May 2010

Have I mentioned before that I am very particular about flying? I am seriously terrified of airplanes.  As a result, I’ve become very superstitious about my actions as I board.  I kiss my hand and then touch it to the side of the plane before boarding.  I’ve been doing this for more than eight years. [...]

Hello from Houston, Texas!  I have an hour layover, and I’m very excited to see some complimentary Wi-Fi.  Yeeeehaw, Texas!   I always feel like I’ve entered a strange time warp whenever I travel across the country.  It’s weird to lose or gain three hours!   My day started at 5:45 AM California time when [...]

Ever wonder what’s a Healthy Tipping Point?   I wasn’t always the healthiest person.  In fact, I spent most of my college years drinking beer and partyin’ way too hard.  I spent most days on the couch and many nights at the bar!  As a result, I was constantly exhausted and emotionally burnt out.  But [...]

In January 2009, the Husband and I rode the Platypus Bus through Napa Valley.  It was truly the best activity of our honeymoon.  When I realized that Jenna and I would have a free day in wine country, I e-mailed Platypus Bus and asked if they’d host us for the day. The limo bus drives [...]

I feel GREAT after yesterday’s Echelon Gran Fondo 100-mile ride.  I’m a little surprised I bounced back so quickly, actually.  My legs feel like I ran a longer run yesterday, but that’s it!  Nothing crazy.   I’m even brave enough to wear high-heeled boots to the wine tour:   I woke up around 8 and [...]

We did it!  We did it!   We may not have been super fast; it might not have always been easy (there was definitely a moment when I openly sobbed into my handlebars); and it was definitely not always pretty, but Jenna, my Dad, and I had an absolute blast riding 100 miles through Napa [...]

Well… I think the verdict is that I’m going to do the full 100 mile ride.  I thought my current sickness was related to the illness I’ve been fighting off at the beginning of the week, but now I’m convinced I’ll allergic to Jenna’s cutie cat, Dexter.  Which is a good thing!   Jenna and [...]

Jenna took me on a tour of her new town this morning.  I declared I needed caffeine, so our first stop was The Flying Goat for coffees. I had a very pretty vanilla latte. And then we went to the farmers market to just look around and explore.  Jenna proclaimed that she could never live [...]

Woke up on the left side of Jenna’s bed at 3 AM, feeling wide awake.  I took a Benadryl, which knocked me back out until 8:00.  Wahoo! I’m officially on West Coast time.   Half-asleep,  I stumbled into the kitchen and made breakfast: I was excited to find… A VitaMix!  We have a pretty lame [...]

Welcome to California! After 10+ hours of traveling, I am finally on the West Coast, happily blogging from the floor of Jenna’s living room.   I got sucked into the weird vortex of traveling and time zone changes… I pretty much ate continuously munching through my flights + a bad chick lit novel.   A [...]

Keep calm and ride on – it’s time to go to California! You might be wondering how I’m getting my bike across the country for my 100-mile race on Sunday.  Well, a bike requires a really big and really awkward case: Here’s how I dismantled my bike and put it in the case.   Thank [...]

Two nights ago, I dreamed I lived in Tennessee, and in our front yard were a bunch of cast-iron lambs and donkeys. (Yes, I went through a blonde stage.) I dreamed that the animals came alive one day, and they walked into our living room and talked to me in English.  They were so nice [...]

Thank you so much for all the motivational mantras in Wednesday’s morning post.  I was having a really tough run this afternoon, and one mantra in particular really made me pull through.   It was something along the lines of, “Commitment is what you do when no one else is looking.”  I wanted to quit [...]