My DC Weekend - Cherry Blossom 10 Miler

This past weekend was the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Miler in Washington, DC where I got to see Alyssa & Tracy and run an awesome race in a pretty rad city.

What a great weekend with amazing people. 10/10 would do it all again ! After the race, @briandouglas138 and I got to hang around the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History and the Air and Space Museum. Our step count ended up totaling 20 miles for the day !! 🇺🇸❤️🏁👟🌸 #cherryblossom10miler #cherryblossom #washingtonmonument #smithsonian #washingtonDC

A photo posted by Lisa Marie 💀 (@lisamdee) on Apr 3, 2016 at 4:46pm PDT

Figuring It Out

I haven't been around a lot recently and it's for a few reasons.  One, that life got a little crazy after Thanksgiving and things just seemed to spiral out of control and two, I've just been a giant ball of stress.  It's not that I'm afraid or don't want to talk about all that's been happening as it's been happening, it's just that when I'm really stressed out, I have a really hard time writing any type of post because it takes every last ounce of energy I have just to function.  

I'm Only Doing this for Donuts

I was not about to let another Training for Tuesday pass me by without getting on board !

The Evolution of My Blog

I touched on wanting to give my space a makeover recently and I've been making some small alterations here and there.  I've added a Best Of page and also some insight into my future goals. However, I still can't shake the feeling like my blog isn't the best blog it could be.  I want it to be better.

What do you do when you're trying to figure something out in 2015 ? You google it. After spending an afternoon scouring a zillion many blogs, pinterest, and bloglovin', I've come up with a list of goals:

1. Download a blogging planner - plan my posts
2. Create more posts ahead of time - schedule them for when life gets hectic
3. Work on the photos/gifs in my posts - get the pictures off my phone and on the blog !
4. Create more interactive posts - I want to create conversations, not just tell you stories everyday
5. Find my niche - I don't want to pigeonhole myself anywhere but I also don't want to be so random that coming here gives you a sad.

I'm putting these goals up so that I can see progress AND hold myself accountable.  Because part of the blogging community is growing and changing and learning from each other. 

Are there any goals you would add to the list ?

Philosophy of my Mind

I've been thinking about posting some non-floofy posts recently.  Or should I call them, "Get to know the inner workings of a WeebleNugget?"  Maybe I'll just tag them, "Getting to know a Weeble."  Anywho, after having this conversation with a few people recently, I thought "Hey, maybe I'm not the only one who's constantly going 1000mph."  Also, I said I would let everyone out there get to know more about me.  So, *deep breath in* here goes...

Everyone's seen this floating around the internet.

Adulting Sucks.

I really don't want to be an adult.  Mostly because I a) have no idea when I became an adult and 2) totally didn't ask to grow up. There are some major perks, don't get me wrong, but I can't count how many times I want a time machine just so I can go back and slap my younger self anytime I would say something stupid like, "Man, I can't wait to grow up !"

Quitting.

I'm not a quitter.

That sounds like a weird first thing to say for my first blog post back.  However, life is crazy and twisted and awesome and scary and for some weird reason, I feel like a quitter recently.  No, I'm not being hard on myself or looking for encouragement or anything like that. This is not an apology post.  This might be a "I want to hold myself accountable" post. I don't know what it is.

I didn't die

I know, I know....I'm a day late.  But better late than pregnant never, right ?! [For those of you who missed the golden girls reference, please leave this post, go here, watch the episode and then maybe I can forgive you.]

Let's get right down to it: my 5K on Saturday.

I woke up at the most insane hour of 6AM.  Thankfully I set up everything the night before because I knew I would be in zombie mode.  I dragged my feet to my car and drove to the boys place so we could take one car and also because I hate driving/parking in downtown and honestly, I don't function before 9AM.  I then spent the next hour trying to come up with every excuse in the book to NOT run.

(Sorry for the feels Dr. Who fans)

Once I got over my anxiety (and by "got over" I mean I could hold a conversation with friends without wanting to burst into tears), it was okay.  We took some fun pictures and they laughed at my shirt.  Don't hate me, but I don't actually have a good picture of it.  I was slightly worried about not coming in last in front of all my friends ! Oops !

(My eyes are closed but oh well !)

(at the starting line before I hid myself in the anonymity of the crowd)

I adore these people.  I only get as nervous as I do running around them because they are just hands down some of THE most awesome people I have ever met.  But back to my story.

Here's a quick rundown of what happened after that picture:

• Can't get a GPS signal on my watch.
• And they're off !
• "Shoot, Guess I'll just run until it picks up." (I should mention that my watch times my 3:30 run/1:00 walk intervals which it can't do when I'm trying to get the GPS to work)
• Running
• Feeling awesome !
• Nice view of downtown !
• Watch still hasn't picked up GPS
• "How long have I been running ?"
• Get GPS signal
• Start running 3:30 interval.
• "Pretty sure I'm gonna regret this when I'm done."
• "Oh, some uphill, no big - OW !"
• "Am I ever going to go downhill ?!"
• "Thank you directing traffic person !"
• My IT bands just noped the fuck out
• "I'll take 'What is Breathing' for One Million Alex."
• A montage of pain and confusion but I'm walking it off.

