October Running Round-Up

October 1^st everyone!

Safe to say September brought me the most miles I’ve ever run in one month. This could be why I’m a bit burned out on training. It could also be why my left foot has started hurting. I just need to get through the race and then I’m going to take some time off from running. 

Here’s what happened on the pavement this month:

 Sep 1: 3 mi OT in 31:00, humid

Sep 4: 4.5 mi TM in 40:24, 9:20/9:02/9:02/8:41

Sep 8: 4 mi OT in 40:00, finally

Sep 9: 9 mi OT in 1h38min, 10:56 avg pace, tough!

Sep 11: 5 mi TM in 43:249:05/8:47:/8:42/8:48/8:09, left foot pain

Sep 13: 4 mi TM in 33:52, 8:28 avg pace

Sep 16: 10 mi OT in 2:00, slow....HARD

Sep 18: 5 mi OT in 51:00, 10ish pace. Foot pain

Sep 23: 6 mi OT in 58mins, 9:40 pace. Foot pain last mile

Sep 25: 5 mi TM in 44:01, 8:48 pace, some foot pain

Sep 30: 10.1 mi OT in 1:44, hip pain halfway

 Total: 62.6 miles!!!

Holy cow! Most miles in a month, EVER! I’m really proud of those miles, even if some of the times weren’t my finest moments. I am ready for this race to be done though. I’m not sure what I’ll do after that. I’ll still shoot for 50 miles/month that I think I’ll be able to attain easily. One thing’s for sure. Distances like 5 and 6 miles seem easy to me like 3-4 used to be. That’s progress, right?

Recipe Reblog

A recipe to entertain with this week. I got it from a good friend of mine. She served it at their house at our recent double garage sale and I liked it so much, of course I asked for the recipe. I think that's a great compliment to a host, don't you? At least I hope it is. I ask for a lot of recipes when I eat at other peoples' houses. Maybe I'm just a copycat chef. Oh well!

Nanny's Veggie Dip: This is a great vegetable dip (or chip or pretzel) recipe that can easily be lightened up. Instead of sour cream, I used Greek yogurt. It tasted the same, saves calories and adds protein. Win! I cut this in half and it was a good amount for 4 people. It says to use prepared mustard and it wasn't until I had it all mixed up that I remembered my friend told me she uses Dijon instead of yellow mustard. That completely slipped my mind! It tasted fine with yellow but it's better with Dijon. You may even have everything for this in your pantry. Give it a try!

Nerves

Just about 3 weeks until the half marathon. I can only assume that others who have reached this point in training for their first long race are feeling much like I am. Doubtful, nervous, tired. I have followed my training plan almost to a T. I’m actually quite proud of that, thinking early on that I would certainly skip runs here and there but really, I haven’t. I have just completed my longest ever run at 10 miles. I think my doubts are coming from the amount of time it took me and the amount of walking I succumbed to. Finally, two hours after I began, I was spent, which I expected. My mind wasn’t in this run at all. As John and I pulled into the park we both said, “I’m really not in the mood for this.” I was sunk before I set sail. Unfortunately, my pace was a lot slower than my projected 10/min mile pace that I originally set for myself. I think it might be time to re-evaluate my pace projections. Time to face reality. Now, I believe that as long as I finish, I have succeeded. Sure, I’d like to run it sub-2:30 but I’m not sure that’s attainable. I’d rather not die before it’s over. It will all come down to the conditions of the day, I guess. No two training runs are alike. What’s curious is that the day after a terrible 10 mile run, my body has bounced back much quicker than the day after a great 9 mile run. What is that about?
I wish I had been able to squeeze in a 5K or 10K as recommended but those races didn’t line up the way I wanted them to. I hope I don’t suffer because of that. For now, I have to try to push these skeptical thoughts from my head and wipe out this defeatist attitude. Running is all mental and my mind needs to get to a better place. Fast! My dad keeps asking if I’ve hit that runner’s high yet. I say no. If you don’t really know, you probably haven’t, right? My hope at the end of this 12 weeks was that I would love running. So far, I still don’t love it. It’s tolerated, at best. Dang, there go those negative thoughts again. Fake it till you make it. I will finish this race as strong as I can with a smile on my face. And then I will never run double digit miles again.
Looking for encouragement from those who’ve been there…….

Downtown Dayton Revival - A Photo Tour

Earlier this month, John and I went to the Downtown Dayton Revival music festival. This was the inaugural event of a 2-day festival held on a few street blocks on the streets of downtown Dayton. We weren't able to attend the second day but here's what went down on Day 1.

The weather was absolutely amazing! We couldn't have asked for a better day. There was a lot of rain the day before but it cleared up and remained in the 70's the whole time. Here I am after having just arrived. Gates opened at Noon but we had errands to run and didn't know any of the earlier bands so we arrived around 3:00 pm.

I had to show you my new bad ass bracelet. It's made from a vintage belt and I bought it at a craft festival last weekend. Don't I look super tough when I wear it? I wanted to feel like a rockstar so I wore it today too. It says, "Don't mess with me" in a not so subtle way.

There were three stages about a block apart. We did have to pay for parking but I expected that. They also ran a free shuttle to the Dayton Art Institute where the Greek Festival was being held. If we were attending both days I definitely would have taken advantage of that. You know what they say. Never pass on baklava.

