Trying to keep my legacy account from disappearing I think...

Solana Beach Triathlon Experience

When I turned 35 a year and a half ago, I wrote a list of 50 things I wanted to do in the next 35 years. Today I get to cross one of them off- I competed in my first triathlon. I am hoping that it is one of many... I had such a great day today. If anyone is thinking of taking up this sport I highly recommend Solana Beach's triathlon.
San Diego is considered the modern birthplace of the triathlon; so it can be an intimidating place to start out, but everybody was so nice today. Yesterday at the Expo there was a 2 hour newbie course overview. They covered everything and the instructor Steve Tally was amazing he came running by me during the run section - he took 2nd place for his age group. Not only was he funny - that man can run!
On Steve's advice I got to the race a little before 5am this morning. I got great parking and got a great end spot on the bike rack; so I could have plenty of room to lay my shoes and stuff out. It was fun watching all the competitors show up, the different bikes, outfits and bodies gave me hope that I wasn't completely out of my class.
I got down to the beach to get comfortable with the water and see what the course looked like. There was a fairly strong northern current, but the surf was crazy calm. I ran into an old high school friend Heather Hawthorne(married name Thelen?? I think) It was amazing to watch the Elites and a few waves take off before my heat. You can learn a lot just by watching others. My heat had about 142 women from 30-39. After last weekends swim clinic I was expecting to get pummeled, but women are obviously more civilized in the water. I got a couple of really good drafts(which is legal in the swim) after getting around the first buoy. Before I knew it I was going around the second buoy and headed back to shore. Got a little washing machined with about 10 other women when a rogue wave rolled through, but actually carried me pretty far into shore; so besides the water up the nose - not a bad ride!
Out of the water there was a fair little run up an incline, across a street to get to the bike transition area. I was psyched that there were still a fair number of bikes on the racks in my age group. Wet suit came off relatively painlessly - put shirt and shorts and shoes and helmet on and trotted with bike to the bike out area. I mounted my bike off to the side so as to not cause any collisions and didn't really want to get mowed down to start my ride. The bike was my big fear of the day. I've swum my whole life - I've done marathons and half marathons before - but the bike was all new. I clipped in one shoe and made the first turn and merged into the heats that were ahead of me. The second shoe took a little while to get clipped in, but about two minutes into the ride I finally heard the click - I was now ready to ride. The first stretch of biking I sounded like a wheezing asthmatic as I tried to get salt water out of my nose and just get comfortable. I'm not sure if it is the wet bathing suit that then gets the bike shorts pad wet that made the saddle a little less friendly, but get to the first of 4 u-turns on the course and I don't fall and I don't obstruct other riders yippee!! The bike ride wasn't bad despite all my fears, I did okay. Whatever advantage I had out of the water I lost on the bike, but today was an internal race and I passed a few on my ride...
With for me a graceful (not flying) dismount from the bike I headed back to my transition area - this time the sight of all the bikes on the racks was not comforting... Got out of the bike shoes and into my Adidas. Headed to the run out stomped on all the timing mats and headed out. This is where the race got ugly - it felt like I had 20 lb ankle weights on each foot! The shuffle that ensued was not pretty. The first mile was an ugly mess, but after the first mile my legs started to feel more normal and the shuffle picked up and I got into a rhythm. I started to sing "I Can Only Imagine" in my head which is an inspiring song in it's own way, but there is a you tube video with the Hoyt's - an Ironman son and father that I find truly inspiring. If I feel weak - I only have to think of this video.
I finished the race in 1:26:01. I was anticipating a 1:30 time so I was happy that I gained some time somewhere - they haven't posted the splits yet... I just feel blessed that I can compete and have fun in the process. Thanks to everyone who sent encouraging words and thoughts.

Inventor

Not sure how accurate, but interesting...

35 Years Old - The Next 35

I have been so blessed over the past 35 years, I have traveled and accomplished many of my goals. One way to achieve a goal is to write it down and share it with people you love. This is a list of 50 things I would like to accomplish over the next 35 years.
1. Own an oceanfront beach house
2. Own a dog
3. Be flown in a corporate jet
4. Write a book and have it published
5. Fall in love and marry the man of my dreams
6. Meet the Pope
7. Meet George Clooney (possibly solve number 5)
8. Travel to all the continents
9. Compete in a triathlon
10. Go into outer space
11. Earn a graduate degree
12. Learn to paint
13. Achieve and maintain my ideal body weight
14. Own a convertible
15. Live overseas
16. Write real letters to my friends
17. Volunteer
18. Be serenaded to by someone I love
19. Dance with my dad at my wedding
20. Join a book club
21. Compete in an engineering contest
22. Join an investment club
23. Perform at the Bluebird Café in Nashville, TN
24. Build a house with Habitat for Humanity
25. Actually organize photos and stuff into scrapbooks
26. Go to the Louvre
27. Throw a dinner party
28. Work like I don’t need a paycheck
29. Have a fully stocked emergency kit
30. Go camping – tent, no running water, the real thing
31. Hike the Grand Canyon
32. Play Poker in Las Vegas
33. Spend $1000.00 on a pair of shoes and not feel guilty
34. Spend a night at the Hotel Chateau Marmont
35. Meet Oprah Winfrey
36. Get backstage passes to a concert
37. Have a Mojito while dancing Salsa in Cuba
38. Attend a Superbowl
39. Dive the Great Barrier Reef
40. Become a decent surfer
41. Be a decent human being
42. Be a great/cool aunt to my niece and nephew
43. Get kissed by a seal
44. Learn to sew sutures
45. Learn to sew well enough that I would wear what I made in public
46. Find a tailor and have my clothes altered to fit me
47. Join a civic organization
48. Smile and look strangers in the eye
49. Go white water rafting
50. Be grateful for all the people in my life

Puppy RIP 12/25/2005-8/18/2006

My previous blog I said I don't cry often, but tonight the tears fell down once again. My blue betta fish, Puppy took a leap of faith from his bowl to the kitchen counter. This event occurred sometime between 3:00pm and 9:00pm this evening pacific standard time. I was unaware of the distress that Puppy was suffering in the kitchen and by the time that I came across his body on the cold granite counter it was too late.