• "I have to be done soon"
• Brian comes backtracking and finds me.  I must have had an epic look of relief on my face because he started laughing.
• Meghan and Rita and Matt and all the awesome people show up to run with me.
• Less laughing/talking, more running.
• More Ow.
• Meghan teaches me how to breathe: instant relief
• Running fast !
• Yelling !
• Finish line !
• Run Walk quickly away from people and try not to throw up.
• Drink water and become normal again.

So in summary, I ran longer than I have in about 5 months, it hurt like hell (but I recovered almost instantly which was cool) and I finished sub 30.  When I looked at my watch it only tracked 2.6 miles which makes me figure I ran for about 8 minutes between a 9-9:30 pace before I took a walk break.  Bonus points for being able to go that long, but I feel like it would have made the whole thing easier overall if I had stuck to the original plan.

(The results)

I'm currently trying to figure out my next few races.  I've got just about 3 months to get ready for City of Oaks.  Let's do this !

Other noteworthy things of the weekend:

• Had my chiro appointment for my IT bands after the 5K - ice has been my best friend for 3 days
• Did a lot of laying around with the monsters. Mostly because I couldn't sit/stand/move without pain (BTW - so worth it)
• Finally saw Jaws for the first time ever.  Didn't freak out or have nightmares.  Major points for me.

There you have it ! I'm excited to run again tonight after taking yesterday and Sunday off to give my legs some time to recover.  Based on the 8:30 minutes I actually ran without stopping on Saturday, I'm going to see what I can actually do.  Time to start pushing my limits a little bit !

Hope everyone had a good weekend  (and a good Monday !)

Running Randomness

At this point in my running career, I've come to terms with the fact that I'm going to hurt.  

I'm currently sitting here, typing this for all of you, trying to ignore my legs. Because we're currently not on speaking terms this morning. They woke up (late, I might add) and were all "We're sore ! We're gonna put this knot in your calf ! Hey, we're throwing some shin soreness in there but don't worry because your IT bands are still going to hurt like always ! Nah nah nah nah nah nah !" and I'm all like

and as soon as I'm done laying some fun random running updates on you, I'm making a date with the stick (That's what she said ! Ah !) and going to town with the RockTape.  Hopefully my legs appreciate the attention because they're going back to work tonight.  I found a 3.1 mile route that didn't murder me and I'd like to try that again tonight.  

I have another 5K on Saturday ! I'm actually more nervous about this one than the last one.  Mostly because everyone I know will be running it.  I keep making jokes about how when they're all done, they can come back and get me.  It's funny but at the same time makes me pretty sad that I'm slow enough that all my friends will finish the race, probably walk around for a little bit and still be able to run back, get me and run probably another mile with me while I finish.  This will be the ultimate test of self confidence for me.  I just have to think about putting one foot in front of the other and finishing the race.  It's going to be hard to ignore how slow I'll feel, but the most important thing is that I finish.  I don't have a time goal or anything, I just want to feel like I did my best.  Or as best I can do with doing 3:1 run/walk anyway.  I could chance running the whole thing but I don't think that's my smartest move right now.

After this 5K it's time to buckle down and focus on preparing for the half marathon.  I need to focus on being consistent with how often I run, increase the mileage and avoid injury.  The biggest challenge for me is going to be my diet.

I eat like crap.  Chocolate is the main staple of my diet.  I survive on Goldfish and M&M's.  I'm lactose intolerant and despise fruit (bananas are okay).  I think it is absolutely okay to eat pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (and I learned this weekend that it can also be dessert !) I don't know how to cook and am usually too lazy to go food shopping.  I don't know what food to eat to help with training.  I am THE pickiest eater you will ever meet. Also I'm lazy. If it takes more than 10 minutes to make and I have to use the oven or stove, well it's just not happening.  Cheap, easy, plain jane recipes (especially smoothies) are welcomed and encouraged if anyone has any !

I will leave you with this:  I should be getting my new shoes soon !  

I have been drooling over these babies for over a month now when I first got to try them.  And soon I will own them and it will be awesome and I'm so excited I can't even wait.

Can't wait to get back to Meredith College again tonight to run because last night's run went so well !  So there's your random running updates from me.  There will start to be more of these because, after all, I started blogging so I could share my progress.  As always, thanks for reading you guys !!

Weekending -NO NO NO ! Version.

