Um ... I'm Pretty Sore

I figured my run yesterday wouldn't be that big of a deal. Obviously
I have run before, and even without running I have been exercising 2-3 times a week.

Today I'm hurting. By legs, back, knees and obliques. I stretched a bit before but didn't really stretch after.

I'm aware I'm getting older (in fact, another year got added to the tally on Friday) but this is just pitiful.

Mission(s) Accomplished

Today was a big day for me. I did a morning run (yes, I actually said I ran and finished the second book in the Twilight series, New Moon.

It was the first time I ran since the Shamrock Shuffle, the 8K I did at the end of March. Seeing as I signed up to do a 10K in just a few weeks, I pretty much had no choice but to get out there today :)

I also finished up my book, which is both good and bad. It's nice to have it done so I can get back to what I'm supposed to be reading, the stuff for my dissertation. But its sad to have finished it because it was enjoyable and something that I looked forward to (for the few days I had it). I didn't need the distraction, so ultimately I am better off finishing it and getting back to reality.

Training Log
Time:34:36   Distance:2.86 mi   Pace:12:10
I went out as slow as possible not knowing what to expect. Its been three months since my last run and I had no idea what sort of reaction my body was going to have. I planned to do about 3 miles, and though I was a bit short I could have easily run the .14 miles left if I had to. I felt pretty good ... my legs were tired and definitely fighting it but I felt fine cardo-wise (which was where I was more concerned there might be an issue). I am sure part of the ease of the run was the slow pace, but I wasn't in a rush so my pace was quite perfect!

It's Here!

Needless to say ... I'm going to bed early tonight :) Time to crack this baby open!

Oh yeah. Brooke's books came too! We already read her one of them :)

Doing The 10K ... Or Maybe the 5K

I signed up for the race! I signed up for the 10K in hopes I would push myself a bit over the next few weeks, but called first and was told I could switch races (from 10K to 5K) if I wanted to. That was all I needed to know!

According to most training plans, it takes 8 weeks to train for a 10K and I have less than 4 until this July 19th race. Hal Higdons 10K training program says I should run 4.5 this weekend, then 5, then 5.5 ... then the race. Since its been a long time since I ran anything at all, I can tell you I wont be doing 4.5 this weekend. I'm gonna try to do 3 this weekend, 4 the next, and 5 the next. If I dont get up to that point then I'll do the 5K on the 19th. Right now I'm not even sure I could do a 3-miler :( Guess we will have to see!

I HAD To Order New Moon

Brooke really needed some new books. Im tired of reading the same ones over and over and she is tired of eating the same ones over an over. So I decided to order a few of the hardcover Dr Seuss books from Barnes & Noble. The problem is, you need to spend $25 to get free shipping and my total wasnt $25. I had no choice but to put New Moon into my shopping cart or I would have paid for shipping. This way, New Moon was practically free.

Ok, so I ordered New Moon and threw in some baby books to get the free shipping. Does it really matter? This way, both Brooke and I win :)

Next Race?

Ive been tossing around the idea of doing a 1/2 Marathon later this year, but need a race or two over the summer to motivate me to move forward and keep running. I may have found one.

The Fleet Feet Sports Women's 5K and 10K takes place on July 19th. I sort of did this race last year. (I walked it since I was about 6.5 months pregnant) So this year if I do it, I actually have to run ... now I'm just trying to convince myself to bite the bullet and sign up for the darn thing.

Friday Funnies

Neither one of these videos has anything to do with anything, but both made me laugh so hard I almost wet my pants. I rarely get that kind of laughter anymore and thought it would be a sin not to share them with anyone else who could use a laugh.

Is There A New Moon On The Horizon?

I finished Twilight last night ... thanks (or no thanks, actually) to a stomach ache that prevented me from sleeping. There were some slight deviations from the movie, but generally the two were one-in-the-same. The book definitely needs to come before the movie, if you are going to choose to do both.

I had decided that I would only read the book at night before bed, a time when I do not ever do school work. BUT, I did not stick to that goal. I read the book during two of Brooke's naps (when I do occasionally do schoolwork, but more often housework) and twice while she was drinking a bottle (a long process because she likes to screw around a lot now that she can feed herself).

I know we wont see the next movie in the theater (its not coming out until November) because we rarely go to the theater anymore. In addition, I have a feeling it would be a teenage frenzy and I'd feel slightly out of place (though I have the maturity of a teenager I sure dont look like one). So I dont need to read the next book until the movie is out on DVD ... that gives me a lot of time. On the other hand, the school semester starts in August and my schoolwork will really ramp up then.

These big life decisions can really be so stressful...

Twilight: First 3 Chapters

I got through the first 3 chapters of Twilight last night. I could/would have read more, but due to recent lack of sleep (thanks to Brooke's two new teeth) I couldnt make it past 10 last night. I generally read a book before the movie, but in this case saw the movie a few weeks ago. So far the book is a very literal translation of the movie (from my perspective at least, in reality it is the other way around ... the movie is an interpretation of the book). While this format is enjoyable if you read a book first it can feel a bit repetitive if you see the movie first. Even the lines quoted in the book were the exact same lines spoken in the movie ... a bit of dejavu for me. Im not sure if the whole book plays out like this, but I do expect it does.

That being said, if I am going to consider reading future books in this series I think I need to read the book before the movie comes out in order to maximize the experience :)

Now that I got that out, I'm back to reading something really thrilling, "Networking as a Means to Strategy Change: The Case of Open Innovation in Mobile Telephony" from a 2007 issue of the Journal of Product Innovation Management. You know you are jealous.

Just One Can't Hurt....

I was in Costco today and they had the whole Twilight series. I was tempted ... but resisted. Sort of.

I bought just the first book, Twilight. Costco sells books pretty cheap so I got a good deal. I also promise only to read it at night, before bed. This way it will not interrupt my schoolwork. In addition, since I got a book, Brooke did too. Everyone wins!

Its only noon, but I cannot wait to go to bed tonight so I can get my read on :)

Lakefront Path

The jogger had a smooth ride on the lakefront path ... When were
leisurely walking. Someday we will work our way up to actually
running with it :)

Dissertation or Twilight Series?

I initially avoided all of the Twilight hype (a book series by Stephenie Meyer, in the event you just got to this planet). I had no intentions on seeing the 1st movie, but my husband actually was the one to rent it. We both liked it, and now previews for the next one have hit:
I love movies and can take 2 hours here and there out of my life to follow this series, but I really want to read the books. Problem is that I need to start on my dissertation. I have been doing a bit of reading (by a bit, I mean about 1 hour total in the past 2 weeks) but need to accelerate the pace and really get into it over the next few months. I have deadlines already set (end of this month, October and January) and in order to meet those deadlines there isnt a whole lot of time for fooling around.

Its an odd coincidence that this trailer hit today, because I have "dissertation time" on my calendar today. Brooke is going to hang out with her sitter while I sit in a coffee shop and try to hit the books. Then I see this movie trailer and it reminds me again that I would rather be reading the Twilight book than the lastest issue of the Journal of Product Innovation Management.

So I have a choice. Do I do my dissertation or drop out of school and read the Twilight Series? Honestly, I'm having a tough time deciding ... Are these books worth it? I think some book lovers might say yes ;)