Sorry, I'm Not Sorry.....

I just ran across Crystal Michelle's link-up. Only, this week's topic is parenting. I'm not a parent, so I'll do my own little "Sorry, Not Sorry"......

Sorry, I'm Not Sorry..... that I watched 'Grey's Anatomy' last night and cried a couple times. Especially when they "danced it out." Shonda Rimes did such a brilliant job of calling back to some Cristina/Meredith-isms that dated back to the very first season. Loved it.

Sorry, I'm Not Sorry..... that I got a little giddy when I saw the preview for a new SR show coming this Fall.

Sorry, I'm Not Sorry.... that I'm such a TV junkie that my first three are about TV.

Sorry, I'm Not Sorry.... that FD requested to follow me on Twitter, so I went back to delete mentions/convos of him from the past year before accepting his request. Let's just hope that he doesn't decide to go back any further that that because there are probably some doozies.

Sorry, I'm Not Sorry..... that the weather in Florida today has me positively GIDDY. It's in the 60s right now with no humidity and a nice breeze. I want to just be outside.

Sorry, I'm Not Sorry.... that I've done absolutely nothing productive at work today. It's just one of those "Brain Is Tired, Must Not Turn On" days.

Have a great weekend!!!

Monday Musings

I met a friend for lunch today at Panera.

Please imagine my utter disbelief and joy when I saw they had the Strawberry Poppyseed and Chicken salad!!!

It's not even Memorial Day, people. Just so wonderful.

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My family has *finally* decided on vacation. The amount of time this decision has taken is ridiculous.

Anyway....... A cruise to tropical locations.

My currently flabby behind better get in gear.

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I have no motivation to do anything remotely productive today.

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So, I recently met a major "one-upper." She is a pretty nice person and tries really hard. However, I get annoyed with every conversation I have with her (she's a friend of a friend).

Anything you have done, she has done better.

Anyone you know, she knows better.

If you've visited Italy, she had dinner with the Pope.

You get what I mean.

Moral of the Story: Do not be a One-Upper.

This Princess Wears Running Shoes...

So, this is a couple months late, but I figured now is as good a time as any, right?

One of the reasons I started running was because I decided that one of my Bucket List items was to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon. In fact, I made it one of my 101 in 1001.

I'll be honest, after I ran the ToT 10 miler, I started slacking. Majorly. I wasn't as prepared as I could/should have been. But, I decided to do my best and work to do better next time. I mean, you have to have a baseline, right?

On Saturday, Feb 22nd, we picked up our packets and got our official race bibs....

Disney really does know how to up the excitement for these races. It's a whole weekend event (with kids runs, 5k, 10k, and a fitness expo). We spent a good amount of time walking around after we officially checked in. My mom and Jeff ran the 5k on Friday, so they were up there. We went to dinner at Downtown Disney and called it an early night as we had to be on the bus by 4am.

When the alarm went off at 3:15am, I can't say we were too thrilled. But, we did make it on the bus by the appropriate time...... only to discover that we both left our room keys in the room.

3:50 am...... It seemed like a good idea back in July......

As early as it is, Disney also knows how to wake you up. Music, lights, etc. Plus, the people watching is stellar..........

There are over 25,000 people that run this race and everyone is split into corrals (A-P). So, imagine our delight when we found our friend Leigh-Anne and her hubby as soon as we made it to our corral (I, ftr).

Did I mention that LA is preggos? And, she'd run the 10k the day before?

Megan and I were shamed and declared that next year, it was a must.

Once the race actually started, we all crossed the start line together, but quickly separated. Usually, Megan is faster than me, but she was still recovering from knee surgery. LA and her husband already decided to take it slow. I went on by myself.

Again, Disney does know how to do these races. They always have some sort of entertainment along the way, picture stops, etc. Except for my one bathroom break around mile 2, I didn't stop.

Well, except to take this picture.......

There was something SO amazing about being able to take a picture in front of the big Magic Kingdom sign/parking booths. Typically, it's full of cars wanting to park. I'll admit, I got a little emotional when I reached that point.

Also, before we even got there, we saw the fastest runners coming back from MK. As in, we were just hitting mile 3 and they were on mile 8. It was pretty cool to cheer them on. They each had a bicyclist riding next to them to make sure they were safe (because they were basically running by themselves).

Another incredible moment...... so, as I was running, I was sort of staying in the same pack as this woman and her friends. The back of her shirt said, "This Princess Used To Be Paralyzed."

I thought to myself how wonderful it was.... Then, we got to Main Street. She stopped in her tracks, turned her back from the castle, and just burst into tears. Her friends surrounded her and they were all crying.

It was such a beautiful, inspirational moment. I am tearing up just typing about it. I, also crying, told her what a great job she was doing and kept running.

Generally, I don't stop for the picture spots on these races. The lines are long and it is for characters (which I can see whenever). However, when I got to the castle, I decided I DEFINITELY needed to get a picture. Somehow, my sister managed to catch up, so we were able to get a picture together......

Yes. I am using the Proofs. I'm not paying $30 for the one picture. Anywho.....

Keeping it real...... Miles 7-10 sucked. Like really, really bad. At one point, I could only tweet how bad it was....

One of the reasons I started this whole journey with running is because of how far it pushes me out of my comfort zone. It is a physical and mental challenge. It brings out so many of my old insecurities. It is something that no one (including me) ever though I could accomplish. The fact that I get up at 5:15am regularly to run (or run after work, if I don't quite make it out of bed) is proof of how much I've personally changed.

But, it is hard. Especially when you're in the middle of running 13.1 miles. 

