I did it!!

I did it! I did the Houston Half-Marathon last weekend and didn't die!

I was soo soo soo nervous about it this year due to a severe training deficit. But I did it, had a blast, and even had a decent time.

We forgot the camera, but if you want to see a pic - click this link to brightroom. (I think I'm going to buy two of the photos, they are expensive, but how many times do you get photographs while running 13.1 miles??)

This was my second half and it made a difference knowing what to expect. Last year I was completely freaked out by the number of people running. It's overwhelming to go from running by yourself to being surrounded by tens of thousands. This year I was able to have fun being surrounded by everyone. And instead of running at others' pace, I held to my own this year.

I did the run in 2 hours and 24 minutes - only two minutes slower than last year! Not too shabby.

And I ran in the skirt

I guess I get to put my 13.1 bumper sticker on my car now, right?

Long time, no see

Major Bummer. Fun times on the internets have been greatly restricted at my workplace recently. Since I don't have internet at home - that presents a problems for writing and keeping up with my pals.

I'm working to get a new laptop/mini/netbook so that I can have unrestricted online access. But for now, I'll be dashing in and out of the fun.

On the plus side, I finally cut my hair. I love it.

I ended up going back to a lady at Regis in the mall. I went to her for about 2 years, then basically didn’t cut my hair the next year. The last cut I got was with a “curl specialist” in October. While she was good and spent a lot of time with me, it’s just a little out of my budget. Miss Regis does a good job on my hair too – so why pay more elsewhere?

And I got a 20% off coupon in the mail for regis. Economics rules.

Hope all is well for everyone!

-b-

Whole lotta handmade

I think I made this two weeks ago, and can't believe that I didn't post it right away since I was so excited about it: I made a necklace with beads that my aunt made for me.


The beads are awesome and each one is slightly different. They were tough for me to photograph, but they are a metallic gray with rainbow sheens of color.


My aunt does a lot of (usually) artsy fartsy stuff with clay/ceramics. She makes all kinds of pieces: vases, wall hangings, mugs, photograph frames, magnets, etc. I've been the benefactor of some of the creations, and while I love them, this is my favorite.

yippee for handmade!
-b-

No slouching missy!

We were in San Antonio last weekend for a wedding and while looking at the photos realized that how you stand makes a HUGE difference in how things look. (reminds me of the post by Sal about Side Views)

Here I am at the Alamo standing straight

yeah for dorky tourists!

Me starring as Miss Slouch-a-Lot earlier in the evening. Ick.

Why did I hunch over? I looks awkward, like my head is not completely attached to my neck and pouches my tummy out.

Despite my slouching, this was a great outfit and I felt really confidently dressed in it. I took a couple photos when I was trying to decide what to wear (how very Cher of me), and this is a fuzzy pic of the dress so that you see how it fits. It is kind of a magical dress that fits me just right. Usually this style of dress does nothing for me except make me look like a rectangle, but this has stretch in just the right places and is cut just for me.

The outfit was made up of a bunch of steals over the course of a couple years:
Nine West Shoes from Ross/marshalls/something like that.
Black dress from Express (via thrifting a million years ago)
Black cashmere cardigan from Theory (via goodwill)
SPARKLY buttons: Thanks Joanne Fabrics!

Seriously, I think this cost me less than $30. Proof, you don’t need money to look classy – you just need to stand up straight!

-b-

Free music from nylon magazine

Do you like music?

Do you like free things?

Then you'll probably like free music! Nylon magazine put together a winter playlist and all of the songs are free. Get the free songs

I'm listening to them right now and I dig it.

Idle hands

Oh hoo..it’s about to get chilly in Houston and people are FREAKING out. For real, people have only talked today about the weather. I think we’re supposed to reach the 20s for a couple days. That’s the part that has everyone a twitter…several days of below freezing.

For those of you in a place that has an actual winter, this does seem genuinely un-fun. So many layers. So much closed-toe shoe wearing. So much hat-hair.

So, yeah, I prepped for it too. By picking up my crochet needle!