Motel Beds on stage - we didn't know them but they were good



The Wheels on stage - didn't know them either but they were decent.



This was the main stage

Unfortunately, as a first time festival, there really weren't that many people there. That ended up turning out really nicely for those in attendance. You could get really close to the stages without trying to hard. Plenty of room to move around in between the sets, no food lines, etc and so on. The amount of people made it feel like a much more intimate festival.

And what's a festival without libations? This truck had about 20 taps coming out the side of it. And not just Bud Light here, no sir. Stella, Shocktop, Sam Adams, and more. Great selection and at $5 for a beer, well, you just can't beat that price at an event of this nature.

Once you've had your fill of beer, you have to face a sad truth. We are outside and none of these buildings around us have public toilets. So, you hold your breath and tough it out. Actually, these weren't as hateful as some porta-potties can be. Probably a testament to the lower attendance levels. There were plenty to choose from and never a line.

While there were more than 20 bands playing over the two days, we were there for 2 specific artists on the bill. The first is one of my all-time favorite bands Guster. I have loved them since high school and have seen them in concert 8 times. I guess you could say I'm a fan. Theirs was the first name I read when I first heard about the festival and immediately emailed John, "We're going."

Adam - Brian - Ryan

They played a great mix of old and new which I appreciated because I like their older albums better. They did not disappoint! But, I knew they wouldn't. And we were able to stand really close which was great. Here's the only bad part about the main stage, all of these old people (and by old I mean easily 30 years older than me) had parked their collapsible chairs in a cluster right up by the stage. I know they just wanted good seats for the headliner (more on that later) but they also just sat in them during the sets of all the other bands (including Guster) and just didn't seem like they were having a good time at all. So, while we were maybe 30 feet from the stage, we could have been a lot closer. Oh well.

This is right after Adam and I had a moment during Amsterdam. Pretty sure we locked eyes even.  I know he saw me.

Singing Ramona




They played for over an hour and we loved every second of it! Good crowd support and they were funny in between sets. It was awesome. After that it was time to wait a bit for the headliner.
I should also tell you there were a ton of food vendors to choose from. I had a Thai PB&P sandwich from our favorite local food truck. John had cabbage and noodles and earlier we had split salt and vinegar fries. There was chicken, mexican, gyros, lots of stuff.

The headliner for the second evening was Train. I wouldn't have minded seeing them but a Sunday night just wasn't happening. We are too old to get home that late on a school night. The headliner for Saturday was.....John Legend! John Legend is local to Dayton and comes back to town for various events but not usually to play. John (my husband) didn't really care about seeing him but was a good sport about sticking around. He also put on a really good show. Although by then, our feet and backs were tired! You could bring in blankets but we never sat down on ours as you wouldn't have been able to see.

These pics didn't turn out as well because our camera is not good with night shots and we weren't as close to the stage.

It's him. I promise.

Tickling the ivories

I'm really glad we went, even though we had to pay for 2 days but only attended one. I hope this becomes an annual event here in Dayton with great music. It also fulfilled my 'try new things' challenge that I just invented for myself. High five, Ashley!

Gone Girl

Source

When a book quickly climbs to the #1 spot on the NY Times Bestseller list, it's generally worth checking out. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn is such a book.

Good Reads' Synopsis: "On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?"
What I Thought: WOW! What a page turner. Great characters, inventive plot. Good stuff. Here's your caveat -- the ending is one of those in which you may be disappointed. I wasn't sure how I wanted it to end but, well, I'll let you read it for yourself. Despite the ending, it's definitely worth picking up. I couldn't put it down and those are my favorite kind of books.

Rating: * * * *

Recipe Reblog

A chocolate chip cookie for you today......

Copycat DoubleTree Chocolate Chip Cookies: If you’ve stayed at a DoubleTree Hotel then you’re already familiar with this recipe. If not, you must book a night at one if you can. Underneath the counter in a special warmer, they have the most amazing cookies for their guests. They don't even give you the side eye when you go ask them for your 4th or 5th one.

This is a copycat recipe and it’s pretty spot on. The only adjustment I made was to leave out the walnuts. I like walnuts and think nuts in general get a bad wrap but when in doubt, leave it out. My batches didn’t turn out as pretty as the cookie you get at the hotel but the taste was identical! This is more than just your typical chocolate chip cookie. With the addition of cinnamon and a little lemon juice, they are elevated to an exciting cookie level. Bake these up!

Stuff

You guys. The other day John and I went to a festival and there were old-timey cars there. One of them had a mannequin in the drivers' seat. I was staring at it when the mannequin smiled at me. It wasn't a mannequin. It was a human. Who is the creeper here? Me for staring, or the old man for pretending to be a mannequin in his car?

Can we all agree that Troop Beverly Hills should have won the Oscar the year it came out? I mean really.

Raise your hand if you are beyond excited for fall TV. The other day, John asked me what show I was most looking forward to and I named about 14. That doesn't mean I want too much TV, does it?

It's candy corn season, y'all! I've been enjoying my first bag of mellowcreme pumpkins and have put out on APB for the coveted and much sought after white chocolate Halloween M&M's. Target was already sold out. On September 7th.

That's all I got party people.