When I hit the ten mile mark, my body got a boost of energy. Granted, my mind thought, "If I were doing the Tower of Terror, I would be done, right now."

One thing that kept me going was all the funny signs. One particularly awful incline had a group of several basically calling us all crazy for even attempting. It was funny, lol.

This was my personal favorite, right around Mile 12.......

When I got into EPCOT and was headed to the exit (you go in, run to the lake and then run back), I saw Megan was just entering. Sister power walked the whole thing. I ran back to her and we finished the race together!

My ending time was 3:08:29 and my place was 11672. It wasn't what I originally was hoping for (back in October before I started slacking), but I did better than I expected. And, I finished ahead of over half the people that participated!

And, I earned this beauty.............

Random Internet Funnies

We all take great pleasure in the funnies that the Interwebs provide. Here are some of my most recent favorites.....

(I have no idea where these originated.... They are not mine. If they are yours, let me know and I'll give you credit)

 

This one may be more local to me, but yesterday we had a Halo Sun. Insert one million photos that looked a lot like this on my FB feed. Don't get me wrong, it was really cool, but everyone and their brother/aunt/uncle/cousin was posting their view of it.....

Monday Musings....

Hi there....... I promise that one day, you will magically find that I'm posting regularly again. That all the drafts I have of occurrences in my life I want documented are being finished and published.

Not happening, today, nope. But, someday.

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Between the series end of 'How I Met Your Mother' and the killing off of Will on 'The Good Wife', I've been an emotional TV watching wreck.

There should be some happiness, though.....

 

Tomorrow marks the 51st Anniversary of 'General Hospital' and on it will be all three Carly's (as pictured, Tamara Braun, Maurice Benard (Sonny), Laura Wright, and Sarah Brown). I'm a geek, but I'm a geek who has always LOVED Carly..... and, more importantly, S&C on GH. So, when this picture started popping up on IG and Twitter over the weekend, I became happy.

*** To further prove my geekdom.... There were actually four Carly's. However, Jennifer Bransford's rendition didn't last more than a few months and seems to have been conveniently forgotten.

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I'm in a new phase, it seems. A phase of trying to cut out negativity..... or, better yet, people trying to stifle who I am.

Recently, I was texting someone and I typed the following....

"I'm at a point in my life where I'm done caring what other people think. Like, I never want to intentionally hurt anyone, but I'm done not being me and hurting myself all because I'm afraid that being me will hurt someone else."

Not sure how long this is going to last, but I hope it's a long time.

It does come with consequences, though..... There have been some uncomfortable moments of realizing that a person doesn't appreciate me being me. I've discovered that there are certain people with whom I just can't share certain things. A couple of tests have come, I've found myself slipping back into the "Oh, no!! I'll just not do that because I don't want to offend!" mode, and then I have to pep myself back up.

They say that your 30's are the time that you really become more comfortable with who you are. I can see how that happens.

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Physically, I let myself go from October until February. Bad.

I'm getting back in the game (hopefully, for good) and it sucks as much as it's great. I lost two pounds last week. I enjoyed fresh air while working out. I ate really well.

I also was tired, moody, and hungry. The sore (and I was sore) didn't really bother me, but the moody/tired did.

I know that I'll start to feel better overall once I keep at it. It's just the getting into the routine that is rough.

Luck 'O' the Irish

Happy St Patrick's Day, Everyone! So far, my day has been very green and very lucky....

Uh, yeah..... That is Bill Cosby!!! He came by for interviews, which was pretty friggin awesome!

File that under "Awesomely Famous Celebrity That I NEVER Imagined I Would Meet."

I'm glad for the good note, as today marks the 10th Anniversary of Mike's Death. He was such a gentle giant and his presence is missed. However, I do think that he is looking down on us from Heaven..... happy at how we are all turning out.

Have a safe and happy day!!!

I'm the kinda girl.....

Oh, hey there. It's been yet another long period of time where I haven't said much. Pretty much the theme of this blog 'o' mine, lately.

Between life being very busy and my mind being full of stuff that I'm not sure I want to say aloud, I just haven't been able to write.

However, thanks to a couple of my favorite reads, I came across this link-up and thought I'd join....

.... alternates between extreme self-control+efficiency and extreme laziness+disorder. There is rarely an in-between. Most of the time, I'm ok with this fact about myself. Usually, I figure that it balances out in the end. There are times, though, where I wish I could be a little more "middle of the road."

.... cannot say "No" to cookie cake. Ever. Sometimes I can deny regular cookies or cake or brownies or ice cream. Most of the time, I can turn down pie or candy or donuts. However, cookie cake has a power over me that I have yet to concur.

..... likes to watch her favorite movies, TV episodes, and read books over and over and over, again. I never get tired of them. With books, I will occasionally just flip through to my favorite parts and read.

.... isn't a T-totaler, but isn't necessarily a "party girl." This is an area in which I am "middle of the road." I get tipsy, but only when I am with people I absolutely trust and in an environment in which I feel safe.

.... has dreamed of her wedding since she could remember dreaming. That being said, as traditional as I tend to be in most aspects of life, there are SO many things about my wedding in which I plan to be completely nontraditional.

.... usually can put myself in another person's shoes. Which makes it difficult for me to stay mad/hurt/etc. Even when I don't agree, I do tend to see their side.

.... over-analyzes EVERYTHING. Boy, do I over-think.

.... is 100% stereotypical when it comes to cars, mice, and getting dirty. I refuse to know anything about cars... including how to change a tire or my oil. I have literally jumped onto counters at the site of a mouse. I can't get too sweaty or too dirty for too long, without needing a shower ASAP. All of this is fine with me.