It's Monday.  Again.  Every week.  At least I have the Nog social run tonight.   Knowing I get to run when I get out of work is about the only thing that keeps me sane enough to get through work. Because mostly all day my answer to everything is "No."  No, I don't want to get up.  No, I don't want to put on pants.  No, I don't want to sit in an office and be nice to people.  

But enough about Mondays and their eternal suckiness.  Let's talk about this weekend (because it was AWESOME !) and this way I can drag my feet a little more and avoid dealing with the fact that the weekend is indeed over.  And I've got lots of pictures for you too !

The 4th was a day spent at the SPCA where I got to spend some quality time with my favorite low rider, Amy:

She's a 3 year old pit mix and adorable doesn't begin to describe her.  Can we talk about those ears ?! I would adopt her in a heartbeat, but she's an alpha female and I already have one at home that would disown me if I brought her another alpha female.  But I love going to visit her and hope one day soon I won't be able to because some awesome family came to scoop her up.

Then it was off to a pool party at a friend's place.  As per the usual with this particular group, there was a lot of laughing, a lot of delicious food (veggie burgers FTW !), and conversation that has provided inside jokes for the next few months...or at least until someone says something more outrageous than the phrase "concrete bikinis".

Since neither Brian nor I are fans of people (especially in large groups with explosions) and I worry about the dogs reaction to fireworks, it was back to my place to watch a very patriotic movie: Team America.  

Apparently Team America is 10 years old already.  Now that we're sad about how old we're all getting, I'll move on.

Saturday started as it usually starts: with a bunch of goofballs at the coffee shop.  The super awesome Rita managed to grab a pic of most of us that morning:

(We're missing Brian and Ed)

Then I headed BACK to the SPCA because an alum was coming back to say hi to the crew and to see about getting a sister ! Also more hangs with Amy.  I then managed to become slightly lobster-ish by not paying attention to my melting sunscreen while I read at the pool.  Oops !

Since life happened back when the movie was in normal theaters, I was super pumped to find out that Mr. Peabody and Sherman was playing at the $2.25 theater that night.  That movie was a great way to end Saturday !  If you haven't seen it, try and find one of those dollar theaters since it doesn't come out on DVD until October !  It was absolutely adorable.

Sunday was by far my favorite day of the weekend.  For the first time in probably about a year, Brian and I have actually had a day off at the same time.  It started, as usual, at the coffee shop.  Basically, in case you haven't figured it out yet, my life is this:

(And it's awesome !)

Then, we went to the flea market down the street.  We were smart and left our wallets in the car.  Which of course means that we found a million awesome things.  But we managed to leave and head to Krispy Kreme without buying a thing ! Go us !

(Top row from the flea market, bottom row from walk)

That night after dinner, we did one of my favorite things and went on a neighborhood walk.  I took a few pictures, but my favorite part was this hidden beach area.  There were people fishing, so we went down a little bit and found the "Money: you're doing it right" house.

(Basically one part of the house is entirely glass...and they have a spiral staircase)

There was also fun art that someone had on their lawn.  Not to mention a ton of "OMG" moments and "I need to live in their guest house".  

Overall, the weekend was EXACTLY what I needed.  Being surrounded by people that I love, not stressing about anything, and having way too much fun (actually that last part isn't possible).  So even though I'm not exactly a super fan of the work week, I feel like I have enough awesome from the weekend to hold me over until this coming weekend.  Who knows what will happen !

How was your holiday weekend ? Everyone still alive and with all their limbs ? Tel me !

SO Done.

I want to bring you a cheery post on this Thursday/Friday.  I really do.  I want to be excited about the upcoming 3 day weekend.  But right now the only thing I can see is how completely and utterly DONE I am with my current position.

I actually really love my life.  It's been years since I could honestly and happily say that my life is awesome.  I have amazing friends, the best partner in crime I could ask for, and 2 dogs that are pretty much the coolest monsters you'll ever meet.  I'm happy (it's been a LONG time since I've said that and meant it) and healthy and I found an amazing new obsession passion and I'm doing it all in a city that I love.

What I don't love is my job.  And it's not a bad job.  It's honestly the best job I've ever had.  But it is not the best job FOR ME and it's starting to take its toll on me.  I am constantly stressed.  After the performance review on Monday, my stress has felt like it's tripled. I don't sleep well.  My appetite is intermittent at best.  I constantly feel like I'm going 100+ mph and honestly just want to slow down.  I feel like I'm gonna get a complex soon !

I know that it's me and it's absolutely my own fault for feeling like this.  I've tried to fit into the mold of "office manager".  But I'm not sure what people expected when you take a crazy philosopher who can't sit still, who has opinions about EVERYTHING, loves debating about things in order to find the best solution, and shove her behind a desk with a set schedule (but be accessible 24/7), give her boring and mundane tasks to carry out only to tell her it's not good enough.  But I keep hearing I have potential ?