Not that that stopped me from immediately placing him back in his bowl even though he resembled more of a plastic fish than a once living soft body fish. His fins were so desiccated, but ever an optimist I placed him back in his bowl and for a brief moment I had hope that resurrection was still possible. Whether it was gas or some electrical impulse when first placed back in the water he wriggled and to the eyes of an ever hopeful person he swam. But this was a short burst of hope. I then watched helplessly as his lifeless body fell to the black gravel. I set the kitchen timer for 30 minutes thinking that maybe he needed a rest. I went back into my room not wanting to accept the fact that Puppy was gone. It was my fault. I had taken the cover off of his aquarium that morning when I was feeding him and had not put it back on. Was he mad at me for leaving him alone for a day and a half? Was he curious about what occurred outside his narrow confines? Was he sad? The kitchen timer brought me back to his tank to confirm what my brain had already known, but my heart was unwilling to accept. Puppy was gone.

I received Puppy as a Christmas gift this year. He was my first pet as an adult. Even as a kid I had never had fish, but Puppy was feisty and had his own personality. I talked to him and he would flare in response. I spoiled him with new plants and tanks and $5.00 betta water. I couldn't take him for walks on the beach, but he became part of my family. I will miss waking up and feeding him and coming back home and talking to him as I unload groceries into my kitchen counter. I will miss him dearly.

Puppy
12/25/2005 - 8/18/2006

Amazing Video

I don't cry easily and usually I won't cry when I think I am being manipulated to cry such as Steel Magnolias or Terms of Endearment, but this video just gets to me. I have watched it several times and each time it touches me. The music, the fact that these are real people, the beauty and nobility of being human, I don't know...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjPrL3n63yg

Saturday Night Dinner and a Movie in San Diego

Woody Allen - what makes him funny? I find him annoying. And yet last night I sat in a dark movie theater, ten dollars lighter, and the gentleman behind me started laughing the minute Woody Allen appeared. He wasn't funny. There was no reason to be laughing at this stage of the movie Scoop. Maybe since I am not an avid Woody fan, there were allusions to jokes from previous movies? I don't know, but found myself being angry at this guy behind me. It was like he wanted us to laugh with him because it was a Woody Allen film - not because it was funny. The movie Scoop wasn't that bad. Woody annoyed me, but overall the movie was harmless. It is one that I wouldn't recommend to friends, but one that I wouldn't denounce either. Hugh Jackman is gorgeous, if somewhat unmotivated. The entire plot is unbelievable and the actors do a decent job if you get over the fact that they have no motivation.

Leaving the movie Scoop with my two friends, who were raving about it we decided to head out to Hillcrest for dinner. Unbeknownst to us it was Gay Pride weekend. The first inkling that we had left conservative Republican San Diego was the near naked man walking along the sidewalk. We had taken a back road route to get into Hillcrest; so I thought that maybe this was a singular incident. Hillcrest is known as a gay neighborhood, but is not known for being outrageously so. It is also known as having some amazing restaurants so onward we drove. Once in the heart of town it became clear that "near-naked man" was not going to be a unique sight. Also every restaurant and store was showing their rainbow colors with flags and balloons. Michele was talking intently with her mom. Heather and I were trying to decide whether we were up for this intense people watching experience. I decided against dinner in Hillcrest in the desire to not be on the nightly news with three women. Cowardly - perhaps.

Michele was still on the phone. Lisa is planning her wedding so there is much to discuss, and since I was driving, I decided to head to a neighborhood that I was more demographically comfortable with, La Jolla. I gave Heather the choice of Mexican or Moroccan. Heather decided to be adventurous; so off to Marrakesh we headed.

We followed the belly dancer into the plush darkened interior of the restaurant. The restaurant was relatively empty. Heather and I chose the bolstered sofa. Michele sat on a chair exposed to the possible antics of the belly dancer. Saturday night is a fixed prix dinner with 5-6 courses. This was Heather and Michele's first time eating Moroccan. The hand washing and towel napkins set the mood for a different dining experience. I ordered vegetarian, while Michele and Heather ordered lamb and chicken for the main course. The tomato soup was refreshing and the bread amazing. Then came my favorite item the salad made of cucumber, carrots and eggplant. It was delicious. Next came a savory dish. Mine was rice fried into a cake covered with cinnamon and sugar. Michele and Heather had a fried cake filled with chicken and decorated with a cinnamon camel also covered in sugar. The main meal consisted of couscous and vegetables for me and couscous and meat for everybody else. By this time the belly dancer had appeared and the restaurant started to fill with patrons. The table next to us was filled with two couples. I would guess that the men were Egyptian or at least middle-Eastern. They danced with the belly dancer. I was now stuffed and having drunk over eight glasses of water with lemon was in need of a restroom. Sadly - the restaurant was having plumbing problems; so had to cross the street to Sammy's to use the facilities. Upon returning there was a yummy mint tea and baklava.

It was a fun women's weekend. I would have had better stories had I stayed in Hillcrest, but think I had more fun in La Jolla.