I haven’t done crochet in probably 3-4 years. I used to like it, but really only knew how to do two stitches and can only make scarves (or smallish blankets that are really just a big scarf). Plus the repetitive counting made me a little buggy….

Which is why it was perfect for a very frustrating Monday night and then a Tuesday watching football. Got my mind off things and I have something to show for my time.

I made a little neck warmer thingy…nothing big or fancy, but I was proud of my first jump back.

And now I have something cute to wear with all the COLD.



BTW Can I give myself a little love? Besides the lipstick I put on for the photo, I totally forgot to put on makeup today. And it looks pretty good. Not sure if I had a magical camera moment, but it looks okay, right?

Is this just what happens when you aren’t sweating most of the day?

The mystery of seasons!

-b-

1/2 Marathon Confirmation

It's official. I'm running 13.1 miles on January 17th. I got my entry confirmation today along with my packet pickup information.

I'm so nervous, I had horrible dreams about it last weekend. Way too much anxiety about doing this. It's because I didn't train as much as I planned. Being sick for so long really took a toll.

Despite the dream and nervousness, I did jog 9 miles last weekend. It was my longest training run and probably my slowest. But I did it and didn't feel like total crude afterwards. That made me a little more hopeful (and ensured a much better night's sleep).

I was hoping to do another mid-length jog this week, but there is supposed to be an Arctic blast here (seriously, they are talking in the teens. That is REDUNKULOUS for Houston). And then we have a friend's wedding this weekend that will occupy a lot of time.

My 3-4 at the Y on the treadmill will have to suffice. I'm hoping to download some more music to my mp3 player in anticipation - any recommendations?

-b-

Voting help needed

I have a couple of great girlfriends that are trying to MAKE IT as filmmakers in New York. They write, act, direct, edit, basically EVERYTHING. They're my pals Liz and Katie:

Here's Liz (http://www.lizleenyc.com/)

And Katie:

See? Don't they look lovey?

They've worked really hard to write a script and have entered it into the Ultimate Filmmaker Competition. This competition seeks to find unknown talented filmmakers and gives them a boost....the prize is a grant to make the movie they submitted and comes with all sorts of other great stuff that help make movies happen.

They've already made it past the first round, but now they need help. If you have a couple minutes, watch their Introduction Video and vote for Katie Carman!

{Argh...I don't know how to get their clip embedded in the blog, but click the link above and it'll take you right there}

If you have a couple more minutes, watch the second clip on the same webpage. It's from their first feature film Eat Me!

This is a film they put together with basically a volunteer staff and maybe some money they found under the couch. Seriously these woman are pretty clever with very little resources, winning the Ultimate Filmmaker Competition would be HUGE for them.

Voting ends Friday...so the sooner the better. Here's the link again.

http://www.ultimatefilmmakercompetition.com/contestant/katiecarman

Thanks!!

-b-

Resolutions recap

New year resolutions. These are tricky every year. You always want to improve, be a better person and I’m no different. I want to be better. But how? What will I really change with each year? Last year I had three resolutions:

1. Take a self-defense course.


Did this one! In January no less. It was helpful in that it made me more aware of my surroundings and gave me some confidence that I could fend off an attacker.

This was our safety jump! We were ready to take on the world.

Which reminds me, this is probably something good to do each year.

2. Sign up for Spanish classes.

Um. Nope. Didn’t do this one. Lo siento. Looked it up, but never signed up. I took Spanish in highschool and really wanted to take a course so that I could talk to people when we travel. We’ve traveled somewhere Spanish-speaking three years in a row and each time I can kind of understand people, but when I attempt to respond – I butcher the language. So instead, I'm a lam-O and rely on my husband to talk to people and translate back & forth. Three years running.

3. Create an Etsy store.

I decided against this one about halfway through the year. I was all geared up about it, but I’m pretty attached to my stuff and I guess a giant wimp. I didn’t want to put my stuff out there and then people don’t buy it. Or don’t like it as much as I do. And the idea of making stuff without knowing the person seemed a little funny. When I’m making a necklace, I’m usually thinking of the person I’m making it for.

So this year. 2010. What will I work on, learn, or achieve? I need to think it over, maybe tomorrow I'll have some ideas.