me. I thought it would be nice to cook them a meal this week. I know they had a big test today and making a full meal is probably not on top of their to-do list. I am happy that my husband is making friends and enjoying his time at school. When he first started school I know he missed his college friends, who had been there for four years. I am sure he was reluctant to find new friends as he didn't want to replace any of his old ones, even though that would never happen. Its good to feel like you have someone to talk to at your work/school. Days can get lonely if you never talk! I can't wait to have people over that are my age! I have yet to make a friend who is my age. I try, I really do, I just have not found anyone yet. Hopefully this will be my chance!

I am making goulosh, bread, pumpkin bread and apple pie. Can you tell I am excited? 

I will let you know how it goes!

Have a non-Monday Monday!


-EAA

13.1

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome.
That's how I felt on Sunday at 10 am after waking up at 4:45 am, running 13.1 miles and eating banana. 
You probably couldn't wipe the smile off my face if you tried.

Erie Half Marathon Results 

I am ecstatic that I signed up. After months of debating with myself, asking if I was ready or could even run that far that fast, I did. And now I am more energized then ever to run more, further and faster. I cannot wait to sign up for a marathon. I am thinking that I want some more time to train, get long runs under my belt and figure out that whole drinking water while running thing. I am still confused and baffled that people can actually drink water or gatorade WHILE RUNNING. Serious skill. I gulped down about a half cup around mile 7 and that was about all I could manage to get in my mouth. It did make me feel better, but it added some time to my race time. I am going to have to experiment with that stuff as a train for a marathon.


any ideas on which marathon to do in the spring? I think there is one in Buffalo, NY which isn't too far...i will have to do some more research on the area to see what will be the best option. training through the winter in a town next to a Great Lake could be a challenge, but I am enthusiastic (and a sadist).


I have been addicted to fashion blogs as of late. New York Fashion Week happened to be on my radar and I needed to keep up with some of my favorite designers. Not that I am a fashion slave, but I do like to see what is trending for spring and how I can start to look for the newest styles. Coming from a small mid-western town, my fashion knowledge has come from a lot of reading on-line and in magazines. Its funny though, I like to see what is new in terms of style, but can't force myself to buy all the trendy items. I like classic fashion, a  mix of preppy style and timeless pieces. I would much rather buy an accessory that is in style than a whole wardrobe that will be out of style soon enough. Fashion blogs have been lighting up with soft palates and lots of patterns, both of which i love! I cannot wait to get some of those striped shirts paired with flow-y silk skirts. But for now I will have to wear my favorite boots and warm sweaters. darn.


It finally feels like fall around here, and I am very glad! I love fall colors, scents and food. Fall is my favorite season by far. I think its the most beautiful and enjoyable of the seasons since you can be outside without having to sweat like a maniac! You can cook warm meals and heat up the whole house with good smells. In our house we have already had some acorn squash and apples from a local orchard. I have a new recipe for vegetable soup and classics like chili and goulash always test better in the fall. Its a tradition in my family to make goulash in the fall, I have some of my fondest memories involving goulash at my Grandparents cottage. Something about warm food and fall make me feel comfortable.  
I am getting hungry already!


Its also my favorite time for new socks! One of the small luxuries I enjoy in life (good coffee being the number one luxury!) The feeling of warm toes and squishy padding under my feet could not be more welcomed. I once said in an interview that new socks were one of my favorite things to buy (side note: I did not get that job). Its amazing that you can find such joy in little things. 

Ok. Another stellar week ahead for me. 
I promise to write sooner.


Your pal,

EAA