So dear friends, I really wanted to bring you sunshine and rainbows today but I need to use all my energy to stay sane so that I (an other people) can stay alive long enough to make it to our 3 day weekend.  No, I currently don't have any plans.  I promise tomorrow will be better and I can't wait to share some fun Friday Favorites and another linkup !  I hope everyone has a better Thursday/Friday than I am.  Counting down the seconds until I'm out the door...

Tuesday randomness

Yesterday sucked.  It wasn't all bad, but an unfortunate event otherwise known as a performance review, sucked out all the happiness I could have had for the day in order to maintain my composure and not get myself fired.  I honestly spent most of my day confused and angry.

I did however, have a meeting with the director of MALS (Masters of Liberal Studies) at NC State and that made a world of difference.  Mostly because it made me remember that I'm not meant to be behind a desk, selling my happiness and sanity for a paycheck.  

So I'm working on rethinking my future and a few major life changes that will hopefully happen. I've made leaps and bounds in the past year about putting myself first and thinking about what is and will be best for me, not only in the short term, but long term goals as well.  In the last year alone:

• Moved to Raleigh (I was originally in Durham and hated it - no offense to those that live there and love it !) and did a giant apartment upgrade for me and the mutts
• Quit smoking after 9 years
• Joined a gym and got a personal trainer
• Started running
• Started training for a half marathon
• Got a job that allows me to be financially independent (regardless of my personal feelings about it currently)

the list can go on and on.  After feeling really down yesterday, I think it's best to remind myself of all the amazing things happening and how much good I have.  

I will say that the best part of yesterday was how amazing and wonderful the 3 most important people in my life were.  Tour guide, confidants, cheerleaders, etc, I know I can count on them for anything.  If it wasn't for them, I would NOT have the energy, drive, or hope to keep my head up and not let stupid things get me down.

MOVING ON !

Time to put all that negativity from yesterday away, keep the drive and fire it lit under my ass and focus on the fun things !  Like soccer...

Sorry all, it's not my forte.  I can talk to you for days about baseball, but you lose me during soccer.  I'll just say "Go sports !" and leave it at that.  (I really just wanted an excuse to use this IT Crowd gif that I found this morning - don't judge me)

In the wake of the mixed emotions presented in today's post, I wanted to leave you with some fun YouTube videos because they're pretty awesome and everyone needs a laugh:

This one is about a year old, but I still get a good laugh at it every time:


What're your favorite YouTube videos when you need a good laugh ?

Now it's time for this girl to go polish her resume and partake in $2 Tuesdays at Gigi's cupcakes.  Cupcakes can be lunch right ? Right.  Thanks for reading !

Weekending - What's sleep ?

It's Monday again...funny how that seems to happen every week despite my objections.  Oh well !  I'm very excited for today's post because I can finally tell everyone how my 5K went this weekend ! And while I'm at it, I figured I could do another linkup as well :)  I love these because I'm finding so many interesting bloggers to stalk follow.

I love seeing posts about "Oh it was great to sleep in" or "I didn't have to set my alarm and it was nice."  On Saturday I got up at the ungodly hour of 6AM to run 3 miles.  My immediate thought:

Followed by:

It was a small race of only 108 people.  I spent a lot of time going back and forth in my head of "It would be cool if someone I knew was here" and "Oh man I hope I don't see anyone I know here".  I was nervous and excited and afraid I would screw something up (not quite sure how as long as I kept putting one foot in front of the other, but I'm a constant worrier so it happens).  About 15 minutes before the race was going to start, I had the best cheerleader I could have asked for show up with tons of good advice (as he'd run the course before) AND he ended up running with me during the hardest part of the course.  I pretty much won at life right there.

I stuck to my 3:1 but since I had music in, sometimes I didn't hear my watch or think to look at it so it ended up being more like 4:1 sometimes (I actually forgot my watch was set for that once I started and did 6:1...oops !)  I loved the course. It was a trail which made it interesting (I've never run on anything not paved before) and it was actually really enjoyable.

The end results were:

(According to my watch)
Time: 30:12.3
Pace:  9:58/mi

(According to the chip)
Time: 30:10
Pace: 9:43/mi

I'm going to go with my watch time for the more accurate results.  And I'm a little sad because it wasn't 3.1 miles (at least according to my watch).  Regardless, I still kicked butt ! When's my next race ?!

(I look ridiculous and gross after the race but I had too much fun to care !)

The rest of Saturday consisted of puppy time at the park, a quick nap (for them) and a birthday party for a 6 year old, which was awesome...except for the ridiculous amount of 6 year olds.  

Besides the 5K, my favorite part of the weekend was a Sunday night adventure around the NC Museum of Art.  It was probably the best way the weekend could have ended.  Now it's back to the daily grind of the work week.  Not sure about anyone else but I am SUPER PUMPED that this is only a 4 day work week.

How was everyone else's weekend ? Tell me, tell me, tell me !